Best Intentions (Jing Theme #16 - "Words of the Heart")
Community: 50_themes
Characters: Jing + Kir (friendship category)
Fandom: King of Bandits Jing
Full list of themes can be found HERE. X-posted to 50_themes, ankhutenshi, kingofbandit
*
Title: Best Intentions
Theme: #16 - Words of the Heart
Notes: 1868 words, finished Jan 19/07.
"I can't believe I'm missing -- ow! -- bat practice for this," Cassis muttered, sucking on her finger for a moment where the needle had jabbed it again. "And why am I doing this? You've got two good hands now..."
Jing gave a sheepish "heh" and scratched the back of his head. "Uhhh... because you're better at it?"
The blonde gave him a Look and he found the spool of thread very interesting. With a grumble, she completed another stitch and heaved a sigh. "I'm not sure I see the point in stitching red cloth with red thread anyway, you're not even going to be able to read it unless you know it's there..."
"That is the point," Jing said. "And are you sure everything's spelled right?"
"Look, if you wanna do this--"
"No no... it's okay," the boy said, waving his hands placatingly. There was a peaceful silence for a few minutes until, unable to help himself, Jing asked, "Is it done yet?"
A sharp needle jabbed him in the knee, and he cried, "OW! CASSIS!"
"NO IT'S NOT DONE! YOU'RE SITTING RIGHT BESIDE ME, YOU'LL KNOW WHEN IT'S DONE!"
"THERE'S NO NEED TO YELL AT ME!"
"YOU YELLED FIRST!"
"BECAUSE YOU STABBED ME WITH THE NEEDLE!"
"BECAUSE YOU WERE BEING STUPID!"
Silence. The blonde girl took up the cloth and needle again, squinting as she rethreaded the thin red line which had fallen loose during the verbal battle. Recovering from their startlement, the crickets in the grass began to chirp again, nervously at first, then with their usual song. Eventually Cassis added, "The idea... it isn't stupid though."
---
"Kir!"
The albatross perked at Jing's eager call, and was surprised when the boy came up to him bearing a small box and a shy grin. "I have something for you," he said, and set the box down in front of him.
Kir cocked his head to one side, opening the lid. Folded neatly inside was a small patch of red cloth, and he looked at the grey-eyed boy skeptically. "What's this?"
"It's--"
"Clothes??" Kir said, poking at the material with a wingtip. "Now wait just a minute, Jing, only humans wear clothes!" The wing came up and prodded Jing's chest instead, making his point. "Just 'cause I can talk doesn't mean I want you thinkin' we're the same, got that? You should know that by now! The feathers are doin' just fine, thank you very much!"
"I-I..." The boy seemed at a loss for words, stunned by Kir's reaction. "I only--"
"Yeah yeah, you didn't do it on purpose, I know," Kir allowed, and gave Jing a quick, distracted pat on the head before spreading his wings again. "The Aunties are making maple toffee with the boys again. You want some?"
"I'll... get some... later," Jing said, attempting a smile. It crumbled once the bird had taken flight disappeared back down the hill towards town. The boy took the cloth from the box and unfolded it, running his fingers over the red-on-red stitching that ran along the outside edge of the bandana.
"... Happy birthday, Kir..." he whispered.
---
When Cassis came back to the house some hours later, she brought with her a bag full of the brown sugary treat. Jing had never come down to the town, which she thought was strange considering the maple confection was one of his favourites. She'd left early, promising to return soon, and hiked up the hill. Jing was sitting on the doorstep, staring at the sunset, and she saw the red bandana dangling loosely from one hand. Her brow furrowed; hadn't he told her that he was going to give Kir his present a day early?
"Hey," she said, sitting down next to him and offering him the bag. He mechanically took a piece and ate it, although his expression was so distant that she could have offered him tree bark and he'd have taken it without question. "What's wrong? Didn't you give that to Kir?"
"He didn't want it."
"What?" Cassis said, having not expected such an answer. "Why not?!"
"He said it's clothes and only humans wear clothes, and we shouldn't try and pretend he's human because he can talk..." The blonde girl was about to make a sharp retort when he added in a frail voice, "I'm sorry I made you waste your time on it..."
She should have realized something was wrong when he didn't look at her as she sat down, but had just become painfully obvious. Cassis set down the bag of candy and took the bandana from him; he didn't resist. "But... it was his birthday present. You don't just say... that you don't want it," she tried. "Maybe if you--"
Jing shook his head, stopping her. "It's... it's fine. If he doesn't want it, then he doesn't need to take it. Our birthday's not until tomorrow anyway. When we go to town, I'll tell him... to find something he likes, and I'll get that for him instead. Then he'll be happy with his gift..."
Our birthday.
