Chapter Text
-♌︎-
It had been ◌◌ days since the two of them met, and it had been the same old song and dance as every other time. An still found it comforting- scour metal, grab metal, bring metal away. Simple!
Not to mention the fantastic bonus of her friend working alongside her. Another day in that factory, another day spent with 09. Truly the small joys of life.
That day, the bag had already been filled to the brim with scavenged material, ready to go, and so An should've technically started heading back to Outpost 5…
But fuck that! The sun was still high in the sky, and her curfew was late at night, and why would she ever wanna go back this soon? Besides…
A grin formed on An's face as she put down the bag next to her hidden motorbike before she turned around to face the hybrid. The other girl just tilted her head, curious.
“Ehy, do you wanna chill inside your weird metal statue thingie again? It's got blankets and everything, and we could just… cuddle, maybe? Chat a bit? Dunno about you, but the whole…”
The raven shook her fingers around, as if pointing to the factory as a whole “abandoned place aesthetic is tiring me out” then, as if realizing “Oh, but only if you want to, of course! I wouldn't want to invite myself to your bed!”
09 blinked, considering the option, and then nodded, eyes shimmering with barely contained warmth. An felt her own chest warm at that, and she scooped the other up in her arms.
“A-An-chan!”
“Rest time! Rest time! Rest time!”
“An-chan!” she squealed, again, a laugh bubbling up as the human kept chanting and playfully marching them towards their impromptu mattress. It was the cosiest thing to be found for miles, and An was not about to lose her chance to rest.
Not to mention, the ram's laugh was sooooooo adorable. Fuck her dignity, hearing that sound made everything else worth it.
Soon, the statue came into view, and the hybrid was dramatically lowered to the ground so she could climb in. She could've been light, but An was not strong enough to carry her up there. And the entrance was pretty high up, too…
Thankfully, 09 didn't seem to take offence to that. She just hauled herself up and disappeared into the metallic belly of the beast, and An didn't hesitate to follow.
They flopped on top of one another, a giggly tangle of limbs as they tried to adjust themselves in a position that actually allowed them to lay next to one another.
Distantly, the raven recalled that there was a story about men cooped up in some wooden beast, and considered herself in a similar situation.
“And- there! All nice and comfy!”
An said, satisfied, before settling her head between the ram's horns, nuzzling and humming in her hair. 09 wiggled, surprised, but she then leaned into the touch, letting herself be spooned.
For a while, the two remained like that, not needing words, but then the little thing known as “boredom” crept up in the raven's mind, and she decided to put it at ease. She'd talked all day, so maybe…
“Say, how does magic actually work, though?”
The ram opened her eyes, catching An's gaze, and she went on.
“Like, you've got that fire magic thing and your eyes glow and stuff, no? But do you know how it actually works or do you just… do it?”
Silence. A few days back, she would've thought the silence meant she overstepped, and 09 was unwinding. Now, though, she felt confident enough to assume her friend was just gathering her thoughts.
“Hmm… I don't… really know, An-chan, but… I guess I could talk about magic in general, if you want…?”
“Sure! Anything's fine!”
As if to make it even clearer, An sat up, putting an elbow under her, locking eyes with the blonde as she gave her total, undivided attention. A chuckle, and then she went on.
“Alright then… All hybrids I've met in my life have magic. There's like this… what do I call it… Aura, around other hybrids? It's like the magic’s in your body, and any other hybrid with magic just… gives off the same type of frequency”
She chuckled again, a bit lost for words, but An didn't dare interrupt her as she tried finding a nicer way to put it. Eventually, the ram shook her head, defeated, and An tried easing her back into conversation.
“So is it like… a limited resource? Extra exclusive to hybrids? Does that mean it can run out?”
The human made a shocked expression, suddenly imagining a shrunk up hybrid, agonizing on the floor. Apparently amused and relieved by the change in topic, 09 went on.
