Work Text:
It was night, and after a boisterous night of home-cooking and banter, each inhabitant of the atelier had resigned to their workspace or room.
The sound of paper and pen scratching and scribbling resounded in Coco and Agott's. When such sounds dim, a bright white light occasionally envelops the room starting from Agott's side: contrasting that of the night sky and the warm glow of the desk lamps. A groan, and new scratches emerge.
Coco couldn't bear her curiosity, stretching her limbs and splaying her hands out. After lifting herself up, she held them together behind her back to stroll over to the other girl's workspace.
Knowing how distraction affects Agott, she halted her steps, attempting to peek over Agott's shoulder before relaxing and letting out gently, "Agott?" The hum in response led her to continue, "Could I sit with you?"
"Go ahead," Agott spoke. "Is something the matter?"
Coco shook her head as she sat, a hint of confusion showing on Agott's face at the gesture. Coco's head then tilted slightly, and an adorable (Agott will admit) smile spread. "Your spell was a little distracting," Coco shared, quickly realising her words, and Agott's frown, before hastily adding, "But in a good way! Not a bad one! Your spells can never be bad!" Agott followed Coco's hands as they gestured in bizarre shapes, finding her form of expression so very endearing.
The gestures suddenly stopped, Coco's eyes landing on Agott's reddened ears. She traced the hue to her cheek, pausing for a moment and looking at Agott's eyes, unbearably soft. Coco held onto this view, the room quieting.
Agott shifted, having realised the state they were in, and cleared her throat. She internally berated herself for her seemingly obvious affection for the other girl. "Ah, thank you, Coco. I..." She threw away her next words, an excuse and instead landed on, "What were you going to say?"
Coco's expression evolved from that of a puzzled one, to revelation. "Right! I rambled there, didn't I? Can I watch you work? Maybe see what spell you're working on? If it was one. Maybe it was multiple. You can show me multiple!" Each addition synchronising with her fingers, twiddling over and over... "Your spells that night were so beautiful, Agott. I can't help it, especially after seeing that same light again. Please?"
She almost looked like a puppy with those sparkling, almost yearning, eyes. Agott, brows slightly furrowed, leaned back, supporting herself with a hand. This was futile, she could hear the slight movement of Coco chasing to maintain the distance. No escape. Agott's cheeks flushed at the proximity.
"Okay..." she let out with a sigh. "Give me some distance, will you? I will need to focus, and you may have noticed but each attempt has not lasted very long." At that, Coco giggled and shuffled back.
“Are you working with decorative keystones again?” Coco asked curiously.
“That is correct, I discovered a new book containing keystones even I had not known. Such books are a rarity, I'm astounded I came across one so unique.” She looked up at the ceiling, as if imagining creatures dancing around. “The book covers the keystones for a great deal of insects, like the pegasus ant: one of the incredible ant species that discovered flight among even the ordinary, no longer limited by queens and alate males.” (A-late? What does that mean? Coco thought to herself).
Agott's passion and joy were always contagious, and Coco couldn't help but smile at every small expression on her face, at the small facts she shared, at her hands deftly picking up her pen and drawing each decorative keystone to present to Coco. She especially loved when Agott leaned forward with heightened focus, her hair falling down and light squeezing through the gaps of her curls. When they shared glances, Coco could combust on the spot.
Despite being distracted, her peripheral vision caught small bubbles of light, and she turned her head to the source.
It was a sight that one could only call breathtaking. Pegasus ants flying around Coco and Agott, griffins doing death spirals, owlcats (in their adorable round form) bouncing around, and Agott looking up with pride.
It felt much too short, that once it had ended, the two spent more time together: talking about everything and anything. What started Agott's love for animals, what her favourite book was, what animals Coco loves, among countless other topics.
Before heading to bed, Agott retrieved that very favourite book and handed it to Coco, their fingers brushing for a moment. “Give it a read one day. I'm sure you'll find something from it.” Face tinted pink, and hand rubbing the back of her neck, she added quietly, “and thank you, Coco.”
