Sleep hadn't come easily as of late, for a handful of reasons. Her royal responsibilities had redoubled as of late, partially being a result of her age. There had always been a burden upon her shoulders, she was her kingdom's sole monarch and guardian after all, but the arrival of adulthood had heralded some changes. Her appearance had always been important, there was a need for her to be polite and proper, but that last term had recently been redefined to limit her actions further. Meetings were now dragging longer, her opinions and expertise being called upon for more specific issues, and standards were rising.
Blaze could handle those changes being pressed onto her, she'd anticipated and prepared for them years in advance, but their impact on a certain someone else was eating at her. Someone with enough of a weight on their shoulders already; someone who refused to leave the feline's thoughts and marred all her senses. This room was so dark, her bed felt so empty, and she felt so cold. Was it any wonder that sleep wasn't claiming her?
Bundling the duvet against herself, Blaze rolled to her right in search of comfort. Instead, her eyes landed on a bedside cabinet, soon flickering up to view a clock that had been haphazardly constructed by a young raccoon. Almost three in the morning, she'd seen that hour frequently as of recent days... even if she'd not dared to mention that truth to others. It wasn't as though she'd had a permanent bedfellow before recently, and even when he was more present she'd weathered periods of his absence, but this was different. She'd scarcely even-
A noise quirked Blaze's ear, quiet but only a few feet away. Pulling the covers with her, the feline rolled to the other side of her bed and threw a stare toward her balcony window. The drawn curtains gave away no secrets, no evidence of what she'd heard, so it only took her a moment of pondering to decide her tired mind way paying tricks on here.
But then the noise sounded again, a now ever so slightly louder knock at her balcony window, less brazen than it had once been. Her blood ran a mixture of both boiling and icy, a combination of excitement as her imagination rushed to recognise the noise and panic over that very source's presence. She jumped out of bed but hesitated at the curtains, her fingers lingering on the fabric.
She could still ignore him; he wouldn't know she was asleep and would surely leave soon enough. That was, assuming the hedgehog was actually stood outside her window. There was a chance some wayward wind had induced the sound, that or perhaps someone else had arrived. The latter option seemed unlikely but stranger things had hap-
A third set of knocks at the window forced her hand, Blaze quickly drew back the curtains. She'd expected a cyan glow to catch her eyes, to lead her toward the rest of his frame, but no such aura was present. Instead, her eyes adjusted, Blaze first found the smiling face and bright yellow eyes of one Silver the hedgehog. His body though, somehow, was more lost to the black of night. That was, with the exception of his chest fur, somehow pushing though.
The door was unlatched but she stood in the way, not permitting his entry.
"Silver, what are you doing," She half whispered, glancing past him and to the dark royal gardens bellow. It was a cloudy night, no starlight guided her search, "You're not supposed to be here."
"I know, that's why I haven't been here, but," He stepped closer, a tense expression on his face but determination in those eyes, "I have a plan."
"You're so naïve," She fussed, weighing her options one last time, "Did anyone see you?"
He shook his head, "No. Blaze, I've been-
Before he could blab another word, the princess pulled him from the dark of night and into the darkness of her room. The door was quickly shut and the curtains were pulled closed, albeit after another haphazardly thrown glance out into the night. Once all was settled, and they were secure, she leant back against what she'd shut and closed her eyes tight.
This event, which had once been commonplace, had been the subject of wistful imagination for upward of two months now. If she'd seen enough rest to have dreamed it, the cat would most certainly have spent the nights with him in some capacity. Granted, it wasn't as though he'd been absent that whole time. She's seen him sure, they'd met and spoke, but privacy had been such a scarcity as of late.
A hand arrived on her shoulder; her eyes flickered open. To see his smile, so bright and close made her heart ache. No matter how strong his psychokinesis grew, those eyes would always pull her in faster. Though she wouldn't dare act on the want, the princess longed to use her favourite pillow and finally claim some much needed rest.
"You're so naive," There was so much she wanted to say, but she held her tongue. Instead, she incredulously asked, "What on earth are you wearing?"
Now out of the dark of night, with the curtains pulled shut but no psychic glow to be found, Blaze lit the tips of her fingers and held them between their frames. She knew whatever his garb was had to be thick, a material significant enough to blot out his psychic light, but she couldn't have foreseen this. From toe to neck, with the small exception of his fingertips, the hedgehog was entirely wrapped in black.
She wanted to think of it as a racing onesie, the sort she had once wore when operating an extreme gear hoverboard, but that definition felt inaccurate. His outfit was made from a black, faux-leather, material, save for a few blue accents sparingly spread across his frame. The way it clung to his body, the opening for his chest fur and even how it caught the firelight brought only one conclusion to mind. Someway, somehow, Silver the hedgehog had got his hands on a catsuit.
"I thought it looked stealthy," He responded, glancing down at himself, "Dark as the night, you know? And it covers my symbols, fit right over my boots too. It's just a shame the zipper won't fit over my chest fur…"
The flames from her fingertips surged brighter as she tutted, "Where did you even find that?"
"In the other world, I didn't want to risk someone putting two and two together if I bought something like it here," He earnestly answered.
