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“One Sharlayan punch, please.”
Luna smiles, a thrill running through her at the familiar voice. She turns slowly from watching the child she’d just handed a cup to wander away, finding her beloved smiling brightly at her, his ears flickering with mirth.
“Can you imagine?” She laughs. “Do you trust the people who came up with Archon Loaf to make a pleasing cup of punch?”
G’raha chuckles, walking close enough to slip an arm around her waist. She falls into him willingly, cupping his cool cheeks and bringing their lips together for a kiss that doesn’t go entirely unnoticed by the people around them.
“You’re interrupting.” She says against his lips, stepping back and glancing over her shoulder at a trio of giggling girls, whispering amongst themselves. “But if you’re here, do you want to help? Miounne promised me I’d be relieved of my duty in another half a bell.”
“With pleasure.” G’raha nods. “Tell me what you need of me.”
It’s easy enough to explain the difference between the three options for punch, trusting that G’raha has enough of a way with people to be able to recommend the correct option when asked.
She does her best not to keep an eye on him when more thirsty customers approach, but there’s something so appealing about watching him interact with children that she can’t resist it for long, sneaking looks at the way he listens so intently to their requests, cracks little jokes and leaves them all prancing away with their favoured drink in hand.
More than one of the children departs the stall with a burgeoning crush and Luna can’t wait to tease him about it later.
“Miss?” Comes a small voice from beside her and she drags her eyes away from G’raha to find a small Au Ra boy peering up at her, Raen just like her, horns only starting to grow into their final shape.
“Yes, sweetheart?” She asks, crouching down to bring them more on a level. He’s tall for his age, as most Au Ra boys are, but he’s young enough that she looks around to make sure there's a guardian nearby.
She spots his parents right away, a Miqo’te woman and an Au Ra man, arm in arm and smiling fondly at their child. Relieved, she quickly redirects her attention back to the boy in front of her, offering a hand that he slips his into gratefully, ears that had been flat and unnoticeable against his skull now popping upright with his increased comfort.
“My uh, my parents. They told me that you’re…” He trails off, drops his voice to a whisper. “The Warrior of Light.” He continues, like it’s some terrible secret.
Luna grins, squeezes his fingers. “That’s right. Though I’m responsible for a far more important task than saving the world, right now.”
The boy grins right back at her. “They also said that you’re like them. That you’re in love with a Miqo’te.”
Luna feels her cheeks grow pink, glancing back at the parents to find that his mother, at least, looks a little alarmed. Perhaps that was a more private discussion that they didn’t expect to be repeated.
“Well, that’s true. He’s right over there, actually.” She says, pointing at G’raha. “I love him very much.”
“Do you have kids too?” He asks. “I don’t know many like me, it’d be nice to have more friends.”
Shaking her head, Luna covers his hand with her other palm. “Not yet. But soon, I hope. And if they’re half as lovely as you are, I’ll consider myself very lucky. What’s your name?”
“Itaro.”
“Itaro.” Luna repeats. “I’ll remember you, and when I’m lucky enough to grow my family, they’ll have a friend to meet.” His face lights up, and it is the simplest sort of joy she can offer, yet it means just as much as saving a life. “Now, what sort of punch would you like?”
“Gridanian, please, and two Limsan ones for my parents.”
With a quiet grin, Luna squeezes his hand once more and then gets to her feet. “Good choice. I’ll help you carry them over.”
It is lovely to talk to Itaro’s parents for a short while knowing that G’raha can pick up the slack, and she quickly stifles any awkward apologies for their son’s choice of conversation topics. It turns out the family have also made their home in the Lavender Beds and Itaro is quick to ask for her ward details before his parents take the chance to urge him into patience this time, at least.
By the time she wishes them a wonderful Starlight and makes her way back to the stall, G’raha is sipping at a cup of his own punch, exhaling slowly and watching his breath mist in the air.
“Are you well?” He asks when she slips into his embrace.
“I made a friend for our future children.” She says, watching his eyes grow wide in surprise.
