The Most Important Gear

special 05

it was late at night in the akademiya's library, most of the students at this point have left to go sleep in their rooms and await for their classes for the next day. very few remained, cracking their heads and trying to absorb knowledge for a test (most likely).

you yawned and grabbed a few books, thumbing through them to check the contents before placing them in 2 piles on a nearby table. one pile belonged to you and the other one belonged to scaramouche, who needed those books desperately. little did he know, after he informed you of the materials he needed, you went to the library every single day to check if they were returned. thankfully, they were, so you checked both your materials and his own out. you placed a pile on your robot's head while you carried the rest, beginning to make your way home. 

unfortunately, a few books that you needed were also missing, so mission partially accomplished. you opened the door quietly, careful not to wake scaramouche who was asleep and placed the books on the table. after thanking your robot who promptly went to go charge itself and power down for the night, you noticed a few lone books on the coffee table. curious, you walked over and checked which books that scaramouche had picked out and saw a small note on the top of it.

you mentioned that you were missing these. these are a gift for you, so use them well.

- kunikuzushi <3

you internally squealed at the heart, heart beating rapidly against your chest while you felt butterflies flapping about happily. after placing the note aside, making a mental reminder to stow it away for later before he could dispose of it, you looked at the fresh books in front of you. a part of you was shocked at the quality, since you hadn't bought new books in a while, and some were even special edition which meant that there would be more content inside.

"are you just going to give those books attention?"

after a small flinch from the voice, you turned to see him leaning in the doorway. his hair was messy from sleep, t-shirt wrinkled, and his face had his usual stare except this time his eyes were curious. he looked eager to see what you thought of his little surprise. you gave him a soft smile, "thank you kunikuzushi."

he nodded. "now come on, let's go to bed."

"let me get changed and have a quick shower first," you responded, walking to the bedroom to grab your pajamas. "i'll sleep in a little. also, i found the books you needed at the library, so they're on the table when you need them."

he nodded, slipping back in the bed and making himself comfortable. at this time of night, scaramouche found himself unwilling to talk a lot. he liked listening to your voice, and he enjoyed just being around you. it was one thing he found himself loving you for: he didn't have to be around you and feel forced to talk all the time. 

from the room he heard the shower turn on and he stared at the ceiling while his mind began to wander. i wonder what she could possibly be working on that involves those types of books... he groaned in annoyance. he wanted to obey your wishes and not look, it took so much self restraint to be unable to see what exactly had you so busy these days. what could you possibly need "the interworkings of organic mechanics" for?

he remained deep in thought until you walked inside, hair slightly damp from your shower and dressed in your pajamas. "turn around," he ordered from the bed.

you sat on the bed, faced away from him while he conjured an anemo ball in his hand, holding it by your hair and using it to finish drying it. he watched the moisture become absorbed by the ball and let it die off, leaving your hair completely dry. "alright, all done. now let's sleep."

after he got himself re-situated, you got yourself comfortable underneath the covers and felt his arms wrap around you. it became a habit for him to sleep with his arms around you, mainly for both of your comforts and for his piece of mind. after everything that's happened, he needed you as an anchor point for himself.

"goodnight," he mumbled.

"night," you responded, pecking his nose to which he pecked your forehead in return. "love you."

"love you too," he echoed, feeling comforted by your steady breathing and heartbeat. scaramouche didn't need sleep, but these days he can understand why humans enjoy their time to rest. "and thanks."

"mhm," you said, being lulled to sleep under the warm sheets.

the two of you slept peacefully through the night, ready to face whatever life threw at you both tomorrow.