#cozy comforts

[travelswithmx]

Cozy night in.

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

Vesuvia Weekly: What Home Feels Like

-- written for @vesuviaweekly's prompt "cozy comforts", with Asra! enjoy a drabble with some angst and comfort :3 --

Asra is predictably unpredictable - which is to say, while they rarely do the exact same thing twice, they'd never do something that wasn't typical of who they are and how they like to function. And this ... isn't typical at all.

"Asra?"

"Hm?"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

He's clearly not fine. His smile doesn't reach his eyes, his bag and coat are placed carefully next to him on the shop counter instead of being haphazardly tossed upstairs, and while you've seen him look tired and lost before, you've never seen him do it sitting completely still on a cold glass counter. You know he tends to be a little emotionally raw after spending one-on-one time catching up with his parents but this is new in a not-so-great way. Sensing your concern, he makes a stronger attempt at a smile and starts to make his way towards the upstairs apartment.

"Really, I'm okay. Just ... tired. There's nothing to worry about."

"I'm still worried," you insist as you follow them up the stairs. When you get to the top you see the uncharacteristic behavior continuing: they're standing quietly in the middle of the room, not moving to start a pot of tea or put down their coat and bag or snuggle into something soft. You circle around them to continue the conversation, but another look at the quiet grief on their face makes comforting them your main priority. If they won't engage in their usual self-soothing habits, you'll just have to do it for them.

You open your hand for his bag and coat and set them down to the side, and then guide him by the hand to the cozy nook under the window. "Sit down," you tell him gently, "I'll make you that smoky tea you like."

You're relieved to see them comply, curling up in a corner of the sofa with a grateful smile. You set the kettle to boil with the stove salamander's help and then busy yourself collecting blankets, throws, pillows, and scarves from around the apartment to take back to the nook. You could swear you see them shiver slightly when you bundle them up and surround them with all manner of soft things. Faust appears as you finish arranging everything and glides around Asra's shoulders, settling in with a comforting squeeze.

Soon enough you're back with a pot of his favorite tea and a couple of cups to drink it with. When you finally sit down next to him and open your arm for cuddles, he falls into your shoulder with a shaky sigh you know he didn't plan on letting you hear. Several sips of hot tea later, he clears his throat, finally ready to tell you what's on his mind.

"I'm sorry ... I don't know what came over me. Thank you for doing this."

"It's no more than you've done for me."

"You're right," they start with a small, wet chuckle, and then "you're still doing it for me, though."

Another pause. You can feel him hesitating, open to talking about it, but not knowing how to do it after years of keeping all his pain to himself. You card your fingers through his hair (another self-soothing gesture you've seen him do to himself when he's stressed) and venture a question.

"Is it something you talked about with your parents?"

"It's ..." they swallow, "yeah. We've talked about the past before, but ... this was the first time ..." Another pause. They breath deeply, tighten their arms around you, and continue. "I actually told them how I lived. What it was like after they left, what losing my family, my -- my home, what it ... did to me."

You card your fingers through his hair again and rest your cheek on his head where he's snuggled against your chest. He drinks the rest of his tea, hand trembling, and you choose not to comment on it as you reach out and refill his cup. Eventually, you decide to risk pressing further. No more secrets, you remind yourself, no more taking on emotional burdens alone.

"You don't have to tell me," you start hesitantly, "but ... what did it do to you?"

They snuggle even closer and you can feel them grounding themself with your heartbeat. "I lost my childhood. I forgot ... what it meant to have a home. I spent years under the docks, trying to rebuild what I remembered a safe place feeling like. I figured out how to make any corner soft and hidden. I learned how to fall asleep anywhere. But it wasn't ... it was never the same. It was never home. By the time I met you, I couldn't remember what it was like to belong somewhere safe."

You can hear the tears clogging his throat and you'd be lying if you acted like you couldn't feel any of your own springing to your eyes. Knowing his habits by now, you go ahead and grab his teacup so he can take some more sips before he chooses to continue.

"I always knew it wasn't my parent's fault, that they would never choose to leave me behind, but ... when they finally asked about it, I was ... angry. I didn't want to hurt them, but they kept saying they wanted to hear everything I was willing to share ... I hated it. I hate being angry at them almost as much as I hate what happened to me ... to us."

You hug them again as they trail off. You're surprised when they pull away to gaze into your eyes, their steady love shining through the grief.

"But then I told them about meeting you. The first time you had me up here for a visit ... it was the first time since I lost them that I walked into a place that was safe and kind that I hadn't had to make up on my own. Even the hut I shared with Muriel was something I'd had to pretend was a home, but this space, with you in it ..." He smiles and trails one gentle knuckle down the curve of your cheek, "You reminded me what home felt like."

You can't help smiling back at them now. "Is that where you get your habit of covering me in soft things?"

