Synopsis: It's you who has the honour of having your Vision taken away at the 100th Vision Hunt Ceremony. As the Traveler interrupts the Ceremony, you realize how far both you and Thoma are willing to go to protect those you care about most . . .

Theme(s): Fluff, Suspense, Some Angst and Comfort

Relationship: Friends (Mutual Crushing)

Trigger Warnings: Tied up Reader, Near Death Experience.

NOTES: Traveler can be either Aether or Lumine- whoever Reader chooses.

•In this story, Reader has a Pyro Vision, and is also a sprinter like Mona or Ayaka.

Word Count: 4063

Enjoy! ;)

Under the Decree

You gritted your teeth, shifting about on your knees. Every time you moved, the ropes cut deeper into your wrists behind your back. The guards above scowled at you, tightening their grips on their spears. The only sound worse than the rumbling thunder were the whispers of the crowd looking down on you.

They probably saw you as a criminal of some sort.

Your blood boiled at the thought. You were anything but.

You glared bitterly at your Archon, the Raiden Shogun standing before the Vision studded statue. Ninety-nine Visions, with yours about to be added to the collection.

It just wasn't right.

You had worked so hard to earn this Vision, and worked even harder since being blessed with it to protect citizens of Inazuma.

You'd protected children.

You'd protected elders.

You'd protected members of the Yashiro Commission.

You'd protected (Traveler).

You'd protected Thoma.

Thoma . . .

You tried to ignore the sinking feeling in your chest. But you couldn't fight off that fear of potentially losing your memory of him.

You loved him so much and there was a high chance you would never get to tell him.

After all the kind things he had done for you . . . even going as far as to introduce you to (Traveler) and Paimon. Paimon, you could afford losing a few memories of, but (Traveler) had become one of your dearest friends if not one of your only friends. Thoma, too, but you wished it could have become something more . . .

You wished he felt the same way about you . . .

But if he was pairing you up with (Traveler), maybe it was his subtle way of telling you he wasn't quite in love with you . . .

You shook off the thought and glared back up at the Raiden Shogun with less respect than ever. She just spun around and looked down on you with that irritatingly uncaring look on her face.

She reached out a hand. It flashed purple. Your Vision began to flicker and shudder.

And then it flew away from you. You instinctively tried leaping after it. But even if your hands were free or if the guards hadn't blocked you off, you still wouldn't have been quick enough to catch it . . .

A streak of purple suddenly shot through the sky and blast landed onstage. Your eyes lit up as (Traveler) appeared with your Vision in hand, Paimon flying to (his/ her) side. Unfortunately for (him/her), the Raiden Shogun frowned. The guards charged. You shuffled after them, wincing at the ropes grinding against your wrists.

"Watch out!"

But (Traveler) was so swift, and with one wield of (his/ her) hands, the guards flickered and collapsed. (S)he then streaked straight over to you. You sat up in excitement as (s)he reached down to free your hands. For a moment, you forgot about the Raiden Shogun until she zapped your hands, forcing (Traveler) to back away.

She was stepping down now on Electro platforms, her eyes fixed on (Traveler), calling (him/ her) an exception, an enemy of eternity . . . whatever that meant. You could have growled at her, but she wouldn't have noticed- (Traveler), your dear friend was her target now.

Sure enough, she brought her hands to her chest, a mighty Electro blast nearly blowing you, (Traveler) and Paimon away. (Traveler) bravely marched in front of you pulling out a sword, watching on as the Raiden Shogun pulled a katana out of her cleavage and aimed it at (him/ her).

"You will be inlaid upon this statue."

And with one slash of her sword, a giant ugly dark purple bordering on black barrier appeared, surrounding her, descending towards (Traveler) who reached out towards you. Your instinct was to reach back towards (him/ her), but the sting in your wrists reminded you of how powerless you were to stop the barrier from engulfing your friend.

"Hey! Let (him/her) go!" you yelled, struggling furiously to break yourself free. But the more you fought, the more the ropes grated against your skin.

You didn't expect the Raiden Shogun to respond. But you sure as hell weren't going to give up that easily. (Traveler) was such a dear friend. Suddenly, the thought of losing (him/ her) felt worse than losing your Vision.

