Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

     Lee found himself running through the woods, the branches hitting him as he passed by them. He had no way of pushing them to the side as his right arm was holding the left one as it was injured. There was a lot of blood, even with a piece of fabric as a makeshift bandage he still left a red trail on the white snow. 

“Told ya this was a bad idea,” Hester told him jumping out of the way of a branch.

“Not helping rabbit!” Lee retorted.

     He stopped for a second to grab some air and adjust the bandage even tighter. He was starting to feel light-headed which was never a good sign, especially when people were chasing him.

“Look over there” Hester pointed her muzzle to a small path to their right.

     The hare didn’t wait to hear Lee’s opinion and ran in that direction.

“Damn it.” The man said under his breath and followed his daemon. 

“Why are we here?” Lee asked when he finally caught up.

“There was a glare.” She simply answered. 

“A glare. You made us come all the way here for a glare?!”

“Yes.” She turned around. “There it is.” She looked up.

“I don’t see anything,” Lee said almost out of patience.

“It’s there. Move around and you’ll see it.” The aeronaut did as he was told and he saw it, it was almost as if a piece of glass was placed floating there.

“I see it, now how’s that helping us?”

     Hester walked towards it and to Lee’s surprise, she disappeared. He would have had a full-blown panic attack if not for the fact his daemon came back a second later.

“There’s something on the other side of this.” She told him as if she hadn’t just vanished. “C’mon.”

     Lee wasn’t sure that going through a mysterious opening in the woods was the best idea but he could hear his name being yelled closed by.

“You’re right, let’s go!” Lee motioned for Hester to go first.

“Such a gentleman.”

“Always.”

     When they came on the other side of it they were still in a forest, but a different one. This one didn’t have any snow. They spotted a large tree and walked up to it, intending to use it as cover if they needed to. Lee sat down his back resting against the tree.

“We need help,” Hester told him.

“Maybe ask that bird over there,” Lee said but the usual playfulness of their banter wasn’t there. Hester explored the woods as far as their bond allowed her to. She came back to an even paler and weaker Lee.

“There’s a house close by, we might be able to get help there.”

“Or they might turn us in.”

“At least we won’t die.” Hester approached him. Lee noticed how she avoided placing her front left paw on the floor and he knew she was feeling his pain. He’d never make Hester suffer if he could help it so he slowly stood up.

“Lead the way.”

     The paper on top of the table was still blank, no matter how many times you picked up the pen you couldn’t put words down. Maybe renting this cabin in the middle of nowhere wasn’t the answer to writer’s block after all. 

Nothing interesting ever happens to me, I need more adventure in my life. You thought.

     A knock on the door interrupted your thoughts. Fear bloomed inside your heart. You were lying, you didn’t need more adventure, you especially didn’t need to be murdered in the middle of a forest. There was another knock, stronger this time, your heart was going a thousand miles per minute.

     You looked around for an object to defend yourself with. The only thing you could find was the iron you used to move the firewood in the fireplace. With that in your hands, you approached the door.

“Who is it?” You asked, trying to keep your voice from shaking.

“Sorry to disturb you, my daemon and I are in need of some assistance. If you could help us we’d be very grateful.” A male voice came through the door.

What? He and his demon?! You were definitely about to die.

“Just leave before I call the cops.” That phrase never worked in movies but you hoped it would now.

“We mean no harm.” A female voice said.

So there were at least two people. Great.

“I can’t help you, go away.” You took your phone out of your pocket but to your dismay, there was no signal.

“Maybe we should leave.” You heard him say quieter this time, you assumed they were talking amongst themselves.

Yes please go.

“Where? You won’t make it 10 more steps in the shape you’re at right now. And neither will I.” 

“Then I guess we’ll die here on the porch.”

     You didn’t want a dead man on your conscience, or on your porch for that matter. You went to the window to see them. You spotted a man leaning against the wall, his arm covered in a red cloth. 

“Where’s the woman?” You asked him.

     He turned his head towards your voice. Even though there were curtains that obscured you from the outside view, you could still feel his gaze on you.

“What woman?” He asked in return.

“Don’t try to play dumb, I heard a woman’s voice.”

“That’s just my daemon miss.”

     Not the demon stuff again.

“I don’t believe in demons, no use in trying to scare me.” He seemed confused by your statement.

“See, this here is Hester.” He pointed to the floor where you saw a rabbit. “She’s my daemon.” The animal was looking at you.