Cassis didn't miss the phrasing. The albatross' rejection, regardless of the reasons for it, had left Jing crushed, and she suspected it had hurt most because he'd offered it with such honest and hopeful intentions. Yet she knew he'd hide it, at least from Kir, and not for the first time she wondered about the relationship between those two. I'm sorry he hurt you, Jing...
"I gotta get back to the Aunties," she said reluctantly, knowing that the boys would not go to bed until she returned to the orphanage. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
"Tomorrow," he echoed, "and thank you for the candy."
They were hollow words, but she didn't challenge them. At the edge of the clearing, she glanced back in time to see Jing open his hand and let the wind carry the red bandana away.
---
Kir had followed Cassis, not long after the girl had trekked up the hill to where Jing's house in the forest was, but the conversation carried on between the two on the doorstep kept him from revealing himself, and instead he huddled on the rooftop cornice, out of sight.
"... Our birthday's not until tomorrow anyway. When we go to town, I'll tell him... to find something he likes, and I'll get that for him instead. Then he'll be happy with his gift..."
Our birthday? Kir thought to himself, surprised. Has it been... a year already? He had known that his understanding of time was different from his companions', because he'd often forget things that Jing had told him would happen in a few days, in a few weeks, in a month, and be utterly shocked when they were suddenly upon him. Had he now misjudged what time of year it was? But no one had said anything about a birthday...!
Cassis left, and Kir warred with indecision, unsure how to approach Jing. I think... I've really screwed up this time... The bandana (as he now saw it) hadn't been an attempt to make him seem more 'human' to them, but a well-intentioned gift that he'd all but thrown back in his partner's face, all because he'd forgotten what tomorrow was. Stupid, stupid! he berated himself.
Below him, on the stoop, the boy released the unwanted gift. The wind swept it away towards the treeline as he disappeared inside, melancholy trailing behind him like a wake. Kir opened his wings and flew with the breeze, following the wind current's path. He had to find it.
The low light had turned everything into a grey-gold tableau, but he located the red square a couple hundred yards into the woods, caught on a piece of rough bark. With the fading light just barely enough illumination, he half-read, half-traced the stitched letters, stumbling over the longer words.
Happy first birthday and anniversary, friend and partner. And their names, all of them... Jing, Cassis, Clove, Pomme, Mint... and his own, Kir.
Kir suddenly found it hard to breathe. Oh no... Jing, I didn't mean to...
But his silent apology wasn't what was needed. Grasping the material firmly in his talons, he lifted back into the air, determined to fix the situation by any means necessary.
---
Jing had already blown out the lamps in the house, shutting the door but leaving the window wide open for his avian friend to return. Normally he would read, with books borrowed from the Balalaika library, but tonight he'd simply wrapped up in his blanket and tried to fall asleep. A rustle of feathers in the otherwise silent room alerted him that Kir had returned, and while the room was dark he blinked furiously, trying to rid his eyes of the faint moisture that had since gathered there.
The albatross alighted on the swaying edge of the hammock once his eyes had adjusted, and said softly, "Jing?" even though he knew the boy was not asleep.
"Yeah..."
"You dropped this," Kir said, offering the bandana, and in the moonlight coming through the window, saw Jing shy away slightly... yet he accepted the cloth, twining it between his fingers as though worried Kir might get too close a look at it. "I found it in the forest..."
"Oh..." The black-haired boy swallowed. "I, um... yeah..."
"Jing..." Kir said, his voice softened by regret, "I didn't know... I swear, I really didn't know why you tried to give that to me... you know me and my forgetting when things happen..."
"It's okay, Kir," Jing said, smiling weakly in what would have been a reassuring manner, if his eyes hadn't given him away; crestfallen, dejected. "If you don't like it, then... it doesn't really matter what the reason was..."
And the bird was reminded so strongly of their first few nights together, when Jing had been fearful of the possibility that he would leave, no longer bound by an eggshell and still ready to lash out at any who tried to 'tame' him. After all this time, Jing... is that what you're still afraid of? That I would leave because you did something...
"The reason is the most important thing," Kir corrected gently, slipping from the hammock edge to the boy's lap and sighing. "I'm sorry I was such a jerk. What matters is that it's from my friends, all of them, and because of that, I do want it... even if I didn't take it at first." He looked up at the boy. "Can you tie it on for me?"
Hope like pinprick stars found its way back into Jing's eyes, and he nodded. The albatross sat patiently as the bandana was carefully worked over the black feathers so they wouldn't rub the wrong way. "Is that too tight?"
"Nah..." Once it was secured, Kir turned around. "Well?"
"It... brings out your eyes?" Jing gave a little laugh, the tease rewarded with a harrumph from the bird.
It wasn't until they had settled into the blankets together that a thought struck Kir, drawing him back from sleep. "I just realized... I didn't get you anything for your birthday, Jing..."
"Yes you did, partner," Jing murmured sleepily. "Yes you did."