The thought made you try to scramble to your feet. In your haste to stand, you tripped and landed face first on the platform, hitting your nose hard on the wooden surface. Pain immediately shot through your face, while your wrists were absolutely burning. You tried to shake it off and sat up on your knees with your eyes fixated on that barrier with your friend inside.

"GIVE MY FRIEND BACK!"

A firm hand suddenly grabbed your shoulder. You gasped and tried to turn around, but couldn't see the person behind you.

Who was it?

Was it a backup guard?

Whoever it was, they crouched behind you and grabbed your arm in their other hand. They were probably trying to tighten your ropes or tie up your feet. You thrashed about furiously in response. You weren't letting them do it to you that easily, whether you had your hands free or not.

"Get OFF of me!" You were about to headbutt them when a soft voice snapped you out of it.

"Y/N, it's me!"

You immediately stopped struggling. "Thoma?!"

"Yeah. Stay still."

You did as you were told, your eyes fixed on the flickering barrier as Thoma tended to the ropes with what you imagined was a little pocket knife. He quickly cut through them one by one. Your wrists felt better with each row he got through. It didn't take him long to cut enough rope to finally free your hands completely. You exhaled a sigh of relief as the burning in your red (possibly peeling) wrists began to calm down.

"Okay, come on."

Before you could react, Thoma had taken you by the shoulders and was running towards the downstairs of the platform under the crowd of people who watched on with "concern."

"Wait!" As grateful as you were that he was here, you couldn't resist glancing back at that barrier. "We need to help (Traveler)!"

"Just stay here for a minute." Thoma (thankfully) stopped and turned around, the two of you a safe distance from harm's way. He wrapped his arm tight around your shoulders. With his other hand, he pulled out his spear, shifting most of his body in front of you. He felt warmer than usual and had his knees bent like he was preparing to summon his shield.

Was he protecting you?

You would have felt excited if he wasn't stopping you from helping your friend. Even Paimon was fluttering super close to that barrier.

It was flickering. And you could hear slashing and grunting all the way from where you were standing. You hopped anxiously on the spot.

"Come on . . . please . . ."

You suddenly heard a shriek in there that made your blood run cold. That shriek was (Traveler) . . . And (s)he sounded seriously hurt. You watched on, your anxiety rising as the barrier stopped flickering and began to crumble down . . .

And then you saw (Traveler) lying motionless, the Raiden Shogun standing with her back turned. Your eyes widened in horror as Paimon flew over to (Traveler) and tried to wake (him/ her) up. But (Traveler) didn't respond, and the Raiden Shogun had turned around . . .

"NO!" You screamed and went to run. But Thoma held you tight.

"No, Y/N! You need to stay!"

You barely heard him. Your eyes were fixated on the Raiden Shogun drawing dangerously close to (Traveler), her eyes locked (his/her) lifeless body, her katana flickering more rapidly with each step.

Your friend was going to die . . .

"(TRAVELER)!"

"I'll help (him/ her)! You stay here!"

What? Did Thoma just say he was going in? But . . . then he'd get himself hurt too . . .

In the split second you paused to process it, Thoma had taken off, wielding his spear.

Two people you cared for so much, putting their lives on the line before the Raiden Shogun, all for you . . .

You couldn't bear to just stand and watch.

You didn't know how you did it without your Vision, but you burst into flames and soared along the ground like a phoenix, up the stage, past Thoma, ignoring him shrieking your name. You were too focused on the Raiden Shogun who had her glowing katana raised over (Traveler) . . .

With one mighty BOOM, you appeared above her, your own flaming weapon aimed right at her face.

Her gaze shifted.

She definitely noticed you.

You thought you saw her lower her eyebrows.

And in just one slash, everything went black.

You stirred and moaned, blinking very slowly to allow your senses to settle. Your skin was tingling, your head throbbing and spinning. There were a few areas of your body that hurt- your wrists were stinging, while your nose had a pressurized pain. The back of your head screamed with each little movement. But the worst had to be your shoulder- it felt like there was a huge swordfight going on in there.

You moaned as you heaved yourself up, rubbing the back of your head. You barely had time to process your surroundings before two soft warm arms wrapped tight around you, making you gasp.

"Y/N! You're up! I was so worried about you . . ."

Thoma . . .

You sighed and relaxed into his body, even hugging him back. You peeped over his shoulder so you could see where you were. You were lying in what seemed to be a futon in what looked like the Komore Teahouse.

