This was it. There was no doubt about it. This was most definitely the universe's way of telling Julius that he was just too fabulous.
That's the only reason he could think of as to why he was spending Valentine's Day completely and utterly alone.
Julius looked wearily into his vanity's mirror, seeing nothing particularly out of the ordinary; his face was always this polished, perfectly matte and glowing in the proud reflection that stared back at him. His eyes were always accentuated carefully to match the translucent layer of color on his eyelids—just enough to bring out his eye color, but not enough to wash him out completely, of course. He'd chosen his favorite heart-shaped earrings too, because, why not? It was Valentine's Day, for Goddess' sake.
A day of love and sweet nothings, and spending time with that special someone...
No, he decided, banishing it just as quickly as he considered it. It wouldn't do to entertain that thought any further.
It was true, at the very least, that no one should be alone on such a joyous evening. One particular woman sprang to Julius' mind when he considered his options. The wine had just finished chilling, his bag was chock-full of delicious sweets, and a lovely bouquet of roses had been freshly cut by his own two hands.
Julius' date for the evening was waiting for him... she just didn't know it yet.
The harder Julius banged on the door, the worse his grip on the bag of chocolates and goodies became. If she didn't hurry and open the door, they were going to be eating this candy off the ground. And there was nothing even remotely romantic about that disgusting mental image. He had a key of his own, of course, but...
"Coming," a soft voice could be heard from behind the door, drowned out only by the hurried shuffling accompanying it.
When the door finally opened, Mira looked even more surprised to see him than he'd expected; it was as if she hadn't already seen him earlier in the day while they were working hard on last minute accessory orders—this time of year was good for business, at least.
Was it really that surprising that he'd pay her a visit tonight?
"Hurry, hurry, I'm about to drop all this stuff!" Julius barged in past her, barely able to see over the tall stalks of the roses balanced against his chest. "What took you so long, Mira?! It's freezing out here!"
The older woman let out a chuckle, an eyebrow raised and suspicious as she shut the door behind him. "Well, for one, I wasn't expecting you..."
"You think I'd let my favorite boss spend such an important night all by herself?" Julius smirked at her, relieved now that his hands were empty and he could pull her into a tight embrace. "I didn't tell you I was coming because it was supposed to be a surprise, you know."
He booped her gently on the nose.
"Well, color me surprised."
He let go of her only to rush back to the goods. "Well, first things first—Happy Valentine's Day, honey." The roses were so beautiful they were practically shining.
"They're lovely, Julius, you really didn't have to," Mira beamed, already on a mission for a vase. "Thank you... for thinking of me. But the only chocolates I had for you are the ones I already gave you earlier today... I'm sorry."
"Well, I came prepared, so there's nothing to worry about!" He spread an assortment of chocolates and cakes across her kitchen table. "I even convinced Chase to make you something special this year~..." Julius winked, presenting her with a plush, blue velveteen box. Its contents were wrapped underneath a small but intricate layer of ribbons and bows. He motioned for her to open it.
"Oh Julius, you really didn't have to go through the trouble..." Mira sat down with the box, opening it to reveal her favorite orange cake—Chase's specialty, if you could get him motivated enough to actually make it for you. Unfortunately, Chase didn't work on commissions... he worked on whatever the hell he wanted to work on. But Julius had been prepared for that, too. "Let me get us a knife."
"No, ma'am, this little cake is all yours. So grab yourself a fork and dig in. I won't accept a single crumb of it! Of course, I was hoping to share the rest of these chocolates with you, though." Julius grinned, tearing away the packaging of a small box of caramels. "Open wide..."
"Please, you don't have to feed me—mmf!" Mira erupted into a small fit of choked laughter once the gooey chocolate piece had been shoved into her mouth. "Julius! You're going to make me sick, please, no more!" she giggled in between more bites.
"No, I insist," he teased mercilessly. "After all, I made a promise to your husband that I'd always make sure you were well-fed and taken care of." This time, he put one of the chocolates in his own mouth instead, smiling delicately at her once he'd swallowed it completely.
Mira watched him solemnly for a moment before her eyes lit up at the thought. "A promise, you say?" she asked, intrigued. "Though I'm certain he didn't mean for you to hand-feed me chocolates in his place! How jealous he would be if he saw us now..."