The next night followed in a very similar fashion, with the exception of the light. Coco, at her workstation, turned around, glancing at Agott who hunched over on her elbow-supported hand. Her dominant hand rose, pen included, and ruffled the back of her head. Coco was especially entranced by those very hands, the ones that had held her own even when stained with ink. The ones that have supported her, and led her. The ones that fit so perfectly in Coco's own… Just the thought alone got the girl hiding behind her hands, letting out a deep breath she didn't realise she was holding.
“What are you doing?” a voice threw out to her.
Upon being caught, Coco chirped, “I was just… Thinking!”
“To sigh so heavily, what of? Although I may be pressing you, you don't have to ans-”
“-ou,” she heard a mutter.
“Pardon?”
“You! I was thinking of you!”
“I didn't realise I had such a negative effect on you,” Agott remarked, taken aback at the sudden volume difference.
At that, Coco stood up, hastily marching over to Agott before looking down at her, eyes determined.
“Coco. If you wish to talk, sit down, will you? I'd much rather not look up right now, my neck and eyes are much too tired for this.”
“Right! Right.”
“So?” Agott questioned, curious at the odd display before her.
Coco had to think of an excuse first, she rushed right into this, and what for? To ask to hold Agott's hands, she can't just do that. She racked her brain for a plan before landing on a thought, one accompanied by a memory.
“When I was younger, first learning to mark and cut fabric, my hands would cramp very fast. I grip hard, you know!” Her dominant hand gripped her other like a pen, or rock, similarly to what she did with Tartah. “Anyway! My mum used to always massage them, I guess. It was a little painful, but she always mentioned that she didn't want my wrist getting like hers, sore even outside of tailoring. And- Oh where am I going with this…” she whined adorably.
“You wish to do so to my hands? I am well aware of the effects of prolonged hand use, and do stretches before I draw, so they do not necessarily need any attention.” Coco's eyes looked down at the rejection, Agott's heart sinking. “But,” she continued, “I suppose I could let you. I'm quite curious.” Partly a lie, she wasn't too keen on the idea, but Coco's eyes, now beaming, are much too convincing.
“I'll start right away! And um. It might hurt. A little. It has been a while.” She took Agott's dominant hand, resting it in her own palm up.
It began with a hard press of her thumbs to Agott's wrist, pushing down the forearm. Agott winced. “Coco, if I knew it was going to be this painful, I wouldn't have let you do this.”
Coco stopped, instead kneading Agott's hands and fingers between her own. “Sorry! Mom always said that the pain was a sign of it working.” She let out a small laugh at the memory. “I don't know how true that was though, the first time she did it to me I was crying from the pain. Though, the feeling after was always so amazing. I'll avoid that part for you then.” Her eyes moved up from Agott's hand to her eyes, as they watched the movements closely.
After a couple minutes, Coco slowed down, gently asking, “Could you spread your fingers out for me?”
Agott did so, not questioning Coco. Until of course, she felt the other girl's own fingers entwining with hers. “C- Coco?!” She stammered, her face heating up an embarrassing amount, eyes darting between their hands and Coco's eyes. Her arms fumbled around, trying to set her hands loose or hide her deep blush, but Coco's grip was much too strong. “Coco, s-stop this teasing! This isn't part of the agreement, I know that much!”
Coco's face appeared both pleased and timid, as if enjoying Agott's suffering. Agott decided right there to let it be, relaxing her fingers and halting her escape attempt. She let in the air she so desperately needed.
“Is this what you were aiming for, the whole time?” Agott sighed, thumb smoothing the other girl's hand. Coco's hands were both soft and calloused. Her unique grip on her pen gave her much more prevalent ones than Agott's own. She quite enjoyed the sensation, though would much rather not admit that fact.
“Maybe! Hehe, Agaffection.”
“I wasn't the one starting this, it's much more of a Cocoffection… Though your name has much less pun potential”
“Puntential!” Agott groaned, knowing it would come the moment she finished her sentence. Coco is much too predictable in these cases.
