Into the Wilderness [Fue/Moriko]

Still spluttering, Moriko feels the warmth of Fue's hands when she starts to pat and rub her back. The comfort she feels from the other girl's touch, and from such a caring gesture, is oddly welcome. A thrill of some emotion she can't quite grasp shoots through her. Her face heats up and she can feel her heart jumping in her chest. Suddenly, she's feeling nervous, but it's not quite like her usual experience with the emotion.

Finally catching her breath, she straightens up from the stoop she'd fallen into and glances up at Fue. Here eyes are filled with tears from the intensity of the coughing, and she's a bit breathless, but at least she's finally stopped!

Giving a weak grin, Moriko nods her head at Fue's question.

"I'm all right," she replies, her voice still a bit scratchy. Gesturing at her glass of cordial, her grin turns sheepish. "I thought it was water."

Looking down at her plate of uneaten salad, she clears her throat. Emotionally, she's a fairly open book. Especially when a person gets to know her. Her body and face just don't know how to lie. But when it comes to putting her emotions into words, that's where Moriko struggles the most. Especially when it's with someone she cares about. And she cares about Fue a lot, she's come to realize.

So, despite her nervousness, and deep embarrassment, Moriko pushes forward determinedly. Gaze drifting to her hands, she grips the bottoms of her sodden shorts tightly.

"That's not true, you know," she murmurs, her voice quiet but firm. Still too nervous to look up, she continues to stare at her crossed legs. "You planned almost the whole trip. You helped me deal with the city, the train and all the people. And then on top of all that, you set up this amazing picnic as a surprise." Embarrassed with having said those words out loud, she can feel her face heat up even more.

But still determined, for she's not done saying what she wants to say, she manages to look back up into Fue's eyes. Despite the red staining her cheeks and the tips of ears, she pushes on.

"But most of all, you came." Fue could have shrugged her off. She could have said no. Or even worse, she could have made fun of her for her desire to just get away. But she hadn't. So, she says it again, trying to emphasize how important this is to her. How important Fue's decision to join her is to her. "You came."

Unable to hold Fue's gaze any longer, Moriko looks away towards the sparkling waters of the lake. The warmth creeps down the back of her neck and her ears burn. Oh man, she's so not good at this talking thing! But she has one final thing to say. Which she does, in a soft, tremulous tone.

"Thank you."

Her words fade away, leaving only the sound of the breeze in the trees and grass, and the lapping of the waves on the nearby shore.

She was ok, "Thank goodness." Fue said, she'd meant to say it internally but it just came out with her sigh of relief. Water, well, that made sense. But Fue hadn't packed or prepared water at all for the picnic. There were water bottles for the hike, at least, that was her reasoning. Plus they wouldn't look quite as nice in the atmosphere she had been trying to create for her pictures. "Sorry." She said a little sheepishly but she kept smiling. Moriko was ok and it was only a little silly mistake. Nothing bad had come of it and it was honestly a little funny.

Fue returned to her own plate, considering what, if anything, she wanted to have more of. But this was interrupted by Moriko speaking again. "Eh?" What wasn't true? But Moriko continued. Fue looked at her friend. It was true, but it was like anyone could do all those things. Even Moriko could have navigated the trains eventually. But maybe that was the point. Sure Moriko could have made this trip on her own, Fue could have hiked up a path through the forests to this lake, but neither likely would have even tried without the other. And it certainly wouldn't have been half as easy or rewarding if they hadn't been together. It was only because of each other that they could be enjoying this wonderful magical moment.

She met Moriko's eyes, and smiled. There was an intensity of the emotion behind there, an emotion that Fue wasn't sure she could sort out. But it made her heart flutter. Moriko's eyes were so gorgeous, Fue felt like she could fall in and swim in them. But then Moriko turned back toward the lake, breaking the intense stare. Fue blinked a few times before her eyes drifted back to the blanket. What was there to say. A short silence fell upon them. Thank you wouldn't be enough, she'd said that. But it came to her eventually. "Of course I came, Moriko." She leaned over and their shoulders met, Fue resting her head against Moriko.

