You could set the bar beyond the stars

Honey wherever you go, I know

Too impatient to wait for the real deal of nightfall, the Celestine’s permanent twilight is the perfect solution to the eagerness galloping through him. He has not had any caffeine today, but he vibrates in place with an almost audible hum, which surely can’t be heard when he won’t even bother to stand still aboard the docking skyship, and certainly not once they disembark from it.

Hopping down with a basket in hand and a blanket thrown over his shoulders like he’s some educated laureate, Kaisel barely even waits for her. ”C’mon!” he calls back, manufacturing a rush that isn’t real, their seats not in risk of being taken, no timed show due to start with or without them. If he’s got forever with her, or as close as two mortal lives can allow, this should be a casual stroll up to the milestone, but with so much withholding and burying and hiding, he’s ready to finally yank the covers back and announce their love in full, and that means fulfilling Safrin’s requirements asap.

---

Quest req: Complete a thread deciding what will be written in the stars. 10 words maximum.

Kaisel

I'd give up half of forever, just to be with you

you hate the crash, but you love the rush

She’s already running when he calls, laughter bright and reckless in her throat as though she’s been waiting her whole life for someone to give her permission to sprint toward something this gloriously unnecessary. The permanent twilight turns him gold to silver as she closes the distance, and she doesn’t hesitate, doesn’t warn him; instead she launches cleanly off the ground and collides with his back in a burst of delighted momentum, arms looping around his shoulders, legs locking tight around his waist, blanket and all be damned.

The impact jolts a breath from her, but she only laughs harder, clinging shamelessly as she presses kiss after kiss into the warm crook of his neck, his cheek, the edge of his jaw, as though she’s trying to brand him with her joy before they’ve even taken another step. Just the idea of this quest they're on crackles through her like carbonation, effervescent and excessive and so utterly, theatrically perfect that she can’t help the way her grip tightens, fingers curling into him as if anchoring herself to the absurdity of it. They’re already married, and yet this—this public, glittering announcement written across the heavens—thrums through her veins with champagne brightness, all sparkle and showmanship and shameless delight. It’s dramatic to the point of indulgence, it’s loud without making a sound, and it feels exactly like them, exactly like the sort of love that refuses to stay small or sensible or politely contained.

She nuzzles closer, lips brushing along his cheek as she tilts her head to catch his profile in the twilight, aqua eyes alight with mischief and something warmer beneath it. "Okay so...10 words is not a lot, so we probably can't say anything about gummy worms or how ticklish you are."

Honey wherever you go, I know

He can hear the surge of her approach, but as he turns his head to capture her, he doesn’t realize quite how literal she intends that to be. It’s barely enough time for a breath, but it’s better notice than none as she launches at him. His stride shifts abruptly, not stumbling, but boots scuff against the Celestine’s pathway as his balance accommodates her. The blanket rides up his shoulders in a dramatic reverse-avalanche of folds and fabric, and in his hand, the basket nearly slips free as it sways wildly. ”—Oof!”

The sound of his air knocking from his chest immediately scatters into laughter, ringing out bright and full. His hands drop instinctively to her legs, hooking beneath her knees to secure her there as if she belongs nowhere else, the basket handle pressed between them on one side. He gives a little hop to settle her weight higher, then another just because he can, jostling her on purpose while her kisses scatter across his neck.

”“Hey, hey, hey!” he gasps between laughs, shoulders bunching as he tries, and fails, to barricade against the worst of her assault. He goes on the offensive instead, spinning them in a loose circle that sends the blanket flaring like some scholar gone mad. “You’re weaponizing affection!” he accuses, breathless with a glee that suggests she should never stop doing so.

He jumps once more, an exaggerated bounce meant entirely to shake her thoughts of future attacks. His grip remains firm and steady, having no intention of actually knocking her free even if centrifical force and gravity argue otherwise. Their joy buzzes between them, like an old houselight humming with an incandescent warmth, one that glows in their ribs and pours out every time they laugh or smile.

Settling into something softer than the hostility of adoration, he exhales a quieter laugh and begins walking properly into the Celestine. They pass enclosures, and he strolls with a curious glance towards the twilight-brushed creatures that shift in their habitats, not really here for them today. Though, the ash ferrets spill around one another in such an eager display of noise and motion when they walk past that Kaisel can’t help but be drawn to observe them in full.

“I would never announce how ticklish I am,” he informs her gravely, as if discussing military strategy rather than the way he’d nearly just squealed. “That information is classified. Highly sensitive. National security risk.” His smile is surely audible. “That also means we can’t use all the hundreds of names you’ve collected like they’re fashion.” Nevermind that he’s given her a fair share of them all on his own.

