Category: Romantic Fluff

Characters: Sabo, Koala

Additional Tags: Medieval AU

Hi guys! Here's my story for Day Four of Saboala Week, prompt "Fantasy." Hope we're all having a good day; if not, here's some fluffy cuteness to make it better! :D

Koala hummed contentedly under her breath as she fluttered the feather duster over the ornate vase situated on the end table next to the guest bed that she had just outfitted with clean sheets. After she had removed every speck of dust from the glass sculpture, she replaced the wilted, dry batch of wildflowers with a fresh set just cut from the garden, tossing the decaying ones in the wicker basket at her feet. Nothing went to waste with Koala; the dry flower petals still could be of use in the making of perfumes and such. With a small sigh, she wiped the sweat from her brow. Only twenty more guest bedrooms to go, she thought wryly, but not with much frustration. It was hard work, but Koala did it willingly and proudly. After all, she thought as she walked over to the window to gaze down at the splendorous castle garden stretching out to the alabaster walls beyond, you have plenty of reason to stay.

Koala was a housemaid in the employment of one Duke Sabo. She had been working for him over a year now, since she was sixteen. The man of the house himself was young, only having just turned sixteen himself. Very young to be running a manor and business by himself, but his father had died an untimely death, and all the responsibilities had fallen upon his shoulders. He managed them well… For the most part.

Koala jumped with a slight shriek as the door to the bedroom suddenly burst open and then slammed shut. Before she could turn around, someone was behind her, clamping a hand over her mouth. Reacting on instinct, she slammed the heel of her foot down on her assaulter's toes and elbowed him harshly in the ribs, causing him to recoil; scowling angrily, she whipped around and began whacking them over the head with the feather duster.

"Take that, and that, and that!"

"Ow! Stop! Koala! It's me!" Sabo wailed as he ducked down and covered his head, laughing as he shielded himself from the rain of dust from the feathery tool. Koala blinked and immediately retracted the device.

"My Lord, what are you doing, barging in here like this? You scared me half to death!" Once more, he jumped up to clamp a hand down over her mouth.

"Shh!" he demanded with a fervent look at the locked bedroom door. "I don't want them to find me." She inquired who, though her inquiry was muffled by his gloved fingers covering her mouth. "My damn uncles," he whined with an exhausted expression. "They're here pestering me about finding a wife again. They even went so far as to plan a banquet tonight and invited all these people to show off their daughters! Hide me, Koala!" he begged and shimmied behind her, crouched down and holding onto her lower thighs. It was a good thing that Sabo didn't require those silly French maid outfits that were all the rage, because he would've gotten a great shot up her skirt. Whimpering, he peered around her legs at the door. It wasn't like her petite frame could shield his muscular one anyway, and she was mighty flustered with the impropriety of what was happening.

"My Lord, this is inappropriate!" she scolded and whapped him over the head with the feather duster again. He poked his lips out at her in a pout and squeezed the plush flesh of her legs a little.

"Come on, Koala, you know I'm not like that. I just don't want to marry a random stranger," he pouted pitifully. It took another couple of whacks for him to finally pry himself off her, only for him to shamble over to the bed she had just made and plop himself face-first onto it. "… Sheets smell good. Lavender?"

"I just made that bed!" Koala wailed in dismay and kicked him in the butt. "Get off it! Now!"

"I own it! I can do what I want with it!" he protested back and buried the upper half of his body amongst the feather pillows, sending them into disarray. Koala groaned and rolled her eyes at her complete embarrassment of a lord. It was no wonder the adults in his life were trying to land him a wife; such behavior was completely unbecoming of a noble. Yet… His nonchalance and playfulness never ceased to put a smile on Koala's face. It was a welcome deviation from the harsh and rigid decorum of the other nobles Koala had met in her life. The thought triggered the back of her shoulder to burn, and somehow Sabo saw the way she winced and grabbed at it through the pile of pillows. "… Does your scar burn again? You've been working yourself too hard."

"It's not that. I just thought of something unpleasant," she reassured him as she pawed at the stinging flesh. The pillows fell down to the floor as Sabo sat up amongst them, his blonde hair sticking up in odd places as he eyed her owlishly. Indeed, he was very different. With her previous lord- her master, more accurately- she would have been backhanded something fierce for the banter that had been going on between herself and Sabo. She grimaced as the brand scar on her shoulder began to throb uncomfortably. Why was she thinking about such things now and causing herself undue pain? She never had to fear being owned again.

