The Neko's Tail - 21. Friends

Elias walked through the flowers behind Reinard’s house, happy to not be worrying for once. They were beautiful, though alien, purples mixed with oranges, a blue bulb appearing here and there.

The air on the planet was cool, and Artemis had bought him a light coat from the port. He wore it now, trying to find a patch of sunlight to relax in. Not an easy task with the clouds that constantly passed over the sun.

It had taken the neko a few days to get comfortable around the house. The building was huge, and he still got lost trying to find his way around. Reinard had shown him the gardens on the second day and they had quickly become the neko’s favourite spot.

He walked past the black Faro; Eigel, Reinard called him.

“Good morning,” the Faro said, smiling at the neko as he pulled a plant out of the ground.

Elias didn’t know why he was removing the plant. It looked good to him. But maybe it was bad somehow. Or maybe the Faro was going to make a potion of some sort with it.

He nodded to the Faro in greeting, continuing his walk. A tree stood beyond the flowers, tall and sprawling. A bench hung from a sturdy branch, chains creaking softly as it swung. It overlooked a drop in the land, a valley spread wide below the hill the house stood on.

As Elias approached the bench, his gaze sweeping across the valley, he noticed Neistar huddled on the bench, swaying slowly. The neko paused, staring at the back of the Faro’s head. He could walk away. He didn’t have to talk to the fox.

“Oh! Hi Elias, how long have you been there?”

Too late…

The neko sighed silently, sticking his chip into his bracelet. He shrugged, hoping Neistar would let him leave.

The Faro moved over on the bench, swinging with his motion.

“Do you want to sit?”

Elias sat, his feet pushing gently against the ground.

“You’re very quiet,” Neistar said.

Elias shrugged. What was he supposed to say to that?

Neistar uncurled his legs, sitting straight on the bench. There wasn’t much space between the two and it seemed to be shrinking.

“Are you just shy? What would it take to draw you out of your shell?”

Elias really had no idea how to answer these questions. He saw Neistar’s tail wagging suggestively behind the Faro.

Standing, Elias backed away from the Faro. He liked the way he looked, but he wasn’t trying to have sex with Reinard’s ardai.

“Are you okay?” Neistar frowned.

Elias shook his head.

“Sorry,” he muttered, before hurrying back to the house.

“It has been two months since the Dalmar have received water. We are sending it, but it has not been arriving, and there are no signs along the path to their planet to make us think the tankers are being attacked…”

Ceirel and Reinard jumped as Elias hurried through the front door. The neko walked toward his and Artemis’ room, not meeting their gazes. His tail was wrapped around his leg and Reinard frowned.

“Did something happen?” he asked as Elias vanished up the stairs.

“I’m not sure,” Ceirel replied, turning back to the viewing screen.

Reinard knew his Mara was worried about the water situation with the Dalmar. Something needed to be done about the missing tankers and though the Artego clan was no longer one of the planet’s leaders, they still needed to help their former enemies.

But Reinard could distance himself from the Dalmar. He wouldn’t be on the planet much longer.

“I’m going to see if he’s okay,” he said, standing.

Walking up the stairs, the fox directed his feet toward the neko’s room. Artemis wouldn’t be in there; the tiger had gone to the port to check on the ship’s progress.

The Faro knocked on the door gently.

“Elias? Are you okay?”

The door opened slowly, the neko looking out from the room. His eyes watched Reinard warily, his ears betraying his fear.

“What happened?” Reinard asked, not making any move to enter the room.

Elias shook his head.

“If you tell me, maybe I can help you,” Reinard pressed.

The neko hesitated, his ears flattening in discomfort.

“Neistar…” he finally whispered.

“Did he do something to you?”

Again the neko shook his head.

“Neistar’s always been a very direct person,” Reinard said. “He’s not exactly the definition of tactful. I’m sorry if he said anything inappropriate.”

“Sei calnela.”

Reinard smiled at the neko, a thought entering his mind.

“You know, you look like you could use a hot drink. I’ll be right back,” he said.

Elias curled up on the bed, playing with his bangle. The dreaded chip was in because he knew he’d have to talk to Reinard at some point and tell him what happened.

Not that anything happened. He was just overreacting. He’d have to apologize to Neistar. Not everyone wanted to fuck him, even if that was all he had been good for in the past.

There was a quiet knock on the door and the neko stood up. He opened the door and let Reinard into the room, the Faro’s hands filled with a tray holding a kettle and two mugs.

“This is a drink that always used to calm me as a kit,” the Faro said, setting the kettle on a small table.

Elias watched the fox pour a steaming red liquid into the cups, adding a spoonful of a light grey powder to the drinks. Reinard stirred both of the drinks and handed one to Elias.

“Drink it slowly,” he warned.

They sat on the bed together, both sipping at the cups. The liquid had a sweet taste to it, though it was watered down some. The best Elias could equate it to was a berry he had eaten as a child, one that had made him tired and sick. It wasn’t a pleasant memory and the neko grimaced.

“Do you not like it?” Reinard asked.

“It tastes like poison…”

The Faro’s jaw dropped. He recovered quickly, closing his mouth.