Kaisel

I'd give up half of forever, just to be with you

you hate the crash, but you love the rush

She hears the oof leave him and immediately leans closer, lips brushing the shell of his ear as she tightens her arms around his shoulders and murmurs a low, dangerous, "Careful, you," the word threaded with velvet threat, the implication unmistakable that any suggestion she’s too much of anything (especially weight) will result in consequences swift and inventive. The warning dissolves into laughter the moment he hops her higher, and when he spins them she abandons all hope of clever retaliation and simply clings tighter, giggling helplessly into the crook of his neck as the world tilts and the blanket flares and the basket swings like collateral damage to their joy.

He bounces her again and she squeals before she can stop herself, the sound bright and uncontained, and when he accuses her of weaponizing affection she only buries her grin against his skin as though that’s confirmation enough. There’s no comeback sharp enough to match the chaos of it, so she settles for hanging on, fingers flexing against him, laughter softening into something warm and breathy as he finally begins to walk properly. The ash ferrets draw a distracted glance from her as well, but she’s far more interested in the steady rise and fall of him beneath her palms, in the way he holds her as though this is the most natural configuration of their bodies in the world.

At his grave declaration about classified ticklishness, she sighs dramatically, a theatrical exhale that trembles into a chuckle. "Mm," she hums, conceding the point with a reluctant little huff because he’s right, and that’s deeply inconvenient. When he reminds her about the hundreds of names she’s collected, she shrugs against him, cheek brushing his temple. "You’re right," she admits, though there’s still mischief curled at the edges of the words. "It’s probably for the best anyway. We do want everyone to know whose engagement it is."
She presses a kiss to his cheek, lingering just long enough to taste his smile. "Do you think we should put my answer at the end, or will it be obvious enough that of course I said yes?"

Honey wherever you go, I know

Her breath at his ear, dipped low in warning, does something immediate and electric to him. His grip tightens instinctively, fingers pressing more firmly beneath her knees as lightning courses sharp and commanding down his spine. His head turns, faint but deliberate, angling to better cup the liquid pour of her threat. For half a heartbeat, there is only the sound of her voice and the weight of her wrapped around him—possessive, daring, promising consequences.

He doesn’t answer her with words, only motion. The bounces and twists he drags her through carry a little bit of a challenge to them, testing limits to consider how far he might manage to move them. Her squeal earns a flash of triumph and he laughs, the sound just as carbonated with glee as before. Settling like a fresh mount, he hikes her higher against him again, hands firm and certain where they hold her, a quiet reminder of exactly how secure she is, and how easily he can bear her weight. He'd carry her anywhere.

The way she throws herself into happiness will forever be one of his favorite things about her. She meets absurdity with the same seriousness she gives politics, weighing a starlight declaration of his weakness as if she were holding court. She takes on burdens that are not hers, shouldering responsibility like an exercise regimen, but just as fiercely she reaches for joy. She accepts smallness, but strives for the excess of glitter right alongside him, giving everything her all as if she has never been broken apart into pieces that could be portioned out. It makes his grin hurt where it pushes up into his cheeks, and it's all he can do to turn his head enough to catch sight of her, affection overflowing like enough escape could turn it tangible.

"I wouldn't consider anything obvious if it's not written down," he huffs, amused at her sense of good will towards the general intelligence and perception of people. "Is it a proposal, or an announcement?" he clarifies, or perhaps a hybrid of the two if her answer is written in. "Definitely needs to be more exciting than, Flora and Kaisel are engaged." Too stiff, even if it is framed with stars. "Same as, Kaisel asked Flora to marry him - she said yes." Long, but not saying near enough. The starlight might be the media, but the words are still what has to do the work. "Something that matches the way this feels." Which has always proven difficult for them when trying to limit to a small wordcount. "Happily Ever After - The Flora and Kaisel Engagement Story? Or maybe, he was a boy, she was a girl, can I make it any more obvious? Shit, too long.

---

BOO NO RARES

Kaisel

I'd give up half of forever, just to be with you

you hate the crash, but you love the rush

Flora hums thoughtfully into Kaisel's hair as he turns the question over, the sound soft and pleased in the back of her throat while her breath drifts deliberately down the back of his neck in a slow, ticklish exhale meant entirely to sabotage whatever serious planning he’s attempting. When he speaks about matching the way this feels, her arms tighten around his shoulders and her legs hug closer at his waist, drawing herself more snugly against him as she leans her chin onto his shoulder with a sigh that spills out warm and adoring.

