Prompt:
"Do you think the sun will set today?"
Quil Ateara V/Claire Young
"Quil," she says, dragging his name out into a whine. He's mid-lick of his choc-vanilla swirl cone, but he looks over at her, attentive as always.
"Yes, kiddo?"
"Am I your best friend?" she asks, her voice little. Her cone is dripping down her hands, leaving sticky, sugary trails behind, but she doesn't seem to notice. Her eyes are glued to her feet, instead, refusing to look at him.
He gently bumps her shoulder with his huge one, grinning down at her. "Of course you are. Don't tell Jacob, though. He might get jealous."
Claire giggles, and for one blissful moment, Quil thinks he's free of her incessant questions. She's five now, and the questions just keep on coming like that flash flood two winters ago. It's kind of cute, but when she gets to asking things like "why did Aunt Emily swallow the baby" and "why don't I have a tail, too" he isn't quite sure how to answer. Babysitting Claire is way more taxing than he thought it would be.
"Quil," she says, again.
He sighs. "Yes, Claire." He almost dreads what's coming next.
"Do you think the sun will set today?" she asks, pressing her face up close to the diner window.
"Ew, Claire, they probably don't clean the windows," he chides, tugging her back, gently. "But yes. It will. It always does."
Claire pauses, her face screwed up in the kind of adorable consternation only a five-year-old can manage. "But what if it doesn't?"
She's worried, and when she looks up at him with those big brown eyes, he wishes he could pull the sun low in the sky with his bare hands.
Instead, he pats her shoulder, fixing his face into the most serious expression he can muster.
"I believe it will, Claire. It hasn't failed me yet."
Somehow, that's enough, and she nods. "Okay. I believe it will, too. I believe you, Quil."
He knows she's talking about the sun, but he's thinking about imprinting and forever and protecting her from everything bad in the world, and when she says she believes him, it's enough to keep him going. He's her big brother, the best big brother she'll ever have, and he's going to do everything he can to keep her believing in him 'til they're old and grey. He believes in her, just like he believes in the sun.