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“Atta girl, Rook!”
Emmrich had called out amidst the battle after witnessing the talented young crow strike an impressive blow against the enemy they’d been up against. Only the necromancer’s rather complimentary choice of words caused Rook to temporarily falter in her actions, which was then immediately followed by a small smirk and her cheeks flushing a warm shade of pink. Although that could’ve easily been due to physical exertion caused by their activities. The smirk, however? Well that was a matter for debate…
The ever watchful eye of Lucanis had immediately picked up the reaction from his fellow crow and also close friend, but there was little time to address it before his gaze shifted towards a projectile that had just been launched in the direction of the very distracted Rook.
“Move!”
Lucanis had called out but by the time the word had left his lips it was already too late. It had all happened so fast. The well timed shot had been fired and it had struck Rook just below the shoulder, the force of the impact knocking the rogue off her feet and causing her to land on the ground. The sudden blow to the back of the head upon landing had rendered the young crow unconscious. Lucanis had rushed forward to defend the helpless Rook from any more oncoming attacks.
“Rook!”
Emmrich had fought off his current assailant before his attention shifted to the knocked out rogue, immediately hurrying over in an attempt to aid Rook, while also turning his back on their enemies. Lucanis was still busy fending off the attackers but Emmrich dashing to Rook’s side didn’t go unnoticed. The mage had kneeled down to inspect the young crow but only for a brief moment before Lucanis intervened.
“Oh goodness…” Emmrich had fretted softly to himself, his tone filled with worry and concern.
“No time for that now,” Lucanis had growled in between the fighting, “we need to focus.”
It quickly occurred to Emmrich that Lucanis was right and so tending to Rook and her injuries would have to wait if they were going to survive this battle with only the two of them. So he returned to his feet and joined Lucanis at his side while both men surrounded Rook to protect her from the oncoming attacks. They would fight together and they would get out of this together.
And that’s exactly what they did…
Rook had woken with a start, a panic flooded her as she immediately remembered the fight she had been in moments ago. Or at least that’s what it had felt like.
“Easy, Rook. Relax. You’re fine.” Came the comforting voice of Lucanis who was leaning against the wall. The wall of her bedroom, the rogue noted. They’d made it back to The Lighthouse then… Thank the Maker. They were all safe, and relatively, sound. As soon as she’d moved to sit up, initially with urgency until Lucanis had spoken, Rook became keenly aware of the throbbing at the back of her head. She hissed in pain and reached a hand up to inspect the damage.
”Love it when you stand ominously in corners… One of my favourite things about you.” Rook drawled, her tone heavily laced with sarcasm.
Lucanis seemingly ignored the remark and took the caring approach to Rook’s snide but harmless comment. They both knew there was no malice behind those words and that she didn’t really mean any of it. “Don’t move too quickly. You hit your head.”
“Yeah, think I could’ve told you that…” Rook muttered as she groaned softly and closed her eyes to give them time to adjust, feeling the small lump that had sprouted at the back of her head. “How long was I out?”
“A few hours.”
Rook sighed and hesitated before moving to sit up on her bed, her eyes opening fully and blinking several times as she recollected the events from before. She felt mostly fine. Just a little sore, slow and sluggish. Something suddenly occurred to her…
“Wait, where’s Emmrich? Is he-”
“Emmrich is fine.” Lucanis reassured her and cocked his head to the side as he watched Rook carefully. “He helped patch you up, he was very concerned about you but I sent him away, said I’d watch over you.”
He almost looked faintly amused while he spoke but she could’ve been reading into that look a little too much. He looked tired too. But this was Lucanis they were talking about, he always looked tired. Given their battle and the fact that it was probably late into the night by now, it made sense for the man who didn’t sleep to watch over her.
It was also Lucanis. They were family, almost like siblings at times except not bound by blood, but bound by joking remarks and sarcasm. That’s how they showed their care and affection for each other.
