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Rin had no idea that one of Muriel’s few hobbies was knitting. The only reason she found out, was when she noticed Inanna wearing a little dog sweater on one of her visits to Muriel’s. “Oh, Nanna!” Rin cooed out the nickname, scratching the top of her head affectionately. “You look so cute in your little sweater!” Honestly, Inanna was so big, that sweater is probably bigger than any sweater Rin owns.
Rin looked to Muriel, who was sat on his bed, not even bothering to greet Rin who just barged into his hut. She was there so often, he was used to it by this point. “Muri, where’d you get this sweater for Inanna?” She asked. Muriel grunted.
“I made it.” He said, plainly.
“What!?” Rin was shocked. “I didn’t know you knew how to knit!” Rin moved to Muriel’s side, clearly excited by this new discovery. “That’s really cool! And it looks really well made!” She said with a grin. Muriel blushed at the praise, but shook his head.
“I’m not… that good…” He retorted.
“I knew you’d say that.” Rin draped her arms around Muriel’s shoulders, huffing. “But I can tell a well made sweater when I see one.” Muriel knew it was futile to argue with the girl, so with a huff, he dropped it.
“So… Why’re you here?” He said, trying to change the subject.
“Oh, so I’m not allowed to drop in and see you whenever I want?” Rin scowled, but it lightened up when she giggled. “Actually, I do have a real reason to be here.” Rin pulled back, pulling up the satchel she was carrying with her, and plopping it into Muriel’s lap. “Asra was going to bring these to you, but I offered to come instead, since he was kind of busy today. Said something about them helping the magical wards.” Rin grinned. “But, they won’t keep me out, so what’s the point?” Muriel caught himself almost smiling at that, but quickly stopped himself.
“... Thank you.” He said, holding the satchel, and setting it aside. He mulled over asking run to stay for lunch, but before he could-
“I’d love to stay longer, but I actually have to go to the market and get some stuff for the shop. I’ll come visit again soon though!” Rin quickly gave Muriel a tight hug, before leaving the hut as quickly as she came.
Muriel sat there, almost shocked at how quickly she came and went. Then, he looked at Inanna, who gave him an almost expectant look. Muriel heaved out a sigh, scrubbing his hands against his face. “... Where did I put the knitting needles…?”
Over the next few weeks, Muriel worked hard on a new sweater- this time, for Rin. He wasn’t sure what her favorite color was- but he figured if he made something white and she didn’t like the color, maybe she could dye it? So he worked on a white sweater. He wasn’t sure of her measurements either- he was honestly just guessing. “Inanna, do you think this looks about her size?” Muriel asked, holding up the mostly finished sweater for her approval. Inanna whined softly, putting her head down. “ It looks much too big for her… ” Inanna said. Muriel sighed. Was it too late to fix it..?
The door to the hut opened, and a familiar face with fluffy white hair came in. “Hey, Muriel! I was just dropping by to see if the extra ward materials got to you and if they were working alright- what do you have there?” Asra paused, pointing to the sweater in Muriel’s hands. Muriel’s face turned red, and he put the sweater behind him.
“I… It’s nothing…” Asra assessed his reaction, then gave a knowing grin.
“...Is that for Rin?” Asra asked. Muriel was quiet, but then gave a single nod. “How nice of you! I’m sure she’ll love it, when do you plan to give it to her?” Muriel huffed and stood, walking over to Asra and dropped the sweater into his hands.
“Give it to her for me…” Muriel insisted, his face red. Asra gave Muriel a sympathetic smile, then nodded.
“Sure, but, uh…” Asra looked down. “... Are you leaving the knitting needles in it, or…?” Muriel hurriedly took back the sweater. Asra chuckled. “I’ll make some tea for us while you finish that up.”
After a few hours, Asra went home, bringing the sweater with him. Muriel felt his anxiousness boil inside of him as Asra left. What if she didn’t like it? It really was too big, wasn’t it..? It was gonna eat at him until he saw her next, wasn’t it..?
Thankfully, Rin came over frequently, so he didn’t need to wait too long for her to come barging in, as usual. “Muri!” She pushed the door open, discarding her bag onto the floor. Oh no. She was wearing the sweater, and it was so big on her. The sweater went past her knees, and she had to roll up the sleeves significantly, and even then only the tips of her fingers could be seen. Despite this, her smile was ear-to-ear, as she practically bum-rushed Muriel, hugging him. Muriel was taken aback, not only because he was being all but tackled by this tiny girl, but also that she was wearing the completely oversized sweater.
“Muri! Asra said you made this for me!” Rin said, smiling up at the tree of a man. Muriel sighed, and nodded.
“I did… Sorry.” Muriel apologized.
“Sorry? Why?” Rin questioned, a somewhat surprised look passing over her features.
“Because, it’s so…” Muriel gently lifted one of the sleeves up. “ ...Big .” Rin laughed.
“Uh, yeah, but that makes it even better.” Rin reassured. Muriel was confused- why would that make it better? Was she just saying that? Before he could think for too long about it, Rin stood on her tip-toes, putting her hands on the sides of Muriel’s face. “Why’re you so tall?” She complained, trying to pull him down. Muriel leaned down for her, much to Rin’s delight.
Rin pressed a firm kiss to Muriel’s cheek, before pulling back a bit. “Thank you Muri, I really appreciate the sweater. It was very comfortable to sleep in.”
Muriel was most certainly blushing at this point, which pleased Rin even more. She pressed another quick kiss to Muriel’s forehead, before quickly moving away to sit on the bed. “So, I was hoping I could stay over tonight, is that okay?” Rin asked, as if the last exchange never happened. Muriel stood straight, looking at the girl in wonder. He let out what could have been a soft laugh, then shook his head.
“Sure.”
This girl was too much for him sometimes.