Self Consciousness

Virinion stared at his right eye in the mirror he held. Rather than a light silver, a hazel blue stared back at him. He still couldn't believe he allowed, no, trusted, Volo to take the parasite out. What in the seven hells had he been thinking?! And in the end what did he have to show for it? Nothing, except a glass eye and a new scar. Virinion moved a hand to gingerly touch the side of his eye and hissed in pain. 

"Admiring yourself, darling?" 

Astarion's voice and approach made Virinion jump startled, he turned to look at the vampire from over his freckled shoulder. 

"Oh, Star, it's just you," he replied, using the pet name he had come up with for Astarion during their first night together. Astarion didn't object to it, so Virinion assumed the vampire was ok with it. "Just looking at the glass eye." 

"Hm, I honestly don't know what you were thinking. Letting Volo muck around your eye like that. A little stupid, if you ask me." Astarion said moving to sit beside Virinion. 

"Yeah, I'm an idiot. Apparently I didn't forget how to be one." Virinion frowned. "This is stupid, but I miss my eye. I remember, at least I think I remember, someone saying that my eyes were pretty once. That the silver had complimented the red." 

"That's not stupid." Astarion replied. "If it makes you feel any better, the glass eye is pretty as well. Not that lovely silver, mind you, but it's a blue hazel and that's pretty, too." 

"Oh, really?" Virinion asked blinking, unable to hide the blush that darkened his cheeks, making his freckles stand out even more. 

"Really." Astarion replied with a small smile. Gods he was easy to read. "Does it still hurt much? It's been a few days." 

"Quite a lot still. I can barely touch near it." 

"Didn't you ask Shadowheart to heal it?" Astarion asked raising an eyebrow. 

"...No, I was hoping it would heal on its own..." Virinion trailed off sheepishly. 

"Virinion, go find Shadowheart! You don't want that to get infected!" Astarion frowned, pointing towards the cleric's tent.  He'd never understand drow and their tendency to try and stay stoic. He watched as Virinion stood up and hurried over to Shadowheart's tent. 

As Viridian hurried over to Shadowheart's tent his mind wandered. Astarion seemed to be the only one who could get him to do something quite willingly. Usually requests, that is if Virinion didn't know the person first, were met with cold eyes and crossed arms. But Astarion seemed to be the key, and he could make the drow do pretty much anything with a simple statement. Viridian wondered if this was what love felt like. Not that he had a base of reference, if he had ever loved someone before, he certainly didn't remember it, not now. 

"Shadowheart," he started as he stopped in front of her tent. "Could you heal my eye?" 

"I'm surprised it took you this long, let me have a look." She said moving closer towards him and peering at the eye. "It's not too bad, but it looks angry. Here, a little bit of healing will help with that and get the swelling down. And the rest will be up to you." 

"Thank you," Virinion said with a toothy smile.