Private The Gift of Life Day

[Aurelian Veruna]

Location: The Rainspire, Parrlay
Tags: Sibylla Abrantes

Parrlay in winter felt like a contradiction, both in its landscape and its spirit. While the rest of Naboo put on its seasonal best; Dee'ja Peak dusted white with snow, Theed enjoying a mild chill, and Kadaara basking in warm breezes, Parrlay hunkered down beneath a solid curtain of slate-gray clouds. A relentless rain steadily drummed across the stone streets, soaking the entire town in a damp, persistent gloom.

Despite the weather, the people refused to surrender to it. Dockworkers strung cheerful lights between the warehouses. Laborers painted vivid color onto their doors. Families pinned bright garlands against weather-beaten walls, determined to conjure a bright season through sheer force of will. Towering above the town stood the Rainspire, the ancestral seat of House Veruna, its high windows glowing with gold and green light. It was a beacon that let every child look up and believe the season was magical.

Aurelian had always admired that about Parrlay; its defiance, its pride, its insistence on finding joy. Returning home from Ukatis with Sibylla today, he felt that same bright insistence thrumming through his own heart. They had just celebrated Life Day on Ukatis, along with the baby shower for the Dowager Princess, but now, the world had shrunk down to just the two of them. It was the quiet thrill of their first holiday as a pair who no longer had to dance around the truth. They had said the words. They had made their choice. They would were in love.

The long flight back had been devoted to work, by unspoken mutual agreement. They had saved their personal celebration for here, in the quiet halls of the Rainspire, away from all obligations and audiences.

Aurelian guided her down the long corridor now, taking careful steps on the polished stone floor. His hands covered her eyes, and he walked just behind her, half-laughing at the awkward shuffle of the movement. The decorations he'd ordered shimmered around them: soft lantern-light, hints of fragrant evergreen, and gold ribbons catching the faint light from the high arched windows. At the end of the hall waited his unfinished gift, something he'd started up when he visited Dee'ja Peak and had been working on in stolen hours ever since. It wasn't perfect yet, but he knew she would understand what it meant. She always did.

"Careful there," he murmured, easily guiding her around a stone pedestal. "If you walk into a statue, I'll never hear the end of it." He paused, letting a familiar spark of mischief slide into his mind, deepening his smile. "You know," he drawled, his voice low and utterly shameless, "when I imagined you blindfolded, I didn't think it would be because I was trying to surprise you. A pleasant twist on expectations, really."

​

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

​

Location: What else would you use blindfolds for?
Aurelian Veruna

Aurelian's palms were warm over her eyes as he guided her forward, his laughter humming faintly behind her as she navigated with an awkward shuffle.

Sibylla let out a soft huff that curled into a laugh. Shiraya, this entire endeavor was absurdly sweet. Tender too, threaded with a boyish delight she felt through the brush of his breath across her hair.

"Well, this is why I am entrusting the fate of my toes to you, my love," she teased with a grin, her tone full of affection disguised as admonishment.

"Lest you have to take responsibility for their damaged state," she added with another giggle, her skirt whispering about her legs as he maneuvered her right, then forward, then right again. A slight bump pressed her back against his chest, prompting another pause and then another melodic laugh before the shuffle began anew.

But it was his next comment that made her eyebrows jump under his fingers.

"What else would someone use blindfolds for if not surprises and games?" she countered, genuinely puzzled beneath his palms. How was this a pleasant twist on expectations?

In House Abrantes, blindfolds meant guessing games, surprise feasts, and the occasional refugee festival on Enarc with a filmsi candy orb suspended over a crowd of shrieking younglings. She had been spun in circles so many times she nearly toppled into the treats herself, the paper shell bouncing off her head while the children shouted wildly contradictory directions.

It had been such a hilariously fun time.

"Do I at least get a hint?" she asked, her tone lilting with anticipation at where he was taking her, "Or is this to be a complete surprise?"

Because she had a gift for him too that she wanted to present him with. One she hoped would mean as much to him as this moment meant to her.

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

Location: You'll find out later
Tags: Sibylla Abrantes

Aurelian's chuckle came low and warm behind her, amusement slipping easily into affection. Her confusion over his teasing only deepened the grin on his face. Of course she didn't know. Sibylla approached life with sincerity so pure it disarmed him every time.

"Oh, my love," he murmured, guiding her another careful step forward. "One day I'm going to teach you the full range of possibilities that come with a blindfold. Surprises and games are only the beginning." His tone curled into something wicked, though he kept his hands steady over her eyes.

He nudged her gently to the right, trying not to trip on her skirt as it swished across the polished stone. For all his grace, walking right behind her avoiding a long skirt was not his natural terrain. The shuffle looked ridiculous, but he couldn't bring himself to care. She was laughing. He would embarrass himself ten times over just to hear it again.

