Disclaimer: Kirby belongs to Nintendo and HAL Laboratory.
The next day, Vesa sat next to Elfilis on the couch in the library. Vesa took note of the book in their hand, yet she leaned closer to them. Elfilis was almost finished with writing this book of advanced spells.
She recalled how Marx and Magolor interacted with one another yesterday when she first met them. Hearing they were engaged sparked some warmth in her heart, so she'd silently wish them well.
A thought popped into her head as she gazed into Elfilis's eyes. She remembered those times back in Lab Discovera. She cherished the times she spent with them, yet lamented the fact the scientists held her back from giving Elfilis any affectionate touch at any time save for the few occasions she would sneak a head scritch.
Now that the scientists weren't around anymore, Vesa figured maybe it wasn't worth trying to search for a guy the same age and species as her, especially when Marx pointed out the grim reality about her species.
Her heart fluttered when she gazed at Elfilis. She's been aware of how majestic and graceful they had been in action. For some time, she'd been thinking maybe those same traits Elfilis had were why Vesa's thoughts and emotions went much deeper regarding them.
"Vesa?"
Vesa snapped out of her thoughts as Elfilis gazed into her eyes.
"How are you doing today?" they asked her.
"Well," Vesa admitted, "I'm still tired from yesterday's practice, but apart from that, I'm ok."
"That's good to hear," Elfilis curved their eyes upwards in a mouth less smile, "so, do you have any plans for today?"
"I…haven't decided yet," Vesa admitted, "by the way, do you mind?"
Elfilis blinked as Vesa wrapped an arm around them.
"Do I mind wha—?" Elfilis let out a cute squeak, "t-that's fine."
Vesa huddled closer as Elfilis placed their arm around her.
"Well," Elfilis continued, "there are a few things you can do today."
In her head, Vesa counted the days she spent with Elfilis in the lab, in Waddle Dee Town and in Dreamland.
"Maybe," Vesa offered, "we can be more than just friends."
Elfilis paused and fixated their eyes on Vesa.
"What do you mean?"
She noticed as Elfilis blushed and their tone hinted at some kind of interest.
"I admit it's not easy to deal with the fact my relatives are long gone," Vesa admitted, "but really, I don't blame you for that. I guess that sepsis episode ruined our escape plan, didn't it?"
She closed her eyes for a brief moment.
"But I'm grateful you saved my life that day," she added, "I've wanted to repay you in some way. I still have yet to adjust here, but when I'm with you, it feels like…I have just enough hope to keep pressing forward no matter what gets thrown at us."
Vesa pulled out the map she held onto and examined it carefully.
"Maybe we can pick a place on Popstar where we can have time to ourselves?" Vesa suggested, "you know, as in a date?"
A minute passed in silence before Elfilis took a deep breath.
"I'd like that," Elfilis proclaimed, "I've had similar feelings for you for a while…even before our escape. Back then, I suppose it must've been from my trauma, or even latching onto the only ray of light in my bleak existence at the time."
Elfilis paused for a moment to gather their thoughts.
"I admit I'm not a social creature," Elfilis continued, "I didn't quite understand what I was feeling at the time. It has only been the past few weeks that I really understood what I felt for you. I didn't say anything i-in case you weren't interested. I didn't want to ruin our friendship or what we already had."
Vesa smiled softly and ran her hand along their head.
"You didn't ruin anything, really," Vesa assured Elfilis as her face reddened, "it also took me a while to figure out my own feelings. I'm hoping we figure out how to make this work—even if I'm still learning magic from you."
Fransisca entered the library which caught Vesa's attention.
"Oh!" Vesa blurted, "speaking of which."
Elfilis noticed and fidgeted nervously. Their tail wagged and their feelers perked up.
"Morning, Fran!" Vesa called over.
Fransisca paused and locked eyes onto Vesa and Elfilis.
"Good morning, Miss Vesa," Fransisca nodded back.
Elfilis took another deep breath.
"We need…relationship advice," Elfilis admitted, deciding to bite the bullet.
After a few seconds, Fransisca let out what other people would consider a squee. Elfilis didn't expect their sister to make this kind of sound. Perhaps this was something she anticipated? The ice mage calmed down after a few moments.
"Ok."
Fransisca approached Vesa and Elfilis, sitting in a lounge chair across from them.
"So, Vesa," she continued, "before we begin, do you have anything you'd like to tell me about yourself?"
Vesa nodded. Over the course of an hour, she went on to tell Fransisca about her family, her community in Ioskaria, the trips to the doctor and her time in Lab Discovera. Elfilis listened to what she had to say and sympathized with her, even if most of it was related to the lab.
"I see," Fransisca said, "well, is there anything you'd like to work on?"
Vesa nodded.
"Apart from the magic I'm still learning and our relationship," she answered, "maybe I'd like to work on my confidence a little more."
"Well," Fransisca advised, "for what I can suggest to you two, try figuring out how to set boundaries and don't be afraid to communicate with one another anywhere it's needed. And…don't rush into things if you're not ready for them. At least, that's all I can give for now."
"Sounds good," Elfilis nodded, "I wouldn't even know where to start with boundaries apart from a few examples."
"I can help you out with that part," Vesa replied.
"Thank you," Elfilis smiled at her, "I'm not used to this, so I'm not sure how it's really supposed to work. I understand that I like you on an emotional level, but I don't really have any kind of experience with this kind of thing other than what I have observed from others. And even until recently, I hadn't given it much attention."
"There are plenty of gestures of affection," Fransisca said, "and plenty of acts of intimacy. For example, you can give a meaningful gift you know would likely put a smile on her face. It can also be doing a favor for your girlfriend when needed. Some acts of intimacy do require consent from both partners."
