Title of the fic is taken from "Perfect for You" from Next to Normal.
The idea for this story (really more of a compilation of one-shots) was specifically inspired by lucifersfavoritechild's (on AO3) headcanon: Headcanon that whenever Luke started to doubt himself or Kronos, he would trace Tori's scars to remind him what he was fighting for.
It was the end of summer. Last night they'd handed out the beads at the last campfire of the summer and today most of the campers were heading back into the real world.
Tori had invited Luke to spar and train with her that afternoon when camp was at its quietest. Since most campers had left by then and all the others who stayed over winter were busy with other things (a day where they didn't have to follow their schedules) no one would be in the training arena. That was usually the case, anyway.
He was running a little late, having gotten caught up at the Big House for a bit longer than he would've liked. He had just gone to inform Chiron that he'd be staying over the winter, but Chiron had stopped him, wanting to know how he was doing. To check up on him. Luke didn't really want that. It had been almost two and half years since then. But he'd suffered through it anyway, because he had to keep up the act.
Anyway, he'd ran back to the Hermes cabin to grab his gym bag, and strap his sword to his waist, before rushing over to the sword arena. He slowed down before entering so it wouldn't seem like he'd ran over here, getting his breathing under control. Inside he could hear soft footsteps.
Suddenly feeling paranoid and anxious, he peeked through the entryway, making sure to stay in the shadows so whoever was there wouldn't notice him. He let out a small breath when he saw Tori.
But then, he saw her and his breath caught completely in his throat, his eyes going wide.
Today was sunny, and the sun seemed to be drawn to her, as it was to all children of Apollo, acting as a natural spotlight. Her hair, which was pulled into a high ponytail, looked golden, and her brown skin looked almost bronze. She was also in tight-fitting shorts and a sports bra, her sword around her waist, in its sheath.
He'd never seen her wear anything but jeans and those quarter sleeve shirts to cover her scars.
Currently, her back was facing Luke, and he swallowed hard, watching her muscles in her back, shoulders, and arms tense as she stretched. His eyes couldn't help but glance at her scars, so prominent on her left side, starting at the elbow and going up her arm, curving back over her shoulder and stopping just above the small of her back. The sunlight threw them into relief, so they seemed even more noticeable.
It was unlike Tori to wear something like this so out in the open.
Then again, he knew about her scars already. He'd seen them before. And with camp nearly barren, it wasn't like she was in danger of revealing them to anyone else.
Realizing he'd been standing there for a long time, Luke pulled back, took a deep breath to compose himself, and then entered the arena.
Tori instantly turned at the sound of his footsteps and smiled.
Luke faltered in his stride, blinking, almost dazed. What was fucking wrong with him? He'd seen Tori before. She'd smiled at him like that before. Why was he so stunned now, all of a sudden?
Trying to regain his footing, he quickly smiled back, doing a once-over with his eyes. Nothing seemed that different about her. Was it some kind of Apollo magic? Him being a handsome god and all? Did that get passed down to his children?
Well, that was a stupid question. He'd seen how the campers looked at all the children of Apollo here. (And may or may not have gotten jealous of the people who tried to flirt with Tori.)
But why now all of a sudden? It'd never hit him like this before.
"You okay?" Tori asked, coming up to him as he set his stuff down.
"Yeah, sorry, I was thinking about some other stuff. It's stupid." Luke waved his hand in a noncommittal gesture. Tori frowned and Luke faltered again. "Uh, Chiron wanted to talk to me about...you know, what happened. Check in or some shit. And I just…"
"Oh, I see." Tori nodded, then: "Is that why you're late?" There was a mocking, challenging edge to her tone.
The corner of Luke's lips pulled up into a lopsided smile. He was grateful she didn't press.
"It's a very valid excuse," he defended himself. "He is our director of camp activities after all."
"You're going to have to make up the lost time, though. I expected to train, not to wait around all day for your slow ass to get down here."
"Oh, I can do better than that," Luke growled playfully.