*
Notes: LJ-cut text taken from a quote by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Characters: Jing + Kir (friendship category)
Fandom: King of Bandits Jing
Full list of themes can be found HERE. X-posted to 50_themes, ankhutenshi, kingofbandit
*
Title: Best Intentions
Theme: #16 - Words of the Heart
Notes: 1868 words, finished Jan 19/07.
"I can't believe I'm missing -- ow! -- bat practice for this," Cassis muttered, sucking on her finger for a moment where the needle had jabbed it again. "And why am I doing this? You've got two good hands now..."
Jing gave a sheepish "heh" and scratched the back of his head. "Uhhh... because you're better at it?"
The blonde gave him a Look and he found the spool of thread very interesting. With a grumble, she completed another stitch and heaved a sigh. "I'm not sure I see the point in stitching red cloth with red thread anyway, you're not even going to be able to read it unless you know it's there..."
"That is the point," Jing said. "And are you sure everything's spelled right?"
"Look, if you wanna do this--"
"No no... it's okay," the boy said, waving his hands placatingly. There was a peaceful silence for a few minutes until, unable to help himself, Jing asked, "Is it done yet?"
A sharp needle jabbed him in the knee, and he cried, "OW! CASSIS!"
"NO IT'S NOT DONE! YOU'RE SITTING RIGHT BESIDE ME, YOU'LL KNOW WHEN IT'S DONE!"
"THERE'S NO NEED TO YELL AT ME!"
"YOU YELLED FIRST!"
"BECAUSE YOU STABBED ME WITH THE NEEDLE!"
"BECAUSE YOU WERE BEING STUPID!"
Silence. The blonde girl took up the cloth and needle again, squinting as she rethreaded the thin red line which had fallen loose during the verbal battle. Recovering from their startlement, the crickets in the grass began to chirp again, nervously at first, then with their usual song. Eventually Cassis added, "The idea... it isn't stupid though."
---
"Kir!"
The albatross perked at Jing's eager call, and was surprised when the boy came up to him bearing a small box and a shy grin. "I have something for you," he said, and set the box down in front of him.
Kir cocked his head to one side, opening the lid. Folded neatly inside was a small patch of red cloth, and he looked at the grey-eyed boy skeptically. "What's this?"
"It's--"
"Clothes??" Kir said, poking at the material with a wingtip. "Now wait just a minute, Jing, only humans wear clothes!" The wing came up and prodded Jing's chest instead, making his point. "Just 'cause I can talk doesn't mean I want you thinkin' we're the same, got that? You should know that by now! The feathers are doin' just fine, thank you very much!"
"I-I..." The boy seemed at a loss for words, stunned by Kir's reaction. "I only--"
"Yeah yeah, you didn't do it on purpose, I know," Kir allowed, and gave Jing a quick, distracted pat on the head before spreading his wings again. "The Aunties are making maple toffee with the boys again. You want some?"
"I'll... get some... later," Jing said, attempting a smile. It crumbled once the bird had taken flight disappeared back down the hill towards town. The boy took the cloth from the box and unfolded it, running his fingers over the red-on-red stitching that ran along the outside edge of the bandana.
"... Happy birthday, Kir..." he whispered.
---
When Cassis came back to the house some hours later, she brought with her a bag full of the brown sugary treat. Jing had never come down to the town, which she thought was strange considering the maple confection was one of his favourites. She'd left early, promising to return soon, and hiked up the hill. Jing was sitting on the doorstep, staring at the sunset, and she saw the red bandana dangling loosely from one hand. Her brow furrowed; hadn't he told her that he was going to give Kir his present a day early?
"Hey," she said, sitting down next to him and offering him the bag. He mechanically took a piece and ate it, although his expression was so distant that she could have offered him tree bark and he'd have taken it without question. "What's wrong? Didn't you give that to Kir?"
"He didn't want it."
"What?" Cassis said, having not expected such an answer. "Why not?!"
"He said it's clothes and only humans wear clothes, and we shouldn't try and pretend he's human because he can talk..." The blonde girl was about to make a sharp retort when he added in a frail voice, "I'm sorry I made you waste your time on it..."
She should have realized something was wrong when he didn't look at her as she sat down, but had just become painfully obvious. Cassis set down the bag of candy and took the bandana from him; he didn't resist. "But... it was his birthday present. You don't just say... that you don't want it," she tried. "Maybe if you--"
Jing shook his head, stopping her. "It's... it's fine. If he doesn't want it, then he doesn't need to take it. Our birthday's not until tomorrow anyway. When we go to town, I'll tell him... to find something he likes, and I'll get that for him instead. Then he'll be happy with his gift..."
Our birthday.
Cassis didn't miss the phrasing. The albatross' rejection, regardless of the reasons for it, had left Jing crushed, and she suspected it had hurt most because he'd offered it with such honest and hopeful intentions. Yet she knew he'd hide it, at least from Kir, and not for the first time she wondered about the relationship between those two. I'm sorry he hurt you, Jing...
