[Felix never really gave much thought to how or where he would meet his last. Given the rate he was going, a battlefield was the likeliest place, and he'd honestly have it no other way considering the alternative has been long closed to him, mostly of his own volition.
After all, there's no purpose to a shield that outlasts the one it's supposed to protect.
Though far too soon, the burning town of Remire was a battlefield all the same, and... maybe not too bad a place to go. Careless as his last moments were, it's a fitting place for a masterless swordsman like him to meet his end.
A forgettable place with regretful circumstances.
So when he awakens to a familiar pillow under his head, it takes him a moment to place that, no, this isn't some sort of cursed afterlife. There's only the latter part of that word, "life" or perhaps "living." Still cursed in some respects, especially when it's accompanied by the heavy weight of bandages and a deep wound that hasn't fully healed just yet.
More surprising though, is the hand clasping his, and its owner sleeping right by his bedside. Felix blinks--once, then twice, just to make sure his eyes aren't fooling him the way they seem to do so a lot nowadays.]
Dimitri...? [Felix whispers, a weak rasp foreign to his ears. He'll take a moment to realize the name he just spoke, at any rate.]
[His sleep is fitful, barely more than a doze. As such, Felix's voice reaches his ears despite the lack of volume. His eyes flutter open as he pushes himself into a sitting position, keeping a hold on his hand all the while. He meets Felix's gaze, and though his amber eyes are groggy and full of confusion, he seems to be mentally present.]
Felix...
[Dimitri lifts the hand he's been holding to his face, pressing his cheek against Felix's palm with a shaky little sigh. For just a few seconds, the dark cloud that's been hanging over him the whole time they've been waiting to see what becomes of Felix lifts, leaving only joy that he's now awake. His smile is genuine, as are the tears that prick at the corners of his eyes.]
[Well, that wetness building by the corner of Dimitri's eyes don't seem to be a figment of his imagination at all. Felix swallows, a little taken aback at how the sight makes him want to tear up too, his body heavy with something other than everything wrapped around him.]
I'm fine, [Felix says with a crooked smile, stretching slightly to wipe that tear away.] Don't cry over a scratch like this.
[Guilt twists in his stomach, his discomfort exacerbated by the way he lies down on it. He's not worthy of Dimitri's tears by any means. Far from it.]
[Is he crying? Dimitri looks somewhat surprised briefly, lifting his free hand to touch the corner of his other eye. Sure enough, it's wet. He hasn't cried outside of when he sleeps in years, now...]
You have been unconscious for nearly three days! That is hardly a scratch.
[It's only the lightest of scolding, and Dimitri still smiles as he shifts from the chair to kneel beside the bed, putting his face level with Felix's so that he doesn't have to twist his neck to look him in the eye. Dimitri brushes his bangs away from his forehead with warm fingertips. He shifts again, resting his cheek on the mattress, putting his head in the same position as Felix's.]
[Felix's eyes grow wide at that revelation. Three days?! And here he thought he was just out for a few hours... Damn, whoever that was who gave him that wound got him really good.
Still, it's rather hard to focus on that when Dimitri is being plenty distracting, shivering pleasantly when warm fingertips brush past his cool skin. It's not only the physical warmth of it that's comforting--the smile that radiates from Dimitri is brighter than the flames that light up and warm the room, a sight that washes over his body in a similar manner as the warmth from the fireplace.
Felix returns the favor, tucking away some stray hairs from Dimitri's face.]
Go back to your room, [Felix says in an attempt to sound authoritative, though with how hoarse his voice is, he isn't doing the best job of it.] You're going to catch something lying down like that.
[He pinches Dimitri's cheek for good measure, not that there's enough force behind it due to how weakened he is.]
[Though being treated like a child by Felix is strange to say the least, the thought of leaving makes his stomach churn so violently that Dimitri doesn't linger on it for long. As easily as it appeared, the smile fades, Dimitri's forehead creasing as he lowers his lashes.]
[Tempted as Felix is to stand his ground, Dimitri's sad expression has a way of hurting him in a manner that his healing injury doesn't. His mind wanders to what ifs it's too tired to process right now, of opportunities gone by and princes that have forever lost themselves.
If Felix stayed by Dimitri's side this whole time, could he have saved him?
Sighing, Felix files away that depressing thought for a while, letting his hand slip away from Dimitri's cheek as he blindly feels around for where Dimitri's hand might be. Cold fingers wrap around it, squeezing.]
Just for a little longer then.