Smirking, Tori unsheathed her sword and twirled it, taking a fighting stance. Luke unsheathed his own sword. And then attacked.
Tori was improving in leaps and bounds when it came to sword fighting and Luke was impressed. He'd never had such a fast-learning attentive student before. It was also nice, because it offered him a challenge when battling, too. It kept him in shape and kept his skills with a sword sharp (pun intended).
Unfortunately for him, today, the more they fought, the more distracted he got. He thought, maybe, if they got all gross and sweaty, Apollo's weird magic would wear off or something. He should've known that's not how it worked.
The sheen of sweat that covered Tori's body as they dueled only made it look like she was actually glowing under the sun's spotlight. Some of the smaller hairs had wiggled free from her ponytail and were now sticking to her forehead in just the right way.
The fierce, concentrated look she got as she attacked was, honestly, turning him on. And her brown eyes weren't helping—shining like a dark topaz in the bright sun.
Luke didn't even realize she was disarming him until his sword had clattered to the ground.
Tori stood before him, sword point at his throat, her chest heaving—don't stare—her expression displeased.
Panic rushed through Luke. She wasn't happy with him? Why? What could he do to make it up to her?
"You sure you're okay?" Tori asked, eyebrows furrowing as she pulled her sword away and sheathed it. "You seem distracted."
Luke swallowed hard and picked up his sword. "Yeah, I—I am...a little distracted," he conceded.
"Do you want to stop for today?"
Luke's head snapped up and he shouted, "No!" Tori jumped and blinked, startled at his strong response. "I mean, no, I'm having fun. I can pull it together. Besides, I was just warming up." He grinned and winked.
Tori rolled her eyes, but a smile was pulling at her lips. "Fine. Your call." She unsheathed her sword again and got into a fighting stance.
Luke honestly tried to focus, really, he did. But, like last time, he kept getting distracted watching Tori fight. It didn't help that he was up close and personal with her right now.
Then he screwed up, badly. He was so busy trying not to stare at the determined look on her face, or the way her abs tightened when doing a move, that when she stepped in and jabbed at him, he only had half a mind to dodge.
In the end, she didn't end up stabbing him, but she did manage to make quite a gash in his side.
Luke let out a grunt of pain, his sword dropping from his hand and going to his side. His knees buckled and hit the hard floor of the arena.
Tori was suddenly there, putting her own hand over his, her other hand caressing his face. She was saying something, looking frantic, but Luke was too busy getting lost in her eyes and watching her lips move to understand what she was saying. Besides, even if he wasn't distracted, his ears were ringing so loud, he wouldn't have been able to hear her anyway.
She pulled away and Luke let out a small noise of protest, reaching for her with his other hand, but she wasn't paying attention and he was slow from pain.
She wasn't gone long, though. She'd simply gone to get some ambrosia, which she promptly put to his lips. Luke opened his mouth obediently and, for the briefest moment, Tori's finger brushed his lips, sending chills down his spine.
He swallowed hard, almost choking on the ambrosia, and his pain slowly faded. When he pulled his hand away and looked down at his side, the wound was gone. The only thing left to show for it was the blood on his hand and some on Tori's, too. They quickly remedied this by rinsing their hands with water from a water bottle she'd brought over with the ambrosia.
"I'm sorry," he said after a moment of quiet, lifting his gaze from his hands, to look at Tori. "I guess I'm more distracted than I thought."
Tori frowned, concern swirling in her eyes. She was kneeling in front of him. She reached up to brush some hair from his forehead.
"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked pulling her hand away. Luke tried to stifle his protests at this.
He simply stared at her, wondering if he should tell her that she was the one distracting him, actually, not the talk he'd had with Chiron. That felt like centuries ago to Luke now.
Tori leaned in a little closer. "...Luke?"
Just a little closer, he thought, sliding his eyes closed and leaning forward to close the gap between them.
