songerein | closed 🌠 safe and sound, alive under the stars

Mm.

[A quiet hum as he thinks back. Back to when he and Alice first stumbled onto his tree... The tree's magic making him lose his memories... The ordeal he put Tifa and others through to get them back and finally overcoming the magic... The corgis and everything after... And then they eventually married in front of this tree.]

Feels like a long time ago...

Because it was.

[She smiles, and it reaches all the way up her nose and into her eyes.]

You know...

[She reaches for his hand on the door.]

Since we aren't using it for anything anymore, we could always try and do something with it. I don't know what, but... if it's just sitting here...

[A soft smile as he takes her hand.]

Mm... We should.

[His gaze goes up to the tree, whose branches remain evergreen with the flowers and leaves despite the snow settling onto its branches. It seems to move as if in agreement, the branches swaying in what little wind there is.]

We took away everything it was protecting... I'm sure it would like something else.

[Tifa smiles up at the tree, too, her other hand going to run gently over the wooden door.]

What do you think? [Is she asking the tree or Eustace? Maybe a little bit of both.] A vacation house? Or is it too close to be considered that? Maybe a giant playhouse for the dogs?

Edited 2023-12-08 17:42 (UTC)

Hmm, maybe. But it's still a bit of a walk.

[Hm...]

Other animals, maybe?

Isn't that what the sanctuary's for?

[Though, it isn't a bad idea, given how far into the town the Starflower actually is. And they can't feasibly take care of anything that's bigger than a large dog...

But it's cute that it's the first place Eustace's mind had gone to.]

Unless you mean open it up to the wild animals a little more?

That's what I was thinking. We'd need someone to supervise it, but... For instance now that winter is coming, it could serve as another place for shelter for animals that might have difficulty finding any or need it.

[With her hand on his, Tifa gives the door's handle a little nudge. Her nose is getting kind of cold.]

We could always ask Mirabelle if she knows anyone.

[The fairy likes to boast sometimes about how she has a friend who knows how to do this or that...]

Maybe she's got a fairy friend who wouldn't mind living away from town with some animals.

[A pause.]

But let's worry about that later, yeah? For now... [Tifa takes a step towards him, seeking his warmth.] This can be our special little place.

Hm... Yeah, we can do that.

[The idea is starting to form in his mind more, and he smiles at Tifa.

But as he leans in...]

First... Wait right here.

[He just boops his nose with hers before he grins mischievously and goes into the door.

Without her.

Leaving her outside.]

Huh?

[Her eyes go a little wide when he brings his nose in to touch hers, and there's a tingle of warmth that tickles her and spreads through into her cheeks, and she brings a hand up to it as if she's just been blessed with magic. And maybe she has.

She does as she's told though, and she might peek curiously around the door to see what he's up to, but the house is so dark that she can barely make anything out inside. And whenever he comes back, she'll move again, pretending as if she hadn't been looking at all as she bounces on the balls of her feet eagerly, a new warmth settling in all around her and melting the snow.]

[Even if he tried to hide it, he knows what she was doing, able to see her shadow from within the dimly lit treehouse. And fortunately he won't take long, coming back with—]

Here.

[Two pairs of ice skates.]

It's been a while since we've done this.

[Of course...there's no lake or pond nearby, nor any visible surface to skate on.]

[When he returns, she is overtaken with surprise when he carries out the pair of skates, and her eyes immediately snap up to him, shimmering with pure, unbridled excitement.]

Really!?

[She reaches out to take one pair of skates with her, a coy look.]

But there's no ice...

[She already has a suspicion he knows exactly how to fix that.]

[A light chuckle as she would be correct.]

Easy enough to fix.

[And with a slight gesture of his hand, cold air rushes out from his palm to wash over the ground before them. And in a matter of moments, the once snow covered ground has solidified into thick ice.]

[That's exactly what she imagined and had in mind, so there's no surprise in her expression, but there is a look of wonder as she watches everything turn to ice, the snow transforming into a perfect surface for them to skate on.]

I had a feeling.

[And she'll lean up to press a kiss to his lips, soft and tender and filled with gratitude.]

... How long's it been since we have?

[He smiles down at her with equal warmth and softness before he answers.]

Mm... Did we do it last year any?

[She takes the skates and sits down on the steps of the house, brushing aside some of the snow first before she's working to slip her shoes off, her lips pouting in thought.]

... Well, there was that one dream we were in. We were both kids in that one, though.

...I'm not sure that really counts.

[He'll think for a moment before he leans against the tree and takes off his boots to switch them out with his own pair of skates.]

Have we really not tried ice skating since...that time at the lake?

Mm...

[Thinking back, further and further and further...

...

Tifa's brows furrow.]

I don't think so.

[And that wasn't exactly the greatest memory between them, even if it was a long time ago, and she wonders if that's why they haven't tried it since then.]

I guess... a chance just never came up again until now.

...Mm.

[He's having similar thoughts as he stamps down on the snow with his blades, now both on his feet.]

But now we do, so we should make the most of it.

[She's busy lacing up her own, one and then the other, but rather than push herself up, she stretches her arms and her hands out for him.]

I plan to.

[She does wonder if he'd thought back to the same day... it was so long ago that she'd nearly forgotten about it, and for a good reason too, probably. It wasn't a memory that Tifa wanted to carry with her ever, anywhere and she has a feeling that Eustace is the same.

Better that they make a new memory to outlast the old. Though, she will tease—]

Let's hope we don't get one of those slugs coming after us this time.

[A small laugh as he takes her hands and pulls her up—and close, where she will be pressed up against him.]

Even if they did, they would full enough within minutes.

[He then sneaks in a kiss, lips lightly pressing against hers as he tugs her a little closer. Is it because he was momentarily unsettled by that memory? Perhaps. But as harrowing as it was...it is a time that made him realize how important Tifa had become to him.]

[And it's a good thing that they won't dwell on it for long. There is nothing to dwell on, if she's perfectly honest—scary as it had been, and as much as she hates frozen lakes these days still, she is of the same mind. It had been a turning point for them, something that maybe they needed for the realization to sink in that they meant more to each other than what they were letting on or willing to admit.

Now they're here, and ready to make a new, better memory.

So, when he tugs her close, she accepts the kiss, her arms wrapping around him in return both to keep him near and for balance. She'll need to get used to these skates again, especially in the snow...]

Let them come, then. Maybe they'd stop terrorizing the town if they did.

[She nuzzles her nose against his, relishing in that warmth that he gives off.]

Come on. Might take me a minute or two to get used to being in these again...

Just hold onto me.

[A light smile before he takes one last kiss and then makes his way to the ice, his steps sure as he stands on the ice while holding her hand to give her support.]

Well, that won't be a problem.

[She's a bit sheepish as she shuffles along towards the ice, sliding her skates along the snow with her hand in his. You'd think that someone with impeccable balance would be used to this sort of thing, but walking and skating on a pair of blades is a bit different from wearing shoes... Doesn't mean she's not a little embarrassed when she trips a little on their way.

But as soon as they get on the ice, she's a bit more comfortable, but no. She's not letting go.]

Do you remember how?

[A laugh....

And he's going to let go of her hands despite what he just said and start skating around her. With his hands behind his back.

Backwards.]

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