Private Tales Hearts and Moonlight

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Hearts and Hearth Day had always been a holiday that her father would write her letters, no matter where he was, and she collected them in a box that her mother had gotten made before Vittoria had been born. Inside there were miniature portraits of her parents, some keepsakes, a few rings and other jewellery, and now a bundled stack of letters, a new one from Killien perched at the very top. This one Vittoria had read a number of times, perhaps in hopes to decipher if he had left a code in order to open her gift, but she had received the gift earlier that day, and still, as the sun was soon to set, Vittoria had not yet figured it out.

She was not frustrated. No, this was stimulation for her mind. Even her magic decided not to begin to unlock the inner mechanisms, for fear she would spoil the fun.

Kilien would find Vittoria sat on the large blanket sprawled across the grass, and a few feet before her was an unlit fire. That was for later. Vittoria had another surprise for Kilien in the picnic basket, where chocolate, marshmallows, strawberries, and even sweet biscuits could be found. There was cheese and crackers too, and sliced bread. An evening under the stars, where she had also laid out a few choices of books from her personal collection, the idea to read to him just to stretch out the hours beneath the stars.

It would seem his gift still held her focus, for she would hear his approach, but her eyes still on the prize. She was at least halfway there to figuring it out, but it merely looked as if she was staring off into space and looking through the puzzle. "Hello, Killy."

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

Killy. That was a new one, not that he had ever been offended by pet names. It simply earned a warm smile that preceded the look of dawning surprise as he took in the entire assortment laid out around her.

"What's all this?" he asked, playing at shock when he knew precisely what it was. Vittoria had spoken of a picnic for the last few weeks, but between her duitifuly maintained schedule as a student and his own mission away, there'd not yet been a chance. What an opportunistic fiend she was.

"Is this-" bending at the knees to crawl onto the blanket next to her, accosting her cheek with a kiss and her ear with a nuzzle, "all for me?"

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

It was only when he gave mock surprise, greeting her that she would set down her treasured gift to rest at her sternum. By the time he kissed her cheek and nuzzled into her ear, she was laughing. Only Kilien had been able to make her make such a sound, and it deeply perturbed their classmates to her laughter from Vittoria, even more so when she sounded like a young child being spoiled on their name day.

"I could not possibly eat all of this on my own." Her hands went to cradle either side of his face, holding him still so that she could greet him properly with a kiss. They had been doing a lot of kissing since that first day. Vittoria enjoyed it all the same, but it was when they got to sneak in this private time did she enjoy it all the more. Out here, King would not have to interrupt them by clearing his throat multiple times before the Proctor came to start their class.

"Did you get your Heart and Hearth gift?" She murmured against his lips.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

With the picnic basket just within reach, his eyes spied the alluring red of a strawberry near the top.

"Mmmm - no," he said into her kiss, "no you couldn't possibly eat it all. Here, let me help you with that," and snaked a hand past her waist to pluck the nearest strawberry from the basket. It was quickly in his teeth and juices filling his mouth. Kilien made several sounds of delight at the flavor as he shifted about to hunker down on the blanket right at Vittoria's side.

"I did," he said, licking strawberry juice from his fingers before casually tossing the leafy top over his shoulder and into the grass, "that was a great little story. Did you write that yourself Miss Larrainth?"

Laying on his side, propped up on his right arm, he gently reached up to paw the wooden locket she wore around her neck. She still hadn't figured out its secret.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Praise always made her feel her best, and when it came from Kilien, it made her feel warm and overwhelmed with wanting to be near him. He was here now, looking up at her chest where the puzzle rested on a chain. "I did indeed write it. Wrote it out all neatly in that book, which I also cut and bound myself."

They had not discussed gifts for each other, but Vittoria had always liked to participate in the holiday and sending gifts to her loved ones. This year had been her first time gifting to someone new and him.

"Your gift... I am afraid to figure it out. Perhaps that is the reason I have not done so already. I enjoy clever things, and this one is by far the cleverest trick..." Vittoria smiled, her hand going to rest over his as he fiddled with the locket. "I will open it on the promise you will find me a new puzzle."