It had been a long time since they'd talked so frankly about Mira's late husband like this. It almost took Julius by surprise that Mira could talk about him at all... just a few months ago, she couldn't hear his name without bursting into unstoppable tears. It was a sore subject, in all literal and figurative meanings of the word.
But Mira had changed considerably.
And there was only one person to thank for that. Life hadn't been the same lately. Things had taken an unexpected turn for the better, especially considering what Mira had been through.
After all, this year had already proven to be a smooth recovery from last year's grief thanks to a certain little someone Julius couldn't get out of his mind tonight, no matter how hard he tried.
"Not that I don't enjoy your company, but you know I have to ask..." Mira tightened her shawl around her shoulders, as if expecting a breeze of cold air. "Why aren't you spending time with Molly tonight?"
Speak of the devil...
Julius paled under her scrutiny. He knew that subject was going to come up sooner or later, but now of all times...? Recently, Mira had become quite bold when it came to poking into his love-life.
"Molly?" he repeated, innocently crossing his arms over his chest. "Why do you ask?"
Mira narrowed her eyes at him, a warning in its own right. "Because she's your girlfriend, Julius. You can't tell me you truly intended to spend the evening with me in place of her."
"Th-That's a very personal question, don't you think?!" Julius snapped back. He could already feel his cheeks rising in color to match the roses in between them. "What's wrong with me wanting to spend time with you?" He sent her a look of feigned disappointment, and a convincing pout to match.
"I'm being serious. I want to know why you're not with her."
When Mira wanted to be, she was stern enough to snap anyone into whatever shape she pleased, and Julius was sadly no exception. A truly formidable opponent when it came to matters of love... and war.
"Alright, alright, fine. There's no need for that salty look." Julius bit his lip, chewing nervously at the skin there. "The truth is, I... I think Molly's been avoiding me the past few days." The words hurt worse than the shame he felt admitting the doubt out-loud. "Every time I tried to ask her about Valentine's Day, she just blew me off and started avoiding me completely. You know how insecure I get about these things, so I decided I'd just let her come to me if she truly wanted to spend time with me." He looked down sadly at the half-demolished chocolates littering the table. "And here we are."
"Are you certain she's been ignoring you, and not just busy with... her farm-work instead?" Mira tried her best to brainstorm on her own. "Perhaps she just got behind schedule, and forgot to tell you..."
"You know as well as I do that Molly's not like that," Julius answered. "She's always honest about these things... her blatant honesty is one of her charms, even. One of the reasons I... fell in love with her."
Mira's ears perked up at the admission. It wasn't as if it was some big secret that he cared deeply for Molly, but... "Well, if you love her like you say, I think you should talk to her."
Julius frowned. "I've been trying, Mira. I know two wrongs don't make a right, but I'm not going to keep trying to talk to someone that doesn't want to talk to me. I-I've done my part."
He reached down to secure another tasty caramel. At the very least he had sweets here to console him—it was easier to eat his feelings than to actually confront them.
"I don't know what I could've possibly done to upset her," he continued, thinking out loud. "Was it something I said? I keep racking my brain, and... hey, you know me better than anyone, do you think I come off too aggressive sometimes? D-Do you think I try too hard when it comes to my relationships?"
Mira chuckled behind her hand. "You're definitely more romantic than most, but I wouldn't say that's a bad thing," she said truthfully. "Maybe she's just scared."
"What's that supposed to mean? You think that I... scared her away with my feelings? That I come off too strong, and—"
"Julius, that's not what I meant, you're jumping to—"
"Surely she knows I would never try something indecent with her... ugh, it's not like I was going to invite her over for Valentine's Day and then ambush her in the bedroom, wearing nothing but rose petals and a smile!"
"That's not—are you even listening to me—?"
"I'm a gentleman, and I'm offended she'd think anything less of me...!"
"I really don't want to picture that, Julius, please calm down..." Mira swatted the idea away like a pesky fly. "You're being paranoid. Sometimes these things are just... complicated. Sometimes, there are things you don't understand about a person until you ask them."
Julius really didn't like feeling desperate. He always liked to think there wasn't a desperate bone in his body.
He liked even less to be proven wrong.
