Surviving the Beastworld

Brothers Chat

Hope you enjoy<3

"Father, why don't you take Elisa to see the garden while Xavier and I clean up." Jaxon suddenly prompted as he began gathering the empty dishes on the table.

They had chatted for a while now and Xavier had only now noticed that it was just past midday. Time had flown quickly and Elisa and him would soon need to head back to the palace before they began worrying a certain snake.

Still, his brother couldn't know that...

At least that was what Xavier assumed. Jaxon was the smarter of the two. That being said, Xavier had his doubts. His brother had been on edge the whole time and he could bet his crystals that Jaxon had something to say to him.

Cleaning up was an excuse. His brother wanted to chat to him privately about something. And he had a feeling he knew what it was about.

"A walk before we leave would be good." Xavier mused before anyone else could say anything. He shifted his gaze to Elisa and added, "You should take this chance to grab some herbs from the garden. Jaxon always plants tons throughout the year."

Jaxon sent him a glare at those words, Xavier knowing how much the younger bird beastman loved his garden. He was so protective of it that one would think those plants were his hatchlings.

"Um... I think looking will just be fine." Elisa smiled nervously, catching Jaxon's glare at Xavier.

Jaxon pursed his lips and muttered, "You can take any that interest you... But be careful with some of them. They must be handled delicately. Oh and-"

"We'll be careful." Xavier's father chimed in before Jaxon could go on, slowly getting up. Jaxon shifted closer, ready to help in a moment's need.

However, the older bird beastman was soon on his feet, having gotten used to moving around with one arm. It was a stark difference to when he had first lost his arm and had spent months stumbling around as he slowly adjusted to the loss.

Once the two had left the brothers alone, Jaxon took all the dishes in one go and headed to the kitchen with Xavier trailing behind him. They were silent as Jaxon set everything down on a nearby counter before turning to face Xavier.

The older bird beastman silently watched him, knowing that Jaxon wanted to say something to him. However, Jaxon moved to the sack Xavier had brought earlier and began taking everything out one by one.

Once they were all laid out on the table, Jaxon walked to the counter once more, grabbed a small wooden box and turned back to Xavier. He slid the box across the table towards Xavier.

"You should take these." Jaxon stated plainly.

Xavier didn't need to look in the box to know what was inside. "No, I can't. You both need that."

Within it were the accumulated crystals that Jaxon, Xavier and their father had saved for necessaries and emergencies. Jaxon was put in charge of it, mostly because he would need easy access to it whenever their father and he needed things while Xavier was gone.

"Not really now that you brought us supplies. We'll be fine and if it's needed, I can always sell some of my plants to the temple. They're always in need." Jaxon murmured. "You, on the other hand, are starting a family. It's going to cost a lot to live in the upper district. You can't keep spending everything on us."

Xavier went still at that. Jaxon's words made sense in a way, but he was still a little shocked by them. He supposed this was the younger bird beastman's way of showing that he was supportive of his courtship.

Even if he still seemed wary about Elisa. Not that Xavier fully blamed him. He understood his brother's doubts and fears better than anyone else because they were the same he had had.

"We both knew this day might someday come." Jaxon added at his brother's silence. "Your crystals from being a guard helps greatly with getting supplies, but you can't keep it going forever. You need to think about other things now. Besides, my job at the temple has been going well. They promoted me to working in the middle district now."

"You got promoted?" Xavier raised an eyebrow in surprise. "I thought you said they believed you were too young and it would take several more years."

"Well that was before two from the upper district caused... some trouble." Jaxon sighed. "Led to a whole mess and several being promoted to replace them... But that's not the point... I'm making enough now, so we'll be fine. You on the other hand need to prepare for the cold season. Have you even bought anything yet?"

"We got a few things... Probably going to need to make a few more trips to the market though." Xavier mused. "There is still a lot that we need."

"Which is why you should take them." Jaxon stated. "I doubt that snake beastman has much... and even if he does, you can't let him outdo you in terms of providing for Elisa. Don't think I saw where that mark was."

And suddenly it clicked why Jaxon was acting this way. His brother was worried about his standing within the household and didn't want him to be outdone by a feral. The thought made him want to laugh out loud.

If only Jaxon knew the truth.

"Look Jax..." Xavier started, using his brother's nickname. "I'll take what I used to pay for supplies, but I won't take any more okay. You don't need to worry about those things. And if we need anything more... I suppose I'll come by."

"I'm not worried... I just don't want you looking like a fool." Jaxon huffed out. "It'll be an embarrassment to this family if you're outdone by a snake."

"Come now... Ahi's not like that." Xavier sighed. "I promise you... It's not like that."

Jaxon pursed his lips, not convinced, but Xavier couldn't exactly blame him. It would take some time for his family to adjust to things and realize that their dynamic was a bit of an odd one compared to other families.

"Take what you need then." Jaxon finally sighed. "But don't say I didn't warn you."

"Yeah, yeah." Xavier brushed his younger brother off as Jaxon continued to nag him like some mother hen.

Eventually through, Elisa and their father returned from the garden, sparing Xavier from getting his ears lectured off about caring for a female. Jaxon gave them some dried herbs from his garden, refusing to take a no for an answer, before the two left for the palace.

Guess it was just payback for not taking all the crystals. Not that Xavier would ever either way.

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