"I gotta get back to the Aunties," she said reluctantly, knowing that the boys would not go to bed until she returned to the orphanage. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
"Tomorrow," he echoed, "and thank you for the candy."
They were hollow words, but she didn't challenge them. At the edge of the clearing, she glanced back in time to see Jing open his hand and let the wind carry the red bandana away.
---
Kir had followed Cassis, not long after the girl had trekked up the hill to where Jing's house in the forest was, but the conversation carried on between the two on the doorstep kept him from revealing himself, and instead he huddled on the rooftop cornice, out of sight.
"... Our birthday's not until tomorrow anyway. When we go to town, I'll tell him... to find something he likes, and I'll get that for him instead. Then he'll be happy with his gift..."
Our birthday? Kir thought to himself, surprised. Has it been... a year already? He had known that his understanding of time was different from his companions', because he'd often forget things that Jing had told him would happen in a few days, in a few weeks, in a month, and be utterly shocked when they were suddenly upon him. Had he now misjudged what time of year it was? But no one had said anything about a birthday...!
Cassis left, and Kir warred with indecision, unsure how to approach Jing. I think... I've really screwed up this time... The bandana (as he now saw it) hadn't been an attempt to make him seem more 'human' to them, but a well-intentioned gift that he'd all but thrown back in his partner's face, all because he'd forgotten what tomorrow was. Stupid, stupid! he berated himself.
Below him, on the stoop, the boy released the unwanted gift. The wind swept it away towards the treeline as he disappeared inside, melancholy trailing behind him like a wake. Kir opened his wings and flew with the breeze, following the wind current's path. He had to find it.
The low light had turned everything into a grey-gold tableau, but he located the red square a couple hundred yards into the woods, caught on a piece of rough bark. With the fading light just barely enough illumination, he half-read, half-traced the stitched letters, stumbling over the longer words.
Happy first birthday and anniversary, friend and partner. And their names, all of them... Jing, Cassis, Clove, Pomme, Mint... and his own, Kir.
Kir suddenly found it hard to breathe. Oh no... Jing, I didn't mean to...
But his silent apology wasn't what was needed. Grasping the material firmly in his talons, he lifted back into the air, determined to fix the situation by any means necessary.
---
Jing had already blown out the lamps in the house, shutting the door but leaving the window wide open for his avian friend to return. Normally he would read, with books borrowed from the Balalaika library, but tonight he'd simply wrapped up in his blanket and tried to fall asleep. A rustle of feathers in the otherwise silent room alerted him that Kir had returned, and while the room was dark he blinked furiously, trying to rid his eyes of the faint moisture that had since gathered there.
The albatross alighted on the swaying edge of the hammock once his eyes had adjusted, and said softly, "Jing?" even though he knew the boy was not asleep.
"Yeah..."
"You dropped this," Kir said, offering the bandana, and in the moonlight coming through the window, saw Jing shy away slightly... yet he accepted the cloth, twining it between his fingers as though worried Kir might get too close a look at it. "I found it in the forest..."
"Oh..." The black-haired boy swallowed. "I, um... yeah..."
"Jing..." Kir said, his voice softened by regret, "I didn't know... I swear, I really didn't know why you tried to give that to me... you know me and my forgetting when things happen..."
"It's okay, Kir," Jing said, smiling weakly in what would have been a reassuring manner, if his eyes hadn't given him away; crestfallen, dejected. "If you don't like it, then... it doesn't really matter what the reason was..."
And the bird was reminded so strongly of their first few nights together, when Jing had been fearful of the possibility that he would leave, no longer bound by an eggshell and still ready to lash out at any who tried to 'tame' him. After all this time, Jing... is that what you're still afraid of? That I would leave because you did something...
"The reason is the most important thing," Kir corrected gently, slipping from the hammock edge to the boy's lap and sighing. "I'm sorry I was such a jerk. What matters is that it's from my friends, all of them, and because of that, I do want it... even if I didn't take it at first." He looked up at the boy. "Can you tie it on for me?"
Hope like pinprick stars found its way back into Jing's eyes, and he nodded. The albatross sat patiently as the bandana was carefully worked over the black feathers so they wouldn't rub the wrong way. "Is that too tight?"
"Nah..." Once it was secured, Kir turned around. "Well?"
"It... brings out your eyes?" Jing gave a little laugh, the tease rewarded with a harrumph from the bird.
It wasn't until they had settled into the blankets together that a thought struck Kir, drawing him back from sleep. "I just realized... I didn't get you anything for your birthday, Jing..."
"Yes you did, partner," Jing murmured sleepily. "Yes you did."
*
Notes: LJ-cut text taken from a quote by Robert Louis Stevenson.