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 Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2025 11:41 am
“He’s magic, Cass!” Reims laughed and held out his hand to try and coax Cassidy closer. The lion seemed pleased by the attention and stretched out his limbs and relaxed his wings so it looked almost like melted glass feathers spread out over him and the ground.
“So, uh--” he paused and then made a face, because he wasn’t sure how much he wanted to get into it. Cassidy was smart. He would surely figure out who he was if he said too much.
“I had a dream, right? Like, I was just sleeping. And, well, I saw his bright eyes just staring at me. So, uh… I went to Ganymede and this brooch was hidden away behind a brick in a wall. Crazy, right? Uh, so yeah, I could sort of feel the magic calling to me and now if I have any problems, he’ll come to give me a hand. Paw. Whatever. But his magic doesn’t last forever, so it’s not like I can just keep him out to fight monsters all the time. That would be pretty cool, though. I mean, I’ve got a cool sword too, and that’s fun to swing around--”
Oh, he was definitely just rambling at this point.
“I’m not the only one, though. Other Knights like me have -- uh… I guess we call them summons. Since we summon them to us. Yeah, I think that sounds right. Anyway, my friends that you met. Ephesus has a big golden tiger and Amarynthos has a bear.”
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Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2025 11:47 am
“What? Wow, you guys are so cheesy! Lions and Tigers and Bears?”
He couldn’t help himself; he tipped his head back and laughed, leaning into Reims. “That’s so crazy!”
And the world was ending, and they had magic pets!
It was cute, to see him so excited about things. Especially considering the weight of what he must have been carrying. The pressure? Let Reims laugh. Let him be happy. Let him find whatever joy he could, he deserved it all.
“I’m so jealous! He’s beautiful. Does he understand what you say?” He didn’t wait for an answer and told the lion, “You’re beautiful.”
His fingers twitched, like he almost reached out to touch the lion, but instead he just put both of his hands on his knees and did his best to control himself. He paused, and then looked at Reims.
“You know, you’re beautiful, too.”
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Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2025 12:00 pm
He’d been laughing quietly in amusement as he realized wow, they were really cheesy with their summons. He probably should have mentioned Sessrumnir’s too!
Reims would have tried to answer Cassidy about if the lion understood him, but suddenly he felt frozen in place as Cassidy continued. He was pretty sure his heart decided to try and escape his chest.
He was beautiful?
His whole face had flushed red as he stared at Cassidy with a stupid open mouthed expression. He quickly closed it, of course, but he wasn’t sure how long he’d been staring at him like that.
“Oh, uh…” he stammered, trying to clear his throat as he glanced away from Cassidy then, looking at anything he could focus on. “I mean. Thanks, but I didn’t pick out the outfit. It kinda came with the magical -- you know. Just being magic thing. But thanks. I mean, it’s probably a little much.”
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Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2025 12:06 pm
“You think so? I like it,” Cassidy said, and this time his smile reached his eyes a little more. He could have laughed, if only because Reims was very cute, and he enjoyed watching him get flustered.
He didn’t laugh because he didn’t want him to think he was just teasing him. He did look good.
“The least thing the universe could do was make sure you looked good while saving it, right? Ten out of ten, five stars. I love it. You belong on a runway. Out on the battlefield? Slay.”
Reims did look good, why was he so shy? All the more reason to be comfortable in the outfit! It didn’t sound like he could have changed it even if he’d wanted to. “You should be more proud about it. It looks good. You look good.”
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Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2025 12:13 pm
Reims laughed, a little awkwardly, like he wasn’t sure if he was being teased or--
No, Cassidy wouldn’t tease him. At least not to hurt him. He knew that now. It was just a little difficult to think of himself looking good when he’d gone his whole life being hated for how he looked. Ah, it was just one more thing for him to figure out and work through, probably.
“Not as good as you,” he finally responded, sounding quite confident about it. “You always look good. In sweatpants or shorts or whatever--”
Hmm… it probably sounded like he was only looking at his legs. That wasn’t true at all, but he did have very nice legs.
Reims cleared his throat again, and then finally reached to take both of Cassidy’s hands, tugging them gently from where he rested them on his knees, and over to his lion so they could both sink their hands into his fur.
“He won’t hurt you,” he promised, and the lion responded with a little boof in--... well, Reims decided it was in agreement.
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Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2025 12:27 pm
Cassidy wasn’t particularly shy (except when he risked losing his hand to a disgruntled lion) so Reims’ assistance was more than appreciated. The lion was soft–softer than he thought it would be, but he wasn’t sure how he’d convinced himself that its fur should be like bristly wires.
Smart, trip him up with the end of the world and then give him a therapy animal to pet? Oh, Reims. It was creative. And it did help, just as much as Reims’ hands on Cassidy’s.
He was still smiling from the compliments and bumped shoulders once more. “Thanks for being so good to me, Reims.” He massaged into the lion’s fur, not quite sure how to pet something so big but enjoying the process all the same. His heart was still going a little fast but Reims said the lion wasn’t going to hurt him, and–
Well, once you got past those teeth, he was kind of cute looking.
“When this whole thing is over, when you don’t have to save the world again, you’re gonna spend more time with me, right? I want to hear about everything going on in your life. You’ve got so much to catch me up on. I like hearing all your magic stories.”
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Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2025 12:30 pm
It was a good thing that Cassidy got to pet the lion when he did, because while it was still there, it seemed to fade from their reality.
“Magic ran out,” he explained, or at least that was what it felt like. He was still holding onto Cassidy’s hands though, and he didn’t bother letting them go just yet.
“Yeah, I’d like that. I’m not sure what stories I can come up with, but I’ll try to not disappoint you,” he grinned.
Even with the sky still crackling above them with its purple hue, Reims at least got to warn Cassidy about what was coming. And he was feeling a bit more confident now. After all, they had to keep Earth safe so they could hang out more.
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Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2025 12:40 pm
“Oh!” Cassidy exclaimed, at first worried that he’d done something to dismiss the summons, but he’d calmed quickly when Reims insisted it was just because the magic ran out.
“...Well, it was cute while it lasted. I hope I’ll be able to pet him again,” he said, which was probably his not-so-subtle way of saying that he wanted to see Reims again.
Before the end of the world. And after it, too. If it came to that.
Reims had such a nice smile. Cassidy wanted to see more of that, too.
There might not have been much he could do, but he’d hope for the best all the same. And, Reims was holding his hands. So that was a plus.
He was pretty sure he’d have to work really hard to find the silver lining in things in the upcoming days.
This was a good start.
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