Work Text:
Lizzie set the basket down in the middle of the clearing, the stump of an old tree made for a table, blankets stolen from beds made for cushions, and looked around with a self-satisfied smile at her work.
Was it perfect? Oh far from it. Was it safe? No, no she supposed it wasn't. But the evening sun lit the clearing in gold and warmth; evening chill held back by sheer will alone. The flowers still bloomed, the axolotls splashed in their pond, the tiny cottage still stood. It felt warm.
A message in chat would send her allies scurrying over here, and okay- perhaps she could've phrased things slightly clearer, maybe [Fairy fort come home now!!! Asap!!] was a bit of a worrying statement, but it would get them here fast! They didn't have enough time for this anyway what with all the deaths, a little worrying never hurt a soul, and they'd forgive her when they saw what she'd worked the whole day setting up!
"Queen of Shadows! Are you alright?" Ren's panicked voice came first, the crash of the fence gate being flung wide open following mere moments later.
Lizzie couldn't help but smile at his (unnecessary) concern; crossing the clearing to reach up, cup his face in both hands, tug the wolf closer and press a swift kiss to his face, giggling at the way his tail wagged in response.
"Can't I just want to see my alliance?"
"Lizzie!" Bigb's voice cried out from the house as he and Cleo emerged from the secret tunnel both panting hard.
"What's the problem?! What happened to the fort?" Cleo gasped as the pair hurried over, Bigb looking around for damages while Cleo put their hands on both of Lizzie's shoulders searching for injuries she wouldn't find.
Okay. Maybe Lizzie regretted giving them quite so little context. Maybe this hadn't been the… most sensible way to get them here. It had still been the fastest though!
"What's all this?" Ren had stepped further into the clearing, seeing—finally!!—all of Lizzie's hard work: lanterns hung from glass and crystal in the air, blankets were strewn across the grass, a kettle and chipped mugs nestled together (Lizzie would've preferred hot cocoa but unfortunately there weren't any jungles, so tea suited just as well, besides, she didn't want to find out if werewolves were allergic to chocolate too), but the centrepiece was the enormous basket of flowers on a dark tree stump. She'd spent all day gathering those, a nice mix of varieties, enough that the inevitable mistakes wouldn't leave them short—she'd planned this!
"This is why I called you all home!" She unhooked Cleo's hands from her shoulders and intertwined them with her own, tugging them forward with a skip and a smile that was finally reciprocated.
Bigb didn't escape either as Lizzie released Cleo's hands, plucked a blooming sprig of lavender from the basket, took one of his hands, slipped the flower behind his ear and planted a kiss on his cheek just beside it. Then, of course, dragged him to the centre of their glowing, golden clearing.
Ren was pouring tea as Cleo sat back on a blanket watching Lizzie, a bemused fondness glimmering in her pale green eyes. Lizzie wondered what colour they were out of this strange game.
"So, just so I'm clear, you called us to the fort like it was an emergency for… tea?"
"No!" Lizzie tried to be indignant but couldn't help a smile spreading wide across her face, "We're also going to make flower crowns!"
Ren handed Cleo a mug and she turned her head to catch his cheek with a kiss as thanks,
"Uh, Lizzie, there are," Ren looked around nervously, like a deer suddenly aware of someone watching it, "there are red names about, are you sure we can relax like this? We aren't safe anywhere, especially not with the boogeymen about!"
Lizzie took a seat beside Cleo, enjoying her own peck on the cheek from them, and pulled a handful of flowers from the basket and began weaving them together, deft hands experienced at drawing beauty from the wilds, from the chaos, from the danger.
"There are signs saying no murder in the fairy fort, besides they can have fun out there but when we walk out with flower crowns tomorrow they'll be glad they didn't kill us!"
She smiled, looking around at the others, her dear fairy fort, her beloved spots of light in the dark forest, the golden sunset before the frozen night. "We can surely take an evening to ourselves right?"