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XOCHI'S HOME - BACKYARD - MORNING
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Xochi managese to pull herself together enough to get back outside, after far too much time spent crying. Now, she wipes the tears from her face, and tries to do what she can to till the soil and prepare her garden, if only just to distract herself for the day.
Kira flies toward the house after carefully snuffing the last of the lanterns for the evening. She gives a low circle and spots Xochi at work in the garden. Rather than head to her nook, the moth flutters down to land on an overturned wheelbarrow at the side of the garden plot. "Good morning," she says in her usual small, cheery voice.
Xochi looks up from the dirt and forces a smile at her friend, "Ah, Kira. Good morning."
Kira cocks her head as she watches Xochi work. "It is for me, but you look sad. Why is my friend sad?"
Xochi shifts herself back to settle on her coils and sighs, "You are correct... I am sad." She thinks a moment, "It is because... I have hurt a very good, old friend of mine. I failed to see him, and in failing, I hurt him a great deal."
Kira frowns. "If you hurt him, then you should make amends, I think. Hopefully the wound will heal." They flutter over and land on one of Xochi's outer coils before leaning in to hug her small form against Xochi's much larger frame.
Xochi nods. "That is a wish, but I do not think I can. I have apologized, but I feel the wound is too deep." She slowly slides along her coils to bring the tip of her tail around, letting it very, very gently nudge against Kira to 'hug' back. "What Aktzin does next... I cannot say. I wish him to be happy, and I fear being near me will forever prevent that."
Kira flutters her wings a bit as she settles in against her friend. "Who is Aktzin? I haven't heard you talk of him before."
Xochi smiles, "Aktzin is... was my best friend. My only friend. I grew up alone, isolated from others, save for servants who saw me as superior, and guards who saw me as a chore... or a prisoner. But Aktzin was a child when I was a child, and we grew up together. He became the only one I could talk to for a very long time... until we could no longer talk the way we had as hatchlings."
Kira nods a bit. "I haven't seen any of my co-hatchlings since I went into my cocoon... I do miss them, but I was the last to emerge anew, and they had all moved on by then..." She frowns somewhat, but then looks up at Xochi. "I've made many new friends since then, though..."
Xochi closes her eyes in memory for just a moment, "Aktzin and I are not of the same clutch, but we played and learned together as though we were..." She smiles at Kira, "I am too making new friends here. Friends I would not wish to lose. I knew I would lose much of my old life coming here... I did not expect it to follow me. Or to hurt so much when it did."
Kira frowns. "I don't think I can do anything to make this better for you, but I'm happy to talk, of course." She flutters up into the air and looks at the garden plot. "I'm just a lamplighter only out of her cocoon for a few years... I know very little beyond what I've seen for myself, but I know that you deserve happiness, friend Xochi."
Xochi chuckles, "I cannot say what I deserve... I have sometimes believed I was born cursed by the gods. But I do what I can to make the best of it. And hopefully none shall suffer harm because of me." She looks away sadly, still heavy with guilty. "No others, at least."
Kira flutters back down the wheelbarrow and blinks at Xochi. "Cursed? Why would anyone curse you?"
Xochi: "Because... I am the granddaughter of a very bad person. One who most assuredly deserved cursing. Such is my bloodline, and so, perhaps a cursed has carried down with it." She shrugs, "I am not sure I truly believe such a thing... but the gods do as they will."
Kira nods. "The moon and sun are unknowable." She looks up at the sun, squinting, before making some sort of ritualistic hand movement over her chest. "But if you are cursed, then I will do what I can to help you bear that curse."
Xochi smiles at the unfamiliar gesture, but she recognizes the intent behind it, and makes a gesture, while different, has like a similar meaning to her. "I cannot say if I am cursed or not, but I can say that I have been blessed by those I have met here in Respite. You are a good friend, Kira." She pauses, glancing away, clearly considering something heavy, but in the end she shakes her head. "I... have not told you everything about me, and some of it I am unsure who I can and cannot tell. But thank you."
Kira bows her head to Xochi. "We are but new friends still. I can wait to know everything. I know enough to call you friend, and that's all I need." She then blinks and looks up and around. "Ah~" she intones, taking flight to the bush at the edge of the property, whose large white flowers have just opened for the morning. She proceeds to bury her face in a series of them, presumably
Kira feeding on their nectar for a moment before moving on to the next flower.
