As the night enshrouds the town of Lumos, the silver moonlight is reflected by the waters of the Iris-covered river beside the atelier. There lies what seems to be a painter's setup, judging from the easel stand and a basket filled with containers of pigment, along with a messy amount of brushes.
In the middle of it all sits a mysterious black haired lad who has his paint-smeared nose stuck on an ink-splashed piece of canvas on an easel. This one is clad in a comfortable sheepskin tunic, battling the cool breeze as he paints the night away.
As he looks up to inspect the night sky, the subtle ray of moonlight bathes and exposes his pale face, which wears longing as if it were the very thing he was born for.
"My dear, don't hide… bless me once more," he whispered towards the heavens like a prayer, which was later followed by a deep sigh and a familiar defeated head tilt.
Ziyan.
With an air of hopelessness, his prior busy hand that was painting life into a canvas came to a halt, now resting lazily at his side, brush put back in its holder. He walks to the chair where his satchel rests against and sits there. Leaning back, til only the two legs of the chair supporting him as his feet find refuge in the nearby crate.
Looking up, still with hope, before he sighs yet again as his eyes close for a moment of rest.
"Forget not, I'm here, always waiting for you."
Some minutes later, the tranquil night entertained a rustling of leaves as a belle entered the area.
Lumiere came to visit her usual spot where she spends time painting, while the scenic, peaceful environment brings her bursts of inspiration and hope. This girl walks the place with reverence as if it's a sacred sanctuary to her.
Upon arriving at the perfect place where the meeting of the river and a nearby waterfall can be visible, she was surprised to see that someone was already there and had set up a place for themselves.
Here I thought this place at night was unappreciated. Who could be camping here so suddenly?
Bringing her things, she decided to take the flat patch of grass on the right side of the unidentified camper. Not close as to be a disturbance, but near enough for stolen glances. She is meant to continue finishing her first project for the atelier. A work of originality, River tasked them to make. And she decided that this place would be perfect for this.
Lumiere loves sceneries with water, so she naturally gets drawn near the water. Setting up a little artistic camp of her own there, putting up her half-finished canvas on an easel, moistening brushes under the river, and grinding flowers with a tree sap base as her pigments.
Unlike most apprentices who specialize in charcoal as medium, her forte is paint, anything fluid with color. She likes being able to make things transparent and vague, yet slowly builds up in color to emphasize with more clarity. That's how she is able to add little details to her work.
After setting up her pigments and brushes, she grabs a brush and taps it to her temple habitually. Thinking deeply
Flowers.. water… a pleasant palace.. What to add next–
As her thoughts vanished the moment she looked up and saw the bright moon bless her with light, the lad beside her had awoken and was welcomed by the sight of a quiet maiden basking under the moonlight as if the skies that he had longed to clear since earlier just suddenly decided to open just for her.
And there, he saw his most awaited muse. Full in all her glory, bright as she had always been, and loved eternally.
"Here you are, my moon," He muttered softly, like the very sight vanished the plagues in his mind.
"Oh, the moon!" She gasped in delight, finally knowing what to add to her piece.
Though what's above and below seemed to blur in this nocturnal spark.
The two now proceeded in painting, determined than ever, holding onto the spark that the lunar muse gave them.
After a long while, Lumiere's paintbrush halts with a clink against an empty dish of blue pigment. She ran out. Unfortunately, she had spare flowers for every color except blue. It was quite a hard pigment to find when foraging.
"Oh dear…"
Eyes scanning the area looking for any natural sources for blue dye, but to no avail. Thus, she found her head tilting to steal a glance at the person also painting beside her. Fighting back her surprise as she recognized who it was. Not expecting to see someone like him in a place like this.
It's those star-filled eyes, him.
Under the same moon, Ziyan Simone Astra.