Review index
AdeielSilverbird: Thank you for those words; like you've said, I've tried to make Leon as emotionally mature as possible without it feeling a little off setting, making it a little realistic. People in the fanfics I've read are usually immature, and get hurt at things I just don't see happening in reality. Instead most people have inner demons, and it's not like Leon doesn't have any, but he knows how to control it, and helps Ciri on her own path to controlling her own. Either way thanks for the review! I'll read you soon.
Guest: De nada amigo!
7thManiac: For sure, learning people is hard, and it's very amusing to write Ciri as she troubles up her words and has such a hard time figuring out people. It might be some chapters before they finally meet the rest of the cast, though I do have a particular mage in mind that they might stumble upon in the near future. Thanks for the review!
As a warning, there's another sex scene in this chapter. I didn't really wanna make a sex scene every single chapter, but it's due, and there's a little warning before it even begins for those that don't wanna read it, although I suggest that you do.
-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-
The road to Anchor, for Ciri at the very least through her various times crossing the same place, always felt empty, gray, and boring. The place was in between two of the least populated areas around Nilfgaard, and therefore, there were no bandits, no monsters and the only enemies one could find around were damn critters or wolves, and she wouldn't be bothered with either of those two.
One was disgusting to fight, and the other could mean trouble if it happened to be more than one pack.
But now, it was different; She had a curious child-man behind her listening to her every word with the utmost attention, almost making feel like the most special person in the entire universe.
"And there's also Sylvans, one of the few harmless relics around the map"
She was there, sitting in front of him and guiding Kelpie through a path the horse already knew very well, as she taught the concentrated auburn haired boy behind her all she could mutter up about monsters, and in this particular lesson, relic monsters.
"So then, why are they called 'relics'?"
He always questioned her every fact with some sort of request, needing to dig out as much of that certain fact as if it was some sort of treasure, and she couldn't help but love the way he paid so much care to everything she said.
"Well, in reality, it comes from the fact that there's not too many, sometimes if any, roaming around the world anymore, and therefore they're extremely rare to see...but I bet Geralt has a better explanation than me"
The endearing ooh's and ah's that he let out everytime he learned something new burned her mind with delight and overloaded cuteness, fueling her desire to tell him more and more before dropping the final bomb on him.
And that is, that she had an entire book filled with monster lore, monster weaknesses and overall, all the things one would need to learn to have at the very least a chance against any dangerous creature around.
Leon himself had been voicing over the past few days his growing want to start reading something new, for the sole sake of reading; she'd never get it, but according to him: 'It relaxes the soul, opens up your mind, and it's extremely refreshing, you should do it sometimes, Ciri', but then again, she was never really a reader, unlike him.
So this whole time she had been vocally teaching him slight facts about monsters and their quirks, just to increase his growing curiosity before surprising him with the book itself.
Ciri internally smiled at the image of him all happy and excited at the look of more information and letters to read, and strangely, she felt excited for him.
"Oh right, I forgot I'll get to meet your papa…" Leon kicked her out of her thoughts with a nervous comment.
Wheezes and laughter escaped out of her mouth at his voiced worries and she had to turn around and pat his arm twice in reassurance to give herself time to stop laughing.
"Gods, Leon, you really get to me at times" His eyes were all on top of her in confusion, "There's absolutely no way Geralt's gonna give you a hard time when you meet him, he's way too old for that either way; Look, he may tease your innocent heart a little, but I'm positive he'll be delighted I've finally reached somewhere with someone, and as a plus, you really are an incredible person"
His unsure gaze puddled her to no end.
"I'm not saying that just because I really, really like you. It's true, you're incredible, and Geralt happens to like people that are not stupid mongrels that can barely form words with their heads" Her reassurances were never the best, but at the very least, he knew she put some effort into them.
"You got a long road ahead with your wording, Cirilla" He decided to change the subject altogether.
Her raised fist and her playful frown attacked him for his wittiness.
"You're gonna have to teach me about it, all I know is how to interact with idiot monsters, bandits and bad people overall" She, albeit slightly hesitantly, let out some hint of information about her past.
The last few days she had been trying to do that, in one way to start doing what Leon had told her to do, which was going through the facts and accepting that things happened, and in another way, she felt this strange push to let Leon know more and more about her.
She felt like a damned teenager damsel enamored.
"There's still some time before I get to meet your-" Leon hesitated, and she already knew which path he was going through, "Your family?" He finally worded out and she chuckled, turning around once again to smile at him warmly.
"Well, they're certainly those that I call mother and father, but I wouldn't go as far as saying that we're exactly a family" The auburn haired boy let out a pensive humm in the air before snapping his fingers.
"Dysfunctional families are cool too, y'know?" He found a way to label her, Geralt and Yennefer and she immediately leaned in, stealing a quick peck on his lips like a shy kid.
Immediately, his cheeks bursted up helplessly, prompting more laughter out of her.
She always caught him off guard, and even though he had really made an effort on getting all comfortable and cozy with her, Ciri knew he'd always blush out at situations that asked for it.
"You're too much, Cirilla" She hummed in response as she stared at the boring road in front of her, "You always steal away my lips like some sort of thieve; truly, a kleptomaniac indeed" His dramatized tone made her laugh out hard and she threw a middle finger his way before shrugging.
So what if she was addicted to stealing everything from him? He was essentially hers already.
At least in her mind, he was.
"You're also always glancing at me, taking quick peeks, think I wouldn't notice?" He was all high up into himself and she found it adorable, "Addicted now, aren't we? I don't blame you" She pffted hard before turning to look at him.
His grin revealed how much he was joking, but she'd play along for the time being either way.
"Yes, very" She confessed, lower, sexy tone appearing inside her throat, "I told you that already, didn't I?" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively and the archer lost his footing yet again, frowning as flustered butterflies started invading his belly. Ciri turned around again to look at the road.
"Y-Yup, I remember" He repeated, looking up into the sky before returning his eyes to her back, taking in her scent one more time into his nose, "Got attacked by a wolf that night, holy shit" She chuckled at his comment.