She looks over to where Itaro and his family are wandering the stalls and G’raha follows her gaze, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips when he recognises why Itaro would have been so interested in her.
“I see.” He murmurs. “Just don’t tell that group of Hyur over there. They’d be quite heartbroken to know the Warrior of Light is planning for her future children.”
“Oh?” She chuckles. “And here I thought it was you with the admirers.”
G’raha cups her cheek, his palm warm from the mug. “Two things can be true at once, my love.”
She turns her face into his touch and kisses his palm, humming and then forcing herself away. “Right. One of us must be responsible, lest Miounne tell us off like schoolchildren.”
The rest of her time at the stall passes in the blink of an eye, and by the time Miounne comes to relieve her she’s more than ready to stretch her legs and see the sights of the Stalls. G’raha has other ideas, though, because Miounne only has to make a mention of her famous Starlight cookies and he’s full of questions about how best to make them, just about resisting the obvious urge to pull out a notebook.
“I’ll wander.” She says, kissing his cheek.
“Don’t go too far.” He murmurs in response, but he’s almost immediately distracted by baking questions once more and she just about resists the urge to fondly roll her eyes as she walks off into the Stalls.
The cosy festiveness of the market makes her feel somewhat choked up, especially when she runs into so many old friends in one place. She spends a few minutes chatting with Momodi and Baderon before there’s a presence at her back and a hand settling on her hip.
“Ah, I wondered if we’d ever meet you.” Momodi says, shooting Luna a coy look. “Since this one never comes round anymore.”
G’raha smiles, offering his hand to both of them. “She talks of you both often, though. And I’m so grateful for the role you played in ensuring Luna was able to grow and thrive. You’ve done more for the star than I think you could possibly realise.”
It’s exactly the right thing to say, even to two people as different as the pair in front of them. But that’s hardly a surprise when it comes to G’raha, who she knows to be capable of far easier charm than she thinks he would ever believe himself to be.
They’re deep into laughing over stories from recent recruits to the Adventurers’ Guild when Luna’s gaze drifts, and she spots a familiar figure in the distance.
“Gods.” She breathes. “Raha, look!”
She’s moving before she even realises it, can hear G’raha apologising for her sudden departure but she doesn’t care, knows they won’t hold it against her. She runs up the hill despite her ridiculous boots, hurrying towards the little group at the top.
She rushes up to them, skittering to a stop beside Jullus and grinning wildly at him.
“Hi!”
He’s entirely unprepared for the embrace but recovers admirably, she’d say, one arm coming around her as the other holds his punch up and out of the way.
“Luna!” He says, with an audible smile. “What a… pleasant surprise!”
She laughs as she shifts back, patting his shoulder. “You’re too polite. I didn’t mean to throw myself at you like that, it's just… been a while. Are you well?”
“Very.” He smiles, looking at his companions. “We thought we’d take the chance to see the sights.”
“And how are you enjoying them? How’s the punch?” She taps the side of his mug. “I had a hand in making it this year.”
“Lovely.” He says, and she can tell he means it. “It reminds me of a tea from home.”
“That’s wonderful to hear.” She grins. “G’raha’s here too. Would you like to come with us for dinner? Mother Miounne is a good friend of ours, and will see us right when it comes to a good Gridanian dinner at the Carline Canopy.”
He looks in askance at his companions, receiving hearty nods in return. This is enough for Jullus, and certainly enough for Luna, who squeezes his arm gently and looks back down to the stalls below.
“I’ll come get you when we’re ready to go - or you can come find us. G’raha and I want to explore the stalls for a bit first.”
“Sounds good, Luna.” He says, and the way that his ease is growing with her over time makes her feel so warm. “See you shortly.”
By the time she extricates herself G’raha is loitering at the bottom of the hill, and his smile when he spots her is enough to steal her breath. She takes the hand he reaches out, letting him pull her in for another kiss, because ‘tis the season, and it’s growing dark now anyway, in this shady little spot.
She shivers and he pulls back, concern obvious as he looks her over. “Cold?”