"No hints," he said as she pressed him for one. "Complete surprise. But don't worry, you won't have to endure this much longer." He paused long enough to brush a kiss against her cheek, soft and fleeting. "And don't even think about peeking."

He stepped ahead of her for a moment, pushing open the final door with his shoulder. A faint creak echoed through the hall. He returned quickly, taking her hand again and guiding her through a curtain of protective plastic that rustled as they passed. Her skirt snagged slightly, and he caught it before it could tear, steadying her with a quiet laugh.

"Almost there," he whispered, slipping behind her. His hands settled at her waist, thumbs tracing a gentle arc as he leaned close enough for his breath to touch her ear. "Alright. Open your eyes."

The room was hardly elegant. It smelled faintly of fresh lumber and clay dust. Lanterns propped on crates cast uneven light across unfinished walls. But the space was large and warm, already shaped with intention.

To the left stood a pottery studio, simple but well-equipped. A wheel, shelves waiting to be filled, tools arranged in neat rows. The beginnings of a kiln installation sat half-assembled against the wall, wires bundled near the floor. He had spent more time than he cared to admit making sure it would be right for her.

On the opposite side, tucked into an alcove beneath a newly built arch, stood a piano. Not ornate, not showy, but sturdy and beautifully tuned. A small box rested on top of it, wrapped in dark maroon ribbon.

Aurelian exhaled, suddenly self-conscious in a way he rarely allowed himself to be. He slipped one hand from her waist and rubbed the back of his neck, forcing a crooked smile.

"It's… similar to the gift in Theed, I know," he said quietly. "But after hearing you play in Dee'ja Peak, I wanted you to feel at home here too. And... I thought maybe this way…" He gestured around them, uncertain for once. "You could work on your art. I could work on mine. Same room. Same peace. Just… together."

​

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

​

Location: I love you so much.
Aurelian Veruna

There was a very particular tone Aurelian used when he was being intentionally improper.

Sibylla knew it well by now.

So when he murmured behind her, There are far more possibilities to a blindfold than games and surprises…

Sibylla's brows knit beneath his palms in a subtle, wary arch.

Oh? Were there now?

A quiet, suspicious little hum slipped from her.

"…I see," Sibylla replied, casting him an expression that said she was on to him. But her attention was drawn by another helpless giggle. He was impossible. What didn't make sense, however, was the next sound. A very distinct, very heavy plastoid sheet being shifted and her smile waned into a perplexed frown.

What was that, she mused, tilting her head like a blindfolded bird trying to make sense of the world by sound alone. But the scent of fresh cut lumber and clay hit her next. That threw her completely. And then her memory jolted.

Next date, then. I will show you.

A hopeful spark leapt inside Sibylla's chest as he guided her forward gently, breath catching with each step. Oh Shiraya, was she truly about to see his studio? She couldn't help the grin that spread across her face as she brightened even as she kept her hands over her shut eyes.

Wait, is this his studio? But then Aurelian's breath brushed her ear again. Oh. Well that… that was… a curious little experience, and she had feelings about it even as his thumbs caressed arcs at her waist.

And Sibylla certainly wasn't prepared for what awaited her when her hands finally lifted. She opened her eyes and gave a few blinks as her vision adjusted to the light.

Then her breath stopped entirely.

"…oh."

The room around her was warm with lantern light, half-finished beams, the faint haze of clay dust in the air. She stepped forward slowly, her slippers whispering across the floor as she took it all in. To the right, a pottery wheel, tools aligned in perfect rows, a half-assembled kiln, and newly raised beams shaping the room… all of it

Not a studio he occupied. One he was building.

"…are you --" She turned, then froze. Across the room, nestled beneath a newly built alcove, waiting for her as though it had always belonged there was a piano. A small maroon ribboned box sat atop the polished surface.

Her knees nearly buckled.

"Oh…" The words trembled out of her in a breath as Aurelian began a shy, sheepish explanation over the rush of emotion rising in her chest, because he did not need to explain anything at all.

She understood perfectly.

This wasn't just a room. It was an invitation into a space he was personally crafting with intention. A space where he would find his peace, where he would shape order out of chaos with his hands, where he could breathe. And now he had carved out a place beside that peace for her because he wanted her here. With him.

The sanctuary in Theed had been meant for her solitude. This one… this one he envisioned for the two of them together.

A shared refuge. A shared life. A shared space where she would feel at home.

"…Oh, Aurelian…"

The realization struck Sibylla with such force that her vision blurred. A knot rose sharply in her throat, and she turned toward him with an expression that held all her affection, awe, and trembling gratitude in one fragile, luminous moment. But when her hazel eyes found his, all she saw was affection. Vulnerability. A hope so earnest it undid her completely.

