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The next day was Valentine’s Day, and for the first year in its history, Watford School of Magicks was hosting a Valentine’s dance. Everyone was dashing about, buying last-minute gifts for their boyfriend or girlfriend, trying on various items of clothing for the dance, or, for the more technical side of the school, trying to find a spell that would actually keep the problematic banners aloft in the Great Hall for more than a few minutes.
Agatha had been going on about her date since January-- his name was Maximilian Pemberton and he had “eyes greener than Melusine's tail". She was infatuated with him, and no less could be said of the poor boy himself. Penelope had gotten a date for the dance, too. She talked about him less dreamily than Agatha did, but that was no surprise. His name was Andrew Ackerman, and he was "absolutely genius in Algebraic Alchemy". (He also had very nice freckles, but Penelope kept this mostly to herself.)
Somehow, Agatha had managed to convince Penny to borrow one of her dresses for the dance, and they had rushed off to her room right after class, and were still trying on what seemed to Simon every article of clothing that Agatha owned. In fact, it seemed that everyone at Watford was making preparations for the following day but Simon. He didn't have a date this year, not that he much wanted one, and he had never really been one for event committees. So Simon was spending February 13th alone in his room, staring at the ceiling. Well, okay, he wasn’t entirely alone-- Baz was over there on the other side of the room, too.
"What time is it?" Simon groaned from where he was lying on his back on his bed, staring at the ceiling.
Baz snapped at him in response. (Though, to his credit, he was still responding. This routine had been going on for a while now.) "5:27 P.M., four minutes after 5:23, which is when you last asked me." Baz sighed long-sufferingly. "You need a hobby, Snow. Something to keep you occupied and out of my hair. Have you ever thought of taking up crocheting? I hear you can do a lot with a bit of yarn and a metal hook if you know how to use them right."
"Oh, shut up, Baz. I know you're bored too, you're just better at hiding it."
"It's called reading, Snow. Maybe that could be your hobby. Here--" Baz tossed a perpetually-dusty hardcover at his friend, who just managed to catch it before it crashed down on his head.
"Leonard Labrose's Studies in Lacunae: The Complete Works," Simon read. "Well, that's...that's certainly a lot of 'L's."
Baz didn't respond verbally, but the glare that he sent Simon's way clearly said "you better open that bloody book and start reading before I decide to spell your lips shut because I do know how to do that, Snow."
Simon complied, and actually ended up finding the book pretty interesting, if a bit heavy. He'd never admit this to Baz, though.
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Somehow, the endless day did eventually end, and then it was Valentine’s Day itself. It was a Saturday, and Simon slept as long as he could, but he had never been able to stay asleep very long once the sun was up, so he was awake (albeit grudgingly) by 9:30. Baz was gone, but Simon wasn't completely sure as to where. That wasn’t anything unusual, though.
Simon decided to go salvage some breakfast from the kitchen and then find Penelope. She appeared on her own, though, halfway through spreading strawberry jelly on his piece of toast.
Simon would admit that he had been a bit grumpy the last couple of days, but seeing Penny made it all melt away. It wasn’t enough to say that she looked happy-- it was more that she was luminous. She was still wearing her regular school uniform, and her hair was just as messy as always, and she wasn't wearing any make-up or anything-- it was more in the clearness of her eyes, the way she was carrying herself. Penelope had always been a pretty confident person, but she looked even moreso at the moment, and the result was that she was practically floating across the stone floor towards Simon.
"There you are, Simon! I was looking for you last night," she said to him with a smile.
"Oh, sorry. I ended up spending most of the day in my room,” he returned, pulling her into a one-armed hug and placing a kiss on the top of her head.
"What, just by yourself? You should've come over to my room-- Agatha was being a bit dull with all the dresses, I'll admit, but still, that must be better than sitting alone all day."
"Oh no, it's fine, Baz was there too. Besides, I didn't want to get in Agatha's way. Did you see the look in her eye?" Penny rolled her eyes and Simon grinned. He finished up the last of his toast, then sat on the floor, gesturing for his best friend to join him. She did, though she looked a bit doubtful about the cleanliness of the floor.