You were safe.

You buried your face into Thoma's shoulder. You soaked up his warmth, running a hand up his back, your other hand playing around with his silky ponytail.

"You okay?"

"Yeah," you breathed with a little nod. Your head screamed in protest, making you shudder.

"Owww."

Thoma instantly pulled away and took you by the arms, carefully avoiding your shoulder.

"Try and relax, okay? You took a bad blow back there. You're lucky you don't have a concussion."

An image flashed before your eyes. The image of the Raiden Shogun slashing her sword before everything went black. It made your shoulder burn even more. You winced and glanced down at it. Sure enough, there was a bandage there. Judging by the patches of dark red almost purple skin and how much it stung and burned at the same time, you imagined it was an electrical burn.

Your reward for rushing in to save (Traveler) . . .

You suddenly sat up straighter as you realized you hadn't seen (Traveler) or Paimon since you had woken up.

"Where is (s)he?"

"Sorry?"

The lack of answer only struck more fear into your heart. You stared at Thoma with panic stricken eyes.

"Where's (Traveler)?"

Thoma gazed compassionately at you and heaved a heavy sigh.

"(S)he had to go to Taratasuna. But (s)he asked me to give you (his/her) thanks on (his/her) behalf . . ."

You'd zoned on hearing (Traveler) was gone. Sure, (s)he had always been the type of person to leap straight back back into action after a difficult fight. But all you could see was the image of (him/her) laying motionless before the Raiden Shogun with her flickering sword raised to strike . . .

You leapt out of bed and charged towards the door, but Thoma was quicker. He caught you in his arms and held you tight as you screamed and thrashed your hands out.

"NO!"

"Y/N-"

"Let me GO!"

"I can't-"

"I NEED TO HELP (HIM/ HER)!"

You kept wrestling his hands away, but every time they slipped, he just grabbed you quicker and tighter. Eventually, he managed to hoist you up and lifted you kicking and screaming towards the bed.

"Put me DOWN!"

"No! You need to rest!"

"NO I DON'T!"

As soon as you felt your feet on the floor, you whipped around and tried to make another charge. This time, Thoma actually blocked you with his body and snaked his arms around you, practically trapping you in an embrace.

"Thoma, STOP IT!"

"Y/N, calm down please . . ."

"I need to help (him/her)!" You tried to push him away. In your desperation, you even punched him on the shoulder. But he just pushed your head into his chest. He did it so gently, and yet his grip was somehow tighter than the ropes around your wrists at the ceremony.

"Thoma, please . . ." you begged, your voice croaking. You gave him another weaker punch. "I can't let (him/ her) go. I don't want anything bad to happen . . ."

"I know . . . I understand . . ."

Did he? Did he really understand? (Traveler) had been such a dear friend to you . . . one of your only friends. Losing (him/her) would be like losing a sibling . . .

You wanted to resist. You wanted to fight. Instead, you gave into Thoma's embrace, bursting into tears, even hugging him back to try and somehow ground you. He wrapped his arms around you in a way that was tighter and somehow more soothing.

"Shhhh . . . it's okay . . . it's going to be okay . . . " His voice was barely above a whisper. He tenderly stroked the back of your head, running his fingers through your hair. You hugged him tighter, soaking up his warmth. As your sobs slowly died down, he slipped a finger under your chin and gently nudged your head upwards.

"Look at me . . ."

Your eyes were wet and raw. They felt so heavy. It was an effort to look up and seal eye contact with him. Not only did it remind you how unbearably handsome Thoma was, but it made you realize how close you were standing together. Your noses were almost touching, while your chests were practically fused to each other. You almost didn't notice him reaching up to stroke your cheeks, wiping the tears away with his thumbs.

"I need you to listen to me." He brushed strands of hair from your face, and tucked it behind your ears. "Are you listening?"

You sniffed and nodded. He nodded back in satisfaction and cupped your face in his hands.

"Good . . ." he whispered. He kept his eyes on yours as he took a deep breath.

"(Traveler) is fine. (S)he was on (his/her) feet before we even entered the teahouse. And (s)he knows how you stopped the Raiden Shogun from executing (him/her). (S)he asked me to tell you that (s)he's incredibly thankful for what you did."

