Arcana One Shots

Relax [Nadia X R.]

Art: tumblr: linaisbluepancake

I'm walking through the halls of the palace looking for Nadia. I've spent the whole day going from one place to another, trying to set up a nice surprise for her and everything seemed to be ready. Now, the only thing I needed to do is find her. I already looked for her in her quarters, the bathing rooms, gardens, maze, kitchen, dining room, veranda.. It's getting frustrating. Is she hiding? Suddenly I remember. Maybe she's in her tower? It's the only place she has decent privacy. And she HAS been stressed lately. No wonder, reestablishing the city's well being, rebuilding houses, structures, making fresh water flow through every corner of Vesuvia, she has a lot more responsibility after Lucio was defeated. Who would have guessed that a tantrum from the air head could lead to a whole city in ruins. But that's past us now, been a while and the man hasn't shown his face in our realm since. And I'm glad. I still sometimes wonder how she managed to put up with him as his wife. But I shake my head as I've already reached the entrance to the tower. I shrug, must have been lost in thoughts as usual. I take a deep breath and knock softly on the door, waiting patiently for an answer. Who knows if she's in her own little oasis right now, or if she's just relaxing normally. But my suspicions are answered as she opens the door, greeting me with a smile as soon as she sees me. "Oh, Y/N, darling. What a delight to see you." She smiles at me, looking a bit better. She rarely has time to relax nowadays and it's starting to worry me. I smile up at her but hers falters for a moment and her eyebrows furrow. "Did something happen? Do they need my attendance? It's Valerius, isn't it?" She let's a deep sigh escape her lips but just as she's about to step past me I stop her by placing my hand on her waist. She stops, throwing me a curious glance. I shake my head, leaning in to give her a sweet kiss on the cheek and pull her into a hug. I can feel how tense she is, ready to do her tasks any second. She should relax, let loose, but she doesn't seem to be able to. At least her posture and flexed muscles tell me as much. I pet her back until she gives in and let's a bit loose. "You're soo tense!" I point it out to her and she sighs in defeat. "I can't help it. I've had all these duties and I barely have time for us. For myself.." She tells me and I tighten the hug a bit before letting go. "Hey, I know what will cheer you up. Come on." I reach for her hand and she intertwines our fingers. "Let's go." I say as I lead her down her tower, out of the palace and away from everyone straight into the maze. She chuckles as I lead us into a dead end and get frustrated about it. "Where are you taking me?" She asks me as we stop and I sigh. "The middle of the maze, but I could've sworn this dead end wasn't here before." I tell her and she starts to pull me after her, her leading the way this time. And successfully at that. We reach the fountain in no time and she gasps as she sees what's been arranged for her - for us. Next to the fountain, a nice picnic is set up. A lavender blanket is sat onto the grass with what looks like a small feast on top. I look to Nadia, smiling at her expression. "What- Oh dear!" She gasps, looking for the right words to say. In the end she just smiles and gives my hand a loving squeeze. "I thought, since you barely have any time to relax these days, I'd surprise you with a little picnic. It's nice outside and no one will bother us here. Look, I even got your favorites!" I tell her and I point to the snacks, sweets and varieties of teas. She chuckles and let's her shoulders relax once again. "Thank you, love. This means a lot to me." I blush a little and we walk over and sit down on the soft blanket. I stare at her bedazzling smile while we drink tea and a nice breeze makes her hair flow beautifully, as if it wanted to comb it for her. We laugh and enjoy ourselves for the rest of the day. I'm just glad she got time to relax sometimes, although only when I tell her to or initiate it. Honestly, what would she do without me.