His eyes widen in realization. "I ... I guess so. Whenever I needed comfort, I'd do things that felt like being at home ... like drinking tea, or taking a nap somewhere soft, or holding something that felt like a hug. I think that's where Faust learned how to squeeze. So when you became home to me ... those were all things I wanted to do with you."

Now it's really hard not to cry. Asra offers you your untouched teacup with a sly smile and waits for you to compose yourself. You snuggle back in with them with a slight sniffle. "I'm sorry, this was about comforting you -"

"Don't be." His eyes are bright, still tired, but lightened from letting go of one more years-old burden. "I didn't mean to weigh you down."

"You didn't." You smile at them. "Thank you for sharing your heart with me."

He laughs. "Thank you for sharing your home with me."

[vesuviaweekly]

Vesuvia Weekly: February 19th - March 5th

You voted, so here it is!

Cozy Comforts

With that, the "Splinters" prompt is officially closed!

The tags are the usual #vesuvia weekly and for this specific prompt, #cozy comforts. The masterlist for all works submitted for this prompt will be under the poll for next week :D

Next week's prompt

Static Electricity

Charcoal Smudging

Cat Behavior

I want to see the votes o.o

Voting ended onFeb 27, 2025

MASTERLIST

What Home Feels Like by @iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia

A Little Place With You by @thesongbirdssonginvesuvia

Mission: Cozy Countess by @mermaidchan05

[thesongbirdssonginvesuvia]

A Little Place With You

For @vesuviaweekly prompt: "Cozy Comforts"

Pairing: Muriel/Lark (He/They Apprentice)

Word count: 592

Summary: Some time after the battle, Lark and Muriel begin to built their new home...

Notes: Yes, chickens can swim, at least a little.

“You think we could put in sky light?”

              Muriel snorted. “Not unless you want the roof to cave in on us.”

              Lark laughed as he continued to sand the bit of wood Muriel had given to him. He wasn’t exactly handy, but he tried to be as helpful as he could, mostly taking trips into town to pick up much needed supplies while Muriel did most of the technical stuff. “Okay so sky light is out,” Lark said, grinning from ear to ear as he often did when he was being playful, “but how do you feel about a swimming pool? Maybe one just big enough for the chickens to swim in…wait do chickens’ swim?”

              “Hand me the hammer,” Muriel said. Lark did as asked, handing the other man the hammer. As he did his hand brushed Muriel’s and the larger man paused, looking at the tool in his hand, then at Lark. “You sure about this?”

              Lark blinked in surprise. “About what? The swimming pool? I was joking- “

              “No about moving out here, away from the city, into the middle of the woods…with me.”

              “Of course,” Lark said, worry starting to replace confusion, “Are you having second thoughts?”

              “No!” Muriel said quickly, “I mean…” His shoulders fell a little. “I just worry that you won’t like living here. Even with all the renovations it’s not like this place is going to be as big as the magic shop- “

              “Okay, I’m going to stop you right there,” Lark said holding up a hand, “because while you say as big as the magic shop you do realize that in said magic shop, I shared a room meant for one with my brother and sister. We divided up said room with sheets, and had barely any room to move less decorate. Compared to that this- “Lark motioned towards the home they were currently working on. “-Is a palace. It’s an upgrade I assure you, with a cool forest to explore to boot. It’s a dream come true. Plus, it comes with the best feature- “Lark reached out a hand and placed it on Muriel’s arm. “-It has you.”

              Inanna lifted her head from where she slept and let out a little whine.

              “And you too Inanna,” Lark laughed, before turning back to Muriel. “Did that help ease any doubts in your mind?”

              Looking down at Lark’s face, Muriel felt a fond smile creep across his face, and he nodded.

              “Good, now is there anything else you would like me to do because I think if I sand this piece any more it’s going to become a toothpick.”

              Muriel indeed did look down and could see that the younger man had indeed managed to sand the chunk into a much smaller piece of…something? He smiled as he took the piece from Lark. “I’ll put it somewhere.”

…

              A few months later…

              From where he lay on the bed, Muriel could look up and in the dying light of the fire he could see the little lump of wood sanded wood he had managed to wedge in one of the corners. It was one of the few additions to the house that Lark had made. He could feel the younger man pillowed against his arm, drooling and snoring away as usual. Muriel sighed as he closed his eyes. Inanna for her part added to the nose with her soft snorts as she slept at the foot of the bed warming their toes. Muriel smiled as he closed his eyes. It truly was home now.

[mermaidchan05]

Vesuvia Weekly: Mission: Cozy Countess

For @vesuviaweekly's Cozy Comforts. Some bullet point headcanons for my OC Chimalus, Portia, and Nadia, my favorite throuple!

(Chimalus uses they/them pronouns btw)

______________________

Chimalus and Portia both love winter. 