[Finding the call of sleep rather inviting, Felix closes his eyes, close to surrendering himself to it.]
[Dimitri is a furnace unto himself, especially overheated as he is right now. It makes the touch of Felix's hand that much colder, cold to the point that it just worries him instead of getting his heart thumping. The fire has started to get low since he drifted off, hasn't it? He sits back up with a small frown, leaning in to press his forehead to Felix's.]
You're still so cold... I will put another log on the fire.
[Though the press of Dimitri's forehead against his has him warming slightly, Felix feels himself drifting off, still exhausted from the recovery process he's undergoing. So he doesn't fight whatever Dimitri is doing, letting him do as he says and pleases.]
[Reluctantly he rises from the floor, parting from Felix long enough to put on two more logs. He quietly wraps some fresh bricks as well, swapping them with the ones currently near Felix's feet. Since he's at least somewhat awake he could probably give him some for his hands as well, but a selfish, childish part of him wants to warm his hands himself. Biting his lower lip, he moves to get the chair he was sitting on out of the way so that he can start to push the beds together.]
[Felix squirms slightly when Dimitri replaces the bricks by his feet, but he doesn't protest it. At least until he hears the scraping sound of something heavy being dragged across the floor.
Something like a bed, in fact.
Reluctantly, Felix cracks an eye open, gaze zeroing on Dimitri as he starts bringing the beds together. But he doesn't do anything more than stare, and goes right back to closing his eye. True, he has every right to protest what Dimitri is doing, but it's a hill he doesn't plan on dying on, especially when more sleep is a much more enticing option.
Plus, he can't say he really dislikes the idea of Dimitri staying the night. There's something comforting about his presence that a warm hearth simply cannot replicate, and as to why that's the case...
[Felix takes notice, but apparently, he doesn't see fit to protest. Dimitri ducks his head and grins to himself, snagging another brick to wrap and put near the hand he won't be able to reach. After that he climbs on in, shifting his pillow to be right next to Felix's. He drapes the totally unnecessary blanket on his bed over Felix instead, curling over on his side to take hold of his other hand, pressed in close enough for Felix to be able to feel his heat from head to toe.]
Goodnight, [Dimitri murmurs, not particularly expecting a response. That Felix ended up in this state in the first place still has him seeing Glenn out of the corner of his eye, but for tonight, he decides to push it aside. He can let the guilt hit him later when Felix is well enough to yell at him properly again.]
[The effect is instant, and it's embarrassing how warmth ensconces him almost immediately at their renewed proximity. Much as he wants to excuse that it's just Dimitri's body warmth, Felix knows a portion of it is due to him as well. Not that he's about to admit it, considering how most of his warmth seems to be concentrated around his cheeks...
So he doesn't respond, and just lets exhaustion carry him all the way to the land of sleep.]
[Having slept poorly since Felix's injury, Dimitri is out like a light as well. He'll still be asleep the next morning when Manuela and Sylvain slip back inside. Sylvain's done her the favor of helping her back to her room a couple of times, so she's willing to let him in early to check on Felix... and try to get Dimitri to leave and eat. But when they arrive, they find beds shoved together and Dimitri very obviously warming Felix. As adorable as it is, Sylvain has no idea that Felix woke up and immediately thinks that Felix must have taken a downturn to prompt him to do that. Dimitri stirs once he approaches the bed and presses the back of his hand to Felix's cheek, checking his temperature.]
He doesn't feel too cold... did something happen?
["Let's take a look," Manuela says, shooing him so that she can check for herself.]
[Damn, he intended to be up with the sun...! Dimitri struggles to push down his embarrassment as he clears his throat and sits up, attempting to comb his hair with his fingers.]
He was a little cool to the touch. I needed to sleep in a proper bed, anyway.
[The room may be cooling as the night wears on, but Dimitri's body heat keeps Felix warm enough. Coupled with the exhaustion brought about by the recovery process, Felix sleeps in despite the amount of rest he's been getting.
He thinks he imagined the touch against his cheek, but Dimitri sitting up and subsequent loss of warmth caused by it has him scrunching his nose, blinking the sleep out of his eyes.]
Didn't I tell you to go back to your room? [Felix mumbles under his breath, even if he's dimly aware he didn't discourage the notion of Dimitri pushing the infirmary beds together.]
["That's enough, you two! I can't examine him with you horsing around. Go on now, go wash up before breakfast."
