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For a century, seasons in Norvrandt had all but ceased to be. The star moved through the heavens, and the temperature fluctuated during its travel, but the hallmark weather of each season was something only noted in records.With the Primordial Light vanquished, winter had come in full, and the weather was colder than it had been in the memory of all but a few Viis.
The residents of the Crystarium were not deterred by the dropping temperatures though; they had survived together under harsher conditions than this, and would do so again.
The Exedra was alive with stalls as the artisans of the city began to supply warm clothes, blankets, food, and other necessities for any who should need them. With Norvrandt more connected than ever before, people from other areas were pouring into the city and offered similar accommodations. Even those as far removed as the Dwarves from Tomra and the Viis from Fanow were joining in.
Before long, what had started as a means to efficiently supply Norvrandt with supplies for the cold was starting to blossom into a new festival, with joy in the air in place of panic or worry over the unknown.
“A shame we have to pause our work on the Empty,” Gaia said sullenly as she looked over the stalls being set up in the Exedra. She burrowed into her black fur coat, trying to stave off chills as the already dull sky grew cloudier.
“Yes, but look at how happy everyone is!” Ryne cried. “I’ve never seen the city so alive!”
Her feelings were a clear opposite of Gaia’s in the moment, as much as her white fur coat was a counter to Gaia’s own. Ryne had insisted on the matching designs, but Gaia had not budged on the color of her own.
“A bit too busy for my taste,” Gaia replied. “But I did promise to help, and so I will.”
Ryne giggled. “Don’t worry, after we check in on a few things, we can find a quiet spot to relax. Just the two of us.” She clasped Gaia’s gloved hand, and the brooding girl visibly relaxed at her touch.
“I can manage that, I suppose. I even have a perfect place in mind, if you have no objections.”
“Why would I object to any place I get to go with you?” Ryne asked sweetly.
Gaia fidgeted with the necklace fashioned from the eternal ice Ryne had created as Shiva. The cold touch of it always helped to calm her nerves, and touching it had become something of a habit for her, even when she couldn’t feel it as keenly.
For as naive as Ryne could appear sometimes, she was a quick learner, and one thing she had picked up especially swiftly since they had started dating was how to push Gaia’s buttons.
“Don’t we have a festival to check over?” Gaia asked as she took off toward the stalls.
It wasn’t long after they set out that a voiced called for their attention as the pair passed by the stall for Spagyrics. “Young miss! A moment of your time!” A Galdjent woman, Pauline, waved to them.
“Yes, of course. What can we assist with?” Ryne asked.
“There is a concoction we have that assists with keeping frost off of glass. I find myself a bit short on components to complete this order that came in for some. Could I get you to run to the Hortorium and grab a few things?” Pauline asked, holding out a sheet of paper with a number of plants listed.
“Certainly! I know the Hortorium well enough by now that we should be back quickly.”
“Many thanks!” Pauline said as she returned to other business at the stall.
“Well, I suppose we have our first detour, then,” Ryne said.
The two engaged in their usual idle chatter on the way into the Trivium. The path was one both of them knew quite well, as both had their reasons to visit the facilities it housed on a regular basis.
The hallway descended down and eventually opened up, allowing a large garden of various types of plants and herbs presented itself to the pair. It was where studies on numerous flora was done, and while it once had been vital to surviving the eternal light, now it was concerned with re-adapting to Norvrandt’s natural cycles and the burgeoning life in the Empty, and so Ryne had taken to learning all she could about its workings.
“I know where these items are, so give me one moment to pick a few,” Ryne said and started off in one direction before Gaia grabbed her arm.
“Before we grab those, come with me. I had something set up in here before they all left to join the festivities. I’d like to show it to you before we get to our errand here.”
“You were in the Hortorium? I didn’t think you had any reason to deal with this section of the Crystarium,” Ryne admitted.
Gaia smirked. “Well, it is on the way to the Cabinet of Curiosities. And why wouldn’t I take at least some interest in what my girlfriend has been up to?”
It was Ryne’s turn to blush. Gaia allowed herself a moment of pride at the reaction.
“Besides, I learned something fascinating from the books Moren keeps on hand.”
“You have been visiting the Cabinet quite often. I suppose all of your writing has inspired no shortage of reading.”
“Precisely. And there are some fun things you can learn from some of the oldest tales in the collection,”Gaia said as she took Ryne over to one of lamps near the back of the facility, where a berried plant hung up inches above them from it. “Ryne, do you happen to know what that is?”
