Playmates Part 3

Started 4/12/12

Aikin couldn't help himself, just to see Zee apologize was a big step for him. He was used to getting a few hits now and again, though he didn't wish to admit it. It was usually when he surprised someone, or picked them up wrong. And although it sometimes hurt for a little while, he didn't blame anyone that did it. He knew it was a lot to take in, so he wasn't about to expect sudden acceptance…though that would have been nice. Since he didn't have someone to teach him how to handle those smaller than him, he was pretty much learning as he went along. He knew as he would get older, he needed to be able to get gentler, even if he did get bigger, but his thoughts were more for the citizens and his family. So to have Zee suddenly expose his weaker side and actually give an apology, even though Aikin knew it was his mistake for surprising him, he really did see a big deal in this.

He pulled Zee against his chest, curling both his hands over him as he hugged him. He sniffled, bending his legs, intertwining his toes, tucking his chin to his chest, and pulling up his shoulders. He was practically curled around the tiny human, but he didn't mind holding Basil's worming self like this for just a little while. Although Zee wasn't comfortable, Aikin found this a dream come true. A friend outside of the castle…a year ago he would have never believed that to ever happen, he only had Damien to rely on.

"I'm not some stuffed animal! Stop squeezing me! Aikin!" The cat just sighed and rolled over onto his side, swishing his tail behind him as he held onto Zee. The man clearly wasn't a cuddler, but Aikin enjoyed the time with him. He couldn't remember the last time he got to cuddle…probably with his mother. Although, it had been a very long time since he had seen his mother. He wondered if he should think of Zee as a brother or something, if just for this moment, but clearly he wasn't as happy to be hugging.

"Aw…come on Zee, just a little bit longer…" He murmured as he lifted him to his cheek, rubbing it against him. "I never get to have hugs like this, Damien always just wants to talk…I mean that's nice too, but he never wants to play." He murmured, pulling Zee away to look at him in his light fist. He was surprised the man had so much energy despite his injury, but the cat only frowned at the man's sudden glare.

"WHO SAID I WANTED TO PLAY!?" Aikin pursed his lips as he sat up, using his sleeve to wipe off his tear covered face. He deposited Zee in his lap as he cleared his face. Zee wasn't being very fun…was it because of Hannah? He seemed pretty angry after she left, had he known her? He was talking pretty familiarly with her.

"Fine…I'll get my cuddling some other time." He murmured, dragging his tray on wheels over and picking up a small piece of fruit. However, when he offered the strawberry to Zee, he was a little surprised to find the difference in size. He hadn't really thought too much over it when he was given food, it was all meant for him to eat, and normally he ate alone. And even though he knew he had seen the difference between Zee and himself many times, this was another sight to behold for Aikin.

Thankfully Zee took the fruit without a fight, and for that Aikin was thankful. He was getting tired of the human being mad at him for nothing. Not to mention the fighting was making the prince have headaches at night. He just wanted what was best for Zee…and maybe a little more close company, why did Zee continue to ignore his efforts? As he munched on his croissant he thought of what to do with Zee today. He knew he had off lessons because of his new company, but that wouldn't last very long when they found out Zee wasn't bedridden like Aikin had led on.

Could he finally have someone to play with him? He lifted his head a bit, continuing to nibble on his bread as he glanced around his room. Toys were trying to keep themselves on top of dressers without wobbling over with the amount of others around it. Aikin never had a lack of toys, it was more like he didn't have anybody to play with him. His ears wilted as he ate silently, all he ever really played with was his bear. At least his bear was around the size of a person and he could pretend it was another of his kind. He jumped to hear a sudden bark of command from the human in his lap, already feeling a bit guilty when he realized that he wasn't sure what Zee had said.

"Er…" He murmured as he looked over the human before he realized his mistake. His ears served back instantly, blushing lightly to find what he had done. Aikin was sure he wasn't that messy of an eater, but around Zee were some crumbs, one of which was big enough to be tossed at Aikin's chest. "Um…s-sorry…um…Zee d-did you want some?" He said as he held out his half-eaten piece of bread. The look he got from Zee didn't seem to be too interested, he just sighed, sat back down and munched on the strawberry he had held under his arm. Aikin pursed his lips and huffed, Zee was just too up-tight…he needed to have some fun too. Sure their last game didn't go too well, but Aikin was sure he could solve that.