"So you think I should just go up to her and ask her, 'oh hi, Molly, why are you avoiding me?' Ugh, how pathetic! I-I could never do that."
Mira shook her head, sighing. "I'm only saying you should tell her how you really feel."
"That... I love her?" he scoffed, fidgeting with his rings. "I might be a pretty confident guy, but there's no way I could say something like that, especially right now!"
"I thought you told me you have a blue feather ready for her." Mira smiled knowingly. "I don't know why you'd even do that if you didn't think she'd say yes."
Julius sighed dramatically, reaching into his pocket. In truth, he'd been keeping the blue feather on his person at all times, in case he did have a sudden rush of confidence one day, and the mood was just right. It never hurt to be prepared, right?
But looking down at the silky blue feather right now made him feel the exact opposite about the situation.
"So beautiful," Mira commented, staring longingly at the feather in his hands. "I'll never forget the day I was handed one of those. I can assure you, there's no greater gift for a girl to receive. Why not give it to her tonight, on Valentine's Day...?" She nudged his arm playfully. "You do still want to marry her, don't you?"
"O-Of course I do... it's all I can think about!" Julius stuffed the feather back into his pocket, a stubbornness returning that he hadn't realized he'd lost in the first place. "Sometimes I lie awake at night, just thinking about how happy I'd be if she said 'yes,' and how proud I'd be to call her my wife one day." He laughed derisively at himself. "It's so cliche and cheesy, I know, but she's all I can think about, Mira. That's why this hurts so much..."
"She's a very special girl," Mira confirmed, reaching for his hand. "You know how much I love to see you two happy. You're like the son I never had, and I know my husband felt the same way about you."
"Mira..." Julius gripped her hand tighter.
"You're special to me, too. That's why I can't... simply sit by and watch you torment yourself over something that has nothing to do with you." Mira looked over her shoulder and cleared her throat at the bedroom door, as if it was listening. "Isn't that right, Molly?"
Julius blinked. "Huh?"
It all happened so fast. The doorknob behind them twisted, and when the door finally creaked open, the last person Julius expected to see was standing right there in the doorway to Mira's bedroom. In a pretty black dress. With tears stained down her cheeks.
Molly?!
It was times like these Julius wished he was better with words—wished he was some sort of dreamy, lovesick casanovan poet—because maybe then, he could accurately describe how she made him feel when she looked him straight in the eyes like this... so innocent and yet knowing. The fire that always danced in them, even when she didn't even realize it, and the undeniable power it always held over him.
Julius was an avid believer of the Harvest Goddess, no two ways about it, but Molly was a goddess in her own right.
"Well, this is awkward," she joked, wiping at her face. "Um, hi, everyone."
"M-Molly?!" Julius jumped up from his seat so fast that he felt dizzy once he was finally balanced on his feet. "I swear to the Goddess Tree, if you've been hiding in Mira's room, listening all this time...!"
Mira and Molly both exchanged guilty smiles. "I heard... every word." She quickly walked over to wrap him into hug. "I'm so sorry, I wasn't trying to eavesdrop, but... I came here to spend time with Mira, too!"
"Why didn't you just say so?" he rasped, on the verge of tears himself. He pulled her tighter against him until he couldn't pull anymore. How he'd missed her—so much that he worried he might actually crush her in his tight grip if he wasn't careful.
"I'm sorry, I just... really wanted to come see Mira tonight, and I didn't know how to tell you! I was afraid you'd be mad if I told you I was busy tonight with someone else, so I...!" She sighed in lieu of finishing her thought. "And please don't be mad at Mira. When you showed up tonight, I made her promise to keep me being here a secret!"
"I'm not angry," he assured her, letting go to lock their eyes. "I'm just relieved..."
"Ahem." Mira stood up, smiling to herself. "Well, I'll give you two a moment alone... I'm going to the restroom."
When she was gone, Molly turned back to face Julius, who was trying desperately to figure out what exactly was going on here, though to no avail of his own.
"So you... really heard all that?" he grimaced, unable to hide the rising flush of his cheeks. "What I said... about you? And about us?"
Molly shrugged. "I heard some things. Especially that part about the rose petals..." She winked.
"Oh, of course you did." Julius rolled his eyes. "And what else did you hear?"
"Well, I might have heard that you love me..."
