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Amaya groggily awakens to find herself tangled in crimson and golden bed sheets with down pillows strewn aside all around her. The side of her chin feels damp and her throat is dry with a faint soreness; she must have slept with her mouth open again, and she groans in embarrassment. She reluctantly cracks an eye to look at the window she knows is adjacent to the bed - the sky was still dark with the faintest hint of deep purples and reds closer to the horizon line. The sun had yet to come up.
Perfect timing.
She can judge by the lack of ambrosial warmth at her back that Janai has already been up for some time. There were times that Amaya had wished that Janai would savor sleeping in, taking in the ambiance of allowing the sunlight to wash over their skin as it would wake them gently, but she knew that Janai was a woman of habit. It was one of the many traits that she loved about her fiancée. Amaya turns her head further into the pillow and buries the largest smile in the soft covering, full of awe at her luck.
Fiancée. There was such a beautiful ring to it.
Amaya finally relents and untangles herself from the sheets, pushing into a sitting motion with hands braced against the plushness of the mattress. A deep breath prepares her as she swings her legs over the side of bed, wincing at the coldness that snaps at her bare feet when they touch the smooth polished stone floor. She rises from the edge and stands, stretching her limbs as she continues her morning ritual; the feeling of deep release in the pops along her spine and shoulders grant her flexibility. Amaya welcomes the smooth contraction and tensioning as her defined muscles wake from sleep.
She ambles towards the wardrobe dresser, selecting and slipping into her chosen underclothing before grasping a freshly laundered set of chest bindings. She smoothes her thumb over the scar located at the junction of her left shoulder and chest before proceeding to cover it with the wrappings - the scar served as a constant reminder of her first skirmishes with Janai, The Golden Knight of Lux Aurea and her Sunforged blade.
Amaya regards the puckered skin of the burn scar with a profound fondness, although Janai had expressed a heavy degree of guilt when she had first laid eyes on it.
"Nothing that couldn't be assuaged with kisses", Amaya would always remind her, pairing her statement with a suggestive wink. Janai's methods of 'assuaging' usually led to them being late to their political meetings, not that any of their guests would dare voice their thoughts on the matter.
She dresses into only her tapered cuffed gi pants before deciding that the amount of clothing at this morning's hour was enough. Amaya was aware that Janai loved seeing her defined muscular stature; the Sunfire elf's hands would roam to graze over expanses of exposed skin before tugging Amaya against her body to kiss the human senseless.
"Continue kissing me like that and I'll go blind next!", Amaya would tease after Janai would release her from her hold. Janai responded without fail an eye roll at the ill jest before signing, "I suppose I'll have to shoulder the burden of nursing you back to health, my captive", emphasizing her playful retort with a pinch to the nearest patch of her lover's skin. Amaya would skitter away from the pinch only to shortly be caught in Janai's agile grasp, surrendering to the most welcome onslaught of kisses.
Amaya's body flushed with warmth at the memory as she walked to the living quarter's area of their bedchamber, picking up a pressed satchel of white peony tea leaves from the available variety next to their quite literally enchanted tea set. It was a gracious gift from their closest companion Kazi, who explained that the vessel's water would boil almost instantaneously in the chamber once the valve was closed. It was an absolute godsend, they would claim, speaking endearingly of the teas that would accompany their late nights of studying linguistics. It was a gift that quickly worked its way into Amaya and Janai's daily ritual.
She pours the near-boiling water into a delicate cup of thin earthen ware, lowering the aromatic tea satchel into the liquid to allow it to steep. The wisps of steam floating from the cup caress her cheeks, and her face warms in its passing.
Amaya only waits a few minutes before cradling the finished cup of tea in her right hand, allowing the heat to warm her scarred palm as she made her way to a particular connected doorway of the bedchamber. She turns the ornate handle with her free hand and gently encourages the elaborately carved door open with her bare shoulder, passing through the gap effortlessly.
Her eyes soften as she is greeted with the sight of Janai, seated cross-legged in the middle of the open-air balcony, her torso upright as her hands rested interwoven on her lap. Janai's locks of hair were pulled back with a familiar golden metal clasp, and Amaya knows that the Sunfire elf's face was relaxed with eyes closed in meditation. Amaya stills in her movement to quietly revel in the woman's sheer presence, marveling at the sight of her fiancée against the backdrop of the glowing sky that was now painted with strokes of deep lavender and cinnabar ember reds.
It was almost time.
The Sun breaks over Lux Aurea's horizon and the first golden beams of sunlight race across the stone of the balcony to kiss the Sunfire Queen's face. Amaya is entranced as Janai's head tilts upwards, as if greeting the Sun with an intimate kiss of her own - their own dignified ritual. The Sunfire Queen inhales a breath, deep and slow, before exhaling in the same reverent manner.
Amaya's heart trips in her chest as Janai gradually opens her eyes, finding purchase in the sight of her lover standing by with a steaming teacup in hand.
"Good morning, my love", Janai's hands sign smoothly in the air with a confidence that makes Amaya swoon. Janai beckons her closer with a curl of her finger and Amaya immediately obeys, offering the cup to Janai who accepts it with a thankful smile.
"Good morning, beautiful", Amaya signs before tenderly grasping Janai's devastatingly gorgeous jaw with her hand as she leans down, guiding their lips together to converge in a soft embrace. They are breathless when they part away, a rose tint to their cheeks. Amaya takes a seat beside her fiancée and mimics Janai's meditative pose. They simultaneously reach a hand towards each other and entwine their fingers, sharing loving glances that speak tomes of their affection.
They are perfectly content in basking in the Sun's graces a while longer.