Work Text:
"Let's go to the Meteor Festival."
With the speed he used to turn his head, it was a miracle that his neck was still in place.
"What." Riz asked, although it hardly sounded like an actual word, much less like a question. It had mostly been a weird noise, an automatic response that had slipped unconsciously, because he had perfectly heard what the ram said. And yet, a part of him hoped that he was wrong, that his head was making up stuff, just like it used to do before juvenile and prison.
Unfortunately, Pina repeated exactly the same words that Riz had heard before. "Let's go to the Meteor Festival."
The bear stayed silent, staring at Pina and trying to read his face, but the only noticeable thing in it was the sheep's beauty.
"... Why?" He asked a few seconds later, trying to sound dismissive. "Shouldn't you go with a girl or something? You know, to light a candle with her."
"I've never been interested in lighting a candle with a girl, and this year is not the exception." Pina shrugged. "Let's go together instead, I bet it will be fun."
"Fun how?" Riz insisted, because honestly, it sounded like a terrible idea. "The drama club's performance is pretty much the same every year. Besides, what if someone recognizes me?"
At that, the herbivore rolled his eyes. "No one will recognize you because it's been years since that happened. Besides, you barely look like you did back in high school. If anything, I believe every lady selling food might give you a discount. You look like you've barely eaten in days."
Riz frowned, but didn't have anything to retort. Pina was mostly right, as he had lost a lot of weight in juvenile, weight he hadn't recovered yet since he had only been free for a few months.
"Why don't you go with Bill and the others?" He asked instead, still trying to persuade the ram. "Or Juno-kun. She likes that stuff, doesn't she?"
"Because I want to go with you." Pina said, making a lot of emphasis on that last part. "We haven't spent much time together lately, so I thought it would be nice. If you don't want to go, though, you can just say so."
The bear's right eye twitched. That had sounded very passively aggressive, something weird in Pina, who usually liked to be more aggressively passive. Everything about this conversation felt wrong for some reason…
But, well, Pina was his best friend, and if we are being honest, Riz really owed him a lot. Wasn't this a very rational thing to ask for?
"Alright, I'll go." He said dismissively, returning his attention to his food.
It was a shame. If he had kept his gaze on Pina, he would have seen his face brightening and his eyes glinting like stars.
And so, here they were.
"What do you want to eat? I'm in the mood for sōmen, but there might be something more filling… You like spicy food, don't you? Ah, there is—"
Riz just followed Pina around as he kept talking, probably trying to get him more excited with the promise of food. And being sincere, it was working. At first he thought it'd be kind of uncomfortable to be surrounded by so many animals, but fortunately, everyone was minding their own business. He had forgotten that most adults were here to eat and buy other things, and young couples were only waiting to light a candle with their loved ones. Despite their height difference, he and Pina didn't stand out much in the crowd —and if at moments they did, it was only because Pina always draw everybody's attention with his looks.
It was amazing, honestly, how beautiful Pina was that night. The light of the few lanterns that were hung in the stalls hit his white fur just in the right way, giving the illusion of a blush. And yet, even among all these lights, Pina shined brighter than all of them. At some point, Riz had stopped pouting and instead was enjoying himself, because as he had promised, Pina bought him everything he wanted (even when he only started asking for candy). They played some silly games and bought a few keepsakes, and by the time Cherryton's drama club appeared, they were already standing close to the meteor.
"Things seem to be okay without you and Juno-kun." He mentioned while they watched the performance.
"Hm. That's good. Although I wouldn't give myself too much credit, the only reason why people like my presence in these things was because of my face."
Riz shook his head, smiling softly. "Don't say that. You're very talented."
Pina didn't respond to that. He seemed distracted all of a sudden, and Riz wondered if he had been hit with nostalgia. Huh, maybe it would have been good if he had come with the guys…
"Would you excuse me for a moment?" Pina told him almost before the presentation ended. "I want to get some water."
"You want me to come with you?"
