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Over the season of winter that was passing by in her boisterous kingdom, Hollyberry had begun to get used to waking up with the feeling of a massive dragon on top of her.
~
The first night was different. Once the days got shorter and the nights got longer, a chill began to creep into the later hours. A normal Pitaya evening while visiting would consist of a conked off lizard in the castle’s sunroom turned guest room, absorbing the moon's rays and the warm nights that usually came with the kingdom. That’s just what Pitaya planned on doing tonight, but alas, something had changed.
As Pitaya gently brought themselves down to the cushion laid on the floor, they couldn’t ignore the chill that was brushing against their scales. A cold blooded creature such as itself could feel it a mile away, and now it was right here in front of them, it was practically screaming in their face. After what felt like centuries (but was probably 10 minutes) Pitaya let out an annoyed growl and looked up at the moon, tail thunking against the mattress.
"Thisss will not do… " they snarled to themselves, crossing their arms and raising themselves to their feet. Clearly, this was not their problem. It was the castle's owner’s. And so, Pitaya went off to find her.
They reached for the door handle and paused, thinking for a moment. If one of the many guards scattered throughout the castle sees them making their way down to the Queen Mother’s room, surely they would cause a disturbance. Pitaya rolls its eyes at the thought. As amusing as that could be, the only thing they crave right now is a long, warm slumber. With their only focus on demanding some kind of heat in the darn castle, Pitaya lets out a quiet hiss as they climb out the window, scaling the walls.
A quiet "What the hell am I doing" crosses their mind as they move against the hollyberrian architecture, attempting to navigate the cathedral from the outside. After flying over the castle so many times, they easily find their way to the familiar balcony that connects to Hollyberry’s room. They jump down onto the cement and squeeze through the slightly open sliding door.
"How in the Witches can she sleep in this cold?" They wonder as they make their way to her bed. Pitaya clears their throat preparing to wake her up, almost already snickering to themselves about how funny it will be when she wakes up so surprised, when they are stopped by a sound. A very Hollyberry sound.
A soft, gentle sigh comes from the late queen mother’s lips. They curl up slightly in a way Pitaya has found themselves unable to look away from.
Pitaya drops their hands and quietly creeps closer. Her hair is sprawled out, most likely from her being too lazy to braid it that night. Her nightgown is delicately slipped off one shoulder, beautiful scars and marks visible down her arms. In all of Pitaya's dragonic years of existence, they can’t think of a single thing more beautiful than what they find in front of them now. No amount of treasure, usurped kingdoms, or scared little cookies could compare to the sight of a sleeping Hollyberry.
They can’t stop themselves from reaching out a clawed finger to brush the hair off her cheeks, earning a small sigh from the woman below. Just an action as simple as that, Pitaya can feel the heat radiating from her freckled body. So that’s why she sleeps with her door open. She’s warmer than the witch’s oven. Their hand freezes and they take a step back, resting the previously reached out hand on their chest. Pitaya couldn’t deny the beating of their silly heart in their silly chest. Silly. That’s what Hollyberry often called them. It was annoying, the way they recognized the feeling. Despite the years and years without it, without her to supply the feeling, it came back like it had never left them.
Pitaya growls. This was so embarrassing. Stupid cookie, stupid feelings. They couldn’t possibly wake her up now, what would she think?! However, the gentle chill from the wind outside presses its cold into their tail as if to say, “you can’t leave now.” After a moment of beating themselves up for being so sappy, they climb onto the free side of the bed as they had before. Surely this was no different from that one time the two got carelessly lost in a cave and had to huddle for warmth. It wasn’t any different from when they had to share the single bed in the inns they visited when regaining Pitaya’s power. Surely.
Their tails flicks slowly as they turn on their side to silently admire the woman this dragon has grown to respect and feel deep care for, the only cookie on all of Earthbread to match them in a fight; to be a good sport, to seek out /them/ for a duel. Pitaya reckons they must be the luckiest dragon ever baked.
With whipped cream soft bed sheets and a personal heater by their side, Pitaya finds themself quickly drifting into dreamland. Before they met a certain worthy cookie, Pitaya loved to take naps all the time. Now they still find themselves able to sleep comfortably, and this time with the cookie who changed everything. A soft purr escapes their chest.
~
When the sun rises and Hollyberry can feel the rays on her face, she can only chuckle at the fruity scent surrounding her and the white hair practically in her mouth, not even having to think twice about who the heavy creature is that’s buried in her neck.
"Good morning, you silly lizard."