She loved it. Sephiroth continued to carefully flick his gaze all over her face as if he might commit all the subtle ways her expression just kept brightening to memory so that he might never forget it. All at the same time as managing to keep his breathing steady while behind those less-intense green hues of his a new warm rush threatened to explode out from his chest.

He couldn't speak; his voice suddenly didn't feel strong enough to be able to make the motions that would allow him words and so in lingering silence Sephiroth just continued to watch her, the smile being stretched outwards from the corners of his own mouth was uncontrollable. His mouth felt dry, as if the skin of his lips might crack from being over stretched.

But he had to do something-

That something executed itself so fast that Sephiroth would likely spend days, perhaps weeks afterwards trying to fathom exactly what had triggered it. In a series of quick, but smooth movements he closed the remaining distance between himself and Terra, crossed his hand that had held the glass ornament between them and took both her hand and the mistletoe in his own. He pulled a little, using their joined hands to draw her ever closer and leaned in.

Perhaps due to the angle, Sephiroth's lips met the corner of Terra's mouth but then readjusted as if it had never happened. He pressed his lips firmly against hers, before finally being able to exhale the breath he'd been holding down through his nose as it rested next to Terra's. The room spun, his own scalding pulse hammering on the inside of his head as just as soon as it happened he withdrew, lowering their hands which had been between them a moment ago and letting her and the mistletoe go.

But he still felt rooted to the spot, unable to look away from Terra's eyes once his own re-opened.