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

Wrote and bound the book herself. Wasn't she just full of little surprises.

More reasons to simply be impressed by her, as if he had any shortage of them.

"Hm," he smiled up at her, thumbing the locket between his fingers, itching to show her the simple little trick to it, "took me a while to make this one. What do you think I am, full of puzzles?" His smile cracked into a smirk as he dropped the locket and playfully pawed at her chin instead, "Just spillin' out of my pockets."

His smile broadened, goaded on by just how much she seemed to be enjoying the gift and his antics. A wolfish grin that showed his canines stretched into his beard, "You open it when you're good and ready," and that hand now came to rest on her knee, thumb gently stroking along her thigh, "there's no rush."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria liked the sound of that. That he knew and understood that she did not wish to make something enjoyable end so soon, that she treasured puzzles like this. Something he had made for her.

"Then I will open it another day, when I am ready." Her fingers curled over the chain, pressing the locket to her skin. "Although I think you would make me a very happy girl if you did have puzzles spilling out of your pockets."

She leaned down to steal another kiss, something she did often now for it to feel natural. "Now, in that basket I have all sorts of things we can roast in the fire. Which is not lit yet because I want to wait until the sun sets." Which was not far off. In a few minutes, the setting sun would pour all over the two, drenching them in a warm glow.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

If puzzles were the way to her heart he would certainly make the effort, though what a monumental effort it would be for them to be spilling out of his pockets. Even magically, he wasn't sure he could manage it. Perhaps that was for the best - couldn't be spoiling the spoiled Initiate too much. He was a pauper compared to her, after all, and it was best he not presume to act as anything else.

As for his own heart, well - she already had the strings looped around her little finger, but food always always helped. Kilien Basmarc was never not hungry.

"I can't wait," he said, looking excited at the prospect of spending the evening with his favorite person in his favorite place; out beneath the stars. Though he shifted where he lay beside her and pushed himself to his feet and turned to offer her his hands, "I have one more lil somethin' for ya, though, before that sun goes to bed."

He smiled, hazel eyes glinting with contained mirth, "C'mon, on your feet Missy."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria looked up at him.

She had decided she adored seeing him at such angles, it reminded her of the night they first spent together in the moonlight, and how she looked up at him as he climbed the apple tree. There was... something undeniable about him then as it was now. Her hand took his, but her eyes never left his face as she moved to stand.

"You are a curiosity..." She smiled coyly, stepping close to him as he intrigued her with just his words. Vitttoria was not so easily distracted with vagueness dangled before her, but Kilien was a constant surprise and wonder she would not tire of.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

"Well that's certainly one of the nicer things I've been called," he returned with a smirk, taking her hand in his own with fingers laced between one another. "Just a short walk."

Off he lead her, through the trees and out to the hillside that followed the slopes of the ridge whereupon the Academy settled overlooking the sea beyond. The rolling hill was rarely used for anything beyond the occasional sparring sessions or teaching the youngest Initiates how to set up camp. For the most part they were left to the wild - gold and green grasses that billowed in the winds like waves on the ocean. Pretty to behold all on their own.

As they reached a knoll near the top overlooking the landscape, Kilien came to a halt and released Vittoria's hand, then reached into his jacket to withdraw his wand from the hidden pocket within. He gave it a flourish, sending a gentle spray of blue light from its end, and glanced aside to her with a warm smile, "Been practicing this just for you."

Kilien raised his wand and gestured it in an arc across the vast expanse of fields, and all before them he watched in the light of the sunset as the hills pushed blooms of wildflowers everywhere. A blanket of colors emerged from nothing - white and pink, blue and yellow, purple and red - like stained glass had been laid out to cover the slopes.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

If Kilien held her hand, Vittoria was convinced he could lead her anywhere and however long, and she would be content to have their fingers laced together. It was a comfort, an affection she had never thought she would crave until Kilien became that person to her.

It made her think of her father, and how he had told her many stories of how he learned to love her mother. He had fallen first, but she needed time to learn more about him before finding things to love.

With Kilien, the immediate thing she was appreciative of was the way he encouraged her to being her best, that he never once held it against her. He may tease, may prod here and there about her drive, but he was unabashed to show his appreciation of her.

