#i finished writing this at 5am in complete darkness and im posting it now immediately after waking up help me

[windupnamazu]

would you sing it back to me?

ffxivwrite2021 #10: heady

⮞ lunya/g'raha with very loving mentions of «balefire». 872 words. ⮞ between 5.3 and endwalker. alcohol cw. ⮞ lunya would like to indulge herself tonight, as a treat. g'raha disagrees.

heady: tending to intoxicate or make giddy or elated.

The champagne glittered beneath the fairy lights strung between the rooftops of Revenant's Toll. Lunya's sigh was nearly a purr of content as she languidly tipped her tulip glass toward the light, admiring the colour. Alcohol was a rare, rare indulgence for her—she could count the number of glasses she'd drank since the Banquet on her hands and lacked the trust to allow strangers to serve her drinks most days. Today was different, and she happily took the moment to admire her liquor over the clamour of the Toll before taking a long sip. It was a sweet thing, with fruity notes she was eager to taste more of, and—

"That's enough for you, I think," a warm, euphorically familiar voice said as a hand reached out and plucked the glass from hers. G'raha slipped back into his seat beside her and placed the champagne by his own glass, out of her arm's reach. With his face flushed with the effort of dancing—getting flinged around, really, first by Rjoli's enthusiasm, then Zaya nearly pincering him with their horns, followed by Reese accidentally stepping on his feet, and finally Hanami taking a great deal of pleasure from deliberately doing so to the beat of the bards—and heat radiating off of him like the sun itself, he unclipped his cape, slipping it over her exposed shoulders before wrapping an arm around her.

"I've only had one glass," she sulked, greedily soaking in his warmth. Evenings in Mor Dhona grew chilly fast and while she could get a shawl from the Rising Stones she was more than pleased to be doted on.

"Champagne gets you drunk faster than wine. I won't let this be the night you finally trip off some scaffolding," he told her with stern fondness, just loud enough for her to hear over the raucous chatter of their guests. "And pray forgive my presumption, but I'm sure you want to be able to stand for the rest of the party."

Well, yeah. But this was a special occasion, and the spirits were a gift from the Company of Heroes—she'd done more than her fair share of playing Lady of the Fetch for Shamani Lohmani and his wine-guzzling clients over the years; damn in particular that couple on the Prima Vista and their stinking bacon breads. It was Lunya's time to drink.

Determined to say so and get her champagne back, she looked up and was immediately floored by the image of G'raha before her. For as long as she'd known him he'd favoured reds and blacks, with golds and whites as mere accents in the overall scheme. Tonight, he glowed in the white barong she wove by hand for him, floral embroidery cascading down his shoulders and thighs in shimmering gold. Little crystals tangled in his braid glinted in the fae-light, glowing softly like the Tower in the distance, tucked between the sprigs of hydrangeas that formed a crown in his hair. He was a prince straight from the pages of a fairytale, regal and beautiful, and ohhhh boy was she in love with him.

Overcome by a dizzying sense of glee, she seized him by the arm. "Raha," she said, mouth dry as she leaned toward him. Her hand didn't even wrap halfway around his wrist, and he slipped his arm back to twine their fingers together. Smooth bastard, making her heart do a Lominsan jig like this—"I have a crush on you."

G'raha blinked at her, his face a wonderful shade of pink and his confusion so endearingly evident. The tip of his tail twitched across her bare thigh. "We're married, Lu. Twice, as a matter of fact. And this is our wedding reception—I surely hope you do."

Lunya giggled and twirled a lock of hair around her finger and over her wedding and engagement rings. "Ehehe."

With a shake of his head, her husband lifted her chin. Wearing an impish grin he'd surely credit to learning from her, he said lowly, "The good news is that I happen to have a crush on you too."

Her face split in an identical grin. "Nooo, shut up," Lunya wailed with sparkling eyes, pounding her fist against his shoulder. It was the dumbest thing to get embarrassed about but she still found her face heating up anyway and that only served to fuel the fire.

"In fact, my inspiration, my moon, stars, and endless sea," G'raha continued heartily, holding her chin firmly so she couldn't break direct eye contact. As if she wanted to. "I must admit that my feelings go beyond a crush—I am deeply, madly in love with you—"

And then Lunya nearly shrieked as it hit her.

"No, wait, you're trying to change the subject!" she gasped, cupping her burning cheeks in her hands. "I love you too, give me back my champagne!"

"I'm the one changing the subject?!"

The party went on uninterrupted, none bothered by the hysterical laughter of the bride clambering onto her chuckling groom's lap to snag the glass of champagne he was holding far above her reach. To their friends, it was laughter well-earned—laughter they hoped would follow them both far into the uncertain future.

Above the Toll, the full moon shone bright.