"Uh-huh?"
"And that you... can't sleep, because you're always thinking about me, and it keeps you up all night long."
"Do you have to say it like that?" he sighed. "That makes me sound like some kind of pervert."
Molly let her hand drop further down his waist until she could feel around in his pocket. "And what's this? Is that a blue feather in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?"
"N-No!" Julius stopped her, pulling away. It was too late. The feather was, assuredly, already poking out enough that anyone in the radius of twenty feet could see it. "That's just, uh... a new accessory of mine. Going to make it into a bracelet, or something, you know?"
"Julius, you hate feathers," Molly corrected him, hands defiant and unyielding on her hips. "You told me when we first met that feathers were the biggest fashion faux-pas in all of Castanet, and that they only belonged on birds and inside blankets and pillows."
Julius took a step backwards, an unsuccessfully useless attempt to pull away and ground himself. He wasn't ready for this, but he had no choice but to be ready. The cat was already out of the bag now, so why wait any longer...?
After all... a chance like this may not come again—or at least, he certainly hoped so. He wasn't sure how much his poor heart could handle going through something like this again...
Mira poked her head back in the room. "Do you two still need more time...?" she asked meekly, eyes glossy and proud at the sight of them holding hands and gawking at each other like teenagers. Maybe it wasn't too obvious how clueless they were about how to continue forward.
"Come back in here, Mira... I'd like for you to be here, too." Julius' uncertainty blossomed into a smile as he pulled the blue feather out—proudly this time. "I don't think Molly here has any objections to you sharing this moment with us, hmm?"
"J-Julius!" Molly stammered. "You mean you're really going to...?"
"It's not like you've left me much of a choice, now have you?" He winked at her. "Although... I can always count on the two of you to give me that final push I need to face my fears."
Mira stood with her back against the door-frame, tears welling in her eyes. Julius had no idea how this had escalated into something so unexpected and chaotic, but...
It was worth it just to see these two girls so happy, he decided with bated breath; maybe an exhale or two would do him some good.
He slipped Molly's hands into his own. "Molly, darling... please marry me! I'm sorry that I've been avoiding you when I should have just talked to you and told you exactly how much you mean to me in the first place." He pulled her closer. "I didn't know how you truly felt about me anymore, and... I got scared. Scared that you were spending Valentine's Day with someone else, or that you just didn't want to see me anymore... but now I know the truth. And this is something I've been wanting to say for a long time."
"Julius..." Molly breathed, barely audible.
"You already know this, you naughty little eavesdropper, but... Molly, I love you. You're my treasure. Please be my wife, and make me the happiest man in the world."
"I love you, too," Molly choked between tears of joy. "Y-Yes, of course! I accept!"
It took every bit of self-control Julius had bottled up to not sweep aside the chocolates covering the table and throw his new fiancee down on it in a moment of passion, but he thankfully remembered they had an audience. He'd keep this kiss rated for all ages for now.
"Oh, congratulations, you two," Mira said, still wiping her tears. "Thank you so much for letting me witness such a beautiful moment... this was truly the best Valentine's Day I could have ever wished for."
"Me too," Molly said, looking up to lock eyes with Julius. "Thank you, love. Speaking of which, I totally have you some chocolates and roses at the house, you know. I... was obviously going to pay you a visit tonight after I saw Mira."
"Well, that's news to me," he added dryly. "I thought you were never going to speak to me again."
"Don't be ridiculous." Molly pulled him to the door. "But I'm sorry, too... for panicking and not being honest with you. At least Mira was here to talk some sense into us."
"Oh please, I did nothing of the sort." Mira chuckled awkwardly. "All I've done is listen to both of you be self-conscious about your feelings for each other... and it hasn't been easy trying to keep all your secrets, you know."
"Secrets?" Julius asked suspiciously between them. "You mean there are more things you two are keeping from me?"
Molly froze. "U-Uh, so, anyway, l-let's go back to my place and get your chocolates, okay? And we'll get out of your hair, Mira."
She tugged longingly at Julius' sleeve.
"Don't worry about me, you two go enjoy the rest of your night together." Mira smiled warmly at them, that same genuine, eternal smile Julius never thought he'd see again.
How had everything become so perfect...? Ever since Molly had come to the island, rang the bells, and...