"So," Simon asked, conspiratorially. "Did you end up deciding on a dress?"
Penelope blushed a bit. "Yes. It's this gorgeous blue color, and it's all shimmery, and oh, Simon, it looks like stars. But then, you'll see it, tonight at the dance."
"I wouldn't miss seeing you all dolled up for the world," Simon teased, "but I don't think I'll be going to the dance, Penny."
"What? Why not? Oh come on, Simon, even I'm going to this thing. What else would you even do? Sit in your room all night?"
Simon sighed. It was hard to explain his reasoning to his friend, because he didn't entirely understand it himself. All he knew was that he definitely did not want to go. He didn't want to spend all night surrounded by so many people, especially when his two best friends would be completely wrapped up in their dates. When everybody would be completely wrapped up in their dates, and oh, there was an idea....
"Penelope..." Simon began, "I just don't know if I can spend all night surrounded by so many couples. Not so soon after...you know." He was, of course, referring to Agatha and their break-up, though it had been several months now since it had happened, and they hadn't parted on bad terms in the slightest. Penelope knew this, too, and was immediately suspicious.
"What, with Agatha? You said you were totally over her. You seem totally over her."
"No, I mean, I am, it's just.... It's not so much about the fact that I'm not dating Agatha, it's more that I'm not dating anyone. Does that make any sense?"
Penelope's gaze softened, and Simon felt a bit guilty for manipulating her feelings like that. He was, in actuality, completely over Agatha, and, to be completely honest, had been for a while even before they had broken up. It had been a very mild break-up, too-- more of an "I don't want to kiss you anymore, but let’s still have lunch and study together and everything" deal than anything else. But Simon knew that Penelope would still be sympathetic towards him if he claimed it was still a bit painful, and so he took that to his advantage, no matter how terrible it felt to lie to his best friend. He just knew that he did not want to be at that dance, completely surrounded by couples.
"Of course, Simon. I understand. But let’s all have dinner together before the dance, at least."
"I'd love that." Simon smiled at her gratefully.
She grinned back, and stood up, stretching. "Right. Well I've got to get going, I'm supposed to help the event committee with those confounded banners this morning. See you!"
Simon called 'good luck!' after her, and then decided to relocate to the library for a while. Maybe he could find another book like that one Baz threw at him last night.
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Simon ended up spending most of the day in the library, with some breaks for food, studying, and walks outside. Before he knew it, it was dinnertime, and he was making his way towards the Dining Hall to meet up with Penny, Agatha, Andrew, and Maximilian.
As he rounded the corner, his eyes immediately found their regular table, and he just as immediately felt incredibly underdressed. The two couples were heading to the dance right after eating, and so already had on their outfits for the night. And by the looks of it, none of them had-- for lack of a better term-- cheaped out.
Andrew and Max both had tuxedos on, each with a different flower in his buttonhole. Max's was a lily, it looked like, and Andrew's was a blue orchid. It soon became apparent as to how they had chosen the garnishes-- each boy's flower matched his date's dress.
Agatha looked absolutely stunning, as usual, with a beautiful golden gown that shone in the light, making her almost seem to glow. She had her hair pinned up, with ringlets hanging down and framing her smiling face perfectly. She was even more breathtaking than usual.
Penelope's dress was a similar style, but it was a dark blue, and billowed out a bit more at the bottom. And she had been right-- it looked like stars. Thousands of sequins adorned it, starting from the bottom and tapering out at around hip-length. She wore her hair down, and its natural redness contrasted nicely with the color of her dress. Penny looked amazing. She was smiling animatedly, though she also looked kind of nervous-- she was not nearly as comfortable in fancy clothes as Agatha. But Simon was sure that by the middle of the night she would forget to be self-conscious and lose herself in the fun. That was one of the wonderful things about Penny: she was always so passionate about everything. She obviously cared a lot about this night, and so she certainly wouldn't allow any ridiculous anxiety to get in her way. That just wasn’t Penny.
"Simon!" Agatha squealed, and Simon made his way over to the table to have dinner with his friends.
