noble libra

Nevertheless, he had passed by this fellow's property many times. Any time he went to and from his campsite, actually. However, this was the first time either of them had spoken to the other.

The horseman stopped his movements, and stood there. Staring at the stranger, he let out a grunt. "Hrmph.." There was no smile, but he did lift his large gauntlet of a hand, waving back.

" Yes.. I've seen you before. We've exchanged eye contact many times." Technically they were neighbors. "....Hrm....keeping well, I take it?"

Holding out his hand, he nods.

"I live here with my partner, Steven A. Starphase." If his hand is taken, he will shake the man's hand, and if not, he would have no concerns in taking his hand back. Although neither smile, there seems to be no animosity.

"Perks, huh? Like what?" he asks innocently, although the sly smile on his face is the very opposite of innocence.

they come to a stop at the beginning of the maze. steven should not find it so odd that nothing about it has changed in the year since he had last seen it, what with the proliferation of magic in this part of the city. and yet the feeling of deja vu he gets is strange.

"You know, most guys would be upset that their partner forgot their anniversary."

"But I guess you're right. The date doesn't really matter. Still, it probably wouldn't hurt to have one..."

"Though it is certainly something that it all does blend together. Would we consider the date we moved in together to be back in Hellsalem's Lot? Or even when we first arrived here. Would it be when we moved into the house?" He smiles to himself, only a slight quirk of his lips.

"We have been through a lot together, here and in our home world. I feel selfish in not wanting to return, and yet I find myself simply not wishing to." Something difficult for someone as righteous and self-sacrificing as him, though he wouldn't call himself either of those things, as he was far too humble for such things.

(but if it's truly meant to represent love, anything less than flourishing cannot be a happy omen for things to come)

"About a year, or close enough to it." steven confirms, easily allowing his hand to slip into the redhead's. something occurs to him, now, and he really, really hopes klaus cannot see the heat rising to his cheeks in the dimming light.

"Damn. This is going to sound terrible, but..." he's mentally kicking himself in the ass as he begins, because, really, wasn't he supposed to be the one who's good at remembering these sorts of details? "...I don't remember when our anniversary is supposed to be."

"Well, to be completely frank, it feels almost more difficult to parse out. Is it when we began living together? If so, where? We have lived together multiple times throughout the years."

"Personally, it seems the only difference now is that we are being upfront about our feelings. Among, ah, other perks." The very suggestion of it caused his ears to flare as red as his hair as he continues walking.

As much as he resents the instruction, being addressed in concern by an infuriatingly familiar name, it all helps him to regain composure. His arms fold, hands tightly clutching at either of his upper arms.

"This isn't my body," Knives snaps back, as though it were the most obvious thing to the other. His eyes dart from the bags of groceries, then back to Steven's partner. "This isn't a life I want any part of. … Including whatever power you clearly have over 'Steven'."

Which is certainly not how Steven would act in general, and certainly not in their own home. However, he had heard of...

"So, you are not Steven." It was less a question and more a confirmation of what the man had said. Hands raised slightly, palms out, he backed up.

Whatever was going on, he didn't want to hurt Steven's body.

hell of a year, too. if anyone had told him back then he'd go on and make something of a life for himself here in this city, he would have laughed. what purpose was his life without libra? yet here he is. rather than the crushing guilt he had once felt for all the things left undone back home, he now only feels content. it could be the warm glow of the pixie lights, or the warm memories this maze conjures up... the very place where he and klaus finally got their act together, months and months ago.

and the setting of a further development in their relationship, if he's lucky.

"I wonder if there will be another flower waiting for us when we get to the end. It'd be cute to have a matching set."

And there was the crushing guilt of knowing it was likely best for one of them to be home, just in case the worst were to happen or their absence would be noted.

But...

If he were to believe Steven was allowed to feel happy without guilt here, then certainly Klaus himself should be allowed to, right?

At least, he supposed, that was an idea to hold onto with the thoughts running through his head. A year together, then, mostly uninterrupted. And yet it feels like it had been so much longer.

why would they? all of the weddings steven has had the pleasure of attending have been, in comparison, far more casual than what he's sure klaus has experienced, given their difference in backgrounds. keeping the bouquet was always kind of expected, if not outright encouraged. although usually there was an actual toss involved, with a gaggle of young women pushing eachother out of the way.

not that he imagines either groom cares about how weddings are "supposed" to go.

it's easy to fall into step with klaus. it's easy to let klaus lead -- as easy as it is in battle, in everything. steven has never been much of a dancer, but he is graceful, and there's no danger of stepping on his lover's toes.

"Keep talking like that and you're going to make me blush." that might actually be true. sometimes klaus says things that make steven's heart ache in the most pleasant way. klaus says them so genuinely, so frankly that steven almost finds it funny. like saying the sky is blue and i've never cared for anyone the way i care for you are both universal truths everyone should know.

it suddenly strikes steven how far gone he is. how utterly, ridiculously enamored he is with the man whose hand rests on his waist.

