Re: Wainright Manor: Hunter R & Damian W
At least they felt the same about gifts. Hunter had brought the gift for Damian, and Damian was free to dispose of it as he chose, and Hunter knew that. (This was why Hunter did not give animals as gifts, or believe in that kind of thing.) That Damian didn't value it as he did was clear, but Hunter wasn't deep enough to really go over the minute details of why he was quite so disappointed. Perhaps he wanted to impress Damian, despite how futile the attempt. Hunter reminded himself that family was usually shit, so there was no point in getting messed up about it. The oldest dog with the silver in her muzzle leaned into his knee, and he put a long bony hand down on her head without thinking. He felt a little better about it after rubbing the wiry hair at the back of her neck.
Confusion flickered twice in Hunter's eyes before he understood that Damian was taking Hunter's "you" personally. He gave him an odd look, not insulted by the cold look and hardly bothered by anything that wasn't outright physical threat. Hunter had experienced the lizard's stare from his foster home more times than he could count, and he preferred that to the alternative of focused attention and coming threat. Hunter turned his body to watch the fridge open with obvious interest. "Could stick an igloo in there," he commented, almost to himself and smiling slightly.
When Damian mentioned complexes, Hunter blinked again, a faint gold edged the sides of his lashes whenever he turned just right. Not cool and not blue at all. "Yeah, bet I do," he said, without apology. Again he gave Damian an uncertain look. He wasn't sure what being called family really entailed. "What is understood about family?" They both had different definitions, perhaps.
"M'dad's in a house out in the woods." Hunter gestured in a vague direction, demeanor changed. Becky immediately sat down on his other side, giving up on her nose-first investigation of the underside of the refrigerator. The puppy didn't notice, because one gold paw was working into a low cupboard to try to fish it open. "Told you about him," he said, frown deep.