She really should know Jump City better by now.
She breathes out and watches the cloud of white curl in the air. It is finally December, the coldest month of the year, and she is in the city, walking down the streets and ignoring stares from the civilians. Normally, she loves this weather - gray, cloudy, and very, very cold. It makes her feel grateful for the fact that she remembered to wear thicker clothes over her normal leotard.
But not even her cloak can stop the chill from sinking into her bare hands. She can feel them becoming numb, slowly freezing into two slabs of ice. Why, oh why, out of all the mittens to eat, Silkie chose hers?
She twitches her fingers in the cold air in hopes that the movement will heat them up, but to no avail. She rubs her hands together as fast as she can without attracting attention and feels nothing. She even tries tucking them underneath her armpits, having read once that it was the hottest part of the body. But all she can feel is the chill from her hands, even through her leotard. She will just have to deal with the cold and not think about cozy, heated mittens or steaming hot tea or dancing flames from the fire...
She grits her teeth, and cups her hands against her face, trying to rekindle some heat with her breath. Nothing works. Her fingers remain as icy as before.
"You cold?"
She gives him a quick glance, wondering if he is truly concerned or merely trying to break the silence. He looks back at her, quirking his head to the side inquisitively. He shudders as a stiff gust of wind blows, and she looks away. At least he has gloves on.
"I'm fine."
She can feel his eyes on her, slowly traveling to where her exposed hands tremble slightly in the breeze. Don't move, she mentally commands them. They ignore her completely.
She watches him out of the corner of her eye, and sees him standing still, staring at her fingers pensively. He looks as if he wants to say something, but he hesitates, biting his lip. She stops and turns to him now, curious as to what he's restraining himself from doing, but before she can ask him, he's peeling off his oversized gray gloves and holding them out for her.
Her eyes widen in surprise, as she stares at his offering. He doesn't look at her, but she can feel his shame leaking from where his green hands and sharp claws hide beneath the cloth.
"Here."
"But-"
"Take them."
Knowing from experience how adamant he can be, she slowly reaches out for them. He quickly shoves his hands into his jacket pockets, hiding his claws from view. He continues walking, embarrassment wafting after him. She follows, powerwalking to keep up, and pulls the gloves on. They are large and warm, and effectively block the outside chill. Next to her, he is slowing down, and she can feel him calming. Her protected hands are slowly thawing, and she tries not to think about how the heat from his hands warmed them up for her. She fails.
Reluctantly, she begins to take off his gloves, meaning to give them back to him, but stops when he suddenly jerks his head up to look at her. He gives her a quizzical look.
"What're you doing?"
She rolls her eyes.
"Giving you back the gloves. It's obvious you need them more than I do."
He protests, but she can be as stubborn as he, and holds the gloves out for him. He hovers over them, and finally accepts one, which he immediately puts on his left hand. He grins at her.
"There. One for each of us."
She opens her mouth to object, then closes it. Instead, she nods, putting the other one on her right hand, and they continue walking down the street in silence. Their cold hands brush up against each other, and he seizes it without warning, sharp claws brushing against her skin. Before she can object, he draws it inside his toasty jacket pocket. He gives her another oversized grin.
"And now we're both covered. Problem solved."
She snorts, slightly embarrassed, but raises no protest. She tells herself it's purely for practical reasons - it was the only way to get both of their hands out of the cold. He is merely being kind in sharing his heat.
A particularly hard gust of wind whips down the street, and she realizes that for the first time she's warm – both on the inside and out.