"Oh...my love," she whispered again, softer this time, as a wobbly smile broke across her face despite the tears gathering in her lashes. A huff of helpless laughter escaped her before she stepped into him, wrapping her arms tight around his waist and pressing her cheek to his chest.

"I love you," she murmured against him in a muffled cry, but oh so very sure.

When Sibylla lifted her head, tears of joy slipping free despite her blinking them back, she rose onto her tippy toes and kissed him. A kiss that was half laughter, half disbelief, yet wholly overflowing with the awe and affection she felt for him.

"I love you so much," she breathed, brushing her forehead to his, her smile bright and shining. "Thank you."

Her voice cracked on the last word. Because she knew exactly what this gift meant.

And it meant everything.

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

Location: One more thing
Tags: Sibylla Abrantes

Aurelian didn't expect the force of her reaction. He had imagined surprise, maybe a laugh, maybe one of those soft little sighs she made when something touched her heart. He wasn't prepared for the way her eyes blurred, or how she folded into him like he was something safe, something certain. The breath went out of him in a quiet rush as her arms wrapped tight around his waist. He held her without thinking, hands settling at her back with a gentleness that came far too easily for someone who had spent years cultivating sharpness.

Her words sank straight into him. The first I love you hit him like a blow, a bright, dizzying one. The second left him breathless. Her kiss landed warm and trembling, her smile radiant even as tears slipped down her cheeks. It was overwhelming in a way he had no defense against.

He touched her cheek with the back of his fingers, smoothing away one of the tears she kept trying to blink back. His own smile felt unsteady, more honest than he usually allowed. "If that is how you react to a barely finished room," he murmured, voice rough with affection, "then you're going to ruin me completely when you see the actual gift."

He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead.

Aurelian brushed his thumb along her jaw before stepping away. He crossed the room toward the piano, boots tapping lightly across the floorboards. The lanterns flickered across the maroon ribbon and the small box resting beside it. He picked it up carefully, turning it once in his hands as he exhaled a quiet breath.

"I kept thinking about what to get you," he said as he walked back toward her. "But it turns out we are both infuriatingly difficult to shop for. Anything either of us wants, we can buy. And anything we buy loses meaning before the credits are even spent."

He stopped in front of her, the box held between them. His eyes drifted to hers, and something softer pulled at his expression, remembering their last time in Parrlay. "After our last time here… when I first told you I loved you, when I said you had me in every lifetime… those words weren't something I said lightly." He swallowed, voice lowering. "You are my forever. So the only gift that made sense was something that mattered to me in a way nothing else does."

Aurelian hesitated. It wasn't often he did. His fingers flexed once against the sides of the box before he extended it toward her.

"It's simple," he said quietly. "And it isn't grand. But it means the galaxy to me. And I want you to have it."

He drew a slow breath, eyes steady on hers even as old vulnerability edged into his voice. "It was my mother's. I never knew her. She came here only long enough to give my father an heir, and when she did, she was sent away. All she left behind was this. My father told me she wore it her entire life. That it had been passed down through her family for generations, from parent to child. Supposed to bring good luck."

Aurelian let out a faint, almost self-mocking huff of air. "I looked into it once. There was a Queen hundreds of years ago who wore one like it. Hers was in a display outside her tomb. I assume mine is just a replica made by loyal citizens who adored her."

His voice grew quieter, gentler. "But it's the only piece of her I have. And she left it for whoever I would become."

He lifted the lid.

Inside lay the necklace. "I want you to have it," he said, barely above a whisper.

​

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

​

Location: Going to make me ugly cry.
Aurelian Veruna

"Well, if I turn into an utter watering pot, it is entirely your fault," Sibylla managed, her voice wobbling between laughter and the emotion tightening her throat. "So you had best take responsibility."

She tried for levity, but the breath that filled her was too fragile, tender, and full.

Of course he would tease her for reacting this strongly to a barely finished room. But it wasn't a room. It was him laying the shape of his future beside hers, deliberately, purposefully. A place carved out so she would feel at home here. With him.

Nobility could flaunt jewels, silks, and grand commissions...but this meant so much more. This was deliberate. Thoughtful. Tender.

And yet, nothing prepared her for what came next.

Aurelian returned a few minutes later with the small box in hand. But it was the vulnerability in his eyes that stole the breath from her lungs. The quiet tremor in his voice as he told her where the gift had come from, why it mattered, what part of himself he was placing into her hands.

Then he carefully lifted the lid, and there it was.

Wide hazel eyes stared down at the carved pendant, the weight of it hitting her all at once. The air thinned, and Sibylla felt her stomach dip with that stunned, beautiful ache where astonishment met tenderness and she was utterly speechless. Undone.