And his surpise was another moment of appreciation.

Before her eyes, the sodden grass left after the snow melted, bloomed wildflowers of every colour. The warmth of the setting sun saturated them into a brilliance, that each flowers became gilded.

"Kilien..." Her voice was soft, a whisper, and her eyes transfixed on the display.

She wished she were a painter, so that she could capture this tableau forever to gaze upon.

"This is beautiful..."

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

"Yeah," he smiled proudly and turned to admire his work, "it sure is."

Letting several long moments go by so she could take it all in, Kilien stashed his wand away and stepped himself back up to stand beside her. An arm looped around her back to rest at her waist and he simply stood at her side, enjoying the view.

"Hey," he whispered at her, head tilting toward her own, "let's go pick your favorites before the sun goes down."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Was this their thing now? To harvest what they could and spend time doing so? For Vittoria, she loved it. It meant more time with Kilien, and goodness did his patience with her make her feel at ease to spend the time in finding the perfect thing to pick.

"I do not see any yarrow..." she teased him as they approached the first wave of wildflowers.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

"Yeah, I put it waaaaaaaay down at the bottom in hopes you wouldn't find it," he rebuked with a smarmy, tooth-filled smile, brows bobbing with a wink back at her.

"Alright, so - you pick 'em, I'll bouquet 'em." Kilien held out his hands, ready to hold any and every flower she chose.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria was left with a wicked smile as she walked a few feet into the sea of flowers, looking about before making a decision on where to start.

The white and yellow daisies first.

Poppies came next, and then the marigolds of a brilliant orange that mimicked the sky. "These are not all from the same season." She noted, turning to Kilien as she handed the picked flowers to him. "But I do like the variations they all give."

The cornflowers especially. Their vibrant petals pleased her so much, she picked a fair share of them. "I always liked these. My grandmother had eyes coloured this deep of blue. My father named me after her." She remembered, sharing with Kilien the morsel of her past.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

"Is that right? Huh, different seasons..." Kilien dutifully and carefully took the flowers as they were passed over, arranging them together neatly while he listened. Truthfully he knew very little about most flowers. He couldn't tell you what season each of them grew or even the names of the vast majority of the fields around them.

But he found a book in the library all about flowers and was able to study some very detailed and colored drawings and paintings of them.

To the cornflowers, as they were given such special attention, he took a mental note.

"Does that mean," he said as he looked over at her expectantly, "there's a Granny Vi somewhere in the world?"

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria was quiet. She was fussing between two leafy stems to stall. Never did she have a problem with speaking about how she was the Lady of her house... but with Kilien, she had begun experiencing emotions she could not comprehend.

"I am the last Larrainth. The only relatives I have are my cousins Elise and Liliana." And their families too. "There were... troubles in my father's past. His wish was that I be the last Larrainth and let it die with me leaving the name to remembered with greatness."

Vittoria did not tell Kilien that on her mother's side, she had a set of grandparents and a large number of family. She only met her Pirian grandparents a handful of times, and the last being at the memorial service of her father nearly two years prior.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

The expectancy faded, slowly wilting into a frown. Brow furrowed, he had the sneaking suspicion he already know she was the last Larrainth. That she'd told him this before, back in her home town. Stupid.

"Oh," he said after a moment, his gaze dropping to the flowers in his hands, "in that case... you should pick some extra cornflowers for your grandmother. I bet she'd like that." When he looked back up he'd fixed another smile on his face, one that was empathetic to her plight. He held out his free hand, ready to add the next batch of flowers to the bundle.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria stiffened.

Why had she expected him to shrug it off, to become awkward and change subject?

No... Kilien was not like the rest. He did not run away from the hard topics, especially with her. He made her feel seen and understood, and his patience only made her learn to be grateful of him.

"Yes... yes she would." She could feel the warmth of his smile, and as she looked up at him, he was washed in gold.

Her task forgotten, her gaze looking to him and —

"You are more beautiful than the flowers looked." The words left her lips without thought.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

"Alright, so ... which ones were those? These little blue ones right?" Kilien bent slightly to pick a nearby bunch of them, rising to stand with a curious look as he added them to the bundle, "I don't get why they're called cornflowers, they don't-"

"You are more beautiful than the flowers looked."