“But, there's truth to it! You're no longer trying to escape! Agotta say, if that's not Agaffection, I'm not sure what is!”
“I've given up on doing so.”
How long did they stay in that position, fingers entangled? More than enough for Coco's Agott-ium to be satisfied for days on end.
The book Coco received contained a multitude of animal signs, many of such being elementary rather than niche. Each page turn, each sign, each drawing was another world for Coco. The book combined magic with information on the animals, with such care it could be considered an encyclopedia. The village had countless animals bred from magic. However, other than knowledge of what fabric some of them are used for or very simple stories of how they came to be, Coco had never felt so connected to them. She understands why Agott must have fallen in love with this book.
She flipped the page, and a new chapter began, hosting tens of bird keystones. Coco was reminded of the river, Custas, and all of the connected events that happened so recently. She did not wish to dwell on the pain, and Qifrey had engraved the need for rest into Coco, to her dismay. So instead, she chose to associate each bird to Agott.
It was a rainy day, giving Coco all the more reason to spend her time reading. Embarrassingly enough, she might have also written a couple little notes, slipping them into certain pages. One could compare them to love letters, though Coco too bashful to admit. Her original plan was to use them as a means to chase after getting a reaction from Agott, after that night together she wanted to see more of her fluster. Seeing the once prickly girl show that side of her, and relax more into it over time felt like an achievement. And adorable! How could she not want more? But even with such factors in play, each note felt all the more freeing, allowing quick and easy expression. And that small fact was just as motivating to continue.
One such note was as follows:
These birds are so similar to the ones you created back on the Silver Eve platform! I'm still so grateful to you, Agott. Thank you :)
To think there's such a story between the fish and the bird: different worlds colliding and the story of how they came together. That spectacle, some part inside me hopes you were thinking of us.
It wasn't long before Coco finished the last page, closing the book and taking a step out of her room.
Agott laid comfortably on a makeshift nest of pillows in the shared workspace. In her lap curled Brushbuddy (she will admit, she has become fond of these small moments). When not reading, her eyes closed as if in thought. She didn't notice the other girl practically sneaking over to her. That is, until she felt the pillows move, and a body forcefully pressing against her shoulder. Though, it was more-so a shock than ‘noticing”.
“Wh-, Coco!” The book in her hand landing on brushbuddy with a thud. “Ah!”
Brushbuddy woke with a loud “PWEE”, fur bristling as it quickly glanced between Agott's shocked expression and Coco's guilty one. It was clear what Brushbuddy was thinking, around the lines of: An incredibly disrespectful disturbance! I stay no further, perhaps the pink one will serve me better. These witches!
After watching Brushbuddy leave in a huff through the slightly opened crack of their door, Agott turned to Coco. “I see you've gone back to your ways. And for what reason exactly did you choose that entrance of all methods?!”
Coco paused for a moment, why did she? She will admit that the guardian figures in her life do have a point in that she rushes in without thinking. “Weeeell, I may not have seen brushbuddy…” Agott beckoned her to continue, knowing there was still more unsaid, “and I maaaay have wanted to uhm, tease you. All of this rain doesn't allow for much excitement, so I got a little too over-energised seeing you.” She fiddled her fingers once again. “I know you hate sudden contact like this, I'm sorry Agott.”
“Make sure you apologise to Brushbuddy as well. And yes, while hate is a little stronger word than I'd use, it is the case that I dislike surprise contact. However, I'd like to be able to better handle these… forms of affection, I suppose… I wasn't drawing this time, so it's rather selfish of me to not do so.” Agott moved the book in her lap onto one of the pillows at her side. Eyes avoiding the look that just appeared on Coco.
“Your hair.” Coco breathed out.
“What of it?”
“It looks fluffier!”
Fluffier, hm? Her hair is without a doubt voluminous compared to Coco's, though it was quite embarrassing for even her ordinary hair to be considered ‘fluffy’. She took pride in not looking like a crescent-horned Alpaca. (Although, they are quite cute…)
Agott let out a sigh. “It's dreadful. This weather, and such a sedentary day brings the worst out of it. Rather than fluffy, it's more of an unbearably difficult frizz.”
