Sword and Snow

Emery

Emery and Avuri found their way back to their bed after using the techniques to hide their new dragon forms. While they didn't really need to sleep, they were both mentally and physically drained more than usual from the completion of their task and were quick to cuddle up in the bed together for rest, Avuri muttering the whole time about how much better it was without the horns.

Emery couldn't help but agree.

A short couple hour nap was all they really needed to be fully functioning again, which left them awake in the very early morning hours, a little before sunrise.

When Emery opened her eyes to the still dark room just inches away from Avuri, she smiled happily. The last several months had been full of things to do, and now that they had finished consolidating the power from the dragonblood, they probably had more training to do.

But it could wait a day or two.

Emery leaned forward to give Avuri a chaste kiss. She could feel Avuri's lips curl into a smile against hers, despite the other woman not appearing to be truly awake. It took another moment, but Avuri's eyes fluttered open, crinkling at the edges in a full-faced smile.

"Good morning."

"Good morning." Emery leaned her hornless forehead against Avuri's in the dark. "You don't have to join me, but I was thinking about doing some chores and things."

"This early?"

"Mhm. Go gather some eggs, cook a nice breakfast. Normal stuff." Emery said lazily.

"You know, after the last few months, average morning chores sound kinda nice." Avuri chuckled.

"That's what I was thinking."

"We're going to have to leave bed first, though, and that's a tough sell."

"At least it isn't cold outside the blanket or anything." Emery said.

"Did you forget who I am, love? As if a little cold bothered me."

"No, but it bothers me." Emery smiled.

"Hmm, you know, it probably won't anymore?" Avuri offered. "Since you have access to all of my Qi and techniques, you can probably do the whole passive temperature control that I can do, too."

"...I'm gonna have to make you teach me that."

"Oh, yeah? And how do you plan to pay me for that, hm?"

Emery rolled her eyes, knowing full well where this was headed. "We share the same bank account, Ri. What's mine is yours."

Even laid down horizontally in bed, Avuri found a way to tilt her head with a finger held to her chin, as if considering the offer. "Hmm…not enough."

Emery let out a dramatic sigh, although her heart wasn't in it. Then, all at once she tumbled over to land on top of Avuri, pinning her and holding her wrists over her head. Avuri squeaked playfully in response, and Emery leaned in close by her ear.

"Then let's see what I can offer you, hm?"

Avuri just responded with an utterly fake sounding "Oh, no!"

In the end, getting out of bed was perhaps more of an ordeal that either of them would have expected. They still managed to get up before the sun rose, but they both felt the need to wash themselves before getting dressed. Emery wasn't going to complain about bathing with Avuri, though, and it didn't seem like Avuri had any complaints either.

As quietly as they could manage, they snuck out of the house once again, just like they had the last couple weeks while sneaking off for Cultivation. The air about them was completely different, though, the resoluteness and determination was gone, replaced with a soft contentment.

Merely steps out the door, Emery snatched Avuri's hand and scooted in to walk closer as they made their way toward the barn. They bumped shoulders a number of times, but neither paid that any mind. If anything, it just made Emery smile brighter. Avuri seemed just as content to wander around hand-in-hand, more relaxed than either of them had been in weeks. Maybe even months.

Neither of them struggled to see in the dim light of the pre-dawn sun, thanks to their enhanced sight through Cultivation, so even with everything still being relatively dark, they were able to run through many of the normal husbandry related activities. In fact, Emery was pretty sure that the husbandry team would be happy to get a random day off from their chores.

Even though they weren't actually working physically side-by-side, just working in the same space was enough for Emery to feel the immense comfort that she always felt from her wife. Their literal spiritual connection was part of that, too, but Emery was positive that even without it, she would feel the same utter peace that she felt while working alongside the woman she loved.

"You know," Avuri suddenly broke the comfortable silence, "we're going to have to do this for everyone else, too."

"Hm?" Emery said, looking up from where she was trying to pull apart some hay from the bales they had stored.

"We're giving the husbandry team an impromptu day off, right? The others are gonna be jealous, so we'll probably need to work our way around the other teams too."

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Emery, in a very good mood for the morning, let out a playful gasp, trying to sound scandalized. "Ri! Are you suggesting we plan another pre-dawn rendezvous? How forward!"

Emery heard an amused snort from the stable Avuri was working in, then she appeared from the gate. They had both gotten dressed in working clothes they weren't worried about getting dirty, but Avuri had still opted to put on an apron while mucking out sections inside the barn.

Avuri's hair had come a little loose from her normally well-kept braid, with several strands hanging in front of her face. They were matted to her forehead with morning dew that had clung to Avuri while she worked. At some point, she must have wiped her face with her arm or something, because she had a little bit of dirt smeared across her cheek.

Emery couldn't help but stand there, completely slack-jawed, as Avuri decided to lean on her shovel and smile with such genuine happiness that it felt like the room was lit up by the sun - despite it still being before sunrise. Avuri giggled again, watching Emery's expression.

"Damn."

"What?" Avuri asked innocently.

Emery finally managed to shake off being dumbstruck and walked over to her wife. Avuri just raised a single eyebrow as Emery stepped up, placed her hands on Avuri's shoulders, and pulled Avuri down so they were resting their foreheads against one another.

"I am the luckiest woman in the world." Emery muttered, but Avuri scoffed. "No, really. I wish I could get a painting or something of what I just saw."