"I love you."

he's a bit startled at how the words leave him before he has time to think -- but he can't take them back, and he doesn't want to.

Of course they danced well together - Klaus had the training and technique and even without anything formal in his background, Steven was more than capable of holding his own on the dance floor. In recent years, he imagined Steven had even more practice than he did at these kind of social events.

But it is at Steven's declaration that he truly feels his face heat up, his ears turn red.

Knives' feelings of disgust are, horrifically, belated. When he awoke in a human body, nothing immediately felt out of place. If anything, waking up to completely unrecognizable surroundings incited initial feelings of alarm. He isn't shielded by his coat, either… The sudden vulnerability prompted for the Plant to examine his body, only to shudder then in disgust for being made to wear human clothes. A wordless grumble is cut short the instant it sounds unfamiliar in his throat.

There is a mirror near the front door of the living room, placed there likely to check on one's appearance before leaving, but the idea behind the placement goes over Knives' head. He's much moreso focused on this stranger he's been transformed into, appalled at the sight of himself and shocked still by it. He's scarred. He has dark hair.

He hardly even wants to move.

The front door nearby clicks open, the sound belatedly registering in his mind as Klaus. The knowledge is startling just as much as the feelings of affection and excitement associated with the name; it all serves to make Knives seethe at the other's intrusion, head whipping to glare.

Steven had rushed him and grabbed him by his tie, asking more than odd questions - even when Steven hadn't remembered anything, he definitely didn't react this aggressively - but luckily the large man was hardly moved by his much smaller partner(?), though he could feel the temperature begin to drop in the room, signaling something far more dangerous.

"Steven, is something wrong?" The answer to that was obvious, but it would be much better to ask the question first and work to subdue him later.

(He didn't want to do this again, he didn't want to fight - the last time they were pitted against each other he...he...)

If he didn't have one hand full of champaign glass Vash would have grabbed the other's determined fist with both hands-- as it stands, he simply rocks up on the balls of his feet.

Given, well, his general appearance tends to make people keep a bit of distance when walking by him, he doubt she could gather a social club. "I don't doubt there is one around here. If not, I suppose we could form one."

Between Vash's house and his own, they certainly had no lack of interesting locations teeming with plant life. "We could meet at your home, or at mine - or we could set up something in Cotes ward? Ah, but I certainly shouldn't be the face of it." The stoic man frets a bit over that point, although he does tend to gain respect within the gardening community, there always was that worry and rough spot upon joining.

"Oh, thanks!" Vash chirps. It's been impossible to get the same wide smile off his face that's been there almost the entire evening. It's far from the first time he's been congratulated in the past few hours, but each time is still deeply appreciated, each thanks genuine.

"Uh-- both for the congratulations and for helpin' us out-- we really appreciate it. There's-- uh-- a lot of plants at the house. Prrrrobably more than you're expecting," he laughs, hand coming up to the back of his head.

"Truthfully, I've been away from my gardening club for quite some time. Steven and I only moved into our manor in the Mistwood recently, so I haven't been able to accumulate my own garden." It was late in the season, too, but the Mistwood was likely not operating on the same seasonal schedule as the rest of the island.

"It's exciting to be able to engage with plants of a large number and variety. Perhaps if there are any offshoots, I could harvest them..?" It would be a wonderful payment, in all honesty. Oh, but Miss Kuroneko-

and he's not trying to think too hard about it.

there no hesitancy in the way he places his hand in klaus', more than eager to be dragged away from his current conversation. the person he's speaking to only smiles when they tell him to "go on" and he's thankful that the grooms are going to be everything the cafe crew will be talking about for the next week, so he doesn't have to hear jokes at his own expense.

"We can probably take these back to the house, you know." he's speaking of the flowers klaus is still holding. the fact that his boyfriend technically 'caught' the bouquet is not lost on him. "I don't think either of the grooms are going to notice anything but eachother for the rest of the night."

then steven sighs.

With ease, he puts a hand on Steven's waist, moving their held hands into position and joining the other guests on the dance floor. As Steven knew well enough now, Klaus was quite graceful in these situations, guiding Steven in a more formal dance than many of the others.

"Neither have I. Typically, I only danced when required of me, and I otherwise stayed to the side."

"Yeah, let's head out."

the chill of the evening that greets them is refreshing.

"Well, I have nowhere better to be," he teases.

He doesn't, however, clue Steven in on where they're going, just easing into the car and nodding to the driver once Steven is seated by him.

"It's...Well, yes, a surprise."

...

The driver takes them to the edge of the Mistwood and drives off, not wanting to risk going farther. Klaus for his part, is at ease as he holds out his arm for Steven once more to resume their journey.

"I had come to the Mistwood once, and thought to myself 'this place reminds me of Hellsalem's Lot'. It wasn't until you left for that brief time, and I thought of everyone else still there, that I realized I am nostalgic for those times. I miss them - which is certainly not something I may have thought when we first began our stay."