“Right… Bit weird you watching me sleep. But thanks.” Rook murmured as she moved to sit up on her bed, the movement causing her look down to inspect the bandage that was wrapped below her collarbone and secured around her shoulder. It wasn’t the first time she’d been wounded in battle and it probably wouldn’t be the last. Only this time the reason for it was different and with the piercing stare from Lucanis, he was likely having a very similar thought.
“You were distracted back there. For as long as I’ve known you, you’ve never once lost focus in a fight. What happened?” Lucanis was direct and straight to the point as usual, but his tone was light and almost playful. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on the viewpoint, Rook remembered all too well what had caused her to lose her focus and concentration during their fight. It was… Well it might’ve been considered pretty funny if it hadn’t nearly gotten her killed and risked the livelihood of her two companions.
“Oh you know, just lost my footing. Made a mistake, it happens. Only human.” Rook replied nonchalantly and purposefully didn’t return Lucanis’s gaze as she continued to check over the newly applied bandage.
“You should know better than to lie to me.”
Okay, that made Rook look up and over at Lucanis who had his arms folded while he still remained leant against the wall behind him. There was glint in his eye, and not because Spite was trying to take him over, it was a different. She knew that look well. This look was a this was a twinkle that suggested intrigue in the conversation. But there was a subtle humour that seemed to linger behind those eyes. It told Rook everything she needed to know. She felt herself growing warm again, her face heating up as it had done before. All for just thinking about him…
Lucanis was just teasing her at this point and Rook quickly became all too aware of it, eventually.
“I think you already know why, you arse.” Rook huffed and rolled her eyes but the small curling of the lips gave her away.
“Aha!” Lucanis exclaimed in triumph and chuckled to himself while he moved away from the darkened corner he’d been standing in and into the light. “I knew it… I saw it. What Emmrich said, it affected you…”
”What? No it didn’t…” It was a pointless attempt to defend herself but one she decided to make nonetheless.
”Oh please, you were blushing…” Lucanis grinned, he was clearly enjoying himself at the expense of Rook who was effectively trapped in a corner.
”Alright, so what if I was?” Here goes nothing…
”Seems you have a thing for praise, hm?”
Oh. That was- Not the direction she’d expected this to go in. This was actually preferable, not ideal but still better than the route she thought Lucanis would take instead. She thought she’d been caught out, like a deer in headlights, in her interest towards a certain necromancer. So this was an improvement.
“Um…” Rook hummed in dismissive contemplation, a short but rapid series of blinks followed.
”Oh? Is there something more?” Lucanis purred.
Crap…
They both had the ability to read one another like a book. It was helpful during certain situations but definitely not in others… Right now, this situation, was the latter of those two. Despite the bond they shared, there were some conversations that Rook was unwilling to have, even with a close friend like her fellow Crow companion.
Rook shook her head slowly, a laugh escaping her. Laughing it off was really the best idea that she had. ”Really not in the mood for this right now, Lucanis.” It was true, only there were multiple reasons why she didn’t want to explore this topic, which didn’t just extend to having sore head.
“Hardly surprising, I suppose, the praise thing.” Lucanis mused aloud, “given the lack of it you received from Viago. You’ve practically been starved.”
“Right, yeah. Hilarious. Just keep this to yourself, alright? Don’t want everyone finding out that flattery will get them everywhere with me. That’d be dangerous.”
Lucanis gave a short chuckle. “That’s true. But more to the point, how do we stop this from happening again? What if Davrin tells you that your hair looks nice today while we’re busy slaughtering demons?”
Thankfully Lucanis wasn’t nearly as sauve or knowing as he made himself out to be, especially when it came to subjects of a romantic nature. He didn’t seem to realise that receiving compliments would only make her weak in the knees if those compliments were made by one person. One specific mage in particular. Luckily he hadn’t caught on with that aspect of it. She smiled, mostly out of relief. But she couldn’t really explain the whole truth, she hoped that Lucanis would drop the matter and forget about it. But given that it impacted their work, he likely wouldn’t give up on this any time soon.