Even with words written in the stars themselves, it still feels impossible to capture the shape of what lives in her chest. The thought of it sends butterflies ricocheting wildly through her stomach, the same ridiculous flutter she’d felt the moment he’d first proposed even though they’re already married now, even though this whole celestial announcement is technically unnecessary. The idea of their promise blazing across the sky anyway has her smiling so wide it almost aches, as though the joy might burst out of her ribs if it doesn’t find somewhere else to go.

"What abouuutttt..." she begins slowly, drawing the word out while she tilts her head beside his, considering it with theatrical seriousness before brightening. "Flora, will you marry me? —Kaisel," she suggests, clearly pleased with herself, the grin audible in her voice. "And then I can reply after with, A THOUSAND TIMES YES."

Honey wherever you go, I know

The puff of her exhale along his neck sends a shiver straight through him. The fine hairs lift in quiet response and his shoulders scrunch upward in a half-hearted shield. He twists his head enough to shoot her a narrow, accusing side-eye, "you’re doing that on purpose!" Without warning, he drops.

Only a few inches, a quick bend of his knees like the ground has suddenly disappeared beneath him, just enough to jolt her. It's enough to earn himself whatever startled noise she makes before he straightens again, laughter spilling out, satisfied with the revenge.

Still grinning, his grip shifts on her legs, thumb absentmindedly tracing along her calf while he keeps thinking through their perfect phrase. Her suggestion makes him slow a step, his head tipping slightly toward hers, considering it properly while the soft glow of the Celestine slides past around them. As he's carried them, the air has begun to shift from the ember-lit rock and heat of the volcanic habitats, giving way gradually to cooler shadows and the thick hush of greenery. The path curves beneath taller canopies, leaves whispering overhead as the twilight glow filters through layers of branches and moss.

"Flora, will you marry me? —Kaisel," he repeats slowly, testing the shape of the words while they move deeper into the forest zone. It shouldn't sound so breathless when they've got matching band on their wrists and a vow overseen by a god, yet his heart sways as if it means to let each exhale carry it straight out of his chest. Nearby, something rustles softly through foliage, the elephant beetle exhibit dictated beside them with a sign and the steady reveal of the lumbering creature.

A grin begins to spread across Kaisel's face as he stops there. “Then!" he whispers with all the drama of a stage and it's attentive audience. "The stars explode with A THOUSAND TIMES YES!" He laughs, not with amusement, but with a raw delight. "That’s actually pretty good." The idea rolls around in his head for another moment, trying to find an alternative just to ensure they've thought it through completely.

"I know what we have to do," he decides, and crouches like a horse that's decided to roll its rider right off. "We gotta lie down here, and practice imagining it written up there." Like squinting to see the image a cloud makes in the sky, they'd rehearse the message in the stars by tracing it out.

Kaisel

I'd give up half of forever, just to be with you

you hate the crash, but you love the rush

Flora's just opening her mouth to inform him—quite emphatically—that yes, obviously she’s doing it on purpose when the ground abruptly vanishes beneath her. The drop wrenches a theatrical squeal from her as her arms tighten reflexively around his shoulders, fingers scrambling for purchase as though he’s genuinely about to spill her into the undergrowth. For a split second she clings harder, breath hitching in startled laughter before she leans down close to his ear again, voice dropping to a low whisper threaded with playful menace. "You’re going to pay for that later," she murmurs, the promise curling just suggestively enough to make it clear the reckoning will be creative to say the least.

Even as the Celestine shifts around them—volcanic glow softening into the cooler hush of greenery, leaves whispering overhead, strange creatures rustling somewhere beyond the path—Flora scarcely notices any of it. Her gaze stays fixed on Kaisel instead, aqua eyes studying the sliver of copper she can see when he's looking forward, the shape of his mouth as he tests the words aloud, the dark fan of his eyelashes against the twilight. The rest of the world might as well be scenery painted behind him.

Even though a god has already witnessed their vows and a band already circles her wrist, the words still send a small shiver racing through her. Her arms tighten around him, hugging him closer, the sensation blooming warm and electric through her chest as if her heart hasn’t quite learned that the answer has already been given. When he pauses, beginning his dramatic announcement of the reply, Flora can’t help herself; the words burst from her at the exact same moment. "A THOUSAND TIMES YES!"

The echo of it leaves her laughing breathlessly, a delighted, impatient sound slipping out of her as she squeezes him tighter again, joy fizzing through her like something effervescent and unstoppable. So when he crouches, clearly intending to dump her into the grass, she only lifts a brow in suspicion before a snicker escapes her and she lets herself slide off him anyway, landing in the soft greenery in a tangle of limbs and laughter. Before he can fully straighten, she reaches up, catching hold of him and tugging him down with her.

