The next morning I was dressed early and making my way to the lab. I decided I wouldn't let Dottore push me around especially after he went out of his way to hold me hostage and introduce me as his assistant to the Queen and court. If he was angry and jealous, that was his problem.
It turns out my schedule was pretty simple. I had specified work hours and I'd have to submit reports of our progress. The timetable indicated important dates in the year and the names of important people in the Fatui including the Harbingers, the finance department and the healers.
Apparently there were only around a dozen or so Generals in this building but it didn't matter much to me as making friends was the bottom of my priorities.
The weather was calm and settled and the sun was out; a nice change to the constant snowing of the last couple of days. It felt as if the weather had uplifted the mood in the palace and as I walked through the corridors with my new mask and uniform, Agents and maids nodded their respect to me.
Unfortunately my hopes for a good, efficient work day came crashing down the moment I stepped through the door of the lab.
"You are LATE!" Dottore was yelling as he appeared through the door of a room I hadn't identified yet. In his hand was his precious pocket watch that snapped loudly as he marched towards me.
"Actually I'm early according to my schedule."
Dottore raised his hand and gripped the air in frustration before he relaxed, ran a hand through his hair and crossed his arms. "First rule of working here. I decide your work hours, not that useless sheet of nonsense. Are we clear, darling?"
"No."
His body went rigid. "No?"
"No, we are not clear. I was brought here against my will and forced to work for you with the only other option being becoming a disgusting experiment and dying. I am a human being who requires the necessary basic essential needs to live and function efficiently therefore I will arrive here and leave here at the times of which my schedule dictates," I stated firmly. This man needed to be put in his place if he expected my help at all.
"But-"
I raised a hand to stop him and continue myself. "Threaten me all you like Dottore but Her Highness expects us to work together to produce only the finest results. She's expecting great things from you, and I will help you achieve that as long as you treat me in the way I should be treated. I mean this in the most respectful way possible. Please be considerate of how dire the situation is at the moment."
His jaw hung open in shock. I concluded that this was the very first time anyone had ever spoken to him in this way. It took him a good minute to recover. He took a step back, rubbing his jaw in what appeared to be confusion.
So I waited. My predictions were that he would resort to anger and scolding but only time could tell. Eventually he threw his hands up in defeat as if he'd lost to a silent battle in his head.
"May I speak now?" He asked in a low, unidentifiable tone.
"Please, go ahead."
"I don't know who you think you are love, but no one has ever spoken to me in such a blatantly blunt and senseless way," he took slow steps forward till our chests were centimeters apart and his masked face was tilted down, inches from mine.
Right now, I was immensely grateful for the mask I wore. I tried to maintain steady breathing.
"I'll give you the benefit of the doubt seeing as you clearly do not know how to show your superiors respect. I'll also grant you the work hours you schedule details because your boldness and courage is... admirable. However, if you step out of line or even attempt to go against my orders, not even the goddamn queen could stop my wrath."
My jaw tensed as I felt his murderous intent.
"Do you have any more demands or are we done here?" He asked, preparing to turn away.
"Actually..." I started.
"Enlighten me."
"I'd appreciate it if you referred to me by my actual name rather than pet names. Is that possible?"
"No. Now follow me, we are leaving," he stated simply.
I suppose I deserved that.
He grabbed his white suit jacket and slipped a few things to the inner pockets before heading for the door to which I stood in the way of.
"What are you doing? Move."
"Where are we going?" I asked firmly.
He sighed. "To your old lab! Exciting, yes? Now stop wasting time. Our carriage should be waiting already."
I allowed him to get through and followed behind him as he led the way to the exit. "But why are we going there?"
"To retrieve the core, love. Keep up."
"Don't you think your clone would've found it if it was in my lab?"
He stopped walking. "You mean it's not in your lab?"
"No, of course not. What do you take me for? An idiot?"
"Well, yes. I thought that was obvious," he said looking down at me with a smile.
I would've laughed but I'm petty and refuse to give him the pleasure of hearing such a delightful sound.
Instead I face palmed. "Ok you know what, we need to go to my lab anyway. I need to retrieve my notes and journal. Also there are some key materials needed for this that I have stored down there. We can get the core after. I don't suppose it's possible that we could go riding instead of in a carriage?"
We resumed our pace towards the exit. "Why on earth would we do that?"
"Well I think it'll be faster and there's not that much to carry. We could be back here by noon. Is that not a better arrangement?" I asked hopefully.
The truth is, this was the most perfect thing that could've happened today. If we went riding I could establish a path out of the palace and find out where the horses are kept. That way if I wanted to escape, I would know which direction to head in to reach my lab, gather my things and flee the nation. Not to mention the fact that I really didn't want to be cooped up in a carriage with this man alone.
