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It had escalated way too quickly.
That morning, Vox Machina, after weeks of struggling, had finally been contracted by a terrified farmer, willing to pay a handful of gold to end the beast terrorizing the village and eating the cattle. Based on the description they had been given, it sounded like an animal fairly easy to take down. She had decided to go with Percy on the job. Get inside the forest, track the beast, kill it, and go back to the group to claim the easy money and go get wasted at the nearest pub. Fairly simple, right?
Despite the group's complaints, they had decided to go by themselves. They said it was to "bond" and "spend quality time", or something they had made up in the moment, but it was only because of that first Winter's Crest and that aim contest that had ended up in a tie between them. The event organizers didn't know who to give the win to. She had nailed every shot, and he had straight-up exploded his bullseye. Since then, they had been looking for that opportunity to prove who was the best. And so, there they were, separated in the forest following the beast each by their own.
They had both taken different approaches. Vex had immediately begun to try and track the beast, and Percy, letting that noble uprising shine, had let her do the job. Following her trying to make as little noise as possible, the second she found the beast and prepared her arrow, he was already shooting at it.
It hadn't stood a chance against both of them at their maximum. It dealt a couple of blows and caused a couple of wounds, mainly thanks to how focused they were on sabotaging each other. Barely ten minutes later, the beast, a young griffin, was killed, but the arrow and the bullet went through its head at the same time, leaving unclear who had taken the kill.
After a bit of arguing, they called it a draw. They began to head back, ready to claim that money, carrying a handful of the beast's feathers, some to prove the man who contracted them they had indeed fulfilled the job, some others Percy said he wanted to keep to tinker with some arrows. Something to give her as a "consolation prize". In between their snarky banter, they hadn't realized how the sky had darkened, signaling rain approaching. And they had been walking a little too close to the river.
And the griffin they had just killed was small for a reason, being just a baby. A baby that had a mother who really put up a fight, one who made them regret going by themselves. The beast eventually went down, leaving him without ammunition and her with multiple broken arrows, both of them bleeding. In the creature's last breath, they were thrown into the river, unable to dodge the final blow.
They're currently on the edge of the river, having managed to get themselves off it. Most of their wounds are now closed, courtesy of that healing spell Vex had learnt, but now, the main issue is that they are freezing their asses off.
She's shivering as she attempts and fails to start a fire. They've just gotten out of the water and are both trembling. The branches she's trying to use are equally as wet, so the fire doesn't start. She tries again, but nothing. Fuck.
Meanwhile, he's hanging their clothes from a low branch. He keeps his shirt on, insisting he won't take it off. Something about decency and his mysterious, dark past. He hasn't said that last part, but it's pretty obvious. Also, with the water, the shirt is see-through, and with those scars she can see, she can imagine why he doesn't want to show them. Those aren't battle scars.
Vex, not so bothered, only kept on her bra and pants. She has scars around her arms and torso, some of them not so healed from their recent fight, and some others already closed, but Pike's magic usually left a mark.
She tries to spark the fire, but nothing happens. Everything is too wet, and time is running out. They have nothing to cover themselves with, nothing to make fire with, nothing to eat, and nothing to keep themselves warm with.
"S-so, how's it going?" Percy's voice pops from behind here, staring at the pile of branches. His teeth are chattering. He's almost worse than she is, with the soaked shit clinging to his body. He still refuses to look at her to the point where it's annoying, with his stupid noble education and prissy fashion that forbade him from looking at her, as he repeats how "it's improper to look at a lady when she's undisposed." Which, yeah, sure, but they had just saved themselves from drowning on a river, and also, they were teammates, with a strictly professional relationship, that shouldn't apply now.
"Eh, this isn't working. We'll have to go deeper into the forest. Everything is wet now, and with this sky…It'll probably rain soon," she says, standing up, grasping the amulet. "Trinket!" she calls, allowing the bear to appear from the necklace. He immediately goes to nuzzle against Vex. "Hey there, darling. You're going to help us."
Percy raised an eyebrow, going near Trinket. It's currently the only source of warmth and the only dry thing near, as his coat is still dripping. A shiver runs down his spine, and gods, he realizes how much he misses the fur on the inside of the coat, the one that kept him warm at all times. But now with the water from the river, the cold of the night, and the chill from the beginning of winter, it'll be hard to survive the night.
"He'll carry us, go get the clothes," she said, hitting the branches in frustration and scattering them, just as the beginnings of a thunderstorm could be heard in the distance.