“Well, I guess it could be if you drink too much, but if you did that you’d be sicker from the amount of liquid you drank than the actual drink,” he said.

Setting his cup aside, Reinard turned to Elias.

“What did my ardai do that upset you?”

Elias let out a quiet sigh. He knew this had been coming.

“You don’t have to answer if you don’t want,” Reinard added quickly.

He really didn’t want to. Elias shook his head silently.

Reinard nodded in acceptance.

“Again, if you ever need to talk about anything I’ll listen.”

The Faro stood up and grabbed the remote for the viewing screen.

“Do you mind if I turn on some cartoons? Mara doesn’t like me watching them,” he chuckled.

Elias shrugged. He didn’t know what cartoons were, and he didn’t want to mess with the remote himself; not after the fiasco with the remote on the Dalmar planet.

The screen came on, and Reinard typed something into the remote. The pictures on the screen changed to a Dalmar hiding from a group of Faro.

“I’ve seen this,” Elias said in surprise.

Reinard looked at him, startled. Elias’ ears flattened in embarrassment.

A beep distracted the two and Reinard stood up.

“I’ll be back,” he said before leaving the room again.

“They’re fresh from the oven, just the way you used to like,” Eigal smiled, handing Reinard a tray of pastries.

“Thank you so much,” Reinard smiled back at the old Faro.

“You’re not going to eat all of them, are you?”

“Oh no. I’m sharing them with Elias.”

“Oh. A friendship plea? Or something more?”

Eigal winked at Reinard.

“It’s nothing like that. I just want to show him my world. As best as I can remember it,” Reinard frowned.

“But it won’t be your world much longer.”

“It will always be my world, even if I’m not here,” Reinard said firmly.

He carried the tray back to Elias’ room, entering without knocking this time. Elias’ nose quivered as he sniffed the air.

“They’re algaer,” Reinard explained. “Try one.”

He took one of the pastries and handed it to Elias, their hands touching briefly. Elias withdrew his hand, his ears flicking nervously. He took a bite of the pastry and his face lit up.

“It’s good, right?” Reinard smiled.

The neko took another, larger bite in response and Reinard chuckled. He took a bite of his own algaer, moaning softly at the taste. They were even better than he remembered; sweet with a bit of a tang to them.

He noticed Elias still sat with a hunch in his shoulders. The neko’s pastry was gone and he was looking with wistful eyes at the tray.

“You can have as many as you want,” Reinard said.

Elias glanced at the Faro uncertainly. His arm snaked out and grabbed another algaer, and Reinard frowned slightly.

“Do I make you uncomfortable?”

Elias shrugged silently, staring at the food in his hands.

“You can say yes. I’m not going to get upset,” Reinard said. “I like you. You have a certain charm to you, and the last thing I’d want is to make you unhappy.”

A thought came to the Faro.

“Is that why you don’t talk? Because you think you’re going to make people upset?”

Elias nodded hesitantly.

“Your silence gives you an air of mystery. I’ve known you for three weeks and I still know nearly nothing about you. But it works for you,” Reinard smiled. “If you don’t want to talk, I’ll never force you to, and I doubt Artemis ever will either. Your voice is like a present that you give to the universe, and any time you want to share it, I will be happy to listen.”

An uncertain smile appeared on Elias’ face.

“Thank you,” he whispered.

He was full and tired.

Elias blinked slowly, trying to pay attention to the moving pictures Reinard had conjured on the screen. This was a different type of story, one about two Faros kissing. Reinard called it a romance.

The Faro seemed a little uncertain about watching the story with Elias, but the neko didn’t mind. He was enjoying the way the pictures moved, watching it more for the novelty than any story there might be.

They sat next to each other, leaning back against the wall as they watched the screen. Though Reinard seemed to be watching Elias more than the pictures. And he seemed a little nervous.

Elias tentatively placed a hand on Reinard’s thigh, hoping it would calm him. The Faro’s breath caught, and he looked at Elias’ hand on his leg.

That was the opposite of what the neko wanted, and he slowly withdrew his hand.

Reinard placed his hand over Elias’, meeting the neko’s eyes. Elias read a lot in that look; fear, hope, and not a little lust.

He pulled his hand out from under Reinards.

“I’m sorry…”

Reinard glanced down, a frown on his face.

“Do you want me to leave?” he asked.

Elias shook his head. It was nice sitting next to the fox, he just didn’t want the fox to…

To what?

Elias flashed back to Neistar. The Faro was agitated. It didn’t mean he was going to have sex with Elias. And the same must be true for Reinard.

Even if Reinard did want to fuck him, Artemis said he could choose if he wanted to be with another person. Besides, he liked Reinard. Maybe the Faro would be happy just being friends.

Friends. He had never really had a friend before. Artemis felt more like a lover held at a distance than a true friend.

Belatedly, Elias realised Reinard was waiting.

“I want you to stay,” he said.

Reinard flashed a small smile at the neko, settling back against the wall. Elias cautiously leaned back beside the Faro, a yawn escaping his mouth. He felt Reinard rest his head on his shoulder, the weight both unsettling and comfortable at the same time. His heart was pounding in his chest, and he hoped the Faro couldn’t hear.

“I really like you Elias…” Reinard whispered.

“I like you too.”