[Gift] Night Sky

It's another night in Selune Woods, and a pair of Moxyns cuddle up together by the warmth of the fire. Spools of fabric and thread litter the room, decorated by plushies and pillows hand-made by the inhabitants. Under a star-embroidered blanket, the two sit in gentle silence, working on their own masterpieces.

"Moon, dear?"

"Hm?" The purple Moxyn turned to face their partner, their ears flicking up at the sound. "Star?"

"You're- absolutely certain you'd like me to embroider your plush?" Star tilted his head, looking down at the mostly blank Moxyn plushie in their hands. "It's already beautiful. ...All the things you make are."

"Oh- you flatter me too much!" Moon giggled, pushing away the sewing machine on the near table they were working at. "It'll be more beautiful if we both work on it together, I think. You did such a nice job on this blanket, they'll look lovely I'm sure! Go ahead, I want to see what you make."

Star let out a small hum. "...Hrm, I suppose. I'll do my very best then!" Sitting up straighter, they took to the black expanse of the monochrome plushie and got to work. What star systems did he remember? There were so many in their own world alone. "Do you... have a preference for any dimension's star systems, or..."

"Star." Moon pat Star on the head. "I want to see what you have to add!"

"Alright, alright." He may as well make his own favorite then.

The two had gone stargazing many times before, indulging together in Moon's hobby. Moon could name most of the local constellations off of the top of their head! Star, meanwhile, despite being named after the things- less so. But he tried his very, very best to pay attention to them when they rambled on about the near constellations, their names and what they meant, the time of their conception. He thought back to one of their first nights out. Bundled up in warm clothes as Moon only relied on their fur (truly, he couldn't understand how they were able to stand the temperatures), pointing up at the night sky from a clearing near home.

"You see that one?" Moon pointed up to a smattering of stars that Star himself could barely see the connection between.

"Um... no."

"Just- here, let me-" They had taken out their notepad, drawing the dots and the lines between them. "I call that one the Adoration constellation! 'Cause they look like a heart, see?"

He looked up. He... still couldn't see it. But he could see someone that made his heart beat, and that was good enough for him.

Back in the present, he glanced over at their notebook on the table. Still the same heart shape as always. Dead in the center of the plush, he took to embroidering the stars, one by one. "You know, Moon- what is it you like about stars, anyway?"

"Well. Are you asking about the stars or yourself? I'm partial to both!" 

Star laughed in response. "Moon... you know what I meant."

"Alright, alright. Well- I like seeing what constellations I can put together myself. And I like going back through books and seeing if anyone else saw the same thing! You know- like, a web through the past or...? -Does that make any sense?"

"Moon, neither of us make any sense."

"I guess you're right." Another chuckle. "Thank you for- ...for spending time with me, Star. I appreciate it."

"Oh, don't you thank me!" Star gently bonked Moon over the head, sticking the needle away in the plush's hand. "I like you and that means I'll spend all the time I want with you. Now shush, I want to see what you end up making today."

"Hehee-! Alright, alright..."

Embroidery took forever, but it seemed to go by just a little faster chatting with his special someone. He wasn't quite so certain the surrounding stars were perfect, but at least he knew he got their constellation right. Maybe he could ask them about the rest sometime. It might have been strange to go on for so long about the exact shape and spaces of the stars, but he liked listening to Moon just fine. Should the paws be constellations or just bunched-up stars? The eyes were already beads, maybe he could make one like his own constellations. Or- he looked to the dark halo (A black hole, perhaps?) hovering by Moon's chest. He knew what he wanted to make- a plush for the both of them. That was the both of them.

"Aaaand- done!" Moon hoisted another plushie up in the air, their own creation during the time. They had been there for... hours by now, but it was evidently worth it. This plush was smaller in size- a crescent moon, it seemed- with one star hanging off of it in the center. "It's me and you! ...kind of! I mean, it's a symbol and all and I guess that's not specific enough but-"

"It's beautiful."

Star smiled at the soft plush, evidently made with love. The stitching near-perfect, every small error they could find just a sign of the love put into the work. Purple and white, just like themselves. It really was sweet. "Are they connected by stitches or are their fabrics connected? Oh- should we put it in bed or hang it on the wall, or, wait, what are you giggling at?"

"I just-" Moon let out a gasping giggle, hiding a smile. "I was so worried you wouldn't like it."

"Oh, Moon..." Star smiled, patting the plush. "I finished mine too, actually. Well, yours and mine."

He put the plush down on the table, smiling at it. Its dark fabric was patterned across with specks of embroidered stars, together in clumps or dashed across it in splatters. Around one of its beaded eyes, white stitches highlighted a void untouched in the center, marking out the shape of a black hole. Across the other eye, a constellation crossed over like a scar, bent in the shape of a broken spoon. "My best work so far. What do you think, Moon?"

Their eyes widened as they looked at the plush, gasping. "It's- the eye, it's you and-!"

"I promised my best, didn't I?"

Laughter and joy filled the den as the Moxyn pair held one another. It’s another night in the woods, and Star is happy to have found the rest of their night sky.