"I suppose you're right. It's been a while since I last went riding. Now that I think about it, when was the last time? Hm... Ah yes! The other harbingers and I were out hunting in the woods chasing down traitors. Good times, good times," he mumbled.
What on earth... I cannot understand these people.
I made a mental note of all the turns we took and slowly developed a map in my mind. This would be extremely useful for the map I would draw up later. Once we were out, a strong gust of wind billowed in our direction. The mask protected my face from the cold but I still felt the chill in my bones despite the sun being out. A carriage had already been prepared for us by a pale, shaky boy who flinched at the sight of us. Ah, wait till he finds out he arranged everything for nothing. Poor boy.
"You there. Get rid of this carriage immediately and get us two of your finest horses. Be quick about it or I'll have you strapped to my surgical table for dissection."
I couldn't help glaring at Dottore through my mask because this man could not converse without slipping in an unnecessary threat. The shaky man whimpered before yelling orders to the helpers nearby and scurrying off to retrieve our horses.
"I can feel you glaring~" spoke Dottore with his head still facing forward.
"Did you really have to traumatize that boy? Would it kill you to ask for something nicely?"
"No, but it might kill you if you keep talking," he said.
He took that better than I thought he would. We were making progress, good.
"So, how do you plan on escaping? Going North or West?" He asked rocking back on his heels as we waited for the horses.
It hadn't exactly registered to me what he'd said until he faced me with a little "Hm?"
My blood ran cold. Colder than it already was, that is. There's no way I could've made it that obvious. I mean I wasn't even planning to do it now anyway so how could he have known.
"Aw cat got your tongue, darling? Did you think I was completely thick? Nobody goes out riding in this weather."
A twisted sneer appeared on his lips as he chuckled at my foolishness.
"If you knew what I was planning, why didn't you just reject my suggestion of riding?" I asked, genuinely curious.
"I was hoping you would try it, then I could hunt you down like a lost bunny in the woods. Just like the old times," he said wistfully.
I gulped. Don't show fear. This is what he wants. Stay confident Y/N.
"So are we still going riding?"
Dottore found that hilarious. He laughed heartily, even clutching his stomach. For an absolute maniac, his laugh was weirdly attractive. At the time, I hadn't realised the way my heart fluttered a little at the sound.
"Oh you're cute, you are. Yes we are still going riding but only because I know you won't try anything idiotic now," he said pointedly looking at me. "Also... I'm feeling a little energized today."
God this man was so confusing. Hot and cold. Everything he does is so unpredictable and confusing. I can't wrap my head around it. This seemed like what a good mood looks like and earlier today after our mini argument, his reaction was still way more contained than I anticipated. I suppose I got lucky. If he wasn't in such a good mood, I worry what the outcome would have been.
Right on cue, the terrified boy brought forward two of the most elegant stallions I'd ever seen. One was chocolate brown with luscious black locks, and the other was pristine white like a freshly ironed shirt. The brown stallion neighed, trotting towards me. It felt like I was chosen.
"Hello there," I whispered, running my hand over its neck. It was so big. I wondered how on earth I'd even get on without struggling. "Excuse me? What's the name of this stallion?"
The stable boy was paralyzed to the spot looking utterly terrified that I'd acknowledged him. I raised an eyebrow at him before he cleared his throat and opened his mouth to reply.
"Why is this important? We don't have all day Y/N," Dottore rudely interrupted.
"No but we have enough time. Let the boy speak," I answered.
The stable boy's jaw dropped open at our interaction. Once again, I raised an eyebrow at him and gestured for him to continue.
"H-his name is Bruno, Ma'am," the stable boy stuttered.
"Bruno. Hm. It suits you," I spoke to the horse. "Well then shall we get going Sir?"
Dottore was watching me with his arms crossed. I hate that I couldn't tell what he was thinking but I hoped my mask concealed my own thoughts just as well.
"Yes... We shall," he responded, sounding distracted.
The both of us made our way round to the saddle however whilst he got on with ease, I could only stand there and try to understand how anyone expected me to get on to this horse when the saddle was almost at the same level as my chest.
"What's the issue now?! We have to go!" Dottore shouted from his place on the horse.
"Well uh..." I said embarrassingly. "I can't reach."
"I can go fetch a stool for you if you'd like ma'am," piped up the stable boy.
Dottore groaned and hopped off his saddle. "No you won't. We. Don't. Have. Time."
