"Okay, t-thanks…" Nathaniel tried his best not to purr too much when Zedd was massaging his wings, but he couldn't really help it. When the man turned back around, he dipped his wings back in the water and kept flexing them until the soap was gone. He massaged the feathers to get rid of any remnants and made sure Zedd wasn't watching before he allowed the tub to drain and got out to dry himself off.
(P-Pajama baby 👉👈)
(Eeee bby)
Zedd heard the water begin to drain and was happy he already set out a towel for Nathaniel to use. He thought about the way the angel had made those chirping noises again, and realized it was very common for the boy to do that when happy. It was a bit odd at first, but since it seemed to happen a lot, Zedd was getting used to it.
He stayed where he was, still messing with his own feathers, waiting for the okay to turn around.
Nathaniel soon dried himself off and got dressed again. His hair was incredibly fluffy now that it was clean, practically just a curly cloud of copper. "Okay, dad… I'm dressed now. Should we head back into the living room?" He asked, running his fingers through his hair to try and smooth it out.
Zedd stood to his feet, having to hold back a chuckle at the single poof Nathaniel’s hair was in. It was certainly cute to say the least. Wait, cute? When was the last time he thought that?
“Yeah. Go ahead and sit like last time and I’ll fix your feathers,” Zedd hummed, wondering if he had a comb somewhere for Nathaniel to try using. He looked in one of the cabinets and was lucky to find what he was looking for.
"Mmkay, dad." Nathaniel headed out to the living room and flopped down on the couch, yawning a bit. He already felt a bit better now that he was warm and clean, but his wings were still very uncomfortable. Thankfully, Zedd would be helping him with that momentarily. He stretched out his wings while he waited so that they wouldn't bother him quite as much.
Zedd followed Nathaniel out of the room shortly after, comb in hand. He took a seat behind the angel and handed him the comb. “Try that to help get your hair fixed,” he suggested, already starting to fiddle with Nathaniel’s wings. It was certainly a lot easier now that the feathers were clean. His wings were also noticeably a brighter white. They were the perfect contrast to his own.
"Oh! Okay, thanks." Nathaniel accepted the comb from Zedd and started to neaten up his fluffy hair a bit, starting to purr softly as soon as the man touched his wings again. While Zedd was preening him, he seemed to start… drooping. He yawned and closed his eyes, beginning to relax and grow sleepy. "Mmmm…" He purred a bit louder as he relaxed, seeming to be a lot more comfortable when his wings were neat.
Zedd could only imagine how good it felt to have your wings properly preened and washed after so long. It was no wonder Nathaniel felt relaxed enough to nearly fall asleep. “Try and stay awake if you can,” he said, a small smile forming on his lips.
"But m'sleepy…" Nathaniel mumbled with a soft whine, reluctantly forcing his eyes open and yawning again. "Feels nice, dad…" He fidgeted with the comb a bit, listening to his own soft, involuntary purrs. It was strangely calming to him to hear his subconscious being relaxed and content enough to purr as much as he was doing.
Zedd gave a soft sigh, nearly finished with the first wing. “You woke up not even 2 hours ago,” he told Nathaniel. It was probably nearing 2 hours though, but the point was that the two hadn’t been awake long. “I won’t be much longer. I thought we might go out and get you something to do since I’m making you take a break from the forge,” he hummed, hoping to motivate the angel to stay awake.
“Something you’ll actually like, don’t worry,” he added, remembering the incident at the park. Stars, he’d never let the boy out of his sight if they ever went back there.
"Alright, alright…" Nathaniel sighed softly and yawned again, rubbing at his eyes sleepily. "Where are you gonna take me, dad? I don't really know my way around the city yet, so… I'm not exactly familiar with the activities around here." Keep talking… that's good. That keeps you more focused and awake. "And you'll stay with me, right? I don't wanna get lost or anything… my sense of direction is really bad."