At this moment, she didn't even mind the cold and wet. Maybe this feeling was temporary, maybe it wasn't what she suspected. But it was a good feeling, something that Fue wanted to cherish. "You're really special, I'll always come for you. Whenever you call." There were a few more words, just on the tip of her tongue, but she bit them back. They could spoil this if she was wrong. She couldn't say anything that strong unless she was sure. You couldn't take too many chances or else things would fall apart. She had to be scientific about this and do her due diligence.

"We still have dessert, Moriko." She said, those weren't the words, but they would have to do for now. "And maybe after, we should definitely take a picture to remember today." At this moment in time, she wanted to remember this instant for the rest of eternity.

Silence is something that Moriko is used to. It's been such a big part of her life, especially over the past year, that she's usually not bothered by it at all. And due to her familiarity, she's come to understand that there are may different types of silence. Such as the hush of wildlife when a predator is nearby. Or the heavy, ringing stillness that bites at the heals of a jarring disturbance.

But the particular silence that hangs between Fue and her, at this moment, is a type of silence she's never experienced before. It feels similar to the quiet of a hunt, filled with anxious anticipation and a tinge of fear. But it's not quite the same. For it's also mixed with the unease of an approaching storm; one that's still a distance away, but you know is coming. As these thoughts drift through her mind, Moriko swears she can smell ozone in the air. Lifting her eyes from the lake, she turns them to the sky, seeking the tell-tale buildup of clouds. But no, it's still bright and sunny, the few clouds in sight high up, far away, and distinctly white.

Then Fue speaks, her soft tones shifting the unknowable silence into familiar noise once again. Of course she came. As if it's a given that she would come. No questions asked. She's never had anyone speak to her in such a way before, and she's at a loss on how to respond.

Before she's able to come up with a reply, though, Fue leans against her and rests her head on her shoulder. Once again Moriko finds herself completely tongue tied. At least she's not choking this time! Fue continues to speak. And what words she says! What does she mean, always come for me? Whenever I call? And then she'd said that word again. Special. Moriko's entire face is a-flame! From the tips of her ears all the way down the back of her neck, she's sure she's red. Still unable to speak, she instead responds by leaning against Fue as well.

Pressing a cheek against the other girl's hair, Moriko returns Fue's gesture in kind. Her heart races as if she's just done a hard sprint. She hopes Fue can't feel the heat of her face or hear the drumming in her chest. But she wouldn't be surprised if she could.

Moriko is not usually one to initiate such intimate contact with another human, but Fue has become the exception. She's not sure when it happened, but having Fue near her has been something she's come to not just accept, but to look forward to. Emotions swirl in her, some familiar, other's more complicated and currently indecipherable to her. But the time to figure them out is not now, for Fue points out that there's still dessert to eat.

The picnic! She'd temporarily forgotten about it! Fue's reminder, and the shock of her forgetting about the food lying right before her, is enough for Moriko to partially return to her senses. Blinking rapidly, she nods against Fue's head. Reluctantly pulling away from the other girl, Moriko finds her gaze once again drawn to her uneaten plate of salad.

Giving a soft cough, in the hopes of dispelling her embarrassment, she picks up the plate and a plastic fork and finally speaks.

"Gotta finish this first, right? Eat it in the right order, like you said?" She gives a shy smile Fue's way. She'd been paying attention! Then, without further ado, she wolfs it down.

With surprising speed and efficiency, she manages to eat the chicken salad in record time. Flecks of the vinaigrette dots her cheeks, but the plate is completely empty. A satisfied sigh escapes her and she pats her belly. This has been the best meal she's eaten in ages! Glancing around, she spots what looks like the dessert. Bright teals lighting up, she points at the lemon yogurt cake and asks, her voice curious and excited.

"Is that the dessert? What is it?"

Fue decided that she could get used to this feeling, back home she was close to both her mother's and that closeness was reflected in how they interacted. Since coming to this school, Fue had felt alone more often than not. Though she had made some friends, there wasn't a special closeness. It was nice to be close to somebody, to be so together that you could share each other's warmth. The shared human touch was reassuring. For her Russian mother, that touch was reassurance that nothing had been lost. For Fue, that touch was so much more meaningful than those blank eyes without a hint of recognition. From her French mother, the touch meant a strong bond that couldn't be broken, no matter what happened.

