bsumone | ❝ spring for flirting but fall for the untamed delicious wild things ❞

Autumn. Elyas' second most favourite time of the year, only just behind springtime (and tied with both winter and summer). He loves the delightfully refreshing chill that's in the air and all the warm smells it seems to bring with the humans trying to combat it. All of their big, hearty meals and their soups and their hot drinks with all of those cozy smelling spices in them. He really enjoys all of the comfy clothes too, as well as the fact that his nice, cozy winter coat starts coming in at this time of the year.

Perhaps the best part of autumn, though, is the flora in its various states and forms. Various types of flowers that only bloom in the autumn and, of course, the leaves. Oh, the leaves! All of the colours, the smell, the sound of them crunching underfoot (especially late at night when everything is so quiet and the crunching of the leaves is the only sound) and the way they feel when he picks them up and crushes them in his hands. He just adores everything about them.

And it's for that very reason why, while out, he scoops up handfuls of leaves to crunch and then toss, occasionally hopping up in the air to grab leaves straight from the lower hanging branches of trees. He also stomps through some of the crunchier looking leaves on the street with a bright, wide grin on his face the entire time. The moment he spots an unattended pile of leaves that some human has raked up but not yet bagged, though, the fox's entire face lights up and he bounds off to run through it. And lay down in it. And roll in it. And generally be a menace to that pile of leaves.

The colors of autumn are but a distant memory to Laurent. Barred from the light of day, their brilliance is little more than faded shadows to his eyes. Oh, sure, there’s the occasional streetlamp to throw a pop of color into the night, but artificial light just isn’t the same. Or maybe that’s just Laurent’s imagination – it’s been such a long time since he’s seen anything under sunlight.

Elyas’ enthusiasm brings him all the joy he needs. The fox often tells him of his daylight adventures, describing the people he meets and the places he goes. He weaves quite a story about the fiery colors adorning the trees in one last burst of life before fading away for winter.

When he rises, the first thing Laurent does is seek out his precious gumiho. A scent so familiar is easy to follow and soon he’s not far behind. But he says nothing, only watches as Elyas collects the crisp leaves in his hands, listens as they crackle in his grasp and under his feet. It isn’t until the fox finds a pile of leaves in which to play that Laurent finally closes the distance between him, staring down at Elyas with a warm smile meant only for him.

“Are you having fun?”

While he's out and about during the daylight hours, Elyas tries to collect a sampling of leaves to bring home to Laurent. One of each colour. It's not the same as getting to see them in the daytime, but it's the best the little fox can do for his vampire. It's better then seeing them only in the moonlight or only under the less than ideal street lights.

Alas, try as he might to make it happen, the leaves don't always manage to make it home. The gumiho only has so much willpower and can only restrain himself from crushing the tantalizing leaves for so long. Even when he doesn't have his visual aids, though, he's always only too happy to describe to Laurent all the colours and things that he's seen out in the sun.

The fox beams up at the vampire when he gets in closer from where he sits half buried in dead leaves. "Yes!" he chirps before holding one hand up to Laurent. "It could be more fun, though, if I had the love of my eternal life to play with."

Was Laurent too dignified to join Elyas in the leaves? Anyone else might think so, but there is a softer side to the vampire that only his beloved gets to see. If others happen to catch a glimpse of that, well, why should he care? Elyas is the only one whose happiness matters to him. It's his precious gumiho that keeps him feeling alive after so many uncounted years.

Crouching down beside the pile, Laurent buries his hands in the leaves, then tosses them to let them cascade over Elyas, covering him in more of those fiery colors. The colors that suit his fox best of all. There truly is nothing better than seeing Elyas so full of joy. Whether he's zooming through their garden or playing in a pile of dead leaves, as long as he's happy, that's all that matters.

Only when the leaves settle does he shift just so to flop onto the half-buried fox. "Oh, where has my darling Elyas gone," he bemoaned playfully. "I can't find him anywhere!"

Humans are plenty undignified, themselves, so who are they to judge or care about what two monsters choose to do with their time or each other? Not that it ever seems to stop the humans. Who really cares about them, though? Dumb, useless creatures, really. Well, not entirely useless.

Elyas reaches up in a feeble attempt to catch some of the leaves Laurent tossed up in the air, laughing as they fall all around him and bury him a little further. The laugh, however, makes way for a startled squeak when the vampire flops onto him. Delightfully unexpected. Without warning, Elyas shifts into his fox form to make himself smaller and better able to wriggle out from beneath Laurent, though all it really does is bury the little fox further beneath the leaves. There's excited trilling and a happily swishing tail under the foliage and he gently nips at the vampire to try to get him to move when the wriggling isn't as effective as he would have liked!

