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Scorpia walked into the ruins. Dust puffed up around her feet with every shuffling step. The air felt unnaturally still. There was no breeze, no scent carried on the wind that rushed over her. When she breathed in, she could only taste the dry earth, could only smell mouldering rubble.
Crumbling walls rose up on either side of her. Daylight lanced through the entryway, casting her shadow so long that it painted the dirt all the way back to the heart of the ruin. On the walls, cracking mural paint slowly flaked away, transforming memories of her ancestors into shapeless blobs.
She took another step in, then stopped.
“This is it, huh?” she asked no one. Scorpia turned and walked back outside into the hot, dry heat of her homeland. Elsewhere, the magic of Etheria had sprawled across the landscape in an explosion of green. Here, sand dunes curled and spilled over stone flats. Rock arches jutted into the sky, disrupting the horizon with bright flashes of red and yellow. She raised a pincer above her forehead to shield her eyes from the sun’s glare.
In the distance, she could see Perfuma sitting on a sandstone slab, legs crossed with a sandaled toe nudging the end of a tough, twiggy plant that sprouted from a crack in the ground. She held an umbrella with both hands--well, it was really just a giant leaf. The stalk rested on her shoulder and the wide brim bathed her in dappled green shadow. Perfuma looked her direction and smiled, lifting one hand from the umbrella stem to wave.
Scorpia smiled and waved back. She bit her lip out of nervous habit and winced as her chapped skin throbbed. She walked over to Perfuma and stopped to stare at the horizon again.
“See anything worth investigating?” Perfuma asked.
“No, not really. I didn’t see anything here.” Perfuma stood and walked over to join her. Scorpia glanced from wherever she was staring off into the middle distance back to her. “Thanks for coming with. I know there’s not much out here. I just--I wanted to be sure.”
Perfuma leaned in close so that their shoulders bumped. Scorpia caught the scent of orange blossoms and felt her cheeks go warm. “Of course. And there’s a lot to see out here, actually. It’s been fun.”
“Oh, I meant, you know. Plants. Growing things. Not much of that out here.”
Perfuma let out a soft hum of a laugh. “As much as I love my plants back home, I also appreciate other kinds of life, and there’s more growing out here than you’d think.”
Scorpia looked at their surroundings again. Some more of those twiggy plants grew up from the hard ground, but barely reached higher than a foot off the ground. There was grass, too, but it was short, brittle, and brown. It crinkled and snapped under her feet. “Uh, you sure this stuff is growing?”
“Well it might not look like that on the surface, but it is.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” Scorpia took a step toward back the way they came, then hesitated. “I guess we should get going?”
Perfuma shrugged. “We can if you want, but I think there’s something kind of neat off in…” She raised a hand and scanned the horizon, pointing to the northeast. “That direction. I wouldn’t mind checking it out. Maybe set up camp for the night if you like?”
Scorpia squinted in the direction Perfuma pointed. The line of sand dunes wavered in the heat, but she didn’t see anything that could possibly have caught Perfuma’s eye. “Over there? You sure it’s not a mirage?”
Perfuma chuckled and started walking. “Of course, silly. I’m sure of it. The plants told me.”
Following after her, Scorpia asked, “Oh, can you actually talk to plants?”
“Not in words, necessarily.” The two of them walked side by side. The ground underneath them gave way to shifting sand as they scaled the first dune. Warm grains spilled over the toes of her boots with every step. She glanced at Perfuma’s feet. Despite wearing sandals, she walked easily across the uneven surface, barely leaving an indent. “I get a feeling from them. It’s hard to describe.”
“Oh, cool.” Scorpia stole a glance at Perfuma’s face only to catch her staring back. She quickly turned and looked toward the horizon. Her breath caught in her chest every time Perfuma caught her staring, like there was a balloon inflating too fast against her ribs. Scorpia nervously tapped the points of her pincers together. It was easier to forget her nerves and just hang out with Perfuma when they were fighting in the rebellion. Now…
Now felt like a thousand words clawed at the inside of her throat, all clamoring to get out, and none of them sounding quite right when they managed to tumble free.
“It must have been jarring, getting your powers so suddenly.”
“Hm?” Scorpia allowed herself another look at Perfuma. “Not really. I mean, there was the whole learning to aim so I didn’t shock anyone, but other than that I was fine.”
Perfuma smiled and touched her arm. The skin under her fingers felt like it had caught aflame. “I’m glad you left the horde and came to us, you know?”