Unable to stand the sight of him at the moment, but unwilling to leave him in the dark, Blaze rolled her eyes to look away, "So you at least had one thought before you came here. What if you'd been seen?"
Suddenly, his other hand found her shoulder and she felt him pull closer, "I just couldn't stop thinking about you being stuck here. I've been planning this for over a month. I've had lots of thoughts about what to do. I knew I wouldn't be seen tonight," Even still, she couldn't look at him, "I've been scoping out places for weeks, seeing when people weren't around and waiting for the conditions to be right. Tonight's the perfect night!"
Hearing him grow louder, not even having to look, she reached across with her unlit hand and pressed a forefinger on his lips, "The perfect night for what?"
"I wanted to be alone with you again," He wholeheartedly stated, despite her quietening effort.
To call his word choice embarrassing was such an understatement, but Blaze understood his want all too well. They'd been separated by such a silly cause, raw and unfettered gossip. When he had first visited her world, the psychic had turned heads and drew a lot of attention but ultimately the scandal had only manifested in whispers and stares, things she could handle. As they'd grown older though, as they'd grown even closer, she'd been unable to ignore the swell forming.
It'd started with a photograph, taken by a reporter who had snuck into the royal gardens, of him floating just beyond the fence of her balcony as they spoke. Once that single image became public, and the citizens became aware of quite how much time the grey hedgehog was spending around the princess, the eyes on them redoubled. Even the way he'd so often entered the palace, through the balcony window, had caused so many comments and questions; both in the press and even spread into royal meetings.
When he'd last left for the future they'd made an agreement, for the short term at least. To reduce the stress and worry surrounding the whole situation, Silver was no long allowed on the palace grounds. They would still meet but only in public places, where no theories could be hatched, or during their time in the other dimension. This change though had come simultaneously to the other pressures on Blaze, pressures that meant just leaving to meet with him was far less of a tenable solution.
The things they'd said, all the news had hypothesised, that wasn't making this situation any easier. She'd had inklings before of deeper feelings, of where their relationship might go, of course she had… but seeing it plastered on tabloids and being asked so bluntly in polite company? She'd had to deny and disavow so many things to save face, so many feelings not far removed from her own. She was used to putting up emotional barriers, but-
"I thought, maybe, we could go to the beach?" He asked, a far more innocent sounding request to follow what came before, "It's been getting quitter out there because of Winter. There's usually no one out there by sunset now, it was totally empty when I walked it to reach you."
A detail stood out to her, it granted an opportunity to flee to less embarrassing thoughts, "How did you reach me by rounding the beach?"
"I moved above the clouds. I wanted to get further from town before flying, to make sure that no one saw me," She dared glance back, his gaze was still intense, "Tonight's perfect because it's so cloudy, but Marine promised it's not forecast to rain. That means I can transport us above the clouds, we'll be better hidden while we walk, and we don't need to worry about the weather," He moved a hand from her shoulders, placing it on his chest fur "And this outfit means I won't glow, we won't be so obvious."
"You say that, but you've not disguised your most revealing trait," When befuddlement crossed his face, she pointed up to his quills.
"Ah," He seemed to realise, "W-Well, we can sort that right now? Before we had out?"
She hesitated again, but Blaze couldn't look away from him. Did they not deserve these moments, these times to just be together? Of course they did, but what they deserved didn't matter. What mattered was if they could afford it, if the benefits could be had without any risk.
"We'll need to be back before sunrise," The words fell from her lips before she could stop them, so she added another caveat, "And I have meetings this morning, so we really can't stay out too long."
"I'll take any time I can with you, Blaze," He stepped close again, she felt warmth beneath his fingertips, "If you're okay with it, then I am too."
"Sit down on the bed, I'll get a brush," The pyrokinetic commanded, stepping past him, "We need to be quick, otherwise there'll be no night to spend. I need to eliminate all of the risk."
She made her way to the light switch, flicking it on and briefly half blinding herself. Seeing him and that outfit in the full light, sat at the foot of her bed, was just bewildering. The worst part was that it sort of suited him? He looked so casual in it, so unphased, as if he'd wear it to literally any occasion. Blaze wanted to tell herself that it was just because black went well with white, but her gaze now latching at his chest fur told another story.
"Couldn't you just have found a cloak or…" She turned away again, heading for her desk to pick up a hairbrush before realising, relative to his quills, it was just too tiny, "Literally anything else?"
"Oh, I almost forgot, the cloak is for you," His complete misinterpretation of her words immediately magnetized her stare back to him.
In her panic, she hadn't even noticed. Wrapped around the hedgehog's right arm was a band of green material. With a swift movement he unfurled and whipped it out to reveal a massive, hooded, green cloak which clasped at the neck. Signs of sewing lined its hem and hood, suggesting it had seen some share of trouble.
"I figured you'd need a disguise too, but I wasn't sure what you'd like," Did that suggest he'd picked out his outfit because he liked it? "This looked like the sort of thing you'd wear when we first met though, and I figured it was different enough from your long coat."