For only a moment, he doubles down on his wiggly companion. Only for a moment. He knows never to play too roughly. While Laurent doesn't get off the pile he leaves, he does shift his weight enough to the side to free the gumiho. It's probably easier for Elyas to dive in and out of the leaves in his fox form. Laurent is a little surprised he hadn't found him in it.

Now that Elyas is in his fox shape, Laurent sits up to begin tossing the leaves once more so the little fox can jump and chase them.

There are whines and more trilling, foxy little grunts and barks and huffing as he wiggles more beneath the vampire. All the while, a big fluffy red tail (only one. Late though it is, there's always the chance that a human could happen by. This way, they'll see a man and a friendly fox instead of a vampire and a gumiho. Not that they would know at first glance that that's what Laurent is) swishes back and forth more and more quickly. He's happy. He's excited. He gets to have fun with his most precious vampire.

The moment Laurent gives him even an inch of space, the little fox darts a few feet away from him then immediately returns, climbing up onto his love's back and licking his cheek. His attention is quickly pulled away from the vampire though and he jumps off of Laurent's back when he starts tossing leaves to chase. Every once in a while, Elyas catches one of the leaves in his mouth and lays it delicately on Laurent's leg. It serves as the only calm moments. Otherwise, he's climbing his love, jumping off of him, burying himself in the leaves and rolling around in them.

He keeps at it until he's panting. It's only then that the calm begins to extend beyond giving Laurent leaves. Then he starts to flop onto Laurent's lap for a few moments at a time to catch his breath before bounding off to chase leaves again. Energetic though he is, his lungs aren't always able to keep up with him, alas.

Ah, he could watch Elyas like this and never grow bored. The little fox’s energy is thrilling to watch and it brings such a smile to Laurent’s face. Whenever he notices the leave spreading too thin, the vampire gathers them up once more into a small pile for his beloved to destroy.

Laurent’s careful with each leaf Elyas places on his lap, treating each like a treasure. Unless the fox indicates that he wants to play with them once more, they’ll be going home with them. He so adores anything gifted by Elyas.

During those calm moments, the vampire runs his fingers over Elyas’ fur, taking particular care to scratch around his velvety ears. His gumiho could keep at this for a while given long enough breaks between his bursts of energy. Laurent has no other plans and is completely content to throw leaves and be climbed on for as long as it make Elyas happy.

After the third or fourth flop, Laurent leans down to press a kiss to between the fox’s ears. Stroking his fur once more, he smiles at the exhausted creature. “Are you getting tired, my love?”

Each time Laurent gathers up a new pile of leaves, the fox scrambles back to his feet and dives into them. They're piles of leaves specially made just for him, after all! He burrows beneath them, leaving little more than a long, fluffy tail visible to sweep happily back and forth over the ground. He quickly whips around to pull at his own tail a little, trying to clear away one of the dried leaves that have gotten caught in his fur. It lasts no longer than a few seconds though. He's quickly distracted by the still mostly formed pile of leaves that his vampire had gathered up for him. He releases his tail to run tight circles in the small pile, chittering excitedly as they're scattered.

Elyas bounds around his precious vampire a few times before suddenly stopping in front of him, though his eyes continue to dart around. Until they spot what they've been on the lookout for. He drops, flattening himself against the ground, staring straight in front of him, then suddenly leaps into the air to pounce on the object of all of his focus. It's a leaf. It's just another leaf. But he picks it up proudly and trots back over to Laurent with it. It's a lovely mix of yellow and red, clearly having fallen during its transition. He noses one or two leaves off of the vampire's lap (ones that he's suddenly deemed not good enough for his love) and replaces them with the new acquired, multi-coloured leaf. Then he flops back down once again, only this time when he does it, he shifts back to his more human looking form and lays with his head in Laurent's lap, careful of his collected leaves.

"Ridiculous," he finally answers with a bright smile up at Laurent. "I couldn't possibly get tired with the source of all my energy so near by."

Laurent picks up the multi-color leaf, holding it up to admire it. This one will be his treasure. It will be the one dipped and waxed and pressed between the pages of a book, preserved forever since his love chose it for him.

Upon Elyas shifting back into a humanoid form, Laurent instinctively reaches out to begin combing his fingers through the gumiho's hair. Did he care that they were sitting on the cool ground in a public place as night stretched out around them? No. It doesn't matter where they are when they're together. And the chill doesn't bother him since he's a dead thing anyway. With all the energy Elyas' expended playing, he's probably not very cognizant of the cold right now, either.