"I know what you mean," Vesa agreed.
"And don't be afraid to show vulnerability when needed," the ice mage added.
"Got it," Vesa nodded.
"I…had another concern I just thought of," Elfilis confessed, "based on the nature of my being, I can't die. It might not be a problem now, but if we have a relationship, even with magic, you'll pass away one day and…I'm not sure how I would deal with that."
Elfilis began to tense up as Vesa stared in bewilderment.
"I'm unable to age," they continued, "and I'll retain my current form unless someone kills me or something else occurs that results in my unnatural death. Before now, it hasn't really been something I thought about."
Elfilis turned their gaze to Fransisca.
"After our planet was destroyed, I mourned for you and the other two, and for my father, and for our people. I eventually got over it after a few decades. But…you'll also age, and die one day. And I'll still be here…"
"Elfilis," Vesa sighed softly.
Vesa placed her hand on Elfilis's shoulder.
"It's an issue for later, though."
Vesa, Elfilis and Fransisca took several minutes to process their thoughts. After that, the ice mage rose from her seat.
"Well, it was nice talking with you two," Fransisca said with a wink, "good luck on your relationship."
"Thank you," Elfilis smiled.
Fransisca made her way out of the library. Vesa huddled closer to Elfilis once again. Closing her eyes for a brief moment, a stray thought gave her an epiphany.
"That reminds me," Vesa said to herself, "I might want to reserve a spot on my shelf for jigsaw puzzles."
Elfilis perked up their feelers.
"I could help you with that," they offered, "or perhaps…I can change one of the spare rooms into a recreation room for games. I believe I can create one particular game I memorized from Shiver Star before it fell."
Vesa took a minute to think over the offer.
"A game room would be great," Vesa nodded, "I'm sure our friends would love to put it to good use."
Vesa stood from the couch.
"Well," Vesa mentioned, "Elfilin and I noticed a giant beanstalk from a window days ago. Is there a place in the garden where we can get a better view of it?"
"Well then," Elfilis stood up, "let me show you."
Elfilis led Vesa out of the library. They crossed the foyer to step out the front door. From a distance, they glanced at the towering plant from a distance. The ultimate life-form might want to take a sample from it at some point. Strolling along the pavement, they circled the fountain and found a raised balcony at the eastern edge of the courtyard. Elfilis pulled up a pair of nearby park chairs before sitting on one of them.
"So," they asked her, "have you thought of where you want to go from your proposition?"
Vesa thought of the question as she sat down next to the ultimate life-form. Tilting her head up, she gazed at the towering beanstalk.
"Say," Vesa pondered, "what do you know of that beanstalk?"
Elfilis placed a finger on their jaw.
"All I know is that Kirby was involved somehow, as usual," Elfilis replied, "and whoever was up there got ahold of one of my people's artifacts."
"Then we might want to ask Kirby about it sometime," Vesa commented.
"Perhaps we'll learn exactly where the artifact is right now," Elfilis agreed, "that's a failed experiment into locating alternate worlds. We found one. But the project was quickly scrapped since the world we found was basically the exact opposite of our own world, a mirror image, an evil copy. Well, not exactly evil. Dark is probably a better word for it…more malicious in nature, but not evil necessarily. Still, the project was scrapped after that and the Mirror we used to experiment with dimensional travel had a cloth put over it and was sealed away somewhere. Apparently now, it has caused two disasters in recent memory, so I should take care of it."
Vesa nodded and pulled out her map. Her finger trailed to the dot marking Rainbow Resort.
"Rainbow Resort," Vesa repeated, "I wonder what that place is like."
Elfilis perked up their feelers.
"I flew overhead during my trip to the Fountain of Dreams," Elfilis explained, "it was…colorful, if nothing else. It's an abundance of pink and purple, if you will."
Vesa's face lit up as she clutched the map to her chest.
"You know what?" she smiled, "maybe that could be where we have our first date!"
"I'd love that," Elfilis smiled.
Vesa leaned her head closer to Elfilis's. She nodded at them, encouraging them to press their forehead onto hers. She cupped their face with her hand and her thumb stroked their fur. Their feelers twitched as their chest rumbled with purrs. After a minute, Vesa leaned her head back and gazed into their eyes.
"I'm ready to get the game room set up," she told them, "you?"
"I'll need some time to get the games in order," Elfilis nodded, "but I have some memorized."
Elfilis stood up and led Vesa back into the tower. Once inside, they ascended the stairs in the middle of the foyer. They meandered through the hallway, passing by a few doors and turning at a corner before the ultimate life-form fixated their eyes on one particular door to their right.
"This seems like a good spot."
Vesa opened the door and peered inside. The room didn't have any dust inside despite being empty.
"I think it's the right size," she proclaimed, glancing over her shoulder.
"It should work fine," Elfilis agreed.
Vesa led Elfilis inside the room. They put their hand out, summoning a wooden chair created from the genetic material of trees. They went on to create several more chairs and a large table. Vesa stared in awe as Elfilis created a few shelves. In a short matter of time, they finished furnishing the room.
"This is…amazing," Vesa said.
"Thank you," Elfilis replied.
As Elfilis looked over their handiwork, Vesa made mental notes on potential decorations to add for later. She then examined the empty shelves.
"We might want to ask everyone here what board games they want on the shelves," she told them.
"Well," Elfilis mused, "my sisters tend to focus more on their magic than games, or other hobbies. Flamberge might be interested though, as she's not allowed to start forest fires anymore."
Vesa tilted her head a little and placed an index finger on her chin.
"And maybe we can talk to Elfilin on what board games he'd like to try," Vesa added.
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