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After a couple months of travelling together, when their rag tag group became a genuine team of heroes and they started getting a bit more spending money, Beau decided to make a joke that would quickly become a tradition. When Yasha returned from a particularly long absence, she was caught by surprise as the monk dropped 5 gold in to her hand and promptly jumped in to her arms. Had the barbarian been half a second slower she would have dropped the smaller woman on her ass. Beau smirked as Yasha continued to actually hold her, instead of dropping her like she’d expected.
“Finally have some extra spending gold to pay for the best seat in the house.” Beau said with a grin, wrapping her arms around Yasha’s neck. Yasha said nothing, not even bothering to look at the monk in her grasp. Walking them up to the bar, she allowed Beau to order a drink and enjoy herself for an hour before plopping Beau back in to a seat. Finally having her arms free, Yasha ordered a couple drinks for herself with the gold, rolling her eyes at a wink from Beau.
“Enjoy yourself?” Mollymauk asked with a shit eating grin, waggling his eyebrows at her.
“Yep, best 5 gold I’ve ever spent.” Beau answered, staring Yasha dead in the eye. Molly let out a laugh and clapped Beau on the back before returning to the tarot reading he was doing with Jester.
The next time Yasha returned, she caught up with the group as they were making their way to a town with reports of undead around the border. As soon as Beau saw the large woman at their caravan she clapped 5 gold in to her palm and jumped back in to the barbarian’s arms. Once again, Yasha simply rolled her eyes and held her, taking note of the bruises on Beau’s face. Everyone else said their hellos and laughed at the monk.
As she was carried, Beau hoped Yasha was picking up on the hints she was dropping, quite literally dropping in to her arms. Beau had asked the group what to do about the barbarian she couldn’t get out of her head, and they suggested trying to just talk to her. Talking was never Beau’s strong suit, so she decided to do the opposite, actions spoke louder than words anyway.
“How long are you staying?” Beau asked, hoping this wasn’t just another day trip.
“About a week.” Yasha responded, causing Jester to cheer from up front of the wagon and Beau to celebrate internally.
“In that case, how much for you to carry me the rest of the week?” Beau asked with a grin.
“You don’t have enough gold.” Yasha deadpanned, causing the entire rest of the group to burst out in laughter, Beau crossing her arms in a fake pout. Neither of them said anything the rest of the hour, though Beau gave up her pouting after just a couple minutes and leaned back in to the barbarian’s chest, quietly appreciating Yasha’s strength.
After Yasha left again, Beau drowned her sorrows in cheap ale. The group laughed about it at first, but began to worry after her fourth of the night. Fjord went up to sit next to her at the bar, ordering the two of them another round.
“Haven’t seen anything eat at ya quite like this, Beau.” He said, concern clear in his voice.
“Yeah, didn’t realize I cared this much til’ too late.” She responded with a sad laugh, staring at the contents of her empty mug.
“Did’ya talk to her yet?”
“No, like I’d know what to say. I punch my problems.”
“Maybe just try sayin’ that you can’t stop thinkin’ bout her?”
“Easier said than done, every time I’m around her my mind goes blank.”
“Tell her that, maybe mention you like bein’ in her arms.” He said with a chuckle.
“You’ll figure it out, you’re smarter than you give yerself credit for.” With that he took his new drink and returned to talk with the others. Beau thought about his words for a few minutes while nursing the new drink before heading to her room for the night.
Yasha returned a few days later, following the sounds of fighting as she found the group facing off against a pack of werewolves. From the look of it, they had been fighting off some undead when the werewolves heard them and smelled the blood. The heroes were already tired from the undead, had Yasha not shown up the werewolves would have had no trouble picking them off A quick look at her friends set her blood on fire. Nott was trying to stand in front of an injured Caleb, Fjord and Molly beaten to hell, Jester trying to heal and unconscious Beau. With a roar, she charged in to the creatures, vision red and blood pounding.
The werewolves didn’t expect the barbarian to have silvered weapons, and retreated after three of them had been picked off almost immediately. When Yasha couldn’t hear the pack anymore, she turned to the group to see how she could help.
