Title: The Sun Leaves Traces
Author: Omnicat
Spoilers & Desirable Foreknowledge: Studio Bones's Darker Than Black.
Warnings: None.
Characters & Relationships: Amber & Hei & Pai
Summary: Very distinctive traces, in fact. Amber denies any and all involvement. / 985 words
Author's Note: Enjoy!
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The Sun Leaves Traces
The camp they had been dropped off at was obviously brand new. Sap, milky white or amber, still leaked from wounds in the felled trees, and the terrain had yet to acquire that well-trodden infrastructure of mud she had come to associate with long-term outdoor operations. The arrangement of the tents could use a little work as well.
It wouldn't surprise Amber if the other crews had been dumped on that desolate, sanity-forsaken riverbank the same way they had been; all but thrown overboard by a panicking human crew desperate to leave Heaven's Gate's waters as fast as their boat could carry them. The higher-ups would not be pleased to hear their Contractors complaining, though, and there was nothing wrong that would hinder their operations, so she decided not to enter the unprofessional conduct of the human operatives into her report.
After a quick round through the campsite to familiarize herself with it, Amber returned to the tent she and the other Contractors would stay in. A curious sight greeted her there: Hei, the young human brother of her even younger fellow Contractor Pai, was stretched out on the ground, straight along the length of the tent, using his arm as a pillow. The relaxed features and even breathing could have been misleading, but when Amber tickled his palm and all he did was twitch, groan, and turn his head, she was sure he was deep, deep asleep.
Poor landlubber, she thought, to go with the ghosts of faintly amused and distantly impressed. The din in the camp was substantial.
Not surprisingly, Pai appeared at her brother's side not long after. Amber had already observed that keeping watch over their sleeping sibling went both ways. What had possessed the boy to take the task upon himself rather than leave it to someone more qualified was anyone's guess, but it certainly wouldn't do for Pai to let such a driven and unshakeably loyal protector slip through her fingers.
Amber nodded at Hei's sleeping form. "How long has he been here?"
"Ten minutes or so," Pai answered, and explained before Amber could ask: "Temperatures are off, this close to the Gate. The shadows cast a lot of cold, and there's no heater for our tent yet. We should get one when the last ship arrives in a couple of hours."
The little quirks of this terrain hadn't escaped Amber. "Did he get much sleep last night?"
"None. He was seasick the entire way."
"Then he probably won't be waking up anytime soon, huh?"
"Probably not," Pai said, and entered the tent. She clearly intended to leave him there. He was tucked neatly out of the way of the walking routes and wouldn't bother anyone, so Amber understood. The girl seemed to have forgotten something, though.
Amber ducked into the tent as well, and emerged a little while later with goose bumps and a bottle of sunscreen. Squatting down next to Hei, she uncapped it, squeezed out the bottle-farts, and began dabbing big white globs onto his rosy cheeks, the sides of his neck, and his bare arms. He looked just like Amber remembered normal teenage boys to look in their sleep: younger than their years, childishly cute despite all their faux-mature bravado, and about to fall victim to an immature prank. She almost expected him to feel the cool tickle of the sunscreen and slap himself.
There's still a good few years left before I revert back to the body I had when I was an obnoxious teenager, but... She cocked her head. Oh, why not. I might never get there physically, but this is an excellent opportunity mentally.
Without touching the oily globs on Hei's face, she rushed into the tent again, and this time she came back with a box of wet paper towels. Only then did she spread the sunscreen over his skin, thick enough to leave a visible white sheen and careful not to wake him with rough movements or too much cold. When he arched into her touch at one point, a small keening sound escaping him, it gave her pause, and she caressed his cheek again without thinking.
The tricky part wasn't getting the sunscreen on without waking him, though; it was getting it off again. Wiping sunscreen from an upper lip in a recognisable moustache shape without exerting undue pressure was quite a chore, and after some internal debate, she had to conclude that a kissy-mouth, accurately shaped or not, would also have to be done by hand in order to remove the necessary amount of protection.
The other way wouldn't quite be worth the awful taste of sunscreen, anyway.
About halfway through, Pai came out and watched the proceedings, sitting on her haunches with her chin in her hand.
"Why are you doing that?" she asked, just as Amber put the finishing touches to the 'lipstick' marks on Hei's cheek.
"Because letting him acquire extensive sunburn risks reducing his combat efficiency, but a moderate amount will teach him a valuable lesson about surviving the elements. I could have woken him and made him put on sunscreen himself, but this way, the discomfort combined with the embarrassment will ensures his human mind takes permanent notice, so we won't have to worry about him getting careless again in the future. And because I can," Amber answered with complete honesty. "Wanna see if I can get 'Property of Pai' on his neck?"
"No."
"Then do you want me to remove it all?"
"Do we have after-sun lotion of some kind?"
"Of course."
"Then there's no point in wasting all that effort." With an exaggerated air of innocence, Pai stood, said: "I'm going up to the supply tent again. We don't even have enough blankets," and left.
Amber, in turn, conjured up a devilish smile.
"Don't worry," she said, leaning down to Hei's soundly sleeping face to inspect her handiwork. "I'll take care of you until she comes back."
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PSAN: Comments on older fics will always remain welcome. :)