Title: Risky Stares
Summary: Flavio is alone at the bar when he realises that someone has been staring at him. He's a little nervous, but with the Guardians around, there's nothing to worry about.
Characters: Flavio, Lynus, Axel, and Zeryn, with an unnamed OC there for fodder
Prompt: CtS Prompt 2
AN: Again, writing for one of my own prompts :'D This one was fun to write though. Maybe a little bit self-indulgent, but that doesn't matter. I wrote something, that's what matters. Now, I hope you enjoy reading~
Flavio was nervous. If you asked someone from his guild they would say that he was always nervous or on edge. Simply not true! He was simply cautious.
But as he glanced over his shoulder for the umpteenth time in the last five minutes, what he was feeling was pure nervousness.
It was mid-afternoon and while the Stickleback bar wasn't as full as it usually was, it had its fair share of patrons loitering about. But there was one in particular that made the hairs on the back of Flavio's neck rise up. By one of the entrance sat a man he did not recognise at all. Short spiky black hair. Class unrecognisable. Eyes a simple brown. Nothing even vaguely familiar about him.
And yet he had been staring at him silently ever since Flavio walked into the bar.
He didn't notice him at first, but as he handed over the quest materials to Cass he felt that feeling of being watched. Flavio wasn't sure if his instincts have been heightened or whether it was pure luck, but the moment he felt that feeling and he turned to look, his eyes fell upon the figure of a man who stared intently back at him.
Even after their gazes caught each other's from clear across the room, the man continued to look at him. Flavio held his gaze for what felt like thirty seconds before he felt intimidated and tore his gaze away.
He couldn't stop himself from continuously glancing over his shoulder though. And each time he did, he found that guy staring back at him.
There was absolutely no expression on the guy's face. Completely blank. One hand held a drink of some kind while the other held his chin as he leaned forward to rest on the table before him. Though his face gave away no hint of what he was feeling or even thinking, Flavio couldn't help but believe he didn't have the best of intentions for him.
Flavio tried to tell himself that he was just being paranoid. Being a survivalist in the labyrinth did that to a guy, right? But he just could not shake the feeling that something wasn't right about the guy. He would feel better if the guy reacted to him looking at him. Hell, even a creepy smile was preferable to that cool, blank stare.
Didn't he know it was rude to stare at someone? The nerve of some people!
Flavio wanted to brush it off. Despite what he was feeling. But his instincts wouldn't let him. Something in his gut was telling him not to leave the bar just yet. Not on his own. To wait and linger about with the other patrons long enough for Fafnir to get the huffs and come and get him.
He couldn't help but feel...silly. Here he was, a survivalist who ventured into a labyrinth filled with monsters, and he was nervous about some random guy that wouldn't stop staring at him from a distance. Though, some do say that it was humans that were the greatest threat...
He chewed on his bottom lip as he glanced over his shoulder again. And once again his gaze collided with that of that man's. And yet again, blank expression and cold stare. It was...almost inhuman in a way.
However, a flash of white from the corner of his eye caught Flavio's attention and he immediately flicked his gaze towards it. He felt a breath of relief pass his lips when he recognised a certain orange-haired medic as he walked in through the doors his potential stalker was located.
Flavio felt relieved to find a familiar and friendly face amongst the crowds. Though he couldn't help but worry when he noticed that man finally tear his gaze from Flavio's direction. And instead gaze at Lynus.
Lynus had his head down as he shuffled through his medical bag. He suddenly stiffened, however, and clutched at the strap of his bag as he immediately turned around. And looked back at the guy now staring at him. He froze for a few seconds before he took a skittish step back. He then turned around completely, still clutching his bag, and hastily headed toward the bar.
In conjunction with his nervousness, Flavio felt a spike of protectiveness as well. Like, how dare that creep scare Lynus like that?
As Lynus made his way toward the bar, he looked in Flavio's direction and he managed to grant him a nervous smile. Flavio couldn't help but to reach out and take him by the elbow to pull him closer to him. Now that he had someone else to protect, he didn't feel nearly as nervous. Oh, he was still skittish as heck, but his nervousness had turned into protective caution.
He also realised that, if he was lucky, someone from the Guardians would also arrive at that bar. Like a certain protective redhead for example.
"Are you all right?" Flavio asked instead of murmuring a greeting.
Lynus winced and flushed at the same time. "Oh, yes. Um…did you happen to see that?"
Flavio nodded his head as he tugged Lynus toward the bar, to which they subconsciously huddled against. "I did. Do you know him?"
"No, I don't," Lynus answered and chewed nervously on his bottom lip. "He…has a rather menacing presence to him. You don't know of him either?"
Flavio shook his head. "Don't recognise him at all."
Lynus suddenly tilted his head to the side and frowned slightly. "You're extremely nervous, too," he pointed out.
Guess there was no hiding that. Especially not from a medic like Lynus.
"He's…also been staring at me ever since I got here," Flavio confessed.
An expression of pure concern immediately spread across Lynus' features. He also looked subtly frightened as his violet eyes glanced in that man's direction once more. He hand grasped onto the strap of his bag even tighter as he tore his gaze from the staring guy to instead glance around at the other patrons at the bar.