“I stabilized her, but I don’t have the energy to heal her.” Jester said as Yasha knelt next to her and the monk. Without a word she picked up Beau and cradled her like she had the last few times she returned. She’d come to enjoy the monk’s company, but this is not how she wanted their reunion to be.
“Can you walk?” She asked the others, heading towards the town when they nodded. When they reached the inn Yasha said nothing and headed up the stairs, letting the others deal with purchasing rooms. She entered the first room at the top of the stairs and carefully laid the monk on to the bed, gently covering her with the blankets and making sure she looked comfortable.
As Yasha sat down and leaned against the bed, she felt the exhaustion hit her. Running as fast as she could when she’d heard fighting as well as the wounds she’d received in her rage began to set in, catching her by surprise.
As her eyes began to droop, she thought about the monk next to her. Every time Beau had asked to be held by her, Yasha played along, assuming the monk was just beating a dead horse with the joke, and didn’t really think past it. It wasn’t until she saw Beau unconscious, so vulnerable to the werewolves, that she felt, more, for her.
Yasha couldn’t remember the last time she’d been so furious, which was saying something for a barbarian. She spent the entire walk back to town thinking about Beau, terrified she was more injured than Jester had let on, which would be saying something. The barbarian continued to worry and think until exhaustion overtook her
Beau woke up to a warm bed and a dark room. She groaned and slowly sat up, assessing her injuries and trying to make her eyes adjust to the darkness. The first thing she noticed was a light snoring coming from across the room. Squinting, she made out the shape of what she assumed to be Jester sleeping in the other cot. The next thing she noticed was the softer, deeper breathing right next to her bed.
Reaching out, she nearly jumped when her hand ran in to a wild mane of hair. Beau quickly realized it was Yasha, and blushed to her ears. She wracked her brain, trying to remember what happened. All she could remember was punching a werewolf in the snout, confusion when it seemed unphased, claws hitting her chest, and darkness. She debated trying to get up and see if anyone else was still awake, but her body was already protesting just being awake. She gently ran her fingers through the mass of hair a few times before laying back down, falling asleep with fingers still tangled in the mane.
When the sun began to peak through the window, Yasha had the misfortune of facing East. She blinked a couple times and brought a hand up to cover her eyes, slowly remembering where she was. The barbarian recalled the events of the previous day, but what she didn’t remember is how Beau’s hand ended up in her hair. Yasha felt the faintest blush on her cheeks as she realized Beau must have woken up at some point in the night.
Careful to not wake Beau, Yasha removed the hand and stood up, quietly making her way to the door. Not quiet enough, though, as she noticed Jester’s eyes pop open at the creaking. “I’m going to get food.” Yasha said quietly, silently thanking the cleric as Jester simply turned over to go back to sleep.
The barbarian made her way downstairs to find the barman just beginning to serve breakfast.
“Hope you’re all ok, looked beat half to hell when you came in yesterday.” He said, serving a couple patrons at the bar. Yasha gave a small nod and tossed a couple gold on the counter, hoping he would give her a large breakfast. He seemed to get the hint, and brought her a plate overflowing with food.
Beau came down the stairs as Yasha was finishing breakfast, they seemed to be the first ones up. Beau joined her at the table waving for another plate to be brought out for herself.
“Hey,” Beau said, feeling awkward about falling asleep touching Yasha’s hair.
“Morning, feeling better?” Yasha asked, concern lacing her voice. Beau blushed at the question, assuming she wouldn’t be interested.
“Oh, uh, yeah, thanks. What happened?” she asked, grateful for the plate placed in front of her. She dug in, pretending to be interested in the meal.
“You were knocked out when I found you guys, killed a couple of the things then carried you back.” She said as if it were your average day. Beau nearly choked on her food hearing that Yasha had carried her back.
“Oh, thanks, do I owe you another 5 gold for that?”
Yasha smirked and gave a genuine smile.
“That one was on the house, but only one freebie.”
Beau felt her face heat up at seeing the usually stoic barbarian give her a smile. She looked down and pretended to be very interested in her breakfast. She kicked herself for not responding, but she didn’t know what to say. She thought about what Fjord had told her, and steeled herself before looking right at Yasha.
