PETAL CROWN.

   And reach out they do, although not recklessly; fingers stopping before touching, allowing the cat itself to notice the new distraction and move its head closer — and then return to ignoring them. Gentle smile on their face even as they retract their hand, naturally a part of them would’ve liked to touch its fur as well, it was so cute after all…but given it was a cat Akira didn’t know, just looking at it sleep was enough to make them feel content. Nostalgic and peaceful in one image, and a great break from the otherwise rather eventful life they led.

   It was hard to believe such a sight would give them such an uncertain response, Akira still feeling like having an animal sleep on you was a sign all of them would like you, or at least most of them. Still, if Petey said so…and so they couldn’t help but wonder what the sight of when it wasn’t like this would’ve looked liked. Simply avoiding him? Not caring? Or even being scared? All of the options feeling so foreign in this moment.

           “ Um…they don’t hate me…? But they don’t really love me either ”, at the very least for first meetings, because the cats they helped the old lady care for back where they lived in their world seemed to like them. Even if Akira almost always had some kind of food with them when they arrived, so, in the end, maybe it simply was a learned response. “ I guess they’re okay with me ? But I think that’s the normal reaction for most people…that’s why I thought animals get along well with you, I’ve never seen a cat sleep on someone like this before ”, well, there was a lot Akira hadn’t seen before, especially in regards to Petey.

  And slightly nervous he stood, growing ever more tense from watching that hand draw closer and closer, hoping that they wouldn’t get hurt— not that he couldn’t just easily tend to their wounds should anything happen, but... it was better if none of that happened at all! This wasn’t even the most dangerous thing he’s seen someone attempt to do and yet, even if they were careful, his expression said otherwise! However, seeing as nothing bad happened in the end, a sigh of relief left the botanical boy. 

  ...

  Th-though, if they themself didn’t mind, he wouldn’t have minded ‘taking one for the team’ by accepting the pets in the cat’s stead! Preferably once the cat was off his head to avoid any potential bites or scratches, of course. Just in case. Their safety first!

  If Akira had voiced their thoughts over his response, Petey would’ve confirmed that all three of those guesses... were right. Caution, indifference, fear... were all too common and natural reactions to his presence, similarly to how most people would. He couldn’t blame any of ‘em, though. After all, if Akira had met him at a certain point in the past... Well, it’s not a thought he’d enjoy thinking about. 

  Even if it was done out of both his own and someone else’s survival, that wasn’t to say he hadn’t done anything recently, though. Though it used to be something that rarely ever came to mind, he can’t help but wonder enough now: would they hate or fear him for it if they were to know or even witness such a sight? ... Do they ever fear him now despite not knowing? 

  Ah, the cat probably took to him because his head felt really soft right now; practically a living pillow or bed for others. It had become a bit firmer from earlier for a bit from the tension he was experiencing, but apparently not enough to disturb the cat’s nap. 

  Plus, he’s not sure whether they can smell him right now or not, but it’s also probably because his body had this tendency to give off a pleasant aroma... That usually played a part in why some animals would approach him or took to him quickly. In fact, the scent he gave off wasn’t even actually his, but usually other plants and even fruits. To this day, he’s still not certain how to control it nor how it works exactly, as odd as that might sound. And if it wasn’t that, then the last thing he could think of that attracted animals was that sweet sap that his mouth made, or to nibble on his petals or leaves!

          “ Oh...! ” The only thing he could really reply with at the moment, actually surprised himself at the answer. He figured with the way he noticed they looked at it, on top of the fact that Akira looked like they really hopeful to find a cat, that at least cats usually took a liking to them.

Sufficiently distracted himself, the pensive plant had been staring at the other flowers present in silence for a good while now. Was he watching them for Akira in a literal sense because he wanted to help the human out more, or was it something else...? Either way, both his silence and trance were broken the moment a familiar voice called out to him.

“...!” The botanical boy gently jolted up with a soft, surprised yelp escaping his lips before turning to the source. Said green lips quickly curved into a warm smile as he greeted back with a coo and a casual wave of his leaf. “Hmm? Mm-mm!” He slowly shook his head from side to side in response, claiming to not have seen one around, buuut... now that they mentioned it, he could ‘smell’ one nearby! In fact, the scent was very strong! 

Kinda weird... Was it an invisible cat or something? Was that a thing around this sort of place...?

