Lily melted the second she crawled into bed. Wrapping herself in her many blankets, snug. She settled with a long, deep sigh. I could sleep for weeks. Maybe months. Hibernation would do her good. It would give her an out to this sickening blend of thrill and boredom that she had been tangled in the past week or so.

Yet something nagged at her. I couldn’t do that to him. How long would Willis wait for her? Would he give up quickly? Would he be disappointed? Sad? Would he worry? Although she didn’t want to admit it, she would worry for him. She would worry for someone she had only spoken to a handful of times.

Sleep. Go to bed, she hissed to herself. She shifted around, restless. Stop thinking. It’s too late for this. Exhaustion wove its way into her bones. Unfortunately it did not do much for her mind.

Why is he so nice to me? It was a simple question with an obvious answer. It was basic decency. Decency that she was, perhaps, not owed. I yelled at him so much. He had been patient. Gentle. Even in the moments he might have been frustrated. He thought of her enough to make her something. He didn't ask what happened with her nose, only if he could help.

Bringing him a flower was the least she could do.

Bed. Sleep. Rest. She willed her mind to be quiet. Sleep was good. She needed so much of it.

It took far longer than she would have liked to drift off.

“I wasn’t expecting this to smell good,” Willis said as he held the stargazer lily in his hands. He kept it close to his face, inspecting it carefully. His nose twitched.

“They’re known for their pleasant scent,” Lily explained. Though her focus quickly shifted to the cyan-tinted light ball in her hand. The moon was nothing but a sliver in the sky at this point. Even on the beach it had darkened quite a bit. Rather than let her make a larger light, Willis had offered to create one of his own. She couldn’t complain.

It’s like holding ice, she thought to herself. She couldn’t do much with the little thing aside from cup it in her hand. But that was more than enough to feel its chilled magic. I suppose it makes sense. He holds the power of death and destruction. It wasn’t fitting for him, really. She set it down between them.

Willis picked at the stargazer a little longer before holding it out to her. She shook her head.

“You can keep it.”

His ears perked up, “Really? You sure?”

She nodded, “There’s plenty left in the garden. I don’t have much use for it.”

His entire face seemed to light up. Like it was the best news he ever heard. She almost expected his tail to appear again. “Oh! Well I’ll be sure to take good care of it,” he told her with a smile. His gaze lingered on the flower for a moment before he set it down gently out of the way. 

Maybe he’s excited since they don’t have a proper garden at the castle? Lily wondered to herself. The stargazer wasn’t worth so much fuss, but seeing him so excited about it stirred something in her.

She didn’t get much chance to think about it until Willis called her attention again. “I brought something for us to do, by the way! I figured it would be a bit tiring to keep doing this if all we did was talk,” he said.

“Do you not like to talk?” she asked. Even though it seemed unlikely the answer was yes.

“It’s not that! There’s only so much to talk about,” he explained, shaking his hands. He tilted his head, neck cracking. “I just think it would get a little boring if we talked about our day over and over. Wouldn’t hurt to do something together instead.”

“That’s true,” she agreed. Her face scrunched up as she recalled the past few days. “I’m not up to much now that I’ve finished my general studies. My mother leaves me to my own devices most of the time. There’s… not much to do around the castle.”

At that, Willis snorted, “Tell me about it. That’s why I usually end up going out. I think I’d lose my mind otherwise.” He shook his head, “Sometimes it’s good to just go on a walk. Get some fresh air.”

Lily couldn’t help but flinch. We really are in the same situation. Of course she had thought about it. But hearing it aloud was another thing entirely. It must be hard for him. He seems so social. “Right,” she muttered.

“But see, this is where the simple joys come in!” He brought his bag out in front of him. Opening it and swiftly pulling something out. He held it in front of him for her to see. 

“Cards?”

“Cards! Specifically card games,” he said, ears shivering. He slid the deck out of the box. It was a standard set, from what she could tell. He shuffled them idly. “There’s lots of things we could play with these.”

She watched the cards slide between his hands. It was a messy technique given how little he paid attention. She swallowed roughly. Feeling a blush creep onto her face. “I’ve never played any card games before,” she admitted quietly.

“Really?” Willis asked, disbelief clear in his tone. He kept fiddling with the cards.

“Not exactly anyone to play with,” she huffed. 

“Oh, right. Makes sense,” he said. His shuffling slowed a moment, seemingly lost in thought. Though it picked back up quickly. “I played a lot when I was younger. Didn’t get to leave the castle much then, so it was a nice way to pass the time.”

“You want to play… children’s card games?”

He made a face at her, “Well it sounds silly when you put it like that. I wouldn’t call these games age specific. Just simple.”

“I suppose that’s good. Or else we would be here all night,” she chuckled weakly. 