The two ate the rest of their meal in silence, only the occasional comment from Aikin once and a while about the food. He even tried to feed Zee more than just the strawberry, but he wasn't willing to keep up the act long enough. He was surprisingly polite for a while, but when Aikin pressed a bit more, he instantly snapped and went silent. Aikin tried to understand why Zee couldn't enjoy the morning, but nothing really came to mind. He thought that perhaps he hadn't slept well, however he didn't have dark circles under his eyes. So instead he brainstormed how he would cheer the grumpy older man up. Aikin thought that he'd come up with many things to do…the only plan he could come up with was a 'play-day.' Unfortunately a lot of things in the palace weren't for him, he was mostly expected to stay in this room, so it wasn't like he could go on a walk or something. So his toys were probably the only thing that he could freely play with. Since he didn't have lessons today, his eyes instantly slid over to his toys in interest, his ears flicking to attention.

"Zee, are you sure you don't want anything else?" Aikin asked once more. As he gazed down at the soon-to-be-happy man in his lap. Zee groaned and rubbed his ruffled hair, shaking his head. Aikin's ears wilted a level before he scooped up the tiny human into his hands. "We'll leave the rest for a snack later." He said quietly as he walked over to his dressers. Like the room, they didn't fit him, thankfully the toys were small enough to play with comfortably. He searched the top of the dresser with careful eyes before he found what he was looking for, his carriage.

He slowly and carefully separated it from the other toys, silently concentrating on getting it off the surface without sending any other toys with it. Aikin gasped when one of the wheels caught on the flag of a small castle. He groaned, looking down to Zee in his other hand before he lifted him to his shoulder. He pushed him onto the perch, feeling proud of himself for thinking quickly, and wisely went back to untangled his toys. All of them were precious, he wasn't sure where most of them came from, however he didn't want to break half of them trying to get the carriage out.

It wasn't until he was holding his black and gold carriage that he realized he felt something else besides his collar clinging to his neck. His ears flicked as he shifted his carriage to hold in one arm before he lifted a hand to cup around his neck. It wasn't too shocking to find that the object clinging to him had been Zee, and with his hand there he could feel the human visibly relax. He felt a little bad to have hurried Zee onto his shoulder, but he just as quickly plucked him off to lower himself to the ground. He ignored a few curses from the human as he lowered his smaller feet to the ground. Aikin was sure to double check Zee was safely situated before he let go of his middle.

"What do you think I am?! Some pet?!" Aikin pursed his lips as the human began his rant. Out of the friendship he wanted from him, the fights almost made it not worth it. There had to be something that he could do that would make the man trust him. He flinched to have a hard glare from the human, only feeling free to move after Zee lowered his eyes with a groan. "Kid, just be gentle alright?" His ears swung back at the words in shock. Zee was lowering his voice? So suddenly? He sighed though, feeling his chest constrict to have the familiar words echo in his head. They had been something he had heard from his mother many times. He shook his head, just enough to clear his head before he smiled and laid a hand on his carriage in his grip.

"It was my grandfather's, but it's still in good shape so it's nice to play with. I don't really have a lot of toys we can both play with but um…at least you can get inside this one." Aikin said proudly, unclasping the lock on the roof to open the door. "Unfortunately, my bear can't fit…he's a bit too big to be in there, but at least you'll fit." He explained, perking to remember that he had left his bear someplace in the huge room. He paused, searching the floor with his eyes quickly before he remembered another addition to the carriage that was probably lost too. The horses that were carved out of an oak tree his great-great grandfather had made for his grandchildren to come. They were beautiful, and the butlers had made them up to be able to attach to the four wheel carriage.