Tori responded to his kiss in kind, much to his enjoyment. Her hands came up to caress his face, one of them moving into his hair. His own hands came up to rest on her hips, careful to keep them on the fabric of her shorts.
But when the kiss started getting really heated, Luke faltered and pulled his hands away completely, causing them to fall. He managed to catch himself on his elbows with Tori falling on top of him.
She laughed and pulled herself up, planting a hand on his chest.
"What was that?" she asked, smiling. She was straddling him now and he hoped to the gods that his body could hold it together for a little longer. Though, with the way she was sitting, that natural spotlight still on her, he probably wasn't going to succeed.
"Sorry, I just…" Luke spluttered. "I didn't know—um, I was afraid of...well—" He broke off, his eyes doing a once-over, hoping that explained it enough.
Tori laughed again, making his heart flutter and his stomach knot.
"What's the matter, Castellan, never seen a girl show this much skin?" she teased.
Luke swallowed hard and slowly sat up. Tori shifted off him so he could before sitting down next to him. Close. Very close. He could smell her. He wanted to reach out and brush his fingers down her arm, but restrained himself so he could explain. Now that they were in a less compromising position, his head was somewhat clearer.
"I just...I wasn't sure what you were comfortable with," he said quietly, timid. "I didn't want to touch you somewhere you didn't want or like."
"Oh." Tori blinked before a delicate smile spread across her lips. "That's very sweet of you." She paused, her eyebrows furrowing, and bit her lip. "I'm not...sure what I'm comfortable with, though. Just...just do what feels natural and I'll tell you how I'm feeling. Does that sound...doable?"
Luke nodded, anticipation rushing through him. She wanted to kiss him again!
Beginning the kiss was a little awkward, but once they started kissing again, it seemed like the most natural thing in the world to them. Luke hesitantly put his hands on her waist (her skin was so soft and warm!) and pulled back a moment to whisper, "Okay?"
"Yeah," Tori breathed before continuing the kiss.
He moved one of his hand to the small of her back, the other to her neck.
"Still okay?"
"Mm-hmm."
He cupped the nape of her neck, his other hand moving to her stomach.
"This okay?"
"Yeah."
Luke found he really liked feeling her abs contract as they moved and kissed.
When Tori broke away for air, Luke moved his lips to her neck. Brazenly, he nipped at her throat and heard her suck in a sharp breath. He pulled away slightly, looking up at her.
"Okay?"
"...yeah," she breathed. "I just...wasn't expecting it."
Luke nipped again, at the base of her throat before licking the same spot. Tori's arms tightened around him, her fingers digging into his back.
"Shit," she hissed.
Pleased, Luke continued to down to her collarbone, continuing his small bites and licks. Her chest heaved and when he glanced up at her, her eyes were squeezed shut and she was biting her lip. Her arms were still tensed around him.
Luke brought her lips to his again, this time their kiss slower and more careful.
Without really thinking, one of Luke's hands moved to her back, between her shoulder blades, to steady her against him while the other started to trail her scars with his fingers. Tori froze, and Luke responded, freezing, too, before quickly pulling his hand away and looking at her warily.
"I'm sorry, I didn't—" he began, but Tori silenced him with a quick peck on the lips.
"I'm just not used to being so comfortable around someone," she said. "I like it. Being able to be open with you."
"So you don't mind?" Luke asked to make sure.
Tori bit her lip, hesitantly lifting her hand and caressing Luke's face, gently stroking her thumb over his scar. He tensed slightly, but it was something they'd already talked about. Something he was getting used to.
"I think it'll take some getting used to, but…" She dropped her hand. "I don't mind."
Luke looked at her for a long moment, taking it all in, before they were kissing again. Slower, but somehow more passionate. He gently pressed his fingertips against her scars, working his way up her back, down her arm, and then back again.
Chapter titles are subject to change. (I wanted to do something witty, but I also just kind of want to post this. So I'll come up with something later and probably change it then.)
As always, I hope you enjoyed! Comments are much appreciated! ^_^
Thank you for reading,
TheBrightestNight