"I..." Her mouth parted, then closed as she swallowed hard. One trembling hand rose to hover just above the pendant without touching it, struck in wordless awe.

She looked up at him.

The nerves shining through the amber of his eyes. The faint, betraying tension in his jaw. The hesitation of a man offering something irreplaceable -- the only piece of his mother he had ever known. The one thing he had protected all his life...and now he was giving it to her.

Her vision blurred instantly.

"Oh… my love," Sibylla whispered, the words splitting open under the weight of everything she felt. Her fingers pressed to her lips as if she could keep herself from falling apart, but another rush of hot tears slipped free, catching on her lashes as she gave small, desperate nods, each one a silent yes, yes, yes.

"Would you please help me put it on?" Sibylla asked quickly, feeling that wave of emotion rush up her belly. She stepped closer before she realized she had moved, her breath catching as she swept the heavy fall of her chestnut hair over one shoulder to bare the soft curve of her neck. Gold caught the light and shimmered across the room, brushing over them both.

And then the wave hit her. Her breath hitched audibly as that familiar tingle swept over her eyes, nose, and cheeks, flushing them a brighter cherry red while her composure unraveled completely.

Oh Shiraya, I am genuinely going to ugly cry!

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

Location: It will protect you now.
Tags: Sibylla Abrantes

Warmth spread through Aurelian at the sight of her unraveling like this, soft, honest, and entirely unguarded. It settled in his chest and stayed there, heavy in the best way. He had given her something precious, but what she gave back in that moment felt just as rare. The way she looked at him, like he was something worth holding onto, made his throat tighten.

When she asked him to help, his hands moved before his thoughts caught up. He stepped closer, careful, reverent. He took the necklace from the box, fingers steady despite the quiet thrum in his pulse. When she swept her hair away, the curve of her neck exposed, he paused for half a breath, struck by how trusting the gesture was.

"I've got you," he said softly.

He lifted it and let it settle against her skin. His fingers brushed her neck as he fastened the clasp, gentle enough that it barely registered as touch, like he was afraid to startle her or break something sacred. The pendant rested where it belonged, catching the lantern light as if it had always been meant to find its way to her.

His hands lingered for a moment before falling away. He exhaled, slow and steady, then let out a quiet huff of a laugh.

"I like to think the good parts of me come from her," he said, voice low. "I don't know much about her. But there isn't much good that comes from Remus Veruna." His mouth curved faintly, edged with dry humor. "So when I manage something decent, I assume I inherited it from her."

He reached out again, thumb brushing just beneath her jaw, grounding himself in the reality of her there.

"This thing has been absurdly lucky for me," he added, glancing down at the necklace. "I should have been struck down by Shiraya more than once for some of the choices I've made. Yet here I am." His eyes lifted back to hers, bright with something playful and sincere all at once. "Still breathing. Still standing. Still apparently worthy of you."

His smile softened.

"So if it has any more luck left in it," he murmured, "I can't think of anyone I'd rather it protect."

​

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

​

Location: It was you.
Aurelian Veruna

Sibylla felt it the moment the clasp clicked into place. Not just the gentle weight of the pendant settling against her skin, but the quiet promise threaded through his touch. I've got you. It echoed softly in her chest, and her lips curved into a tender smile before she could stop it.

"...when you spoke of wanting to protect me, this was not what I imagined," Sibylla said softly, emotion threading every word.

"And yet… to know that I will carry a piece of you with me always is a comfort I cannot express in words." she admited quietly even as her voice was still a little unsteady, her fingers rising instinctively to the carved pendant, letting her thumb brush its surface in slow, reverent strokes, committing every detail of this moment to memory. A mental snapshot she knew she would return to again and again.

It only made her more eager to give him his gift in turn. But for now, she turned to face him fully. She was surely a sight -- eyes red-rimmed, cheeks and nose flushed, her smile wobbling with emotion yet utterly earnest in her gratitude and affection. When his thumb brushed her cheek, she leaned into the touch without thinking, lifting her own hand to cup over his, holding him there as she listened.

Siibylla understood why Aurelian thought the good in him must come from his mother. Truly, she did. But there was something important he needed to hear.

She slipped gently from his grasp and brought both hands up to his face, cradling him with care as she smiled up at him.

"Perhaps some of those good things may indeed come from your mother," Sibylla said softly. "And I will not presume to know what she felt or the full circumstances of when she left. Whatever grace or fortune you believe she gave you, whatever protection you think followed you from her… remember this."

Her thumbs brushed lightly along his jaw in a deliberate sweep so he would understand what she meant.