Setting the brush down, she drew a scrunchie from her desk and made her way over. Almost ignoring the cloak, she rounded the hedgehog and buried her hands in his quills, pulling them back and to a point. Even just that sensation, the simply touching him so freely close, shot electricity up her fingertips and powered the butterflies in her gut. She sort of lost herself in the act for the moment, only realising how purely she was enjoying herself when the fluffy mass was finally bundled. In a single, swift, manoeuvre, she used the soft black band to secure his quills in place. Just like that, his silhouette had been fully changed.
"Come on, we don't have time to waste," She rounded him, finally claiming the cloak and throwing it around her shoulders.
"R-Right, right, yes. Okay!" He stumbled to his feet, heading for the balcony and reopening it.
Admittedly her combined attire was set to be more than a little nonsensical, but she didn't want to waste another moment. After she'd stepped into a pair of hiking boots, tying them and doing the button on her cloak, it was done. From head to toe; black boots, mauve pyjama trousers, a white tank top and a worn green cloak. A worn green cloak that, as she pulled the hood up, Blaze realised lacked earholes or a hole for her tail. It also smelled, undeniably strongly, of him.
"This is yours, isn't it?" She asked, turning off the light and closing the distance between them.
"Yeah, I used it in the last future I visited. It was sort of sandy, needed it to protect against the dust storms," He started to explain, before seeming to catch himself, "Is that okay?"
"It's fine," At least he'd stitched it back together after his efforts, "Let's go, come on."
He assumed a familiar pose, bending his knees and holding his arms out for her to step into; the left lower to hold her legs, the right ready to support her back. Blaze didn't have the energy to hesitate, she brought her arm around his shoulders and let him slip his other arm behind her knee. Again, the touch of his exposed fingertips was just so warm, plying tightly at both the thick material covering her shoulder and reaching her soft pyjamas bottoms. Perhaps it was the result of his absence, she hadn't dared to so much as hold his hand since that picture was taken.
She saw a slight cyan glow ebb from his form as the curtains reopened and the doors swung open. The night was cool, but the wind was gentle, in her surprise, she hadn't noticed it. She heard the curtains swish behind them, followed by the door gently shutting. Then, the dark retook them.
He just stood there for a moment, their eyes locked as he turned to beam down at her. Without warning he leaned closer, directly into her hood, "I missed you."
Blaze felt her ears graze the inside of her hood as they folded, her tail stiffened against the material pinned to her back. Those three words echoed in her heart and brought her muscles to tense, embarrassment fizzled across her skin like static cling on clothes. How was he so unphased? Why was she floundering while he was so cool, so calm and collected? Things were meant to be the other way around; he was the emotional one.
He sighed against her. His contact was magnetic. If only she had the strength to act. His lips were so undeniably close. Even when he finally pulled back, neither his smile nor her fuzziness faded.
She looked away the moment he pulled back, turning to the balcony's balustrade, "We need to go, before we're seen."
It wasn't likely that they would be caught here again, the journalist who had snuck into the royal gardens to take the photo had been lambasted by their peers, but Blaze needed an excuse to chastise the hedgehog. This was still dangerous, regardless of how far ahead he'd planned, and she was foolish for going along with it. All it took was the wrong person recognising, a single busybody on a morning run, to-
"Alright, I'm going to get us above the clouds," He informed her, as if waiting for permission, "Hold on."
Psychic magic again wrapped around him, removing gravity's burden from his form. With a single bound he landed atop the wall that edged her balcony. She felt herself shift in the hedgehog's grasp as his knees bent again, in preparation to fully soar.
This second jump wasn't quite as smooth. Based on the speed they shot upwards, he truly was doing all he could to avoid being seen; this was the type of acceleration he only used in combat, when faced with an insurmountable foe. She shut her eyes tight, feeling the air resistance flap her cloak and push into its hood. Moisture soon met her senses, a sensation of dampness rather than wet, the touch of clouds they were passing through.
Then, as quickly as the combination of feelings and forces vanished, they went from rocketing to coasting. Her eyes flickered open, first of course being drawn to the glowing psychic before quickly switching to look beyond him. Stars sprawled out above them, their scope stretched out endlessly in all directions and coloured the sky from its presumed black to a deep navy. The moon was almost non-existent, perhaps a few days from being entirely absent in the sky or having just been in that stealthy state. Truth be told, without him alongside her, she'd been paying less attention to the night sky as of late.
Blaze turned her attention back to him, thankfully catching him as he looked skyward rather than stared down at her. Despite his psychic protection, and her instated scrunchie, the wind was still blustering through his quills. However, it didn't take long for her to notice the look on Silver's face. Rather than his usual sparkling eyes and goofy grin, a much more analytical gaze had claimed his expression. She could see the cogs turning in his head, as if he was deep in thought, contrary to his usual reaction to reaching the stars. It took the cat a moment to process just what he was doing.
"Are you," She felt foolish, making such idle conversation, "Navigating using the stars?"
"Oh, yeah," The moment he looked down to her, he went from frowning into the middle distance to grinning so ludicrously, "The stars here are different from in my world, I don't know them as well, but I practiced using them in preparation for this. I wanted to make sure I knew where was safe to land."
"You really have been planning this for a while," Blaze mumbled, again prying her eyes away and looking to the sky.