"Shut up, cry baby" She retorted back, "You loved it" He hummed loudly and pensively, making it seem as if he was actually considering that, and she turned around to scowl at him.
"I'm kidding!" He tried, but her fists had already reached his shoulder, "Holy, freaky spicy lady, what's wrong with your head?" He exclaimed, indignified
"You're a goddess, Ciri" She mocked the words he let out that certain night and he immediately attempted to mute her with his hand to no avail, Ciri could stop both of his hands with just one of them, effortlessly, "You're too weak to conquer my attacks, hon" She snickered as she let go of his hand and he hmphed.
"Not my fault you're a gorilla" She inadvertently leaned back into his chest to rest a little, taking in her favorite position while horse riding as she ignored her partner's bickers, "How can these thin arms carry that much strength?" He took one of her lazy hands and lifted it up before letting it drop down onto her own lap to create emphasis, and Ciri chuckled loudly.
"Reinforcement spells, plus you always see me do my routine either way, I'm not build up like an adonis, but I do have muscle" She took his hand and placed it on her flat stomach, as to prove a point, "This tight body isn't a magical spell nor anything like that, honey" She showed off as she closed her eyes, rejoicing in his warmth as Kelpie throttled lightly.
"Might be time for me to get into that routine as well," Ciri smirked, taking his words in the worst way possible.
"Don't worry, I plan to get you into my routine soon enough, hotstuff" His heartbeat increased and she laughed.
"I meant like, y'know, take care of my current condition, work on my stamina...maybe you'd like more muscles here and there?" She frowned and denied with her head, immediately lifting herself off his chest to stare at him.
"You're fine the way you are, Leon" She turned back to the road but not before giving him a reassuring wink, "I like the fact that you'd like to do some exercise, but not if it's only because you think you'll get hotter for me" She shrugged, "I've seen plenty of bodies and I like yours the best" Leon hummed and nodded even though she couldn't see him.
"You had your fun in the past, huh?" It was now him that rested his hands around her waist and placed his chin on one of her shoulders.
Something slightly sunk within her; maybe she shouldn't have said that?
"Does that bother you?" She knew she'd feel weird if Leon started talking about whatever girl he'd met before, so she decided to ask, just in case.
Leon's eyes turned to look at her with confusement.
"I mean, I had already guessed as much" She didn't know whether to murder him on the spot or laugh sheepishly, "And it's not like I'm an insanely jealous person, so no, your past adventures with other men do not affect me, Cirilla" The way he worded it made her cringe internally but she nodded nonetheless, "So long you don't compare me to any of them, that is" He finished with an insecure tone and Ciri turned around to stare at his eyes with disbelief.
"Are you crazy, Leon? Of course I wouldn't do that" No one other than him crossed her mind either way nowadays, but she wouldn't tell him that, "It was all midnight encounters, for the sake of lust yada, yada, and there were also women involved" She wondered whether or not saying this things was even the right choice, "And none of them were as important or memorable as what we did, and what I have with you, I hope you can realize that" His poker face didn't give her an exact answer to her small outburst of self reflection.
"Ciri, you're again overthinking this, I too think that this is a special kind of connection we've got here, you and I, so don't worry that much" He remained silent for a few seconds, "Didn't know you swung both ways though, guess you learn something new everyday" She seemed still troubled with something and Leon just chuckled at her furrowed look, "No, that doesn't bother me either, worry wat"
"Stop it, dumbass. This is new to me so of course I wouldn't know what bothers you and what doesn't" She sighed, "I'd rather ask every time if anything bothers you than actually hurting you once and regret it tremendously" She confessed and Leon was left stunned for a second.
"That's very mature of you, and I thank you for that, Ciri" He hugged her waist and pulled her close to him, ignoring her half assed grunts and tries to unlock herself from his grasp.
If she wanted to, she could remove herself off him without much force, but she'd play hard to get a little longer, for the sake of payback.
After a minute or two, she gave in and relaxed once again around him.
"Why do we fit together so much?" She asked out into the air with her eyes closed, trusting Kelpie to guide them in the right direction as she laid on top of Leon once again.
"Don't ask those questions" His voice was extremely close to her ear, prompting goose bumps on her skin, "Just enjoy it, Ciri" She smiled with her eyes closed, drifting away to the sound of his heartbeat and his calm hums.
Leon was right, she should just enjoy him as long as time allowed her to.
-0-0-0-0-0-0
Ciri lifted up her eyelids slowly as she heard her name called out twice, and found herself staring up into the sky, with the sun being blocked by plenty of clouds around, meaning that it may rain hard later that day.
"Ciri" She felt a soft hand running through her locks gently and Leon's voice right next to her ear, and felt her body stir as he did so, "You up, sleeping princess?" He mocked her and she smirked with her eyes slightly open, having a hard time removing herself from such a comfortable position.
Apparently, she had fallen asleep on top of Leon, with him silently taking Kelpie's leash in order to let her rest for a minute.
"I can spot the village now, I think you might wanna get up" She nodded, stretched one more time and lifted herself up, taking the leash once Leon offered it to her.
"I can't believe I fell asleep" Leon immediately chuckled at her comment, "I'm serious, that never happens to me" She sighed and made an attempt to fix her hair a little bit.
"Well, you looked too at ease for me to actually go and wake you up, so..." She shrugged and denied with her head.
"I'm not mad, just weirded out, but that's fine" She stared at the road and at the far looking village, filled with small lights and people. Anchor was different from the villages around Crow's perch; since it was the only one around the entire area, it served almost like a city, with paved roads and small buildings. Surely, it will turn into a small city as days went by, more so if her father actually did something useful for once with the places he's conquered, "Yup, that's Anchor. You can relax a little over there, not much bad shit happens, although please don't go on acting like a clueless tourist" Leon pouted.
"That's part of my charm, Cirilla" She laughed hard and brought up a hand to caress his cheek for a second or two.
