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Wriothesley sighed as he reclined in the grass, hands folded beneath his head. The tree they'd found to picnic beneath offered plenty of shade, and the breeze was wonderful against his skin despite the day's heat. He was so used to the chilly damp of Meropide, it was good to get out in the sun, and a little use of his Vision kept him nice and cool.
The same couldn't be said for Neuvillette. He knelt beside Wriothesley, water goblet in hand, sipping its contents on occasion. He closed his eyes periodically when a particularly strong wind came by and played with his long hair, his rhinophores twitching.
"Hey," Wriothesley said after a moment, reaching out to touch Neuvillette's cheek with the tips of his fingers. "You look... hot."
"Oh?" Neuvillette blinked at him. "Thank you, Wriothesley."
Wriothesley snorted at him. "That too. But no, I mean literally. You look like you're overheating, Neuvillette. Here." Gently, he cupped the back of his neck, channeling a little Cryo against his skin, and Neuvillette sighed and visibly relaxed.
"Thank you. But I assure you I'm perfectly well."
"I know you don't lie," he said, because Neuvillette liked to remind him of that at great length, "but I'm not buying it. Your skin even feels hot to the touch." He sat up in the grass, gently pushing his fingers beneath the collar of Neuvillette's shirt. "You should have asked me to cool you down sooner. You know I don't mind."
Neuvillette only let out a quiet sound of acknowledgement, but he relaxed further beneath that cool touch, closing his eyes.
"You didn't have to come out here," Wriothesley reminded him. "I could have brought Sigewinne on my own. Or she could have come by herself."
"Of course. But you know I would never turn down the opportunity for a day with you. With both of you."
Wriothesley smiled a little at that. It was true. Sigewinne had wanted to come out here today to pick flowers to replenish her supplies and invited them along. She was somewhere out there now, although... admittedly he'd lost track of her. She never went too far though, and he caught sight of her rhinophores bopping about in the distance on occasion.
"Hey," he whispered, sliding a little closer. "The grass is nice and cool. Lay down with me?"
Neuvillette gave him a soft, indulging smile. "And get grass stains on my court robes?"
Wriothesley smirked. "So take them off."
Neuvillette leaned in, taking Wriothesley's chin between his fingers. "Are you trying to propose something, beloved?"
"Hmm." He considered that a moment, resting his chin in Neuvillette's hand, smiling and blinking over at him like a well-loved dog. "Maybe I am. Maybe I'm not. Who's to say?"
Neuvillette let out a little laugh at that. "Wriothesley..."
"Hey, I have an idea," he muttered, pulling away from Neuvillette just long enough to unstrap his own coat from his shoulders, laying it out between them. He rolled onto one half of it and gestured for Neuvillette to take the other. "How's that? No grass stains on your robe."
Neuvillette regarded him for a moment, a fond smile on his face, then moved to lay down beside him. Their thighs and shoulders brushed, and he laid his head down in the grass beside Wriothesley's, the fur collar of his coat tickling their necks as they stared up at the gently waving boughs of the tree, the leaves rustling in the wind.
"You were right," Neuvillette agreed. "I find this remarkably soothing. And the grass is indeed quite cool."
"See? I told you."
There was a comfortable silence between them. Neuvillette often liked to prattle on about the water he'd brought with him or what the melusines were up to or a particular trial that he'd found intriguing, but instead he closed his eyes and there was a long moment where Wriothesley thought he might have fallen asleep.
When he took Neuvillette's hand, though, Neuvillette cracked one bright eye to glance over at him and Wriothesley brought his gloved fingers to his lips, gently kissing the backs of each one. "There's nothing in the world better than this," he whispered.
Neuvillette smiled softly at that. "I would have to agree. Although, the sun could certainly be less bright, and the temperature less warm. Perhaps a smattering of rain. I would find that wonderfully ideal."
"But then Sigewinne wouldn't have her perfect weather for flower gathering."
"That is true."
Their eyes met, and Wriothesley found himself flushing, laughing. Neuvillette was just so... so fucking beautiful.
It seemed Neuvillette was thinking much the same. Gently, he reached out to touch Wriothesley's cheek, rubbing his thumb over the blush that colored his skin. And when Wriothesley glanced away, Neuvillette leaned over and kissed him, soft and slow and sweet.
That only made his flush darken and he let out a harsh little breath, frantically trying to cool himself down again. "Wow," he breathed. "Monsieur... in public?"
"We are quite alone," Neuvillette reminded him softly, "and you were teasing me and kissing my fingers not moments ago."
Wriothesley barked out a laugh. "Well, I can't deny that."
The soft pattering of feet caught both their ears then, though it was Neuvillette who sat up first as Sigewinne came running towards them, her little fists full of flowers. "All done!" she called.
"Oh yeah?" Wriothesley sat up on one arm as well. "That's quite the haul. You got all you need?"
"Yep! These should last me a while."
"Then you were quite successful. That's good, I'm glad." Neuvillette's smile widened as he watched her, and Wriothesley took his hand, squeezing it in his own. As he did, that warm smile turned upon him as well, and he felt that flush creeping up the back of his neck again. "Now, shall we return to the Palais for tea?"
"Yeah," Wriothesley agreed, squeezing Neuvillette's hand again while Sigewinne started packing her flowers away, giving them both a knowing look. That was fine, he didn't care. He was just so... so happy, to be here today. "That sounds great. Let's go."