"Of course," The hedgehog immediately responded, "I said I missed you."
She couldn't manage a response to that, not even her usual tutting about him being naïve. The hedgehog had of course done a lot for her across her life, just as the feline had for him, but this really felt like something special. Not only had he schemed all this well ahead of time, waiting for the right time to act, but he'd learned a skill and adapted it to her world in the hopes that it would make the endeavour that little bit safer.
It was inevitable that her stare drifted back to him, now catching a bold smile on his lips. Evidently, he'd righted himself, deciding he knew where they were and the direction to travel, and was now he was back to the wistful stargazing hedgehog she'd come to accept as the norm. Perhaps it was because of how much time had passed since they'd last been like this, maybe it was just because they were older now, but something felt different about this whole position. Foolish thoughts fluttered into the princess mind. The contact from his fingertips still so bluntly rang at the forefront of her mind, she couldn't keep her gaze on him for long.
Even if these feelings were born of them growing older, they made her feel so much more childish. The way her tail was rubbing beyond her legs, ruffling the edge of her cloak, and the sensation of her ears brushing against the material of the hood was just too much. Even with the bluster pushing against them, the scent of him was so ever present. He was inescapable. Well, of course it was, he was carrying her.
She felt heat flash across her muzzle, too many foolish thoughts were circulating.
"I think this is the spot. Are you holding on?" She heard his voice, but forced her eyes to stay forward, "To keep us as hidden as possible, this is going to be a little rougher than usual."
"It'll be fine, just do it," She grumbled, feeling herself further warm as his hold tightened.
Blaze felt them slow to, the wind became natural for just a moment. Then, the light surrounding Silver suddenly flickered off. As the whistling of wind resumed, her cloak flapping and fur bristling, the sudden change took the princess by surprise. Instinctively her grip around his shoulders strengthened, she pushed her head to top his collarbone as she hung on even stronger.
He'd put them into free-fall and, quickly, Blaze understood why. Without his cyan light wrapped around them, their arrival on the beach would be entirely unobservable against the dark of night. If someone was staring out at the cloudy skies or simply glanced out their window, their slow and glowing descent to the ground would be spotted.
Just as quickly as surprise had gripped her though, cyan energy reignited across his form and their plummet was made to slow. That light revealed a bluff cliff that stood at the beaches' end. Now that they'd passed behind it, there was no way they could be seen from the civilisation more inland. It was a tall rock-face, but it hadn't given them a lot of space to slow down; she felt him buckle as they met the sand.
"And that's us landed," He simply commented, smile still in his tone, "Do you want to stay like this, or should I-
Very quickly, Blaze unlatched herself from the hedgehog and swung her legs free from his hold. It wasn't a perfectly elegant manoeuvre, he hadn't positioned himself to let her down, but the pyrokinetic managed and took a few steps away. The sound of the sea crashing against the shore filled her ears, the scent of salt was made to mingle with that of him hanging on her cloak.
Her eyes again pierced the dark, despite the reinstated cloud barrier keeping the stars and waxing moon away. They weren't at the nicest part of the beach, instead he'd landed at a more secluded side where large rocks poked through the sand and driftwood debris littered the sand. In that way though, it was much more natural looking.
"The beach is ours," He exclaimed, gesturing ahead, "We're totally free," Relief carried in his voice, but was soon replaced by excitement, "We can do whatever we want!"
The hedgehog ran a little ahead, spinning as he crossed the sands just a few feet from the water. Evidently though, his eyes hadn't adjusted to the dark. He quickly tripped over a large chunk of driftwood, only just catching himself with his psychokinesis before he could go backside overhead into the sand. From that position though, hovering as he righted himself, a sign of his pure enjoyment became undeniable.
Seeing his tail wag, despite the tight material surrounding it, brought a crooked smile to her face, "You should still probably keep your voice down, that and be more careful. If you're too loud or hurt yourself, all your stealth will be for nothing."
He righted himself, turning back at her, "Okay, okay you're right. But I do have a plan for that," His eyes were glowing with excitement, "On the off chance that we do get caught. We'll just say this is a tryst and it'll be okay."
"A tryst?" Blaze parroted, bewildered at what he'd just suggested.
"Yeah, a tryst," He wholeheartedly repeated.
It was ludicrous, his whole line of thinking was nonsensical. His whole plan to avoid getting caught sneaking her out of the castle, to avoid romantic speculation, was to admit to sneaking her out the castle through the use of such a torrid term? For all his planning, he clearly hadn't had time to check a dictionary. Who ever heard of a platonic tryst?
That thought, and perhaps her present location, branched into another. Did she want this tryst to be platonic? Blaze had heard that absence made the heart grow fonder, but now she knew that phrase was true. Her heart was pounding in her chest with an excitement it hadn't felt in months. Perhaps it was the exhilaration of this newly stolen freedom, maybe it was just embarrassment, but she didn't want it to stop. Regardless of what it was or what it led to.
Despite the determination behind those thoughts, and her recent warning about being heard, Blaze found herself laughing. She half buckled over, unable to even look at him, let alone explain ludicrousness of what he'd said. Her hands found her knees as she felt her face blush brighter.