Xochi covers her mouth as she stifles a laugh, then shifts back towards her garden to resume tilling the soil with her hands. "Then that is enough. I know the same of you, Kira. I wish... some things had not changed. But I am the one who forced the change. I must accept the bad... alongside the good. I shall plant myself in the garden that is Respite, and hope I thrive here."
Kira returns to Xochi's side after a few minutes of feeding. After taking a moment to wipe some stray pollen off of her face, she nods in areement. "As will I. I mean, I have never known anything beyond this town, or the areas near it, but I have no intent on retreating from my new friends."
Xochi turns the soil before she tilts her head and smiles at Kira again, "I have cried all the tears I can for now."
Kira nods. She looks down at the soil. "Can I help you with this? I would like to help you make the flowers grow..."
Xochi dips her head at Kira, "I would be honored." The two work together for awhile, getting the soil ready and planting the seeds of a new garden in Respite.
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NORTH GATE - AFTERNOON
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Louma has only just settled down in her giddiness as the gates pass by on either side of her, though by looking at her at a glance, one might not know. Despite not wearing anything resembling guard garb, Louma keeps a stiff, almost official air about her in the streets, saluting any guard they pass, including the one at the gates. The facade is somewhat broken by the large basket hanging from her arm and the smile at the corners of her beak, though. She glances at Maybelline as they exit the town, quietly giggling.
Maybelline smiles ear to ear, walking alongside Louma at a decent pace, no crutches, her limp almost completely gone now. After a quick check in with Plume to be sure a walk out to the waterfall and back wouldn't be to much strain on it, at least. Mostly, she's just glad Louma's carrying the basket, since she'd have definitely had difficulty with it.
Louma shakes her wings out as they leave the walls behind, visibly relaxing. "It's incredible how stifling a town can be, even Respite! I'm glad you've recovered so well, by the way. If you hadn't, I swear I'd have carried you out here today."
Maybelline smirks, "Oh you would, would you? Heh. Well, I'd have probably let you. Would have beat the crutches, they're a pain in the... underarm mostly." She looks about town, "But ugh, yeah. Respite is way too hot... Glaushire only gets this hot in the late of summer, and even then, not quite this hot."
Louma chuckles, giving a sly sideways glance to May. "Too hot, hmm?" She spreads the wing on May's side out wide, angling it to provide a large shadow over the stoat. "I could fan you, too, but that would make a lot of dust."
Maybelline looks up and sticks her tongue out at Louma, giggling, "I'll take the heat. Though either way, heat or dust, cooling off by the waterfall would be nice." She hums a moment, "Can you swim in the water there? Or is that not advised?"
Louma thinks on that for a moment, shrugging. "The current is quite strong out of the pool, and of course swimming directly under the waterfall is... Well, stupid. The shore is safe, though. You're right, a swim would be fantastic."
Maybelline nods, laughing a little nervously, "Directly... under the waterfall is bad. Of course. I uh... definitely knew that! And definitely wasn't thinking of it as just a really good shower."
Louma chuckles, grinning. "Right? You wouldn't be the first." She scratches the back of her neck, blushing. "Out of the two of us, anyways."
Maybelline raises an eyebrow at Louma, "Gave it a try once, eh? Well, I mean, your experience benefits me!"
Louma nods, looking ahead as the outskirts of the town fall away from around them. "I did. Luckily I float pretty well, Carter grabbed the end of my tail and pulled me free. He never let me live down being a drowned swan." She chuckles quietly, moving a little closer to May as they go along.
Maybelline glances around, this being the first time she's been out of town since she arrived and she never really got a good look at the wilderness, such as it is, to the north. City girl in the country. "Well, then I'll have to thank Carter for making sure you survived! Cause... this is nice out here."
Louma gets a sad look for a second before turning to May, the stoat's presence warming her mood. "It really is! So quiet, and that breeze. And nobody staring or expecting anything from you!" She folds her shading wing back, relaxing further. "The waterfall is... Hm, I actually don't know how long at this pace. It's not far ahead."
Maybelline nods slowly, "Never... thought about it like that... nobody else, just... us then? Sounds very nice, yeah... I can't wait to see it."
Louma giggles. "I get the feeling you don't leave the walls behind very often."
Maybelline shakes her head, "Not at all. I mean, not yet at all in Respite until now. Never did much leave the city when I lived in Glaushire either, or when I interned in Policaster... just... always been a city girl!" She seems a little awkward about admitting that, but smiles at Louma. "The air's so pure out here though, it's almost weird."