"You've got plenty of charms around either way, but watch your back, k'?" She pleaded, turning around and looking at him with serious eyes.
"Yes, ma'am" She nodded, whispered a good boy and urged Kelpie to walk towards the village
The place itself had a busy mood to it, it was a blooming village and almost everyone wanted to participate in it; businesses of every kind could be found on every corner, and almost every house offered some sort of service or used its front as a store counter.
"This place looks more like home than Midscope, it's got plenty of people"
Leon was, again, turning his head to look at every single corner around the place with unlimited curiosity, commenting off his guesses about what kind of stuff every different seller offers.
"Well it definitely looks more lively, they're building rocky walls now" Ciri had already visited this village a year or so ago, and to her own perspective, things had definitely changed a lot.
The place had new buildings, plenty of public benches and the pathways seemed to be made out of pebbles and the such, a sign of improvement; Whoever handled Anchor, they were doing a damn good job at it.
"I feel like in a year or two Anchor might become some sort of city" Ciri voiced out her thoughts and Leon just hummed in agreement, "Anyway, we need to find a post board, keep your eyes open"
"Roger that"
It took them some time to finally find it, and when they did Ciri didn't feel that excited; It wasn't empty, but the jobs were all about eliminating pests, escorting people or deliveries.
"Hey, I found this one, Ciri" The voice of her partner reached out to her and she turned around to find a contract being shoved in front of her, "It says there's a monster around the local pond, perhaps it's some sort of Water Hag?" Ciri munched her cheek in a pensive way, hesitating.
She'd already taught Leon plenty of stuff about necrophages, especially the water type and Water hags alike, but she hadn't shown him how one really looked.
She debated herself for a second or two before nodding and taking the paper from his hands.
"Surely, I can't convince you to skip this one, or can I?" Leon eyed her with judging eyes before shaking his head in denial.
She sighed, letting out her worries off in the air before gripping the contract tightly and skipping forward.
"Fine, let me tell you a few things about Hags so we can get the upper hand against it"
-ooooooo-
The pond itself was merely a mile away from the town, which would be the reason why a contract against it even existed to begin with. It had muddy water instead of clear, potable liquid, displaying clues about the kind of creature that lurked around it.
"Stay close" Ciri ordered a weary Leon.
The archer had his bow out the moment they dropped off Kelpie, keeping his ears and eyes up to every single movement around, even though everything seemed perfectly calm and quiet; He was truthfully scared shitless, but at the same time, he had read about action too many times not to learn how to appreciate it.
Still, he was nervous. Ciri's posture displayed complete calmness and relaxation, meaning she was already used to this, but he was tripping bullets at the mere sound of anything that occurred around him.
Ciri crouched in front of a small mark on the nearby grass, and motioned Leon to crouch next to her.
"Normally I'd just do all this mentally, but for you I'm gonna voice it out" He nodded as he tried calming his pounding heart, and crouched right next to her to stare at the footmark on the mossy floor, "As you may have already noticed, the pond's looking considerably dirty…" Leon nodded when she motioned the entire pond in front of them with her hand, "That should already tell you the fact that there's a water hag getting through the natural filters of the pond itself-, plus this clue right here" Now she returned to the mark on the floor, which displayed some sort of clawish feetmark with no more than two toes, "Water Hags don't have more than three fingers, and if she's only got two it means that she's not that strong as of yet" She raised up and breathed in softly.
"And...how are we sure that it really is a hag?" She hummed in approval and Leon smiled, feeling something at the small thumbs up Ciri gave him.
"You may not realize it, darl. But that question really saves lives'' She elaborated, "But in this case, only Water Hags own this sort of footmark, and also, water monsters usually don't mess with the natural filters around water itself, it's only a Water Hag deal most of the time" Leon hummed, understanding, "Grouping those two clues together, it's pretty obvious this is a Water Hag"
Leon fidgeted around with discomfort.
"So this monster is right below us, listening to our bicker?" She had told him Water Hags could merge into water before.
"Not really, if we were close she'd come out immediately, they're not smart at all after all" Ciri let out a small sigh and then snapped her fingers, "Listen, this is dangerous, but at the very least Water hags are easy to handle" Leon nodded, taking a serious pose as he listened, "She'll most likely lash out with her sharp claws, but they're pretty easy to dodge and pretty noticeable as well. She'll most likely throw mud at your face so as to blind you" She added, "If that happens I'll make sure she doesn't reach you, but make sure you remove it as soon as you can" Leon gulped before nodding once again.
"And how do we kill it" Ciri smiled one more time and coughed.
"Well, it's a miracle that this time it turned out to be a Water Hag" The auburn haired archer stared in confusion, "Most monsters are immune to any sort of steel, and you need a silver weapon in order to deal any damage whatsoever" She took out Zirael and showed it to Leon, "Zirael is a silver sword, Geralt's gift by the way, and as a plus it has runs that harden it enough to turn it useful against non-monsters as well" She winked, "That's why I don't carry two swords" She snickered with pride.
"So my arrows wouldn't work that well?" Ciri denied with her head.
"Against normal cases-, or rather, most monsters, they wouldn't" She shrugged, "But this it's a Water Hag, so they definitely will deal some damage" She finished half heartedly.
In reality, she couldn't really understand what the runes in the archer's bow meant or how they worked, and if it were to be something close to what her runes did, then maybe even his steel arrows may do some damage.
"Alright" Leon finally agreed, cracking his knuckles before turning to look at the white haired Witcher in her eyes, "Let's do this, I'm ready"
Ciri took a deep breath and nodded before stepping in front of Leon.
In a second, she enhanced her senses to the brim, hurting her a bit but allowing her to locate the familiar, erratic breathing of a monster not too far away from them.
"Leon, why don't you start by shooting an arrow in that general direction" She pointed forwards with her finger, "That bitch is hiding over there" Leon tensed an arrow hard.
"Ready?" He asked his silver haired companion and she snickered.
"I should be the one asking you that" The auburn haired archer threw her a look and let go of the arrow, letting it fly straight towards the place Ciri was pointing, just for it to fall onto the muddy ground.