"Where did you get that idea?" She managed to vocalise.
"The same place I got the idea for this whole meeting, a fairy-tale about a princess escaping her parents with the help of a stable hand. It sort of reminded me of us and our situation," He'd started to snicker himself, unable to keep his emotions hidden while she laughed, "What's so funny?"
"What do you think a tryst is, Silver?" Blaze dared to ask, ignoring his question.
"When someone helps someone else to escape a place they'd rather not be?" He answered, still grinning widely, "I think it also has something to do with overcoming a social barrier? The book made it seem that way at least."
Blaze hesitated for a moment, almost coming to her senses. She still had the opportunity to explain this whole misunderstanding, to define the term to him and have him straighten up. It was probably what was wisest, after all, if they were caught it meant he wouldn't doom them any further. As she stood up straight though, Blaze knew she couldn't bring herself to do that. There was far too much enjoyment to be had.
"Fine," She rolled her eyes but closed the distance between them, snatching up his hand and beginning to lead him across the beach, "Let's make the most of this so-called tryst then. But remember, you're the one who dubbed it that."
"W-What?" He stammered, quickly catching up, "Okay, I guess? So long as you're sure?"
"I'm positive," She quickly replied, trying to ignore the sensation of her tail reaching for his waist but never arriving, "Did you have anything else planned, now that we're here?"
"Not really, it seemed too late to have a meal and I didn't want to risk us getting caught," He confessed, "I thought we could just sort of walk and talk? Nothing too new or different. I just sort of wanted things to be normal, like they used to be."
"I suppose that makes sense," That sounded like the right thing to do. To be honest, being such a bundle of nerves, the cat wasn't sure she could eat or handle any surprises. Small talk seemed much more appropriate, "Has staying with Marine been tough?"
"It's been fine, she calmed down a bit after the second week," He answered, "It's not the same as staying at the palace but it's comfortable enough. She keeps me company, I make sure she doesn't get into trouble. It'll work out."
From there, a new thought sparked in Blaze's mind, "Does she know about tonight?"
"Sort of?" He winced, "She knew I was up to something, kept asking about it. It was kind of hard to keep my plans to myself, especially when I asked to use the weather forecasting device she uses to plan her sailing. I think she probably knows what I was planning, but I did make sure she was asleep before I sneaked out."
"Well, let's hope that's the case," Blaze hummed, gently shouldering him to sidestep around an overlarge rock.
"How have things been for you?" He asked, returning the gesture before realising what she was actually doing, "Are you okay?"
"I'm," Again, Blaze felt her tail wriggle as if trying to reach for his waist, "You're so naïve," She tutted, catching herself before beginning a brief tirade, "Things are as they should be. The kingdom continues to prosper, there has been no sign of Eggman Nega nor any threats born of this reality or the other. People are more comfortable than ever, we're finally in what seems to be a time of true peace."
"Right," She heard the hesitation in his voice, the sound of him processing her words, "But are you okay?"
A sigh slipped her lips, she thought for a moment how to answer truthfully.
She squeezed his hand but looked away, "I missed you too," Again, Blaze felt his shoulder brush against hers as he leaned closer, "I've been okay, just tired. Lots of work and little rest, long meetings and lots of research. It's what I anticipated but not what I'm used to."
"Tired?" She felt his head tilt.
"Well," If he really going to make her spell it out, then she'd use that opportunity to retake control, "I could hardly sleep without my favourite pillow, of course."
It only took two paces for him to catch her drift, but he didn't respond for a moment. She felt his grasp suddenly tighten, and noticed his gaze darting to and from her form a couple of times. Eventually though, after around five further steps in total silence, he halted in front of her and snatched up her free hand.
Even in the dark, Blaze could identify his flustered seriousness, "I-If you want, we could just stop here I guess? It's not the best spot to lay down I know, but I'd stay up and fly you back when the sun comes-
A wiry smile again crossed her lips, but she shook her head and pushed to step forward, "Let's save that for next time, you can find somewhere less sandy for us to lay."
He didn't let go, walking backwards so foolishly, "Next time?"
"I presumed this tryst wasn't set to be a one-off," She mused, now looking him dead in the eye and watching him shrink, "Was tonight really all you had in mind?"
"I didn't really think that far ahead, I was focused on tonight," He mumbled, releasing her hand and moving to again wander beside her before piping up, "B-But yes! I will I'll find a good spot, I promise."
"I'll look forward to it," She answered, again feeling her tail fidget, she was approaching embarrassment again, "But I suppose we should focus on what we have now. Tell me more about this fairytale, the one that inspired this tryst, as you've dubbed it."
Her plot worked and he yammered on, explaining at length about this story that he'd somehow failed to recognise was romantic. He spoke of the pair's first meeting, how the stable hand and the princess had known each other since when they were children and that he'd ended up taking that job just so they could be closer, and yet they were still kept so separate by social class. To be honest, she could listen to him for hours, talking so earnestly and openly about something he deeply cared about. The actual subject of their talks barely even mattered to her, just being with him was more than she could have hoped for this evening.