“We really need your help.” There was the female voice again, if you didn’t know better you could have sworn it came from the rabbit.

“I don’t know what trick you’re using with that rabbit but it’s not funny.” You told him.

“I’m a hare.” The animal replied sounding offended.

“We know it might come off as a shock to see a daemon talking this much. We understand this might not be seen as a common behavior in some places. Sorry if that’s upsetting you. Now could you please give me some bandages, and a thread and needle? I might lose conscience if I wait any longer.” You noticed something red had started dripping from the cloth.

     Still holding the iron, you opened the door just enough to get a good look at the man and the hare. The man reached for something with his good arm and your breath got caught in your throat. He immediately noticed and moved slower. He took out a gun.

Oh god, this is how it ends.

     You watched as he dismantled the gun and threw the bullets on the floor before handing it to you.

“Here, we’re no threat to you.” He told you.

     You took the pistol, it felt cold and heavy in your hand. So maybe, just maybe you weren’t getting murdered tonight. You opened the door for them to come through. He took a couple of steps and collapsed against the wall.

“Lee!” The hare said.

     You put down both weapons and rushed to help him. He half-walked half-got dragged by you to the living room falling on one of the couches. You went to look for the first aid kit and thought about how you were going to have to pay extra for the Airbnb due to the red stain on the couch. 

“Okay, tell me what to do.” You said kneeling in front of the couch.

     He briefly explained how to sew a wound. “It’s just like sewing clothes,” He said after the explanation but by the look of the hare you knew that wasn’t true. You pressed the needle to the skin, not knowing how hard you were supposed to push it in.

“Hey, you’re doing great.” There was an attempt of a smile on his face, but it looked more like a grimace. “Don’t stop until it’s done.”

     You pressed the needle in and brought it out on the other side. The man had his eyes closed and his jaw was tense but he didn’t make any sound, so you took that as a sign to continue. You repeated the process a couple more times until the wound was closed. 

“There.” The man briefly opened his eyes to examine your work.

     You grabbed a couple of clean towels from the nearby closet and cleaned off the blood as gently as you could, before applying the bandages.

“Thank you, miss...” He stared at you and you told him your name.

“And you are?”

“Lee Scoresby, the best aeronaut there is, and this here is Hester.” He said pointing to the hare. “I would offer you a balloon ride as a thank you but I’m afraid my vessel is not with me. Is there anything I can do to repay you?”

“You can tell me what’s your trick for making the hare talk, did you train her? Use some kind of device? Is it like the dog collars in Up?” 

“Miss I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He looked at you confused, and then with surprise. “Where’s your daemon? Are you a witch?”

“No, and I don’t have one I think.” You answered resisting the urge to run out of there, he sure said the weirdest things.

“That’s-” The hare seemed as uneasy as he. “Why don’t you have one?”

“If you explain to me what a daemon is I might be able to tell you.” 

Was this man having a mental breakdown in your living room?

“A daemon is a part of you. Hester is my daemon. Everyone has one.” He explained looking tenser by the second.

“I used to have a cat as a pet when I was little. His name was Chester.”

“We should go.” He made an attempt to stand up but collapsed on the couch immediately.

“You’re going to open up your stitches, why don’t you take a deep breath? I’ll get you a glass of water.” You said as calmly as possible.

     You went to the kitchen. You had to call someone to come help you but first, you had to get him to calm down. 

     Lee and Hester were confused and nervous. People without daemons never meant good news. It meant they had been separated from them, they were people without a soul.

“Maybe that thing in the forest took us somewhere else,” Hester whispered. “Remember mom used to tell us stories about other lands?”

“Those were just children’s stories.” 

“What if they weren’t just that?”

     You returned with the glass of water and handed it to him, interrupting their conversation. He took it and thanked you for it but didn’t drink it.

“How did you get here anyway? Did you take the boat, that’s the only way to this island.” You asked deeming that a safe conversation topic.

“We came from the forest-”

“The forest?”

“We can show you.” Hester offered.

     You would normally say no to an offer like that. It sounded like the last words someone who was about to be murdered in the woods would hear. But he was weak, you could easily fight him if you needed to. This might give you a clue about where he had come from. And you had asked for an adventure after all.

     Slowly, Lee led you to the forest, Hester right by his side. You walked to a part of the forest you hadn’t explored.

“There it is.” Did Lee point to a tree? You didn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

     Hester hopped in that direction and disappeared in front of your eyes.

