Just Like That | "The Moth Prince" fanfic

2. The Jacket

The following day, while Arcade maneuvered his way through the forest, he had the revealing thought that it had been years since his shoes experienced so much mud.

The path that led to Fern's cave was a path that Arcade had taken many times before, but now it had become a barely recognizable route covered in puddles. The ground had almost entirely turned into a heap of mud that stretched everywhere he looked. Worst of all: it seemed that every patch of mud was pretending to be shallow or dry enough to trick Arcade into thinking it was safe to take a step there, but he couldn't make that mistake unless he wanted to say goodbye to his dry socks.

The whole situation was making it really difficult to walk freely. But at least it was easier now that the sun was up in the sky and he could actually see where he was. The previous night, when he went back to his bike after the storm stopped, he only had his phone's flashlight to guide him (he didn't ask Fern to accompany him because he didn't want to bother them), and combining that with his complete lack of orientation skills caused him to get his feet stuck in the mud constantly. He almost ruined his pair of shoes, which would've sucked because he didn't have many of those.

So Arcade wasn't very fond of his walk through the forest. It was sticky and annoying and it was taking too damn long because he had to be extra careful with his steps. Besides, he wasn't feeling particularly patient either. Every second he spent there was another second he lost from the afternoon, and he wanted to reach Fern's cave as soon as possible so he could be there for as much time as he could before nightfall caught him. He wanted to see his friend's face again and sit down next to them and talk to them and listen to their voice and just be... together already.

But, uh, Arcade mostly wanted to leave behind the forest. Find a safe place not surrounded by mud.

Finally, and despite his rush, he managed to get to Fern's cave with his shoes almost intact (give or take a few stumbles). He got inside and looked around for the prince, but they didn't seem to be anywhere in sight. "Hey, Fern! You here?" he called, then, announcing his presence in case they were at the far end of the cave.

There was no answer. However, he felt something shift in the air; something similar to nervousness that wasn't there before, and then Fern appeared from behind the rock wall that kept their hammock hidden from view. Their cheeks were tinted with a warmer tone than usual, so faint it could've been an effect of the light, and their aura was different from anything Arcade had ever seen on them before: it wasn't relaxed or defensive or reserved, but more... shy. If he didn't know better, he would've thought Fern was embarrassed.

He didn't have time to focus on that, though, because he suddenly noticed another crucial detail: Fern had his jacket on. The sun was out, there was no rain or storm or raging water threatening to attack them; it wasn't even cold that afternoon, and yet... Fern was wearing his jacket. Full-on wearing his jacket, with his arms through their sleeves as it's supposed to be instead of just having it over their shoulders cape-style. It was wrinkled, too, as if Fern had had it on for a while, and it was zipped all the way up like their own personal cocoon.

"You're late today," Fern pointed out with his usual tone, his usual posture, trying his best to act like nothing was different despite everything being different. Arcade blinked in response, his brain still processing the view in front of him, still looking for a reason that explained the warmth blooming inside his chest, the overwhelming need to smile just because his friend looked so warm and cozy and safe while wearing his clothes.

"You have the jacket on," he muttered, pointing out the obvious like an idiot. Fern's response was to get so evidently flustered that Arcade's breath caught in his throat: their face flushed immediately, a faint blush reaching even the tips of their ears, and their wings perked up in a somewhat defensive stance, as if they weren't expecting the comment and were taken aback by it. Arcade never thought his words could make them react like that.