They managed to make it good distance, just beyond the bluff's far edge, before conversation began to dry. Admittedly there were other topics in the feline's mind, worthy of broaching, but the serene peace she felt as they walked hand in hand was granting a comfort she didn't want to break. That andmost of those topics were much too embarrassing to openly broach now, even if they were alone.
Eventually, the sight of a conch shell, large but partly buried in the sand, brought the cat to hesitate. With her hand still in his, their fingers interlocked, her stopping brought him to do the same as she reached down to retrieve it. To her surprise it was entirely intact, though its colours were lost to her in the dark.
"Oh, wow. It's huge," Silver commented, leaning in.
"You should probably take it. If a maid sees it in my room, they'll know I'll have snuck down here," Blaze quickly insisted, at first looking for an excuse to gift it to him before realising what she'd said was true, "I've started to worry about their gossip too…"
Rather than taking the conch, Blaze felt his hands return to her shoulders, "Do you not feel safe?"
"Of course I'm safe, I just," She fumbled mentally for the right words, "Lack privacy," The absence of explanation sounded worse, she shoved the conch into his chest, "Look after it for me, until things have settled a little more."
"I-I will, until things are better," He promised, overly seriously, "But, whenever we can get together, I'll bring it so you can see," He further swore, before finally taking the conch but glancing skyward, "It's just a shame it'll always be in the dark, I'm sure it's really colourful… firelight or a psychic glow, nice as they are, they're not sunlight."
"Well, it's something to look forward to. For when we can be more casual again," Blaze professed, turning to resume their walk only for him to hold still.
For a moment he hesitated, the sound of waves filled the void of their conversation.
"W-Well, what if you didn't have to wait?" He posited, "I did have one more idea for tonight, but I'm worried it's a little risky," He confessed, allowing one of his hands to find his bound quills, "I know it's cloudy now, but I could fix that, if you want? Just a little bit, just enough that we could see up to the stars from all the way down here."
It took her a moment to understand just what he was suggesting, "We could just go back above the clouds," She pointed out.
"We could, if you want to, we could," He agreed, hand continuing to fiddle with his bound quills, "But, then we'd sort of lose what was we gained by coming here; the sand and the sea."
"What exactly did you have in mind?" The cat pried.
"Um, well," The hedgehog pointed to the sky and then to the sand, "We'd just sort of lie here and we could stargaze? Like we used to do all the time, back in the royal gardens. That way, you can get some rest too?"
Blaze wandered back to him, closing the gap, "Here?"
He quickly looked to their surroundings, "Can you think of a better spot?"
She didn't even look across the beach, only to him, "No. There's nowhere better."
Without hesitating, she bundled the cape of his cloak beneath her backside to avoid the dirt of the sand. Quickly, he matched her position, though wasn't nearly as worried about dirtying his clothes. Thankfully, his catsuit wouldn't be cleaned by the royal staff.
"Alright," He set the conch between them, stretching his arms toward the skies and clenching his fists together, "Marine said there wouldn't be much wind today, so hopefully this will work without me holding it open."
He spread his fingers, parting them as if his hands, joined at the wrist, were a single flower blooming. On the tips of his fingers and at the centre of his palms, cyan light managed to blur through the faux leather of his outfit. Simultaneous to his movement, the skies directly above them began to split. A faint cyan glow was visible on the clouds, flitting around their edges, and the dark mass was spread as if by some phantasmal group of winds.
The process was fast, in the blink of an eye Blaze went from staring at undulating tinted clouds to a cleanly exposed circle of night. The waining figure of the moon was surrounded by glinting specks of light, stars that shone brighter than ever when contrasted against black of a thickly clouded night. It was their private window into the splendour of the celestial bodies on this very early morning. Even the sky itself, its so subtle blue, was on display to them and only them.
Blaze was weighing how to compliment his efforts, when they seemed to yield a further result. It started small, Blaze swore she saw a slight movement out the corner of her eye, but seconds later the sound became undeniable. All around them a downpour had started, rain was tumbling from the clouds he'd pushed together and wetting the sands around them.
"I guess pushing the clouds together had some unforeseen consequences," He awkwardly admitted, shuffling close enough to sit shoulder to shoulder with her, "Still, now we should be even harder to see?"
It was raining, and yet they were safe from the downpour. Without the need of a parasol, psychic barrier or otherwise, she and him were totally untouched. Admittedly, if the rainfall went on for too long the sands beneath them would soak, but for now things were perfect. It was almost as if the world itself was pushing them to stay together, as it had unintentionally done so many times before. From their first lives in crisis city, to reuniting to whenever they'd aligned to catch each other since.
"I don't think that was you," She teased as she matched his movement, allowing her outer thigh to brush against his, "Just perfect timing timing."
"W-Well, um," As if literally searching for a distraction, he drew up the conch, "Now we can see this just a little better?"
The thin moon and glinting stars did enough to reveal the shell's colouration, a mix of cream and orange, but the lack of detail still visible did inspire a plan within Blaze. It was born of a technique Amy had taught her, to use what you had to bargain for more. That and well, it would perhaps inspire him to enact other schemes like this one.
"I think I'd still like to see it under the sun," She pushed, "I'll get a chance to when we can be together again, as we once were."
