Chapter 56: Andante
Samael reclined with her head resting across Kivas’ thighs, one arm bent loosely over her midsection, the other draped across the grass. Her gaze was turned upward, fixed on the half-shadowed profile of the angel above her.
The branches above filtered sunlight in soft beams, tracing faint patterns across Kivas’ expression—equal parts tranquil and tired, touched with something peaceful she hadn’t worn since the distortion reset the world.
The lap beneath her was surprisingly comfortable.
Samael had worried her horns would complicate the arrangement, but they’d formed at such a modest angle that she simply needed to rest closer to the bend of Kivas’ knees.
Her neck arched slightly, but the view was worth it. From here, the world narrowed down to soft cloth, steady warmth, and Kivas’ quiet rhythm.
Also, Kivas’ thighs were plump enough to accommodate her.
"This whole time-resetting thing," Samael murmured, her voice tinted with amusement, "still feels utterly insane." Her fingers brushed faintly against the fabric over Kivas’ leg, slow and idle. "I’ve thought about it. A lot...
"And I’m certain of it now. This isn’t a different Fathomi. This is our Fathomi. The same layers, the same cycles. Just... rewound. Not recreated anew or being thrown to a different timeline."
Kivas looked down at her, fingers gently combing through the twin-toned strands of Samael’s hair. "I was scared," she admitted softly. "The world flipped, the ground was gone, and you were dead. Then I woke up again like nothing ever happened. I kept asking if I was hallucinating...
"If everything was a dream." She paused, her touch pausing mid-stroke. "But when I saw your face again... it was like a switch flipped inside my chest. All that anxiety vanished. Just like that."
Samael’s lips curved slightly, and her gaze turned away, not toward the sky but toward the opposite side of the field, away from Kivas’ line of sight.