Work Text:
Dani sat down next to Illyana. She was purposefully too close, knowing Illyana liked the feeling of her, close enough to grasp and protect if the worst happened.
The worst happened often.
The cool night breeze ruffled the grass and moved through her thin pajamas. Illyana shifted slightly, playing casual, but Dani has always been able to see right through her.
A head dropped on her shoulder, blue eyes trained on the skyline. “I’d die for you, you know.”
“That doesn’t mean much —“ A quick side glance told her that that was the wrong thing to say, but it was too late to take it back, “— you’d die for anyone.”
Illyana was tense, now. “Pot calls the kettle black,” She bit back, “Eh, Moonstar?”
Dani could feel the warmth of her skin against hers, impeded only slightly by the fabric between.
“It’s true,” Dani said, knowing she couldn’t scare her off, not really, not with her stilted words and not with her fears. If nothing else, they were honest to each other, if not themselves. “You wouldn’t live for me.”
Illyana is silent.
A hand moves, lacing its fingers with Dani’s. Dani’s thumb trailed over the callouses there. There’s scurrying, around them, in the trees.
“You wouldn’t either.”
Dani leaned her head on top of Illyana’s.
She can hear her heart beating.
A mouse skittered by their feet, disappearing back into the grass.
The sun rose, slowly embracing them with its glow. Dani’s hand squeezed Illyana’s.
They both know the answer.