"This thing was on the streets?" Aikin perked at Zee's words, looking down to him with a tilt of his head. He was a bit surprised, but he had poked his head inside, which was all Aikin needed to get that smile back on his face. He happily laid down to be as level as he could with Zee, lying his head on his crossed arms while he gazed at the carriage.
"It's always been my favorite….but as you can probably tell I can't use it. It was meant for the cold winters, but after the driver's seat broke, it took out the front with it. My grandfather was going to throw it out, but Damien's father kept it. It was before me, but when it was still sitting at his home, he decided it would be good for me to have. I always wished I could go for a ride in it, but that's impossible for me." He sighed but smiled as Zee ventured inside. "They fixed it for me, but I think it's best to keep it off the streets now."


Basil glanced back at the giant boy; he had that shine of a wise old man again in those eyes. He watched him for only a moment before stepping into the old carriage. He'd never seen anything like it. Despite its age, the paint was barely chipped, the seats were perfect, and the curtains were hole free. He laid a hand on the carriage's seats; they felt better than any fabric he had ever felt. He would like to imagine, even back home, that he could afford a carriage like this…but that would be a lie.

Despite him being better off than the slums back in his hometown, carriages were expensive. Not to mention they were useless without a horse or two to pull it, and his family couldn't afford a horse and a carriage. Only the rich and powerful could afford things like that. Now that he thought about it, this was probably the first time he stepped foot into something like this. He sighed, about to step back out only for the door to slam in his face. He stood there, shocked into just staring at the closed curtain before the realization hit him. The brat had closed the door…right in his face.

"AIKIN! AIKIN! LET ME OUT RIGHT NOW!" He almost felt himself breathing fire to hear a loud lock, a clasp that was big enough for only Aikin to control…how wonderful. He heard clothes rustling and a few mumbles he couldn't understand before he pounded the door with his knuckles again. "AIKIN!"

"Shush Zee! I just need to look for the horses, than we can race. Don't be so impatient, it'll only take a little while." The giant voice boomed not too far off. Basil stilled at that one word…race. He gapped as he rushed to the other door, pushing against it. He frowned when it didn't budge and he heard little clinks of the clasp against the hook.
"You just have to be kidding me…" He growled under his breath as he heard loud shuffling and footsteps outside the carriage. "YOU EXPECT ME TO RACE INSIDE THIS THING?!" He yelled through the door, barely containing a surprised yelp when a bang happened outside. He couldn't stop a gasp when the world around him shook so much that Basil was sure he lifted off the carriage floor. Even if it was for a few seconds, the chaos stopped and Basil was left sitting on the floor of the carriage with an uncomfortable silent world surrounding him.

There was a moment of that silence, and it was enough of it that made a lump of worry start in Basil's chest. Where was all that noise the kid was making? "Er…kid…you okay?" He waited for an answer, but there was none. At first he thought maybe that the kid didn't hear him, but passed the thought along when he knew Aikin could catch the smallest of sounds with those huge feline ears of his. He strained his ears, pressing it against the wall of the carriage only to catch a loud sniffle. He slowly rose away from the wooden wall in shock. His brain unscrambled the strange noise and it only took him a panic filled second before he pulled the curtain quickly from the window. He almost felt sorry he ripped the fabric in his haste, but he had to see what was wrong. It didn't take too long to see Aikin kneeling on the ground, holding something against him with another few sniffles. Was he hurt? Was someone else here?

Basil groaned in uneasiness and slammed his fist a few times against the door to get the kid's attention. He was thankful when those big aqua eyes focused on the carriage, than him, but as Basil expected those eyes were ready to burst with new tears. Aikin looked down to his lap where he held something gently, but with this point of view, Basil couldn't see anything but an upset feline.

"Oy! Kid! What are you so upset about, huh?" He yelled out, grumbling to himself for having to fix another tear session. It was clear no one else was in the room, so he was happy at least that no one had decided to hurt the kid (although he may have done it, he didn't want anyone else hurting the poor boy). He may be starting to understand the prince, but children weren't really what Basil liked dealing with. He much rather go through the danger of stealing a few things then play babysitter. From Aikin clinging to him whining and moaning to Aikin giving him that puppy-eyed look; Basil was starting to think it'd be impossible to stay mad at the kid too long anyway. He was pure in a way Basil had never seen, unlike the kid's outside the palace he'd never see someone steal or fight. In a way, Basil wanted to protect him. To think he had never met someone outside made him feel horrid for the trapped child. The giant boy sniffled a few times before he suddenly let loose a cry, making Basil flinch away from the door to slap his hands over his ears with a shudder.