The stable boy took a shaky step back as Dottore came up behind me. His hands found their way around my waist and lifted me up till I was able to easily latch my leg onto the stirrup and sit comfortably on the saddle. The feel of his hands lingered on my body in a way I was unsure of how to feel.
"Sorted. You are forbidden to speak for the next 30 minutes as punishment for delaying our departure," Dottore said as he got back on his horse.
I don't think he realised what he had just done and how that action might be mistaken for something completely different. I glanced at the stable boy whose mouth was back in an 'O' shape. I internally face palmed. This would be the talk of the palace by the time we got back and I was dreading it.
Without any heads up, Dottore led the horse forward, leaving me behind in a flurry of kicked up snow. I needed to pay attention to the surroundings whilst making it as discreet as possible. Quickly, I caught up to Dottore until we were galloping side by side through the dirt path of the enormous, snow covered forest.
Honestly? Despite all that had happened, I felt freer than ever. I'd learnt to ride in my childhood in Fontaine and had always been fond of it. But this? It was like a scene out of a fairy tale. I felt like a runaway princess.
I couldn't help removing the mask from my face and feeling the air rush past me, cooling my skin. Rays of sunlight peeked through the trees creating a beautiful scene before us. I'd completely forgotten about mapping the path because the feeling this gave me couldn't be ignored. I felt a smile rise on my lips as I inhaled the smell of fresh grass.
Only now had I remembered the man who rode by my side, I hoped to god he didn't catch that smile.
~~~
Dottore's POV:
She smiled. I don't know what came over me at that moment but I couldn't take my eyes off her. I caught movement in the corner of my eye earlier only to see she'd removed the mask and for the first time since we'd met, I felt like I was seeing her.
The girl I was trying to see from the beginning. Underneath the expressionless mask. I was starting to regret ever being curious about her because now every time I closed my eyes, I saw the smile that graced those lips and the way the corner of her eyes crinkled. The way her eyes glittered as they did when she'd asked me about the heart in the lab.
What is wrong with me?! Why is any of this important? All I wanted to understand was why she had her own behavior pattern and why manipulating her fear was impossible! I only wanted to figure her out and how to control her. So why do I feel like this? I could've sworn I felt my heart constrict for a second. Good god! She hadn't poisoned me, had she? I'd have to check this out later. I'm certainly too young to have any major heart problems.
Focus on the objective at hand Dottore. You can record this all later. Right now, I needed to get my hands on that core and see for myself if she's all talk or not.
We were nearing the opening that signified the end of the forest. Beyond that was the frozen Heart Lake.
Her lab was situated in a secluded area north of the lake, near the abandoned church. It was an awfully remote location; completely hidden from plain sight and not another living person for miles.
It made me wonder why she surrounded herself with solitude. Even the Tsaritsa had said something about her being 'a lonely child.' An orphan too... interesting. I'd have to do a background check on her. I wonder if she pushed people away for the same reason I did...
Gah! Quit getting distracted, Dottore. We have more important things to worry about.
Here it was. The exit of the forest. As the sunlight expanded on our way out, I couldn't help glancing over at her. I'm not sure why this was my first thought but I found myself completely unregretful in doing so because I witnessed beautiful awe appear on her pretty face.
~~~
Y/N's POV:
Holy shit. What I was seeing right now was dazzling. You'd think I hadn't been living here for 4 years now. I really needed to get outside more because this made me feel all sorts. Alluring, untouched snow carpeted the ground around a frozen lake in the shape of a heart.
Bruno slowed down as we trotted down the hill, allowing me to take in the sight. The sun had been blanketed by the clouds but it only added to the scene. Hills upon hills rolled over in pure white and a deep forest which I now recognized as the Green Thorn Grove sat in peace behind the view.
Green Thorn Grove was the forest that led to the abandoned church I used as a landmark to locate my underground lab. I had no idea how close it would be to the palace. I'd picked the location specifically because of its distance from people. That way I could experiment to my heart's content without worrying about the safety of nearby civilians.
As we neared the entrance to the grove, I leaned forward to catch my reflection in the lake. What caught my attention instead were the dark clouds gathering in the sky, likely preparing to snow us in. I pointed to the sky after glancing to my left at Dottore who only nodded as he motioned to speed up. We galloped deep into the forest as our surroundings darkened.
A/N
If it wasnt already obvious from the fact that i cant stop uploading chapters, im literally obsessed. Obsessed with dottore, obsessed with writing, and obsessed with where this fic is gonna go.
Im going for a "he fell first, she fell harder" situation. I cannot wait to write down the coming chapters. All i can say is that Dottore will be feeling a lot more heart burn soon hehe.
Thanks for reading! <3