This is a get well gift for feministkendra. So here is some short Brackendra fluff based off headcanons. If you have a suggestion or would like me to expand on one of these, please tell me! Hope you enjoy!
To a unicorn, 3 nights of sleep a week was more than enough. A human needed at least double that to stay healthy over a long period of time. Bracken was usually lucky to get 2 nights before his body and mind refused to shut down enough to sleep. He could relax deeply, yes, and maybe even lightly doze, but sleep was nonexistent after about 12 hours of it.
That's exactly the situation that currently entangled him, as it did most nights. Stuck in that irritating position between sleep and wakefulness. Finally admitting defeat, Bracken opened his eyes, slightly. Thus allowing them to adjust to the blinding brightness, otherwise known as his wife, Kendra. The only thing keeping him from jumping out of bed and doing something constructive.
Had it been any other time or anybody else, Bracken wouldn't have even gone to bed. But this was Kendra. Sweet, gorgeous Kendra. Bracken knew that him, just simply laying next to her made her feel safe and protected. If Kendra deserved anything, it was to feel safe and protected. And with Kendra barely getting enough sleep as it was, he was ready to do anything he could to help. Not that Bracken minded, he loved the feeling of her small body tucked safely in his arms. Nothing compared to the peace he felt radiate through his very soul, as he felt the small rise and fall of her chest as she breathed. A constant reminder that she was safe. He hadn't failed.
In these quiet moments, Bracken couldn't help but stare at her beautiful features. Her long, brown hair, feeling so soft and silky. The hair that always smelled amazing. Her soft, pink lips and creamy white skin. He couldn't help but smile at how relaxed she was, something he never saw when she was awake. He gently ran his fingers through her hair, careful not to wake her, as he marveled at the softness. His hand ran over the shoulders which were free from their usual tenseness. Her beautiful face a pure display of peace.
He watched her softly smile in her sleep, and wondered what she was dreaming. All he had to do was gently weave into her sleeping subconscious, but he enjoyed the morning conversations about her dreams. He was also thankful for the good dreams she appeared to be having.
Bracken pulled her closer and smiled, content to stay there until morning.
"Bracken? Are you still awake?" Whispered a sheepish voice from beside him. Bracken was, indeed, still awake. Simply not tired enough to be sleeping. Kendra on the other hand, he knew, was exhausted. He rolled over to face her, squinting slightly as his eyes adjusted, confused as to what was causing her lack of sleep.
" I am, but what are you still doing up? I can tell how exhausted you are." Bracken said in concern. He reached up to brush a strand of her brown hair out of her face, allowing his hand to linger on her cheekbone, before placing a soft, gentle kiss on her forehead.
" I just can't fall asleep, I'm so tired, but my mind won't shut down." she answered shrugging. " What about you? Why can't you sleep?" She asked.
" I'm not tired. I slept two nights in a row, so I'm not sleepy." He said in a gentle soothing voice, trying to slowly lull Kendra to sleep. So far all his attempts at soothing her proving fruitless.
" You don't have to stay here if you don't want to. It must be boring just laying there."
" It's not too bad, besides, I like being with you." Bracken finished quickly, trying not to get roped into a conversation that would keep her awake any longer. They lay in silence for a few minutes when suddenly an idea struck him.
" Hey Kendra?" He said quietly, making sure she hadn't drifted off.
" Yes?" She asked, obviously happy to have an excuse to stay awake.
" Since both of us can't sleep how about we go look at the stars? That could be fun." He suggested, knowing that this way not only could he find out what was bothering her, but also get her mind off of it so she could fall asleep.
"Yeah! That's a great idea! Let's go!" Kendra said quickly kicking off the sheets and heading down the stairs of their small cabin. Bracken grabbed a blanket and followed after her, amused by her enthusiastic response. It was one of the many things he loved about Kendra, her ability to find so much joy in the littlest of things. Bracken walked through the quiet cabin and out the wooden door, closing it softly behind him.
Once outside, Bracken stopped for a moment to admire How beautiful Kendra looked as she glowed in the starlight. The gentle night-time wind blowing her long blond hair. Bracken shook his head to clear his thoughts and laid the blanket down before lying on top of it. He lay on his back, and Kendra did the same, he intertwined their fingers as they lay in silence. They stayed in that position until the cold night air caused Kendra to snuggle closer for warmth. Bracken lifted his arm, allowing Kendra to curl into his side and place her head on his chest. Bracken pulled her closer as he wrapped his arms around her, making sure she could hear his heart beat. From their current position, Bracken could feel a tenseness in her shoulders that he hadn't noticed previously. Thus indicating she was worried.
" What's causing you to tense up like this princess? What's worrying you?" He asked gently, rubbing her shoulders in a soothing, circular motion. Gently easing the knots of tension and stress. Through their contact he could feel her becoming drowsier by the second, and knew she wouldn't last much longer.
" I'm worried, about going to the royal gathering tomorrow night. I really want them to accept me." She said through half-lidded eyes, her words running together slightly. The gathering was basically a ball where all the unicorns and the royal family got together to welcome a new member. That member, in this case, being Kendra.
" You have nothing to worry about, love. Trust me . They'll love you just like I do. My family loves you. I adore you. You have nothing to worry about." He replied, meaning every word.
