Spring Fling

Ara marveled at how easy it was to smile around Novel. Even around her family, she was generally fairly serious, reserved and composed. But it seemed useless to even try to contain her joy around her best friend -- it seemed to spill over regardless, a smile that illuminated her features for all to see.

Usually she preferred to have a plan or a goal in mind, even if it was a small and meaningless one. To collect a certain herb, to simply scout for flowers, anything -- but she didn't need an excuse to spend time with Novel. It almost made her feel selfish, to simply do nothing with someone for the sake of enjoyment alone. She knew she didn't need to feel guilty, but it partially made her time with her that much more thrilling. She felt her stomach turn with excitement at the prospect of coming back here in the summer, when the flowers all turned to fruit, and they could perhaps try some of them. Her smile grew, the expression twitching at the corners of her lips, and she felt her tail wagging gently behind her. "Let us find some flowers, then," she said, slipping beneath the underbrush. The orchard was quite overgrown, and though it was quite beautiful, the vegetation was too dense to navigate with ease. But there was no need for everything to be easy, was there?