“I, I like talking to you. But when I talk to you I forget how to talk. But I like it when you carry me.” She said, feeling stupid as the words tumbled out at their own volition. She looked away when she finished, nails biting in to her palm in frustration.
“I, enjoy carrying you.” Yasha responded quietly, now taking her turn to avoid eye contact.
“Really? In that case…” Beau trailed off to finish her breakfast in a couple bites before jumping up and digging out five gold from her pocket. She handed it to Yasha who laughed and took it, picking up the monk in the middle of the bar before she had the chance to jump on her again. Not appreciating the audience, Yasha carried Beau outside and to the outskirts of town.
She carried her for ten minutes into the woods, the opposite way they’d fought the creatures yesterday. Yasha found an old, fallen tree and sat down to lean against it, keeping the monk in her lap. For the first bit Beau just curled into Yasha, loving the way the barbarian’s arms tightened around her. They sat in silence for awhile, neither really wanting to break the moment.
“I wish you didn’t always have to go, it’s boring without you around.” Beau said quietly, staring off past the trees.
“Ha, I doubt that. Molly alone could keep you entertained for months.” Yasha teased, opening up to the monk.
“I’d rather you keep me entertained for months.” Beau said cockily, shifting back slightly to look up at the barbarian.
“Oh? And how would I keep you entertained?” Yasha fired back, looking down at the woman in her arms. Without a word, Beau surged up to kiss the barbarian, surprising her but not enough to keep Yasha from kissing her back. Beau only expected to kiss her
then have to explain herself, but as she pulled away Yasha followed, a hand moving from her legs up to cradle the monk’s face. Beau buried a hand in Yasha’s hair, also trying to keep her close.
They stayed like that for what seemed like hours, neither wanting to stop. It wasn’t till they heard a snap of branches and tore away from each other to watch an elk get startled that they looked at each other and thought about what had happened. They both realized with a blush that Beau had moved to straddle the barbarian, whose hands were tightly gripping the monk’s hips to keep her close.
“So, should we let the others know we didn’t kill each other?” Beau said, avoiding the barbarian’s gaze.
“Probably.” Yasha answered, leaning down to capture the monk’s lips again. Beau returned the kiss for a few moments before forcing herself back.
“As much as I’d like to keep doing this for the rest of the century, and believe me I’d really like that, the town has a really bad undead problem we said we’d take care of.” Beau said, thinking of the families she’d already seen destroyed. Yasha sighed and nodded, standing up and placing Beau on her feet.
“Your hour is up.” Yasha said but proceeded to grab the monk’s hand in her own. The walked back to town like that, ignoring the catcalls of their friends when they entered the bar. Molly and Jester teased them for a bit while Fjord just sat back with a quiet smile.
“How big of a problem are the undead? I have to leave in a few days.” Yasha said, cutting straight to the point.
“Aw babe, can’t you stay longer?” Beau whined. Yasha gave no response besides a smirk and raised eyebrow at the nickname.
“We think we more or less found where the undead are coming from. There was a small cave a little ways away from where we fought yesterday. The town thinks it’s a wizard that used to live around here, said he always had a screw loose.” Fjord explained, pushing his empty plate away. Yasha nodded and waiting for the others to finish their meal.
The undead and their creator were dispatched in a couple days, the cave being a bit more of a maze than they had anticipated. A few close calls and a lot of walking later, they finally made their way out of the cave and back to the town. They were given free lodging for the new few days and a few free rounds the first night they returned.
Beau managed to convince Yasha to have a drinking contest with some of the other patrons who greatly underestimated the barbarian. Beau, of course, bet on Yasha and won a handful of gold, which was immediately given to her girlfriend as she kissed her and proceeded to climb on her back and sit on her shoulders.
Yasha rolled her eyes but let Beau stay perched, holding on to her legs as she moved around the crowded bar. Many of the drunkards cheered and whooped for Beau, asking when they could have a turn. They received middle fingers for an answer, and those that got too close quickly received a foot to the nose. Though a tad overdone, Yasha liked the protective side of the monk.