"Nah, I'll be back in a minute, enjoy the show."
And before Riz could say anything else, Pina moved away and walked towards the back of the crowd. The bear followed him with his gaze, but soon enough he was out of his sight.
What's going on with him…
"Thank you!" The lady gazelle that sold him the candle said as he walked back to the center. He hadn't lied when he told Riz that he wasn't interested in lighting a candle with a girl this year.
But well, Riz wasn't a girl. Fortunately.
He made his way back, protecting the flame of his candle as his heart started beating harder. This was tremendously cheesy, so much that he already felt sick with diabetes, but it couldn't be helped. Riz just had some kind of magic that pulled that side of him out. It was annoying, but who cared? It certainly made him happy.
But of course, things just wouldn't work the way he had planned. Because before he could arrive next to Riz, it started raining.
No, it wasn't just rain, it was a downpour. He immediately tried to cover the flame, but it soon seemed obvious that it would be impossible to protect it. How could rainfall become so heavy in so little time?
He tried to walk back to Riz, but animals started moving in all directions, searching for a roof to cover themselves, and in the process jostling him and pushing him to the side.
And among all that chaos, all lights went off.
It happened fast, incredibly so. One moment animals were crashing against him, almost squashing him, and the next he felt completely lonely, as if he had been left in a dark hole.
Everything was pitch black.
He couldn't help the shiver that ran down his spine. He couldn't see anything, as the flame of his candle had been blown out long before. He could hear some screams, probably of the youngest herbivores, and some mothers calling for their cubs, but everything was confusing. He didn't know what to do, and for a moment he stood frozen, waiting for someone to move him or a carnivore to attack him.
And, soon enough, a pair of claws grabbed him by the sides and picked him from the ground, and in surprise, he dropped the candle in his hand.
Oh boy.
Maybe it was the fear, or maybe it was the cold, but the only thing he managed to do was close his eyes tight, wondering if his death would be fast. The carnivore holding him eventually put him down, apparently sitting him on their lap. He didn't feel the heavy drops of water falling over him anymore, so they had probably brought him to a safe place before eating him.
"Pina-kun, Pina-kun, are you alright?"
Oh… thank God.
"Riz-san?" He opened his eyes, but it was still dark, so he couldn't see a thing. Nevertheless, now that he knew it was Riz, he sighed in relief.
"Yes, it's me, are you alright?" The bear asked again, running a hand down his wet wool.
"Yeah…"
Riz sighed in relief as well, pressing him against his chest. "What an idiot, why would you stay in the middle of the crowd like that? Don't you know how dangerous that was?"
He knew, of course, even better than Riz himself, but he had just… frozen. He had been so, so excited about the candle, that when things didn't turn out like his fantasy he was too shocked to react.
They stayed silent after that, just listening to the water hitting the pavement. Apparently, Riz had found a very small place for them to hide, just between two of the small buildings that surrounded the festival. He probably was too tall to stand there, and therefore had to sit with Pina in his lap.
And it felt… nice. Of course, he was wet and cold, and who knows where his candle go, but Riz was holding him close, trying to keep him warm. Ah, it felt so good to be this close…
"Are you scared?"
"Huh?"
Riz's question took him off guard, especially because he couldn't see a thing, and therefore couldn't read his face.
"You're scared, aren't you?" Riz repeated, although he sounded sure this time. "Are you afraid of being trapped in a small place with a carnivore of my size?"
What.
"What? No." He answered quickly.
"You don't have to lie." Riz insisted. "We're very close, I can feel your heartbeat getting faster."
Oh… so that was what this was about.
"I'm not scared, I swear." Pina said, trying to sound sincere. "My heart is beating hard, indeed, but not because I am afraid. I'm just happy."
If Riz reacted in any way, the sheep was unable to see. Maybe he didn't believe him, so Pina tried to think of another thing to say that would sound more convincing. Before anything came to his mind, though, Riz spoke again.