"THEY'RE BROKEN! THEY MADE THEM SPECIAL AND I BROKE THEM!" The wailing felt like a sound wave. Basil was sure that if he clamped his hands any tighter against his ears, his head would explode from the pressure. Aikin's roars were so loud, he wondered if the whole palace would be alerted. He heard the creaking of the door, something he caught between the boy's loud sniffling and sobs. Basil managed to peek an eye open to see the giant look up from his broken toys. There were a few more sniffles before those huge ears of his dipped back and he flashed his fangs at whoever had entered. "GET OUT OF MY ROOM! I don't want you here!"  

Basil blinked, wondering if he should dare take a hand off his head to pinch himself. The kid, yelling like that? That certainly wasn't like him. He raised his eyebrows in surprise when Aikin gingerly put the toys down, getting up to no doubt go after the door. It was at this time that Basil finally saw what Aikin had been cradling, two wooden horses. One was missing two legs, and the other had a large crack in the neck that almost left the head to be lying against its back. It took a second or two before Basil felt the thundering footsteps returning. He could barely prepare himself before he was thrown into the back seat, hearing the carriage's wooden exterior groan from the pressure outside.

"Z-Zee…wh-what do I do? They were my ancestor's gift to anyone stuck in this room, I broke them. I broke their special gift…" The sniffling was closer, and the wooden planks creaked again. It didn't take him too long to figure out the huge kid was clutching the carriage in an effort to get close to the only other person in the room. He sighed, rubbing his sore wound on his back and a soon-to-be-blue bruise on his hip as he tried to stand, only to be forced to sit back down when the carriage went vertical. "I'm a horrible price! I was only given a few things to take care of and I break them without even realizing!"

The older man sighed, feeling his heart going out to the boy even if he was practically lying on the ceiling thanks to him. Despite Aikin having all this luxury, he didn't have one thing people outside the palace could have. A future. His life was set in stone…probably quite literally with how people talked of their huge king. Aikin was next in line, whether he agreed or not. Basil didn't know much of royalty, but he did know Aikin was eleven, and he just wanted to be a child.

"Look um…Aikin, I'm sure you can carve more when you're older and um…others could try fixing them for you—how badly are they really broken--?"

"But I broke them! They were my great-great-grandfather's! I didn't know him but…no one has been in this room, minus me. No one is tall enough to reach…I must have done it."
"Th-then let's not break anything else, like this damned--!" Basil braced himself to feel a quick descent, rolling over the bench to the floor. He managed to successfully roll over the side of the carriage onto the bench, but fell ungracefully to the floor where he felt his breath rush out of his lungs. He wheezed, gasping like a fish out of water until he finally got oxygen to circulate inside him. He sat there, gasping for a while until he was sure nothing was bruised but his back, hip and pride.

He slowly stood, cautious of whether the carriage would flip again or not. When he was sure he wouldn't be going for another ride, he peeked out between the ripped curtains. Aikin was back cradling the horses that were clearly too broken to repair easily. He sighed and looked around the carriage, about to find something to pry the door open again, but those big eyes focused on him again. He froze as those turquoise eyes took him in before they glanced back down to the horses in his arms.

"Zee…do you think I'm a bad prince?" The question set Basil off into just gapping at the kid. He'd known him for what—two days? He slowly straightened and crossed his broad arms across his chest. The kid didn't deserve a punch to the face, no that was too rough, but Basil was getting tired of playing around. He wanted out of this place, he needed out. The kid was starting to get on his good side, but he didn't have time to play with him.

