A/N: Tumblr (which is where I spend 90% of my time) has an odd obsession with flower crowns. And since I don't have photoshop, this is the only way I can participate in the flower crown epidemic. Enjoy.
.
.
.
When the members of the 2nd Ship get stressed, Nai is almost always the first to know. Even if people don't actually say anything, their emotions flow out of them. Gareki is shorter with him than usual and throws things at Yogi, who is quieter when under stress and doesn't protest when Gareki slams the door in his face. Hirato is friendlier in a frightening way, and his words can be trusted even less than usual. Tsukumo closes herself off to everyone.
Nai doesn't like it.
He wants his friends to be happy; it stresses him out when they aren't because he never really knows what to do to cheer them up. He's tried hugging people—it always cheered him up when Karoku used to hug him—but it doesn't really work on anyone except Yogi, though one person is better than none.
He's outside one day, alone except for the presence of the Sheep who are keeping an eye on him. It's warm but not uncomfortably so, and he's at perfect peace as he lies on his back in the grass, feeling the sun on his cheeks and the wind in his hair. He wonders vaguely if there's anything he can possibly do to raise the spirits of his friends. A flower petal drifts off and lands conveniently on the tip of his nose, making him sneeze and sit up. The flowers in this meadow are beautiful; if only he could take them back with him, he could cheer up the Ship with them. No one can be sad when they're looking at pretty flowers, after all.
One of the Sheep clambers up into Nai's lap and happily lets him pet it. Nai gazes at the rim of its hat absentmindedly, and slowly but surely a brilliant idea forms in his head.
Gareki and Yogi are Nai's first victims.
He finds them in his and Gareki's room, Yogi sitting in Nai's bed with a sheepish expression and Gareki on his back reading above. Gareki doesn't stir as Nai enters, but Yogi's face lights up with a smile. "Nai-chan! You're back! Did you have fun?" he asks, and the boy nods with a grin. "…what's that you have behind your back?"
Out of the corner of his eye, Nai sees Gareki roll onto his side to face them and prop himself up with his elbow. "I brought you flowers," the niji says shyly, and he produces two flower crowns.
Yogi leans down so Nai can set one on top of his head, and the man looks as if he's so touched he's about to cry. He stands and gathers Nai up in his arms, nearly crushing the other crown in the process. "Thank you!" He looks up at Gareki, who has been watching with an air of indifference. "Gareki-kun, you should put on yours too." He lifts Nai up, trying to give him leverage to put the crown on Gareki, but the black haired boy scoots back against the wall with a snort.
"As if I'd wear something like that," he scoffs. At Nai's crushed expression, his eyes seem to waver, and he snatches the flowers out of the niji's hands with a soft "hmph." The tips of his ears are scarlet as he puts it on his head, but Nai's face is elated as Yogi sets him down. "See? It's stupid."
Nai shakes his head quickly as Yogi responds, "You look so cute! We should get one of the Sheep to take our picture together!"
Nai scurries from the room, escaping just before he hears the sound of something being thrown at Yogi's face. But in spite of his protests, he knows he saw Gareki smile.
Next is Tsukumo. He runs into her in the hall and almost causes her to spill the hot cup of tea in her hand.
Once she recovers from her surprise, she tilts her head quizzically at him. "What's wrong, Nai-chan? Are you looking for Gareki?"
"I'm looking for you!" Nai blurts out, and Tsukumo is surprised by the boy for the second time in the span of ten seconds. Nai holds out a flower crown for her, but she doesn't move, uncertainty written on her face. "This is for you," the boy clarifies, taking her hand and pressing the crown into it. "It goes on your head!"
Tsukumo closes her fingers around the crown and gingerly sets it atop her head. "Thank you," she murmurs, and upon catching a glimpse of her reflection in a window, she smiles.
"You look so pretty," Nai tells her sincerely, earning another small smile and slight blush.
He can hear her humming quietly as they both continue down the hall in opposite directions.
Hirato is more difficult to track down than any of the others, but Nai is able to follow Akari's voice to find him. The doctor is apparently angry about something Hirato has done, which doesn't come as a surprise to Nai or anyone else within earshot. Akari always seems stressed out, so even though Nai wasn't sure if the doctor was going to be on the ship or not, he made an extra flower crown just in case.
He finds he is correct; the moment he enters the conference room where Hirato and Akari are he sees the captain with his hands up and the doctor inches from his face with a scowl. Nai stands quietly in the doorway, unsure of how to approach the men, until Hirato notices him.
"What is it?" he asks with a very unpleasantly pleasant smile. Akari turns toward him too, and Nai swallows, a bit nervous under the gaze of the two adults.
"I made these." He holds out the flower crowns, and Hirato lifts an eyebrow while Akari just stares. "For you," he adds after a pause.
Hirato is the one who takes both crowns and plops one down on top of Akari's head, simply smirking as the doctor's scowl deepens. Hirato takes off his hat and holds it to his chest, letting the flowers have a place on his head instead. Nai is proud to see that even though Akari's eyes are narrow, he doesn't make any move to take off the crown, which means he must like it.
"I imagine your nurses would all have hernias if you returned to Research Tower with that, but there's no harm in wearing it while you're on 2nd Ship, right?" Hirato asks Akari with a grin, and the other man sighs deeply.
"I'll… wear it here," Akari says with some difficulty, and Nai practically beams at him.
By the end of the day, all of the crew of 2nd Ship, including a number of the Sheep, is adorned with colorful flower crowns.
Even Gareki wears his throughout the rest of the day, though he does take it off before bed, telling Nai "If I sleep on it, I'll crush it, idiot." Nai doesn't mind. Lying in his bunk below Gareki, he finds himself proud with the knowledge that his actions cheered up his friends. Even if he hadn't been the one to make them happier, he would still be pleased that someone had.
He sleeps with a smile that night.