#i started watching right after the mcelroys announced they were leaving like i skipped a class to watch the last awful squad live

[queertazsecretsanta]

A gift for @lucretiastan, created by @magnus-mcelroy!

Happy Candlenights!!

(tw: alcohol ment)

It wasn't like Lucretia to not be studying hard the night before exam, especially a final, but on this particular night, she found her interest drawn elsewhere. The night had started like any other, her head deep in the rigorous notes she had taken during Mr. Jenkins class, but something changed; her Stone of Farspeech started to ring. Unusual, she thought, seeing as she had silenced it hours ago. Curious, she reached for it, but then pulled away. It was probably just Robbie asking to bum off her notes for the twelfth time that week. It wasn't her fault he had missed class and got detention for it.  

No, she couldn't get distracted now. The ringing soon stopped and Lucretia went back to reading.

It wasn't long before it started to ring again. And again. And again.

Now Lucretia was annoyed. She picked up the stone and rejected the call, making sure not once, but three times that it for sure was on silent. For an added safe measure, she placed the stone under her pillow. Out of sight, out of mind. As she began to walk back to her study desk, a muffled noise made its way into her room.

“What the...” she said aloud, looking around for the source of the noises. No, not noise, music? It sounded like someone singing. There was no radio in the room, could she just be hearing a noisy neighbor? No, it sounded way too close. The singing became louder as she got closer and closer to her bed, sounding almost intelligible as she put her ear to her pillow.

When she lifted the pillow up, a swell of sound filled the room.

“Hey Lucy you so fine, you so fine you blow my mind. Hey Lucy! Hey hey! Hey Lucy! Hey hey!” The lines repeated over and over, the voice so very familiar.

“Um, Lup?” Lucretia finally squeaked, not wanting to interrupt Lup's flow.

Lup finished the last repetition before answering, “What's up?”

“What are you doing?”

“I'm serenading you, what does it sound like?”

Lup then picked up her singing again, this time Lucretia was inclined to interrupt.

“Did you need something?” Lucretia asked, her voice a little more stern this time, “I’m kinda in the middle of studying.”

“Oh, good, then I caught you at the perfect time,” Lup replied eagerly.

“Perfect time for wh--” Lucretia was interrupted by the sound of a knock at her dorm room's door. “Hold on,” picking up the stone and walking over, Lucretia hesitantly opened the door to find Lup stood there, holding her own stone and smiling her (literally) trademarked goofy smile.

“Heyyyy Lucy,” Lup said in a sing song voice, trying to be endearing, “Can I come in?”

Before Lucretia could answer, Lup skipped in, the bells on her festive Candlenights dress jingling as she moved. Lup firmly placed herself down on the other woman's bed, patting the spot beside her.

Lucretia was still stood at the open door, only turning to look toward Lup. She really didn't have time for Lup's antics, as much as she enjoyed the other woman's company.

“Look, Lup, I'd love to get involved with any of your crazy plans, but I have a final tomorrow,” she sighed, “and so do you!”

“Antics? Moi?” Lup feigned shock, batting her eyelashes for added dramatic measure, “I don't know who you take me for, Lucy.”

Lucretia couldn’t fight the smile that made its way to her cheeks as she begrudgingly shook her head, “Okay, then why are you here?”

“I’m here to save you!” Lup announced with a flourish, her arms open wide in a grand gesture, “Now, before you say “From what?”, let me answer that; I’m rescuing you from yourself.”

The elven woman stood, her dress tingling and bouncing with her excited movements. She walked over to Lucretia and grabbed her by the shoulders, driving her back towards the bed. She made a motion that meant for Lucretia to sit, and she obeyed.

“We all know damn well you’re gonna pass that final with flying colors tomorrow, you pay attention in class like it’s nobody's business and study pretty much every night anyway. You need a night off--”

It was here that Lucretia interrupted, “--Not taking a night off is what got me where I am. I don’t need saving from myself, Lup.”

“When was the last time you slept?”

“What’s that?”

Lup sighed, “Okay, it seems like things are a lot more dire than I thought. Do you trust me?”

Lucretia eyed the other woman wearily, “Normally, yes. When you actually feel like you need to ask me, no.”

Lup groaned, “Come onnnn. Do you trust me?”

“Ugh, fine.”

“Okay, close your eyes.”

Lucretia complied with Lup’s order, although uneasy about it, “What now?”

“Just wait a sec.”

A creaky sound echoed through the small room, and was followed by a cool breeze and a loud clattering thud. Lucretia’s eyes shot open at the sound, turning to the source. Lup was stood at the open window and smiling.

“What did you do?” Lucretia yelped as she got over to the window. Pushing past Lup, Lucretia ducked her head out the window and found her whole stack of books, notes and all, scattered on the snowy ground below. Pulling herself back inside, Lucretia quickly shot an incredulous look Lup’s way.