"O-Oh?" It took him a moment to process what she'd implied, "R-Right, yes of course," He nodded vigorously, setting the conch beside him before turning back to her, "But, um, as for tonight, I don't know how long the hole will hold open for, there isn't much of a wind, but-
She moved a finger to his lips. Then, without another word, the cat leant back to lie in the sand. Moments later, the hedgehog followed.
For a while they simply lay together, enjoying the serenity of this improbable, if not impossible, moment they were experiencing. Soon her hand found his in the small gap between them, reminding the cat that she wasn't wearing gloves. Not long after, she felt him wriggle in even closer, leading their shared grasp to rise and rest upon their thighs. As the moments more ticked by though, once the patter of rain came to slow and the clouds began to drift once more, Blaze found her eyes were slipping down to him. The hedgehog's gaze was still to the sky, but something strange was lingering in his expression. Rather than his usual sparkling stare, the sort she'd seen so many times as he glanced skyward during the day and night alike, the there was a tightness in the hedgehog's jaw and a flitting panic in his eyes. He was biting his lip...
Nervousness? She was used to seeing that in him, the panic before a fight, but this brand of tension was different. It had cropped up from time to time, in the quieter moments that had come to pass before that picture was published. Now though, it seemed the weight of time between their last encounter like this and their present predicament had chipped away at what little proficiency he had in obscuring emotions. Clearly, he had thought a lot more about what he wanted to do tonight beyond laying beneath the stars.
Blaze allowed her left hand to encroach, surprise pulled his gaze to her as her fingers fell upon exposed chest fur, "What's on your mind?"
"N-Nothing?" He bleated, eyes wide.
"Liar," That word fell quietly from her lips, despite the lack of people around to overhear.
"W-What, I," The psychic stammered, "Well, you know, just, I've been thinking while we were apart."
"Thinking? How scandalous," She joked, "About what?"
"About that paper and, you know," He shuddered under her touch, "What people were talking about."
Again grinning that wiry smile, she rolled her eyes, "Use your words, Silver."
"I just," He wavered as she shifted, now slightly sitting up and fully facing him, "At first I was embarrassed by it all, but while I was away I sort of reflected on why I felt that way. I wasn't just worried about your position, even if that was most of my worry, something else was eating at me," He rose to his elbows, but her position kept him down, "Some of the things they said, about us, what they thought we were doing in the palace, what they think we are to each other," She closed the distance between them, "I sort of wondered, ignoring what others think, would it be so bad if that stuff was-
Blaze couldn't wait another moment or listen to another word. The hood fell from her head as she leant in, bringing her eyes to shut as their lips met. She felt his whole frame stiffen at first, a sign of panic or surprise that was automatically mirrored within her mind, only for her efforts to be clumsily returned. He practically shot to sit upright as he kissed her, crashing his nose into hers and very almost knocking their teeth together. It took the cat firming her hand on his chest, feeling heat bristle at her fingertips, to keep him in place.
Now that he was under control, the actual sensation of kissing him wasn't at all like she'd anticipated. Blaze had always known that, despite his soft outer appearance, Silver was rugged underneath, but she didn't imagine that would apply to this intimacy. There was a certain blunt fervour to the touch of his lips, which somehow mingled well with the slight taste of sweat, likely born from both panic and the day's work. There was also an undeniable undercurrent of sugar, perhaps lemonade or ice cream? They were in the midst of winter and yet, of course, the sweet-toothed hedgehog-
A flash of light forced Blaze to break the kiss, rocketing to her feet. Embarrassment was immediately replaced with a feeling of utter panic, she threw her hood back over her head but knew she was far too late. By the resounding click that had accompanied that light, she immediately recognised that a photo had been taken. While Silver was still stunned, sat confused, her eyes darted across the dark beach only to catch a lone figure running away. From this distance, her eyes still settling due to the light, the princess could just identify a hooded cagoule obscuring their upper body.
With no idea what else she could do, Blaze shot off to give chase. She knew it wouldn't take long to catch up to the photographer, she was by far the fastest in her kingdom, but she had no idea what she'd do with them. A scoop like this, to the wrong people, was worth more than the sum in the royal treasury, not that she'd dare negotiate or bribe. Could she break the camera, would she dare?
"Get back here!" Reaching out half blindly, she managed to grasp the back of the individual's hood and tug them to a stop, "Just what do you think you're doing?"
She felt the individual continue to run, making it a few paces further, only to trip and end up hanging from their cagoule in the light rain. Immediately something felt familiar to Blaze, from the weight of that person in her hand to the way they were uselessly wriggling. In fact, they were light enough that the cat was able to fully raise the cloaked figure to almost reach her eyeline. Suspicion immediately pointed the princess in one direction.
"Easy mate, ease up would you," The strong accent on the photographer's voice instantly confirmed that intuition, "It was just a joke."
"Marine!" Blaze couldn't help but shout, "What are you doing here?"
"What are you doing here, mate?" Still in the cat's grasp, the raccoon drew up what looked to be a self-made polaroid camera and made it flash again, "Oh wait, I already know and I've got a picture to prove it!"