"Why do you believe that you are a 'bad' prince?" Basil didn't mean it, but the irritated tone came out in his voice, and those hurt eyes that were on him made him instantly regret opening his big mouth. He quickly put up his hands in a surrender type movement, his eyebrows pulling up in worry with a groan. If he had to go through that serein again, he was sure he'd pop an eardrum or two. "I just want to understand, don't look at me like that…look, kid. Our worlds are completely different. What I define as a 'bad' prince and a 'good' prince is going to be very different from your view." He was a bit thankful when Aikin slowly nodded, sniffling as he held the broken items closer.

"Would…would you think that my great-great-grandfather would be upset with me about the horses?"

"Kid…how long has it been since anyone has been in this room. I'm sure he'd just be happy someone was enjoying his work. Now…" He paused, bracing his hands on the doorframe of the carriage. "OPEN. THIS. DOOR." The prince huffed, pushing out his bottom lip as he set the horses down to crawl over to the carriage. Basil was a bit dumbfounded that the kid actually listened, but he grinned anyway. He was finally getting a hold on this kid. He waited to hear one of the latches on the top open, but he heard no such thing, instead he heard a loud click on the side.

"Enjoying his work…we already got the carriage out…I guess we can still race it." He murmured between sniffles. Basil gasped and pounded on the glass of the carriage, immediately roaring at the giant outside, that only sniffled and scared Basil into jumping to the other side of the carriage when a large finger tapped the door. "Don't be such a whiner…" The cat sniffled and a rush of fabric was heard before one of those big eyes was uncomfortably gazing inside the small carriage. "You offered to play, so we'll play."

"But--!" He growled to a stop when that shining eye disappeared from view, leaving Basil to press against the other door with a deep frown. "Damn kid." He hissed, glaring daggers out of the door. He would get this kid back, and if it took the rest of his stay here, so be it.


Aikin rubbed down his face on his sleeve, giving himself a moment to drink in the sadness once more over his broken toys until he moved to Zee's words. They could be fixed…and they were well loved, even though they were broken now. He took a deep breath, zoning out the shaking carriage he had to place a hand on just to be sure that it wouldn't tip over. He did feel a little bad for trapping Zee like that, and he'll probably never step into something like that again, but Aikin knew Zee would enjoy the ride too. He was too serious, a little fun would loosen him up. It'd be exciting, he doubted Zee was ever in a carriage anyway…well Aikin was never in one either, but at least he had one.

Aikin frowned, testing the carriage as he lifted a hand. He wasn't too surprised to see it continue to shake and quiver on its old wheels to the fighting human inside. He pursed his lips, his ears drawing back at the sight. Zee sounded like he was actually starting to get used to the big cat, and that gave Aikin some fluttering delight left in his heart, but clearly now he didn't feel like playing along. He carefully stood, brushing down his clothes and clearing his face once more of the left-over tears before crouching down to gather up the carriage. As long as he didn't let anyone get a too good look at his red eyes, they wouldn't be able to tell that the prince had been crying…at least he hoped. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately and being caught with it.

He made sure to hold the wagon with care, Zee was inside after all and the last thing he wanted was to hurt the older man…well anymore then he already had. He flinched to feel a hard thump against one of the doors, moving his fingers lower to avoid more of the sting. He stopped by his bedroom door, eyes tracing the top of the carriage with confusion. What use would getting out of the carriage be now? He huffed and gingerly tapped the roof with a claw. "Calm down Zee, we're not going far, just in the hallway." He murmured, frowning to hear illegible curses from the man currently being a prisoner. "You're a kill-joy, you know…"

Aikin cradled the carriage against his stomach as he opened his doors, glancing down to the guards he'd scared off not too long ago. They both stiffened, but didn't move from their positions…as they were probably told be his father. He sighed and stepped out, a little unhappy that he had gone off to yell at them. He couldn't remember the last time he was actually mad at anyone like that, perhaps he should apologize for it.

He paused, opening his mouth to quickly apologize for losing his temper before he felt the carriage give another heavy jerk away from his body. His heart leapt, he didn't even need to look to know the carriage was tipping, he could feel it. He was momentarily aware that the guards were watching him, but all Aikin could do was hold his breath and fumble with the carriage in mid-air. It felt time had gone to a standstill as he grabbed the carriage, both his hands clutching at it as if it would slip right through his fingers like it wasn't there at all. A few seconds passed before Aikin found the courage to quickly lifted it to his ear. It flicked a few times, but he could definitely hear Zee panting inside. Alive…he was alive.