“Doesn’t quite work like that, Luc… Not gonna suddenly start swooning just because someone calls me pretty.”
“Then how does it work?” Lucanis asked curiously, his brows knitting together in confusion. “We need to make sure this doesn’t happen again, we can’t afford to-”
“Are you lecturing our indomitable leader already, Lucanis?”
Both Rook and Lucanis glanced sharply to the entrance of the bedroom to find Emmrich stood in the doorway, a gentle smile on his face. They each blinked, their surprise was a little too evident. Lucanis broke the short silence.
“How did you manage to sneak up on a Crow? No wait, two Crows?” He almost sounded impressed. Rook knew him well enough to determine that he was indeed impressed… Even if he didn’t want to admit it.
“Growing up in the Mourn Watch in the Grand Necropolis makes for remarkably light feet.” Emmrich supplied effortlessly before stepping into the room, his gaze then fell to Rook who was staring right back at him, mouth slightly agape. The mage looked far more disheveled than usual, typically the man didn’t have a hair out of place and was always well dressed. Clearly he’d been restless. But it was a good look on him, at least it was in Rook’s eyes anyway. He turned his attention from Lucanis to Rook. “How are you feeling?”
“Erm yeah, good. Better. Thanks.”
“We were just talking about how to prevent distractions. Any ideas?” Lucanis peered from Rook over to Emmrich with a quizzical look.
“A conversation perhaps best saved for another time. For now, we should allow Rook to rest. If you’d like, I can take over.”
“Neither of you need to watch me now I’m awake. Look at me, alive and well.” Rook gestured towards herself before carrying on to speak, lightly clearing her throat. “Appreciate it, by the way. Thank you.” She addressed both men, giving them each a sincere smile before she continued. “In the meantime, if I have any scary dreams, I’ve got Varric right next door.” Rook commented jokingly.
“If you’re sure, I’ll head back then.” Lucanis announced, “I need a coffee anyway.” He added casually before making his way to leave.
Emmrich, on the other hand, moved further into the room. “You’ve experienced a mild head injury and concussion, Rook, you shouldn’t be left alone. Not just yet. I’ll stay for a while, just to be certain.”
Rook nodded her head, the two of them exchanging reassuring glances while they listened to the footsteps of Lucanis retreating from behind the closed door before they disappeared completely. As soon as they were in the clear, Emmrich approached Rook’s bed side and sat down beside her. A hand reached up to the side of her head, cupping her face and Rook affectionately leaned into it.
“I was so worried for you, my dear. Are you sure you’re quite alright? You’re wounded.” Emmrich’s tone was full with concern as he searched Rook’s face for a moment before settling on her eyes. One of Rook’s hands reached down to rest over Emmrich’s upper leg.
“I’m fine, don’t worry about me.” Rook smiled softly and leaned in for a kiss, an action that Emmerich reciprocated gladly and with a strong enthusiasm.
“But I do, I do worry about you. Incessantly.” The mage admitted upon breaking away from her lips.
“I think we need to worry more about Lucanis. He’s getting suspicious.”
Emmrich sighed softly, his gaze dropping to the bandage draped around Rook’s shoulder and upper chest. He brushed her hair so that it fell over her shoulder so he could view it easier. “Don’t you think it’s about time we told him? I fear you may be overthinking how he might react, darling. Lucanis is-”
“Like a brother to me, and I’m like a sister to him.” She confessed, taking Emmrich’s hand within her own and brushing her thumb over the back of the mage’s palm. “I’m sure you’re probably right. He just takes time to warm to people, thought bringing you along with us while we’re out and about might help him bond with you a bit, you know?” Rook sighed, “didn’t quite go to plan though.”
It was important to Rook that Lucanis liked Emmrich, or didn’t want to stab him, at the very least. She had no real idea how Lucanis felt about Emmrich, they hadn’t spoken much about their fellow companions. All she knew was that it needed to be done right. Emmrich mattered too much to her. They had only been together for a short time but she was enjoying every moment, even if it was in secrecy, for now...