You could hear his sincerity in his words, and it was really touching you. You wished you had been there to tell (Traveler) (s)he was welcome. One last tear trickled down your face, which Thoma gently wiped away.

"You okay?"

You nodded.

"Okay," he whispered. "The next thing I need to tell you is that you won't be able to leave here for a while."

"What?" Your body stiffened. Your eyes widened. They flicked over Thoma's shoulder at the door in the distance.

"Y/N. Look at me." He took you firmly by the arms in case you tried to run again. You fought a whine and glanced at him. He leaned in closer to your ear in a way that made your heart flutter.

"There's guards everywhere out there. If they find you, they will arrest you." Thoma took a moment to swallow back something. He leaned in closer and spoke in a deeper, softer voice that sent a tingle down your spine.

"I need to be honest with you, Y/N. I don't want to scold you but . . ." His grip on your arms tightened.

"You're in really serious trouble. This isn't just because you escaped the ceremony with your Vision. You attacked the Raiden Shogun. So if those guards caught you . . ."

Thoma shuddered, making you shiver with him. His breath hitched as he did so. He paused for a moment, gazing down to gather his thoughts. He shut his eyes, taking another deep shaky breath. Eventually, he slowly released it and gazed back at you, his face and grip softening as he did so.

"That's why you need to stay here . . . where you'll be safe. And . . . I'll stay with you."

Your heart skipped a beat.

"Really?" You could have cringed for letting that slip out. You winced a little when Thoma let a small chuckle escape.

"Of course I will. I . . . kinda have to anyway. I'm probably in a bit of trouble too. There were a lot of witnesses at that ceremony, some who probably recognised me. Either way, I don't think I'm going to- huh?"

You had thrown your arms around him. You didn't care that he was in less danger than you. He had still risked his reputation and more importantly his life to save you. You squeezed him with gratitude, rubbing your face off his chest as he timidly returned the hug.

"Thank you," you mumbled.

"Oh . . . Y- you're welcome, Y/N . . ."

You sniffed as your eyes landed over his shoulder. You gazed longingly at the door in the distance. You wanted to be out there, helping (Traveler) so bad . . . But that tone Thoma had used and the way he had held you so tightly . . . You would have stayed, even if it didn't give you the shivers.

You could sense him looking down at you eyeing that door. He sighed, fanning a wave of hot breath over your hair.

"I know exactly how you feel."

You let out a little moan. Your body sank. Was he really going to start this again?

"I, uh . . ." He swallowed back what seemed to be bigger lump in his throat than last time. "When I helped you at that Vision Hunt Ceremony . . . that wasn't planned . . ."

"Huh?" You lowered your eyebrows and stared up at him. He glanced away from you, his cheeks tinting pink. You thought you felt his heart beating a bit faster.

"When I first found out you had been arrested, (Traveler) told me to stay here and (s)he would help you. But, uh . . ." He sighed again, shutting his eyes. "I couldn't help myself . . ."

His face clenched for a moment. His body shuddered. He clung onto your clothes so tight, you thought he might tear them for a moment.

And then, very slowly, he looked up with shimmering green eyes. He was so beautiful . . . You definitely felt a faster heartbeat in his chest. You felt your own heart beginning to race possibly harder and faster than his.

"Y/N . . . I care for you so much. I've felt that way about you for a long time. I, uh . . ." He shut his eyes and took another deep breath. "I . . . I understand your feelings about (Traveler) too. It's hard to resist helping someone you care for that much. I've actually often wondered if, uh . . ." He paused and let out a nervous little chuckle.

"I've wondered if you might have had feelings for (him/ her). A- and that's okay! But, uhh . . . if you do feel that way towards (him/ her), then . . . could you at least try and stay here? Where it's safe?"

His voice was getting softer and softer. His thumbs were absentmindedly stroking your cheeks. And your heart was beating faster and faster with each word. He resealed that eye contact with you again. His green eyes were absolutely glistening.

"I'm pretty sure (Traveler) doesn't want you to get hurt. And I don't want you to hurt yourself anymore either. So please . . . can you stay here for a while?" He sniffed. "I really don't want you to-"

"Shhh . . ." You put a finger on his lip, softly silencing him. You could hear his voice quaking and see his eyes welling with each word.

You couldn't bear it.