Louma nods, smiling back at May. "Well, I hope you do have a good time. Out here is the second most relaxed I ever get, and I'd like that for you as well. Out here, there's no generator, no paperwork, no explosions, no patrols. Just... This." She waves her arms out in an arch, as the cliffs of the NorthWest range loom a great distance ahead, blocked at their base by trees of slowly increasing density. A rumbling can be heard ahead, beyond a narrow trail that splits from the main road, though it's source is still obscured.
Maybelline 's ears perk up at the growing noise, "That's the waterfall? Sounds crazy." She glances at Louma curiously, "Second most relaxed? What's the first then?"
Louma gives May a wry grin, and simply looks straight up. She turns down the narrower path as she looks back to May, a warm smile taking place of the grin. "Even just thinking about that freedom... Mmh, I don't mean to tease, though."
Maybelline looks up at the clear blue sky overhead as Louma leads on, following afterward a moment later, "Up there, huh... Guess up there, you've truly got nothing to restrain you. Down here, you're still uh, down... here? That doesn't make any sense. Maybe I won't understand until uh, well..." She looks up again and shrugs. "And I never said there was anything wrong with a bit of teasing."
Louma blinks, bumping her tail playfully against May's side. "Really? Are you saying you'd actually like to try going up with me?"
Maybelline takes the hit from the tail and giggles, "I mean, maybe? I don't think heights bother me, never have before at least. I don't know how you'd manage it?" She gives Louma an appraising look, stroking her chin thoughtfully. "Maybe a saddle?"
Louma gives May an exaggerated frown. "Maybelline! How undignified!" She giggles, adjusting the basket in her grip. "I could get a larger basket for you to ride in, maybe? Might even be able to fit some cookies in it for the trip~."
Maybelline laughs along, then scrunches up her nose while she looks at the basket, "I... that's... incredibly tempting. The uh, the basket, of course! And the flight, I mean, obviously the flight."
Louma chuckles as they finally enter the shaded path, which begins to wind down a gentle hill. "Whenever you feel you're ready for it, if it does strike you. I'm not going to rush into getting you off-" A branch rudely strikes Louma in the neck, forcing her to actually pay attention to where she's slithering. "off of the ground."
Maybelline frowns at the branch, "Just make sure to watch what's striking you..." She laughs, letting it linger a moment into a deep exhale. "I think it'd be fun to experience. Once, at least." She glances at the basket. "Maybe more then once... we'll just have to see."
Louma leans closer to May as another branch has grown at her height, but also to hear her last few words as the din of the primary waterfall breaks through, the path opening up to a cliff face cut by nature's tools. Louma looks up and up and up at the high curtain, waves of mist pushing outward toward them.
Maybelline smiles as Louma leans in, raising her voice just a little before she turns to get her first look at the waterfall, and all words die in her throat. Her jaw slackens as she stares up at the cascading water, barely managing to let out an awe-inspired "Whoa..."
Louma spreads her wings, letting the cool mist buffer against them as she sighs. She has to half-shout to May, though, and isn't entirely sure she can be heard. "Beautiful, isn't it? There's a quieter spot just around the cliff..." She trails off, looking at May's expression and feeling her heart skip. She blushes, looking back towards the waterfall.
Maybelline nods vacantly, staring at the waterfall a moment longer before she snaps back to the moment, turning back to Louma, "Quieter... yeah. Lead the way."
Louma nods, clearing her throat as she calms down, taking them along the edge of the stream as it winds out of the huge pool into a second one, the outcropping of stone blocking much of the roar. The waterfall feeding this pool runs more down the face of the stone instead of freefalling, and the pool is clear and cool. Louma sets the basket down and looks about. "Here look good to you?"
Maybelline still seems a little shaken by the sight of the waterfall, but nods, "Seems... great yeah. Just... wow. I uh, wasn't prepared for this. I thought, 'oh, waterfall', and logically I knew what that meant, but... wow."
Louma stifles a giggle, chancing another look at May. "Yes it's quite magnificent. It seems most of the water from the mountains winds up coming down that fall, but the water must also flow out of the pool underground somewhere." She shrugs as she rests on the shore, coiling her tail in a large spiral instead of as a mounded seat for herself, with the basket in the middle. "I wouldn't want to live right next to all that noise, though."
Maybelline laughs, shaking her head, "Well, I've been living next to magical generators the past... ten years of my life. You'd be amazed the noises you can just get used to."