Nothing happened.
"Look" Ciri tapped his arm and motioned the arrow, which was slowly sinking into the muddy ground.
Screeches and roars could be heard right after the arrow finally disappeared into the ground, but no monster could be seen.
"Leon, get away!" He felt himself being pushed to the side by Ciri before she jumped to the other side. Staring down onto the floor, he noticed it started melting into a puddle of mud and water.
Seconds after, an incredibly terrifying monster jumped out of the hole, with limbs similar to an old woman and a huge, curved back.
Leon froze on the spot, both attacked by the extreme odor and the sight of a literal monster screeching as it lunged towards himself.
Time seemed to stop for a second, and even though his ears were half ringing, he still caught Ciri's yells that told him to move.
He couldn't, but right before the claw of the Water Hag managed to snatch away some of his skin, a greenish flash blinded them both, and the next thing he knew, Ciri was in front of him, blocking the monster's claw with her silver sword.
"Leon!" Her eyes pleaded for him to react, even though she knew he was overwhelmed with fear.
She swatted away the monster's claw and kicked her off, immediately triggering the hag's defense system and forcing her to dig down onto the floor one more time.
"We have no time, Leon, please, I know it's scary-," She hated the fact that she was useless with words, "I believe in you, Leon!" She tried with encouragement, even though it was no place to start an inspiring rant, and her eyes cried in plea when the floor below him started morphin into a puddle once again.
Her blink was still not ready after such a quick jump.
"MOVE!" She screeched from the bottom of her soul, and her eyes widened at the sight.
The attack never hit him, but not because of Leon actively trying to dodge it nor defend against it.
Leon had been literally sent flying by nothing in particular, to another spot. It almost looked as if the air itself saved her boy's life by throwing him to the other side.
Another screech from the monster running towards the auburn haired boy stopped her confusement short and, in desperation, she chanted her blink one more time, until she realized Leon was finally moving.
He was on his feet, finally taking hold of his fears and even though it was barely, he managed to avoid the Water Hag's slashes.
She didn't wanna distract him by yelling, so instead she waited for an opening with her blink ready.
After a fifth dodge, the archer finally learned the spaces of time he had to counter attack before the monster started once again, and shot an arrow aimed at one of the monster's eyes.
He missed.
"I'm trembling" He muttered as he struggled evading the next attack.
The small panic attack had lasting effects on him, mainly trembling and a sensation of wobbly legs, both that made his shots way less accurate.
He needed Ciri for the next attack, not really seeing a way to evade it otherwise.
He didn't even need to voice out his thoughts, and in another blink, the white haired Witcher was already in front of him, blocking yet again another slash from the hag's.
"T-Thanks…" He felt the air leaving him for a second, and Leon hit his own legs twice with force to remind his body that he needed to breathe, "Sorry, I'm trembling, I can't hit anything vital" He still shot an arrow to the monster's stomach once Ciri moved out of the way.
"So long you're okay, everything is peachy" Ciri didn't seem to have any troubles with the monster-, this was nothing compared to a vampire or any other tier monster of the sort, but she'd use this opportunity for Leon to get used to the ugly sights they represented, "I want you to finish off this monster, I could kill it with one move, but I'd like you to test yourself, seeing how you actually managed to evade its attacks" Ciri explained as she kept her eyes focused solely on the Water Hag itself.
Leon gulped dry and stood up.
"Right, I can try my best" He stared at his hands before closing them into fists.
He was still slightly trembling, but he'd pull it off.
"I won't let anything happen to you, but remember that that's not always gonna be the case" She turned around to stare at his soul with her emerald eyes filled with worry, "One mistake, and it'll cost you dearly" He didn't have time to react at all when the floor beneath Ciri started morphin once again, and Ciri only nodded towards him before blinking away and into a hiding spot, already charging another blink and even a time stop attack if needed, while silently praying for her partner.
This was definitely not how she'd been trained, but if he pulls it off, it probably would allow him to jump across the Witcher training by years.
Encounters with real monsters were far into the lessons, after all.
"Damn, aren't you stinky" Leon said the moment the Water Hag jumped out of its hole.
The monster gathered mud into its hands, and Leon took that as a cue to start dodging.
Jumping to the side the moment she threw that harsh ball of mud, Leon found himself in front of yet another mud ball.
He couldn't move away his body with such proximity, but in a quick motion he threw his head back, evading the ball by a mere hair.
Ciri squealed at the sight.
That was fast, Lion. She smiled proudly and fisted the air.
Leon kept on moving around without any possibility to attack as the monster raged and trashed around, his slight chances to tense an arrow blurred away by his own trembling.
It was getting sort of annoying.
After a few seconds of just avoiding and evading, he decided he'd try to prepare the shot while he kept on moving, even if it took away some of his concentration. It took some effort, and he actually dropped one of his arrows when he tried reaching for it while moving around, but in the end the arrow was tensed out and ready.
The monster jumped towards him mindlessly and Leon just stepped to the side, letting it fall in front of him before using his right leg to kick the monster. It dealt no damage, and he wasn't as strong as Ciri by any means, but the idea worked. The monster was stunned on the ground with its front facing forward, and right before she dived into the mud in defense, he drew up an arrow and shot it right in between its eyes.
The monster screeched and disappeared into the mud, which gave Leon time to tense another arrow, frowning this time as a familiar feeling enveloped him.
Ciri couldn't believe her eyes, once again Leon's orbs changed to a bright blue, and this time around, his bow's runes started shining as well in a blue manner. She didn't notice any other changes within him, but by his confident pose, she suspected something had changed.
When he dodged even before the Water Hag chanted her spell to come out of the muddy ground, she knew something had definitely changed.
Leon didn't need to evade nothing anymore, he was dancing at the perfect distance in which the Hag had no time to either charge up a long attack nor throw out any sort of mud. And everytime it hesitated, it'd meet the end of an arrow somewhere around its body, slowly poking away its vitality.