"Happy about what?"
Ah, so he hadn't believed him.
"Well… because I'm here with you." He answered with a shrug. "I wanted us to place a candle together in the meteorite, but… ah, it doesn't matter, now. Even if that was ruined, though, I am glad I'm here with you."
He heard a sharp breath, as if Riz had tried to suppress a sound of surprise. He didn't say anything regarding his obvious confession, though, and just then Pina realized that he hadn't expected that. Was he being rejected?
"Riz-san?"
"... Yes?"
"I can't see you." He stated, although he was sure the bear already knew. "Can you see me?"
"... Yeah, yeah, I can."
He sounded nervous. "I probably should be scared, being unable to see and in the arms of a brown bear, but I don't. I feel safe and happy. However…"
The ram searched for the ursine's face with his hands, holding his cheeks gently once he found it. "I'm starting to think that the one who's scared, is you."
The carnivore's body tensed, but besides that, he made no other movement. Not that it mattered, he had just confirmed what Pina had said: he was scared.
"I'm terrified." The bear admitted after a long moment of silence. And because he knew him well enough, Pina could figure out why that was.
"Do you want to eat me?"
Riz's body shook. God, why was Pina doing this to him?
"I don't know." He whispered. "I don't know, I'm sorry, I—" His voice broke at the end, and he had to take a deep breath before finishing. "I don't know—"
Because it was true, he wasn't sure. With their bodies pressed together like that, with Pina having confessed something like that, with his beautiful eyes searching for him in the dark… how could he not be scared? How could he not wish to eat Pina and make sure they'd be together for the rest of their lives?
"You can taste me, if you want." The sheep said as he moved his neck back. "I won't mind."
"Ha." Riz chuckled. "You've lost your mind."
"Maybe." He shrugged again. "For the last few years, I've felt that I've truly lost it, for all I think about is how much I want to be devoured by you."
As soon as he finished talking, Riz moved one hand to his neck, his claws slightly grazing against him. "You devil sheep." He muttered angrily. "How can you say such things, and expect me not to love you back?"
"I never expected such a thing."
Dammit. Dammit, dammit, dammit.
Breathing heavily, Riz moved his head down to place a kiss on Pina's shoulder. The sheep closed his eyes, throwing his head back to give him more access to his neck. Riz gladly accepted the offer, kissing him up towards his jaw, even leaving small licks on his way.
"Pina." He whispered, still pressing his lips against the wet fur. "You taste good."
"Really? Well, I'm glad the rain didn't ruin my flavor."
Riz chuckled, finally moving away for a moment. It was so uncomfortable to be in such a small place, with his wet clothes sticking to his body, having to make himself small and trying not to crush Pina.
And yet, despite all that, he had never felt happier.
"Pina-kun." He got closer, pressing his nose against the other's muzzle. "Pina…"
The sheep didn't try to move back, he just stayed as he was, waiting for the bear to take that last step.
Slowly —whether it was to give Pina a chance to change his mind, or because he was still unsure himself, he couldn't tell— Riz moved his head down and pressed his lips against the ram's.
Like the warm caress of the sun when it comes out in the morning, that which feels like an embrace of life itself. He no longer felt cold, and he no longer felt hungry, all he felt was bliss.
"I love you." He whispered when they parted. "I love you, more than anything, with all my heart, I love you."
Pina opened his eyes, looking slightly annoyed. "I can't believe I didn't see your face the first time you said that. Couldn't you have waited until the power came back?"
"Is that all you have to say, after I confessed my feelings? How cruel you are."
The sheep chuckled. "Sorry, sorry. It's just annoying to be unable to see anything, so I really would like to have a light."
"Is that so…" Riz nuzzled his face, just before planting a kiss on his cheek.
He couldn't relate to that sentiment, not when Pina was already the ray of light in his life.
"There are darknesses in life and there are lights, and you are one of the lights, the light of all lights."
— Bram Stroker