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Huntsman is, quite frankly, very lost. The tea aisle of any store was usually vast, but this one in particular has the largest variety he has ever seen. Bags of different colours and fonts crowd the shelves. What type of tea did that blue monstrosity even like? His eyes glaze over as he starts to read all the names. Orange Pico, Green Tea, Earl Grey? These sound more like colours than anything.
He puts a hand in his pocket, feeling his claws brush the bag Sandy had given him. Maybe he should just go home before he ends up standing here for another ten minutes.
Before he can make a decision, a meek voice interrupts the spider’s trance, “Um, excuse me!” His eyes flickering to a small human woman with an employees uniform. She looks nervous, but he was used to odd looks as a demon, “You’ve been standing here an awful long time. Is there anything I can do to help?” She gives a sheepish smile, her hands clasping in front of her. The name tag reads something he isn’t even going to try and pronounce.
He’s equally awkward in his response, unfamiliar and slow, “Do you know…anything about tea?”
“Do you need help finding the right type?” She gives an understanding smile as Huntsman nods.
“It’s for a big guy who’s all about staying calm. Peace loving, y’know.” He tries to describe Sandy as best he can, the woman nodding along. She starts to trace the shelves with her finger, looking for something among the packaging.
“Here.” She picks up a yellow bag with cursive font, handing it to the spider. “It’s chamomile. It helps people sleep so your friend might enjoy this one.”
He inspects the bag curiously, “Hm, yeah. Maybe he will.” Huntsman thanks her, making sure to pay before heading back out onto the street. A few people turn to stare at the demon, but his focus is on a different topic entirely. The spiders claws start to tap the bag impatiently as he walks, a nervousness building in the usually gruff hunter. Would Sandy even want to talk to him or would he just get turned away at the door?
From what he’s learned, Sandy isn’t a hateful type of person. Yet, he can’t seem to stop himself from worrying about the reaction he might receive from the man. Anger? Hatred? Disappointment? It’s deserved if it is. Huntsman’s no saint. This much is obvious. Yet, a small part of him still looks at the bag, seeing a a possibility where Sandy forgives him.
The scent of saltwater washes over Huntsman, the dock slowly coming into view as the afternoon sun reflects off the water. He squints slightly, still not quite acquainted with direct sunlight. The boats are lined up like soldiers, but only one catches his eye. A shabby mismatched ship. The spider pauses just off from stepping onto the pier, gripping the bag a bit tighter. Sandy’s blue skin is obvious against the boat as the man seems to be fixing one of the walls that faced the spider. He looks focused, and Huntsman feels a bit guilty to be the thing that interrupts it.
The demon takes a deep breathe, walking closer with a more confident stride. He stops in front of the boat, feeling too unwelcome on board. Sandy glances over briefly from the sound of boots on wood, before turning his full attention to Huntsman. There’s a hammer in his hand, “Oh, hello there!” The giant grins. It takes Huntsman aback for a moment. That wasn’t the reaction he’s been expecting.
Huntsman skin felt hot, “Er- hi.” He closes his eyes for a moment to take a deep breath and gather his confidence again, “I came to apologize.”
Sandy bends down to put his hammer back inside a toolbox, standing to pat the rim of the boat as an invite. Huntsman pauses before nervously boarding, feeling small in front of Sandy. The man’s eyes glance down at the bag in the spiders hand for a moment.
“I’m sorry for calling you an errand boy and…all the other stuff.” His eyes shift away from Sandy. He’s never been good with apologies. “Oh- and I brought you tea. Since you like that stuff.” His claws loosen their grip on the bag to hold it out for the other to grab. There’s a beat of silence.
Sandy slowly smiles again, a softer but still genuine one. He takes the bag, “Forgiven. As I said before, an enemy is just a friend you haven’t won over yet.” Sandy pauses to check the bag again, “If I brew us both a cup of this, will you join me?”
“…I wouldn’t be opposed.” He rubs the back of his neck, feeling some of his muscles relax. His head is swimming from the unfamiliarity of it all. He’s out of his element.
Sandy beams, walking towards the door of the ship. He turns to look back at Huntsman, seeming confused for a moment before gesturing for the spider to follow. “The blue cat is Mo, by the way.”
Huntsman was about to ask what he meant by a blue cat, before entering to see a…blue cat. It’s strikingly similar appearance to Sandy is apparent as it stretches to lie on the back of the couch. He notes a few other cats as well, the somewhat messy interior making sense now.
Sitting on the couch with a fairly stiff posture, the spider finds himself relaxing into it fairly fast. The blankets that had been thrown over it smell like a tea he can’t name, but it’s anything but unpleasant. Some of the cats stare at him curiously. “I didn’t think you had so many cats.”