"Thank you. I love you too Bracken." She answered almost inaudibly.
" Sleep, Kendra, everything will keep until you wake." He whispered gently and almost immediately, Kendra went limp against him and her breathing evened out. He waited a few minutes more, listening to her soft breaths and staring at the stars above. Before, finally, gently laying Kendra on the ground and moving to pick her up and carry her back to bed. Hoping that the stress would melt away.
Kendra held Brackens hands in a death grip as he pulled her across the ice. He had taken her to a preserve near the arctic circle in an attempt to teach her to ice skate. So far, however, all Kendra had learned how to do was fall. Bracken laughed at her death grip.
" You ok, love. I'm not going to let you go!" He laughed some more before adding, " I don't know why you're so scared, It really isn't that hard."
" Easy for you to say, unicorn! You're not the one falling on your butt every time you try to stand on your own!" Kendra snapped, as she said this she slipped again, the only thing keeping her from falling was Brackens unwavering hold on her. Much to her annoyance the unicorn laughed again.
" That's only because I've had years of practice!" He said. " The only way to learn is to do it!" He added and when he said it, he let go and skated off a few inches away from her. Kendra let out a terrified yelp and braced herself for a fall. Much to her surprise, she stayed on her feet! She watched the graceful way that her boyfriend pushed off and skated around the small lake. Slowly and steadily she began to copy his movements. She let out a laugh of joy as she realized that she was skating on her own. She felt the rush of pleasure you get when you learn something new.
" You're doing great Kendra!" Bracken called with a smile on his face. At the sound of his voice, Kendra looked up and stopped watching where she was going or what she was doing. Big mistake. When she looked back to what she was doing, she realized she was reaching the edge of the small lake. Sudden panic filled her as she realized she didn't know how to stop.
"How do I stop? " She asked, the panic evident in her voice.
" Don't worry! Just Dig your feet into the ice. " Bracken called calmly. Kendra rushed to do just that. Unfortunately, when she did that she brought her feet towards each other and twisted her ankle. For at least the hundredth time that day, Kendra felt her back hit the cold ice. Bracken quickly skated over to her and put a hand out to help her up.
" Are you ok?" He asked, his face clouded with concern. " You look like you fell harder that time." She took his hand and he pulled her to her feet. Kendra winced as a white hot pain
" Yeah, I think I twisted my ankle when I fell." Kendra said shakily as she leaned on Bracken. He led her to sit on the snow bank lining the edge of the pond. Once she was sitting he slowly and as gently as possible pulled the ice skate off of her, already swollen, ankle. He quickly pulled her socks down slightly and place a gentle kiss to the injury. Kendra immediately felt warmth shoot through her shivering body. The warmth circled her ankle and the pain stopped.
" Thank you." Kendra said, blushing furiously. Bracken gently brushed a hand across her flaming cheek, adding fuel to the fire, as he brushed a piece behind her ear.
"Anytime, princess." He said as he placed a soft kiss to her forehead. He helped her slip her boots back on before pulling her to her feet and leading back to the fairy shrine.
Bracken watched from a cell where he was chained as Kendra charged Ronodin. He dodged her attack and her sword. She raised her sword to strike, but he grabbed her arm and stopped her. Ronodin's evil face twisted into a malevolent smirk. Before Kendra could react, Ronodin twisted his grip and bent her arm backwards. The room was filled with the sickening snap of bone and Kendra's pain filled scream. Bracken fought against his restraints as he watched Ronodin grab Kendra's face and hit her, causing her head to violently snap backwards, no doubt causing whiplash. He lets go of her and shoves her away roughly. Then, before she can react, he kicked her legs out from underneath her. Kendra gives a short cry of pain as her head hits the ground with a resounding 'crack'. Kendra looks up at Ronodin slightly dazed. Bracken watched in horror as Ronodin's evil smirk twisted into a snarl as a he brought his foot down on her chest, hard. The bones in her chest snap and Kendra screamed in pure agony. Tear poured down her bloody face. Ronodin grabbed her by her hair and pulled her up to meet his face and he drove his sword deep into her chest.
"KENDRA!" Bracken screamed as he sat straight up in the bed drenched in sweat with tears still streaming down his face. Kendra shot up beside him look for the danger that could have caused such a pain filled, terrified scream to come from her husband. Bracken turned to look at her. He scanned her body for the injuries he had just seen his cousin inflict. Instead, he was met with worried green eyes. Bracken felt his breathing speed up ad uncontrollable sobs left his mouth. He shook like a leaf in a wind storm from the terror of the nightmare. Suddenly he felt Kendra's small arms wrap around his frame and felt her hand guide his head to rest on her chest, right over her heart. He felt her fingers run through his hair. Bracken held her in a crushing grip, afraid that she would disappear. Slowly, her steady heartbeat and slow breathing helped him relax. His sobs turned into a silent stream of tears and then stopped entirely. His breathing began to slowly even out. As his panic began to settle he could hear a sound that brought a smile back onto his face. Kendra was singing softly in his ear. The fingers running through his hair helped push him further into relaxation. Eventually Bracken stopped fighting the sleep pulling at his eyelids and let Kendra lull him to sleep, content in the knowledge that she was perfectly ok.