His body relaxed instantly as he held the wooden transportation even tighter than before. Aikin's eyes focused on the guards, who still seemed to be holding their breath, staring at the giant with fear. His ears dipped back in shame…they probably thought it was his fault. "I'm sorry…" He managed out before quickly walking past them toward the garden, his tail curling around his leg in embarrassment.

Would they be telling his father? He'd be heartbroken to lose Zee…even if the human would probably be safer away from him. He was almost glad that he didn't have eyes watching him as he turned the corner into an empty hallway, glaring down to the carriage he held tightly. "Zee! What is your problem?!" He whispered harshly, tapping a few claws on the side of the carriage to alert him. "What if I dropped you?! Just hold still! Why can't you go along with anything? What if you got hurt—ohmyfish, Zee? Zee are you hurt? How's your back?!"

Aikin couldn't believe he had forgotten about that horrid wound on his friend's back. Did he open it back up?! Was he bleeding out? How fast did that normally happen?! He sat down, placing the carriage on its side, slowly, on his lap, so he could open the latch. It took a few tries to open the latch on the top, but when he finally got it open, he was immediately digging in the inside. Only a few of his fingers could fit, but all that mattered was to see if Zee was hurt. It wasn't too surprising for it to take a while to catch the scampering human, but eventually he managed to gingerly pinch one of his legs.
The cat's concern melted with the livid glare of an upside-down Zee that emerged from the wagon. Aikin sighed as he glanced over the human, turning him around to thankfully find clean bandages. "Perhaps playing isn't--!"

"YOU LITTLE BRAT!" Aikin perked, the older man flailing his free limbs when the prince drew closer. "Do you realize that PLAYING isn't what I'm here to do?!" He sighed under the loud voice of the human. He was starting to think that talking normally was against his nature. He grabbed the carriage with a free hand as the human shouted; it was the same argument as ever. Although Aikin wanted to make Zee happy, whatever he tried to do only seemed to upset him further.

He rose back up to stand, continuing down the halls until he could get to the garden. The sun would be shining around his favorite spot at this point, it'd be perfect for a nap. After all this fighting and roller coaster feelings it was tiring him out, and napping by his mother's flowers sounded like a good idea. He gingerly closed the doors, lowering the human into the grass as soon as the click went off behind him. "If you're so mad at me…go run it off or something." He mumbled as he walked over past the man to his favorite flower bush. It reminded him of his mother, and he often sat here just to feel close to her.

Aikin slowly sat, careful of the vines and lowered the carriage back down to the ground beside him. Thankfully it wasn't broken, but he did see a few marks from his claws. He sighed and tenderly laid a hand on top of it. He was destroying everything…his friendship, his family's gifts, and the guards that had stayed with him since he was a child. Who said being born this way was a good thing?

It was a curse…he hated it with every drop of blood he had in his body.


Basil sighed as he leaned against the massive border between the garden and freedom. He knew the kid had to be sleeping, it was too quiet, and once and a while he'd hear a sound of rustling leaves. Some man he turned out to be…why couldn't it have been easy with this kid? Why couldn't he be a regular sized child? Or one that listens? Or better yet just a guard he could punch in the jaw and run off without worrying about? He slowly lowered himself to sit down, groaning in pain from his back.

The damned feline was practically asking to be yelled at every few moments. Actually…it felt like near-death and near-escapes seemed to just fall short of Basil's string of fate…perhaps fortunately for both of them. He always hated himself after the initial shock of terror was over and he was on safe ground. His temper was something that never really favored caring for other's feelings.

"He's just 11…I've been yelling and fighting with an 11-year-old…" He murmured to himself, his dark blue eyes lowering to the grass. He would have liked to imagine it was that easy…but with a kid with as much energy and wanting as Aikin, it never would be 'just an eleven-year-old.' All he could think was trying to think of a way to calm himself. Aikin wanted his way…a lot…and well Basil was used to his way. As a thief, he took what he wanted and didn't prefer deep rooted relationships. In fact, his parents seemed to be the only ones that knew where he was from, but that didn't much count.

