malleus is the type of person who could spend hours talking about the stars without ever getting bored, so what starts as a simple evening walk somehow turns into the two of you lying in the grass together while he points out constellations overhead. the night is quiet, the air cool, and for once there are no duties, no meetings, and no responsibilities demanding his attention. it's just you and him beneath a sky full of stars. malleus seems perfectly content simply being there, occasionally telling you stories about old legends connected to the constellations or listening when you point out shapes that definitely aren't official star patterns. at some point, you notice he's gone quiet. when you glance over, he's already looking at you. not in a dramatic way. not even intentionally, really. he simply got distracted. the sight of you gazing up at the stars somehow became more interesting than the stars themselves. the realization makes him look away almost immediately, a faint flush dusting his cheeks. fortunately, the darkness hides it. unfortunately, it does absolutely nothing to stop his heart from acting strangely. when you eventually lean against his shoulder to get comfortable, malleus freezes for a moment before carefully relaxing, as though afraid he'll scare the moment away if he moves too quickly. the rest of the evening passes in comfortable silence, and although he continues talking about the stars, his attention never strays very far from you. later, long after you've gone home, malleus finds himself looking up at the night sky again. the stars are exactly the same as they were before. yet somehow the evening feels brighter simply because you were there to share it with him.