They celebrated well into the night. When Beau had finally had enough to drink, she could barely keep her balance atop the barbarian, still demanding more drink. Yasha carefully walked them up the stairs to the first room and deposited Beau on the bed, turning to leave when a hand grabbed her wrist.
“No don’t go yet,” Beau mumbled, burying her face into the pillow. Yasha sighed and removed her weapons and armor before laying down next to Beau. The monk instantly curled in to her and fell asleep, leaving Yasha to try and tamper down her blush. The barbarian wrapped her arms around the smaller woman and laid awake for another hour before finally finding sleep.
A couple years down the road, Yasha was finally able to stay with the group for good. Beau nearly cried at the news, jumping into her girlfriend’s arms and kissing her feverishly. Yasha laughed and returned the affection before hugging the rest of their friends. From there, every day Beau would give Yasha five gold to carry her around, sticking her tongue out at the others who had long since given up laughing about it.
After a few months, Yasha had an idea. While Beau was doing her morning practice routine, Yasha pulled Molly aside to ask a question.
“I like Beau.” Yasha stated lamely, kicking herself mentally.
“I’m aware.” He responded, voice dripping with sarcasm from the smirk on his lips.
“I want to get her a ring, but I’m not sure how to ask.”
“How did you tell her you liked her?”
“She told me, she was her normal straightforward self.”
“So be straightforward, like the rest of your relationship.”
“Yeah, thanks Molly.”
“I want first dibs on best man!” He said with a wink and walked off as Beau entered the tavern. Yasha greeted her but her mind was elsewhere.
“I’m going in to town for a bit, I’ll be back later.” Yasha said, standing up abruptly.
“Want me to come with?” Beau offered, beginning to stand.
“No, no, uh, I think Nott wanted your help with something today.” She fumbled her words, hoping it would be enough.
“Oh, alright, see you later babe?”
“Yeah.” With a kiss goodbye Yasha made her way out of the inn to the town shopping district. She stuffed her hand into a pocket that held a sizeable gold pouch. Inside was all of the gold Beau had given her over the past few months, and she intended to spend it well.
It took her a couple hours, but she finally found a simple platinum band, small intricate designs around the outside. She thanked the jeweler and hid the band in the now empty pouch. As soon as she left the shop Yasha was jumpy, her and constantly going to her pocket to make sure it was still there. She made a beeline for the inn, hoping Beau was still there.
Opening the door, she was relieved to see Beau arm wrestling Fjord, neither seeming to be giving any leeway. Yasha walked up behind Beau and put a hand on her shoulder, leaning down to whisper in her ear.
“Kick his ass, for me.”
Fjord’s hand hit the table so fast he’d swear he got whiplash.
“What in the hell did ya tell her?” He said, flexing his hand. Beau and Yasha smirked before Yasha picked up the monk and began to walk them to the door.
“We’ll be back.” Yasha said, kicking the door open and leaving them to stare.
“Whoa babe, you know I love being manhandled but is everything ok?” Beau asked, concern in her voice. Yasha gave a short nod and carried them out of the town to the forest surrounding them. Once out of earshot of the town, she gently set Beau back on her
feet. The monk began to rummage in her pocket before Yasha stopped her.
“It’s my turn to give you something.” Yasha said, hand shaking as she took out the pouch from her pocket and handed it to Beau.
Beau eyed the bag suspiciously, slowly opening it and dumping the contents in to her palm. Yasha held her breath as confusion turned to surprise, Beau’s jaw dropping.
“I-is this what I think it is?” Beau whispered, so low Yasha strained to hear her.
“If you want it to be, yes.”
Before she could blink the monk launched herself at the barbarian, arms locking around her neck pulling her as close as she could. Yasha let out the breath she didn’t know she’d been holding and instantly returned the hug, almost fearing she’d crack a rib. Beau mumbled in to her hair and it took a couple moments for Yasha to understand what she was saying.
“Yes yes yes yes yes!”
“Really?” Yasha asked, insecurity crawling it’s way in to her thoughts.
“Of course, what idiot would say no?” Beau pulled back to look Yasha in the eye, tears streaming down her face. Beau pulled her in for a kiss, laughs coming from both of them. They’d been on a lot of adventures, and this was one adventure Yasha couldn’t wait to start.