“Dreadful? I love your hair, even when it acts up!” Coco giggled at the memories of Agott's extra-tough-to-handle bedhair, and the girl's frustration.
Agott crimsoned, ‘I love your hair’, what a very Coco thing to say. She's almost sure of what Coco's up to. These past few days have been far too affectionate to not notice. And the mention of wanting to tease her? She isn't that oblivious.
There was a short pause before Coco spoke again, a slight tremble in her voice, “Could I touch it?”
That's a first.
“It's okay if you don't want me to! While Tetia sometimes lets me, I know it's not a very you th-"
“You can,” Agott interrupted, tapping her fingers on her lap tensely.
With the permission, Coco raised one hand towards Agott's hair, tenderly twirling one of the other girl's less-defined curls with her finger.
A pleasantly ticklish feeling, almost foreign to Agott. When was the last time she felt this? As a child, before she lost herself in expectations, her mother combed through her long locks. Complimenting it, mentioning how beautiful it was, and comparing it to her own.
Coco's fingers moved more brazenly, smoothing across her bangs and combing across her scalp, Agott humming at the sensation and leaning back onto the pillows with her eyes closed. Coco didn't pause, continuing all while savouring the enchanting sight of the very relaxed Agott.
At one stage, to get a better view, Coco repositioned slightly, letting herself lean above Agott. Her heart hammered at the vulnerability and trust from the girl below her.
An imaginary line was etched as her fingers traced from her hair, to her ears, then to her cheek. Coco leaned further down to get a closer look, choosing to smooth her thumb over Agott's eyelashes, so beautiful and long. And once her thumb safely moved away, Agott's eyes opened with such softness Coco could die right there.
The other girl's hand lifted up, gently squeezing Coco's ear, then landing at the back of her head. Coco's heart beating rapidly at the affection.
“You're so red,” Agott said with a smile, eyes lidded and scanning the other girl's face.
“Says you.”
“Hmmmm. Is that so?” Agott hummed, gently pulling Coco down. Coco could feel the tickle of her breath, could see Agott lick her lips, each small detail bringing the girl to an even redder state. “I know what you've been up to, Coco.” Her voice trembled slightly, mostly masked by confidence. “Bear with me now, it's my turn and I will admit, I've been quite impatient.”
Agott brought Coco's head down for the last time and closed the remaining distance, her eyes shutting as soon as she felt the contact. Meanwhile, Coco's eyes remained open, as if memorising the new angle of Agott. The dark-haired girl's eyebrows that started furrowed now relaxed, her face still flushing red, her hair tickling Coco's face, her hand on Coco's neck smoothing upwards to interlace with her own hair, her other hand slipping into Coco's, and their lips melting together. After satisfying herself with the view, she closed her own, letting herself further enjoy the sensations. She could feel a smile growing on Agott, once again contagious.
As Coco pulled back, Agott's lips sprung back, having stuck on until the very last moment.
Coco opened her eyes, enough to see Agott's own still closed - savouring the moment. “I like you, Agott,” she whispered, returning to her previous place on Agott's lips.
She could hear, and feel, a small annoyed grumble from Agott, and the girl positioned her thumb to separate their lips. “I like you, too,” she shared, pressing them back to the corner of Coco's mouth. “Lay down with me? I'm feeling a touch drowsy.”
Coco nodded, positioning herself to lay beside Agott, both girls' heads facing each other.
“So, does this mean you're my girlfriend?” Coco asked, watching Agott open and close her eyes tiredly in an attempt to stay awake for her. She heard a hum from the girl, acknowledgement, before she closed her eyes for good.
Agott stepped into the workspace, noticing a new addition on her desk. She glanced at it, realising it was the book she gave Coco and gently picked it up, intent on placing it with her other books. Her actions paused as she noticed a small piece of paper slip out from one of the pages. It had writing on it, she noted, curiously picking it up and reading it.
Her face heated, Coco was still determined to get her reacting, even now.