Louma chuckles as she opens the basket. "I can imagine. That long, though, hmm? That puts you in your... Late twenties, I guess?" She pats a spot on her coils, suggesting May relax there. "I forgot to pack a blanket, since I never need one for myself. I'm sorry."
Maybelline blushes slightly, then walks over and settles down on Louma's tail, "...huh. It's softer then I imagined..." She blushes further at what that implies, quickly changing the subject, "Ah! Twenty six! Fresh out of Sarn Central University and right onto the boat for Aephix."
Louma blushes as well, though she giggles nervously. She wasn't sure what to expect from the invitation, but the light pressure from May was certainly not unpleasant. She nods as she takes the bread and cheese she'd packed out of the basket, as well as an unopened bottle of wine. "Mmh, yes. I recall discussing your time at Sarn when we first met. What about Polycaster? How was that for you?"
Maybelline glances a little nervously at the basket, slightly worried that the very simple sandwiches she made won't be all that good. She manages to laugh though, "Policaster was... different. I mean, it's a bigger city then Glaushire, but not by much. They've got a whole big port, and they're way more up to date on their magitech, probably because they're doing a ton of trading of Westport. It was definitely the best training I had to prepare me for here though."
Louma nods, smiling as she portions out the appetizer, retrieving May's bundled sandwiches from the basket as she searches idly for the corkscrew. "I can imagine! Right there on the edge of the newest technology." She finds the utensil, setting it and the wine bottle down for now. "Honestly, we're very lucky to have you as our engineer. Someone else might have quit after that accident."
Maybelline sighs, "Wish I'd been on that edge instead of falling off... missed out on AMP tech by about six months. Guess I'm not all that bitter about it anymore." She waves a hand towards the waterfall, then lowers it and pats Louma's tail where she's sitting. "I'm in a pretty good spot right now. And I'm no quitter."
Louma nods along, trying not to shiver from the tickle when May pats her tail. "I would agree, there's nowhere else I'd rather be right now." She pauses, trying to hide her blush by eating a piece of the bread.
Maybelline pauses a moment, raising an eyebrow at Louma's reaction, then looking down at her hand. She smiles wide as she rocks back where she's sitting, sliding her hand along Louma's tail. "Besides, I couldn't walk away. Not with a leg injury that bad."
Louma halts her meal, eyes darting to May's hand as her wings twitch, trying to suppress a shudder. Her tail tenses under May's touch. "Y-yes, that would have m-made a difficult thing more difficult. Indeed." She clears her throat, though it sounds suspiciously like a poorly hidden giggle.
Maybelline nods, acting rather non-chalant, but she sits forward again, tracing her hands back towards her, "Guess I can't get too comfortable until I've gotten something to eat, though, hmm?" She tilts her head at Louma, barely containing a smirk, "You doing alright?"
Louma shudders under May as her hand draws back, blushing brightly under her feathers. She laughs, dropping her bread. "Oh gods stop! That tickles! I didn't know that would tickle there!"
Maybelline lifts her hand to her mouth, "Oh? I didn't realize!" She snerks, unable to keep herself from laughing, "I mean, I /might/ have noticed. S-sorry! Couldn't resist." She hops off Louma's coil and reaches into the basket to pull out some cheese.
Louma sighs, catching her breath. She blushes after a few moments, stumbling over her words. "I-I mean... I didn't hate it..." She quickly tries to change the subject as she picks up one of May's sandwiches. "So what did you pack?" She doesn't really wait for an answer or examine the food before taking a bite.
Maybelline giggles, waving one hand at Louma, wiggling the fingers a bit before she reaches back into the basket, "Well, uh, nothing special. They're just basic. Ham, cheese, lettuce... I made them with and without tomatoes." She holds up two carefully wrapped sandwhiches, one in a red wrap, and the other in white. "I can't stand tomatoes, but I don't know your tastes. It's probably a waste making a spare sandwich but you can't just pick tomatoes off, no matter what folks tell you."
Louma had grabbed a tomato'ed sandwich, humming as she enjoys the food, missing May's teasing gesture. She swallows before replying. "I'll keep that in mind for when I make things for you. I do appreciate you thinking of me, but I assure you, I can live without tomatoes. Um... This isn't Strix's ham, though, is it?"
Maybelline chuckles, setting the spare un-tomato'ed sandwich down. "No, afraid not. As much as I'd be curious to see how Strix cooks another ham, I felt it more prudent to get the meat from the meatery in the market place." She furrows her brow, "Though I guess I had been thinking about eating ham a lot since he blew one up in the generator room."
