"If you really have to sleep on the job, can you do it somewhere where you won't look like a slothful bag of feathers?"
Dark Pit didn't even bother to open his eyes. "I'm not sleeping on the job. I already did what you told me to do. I'm waiting for further orders."
"Sure, underneath the tree that you always nap under and never do anything else. Definitely somewhere you'd go if you wanted more work," Viridi's steps were light against the grass and stopped right beside his head. He heard her sit down. "Phosphora is already out and about, so you're off the hook for now. Don't bother moving."
Dark Pit lifted his head, waiting for a response, and when he heard her finish shifting, he laid his head back down on her lap. Her hand's movement through his hair was rhythmic and even, almost to the point where he could put it out of his mind if not for the confident force of her petting. She made it very clear that every time she touched him, she did so with intention.
Viridi stroked him like she would an animal or one of her "children". Every time she did so, he felt as if he was not so much of an angel as much as a powerful beast at rest, receiving a gesture from someone who understood his strength despite being above him. It was not like being touched by Palutena, a touch that made peace wash over his body like it was being poured from her palm.
He wondered if goddesses would be so particular as to exert their personal influences through such simple gestures of affection. Viridi scratched behind his ear, and he huffed air out of his nose. What a stupid question. Of course Viridi would bring out something deep and rumbling in his nature, and Palutena, mistress of light, would guide him towards calm.
"Silly bird," Viridi said under her breath. If Dark Pit had a tail, he felt as if he would have flicked it then. Instead, he turned so she could pet at other parts of his head. She complied with another scratch at his scalp.