You couldn't bear seeing him like this.

And you couldn't bear the thought of you two being apart. (Traveler) was bad enough. The thought of Thoma getting hurt for you was even worse.

"Y/N?" He took you by the waist. He gazed down at you. He looked so concerned for you . . .

You couldn't hold yourself back any longer. You grabbed his face in both hands and mashed your lips against his. He let out a startled "mmf!" You felt him stumble back. His grip on your waist tightened as he did so. You didn't care. You shut your eyes tight and kissed him as hard as you possibly could.

"I love you," you breathed, running your fingers through his hair, pouring all your emotion into that kiss. He let out a little moan and began kissing you back, sliding his hands up and down your back.

"Oh, Y/N . . . mmm . . . I love you too . . ."

The two of you were so hungry for each other. You were so keen to feel each other up and didn't know where to start. As the kiss got heavier and sloppier, you slid your hands up Thoma's finely toned stomach, up to his chest, feeling up his pecs through his tight shirt. He returned the affection, massaging your shoulders, his hands making circular motions down your back and towards yours waist.

"Thoma . . ." you breathed, tugging at his jacket, nearly pulling it off. He was so warm, and you felt even warmer. Your cheeks were flushed- you were practically melting into his touch. The more your lips rubbed off each other, the more your worries melted away . . .

You went to slip your tongue in. He gasped and suddenly separated. His grip on you tightened. You blinked up at him in concern.

"I'm sorry. Did I upse-"

"Shhhhh-shh-shh-shh-shh." It wasn't a soothing shush, and it silenced you straight away. Thoma's eyes weren't on you. They were narrowed, gazing out into the distance. You would have questioned him if he hadn't shushed you so urgently.

Your ears suddenly picked up on clunking metal and marching feet. You heard Taroumaru growling from the teahouse entrance. You glanced up at Thoma who grabbed your hand and guided you to a corner by the bedroom door before pinning you right into it. He stood protectively over you and pulled out his spear. He flashed you a look you imagined was supposed to be reassuring. A determined look that said,

"Don't worry. I'll protect you."

"Thoma, n-"

He palmed your mouth gently but just firm enough to keep you quiet. All you could do was gaze pleadingly into his eyes and pray that the chattering guards wouldn't dare enter.

"What do you say? You think she's in here?"

"Is she allowed in? She is with the Kamisato Clan, right?"

. . .

"What about that housekeeper boy?"

"What about him?"

"He's with the Kamisatos! He carried that girl away from the ceremony! And the Outlander was following them!"

Thoma pressed his hand a little harder against your mouth as you began to snuffle and tremble. His grip on his spear tightened. His body was getting hotter. His eyes didn't leave you for a second.

"Well he's not our biggest priority. Our biggest priority is to seize the Outlander- that girl's a close second! Whether she's with the Kamisatos or not, we're not approved, and I'm not risking breaking in there!"

"Fine! Outlander it is! (S)he's gotta be around here somewhere!"

"Right! You patrol the city and I'll check over in Ritou!"

And you heard the guards marching away. Thoma waited for their footsteps to fade quiet enough before slowly removing his hand from your mouth. You exhaled a controlled sigh of relief and dropped your head on his shoulder. His spear disappeared from his hand, allowing him to embrace you tightly, scattering kisses all over you.

"Oh Y/N . . ." he whispered between kisses. "I'm so glad you're here . . ." He squeezed you tighter and kissed you harder. "I love you, Y/N . . . I love so much . . ."

You gripped onto his face and kissed him right back. "I love you too . . . mmf . . . I really love you too . . ."

You gasped for breath. The more you kissed him, the more you realized how much you wanted him. Part of you still wished you could maybe sneak out and help (Traveler) as soon as the opportunity presented itself. But after seeing Thoma willing to go as far as he did to protect you and potentially farther . . .

That was more than enough to make you stay in the safety of the teahouse.

For your own safety.

For (Traveler)'s safety.

And especially for Thoma's safety.

Well I hope you enjoyed that! Was pretty tempted to have a smut moment in this, but then that would probably just make this a Feelings of Warmth reboot. But I'll probably write a sequel to it later down the line.

Don't forget, if you have any ideas, you're more than happy to share them! And if you like these stories, be sure to follow, fav and review! It would be much appreciated.

See ya! ;)