Louma blinks, pausing mid-bite. "I'm sorry, did I hear that right? Strix exploded ham in the generator room?"
Maybelline returns to her seat on Louma, with a bit let teasing this time, "It's the damndest thing... his generator, or, whatever you want to all the thing that was giving the town power, should have been impossible. But, like... all the pieces made some kind of sense? And the whole thing ran the power of all those lightning bolts through an uncooked ham that should have caught the whole building on fire. When he turned it off, the ham just sorta... popped. Never smelled more delicious ham in my life..." She takes a bite of her sandwich thoughtfully.
Louma can't help but laugh, tilting her head a bit. "Maybelline, your generator runs on a magic power source, doesn't it? Strix's just ran on unbridled magic instead. I'm sure if you thought back on it, you'd figure out what part of your own design is the ham. Just... Don't hurt yourself trying to get into a kobold's mind space, alright?"
Maybelline groans slightly, "Yeah, yeah, I know. Like, magitech at its core is magic being harnessed and controlled by technology. What Strix does is more like... a framework of technology that is being imbued with magic to work. I guess it's sorta similar? Honestly I just wish I could find a way to safely harness some of the power source he tapped into. I've got a few ideas and-" She pauses, "And you're probably bored to death listening to me talk shop... sorry."
Louma continues eating her sandwich, happily watching May talk, her enthusiasm somewhat infectious. "Ah, no, not at all. I admit, I don't really understand magitech, but... Well, I already told you once that your enthusiasm is attractive." She shrugs as she finishes the last bite of her sandwich. "But perhaps you're right, the topic of work isn't really a date topic, is it?"
Maybelline blushes as she stops talking long enough to take a few bites of her sandwich and nods. "Th-thank you. And I guess... I don't really know what a good date topic would actually be? Second date, you'd think all my nerves would have settled down after the first but I still look at you and get all flustered." The edges of her mouth creep up, "But like, in a good way."
Louma blushes, glancing away, then looking straight into May's eyes. "I suppose what I was going to suggest we do instead might not help much with getting flustered~."
Maybelline takes a sharp breath, looking back into Louma's eyes, definitely more then a little nervous. "And... what might that be?"
Louma looks pointedly at the cool, clear water a few feet from her coils. "A nice refreshing dip, of course! That water's been there, inviting us this whole time."
Maybelline looks towards the watere and smiles, "Oh, yeah... yeah, a swim will definitely be fun." She sets her hand down on Louma's tail and runs it gently across the scales. "Probably a bit dusty from having a stoat sit up here."
Louma shudders at the touch again, blushing with a smile. She doesn't hesitate, pulling her plain cotton shirt over her head and casting it over the basket. Despite being immediately technically naked, her feathers hide any noticeable 'shame' anyways. She begins to uncoil her tail, though not moving the section May is resting upon yet. "Yes, just a swim. Innocent swimming. It's not dust you're causing by touching me like that, though."
Maybelline blushes as she watches Louma undress, but her hand doesn't move away either, "Well, if it's not the dust, it must be the heat, hm?" She coughs a little awkwardly, giving Louma's scales one last caress before she lifts her arm to shrug off the thin cardigan she's wearing over a light shirt, then hesitates a moment.
Louma continues blushing at the touch, trying to be subtle about watching May and probably failing pretty significantly at it. She looks around them at May's hesitation, smiling gently. "There's nobody else around, but if you're uncomfortable, that's okay." She dips the end of her tail into the water, an appreciative shiver running up the length of her body.
Maybelline chuckles nervously, as she removes her shirt, despite her hesitation, there's not anything much to see, her fur covering anything, "It's just... a little weirder in Sarn I guess. You'll uh, have to forgive me." She pauses a moment to look Louma up and down, really unable to hide her own gawking as her blush increases.
Louma giggles, a bit of a mischievous look in her eyes, though she's still nervously blushing. "Mhm, it's not much different than at the bath house, if that helps." She feels warm under May's look, instinctively moving her arm across her torso. "W-well, I say that, but this certainly feels more exposed." She starts towards the water, hoping a cold dip will wash away her current thoughts.
Maybelline glances away as Louma turns to head towards the water, reaching down to remove the shorts she was wearing, then stacks her clothes in a tidy pile and bites her lip, "Definitely feels exposed, yeah... good thing it's just you and me out here, uh, right?" She walks towards the water, dipping a toe in at first before slipping in the rest of the way, shivering just a little in the bracing water.
