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Quiet.
The three were quiet, hands-first in the scene that was unfolding before them.
Well . . . Moreso it was O’miz sifting around in the snow, teeth chattering, as Estinien investigates a corpse, discussing with Aymeric. In fact, the trio had been called on another wild goose chase; the man O'miz was searching for had rumors floating around him, ones of consuming dragon's flesh, going mad and killing his wife. And of course, coincidentally, he and his wife ended up disappearing- so now O'miz had to find some sort of proof of this being true.
. . . And y’know, O’miz could have sworn rumors like that had quelled out and died by the end of the dragonsong war. But here they were. . .
. . . In all honesty, the investigation was called on solely O’miz, but he didn’t want to book it alone. Seemed he was more paranoid than usual, not to mention slightly tired of being sent around for such things- even if he was more than fully willing- and managed to convince the other two to come with. About as easy as convincing the two to go on calmer adventures with him, right ?
All the same.
It always went the same. . .
Convincing Aymeric was quick; it was Estinien who was a pain. Every time they’d say the same thing, claiming that they had more important things to do. And then O’miz would always bring up that he can hold off on swinging that lance- lovingly dubbed ‘that glorified pitchfork’- around long enough to go adventuring. Or, in this case, see if the rumors were just that- rumors.
And then, with another handful of snow shoved aside-
"Estinien ! Aymeric ! Oh b-b-by Nophica. . .”
The miqo's red-pink ears perked in the directions of the others as he opened the man's mouth, seeking for any signs of his supposed connection, the thing that would have gotten him called a heretic if this case were some time before.
. . .
"There's n-no immediate signs . . . H-H-Have you fffound anything on h-his wife . . . ?" O'miz trembled as he spoke, rubbing his hands together.
"Ah . . . No evidence on her person, I fear . . . " Aymeric spoke up, before shaking his head. "Mayhap the one who started this rumor had something against this man . . ."
"Thhhen p-p-perhaps we . . . Musst f-find . . . Mmhh." With a sigh, O’miz began to search for a dravanian pendant- hands visibly shaking aggressively as he does so, before-
“Estinien, I cannn handle m-m-mmyself. . .”
The miqo was just trying to calm Estinien down so he could keep working- but when he peered at his fingers barely poking between the taller man's, he realized just how red they were, how numb they felt - And he hadn't even realized how cold he was until he was wrapped within their arms, an old coat belonging to Haurchefant draped over them both.
"You're freezing . . . The Coerthas have been nibbling away at you for far too long today."
Pouting, O'miz nuzzled further against Estinien, pressing his face into the other's chest. He wanted to finish this investigation-
"I c-c-cannn handle mysselfff ju-j-j-jussst fine ! " The miqo'te shivered, slightly moving to push himself back to the man's corpse- before he felt a gust on his back, and then the warmth of another body . . .
?
Oh.
"But you needn't freeze to prove such."
Blinking up at Aymeric now, before burying his face into Estinien’s chest, and allowing the onyx-haired elezen to wrap his arms around them both.
A sigh. “We have found the corpses. . . And proven the rumors false. Estinien and I found no traces of attack on the woman. Mayhap it was mere accident, or foul play from another party was involved. . . For all we know a murder might be on our hands. . . Ah, without a doubt not the one we were sent for, I’m afraid. That would make this all easy, wouldn’t it. . . ?” There was a dry chuckle then, as Estinien murmured something along the lines of ‘By Halone’s holy tits.’ “We can investigate more soon. Knowing full well they seem to believe you a detective as much as you are a healer, someone to run errands, a fighter, and a defense. A thousand men in one.”
The miqo was quiet, as he lay still in the warmth of the others. It was something he thought of on occasion- how people seemed to believe him to be this man of a thousand occupations, a man of a thousand abilities. Some far surpassing his own- all those years ago, travelling with O’dax and Y’shele, why. . . He never imagined being here. Doing all these quests for others- hell, realizing he was the Warrior of Light was a slap to the face. And now-
Now he rest between the Azure Dragoon and an ex-commander; now ruler of Ishgard.
