It was cold from where Cyrus was sitting pressed against the window. The gentle snow falling outside blanketing the ground in crisp white. It was hard to feel the cool smooth texture of the glass or even the biting cold but if it was noticeable to him then it must be bad. He couldn't help but think about what Juniper was doing right now. Did she like the snow? He knew she enjoyed the cold but snow was completely different. He should go check on her… What if star was snowed in and couldn't get uh… groceries! or more books! Yeah he should go check on her…
With their mind set, they headed towards the back door and done the steep hill his house was perched on. His parents were out doing whatever the fuck they did with their days— (he knew exactly where they were)— but it became habit to sneak out the back door at odd hours because it doesn't squeak like the front door does. Not to mention the third and fifth floorboard away from the door creaks like a bitch and they can never remember the specific spots that makes them creak. They swear it moves every time, like the floorboards are out to get them—
Right—
Juniper, house, snow, lots and lots of snow.
Cyrus is probably not equip for the weather but night just hopes that their layers are enough, its not like they can feel it. (at the thought, Cyrus can already hear his mom chastising him for that line of thinking like she has countless times. 'Just because you can't feel it as much doesn't mean it doesn't still affect you gem'. At this point its a wonder why she still tries.)
Lost in his thoughts about nefarious floorboards and weather, he didn't even realize he made it to the Cross household until he was standing at their front door, hand already in motion to knock. He doesn't remember if he's already knocked or just about to so he knocks again for good measure.
"Yes, yes, you impatient rat I'm coming." says a delightful voice from inside.
Cyrus didn't have enough time to feel offended by the comment before getting distracted by the person now standing in the open doorway. Juniper. They can already feel their shoulders relaxing in her presence.
'Oh stars, I have it bad.' Cyrus thinks in the privacy of his own head. "Uh… Hey Juni.. I-I just wanted to see what you were up to t-today."
Juniper smiles in a way that tells Cyrus she knows something that she doesn't intend on telling Cyrus until the perfect moment for maximum embarrassment. "Well. I just finished making soup for Aspen and I was about to go work on a sewing project but I could be persuaded." star says with a grin.
"Uhhh.. persuaded to do what exactly?" Cyrus asks with a squeak.
Juniper just raises an eyebrow questioningly, "You're telling me you came all this way in the snow just to say hi?"
Cyrus can faintly feels his face get hot with embarrassment, no doubt flushed with purple all the way down his neck. "Oh! Right! Ha ha… Yes I did come here to ask— um…" They stutter out, desperately, subtly (not), looking at their surroundings for an excuse besides 'I wanted to see you'.
"I was wondering… if you wanted to… have a snowball fight?" he says hesitantly.
"A snowball fight?" Juniper asks incredulously.
"Yeah! I-I mean I don't know how you feel about snow so if you totally hate it we can find something to do inside but i thought it could be fun cause its kind of rare here you know?"
Juniper shakes stars head in what Cyrus assumes is fond exasperation but you could never be too certain, "Sure, let me go get some better clothes and then we can head to our spot, I'm sure it'll have plenty of snow for our needs—"
She finally takes a moment to scrutinize Cyrus' choice in clothes and rolls her eyes at his sheer idiocy. "—and let's get you some better clothes too."
"What? I'm fine. I can't even feel it starlight! See—" he says as he thunks a nail against his skin. It makes a dull thunk sound of tapping on stone.
"Just because you can feel it doesn't mean—" star starts to chastise but Cyrus tunes it out as Juniper finally ushers them through the doorway.
She doesn't go far, just grabbing a fur lined cloak, gloves, and pulls the cloak's hood up to protect her delicate ear fins. She looks him up and down and Cyrus feels himself fidget under the attention. 'That's normal calm down. She's just seeing what clothes to give me. She's not checking me out pull yourself together dude.' By the time he's pulled out of his thoughts, Juniper has already dressed him in a smaller cloak, this one a light blue compared to her pink cloak, and a scarf.
"Sorry, you're going to have to borrow Aspen's cloak if you don't mind."
Cyrus just nods, "Yeah no worries. Let's head out I'm ready to win!", he says, gaining more confidence as he goes and putting the roaming eyes out of his mind.
"Sure moonbeam" Juniper says with a soft smile that Cyrus doesn't catch in his boasting.
After a perilous and dangerous 10 minute walk up a hill and through the forest, they make it to their destination. Cyrus rests his hands on his knees and pants.
Juniper gives him a playful shove, "Come on you big baby it wasn't that bad."