"Give me that!" She insisted, snatching the photo after it printed from the slit, "And where's the first picture you took?"
"Trade secret I'm afraid, won't break my journalist's integrity," She insisted, as if this was anything more than a prank, "I can't believe you actually smooched him, eww."
It was only now that Silver, seeming to have recovered from both the kiss and surprise, arrived at the feline's side, "O-Oh, it's just Marine."
"What do you mean just Marine, mate?" The youth barked, beginning to wriggle in the cat's grasp, "Get her off me."
Rather than release the shipwright, Blaze tightened her grasp, "We were finally spending some quality time together, after so long, and you just had to-
A hand arrived on her shoulder, halting Blaze's tirade before her frustration could flare over. The rain had fully stopped, she took just a moment to breathe. Silver was undoubtedly frustrated too, but the princess knew he was the better mouthpiece given their current situation. While she could dictate orders and decrees, he could output blunt honesty without flaring rage behind it. When it came to more stressful social situations, though he wasn't as experienced, the hedgehog was generally more competent.
As Blaze set the teenager down, thankfully she didn't run away, "I take it you figured out what I was planning then."
"You're not great at being sneaky," She cheekily returned, pretending to dust herself off.
"Evidently," Silver cringed, seeming to weigh things for a moment, "If I give you this shell to look after, will you give us the picture you took."
"I'm not seven anymore," The still relative youngster snorted as she rolled her eyes.
Perhaps Blaze had overestimated his abilities, but his tactic had defused things, "Well, that's fair," He half cringed, "But, look, considering what you captured in that photo... you understand why I want to keep it, right?"
The raccoon huffed, but his claim had made a clear impact, "Alright, but under one condition," She haggled, "I had to stay up way too late to do this, I want a post midnight snack," Now she sounded more childish than ever, "I'm thinking pancakes."
"Well, sunrise can't be too long from now," Silver mumbled, glancing toward the still cloudy sky before turning back to her, "If it'll get you to give up the photograph, then fine. I can do that once I'm back."
"Deal!" She, again much too loudly, exclaimed, producing the now slightly crumpled photo from an inner pocket of her jacket.
Awkwardly, the hedgehog took the image and handed it off to the cat. For a moment she did consider burning it, doing away with the one speck of evidence regarding their so called platonic tryst. However, ultimately, she couldn't bring herself to. Unfortunately though, still in her pyjamas, a lack of pockets forced Blaze to keep the small picture in her hand. As she looked away from it, still grey and developing, their eyes met again.
"Do you want to come for breakfast before I have to take you back?" His hand found his quills, "It does also just feels sort of, um, embarrassing to leave off with-
"Yes, fine," She cut him off before he could mention their act, embarrassment having redoubled, "L-Let's just go," She managed to stammer out, stepping past the pair. Silver went to follow but a third pair did hesitate to follow, "Are you coming, Marine?"
"Um, sure, mate," The youth picked up the pace to arrive beside the princess, "I'm sorry, I just... missed you too, didn't want to be left out."
"I know, I'm just," Blaze managed to sigh, finally pushing her frustration aside, "It was an intense situation. I was worried for our safety," She admitted, stopping to look down to Marine, "I'm sorry too."
"It's fine mate, but it should be said," Mischief retook her face, "From where I watching, intense seems like an accurate description."
Before Blaze could respond to her tease, the raccoon shot off ahead and was undoubtedly bolting in the direction of her abode. Left mostly alone again, the cat managed to half sidled up to the hedgehog. They exchanged a mutual wavering grimace.
"I suppose it was silly to think everything would go to plan," He confessed, letting his shoulder brush against hers.
"Probably," She murmured back, " I suppose it's better that she found us, rather than anyone else."
Silence entered the space between them, growing more deafening as the sound of waves reaching the shore faded. Glances were thrown back and forth, cutting through the dark. Eventually her hand fumbled to find his. His thumb brushed over hers as their fingers came to interlock.
"How does the picture look?" He eventually asked, just as Marine's hut entered view.
"It hasn't developed yet," She explained, glancing down at the now slightly less grey photograph, "Neither of us could see it properly in the dark anyway."
Another quiet bloomed, she glanced up to him and saw deep thought on his muzzle, "Maybe I shouldn't see it yet," He raised the conch, "Just like you don't want to see this in the light, right? Not till we can see each other as we did before."
A promise made tactile, a reason to reunite made manifest for each of them. Objects exchanged not as bribes or some other exchange, but representative of promises. What value they held on their own wasn't insignificant, a scandalous photo and a pristine shell, but their sentimental worth was far greater.
"If you're sure you can wait to see it, I think that would be nice," Her agreement came out quickly, but she struggled to state what came next, "But, I don't see a reason to not replicate its contents before then."
They'd steal back their normalcy, no matter how long it took. He squeezed her hand, as if trying to obfuscate the undeniable mix of excitement and trepidation on his face, as their lips met again. The kiss was briefer than before, and not nearly as crude, but with her slipping onto her tiptoes, they replicated what the photo would undoubtedly show and rumours had endlessly insisted.
Whenever they could finally kiss in public, they'd have had plenty of practice. She would make sure of that.