“What just happened?” You took a step back.

“Some sort of portal between lands apparently.” Hester came back, she looked okay.

     You stepped closer to the portal and stretched your hand in front of you and it disappeared. You screamed and quickly pulled it back, thankfully your hand was still there. With a deep breath, you stepped through it. It was a completely different place on the other side, it was snowing and everything.

“See? We came from the forest.” You jumped noticing Lee next to you and fell on your back.

“Didn’t mean to scare you.” He told you offering you his good hand to help you stand.

“If I take that you will fall to the floor with me.” Pushing his hand away you stood up on your own.

“Thank you for all the help.” He tipped his hat and started walking away.

     You ran after him.

“Where are you going?”

“To get my balloon.”

“Is it close?”

“A couple of hours from here.” 

“No way you’re walking that much. I didn’t save you and had my world put upside down just so you could go pass out in the middle of the woods. You’re staying with me for a bit.”

     You were just as surprised as Lee upon hearing your words. You had decided to trust him, he had told you the truth about everything so far. There was some shouting in the distance, someone calling Lee’s name.

“You’re right, we should go.” He said turning around.

     Once in the cabin, Lee lay down on the not-stained couch while you heated some water and turned on the fireplace.

“This a nice house you have here.” He mentioned.

“Oh, it’s not mine, I’m just on vacation.”

“So this is a hotel? I haven’t seen other people around if that’s the case.”

“No, this is an Airbnb, you pay to stay in other people’s houses.”

“And why did you decide to come here? Is it a popular destination?”

“I’m writing a book. Do you prefer tea or coffee?” You quickly changed the conversation topic. You didn’t want to have the man asking about how the writing was going.

“Coffee, thanks.”

“And Hester? Would you like something?” You didn’t know whether to ask the hare or Lee, so you alternated looking between the two. “I think there’s some lettuce in the fridge.”

“No, thank you, daemons don’t eat.”

“Okay.”

     When you came back with the food, Lee was already sleeping. You left his coffee and some cookies on the table next to him and grabbed a blanket. As careful as you could you covered him with it.

“Thank you,” Hester said, you jumped back a bit as you thought she was sleeping. “For saving us.”

“It’s okay. I was happy to help once I figured you weren’t going to kill me. Goodnight.”

     The next morning the smell of something burning woke you up. You rushed downstairs to find Lee cooking breakfast.

“Mornin’,” He said with a smile, you couldn’t help but notice how good he looked now. He wasn’t as pale as yesterday, and his morning hair made him look so cute. 

“Good morning.” You said after a couple of seconds hoping he didn’t notice the way you were blushing. “You didn’t have to cook, your arm must be killing you.”

“Cooking is giving him too much credit. He almost burned the house down.” Hester remarked.

“But I didn’t. And don’t worry I’ve had worse, the arm will be fine in a couple of days.”

“Still, just sit down. I’ll make us something.”

     You ended up making some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

“So you said you’re an aeronaut?” You asked while eating.

“Yes, the best in my world, ain’t that right Hester?” You didn’t know that hares could roll their eyes but apparently, it was a thing since Hester did it.

“That sounds really interesting.” You replied.

“It can be, but it’s also boring sometimes, being in the sky with nothing to do for days.” He reached for a second sandwich. “Tell me more about you. You said you’re an author, I’m sure you must have lived your fair share of adventures if you want to document them.”

“I- Not really, not.”

“Then what do you write about?”

“Things from my imagination mostly, but lately I’ve been in need of inspiration, that’s why I came here.”

“And did you find it?”

“I think I did.” You looked into his eyes and gave him a smile, which he was quick to return.

“You know, I’d be happy to take you on my balloon if you wanted, you can experience first hand what’s like to be up there.”

“I-I don’t know.”

“C’mon, I’ll bring back here safe and sound. How long were you planning on staying on this island?”

“10 more days.”

“That’s enough time to deliver the cargo and come back. No one will notice you’re gone.” He noticed you weren’t convinced. “Are you really going to say no to an adventure?”

     You took a second to think about it. This was not an opportunity you should let pass.

“Sounds like a plan.” You finally said.

     Later that day you were standing next to the portal. Lee offered you his hand.

“Ready?” 

“Yes.” You took his hand and stepped through the portal, adventure called.

Chapter Text

     Lee had not been lying when he said his balloon was a couple of hours away. It had been four hours of walking so far and you were freezing and tired, your feet feeling heavier with every step.