"Your choices are still your own. The good I see in you, the decency, the kindness, the resolve, as well as the flaws you wrestle with -- all of it belongs to you. Not luck. Not protection. Not inheritance."

And as her voice leveled into a more certain, sure tone, Sibylla leaned in to whisper.

"You. Here. Standing with me. That was not fate's doing." She smiled, small and warm.

"It was you."

And that is when her expression softened again.

"But if there is one thing I am grateful to her for," Sibylla added gently, "it is that she is your mother. That she brought you into this world. Wherever she may be now, I am grateful to her for that."

Sibylla's hands lingered a moment longer before easing away, hazel eyes studying Aurelian thoughtfully as affection and curiosity mingled in her gaze.

"Have you ever considered opening an inquest to search for her?" Certainly, as Patriarch of House Veruna, all documents and resources were at his disposal should he wish it.

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

Location: I'm in a glass case of emotion
Tags: Sibylla Abrantes

Aurelian felt her words land one by one, each of them finding a place he usually kept locked tight. When her hands rose to his face, when her thumbs traced his jaw with that careful certainty, he forgot for a moment how to perform. Forgot how to smile just enough to keep things light, how to tilt the truth into something clever and survivable.

He had trained himself to deflect moments like this with wit or arrogance, to turn sincerity into something lighter, safer. This time, he didn't. He couldn't. Her touch was too steady, her voice too sure. She wasn't trying to fix him or mythologize him. She was seeing him, exactly as he stood, and choosing him anyway.

His chest tightened. He swallowed, once, then again. His eyes burned in a way that made him look away, jaw setting as if that might keep the feeling contained. It didn't. The warmth stayed, spreading, relentless.

When he looked back at her, his smile was there out of habit, but it was thinner now. Real in a way that left him exposed. He reached up and covered one of her hands with his own, pressing it lightly into his cheek as if grounding himself in the simple fact of her.

"Don't do that," he said softly, a rough edge creeping into his voice. "Don't say things like that unless you mean to undo me."

He exhaled a quiet laugh that didn't quite manage to be a joke. "You have a terrible habit of telling the truth."

Her words about choice, about him, sank deeper than he expected. He nodded once, slow and thoughtful, eyes flicking down before returning to hers. "I know," he said. "At least… I think I do." His thumb brushed over her knuckles. "But hearing it from you makes it harder to pretend I'm just a product of circumstance."

He let his forehead rest briefly against hers, the contact small but intimate. "You took this," he added, voice low. "Something I've guarded my entire life. And you did it with so much care I don't even know what to do with it. That tells me I gave it to the right person."

When she asked about his mother, the question settled between them, quiet and heavy. He drew back slightly, enough to breathe, enough to gather himself. His gaze drifted past her shoulder, unfocused.

"No," he admitted. "I've never looked for her."

His mouth curved into something bitter, fleeting. "My father always told me there was nothing to find. That she was no one. Not worth my time or my thoughts. He was very good at convincing people that the past should stay buried."

He paused. His fingers tightened briefly around hers before easing again. "But the truth is, I was afraid." He glanced back at her, vulnerability bare now. "What if she wasn't who I imagined? What if she was just like him?" A breath shuddered out of him. "What if that meant I was destined to be the same."

He shook his head once, quiet. "I didn't think I could survive that answer. So I left it alone."

Aurelian looked at her then, really looked at her, eyes bright with unshed emotion he no longer bothered to hide. "You make it feel less terrifying," he said. "Like maybe who I come from matters less than who I choose to be. And who I choose to be with."

His thumb brushed the pendant at her throat.

"And that," he murmured, "is something I never thought I'd have."

​

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

​

Location: I will be there with you, wherever it carries you.
Aurelian Veruna

"I say it because if I do not, you disappear into your own thoughts and begin believing the version of yourself your mind invents. And that is not the man I see." Sibylla said it simply, offering him a small, knowing smile that lingered as she drew him into her embrace. She understood how foreign this kind of honesty was to him, how long he had learned to harden himself and lock away what was soft in order to survive the hell his father left behind.

Her thumb stilled at his jaw briefly as he pressed his forehead to hers, then resumed its slow, thoughtful trace.

"You have always had circumstance...you were born into it, trained within it, tested by it." A faint curve touched her lips. "But you choose far more than you admit."

Her hand shifted, not leaving his face, but easing just enough to let him feel the choice in it.

"You decide when to be kind. When to be restrained. When to listen. When to carry more than is required of you." she leaned closer, murmuring quietly with certain assurance, "Those are not accidents, Aurelian."

Her smile softened, and then Sibylla took another deep breath, her free hand coming up to gently cover his own that came up to trace the pendant he had given her.

"Which means that even if it feels frightening -- and the unknown often does -- it remains entirely your choice whether you take that path and search for your mother. I cannot pretend to know where it will lead, nor whether it will prove easier or harder than remaining as you are....But I do know this: you would not walk it alone. I will be there with you, wherever it carries you."

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

Location: I am here for you as well
Tags: Sibylla Abrantes

Aurelian listened without interrupting, something rare and deliberate. Her words didn't press or pry. They settled. Each one found its place and stayed there, warm and steady, until the knot in his chest loosened enough for him to breathe again. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, forehead still near hers, letting the truth of what she said sink in.

"I know," he said quietly at last. A faint smile touched his mouth, tired but sincere. "And you're right. You usually are."

He lifted his head, studying her face with an openness he rarely allowed. "I don't give myself enough credit for my choices," he admitted. "It's easier to pretend I'm shaped entirely by circumstance. That way I don't have to take responsibility for the parts of me that survived."

Her promise stayed with him. That she would walk with him, wherever that path led. It struck deeper than he expected. He nodded once, slow and thoughtful. "If I ever do look for her," he said, voice low, "it'll be because of this moment. Because you made it feel possible. Not safe. Just… possible."

He drew back gently, his hand finding hers as he turned them toward the sitting area nearby. The couch was simple, upholstered, a low table set before it with a bucket of ice and a waiting bottle. He guided her down beside him, unhurried, grounding himself in the ordinary motion of it.

Aurelian took the bottle, twisted the foil, and popped the cork with a soft, celebratory crack. "To new seasons," he said lightly, though his eyes were earnest as he poured. "And to questionable decisions made with excellent company."

He handed her a glass before taking his own seat and lifting it. "With you at my side," he added, "I think I might finally have the heart to face the past."

He took a sip, then glanced at her again, expression softening. "I know you worry about me," he said. "You listen. You steady me. You carry more than you should sometimes." His jaw tightened briefly before he spoke again. "If it ever feels like too much, tell me. I want to be there for you too. I want to hear your fears, your doubts. Not just my own."

His smile returned, warmer now. "I don't want this to be one-sided."

​

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

​

Location: I do not want this to be one-sided either.
Aurelian Veruna

Sibylla gave a quiet huff of a laugh as he handed her the glass, the sound soft and faintly self-conscious as her fingers closed around the stem. She glanced at the pale shimmer of the drink, then back to him as the corner of her mouth lifting with gentle amusement.

"Questionable decisions made in excellent company have rather become my specialty when it comes to you," she replied with a wry twist of her lips, lifting the glass just enough to acknowledge the toast before taking a small sip.

Still, Aurelian's words lingered. They always did. Especially the way he spoke of wanting to be there for her too, not simply accepting her care, but offering his in return.

So she watched him over the rim of the glass with a thoughtful expression, the light gilding her chesnut hair and the cut of her dress as she sat beside him. When she lowered it, her fingers remained loosely wrapped around the stem, knuckles resting against her knee as she turned slightly toward him on the couch.

"I know," Sibylla began quietly. "I know you do. And I do not want this to be one-sided either."
The admission cost her more than she allowed to show. Her thoughts drifted to Acier and the tangled, painful mess that circumstance had woven between them, leaving hurt on both sides.

She did not want that to happen with Aurelian. Not ever. And certainly not the way things had unraveled with Lysander.

"I am not always right," she let the quiet linger for a moment before moving to a more candid tone.

"I am aware it sounds rather absurd for me to admit how difficult it is to be forthright about my own fears and doubts, particularly when I so readily encourage you to do the same," she added, the corner of her mouth lifting in a small, self-aware smile. "Especially given how much of yourself you have already entrusted to me."

Her gaze drifted, almost unconsciously, toward the piano he had intentionally brought for her to this half-finished room just a few steps away. Dee'ja Peak stirred in her memory, as did this room he had set aside for them.

"It has always been easier for me to listen," she continued quietly, "to guide, to offer counsel, to mitigate rather than to untangle what resides in my own thoughts. Perhaps that is why it has so often felt simpler to sit at a piano and play than to speak them aloud."

She swallowed, then turned her attention fully back to him. There was seriousness there now and a vulnerability she did not shy from.

"So I am trying," Sibylla said. "Truly. I only ask for a little patience while I remind myself that it is permitted for me to speak for myself, to place my own thoughts alongside the needs of others."

She bit her lower lip briefly, then offered him a small, genuine smile.

"And perhaps, to begin," she added lightly, "would you like your Life Day present first?"

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

Location: I'm ready
Tags: Sibylla Abrantes

Aurelian listened, really listened, as she spoke. He leaned back slightly into the couch, glass balanced loosely in his hand, eyes never leaving her face. The careful way she chose her words. The way she admitted difficulty without retreating from it. It mattered more than she knew.