Sandy laughs, possibly the most welcoming one he’s ever heard, “They’re therapy cats. They’ve helped me a lot. Sorry, I probably should have warned you first.”
A cat rubs up against Huntsman’s leg, “I don’t mind.” He’s not really an animal person, but he reaches down to give it a small head scratch. Therapy cats, huh?
“Do you want any milk, honey, or sugar in yours?” Sandy eventually walks over with two cups of tea, steam blowing off them as he hands one to Huntsman. The spider shook his head, Sandy taking a seat on the couch next to him with his own cup. The seat dips from the weight, Huntsman sliding a bit closer to him as a result. He can tell the giant is trying to bend over and make himself take up less room. It’s the opposite of what any spider from his pack would do. They would all take advantage of it.
He blows on the tea, taking a hesitant sip. Oh. This is good. Sandy let out a content sigh as he takes one as well. “If I knew it was this good I would’ve tried tea way before now.” Huntsman mutters, mostly to himself.
Sandy laughs, a louder more booming sound that bounces off the walls, “You’ve never had any before? How did you pick this then?”
Huntsman sheepishly smiles, a raspy chuckle escaping his throat, “Someone at the store helped. I couldn’t tell what tea that bag you gave me was.”
Sandy face changes to one of surprise, “You kept that?”
The spider flushes, avoiding eye contact, “Maybe.”
Huntsman can practically sense Sandy’s smile burning into him, “Well, there’s a lot more of that chamomile- more than I can probably drink alone.” The demon looks back over, confused as to where this is going. “You’re welcome to come back anytime.”
Huntsman takes another sip of his tea to hide the fluster he feels crawling up him, muttering a gruff, “Maybe.”
Sandy’s smile only grows, the two settling into a comfortable silence. The sounds of the dock are muffled through the wall, but Huntsman can still feel the boat rock from the waves on occasion. It’s the first time in weeks that the demon feels truly peaceful.
Sandy is the first to break the silence, “I’m sorry too, by the way. About scaring you. I’ve been trying to work on that.” He rubs the back of his neck, a mix of guilt and embarrassment in his expression. It’s the opposite of what Huntsman saw that day. Instead of the intimidating eyes that were hardened from witnessing so many battles, this Sandy’s eyes are a swirl of feelings uncorked.
“I deserved it. I was asking for it, after all.” Huntsman raises an eyebrow at the notion that he even did something wrong, but Sandy simply shakes his head.
He sighs, staring at his cup, “I lost control and could have hurt you. I made a promise not to hurt anyone again.” Mo seems to wake at that, moving to lay on Sandy’s shoulder. It leans its head against his, as if comforting him.
Huntsman isn’t sure what he should be doing here, but settles on placing a clawed hand on the others arm. The spider almost melts from how pleasantly warm Sandy’s skin is compared to Huntsman’s icy skin, “Listen, I don’t know who you were before. Syntax told me you used to be a warrior, but that’s about it.” He pauses and hopes this is the right thing to say before continuing, “You didn’t hurt me. It seems like you’re doing pretty good already to control yourself too. Give yourself some credit, big guy.”
Sandy puts a blue hand gently over Huntsman’s, a genuine kindness in his eyes that is unfamiliar to the demon. “Thank you.”
The spiders skin burns, the previous warmth almost suffocating as he’s given that look. He’s afraid to move. A want in him is being put in the spotlight. It’s awake and yearning for something he can’t place, but the feeling alone scares him.
Sandy only seems to be growing more nervous by the second however, his hand trailing from the demons to rest on Huntsman’s shoulder instead. He glances away from Huntsman for a moment, “If I- if we-“ He pauses, eyebrows knitting together as he tries to figure out what he wants to say. Mo moves back to his prior sleeping spot.
“I want to kiss you.” Sandy finally gets out, his eyes trying to focus on anything but the spider at this point. The words feel like a switch being flipped to Huntsman. Kiss him? The want for more flares up in him like a firecracker as the realization hits him full force. That’s what he wants.
Before Sandy could apologize to him, Huntsman puts his cup down onto the coffee table and moves to practically sit in the man’s lap. Spider demons have always been anything but subtle, after all. Sandy’s eyes widen as Huntsman swallows his anxiety to press their lips together.
Arms wrap around the spider, kissing him back. His hand trails up Sandy, claws threading into his hair. It’s not exactly perfect, but Huntsman finds himself enjoying every second of it. If his clan ever found out he did this, Huntsman is sure he would get the worst punishment available.
He pulls away, both of them just taking it in for a moment with warm breaths. His forehead leans against Sandy’s chest, heart starting to calm down. He finally mutters out, “If you tell anyone this happened I’ll gut you.”
Sandy burst out laughing.