Nadia... not so much.

She tolerates it, of course. And she enjoys winter festivals. 

But the ordinary days, particularly the snowy ones, are far from fun for someone who grew up in warm and sunny Prakra. 

Since Nadia is always going out of her way to find time to do nice things for her loves, it’s finally time for Portia and Chimalus to return the favor. 

Chimalus finds absolute joy in making sure Nadia has the coziest winter possible. 

Their favorite window spot? It’s Nadia’s now. 

All the pillows they particularly like to settle on? Nadia’s. 

The warmest blankets in the palace? Chimalus immediately gathers them up and gives them to Nadia. 

And they know the best books to read by a cozy snowy window.

Meanwhile, Portia’s all in on the snacks. 

She makes the second-best soups (since Mazelinka makes the best ones) 

She makes the absolute best coffee

And Portia even knows Nadia’s favorite tea, which remains a mystery to Chimalus

(Chimalus does not understand tea on a daily basis, let alone the fancy types that Nadia likes) 

By the end of the day, Chimalus and Portia’s combined powers have created the coziest possible nook for Nadia to warm up and enjoy a relaxing evening. 

And thanks to their own familiar, Skye, Chimalus knows exactly how to knit little charmed scarves for flying friends. 

They make one for Chandra, so she can be just as cozy as Nadia. 

Chandra pretends to hate it. But she never lets anyone take it off.

[siseliestudio]

stay cozy 🍂🏠🧣

[belvedia02]

Cozy Comforts

Enid había bajado una vez más a la cocina a dejar la bandeja con los dos platos después de cenar junto a Wednesday en su habitación. Durante la tarde, practicaron con el violín, Enid se había negado porque su maestra estaba enferma, a lo que Wednesday había contrarrestado explicando la importancia de tener al menos una hora al día de ensayo. Lo mejor de todo, es que Enid tuvo menos fallos que los días anteriores.

—Hey, Wends… — Le insistió a Enid que se sentía mejor así que también estuvo un rato escribiendo, no su hora acostumbrada, pero si cerca de 45 minutos.

Wednesday se giró desde su asiento, después de leer el último párrafo de la hoja que había escrito —Dime Enid— Dejó sus manos encima de su regazo.

—¿Estás cansada, ya quieres dormir? — Enid quería quedarse más tiempo con su amiga, se sentía demasiado cómoda cuidándola, una oportunidad que nunca se le presentó en Nevermore durante todo el tiempo que la ha conocido.

— ¿Qué hora es? — Perdió toda la noción del tiempo por despertarse tarde y estar encerrada todo el día en su habitación, agradecida de la compañía, por supuesto.

—Las 21:07— Le respondió después de ver la hora en su teléfono.

Wednesday se quedó pensando en cualquier actividad que pudiera apreciar y que eso permitiera que Enid siguiera haciéndole compañía.

—No, es temprano aún, ¿y tú?

—Estoy bien… — En algunas ocasiones, el día siguiente de la Luna llena, prefería estar durmiendo la mayor parte del día, sin embargo, estar de vacaciones y en la mansión de los Addams la había hecho sentir con más energía.

—¿Quieres jugar algún juego de mesa? — Es la excusa perfecta que se le había ocurrido para que Enid no se fuera.

—¿No me digas qué tienes monopoly o pictionary? — Preguntó emocionada y se acercó a Wednesday, estaba sentada en la cama de Wednesday viendo algunos videos en una aplicación.

—Desconozco completamente cuales son esos juegos, solo tengo Scrabble, además de mi juego de ajedrez — Eran sus favoritos, porque videojuegos no llamaban su atención.

— Creo que en ambos perdería y soy una muy mala perdedora — Enid recordó una de sus noches de juego con Yoko, jugaron pictionary junto a Divina y Bianca. Perdieron porque Bianca no pudo adivinar el nombre de una película animada. Yoko se burló de ella toda la semana hasta que Enid obtuvo su revancha.

— Entonces, ¿qué sugieres? — Si le contestaba que era mejor irse a su habitación, Wednesday lo aceptaría.

—Déjame pensar — Enid tenía una sola alternativa y era un pasatiempo que no había compartido con Wednesday en varios meses — ¿una noche de películas? —Preguntó tímidamente.

Wednesday no recordaba bien cuando fue la última vez que había visto películas con Enid, así que le pareció acertada su idea.

—Me parece aceptable— Se puso de pie y fue hasta donde estaba Enid— Aunque no tengo ninguna de las golosinas que acostumbras a comer mientras vemos la película— Wednesday recordaba que Enid siempre tenía un refresco y palomitas de maíz.

