Cordiform Heaven

Bean Interlude (Indulgence)

Delnis sat across from Artie in the masterfully crafted campsite the human man had set up just hours before.

A roaring fire burnt betwixed them while the night sky gently slept above. Delnis glanced around at the surrounding forest, Shroot was a bleak and unfriendly place, but Artie had somehow managed to make it feel like home...or at least...what Delnis imagined a home might feel like.

Perhaps it was his expertly concocted beans, or in his habit of filling dead air with tidbits of information. Perhaps home was in his ambling nervous speech; it fell like rain from his lips. Delnis wasn't quite sure, but he knew he felt secure in the comfort of Artie's simplicity. 

The two had set aside their eating utensils, sharing scraps of sentences, looking at nothing.

It was strangely intoxicating, the way the orange firelight fell about Artie's face.  It played along the soft dark curls of his hair and danced in his flickering eyes as he spoke idly. An awkward pensive smile rested on his lips all the while, free  flowing but socially hesitant. 

Delnis grew embarrassed when he realized that he'd been thinking more about Artie's lips than his words. What had he been saying?

"Oh yes! Dragons can be awfully fierce- We uh...fought one a while back- at sea." Delnis moved about in an offhand manner, trying desperately to regain his footing in the conversation. He felt worried when he caught Artie's gaze once more. His large owlish eyes were overwrought with concern for only a moment before the man laughed quietly to himself and looked away in an almost shy manner.

"I'm sorry I- I've been very distracted lately."

"It's alright, I'm not used to striking up conversations. I used to work in the graveyard and, well..."

As Artie lapsed back into his usual tangling speech, Delnis trailed his index finger over the edge of his empty bowl, feeling the cold night air more than the fire. He had the sinking feeling that he'd missed something important while he wasn't paying attention. What had Artie said?

"You know, you should really get to bed," Artie said at length. His dark eyes lingered on the firelight that painted Delnis' face in the dark. The man sporadically opened and closed his eyes a few times before glancing away, drawing nearer to himself and the fire in order to warm his hands.

Delnis pulled his arms up behind his head and stretched before rising to his feet. A paltry smile found its way onto his face as the sounds of the night embraced him.

"I'm not going to sleep until you've gotten some yourself. Dawn is going to break soon! How about I take care of all of this while you settle down to memees, hmm?" He set about picking up the sullied dishwear of their sleeping compatriots before Artie could object. The soft clinks and clanks of the  dishes was hardly audible over the crackle of the fire. As if to twin this flame, a soft warmth spread through Delnis as he quietly moved about his friends.

In a moment of sentimental tenderness, he took extra care in kneeling down to adjust Ivae's hair and gingerly smooth down her bedding. He pressed a hand to her cheek briefly and whispered, "Sleep well, my dearest friend," before he rose to his feet once again. Delnis felt his nerves pick up once more as he circled back to Artie.

"You...Don't have to do that," the man said, almost embarrassed as he handed Delnis his empty bowl.

"Oh, but I do! After all I played a poor listener tonight. I'm still sorry about tha-"

"No it's okay, don't mention it." Artie's voice struck the high and twined chord it always did when the man was nervous, he shifted on the cold autumn ground and glanced back up towards Delnis. The triton tried to convince himself that it was the fire that had made his face warm as he took a few steps to the side. His thin smile softened into one of greater sincerity as he turned away and crept over to the nearby lake to clean the old bowls and cutlery. Delnis had expected Artie to be nestled in a sleeping position amidst the others by the time he returned. However, the man was now standing a bit awkwardly by the now dwindling fire.

"Is there something you need to tell me?" Delnis asked, trying to fight the earnest tone out of his voice as he quickly placed the supplies where they belonged. Artie's face was pensive and a little forlorn as he sought to find the words he wanted to say.

"Delnis...Do...do you know what it's like to be happy?" The smallness of the much taller man's voice made Delnis' heart lurch. It was a difficult line of work, and he'd never fully forgiven himself for getting the man roped into it. He swallowed lightly and tried to think of how to respond, drawing closer to Artie as he did so while still trying to maintain some distance.

"Well, I know I certainly struggle to be sometimes- but! I'm always happy when I'm with you!... Even when times get rough." Delnis shrugged a little and felt stupid the second the words had left his mouth. He heard Artie laugh slightly, a sad humming sort of laugh that made Delnis wonder if he'd ever heard the man laugh before in the first place. However, he did not have much time to ponder over the question before he felt Artie press closer to him.

"Look, Delnis, I..." Artie's hand moved towards Delnis' in a flustered fashion. The two looked away from each other, both surprised by their actions. Artie's pale face burned in the twinkling purple light of the early dawn,"I...I mean." Their eyes met again, and for a moment it felt as though all the fading stars in the sky had gathered between them, finding their way into the sleep-deprived spaces between them. Close and yet terribly distant.

Artie turned to Delnis, his hand reaching towards the side of his head. Suddenly, clumsily, but not uncertainly, their lips found each other in the pleasant glow of the morning. The two pulled away from each other and stared at each other, having all too much to say, but floundering to find the right words. Chests strained and faces flushed, the two were startled by the sound of Ivae stirring in her sleep and quickly separated, finding their way to their individual sleeping places as if to find some sense of normalcy in their bedrolls. They stared back at each other briefly before looking away again.

"I know, Artie."