Leon was panting though, this feeling of seeing things slowly and moving faster cost him greatly, tiring him out twice as much and leaving him breathless.
Either way he didn't need to voice his troubles, and after landing one last arrow on the stubborn monster's shoulder, Ciri appeared right next to him, swiftly ending the monster's life with a slice on its neck, decapitating it.
She didn't even register the kill, instead her eyes were all on top of the tired Leon in front of her. She couldn't deny it, she was beaming happily at him.
"I'm so proud of you" She crouched in front of him the moment he dropped down to sit on his bum, dead tired, "I just took the last blow because you'd probably run out of arrows before that stubborn thing bled to dead" She clapped her hands together, "Still, that was amazing!" She praised once again.
Leon went unresponsive for a second before lifting his now brown eyes to tiredly smile her way, lifting up a trembling fist in victory. His whole body was shaking, a clear aftermath of the fear he experienced, and Ciri had to yet again realize that this wasn't such a trilling thing for him.
"You're trembling pretty hard there, Leon" His whole body was shaking, with Leon holding his knees up to hide his face and apply pressure with his arms to try and contain the sudden bursts of trembles within him, worrying Ciri terribly, "Are you okay?" She placed a hand on his shoulder and he swatted it away.
"D-Don't touch me right now" He explained with trouble, "I-It happens whenever I-I get an attack...it-it's just the aftermath of it all" Her mind went back to the time they witnessed the Hanged Man's tree, and how he also got a small attack.
Her heart trembled.
"I'm here if you need me, Leon" Her voice was honest and careful as she took a seat right next to the auburn haired boy on the muddy grass, and even though she was dying to shower him down with hugs and affection, she realized his body was probably taking defensive actions after such a rough start against that Water Hag.
After ten minutes or so of worrying, Leon finally stopped trembling.
"Gods" He took a deep breath of relief and Ciri lifted her eyes that were before staring at the ground filled with worry.
"You fine now?" She lifted a hand to try and touch him, but stopped halfways as she remembered what he said.
Leon turned his tired head to find her hand lifted up in the air, and reached up to hold it with his own, intertwining his fingers with hers and bringing it down to rest on the floor.
"Just tired, my muscles tense up whenever this happens" She frowned even though butterflies were attacking her belly at the sight of their hands closed together.
"This happens often?" Her tone gave away how worried she was after seeing him shaking to death a minute or so ago.
"No" He replied dryly as he yawned, "This has happened twice and you've been there for both" She tried voicing out one bothersome thought and he lifted a hand in the air, stopping her, "If you're gonna ask me to stop joining you against monster, save it, Ciri" She pouted and pushed him lightly, stopping him from falling with her hand holding his own.
"I hate you...making me worry so much like this, it's not fair" She complained and tightened her hand around his, frustration enveloping her even though she was happy he finally stopped trembling.
"Ciri..." His eyes were slowly going back to their normal brightness, "You know you don't mean that" He snickered as she groaned and denied with her head, "This is to protect you and protect myself as well, and if I'm gonna lose you to some evil that gets the upper hand on you once, I'd rather lose you while fighting myself, not alone while I wait for you to never come back to me" She munched her cheek, pondering what he had said.
It made sense even though she hated it.
"Instead of crying over things that haven't happened yet, you should teach me even more so I learn how this things act and look and therefore I don't literally pass out on the spot at the sight of one" The way he worded it made Ciri laugh besides her current mood, and after a few painful seconds, she finally sighed and agreed.
"Fine, but stop talking for a bit, smart ass" She reached up with her hand, meaning to kiss him, but the sound of a thunder and sudden cold drops falling on top of them both like a cascade stopped her from doing so.
Rain soon enveloped both of them and Leon laughed shortly at the shenanigan.
"I've read too many books not to do this-" Ciri didn't have time to ask what he meant as he pulled her hand and reached up with his free hand to take a hold of her chin.
This time around, he was the one that stole her lips away.
It wasn't a deep kiss, zero tongues involved, but it was just as intense; he meant something with this, she was sure, could feel it in his touch, so she just let it flow through her, reciprocating without deepening, but with just as much passion.
"Romantic kiss under the rain… don't call me out on the cheesiness, okay?" Ciri's heart squeezed tight. She could only nod mindlessly, feeling her lips tingle as if it was the first time anyone had ever kissed her.
Leon stood up and offered a hand she gladly took before stretching, forcefully snapping most of his bones that tightened up after his small attack.
The rain felt damn cold and so did her fingertips.
"Let's get out of here" She commanded, walking towards an anxious Kelpie; Her horse was never one keen to rain or storms, and was extremely happy when it spotted both Leon and Ciri. It usually meant a roof to sleep peacefully under after a quick galloping session.
"Aren't we supposed to bring some proof that we actually dealt with the pond problem?" Leon mused as he followed and Ciri stopped on her tracks immediately.
She'd forgotten about that.
"Right...why don't you go pick up that Hag's head and strap it over Kelpie?" She tried and Leon let out a pfft before snickering.
"Ew, no way" Ciri groaned, "That's disgusting, Ciri; you're the Witcher, you do it" She glared at him before turning her expression into a fake, pleading, puppy eyed one.
"Please? Pretty please?" She held her hands together for emphasis and Leon laughed at the sight, "I'll reward you...later" She sent out a sly smirk and he replied with a lifted brow.
"You're already the best reward I could've gotten, Cirilla" Her brow twitched, already seeing her defeat but he relented, "Fine, I'll do it, even though I just suffered trembling after an intense panic attack, I'll do it" He dramatized, adding slight guilt to her laziness before winking her way.
She huffed and turned around, crossing her arms below her chest as she waited for Leon to pick up the trophy.
He came back five minutes later with a smelly head in hand, holding it's disgusting hair as a way to keep his fingers off the putrid skin.
"This smells worse than your breath early in the morning" If she had anything harmless in her hands at that moment, she'd have thrown it his way.
"I'm surprised you're not freezing right now" Ciri retorted, rubbing her hands around her wet shoulders.
