Genre: Hurt/Comfort, attempted humor

Plot: Obanai scores some cuddles after a rough mission and he's not sure how to feel about it.

CW: Blood

Cuddles

Obanai coughed and clutched his side. Blood seeped from the gash caused by a demon's claw. It soaked his haori, turning the stark white cloth crimson. The familiar metallic taste of blood filled his mouth. He tried not to let it get in his bandages, but the blood slipped past his lips. The coughing caused the pain in his side to suddenly spike. Obanai groaned a little from the sudden increase of pain and frustration.

Damn it ... I gotta hold out long enough to get back to my estate. That demon was a tough one ... why did I have to choke long enough for it to get me?

The familiar feeling of scales rubbed against his cheek as Kaburamaru comfortingly nuzzled him. The snake was concerned for their friend's well being.

"I'm okay," Obanai assured, trying to assure Kaburamaru. And himself. If he could convince himself that he was fine, it would hopefully give him enough strength to get home.

Obanai could feel himself starting to get lightheaded. NOT a good sign.

Sure enough, his legs suddenly turned to jelly and he nearly collapsed before catching himself. Kaburamaru let out a hiss of shock and worry. Obanai's breathing got heavy as he steadied himself. His legs returned to normal, but the fact that they nearly gave out beneath him worried him. If it happened just now, it could easily happen again.

I need to get to home NOW.

Obanai looked ahead at the path in front of him. It had grown foggy and harder to make out than usual. Dizziness swarmed his mind as he let out another hoarse cough.

Fuck ... I'm blacking out...

The last thing he heard was a frantic hiss from his companion as darkness completely took over.

~o.O.o~

The first thing Obanai felt was a dull ache in his side, right where he had been clawed. It didn't hurt anywhere near as bad as it did earlier. Someone must have treated it, he supposed. The next thing he noticed was a pair of arms wrapped securely around him. He felt like he was lying on his side. Underneath him was what he assumed was a futon. He felt warmth against his back. Hot breath gently blew against his neck in a rhythmic pattern. The sound of peaceful, heavy breathing filled the room.

Someone is spooning me! Obanai realized. Whoever it is, they're definitely asleep.

Slowly, he opened his eyes and blinked, adjusting to the darkness. The room seemed unfamiliar. It also wasn't anything too special. The room seemed so plain and almost empty. Clearly, whoever owned the place was a minimalist.

A gentle hiss got his attention. Obanai shifted his gaze to Kaburamaru, who was slithering onto the futon. The snake gently nuzzled Obanai's forehead.

"I'm okay," Obanai softly whispered, not wanting to wake whoever was holding him. He looked down at himself. He was wearing loose-fitting sleepwear. He felt bandages wrapped around where his injury was, confirming his theory that someone treated his wound. But what really got his attention was the mismatched sleeves that were wrapped around him. One was a plain maroon. The other had a yellow and green cube-like pattern.

That looks like Tomioka's haori! Obanai realized with a sudden surge of anger and confusion. Why did Tomioka help me? Why is he spooning me?!

He started to shift to wake Giyuu up, ready to ask questions. But as he did, pain shot through his side and he stopped. Kaburamaru gave him a look of disapproval and shook their head.

Obanai shot Kaburamaru a soft glare that said "What do you expect me to do?"

Kaburamaru slithered on top of the two, using their tail to gently push Obanai further into Giyuu's embrace. Obanai could only comply in confusion.

The feeling of pressing against him caused Giyuu to gently nuzzle the back of Obanai's shoulder.

Obanai felt blood immediately flow to his cheeks, turning his face bright red. His heart started to pound in his chest as butterflies danced in his stomach. WHAT IS HAPPENING?!

It's gotta be a dream ... right? He's only dreaming.

...

Who could he possibly be dreaming of to make him do this?

WHY AM I ASKING MYSELF THAT QUESTION?!