“A little.” She admits. “Let’s get some punch and take a walk, I’ll warm right up in no time.”
Luna might have assumed that having one hand full of punch and the other tucked in the curve of G’raha’s elbow might have curbed her desire to throw her gil around. Unfortunately, she is a soft touch at the best of times and even more so at this time of year, when everything is covered in lights and the weather is chill and she’s filled with hope for the future.
They buy one of everything from Beatin’s stall and ask for it to be sent ahead to their home so they don’t have to carry around a lot of toys well in advance of having any children to play with them. Luna purchases a number of bulbs for the garden from the botanists’ guild, and G’raha chooses a new satchel from the leatherworkers to replace the one he’s been using since he first studied - at Luna’s insistence, there are only so many holes she can patch before the old thing finally gives up the ghost.
When they make it round to the food stalls her stomach starts to rumble and it takes every ilm of willpower not to order everything on the menu when she’s already made a promise to Jullus.
Speaking of which…
“I thought it might be nice to eat with Jullus and his friends tonight - would you mind?”
G’raha smiles, as affable as always. “Not at all. Though I was quietly longing for a turkey roll.”
“We’ll come back tomorrow, just the two of us. With a limited amount of gil and a hipflask of rum for the punch.”
Tucking her hair behind her horn, G’raha leans in and whispers, just for her: “You have the best ideas, my love.”
Luna can feel her cheeks colouring as she stares deep into his eyes, and does her best to hide it by turning and seeking out Jullus. She waves when he spots her and together the three men start towards them, greeting G’raha like an old friend.
“Are you very familiar with the city?” Jullus asks, falling into step alongside her as they make their way back into Old Gridania.
“Oh, very. I’m a Corvosi native.” She says, smiling softly and gesturing at G’raha, pressing on before Jullus can think too hard on Garlemald’s association with their homeland. “We both are. But when I was first called upon by Hydaelyn, I made my way to Eorzea, and this was my first stop. Everyone in the city became family over the time I honed my skills as an adventurer. The rest, they say, is history.”
As she speaks she’s all too aware that Jullus can’t seem to keep his attention on her and she can’t blame him for it, not after seeing what has happened to the place he calls home.
“It’s beautiful. I can’t begin to imagine how lovely it is to be around so much nature.”
Luna nods. “It’s part of the reason I bought a house here. I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.”
“That much I understand very well.” He says, nudging her. “Now, tell me what to expect of Gridanian cuisine. Albus seems to think it’ll be entirely lacking in meat.”
Luna laughs, chancing a look at the man to find him already protesting and embarrassed. “It certainly has less meat than other city states, but don’t worry. We wouldn’t take three growing boys somewhere that wouldn’t cater to their needs.”
G’raha’s laughter assures her that he’s been keeping an ear on her conversation even while holding his own, and she doesn’t resist throwing a smile in his direction, reaching out a hand that he quickly catches.
By the time they make it to the Carline Canopy - with plentiful stops to admire this or that along the way - Mother Miounne meets them at the door and spirits the three men off to a table, leaving G’raha and Luna lingering behind.
“You have such a talent, my love.” G’raha says. In response to her raised eyebrow, he continues: “For collecting strays.”
She snorts, turning her face into his throat and stifling the sound there. “I just want people to be happy, safe, and fed. Is that so bad?”
“Not at all.” He speaks with enough sincerity to soothe her worries. “It happens to be one of my favourite things about you.”
Luna stares at him for a moment, really takes in every ilm of his handsome face, until she’s been looking almost too long. Then she smiles, kisses the tip of his nose and whispers, “Happy Starlight, my darling.”
“And the same to you, dear heart. May the season bring you everything you want, and more.”
“But Raha,” Luna starts, with a sickly sweet grin. “I already have you - what more could I want?”
G’raha groans as if he’s even slightly annoyed by her teasing.
“Terrible woman.” He huffs, hooks his fingers in her belt and tugs her after him into the inn.
“Yes yes.” Luna grins, uncommonly pleased. “And yet love me anyway.”