Leon stared at her with a smirk and daring eyes, but her glare was enough to stop any joke that he had in mind.
"Alright, I get it, you wanna get out of here, let's go" She showed a satisfied smile and waited for him to strap on that head behind Kelpie and hop on for the ride.
Once on top, Ciri tapped Kelpie lightly with her foot and the horse happily agreed to leave that damned pond. The town wasn't too far away either way, but the rain was pouring down hard.
"The sky is sobbing like a Widow" Leon commented off to the air and Ciri only nodded in response.
"My clothes detest rain" Leon chuckled, "And I don't like it that much either" She found his arms around her waist rather uncomfortable, what with them all being wet and strangely sticky, but she'd let him be.
"I find it...sort of peaceful" She made a confused expression but still didn't turn around to show it, "I like the feeling of droplets falling down onto my face, my skin...it's just pretty, I like it"
"You and I are nothing alike" The auburn haired archer chuckled and nodded at the same time.
"We already knew that, didn't we?" It was her turn to smile and nod in agreement, "Maybe that's what's gotten me so infatuated with you…" He rested his chin on her shoulder and brought their bodies closer together.
Ciri frowned for a bit, troubled before sighing.
"W-What's Infatuated supposed to mean, Leon?" She'd usually not ask the meaning of words he used that she didn't quite understand, but this time it felt crucial, and she silently hoped that he wouldn't tease her with it.
"I'm damn obsessed with you, that's what I meant" He tightened his hug and she felt her chest fill up with warmth, "But the exact definition would be falling for someone or something, some sort of obsession, when you can't take your eyes away for even second" He taught without a trace of mocking or teasing.
Ciri felt silly, Leon was definelty not like her or other people, and wouldn't make fun of her for not knowing something.
"It'd feel weird to say it too, but you know I reciprocate, right?" She asked as she placed a hand on top of his arm, squeezing lightly with reassurance.
"Of course, I just wanted to be...y'know, cheesy" She giggled, "Put some butterflies around your belly" She hummed pensively, "Have I got that effect on you? 'Cuz you sure do that to me" He was letting go of his words, inquiring like a young kid and she giggled.
"I don't really like talking about feelings and whatnot…" She already felt weird confessing that, "But you do, you sure do"
Almost all the time.
"It's fine, I won't push over it" Ciri was glad her ways didn't seem to affect him.
She'd reassure him later that night, if anything.
"If it's awkward I could stop, I just sometimes let myself go loose and turn into this romantic poet" He joked around himself and Ciri finally turned around to throw him a look.
"Don't think that I don't like that, Leon" She reached up and pecked his wet lips one more time, stunning him in place, "I just don't see myself being that way" Her cheeks felt warm, "It's not usual for me, but I like how you make me feel, don't you dare stop" She returned her eyes to the road and internally smiled, proud of herself for being able to use the right words this time.
Soon enough Leon returned to his comfortable position, hugging her even tighter, not really caring whether or not they were both drenched under the pouring rain.
"Alright then, princess"
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-
"Here, yer' payment, y'all really saved us by taking away that pest" They were back inside the small, in progress walls of the town, talking to the certain Hunter that had apparently recollected money around the entire village to put up a contract against the Water Hag, "May not look like it, but that pond is a good source of water, and we're glad we now don't have to share it with a bloody monster" The hunting duo nodded in understanding, and Leon's eyebrows lifted up at the sight of that much money.
"Thank you, this is a lot!" He grinned as he passed the pouch of coins to Ciri, who again hid it immediately.
The Hunter stared strangely at the bright kid in front of him and nodded.
"No need, it's fair work, and it deserves fair money" He crossed his arms in front of his chest, "Take it you're not from around here?" Leon denied with his head, grin still plastered around his face in a way that worried Ciri a little.
"Zgraggen" Leon voiced out and the silver haired Witcher's ears immediately shot up, registering information about Leon she hadn't heard before.
"Ah, so you're-"
"You're from Zgraggen!?" She interrupted and asked in a high pitch tone that she berated herself for afterwards.
"Oh, right, I never told you" She quickly denied with her head and he chuckled, "What about it?"
Realizing she was reacting out of nothing, she let her gaze drop down to the floor.
"No, nothing...I just thought I knew for some reason" She turned her gaze to the Hunter who was looking at both of them with an amused smile, "Sorry about that"
"All fine, lady" The grown man chuckled before eyeing them both one more time, "A Witcher with a companion, huh" She nodded without hesitating, "And also lovers" Her eyes opened up a little and Leon snickered awkwardly before nodding.
"T-That obvious?" The Hunter laughed loudly at her question before nodding eagerly.
"I've got experience, lass, I can see when stuff's happening" He let out a breath, "And I'm happy for you both, in this rotten world, finding someone to rely on is more than a blessing" The Hunter patted Leon's shoulders twice before waving at them both, "Now I need to take care of some business, take care of each other, don't think I'll see you again in a long time" Leon grinned one more time while nodding, and Ciri merely waved goodbye with her usual expression.
Walking towards the close inn with Kelpie in a leash, Ciri noticed Leon's low humming.
"Someone's overly happy" She commented with a smirk once she's spotted the Inn.
"I happen to be, yeah" He replied with a small smile.
She wondered if it was because of what the Hunter said, and returned his smile with her own.
She felt that way too. Lovers was a good description, even if she wasn't really ready to say something like I love you or the sort yet to Leon.
She'd tell him when the time felt right, and until then, she'd prove it with actions...and words, whenever words were needed.
Fuck words, though.
Inside the Inn, they didn't even register the amount of people that were hanging around the place either drunk or about to get drunk, and just skipped towards the hoster, quickly asking and paying for a room even before eating anything.
The room was, per routine, small, cold and slightly empty.
Still, to Ciri, it was perfect.
"You hungry?" She asked in a light tone as she walked around the room, whilst Leon merely took a seat on the edge of the bed to rest his body.
Truth be told, he looked a little tired.