BIG GOOFY GRIN COMPLETE WITH S Q U E A K Y  T O Y   S Q U E E Z I N G   S O U N D.

Such a polite act has successfully saved and pleased the plant...!

W H U M P !

Uh-oh...

He’s... not really sure what to do here... Should he just burrow or fly away while he still can? Would that be considered mean or something?

With his inability to understand the strange plant thing, Seiji could only guess at its intentions. For now, it seemed to like the idea of temporarily staying at the park? Seiji had to assume so as he walked over and picked up the now-shrunken plant creature and began making his way to the park.

Thankfully, the plant creature was easy enough to carry– all that training and exercise sure paid off! And even better, he’d managed not to attract unwanted attention during that walk!

Explaining things to Yuko was enough of a pain!

When he got to the park with the plant thing in tow, Seiji dropped it into a nearby patch of flowers.

“Okay, I believe this is the most I can do for you right now. Please behave yourself, okay? I don’t want to have to call my friends over to deal with you.”

Expecting to simply trail behind the boy or at least walk beside him to the park, the small plant curiously cocked his head to the side while looking up at the teen that now easily towered over him; even if It’s not his first time shrinking, seeing others a lot larger and taller than usual was still a bit bizarre. He was also expecting some more words of caution or advice, but instead, he found himself off the ground with a pair of arms wrapped around his soft flesh.

“...?!” 

O-oh...! He was not expecting to be picked up so suddenly! Had he known this would happen, he would've shrunken down a bit more! 

...Though very unused to the feeling, the plant found it to be pretty pleasant, so there wasn’t any struggling. In fact, with how still he remained paired with the constant and current placid smile on his face, he probably resembled more of a stuffed toy of some kind rather than a child wearing a costume at the moment. It also seemed the little leafy lad thought the ride was nice enough to slowly drift off into a slumber in the middle of a ride and become completely oblivious to their surroundings or the risk of getting noticed.

However, the flower woke back up to being surrounded by fellow flowers of varying colors upon being dropped off. The tiny monster briefly took in his new environment before returning his attention to the boy, responding with a simple nod of his spotted head, followed by the slightly swift shake of his head in regard to that last bit of being “dealt with.” Regardless of whether the boy planned on leaving the peculiar plant immediately or not, the botanical being waved goodbye to the teen under the assumption he would be on his own for now. 

Looking around the patch, he figured he should try to ‘blend in’ further by planting his feet into the ground and burrowing until nothing but his head was visible. He still stuck out like a sore thumb with him being the only of his kind present, but he hoped it’d help even just a little bit in avoiding attracting any attention.

N-no... Whatever gave him that idea?

Nervous sweating and chuckling while suspiciously scooching ever so gradually away.

I hate how this website functions.

Ahem.

The big oaf contemplatively stared at his leaf as he heard the prince speak.

That's a good question! He's... never really thought about it before. Odd as that might sound, but that's probably because nobody really bothered to ask him that question before.

So, when he turned his attention back to Euden, he could only provide a look of uncertainty and a shrug for an answer.

Did he maybe want him to demonstrate his strength by lifting up one or several of the numerous nearby trees of Mistholt? Or should he attempt lifting one of the many buildings scattered about outside the Halidom? Or maybe...

His gaze gradually shifted, glossing over the various colorful facilities that occupied the castle grounds until his sights were set on the huge structure that towered over all others.

The prince would want to see the plant try his leaf at lifting or moving the castle itself!

...Actually, probably not the best idea considering it not only served as the base of the seventh scion’s operations but as a home and shelter to the prince and many, many others here. Maaaybe not the buildings either, now that he’s thought about it, but if asked to, he would totally do it! 

W-what!? Where's all this coming from so suddenly...?

With every question that spurt out from the stranger's mouth, the higher the plant's leaves rose in an attempt to conceal his visibly flustered face. Being suddenly put on the spot, the flower found himself overwhelmed and unable to answer the relentless barrage of... rather personal questions. He’s not certain whether this person’s just trying to tease him or just really curious. Either way, that didn’t matter, he just wanted to get away!