Ryne thought for a moment, going over the many plants she had learned about for the sake of the Empty. “I believe it’s… mistletoe? Normally not a greatly desirable plant due to how it grows, but it has medicinal uses.”
“You do know your stuff!” Ryne beamed at the compliment. “What about cultural uses? Before the Flood of Light?”
“I… admit that wasn’t part of what I read…”
Gaia looked around the area, making sure it was devoid of any other person as Ryne listened intently to her words. “It was used to decorate, to bring happiness and luck to people that walked beneath it, and so it was often hung on door frames. But there was one more use, particularly in an old winter holiday.”
Satisfied that no one was around, she turned to Ryne quickly and pulled her close. As she grabbed her tightly, her lips met firmly with her girlfriend’s. The smaller girl squeaked in surprise at first, but returned the embrace and the kiss happily.
When their lips parted, Gaia noted that her red lipstick was printed over Ryne’s lips. She smiled at the sight, but said nothing.
“You see, you kiss those who are caught under it with you.”
“Quite the surprise you set up,” Ryne said, still holding onto her girlfriend.
“I was… a spur the moment thing, really. But I am glad that it seems to have made you happy.”
“Of… of course it has,” Ryne said bashfully, averting her gaze. “The thought you put into it and… and… the kiss…” Though she was good at teasing, the displays of affection still often left her tongue-tied.
Gaia kissed her forehead. “You are positively adorable sometimes.”
Ryne wore a pouty expression when she looked up. “What do you mean ‘sometimes’?”
Gaia laughed. “Well you can’t be adorable all of the time, that would diminish the charm of it.”
“Fine,” Ryne’s expression returned to a gentle smile. “But we shouldn’t keep Pauline waiting. Shall we get those herbs?”
Gaia chuckled. “Oh, there’s no need. Pauline was in on this.”
Ryne looked stumped. “You… what?”
“Yes, I had her give us an excuse to come here. If she actually needed anything, she was supposed to give me a specific phrase to indicate it. Besides, you know that Pauline is always over-preparing.”
Ryne quirked an eyebrow. “Do you remember what that phrase was?”
Gaia nodded. “It was…” she paused and looked down, trying to focus. Come on, memory, not now. Think! It was very specific!
Ryne nodded. “What’s what I thought. Let’s grab these things just in case.”
“Now wait a minute, I can get this, just let me think for a moment!”
“Nope! Not a moment to lose, we already took our break early!”
“Ryne~!”
Bundles of herbs in hand, the girls made their way back to the Exedra. As they left the covered hallways, the chill of the winter wind hit them all over again.
“Did it get colder while we were in there?” Gaia asked.
“Gaia, look at the sky!” Ryne pointed.
The clouds now blanketed the sky, and flakes of white drifted lazily down to the ground. For the first time in a hundred years, Lakeland was seeing snow.
“I thought I would be used to it after the whole incident with Eden, but it’s strange to see it falling from the sky like that.” Gaia said.
“Yes, but it is quite pretty.”
“The ice you made was prettier,” Gaia replied. “You asked me to wear proof of it, after all.”
Ryne playfully smacked her arm. “Flatterer.”
Without warning, a long cloth was wrapped around each of their necks and draped off to the side. Lyna appeared from behind them, a bag of red and light blue scarves hanging off of one arm. “It’s getting colder than we previously guessed, so bundle up, you two.” She paused and stared at Ryne. “Though perhaps you had other means of keeping warm in mind?” She chuckled as she walked off to continue her deliveries. “You may want to check a mirror before you return to work, dear!”
Ryne patted her face frantically, and Gaia pulled out a compact mirror for applying makeup. Immediately, the Oracle of Light saw the lipstick Gaia had planted on her, and Gaia was struggling to contain her laughter.
“Gaia, you were going to let me go out like this?!” Ryne cried.
“I would have brought it up! … If I remembered. But you know, memory issues and all that.” Gaia said playfully with a shrug.
Ryne stood on her tiptoes and gave Gaia another kiss on the lips. “At least make sure it’s applied evenly.” She demanded when it broke.
Gaia wiped off some of the excess from the edge of Ryne’s mouth to make it look more natural. “Still not quite your color, but I do like how it looks on you nonetheless. Can’t argue against the application method, either.”
Gaia took Ryne’s hand, and the two made their way back for their errand, leaving footprints in the snow that told of their first winter together.