Work Text:
Emmrich was slowly loosing his mind.
When he had let himself be ushered into a vacation with the rest of his friends, he had eagerly agreed. Ready to leave behind his office and the cramped morning commutes. For months, he had been reverting back into his habit of working until the early hours of dawn, when the light begun to kiss his aching eyes without pause. The only thing breaking his routine was Manfred or the visits of his friends. Especially Rook had a habit of popping into his office unannounced, keeping him company for a few hours, until she left again. Whenever he took to long to get Manfred, she would be there to get him safely home.
After dear Harding had promised him a hike months ago, now had finally been the time to go and he found himself aching for the adventure.
Neve had offered so very kindly that she and Lucanis would look after Manfred, whose vacation time hadn't started yet. Both had patiently sat through the list of Manfred's preferred foods and after school activities and eased his anxiety somewhat. After slipping them the paper with the emergency contacts and the request to be written daily, he had left the boy with his favorite "aunty" and "uncle".
That had left Emmrich to pack one suitcase for himself. Harding had been insistent on it being just one and despite his inital lightheartedness, soon enough he had found himself struggling.
In anticipation of the cold, he had packed several blankets, hats, several pieces of his winter attire, three pairs of gloves and scarfs - the mountain range had shown temperature drops down to 10!- and seven of the books he had meant to read but never quite gotten to in the middle of the semester. Now, the only thing left to do had been to close the dreaded suitcase. After several attempts of shoving and pushing, he had quietly retrieved three books, one pair of gloves, one scarf and put those away. When the suitcase still did not budge, he huffed and put some of the extra clothes on his body. One never knew when those were needed in harsh weather! A relieved sigh left his throat when the clasps finally clicked shut.
After meeting up with everyone in front of Davrin's bus, they had been good to go. Despite the ache in his folded legs, the several hours of driving where enjoyable. Drifting in and out of the lively chatter that filled the space, he took the time to admire the truly maginificent view. The wide mountain range spread in front of them, rolling against the sky as if a giant had curled it's toes against the snowflakes that danced downwards from the sky. Nature, in it's frosty stillness, was as breathtaking as ever.
Especially, with Rook's dark hair in front of it. Especially, as she turned her head to smile at him, all sharp, stormy eyes and cocked eyebrows.
When their car stopped five hours later, he realized with a mixture of thrill and dread why only one suitcase had been allowed. The last miles were supposed to be their very first hike. Emmrich huffed to himself, as Davrin made yet another joke about his constitution. His morning jogs and general exercises had kept him healthy enough. Certainly, a small hike would do wonders for his stiff joints.
He managed to enjoy the feeling of the sharp, biting winter air, despite his curling toes.
He gritted his teeth through the last part of the way, even though his socks were wet and there was no distracting talk anymore.
He only almost cried out of relief, when the log houses came into sight and only felt slightly shocked, when Rook and him were assigned the smallest house for them alone.
He didn't complain when they made the room with the tacky embroidery and awful off-pink bedsheets their home, didn't sigh when the boiler only garanteed five minutes of hot water, didn't cringe at Rook's jokes at the two double beds or at the way his heart clenched when she brushed her hand against his. Of course, that night he did not spend by listening to her breathing on the other side of the room.
He did, however, get a sinking feeling once the next day had arrived. The snow had stacked more than both Davrin and Harding had claimed it would after a night of howling winds against the thin window.
The next two days had been filled to the brim with activities, despite his worry. After his budding frustration and despite the new temperature drop, this had been a welcome change. Most of all because of Rook's steady presence at his side.
She was there to talk with them on yet another hike up the mountains, keeping his mind off the grey sky above them and helped him go steady, when Bellara surprised them with skiing. After a while, he found his own footing and with a look to the flushed cheeks in Rook's face, he even forgot his worry about the falling snow.
That night, when they all sat in the larger hut and drank some of Taash's home made liquor, the radio stayed silent but Rook's laughter, as she won yet another round of wicked grace, was better than any music.
Maybe, they should have turned it on. Because the next day, Emmrich had woken up to a wave of toe curling cold and a closed door. After examining the situation with Rook and a few texts between the team and them, it seemd as if they were snowed in.
"They say to sit it out. Snow should stop falling in a few hours and they are in contact with aid, should it get too much," Rook had said with her fingers sprinting across the phone screen.
"Isnt…" Emmrich had answered with a raised brow. "This precadement too be cosidered 'too much'?"