The pair were quiet for a moment while they enjoyed each other’s company, during a time that they could finally be alone with just one another and no one else. They felt content. “Speaking of earlier on, what happened, exactly?” Emmrich enquired thoughtfully.
Rook gave a small laugh. “It’s nothing, really. Stupid, actually, considering it could’ve gotten me - and maybe even us - killed.”
Emmrich raised his eyebrows inquisitively. “It’s not nothing to me. I have to agree with Lucanis here, Rook, if it’s concerning distractions then it’s important to understand the reasonings and implications.”
Rook had been watching her finger trace absentmindedly over the back of Emmrich’s hand, admiring the rings that he wore on his fingers. She gave a grin and shook her head gently before meeting his gaze once more. “Your praise, your compliments, you flattering me while we’re in the middle of a fight. It…” The rogue trailed off. She couldn’t believe they were about to have this discussion, or rather the fact that she had to explain it. “It does things to me.”
While certain elements of romance went over Lucanis’s head, Emmerich was far more experienced and ‘in the know’ than he led people to believe. Although he wasn’t quite at Rook’s level with certain aspects… This would be something that he wouldn’t have even considered, or thought about. But Rook knew what she liked and she wanted to be honest with the man that she liked. More than liked, if she was being honest with herself, but that was a conversation for another time.
Emmrich titled his head slightly to one side, appearing slightly puzzled by Rook’s response. “It does things to you? As in, it distracts you?”
“Yes, exactly. Well, kind of. Gets me all hot and bothered.”
”All because I said ‘atta girl’?” Emmrich quirked an eyebrow which prompted Rook to continue.
”To put it plainly, it turns me on.”
“It… Oh, I- I see.” The mage blinked in realisation and then hummed with one hand still entwined with Rook’s fingers. The other free hand of his reached up to brush a strand of hair that had fallen forward back behind her ear. “Then I think we may have encountered a slight problem.”
“A problem?” Oh no, had she said too much?
“I don’t intend to stop.” He smiled suggestively and his gaze softened. This was an unexpected development, at least from Emmrich’s perspective. It wasn’t a complaint by any means. It was a pleasant and most welcomed surprise.
Rook returned the smile, relief - amongst other things - washed over her upon hearing those words. “Wouldn’t want you to.”
“But if you could get hurt…” His expression changed to that of a much softer one.
“It won’t happen again. It just caught me off guard, that’s all. I’ll be better prepared for it next time.”
“Presuming there’ll be a next time, of course. That all depends on how good you are.”
It wasn’t very often that Rook was rendered speechless, albeit temporarily, but this was definitely a pleasant surprise. If it was even possible, she thought she liked him even more.
“I’ll be good for you… I can be good right now, if you let me.” Rook smirked as she kept hold of the hand in her own and guided Emmrich to lay down with her on the bed. He eagerly obliged, enabling Rook to lay her good shoulder against him to close any gaps between them. Emmrich leaned closer to kiss Rook intimately and with passion, the two of them getting lost against other before the mage eased back again.
“As tempting a thought as that is, my dear, believe me. One of us must show restraint. You need your rest tonight. There’s always tomorrow.” He said flirtatiously as he began to gently run his fingers through the rogue’s hair.
Rook rested her head on Emmrich’s chest and closed her eyes with a soft huff and a small smirk. “Tease.”
“Ah, ah, ah…” Emmrich chastised gently, though the words held no real weight to them, holding Rook close to him. “Sleep now, darling. I’ll be right here when you wake up.”
Rook sighed and allowed herself to relax against Emmrich, feeling completely at ease and comfortable, warm and safe in his arms. As she succumbed to a deep and restful slumber, she barely even registered a chaste kiss to her forehead followed by the whispering of Emmrich in her ear.
“Good girl.”