Starfish

10.2

"Oh, good! It's not like you weren't here once already, come on in." Nina turned from the door and Ardus saw that she'd done something with her hair, had woven it into a thick rope that fell down her back. It looked damp, and he surmised that she'd been awake long enough to wash up. If she is up and about she must be feeling better. His hands itched to take that rope into his hands and pass it through his fingers, test its weight and texture. It looks smooth, like blueback fur... Following her in at a distance Ardus tried not to hover, but if he stood close enough he could detect a warm, enticing scent. Soft, sweet, clean... She stood beside a short table – short to him, the perfect height for her – opening the sack and going through its contents. "Oh, here's the yellow sea worm, and – Ah! Seaweed soup! I love this stuff!" Ardus watched her pull a short cushioned ottoman meant to be a footrest up to the table, using it instead as a backless chair. His throat tightened at the sight. She is so small! She unfastened the lid and savored the smell of the salty broth. "Where did you get this?"

"Ah, well...I made it."

"You..." Her grey eyes grew large and her smile turned to open wonder. "You made all of this for me?"

"I..." In truth, he'd begun cooking for himself and found the task soothing enough that he'd just kept going – it felt right. He reached up and ran his fingers through his barbels. "Er, well..." One of his claws got stuck on a wire wrap and he had to use his other hand to free himself. "Yes." Shifting from foot to foot Ardus looked around the room to try not to stare at her eyes or her bare shoulder. He stuffed his hands in his pockets to hide his balled-up fists while he looked around the room at anything that would distract him.

"Would you sit down?" She asked him. "You're making me nervous."

I am making her nervous? Ardus looked for a seat that wasn't too close. He settled for across the short table on a chair that would have swallowed her. She kept unpacking the sack, marveling over the variety. She pulled yet another covered dish out and gave him an odd look. "How much food did you make? There's enough for several humans."

"Eh..." His stomach curled up on itself and wanted to die. "Perhaps I was overzealous."

"I'll say." Nina grinned at him and he clutched the arm of the chair in quiet panic. She picked up a piece of sea worm that had been seared with an herbal oil that crisped the skin. She took a bite and chewed experimentally. Her eyes rolled and Ardus thought she was about to collapse when she exclaimed, "Ardus, this is really good!"

"I-is it?" He couldn't decide what to do with his hands. He set one on his knee, then moved it to the chair arm. He shuffled his feet. She'd called him by his name, without his honorific Doctor, and he wasn't sure how he felt about that yet. He liked the sound of it in her voice, though, like a small boat cresting a wave. Ar-dus.

"Mm-hmm!" Nina nodded enthusiastically, her mouth full. She sampled more of the things he'd brought – a fish stuffed with herbs, roasted and blistered vegetables, tiny sea creatures battered and fried. She seemed to enjoy all of them. "You didn't have to do this, but I'm glad you did. It's what a friend would do. Is that why you did this? You've decided you want to be friends?"

Ardus blinked. She did say she wants to be friends. "Ah...yes. That is what I have decided."

"Wonderful! I was hoping you would." Her smile devastated him, her dimples deepening in her cheeks and her eyes... Oh, those eyes! Something softened deep inside of him, his leaden stomach warming. She made a circling motion with her finger at all the food. "Aren't you going to help me eat this? I won't be able to finish it all before it goes bad." She tipped her head to one side, her pretty grey eyes bright. "Please?" Speechless, Ardus nodded. He wasn't hungry but he couldn't refuse when she asked like that, with her eyes wide and her voice so sweet it curled his toes. He sat forward and Nina pushed a dish at him. Reaching towards it he ran into some trouble – the table was lower than he was used to eating at, and after some jostling and a bit of fussing with his legs he decided to sit on the floor where the table came up nearly above his stomach. Once he settled down, crossing his legs under the table, he looked up and saw Nina grinning at him. He narrowed his eyes at her. "What?"