"Wait, what?"
"We'll need to find cover, and we won't find it here. Do you want to sleep in the rain? She asks, already standing and getting on top of the bear. He nods quietly, going to the branch where everything, along with their shoes and socks, is set. "And walking barefoot around the forest isn't ideal either."
"Not ideal," he says, as he picks everything. In that moment, he steps on something sharp, probably a splinter, and hisses in pain. "I'm really not in the mood for that either." He gets close to her and hands her her clothing, before hesitating. "I, how do I…"
"Get on him?" she questions, smirking at the way he freezes in place. "Have you ever ridden a horse? It's fairly easy."
"I know how to ride a horse, Vex'ahlia, you've seen me do so," he sighs, rolling his eyes. However, there's a light blush showing in his cheeks. "However, due to our current circumstances…state, if you can…help me?"
He's ridden Trinket before, but now it feels like overstepping a boundary. They've done it thousands of times before, but never with her being almost naked and him wearing a soaked shirt that leaves little to the imagination, clinging to his frame.
"Oh, please, get up here," she extends her hand and yanks him to pull him up. Once he's on the bear's back, he sets the clothing on his lap, sitting stiff and clearly uncomfortable, sitting on the edge of the bear.
"Can you stop that?" She says, after he almost falls off the animal for the third time in ten minutes. "Get closer to me."
"I, uh—Are you sure?" He asks, with a tiny voice, grabbing tighter his clothes that are about to fall, too.
"Yes, Percival, it's okay. Have you ever seen a woman naked? Quit making a spectacle out of this."
He opens his mouth to retort, but only a tiny noise comes out, as he, face red, gets closer to her.
It takes them a good hour to find a place to rest. The moon is their only light source as Trinket finds them a place to stop for the night. It's a cave, kept dry from the rain, where they can rest. Once they get inside and make sure it's safe, she manages to ignite a fire, while Percy sets the clothes on some rock near the flames and goes to join her. They don't have anything to eat, but both of them have gone longer without food, and at least here, they won't freeze to death.
There's one key problem, though: they're still awfully cold. Even though the fire and Trinket's fur, where Percy is currently glued to, she's still in her underwear, and he refuses to take off his shirt, which will still need a while to fully dry.
And there was only one solution to that, one that she had to admit didn't sound half bad.
She sits next to him. He's still trembling, wrapping his hands around his body. Once she gets closer, he tenses. He doesn't move away, though. So she presses close, and their shoulders touch. It's…unpleasant. Not because it's him, but because that damn wet shirt makes her shiver.
"Are you really not going to take that off?"
"I-I'd rather not—"
"You know, it'll be harder for you to get warm if you don't take off your clothes. You'll freeze, actually. " She's now taken out her pants too, leaving her in her underwear. It would normally mean something to be almost naked in front of Percy, but in this case, the survival instinct drowns the awkwardness. If he doesn't want to collaborate, then he'll have to deal with the consequences.
Trinket seems to understand, nuzzling closer and enveloping them both. Percy straightens, looking at the bear currently licking his face. "I, uh, Vex!" He yelps as she leans against his shoulder.
"Body warmth, darling. Get intimate."
"Shouldn't one of us keep watch?" He tries, looking around.
"Trinket's here," she answers, without thinking twice. She knows someone should probably keep watch, and that doing so would spare them the awkwardness of cuddling sleeping together, but it's also the chance to do exactly that, sleep with Percy. Who could blame her?
He sighs in defeat, setting his glasses aside. "I guess you're right," he admits. In his mind, he hates himself for not disliking this as much as he should. After all, it's Vex'ahlia Vessar they're talking about. He would be a fool to decline such an offer. "Goodnight, I assume."
"Sure," she murmurs, slowly leaning against him. It's awkward for the first few minutes, but after warmth begins to envelop them both, that awkwardness disappears, and almost unconsciously, he wraps his arms around her, and she nuzzles closer. Trinket, ever the best boy, makes sure they spend the night safe and warm.
The next morning, they wake up tangled with each other. They mutter apologies, they rush to put their clothes on, and they rush to keep moving and retreat to the group, who are probably worried sick. However, despite neither of them admitting it, it's the best they've ever slept in years.
(Minus the attack, almost dying, almost drowning, almost bleeding out, and almost freezing to death, repeating the experience wouldn't be that bad.)