"What? Me standing here with a shit-covered shovel and a dopey grin?"

"Yep. Don't forget the dirt on your cheek, either. And the stained apron. It adds to the whole vibe." Emery smiled, placing a warm kiss on Avuri's lips. It was soft and lingering, but she didn't push any deeper than that.

Avuri sighed when Emery pulled away. "Just for the record, I imagine I'm covered in animal crap, not dirt."

Emery couldn't help but laugh at the unenthused, flat delivery that Avuri spoke with. "Doesn't matter. The whole place smells like manure anyway."

Avuri rolled her eyes. "Well, I'm going to need another bath before breakfast, I guess. Let me finish here, you go grab the eggs."

Emery smiled and kissed Avuri again before spinning to head to the chicken coop. "Kay." She called, sounding like one of their daughters.

Once Emery had gathered two baskets worth of eggs, she returned to grab Avuri and head back to the house. Emery whined that she also felt dirty and joined Avuri in the bath as the sun was finally coming up. They took their time drying off after that, and Emery spent plenty of time combing out Avuri's hair. It was one of their routines that they had skipped unfortunately regularly over the last several months.

Once they were prepared, the two snuck off once again to the big outdoor kitchen to prepare breakfast. It was still earlier than most of the kids would be getting up, and the culinary team wouldn't even be starting normal breakfast preparation for another hour. That was plenty of time for Emery and Avuri to prepare a solid, though simple breakfast.

Emery focused on the eggs, cooking all of what she had gathered that morning, plus a couple dozen more from their storage. She even took the time to diversify how they were cooked, leaving a small banquet for the family to find later. There were large serving trays kept over heating Arrays full of scrambled, poached, fried, and even a few cheesy omelets.

Avuri, meanwhile, prepared several potential side dishes. She prepared a few meats, ranging from bacon to breakfast sausages, as well as a potato hash, and a mild tomato and pepper based sauce to go over the eggs for the kids that liked it.

Altogether, the spread looked great, and should more than cover feeding basically everyone. But, the family only ate breakfasts together on special occasions because everyone did their chores on different schedules. So, once they were satisfied, they bundled up a good spread for themselves and the main house kids before returning to their own dining room.

When Stena and Cierra sleepily descended the stairs, Emery and Avuri were in the process of brewing tea and had already set out the huge breakfast spread on their table.

"Whoa. What's the occasion?" Cierra asked as she settled down at the table. She yawned, which quickly jumped to Stena, and then Emery and Avuri.

"No occasion. We got up early and felt like doing something together." Emery said nonchalantly. "We left enough for everyone at the pavilion, too. Just brought enough for all of us."

"No complaints here." Stena said, half-collapsed on the table. Or eyes lit up when she saw the poached eggs. "Mom! You poached some?"

"Mhm." Emery smiled as she took the finally boiling kettle. "I know they're your favorite. But leave some for Astra, too. I think she likes them about as much as you do."

"Well good. They're the best way to have eggs."

"Disagree. Fried is better." Cierra said.

Stena eyed her sister, still a little too sleepy for an actual argument over it. "I'll give you, fried goes better on bread or in a sandwich. But on their own, poaching is way better."

"Don't argue this early." Avuri chided as she placed the cups down on the counter for Emery. She bumped Emery's hip playfully with her own. "Besides, you're both wrong anyway. An omelet with a bunch of fillings is best."

Emery rolled her eyes as she filled the six cups with a pleasant jasmine tea. "You are all crazy. They're eggs. It doesn't matter how you cook them, they're always delicious."

Emery chuckled at the chorus of 'fine's she got in response, happy that no one wanted to argue. When she placed the cups of tea in front of each seat, and she and Avuri finally sat down, all four of them took long sips from the tea.

Everyone at the table let out long, pleasant sighs.

"Oh, that's good."

"Jasmine tea isn't usually my choice for breakfast, but when it's good, it's good." Cierra agreed.

"Your mom just makes it really mellow." Avuri said. "It's like drinking lightly fragrant, pleasantly hot water. Perfect for a morning like this."

Emery didn't say anything, just kept her hands around the warm cup, enjoying the pleasant, calming tea. It was a little extra work to brew the Jasmine tea just right. The temperature had to be perfect to avoid the bitterness, and letting it steep for too long would make it bitter, too. But when she got it right, it was one of her favorite drinks. It went down smooth and refreshing, the way plain water did.

"...morning," Astra grumbled quietly from the stairs as she came down them. She still looked sleepy, and was walking down the steps with a blanket held tightly around her.

"Good morning, Star." Avuri said. "Hungry?"

She shook her head, but still came to join everyone at the table. Once she slid into her seat, a dainty little arm popped out from the front of her blanket-cloak to pull her tea closer.

Arek appeared not long after, looking the most awake out of the kids. He wasn't particularly energetic, but he wasn't still wiping the sleep from his eyes as he sat at the table, and gathered a plate of food.

Emery leaned back in her chair, just watching her family be. It was so unbelievably ordinary that she couldn't help but smile as she sipped her tea. Avuri must have felt the bone-deep satisfaction and serenity coming from her, because she placed a hand on Emery's thigh, just to create a point of contact between them.

Emery placed her hand over Avuri's, who then entwined their fingers. It was at an awkward angle that even hurt a little bit, but it was worth it. This was exactly the kind of moment that she wanted to hold her wife's hand.