“Magic can run out. If I use too much, for example, I start feeling all tired and mushy. It's not pleasant, let me tell you… Oh, but don't make that face, An-chan, it charges up passively! I just… rest a bit, and then I'm back as new!”
Oh thank fuck…
Relieved, An's face relaxed again, happy that her friend couldn't apparently die from magic loss, but then a new worry bubbled up. Probably childish, but…
“Wait, does that mean that using magic hurts?”
Silence. The ram's eyes lit up in amused orange, and An didn't understand what the hell she said that warranted such a reaction. Did she say something stupid…?
Then- laughter. Soft and amused and perfectly 09, and the human relaxed again.
“Hurt? No, An-chan, don't worry! It doesn't hurt at all! Nothing about magic hurts- well, unless I use it for hours on end, but even that requires way too much effort before I actually get there…”
Her eyes furrowed, actually considering the possibility of using way too much magic and whether that hurt or not, and An felt a little smile bubble up on her face.
Seeing her friend getting way too lost in hypotheticals, she flicked the other's forehead, getting her back to ground.
“But what about your magic? The whole… Fire thing you do. Is it actual honest-to-Luka fire or some… fake thing?”
In response, 09 just produced a small flame on her fingertip, offering it to An. Her hand hovered, curious- and then flinched back when she felt the warmth.
Ok, real fire, not gonna touch that. How the fuck is she keeping it that close without getting burnt??
The ram smiled, something close to mirth shimmering in her orange glow, before her eyes returned to their normal brown, flame disappearing just like that.
Something in An's face must've betrayed her thoughts, because the hybrid spoke up, answering her unspoken question.
“I… don't know how I'm not getting burnt, honestly. I just know that using magic feels good, and that hot things never seemed to bother me much. Maybe I just have tougher skin…?”
“Tougher skin… wait” the raven's eyes widened for what felt like the millionth time that day “Does that mean you're fireproof? That's sick, girl!”
09 looked down at her hands, in thought, as if actually considering the fact that she was immune to fire only then. Eyes determined, they lit up again, and the little fire popped up.
An flinched back, surprised, but before she could voice anything, the hybrid had brought the flame to the tips of her hair.
Time stopped. Neither of them dared to move, one too shocked and the other too focused, and then…
It's… not going up in flames. Holy shit.
Satisfied, 09 shut off the flame, and her head wasn't even singed. Nada. Perfectly intact. The raven stared at that specific spot way too long, entranced, before the ram flicked her forehead.
“An-chan…? You're staring…”
“My friend’s fucking fireproof”
Silence, yet again, and then An wrapped her arms around 09, sending them both down into the blanket. A surprised squeal was the response to her action, but An just scratched the base of her friend's horns, and the squeals became contented little hums.
“My friend's fireproof and so cool and whoever abandoned her are just a bunch of fucking idiots. You're the best. You're the absolute best. Did anyone tell you that?”
“No…”
“Well, now I'm telling you! You're the coolest, best thing ever! I'm so glad to have met you!”
The ram chuckled, surprised, but then she leaned deeper into An's embrace, careful not to hurt her with her horns. Once they got comfortable again, she spoke up, tone soft and adorable.
Well, soft and adorable in An's humble opinion, but it was an objective fact just how-
“Thanks, An-chan. You're really cool too, and I'm…”
She twisted her head up to meet An's amber ones, warm orange glows dancing in her eyes. The human got lost in them, then focused on the dopey smile on 09’s face.
“... I'm really glad to have met you, too”
Something about that sentence made her chest flutter and her heart sing, but An didn't have time to think about that. It was probably, like, loneliness speaking. She felt something similar with Haruka, all those cycles back, so nothing to worry about.
Instead, she embraced her tighter, feeling the chill of the night coming from outside, and spooned her. She probably had to start heading back soon, but at that moment, hugging her best friend…
An thought she didn't have anywhere else she'd rather be.