Kabarumaru, who was coiled on Giyuu's shoulder, was watching Obanai's face in amusement. The fact was, Kaburamaru had always seen the way Giyuu looked at Obanai. The snake knew the Water Pillar had a crush on the Serpent Pillar. As for Obanai, Kaburamaru knew damn well how in denial Obanai was. Why he was in denial? Kaburamaru didn't know. Was it because Obanai thought Giyuu was self-centered? Internalized homophobia? Whatever the reason was, Kaburamaru wanted Obanai to finally accept his feelings. And now this was the perfect opportunity to do so. It seemed to be working, Kaburamaru noticed, giving the evident gay panic on Obanai's face. Perhaps he just needed a little push. Slithering in close, Kaburamaru gently nuzzled Obanai's temple, knowing the action relaxed their best friend.

Obanai calmed down a little when he felt Kaburamaru gently nuzzling his temple with their nose. He snapped out of his thoughts and allowed his body to relax and get comfortable.

Hm ... this is actually kind of nice. Obanai thought as a small smile grew on his face. But as soon as he realized the smile was there, he dropped it. Why am I feeling like this? Tomioka, what is this effect you're having on me?

Staring at the wall, Obanai's mind started to wander. Have I ... been too hard on him? If he truly does feel like he's better than us, would he be doing this right now? Were Shinazugawa and I wrong about him? And why is my stomach still feeling like this now that I'm so close to him? I know it's acted up like this whenever he's near, but it's never been this bad! What the hell is going on with me? This wound must have fucked me up more than I thought. Or maybe I'm just tired. Yeah, that's gotta be it. I just need sleep. I'll feel better in the morning.

...

My side is falling asleep, fUCK-

Letting out a soft, but irritated sigh, Obanai slowly started to shift, careful not to wake Giyuu. Trying not to grunt in pain, and with a lot effort, he eventually got on his side. Unfortunately, this resulted in his face being right against Giyuu's chest. Giyuu didn't awaken, but his arms shifted to wrap around Obanai more securely and he buried the bottom half of his face into Obanai's hair.

How is he sleeping through this? He must be a heavy sleeper.

AND WHY DOES HE KEEP DOING THIS SHIT IN HIS SLEEP?!

Once again, Obanai felt his face getting warm as butterflies flew around in his stomach. Kaburamaru could only let out a hiss of amusement, earning a glare from their best friend.

Hm ... this actually feels kind of nice. Obanai thought, a sense of comfort taking over him. Tentatively, he reached an arm up and wrapped it around Giyuu in return. He could have sworn he felt a small smile form on Giyuu's lips against his head.

Did I just make his dream happier? Obanai wondered.

Little did he know, Giyuu was, in fact, awake. Just a few hours earlier, he was going for a walk when he noticed Obanai on the ground in a heap. Concerned, Giyuu had brought him back to the Water Estate and patched him up. Since there was only one futon, he figured it would be okay if they shared it. That way he could keep an eye on Obanai in case he needed anything. Besides, it was a solid excuse to be this close to his crush without getting snapped at. Giyuu never understood what it was about Obanai that had captivated him, but he knew he wanted Obanai to understand that he was a good person, even if he doesn't seem like that at first. Despite this being the plan, he did not anticipate falling asleep, let alone spooning his companion in his sleep. He had woken up just shortly after Obanai had. However, he was feeling nervous to confront him at the moment. On top of that, he was not at all expecting Obanai to reciprocate the actions. He had done them, hoping Obanai would think he's doing it in his sleep, which seemed to be the case. Perhaps he'll feel more confident to talk about it in the morning. But right now, he was perfectly content with staying like this.

Unbeknownst to him, Obanai also felt perfectly okay with this. The only thing he wasn't sure about was whether or not he should bring this up in the morning. He concluded that he should sleep on it and make a final decision in the morning. Some sleep would definitely do him good.

Kaburamaru was content with this outcome. They could tell Obanai may not have fully accepted his feelings, but tonight was definitely progress.

At first I was worried this was gonna be short, but then my brain went a little haywire and now it's a little longer than I originally planned. I hope you guys liked it!