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Dinner went too fast, and soon Penelope and Agatha were heading off towards the Great Hall with their dates. Simon grabbed Penny for a hug before she left, kissing the top of her head. "Have fun tonight, okay?" he told her.
Penelope rolled her eyes. "Of course I'm going to have fun-- it's you I'm worried about."
But then Andrew was calling Penny over and she was leaving and Simon decided it was probably time to retreat to his room.
To his surprise, his room came with a bored-looking Basilton, sprawled out on his bed.
"What are you doing here?" Simon asked. "I figured you'd be leading some poor girl around the Hall while raising your eyebrows at her and hinting at villainous intentions through witty one-liners right about now."
Baz just raised his eyebrows and muttered, "You flatter me, Snow, but, contrary to popular belief, I actually do need to sleep."
"What, no hot dates, then?"
"Perhaps you should keep in mind during this conversation that you are also alone in your room on Valentine’s Day. Which, to be quite honest, seems infinitely more surprising than me not having a date."
Simon grinned. "I'm not alone on Valentine’s Day, Baz. I've got you!"
"That's not what I meant and you know it."
Simon gave up trying to talk to his grumpy roommate and instead sat down on his bed, pulling his Elixirs notes onto his lap in a vain attempt to study. Surprisingly, it was Baz who cracked first. He closed his novel with a bang and said "I cannot stand your pitiful sighing any longer. If you refuse to go to the dance, then at least take a walk outside, or go bother a ghost, or something."
"Fine," Simon replied, "but only if you come with me."
"...What?"
"You're obviously just as bored as I am. Come on-- all the teachers are busy keeping it PG in the Hall, it would be easy to sneak out."
"...If I say no, you'll just keep making those kicked puppy noises, won't you?"
Simon just smiled.
"Fine."
They sneaked out the usual way: by using the window in the funnily-shaped back tower that jutted out past the moat and over the stretch of grass that eventually faded into the forest. There had been a rope ladder hidden under one of the floorboards in the tower since long before either boy had come to Watford-- it was the student body's best-kept secret. The trick was that once you were safe on solid ground, you had to aim your spell just right to get the ladder to detach without breaking, then hide it in the bush by the edge of the water so none of the guards or teachers saw it. In order to reattach it to get back into the castle, you had to get the end back into the window somehow-- some of the older, more flashy students used magic for this, but most people just tied the end of the ladder to a stone and threw it into the tower. This worked better than you would think, since the ladder was enchanted so that it could stretch as long as you needed, as well as being strongly averse to water, and hovering a good five inches above the moat if you accidentally dropped it in.
Once they had gotten safely down the ladder and into the forest, the two boys stuck to the main path-- they were just looking for a leisurely nighttime stroll, anyways, and strolls usually tend to go better when you don’t have to fight a nest of tired, angry harpies that you’ve just woken up in the middle of the night.
And so they walked for a while, and they talked. They talked about Penelope and Agatha, and Dev and Niall, and how, not that long ago, Simon and Baz had hated each others' guts. Simon laughed a bit at how silly that seemed now, and Baz smiled to himself. They talked about the increasing pressure to figure out what they were going to do with their lives; were they going to go to University, did they plan to intern anywhere, how are you going to pay for everything, and on and on. Baz said he probably wouldn't have much of a say in any of it anyways, that his father already had a pretty good idea of what he wanted Baz to do. Simon said that he couldn't see that far into his future, even if it was only a little over a year away now; that all he could really manage to focus on at this point was defeating the Insidious Humdrum. That topic didn't last long.
After a while, they came to a clearing in the trees: a grassy meadow lit by the full moon. The sky was clear, and Baz looked up at for a second before announcing, "Sirius is looking especially bright tonight."
Simon turned his head to look at his friend. "...What?"
Baz pointed. "There-- that star. Sirius. Part of Canis Major."
"That's a constellation, right?"
Baz nodded. "And there's Camelopardalis, right there. And there's Auriga-- and Gemini, back over that way.”
Simon grinned at his roommate. "I didn't know you knew about this kind of stuff, Baz."