Ah, but that smile makes him feel weak. It makes something inside the vampire flutter like he's a young creature new to the world of love. Every time, without fail. How is it possible to fall for someone again and again, every minute of every night? A contented sigh slips from him and he holds the multi-color leaf in front of Elyas' eyes.

"I will keep this one forever," he promised.

As a creature made purely of mountain magic and fur, who'd just spent a not insignificant amount of time running and jumping, it'll be some time before the cold really starts to bother Elyas. They still have plenty of time to enjoy the cool, crisp air and the rapidly freezing ground. Plenty of time to enjoy this night, yet so little time to enjoy the season before it turns over to winter. But he doesn't need to think of such things currently (time has no meaning to that which doesn't die). The here and now is all that's important.

Elyas reaches up toward the leaf that Laurent is holding, gently running his fingers over it. Along the edges and over the veins. Admiring it as well as inspecting it. Making sure he didn't accidentally puncture it with his teeth. As careful and gentle as he can be as a fox, mistakes can still happen. Picking things up with one's mouth can only ever be so gentle.

It's perfect though. Just like his vampire and the love they share for one another.

"Be sure that you do. I won't go looking for another one for you," he teases. They both know the real truth. Elyas would bring Laurent a thousand leaves a thousand times over if that was what he wanted.

There will always be more leaves. More leaves, more fragrant flowers struggling to survive without the sun's kiss, more stories of life in the light and the laughter of children. There will always be more and yet Laurent doesn't tire of it. He never tires of the gifts and the daylight world woven in his beloved's voice. How could he when Elyas is his everything?

A quiet huff of laughter answers the fox's words. As if there won't be more leaves tomorrow, next week, next autumn, a decade, a century, a millennium from now. As if Laurent's metaphorical breath won't be taken away with each new leaf. But this one, this is the leaf he will keep forever.

"This one reminds me of you. So bright and vibrant."

The city was something Elyas still wanted to avoid for obvious reasons but he'd been able to talk his mate into going with him to a small village on the opposite side of the forest. And he was so glad that he had. Even when he wasn't right next to him he could hear how much fun he was having with all the leaves, Silvio smiling as he did little errands here and there before coming back to sit down and listen to him.

A laugh escaped him when he heard a pile of leaves get destroyed. Leaning back on his hands, he tilted his head then gave a little shake to get some of the leaves off of him that had floated over.

Adorable. Absolutely adorable.

"Should I start collecting leaves in piles around the house for you?"

For as much as Elyas talks of disliking humans, he doesn't hate spending time in their cities and towns. It's where their children are and he actually likes the children! Now if the parents would just let their children wander into the woods, Elyas would never have to see the adults outside of ripping their insides out! Plus the towns, especially, are so cozy at this time of the year. And some of them start to put up decorations that he likes to look at (and will probably now spend the rest of the day describing to Silvio).

Elyas is glad, too, that he allowed Silvio to talk him into going into the village. As much as he wanted to go, he'd been apprehensive. What if some of the hunters lived there too? Could Silvio be entirely certain that there were no hunters waiting for him in the village too? What if they just wait for fifty or so years until they can be sure those hunters are dead?

But Silvio had assured him that those hunters live in the city. Besides, it's not like Elyas is some fragile little thing! They just surprised him last time, that's all. He won't let them get the best of him if he sees them again. And, of course, he also has Silvio.

When Silvio comes to sit down, Elyas is sitting in the center of what was once a neat pile of leaves. Now, it is nothing of the sort. Some leaves, he's crunching in his hands (only if they're nice and dry) while others, he's carefully pulling apart and throwing up into the air like confetti. Or throwing over toward Silvio, though the pieces just sort of flutter to the ground not even a foot in front of the fox whenever he tries that.

"There's already leaves under your mattress and in the couch cushions." He thought, maybe, that between the open doors and Elyas, himself, always smelling of outside, Silvio wouldn't notice the scent of the leaves inside. But then he stops what he's doing and frowns over at the wolf. "Did you move my leaves like you keep moving my food?"

While he couldn't see the frown, he could very much hear it in the tone of his voice. Grinning, he cocked his head to the side and stretched his legs out in front of him then went to recline back on his elbows. The food thing was something they were still working on but that was fine.

"You mean did I clean the house and furniture? I did do that." Basically every time his mate runs out to go play on his own for a few hours. Every single time.

"It's our mattress, by the way."

Just to remind him that it was fully his territory too. They'd get it smelling like him equally with enough time but that fact didn't make the bed less of his. Not by a long shot.

