The Unwanted Wendigo [ManxMan]

EXTRA Chapter Four: A Collection of Trinkets

~EXTRA Chapter Four: A Collection of Trinkets~

Three days after the wedding, all the guests have gone home, and I am once again wandering the halls. Felix, for all that he has enjoyed just relaxing in our shared room while we watch movies or funny YouTube videos together, could not stand not doing work for any longer, so while he returned to work, I set out to just wander around in hopes of finding an interesting distraction. If I do not find something within a couple of hours, though, I will probably just return to my husband's - my adorable husband's - side and watch him fill out all the boring paperwork he thinks he has been neglecting for the past few days, despite the fact that he has people to help him with that.

Me thinks he can be a bit of an idiot, but he's my idiot now.

"You've got a really stupid smile on your face."

The 'really stupid smile' on my face sharpens as I stuff my hands in the pockets of my pants and turn on my heels to face the demon who somehow got behind me without me hearing him. Or, well, maybe not somehow; I was not really paying attention to anything with how lost in thought I was.

"Eavesdropping is a bad habit, demon," I point out, eyeing him and the doors in the hallway as I try to figure out how long he was following me. Because if he literally just left a room, then I do not care, but if he has been following me down multiple hallways, then shame on me for not noticing him.

Considering the fact that he commented on my grin, though, that probably means that I just passed by him or something.

Atasah's face scrunches up in confusion. "You weren't talking to anyone," he says, blinking.

"Eavesdropping is a bad habit, demon," I repeat, revelling in the glare he shoots me in response. If he was expecting me to make sense today, then he has another thing coming because I am bored.

After a moment, he just rolls his eyes and says, "You eavesdrop all the time. Don't think I haven't forgotten that time you eavesdropped on the meeting about the Cetus."

"Eavesdropping is a bad habit, and I regret nothing," I reply brightly, before turning on my heels again and continuing on the way I was going.

To my amusement, Atasah falls into step beside me without hesitation, which means that he is either as bored as I am or expects me to start causing trouble if he does not tag along. And considering that the latter is true, he would be right to worry if that is his reason for joining me.

"You're in an awfully good mood," he comments, after a moment, and when I tilt my head his way, he is side-eyeing me suspiciously. However, suspicious though he might be, he also looks happy, but whether that is because he is happy I am happy or he just had a very good day himself, I cannot say.

I slide closer and capture his arm so I can lean up against him while we walk, much to his feigned exasperation. "Aren't I always?"

"You often pretend to be happy. There's a difference," Atasah points out. After a moment, he absentmindedly adds, "Felix's been in a pretty good mood, too."

My grin kind of freezes on my face as I try to figure out exactly where he is going with this. "I guess. What about it? " I ask, squeezing his arm a bit tighter as I resist the urge to actually press my face into his shoulder. A few weeks ago, that would have been okay, but I have a mask again, and even though the actual mask part is fake, the antlers are very real and especially poke-y.

"Nothing, really. I'm just curious what you guys did? You weren't exactly on the best of terms for a while, and Felix was pretty nervous about the whole relationship thing."