"Just tired" He lay down on the small bed, using both of his arms as a pillow, "Good thing we ate right before reaching the village; it's too crowded, I don't wanna go out and ask for food" She hummed in response, not minding skipping dinner.
Less so with the chance that was presented to her.
"So you'd rather just relax?" She laid down on the bed, putting half of her body slowly on top of him while caressing his chest with her fingers.
His heartbeat increased a few bits, letting Ciri know that he knew what was coming.
It all depended on his answer.
+18 Warning.
"I'd...rather be with you" Her hand traveled up in response and took hold of his defined chin, traveling around the line, almost mapping it.
She pushed herself forward a little more and closed the distance between them, relishing on the sparks that his mouth brought inside her mind.
"It's been some time…" She muttered before quickening her pace, kissing him faster, with more passion, "You always make me wait so much" Her tongue traveled around the brim of his lips, tracing lines while she placed herself on top of him.
"Need to add some fuel; the longer the wait, the better it feels...r-right?" His confidence failed him for a second and Ciri giggled before resuming her affections.
"You're just a damn tease" She reached down to the end of his shirt and lifted it up, getting rid of it on the spot, "And I'm instead infatuated with you" She took a second to admire the sight of him right below her before returning to his lips, enjoying the way his heart was running miles per second.
She lowered herself a little and bit his neck, eliciting a Yelp out of him.
"Why do you always have to mark somewhere around my body?" He asked as she continued attacking his neck with desire, and she only chuckled in response.
She lifted herself up one more time and started removing her corset, staring down at him with her emerald orbs in the meantime.
"Because you're mine" Her voice was low and sultry, almost alluring.
Done with her corset, she decided it would be fair for them both to be shirtless, and removed her white blouse off her as well.
Without waiting, she returned to his mouth with even more fire, her core increasingly asking her for more and more.
His hand teased every corner of her skin, slowly brushing past her covered breasts, lightly running his fingers around her sides, and it only fueled her more.
His gentle touch felt like adrenaline shots to Ciri.
The moment she tried to go for his pants, Leon turned both of them around in a quick motion, taking initiative.
"I wanted to- uh" His face was red with embarrassment, but his eyes were also filled with determination, "I wanna make you feel good as well, Ciri" Her heart melted at the sight of him, shy and anxious; he was floored without any external help like alcohol, and he still thought about her first and foremost.
She threw her arms around his shoulders and pulled him close again, kissing him deeply but without any force, letting him guide the play for once.
His hands reached up to her covered breasts and squeezed lightly, massaging them in slow motions that picked up the pace every other second, prompting small noises out of her mouth.
Every moan that died burrowed between their kisses seemed to guide him in the right direction.
Her neck was one of her weak points and he immediately took notice of it, nibbling, sucking and licking around the smooth areas as much as he could, loving the way her nails would slightly scratch his back every time he touched somewhere she liked.
He lifted himself up for a second just to receive a whined protest.
"Don't stop…" Ciri was panting, having enjoyed his light caresses and kisses like never before.
"Then take this off you" His voice filled with command touched a place weird within her, but she still followed through nonetheless, and removed her brassiere off, allowing him to massage her breasts directly.
One of his hands traveled down, brushing the tip of his finger around her flat belly before going lower, teasing her sensitive zone above her leather pants, torturing Ciri.
"Mm...i don't know whether I hate this or love this" She was the one being driven mad in this case, always wishing for more even though it was enjoyable.
Leon silenced her with another kiss before lowering himself and reaching up to lick away her breasts, focusing on her hardened nipples whilst he continued rubbing her groin area and sensitive spot.
This felt different for Ciri, instead of rushing out and touching her right where she wanted, he seemed to enjoy teasing her and building up more and more desire, not something that she really hated, but it was new.
She stopped him for a second to remove her leather pants as quickly as she could, hoping that it would let him know how much she wanted him to touch her at least directly.
His mouth claimed hers once again and this time Ciri took hold of his hand and shoved it down her panties, begging silently for him to continue, with the other one still attacking her breasts and pinching her nipples.
His fingers remained in place for a second, with him clearly not knowing how to go from there, before deciding altogether that it was time to taste the waters a little bit, rubbing her lower lips up and down.
Her hums of pleasure turned into small, uncontrollable moans that increased once he returned to her neck.
Ciri couldn't remember the last time someone took the time to drive her insane.
His fingers went from shy brushes to gentle pressing, this time trying out circling motions and with every movement of his hand, Ciri would squirm and let out moans that let him know what worked and what didn't.
Done with merely touching and rubbing, he left her alone in the bed as he crawled out, removing her parties in the process and getting on his knees.
Ciri couldn't believe her eyes,
"You're...gonna eat me out?" His cheeks bursted out at her dumbfounded question and even she smacked her forehead at the stupidity.
"Well, when you say it like that it sounds embarrassing" She denied with her head, not wanting to utter another word in fears it'd break the mood he had been working hard on, "But yes…" He leaned closer to her exposed crotch and exhaled, forcing Ciri to inhale deeply, "It's my turn to taste you out, honey"
Ciri could feel her heart beating like a wild horse at his mere words and could only stare in delight at the sight of Leon in between her legs, staring down on her womanhood as he figured out how to exactly go on about that.
She wasn't sure herself, truth be told, no one had really tried oral sex on her before, even with her many encounters.
At his first hesitant lick slightly above her lips and directly onto her clit, she moaned hard and had to mute the sound with her own hands, surprising even herself.
He had left her extremely sensitive after all that teasing and prepping, and everything felt too great.
"This…" She bit her hand once his licks became continuous, forcing sounds out of her mouth like never before, "Oh gods…" She brought a hand down to take his hair in between her fingers, letting him know he could continue.
His thumb found his way up to her magic button, and suddenly Ciri started seeing stars, unable to hold her moans and instead using a nearby pillow to, at the very least, muffle them out.
