forum Pheasant Brook (O/O with Icarus!)

Started December 12, 2019 by @GoblinKing

tune

“Yeah, I do..” Wilhelm said softly, clapping his palms together to take off any dirt. “I’d love to go into botany or run my own nursery someday, but alas.. it’s just not in the cards.”

Connor cocked his head a little bit. "An' why not?" he asked softly. "Er…excuse me if tha's a rude question 'r anythin'." he added. He tucked a wayward curl back behind his ear, looking up at Wilhelm curiously. The book was still tucked in his pocket.

“Oh, you know. It’s nothing big, I’m just expected to take my father’s place as heir to the company. I don’t even like cars, but I suppose I’ll be running the place, eh?” Wilhelm laughed, shaking his head. He plucked a small white blossom, tucking it behind his ear. “I’ve come to terms with it, you know.”

Connor shrugged a little bit. "Aye, tha' makes sense. But…couldn't you run the company yeh wanted to on th' side?" he asked, cocking his head at Wilhelm. "Or would tha' be impossible?"

“Too much work.” Wilhelm said simply, shrugging his shoulders and sticking his hands in his pockets. “What about you? You got any future planned out?”

Connor shrugged again. "No' really." he replied slowly. "I'll inherit the family fortune when ah turn 20, bu' aftah tha'…ah dinnae wha' ah'll b' doin'."

“Lucky you, then.” Wilhelm grinned, stretching his back. “We’ve seen just about everything the gardens have to offer, then. Do you want to stay in here or do something else?”

Connor shrugged a little bit, and smiled back at Wilhelm. "Ah don' have a preference." he replied with a soft, light smile.

“No? Then let’s stay here. It’s nice.” Wilhelm returned the smile, tipping his head to the side as he looked down at Connor. “Maybe talk a little more about plants.”

Connor smiled a little. "Sure. Ah dinnae know th' first thing aboot plants, bu' alrigh'." he replied with a soft laugh. He looked up at Wilhelm, a faint blush spreading over his face. He hoped that the other boy would just assume it was from the cold.

“That’s alright. Oh- are you cold? We can go in if you want.” Wilhelm’s deep brown eyes were soft, reminiscent of a puppy’s. “I won’t mind.”

Connor blinked, and shook his head, burrowing into the sweater a little bit. He could smell Wilhelm on it, not that he minded. "No, ah'm okay." he replied with a soft smile.

“Alright, alright. So what we’re looking at here is cyclamen. Beautiful red. Very christmasy, you understand.” Wilhelm stood next to Connor, figuring he didn’t want to crouch as much as Wilhelm did, and he didn’t want to make him feel like he had to.

Connor nodded a little, looking down at the flower. "Ah really should ha' brooght m' sketchbook." he said.

“Yeah.. Well, you can always come back out, right?” Wilhelm looked away from the flowers, looking instead at Connor. “I swear, they really should add stakes with the flower names or something, it gets tricky trying to remember all of them!”

Connor laughed a little. "Yeah, they should." he replied. "I'll ha' ta bring yeh with m' when ah come back, jus' so ah know the name of wha' 'm drawin'." he smiled at Wilhelm.

Wilhelm flushed a little bit, giving Connor a small smile. “Yeah, guess you will.” He didn’t bother hiding the flush- he just prayed Connor would assume it was the cold. “I have a book somewhere in my, well, I guess our, room… I should bring it out here sometime to check which is which.”

Connor smiled, and snuggled into the sweater again. "Ahright." he replied, crouching to examine the flowers closer. He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again.

Wilhelm was quiet as his eyes wandered around the garden. He didn’t want to crouch next to him- he’d seem too clingy- and he didn’t want to talk, either. Connor seemed interested in the flowers, and Wilhelm didn’t want to distract him. Without fail, though, his eyes always managed to find their way back to Connor and his sweater. Even if the boy gave it back, that’s how he would think of it: Connor’s sweater.

Connor adjusted the fit of the sweater again, running a hand through his red curls. He smiled a little bit, and brushed a finger down a flower petal. He stood up again. "Ah really should bring out m' sketchbook." he said, looking up at Wilhelm. "Ah also should paint those pretty eyes of yers."

Wilhelm never could control his blushing, and now wasn’t any exception. He looked away, although by the sound of his voice it was evident that he was smiling ear to ear. “Well, thank you. I gotta say, I don’t really know how to respond to that.” Not that that was a bad thing, of course. Wilhelm hoped Connor could read between the lines enough to understand what he meant.

Connor laughed a little. "Jus' take it as a comment, Wil." he replied. The nickname slipped out before he could stop it, and he blinked. "Erm…'s it alrigh' if ah call you that?" he asked, raising his eyebrows at Wilhelm. He was smiling as he looked up at the taller boy.

“Oh, sure. I don’t really mind what you call me- Wil, Wilhelm, William- yes, Ive gotten that- Sallow, whatever.” Wilhelm shrugged, still slightly pink and smiling.

Connor laughed again, eyes crinkling just a little bit at the corners. "Alright." he replied, smiling. "Wha' aboot late fer dinner?" he asked teasingly.

Wilhelm tilted his head. "I mean- yeah, I'll take it." He shrugged, laughing. "Oh, uh- what time is it, actually? Do you know? I don't have my watch on me." He glanced up at the sky, noticing that the sun was beginning to set as the sky shifted into a cotton-candy pink.