Rook had only shrugged. "We can only wait and see. They say to block out the cold." Then a look Emmrich didn't manage to read, crossed her face.
"Is something wrong, Rook?"
She had turned and looked at him with a smile curling her lips. "Maybe we should start sleeping in one bed."
Despite his first shock, he had agreed. They had shoved spare towels and bedding inside any nook and cranny, pulled the curtains shut and heated up the oven. When Emmrich had been small, his parents had rubbed his hand and feet on cold days, until the dreaded cold left them. They were always cooler than the rest of his body but stung bitterly the more the temperatures dropped. After their death, he had found different ways to deal with it but it never was quite the same.
Suddenly, Emmrich was glad for the spare set of protective clothing he had packed and for the books that allowed him to take his mind of the worry building in his chest.
Rook on the other hand didn't seem to be afraid, despite the red tint on her cheeks and nose. No matter how much she laughed it off, she was cold and he could see.
Which was exactly why Rook must have been pressed to him so very tightly this morning.
The room was chilled, with the last embers of the fire glowing and a faint light coming in from the window, casting the room in a half-light. Emmrich did not need to see, to know why his heart was beating in his throat. Rook's long legs were tangled with his with her head pressed in the crook of his neck. As if they had a mind of his own, Emmrich's arms had sneaked around her shoulders in the night, burying his nose in the shock of her dark hair.
When he tried to open his arms and detangle himself as quickly as possible, she sighed and nuzzled even closer into him.
Cold panick filled his veins. Since the night, three months ago, back when Lucanis and Neve had held their housewarming and Rook had asked to sleep over at his place, he had seeked distance. He remembered the warmth of her breath mingling with his, the way both had leaned in, leaving them to almost kiss.
But only almost. He had ruined it, with his fear and his overthinking and shame had filled him; one that had settled deeply in the lining of his stomach, weighing him down, whenever longing had tried to pull him in. It had been his first attempt since many failed dates and even longer since Johanna. Whenever he had gazed at Rook after this… he had ignored the glances between them and filled the silence with idle, meaningless chatter. Hiding behind his polite attentiveness, he had shut the desire for her in a tight cage inside his chest, together with memories of his parents, his loneliness, his fear of death. But just like they tended to rise outside the metal bars, his feelings for Rook choked him whenever he saw her spending time with Manfred or playing cards with her friends.
It felt as if he had ruined his chance with her and did not intend to make her uncomfortable about his own foolish desire. Careful not to wake her, he moved his head away and looked at her face. She looked peaceful, the mischievious twinkle of daytime hidden behind the small curl of her lips.
There was a scar on her cheekbone, one that she rarely spoke about. Running from just above her ear down to her lip. Oh, how he wished to trace it, as if he could wash away the sorrow.
Emmrich was in the process of reaching out to touch it, just this once, when suddenly her eyes opened and he flinched away as if burned. He was a fool. A fool and a coward.
"Emmrich…?" she grumbled and blinked at him. "Why are you staring at me like this?"
Her words created a small cloud in front of her face and Emmrich realized with a drop of his stomach that it was not only him who was freezing. This was beginning to be dangerous.
"It's getting colder," he said, looking around the room. "We need to get warm immediatly or we risk hypothermia."
She furrowed her brow. "It's not that cold yet."
"Yet. Cold is a slow killer." He was glad that she was too distracted with being puzzled about his behaviour, to question how they had woken up. With a motion that was smoother than he had anticipated and yet less than he would have liked, he moved out of the bed and into the dreaded cold. Immediatly, his teeth where chattering and he was regretting leaving Rook's warmth behind.
He took in the room. The discarded bed at one side of the main room which doubled for sleeping and living, the other in which Rook laid, both blankets drawn up to her chin. She cocked an eyebrow at him but said nothing otherwise.
There was enough wood to get them through several days, with some next to the oven in the middle of the room and some in a small room just behind the kitchen area, which itself was separated from the main room by a thin, creaky door. Whoever had build this log had not thought about the environment it was build in too long. Maybe that was why the price had been too good to ignore.
He blew hot air into his cupped hands and ignored the way his heart clenched at the gesture of his mama, but moved on nonetheless. Opening his suitcase, he got the rest of his winter clothes out and gave them to Rook . "Here, you need to stay warm. It's crucial to our survival!"