"Leaves don't do well indoors like they do outdoors."

The food thing is something that has to be worked on. Elyas needs to start finding better places to hide it. He's getting really tired of going back to his hiding spaces later and finding out that the wolf has taken his food. Mate or not, that's Elyas' special food! How dare Silvio take it without at least asking first. That's not to say that Elyas would necessarily let him take it, but at least he could ask!

Narrowed eyes accompany the frown and he tries, once again, to throw leafs over at Silvio only for them to gentle fall back to the ground before ever reaching the wolf.

"Yeah that's what I said." He's starting to get better as calling it 'our' instead of 'your' but he still slips up on a pretty regular basis. Often without even taking notice of it.

"They're dead so they didn't do that well outdoors either." Then he shuffles forward a little and points an accusatory finger at the wolf. "You better not have touched the leaf I put in the cupboard. I was saving that one." That's why it wasn't just shoved under the mattress or the couch cushions.

Silvio could hear the attempts to throw leaves at him and just laughed every time they failed. Eventually he was sure Elyas was just going to get up to dump them on him but that was fine. He was ready for that fun moment too.

"They do well outdoors. They help to ready the plants for new life."

He hummed thoughtfully and considered the cupboard leaf. "Why are you saving a leaf in the cupboard?"

Elyas huffs at the laughing wolf. Oh, Elyas will get back at him before too long. He'll gather up a whole armful of leaves or something. He won't allow his precious leaves to keep embarrassing him like this in front of the dumb wolf. Right now, he's just biding his time until the moment is right. Just wait, Silvio.

"Humans rake them all up and throw them away and everything still grows fine so they're clearly not that important for new growth." Though it's not surprising that humans throw away something that's important to nature. They probably throw it away and then just buy something that's pretty much the same to replace it when the time comes. ...yeah that sounds pretty human.

"So it wouldn't get mixed in with the other leaves." Obviously.

"Nature would thrive more if the leaves were there honestly. That way they don't have to supplement with those chemicals that smell awful."

But what really mattered here? That leaf. He was very curious about it now. "What's so special about it that it needs to be kept apart from the others? Are you going to use it for something?"

Because it definitely wasn't going to last in the cupboard.

Elyas tips his head to one side curiously, not quite understanding the question. He blinks a few times at the wolf and then lays back in the leaves with his arms spread out to the sides. His eyes dart around the various leaves still hanging on tightly to their branches. All such beautiful colours. Reds and yellows and oranges. Some of them are even managing to retain a bit of their green. Why wouldn't he want to keep one of them for himself?

"That's stupid. What would I use a leaf for?"

So not to use. That meant it was just a very simple reason then. Silvio pondered it a moment then...

"Do you really love the color and shape of it?" After all, how would he know since he was blind? He had no way to be able to tell if it was really that special at all.

Even if Silvio wasn't blind, there doesn't look to be anything particularly special about the leaf he has hidden away. It has a tear in one side of it, and there's little brown spots marring the pretty, bright orange. There are plenty of far better leaves around, some near close to perfect, but Elyas got attached to that one. That one little leaf that's far from the prettiest leaf he's seen.

Elyas sits back up then starts to gather up a small pile of leaves in front of himself. "It's a nice leaf."

And that was it. Elyas just really loved it. Silvio smiled and bowed his head. "It'll be safe. I promise."

Once they got home he was going to go find it then set about preserving it to ensure that it would last and not dry up and turn to nothing. If Elyas loved that little leaf then there were ways to keep it as it was and he was going to set about using them to keep it safe for sure.

"Don't touch it." Then it'll stay safe. It's beneath some dishes that he hasn't seen Silvio use yet so he's sure that it'll be okay there. It'll stay nice and flat and protected with the heavy dish on top of it. As preserved as he can get it. And he can go and look at it any time he wants! It's the perfect solution for the little fox. Sure, it'll probably be a dusty, crumbly mess in a few weeks, but that's okay. It's not like this is the first time he'd picked and then lost a leaf that he liked. It's a familiar process for the fox.

Elyas climbs to his feet and then bends over to scoop up the pile of leaves he'd been gather, then he unceremoniously dumps them over the wolf. "You can touch these ones though."

There it was. The dumping he'd been waiting for. He closed his eyes to make sure none would get in his eyes then shook his head off before grabbing his mate to pull him onto his lap and nuzzle him. "Hmmmm...between leaves and you... I always pick you!"

He grinned then kissed his cheek, wrapping his arms around him so he could cuddle him.

"I'll see about getting some leaf piles for you at home though. It's really cute when you play in them."

Elyas

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject