A/N: ...Yeah, I know you guys have been waiting for an update on this. I am prioritizing my other ficlet uploading for Feathers on the Wind, though, since I have a lot more of those to upload. I would run out of updates for this far too quickly if I kept uploading for it. Special thanks to those who have been supporting me despite what I update. I really appreciate that more than I can say. And thanks to those of you who reviewed this, as well.
This part was a request - I took requests on tumblr for specific heartshards that people wanted to see ficlets about in this AU, as long as I could get inspired enough to write them.
Request: The heartshard of affection, please! That was always one of my favorites...
Rating and Genre: PG / Angst | Subtle ship hints because when do I not.
Notes: This is one of my favorite heartshards, so I really enjoyed working with an idea for this. And there's even a brief cameo of a certain familiar duo...
Her Smile
What a pointless tradition this was.
Nacht sneered at the classroom full of giggling teens, all speaking or whispering excitedly to one another about the Fire Festival and who they were considering for partners. All cheeks were painted with happy blushes and smiles full of hope.
He never liked this day. What good was some silly romantic idea about a golden apple granting a couple an everlasting bond through their dancing skills?
Rubbish. A trivial event of wasted time and nothing more.
His crimson eyes shifted away from the crowd and down to the complacent girl sitting next to him, looking on at the tittering group of girls with neither interest or disinterest. Idly, he reached up with his hand and twirled a lock of Ahiru's red hair with one finger. Thankfully, with so very few of her emotions, his princess wouldn't have any interest in this drivel. And even if she did, he could talk her out of it easily enough.
"Fakir," she suddenly spoke, looking up at him. "They're pointing at us."
And sure enough, his princess was right. A group of the chattering female dancers was pointing fingers in their direction and whispering excitedly to one another. Though with the volume of their 'whispers', it was impossible not to hear them, even across the expanse of the room.
"I bet Fakir and Ahiru will win the golden apple!"
"Oh, that will never happen! Ahiru is such a poor dancer. She's just a beginner and he's in the advanced class! The gap is just too large. It's bound to become a wonderful failure and break their poor hopeful hearts. I can't wait to watch it unfold!"
"But they suit each other really well when they dance, don't they? They're always together and he refuses to dance with anyone else! Ahiru holds his arm when they're out walking in the courtyard and everything!"
"They must be dating! What a cute and tragically mismatched couple!"
Nacht rolled his eyes and averted them from the throng of teens, focusing instead on the redhead beside him. Dating? Is that what they thought? Well, in truth, that was fine with him. All the better if they believed Ahiru was off-limits. And his. He approved of that.
As for the golden apple, that was just was ridiculous - as was this entire festival. What need did he have of some useless souvenir when he had the one girl who accepted him right here at his side?
That was all that he really needed. And it was all that she needed, too.
Leaning down, he poised his lips at her ear. "Take my arm," he instructed her in a low, hushed voice.
And just like always, she did as he said without question or complaint.
He should have figured that taking his eyes off her for even a few moments would result in that moron wandering off on her own. Nacht clenched his teeth, his aggravation growing by the minute.
Had she been duped by the girls in her class into doing something pointless again? Or worse, had she been convinced to take part in this stupid Fire Festival?
With fisted hands, he stalked across the academy grounds, looking every which way for a head of bright red hair. It never ceased to irritate him that he could so easily lose track of someone who stuck out like a sore thumb. Just where had she disappeared to now?
His peripheral vision then caught sight of something beyond a window, turning his head quickly in that direction. And there-
What was she doing with him?
Well, no - that much was obvious. The white-haired, smiling teen was lifting his doe-eyed princess up into the air, where she formed a sloppy bend of a leg extended behind her. They were dancing.
Hadn't he already told that nuisance to stay away from her? Hmph. To think that he actually believed Mytho might have heeded his warning, unlike Rue. He really did have his eyes on Ahiru, didn't he?
Nacht scowled, a hot emotion burning through his system as he made a swift beeline for the nearest entrance to the building in question. He would put a stop to this here and now.
At the very least, he thought bitterly, he found what he was looking for.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?"
Mytho looked nervous, having been cornered as he was leaving the practice room. But he still managed to smile, even if it appeared obviously forced. "Ah, it's not what you think, Fakir! I'm not trying to steal your partner or anything. I already have a partner. It's just..."
"Just what?" Nacht snapped, clearly lacking patience.
"She... Ahiru said she was lonely. She asked me to dance with her."
"You didn't refuse?" he sneered, though he knew the answer already.
"I..." Mytho seemed at a loss and sighed. "I couldn't just leave her there. She looked so sad..."
Loneliness. Sadness. Feelings.
Damn that Prince Siegfried!
"You suit her the most," Mytho cut through his thoughts. "I've always thought so. Ahiru looks the most graceful when she dances with you. And I'm sure... I'm sure you two will win tonight."
"I would never waste my time with such nonsense," Nacht informed him with a growl, pushing past him. Just before opening the door, he turned back to the other boy, red eyes narrowed dangerously. "Don't touch her again."
And the door snapped firmly shut.
She was still inside, dressed in her uniform and facing away from him. Her dulled eyes were staring out the window, a mop held loosely in one of her hands.
Dammit, if she had been lonely... why did she leave his side?
"Princess," he shattered the silence like a brick through glass.
She turned around, regarding him with her usual lack of emotion. "Fakir," she acknowledged. And then, "You're late."
That took the raven prince by surprise. "Late?" he echoed her. "Late for what?"
"The girls in class said I should meet you here. To practice for the festival. I had chores from Mr. Cat and I came and I waited for you. But you didn't come. I was lonely. Then Mytho came..."
Nacht mentally cursed those nosy girls as he quickly approached her, reaching for her hand. "Forget it," he told her firmly, whirling her around and causing her to drop the mop to the floor with a clatter. "We're not going to the festival. They lied to you. Don't listen to them again. Understand?"
She nodded, leaning into him as he pulled her forward. The scent of her hair and the lightness of her small body tempered his simmering anger and gave way to the kind of peace he could only find with her. "But I will dance with you." He brushed a long lock of her bangs behind one ear before he made to raise her off of her feet. "Whenever you're feeling lonely or sad. As much as you want."
"Mytho danced with me when I was lonely."
It was merely a statement with no emotion in it at all, but the words alone snagged in his chest and Nacht's movements abruptly staggered. Giving her a rough yank, he pulled her right in toward his chest and lifted her face by her chin.
"Do you like him?"
He knew the answer already. She wasn't capable of feeling a 'like' for anything. But he wanted to hear it.
"I don't know," she said.
Yet it didn't ease Nacht as much as he had hoped. He had to make it clear to her, somehow. And ironically, the chattering of those girls from earlier in the day flitted across his mind. If she believed that they were together in an official sense, maybe he could prevent this from ever happening again. The thought was pleasing.
His thumb stroked her cheek. "We're dating. Don't dance with anyone else."
"We're dating," she repeated. "Okay."
That was what he wanted to hear.
When Ahiru had disappeared again without a word, for nearly the entirety of the evening, Nacht had been on his last nerve.
Didn't he already make it clear to her? If she was lonely or sad, she should come to him, dammit! And instead of waiting for him in the private room of the library like he told her to, she left as soon as he had stepped out to get her a drink.
And now he found himself lurking behind the buildings around the site of the festival, of all places. It seemed likely that she could have fallen for something else that came out of those girls' big mouths. The blonde and the pink-haired two in particular seemed all too thrilled about feeding her worthless information or persuading her to do stupid things. He wouldn't be surprised if they followed him to find out where he brought her for the evening and lured her out.
Unlike where she waited in the classroom, however, she did not appear to be waiting for him now. And the festival itself was over. The fire was being put out, happy couples were going on their way out of the square, and the festivities were all being put to an end.
Where was she? Did she have any idea how worried about her he was?
...Of course she didn't. His princess didn't understand the concept of worrying. Nacht cursed under his breath, turning sharply on heel. There was no point to waiting here any longer. He'd best look elsewhere for-
And there, just a few feet ahead of him, she stood plain as day. Nacht blinked once just to make sure he hadn't imagined her sudden appearance.
The sight of her remained. And his worry shifted heavily to a surge of anger as he closed the few remaining steps between them. "Where have you been?" he demanded in a snarl. "I've been looking for you for hours!"
"Fakir," she addressed him calmly, unable to even react to his clear displeasure. "I was in the library. Where you told me to wait for you."
"No you damn well weren't," he hissed. He had only left her alone for a couple of minutes and she hadn't been able to stay in once place. It was maddening! "When I came back, you were gone."
"I went beneath the floor."
Nacht stared at her, speechless, for a good five seconds. "You what?"
"There was light. I moved a tile. There was a space and I went down. I followed the light." She named each action off, as though she was reading down a written list.
Ahiru wasn't capable of lying on her own, as far as he knew. That meant that his princess really did slip down beneath the library. And she did it within the few short minutes that he left her unattended. He opened his mouth to interrogate her further, but stopped short. Only now did he notice that she wasn't empty-handed.
His brows furrowed at the object she was holding in her hands. "...Where did you get that from?"
"It called to me," she responded placidly. "The light. Beneath the library, I found it."
Nacht's eyes widened when a smile - a real, actual smile - formed upon his princess's features. She never did that before. It was warm. It was striking. He wanted her to turn and show that smile just to him and-
No, this was a very unwelcome development. If she was able to smile, that meant... Prince Siegfried did something. He gave her back an emotion.
Gritting his teeth, Nacht demanded, "Which one was it?"
She finally looked away from the lamp and faced him with her blue eyes, blinking slowly. Her lips made no movement to respond. And somehow, when her ignorance never usually bothered him, right now, it irritated him all the more.
"The feeling. You have another one." He glared at her. "What did Prince Siegfried give back to you?"
"Oh. It was... affection."
A knot formed in his gut. He knew Ahiru. He knew her very well - better than anyone, better than even that damned Rue. If she had the ability to express affection, she would share that emotion freely. Unlike loneliness, sadness, and frustration, that he could nurture her for, affection wasn't something he could 'cure'.
And she was still holding that ancient-looking lamp like it was important to her. Just what the hell had happened this evening? His eyes narrowed. "Did Prince Siegfried give that to you?"
Ahiru shook her head. "No. I told you. She called out to me."
"She?" He raised an eyebrow, watching the lamp as though he expected it to sprout arms and legs and start talking.
"The spirit inside," she clarified in monotone.
Nacht still kept his wary gaze upon the object. As far as he was concerned, anything that led his princess away from him was dangerous - whether it was an actual person or not. His lip curled unpleasantly. "Get rid of it."
"No!" Ahiru protested in a squeak as she curled her fingers gently around the lamp, cradling it to her front as one would a precious child. "She was lonely. I know... what loneliness feels like. I don't want her to feel alone."
...He already hated this emotion. She was openly defying him - over a lamp, of all things. She cared so much for that spirit that she was willing to stand up against his words for it.
But at least she was back in his care. The spirit didn't seem to be causing trouble for now. If it did, he would throw the damn thing out whether she liked it or not. However, for the time being... he could let her keep it.
"Come on," he reached for her hand. "We're going back. You can bring it with you."
Uncurling one set of fingers from around her protective hold of the lamp, she met his fingers and gave him a soft smile. It made his heart ache to the point that he forgot how to breathe.
"Thank you, Fakir."
Perhaps... he did not hate this emotion, after all.
A/N: And that's it for the heartshard of Affection! I hope you enjoyed this installment/ficlet of this AU. Reviews/comments/critique are greatly loved and appreciated.
And thank you for reading.