He nodded once, slow and steady. "You don't have to be perfect at it," he said quietly. "You don't have to have the words ready, or say them cleanly, or say them at all until you're ready." His tone stayed gentle, unguarded. "If you ever want to talk, I'm here. For anything. Even the messy parts you think you should have sorted out by now."

Inside, a quieter thought pressed at him. That maybe she still didn't trust him fully. That maybe she shouldn't. He knew what he was capable of when he was careless, when he hid behind charm or cleverness. He had been an idiot more times than he could count. That fear stayed locked behind his ribs, unspoken. For now, reassurance mattered more than confession.

He shifted closer, shoulder brushing hers. "You've been my anchor more times than I can name," he said. "I want the chance to return that. I want to be the person you lean on when it's your turn to feel unsteady." His mouth curved into a small, earnest smile. "I hope I can be that for you. One day."

Aurelian lifted his glass, took another sip, then set it down on the table with a quiet clink. He studied her for a moment, expression soft, something warm and fond settling into his features.

Then the mood tilted, just slightly.

"Well," he said, a wry spark lighting his eyes, "if you're offering a Life Day present after all that sincerity, it would be rude of me to refuse." He shifted further back into the couch, stretching his arm along the backrest as if settling in for a show. "By all means."

His smile deepened, familiar and teasing, but grounded now by something steadier underneath.

"I'm ready."

​

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

​

Location: In any lifetime.
Aurelian Veruna

I hope I can be that for you. One day.

Sibylla's expression softened and she leaned forward to press a gentle kiss on his cheek, using her free hand to gently rake her fingers through his hair in a cafune of affection.

"You are," she said quietly as she drew back, her smile deepening. "You already are. In more ways than I could properly explain, even if I attempted it at length."

She reached inside her dress pocket and withdrew a small wooden box, hand-carved and lovingly polished smooth by time and care. Delicate Cambylictus flowers traced its surface, symbols of trust and acceptance, the sort of object kept not for its value, but for its meaning.

"As you so rightly observed," Sibylla continued, her tone light but earnest, "shopping for one another is a dreadful endeavor. So, like you, I chose something that mattered to me instead."

She held the box out to him.

"You have done so much for me," she went on softly. "You gave me the space to understand my own feelings. You created places where I might retreat when the galaxy grows too loud. And the care you took in seeking out every fragment of Nabooian myth you could find for me was… deeply thoughtful and touching..."

A faint, self-aware smile touched her lips.

"So while this cannot hope to rival what you have given me," she said gently, "I wished you to have it nonetheless."

When Aurelian opened the box, he would find a pendant nestled inside. An ancient Nabooian coin, worn by centuries, polished down into a smooth token. Along its edge bloomed the Flower of Life motif, delicate and deliberate. At its center, engraved in the old Futhark script of Naboo, were two intertwined initials. Hers and his. The characters were slightly imperfect, clearly hand-worked rather than machine-cut.

"I went through a few coins first to make sure I could etch it right..." Sibylla admitted, a hint of self-consciousness touching her voice. "And I concede the engravings may be a little rough."

She drew a breath but then continued as she explained, hoping it made sense.

"This coin was the first artifact I ever collected," she admitted with a bit of a sheepish expression, "I found it years ago, during my earliest research into Nabooian myths. It was linked to one of the oldest accounts of the ascension of Set and Vere, when they were first named Shiraya and Aditya. That discovery was what truly drew me into the stories and made me want to understand our history beyond what was merely taught."

Hazel eyes met amber and her voice turned reflective. Did this mean she was so very clearly a romantic, yes, but that was Sibylla under all that perfectly regulated composure. A girl who dreamed and perhaps let herself get drifted away by ancient myths and love stories.

"It has always reminded me that belief, devotion, and love endure far longer than any single lifetime. And while it can never replace what you entrusted to me, I wanted you to have something tangible as well. Something to remind you of what you so often doubt."

She gestured gently to the back of the pendant.

There, encircling a carved Camby flower in the same ancient script, were the words:

In Any Lifetime.

"It is yours now," Sibylla said quietly. "To keep… and to remember."

Her smile widened, full of unguarded affection.

That you are the man I would have fallen for," she added softly, "in any lifetime."

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

Location: Speechless
Tags: Sibylla Abrantes

For a rare moment, Aurelian had nothing ready. No clever reply, no deflection softened with charm. Her kiss caught him off guard, the familiar warmth of it grounding him before the words could. He stayed still as she spoke, as she placed the box in his hands, his fingers already tightening around it as though it might vanish if he didn't hold on hard enough.

He opened it slowly.