Aye, if you told O’miz he was to realize his position as Warrior of Light, if you told him he would be resting here, between these two, trying to warm up during a quest where somebody expected him to be adequate enough for detective work- Why, if you told him all this back then he’d probably laugh directly in your face ! So stunned and appalled by such words he’d be, whether by sheer inability to comprehend it or simply being unable to believe that someone like himself be capable of such a thing. . .
Perchance it was just something he wouldn't be able to comprehend at that age. He was bright-eyed, bushy tailed, and ready to adventure with his siblings. "Big brother, I wanna be just like you !" He'd cry out, before running forward to attempt to lance a large bug- only for the heavy lance's blade to slam into the soft dirt, shoving in, and practically flinging the miqo, due to it essentially becoming what is best described as an oversized lever.
Yeah, that wasn't exactly the most pleasant experience. And it embarrassed him so much more when Y'shele had to come heal him- Not to mention he'd crushed his helmet.
And yet they still helped him up, and took him off to adventure . . . Out, away from their village, and see the world.
Oh, he couldn’t help but miss how simple those times were.
“We should get going.”
It was a quiet whisper from Aymeric, as he nuzzled Estinien’s shoulder, essentially trapping O’miz between the two. Not that he was complaining, of course, in fact he was rather content with this.
The next thing the miqo’te heard was a rumble, and a growl, before the dragoon spoke up; “Aww. . . You don’t want us to complete our little moment out in the freezing cold, over in the middle of a ditch, relaxing right by the body of a man accused of crimes he more than likely did not even commit ?”
“How r-r-rrromantic.”
Hah, who knew ! O’miz could handle witty comments when he’s currently freezing his arse off !
And soon he felt himself being lifted by Aymeric- and he allowed such, curling up into the taller’s arms, and kept his eyes on Estinien as they began to walk. . . And it wasn’t long before Estinien found his hands on O’miz’s cheeks, leaning down to give the miqo’te a kiss - a difficult task while they walked, but nothing the Great Azure Dragoon couldn’t handle, yes ?
Upon their re-arrival, O’miz quickly clung to Aymeric, wrapping both his arms and legs around the Lord- barely giving him time to take a rest by the fire.
“Someone’s feeling needy. . .” He spoke, cupping the Miqo’s cheeks as he awaited Estinien, carrying a large coat; belonging to O’miz, the one given by Haurchefant.. They wrapped it around him, having to peel his arms off of Aymeric first- after a bit of protest- and made sure to clip it, while Aymeric rose- a quiet apology escaping his lips as he did so. . .
“We have elsewhere to be. . . We shall report to the one who sent us on this mess. . .”
Yellow eyes simply watch with curiosity as the two walk off, hand in hand, Estinien leaning into Aymeric. . .
And he found himself alone with his thoughts, the warmth of the fire seeping into his cold body.
Soon, O'miz found himself burying his face within the cloak- simply breathing in and out.
Ah, it still smelled of the silver haired man. That scent of roses and honey being something that was always prominent to alert him of his old friend's presence . . .
And he couldn’t help but remember his times past with the tall elezen. Haurchefant’s smile was damn near contagious, so willing to open his arms to O’miz he was . . . The miqo vividly remembered when he first did so, and he ran into Haurchefant’s arms and melted down into his arms, clutching down on his chainmail. . .
Man. He still had that old scar from when Haurchefant’s chainmail ended up slicing his hand open- a complete accident, but it was messy. Nothing he couldn’t patch up. . .
. . . And the cocoa. He always enjoyed Haurchefant’s cocoa- while he found it to be just another excuse he could use to spend time with his best friend, it was also a breath of fresh air to be able to have such a simple moment with him. To be able to just sit down with his friend and chatter, away from the quests and the pains for just a little while. The drink was nearly as sweet as he was. . . A charm that O’miz couldn’t resist.
Oh, how he loved his friend. Even if their friendship never went past that- a friendship- and O’miz’s feelings never surpassed platonic, he still cared very deeply for him.
And that.
. . .
That made everything hurt so much more.
He clutched down on the cloak, hands trembling, and curled in on himself, whimpering.
Remembering it all was painful.
O’miz could still barely look at that portrait of his departed friend, not without his eyes getting misty. It was always the same, and . . .