Thankfully, he stopped frowning at her, turning his attention to the deck to shuffle it properly. “Since you don’t know any card games I can explain one to you. Then you can choose if you want to play it or not. Sound good?”

“Would it not be easier for you to pick one for us to play?” she pointed out.

He shrugged. “I wouldn’t want to play something you don’t want to.”

You’re too nice, she bit back the comment. Instead simply nodding.

“A personal favorite of mine is Go Fish. You're trying to collect a full set of four cards. So all the 1s from the deck, all the kings, etcetera etcetera,” Willis explained. He finished shuffling the cards, but still fidgeted with them as he continued. “We each start with seven cards. One person asks something like 'have any 3s?’. If the other person has any, they have to hand them over. If they don't, they say 'go fish!’ and the person who asked has to draw a card. Then things switch. We go until we run out of cards, or until someone gives up.” He added the last part with a mischievous tone.

“That seems… simple enough,” Lily hummed. Maybe too simple. She held her tongue. “I wouldn't mind playing that. We could probably get through a couple games fair quick.”

At that, Willis nodded enthusiastically. He dealt their cards. Before gently moving the lights to place the rest of the deck between them. “Usually the youngest person goes first in the game,” he said, looking at her curiously.

“Oh,” Lily hummed. She picked up her cards, stalling. She had two 2s, two 7s, a jack, a queen, and a king. “I turned twenty recently.” If two months could be considered recent.

“Yes!” Willis exclaimed. Though he was quick to dampen his excitement with a dip of his head. He coughed. “I’m nineteen, so I guess I’m going first.”

Her ears perked up, “Really? When’s your birthday?”

“New Year’s day. Since I’m so special,” there was almost a hint of sarcasm in his tone.

He’s only a few months younger than me then. “It is a special date. I was born on a special one as well,” she paused, lips pressed into a tight line. She watched him pick up his cards. “Special in Arcadia, at least. I’m not sure if there’s as much importance placed on the summer solstice in Abaddon.”

“I mean I'd consider it cooler than mine,” he admitted. He played around with his cards. “Even if we don't celebrate the summer solstice much. The winter solstice tends to be a bigger thing. Lots of festivity in those few weeks.”

He stopped his fidgeting, looking up at her, “Have any 3s?”

“What-” she blinked at him. It took her brain a moment to catch up. Letting out a silent 'oh'. She looked down at her cards, even though she already knew the answer. She shook her head, “Go fish.”

He pulled from the deck, organizing it in his hand before looking back at her.

Which one do I ask about? Is there an optimal way to do this? Maybe the ones I have multiples for? “Do you have any 7s?” she decided.

“Go fish.”

She pulled a three from the deck. Damn. She did her best not to react.

“Have any 3s?”

Damn it. Of course he asked again. She sighed, “Unfortunately.” She reluctantly handed it over.

He grinned wide as he took it. But instead of putting it with the rest, he pulled three other cards from his hand. He turned them around, “First set is mine.”

She couldn’t stop herself from gasping, “What? We just started!”

All she got was a shrug. “I’m good at this game. Since I didn’t have to fish I get to ask you again,” he explained. “Have any 4s?”

“No,” she said. Before adding, “go fish.”

Another card drawn. 

“Have any 2s?”

“Go fish.”

She drew a five.

As it turned out, Go Fish could go on much longer than she expected. They went what felt like ages before one of them got a hit. Even then, they returned to their dance of asking and fishing.

“Have any 4s?”

Lily sighed, “That’s all that you’ve asked for.” 

“I mean you’ll have one eventually,” Willis pointed out. He leaned in slightly, “Like right now?”

It took all her self control not to roll her eyes. She reluctantly held out the four she drew a moment ago. “Me giving you this doesn’t mean anything,” she huffed.

“It’s so much, actually,” he said smugly. “I mean, who’s the one winning here?”

She looked at their collection of cards, “I am, actually.”

He didn’t answer, instead just putting the 4s down with the rest of his cards. His hand was empty. “You know something fun about running out of cards in this game?”

I don’t like how he said that. “What…?”

“It means I get to take the rest of the deck,” he said. “Well, technically only until I have a full hand. But usually this only happens when the deck is almost gone.” He grabbed the few cards that were left.

She didn’t have the chance to realize what was happening until it was too late.

“Have any aces?” he asked knowingly. She caught sight of his canines in the smile he tried to hold back. If she wasn’t invested in the game, it might have been sinister in the low light. Instead it was just annoying.

“Don’t look at me like that!” she hissed. Shoving the two she had at him. Another set complete for him.

There’s only four cards left in play- oh. 

“Have any kings?”

“Just take the damn cards.”

“Gladly!” All the cards were drawn. Six to seven sets. “I win,” he said cheerfully. Unbothered by her barely restrained withering glare.

She returned the cards she collected, “We’re playing again. I’ll beat you this time.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”