Fue missed those touches, but this touch, it seemed to mean that Moriko could rely on her and that she could rely on Moriko. It was friendship, pure and simple. Though with this strange, new, and complicated longing in her heart, Fue was starting to wonder if maybe it could mean something more. And if it did, would Moriko feel the same or reject it? Would that rejection change things for the worst and all of this fall apart, this day a happy memory but bittersweet in its loss? Or what if she said yes? Could that be worse than a no? Would companionship cheapen this closeness they shared now the same way eating the same meal became less exciting and novel, becoming nothing more than a pleasant routine. Fue didn’t know but maybe her parents might. Waiting, thinking, planning would be the only sensible option. A gentle touch for now, but no more. Not yet.

It would be nice for as long as it lasted so she closed her eyes and held her place while Moriko finished eating. Order was important, you couldn't skip steps or it would upset things. Eating dessert first would upset your stomach and ruin your appetite, even if dessert was oh so desirable. It seemed a bit inappropriate to think of Moriko as a dessert, but comparing the whole relationship as food seemed to be the most appropriate metaphor as they both had so much of their interests relate to it. Well, Fue's interests mostly involved food in a round about way. Moriko just seemed to be a very dedicated food enthusiast. But that was cute too, and that was the best sort of person to test food photography on for effectiveness.

Fue reaches across the blanket and brought the precut slices over. “It’s a lemon yoghurt cake.” She said. “It’s a fairly common thing back home. Not too special but not so common here in Japan.” She reaches across the blanket again to get the can of whipped cream. “Ma Mere would be quite upset if she knew I was using this stuff.” But Fue wouldn’t turn her nose up at something so convenient and easy to transport. Besides, it tasted good enough for a premade cake anyway. She began to shake the can vigorously.

“The cake is really nice, I think. I haven’t had this brand before.” Fue twisted the lid off before turning it over and giving her cake a near perfect swirled peak in the center. She looked at it for a moment before nodding. Even if she wasn’t taking a picture, some habits died hard. “It’s got Greek yoghurt in it which changes the level of sweetness you get on a normal cake. They add a bit of syrup in it to help but I like my dessert really sweet.” She passed the can over to Moriko to add whipped cream to her own dessert in whatever amount she liked. Then she picked up her fork and began to spread it over the slice of cake more evenly. Looks were one thing but she still wanted a mouthful of whipped cream with every bite of cake.

"Lemon yogurt cake..." Moriko repeats after Fue, her eyes glued to the plates as the other girl pulls the cakes towards them. She watches in anticipation as Fue snags a can of whipping cream and begins to swirl it on top of her piece. She's never had a lemon yogurt cake before, so this will be a new experience for her! Listening quietly to Fue as she talks, she has a few questions rise within her. But she doesn't want to interrupt the other girl, so she decides to save them for later. Watching closely at what Fue is doing, Moriko can't help but feel awe at how perfect the cake looks. Especially the swirled part!

Moriko accepts the can from Fue and tries her best to make her cake come out like hers. Unfortunately, she's not used to how instant whipping cream cans work. Sticking her tongue out in concentration, she tips the can over just as she'd seen Fue do. Pressing her thumb to the spout, she pushes into it with more force than needed. Instantly, a huge spurt of whipping cream streams out. With a yelp, she releases the spout, but the damage has already been done. The cream completely covers the cake, and pools in clumps at the bottom of the plate. Setting down the can, she glances over at Fue's cake, a disappointed expression on her face. Shaking her head, she smiles ruefully at Fue.

"Making food look good is hard. Making it look as good as you do, is even harder!"

Leaning a bit to the side, where her shoulder presses lightly into Fue's own, she peers down at the other girl's perfect cake. "It looks amazing," she murmurs wistfully. Gaze shifting back over to the whip cream blob on her plate, she straightens back up.

"Well, it doesn't look as nice as yours, but I bet it still tastes great!" she says cheerfully. Picking her fork up, she wipes the salad dressing off of it with a napkin. Glancing back at Fue, she notices how the other girl is spreading the cream more evenly around on the cake. Since she messed up the looks part, she doesn't have to take this extra step. Nodding to herself, she cuts through the whip cream and cake, taking off a rather large piece. Opening her mouth wide, Moriko pops the whole piece into it.