Baz shrugged. "I spent a lot of my nights looking at the stars when I was younger. Eventually I got my father to hire a tutor for me so I could learn more about them. He didn't care, because he saw it as a way for me to get more educated, and he's always jumped at any chance to get me more educated. But I liked learning about the stars, I always have. How each one was discovered, all the mythology behind the constellations. Those kinds of things."
"Huh. I guess I never really thought much about it. So much is happening on Earth, I never thought to wonder about things beyond it."
"So, you don't know anything about astronomy?" Simon shrugged. "Really? Anything? Not even any of the mythology?"
Simon smiled and shook his head. "Not all of us had fancy rich kid educations with private tutors who taught us about the night sky, Baz."
Baz scowled.
Simon decided to try and make peace. "I don't suppose you'd like to try and teach me a bit now? At least the stuff about the constellations. So I can have some idea of what you're talking about."
Baz rolled his eyes, but agreed. Then he laid down and patted the ground next to him for Simon to join him. "Come on," he said, "you'll just hurt your neck if you look for too long standing up."
So Simon joined him on the ground, and at least it wasn't wet, since it hadn't rained all week. The grass tickled his nose and he batted it away, and then again when it bounced back. He ended up just ripping it out of the ground in frustration. Once he was comfortable, he looked over to see Baz stifling a laugh. "Shut up," he muttered, but he was smiling too. "Now. Tell me all about these stars of yours."
And Baz did. He started by pointing out Gemini and telling Simon about Castor and Pollux, the Great Twins. He told him about how both were born to the same mortal mother, Leda, but Pollux was the son of Zeus and therefore immortal, while Castor's father was Tyndareus, the king of Sparta, and was not. Baz described how when Castor died, Pollux was so heartbroken that Zeus raised them both to the heavens where they could live together eternally.
Then he moved on to the constellation Auriga, said to be the Greek Erichthonius of Athens, who invented the four-horse chariot and was eventually placed in the sky by Zeus in honor of his genius and heroism. And Lepus, a rabbit forever being hunted by Orion.
Eventually he got a bit off-topic and started to talk about other constellations that weren't visible yet. He talked about Lyra, the harp, and how in Greek mythology it was best known for its owner, Orpheus, who loved to play it and did so beautifully. He was constantly playing love songs for his wife, Eurydice, until she died suddenly one day. Orpheus ventured into the underworld to convince Hades to let her live again, and Hades said that he would, but only if Orpheus would trust him completely and make the journey back to the living world without looking back to see if Eurydice was in fact behind him, all while playing his harp. Desperate, Orpheus agreed, but when the journey crossed through a pine forest, and he could no longer hear his beloved wife's footsteps behind him, he grew anxious and looked back. Eurydice vanished, as Hades had taken her back into the underworld forever as punishment for Orpheus' doubt. When Orpheus died soon after, Zeus placed the harp in the sky to honor Orpheus' beautiful music and love for his wife.
By the time Baz began to talk about Cygnus, the swan, Simon's attention had been drawn away from the night sky and towards his roommate. Because he was talking so animatedly, so passionately, and Simon didn't think he'd ever seen anything like it before. Not on Baz, at least. Not cool, collected Basilton, who was so deliberate and composed that sometimes Simon started to wonder if he really cared about anything at all. But this Baz so obviously did care, and it was kind of captivating. Simon had always been aware of his friend's attractiveness, but he'd always thought of it as more of an objective thing. Baz had always been gorgeous but cold, all sharp lines and haughty eyebrows. He'd never been...warm. Until now. Now, Baz's gray eyes were lit up, and his fingers were playing absentmindedly with the hem of his sleeve, and he looked...beautiful. There was no other way to describe it.
Suddenly, Baz paused, and turned towards Simon. "Are you even listening to me?" he asked, exasperated.
Simon realized that he had been staring, and, aware that Baz's vampire vision could probably pick up his blush even in the dark, coughed awkwardly. "Yeah. Yeah, sorry." He turned away from his friend, back onto his back, and stared stiffly back up at the sky.
Baz raised an eyebrow. “Oh really? Then what was I saying?”