Louma turns back in time to see May laying the shorts down, her face suddenly burning as she turns away and dives fully under the water. She slowly circles under the water for a bit before she gently surfaces again a short distance from May. "R-r-refreshing! It's really good for coo-cooling oneself down, f-f-for sure!"
Maybelline doesn't swim in too far, just soaking up just past her neck and making sure the current isn't too bad, "Y-y-yeah! Definitely cooled me down." She takes a few haphazard paddles forward, and it might be apparent that she barely knows how to swim.
Louma watches May paddling around, calming down now that they're both submerged and she's had a good soak. "...You okay there?"
Maybelline is keeping her head above water, but maybe exerting herself a bit too much, "W-would you believe I've never swam before?"
Louma stifles a chuckle. "I... Would, yes. Here, let me just..." Louma slips the lower end of her tail lengthwise under May's torso, giving her a little more buoyancy, with the tip of her tail pointing downward.
Maybelline flails for a second as Louma's tail pushes under her, but recovers quickly and laughs, "Ahahh.... that helps. Thanks."
Louma giggles, laying back in the water as her wings spread out, staring up at the clouds. She's silent for a long moment, turning her head towards May to speak. "Thank you for this. I know I thanked you last time, too, and I probably will again, but that's because I mean it."
Maybelline takes a moment to gather herself in the water, then just lets herself float on her back, folding her hand onto her chest, "Heh. I know. I mean, half the date I'm having so much fun just being with you, and the other half I'm worried about screwing it up, cause I want you to have fun too." She swallows nervously, "I... I like you Louma. I guess I still don't know a lot about you, but... Thank you for this too."
Louma sighs happily, letting the water lap against her. "I don't think there's anything you can do to make this go poorly, and if there's anything you want to know, feel free to ask. I... I'm done with secrets, I think. They haven't been kind to me lately."
Maybelline laughs quietly, "I don't know... I don't have any pressing questions. No secrets sounds like a good policy, but I don't wanna pry either." She pauses. "What brought you to Respite? Career? Escape? Something else?"
Louma blinks at the clouds, her smile slipping slightly. "Mmh, that answer has three versions, and I think only one will actually tell you much about me. Since that is your goal, I'm sure you want the long version, right?"
Maybelline hums, "As long as you're willing to share..."
Louma uses the support of her tail to float May a little closer to her, giggling despite her least favorite topic coming up. "I want to share with you, yes." She considers how to bring out her answer for a moment, closing her eyes when she speaks. "My family, much like Brunilda's, has a long running tradition. Ours is... Not so noble. Growing up, we always lived in comfort and wealth, and people seemed to respect our family. After my military service was up, my elder siblings and I were told about the family business. Turns out, my ancestors and parents sold espionage and sabotage, often against other snakes." She takes a deep breath, letting that sink in. "My siblings and I didn't exactly appreciate that, so my sister and I left on our own ways, and my brother remained. He... He changed his mind, according to the last contact I ever had with any of them."
Maybelline frowns as she listens, "I... I'm sorry, Louma." She sighs, "Sounds a lot like what my father went through, to be honest. He left the family business before he met my Mom. He wasn't even willing to 'play along'. My uncle was the only one who spoke with him, and even then, it was always tense. Wasn't like it was a long running tradition in our case, but stoats make good thieves. And good smugglers too."
Louma sighs, smiling at the weight off each of their chests. She chuckles lightly, turning to look at May again. "How could someone so cute be a good thief? You'd draw too many looks!"
Maybelline chuckles, letting the tension of the moment drop off, "Well, now you know why I went into Magitech engineering instead."
Louma watches May floating for a few moments before altering the stoat's course via tail again, bringing her close enough to give her a quick peck on the cheek. "Tight spaces are much more noble than purse strings. You've done well."
Maybelline eeps at the unexpected kiss, looking over at Louma in surprise before she settles her head back into the water, an unmistakable grin across her face. "So have you. Dad always said being able to look yourself in the mirror every morning was worth more to him then all the jewelry in Glaushire."
Louma chuckles, smiling warmly at May when she looks over before turning back to watching the sky. "Your father sounds like a wise man, I'll take that advice to heart."
Maybelline splashes her hand a bit to paddle herself in closer, grasping Louma's larger hand and holding it tight while they spend a lazy afternoon floating together through a successful second date.