—Por eso no hay problemas, traje para hacer las palomitas y por el refresco no hay problema, beberé uno de los jugos que hay en la nevera— Enid se paró y fue hasta la puerta, antes de desaparecer de la vista de Wednesday le dijo — Vuelvo en media hora más o menos. Wednesday solo asintió, ahora ella ocuparía ese tiempo para ordenar su cama para poder disfrutar de la película que Enid elegiría. De seguro otra de Disney, pensó.

Enid fue hasta su dormitorio, buscó su bolso donde guardaba todavía la bolsa de palomitas, por si se presentaba una ocasión como ésta y salió corriendo en dirección a la cocina, sin encontrarse con ninguno de los otros miembros de la familia Addams.

Encendió el fuego de la estufa y buscó el sartén y el aceite y dejó caer una buena cantidad de palomitas, ahora volvería a su dormitorio para buscar la laptop que no había ocupado en todos estos días, porque cada día de sus vacaciones se transformaba en una inolvidable aventura.

La encendió y revisó el estado de la batería, tenía 100%, ahora solo le faltaba buscar una película adecuada para ver con Wednesday.

—Creo que estas las hemos visto— Dijo cuando fue revisando su carpeta, dentro de ella estaban; La princesa y el sapo, El jorobado de Notre Dame, Aladdín, Hércules, Lilo & Stitch, La Sirenita, La Bella y la Bestia y el Rey León. — Vaya, no pensé que Wends haya soportado ver tantas— Enid siguió mirando la lista y escogió un par que podría gustarle.

Volvió a la cocina, viendo el tiempo que había tardado en regresar. Aún faltan 15 minutos. Calculó el tiempo mentalmente.  

Wednesday estaba satisfecha con el estado de su habitación, completamente ordenada y lista para ver cualquiera de la película o películas que Enid eligiera, nunca le había rechazado ninguna de sus opciones, al final siempre se había entretenido viéndolas con ella.

Observó el reloj que estaba en su escritorio, aún faltaban algunos minutos para que Enid regresará, así que escogió uno de sus libros y lo leyó, aunque no se pudo concentrar completamente en su lectura.

Enid no tuvo la necesidad de golpear la puerta de la habitación de Wednesday, pues estaba abierta, eso le facilitó la tarea, pues traía su laptop y el cargador. Lo dejó encima de la cama.

—Ya vuelvo, solo faltan las palomitas — Una vez más dejó sola a Wednesday.

Enid volvió a aparecer en la habitación con la bandeja que tenía una jarra de jugo, dos vasos y las palomitas.

—Listo— Dijo mientras se sentaba cerca de Wednesday, apoyando su espalda en una de las almohadas que le había pasado su amiga.

—También lo estoy, para ver cualquiera de tus películas. — Recordaba perfectamente todas las películas Disney que Enid le había enseñado en todo el tiempo que habían compartido la habitación en Nevermore y dedicaron un día a la semana para verlas.

—Lo dices como si fuera una tortura— Enid encontró la película y estaba lista para presionar “play”.

—Siempre aprecio una buena tortura— Wednesday también quería agregar que pasar un rato en su compañía nunca sería un tormento.

Enid le dio play y vieron la película en un completo silencio, aunque Enid cantó la canción del inicio y la principal. Cuando terminó fue Wednesday quien hizo el primer comentario.

— ¿No crees que hay algo de incesto? — Eso fue lo que pudo apreciar con el final de Frozen.

—¡NO! Absolutamente no, es una hermosa relación de hermanas— Aunque si analizaba el sacrificio de Anna, quizás Wednesday tenía razón.

—La que digas Enid— Wednesday no admitió que sí le había gustado.

—¿Supongo que no querrás ver la secuela? — Enid no se había movido, estaba demasiado cómoda al lado de Wednesday.

—¿Hay otra? — Realmente tenía un buen final reconoció, además que las anteriores películas siempre fue solo una.

—Sí y hay planes para una tercera— Enid ya estaba lista para reproducirla.

—No estoy cansada, así que sí quieres podemos verla— Se reacomodó en su lugar, un poco más cerca de Enid.

— Gracias— Le acarició ligeramente el brazo derecho.

Wednesday no fue capaz de ver el final, se había quedado dormida y Enid solo se dio cuenta cuando le preguntó que le había parecido y al no recibir respuesta, la miró y estaba completamente adormecida.  

Enid quería quedarse en el mismo lugar, pero tenía que sacar la bandeja y el laptop. Cuando se movió Wednesday se despertó.

—No te vayas… — Susurró y volvió a dormirse.

—Ya vuelvo— Enid se atrevió a darle un ligero beso en su frente y rápidamente dejó todo encima del escritorio. Fue hasta la habitación para cambiarse a su pijama y volver a la habitación de Wednesday para acompañarla.

Porque esto es lo que quiere Wends…. ¿o no? — Pensó mientras salía de su habitación hacia donde estaba su enamoramiento secreto.

@choicesprompts