“You’ll thank me later, now come,” Lup spun on her heel, her long, wavy hair flying as she moved.  

Lucretia stay stood at the window, mouth hung wide open and dumbstruck. She couldn’t believe what just happened. She wanted to be mad, but all she felt now was confused. She didn’t know what to do next.

Lup made up Lucretia’s mind for her, turning back to the other young woman. “Goofus, close your mouth and come on,” Lup shot her a teasing smile, grabbing her hand and leading the way.

Lucretia obediently followed. It took a moment before she even realized that she was following Lup, only getting it when she felt Lup squeeze her hand. Lup was holding her hand. Lup Taaco was holding her hand. Oh boy.

While the gesture was done in an attempt to get Lucretia moving and nothing else, Lucretia couldn’t help but blush.

Blush? Why was she blushing? She couldn’t let Lup see that, she’d call her lame or something. So, as the two made their way down the hall to wherever Lup was leading them, Lucretia hid her face, trying to regain composure.

It wasn’t long before they reached their destination, the dorm building’s common room. A small party of students had gathered there for a little get together, nothing crazy, just some chips and light music. Still holding Lucretia’s hand, Lup lead the pair to the comfiest couch in the room, which she had reserved with coats and bags, which very obviously weren’t hers.

“Sit here, I’ll be right back,” Lup explained, leaving Lucretia at the couch.

Lucretia sat and looked around, doe eyed and still in a semi-shocked state. She saw a lot of familiar faces. She was surprised, however, to see Lup’s brother, Taako, here. He was talking to that new guy, Kravitz she believed his name was, who was transferring in for next semester. She didn’t really think this kinda get together was his scene, he was more a party animal than this and there were more than enough Candlenights parties happening for him to be here. She watched as the two guys talked, Taako laughing a little too hard at some crack or another that Kravitz made. At one point, Kravitz leaned in and whispered something to Taako. Lucretia couldn’t hear what it was, but it must have been juicy by the way Taako reacted. His face went flush, the only color came from the dusting of red blush that made its way to his cheeks and pointed ears. Lucretia can only imagine the secret that was shared. Before she could contemplate that too long, the pair of men walked off and Lup returned, a drink in each hand.

“Here,” she said, offering Lucretia one of the drinks as she plopped down on the couch, “Before you say anything, it’s just punch.”

Lucretia took the drink and gave a silent thank you. “Why did you bring me here? Wouldn’t you much rather be at some big Candlenights party?” Lucretia hadn't thought about the words before she said them, but there they were. It's not like she could take them back.

Lup shrugged, taking a sip of her drink as her eyes scanned over the small gathering of people, “Those are a dime a dozen. I wanted a change of scenery.” She paused and looked over to Lucretia, “Plus, I knew parties aren’t really your scene and I wanted you to be happy.”

Lucretia fought back the blush she felt returning to her cheeks, “Oh, well, I appreciate that.” Lucretia could have very well have left it at that and things would have been all and well, but for some reason, her brain compelled her to say, “And why do you care that I’m happy?”

The words shocked Lup, but she didn’t let it show. Instead, she took another sip of her drink and leaned back heavily into the couch. She sat silent for a moment. “I care about you, Lucy. I’ve noticed you’ve been running yourself ragged lately and thought you needed a night off. I knew you weren’t gonna do that, so I took it upon myself. I thought this little shindig would do you good without overwhelming you.” She paused and looked directly into Lucretia’s eyes, letting out a slight scoffy laugh, “But maybe I was wrong about this not being overwhelming by that blush on your face.”

“Oh!” Lucretia squeaked, hiding her face in her hands, “Sorry, I uh… I don’t know.”

“Wow, that’s a first,” Lup laughed lightly, “Come on, Lucy, let’s relax and just enjoy ourselves tonight. Let’s unwind and celebrate the end of the semester and Candlenights. You deserve a little break, you’ve worked so damn hard.” It sounded like Lup was going to end her thought there, but then added, “I’m proud of you.”

At that Lucretia smiled, letting the smile show and not caring if Lup thought it goofy.

The rest of the night went by easier as Lucretia actually allowed herself to have some fun. For the most part, it consisted of her and Lup talking on the couch, talking about everything and nothing. They were joined by some friends, Carey even dropped by after wrestling practice to say hi and totally not to see if Killian was there (she was).

As the night dragged on, Lucretia felt herself feel more and more relaxed, not tense and worried like she had at the start. At just after midnight, she turned to Lup and smiled a big goofy grin.

“Whaaaaat?” Lup asked, feeling a slight buzz from her now slightly spiked punch, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Because,” Lucretia replied, thinking she had said more. Perhaps she was also feeling the effects of her new drink as well. After a moment’s silence, she continued, “I’m very happy that you rescued me.”

