There was a gentle calmness to the warm summer night. The gentle babbling of a distant brook, the rustling of the forest leaves. The tender warmth on Lila's palm. The Falling Pool was always a good place to come after a long day of work, especially for those who went with the ones fell for. Such a series of Fall jokes about the Fall Maiden had already been saying. Rest assured, Lila wouldn't let that go. Cinder did her best to bear through it, something growing easier, as long as it was Lila's charming smile that came from the jokes.
Blanket, large and warm, laid beneath their backs. The pair watching lovingly up in the night's sky. Dancing stars twinkled calmly across the dull navy air, and the moon's shattered components formed a fantastical backdrop. A warmth joined their hands, the red quilt playing second fiddle to the Fall Maiden's heat.
"We're not going to see one." Cinder mused, "I watched the sky for years, never saw one shooting star." Lila scoffed in return, her brow creasing, "Sour puss, maybe tonight will break your streak?" They held their silence for a moment. The tension in their clasped hands growing with each passing second. "Cinder?" Lila asked, her breath tracking in with a huff. "Hmm?" The Fall Maiden grumbled in return.
Lila let out a lengthy sigh, rolling onto her side to look at Cinder's face. "Did you have a good day then?" She asked, cradling Cinder's hand in her own. Cinder tilted her head, smiling calmly at her partner. "It was okay. This makes it better, though." She raised her and Lila's hands together. A soft chuckle left Lila's thin lips. "I thought so. We haven't had a night under the stars in a while." Smiling in return, Cinder huffed a short laugh, "No, we haven't." She gasped a little, turning over to face Lila fully. "I missed it." Cinder said, her golden eye twinkling in the night air.
It had been three months, two weeks, and four days since Cinder had left Salem, and she felt as good as she did when she had left every single day. For every day she awoke on this red quilt, Cinder would have the pleasure and pride to see those glimmer lilac eyes. The love they held, it was shocking frankly that someone could hold so much.
Cinder shifted, bringing her and Lila closer together. "How was your day?" She asked, smiling at the small farmer in her grasp. Softly sighing, Lila nodded tiredly, "Long. Very long," Cinder's smile turned to a pout, that golden orb losing some of its lustre. "Oh, no? What made it so long?"
Lila took a moment to appreciate the genuine concern shown in the woman's eye. "Oh," She took in a deep sigh, "The market was packed, and the sun was so hot today. It was brutal." Cinder's pout only worsened. Lila feeling some of the heat withdraw from Cinder's hand. Cinder's voice came as a gasp, "I can be cooler if you wish. Would that make you feel better?" A shiver ran over Lila, though it was accompanied by a blush. "N-no, dear. It was hours ago. Your warmth is very much appreciated." Lila said with an exaggerated shiver. Very quickly, Cinder's warmth returned doubly, "Then I'll endeavour to make you feel comfortable."
The soft cooing left Lila's tired frame was utterly involuntary, the noise-making both Cinder and Lila blush. "Happy?" Cinder chuckled out, her prosthetic scratching her neck as she did so. Lila, momentarily embarrassed, forced a laugh. "Y-yeah. Sorry." Cinder shook her head, "N-no, don't be upset." The prosthetic as well rushing over to cradle Lila's shoulder. Cool metal nipping at the faintly exposed skin forced Lila even closer to her partner in a jump.
Practically within Cinder's arms, the Fall Maiden scoffed gently. "When I say don't be upset, I didn't mean be afraid, Lily." The musical tone that dripped from the Fall Maiden grew the redness on Lila's face. It is only in part visible due to the glow of Cinder's eye. "I-I wasn't afraid!" She protested in panic, "Your arm is freezing!" Cinder's face twisted into a faintly visible smirk. "It is metal, dear. But if you're cold, I wouldn't mind warming you up more?" The flesh arm of Cinder riled up underneath Lila, pulling the simple gardener into Cinder's broader chest.
Going stiff again from the sudden move, Lila's mouth spasmed a faint "O-oh." Noise. Making Cinder only laugh as she rested onto her back. Lila hauled up onto the Fall Maiden's front as she did so. "B-but the stars-?" Lila said, violently red in the dark air. A guttural huff left Cinder as her hands wrapped around Lila's waist, "Lil, I could look into your eyes all night long." She smiled, pulling the gardener even closer into an eye-widening kiss.
The gentle breeze feeling even warmer as the two entwined. Cinder and Lila's kiss evolving into more, making them miss the glimpse of a shooting star above.