“How much longer?” You asked him.

“We’re almost there.” He replied.

“If by almost you mean half an hour more of walking then yes, we’re almost there,” Hester added.

“It’s only like 20 minutes,” Lee said.

     Great 20 more minutes .

      A bird flew right by you, stopping on a nearby branch. You stopped to watch it, not noticing Lee had kept walking without you. When you turned and he wasn’t there you rushed to catch up with him. You noticed the steps turned left and you went after them so fast you almost bumped into Lee who was standing there with a big smile on his face.

“Here she is.” He said under his breath. “Y/n meet my balloon. She might not look like much right now but wait till you see her in the air.”

     It was smaller than you had thought it would be, but then again you had never seen a hot air balloon in real life before. Lee rushed inside and started moving things around. You walked up to the balloon and leaned on its frame watching as he turned on the fire in the middle. He seemed so happy and at peace, you could feel he belonged here. He knelt next to a box, Hester hopping to his side.

“They better be there Lee, we can’t lose them.”

“I know, I know,” he said and lifted the lid. “They’re still here.”

“What is?” You asked curiously walking towards them.

“The cargo we have to deliver tonight.” He took something out and handed it to you, it was a scroll. “Go ahead, look inside.”

You opened it to find the most beautiful map you had ever seen, it was full of colors and details.

“Beautiful, right?”

“Yes.”

“And there are more, they show the whole world. Not as impressive as seeing it with your own eyes but it sure is something.” That cheeky smile appeared again. “Let’s get this girl up in the air.”

     As the balloon went up an uncomfortable feeling took hold of your stomach, the ground became smaller, and fear started to set in. You had forgotten to mention your fear of heights. You held onto the railing as hard as you could, making your knuckles white, and closed your eyes. You felt a hand on top of yours.

“You can open your eyes if you want. I promise you’re safe.” Lee’s voice managed to make its way through the fear that had taken hold of your brain.

     You opened your eyes to see the landscape in front of you, the clear sky full of clouds took your breath away. It was truly beautiful.

“Like the view?” He asked.

You looked at him, he was leaning against the railing, his hand still on yours. 

“I do.” You smiled at him.

“I am enjoying it too.” He said, his eyes never leaving yours.

     You felt the heat on your cheeks and quickly moved your hand away with the excuse of seeing the maps again.

     One of the things that surprised you from flying was how cold it got up there after the sunset. You hugged your jacket closer to your body wishing you had brought something warmer. The thin piece of clothing did little to stop your whole being from freezing. You did your best to hide the shivers but apparently, it wasn’t enough as Lee approached you with his coat. Standing in front of you he wrapped it around your shoulders. He was so close you could notice the steam coming from his breathing.

“You’re going to freeze.” You tried to argue.

“Nah, Hester and I can take the cold. Not our first rodeo.”

“If you say so.” 

      He was slowly leaning in and closing the distance between you, making your stomach flutter with anticipation.

“We’re here!” Hester said interrupting whatever was about to happen.

     Lee looked at you one last time before heading to the control panel to land the balloon.

     The landing wasn’t as smooth as you would have wanted, given it had included you yelping and Lee laughing at you and teasing you until you reached the town. It was a rather small place and you stopped often to look around. You finally got to the library, the place where Lee had to deliver the maps. 

“I'll be right back. Just don’t wander too far and don’t tell people you don’t have a daemon.” He whispered into your ear, his beard tickling you. 

     You leaned against the wall and observed the few people that were still out at night, you were surprised to see the variety of daemons that existed. You were thinking about what your daemon would be when Lee came out of the shop.

“All done. Wanna go eat something?” He shook a small bag making the coins clatter against each other. “My treat.”

     During dinner, you could tell there was something on Lee’s mind as he was picking apart the bacon but not really eating it. 

“A penny for your thoughts?” You asked him.

“Huh?”

“She wants to know what’s on your mind, Lee.” Hester, who was more jumpy than usual, said before you could.

“I got information about an old friend who’s in trouble.” He told you.

“And you want to help him.” You guessed.

“Yes.” He looked into your eyes.

“But…”

“But he’s up North.” he finished.

“And?”

“And I have to take you home so that has to wait.”

“You know… maybe I could stay a couple more days. To get more inspiration for the book.”

     His eyes immediately lighted up.

“Really?”

“Yes really.”

     When he gave you the biggest smile you knew this wasn’t an adventure you would regret.