"Samuel!"
At the gates he had waited for her as he had every autumnal equinox. The love of his life, a paradox, anathema to everything he represented, Sam drowned in the radiant glory that was Y/N. Warmth washed over him as she jumped into his arms. Acanthus and sea salt filled his nose, scents he adored, scents that he longed to smell again every time she left him in the spring. Held close, he buried his nose in the crook of her neck and her hair shrouded him from the harsh light of the sun.
"My dear Y/N," he sighed, voice breaking. "I've missed you so."
"And I you," she replied.
When he looked into her wide eyes, Y/N beamed, brimming with life and love. Full cheeks and plump lips flushed pink as a sharp breeze rushed between them, and Y/N curled into his embrace. "Can we go home? Autumn's end is upon us and there's a chill in my bones."
"Y/N?"
She clung to his robes as Sam held her close. "Yes?"
"I would like to stay for a while," he replied. "Topside. Not long. I want to see what you leave behind when you're with me."
Y/N shuddered with a downtrodden frown. "You wish to see Winter?"
Sam smiled as he threaded his fingers into her hair. The gentlest suggestion lifted her eyes to his once more and he drowned in her disappointed gaze. "I can keep you comfortable." With a single thought, silvery robes draped her shoulders, manifested from the chill in the air to billow about her feet. Supple leather wrapped her feet and leather gloves sheathed her hands. Completely covered but for her plunging neckline—Sam perished the thought of hiding such perfect cleavage from the world—he held her at arm's length and admired his handiwork.
"Oh, it's so soft," she sighed, but a sharp glare snapped to his. "I hope—"
"No animals were harmed, I promise," Sam sang as he held up a pleading hand. "Must you think so lowly of me."
Y/N glanced at her cleavage, then back to him. "I think you're a bit of a pervert."
"Come now, Y/N," he cooed, "you were wearing a tea cozy for a dress before."
Her glare narrowed as she fingered the neckline from her chest up to the high collar at the nape of her neck. "Is it pretty?"
A wave of his hand summoned a tall mirror in which she appeared. Her jaw dropped as she turned to each side, marveling at the swathes of heavy velvet lined with shimmery satin. With posture that put kings to shame, Y/N squared to the mirror as Sam lay his hands upon her shoulders. "You've ensorcelled me," he mused as he curled her hair behind her ear. Another wave of his hand summoned a crown of sharp grey stone atop her head, not unlike his own. She stared at it a moment, face contorted with scrutiny. He couldn't help but ogle her; pure power radiate from her in waves, regal dress and a crown far more intimidating than he had intended.
A flick of her own hand transformed the crown into a braid of white and ice blue hyacinths, a perfect match for her silvery robes.
"I dare say you have improved my concept," Sam jested.
She held out her arm for him to hold. "Come then, my love. Winter looms."
Sam wrapped his arm beneath hers and followed as she led him into the fading autumn woods. Together they walked, the passage of time ignored for the pleasure of good company. As the days waned, the bright red, orange, and yellow leaves faded to brown and fell, carried on the winds like so many tiny ships bearing promise for tomorrow.
"Tell me, Y/N," Sam said as they walked a wooded path. "What do mortals find so fascinating about the change of the trees? Do they not dislike the end of life? They despise me."
The soft leather of her gloved hand enveloped his. "My sweet Sam, I believe you underestimate mortals. They comprehend our world changes for a reason. Inexorable, time moves, and so must life. The trees shed life they can no longer support when the winds change and the sun's time in the sky shortens."
"But it is death they are witnessing," Sam stated as he stopped. Y/N stuttered to a halt beside him and waited for him to finish his thought. "Mortals despise death."
"In death, there is life," Y/N said. "The leaves fall to the ground and return to the earth from which they grew. So too will mortals, one day. That is what they fear. They appreciate the beauty of the leaves for it is fleeting. And believe it or not, there are even some mortals that enjoy the stillness of Winter."
"Stillness?" Sam asked.
When Y/N gestured to the landscape before them, Sam gaped. Enraptured by their conversation, he had missed the snowfall. They stood beside a small river, its steady flow churning beneath the overhanging snow on the banks. A dense forest lined the far side of the river, covered in a thick layer of snow. Even though he heard the babble of the river, no other sounds penetrated the pristine stillness, and Sam understood.
"It is beautiful," he sighed. "This is what happens while you are away?"
"It is," she said with a small smile. "I should have known you would enjoy it."
"You do not?" Sam asked.
Y/N squinted into the pale winter sunlight as she thought. "I neither like it nor dislike it. But without it the world would not survive. It cannot support endless springs and summers. Overgrowth would choke out other life and the delicate balance between prey and predator depend on this cleansing. Even the mortals understand that."
For a long moment, Sam remained silent, enthralled. He had never known such serenity, and how marvelous for him that Y/N had unwittingly given it to him through death. He turned to her with that transformative thought and gathered her in his arms. "Thank you."
"For?"
He held her tight as her arms wrapped around him. "For everything. For all that you sacrifice to stand beside me."
"Of course," Y/N said. "I would do anything for you, Samuel. I love you."
"And I you," he repeated.
There they lingered, drowned in one another's embrace. But when Sam felt the shiver in her bones, he roused them from their revere. "I imagine you would like to go now."
"I am sorry, Sam, but I am not used to the cold," she said. "Home?"
Sam nodded as he wrapped his arm beneath hers once more. "Yes. Cerberus misses you."
Y/N laughed her bright, cackling laughter, head thrown back and hand at her stomach. "I can only imagine. I miss her, too."
"Then let us be on our way," Sam said as he motioned them onward. "Home."
The radiance of her smile warmed even his cold, cruel heart. "Home."