"I hope you enjoy your cake, Mira," Julius cooed, giving her a final hug. "And I'll see you tomorrow."
He'd let them off the hook this time. Though it seemed like he'd been stuck in this little ruse of theirs from the very beginning, at least things had turned out for the best.
When they were finally outside and alone, Molly reached up to instigate a much more passionate kiss. "I love you," she whispered. "I can't believe that just happened. Sorry if I pressured you."
"No, I've wanted to give you that feather for such a long time now... but, well, you know the story, now don't you?"
Molly giggled. "So, my place, right?" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "And about that thing you said earlier, about wearing nothing but rose petals and a smile..."
"Good Goddess, Molly, you little minx," Julius shoved her playfully. "I'm never going to live that one down, am I?! Well, all I can say is you better be careful what you wish for."
Molly looked up at the sky, casting a quick side-glance to the almost-hidden, familiar path that lead to the Goddess Spring as they walked past it.
Wishes, huh...?
"Don't I know it," she said to herself, burying her head in Julius' coat. She'd have to thank the Goddess personally one day soon, now that her own personal wish in Castanet had finally been granted.
"I still want to know about all these 'secrets' you've been keeping from me, you know." Julius looked down at her mischievously.
"It's just, girl-things. You wouldn't be interested in half the things Mira and I talk about...!"
He had no intentions of backing down now. Not after tonight's events. "Oh yeah? Like what? Give me an example, and I'll tell you if I'm interested in that particular topic or not."
"Like..."
"Yes, Molly dear? I'm waiting."
Molly fidgeted beside him, an adorable mix of embarrassment and aloofness in her stance. "Well, I've... always wanted to be a bride."
He couldn't help but blush at her refreshing honesty. "I... I see. And that's the sort of thing you've been talking to Mira about behind my back lately?"
"U-Ugh, you make me so flustered sometimes, you know." Molly pouted. "But that's why I love you, I guess."
Julius let out a quiet chuckle. "I do have that effect on people, don't I? Fine, I'll let you off the hook this time." He narrowed his eyes. "But from here on out... no more secrets, okay?"
Molly hesitated. "No more secrets... I promise. Although..."
"What is it?"
"Well... um... what would you do if I told you I might have already busted into some of the chocolates I got for you..."
"Molly!" Julius gasped, mock-appalled at the thought... or maybe it was at least half-genuine; it was hard to tell with Julius one way or another. "How could you! So you really did have no intentions of giving me chocolate today!"
"N-No, it's not that...!" She gripped tighter on his arm. "I just... well, I thought I could make it up to you in... other ways."
"That's inexcusable, you know-! Wait... what?" Julius couldn't help but raise a satisfied eyebrow.
"Hey! I didn't mean it like that, I was actually talking about... well... this." Molly let out a defeated sigh and pulled out an unexpected blue feather of her own from her tattered rucksack. "No more secrets, right...?"
Julius couldn't help but gawk at the feather until a smirk finally broke through his confusion. "So... this is why I haven't seen much of you lately?"
Molly nodded. "Between actually getting this thing, and then trying to work up the courage to finally give it to you..."
He pulled her into another swift, crushing embrace.
"I'm... terribly sorry," he sighed suddenly. "I hate to do this, but I guess I have no choice but to decline your proposal."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Molly growled, a sudden spasm in her heart.
"Well, my dear Molly, as of tonight, it appears I'm already engaged, so~..." Julius tickled the other blue feather teasingly over her face.
Molly snatched it from his fingers. "You're such a dork. Get in this house before I change my mind about marrying you at all."
He winked at her, following her into the quaint little farmhouse that, before long, would be his home, too. "You wouldn't dare."
As it turned out, of course there was a perfectly good reason Julius almost spent Valentine's Day alone. And it had everything to do with his devious new fiancee, and his unassuming, scheming boss...
And naturally, it goes without saying that it was also the universe's way of telling him that he was just too fabulous for it to be any other way.
A/N: TEAM MIRA AS A WINGMAN FOR LIFE (sorry not sorry)
Happy Valentine's Day to the awesome Lucy Kay! I'm honored to have been your writing valentine. I hope you don't mind that I chose to post on the day itself, but I hope you enjoy this little random thing regardless :)