“Y-you are? Wow, I don’t know if anyone’s ever said that. I mean, I know you guys were glad to have me. But I always felt kind of in the way, you know, back in the horde. Entrapta always liked having me around but she was...the others didn’t…” She felt like she was rambling, so she cut herself off. “I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologize.” Perfuma looped her hand through the crook of Scorpia’s arm, pulling her close as they continued to walk. She raised her umbrella higher up so it shaded the two of them. “I like hearing what you have to say. And besides, you’ve always been a great listener when I need one.”
The two of them continued walking across the desert as the sun set, plunging them into twilight. As the sky turned a deep purple, they came across the destination Perfuma had in mind. “It’s just up there,” she said, pointing toward a formation of red rocks jutting up out of the sand, their ends converging at a point in the sky.
Scorpia squinted and looked for signs of plant life, but nothing obvious came into view. “Those are some pretty cool rocks.”
Perfuma laughed. “Just wait til you see what’s on the other side of them.”
They walked up to the formation, jagged slabs of sandstone breaking the surface and breaching high up like a roiling sea. Scorpia paused and stared, craning her neck back to see where the jagged points ended. “Woah.”
“Come on.” Perfuma wrapped her fingers around the tip of Scorpia’s right pincer and tugged. “We’re almost there.”
Scorpia felt like the balloon was filling up too fast in her chest again. She allowed Perfuma to lead her through a craggy gap in the stone structure. They stepped through to the other side and Scorpia gasped.
An oasis spilled out before them. A large pool of water was surrounded by palm trees and tufts of grass. Wildflowers sprouted from the ground, petals closing as night descended on the desert. “Do you like it?” Perfuma asked, turning to look at her.
Scorpia met her gaze and smiled. “Of course! It’s wonderful! Thanks so much for bringing me here.” Perfuma let go of her hand and walked toward the edge of the oasis. She kicked her sandals off and reached toward the ground. A wildflower snaked up her hand, entwining itself around her arm. She plucked it free and used the stem to tie her hair back. When she began pulling up at the hem of her dress, Scorpia found her voice again. “Uh, what are you doing?”
“Going for a swim, silly.” Perfuma paused in pulling up her dress and turned back to Scorpia. “Everything alright?”
Scorpia cleared her throat. “Uh, yeah, of course! Was just curious.” Despite the desert suddenly being several degrees cooler with sunset, she felt heat flush her face and creep toward her ears.
Perfuma smirked and turned back toward the pool. She pulled her dress up over her head and Scorpia quickly looked down at the ground. She tapped her pincers together again as a million nervous thoughts clambered in her head. “Are you going to join me?”
“Huh?” Scorpia forced herself to look over at Perfuma, who was chest-deep in the pool. Her sun-kissed shoulders were dappled with freckles and her arms rested atop the water, sending ripples along the glassy surface. “Yeah. I could do that. Swimming’s fun.” Her mind was racing. Things like this didn’t happen to Scorpia. Pretty girls didn’t ask her to go skinny dipping . She was the one that chased after others, that asked them to do stuff with her . She swallowed past a tightening feeling in her throat and glanced down at herself. Do I remove my clothes? Is it weird if I do that? Is it weird if I don’t?
“You don’t have to undress if you’re uncomfortable,” Perfuma said.
Oh gosh, she thinks I’m being weird. Scorpia tried to laugh, but it probably came out all wrong, a couple forced chuckles. “No, it’s just a bit of a production to get out of my shirt.” She waved her claws. Scorpia settled for kicking off her boots and carefully folding her pants up on top of a rock. It wasn’t a big deal if Perfuma saw her in her briefs or anything. She waded into the oasis, shuffling her feet on the sandy bottom until she bumped into a shallow outcropping of stone to sit down on. While sitting, the water came up just to her chest. She tried to lean back and relax, but that just wasn’t possible. Perfuma did a few breast strokes back and forth across the length of the pool. Then, she turned toward Scorpia and swam close.
“Is there room enough for two there?” She nodded at where Scorpia was sitting.
“I think so.” Scorpia scooted over and Perfuma took a seat next to her, settling in close so that their shoulders bumped together.
“I can’t wait for the stars to come out.” Perfuma was gently kicking her feet back and forth. Scorpia could feel the water’s current sloshing against her own feet with the motion. “I bet they look amazing out here.”
Scorpia looked up at the dark navy sky. A few pinpricks of light shone brightly already. “We could make camp here,” she said, her nerves subsiding for a second. “We could watch all of them come out.”
Perfuma wrapped an arm around hers and rested her head against her arm. “I’d like that very much.”
