TW: Have some Fluffy Owls.

Title: ~Owls~

The first time he sees her, all he notices are the feathery creatures scattered across the night sky; wings flapping and feathers rustling as an unnamed maiden tends to them, strands of blonde hair misaligned and tangled under her hat as she braces herself against the wind. The island was out of sight from Honeydew Inc, little past that of Lalna’s castle, and he’s not entirely sure how he found himself there, watching the girl whisper and mumble to her feathered companions.

He’s curious, though, more curious than ever need be, and he feels himself hovering towards the girl, landing square on one of the trees that made up the island with careful precision.

He taps at her shoulder, a warm smile on his face, “H-“

She jumps at the touch and she snarls, turning around, hands grasping at the blade in her pouch. “Oh, bugger off, why don’t y-” Her jaw slackens, mouth forming an ‘o’ as she surveys the spaceman in front of her before standing her ground and drawing her sword. “Name. Now.”

The dull side of her diamond blade is pressed securely against his neck and he has to fight the urge to swallow. “X-Xephos. Of Honeydew Incor… Enterp.. Industries—bloody hell, whatever.”

Her eyebrows raise, giving a sly grin at the name as she retracts her sword. “So, you’re the new recruit Lalna’s been going on about.” She muses, gaze returning to that of the creatures. He’s never seen one of them; Honeydew’s shown him cows and pigs and chicken and sheep alike, but never these.

Xephos’s eyebrows furrow together, a questioning look on his face. “Wha—?”

She smiles at this, genuine and real, eyes lit up, and he almost wants to just sit there and stare at her for a while; to see her interact with her companions, to see her talk and smile and— “Lomadia. My name’s Lomadia. Welcome to Owl Island, my friend.”

"Owls?"

His face is contorted in confusion and Lomadia almost laughs at him before taking his hand and showing him around the island. He learns about owls that day; of friendship and tending and a beautiful maiden with the name Lomadia.

—

The second time he sees her, it’s for refuge. From the factory, from his friends, from… everything. The hum of machinery was ticking in his ears, and he scratches and pulls at them, but the sound stuck. It was annoying and pestering and surely Honeydew and Lalna were good people, but after sticking to them for little over a couple of months drove him to the edge.

She notices the look on his face when he shows up, his ragged panting and kicking at the dirt. “Hey.”

He grumbles back a incoherent response, arms crossed as he sits himself on the sand. She floats over to him, situating herself on the ground next to him. “Things getting too hot to handle?” Lomadia questions, brow raised.

He chuckles, eyes focusing on the scenery before him. “You can say that.”

Her hand finds his and she squeezes it in reassurance. They sit in silence for the rest of the night, the only sound the splashing waves.

.~'~.~'

The fifth time he sees her, she’s with the pool boy. He’s seen his stands scattered about Tektopia; three by three shacks made of planks and dirt. They’re laughing and playing around with sleighs in the snow as he attempts to make a woolen Santa.

Xephos turns away, flying back to the factory, an awkward heaviness taking place in his heart.

.~'~.~'

It happens the ninth time they meet, she goes and finds him. He’s huddled in the corner of one of various caverns underneath Tektopia, eyes glowing a light for him as he battles against zombies and skeletons. It was by accident, of course, she needed to go spelunking for certain ores after opting to stop using quarries around her island, and he was just… there.

"Xephos!" She calls, and with a hurried blink, his eyes return to normal, darkness consuming the small cave. Lomadia reaches for a torch, placing it blindly on a nearby surface. "What the bloody hell was that? Have you really got no torches on you?" She huffs.

"Hey, Lomadia."

"Do you realize how dangerous it is to go mining with no torches? If you hadn’t got that nano armor on, you could have died!" She continues, scolding him as though he should’ve known better than to leave with no source of light.

"I don’t need torches."

She rolls her eyes, hand placed on her hip as she shakes her head. “Of course not, Xephos. You most obviously have some sort of light source programmed within you, or some rubbish like that.”

His eyes light back up, filling the rest of the cavern with a bright blue glow. She yelps at the sudden brightness, her expression filled with amazement and wonder. “I… you’re not from here, are you?” Her fingers trace the outline of his face and he shivers at the touch before shoving her off of him, like a switch going off as he realizes what he’s done.

"Don’t touch me." His words are cold, bitter, empty, gaze elsewhere and distant, and Lomadia backs up. "It’s best for you to go now."

She frowns at his reaction, biting at her bottom lip as she grabs at his shoulder, “I’m not afraid you know.”

"It’s getting late." He mutters, his face is laced with anger and shame, a flash of insecurity burning in his eyes.

"I like you just the way you are, Xephos." Her voice is soft and sure, and he finds himself believing her, letting his guard drop as she wraps her arms around him.

"Okay." He hums into her shoulder, making careful not to hold her too tight and break her—he knows she’s not fragile; that she’s more than capable of handling herself, but he doesn’t want to lose her. Not at all.

"Let’s get you back to Honeydew Inc. The little dwarf’s probably worried about you." Lomadia mumbles, tugging off her owl hat and placing it on his head as she reaches for his hand, intertwining their fingers leading the way out of the cavern.

Xephos smiles to himself, playing with the hat atop his head as they make their way back to the factory.

He likes owls. He likes how they hoot and fly about, staking out their post with silent pinpoint accuracy. And most of all, he likes her.