Unexpectedly, he closed his eyes for a moment before he opened them with a soft sigh of relief. He turned his attention back to Flavio and smiled softly at him.
"It'll be all right," he said in a surprisingly calm way, completely at odds to what he looked like just seconds ago.
Before Flavio could ask what he meant he was interrupted by a loud laugh. It didn't come from inside the bar, rather outside. But it was loud. And it was familiar.
From the other side of the bar, a set of doors that had been previous closed were suddenly flung open. Almost in the fashion of someone kicking them open in frustration. And from those doors appeared two tall figures. Two explorers that look intimidating by appearance, especially if one didn't know them personally.
It was Axel and Zeryn.
And that was when Flavio understood what Lynus had meant. And he felt a wave of relief wash over him two.
"The raptors are running away from you. Away. Not towards. Away. Doesn't that say something?" Axel practically seethed. Even from this distance, Flavio could see him bristling.
Zeryn released another loud, boisterous laugh. "Aye, they run away from yer, too!"
Axel dragged a weary and frustrated hand over his face. "Only because they associate me with you. After all I'm the sucker that has to chase after you two flaming fuckwits!"
"Now, Reddie," Zeryn crooned as he patted Axel roughly on the back, earning a irritated eye-twitch from him. "I can't take all the credit!"
…Hm. It sounded as though Zeryn and Simmons had another Raptor race in the labyrinth.
Flavio wasn't entirely sure how Lynus knew they were coming, but he was glad for their presences anyway.
"Axel, over here!" Lynus called out as he waved to the two.
Axel snapped his head up to look over at him. And immediately made a beeline towards them, Zeryn on his heels, still grinning like an idiot, as they say.
As they approached, Flavio flickered his gaze back towards the creepily-staring-guy to find him doing just that. Staring. Creepily at that.
Hmmm…he mustn't be a local then?
"Save me from this idiot," Axel murmured as he practically smothered Lynus in his arms the second he was close enough.
Lynus chuckled softly as he nuzzled his head under Axel's chin in a soothing way.
He, however, paused abruptly and pressed his lips together as he contemplated something. A polite smile soon appeared and he directed his attention to his guild's highlander.
"Zeryn? When I was stepping into the bar just minutes ago, I overheard something from that dark haired man, the one sat near the doors over there," he said as he pointed at the man that had being causing both of Flavio's and Lynus' nervousness. "Something about being bored and looking for a challenger to face him in battle."
A wild, almost feral grin appeared on Zeryn's lips. "Aye?"
Flavio immediately understood what Lynus was trying to do. So he leaned casually against the bar and glanced in the direction of the man that wasn't as nerve-wracking as he had previously been.
"I can't be sure, of course," Lynus replied with an apologetic look. "Maybe you can ask him?"
"I'm pretty sure I overheard him saying something like that, too," Flavio added casually as he turned to look at Zeryn. "Something about not having the right kind of challenging rival? I can't be too sure. Totally need to ask him."
"Aye, Lads, I'll take yer words for it," Zeryn said simply as he spun on his heel and made a beeline for that staring stalker. "I heard yer looking for a fight, laddie?" he actually bellowed from clear across the bar.
The bar seemed to fall silent as the man in question glanced over in Zeryn's direction. He, however, suddenly sat up straight in his chair, an expression of sheer nervousness on his face when he realised that Zeryn was directing that question towards him. His mouth fell open in a fish out of water expression.
"A-ah, no?" he muttered as he hastily took to his feet.
"No backing out of a challenge now," Zeryn continued as he closed the distance between them rapidly.
The guy saw that he was approaching fast. So with a speed that was honestly quite impressive, he dove for the door, the chair he had once been sat on confidently falling to the floor with a loud crash.
Zeryn, however, laughed boisterously and followed the guy outside immediately. "Dun worry, I enjoy the thrill of the hunt too!"
With that, the two were gone.
The bar remained silent for a few seconds longer before the patrons turned back to their companions and previous conversations.
Flavio was relieved. And honestly amused. He had hoped that maybe Axel would put the fear of god into the guy by telling him to get lost. But Axel didn't need to, it seemed. Axel broke up bar fights. Zeryn participated in them. Zeryn was just as equipped to deal with potential stalkers and harassers as Axel was. The only difference was that Zeryn enjoyed it.
So, yeah, let the blond highlander have his fun.
"He wasn't looking for a fight, was he?" Axel asked with a half smirk.
Lynus shrugged as he turned pressed himself against Axel's chest. "He was, in a way. Just not someone like Zeryn for a target."
Axel rested his chin atop of Lynus' hair as his eyes flickered toward the doors that both Zeryn and the creepy, staring guy disappeared through. "Did he do something?" he asked, protectively.
Lynus shared a glance with Flavio and held a finger to his smiling lips. Flavio nodded his head in return, also smiling.
Technically, the guy hadn't done anything. But he did make them both feel uncomfortable. And he did stare rather menacingly at them. And that made them feel as if he wanted to do something.
But, really, in this town and in this bar, staring intently at someone was usually a prelude to a fight of some kind. Cass even kept a tally on how many bar-fights started with the question "what are you looking at?". So he had to have been looking for a fight, right? They just gave him a different opponent.
Yeah, there was no need to worry about that guy anymore.
He probably shouldn't tell Fafnir about the guy, though…
