#ezra and clara go on vacation

[the-blind-assassin-12]

June Prompt #1- Belvedere

A POINT OF NO RETURN FLASHBACK

A/N: Oh would you look at that? I’m finally getting around to posting these! This fits into the PoNR timeline somewhere in the second year that Ezra and Clara had together before he left that final time for The Green Moon. It includes my HC for what the Ephrate looks like (loosely inspired by the image of Pismis 24 below!), and I fully enjoyed getting the chance to finally flesh that out. 

Request: “falling asleep in the sun” and “fireflies” from @paracosmenthusiast​ 

WC: 2.7k 

Warning: Ezra is in LOVE. 

That feels amazing. 

Clara took a deep breath in through her nose. Eyes closed as they had been for at least the last hour, she lay on the double wide lounge chair, a sluggish, sunbaked smile curving her lips. Even with the thick, heavily filtered glass shield that enclosed the entire observation deck, the glow from the Ephrate’s brightest star blanketed her skin in a way that felt entirely different from the heat of the Harvest Star on Kamrea.  

Letting out a hum, she rolled onto her left side and shifted closer to Ezra, right arm falling over his torso as she settled into him. His shirt was soft, worn and washed countless times over, and a part of his life for far longer than she had been. The black fabric was faded, but still dark enough to absorb and retain some of the star’s warmth, and it made her smile spread as she pressed her cheek against his chest. She felt the rise and fall of his breathing, and then the arm that had been bent and tucked beneath his head was curling around to corral her more tightly to him.  

Not as good as this though.  

Ezra dipped his chin and turned to drag his lips over her forehead, right hand trailing slowly up her ribs and down her side. “You gettin’ tired, Huckleberry?” 

From the tone of his voice she could tell that he was wearing a smile similar to the one still stuck on her own face, content and unhurried. Clara shook her head slowly, her muffled no cut short by a yawn. She felt a quick burst of air on her shut eyelids as Ezra chuckled, the sound surrounding her and keeping her just as warm as the glow from the celestial bodies they were lying under.   

He kissed her near her hairline again and then both of his hands were settled at her waist. “Now I don’t mean to label you a liar, my Clara-” His. Every time he referred to her as his she felt her breath catch, felt her heart skip and jump before fluttering back into rhythm. I am yours, Ezra. “But right now, I’m not convinced that you are being entirely truthful with me.”

Clara laughed and tilted her face up, finally prying her eyes open to look at him. Staring down at her through his lashes, he brought a hand up to trace his fingers along her brow, snatching a few stray hairs between them and swiping them out of the way. “Hmm, you caught me.” She tried to stave off another yawn by forcing her lips to stay closed, but it broke through regardless, her right hand flying to her mouth to cover it in a force of habit. 

Ezra caught her fingers in one of his large hands and pulled them away to expose the yawn and the smile that was still trying to form around it. Through narrowed eyes, the apples of her cheeks going even more round and rising to make her squint, she watched him lift her captured hand. Using just his index finger, he bent all of hers so that he could press his lips to her knuckles. “We could turn in for the night, if you want.” He released his grip and returned his hand to her waist, but she kept hers where it was, unfolding her fingers to rake them through his beard, the coarse, patchy hair there just as warm as his skin and his shirt. She felt his jaw clench, the muscles pushing against her palm as he swallowed. 

“Mmm, not yet.” Clara slid a little higher up on the lounge so that she could rub the tip of her nose along the misaligned ridge of his before kissing the silvery white scar on the left side of his face. She heard the low, gravelly groan in the back of his throat, his hands pressing flat against her as she pulled back to look him in the eye. “Wanna stay out here a little longer with you.” Sighing, she fit herself against him again, this time high enough so she could rest her ear on his shoulder. “All this light, these stars, this v-” He squeezed her, both arms tightening with gentle pressure as he waited for another yawn to pass. “This view.” She lifted one hand upwards to gesture lazily at the open expanse of space that surrounded them, bringing her eyes up to the dusty purple nebulous clouds swirling and stacking on top of one another, the brilliant orbs of light burning through and around them. “It's… Ezra, it’s…”

I never knew anything like this was even possible. 

“It’s a sight to behold, a real marvel of the universe.” He looked back down at her. “But it would mean nothing to me if I saw it alone, Huckleberry.” 

Clara blinked her heavy eyelids, trying to keep them open and focused on Ezra’s. There was still a hint of a smile lingering in them, lightening their color to sepia. She could always tell what was going on behind them by the shade and the shine. When he was angry or upset they would sharpen fiercely, going almost coal-black like a starless night. Worry and fear caused a watercolor effect, the dark leaching from them as his pupils dilated. Now though, his eyes were shimmering, the innumerable reflections of the twinkling dots on the other side of the glass highlighting each individual thread of color woven in the tapestry of his irises- umber, gold, ochre. They were bright with happiness in spite of how tired she knew that he was, their light only adding to the warmth spreading through her being. 