“You were telling me about the two brothers at first, and then there was this hero guy who invented a carriage or something and Zeus thought he was really cool so he put him in the sky, and then a rabbit being chased by a hunter. Oh, and you also got kind of off-track and started to talk about Lyra for a while, and all about that guy who tried to save his wife from the underworld. That one was my favorite, because it was really sweet. I mean, sure, he ended up losing her in the long run, but it was just because he couldn't take not knowing if she was actually following."
Baz looked like he was barely suppressing an eyeroll, but he was also smiling, the light of the stars he had been talking about dancing over his features. Simon thought vaguely that Baz looked kind of like a constellation himself.
"You're a hopeless romantic, Snow. You always have been."
Simon grinned. "Said the boy who just spent an hour reciting ancient Greek mythology about the stars. On Valentine's Day, too. Honestly, do you hear yourself?"
Baz turned his head away. "Oh, shut up. There's nothing romantic about stargazing with your best friend. It's completely platonic, and you know it."
"I never said it wasn't. I just said that you were a romantic." Simon was blushing again now, but it was worth it to see his friend squirm uncomfortably. "But it's nice to know I'm your best friend, Baz, that's really sweet."
Baz looked about two seconds away from casting an invisibility spell on himself and making a quick getaway back to the castle. It was hilarious, and, quite frankly, adorable.
"Shut up, Snow."
"No, really, I'm touched. I didn't know we had reached best-friendship levels yet."
"...I hate you."
"Mmhm."
"I'm serious. One more word out of you and I just might have to curse your mouth shut. Or worse." He reached for his wand and pointed it threateningly at Simon. "Frog in your thro--" But Simon, acting quickly, rolled on top of his roommate, effectively pinning him and knocking his wand from his grasp. Simon let out a triumphant yell.
Baz just glared. "Get the hell off me, Snow."
Simon pretended to consider this. "Hmm. I don't know, I quite like it here. You're much easier to get along with when your limbs are all pinned down."
"Snow, I'm warning you," Baz growled.
"Yeah? What are you going to d--" Simon stopped short. Vampire strength.
Shit.
Baz smirked and, in one swift movement, rolled them over, seemingly effortlessly.
"It seems the tables have turned,” he deadpanned.
Now it was Simon's turn to glare.
Baz, now quite obviously just barely suppressing a grin, said "You know, you may have had a point. This is quite comfortable. I like you better when you can't move."
Simon, determined to prove to his roommate that he was not entirely unable to move, started to wildly thrash his head at him. Baz let out a squeak that he would probably deny for the rest of his life (and that Simon would probably never let him forget) and tried belatedly to move his head farther out of reach of Simon's.
He didn't quite make it, though, and Simon's forehead nearly crashed into his nose before Simon realized that that was what was about to happen and hurriedly stopped the movement short.
However, stopping the movement short meant that the two boys' faces were now quite close together. As in, a few mere inches of distance.
Which didn't have to be weird. Which wasn't weird, of course it wasn't, why would it be weird? Sure, they'd been staring at each other for a couple seconds now, but they were just catching their breath. Stuff like this happened all the time, to everyone.
...Okay, so the staring was going on a little longer than might be considered strictly normal, but who even keeps track of that sort of thing, anyways?
Look away, Simon told himself. Simon did not look away.
How long had it been? Simon had no idea. He'd been...sort of wrapped up in the way the moonlight was glinting off of Baz's eyes, and how his mouth was just ever so slightly open, frozen in a look of shock. And, for some reason, the fleck of mud that had secured itself to Baz's cheek.
Baz swallowed, licked his lips, and glanced down at Simon's. Just for a split second.
And then it happened again.
Wait. Wait. Did that mean…? Could Baz really feel the same way? About Simon? But that didn’t make any sense. Right?
Baz’s gaze made its way back down to Simon’s lips for a third time, and Simon decided that this was not a time for questions.
Okay, so Baz...felt the same way. Or at least something close to it. This...this was kind of amazing. But the staring had been going on for a long time now and Simon should probably say something. Yes. Yes, that was the right thing to do here. Say something. To Baz. Right.
"Um. Baz?"