While he recovers, Juniper surveys the area. It's not much but it's their favorite spot to come to when they want to escape. It's just a simple circle clearing in the middle of the Warped Woods, known for its trees that's trunks twist and bend in ways no tree normally should. She makes her first mistake turning her back to Cyrus, something that never ends well. Star is caught off balance by a freezing sensation that hurtled towards star's neck. Juniper puts a hand to the part that as hit and whips around to see Cyrus standing as innocently as he could possibly could (so not very).
"Something the matter Juni?" The traitor says with a teasing lit.
"Oh you're on, Cypress" Juniper replies with a grin.
Cyrus pouts at her nickname, "Heyy I thought we agreed to never speak about that again."
"I remember making no such promise." and with that she throws her best snowball she could manage straight at Cyrus' face.
The fight truly begins then. A flurry of snowballs going back and forth across the clearing, laughter echoing through the empty woods. At some point— Cyrus will deny it was night— they started wrestling in the snow, leaving paths of disturbed snow in their wake. Cyrus claims it was to attempt get snow down her shirt but they really just wanted an excuse to be closer to her, the distance of the clearing felt too far away for his liking. Eventually, both panting and exhausted, Juniper collapses on top of Cyrus. He lets out a puff of air as his breath catches for more then one reason. 'I think I died. This must be some kind of dream or heaven or simply not real. Oh stars I'm so screwed.'
Cyrus can feel the pressure and warmth from where stars' laying on top of him and can just barely feel puffs of breath on his neck but its enough to drive him insane. 'Calm down, holy shit please calm down. This is fine. We're just friends that's it. She doesn't feel the same way don't read into it… Okay I'm reading into it.'
After mostly catching her breath, Juniper props herself up and finally taking the pressure off Cyrus' lungs. She looks happy— and insanely cute… fuck— her cheeks are flushed with a pretty teal and they can just barely see her ear fins twitching under her hood. Her eyes are crinkled in joy and the sun bounces off her strawberry blonde hair, making it almost glow. Her lips are smiling wide, shaped in a pretty cupids bow and showing off her fanged teeth.
"Uhhh.. Cyrus?"
Cyrus is startled back to himself realized he was staring way longer at her lips then appropriate for friends. Not for the first time that day does blush color his cheeks as he looks away. "Uh what sorry?"
Juniper chuckles a bit, "I asked how you were doing moonlight. You zoned out a bit.", keeping one hand propping her up, she uses the other hand to move a section of hair out of Cyrus' face. Her touch feels almost reverent in its softness. It's the final straw before Cyrus surges forward and kisses Juniper… on the lips… like how normal people who don't have crushes on their best friends do.
It's the best feeling he's ever felt, the skin is slightly thinner then the rest of his body meaning he can actually feel it for once. Her lips are warm against his and he feels a spark of electricity at the touch. Shortly after he finally comes to his sense and his eyes widen. He rips himself away from her loose grip and stares wide-eyed at her reaction. Her face is still flushed teal but he doesn't know if its still from the cold or from being flustered. Her mouth is slightly parted in shock and her eyes almost unseeing.
Cyrus curses under his breath, "Shit shit shit, what the fuck did I just do. I'm gonna uhh… go…", and he maneuvers himself out from under Juniper. Once he makes the short distance to the treeline, Juniper's brain seems to finally have caught up and she yells out to him.
"Cyrus! Hey! Wait I didn't even…" but he doesn't catch the tail end of stars' sentence, already out of earshot.
They run faster then they've ever run in their life as they barrel through their front door, not even caring about the stupid floor board creeks that have now just become a pet peeve. It doesn't take too long before an incessant knocking on the door starts.
"Hey! You get you're ass out here right now Cyrus! I swear on Selune I will drag you out of there so save us both the effort." Juniper shouts.
'Wow swearing and taking her goddesses' name in vain, I really fucked up'
Cyrus reluctantly opens the door and is met with Juniper looking barely out of breath for how much running she must've done. Curse her tall legs and longer stamina.
"Now. Would you like to explain to me what the hells that was?!" She asks exasperated.
Cyrus fidgets under her gaze, "Uhh… If I told you to forget about it and I didn't mean to could we agree to never talk about it again?"
Star looks offended at first before it turns into something more neutral and cold, "Did you not mean it?"
"I mean, well… I did but if you don't feel that way then we can pretend this never happened cause I'd really like to ke—" his rambling is cut off by a kiss. A real one. Not the rushed heat of the moment bullshit he pulled. He reciprocates quickly before pulling away, wide-eyed and unsure.
"Uhhh…"
Juniper smiles, "Does that answer your questions?"
"Uhh yeah… Yeah I'd say so." He says, his lips twitching upwards as he drags inside by her arm, "I could get used to that."