Her hips were rocking up and down erratically, forcing Leon to take hold of her hips and keep them in place as he stuffed his face further into her thighs, savouring her taste as his arousal heightened with every muffled moan. Knowing that he could turn Ciri into this mess affected him deeply, so much that he was dying to move forward.
Her eyes shot open when a familiar sensation reached up to her core, and in less than a second, she felt her orgasm attack every fiber of her being, spasms making themselves known on her lower half. She hurriedly pushed his face away from her crotch when it became a little too much, all so she could recover from the afterglow.
Her eyes stared down at the archer in front of her as she panted hard. His face was drenched with her juices, his cheeks were burning red and, once he stood up, she noticed the hardening bulge inside his pants.
"D-Did...you read about this, as well?" Her breath was erratic and sultry, so much that Leon could only nod and gulp. She pointed towards his pants with one finger, and motioned down as she took deep breaths. She had never finished like this before, and now she wanted him.
Needed him bad.
Leon quickly removed his trousers, ending up just as naked as she was.
"Come here, I need you" He nodded once again and crawled up into the bed, already used to the shift that was coming.
In the blink of an eye, Ciri was on top of him, grinding her pussy around the length of his shaft fast, wetting it with her arousal.
"That was amazing…" She confessed, leaning in to kiss him deeply and without restraint. She could feel her fire burning once again from the mere friction of their sexes, and without asking, she aligned his manhood right in front of her opening and lowered her hips, moaning into the kiss as she did so.
She had thought her initial release would help the over-sensitive status he had brought upon her, but on the contrary, it had heightened even more. She felt herself tighter, and every single movement she did seemed to bring sparks down her entire spine.
Leon was panting, sensitive as he was, and holding her hips in an attempt to slow her down a little bit, but Ciri was stronger than him by too many miles, and her eyes seemed too lost in lust for her to stop or even bring down her pace by a notch.
"It feels too good" She voiced out to the air as she let out a moan into the mattress, pressing her chest close to him without stopping her hips. She didn't really want to give the entire Inn the pleasure of listening to her lustful moans, but she couldn't help herself, "Leon…" She kissed him once again, using the chance to let out more sounds into his mouth, "I've never felt so good" She worded out again, her words finally for once coming out naturally.
"I-It feels great to me as well, Cirilla" His eyes locked onto hers as his hands found a spot to rest on her hips, which kept on going up and down without relenting, "I-" His stifled a grunt, "You need to s-slow down a little, wolfie" She muted him with her lips one more time, not really wanting to stop even for a second.
She changed her movements, lifting herself up straight and grinding her hips back and forth with him inside of her, hoping maybe this wouldn't be as intense for him.
It still felt too good the white haired Witcher.
Leon's hands worked their way up to her breasts whilst Ciri was too busy biting her own hand to stop herself from moaning hard.
"I love the way you look at me" Her words left her mouth before she even registered, but no such thing as regret or shame came upon her while saying them; rather, it felt good to say it, it was the truth. His eyes were focused on her entire self, not really knowing where to look exactly.
Feeling her climax knocking on the door, she fastened up the pace once more, bouncing on top of him once again, forcing a small moan to escape out of his mouth.
"Ciri-" She knew, but it didn't matter, not really, she was already there herself, no matter what he did, it would all help her meet her desired release.
"Do it inside" Her poor boy's eyes shot open and his worried look made her giggle sensually, even when she was still jumping on his dick like a crazy beast, "It's fine, just do it, there's a spell for this shit" He gulped down hard, his member pulsing more and more with every movement she did, but he trusted her enough to know that it was okay. "Give it to me, Lion" She casted the spell in the back of her mind, and prepared herself for another round of spasms, kissing him deeply as she did so.
Her climax reached them first, but her quivering walls were enough for him to burst inside with a loud grunt.
"...Stay still for a second" She ordered him as her thighs gave up on her, forcing Ciri to lift her waist up to take him out of her.
"Y-Your legs are trembling a little" He noticed and she chuckled before reaching up to kiss him.
"I think it means that it felt amazing" Ciri kissed him again, lovingly, "Leon, I've never felt like this, what kind of magic did you use on me?" She joked as the afterglow hit her hard, draining her energy away more than any Monster hunt would.
"It must be my charm" He replied amusedly, enjoying the way Ciri just curled up next to him with her head on his arm, "It's the years of experience, truly" Ciri laughed as she straightened her legs, cringing at the feeling of his liquids all running out of her.
"Ew…" Leon laughed hard before attempting to lift himself up, "Hey! Don't leave me now, I feel cuddly" Leon still removed her hand off his chest and stood up, walking towards his backpack buttnaked and in the cold air.
He took out a handkerchief and brought it over to her.
"Here" He offered it and Ciri nodded gratefully, "I don't know how to help you, but it must be quite the bizarre feeling" They shared an awkward laugh.
"It really is" She let him know and patted the spot next to her, "Now come back here, heater" Leon chuckled and crawled into the bed once more.
Done with the procedure, Ciri entangled herself around the brown haired archer, smiling tiredly.
"You're so good to me, Ciri" Her chest tightened, "I lo-, uhm" Leon cut himself short and shook his head, "I love the fact that I got to meet you, I'm very lucky" She knew that wasn't what he wanted to say, and silently thanked the gods he had restrained. She wanted to say it when it was right, and even though this entire situation felt right, her heart still needed time to settle down.
She kissed his cheek with care before returning to her arm-pillow, letting herself drift off to sleep next to him.
Leon immediately fell asleep after closing his eyes, forcing a giggle out of her.
"I'm the lucky one, Leon"
-0-0-0-0-0
Hi, thank you for reading this chapter! I've tried making it more action filled, and I hope it was to your liking; I've tried making Leon react just like a human would, and then in turn try hard the way a human would as well. I also wanted to make the inmense difference in power between Leon and Ciri: Ciri is already a master Witcher, and finished off the beast in a single swing, whilst Leon could barely keep up with it. Of course, it doesn't matter, since they're both a team, but I just wanted to clarify that they're not even close yet.
Thank you for reading, leave a review if you'd like, it fuels me a lot.