“My pleasure, bubelah,” Lup replied, placing a warm hand on Lucretia’s knee.

The pair of women smiled, locking their gazes for just a brief moment.

“You are so beautiful.”

It took a moment for Lucretia to realize what she had just said, and when she did, she didn’t blush, she didn’t try to take it back, she just let it be. Perhaps the very small amounts of booze in her drink was acting as liquid courage, but she didn’t care.

This time, it was Lup’s turn to blush. Just as her brother had when Kravitz whispered into his ear, a faint pink decorated her full, soft brown cheeks. “Thank you,” Lup replied in a soft voice that Lucretia had never heard before. She wanted to hear that voice forever.

Lucretia was feeling better than she had in weeks, months even. She could have discounted it to actually relaxing, maybe even the alcohol, but no, she knew it was all Lup. Feeling another burst of confidence, Lucretia extended her hand and placed it on Lup’s cheek, her thumb gently rubbing circles on her jaw.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Lup said suddenly, “And I think you should wait.”

“What do you mean?” Lucretia was genuinely confused, she wasn’t really much thinking, just letting things happen from moment to moment for the first time in a long time.  

“Just,” Lup paused, placing her hand on Lucretia’s and taking it off her cheek, “wait. A little while. I want you to be completely sober before you make any decisions.”

Lucretia nodded, her’s and Lup’s hands still intertwined in Lup’s lap. “Is this okay?”

“This is more than fine,” Lup replied softly, flashing a goofy, gap toothed smile.

The night stretched on a little longer, the pair of women remaining quiet for some time, but still perfectly content in each other’s company. It wasn’t long before they were on top of each other, but in the most serene way. Lup had casually melted into Lucretia, their two forms almost becoming one in the tangle. At just after 2am, Lup looked up at Lucretia.

“Hey,” she said, breaking the long, but comfortable, silence.

“Yeah?” Lucretia had her hand tangled into Lup’s hair, playing with it gently for who knows how long.

“Are you still thinking about it?”

“Yeah.”

“And are you sober?”

Lucretia took a moment to reply, “Yeah.”

“Then do it.”

No longer guided by liquid courage, Lucretia took a moment. She was prepared to contemplate every little thing, but something told her to just do it. Although the position was awkward, Lucretia leaned in and placed her lips on Lup’s. It had been a while since Lucretia had kissed anyone, but Lup made it feel so natural. This kiss wasn’t mind blowing or life changing, it was simple and sweet. It was perfect.

As the two broke apart, Lup smiled and replied, “I wanted you to be making that choice, not the alcohol. Aren’t you glad you waited?”

Lucretia nodded, placing her hand back in Lup’s hair.

The two quickly fell back into the comfortable silence they had shared moments ago. Periodically, one of them would initiate another kiss, peppering small, sweet moments throughout the night. It wasn’t long, however, before the girls felt sleepy, but neither wanted to move. They were comfortable enough where they were.

Morning came before anyone knew it. When Lucretia woke up, she felt a small tinge of panic as she realized she wasn’t in her dorm. The panic quickly subsided, however, when she looked down and saw Lup’s head in her lap.

Looking at her watch, she saw it was only 7:30. It was later than she normally woke up, but she didn’t really care. Looking around the room, she saw the remnants of last nights get together; stray beer cans, a leftover box of pizza, Merle faced down in the carpet. She was tempted to go check on him, but when she saw him twitch, she decided that he was fine.

She then looked down at Lup, so peaceful in her sleeping state. She was half tempted to wake her with a good morning kiss, but decided against it. She knew Lup liked to sleep in. Knowing she had some time to kill, Lucretia remained still, in hopes of not to disturb the guest using her legs as a pillow.

Just as she went to take out her stone of farspeech, which Lup had at one point in the night told Lucretia that she hacked, a familiar figure walked in with a paper cup of coffee in hand. It was Lup’s brother, wearing what he had been wearing the night before, only a little more disheveled.

“Oh, I didn’t mean to interrupt the fun,” Taako quipped as he spotted his sister and Lucretia on the couch.

“You’re not interrupting anything,” Lucretia replied softly.

“So, did you two get it on in here last night or something?”

Lucretia was shocked by Taako’s forwardness, but then remembered who she was talking to. “No, nothing of the sort. We just… kissed, a lot.” She paused, but then added softly, “It was so nice to finally kiss her.”

“Finally? What are you talking about? I thought you two have been boning for like a year,” Taako said nonchalantly as he sipped his coffee and left the room.

Lucretia was left dumbstruck, had her puppy dog crush really been that obvious? Well, it didn’t really matter now. She had her girl, that’s all that she cared about.