The first thing she tastes is the sweet tang of the whip cream. But once she bites down into the cake, well, that's where all the flavor is at! The cake is moist and light, spongy but firm in it's texture. The lemon adds a nice zing to the overwhelming sweetness that floods her mouth. What even is this?? she mentally wonders as the flavors and textures swirl in her mind. She's had cake before, but nothing quite like this! The closest she can compare it to is pound cake? Or may angel food cake? But it's lighter than the pound cake, but not as light as the angel food cake. Whatever it is, it's awesome!

She's closed her eyes, her chewing slow and deliberate as she takes it all in. Swallowing the bite, she tilts her head back in delight. She can't help the small hum of appreciation that escapes her. A small smile tugs her lips upward even as she takes in a deep breath, the scent and flavor of the cake still swamping her senses.

She's in heaven!

Cracking her eyes open, she focuses them on Fue. Bright teals sparkling, she rocks forward and exclaims, her voice ringing with enthusiasm, "This is my new favorite dessert! Lemon yogurt cake!" She raises her fork, pointing it at the sky in an almost salute at this proclamation.

With that said, she returns to eating her slice of cake. All the while making soft noises of delight and contentment.

Fue was focused on her own cake but her attention was drawn away from it by Morkio's sudden panicked noise. Her head darted to the side to see Moriko holding what was looking more like a plate of whipped cream than a cake slice. As hard as she tries, she isn't able to suppress her laughter, though the giggle turns into a snort as it escapes through her nose. "Sorry, it's just, it's funny." She grinned at Moriko before using her fork to cut a piece of her own cake and take a bite. She hadn't seen anybody mess up with a whip cream can before, it was kind of silly.

But Fue appreciated the compliments, she did have a lot of practice working with different tools and even a spray can of whipped cream was a useful tool for a food photographer if you knew how to use it. Though she wouldn't in a more professional environment, it just didn't have the lasting power that you needed for a long term shoot under harsh and hot lights for hours at a time. She took the bite. Unlike her friend, she was less impressed. It wasn't bad, but it didn't hold a candle to some of the cakes back home in France, but that was just more snobbery coming out. It tasted good, but she was glad to have the whipped cream to make it even sweeter.

She smiled as Moriko proclaimed the cake's greatness. It was so obvious how much Moriko loved food, Fue felt her heart beat a little, was it jealousy? over cake? No, she would just have to introduce Moriko to some really good desserts from back home. Maybe she could ask her parents to mail them something. They'd probably support that, she'd ask when they had their other talk. Fue turned her attention back to the cake for a moment before a devilish idea struck her.

Slowly, trying not to draw attention to it, she picked up the whipped cream canister again. "Hey Moriko?" She asked. The moment she turned to look at Fue, Fue raised the can and sprayed a dollop of whipped cream on the tip of Moriko's nose. Then she started cracking up, her mad laugh echoing over the lake.

Having nothing to compare to it in the past, Moriko finds herself immensely enjoying the lemon yogurt cake. She'd caught the giggle-snort Fue had given, but she doesn't mind. It is a little funny, after all. So, with her mouth half full, she directs a lopsided grin Fue's way. Then she continues to slowly eat her portion of cake. This is probably the slowest the other girl has ever seen Moriko eat. She really wants to savor this cake, for it's a grand way to cap off such an amazing day!

As she's popping the last forkful into her mouth, Fue calls her name. Turning her head, Moriko looks over at the other girl, her expression questioning. With a quick movement, Fue raises the can of whip cream and neatly places a dollop of cream on the end of her nose. Head jerking back in surprise, Moriko's eyes go crossed as she tries to see the white fluff on her face. With her cheeks slightly puffed with a mouthful of cake, she looks kind of like a chipmunk.

Fue bursts out laughing. It's loud and carefree and filled with such warmth. A very different kind if sound, coming from such a usually quiet and reserved girl. Chewing her piece of cake quickly, Moriko swallows it down. Setting her plate the side, she can feel a grin tugging at her lips. She's never heard Fue laugh like this before! And it's making her feel a little giddy inside.

An idea popping into her head, Moriko turns a mischevious smile Fue's way. Removing the whipped cream from her nose with a quick swipe of a finger, she pounces on Fue with an exuberant "Ah ha!".