The pendant stole what little breath he had left. He lifted it from the box with care that bordered on reverence, thumb brushing the surface of the coin, tracing the flower, the imperfect lines of the engraving. His gaze lingered on the initials far longer than he meant to. They felt impossibly permanent. Intimate in a way titles and vows never were.

Aurelian swallowed. Once. Then again.

"No one has ever given me something like this," he said quietly. His voice had dropped, stripped of its usual confidence. Honest. "Not something that mattered like this."

He closed the box, only to set it aside immediately so he could hold the pendant properly, letting it rest in his palm. Legacy had always been loud in his life. Names carved into stone. Expectations etched into blood. This was different. This was chosen.

He looked at her then, really looked, and for once the words came slowly. "You gave me something that doesn't ask anything of me," he said.

A small, disbelieving laugh escaped him as he shook his head. "You trusted me with your first discovery. With something that shaped you." His grip tightened just slightly. "I don't take that lightly. I won't."

Carefully, he slipped the chain over his head, settling the pendant against his chest as if it belonged there. His hand lingered over it, palm flat, as though anchoring himself to the weight.

"In any lifetime," he repeated softly, testing the words as if they might break. They didn't.

He leaned in, forehead brushing hers, voice low. "I don't deserve this," he admitted. "But I swear to you, I will be worthy of it."

The dangerous smile returned, smaller now, tempered by something steady and real. "You may have just made it very difficult for me to ever top this... Thank you. For seeing me."

​

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

​

Location: I am sure you will think of something.
Aurelian Veruna

Sibylla's expression softened as she listened, hazel eyes shining in that quiet, overwhelmed way that meant his words had landed exactly where she hoped they would. She reached to cup his cheek after he lifted his forehead from her own, enjoying this intimate time together with him.

She would never forget it.

"You are already worthy," she said softly, a fond little curve to her smile. "And you have always been seen. I am merely stating the obvious."

Then her tone brightened as mischief flickered in her tawny eyes.

"Well," she added lightly, brushing her thumb along the faint shadow of his jaw, amused by the rasp beneath her touch, "I am quite certain that brilliant mind of yours will eventually find a way to make me either weep like a watering pot or laugh incredulously at your brazen audacity."

She leaned in and kissed his cheek. Then the other. A quick peck to the tip of his nose, followed by one more to his lips, lingering just long enough to promise there was more to come. She pulled back only a breath, dazzling him with a radiant, utterly pleased smile.

"But for now," she said sweetly with a crooked grin, "I believe you owe me a proper tour of this burgeoning pottery studio of yours... and you have yet to show me these cups, bowls, and vases that gave up the ghost halfway."

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

Location: Here are my pots
Tags: Sibylla Abrantes

Aurelian laughed under his breath as her kisses landed one after another, the sound low and unguarded. His hand rose to cover hers at his jaw, thumb brushing lightly at her wrist as if to keep the moment from slipping away. Her faith in him unsettled him in the best way. He leaned into it, into her, letting the warmth settle.

"You have an alarming amount of confidence in my capacity for emotional devastation," he said lightly, though his eyes stayed soft. "I promise to deploy it responsibly. Mostly."

At her mention of the pottery studio, his smile shifted. Less polished. More eager. He straightened, already moving, fingers closing around hers without asking. "Ah," he said, standing and tugging her gently after him. "Then it's time you see the evidence."

He led her across the room toward the far side, where the space opened into something quieter and more personal. Shelves lined the wall, rough stone softened by use. A worktable sat near the window, its surface marked with dried clay and careful repairs. Tools were arranged with deliberate precision, not decorative, but used. Loved.

Aurelian slowed, suddenly more aware of himself. "I started this to keep my hands busy," he said, glancing back at her as he reached for one of the shelves. "Politics ruins posture. Scheming ruins joints. This keeps me honest."

He lifted a bowl first. Simple. Clean lines. Glazed in deep blue with faint silver flecks that caught the light. "This one survived," he said. "Barely. I learned a great deal about patience and when to stop meddling."

Next came a cup, slightly asymmetrical, its handle smoothed by repetition. "That one cracked the first time. I remade it three times. Turns out control is overrated."

He set them down carefully, then picked up a small vase, narrower at the neck, its surface etched with subtle geometric patterns. "This is my favorite," he admitted. "It behaves. Which is rare company for me."

He flexed his fingers absently, clay dust still faintly visible beneath his nails. "Strong hands matter," he added, tone turning playful as he glanced at her. "Dexterity. Endurance." He let a pause linger between, deliberate and teasing. "I imagine you'll appreciate that later."

He grinned, unapologetic, then softened again. "But truly. It gives me something solid to build. Something that doesn't argue back."

He set the vase down and turned fully to her, still holding her hand. "I wanted you to see this," he said quietly. "This part of me doesn't perform. It just exists. If that makes sense?"

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