[SNEAK PEEK]Footrest by the Fire
Ruby and Masuya come in out of the cold.
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**Footrest by the Fire
Subscriber Reward for Lucky-Ray (Dec 2023)
By Limewah
18+
SNEAK PEEK**
The cottage was only marginally warmer than the bitter winter bite of the snowy forest, but it was still a huge improvement. And it only got more comfortable the closer Ruby trudged to the still-burning stove and its comforting warmth.
He gradually shed the dark layers of wool and cotton, shaking the snow off of his shoulders. In a mirror near the door, he could see his dark hair was cowlicked from his hat, and his cheeks and nose were a bright, rosy red.
He shuddered one last time before heading straight for the stove, rubbing his hands together.
His partner wasn't asking him if he was alright - Masuya probably didn't feel the cold as much as him. Being a necromancer gave one a far higher tolerance for the chill.
"That was lovely," the sorceress said idly. "Thank you for coming along with me!"
"S-s-sure," Ruby chattered, unable to mask the discomfort in his voice.
"Oh, was that too long a hike for you?" Masuya asked, still taking her leisurely time unfurling her scarf and unpinning her cloak. Her skin was still perfectly pale, and her silky dark hair looked flawless, as always. "You could have said something if it was getting much..."
"I d-didn't want to," Ruby said as he splayed out on the rug in front of the stove's radiation. "You w-were having a nice time, so I didn't want to..."
"Awwh." Masuya tutted and tilted her head to the side. "Well, thank you. I'll boil some water for tea, that'll warm you right up."
"Th-th-thank you," Ruby said, his teeth still rattling as he vibrated from the chill.
"Mmh." The witch pursed her lips. It was obvious Ruby was going to need a little more than a cup of tea to mitigate this stressful chill. She knew just the thing.
Rather than heading straight to the kitchen nook of the cottage to fetch one of the water jugs, she went to her room, and rifled through her bag. It was a well-woven patchwork of beautiful, love-worn fabric. She kept some of her spare bits and pieces here; she wasn't planning on doing any magic while she was out here, but the situation called for it.
Masuya pulled out a small burlap doll, made of grey cloth. with a few small strands of black hair wrapped around its neck like a handsome scarf. She returned its stitched-on smile as she looked into its little button eyes.
She reached down towards where its ear was, and whispered softly.
"Relax my dear, relax sweet thing, you've been walking so much, and you're so very tired, it makes me feel so terrible to see you suffer so... so relax, dear one, nothing would make me happier than that..."
Ruby wouldn't hear it. But his mind would.
She gently folded the doll's legs underneath its body to match Ruby's cross-legged position. Then she guided the legs back out in front, and Ruby's body slowly, sleepily mimicked them
She watched Ruby staring between the slats of the stove at the warm fire, swaying his head from side to side just a little - with her manipulations of the doll's head to guide him.
"And you feel so warm, so very comfortable, there's less need for those chilly layers. Just allow yourself to disrobe, free yourself from those imprisoning fabrics... good, dear sweet little thing...
As her stream of lullabye words continued, he grew visibly more relaxed, melting into himself.
His eyes were fluttering just a little. Like he was nodding off. He probably thought he was... he had no idea.
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