Still, her mind had already begun its plummet over the cliff. Her legs wobbled as the strength suddenly left her body in one rapid flush. As her body teetered, she staggered forward and knocked into the bedside table, making the vase of flowers whirl precariously.

"Ah! Koala, please sit down," Sabo cried and lunged forward to catch her by the shoulders. Koala was panting as he eased her down onto the edge of the bed. The tremors that wracked her body made the frame creak and tremble. With a high-pitched whine, one of her hands twisted into the fabric at the front of her dress while the other continuously dug into the area over her burning shoulder. Desperately, she tried to push down the horrifying images that were threatening to surface in her panicked mind- a burning piece of iron, rattling chains around the raw skin of her wrists, her own red blood splattered across a dirty floor. With her imagination running so rampant, she could even smell the putrid stench of her own burning flesh and hear her own screeching wails. Tears prickling at the corners of her wide eyes, she slumped back, into Sabo's warm and soft arms. "Don't worry, Koala," he whispered soothingly in her ear as he hugged her gently. "No one will ever be able to hurt you again. You're free, remember?"

"F-free," she stammered with hot, uneven breaths. That's right. Sabo saved her. He rescued her from that awful place. That place, that time, that person, was just a memory. A faraway, terrible, awful one, but a memory nonetheless. Slowly, Koala's breaths began to grow more even and full.

"That's right," he smiled gently, leaning his head against hers as he pushed her shaking hand aside to begin rubbing soothing circles into the burn mark hidden beneath her clothes. "No one owns you, Koala." No one… owns me… she thought hazily, eyes fluttering as the dark visions began to fade away. As she was coming down from her panic attack, she felt Sabo sigh against her and push his face slightly into her caramel hair. "… Koala?"

"Hmm?"

"Why do you stay here?" Her eyes widened at the question. "I mean, when you asked to work for me, I only agreed so you would have a place to stay while you got back on your feet, but… It's been a year now. Nothing holds you here. You can go and do anything you want, you know. I would hate to see you waste away here, putting any dreams of yours on hold, simply because you feel obligated." Her body twitched as she felt him frown deeply against her scalp. There was no question that he meant every word that he was uttering. "I know this work of yours reminds you of that bastard," he growled, unintentionally squeezing her in his rising ire. "These fits of yours… I know you have them often."

Koala hung her head at the accusation. It was true, of course. It wasn't uncommon that she awoke screaming in the middle of the night and the other in-house maids had to calm her down from her night terrors. This wasn't the first time she had suffered a panic attack in the middle of the day, too; several times, one of her co-workers found her huddled in a corner, crying and begging for mercy to phantoms they could not see. She winced as her scar began to ache again, and before she could dissolve into another fit, Sabo bundled her further into his embrace. She was practically sitting in his lap now. If anyone happened upon them, it would surely be the scandal of the decade. Koala didn't care much, though. Sabo always made her feel so safe… secure… appreciated. She reached up with one of her hands to timidly wrap a few of her fingers around one of his.

"I have no dreams," she whispered. "They were all taken from me. I cannot even remember what they were." She turned her face to look up at his concerned one. Was she really about to say what she was about to say? It wasn't just improper; it was downright outrageous. Even with Sabo being who he was, she had no idea how he would react. If anyone else heard about it, surely she would be reprimanded. Still, Koala didn't care. She had been standing on the sidelines harboring her secret feelings for so long, and now, with his arms wrapped around her and his face so close and his expression so caring, she threw caution and rules to the window. "If I have a dream now, it's you," she breathed.

There. Her words were in open air now. She didn't know whether to be relieved or stressed. Of course she loved him. He was her savior, and continued to be every single day. No one had treated her with such humanity before. He was incredible in every sense of the word; even though she was lower than him in class, he still treated her with such respect and grace. She felt special. Even if it was all an illusion, even if it meant nothing to him, it meant something to Koala- and she felt she at least owed him the truth, after all he had done for her. She bit down on her bottom lip as she awaited his reaction. His face was terrifyingly blank. "M-my Lord…?"