Scorpia risked a glance at her. She watched Perfuma watch the sky, watched the way her honeycomb eyes traced the patterns of slowly-appearing constellations. She watched until Perfuma’s gaze trailed back down to earth and met her own, and even then she couldn’t help but stare. “Perfuma.” The name tumbled loose. She could feel other words slipping free. There were too many of them trying to get out. “I’d like--I mean I like…” Her tongue felt thick in her mouth.
And then Perfuma was somehow closer , her body pressed up along the side of Scorpia like a firebrand. “Yes?” she asked.
“I...I can’t…” Her eyes searched Perfuma’s for a sign, for anything that might confirm that this was actually happening. “Words are hard, sorry.”
“Do I make you nervous?” Perfuma had the barest hint of a smirk tugging at her lips.
“Maybe.” Scorpia’s heart was pounding so hard. Something about this moment felt fragile, like if she moved too suddenly everything would shatter.
Perfuma shifted, rising up out of the water so that it sloshed off her body in rivulets. Scorpia nearly trembled as the droplets traced a path down her collarbone and in between the valley of her breasts. Perfuma placed her hands on Scorpia’s biceps and one knee by her hipbone. Slowly, Perfuma lowered herself back into the water, straddling Scorpia’s lap. Scorpia stared up at her, afraid to even breathe lest the moment wash away. Perfuma brought one hand up to Scorpia’s chest. Palm pressed flat against her skin, fingers crawled a trail up to her shoulder. Could she feel Scorpia’s heartbeat? “Am I misreading this?” she asked. “Now’s the time to tell me.”
“You’re not. You’re not misreading it. I just can’t believe it’s happening.”
Perfuma smiled and reached a hand up to cup her cheek. “I haven’t been able to get you off my mind since you stumbled into Brightmoon. I thought I made that obvious.”
If Scorpia had any words left, they never got the chance to spill out. Perfuma leaned in close and brushed their lips together. Scorpia breathed in a sharp gasp, closed her eyes, and leaned forward to capture Perfuma’s lips in a firm kiss. She raised her arms and hesitantly wrapped them around Perfuma. They kissed again, and again, and again. Perfuma held her face in her hands, drawing their mouths together over and over. Her back arched and her hips rolled forward. When they finally stopped, Perfuma pressed their foreheads together and smiled, red blossoming on her cheeks. “Wow,” Scorpia whispered.
Perfuma chuckled and leaned in to give her one more kiss on the lips. “I’ve been wanting to do that for a while.”
“Wait, really?” Scorpia stared wide-eyed. “I always assumed--I mean, I never thought someone like you would fall for me.”
“Someone like me?” Perfuma smirked. “And what exactly is that supposed to mean?”
“Oh, you know.” But she probably didn’t know. Scorpia struggled to find the right words. “You’re a princess, and-”
“So are you.” Perfuma let her hands settle back on her chest.
“I know, but it’s a new thing, and I’m not the princess of oceans or light or flowers, or snow palaces. I’ve just got this.” She gestured with a claw to the desert. “And these.” She held her pincers up. “I’m not soft. I’m not very princess-y. I accidentally poison people when they surprise me. I’m just pointy and large and clumsy.”
“Oh Scorpia.” Perfuma leaned down and kissed her cheek. “All roses have their thorns,” she murmured, lips brushing her skin. “And you’re more breath-taking than any rose.” Their lips met again and Scorpia’s heart soared.
She likes me. She really likes me . When their lips broke apart, Scorpia laughed and pressed her face into the hollow of Perfuma’s throat. She breathed in the scent of pollen and dewey forest. This was more than she could have ever imagined for herself, more than she would have ever dared to hope for. She leaned forward and kissed the pulse point of Perfuma’s neck, then hugged her tight. “You make me so happy,” she whispered.
Perfuma hugged her back. She leaned in close to Scorpia’s ear and whispered, “You make me happy, too.”
They held each other for several long minutes. Finally, Perfuma disentangled herself from their embrace and sat down next to Scorpia again. She kept their arms looped together and wrapped both her hands around the inside of Scorpia’s pincer. She rested her head against Scorpia’s arm and said, “The stars are so bright.”
Scorpia looked upward and let out a gasp at the sight of countless pinpricks of light winking into existence as the purple hues of twilight gave way to the full cover of night. She had only just gotten used to the sight of stars in the sky. This moment, sitting in a desert oasis with Perfuma at her side, felt as if she were rediscovering them all over again. “I could get used to this view,” she said.
Perfuma giggled and leaned up to kiss her on the cheek. “So could I.”