Apparently those two syllables were enough, because Baz jerked away, swearing and stammering. He quickly detached himself from Simon and managed to get a good seven feet away without making eye contact once.
Simon rose to his feet, frowning. This wasn't right. This wasn't...this wasn't what was supposed to happen. Or maybe it was. Either way, he wanted an answer.
"Baz?" he tried, stepping closer. Baz didn't respond, just stepped back a bit so that he was leaning against a tree, using it for support, still avoiding Simon's eyes.
He looked like an animal, trapped in a corner, vulnerable and nervous. And it hurt, to see him like that. Because of Simon.
God, could they just go back to the weird staring?
Simon gathered his courage and took a few steps forward. Baz didn't move, frozen stiff. He took another step. And another.
Slowly but surely he made his way to the tree that seemed to be supporting most of Baz's weight at the moment. Baz still wouldn't make eye contact.
Then he must feel the same way, right? Or else, why would he be acting so embarrassed? Ashamed, even. Right?
Only one way to find out.
So Simon, with a burst of confidence, stepped up closer, right into his roommate's personal space, and Baz had no choice but to meet his eye. And when Simon reached up, slowly, and touched his fingertips to Baz's jawline, Baz didn't flinch away. In fact, he seemed to relax into the touch, seemed to let some of his tensed muscles loosen.
Simon took a deep breath. "Can-- can I...?"
Baz nodded. Simon leaned in. And then they were kissing.
It wasn't like kissing Agatha. Agatha's breath had always been too sweet, and her lip gloss had been impossible to get off his mouth afterwards. But Baz, of course, didn't wear lip gloss, and his breath tasted more like mint Aero bars than frosting, and his lips were oh so smooth and tentative. It was strange to think that this warm, soft being was a vampire, but when Simon brought his hand up to rest against Baz's chest, he could feel how fast said vampire's heart was beating.
And, unlike Agatha, Baz made noises. Baz sighed and whimpered, and their lips made a smacking sound when they pulled apart, slightly out of breath.
There was a moment of silence, and then Baz broke into a grin. "I told you you were a hopeless romantic. You even kiss like one."
Simon rolled his eyes and went in for another kiss.
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Ten minutes and quite an impressive amount of snogging later, Baz broke away and glanced down at his watch. "Crowley, Snow, it's almost two in the morning. We should probably head back."
Simon agreed, though he did so reluctantly and not without his fair share of complaining. Together they made their way back through the woods and towards the castle they called home. About five minutes from the end of the path, Simon let go of Baz's hand (okay, so maybe they had been holding hands, whatever) and dashed off into the trees, calling "One moment!" back at a very confused and somewhat enraged Basilton.
"Simon? What the hell are you doing? It's two A.M., you idiot, I swear t--" but then Simon was back, and he was holding a flower.
"What in Crowley's name were you doing? Do you have any idea what lives in these woods??"
Simon just grinned and held up the flower. It was a bright, golden yellow, and it looked like it might be some variation of a buttercup. "For you," Simon said simply.
"...You're really not helping with the whole 'hopeless romantic' point, I hope you realize that."
Simon shrugged. "I've accepted it. Plus, I've waited ages to be able to...to have this, with you. I think I've earned my fair share of cheesy gestures. Now take the damn flower."
Baz took the damn flower, and they walked on in silence for a few moments.
Then he said, "I'm sure this is some kind of buttercup, but it's too early in the year for buttercups.” He narrowed his eyes at Simon as if he might be behind it.
"Well, these woods are on the outskirts of a magical school. I hardly think it would be a stretch to say that it might be a magical buttercup. Ooh, do you think its enchanted? Look, it's sparkling, I'm sure it is."
Baz studied it. It was indeed shimmering in the moonlight a bit. "Perhaps," he murmured, and felt for Simon's hand again.
In the morning when Penelope opened the door to Simon's bedroom, she found both boys fast asleep in all their clothes on Baz's bed, their limbs thoroughly entangled.
Penelope shut the door very quietly, walked quickly down the halls to Agatha's room, and managed to get all the way inside before she burst out, "IT HAPPENED."