Then, he turned his back to her, ignored the amused scoff, and tipped in some messages into his phone. At least the power was still on. It was important to get an update on Manfred - who had drawn him a lovely painting!- and ask the rest of their friends if help was on the way to get them out. He worried about them, too. But they had Davrin and Harding, who were experts at surviving cold weather. They would be alright.
Behind him, he could hear the rustling stop. Rook chuckled.
When he turned to look at her, she wore his favorite thick pullover, a second pair of wool socks and one of his spare hats. It was the warmest he possessed, with a thick inner lining and flaps that covered the ears.
"I look silly," she complained. The other pullover, his green one, and another pair of socks were thrown over her arm.
"You look warmer. Put on the other clothing, if you please." He tried to ignore the ache in his chest upon seeing how well his clothes fit her and quickly moved to some of the cupboards. Rumaging around, he picked through several boardgames and books that had been left uncared for until he found several candles.
"From which attic have you gotten this?" Rook asked behind him and Emmrich quickly stood up.
"I beg your pardon?" He stared into her eyes. This was certainly not the situation he had anticipated to meet while on this trip.
She took the candles from him and pressed the clothes into his hands.
"You heard me. You can make us some tea, while I light those," she winked and turned to set the candles. As he stood befuddled, she turned over her shoulder and smiled. "And Emmrich? Put on the clothes. Your nose looks like an icicle."
What else could he do, but as she said? Rook could be as stubborn as the mountain they had set their foot upon and was just as mysterious to him.
When he returned with two steaming cups from the kitchen, Rook had lit the candles and restoked the fire. On top of that, she had pulled two of the blankets from the bed and put them on the carpet in front of the fire, apparently planning to stay as close to it as possible.
"Harding wrote. She said to sit out one more night and if nothing changes by then, we will be picked up by an emergency contact."
He nodded. One more night would be managable. With a concerned look, Emmrich tried to figure out the reason behind the placement of the candles and quickly handed her the tea. With a raised brow, she took both from his hands and set them aside.
"You are cold," she said and grabbed his hands and rubbed them between hers.
"Nonsense, I…" he began and chocked on the tears that welled in his throat.
Blinking, he tried to fumble for words, to avert her attention from the fear and the sorrow in his chest.
"You?" she asked, eyes searching for something.
What was he supposed to say? I care for your wellbeing because I cannot shake the feelings I have caught over a year ago? I am older than you and have a child, please be a part of my family that I have yearned for since I lost it? I am crying because I want nothing more than to kiss your perfect lips until I feel worthy of your attention?
"I think," he began, straining."That we should get you warm."
For a moment, it seemed as if Rook new but she did not say anything. Nodding, she pulled him onto the carpet. Sitting against each other, Emmich noticed once again how close they were and how much his skin burned when they touched, how his chest tightened. With a quick motion, he grabbed the blanket and placed it over her legs. Then, he pulled out the other and was just about to pull it over her back and cocoon her in it, when Rook's warm hand stopped against his face stopped him.
"Emmrich," she whispered and he could not help but stare at her. Beautiful, strong Rook. "Let me take care of you, too."
It was as if being caught in a spell, mesmerized by her blue eyes that stared right into his soul and he found himself not able to move a single muscle in his body. While her right thumb caressed his cheek, Rook grabbed the blanket with her free hand and pulled it over their heads. Underneath the fabric, the outside world drowned out. Like snow that covered the world and left it peaceful.
A tension, similar to the one that had budded between them several times, seemed to pull them together and Emmrich felt her breath on his lips. She brushed her nose against his, igniting a fire despite the coolness of their skin and he felt his eyes slip close.
Their kiss was sweet at first, as lips explored the others tentatively and months of longing slowly faded into open desire. Emmrich's hands rose to cup her face and pulled her closer in, the need to be close to her making him forget propriety.
Rook clung to him, pulling him deeper and he slipped his tongue against her lips. Their kiss grew heated, as their tongues intertwined and it took the need for air to break away from each other.
Breathing heavily, Emmrich looked into her eyes. "How long…?"
"All the time." She kissed him once more. "You didn't want to see. But I am so glad for the weather."
A small scoff erupted from his throat. "Rook, this is still dangerous. We need to hold out another night before anyone can fetch us."
There was the gleam again. Her teeth flashed as she spoke: "Well, I heard it does wonders for hypothermia to get naked."
The next day and night was spend in front the fire, later on top of a makeshift bed. Holding hands, exchanging kisses and stories. At night, he pressed into her tightly, thanking the snow and the cold for the gift that it had brought him.