Dimitri pauses, picking at his shirt. It... is kind of sticking to his torso, isn't it...? It was just so hot, but he didn't dare reduce the heat with Felix in the state he was in.]
My apologies. I will take the sheets I slept on to be laundered along the way.
[But before Felix could say more, Manuela begins shooing Dimitri and Sylvain away, leaving Felix to stare as they mill about.
Sighing, Felix lets his hand fall flat against the sheets, letting Manuela fuss over him as she wills. Knowing her, it's best to just behave and wait for everything to be over and avoid doing anything that may risk reopening his wounds. Still, eyeing Sylvain and Dimitri makes him wonder about the headaches Manuela has to deal with on what he assumes to be a regular basis. Was he that rowdy too back in the day...? It feels like such a long time ago, even if this is technically his present...
He is distracted from his thoughts by a knock on the door, the newcomer's voice familiar.
"Professor, I brought some breakfast, should I take it back or is it fine for me to go in?"
"Certainly, Felix is awake now."
At those words, the door practically flies open as Felix twists his head to try and see without upsetting his bandages.
"Felix!"
Eyes glassy, Ingrid looks like she's about to pounce on the bed, but one look from Manuela has her staying her ground, swallowing as she walks over to the bedside table and places the tray of food on it.]
I'm not going to die from something like that, [Felix says, glancing away from that look on Ingrid, too soft for the stern lady knight he's come to know.
"But you almost did," Ingrid says, folding her arms. With no adequate response to that, Felix bristles and turns to look the other way, a little embarrassed at the prospect of being lectured by a 17-year-old Ingrid.]
Oh, good idea, [Sylvain says breezily as Ingrid puts down that breakfast tray. Best to cut off her scolding as quick as possible to spare Felix of it...]
How about I bring lunch, then? And Dimitri can bring dinner. Then we won't be overcrowding you, Professor Manuela.
[Dimitri is clearly VERY dismayed at the thought of not seeing Felix until dinner, but he can suck it up! He didn't get them last night when Felix woke up!
Pleasantly surprised, Manuela shoots Sylvain a small smile.
"Oh, all right. But only bring easy to digest food, and don't let him use his arms yet! That blade severed some important muscles."
[Thankfully, Sylvain's intervention seems to redirect attention from Felix to other people. He dares to glance Ingrid's way again, and she has that furrowed brow look on her face, as if contemplating telling off Sylvain for some sort of offense. But she decides against it, instead letting her gaze fall past Felix--the bed next to him perhaps, and then Dimitri... it's a little hard to see from where he is lying down, and it's rather tempting to sit up--
But he refrains, remembering how troublesome Manuela can be when she gets fussy about her patients. Handfeeding though... what a pain.
"Very well," Ingrid says. "I'll continue to bring breakfast. How many days are we going to continue this arrangement?"
Felix sighs, giving up as they continue to talk as if he weren't in the room.]
[Even though she knows he's doing it just to butter her up, Sylvain is still terribly charming. Honestly, that boy!
"Don't disturb his rest, though! If you can't behave yourselves I'll just ask Mercedes and Marianne to help."
There's also Linhardt, but... she's not letting that boy near an injured person with a major crest.
"Would you rather have one of them help you keep clean while you're here, Felix? I don't mind, but if you don't want a lady seeing you undressed..."
Dimitri's mostly kept quiet up until now, but when Manuela basically insinuates that either Dimitri or Sylvain might be giving Felix sponge baths he turns red up to his ears and takes a step back. Goddess, he couldn't withstand that!]
[What blood that Felix still has flows straight into his cheeks at the idea of Dimitri giving him a sponge bath--never mind that Sylvain and Ingrid and the others are part of that insinuation too. Certainly, they've seen each other bare a couple of times, especially a lot as children, but now, especially in the context of touching...
...Wait. Manuela is waiting for a reply from him. Coughing awkwardly, he says:]
[Now isn't that interesting? Dimitri and Felix are both pretty flushed. The way they feel is pretty obvious to Sylvain, but seeing them feel it at the same time is new. First it was Felix trailing after Dimitri like a sad puppy, then Dimitri doing the same to Felix... have they finally synced up? The thought is a little lonely, but more than anything, he's glad they aren't estranged anymore.
...mostly. He still doesn't want to have to stand here and see it for too long. Time to get Felix to tell him to get out!]
