Chapter Text
Gale needed to sleep, but Vir required only reverie, so she had mastered the art of slipping out of bed after her four hours of rest without waking Gale. She would sit in the library and pour over a book until morning. Sometimes Tara would sit in her lap, though she maintained that Gale’s lap was more comfortable than Vir’s.
Vir was aware that sleep habits were not the only difference. She had centuries left in her. Gale was human. As a Chosen of Mystra, his magic might extend his life much longer than a normal human’s, but not forever, and while his aging would eventually slow to a stop, he would age at the normal human rate until that happened.
His face would line. His hair would grey. His bad back and bad knees would get worse. Those dark eyes would stay the same.
Vir had seen human-elven couples a few times before. An elderly human leaning for support on the arm of a fresh-faced elf who might be three times that human’s age or more. Vir simply planned to stay by Gale’s side for as long as she could have him.
Tara and Morena had both been delighted at what Vir and Gale had begun to share, but among a few of their colleagues, there had been snide comments about how Vir, with her purple-toned skin, proved that Gale had a type, and that after Mystra had left him, he was simply seeking out the next best thing.
Vir knew that was not the case. She had seen how Gale was when he was with Mystra; she could see how he behaved now that he was with her instead. Happier with himself. Less desperate to prove his worth. More secure. She had come to realise that Gale’s social circle was not so wide as she’d been used to assume, but the few friends he had accepted the relationship unreservedly.
Vir had a collection of the love poetry Gale had written her, comparing her eyes to rubies, her hair to starlight, to snowdrops. A dozen commendations of her intelligence and skill. In the mornings, they’d walk to Blackstaff Academy arm in arm.
Vir had never thought she could make someone so happy. She had not thought she could inspire such depth of love. She had not imagined she could have a comfortable home, or a lover who looked at her the way Gale did.
She’d come to know him in ways she’d never imagined. To see the way he’d look at her, as he stirred a pot in the kitchen, only for Vir to come up behind him and tug playfully on the string of his apron, so he had no choice but to step back into her arms, laughing quietly. He cut a fine figure in his robes, but underneath them, his waist softened just the littlest bit, and it felt like a secret only Vir could know.
Vir heard Gale stir in the next room. She set down her book, and went back to the bedroom.
Gale lay in bed, his hair mussed from sleep.
If she cast her mind back, Vir could remember Gale as a fresh-faced young university student. She liked the man before her much more. More self-assured, more mature, with the beginnings of grey hairs and frown lines. Oh, he could still be insecure sometimes, but it was something he was growing out of. He knew that he was enough for Vir, even if he still looked at her in wonder, as he was doing now.
He smiled up at her. “Good morning, my love.”
“You’re awake early,” said Vir, bending to kiss him.
“Early enough that I can tempt you back to bed?”
By way of answer, Vir slipped under the covers. Gale pulled her close. “Allow me to warm you up.”
Vir relaxed against him. It had always been so very hard for her to relax, but she was learning to do it. It was easier to learn these things with Gale in her arms, creases on his cheek from the pillow, hair unkempt. It felt like safety. It felt like a home.