Kevva, I love this man so much. 

It wasn’t just the incredible view from the observation deck built on top of the Bowsum Conservatory’s lodge that she had previously thought impossible. The way that Clara felt about Ezra blew her mind to pieces whenever she tried to fully understand it. It was strongest when they were together, like they were now, the thing swelling in her chest. But it was still there when they were apart, when he was away for weeks at a time, cycling through his days on a distant moon in a separate system, it was still there, taking up the same amount of space in her heart as it was when he left. And upon his return? The second she was in his arms again she could feel it expanding, pushing beyond its former bounds to reach for any space not already full of the sure, confident, certainty that he brought out in her. 

A low hum vibrated in the back of her throat as she raised her hand up to the shock of platinum blonde at his hairline, brushing through it lightly before her languid fingers slipped down to the helix of his ear. “Not alone, Ezra…” She yawned and didn’t even attempt to stop it as she nestled back down against his shoulder, fingertips still moving over the skin behind his earlobe, wandering into the hair at the nape of his neck. “Never alone…” her voice trailed almost completely off as a thick swath of sleep swept over her, but not before she finished, “never gonna be alone again.” 

--  --  --  --  --  --    

No, we will not.

She was only conscious for a few seconds longer, but Ezra used that time well.  “My Clara, I will be yours until every last one of these stars goes dark.” 

His words hit her ear just as she sunk beneath the warmth of the starlight. He knew the moment that she gave over to the exhaustion she’d been fighting since they left Kamrea, her limbs going slack and her weight settling against his body, grounding him in a way that nothing, no being or entity had ever been able to before. He rested his temple atop her head and spoke   “Until they all go dark, Huckleberry, and then for all eternity after that.”   

He peered out at the supernova sea and the expanse of wild space beyond it, his touch traversing over her hip and up to the hemline of her shirt, fingertips seeking her skin. Though he had traveled to the Ephrate before, it was only in passing. He hadn’t made a point to stop at the Conservatory on Bowsum, the last in a chain of small planetary islands before the Fringe. He had heard what he thought were tall tales about the majesty of the view from fellow floaters as he made his way through the galaxy, but he never thought that they’d be true. 

People have overactive imaginations and exceptionally low standards. I’m sure it would be a let down. 

Those were the excuses he fed himself for not bothering to spend a few hours basking in the sublime, raw beauty he was sharing with Clara now the last time he had been there. Shutting his eyes on the view before him, he focused on the way he could feel the Ephrate’s sun coming off of her. It was like she was the source of heat and light and energy, like the star was soaking in her glory. 

For once I am happy to be found a fool. 

There were plenty of less than intelligent choices in Ezra’s rear view, and most of them had cost him in some way. This one instance however, had paid him a dividend when it allowed his first time appreciating the wonder of this view to be Clara’s first time as well. She had mentioned once or twice that she had always dreamed of making the trip to Bowsum, but that the only vacation or adventure she had ever taken was simply to the Lakelands on the opposite side of Kamrea. So when his last rotation up on The Green had been a fortunate one, garnering him additional time off and a substantial bonus, he knew immediately what to do with it. When the freighter dropped him off on Central for the short transfer back home, he used one of the comm stalls in the shuttle station to call her. 

“Pack a bag, Huckleberry, because as soon I get home I am whisking you away.”   

It was breathtaking, from the moment that the elevator doors parted and a sliver of lavender white light pushed through, but he was unprepared for how her reaction to the sight would stir things in him that the stars never could. He recalled her gasp and the way that his name slipped through the fingers of the hand that wasn’t laced with his as she brought it up to cover her mouth, eyes blinking themselves wider than he’d ever seen them, the stars and the sun glowing in their tawny-golden depths. She mouthed something inaudible as her hand fell away from her face, and Ezra had to tug her out of the open elevator doors before they slid closed again, her feet seemingly stuck in place. By the time he had guided her to the lounge chair that they still occupied, tears streamed silently down her face, and when she turned to him all she could say was his name. 

Ezra sighed as he opened his eyes again to see the way that she fit so perfectly against him and the way that the glimmering lights above them and all around them seemed to exist only to illuminate that fact. It was in that moment that he decided that he wanted to give her everything that he possibly could; everything she needed and dreamed of, all of himself, an entire life filled with moments like this scattered throughout their story. If he could give her moments like this, if he could continue to see that look on her face, he would know what it meant to live a full life, to die a happy man. 

Not for a long, long time though Huckleberry. 