He jerked up, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise. Was he unconsciously pushing Aikin away? Did he think that doing that would help the situation because he didn't like to get close to people? He sighed, letting his head drop in grief. Time after time the yelling did nothing but make Aikin's heart break…he was hurting a damn KID. He wasn't fighting a guard, or a shop keeper, or even a grown man. He sucked in a deep breath, using the wall to slowly pull himself to stand.

All over his body hurt, but it was getting ridiculous now. Despite Aikin wanting to do things his own way, he was just trying to get a friend…failing, but he was trying. And although Basil really didn't want to think about it, the kid was as close as an ally as he'd probably get around here. He half-limped around shrubs and walls of flowers until he found the same giant he had been thinking over for quite some time.

His resting face was a familiar one, and he finally looked his age like this. He had curled up near a bush of large red roses, the carriage close-by as he laid in the sun. The kid didn't even seem to mind being so close to a flower that had thorns, in fact one of his big ears were almost flicking right into the bush…that'd be a wakeup call if he got much closer.

Basil sighed again, rubbing a hand over his tired face. Kid…he was actually a kid and Basil needed to at least try to be kinder. He walked over to his massive face, placing a hand on the bridge of his nose. He jerked back when the giant huffed, his nose scrunching up. It took him a moment, but he settled with a half purr, half sigh back into his comfortable position. Basil couldn't help the smirk that pulled at the edges of his mouth. Yeah…some ally he ended up having.

He took one last look at the huge barrier of the garden before slowly lying down a few feet away from the giant, near the very same black carriage he had been trapped in…at least the kid wouldn't move onto him here.


By the time that he woke up he had to admit the sun felt nice…it'd been a while since he had been taking naps while the sun was still high in the sky. He opened his eyes to the same sight he had fallen asleep to, though with one glance around he knew for a fact that the giant had gotten closer. For once, Aikin seemed to be careful that he wasn't touching Basil, but by this time his fingertips brushed against the bottom of his boots.

He slowly sat up, his back creaking from the stiff ground and the wound. He sighed, sleeping there was definitely a bad choice, and he had a feeling he'd been sleeping on a vine or rock. How much time had passed? Basil glanced back at the giant kid, how was he still asleep out here? He slowly shook his head, using the nearby carriage to help him stand. He could hear Aikin move and exhale, leaves ruffling as he moved.

Basil kept a watch on him as he took a glance to those huge doors, his dark blue eyes going over them in suspicion. He would have liked to see them cracked, a guard or something standing there to check on this kid, but as expected the doors offered no escape. He slowly leaned against the carriage, frowning back at the sleeping face of Aikin. As usual he seemed to curl on his side, practically surrounding the area with his long limbs and tail. He often found him doing this close to the pillow he had been sleeping on the past few nights.

He slowly walked over to the giant's face, looking over the calm features with a slight smile. He had to admit this way the kid looked as innocent as his age implied. He couldn't help but be curious with the huge feline. In his country he'd never heard of such myths becoming reality. He had heard of different countries going against this feline covered land, but they never seemed to win. Most of the tales told of retreat or of humiliation. Did this country really have such a past or were they controlling the stories as they did the tale of their king?

Basil lifted a hand, a bit hesitant, until he carefully rested his hand on the bridge of Aikin's nose. He could feel all the guilt he had gone to sleep with swimming back into his veins. Aikin had gone to sleep with the belief that Basil truly hated him. A child shouldn't have to worry about such things…he sighed and gingerly patted his nose. Though, the immediate twitch that followed instantly made Basil flinch away, eyes wide with horror. He inwardly cursed to himself, of course the kid would wake up from that, Basil was messing with his face! Basil groaned, remembering quite a number of times he'd woken up to something buzzing around his face. Just thinking about it made his face go pale.

