Seated on one side of a flat, circular rock, Honeymaren took the stack of flashcards Elsa offered and waggled a finger. "You ready? Anna talked up your intelligence pretty good the other day...I expect a hundred percent." She giggled as Bruni danced around behind her, blasting any of the wind-blown rain that got too close with a sizzling, purple fire.
"I'll get one ten." Elsa defiantly jutted out her chin, even as her stomach did flip-flops. She paled as she realized she had forgotten her shuffle-count, but clung to Anna's plan all the same.
'Whatever you do, don't let her shuffle the flash cards...they have to be in the right order!'
It was only after several stilted breaths, that Elsa realized she'd been staring all along...staring, as Honeymaren effortlessly shuffled and bridged the flash-cards. Elsa croaked in panic. "Wait!"
Pausing effortlessly mid-bridge, Honeymaren did a startled hop. "What is it? Did Bruni light me on fire?"
Chirping happily at being mentioned, Bruni hopped off the rock and belly-flopped into a large puddle. A cloud of steam rose against the rain.
Elsa blushed, then blanched as she felt a spot of ice forming under her rear. She giggled bashfully and offered vague hand-waving gestures. "Oh...nothing. I mean…" She quickly trailed off, gaze trailing down to fingers curled over and arching the flash-cards. Elsa gulped, mimicked the bridge maneuver awkwardly, and shrugged. "...that looked neat. Your hands. The cards."
A thin layer of ice gradually crept behind Elsa, along and over the boulder's edge. A few more wet leaves fluttered off the hovering leaf-cover.
"I could show you how to do it later. If you want." Splitting the pile into two neat stacks, Honeymaren hunched over. She didn't even bat an eyelash as several soggy leaves landed on her cap. "But first..." She pushed up the back card in her left-hand pile, then arched an eyebrow. "What does this mean?"
The rain quickly became a downpour, one which not even a thick leaf-roof could hold back. Gale whined, and leaves began to quickly tumble down.
Elsa couldn't stop herself, as she rested both hands on her ankles and leaned forward, too. "Lubię ser." Her face warmed, and she stared down at her squeezing hands with a sheepish croak. "I like cheese." Her whole body went rigid the moment she spied her index fingers pointing straight ahead.
I like you!
Suddenly, the leaf-cover blew apart in a sloppy, soaked mess. Elsa looked up just in time to get slapped on the face by a messy bunch of leaves...and the downpour that followed. She shrieked, tumbled backwards off of the boulder, and landed with a muddy squelch on the forest floor below.
Honeymaren had lunged for Elsa, scattering flash-cards everywhere, and ended up face-down on the boulder...and buried in leaves. She dug her way through the pile, shimmied to the boulder's edge, and peeked over even as rain soaked her. "Elsa! Are you...okay?"
Covered from head to toe with leaves and mud, Elsa slapped a filthy hand against her forehead and laughed herself breathless. "Lubię ser!"
The chilly rain blurred her vision, but she kept right on laughing as she waved both hands insistently. "Lubię ser!"
Glancing left and right at the scattered, destroyed flash-cards, Honeymaren folded her arms underneath her chin and cocked her head to one side. She smiled, somewhere between amusement and affection. "Well, I guess you do."
Rainwater pooled around Elsa's legs, but it didn't stop her from opening her eyes and staring up in elated wonder. Her smile grew small and intimate, and she pointed again.
"Lubię cię."
Honeymaren didn't even notice Gale having stolen her cap. She quickly hid her goofy smile by mashing her face against her arms. The rain's chill was long gone.
Wrapped up in a grey-hide poncho, Yelana rubbed her eyes...and glanced to her right. "What did we just...see?" She shuffled from side to side self consciously, her net-full of fish jostled as Gale swirled around her playfully.
Ryder chuckled, then bumped shoulders with Yelana, before gesturing along a path that gave a wide berth to the study partners. "Something adorable."
At that, Yelana coughed sharply and cleared her throat. "About time, yeesh."