He kissed the concern away from her mind where he knew it would start swirling had he spoken that realization aloud, promising her that he would scratch and claw for every second with her that Kevva deemed to grant him with. As though the mythic deity were there herself, listening to his whispered vows and waiting for him to finish before allowing any interference from the outside world, an attendant from the observation deck made their way towards Ezra and Clara. There was no impropriety to the way that they were tangled, so he knew that they weren’t about to be scolded for a public display, but he’d neglected to notice that all of the other lounge chairs were vacant; that the two of them were the only ones present on the top deck, and it struck him that he had no idea how long that had been the case. 

The attendant cleared her throat as she neared their spot to announce herself, and Ezra sat up as best as he could without disturbing Clara, meeting the young woman’s clear, kind eyes. “Good evening, sir, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask the two of you to head down now, the observation deck is closing for the night.” 

Ezra gave the woman a sheepish grin and a small nod. “Of course, my apologies for prolonging your shift.” He gestured up at the sky, unbelievably bright above their heads. “Easy to forget that it isn’t high-noon up here, and my Huckleberry was enjoying the starshine on her skin.” 

The woman’s smile warmed as she told him that it was alright, that she would begin shutting down the other side of the deck so that he could rouse Clara and see her out and back to their rooms on the other side of the lodge. He thanked her before she turned away, and then he leaned down to press his lips to Clara’s brow, softly speaking her name. It had the opposite effect, only causing her to slink closer to him, and he smiled, dropping another kiss before sliding his arms beneath her legs and around her back. “Alright, have it your way.” 

Rising from the lounge, he tilted her weight into his chest to keep his hold on her secure as he carried her to the elevator and down to the ground floor. When the doors opened again he laughed to himself, the enclosed atrium showing a sky much darker down here and on this side of the building. It really is closing time. He strode through the lobby watching as tiny yellow lights blinked near the dark grass outside, and before his brain could make the connection, he heard Clara mumble his name. “Hmm? What’s that?” 

“Ezra, the stars are moving.” 

Her voice was syrupy and surreal, only half awake, and it made his arms tighten around her with how endearing her sleepy confusion was. “Those are fireflies, Clara,” he told her, using his foot to open the door to the hall that lead to their room. 

“Oh…” she hummed and wound her arms around his neck, pressing her face into his shoulder, making his heart spin in dizzy circles. “And where...are we going?”

He chuckled again, nuzzling the end of his nose into her hair. “We overstayed our welcome upstairs, it’s nighttime now, Huckleberry. I’m taking you to bed.” 

She let out a sigh and then he felt her lips pressed to his throat, his pulse doubling against them. “Thank you, Ezra.” She kissed him again as he reached their door, and he knew that she was thanking him for more than just carrying her from the observation deck. Before he could respond though, she mumbled something else. “Love you…” 

He stooped down to the height of the keypad near the door to enter the code without having to put her down, and he answered her without hesitation. “I love you, my Clara. To the moon and back.” The door lock beeped and it slid open, Ezra stepping through. “Until all the stars go dark.” He carried her over to the bed and laid her down, bending forward to whisper the next words into her ear, even though he knew she was already asleep again. “And forever after that.”

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*taken from Merriam-Webster:  Given the origins of the word, belvedere is the ideal term for a building (or part of a building) with a view; it derives from two Italian words, bel, which means "beautiful," and vedere, which means "view." The term has been used in English since the 1570s

Thank you for reading!! If you would like to be added to or removed from the tags for this or any of my stories, please feel free to let me know! :) 

tags:  @something-tofightfor​ @alraedesigns​ @pheedraws​ @shoopidly​ @fific7​ @valkblue​ @a-court-of-feysand-and-elorcan​ @cannedsoupsucks​ @tobealostwanderer​ @paracosmenthusiast​ @gracie7209​ @dihra-vesa​

[the-blind-assassin-12]

The Ghosts That We Knew

A/N: Just a short little piece to keep the “write every damn day” momentum going using the Day 3 prompt from this September Prompts list- foggy mornings. This fits into the Point of No Return Universe and it technically takes place after the events of the epilogue Petrichor (which I am still writing) but it doesn’t give anything away about what’s still to come for Ezra, Clara and Cee. Title comes from a Mumford & Sons song of the same name. (give it a listen if you want to up the foggy vibes) 

Prompt: Foggy Mornings 

Word Count: 1.1k

It was the silence that woke him. 

Eyes still closed, Ezra inhaled slowly through his nose and held it. Counting to three in his head, he listened to the thick, fresh quiet that had settled in place of the constant rapping of raindrops against the windows, the roof, the leaves of the Crater-Oak next to the house before releasing the breath he took. The muted, muffled absence of the metronomic rhythm stuffed his ears and told him that the monsoon had retreated back to the Lakelands. Rain’s done. He blinked, lashes fluttering and eyelids wrinkling, and then opened his eyes fully. 