He almost felt like he wanted to whimper to hear a small groan from the giant. Aikin's big face scrunched up once, pulling his chin closer to his chest as he curled up tighter. Basil froze, staring at his face, just waiting to see those big eyes open, but instead Aikin took a big breath and let out a sigh. After a second of no moment, Basil let go of the breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He glanced back to the carriage, Aikin had knocked it over, a hand resting on top of it as if it was something for comfort. He frowned, already feeling his heart sinking for the boy. Those type of things were really important to him, it seemed.

He heard the giant shift again, and heard him sniff a bit, but Basil paid him no mind as he began to slowly inch his way into safe ground. The last thing he would want was being caught up with Aikin while sleeping. He knew that was another reason that he had stayed off the bed while the kid was sleeping. He wasn't really sure how hyper-sensitive the boy was, and the last thing he wanted was to well…get under that massive prince.

"Ma...mama…?" Basil stopped, looking back over his shoulder in confusion toward the giant. Did he just say…what Basil thought he said? Aikin's face tensed and he moved his head again, one of his ears turning toward the human. The same human frowned back at the dreaming kid, if he put the dots and clues together right then this boy hadn't seen his mother in quite a chunk of time. He sighed and massaged the back of his neck, what would he tell Aikin when he woke up? 'Sorry for cussing at you…I'm grouchy?' He groaned and turned away. He heard the sound of rustling fabric, but he passed off as restless sleep.

"Er…sorry for tipping the carriage? Well, damn it that isn't my fault…" He mumbled under his breath as he crossed his arms. "You're not bad kid, I just don't like you? Oh gods that sounds more awful…he goes through enough. I have important things to do outside these walls…but I hope to see you again? Ugh…no that will make him more clingy--!" He jerked forward with surprise when he felt a bump against his back (thankfully avoiding his wound). "Are you awake already?" He raised his voice just a bit above a mumble as he turned, expecting to see a grinning face, instead he saw a familiar giant clawed hand.
The hand laid there for a moment, Basil shooting the sleeping giant a confused look. Was he half awake? Did he know that Basil was here? "Er…kid?" He said as he took some careful steps around his hand to peek under all his bangs to his eyes. He shook his head to realize that Aikin was still dead to the world, which meant he must be dreaming instead of knowing of his presence here. That made him slightly uncomfortable, but he only had a second of silence before he felt heavy fingers curl around him.

He couldn't stop the unmanly yelp as he fell to the ground with Aikin's hand flopped on top of him, leaving the older man grumbling under his breath. "Damn it, kid…I swear to the gods that someday I'll get you back for all this pushing and grabbing--!" The giant weight around him suddenly encased him, those big fingers curling under him until it was a loose fist. "OY! AIKIN! WAKE THE HELL UP!" He barked, wriggling his shoulders in an attempt to free his arms.

Aikin groaned again, his eyes shutting tighter for a moment before he relaxed. Basil managed to notice that Aikin was sniffing the air again, but that only caused Aikin to draw his hand close to his face, almost to a point that is Basil's arms were free he could probably reach out and start tugging on his cheeks…or slap his damn nose again. "Mama…I missed…you…" He whispered, nuzzling Basil's exposed torso.

"Mom?" He answered slowly. He didn't actually think that HE was Aikin's mother? He sighed, embarrassment spreading through his body as he heard fragments of purrs coming from the giant feline. He wasn't happy at all to be in this position…but to hear Aikin dreaming about his mother made Basil wonder how long it had been since Aikin had seen her. He was still a boy…and Basil definitely didn't have the heart to wake the big cat up from a good dream. No doubt he'd be pretty sad to know he was only dreaming of his mother instead of actually seeing her when he awoke. This dream seemed strong enough to involve Basil…and make him sleep talk.

So, against his better judgment, he carefully leaned down against the bridge of Aikin's nose. He could definitely feel the cat purring by now, but he felt as embarrassed as a school boy confessing. If anybody saw him like this he'd be ruined…he groaned at the thought and hesitantly rubbed his cheek against the tip of Aikin's nose. "Gods…I swear you better not remember any of this…" He said quietly. The least he could do for the kid is push his dream on a bit more…right? He'd been so mean to Aikin, so he found himself hoping that his conscience would at least let him off the hook with this awkward act instead of guilt tripping him every second of the day.