That… was actually a good question. He never needed to go out and buy toys and such for any reason, so he didn’t know where to really look. Zedd hoped there wouldn’t be so many families like in the clothing store. He nearly sighed. That was a dumb wish to have. Of course children would be swarming a store with toys lining every shelf.
“I was thinking we’d go get something you can do here in case I’m busy downstairs. We can always go out somewhere, but it’ll get boring if you don’t have anything to do in your free time,” Zedd hummed, now moving onto the other wing. The right one was now neat and clean. It was clearly done by someone experienced. Obviously.
“And of course I’m gonna stay with you. I’d be a pretty awful dad if I made you go by yourself.”
"Oh… okay…" Nathaniel yawned again, still purring softly. "I could always help you run the shop, you know. I mean… I'm not super experienced, but I could learn where the potions were and bring you whatever one you need for the customers and stuff." He shrugged a bit, flirting the wing Zedd was finished with a few times and relaxing more upon finding how much more comfortable it was. "What are you thinking I should do anyway? Other than the forge, that is, since I'm apparently on a temporary hiatus…"
“Um… normal kid stuff I guess? I don’t know what you like to do, so that’s really up to you?” Zedd initially replied. “I’ll let you help, but I’m not letting you work the entire time when you could be doing something else you find fun.”
"Mm… I guess swordmaking isn't standard for children. It wasn't super common up in heaven either." Nathaniel hummed thoughtfully to himself. "Like, it was important, we needed people doing it, but… it's not like everyone was doing it, you know? I don't really know what kids do down here…"
Zedd smiled lightly. “It really isn’t. Well, some kids like drawing, others like to play with toys and other kids,” Zedd started, listing two examples off the top of his head. “We’ll find something you like, I promise,” the man said. He was being honest when saying he didn’t really know what the angel liked activity wise.
"Okay! I know how to draw!" Nathaniel grinned brightly. "They made us take art classes up in heaven. And choir… lots of singing up there." He hummed again and looked down at the couch. "I'm willing to experiment, though. I'm sure we'll find something, dad!"
“Did you actually like it though? I’m not going to make you do something you don’t actually have fun doing,” Zedd huffed. He remembered having to take an art course in school for credit and doing absolutely horrendous. He didn’t have a single artistic bone in his body.
"Mm… yeah! I think so!" Nathaniel kept his smile up and looked over his shoulder at Zedd. "I think I was pretty okay at it. I prefer making swords and stuff, but… drawing is good too! I like to do things with my hands, so… that kinda thing is usually a good bet."
The more Zedd thought about things kids played with, the more he thought about little girls with little painted tea sets and their stuffed animals. Except it was Nathaniel in the place of a little girl. He ignored the thought for now. He wasn’t sure if the angel would enjoy that. It was a bit girly. He wouldn’t shame him if he did like that sort of thing though. “Sounds good enough for me. I’m at the edge of your wing here so I’m almost finished and we can head out,” he hummed, moving the longer feathers in place before finishing the final smaller few.
"Okay!" Nathaniel stretched his arms a bit and waited patiently for Zedd to finish up with his wings. "How long does it take you to preen yourself, dad?" He asked curiously. "I mean, you've got double the amount of wings I do, and they're huge. I'm sure it takes you ages, doesn't it? I mean, it takes me long enough with my own and they aren't even that big…"
“Mm, they aren’t that big. Yours will still grow to about the size of mine as you get older,” he said with a small laugh. “But if I were to guess, perhaps an hour and a half without help? If I go somewhere and have someone else do it, it takes probably half the time,” he added, actually answering the question. Perhaps once Nathaniel was older, he could start taking him there too.
"Oh, okay… I used to be able to do mine on my own okay, but now that they're all broken and stuff, it's kinda hard for me to reach. And sometimes they hurt when I push them the wrong way." Nathaniel purred softly and stretched out his wings once Zedd was done with them. "Thanks, dad!"
(Eee I need more of this fluff)