Aww, come on, Felix! You used to love it when I helped you take a bath. You were so bad about getting soap in your eyes, it was so cute... oh, but you did like having someone sing to you, so I guess Professor Manuela is actually a pretty good choice.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
cynicfelixity) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
amewsbox2020-01-09 12:53 pm
no subject
After all, there's no purpose to a shield that outlasts the one it's supposed to protect.
Though far too soon, the burning town of Remire was a battlefield all the same, and... maybe not too bad a place to go. Careless as his last moments were, it's a fitting place for a masterless swordsman like him to meet his end.
A forgettable place with regretful circumstances.
So when he awakens to a familiar pillow under his head, it takes him a moment to place that, no, this isn't some sort of cursed afterlife. There's only the latter part of that word, "life" or perhaps "living." Still cursed in some respects, especially when it's accompanied by the heavy weight of bandages and a deep wound that hasn't fully healed just yet.
More surprising though, is the hand clasping his, and its owner sleeping right by his bedside. Felix blinks--once, then twice, just to make sure his eyes aren't fooling him the way they seem to do so a lot nowadays.]
Dimitri...? [Felix whispers, a weak rasp foreign to his ears. He'll take a moment to realize the name he just spoke, at any rate.]
no subject
Felix...
[Dimitri lifts the hand he's been holding to his face, pressing his cheek against Felix's palm with a shaky little sigh. For just a few seconds, the dark cloud that's been hanging over him the whole time they've been waiting to see what becomes of Felix lifts, leaving only joy that he's now awake. His smile is genuine, as are the tears that prick at the corners of his eyes.]
You're awake. Thank the goddess...
no subject
I'm fine, [Felix says with a crooked smile, stretching slightly to wipe that tear away.] Don't cry over a scratch like this.
[Guilt twists in his stomach, his discomfort exacerbated by the way he lies down on it. He's not worthy of Dimitri's tears by any means. Far from it.]
no subject
You have been unconscious for nearly three days! That is hardly a scratch.
[It's only the lightest of scolding, and Dimitri still smiles as he shifts from the chair to kneel beside the bed, putting his face level with Felix's so that he doesn't have to twist his neck to look him in the eye. Dimitri brushes his bangs away from his forehead with warm fingertips. He shifts again, resting his cheek on the mattress, putting his head in the same position as Felix's.]
no subject
Still, it's rather hard to focus on that when Dimitri is being plenty distracting, shivering pleasantly when warm fingertips brush past his cool skin. It's not only the physical warmth of it that's comforting--the smile that radiates from Dimitri is brighter than the flames that light up and warm the room, a sight that washes over his body in a similar manner as the warmth from the fireplace.
Felix returns the favor, tucking away some stray hairs from Dimitri's face.]
Go back to your room, [Felix says in an attempt to sound authoritative, though with how hoarse his voice is, he isn't doing the best job of it.] You're going to catch something lying down like that.
[He pinches Dimitri's cheek for good measure, not that there's enough force behind it due to how weakened he is.]
no subject
...not yet, [he says softly.]
Just let me stay a little longer.
no subject
If Felix stayed by Dimitri's side this whole time, could he have saved him?
Sighing, Felix files away that depressing thought for a while, letting his hand slip away from Dimitri's cheek as he blindly feels around for where Dimitri's hand might be. Cold fingers wrap around it, squeezing.]
Just for a little longer then.
[Finding the call of sleep rather inviting, Felix closes his eyes, close to surrendering himself to it.]
no subject
You're still so cold... I will put another log on the fire.
no subject
[Though the press of Dimitri's forehead against his has him warming slightly, Felix feels himself drifting off, still exhausted from the recovery process he's undergoing. So he doesn't fight whatever Dimitri is doing, letting him do as he says and pleases.]
no subject
no subject
Something like a bed, in fact.
Reluctantly, Felix cracks an eye open, gaze zeroing on Dimitri as he starts bringing the beds together. But he doesn't do anything more than stare, and goes right back to closing his eye. True, he has every right to protest what Dimitri is doing, but it's a hill he doesn't plan on dying on, especially when more sleep is a much more enticing option.
Plus, he can't say he really dislikes the idea of Dimitri staying the night. There's something comforting about his presence that a warm hearth simply cannot replicate, and as to why that's the case...
Well, he'll think on that another time.]
no subject
Goodnight, [Dimitri murmurs, not particularly expecting a response. That Felix ended up in this state in the first place still has him seeing Glenn out of the corner of his eye, but for tonight, he decides to push it aside. He can let the guilt hit him later when Felix is well enough to yell at him properly again.]
no subject
So he doesn't respond, and just lets exhaustion carry him all the way to the land of sleep.]
no subject
He doesn't feel too cold... did something happen?
