Welcome to Gaia! ::

After Tanarah and Talanah had been successfully dropped off with their grandparents, the night grew notably quieter, and Lithian shut his eyes, enjoying for just a moment the simple peace of that in and of itself.

Though he loved his daughters beyond description, in the years since their birth, moments of quiet and tranquility had been few and far between, ever rare and difficult to come by. Once they had become old enough and capable of spending more time away, of course, Kilian and Vallarah had taken them on occasion to provide himself and Casseth with time to themselves — as they were tonight. Much as he appreciated that, though, the times were still fairly rare, Lithian not wanting to overburden them, and he appreciated them immensely.

Overhead, white stars twinkled down from a midnight sky, the evening air becoming brisk despite the season as the sun sank and allowed the dry air to cool. Lithian stepped over, shifting his hand out to thread fingers between Casseth’s and leaning to press a kiss to his cheek.

“Little as I like burdening Vallarah and your father…I have missed opportunities like this,” he admitted, smiling. “Sometimes I cannot help but remember how once upon a time, I thought everything we have together was beyond impossible…”

Lithian blinked, startled at the giftbox. For all that they both exchanged numerous gestures of affection on a daily basis, gifts were not generally among them, and upon thinking on it, he couldn’t remember the last time either of them had given the other something along those lines. After a glance to Casseth, though, and a flush, he accepted the box, equal parts curious and abashed.

“You know you needn’t get me anything, Casseth,” he murmured. “What is the occasion?”

He worked his fingers over the ribbon bindings as he asked, careful not to rip anything, and on successfully lifting back the lid, his flush magnified, gaze taking in the full — obviously carefully arranged and picked — display. Fresh, blooming buds, all in colors that Lithian knew immediately represented their family, from his blue and Casseth’s yellow to the tiny dots of pink scattered within.

Careful not to jostle them too harshly, Lithian swept forward, catching his mate in an encompassing hug and then kissing him and murmuring into it, “They’re beautiful, Casseth. We’ll have to put them somewhere I can see them every day and perhaps Vallarah can help them to last…” He lingered, not wanting to pull away, but eventually leaned back enough to smile and eye his mate’s face. “So…oh romantic gift-bearer…what is first on our schedule tonight? Now that you have me all to yourself…”

Lithian’s smile broadened. “I would love to go dancing.”

And so they did.

It required some exploration around the town — which Lithian didn’t mind in the least — meandering between the streets and occasionally sampling street food before they came upon a small performance from a gypsy train passing through. From it came the wafting tunes of a wooden flute, percussion, and a singer, though the language he used was nothing Lithian immediately recognized. A small gathering of townsfolk, mostly young faces out for a night of entertainment from the look of things, had already cloistered around the scene, and Lithian slipped his fingers into Casseth’s, tugging him close and towards it.

Leaning in as they drew close, Lithian said, near to Casseth’s ear, “Do you remember the first time we danced?”

Lithian hummed. “Did it really?” he asked. “And here I thought I’ve always been the same…silly, bumbling…clumsy little blue-haired girl.” His eyes twinkled with amusement moments before he tugged Casseth to the area cleared for dancing. “Do you think you have gotten any better at dancing since that night? I seem to recall we were, at the time, under the influence of a little more than just juice…”

Lithian grinned. “I’d like that.”

So, they spent a sizable portion of the evening doing just that, neither of them especially ‘skilled’ at it, but nor were they as nervous as during their first experiences with it, and between the wash of rich music, the interplay of light and cool n** of evening, and Casseth’s enduring heat, Lithian found the process more than pleasing enough to satisfy thoroughly. In the aftermath, when both were flushed and worn enough to want some space just to themselves — and perhaps a little more quiet all around — they slipped from the crowd, out, and down back towards the seashore and beach line.

In the distance, the music was still barely audible as Lithian slipped off his boots, and moved to toe his feet into the cool sand, lit only by starlight and the rising moon. “What did you imagine for yourself as a boy?” Lithian asked, the question coming on a whim. “Your dream of a perfect future…what did it include?”

Lithian flushed and dipped his lashes.

He and Casseth truly had been very different in their aims for the future at one point. Having always wanted a family, large like his own had been — or, barring that, a peaceful existence as a priest, dedicated to his faith and his god and bringing others health, healing, and religion — it was strange to think that not so very long ago, his mate’s goals had been drastically different. Lithian had never been a fan of the pit, ever less so every time Casseth risked his life and his health there, and it had been one of the most relieving moments he could remember, when Casseth had said he would stop. To think that once upon a time, that place had been the center of Casseth’s goals…

Lithian exhaled, dismissing the thought, and shifted closer to his mate, winding an arm around his waist and pinching into the cloth of his shirt as he leaned to press a kiss to the scruff at Cas’ jaw. “I love you,” he said. “And I cannot express how happy I am that things took the turns they did…”

From there, the night took most of the turns one might expect. Despite Lithian’s suggestions to perhaps maintain some semblance of modesty, they did not make it off of the beach until after Casseth had reassured himself that every inch of Lithian still felt and tasted as it had in the past, upon which point — following a brief respite — they made themselves presentable again and returned home. There, they bathed properly, dried, and fetched their (sleeping) daughters.

After the walk home and the tucking-in ritual of the girls, Lithian slipped gratefully into bed beside his mate and wondered as his mind drifted off what all as-of-yet-unexpected things would continue to change their lives in the years to come.