He blinked, froze, hazel eyes drifted back toward her, "-look anything... like...corn?"

Did she just call him beautiful?

Part of him wanted to look around, to be silly, to brush off the compliment with humor as if searching for the beautiful person standing nearby. Then he looked at her face and saw the softness in it, frigid edges melted in the warmth of her own feelings. His smile persisted, shifting with the fondness he'd developed for her over the few short weeks they'd spent time together.

Kilien carefully gathered the bundle in both hands and moved to step back over to her, "My grandmother used to tell me that beauty grows from happiness." His hand dipped into a jacket pocket and withdrew a string of baling twine he'd nicked from the stables, then began to wind it around the stems of the flower bundle in his hand.

"If I'm beautiful, it's only because you make me really happy."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria could not help but stare at him, shocked and unsure of what to say. It never occurred to her to make someone happy, let alone having not made the conscious choice to do so with him other than gift him a handwritten story and bind the book for him.

His words swirled around her, and she sucked in a shaky breath as she tried to work through the emotions pressing on her chest.

"I do?" Never had she asked for clarification on something like that. It was unusual for someone to think of her that way, but she began to see it all. Of course he was happy. How many times had she lost count of all the smiles he had given her?

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

Kilien chuckled, a concerned bit of humor washing over his face as he watched her struggle with her own feelings. He stepped closer, coming up to her front where he lifted a hand to brush his fingertips down along the strands of dark hair framing the side of her face, "Yeah," he replied quietly, his gaze shifting down to the flower bouquet he held between them, "the happiest I've been in... years."

Hazel shifted back to blue, "In fact I might be a little addicted to it, so you're kinda stuck with me now."

He presented her with the bouquet, now tied with a twine string in a lopsided bow, "For you."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Addicted...

She felt that too.

Recognised it within herself. There was so much about him that she wanted over and over, and the swell of emotions were the same whenever she felt like...

"Kiss me." She whispered, staring at him as the gold began to fade but made his hazel eyes glow to something extraordinary and rare. "I... I am addicted to you kissing me..." she further clarified.

It made her happy in a type of way, to be so close to him and warmed by his presence. She never liked to be touched before, had threatened a great many in the past...

But Kilien had never bothered her.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

She sure did like telling him what to do, but generally he took no issue with her orders. Especially not when it involved granting her romantic desires - never had to tell him twice. Kilien pushed the bundle of flowers into her hand, stepping up snug against her front until he could nuzzle lightly against her face.

He tilted his head and kissed her once, slowly, along her top lip. A second time along her bottom lip. The slow pace he'd set for himself always created a cage against which the scoundrel beast within pressed against. Wanting more - so much more. He felt it reach through the bars, clawing for a morsel of her lust.

This time he'd let it have a taste.

Kilien licked across her lips, his hands now free lifted to neck and jaw.

"I want to show you something," he whispered to her, head leaned against hers as he lightly brushed a thumb over her lower lip, "open your mouth when I kiss you again."

It would always be a bit awkward the first time, he knew, but he didn't care. Either she'd like it or she wouldn't, and he'd know soon enough which one it was. When he leaned in next to plant his lips against hers, he waited for her teeth to part, tilted his head and pressed his tongue in along her own.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

The flowers had been forgotten, but she was used to forgetting a great deal whenever they had moments like this. All too well, her arms wrapped around his neck to anchor herself to him, savouring his kisses while the bouquet rested along his spine.

His instruction on what she do the next time he went to kiss her left her curious, but there was a danger in her curiosity. All too eagerly, she obliged his request and was pleasantly surprised by the introduction of his tongue. He tasted like whatever fruit he had eaten before they walked this way, and Vittoria was convinced to experience this new sensation.

His tongue was patient, showing her the movements in which it moved and soon she tried to replicate it. Slow, gentle, soft. There was no need to rush this. Vittoria's eyes fluttered closed the moment she began to feel as if she was working with him.

Was this a kiss? It certainly had elements of it...