Stone Circle i. you were loved

A smile crawled onto the boy's maw and he nodded his head. "Mhm. You showed me the purple flowers, first, and it was nice. So you get the last flower," he reasoned out, only pausing when Rosewood said they could share it. His smile brightened at that and he tipped his head to the side. "Are you sure?" the boy asked hopefully. He wondered how long they'd be able to keep it, or if it would fade away all the way.

"Do you have a favorite color?" he asked, eyes round as he looked over at the older boy. Ikiaq thought his was yellow, but he wasn't sure just yet. There were so many beautiful colors - in the sky, in the flowers, in the leaves as they changed colors. He loved them all.

The field with the flowers that never died was outside the borders. Ikiaq had never been out there before, and the idea was frightening. But... Rose went outside all the time, didn't he? He wasn't even born here, so he'd been outside before for sure. It was a scary thought - how could they be sure it was safe out there? - but... Ikiaq wanted to do it. He wanted to see the flowers with Rosewood.

He had to clear his throat to be able to speak again, but he managed. "I wanna go," he murmured, trotting to catch up to the older boy. Determination settled in his gaze, and an unsteady smile grew on his maw. "The flowers don't die? All year?" He wanted to get him talking about the flowers again, not thinking about how scared Ikiaq might be. Because he was brave! He wasn't scared. He was just concerned.