Trying to catch his breath now. Burying himself further into the coat, before-
"You were rather close . . . Do you still miss him . . . ?"
Aymeric's gentle voice rang out as he stepped forward, placing a pasty he had in hand aside. Moving to O'miz and lifting his chin, he was soon laying a soft kiss on the miqo's lips. . . Worried fingers traced his cheekbones, lips fleeting against his. "You know none of us will be upset if you do . . . He was a friend to all of us . . ."
. . .
The small white mage just sat there, breathing Aymeric's breath, staring into those icy blue eyes. He turned his head to the side, placing his own hand over the one the elezen was using to run a finger against his cheek. It was so small against his . . . And yet he was so used to every inch of it- knew every scar and the little beauty mark near his index finger- He knew every inch of Aymeric. Adjusting his body slightly to wrap his arms around the other, the Miqo'te ran his hands against his exposed neck- thumbing the other beauty mark.
"I'm scared to lose the two of you just the same . . ." Despite his tender touches, O'miz was visibly worried, placing a kiss on the elezen's lips, just briefly. "I'm terrified, actually . . . I don't know what I'd do if I lost you two . . ." He froze then, closing his eyes as Aymeric began to run his finger against his cheek again. “What if I can’t help you two, if something happens and I can’t do anything-” Opening his eyes a bit to stare up at the other, looking defeated. “My entire job is to heal. To keep you safe and make sure you don’t die. And I don’t wanna fail it again, especially with either of you two. . .” He pressed against Aymeric again, gripping down on his clothes for a moment.
The elezen was quiet for a moment, before he nuzzled the miqo’te, huffing. “You have never failed at your job. . . You worked so diligently. . . No healer can save everyone, my dear. . .” He gently ran his hands up and down O'miz's back, sighing quietly while he did so. "You are simply bringing further harm to yourself by blaming . . . Yourself . . . Ah, O'miz, dear, I realize I am repeating words you have told me . . ."
There's a quiet chuckle, almost amused, as he nuzzles his nose against the white mage's, a soft smile on his face. "I think it's best we both listen to our own words, yeah ?" He spoke again, and then once more Aymeric was cupping the other's cheeks, only smiling wider as the miqo'te presses his head down into his hands, ever so slightly- allowing his cheeks to puff up further. A squishy cat, you could compare him to.
"It's hard not to . . . I just feel that, y'know, what with the whole White Mage thing . . ."
"I'm sure even White Mages past weren't able to save everyone they knew."
With that comment, Aymeric pressed another gentle kiss on O'miz's lips- and soon O'miz found himself preoccupied with attempting to lick any remaining cinnamon from the pastry off of the onyx-haired man's lips- just resulting in a soft chuckle from the elezen.
Stopping the licking for a second. "I guess I'll just have to try harder. Even if I can't save everyone. . . Y'shele wouldn't want me to give up over a few losses. Nor . . ." He cuts himself off, glancing up into those blue eyes again- Seeing the understanding gaze. He didn't even need to say the name.
Aymeric sighed, rising up, and offering a hand to O'miz- which he took quick, slipping their hands into a position they'd known all too well- something done often between the two of them. It didn't take long for the duo to settle into a dance position, causing a soft giggle to escape the miqo. Faintly whispering something up to the elezen, he began to step; leading the dance.
They soon lost themselves, moving swiftly across the room. It didn't take long for Haurchefant's old coat to slip off O'miz's shoulders, only taking very slight notice when he felt the chill. Yet he ignored it, merely enjoying the time with his husband . . .
The two were swept up in their dance. O’miz wasn’t keeping his eyes on Aymeric- something the elezen took no offense to, as he knew the miqo’te was bad with eye contact, having told him it felt as if it was hurting him physically to hold it. He kept his eyes on the smaller man as O’miz kept his gaze focused on the small earring dangling down. It was as if he were entranced by the little blue stone. . .
And upon dipping Aymeric, he found himself glancing up at gray eyes, and leaned forward slightly to give his other husband a kiss. It was as if he wasn’t even startled by the sudden, silent entrance of the other.
