pairings: Obi/Shirayuki; background Zen/Shirayuki, Obi/Zen
warning(s): none
notes: Written for the ObiYuki Kiss-a-thon 2016 on tumblr. This fills the first prompt, 'Accident'. I really enjoy this series and while this piece is still rather rough, I'm very happy to finally share it! Comments and constructive feedback are very appreciated. This is crossposted to both tumblr (where you can find my full author's notes) and AO3.
Shirayuki gestures for Obi to enter her workspace, tapping a foot impatiently when he dawdles at the door. Zen nudges his aide in the side until he reluctantly enters the room and sits down on the stool pulled up for him at her work counter.
"Just sit down and let her fuss over you," Zen tells Obi, following him in and leaning casually against the counter.
"It's nothing, Miss, really," Obi starts to say, but is cut off when Shirayuki grasps his chin and tilts his head up toward her so she can look at him.
"Zen was right: your lips are a mess," she informs him solemnly. "You've got the worst chapped lips I've seen so far this year, Obi. Doesn't it hurt?"
"They always get like that in the winter," he says defensively, unconsciously licking his lips. "It's normal for me."
"Your lip split when we were talking earlier. I saw it," Zen remarks blandly. "That's not really normal." He's looking at some of the bundled herbs hanging from the cupboards and misses Obi's half-hearted glare in his direction. So much for support!
"Please don't irritate your lips further by licking them," Shirayuki tells Obi sternly. She leaves off examining her patient to root around in one of the drawers closest to her. Obi sighs and tugs his cap further down around his ears. He worries at his bottom lip with his teeth while Shirayuki quietly consults with Zen at the far end of the counter. She shows Zen what she retrieved from the drawer and he smiles at her, presses a kiss to her forehead before she turns back towards Obi.
"Here." She shows him what she's got in her hands- an assortment of metal tins. Obi picks one up and examines it. There's a flower embossed on the lid, and when he pries it open there's a soft scent of roses.
"It's balm. For your lips," she explains when he raises a questioning eyebrow at her. "It's made from beeswax. That one has rose oil in it, and this one has mint oil," she puts a tin with a leaf on its lid on the counter along with the others in her hands, "this one has lavender, this one is plain." She starts telling him about the process involved in making them, eager as always to share her knowledge. Obi stands up and joins Shirayuki at the counter. He opens and examines each tin in turn as he listens to her talk. He's lost in thought for a few minutes as he turns the tins over in his hands.
"Obi?" she asks, placing a hand in the crook of his elbow. It's hard for him to explain how much he hates feeling vulnerable, even though he's been working on letting both Shirayuki and Zen in when those moments occur, such as now. So he doesn't say anything about it to her, just closes the tin he was looking at and gives her a slow blink of a cat-smile.
"Thank you, Miss," he says warmly. He flips the tin with plain balm in it up in the air a few times to indicate his choice. Shirayuki gathers the rest of the tins and puts them back in their drawer. She's giving him one of her Looks, the one he's come to know as the 'we're not done here yet, mister' look.
"Zen, could you-" she starts to say. Zen is beside her in an instant, a wordless exchange communicated through one of their other Looks that Obi has yet to categorize. He takes the tin from Obi and opens it, offers it to Shirayuki. She dips her pinky finger in the balm and with her other hand, reaches out to cup Obi's face.
He leans forward obligingly, watching her from under his lashes. She's careful in her application of the balm, smoothing out the roughness of his lips with a gentle fingertip. He's surprised at how much better his mouth feels when she's done .
"Better?" she asks with a shy smile. Her cheeks are faintly pink and Obi smiles fully at her, just because he can.
"Much better, Shirayuki," he says, enjoying the way she reacts when he says her name. He turns his face to kiss her palm, takes her hand in his to kiss her fingers and then draws her into his arms. Shirayuki's kisses are sweet like the rose balm on her own lips. Obi makes sure to show his gratitude until she's flushed and leaning back against the counter for support, at which point he draws away with another smile and rests his forehead against hers for a moment.
"Make sure you use it whenever your lips get too dry, Obi. And please drink more water!" is what she tells him when she gets her breath back. Her professional pharmacist voice is slightly wobbly and spoils the delivery. He gives her the most solemn assurance he can muster while fighting back a grin.
"Of course, Miss."
Zen's hand on his shoulder reminds him that he's still on duty, and that they should really be getting back to Zen's study before one of the other aides comes looking for them. Obi reaches over his shoulder to mesh his fingers with Zen's, the briefest of touches before Zen's hand drops from his shoulder.
"Jealous?" he asks slyly once he sees that the tips of Zen's ears are red, nudging him in the side.
"Of you?" Zen snorts and bats Obi's arm away from his sides. "Never."
"That's enough, you two," Shirayuki says firmly. She tiptoes to kiss both of them on the cheek, one after the other, then gently pushes them towards the door. "I have work to do, now, and so do the both of you. I'll see you later."
Zen leaves first, ever obedient, but Obi lingers at the doorway, watching Shirayuki as she bustles around her workshop. She passes by the open window and for a moment is bathed in light, a pink halo, a glint of gold as she turns her head and the light catches on the hairpin tucked into her braids. Obi closes his hand over the tin of balm in his pocket and follows Zen back down the hallway with a secret smile on his face.