Work Text:
Seraph
I snuggled closer to Lilac, burying my face in his chest until everything felt warm and smelled like him. I chuffed happily, all my eyes slipping closed in pure delight. There was always a hint of warm, wet earth clinging to him and the floral, herbal scent of all the plants we kept in our love shack had seeped into his skin over the years they'd previously been in his room, or at least it seemed this way.
His soft, skilled fingers ran over the back of my head, over my ear, which he pinched lightly, affectionately. “Are you tired, Anata?,” he murmured, so quiet I barely heard him. His voice alone made my stomach tighten and fill with wonderful butterfly wings, tickling me in the best way possible. I shook my head, nose rubbing over his soft sweater. “N-no,” I rasped, tilting my head until I could blink up at him. “J-just cuddly. I m-missed you t-today.”
He had been gone for two days, scouting the area for Anchor together with Ghost and Wyn. I had offered to come with him but he had refused. I knew why, even if he didn't like to talk about it with me. Wyn had spotted military trucks approaching the old Nebraska base a few days ago and my Lilac hadn't wanted to risk them spotting me. It was one of the many ways he took care of me all the time. That's why I hadn't fought him on his decision to go without me, because he hadn't made it to leave me behind but to protect me. How could I be angry at him for that?
“I missed you too, Anata,” he whispered back. His chin tilted upwards and I had to grin, knowing exactly what he wanted. My tongue snuck out, dancing over his slightly parted lips before it dipped inside. I knew the way we kissed was unusual, and I also knew that Lilac didn't mind. Neither did I. I loved that I could watch how my Lilac's eyes closed whenever we did this, how his features went soft and relaxed, cheeks flushing sweetly. When my tongue wound lazily around his I could hear his breath hitch.
After what felt like forever and still no time at all I pulled back. My nose brushed against his and I purred, loving that we were close again after two days. His fingers brushed over my neck and I preened, leaning into his touch enthusiastically. “W-what does it m-mean?,” I asked, almost immediately getting distracted again by his skilled fingers finding every spot on my upper body that made me shiver. “What does what mean, Anata?,” he replied. I could hear that he was grinning, knew that he was proud and smug at knowing that he could make me react like this. “T-that,” I sighed. “W-what you c-call m-me.”
His hand stilled, making me growl a little in the back of my throat. I blinked my eyes open and looked at him, half curious and half disappointed. It seemed to be enough to make him move again, fingers caressing my shoulder slowly, rhythmically. “Oh. That,” he muttered. The corners of his lips were pulled up into a small smile, soft and barely there, but the look in his eyes was completely different. I studied him a little worriedly. His eyes were looking at something far away, a little sadly, darkly. “It's something I learned from my mother. It's in Japanese, you know? She used to call my father that,” he told me quietly. Then his gaze shifted towards me. The warmth seeped back into his eyes as he cupped my cheek. “I think it means something like darling but I'm not sure, it's been so long since I heard her say it.”
I closed my eyes as he pressed a kiss onto my chin, where he always did. “I l-like it,” I murmured. My fingers trailed over his waist, slipping underneath his sweater to dance over bare skin. He was so small that I could touch all of his torso if I just stretched my hands out completely. “I w-want to have s-something to call y-you too.”
That had been on my mind for a while. I knew that Wyn called Danny sweet, that Charlie often called Moth baby and that Gloam sometimes used love when he was talking to Rig. I had nothing to call Lilac, except for his name and while it was beautiful and one of the first things I had ever wanted to say, it didn't feel like enough. Many people called him Lilac. Only I called him Jesse but I wanted something that was just as special that I could say when others were around us.
He sighed, relaxing underneath my hands. “I'd like that,” Lilac admitted. “What did you have in mind?” I huffed, fingers briefly digging into his skin. “I d-don't k-know,” I admitted glumly. “S-something that f-fits y-you.” Which was harder than it should be. The only terms I knew I had heard from the other beasties and their partners and that wasn't special enough and I didn't know what else would be a good thing to call your lover. And I couldn't imagine calling Lilac baby anyway. He was strong and quiet, calling him baby just felt… wrong. And he was so much more than just sweet.
His touch on my skin pulled me out of my thoughts. I blinked at him, noticing his soft smile. “You're not in a hurry to find anything,” Lilac murmured. “It's okay if you don't know what you want to call me yet. I also had to think a while before choosing my raider name.” His expression turned sheepish. “There wasn't a lot about me I could've based it off.”
I growled in disagreement. There was a lot about him that was absolutely wonderful and that would've made a good raider name. “H-how did y-you choose?,” I asked before I nuzzled into his palm. “I picked the color of my mother's dress in my favorite memory of her,” he replied almost immediately, smile turning wistful. “And it's also one of my favorite flowers. Whenever it blooms I know it's spring again.”
I jerked away, eyes wide. “Lie-lack is a-a flower?,” I asked, voice cracking. I could feel the life seed thrum beneath my skin, faster now in my excitement. “Yes?,” Lilac replied, voice pinched. “Why?”
I pitched forward and pressed our faces together, smiling brightly. “M-my flower!,” I crooned. “M-my Lie-lack is m-my flower!” The words made my stomach churn with happiness and my limbs trembled with it. Beneath my hands Lilac went slack. “I like that,” he whispered as he pulled me closer.