Olfactory

Date/Timing: 20 May 2006
Setting: Gottlieb home; Berlin, Germany
.
Hermann shivers in his bathers, but smiles at Bastien, similarly dressed and standing in the bathtub, and asks, „Are we ready for this?“
„Yup!“ Bastien flashes thumbs up.
Hermann stretches, lifts down the handheld shower head, passes it over—
Bastien starts the water.
—sits on the rim of the tub carefully holding his wings over the basin.
„Thank you for helping me.“
„„You're welcome.““
/Splishing as Bastien tests the temperature.
„„You wanna check it?““
„I trust you.“
„„Then, here we go~!““
Body temperature—perfect—water flows over and between the feathers of his left wing, then the right.
Hermann leans forward to offset the steadily increasing weight of the waterlogged limbs.
„„I think I got it all.““
„It certainly feels like you did,“ drawls Hermann, shoulders aching from the pull against them. „Time for soap, then.“ 
„„How'd you do this while you were in England?““
„Rather poorly.“ Hermann grimaces. „I missed a lot of places with the shampoo.“
Bastien makes a sad noise.
„What're you thinking?“
„„I'm thinking you'll need to take me with you when you go back,““ he snickers.
„I'd love to, but we'll have to see if we can make it work.“
„„I don't take up much space and I don't eat mu—““
„You eat like an entire football side, Bunny.“
„„I'm /growing!““
„Sideways.“
„„I don't /have to help, you know.““
„My apologies. Please continue eating like an entire football—“
„„I'm go—““
„Sorry, sorry.“
Bastien huffs.
Squeaking as his shifts and nabs the soap bottle.
„„You're /sure you want to use this stuff?““
„Yes.“
„„/Really sure?““
Hermann twists around. „Yes. Is there a reason I shouldn't?“
Bastien looks away, shuffles his feet. „It, uh, smells a little girly?“
„What does that mean?“
„I think this is the same stuff Sofie uses?“
Hermann frowns. „May I smell it again?“
Bastien hands over the bottle and Hermann fills his lungs.
Strawberry, maybe a smidge of vanilla ... and very, /very sweet.
"If he's fucking with me, I'll ...," mutters Hermann, passing it back.
„What was that?“
„Nothing.“
Bastien crosses his arms over the bottle. „You said one of the words my English teacher says never to say.“
Hermann faces front again. „Well, they're wrong. 'Nothing' is sometimes the best thing to say.“
Silence.
Hermann smirks, waits for it.
„„That's not funny.““
„Yes, it is.“
Bastien heaves a spectacular sigh. „„I'm gonna start soaping now so I can get away from you and your 'jokes'.““
„Awww ....“
„„Shush.““
Bastien makes quick (at least it's quicker than Hermann could manage on his own) work of soaping up and then rinsing out Hermann's feathers, then climbs out of the tub and digs under the sink for the hair dryer.
Hermann tries to press as much water as he can from his wings with a towel.
They still drip and, even with the dryer, take an /age to return to their normal weight.
Hermann gives them an experimental flutter, tells Bastien over the whirring, „That's enough.“
The ticklish air flow stops.
„Thank you, Bunny. I'll clean up in here.“
„Cool.“ Bastien climbs out the tub, grabs a towel from the rack, wraps it around his waist. „I'll be in the sitting room after I change if you need me.“
Hermann acknowledges.
Bastien skips off.
Hermann takes a deep breath—strawberry-scented!—pushes to his feet. A quick flick and he has a dry towel around his waist. He gathers up sodden feathers from the bathtub, stuffs them into the biohazard box beneath the sink. Hangs the wettest towels on the shower rod to dry a bit, drapes the drier ones over the edge of the tub. Winds up the dryer cord and returns it to its place. After a last check for feathers (none found), he takes his cane and shuffles to his room.
Towel and bathers in the hamper, he layers up in a binder, shirt, and jumper, tucks his programming text under his arm, and heads to the sitting room.
Two steps through the entry and Bastien whips around.
„What's—“
„Oh my God, Manny!“
His video game makes a sad, 'game over' noise.
„What?“
„I can smell you from over /here!“ Grimaces. „/And you smell like a princess party.“
Hermann blinks. „What, exactly, does a princess party smell like?“
„/Pink, Manny. You smell /pink.“ Wrinkles his nose. „No one's gonna take you seriously.“
Hermann's heart sinks as he drops himself in a chair. „I'll just have to hope it wears off before Monday, then.“
„/Definitely.“
Category:Ficlet
Category:Berlin (setting)
Category:Hermann
Category:Hermann's POV
Category:Hermann has wings
Category:Hermann (ficlet)
Category:Bastien
Category:Bastien (ficlet)
Category:Edan (mention)
Category:Sofie (mention)
Category:Ficlets with images
Category:Hermann is a programmer