The kiss she presses to his mouth is bright with righteous happiness rather than heat, the kind born from sheer overflowing affection, though even so, the nearness of him steals the breath from her lungs all the same. The words will you marry me keep echoing somewhere behind her ribs like a bell that refuses to stop ringing.

Eventually she lets him settle beside her so they can both look upward, shoulders brushing as the twilight sky stretches above them. "I wonder," she murmurs thoughtfully after a moment, voice soft with curiosity and mischief alike, "if Safrin will let it be in our own handwriting."

Honey wherever you go, I know

Their voices collide in perfect timing. A THOUSAND TIMES YES! The echo of it races through him, swelling warm and bright inside his chest like a kite finally catching the wind and lifting off. For a moment, Kaisel feels like his feet might not be on the ground still, too full of her, of this—of the impossible, ridiculous joy of loving someone who meets him step for step in every way. Adoration rises sharp and dizzying behind his ribs, pressing against his lungs until it almost feels like laughing and breathing are the same thing.

The sudden tug that follows shortly thereafter reminds him that gravity, in fact, still has a hold on him, whatever his delusions about it might be. He barely has time to bugle a startled yell before he’s sinking with her, the basket slipping from his grasp finally and tumbling onto the lawn. The lid flips open on impact, surrendering some of its contents in cheerful defeat.

Kaisel lands amid the grass with a breathless sound that dissolves into laughter immediately. ”Flor—!” The protest never truly forms, not when she’s already kissing him. His arms come up instinctively, sweeping around her back to pull her close as the kiss presses bright and bubbly against his mouth. There’s nothing urgent or wild about this one; it’s the kind that spills out when happiness grows too big, and giggling isn’t enough to release the excess fizz.

When they finally flop apart, he lets out a long, satisfied sigh, chest still rising and falling with the remnants of laughter, smile spreading against the echo of her taste. He sits up partway to flap the blanket out, not just an impressively large scarf around his neck. Wrestling it into place, which includes shoving it beneath her with pointed hands and the sharp thrusts of a focused breadmaker, he gets it laid out and settles beside her.

Squinting up at the starlit canopy, he narrows one eye with exaggerated concentration and lifts a finger toward the sky. Slowly, very seriously, he begins tracing invisible letters against the stars, as though the message might appear if he concentrates hard enough. “Bet she would,” he says easily, voice warm with the lingering glow of the moment. His finger moves through another imaginary word before he turns his head to look at her. “Each of us writes our part on a piece of paper, then hand it over when we turn in the quest.”

Kaisel

I'd give up half of forever, just to be with you

you hate the crash, but you love the rush

One of Flora’s favourite sounds in the entire world is the way her name sometimes dies halfway out of Kaisel’s mouth, cut cleanly short by the press of her own lips. Whether it happens in laughter or heat hardly matters; the interruption itself fills her with a buoyant, irrepressible delight that bubbles up again now as he flops beside her. She turns her head toward him with a smile she makes no effort to hide, the expression running happily away with itself the longer she watches him catching his breath in the grass.

Her contentment lasts right up until he begins aggressively arranging the blanket. A long, theatrical groan escapes her as he shoves and nudges her aside, Flora complaining predictably under her breath even as she obligingly scoots. The moment the blanket is finally in place she undoes the protest by immediately snuggling against his side again, shoulder settling comfortably against him as though the whole ordeal had merely been an elaborate repositioning exercise.

Tilting her head back, she squints upward along with him, one eye closing as she lifts her own finger toward the stars and begins tracing imaginary letters in the air beside his. Where his shapes are firm and deliberate, Flora’s movements curl and loop with loose, cursive flourishes, her invisible script sweeping playfully through the twilight while she carefully writes out her answer beside his proposal. "Perfect," she whispers, the word soft with satisfaction.

She turns her head toward him then, intending to say something else, only to find herself caught by the copper of his eyes and the easy boyish curve of his smile. For a moment she simply stares, undone by it in that familiar, dangerous way, before abruptly rolling onto him with the unmistakable momentum of someone about to deliver a very enthusiastic kiss.

At the last possible second she veers off course; her hand darts instead for the basket that had spilled open nearby, and she plops it squarely onto his chest with cheerful disregard for his breathing before rummaging enthusiastically through its contents. A moment later she gasps with theatrical astonishment, eyes widening as though she’s uncovered buried treasure. "A whole block of cheese?" she demands, scandalised delight bubbling through her voice as she lifts it triumphantly. "You do love me."


~FIN