"Ah, Estinien, you finally return. O'miz and I had a bit of a talk before your return . . . And, well, I think you'll find it obvious what we took to after, yeah ?" Aymeric chuckled, rising up and stepping over to Estinien when O'miz let go of him. He placed a hand on their cheek, running a finger against their chin as they placed a kiss on their lips. "Mayhap we could rest now. It's been a long day, I'd say- and the cold has been nipping at O'miz fiercely."
The dragoon simply raised an eyebrow for a moment, glancing at O'miz- who was currently preoccupied with trying to wrap back up in Haurchefant's old coat, and nibble off of the leftover pastry- simply huffing as the miqo offers the pastry to the two of them. "Is there not more we need to do . . . ? We have duties, and surely there's-"
They were interrupted by Aymeric placing his thumb over their lips, a gentle look in his eyes. "You fret far too much. Some rest would do us good. . . And we've already cleared everything up with the man who sent O'miz on that quest anyways. Any further and he might pass out on us . . ."
Estinien opened his mouth to speak, but was quickly interrupted by a realization. And as if on cue, O'miz glanced over from where he was shuffling, pastry still in hand, coat haphazardly draped over his shoulders, as he blinked slowly. He was already halfway to the bedroom when he yawned, mouth open wide to reveal the sharp fangs he inherited from his mother. Suddenly, he shook his head, causing his ears to flop over his pink hair. And then he just . . . Stared in Estinien's direction, raising an eyebrow.
"Pass out on you . . . ? Aymeric, who was the one leading our dance again ?"
"Oh, Mizzy. Did the slow dance tucker you out that much . . . ? Mayhap you should rest then . . ."
Fluffing up then, O'miz pushed the pastry into his mouth, speaking some incoherent nothings through the pastry as he flicks his tail. Of course, this only sparked a chuckle from the other two . . . Kinda hard to take the Warrior of Light seriously when he's currently looking like a small pink ball of fluff, cinnamon pastry shoved in his face, mumbling something completely unknown into it. It was probably even harder to do so with little chunks of cinnamon and crumbs all over his cheeks.
"Alright . . . We're going to bed . . ."
Estinien simply nipped on their thumb, allowing Aymeric to lead them to the bedroom with a hand on their back, taking O'miz with them.
The dragoon was quick to remove his shirt upon entering the room- tossing it haphazardly onto the floor, and nudging it away from the fluffy rug slightly. Aymeric chuckled, walking over and pressing his hands gently against their chest as he gently kissed the other on their lips . . . And moved to pick up the shirt, folding it up and placing it on the basket next to the desk.
"You two still have my first wand . . . ? I keep forgetting . . ." O'miz mumbled slight as he picked up the small branch, turning it over in his hands . . . It was well worn, cracked in a place or two, and nearly broke in half after a really nasty attack that left O'miz pretty heavily scarred . . .
It was full of memories of his early conjurer days.
Fighting alone, and then soon alongside Sylphie, all before the more extreme stress of the Warrior of Light to bear came upon him. . .
And soon he found the warmth of Estinien against his back, the dragoon's arms wrapped around him and taking hold of a string on his bilaud The miqo rose one of his hands, unclasping the bit along his neck and glancing up at Estinien, allowing them to remove the top- shivering quietly as they did so.
He leaned back, purring up against Estinien as they twirled the two of them around, leading them both to the bed Aymeric was currently resting in.
"It's been a long day . . . C'mon . . ."
Soon O'miz flopped against Aymeric, quickly cuddling up against the elezen, as Estinien sat up on the bed, going to play with Aymeric's hair. The miqo’te listened to his breath, eyes closed and keeping one arm over him, soft breaths escaping his lips as he could already feel sleep overtaking him. . . Maybe he was right- perhaps he was just tired. So he cuddled up, nuzzling against his chest, and huffed. He could hear Aymeric’s heartbeat- just barely hear the two of them whispering quietly to each other while his eyes slowly closed. . .
This was bliss.
He couldn’t ask for anything more than moments like this- quiet moments with his husbands. . .
. . .
And he could feel sleep slowly taking him into her quiet grasp. . .
The last thing he could note before he was asleep was shifting around- and feeling the warmth of both Estinien and Aymeric up against him. . . He’d been moved to be nestled between the two. . .
Simply nuzzling in further, the miqo’te began to purr, allowing sleep to finally take him in. . .