°•Mumbo's POV•°

Today was a little chilly, but I came prepared. The autumn weather is approaching quicker than I would like. The pumpkin flavors are going to start popping up in the café within the next week or so.

I keep checking my watch. I spent half an hour to get out of the city. I'm not entirely sure how long I have been walking around and sitting on the freezing park benches.

My hands are wrapped around his usual drink and a brown bag with new pumpkin sweets that I got out of stock early. I paid for it all so I can just show my appreciation for him.

A small breeze hits my cheeks, causing me to shiver at the cold contact. The ends of my striped scarf around my neck gently glide with the wind as it passes by. I wasn't really cold but a shiver would frequently make it's way down my spine now and then.

"Hey, Mumbo!" I heard the familiar voice, turning my head to look down the gravel pathway that stretches around the park. He smiles warmly with his same red sweater, but with a black jacket overlapping it.

The flower crown remained on his head, followed with the rainbow feathered necklace that swayed with the breeze. His purple wings are tucked behind his back and not spread out. A plain colored satchel hung around his smaller figure and ended at his hips.

I wonder what's inside.

He sits down beside me, beaming his usual joyful expression. I struggle to figure out what to say next and awkwardly hand out the items I bought for him.

"I-I just want to say thanks for coming in- uh often. You are r-really nice to me and very patient. I thought I should m-maybe get you something i-in return-"

Oh, goodness me. Why do my lips fail to stop stuttering?

Grian giggles like he did the day prior, which sent my heart to beat like a rapid drum. He grabs the items from my hold gently. His hands are warm as he takes the items slowly from my grip like he is contemplating if he wants to hold my hands or not.

"You didn't have to, Mumbo. But, thank you. That makes me really happy," he then suddenly stands up, items in his grasp. "Mumbo, can you follow me?"

"I- pardon?"

"Can you follow me somewhere? I want to bring you somewhere and give you something in return!" Grian begins to head off. I scramble onto my feet and follow closely beside him. He walks down the gravel path, leading into the more dense area of the woods. "Now, I don't see people come to this part often, so don't spoil this for me."

Grian veers off to the right, off of the trail, surprising me before I stumble to follow his quick pace. He weaves through a few thick trees that are coated in nothing but color-changing leaves, reaching into a clearing after a minute of leaves crunching under our feet.

The opening was a small, lush patch of grass with a small creek passing through the middle. Nature seemed to be undisturbed here, except for the little hammock that rested between two trees on the other side of the patch, just past the miniature creek. A small ring of stones was next to the hammock, full of nothing but ashes and twigs.

"It's nothing much, but I hope you like it. I generally come here to relax and read a book," Grian hops over the little stream of water to reach the hammock. I do so without struggling, thankfully. That would be embarrassing if I slipped and fell into a meekly, little water stream.

He sets the items I gave him next to the small, man-made fire pit. He sits down on the grass blades in front of the hammock, patting the spot beside him to signal me to sit down. I do as I am silently told, sitting down next to Grian a little farther than I hope.

"Why do you trust me with this?" I asked, looking around the small but lovely area. Birds chattered amongst one another and fly through the trees. The trees have long enough branches and flourishing leaves to cover the vast majority of the sunlight.

"You seem like a nice guy. I don't know... I just... Every fiber in my body trusts you. You seem to be good without any weird or fake vibes. I like that," he takes a sip from his drink.

Okay, if he can't hear my heart before, I'm sure as all hell he can hear my heart right now. He sets the drink back down on the dirt and opens the brown bag with curiosity. His blue eyes begin to sparkle with literal stars as they go wide.

"These aren't even out yet!" He gasps and pulls the treats out, setting them down on his crossed lap. "You seriously didn't have to!"

"I insist. Trust me, it was worth it to see you smile," I quickly shut up, pursing my lips tightly into a thin line at what I said. I can see the faint pink that dusted along his face as he laughed shyly.

"Thank you. I should repay you," he says, breaking apart one of the pumpkin vanilla sugar cookies and popping a piece into his mouth.

"I should be the one repaying you, Grian. You the best customer," I reply, shuffling a little bit to get more comfortable.

"Oh, come on. I'll feel bad then."

"Okay okay. Uhm-" I look at his purple wings. "May I er- may I pet one of your wings? I know it sounds weird but they look so-"

Grian looks up in surprise, a small crumb falling from his lips. He casts another smile. I wonder how his face is not sore from all that smiling.