"Sabo," he interjected suddenly, forcefully. She jumped in his arms at the harshness in his tone. Suddenly, his face relaxed into a warm smile, and he placed a hand on her cheek. "Call me Sabo, my dear Koala." Her lips pressed together into a thin line as her heart swelled up in her chest. His thumb was stroking soft lines over her cheekbone as he tilted his head to look at her thoughtfully. It was then that she realized what they were doing was very, very wrong.

"M-my Lo-"

"What did I just say?"

"Sabo," she choked out. The name felt foreign and immoral on her tongue. "Wh-what about all your suitors…? Surely, your uncles will demand you choose one…"

"I have already." It took a moment for the words to process in her brain. When they clicked, she flushed tomato-red and squeaked in shock.

"But, but, but-! I am but a mere maid! The scandal! The outcry! They'll make a mockery of you!" she cried, wriggling around as she fretted. Sabo laughed jovially, keeping her within his embrace as she squirmed and writhed.

"I don't care! Let them make a fool of me," he purred, and she stiffened as he pushed down the sleeve of her dress to reveal the top half of the burn mark scarring her back and pressed a light kiss to the marred skin. "I'll be a fool in love," he whispered against it. Koala felt shivers radiate out from where his lips moved, spreading a warm, tingling feeling through her body. Nervous yet aroused, she looked over her shoulder where his dark eyes were glittering up at her through his wavy blonde locks. "Why do you think I have been so adamant not to get married all this time?" he laughed dryly. Her skin crawled in an oddly pleasurable way as he began a burning trail of open-mouthed kisses up her shoulder and over her neck. When he arrived at her ear, he breathily whispered into it, "I've been a fool for you for quite some time, Koala."

"S-Sabo," she groaned as her hands nervously fisted the sheets on either side of her.

"You have always amazed me," he crooned as he ran feather-light fingers up and down her sides. "I mean, an average girl wouldn't beat me over the head with a feather duster," he rumbled with laughter, bringing a blush to her cheeks. She wasn't sure if that was a compliment or a joke at her expense. His lips were moving over her cheeks now, hand turning her face to angle it toward him. She gave him no resistance. His dark eyes were shining as they burned down into hers. "Do you love me, Koala? Truly?" he asked against the corner of her lips.

"Yes," she answered immediately in a husky breath laced with desire and need. "Sabo, I love you with all my heart." Her voice cracked with the sheer amount of emotion welling up inside her. Was it possible to love someone so much that it hurt? All the feeling she had been suppressing for fear of rebuke came bursting through the dam, brining tears to her eyes. As they spilled down her cheeks, Sabo whispered soothing words and gently kissed them away before he looked down at her endearingly. "Kiss me, Sabo."

And he did.

Koala's eyes fell shut as his lips descended over her own, soft and warm. A soft sigh left her as they moved against hers in a harmonious dance. Koala had never kissed a man before, but had heard the older women talk about it; all their stories could never had prepared her for how simply breathtaking it was. She had to ground herself by gripping his shoulders because she felt like she was slipping away, falling into nothingness. Actually, that's because she was falling back; Sabo had turned her body to push her gently down onto the bed, crawling on top of her as he kissed her with fervor. The bouncy mattress dipped as his knees pushed into the soft material on either side of her hips. Her hands migrated up his neck to push into his wavy blonde hair, and it felt like she always imagined it would; soft like silk, so smooth as she teased the strands around her fingers. As his lips continued to move against hers, Koala lazily thought that if she died right then, she would die happy.

Her eyes cracked open as she felt him retreat. Her arms still hung loosely around his neck as he hovered over her, stroking through her hair repeatedly while he propped himself up with an elbow. "What with the smirk?" she asked at the almost shit-eating grin that was on his face.

"I was just thinking about the looks on my uncles' faces when I tell them I'm in love with a maid~" he chirped almost too devilishly. Koala flushed pink and slapped a hand over her face with a groan.

"You're too troublesome for me! I quit!"

"No! Don't quit!" he whined miserably and flopped down on top of her to pin her to the bed. She gasped as all the breath was forced out of her lungs. "Now you can't go anywhere!"

"You're so heavy… I'm gonna tell the cook to feed you less…" she groaned as she tried in vain to push him off her.

"You're so mean," he pouted up at her, then smiled and kissed the end of her chin. "Seriously, though, Koala. You'll stay with me forever, right?" Koala blinked down at him, then smiled sweetly.

"Of course. I have plenty of reason to stay, after all."