["Let's take a look," Manuela says, shooing him so that she can check for herself.]
no subject
He was a little cool to the touch. I needed to sleep in a proper bed, anyway.
no subject
He thinks he imagined the touch against his cheek, but Dimitri sitting up and subsequent loss of warmth caused by it has him scrunching his nose, blinking the sleep out of his eyes.]
Didn't I tell you to go back to your room? [Felix mumbles under his breath, even if he's dimly aware he didn't discourage the notion of Dimitri pushing the infirmary beds together.]
no subject
Felix!
[He sounds normal and his eyes look clear — present mentally, if tired. Sylvain laughs, elbowing Dimitri.]
You should have gotten us up if he woke up, come on!
no subject
["That's enough, you two! I can't examine him with you horsing around. Go on now, go wash up before breakfast."
Dimitri pauses, picking at his shirt. It... is kind of sticking to his torso, isn't it...? It was just so hot, but he didn't dare reduce the heat with Felix in the state he was in.]
My apologies. I will take the sheets I slept on to be laundered along the way.
no subject
[But before Felix could say more, Manuela begins shooing Dimitri and Sylvain away, leaving Felix to stare as they mill about.
Sighing, Felix lets his hand fall flat against the sheets, letting Manuela fuss over him as she wills. Knowing her, it's best to just behave and wait for everything to be over and avoid doing anything that may risk reopening his wounds. Still, eyeing Sylvain and Dimitri makes him wonder about the headaches Manuela has to deal with on what he assumes to be a regular basis. Was he that rowdy too back in the day...? It feels like such a long time ago, even if this is technically his present...
He is distracted from his thoughts by a knock on the door, the newcomer's voice familiar.
"Professor, I brought some breakfast, should I take it back or is it fine for me to go in?"
"Certainly, Felix is awake now."
At those words, the door practically flies open as Felix twists his head to try and see without upsetting his bandages.
"Felix!"
Eyes glassy, Ingrid looks like she's about to pounce on the bed, but one look from Manuela has her staying her ground, swallowing as she walks over to the bedside table and places the tray of food on it.]
I'm not going to die from something like that, [Felix says, glancing away from that look on Ingrid, too soft for the stern lady knight he's come to know.
"But you almost did," Ingrid says, folding her arms. With no adequate response to that, Felix bristles and turns to look the other way, a little embarrassed at the prospect of being lectured by a 17-year-old Ingrid.]
no subject
How about I bring lunch, then? And Dimitri can bring dinner. Then we won't be overcrowding you, Professor Manuela.
[Dimitri is clearly VERY dismayed at the thought of not seeing Felix until dinner, but he can suck it up! He didn't get them last night when Felix woke up!
Pleasantly surprised, Manuela shoots Sylvain a small smile.
"Oh, all right. But only bring easy to digest food, and don't let him use his arms yet! That blade severed some important muscles."
Ah, handfeeding Felix... so cute...]
no subject
But he refrains, remembering how troublesome Manuela can be when she gets fussy about her patients. Handfeeding though... what a pain.
"Very well," Ingrid says. "I'll continue to bring breakfast. How many days are we going to continue this arrangement?"
Felix sighs, giving up as they continue to talk as if he weren't in the room.]
no subject
[He winks at Manuela before continuing.]
— clears him to use a fork.
no subject
"Don't disturb his rest, though! If you can't behave yourselves I'll just ask Mercedes and Marianne to help."
There's also Linhardt, but... she's not letting that boy near an injured person with a major crest.
"Would you rather have one of them help you keep clean while you're here, Felix? I don't mind, but if you don't want a lady seeing you undressed..."
Dimitri's mostly kept quiet up until now, but when Manuela basically insinuates that either Dimitri or Sylvain might be giving Felix sponge baths he turns red up to his ears and takes a step back. Goddess, he couldn't withstand that!]
no subject
...Wait. Manuela is waiting for a reply from him. Coughing awkwardly, he says:]
I don't mind you taking care of me, Professor.
[The safest answer in this regard, perhaps...]
no subject
...mostly. He still doesn't want to have to stand here and see it for too long. Time to get Felix to tell him to get out!]
Aww, come on, Felix! You used to love it when I helped you take a bath. You were so bad about getting soap in your eyes, it was so cute... oh, but you did like having someone sing to you, so I guess Professor Manuela is actually a pretty good choice.
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)