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“The stars tonight are lovely, aren’t they?”
Bari had a smile as she spoke, beaming and lovely.
“Beautiful nights such as this always get me thinking. Sometimes I fantasize about what goes on between the Stars of the City, or even the Impurities. What conversations go on between them? What do things such high and mighty even discuss?”
Sancho didn’t have much to say in response. “No idea.” This wasn’t a journey she wanted to go on, that’s for sure.
The two sat by the riverside. Soon enough, they’d find the River of Oblivion that they were searching for all along. But for now, the waters were clear and normal, teeming with fish and algae. Drinking from them would only quench your thirst, not clean your mind.
Bari leaned back, gazing at the twilight sky. “Sometimes, I fantasize about taking down one of those Impurities myself. Dueling with Quixote gave me a glimpse of that world I want to be in. Imagine the feeling coursing through your veins, Sancho! Taking down something that even the Head couldn’t, running away without a name.”
The woman was always a mystery to Sancho. When she and her Father fought, something inside of her always felt left out, questioning and yearning for more. But now that she was forced on a journey with Bari, she only had even more questions. Where did her interest in the City come from? Why was she so intrigued by it? This place was worse than Hell. Why was she so fascinated with its inner workings as a mechanic would with a machine?
“Have you ever heard of the Library?” The question had passion behind it. Sancho always liked that about her. “It stood proudly where L Corp once resided.”
“I know the Blood-red Night perished there.”
“I always wanted to go there myself.”
“...Do you have some kind of death wish?”
Bari chuckled. “Not at all. I just want to see everything the City has to offer. All of its flowers and Nests, all of its trees and Impurities. I want to understand each and every Star. If the City were a timepiece, I’d want to take it apart and put it back together again over and over for the rest of my life.” Her eyes were filled with twinkles, deep blue hair swaying in the weak summer wind. “My whole life has been wandering, yet my time with you has been the greatest adventure.”
“Your time with me, huh…”
“Of course.”
They shared a comforting silence. It was as though it were just them, the river, and the sky. Cicadas chirped in a screech that Sancho found unbearable, yet Bari seemed to enjoy it.
If Bari liked it, it was alright.
Everything was serene. Perhaps even perfect. It was just Sancho and Bari together, looking through the starry sky. Sure, there were the cicadas, but again… If Bari liked it, it was fine. Even if Sancho’s arm were lobbed off… Maybe, just maybe, if Bari liked it, it would be fine. Though Sancho remained haunted by the pangs of hunger, even directed towards Bari herself at times, it was soothed by meaning.
That meaning was Bari.
Sancho never imagined she could find her appealing in return, however.
So when Bari’s hand first landed on top of hers, she initially flinched and stood up rapidly, almost as a cat would. The softness of it didn’t matter; it shocked her! So much so that she nearly fell into the river. Bari was quick to catch her, thankfully. Her arm wrapped around Sancho’s waist, heroic.
Sancho didn’t mind.
…Actually, when Bari was like this, she really did look like a knight. Of course, as the Knight of the White Moon, chivalrous energy always surrounded her. But when she did these little things for Sancho — cleaning Rocinante when it got dirty after long days, washing her hair when they bathed together at aged inn bathrooms (she pretty much had to force her in each time; Bloodfiends hate water, you know), cooking her meals when possible, even just listening to her — she really did feel like a knight from the tales of old, here to save her princess.
Eugh.
It was embarrassing as much as it was riveting.
“Try to be more careful, Sancho. Next time you fall, I won’t catch you.” It was obvious Bari didn’t mean it. Despite the fact Sancho was bad at telling the emotions of others, even she could pick up on the humor laced in the sentence. She pulled her closer up before letting go. “Also, I apologize. Did you not like me holding your hand?”
“No, I did like it. I just… I wasn’t expecting it.”
“...Then can I do it again?”
She had that beaming smile on her again. The one that Sancho loved so much. That’s when she realized that Bari had always looked at her this way. At first, it confused her. She believed that maybe she just found her intriguing as the Kindred of Don Quixote. Why else would she look at her with the same expression that she looks at the stars with?
“Uh.”
Maybe Bari liked her.
It probably shouldn’t have taken her so long to realize that. She was preoccupied with the stress of the “adventure”, as well as the fact all of this would seem as blurry and fragmented as a dream she had years ago once it was done.
She wanted to remember Bari, at least.
But she knew that she wouldn’t.
Therefore, she had to savor this before it was all gone.
“Sure.”
When Sancho reached out her hand, it took a few moments for Bari to grab it with both of her own. She caressed it gently and examined Sancho’s nails, red and painted by Bari herself. “You’re really pretty,” she said tenderly.
“Um.” Sancho’s free palm found Bari’s cheek. She melted into the touch and giggled, her gaze shifting from Sancho’s nails to her face. “Is this okay?”
“Yeah. It’s nice.”
They stood there for a while, eyes locked on each other, and it’s then that it dawned on Sancho how silly her feelings before were. She was never left out of Bari and her Father’s duels. Each time Bari left, and each time she came, their eyes would meet and she would smile at her. Sancho just thought it was courtesy. But now that she was actually with Bari alone, she knew that she always liked her.
Bari broke the silence.
“Hey, Sancho.”
“Mhm…?”
“Can you kiss me?”
Part of her thought she should fall back into the river in disbelief. The other half wasn’t surprised at all.
“Yeah, sure.”
When Sancho leaned forward and their lips met, she had an instinctual urge to jolt away again. This kind of affection wasn’t something she was used to. Still, she kissed her and —
Bari let go of her hand and put both hands on her cheeks.
Which made her jolt and fall into the lake.
When she screamed, it drowned out the cicadas, jumping out of the water and falling onto the grass. She spat up some of that vapid liquid and stuck her tongue out.
Though Bari had a concerned expression, she simultaneously seemed to be holding back laughter. “Oh… Are you alright?”
Sancho, despite the wet feeling dragging her down and the nausea accompanying it, laughed in her stead.
“Just fine.”