Submission (#6647) Approved

Nico and Mary were still in Faerindell, enjoying the harvest season. After the picnic they had last week, Nico had decided they should be a little more active - and go harvest and forage for some of the amazing foods Faerindell had to offer. He loved Faerindell a lot. The mild climate agreed with him and he couldn’t help but marvel at the pink trees and the wide array of flowers everywhere. It was so colorful and such a stark contrast to his home in Ahza.

They stayed at an Inn, which was owned by a friend of Mary and during breakfast she gave them insight and tips on where they could find the best apple picking places.
“They are in the middle of harvesting everywhere, but I know some places that are not very crowded.” 

Nico liked the sound of that, and he kept listening while he was grabbing different kinds of berries and gave them to his pomu, which was sitting next to his tea cup and enjoying the fresh fruits. Nico smiled and grabbed a bowl of whipped cream. “Here you go, have you tried the blueberries with this before? It’s quite tasty.” He was feeling a bit guilty about not having spent a lot of time with his Pomu in the past few weeks - the whole ordeal with Mary had him quite distracted, and he wanted to make up for it now. Not that his Pomu minded very much; it was just happy and eager to help Nico in any way. It chirped and threw a big strawberry into the whipped cream and took a big bite out of the fruit.

The purring was so loud, even Mary perked up his ears and laughed softly when he discovered the scene. “You’re spoiling them”, he amused, and laughed when Nico stuck his tongue out.

“Is that so? Well I’ve never heard you complain about me spoiling you…” Nico grinned, before having to catch a bread roll Mary threw in his direction in order to shut him up. He laughed again. “I wanted to prepare lunch for us anyway.” 

Mary just glared at him in annoyance before getting back to Talia, who had followed this conversation amused. 

[...] 

Fairy shrouds adorned the archway and Mary eventually found himself under the boughs of a sprawling apple orchard while Nico was enthusiastically pawing at some of the apples that had already fallen to the ground and were being eaten by bugs. Nico made a mental note to stay away from those, as he did not want to get stung by wasps. The orchard was bathed in the warm hues of the afternoon sun, everything was pink and orange and the scent of ripe apples lingered in the air.

Strolling amidst the rows of trees, Mary's pink eyes narrowed as he surveyed the surroundings. Meanwhile, Nico enthusiastically trailed after him, keeping a basket nearby, his friendly and outgoing demeanor undeterred by Marys’ typically reserved disposition.“Come on now, love~ What’s the matter? Look at all these precious apples, ready to be harvested” Nico purred, his yellow eyes gleaming with excitement.

Mary flicked his short tail, giving a slight nod to acknowledge Nicos excitement. Despite his reserved demeanor, there was a tenderness in his gaze as he glanced at his partner. 

"Just feeling a bit under the weather", he answered quietly. 

Nico nodded softly and got the hint. Ever since the ordeal in Ahza Marys’ mood was even more unstable than usual and he was easily thrown off by the slightest things. It didn’t help that Mary just wasn’t used to doing normal things.

With a heavy sigh, Mary looked around, a bit overwhelmed on where to start. There was so much variety, so many options to choose from. This was his first time going apple picking.
“These all look delicious. Where and how do we start?” Feeling a bit lost, he stopped and turned around to Nico. who couldn't hold back his excitement and jumped onto a low-hanging, nearby branch and grinned. As he did, a shower of leaves fell gently to the ground and surrounded Mary, who couldn’t help but smile at this natural confetti. 

"How about right here?”, Nico exclaimed and shook the branch a bit more to make more leaves fall onto his partner.

Mary laughed softly. “Are you sure?” He looked around, but Nico just nodded and eagerly climbed up and reached for the plump, crimson fruits. His agile movements and playful antics sparked a rare but subtle amusement in Mary, who went to retrieve the basket Nico had left on the ground.
“Alright then! Just throw them carefully and I’ll put them in the basket.”

Together, they filled their little woven basket with apples, their different personalities turning the mundane task into a delightful adventure. Nico happily kept the conversation going, trying to distract Mary from his dark thoughts - he talked about the fun of picking apples, what different recipes they could try and if they should try different varieties as well; sometimes playfully nudging Mary when he was on the ground and they moved onto the next trees. Mary responded with a soft purr, silently acknowledging their special bond and being thankful for his partners’ understanding. 

Eventually their pomus joined in on the fun and climbed around in the trees, next to Nico, trying to pick the most juicy apples. Mary was okay with staying on the ground. As they moved to collecting different varieties, he started to carefully sort them.

As the sun dipped lower in the sky, casting a warm glow over the orchard, Nico and Mary made their way back home, their baskets brimming with the fruits of their joint labor. The giant pink Eldertree of Faerindell loomed in the distance. On their way, they enjoyed the sound of rustling leaves and the comforting feeling of being together.

“I’m sure Talia will allow us to use her kitchen again”, Nico daydreamed. “I can’t wait. Do you have a favorite apple recipe, love?”

“Mhm…Let me think~” Mary had never thought of that. He had a sweet tooth, but usually that included chocolate.
“I had toffee apple cake once, it was very delicious. Can we bake that? I think we picked the right variety of apples for it. I can look up a recipe when we’re back.”

“Sounds like a plan!”