Knocking the other girl over onto the picnic blanket, she finds herself leaning over Fue. One hand braces against the ground, next to the other girl's head. Her body presses slightly into Fue's own, though most of her weight is on her knees and the arm. Bright teals dancing, Moriko peers down into Fue's eyes, her smile widening. With a swift motion of her other hand, she places the small bit of cream right onto the end of Fue's nose. Leaning in close, she whispers into the other girl's ear, her voice filled with barely contained glee.

"Got you!"

Rolling off of Fue, Moriko falls down next to the other girl. A laugh of her own bubbles up out of her. It's not as loud as Fue's, but it's continuous and rolling, coming from deep within her diaphragm. Tears spring to her eyes as she clutches her stomach. This is the hardest she's laughed in a long, long time. And the happiest she's felt in that same time.

Turning her head towards Fue, she can't help but to gaze at the other girl. This girl, who makes her so happy. That feeling, the elusive one that she can't quite grasp or understand, wells within her. Still laughing, she relaxes and lets the emotions run their course. She'll analyze them later. For now, she feels good, and it's best to live these types of experiences in the moment.

The look on Moriko's face just made Fue laugh even harder. Cross eyed, bulging cheeks, and that dollop of whipped cream hanging off her nose like a weird clown accessory just pushed the girl over the edge. He laughs turned into wheezy gasps as she desperately struggled to keep any air between the overwhelming fit of laughter that just kept erupting from her like an endless spring of water.

Now that her guard was down, it was like a catastrophic flood, destroying any barrier she could put up to block the flood of emotions that were coming out of her in waves of choking laughter. She couldn't keep her eyes open and tears were starting to gather at the corners of her eyes and then trickle down her cheeks, leaving trails in the dust that had gathered.

She screams as suddenly Moriko pounces on top of her and pushes Fue down. Her arms flail and send the can of whip cream rolling off into the grass somewhere. She manages to open her eyes, still giggling and stares up into the teal eyes of her friend. Choking laughter breaks back into full guffaws when Moriko dabs the whipped cream back onto her nose.

Moriko rolled off her, laughing just as hard, though not quite as loudly as Fue was. The two lay there, fighting to get their own emotions back under control, lying beside the waters edge, beside the remains of a picnic. It was picturesque. This would be worth a picture, but Fue wouldn't think of that until later, and even then, at least she held it in her memories and that would be plenty. She turned her head toward Moriko and their eyes met. Both wet from crying tears of laughter.

Fue almost felt the courage to push forward, to push the boundaries of her own obsession with preparation and planning. But she didn't. What she did do was slide her hand over until it bumped into Moriko's wrist. Then she went lower and took Moriko's hand in hers, attempting to intertwine fingers. She squeezed the other girl's hand tightly and smiled. She didn't have any words, she didn't know what to say. Maybe this would be enough for now.

Gazing into Fue's eyes, Moriko makes note of their wetness. The tear tracks trailing down the other girl's cheeks are hard to miss. They gleam in the day's light, cutting a clean path through the slight buildup of dust. So these are happy tears? she wonders, even as she blinks at the moisture gathering in her own eyes. Her grandmother would often mention tears of happiness in her many stories, but Moriko has never really experienced them before. But there's a first for everything!

Her laughter dying down to soft chuckles, Moriko finds herself unable to look away from those quiet brown eyes. They're so mesmerizing! A slight touch on her wrist isn't enough to distract her, but when Fue's hand slips over hers, it finally draws her attention away from them. Breaking the eye contact, Moriko glances down and watches as Fue's fingers entwine in her own. Responding in kind, she also intertwines her fingers with Fue's. Giving a light squeeze back, she makes note of how soft the other girl's hand is. Her own hands are rough with calluses and scars from her wood working and forest life. Fue's hand is also a little bit larger, easily covering hers. Such a difference! Moriko's fallen silent, her laughter fading away into the sound of the breeze, but her joy not diminishing in the least. Looking back up, she directs a soft smile Fue's way.

Bright teals peering into dark browns, Moriko raises her free hand and gently brushes away the other girl's tears with the back of her index finger. She says, her voice low and warm and somewhat teasing, "Your eyes are leaking."

Drenched in dazzling sunlight, they lay there. On the edge of the picnic blanket, so close that their breath mingles, yet not quite touching. Other than their clasped hands and that single finger grazing Fue's cheek.

All the world is this contact, the slight physical distance between them bridged by the odd connection they share.

And for a moment, time seems to have stilled.