@crownedflora ( x )

'hehe!' he finds such reactions as amusing as they are adorable. such a fitting and satisfying sound too! squish! he may be oblivious to some other things, but euden's not blind to the soft flower's obvious signs of enjoyment, so he'll just keep fondling the cutie to both of their benefits.

his happy expression leaves once he feels the weight of the plant growing heavier but returns after easily managing to support him. another playful squish and some affectionate stroking from his thumbs. 'heh, so cute...'

even if it comes at the risk of being crushed, the prince didn't want his friend to fall! good thing the flower's not as heavy as he expected thanks to being smaller than usual. his current size makes euden wonder if he can get any smaller...

as he continues to rub and squish the adorable flower's cheeks, he remembers something he's been meaning to ask. 'say...is your room comfortable enough for you...?' his hands pause to gently cup and tilt the plant's head up.

he has noticed both the bed and the room have been left exactly the same as it was even before the plant's arrival. at first, the prince thought maybe someone like him was actually skilled in tidying up and making a bed, but...after checking up on him for several nights and noticing nobody was there along with the door always being open, it's probably safe to assume that wasn't the case. is it because he's a plant?

'I could always help make better sleeping arrangements for you if it's not. no need to be shy about it.' some more caring strokes to that squishable face.

The soft squish of his cheeks being pushed inward forces his lips into a slight puckering formation before relaxing back into that dopey smile of his.

Ahhh, he felt like he was getting spoiled~! He loved getting spoiled! All this gentle caressing and kneading was so soothing that he could probably be lulled into sleep like this. Matter of fact, even in a position of being held up by the head that most would consider awkward and uncomfortable to do so, he was already on his way to drifting off.

However, as soft and soothing the sensation was, the currently-pampered plant registered that he received a compliment, eventually. Thanks to such a remark made by a man who was cute himself, there’s a green hue suddenly painting his cheeks now; one of several telltale signs of a flustered flower! Another sign sprouted up as his petals folded forward in a rather laughable attempt at shielding his face from the polite prince’s view. 

Ohhh, it was moments like these that he wished they were larger and longer...!

And yet, the flustered feeling found itself fading ever so slightly once the plant was presented with a question. His pleasant petals perked up at the query, which would usually prompt the tilt of his spotted head, but seeing as such a movement might shift or shake Euden’s hands off him... he elected to remain still and try his best to respond vocally. 

“Mmmnnn...” He droned out, trying to think back to what the room that had been arranged for him was like, but he’s having trouble since he hasn’t seen it since his arrival. Actually, it wasn’t even really the room or anything in it that was the problem! 

Reception to his arrival was... not exactly a positive one based on all those looks he remembered getting that day— even after being introduced by Euden, the head of the Halidom! He can’t really blame them, though, what with all the monsters out there he’s seen and encountered since his, uhhh, unexpected arrival to... Alberia, was it? Yeah. 

Anyway, even though he hasn’t done anything wrong — intentionally, at least — plenty of people seem to think he’s one of those “Fiends”, so he’s mostly stuck to sleeping outside where there won’t be too many problems with his presence! ...H-hopefully! The past several nights have been fine so far, though!

... But how will he let Euden know what the issue is? Should he just... lie so the prince won’t have to worry about it? It seemed like the easier option, but...

This was quite the predicament the plant found himself in...!

“...”

As expected... not a single sign of objection from the plant the moment the prince’s palms found themselves placed on both sides of the flower’s face. Instead, even though the blond man had already requested permission to touch beforehand, there was that typical, innocent look of curiosity with the slightest hint of surprise. An expression that would shortly, and surely, find an incredibly self-indulgent and equally sheepish smile smeared over itself. Feeling the prince run those gloved hands along his cheeks, the plant’s petals folded back in response to the pleasant sensation. 

There’s an oddly fitting sound produced with each and every squish of the plant’s pillowy, polka-dotted head, serving as even further proof of his undeniable squishiness! Even if he weren’t so gentle, it would be absolutely safe to bet that this big red-and-green goof would still have the same, if not at least similar, reaction and expression to this type of contact. Especially if it’s from someone like Euden!  

Blatantly blissful expression aside, he also expressed his contentment through occasional cooing and purring-like sounds as the royal’s hands roamed about and massaged his head. He’s surprised — and pleasantly so — by how soft and smooth those exposed fingers felt rubbing and pressing any area they could of the leafy lad’s head. Not that he’d know much about what makes someone’s hands soft or not, but what he does know is it felt really nice! To the point where the urge to relax his entire body and just let it fall forward grew more and more heavier...

Fortunately, the flower was already at a smaller size when the prince found him — at the perfect height where Euden could reach with ease — so the risk of said prince getting crushed beneath a big botanical boy wasn’t something either of them would have to worry too much about.