Another sigh slipped out as he took in her still sleeping form beside him, the rain-washed pre-dawn light that crept in through the curtains creating a sort of aura over her skin. Oh, my Clara. Laying on his side, he leaned forward to find her shoulder with his lips, pressing a kiss to the cluster of freckles there. A throaty groan emanated from somewhere in his chest as he dragged her closer, arm winding more tightly around her as though he wanted to eliminate the boundaries between their bodies entirely. Keeping his lips in contact with the ridge of her shoulder, he kissed his way up her neck, smiling as she swallowed and finally stirred. 

Clara let out a dreamy hum, hips shifting against his as he felt one of her small hands circle his wrist. “G’ morning, Ezra,” she murmured, voice impeded slightly by the pillow and the yawn she tried to hide in it. “‘S it still rainin’?”

Ezra’s chest warmed, his heart spinning at the way sleep still stuck in her throat, thickening her tongue. “Uh-uh, Huckleberry,” he left one more peck behind her ear, her soft hair tickling the tip of his nose. “Listen.” She laid still, holding her breath for a few beats the way he had when he first woke so that she could focus on the sound, and then she was turning onto her back with a sleep-polished smile on her face. Kevva what I fool I was to ever leave this farm. 

She didn’t let him dwell on his misgivings for too long though, reaching up with one hand to rake her fingertips through the platinum splotch in his hair. “S’your favorite part of the rainy season, Ezra.” Letting her hand curve around his cheek, she swept her thumb under his eye. “The end of it.” 

A chuckle fell from his lips as they stretched into a quick grin and he turned his face to kiss the heel of her palm. “Indeed it is, for now I get to see you in proper daylight, without the filter of the clouds to dim your shine.” 

She laughed, her hand falling to her own face to rub over her eyes. “Mmm, I don’t feel very shiny at the moment.” Nonsense, Huckleberry you are always the brightest light in any room, no matter the weather. “I’m gonna take a quick shower, I’ll meet you downstairs in a few?” 

Ezra nodded, blinking twice before leaning in to kiss her nose and then they both rose from the bed, Clara heading for the bathroom and Ezra getting himself together to go down to the kitchen. Pausing outside the closed door to Cee’s room, he waited to make sure that the girl was alright, that the sudden stoppage of the rain hadn’t startled her the same way that the torrents of it had when they first began to fall. Still sleeping, little bird? Just like the rest of the house, her room only answered with silence and he continued on down the stairs. 

Steps creaking beneath his bare feet, Ezra descended and turned directly into the kitchen. Flicking the light on so that he could see to set up the brewer for tea. Using the new handle Cee had installed, he scooped the purpled powder into it and maneuvered the basket, slotting it into the machine to start the drip. That done, he lifted his head and looked out the round window over the sink and was immediately met with a wall of dense, white fog, chest tightening around the warmth that waking up with the woman he loved always put there. It is my favorite time of the season, Clara, you were right about that. 

The pipes were still shaking in the walls which meant that she was still in the shower, so Ezra took the opportunity to step out into the blank, quiet morning alone. Though the silence had been almost impenetrable when he first woke, it was thinner out on the porch, diffused by the Thulian fields and the clouds of fog that were rolling over them. The door banged shut behind him, but he didn’t hear it. His attention was on the wisps of vapor hovering over the ground and the beams of light from the rising Vernal Star turning into soft yellow orbs as they passed through the fog. 

To many people, even those who grew up there, the phenomenon of Kamrea’s fog cover following the rains sent shivers and chills down their spines, evoking spectral imagery and playing tricks with their eyes. In truth, Ezra also saw ghosts when he looked out at the ground cloud, at the wisps moving like spirits through the watercolor landscape. But instead of anything sinister he saw it as a release, a rising, a clearance of all the things that haunted him through the last year. The last five years. While most referred to the daylight’s effect on the fog as a burning off, he saw it more of a warming, a melting, the air evening out and the weather laying down its arms in surrender. To him, it was the planet’s way of reminding its inhabitants that everything fades; all fogs lift, all the things often mistaken for ghosts flicker and vanish, and that once they did there was nothing but life and growth left in their wake. 

When the door opened again, Ezra turned to see Clara and Cee coming outside clutching steaming mugs, the young girl carrying a second one for him, her blonde hair rumpled from sleep. He reached to take his beverage from her as Clara wound her arm around his waist and fit herself against his side and filled his chest with warmth once more, the three of them silently watching the rest of the ghosts vacate the fields. 

Life is for the living, and that’s what I intend to do with the rest of mine. 

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tags: @something-tofightfor​​ @alraedesigns​​ @pheedraws​​ @shoopidly​​ @fific7​ @valkblue​​ @a-court-of-feysand-and-elorcan​​ @cannedsoupsucks​​ @tobealostwanderer​​ @paracosmenthusiast​​ @gracie7209​ @dihra-vesa​​ @marauderskeeper​​ @disgruntledspacedad​​ @novemberrain221​ @littlemisspascal​​ @yespolkadotkitty​