Winter Antics

Brown feathered wings flapped idly as a yume tended to the kitchen. His hands diligently worked away, only pausing when he turned to answer his significant other.

"Lapis, would you mind handing me the seasoning salt?"

"Oh uh... which cabinet was that again?" Asked the blue-haired yume distractedly as she opened a few cabinets in the general area.

"The biggest one to the left."

"Ohhh right. Nearly forgot. I literally just put the black pepper in there this morning."

Shufen smiled, taking the salt from Lapis with a small laugh.

"I don't blame you for forgetting. A lot has happened since then... such as that tower Quinn set us up to."

Shufen stretched with visible discomfort, an audible crack sounding from his spine and fully stretched wings.

"I'm really starting to feel those decades of living all of a sudden. Honestly, I don't think I've ever been this sore in years."

Lapis, (although wearing an icepack on her head) hummed in amusement, popping the Christmas chicken out of the oven. She was wearing a pretty, tan, Lolita overcoat-inspired garment. The coat was lined in fur at the end of the skirt and even had a small shawl-like number at the top. It admittedly was a bit overdone in her opinion, but Matilda refused to simply let her show up to the party with her patched jacket. Honestly... no respect for the traveling craft. She rolled her eyes at the thought inwardly before glancing at Shufen again.

"What on Earth caused your back to get as sore as this before?"

Shufen grimaced, running a hand through the front of his hair. For a minute or two, there was just an awkward quiet, minus the stressed pacing from the winged yume. After effectively tousling his surprisingly down hair, (which rested just passed his shoulders) he spoke yet again.

"It happened maybe a week after I received my blessing. Now that I think about it, it was actually nearing Christmas then too... A-anyway, it was hard to control my wings at first. They're so large and suddenly my self spacial awareness had just doubled..."

Lapis stood up straight as Shufen went on, still amused but taking him seriously, nonetheless. Shufen was internally grateful for the yume's patience with him, leaning against a wall with folded arms.

"-It was hard not to bump into things or knock stuff over. Not to mention grooming them. Knotted feathers is a nightmare and I wouldn't dare wish on someone else."

He shivered at the thought, lightly shaking his head.

"Apologies... I went on another tangent... I was attempting to get better at flying when the wind speed changed. On foot, it wasn't that big of a deal, but having two left feet in the air was horrid. Sure enough, I fell into a tree. I remember having to pull out so many twigs and leaves... and oh Gods, the poor child's snowman that got ruined in the process."

Lapis was quiet for a moment, taking in all the new information. Much to Shufen's dismay, she started laughing- However, it wasn't at him as much as it was at the irony of it all. She came over to him, oven mitts long discarded on a black, marble-finished countertop. Shufen blinked curiously at her, holding his arms out awkwardly when Lapis hugged him. In a practiced motion, his arms wrapped around her in return, wings lightly mimicking the action.

"Blessing or not, you had to start somewhere, right? You were simply going through a learning experience." Lapis started, looking at Shufen in the eye to make sure her words came across.

"As you surely know by now, I love traveling. Exploring the world with this wanderlust spirit of mine."

Shufen nodded, still remembering her signature coat that adorned tags from a few of the places she visited. He was even greeted to the cove and into their small family dynamic with it present, the smell of that chocolate cake with the word "WELCOME" plastered across in the tastiest vanilla frosting.

"I wasn't always like that, you know. Nor were you the greatest flier back then either. I was a bit more dolled up back then. Much longer hair, some of it dyed, and the fanciest flower bows you'd ever see. -But you know what?"

Dumbly, Shufen shook his head "No" despite internally knowing the question was rhetorical, still blinking curiously as Lapis released the hug. Abruptly she pulled out a green Santa hat and propped it onto his head.

"I still look absolutely 'amazing' and love doing what I do today, as should you. We all have time to figure ourselves out here. That's what growing up and life experiences are all about. Now come on-"

Lapis gently pulled a now smiling Shufen towards the counter with oven mitts, adorning her own Santa hat soon after.

"This meal isn't going to season itself, now is it?"

Shufen chuckled, letting his wings relax and fold inwards as he grabbed a few more spices.

"I suppose it won't."

The two laughed together in the kitchen, enjoying each other's company as well as the holiday atmosphere. After all, everyone was doing their part, even if there were ups and down's along the way.

As if to prove a point, a disgruntled Quinn busted into the kitchen, startling the pair.

"I'm gonna need back up here-- Fennec warned me about not feeding the kids too much candy but I thought they could handle it. Now Keith and Nullitas are running all over the place! Seriously, it was like their personalities did a 180. They both seemed like such shy yumes but bam, sugar rush, and now there are two demons running amuck-"

Lapis and Shufen exchanged glances at each other before placing the sacred dinner on the stove.

"Guess we've been summoned again."

"Expect a lot of that tonight."