i could be the reason you can't sleep at night
Flora lets herself fall into the moment the way she falls into every dangerous, dazzling thing in her life; with her whole heart first and everything else scrambling to keep up. The festival blurs around them in ribbons of colour, sand and sunlight and laughter all spinning together until the world feels trapped inside a snowglobe someone has shaken too enthusiastically. She knows already she’ll tuck this one away somewhere permanent: Kai’s arms around her, her curls lifting in the motion, Spice orbiting them like a comet, and the desert conspiring to make this ridiculous little victory feel mythic.
When he finally sets her down and reality intrudes in the form of a cranky carnie and a truly absurd turtle, Flora can only stare after him for a long moment. If her sunglasses weren’t still in place, the cartoon hearts in her eyes would probably be visible from Stormbreak. She pushes them up onto her head anyway, letting him see the full, shameless delight softening her expression as he wrestles the giant Tumsea into his arms like it’s a treasure he risked life and limb to obtain.
Spice, however, decides this requires immediate investigation. With a quick flap of her wings she lands on Kai’s shoulders, leaning forward to sniff the plush with the grave suspicion of a guard dragon evaluating a new pack member. A tiny, warning chirr follows, just so the Tumsea knows she has opinions on its place in their lives.
Flora wanders closer, one hip cocked, amusement curling warm in her chest. "He’s sleeping with us, huh?" she echoes, already imagining the three of them crammed into the comparibly smaller bed aboard the Sugartide. "Maybe we should have a sleepover on the deck then, so we all fit." Her grin sharpens as she taps the plushie’s enormous nose, then lifts her gaze back to Kai with a teasing, wicked sweetness only he ever gets the full force of. "So what’s his name? And is he going to be the big spoon tonight—" she leans in, voice dropping low, "—or is that still your job?"
When he finally sets her down and reality intrudes in the form of a cranky carnie and a truly absurd turtle, Flora can only stare after him for a long moment. If her sunglasses weren’t still in place, the cartoon hearts in her eyes would probably be visible from Stormbreak. She pushes them up onto her head anyway, letting him see the full, shameless delight softening her expression as he wrestles the giant Tumsea into his arms like it’s a treasure he risked life and limb to obtain.
Spice, however, decides this requires immediate investigation. With a quick flap of her wings she lands on Kai’s shoulders, leaning forward to sniff the plush with the grave suspicion of a guard dragon evaluating a new pack member. A tiny, warning chirr follows, just so the Tumsea knows she has opinions on its place in their lives.
Flora wanders closer, one hip cocked, amusement curling warm in her chest. "He’s sleeping with us, huh?" she echoes, already imagining the three of them crammed into the comparibly smaller bed aboard the Sugartide. "Maybe we should have a sleepover on the deck then, so we all fit." Her grin sharpens as she taps the plushie’s enormous nose, then lifts her gaze back to Kai with a teasing, wicked sweetness only he ever gets the full force of. "So what’s his name? And is he going to be the big spoon tonight—" she leans in, voice dropping low, "—or is that still your job?"
