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A late afternoon breeze rippled the tall grass, the clouds parting to allow golden rays of sunshine to spill over the enclosed backyard.
Iskall tipped their head to the sky, closing their eyes and allowing the light to warm light to flood their senses.
It was another beautiful day, and the days were getting longer as late spring spilled over into early summer. Warm weather made a simple life all the more enjoyable, and tasks as seemingly monotonous as stringing laundry onto clothes lines or washing the ancient glass windows of the cottage became beautiful in their own way.
Iskall let out a soft sigh, still smiling as they hung the last article of damp clothing up onto the lines strung between a pair of trees. Their partner would be arriving home soon, having gone out for the afternoon to collect herbs in the forest. The two of them would be due for a trip into town soon, Iskall thought.
They made their way back inside to put the wicker laundry basket away, then lit the stove to boil some water. In the meantime, they made their way around the kitchen, occasionally glancing out the window above the sink and waiting to see the back gate swing open.
Iskall was just about to drop the dried tea leaves into one of their mugs when they heard the telltale squeak of rusty hinges outside. They smiled, setting the jar of leaves back down onto the counter, before heading outside in time to see their partner pulling the gate back shut behind him.
“Joe! You’re back!”
Joe turned around at the sound of Iskall’s voice, matching their smile in turn.
“Of course I am, don’t I always come back?”
“And I'm always glad to see you.”
Joe wove his way up the cobbled path, setting his basket of findings down on the porch. Iskall immediately wrapped him up in a hug, and Joe held them back just as tightly. He kissed the top of their head, and after a moment, pulled away still holding their hands between the two of them.
“How was it?” Iskall asked.
“Oh, the harvest is great,” Joe replied. “All of our favorite spots are grown back again, and we should be able to go into town and sell some herb bundles soon. Oh the change of seasons.”
“That’s great!”
“How was your afternoon?”
Iskall released one of Joe’s hands, pushing a strand of the other’s hair back behind his ear. Shadows of the hanging laundry danced over him, and Iskall thought that they could get lost for an eternity in those blue eyes. “It was fine. I’m making tea.”
“Are you? Well I could really go for some.”
“Let’s head inside then!”
Joe picked his basket of herbs back up, and still holding Iskall’s other hand, the two of them headed back inside.
The water was still boiling on the stove, and Iskall re-entered the kitchen to finish up the tea. Stopping at the door, Joe took off his boots and his thin coat, setting both aside. He ran a hand through his hair, watching flakes of dirt fall away. The dirt he was covered in, aching in his muscles, and heaping basket of found goods was evidence enough of a successful day.
“Here you go!” Iskall reapproached with a mug full of steaming peppermint tea, made from some of the dried herbs they grew in the garden. “All yours.”
“Thank you.” Joe took the mug from them, blowing across it before taking a sip. “No tea leaves in town match what we grow.”
“That’s why we’ve got the best market!” Iskall agreed. “Speaking of which, I’d like to see what you found.”
“Right, right,” Joe agreed. He motioned for Iskall to come sit with him at the kitchen table, taking the basket of herbs with him. As the two of them sat down, he spread the selection of leaves out before the two of them.
“What a haul!” Iskall complimented.
“We’ll have good business with weather like this.” Joe began separating the herbs into several piles sorted by type, and Iskall passed him a basket of pre-cut twine pieces they used for bundling.
“What would you say to going into town tomorrow?” Iskall asked. “I collected some herbs from the garden today too, and we should have enough to sell.”
“We need eggs anyways, don’t we?”
“We do, yes! A two for one trip.”
“Let’s do it then, good thinking.”
Beaming, Iskall helped Joe tie up the remaining bundles of herbs and place them all back into the baskets. Once the task was finished, Joe stood up, stretching and letting his arms fall back to his sides.
Iskall approached his side of the table, laying a hand gently over Joe’s shoulder. “Seems like you had a long day.”
“It’ll be worth it though.” He turned to Iskall and smiled, then leaned in and kissed their cheek. “Coming home to you made it a lot better.”
Iskall’s face went pleasantly warm.“I know you’d do the same for me!”
“Of course I would.
They led Joe over to the couch, sitting him down before sitting down beside him. Leaning over, Iskall stole another kiss from him, a little longer and much sweeter this time, trailing a hand on Joe’s cheek. They then laughed softly, settling down by his side.
A breeze blew through the living room, stirring the curtains as the two found comfortable positions in each other’s arms. Joe had his arm wrapped around Iskall’s waist, and Iskall finger-combed the ends of Joe’s hair. Occasionally, Joe would reach over and take a sip of the tea that had been prepared for him, but for the most part, the two just remained still, quiet, and content with one another.
Long days of hard work paid off. Some sunshine and a loving pair of arms to end the day made any amount of work worth it in a simple life like that. And right then, neither Joe nor Iskall would have had it any other way.