"Sure!" He stuffs the rest of the cookie into his mouth, crunching on it happily. His wings spread out a little bit, enough for me to reach out and stroke the feathers.

Holy kittens, his wings, and feathers feel like absolute silk. My fingers are delicately run down direction of his feathers, feeling the smooth curves also. The shade of lilac purple was just beautiful under the warm cast of the sun's rays today.

"Oh my goodness-" I breathe out, being extremely surprised by the feeling of my hand on his feathers. I sometimes pull away, fearing I might pull a feather or twist one out of place. Grian must've noticed because he chuckles quietly with a blush rising back up to his cheeks.

"You don't have to be very delicate, Mumbo. They are feathers. I can pluck one off if I want to," he says while peeling the wrapping off of a pumpkin muffin coated with sugar on top.

"Don't you feel that though?"

"Yeah. It feels like a pinch for a few seconds then the pain just vanishes. It's fine if you want to pet it more. They are not super sensitive or anything," he takes a bite from the savory muffin and chews on it for a moment. Grian reaches his hands down to his satchel and pulls something out.

I was too caught up to actually notice Grian pulling something from his bag. He looks at me, which instantly makes me pause my hands in mid-air. He giggles a little bit, mouth full of pumpkin muffin, and puts the item on my head quickly. I only saw a red and green blur before he placed it on top of my head.

I take my phone from my pocket and open up the camera so it faces me.

Flower crown?

I tuck my phone into my jacket's pocket, feeling a smile draw across my lips. My fingers lightly poke the petals and stem holding the crown together.

"I just thought it would be a nice, small gift. I hope you like it."

"Are you kidding me? I love it!" A wide smile makes its way to my face. Grian smiles back and I swear I saw him scoot a little bit closer to me. He puts the last of the pumpkin muffin into his mouth and begins to eat it. He twists his body a little bit and lets his hands venture into his bag again.

I saw him pull out a ukulele. He looks at me and I nod to silently confirm that he can play it. He tunes the strings, plucking them a few times with his fingers to make sure they sound correct.

Grian begins to strum the ukulele while softly singing.

"Hey, Grian?"

"Hm?" He pauses and looks back up at me. I tug at the collar of my jacket a small bit and laugh uncomfortably, a little embarrassed at my next question.

"You wouldn't mind if you teach me how to play the ukulele? I only know the ukulele has F and C major chords for the most part." His eyes go wide with more sparkles.

"Of course! Here!" He hands me the little guitar. I look at him a little puzzled. His laugh rings into my ears, making my face flush a strong crimson. "Okay okay, here. First, you need to know how to hold it," Grian readjusts the instrument in my hold. After I got it correct, I realized how easier it feels. "And here is how you strum."

The rest of the day went on like that. I was really happy during the day, except for the humiliating times where my nails would pluck a string roughly. He would just laugh it off with a wave of his hand.

The sun was starting to cast a variety of colors across the sky. Grian picked up his garbage from the treats and shoved them into his bag. He grabbed the ukulele also, putting it inside his bag. We hop over the little creek and head back to the winding gravel trail.

"I had fun today," Grian chirps, a dash of red falling down his cheeks. "We should hang out again soon."

"Yeah, I completely agree." Our feet crunch the mini pebbles in unison. The dense trees began to clear out one by one as we exit out of the forest.

"How can I show my gratitude?" Grian asks, making me look down at him.

"Gratitude?" Grian nods, intertwining his fingers together shyly and looks ahead to avoid eye contact. "Grian, you don't have to show me gratitude for anything."

"But it seems wrong to just..."

"To just what?"

Grian looks up at me. His expression looks more serious than usual, no smile on his lips and his eyes are swirling with different emotions. The trail ends at the parking lot, where we pause. Grian bites his lower lip and looks around.

What happened next startled me. He went on his toes, giving me a quick peck on the cheek before running off to his car, waving toward me. "See you later, Mumbo!" He gets into his car and slams the driver door shut. I promptly hear his horn honk a little bit probably because he slammed his head down in embarrassment. I laugh, face more flushed than I have ever felt it. My cheeks are on fire and my heart is just hurting a little bit due to the immense beating.

I can't wait to tell Iskall about this.