Chapter Text
Kronii winced as Fauna tightened the bandage around her arm. “Fauna, I’m fine, it’s just a scratch.”
“You bled all over my carpet.” Fauna says, ice in her words and eyebrows furrowed.
“... I’m sorry… I’ll clean it up-”
“No, you won’t.”
“... Fauna?”
“I’m not mad about the carpet, Kronii. I’m just… upset you got hurt again.”
Kronii bites her lip. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”
Fauna glares at her, dropping Kronii’s arm suddenly since she was finished. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”
The Warden hisses for a moment, not expecting her arm to suddenly drop as it hits her lap. She bites her tongue as Fauna’s hands end up on her chin, forcing her to be locked into the kirin’s gaze.
“Just… Promise me you’ll come to me when it happens again.”
Kronii’s breath hitches. “Yeah. I promise. I owe you.”
Kronii nervously laughs as Fauna applies a bandage to her stomach. “Be gentle.”
“Oh, don’t worry. I’ll take good care of you.” The kirin grins mischievously, not missing the chance to run her hands along Kronii’s muscles.
“This feels more like taking advantage.”
“Why should I waste the opportunity?” Fauna smiled as she delicately started massaging the muscles. “Besides, don’t you owe me?”
“Mmf. Keep that up and I think I’m just going to constantly be in debt to you.”
“That doesn’t sound too bad.”
Kronii laughed, trying to wave off the kirin. “Fauna! Get off me, I’m literally fine!”
“Nope! I told you that I’d help whenever you got hurt!” Fauna exclaims as she climbs on top of the warden, pinning her down onto the bed.
“I literally just bit my tongue while talking! What’re you even gonna do?” The Warden chuckles, accepting defeat as her wrists are held down, no longer wanting to fight off the Keeper.
“Hmm.” Fauna lowers herself. “Kiss it better?”
Kronii nervously smiles before shrugging. “Yeah, I guess I wouldn’t mind.”
Kronii awoke with a start, flinching as her eyes shoot open, scaring the keeper in the process.
Fauna looks down onto her lap where Kronii’s head lay, sitting up on the couch to brush her bangs out of her eyes. “Kronii?”
“F-Fauna.” Kronii gasps out, trying to get used to being awake again. She reaches up to grab Fauna’s hand, nesting her face into it.
“Nightmare?”
“Mhm.” Kronii hums into her palm. “I don’t think you can kiss this one better.” She jokes, trying to mask her stress.
“I can try.” Fauna plays along, leaning down.
Kronii closes her eyes as the kirin starts peppering her face with little pecks, all over her cheeks, her forehead, her nose, and the corners of her mouth which start to turn upwards in a small smile.
The stress begins to fade away from Kronii, the feelings of bad dreams being replaced with the sense of an ideal reality.
Kronii groans as she rubs the bridge of her nose. She pushes her chair away from her desk, not wanting to look at the paperwork anymore.
“What’s wrong?” Fauna calls from the couch that she is quick to leave, immediately making her way to the Warden’s side.
“Just… another headache. Sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry.” Fauna reassures, taking a seat on Kronii’s lap and looking down at the desk.
Naturally, Kronii’s arms worm themselves around her waist, her head using the kirin’s shoulder as a chinrest.
Fauna hums, an unsatisfied pout as she moves her hands up to hold Kronii’s hands, their fingers subconsciously playing with each other. “I don’t get it.” She says, referencing the paperwork.
Kronii scoffs. “You don’t need to. You tryna do my work or something?”
“No… I’m just curious about what's hurting your head.”
A little heartfelt chuckle comes from the Warden before she turns her head, craning her neck just a bit to kiss Fauna’s cheeks. “Don’t worry too much about the paperwork then.”
“Is it something else?” Fauna raises an eyebrow, slightly turning to look at the warden and cup her cheeks.
“Mm.” Kronii mumbles. “Just a bad feeling.”
Fauna gasps suddenly, hand grasping at her chest as her other one grabs onto the kitchen counter for support. It’s in vain as she ends up collapsing on the ground anyways.
“Kr-Kronii-” She tries to gasp out, and if she could feel anything but pain, it’d be relief as she hears fast footsteps, running to her side.
“Fauna!” Kronii yells, hooking her arms under the kirin to scoop her up. “H-Hold on, I’ll bring you to the couch!”
She grunts as she picks her up, although it’s almost effortless as adrenaline kicks in. Quickly, she makes her way to the living room, yelling up the stairs on her way there.
“Guys! Help, quick!” She screams with all the power in her lungs, then continuing on her main task, and lowering Fauna onto the couch carefully. “F-Fauna?!” Kronii panics, trying to pat the kirin’s cheeks to get an answer.
The Keeper only lays there, beads of sweat starting to fall as eyes are clenched close, eyebrows furrowed, and every tell of her body screaming that she was in pain.
She can hear footsteps run down the stairs, her friends quick to be at their side, full of questions.
“What’s going on?!” “What happened?!” “Fauna?!”
“I- I don’t-” Kronii chokes out, tears already forming at the edges of her eyes. “I don’t know! She just f-fell suddenly and- and-”
“Hold on, hold on.” Sana is first to cut in, leaning over the arm of the couch to put her hands on the side of Fauna’s skull, focusing energy on the kirin.
“Sana?” Kronii’s voice trembles, hands shaking as they wrap themselves around Fauna’s.
“It’s okay, Kronini, I’m just sending her to sleep so hopefully it won’t hurt as much.” Sana smiles, a drop of sweat falling down her face as she strains her energy.
Kronii’s voice cracks as she hums in confirmation, shifting nervously as she watches Fauna’s body relax, but it’s still reacting to a pain Kronii can barely watch take over her body.
“Wh-what’s happening though?” She sniffles, trying to look at her friends for answers.
Bae’s nose scrunches up as she focuses, trying to sense something. “Uh, there’s a lot of chaos in… in a forest!”
“It’s a wildfire!” Mumei realizes. “I can’t feel it that much since it’s not a heavily populated area, but I know that a few civilizations have been panicking about a big storm! Maybe lightning struck???”
“That would explain the smoke.” Sana adds, prompting Kronii’s head to snap back to the kirin, noticing the ends of her hair fading away into smoke. Suddenly, Fauna’s hands feel warm, slowly shifting to burning, but Kronii can’t bring herself to tear away. Unfortunately, she does when a shock comes through her hands, forcing her to recoil in a hiss.
“Shit!” Kronii’s eyes glance back to Bae’s, shaking with fear. “Where is it?!”
“I can take you there!”
Kronii flinches. “Just tell me where it is!”
She jolts once more when Bae grabs onto her hands. “Let me come with, please.”
Her will wavers.
“Fine. But you stay far back as soon as we get there.”