The Lout's Pet Squirrel (og alcale)

Part 7

The boot landed approximately one millimeter away from Alver's face at skull crushing intensity. Alver turned his shaking gaze away from the dent in the balcony guardrail where the foot still rested and up toward Cale's doubtlessly murderous glare.

Cale's gaze was murderous but his eyes were set on the horizon with a curse. That was before he began to urgently look all around the property, searching for something with a growing sense of urgency.

Before Alver could muster a reply, he was dragged up to face Cale by the collar. "You–" Cale hissed, rage emanating off of him. "You scared him away, you piece of shit!"

Alver was quick on his feet. Survival in the palace would be impossible if he couldn't infer meaning from very little information. He was quick on the uptake but it didn't remove any of his confusion. "...the squirrel?"

Cale growled and smashed his forehead against Alver's with a look that probably could and would kill if given the opportunity. "You're going to help me."

"...what?"

Cale was already dragging him over the edge of the railing and Alver had to struggle to gather himself while listening to Cale's grumbling. "What kind of idiot thief are you? You must have scared him shitless. He's already mopey enough as it is."

Alver felt a pang of guilt. He should explain the situation.

...although perhaps not while Cale was all but holding him by the throat and with a killer aura rolling off him in waves. That was not the best timing to admit that you were lying to Cale for the past week and pretending to be an animal.

Alver let out a yelp as gravity overtook them and gathered up his mana to save them from a deadly drop only to land with a groan against a tree branch.

Alver turned a shaking expression from the branch Cale had dragged him to and back to the balcony they'd jumped off. It wasn't an impossible leap to make. Alver could make it with ease. But it was somehow quite shocking that Cale had managed it while dragging reluctant dead weight behind him.

The famous lout was a lot stronger than he would have imagined. And a lot more vicious. Alver scrabbled to catch his breath as Cale's grip really did choke him, the oblivious lout looking all around the tree branches in search of his lost pet.

Cale was so preoccupied in fact that he lost his balance on the branch.

For the second time in the last few minutes, Alver felt gravity betray him as Cale's drop dragged him down as well.

He moved more on instinct than any real thought. His arms wrapped tightly around Cale as he summoned up just enough mana to soften their fall.

Cale was surprisingly small in his arms. For someone so strong and vicious, someone who seemed so big, he really wasn't a large man.

The scent of cinnamon brought him back to reality as he breathed in heavily, safely on the ground with an arm full of lout.

"...you okay?" Alver asked.

Cale pulled away, glaring down at Alver and straddling him unknowingly. "Hurry up, thief. He's going to get lost."

Yeah. That answered his question. Alver rested a placating hand onto Cale's. "Calm down. Panicking won't help–"

Once more, Alver was faced with the ferocity of Cale's glare as he held onto his collar. "Who said I'm panicked?!" He scoffed and after spending a week with Cale, it was somehow easy to spot the tell.

Alver's heart pinched with guilt again.

Cale was worried.

Still dishonest and crass, but worried sick as well.

Cale abandoned the speechless 'thief' as he stood up, stomping fearfully around the garden as he searched through a bush.

"Hurry up and help out or I'll beat the shit out of you." Cale growled and Alver decided that the best part of wisdom was to obey for the time being.

He felt rather silly, searching through bushes and up trees for a squirrel that he knew they wouldn't find. He felt downright embarrassed when he offered up an actual squirrel only for Cale to immediately know it wasn't his squirrel without even a close inspection.

"Are you sure?" Alver asked, releasing the chittering little guy with a mental apology for scaring him. "Isn't one squirrel as good as another?"

Alver dodged just in time to avoid the fist. He hadn't been expecting it but Cale wasn't subtle. Wide and obvious movements that were nearly theatrical in nature.

"No. You blind asshole." Cale hissed, turning away from him and stalking toward the garden gates.

Alver stood for a moment in the Henituse garden, debating for just a moment if he should leave or let Cale stalk away. Guilt stole him in the end and he jogged after Cale with a sigh. "If he ran away, doesn't that mean he doesn't want to stay with you? You shouldn't imprison wild animals."

Cale grit his teeth. "I don't want an ethics lesson from a thief. Besides, he's had plenty of chances to run away. You scared him. Bastard."

Well, it was true enough that Alver had every chance in the world to leave but it still felt so strange to admit. "Then won't he come home when he's ready?"

Cale nearly elbowed him in the gut. This time Alver was expecting it. Cale was surprisingly violent now that Alver wasn't a squirrel. "Fuck off."

Barely concealed worry painted in aggression fought inside of Cale's eyes and Alver felt strange to see it.

When was the last time someone had been so concerned for him? His aunt worried about him too but... there was just something a bit different about Cale's aggressive and dishonest affection.

Probably the aggressive and dishonest parts.

He walked in silence beside Cale, attempting to look as though he was eyeing the nearby trees and bushes for any sight of a squirrel but unable to stop himself from looking at Cale once more. Cale was certainly actually looking, although now that they were leaving the Henituse estate, he made more of an effort to disguise what he was up to.

"...why do you care about finding some squirrel?"

"Why did you try to break into my room? Got an early death wish?"

Alver hesitated.

He should come clean.

Right here and now, explain as little as possible and apologize for the trouble he caused in his short stay. Thank Cale for his assistance and then leave without a trace.

Should.

Alver was really tired of what he 'should' do. He was sick of everything he'd failed to do.

"...the Henituse family is rich and I heard the eldest son spends all his time drinking." True enough. "It was reasonable to assume stealing a few items from a drunk wouldn't be noticed."

Cale stopped in place and turned to glare at Alver. It was the first time since they'd 'met' that Alver felt that the man was really looking at him. Every glare prior had been nothing more than an attempt to burn Alver alive with the heat of his anger. This one was... curious.

Cale scowled. Deep and angry and just a bit curious.

Alver hadn't actually lied but those piercing reddish brown eyes made him feel as though Cale had seen through every lie and knew everything about him.

It was disconcerting.

"...fine." Cale said, and there was something tight and evil to his words. "You're out for easy money, right?" One dominating footstep brought Cale nose to nose with Alver and it was quite scary given Cale's current willingness to bash his face into a stone. "I've got a job for you."