(That button is fighting for its life trying to keep this beefy 🍑 man's shirt together)
(Did a little revising but it's mostly the same)
(I started reading about Shuhu and then about Teng Xiao. There's so little information on them but I've already gone down a rabbit hole)
Gepard's back was killing him as he slowly awoke, eyes fluttering open before squinting slightly.
He was all cozy in warm, and he could smell smoke from a fire nearby. He grimaced, forcing himself to sit up and immediately pressing a hand against his head.
Ouch, that hurt—
"Oh, you're awake!"
The Captain glanced in the direction of the voice and found y/n huddled by a measly little fire, a little look of surprise on her face. She offered him a small smile, "How are you feeling, hm? That was quite the fall we took."
"Where... are we? What happened?"
"I guess we walked on some cave covered with ice or whatever. Couldn't see it because of the snow."
Gepard winced as his head ached, but he tensed when y/n joined him and held his face in her hands, seemingly checking him over again.
"Lynx went off to find help, but it's been a while. I didn't do any exploring since you were still out, but it seems like this cave goes on for more than half a mile." y/n remarked as she brushed Gepard's hair aside to check his head for any swelling or bleeding.
Her e/c gaze met his and she blinked upon spotting the heavy blush growing on the Captain's cheeks. She quickly pulled her hands away, clearing her throat awkwardly, "S-Sorry..."
"N-No! You're fine, you just... caught me off guard." Gepard mumbled, "How long has it been?"
"About an hour, though I think we may be stuck here for a while longer," y/n murmured, "Thankfully, we've got food! I don't think we'll need to eat for a bit since dinner at the restaurant was nice, but we won't starve."
Gepard let out a quiet breath of relief with a small nod, "That's good... during the fall, you weren't hurt, were you?"
Y/n blinked, looked down at herself, then at Gepard.
"Nah, I'm good. If I did get hurt, I didn't notice."
"Right, crazy regeneration..."
"Mhm."
Gepard took a moment to peer past y/n into the darkness of the icy cave beyond the small fire. There were two separate tunnels, each leading to unknown locations with unknown dangers lurking.
Y/n followed his gaze, looking back and forth between him and the darkness before grinning, "Wanna go check it out?"
"I suppose it would be better to make sure nothing is down there... rather than being caught off guard later."
Gepard got back to his feet, his h/c haired companion waiting on him before the pair wandered off into the dark to check it out. There was the sound of water coming from the left, so y/n made a beeline for that direction.
She marveled at the icy walls around the as the two of them walked. Was the entire place made of ice? She could see what looked like stone beneath it, but she couldn't be sure.
"What is this place?" y/n breathed, "I would've never expected to find something like this beneath the snow."
"I've crossed over this place many times before and nobody ever noticed a thing. Maybe the ice above was worn down from people walking on it." Gepard suggested, picking up his pace a bit to remain beside y/n, "Don't stray too far, we don't know what's down here."
"Ah, I'm sure it's fine. You're right, though, I'll stick— WOAH!!" y/n could've sworn her heart jumped to her throat when her foot slipped out from under her.
Gepard immediately moved to grab her but was dragged down as well, the two of them falling flat in their 🍑es and being sent sliding down the tunnel, the icy floor sending them skidding along.
The ice covered walls of the tunnels zoomed past them as they went sliding downwards, darkness all around their pair. Y/n couldn't see 💩, but she felt Gepard grab ahold of her hand and drag her close until he was able to loop his arms around her.
One minute they were sliding down the tunnel, the next they were dumped in water. Oddly warm water for a planet that'd been in a centuries long ice age.
Geoard surfaced first with a gasp, shaking his head to rid his hair of water while y/n popped up next to him.
"Well, that was something." she hummed with a little blink, "You all good, Gepard? You didn't hit your head, did you?"
"No, I think I'm fine..." Gepard murmured as he rubbed at his temples with a little grimace, blinking open an eye to glance at y/n, "What about you?"
"Unharmed and still breathing." y/n chimed before glancing around, her eyes filled with curiosity, "Woah... take a look at this! This is totally out of place!"
Out of place indeed. The cave didn't make sense when the conditions of the planet were put into account, yet it existed anyways.
The warm lake sat in the center of a dim cave, reflecting the stalactites above. Plant life flourished around the cave, luscious green grass mining the cave floor.
Further along, a few feet away from the shore of the lake, was a tree. Ahhh, y/n wasn't fond of trees.
She shut her eyes and sunk in the water a bit with a little sigh of content, "What a nice find! I could just sit in this water all day and I'd be set!"
"But how is any of this here? Finding a cave out of nowhere was strange enough but a warm lake, plant life, and a tree? It's... impossible," Gepard breathed as y/n started doing backstrokes in the water, swimming in circles, "Ah— we should get out of the water."
"What? But it's nice and warm..."
"Well we don't want our clothes soaked. We'll have to leave eventually and it won't be pleasant if our clothes are wet when we get out."
Y/n sunk under the water a bit with a small scowl.
She didn't need to speak for her message to be clear.
"Y/n."
"Hmph."
Gepard groaned, approaching her and looping his arms under hers to drag her from the lake. She didn't protest, but she was clearly upset about.
He had a point, that's why.
After they got out of the water, they put some distance between one another and turned their backs to each other as they wiggled their way out of their wet clothes.
The silence was painfully awkward, the only sounds being the light shuffling of clothing and the water in the lake settling once more after being disturbed by the pair who'd slid on into the hidden cave.
Thankfully, they hadn't slid too far away from their original location and Gepard decided to go retrieve their things so they could settle down where it was warm instead.
After some back and forth, y/n agreed to stay while Gepard set off to retrieve their stuff. "I won't be long," he promised, "Just sit tight, okay?"
He left y/n seated by the giant tree, the woman keeping her wet clothes wrapped around herself as she peered at her reflection in the water.
Holy cow, she looked like 💩.
Sure, things had been rough recently but she hadn't realized that it showed up in her appearance.
DAMN she looked rough.
"I suppose that's what I get for not taking care of myself. I should've listened to Jing Yuan." y/n mumbled with a rueful look before splashing some water on her face, "Eyebags, begone. Go away."
As she rubbed at her eyes irritably, it took a moment to realize that her reflection wasn't doing what a reflection should be doing.
It was just staring at her.
Y/n paused her futile attempt at getting rid of her little eyebags, staring back at her reflection curiously. After a moment, she shook her head and retreated from the water so she wouldn't have to see whatever the hell that was.
She didn't like this... where was Gepard?
How much longer would he be gone?
"Hey, y/n."
'Ignore it, it's not real. Just tune it out, it's not—!'
A familiar face peeked into her line of sight and y/n's breath caught in her throat at the sight of her brother. He was frowning, though his expression softened into a little look of delight when y/n's gaze met his.
"There you are," he hummed with a little grin.
"You're not real." y/n managed to say, backing up as her brother stood upright again with a little frown, "You... I dunno if this is some sick trick Phantylia left to drive me off the edge again but you aren't real."
She crossed her arms, looking down at the ground, "I've come to terms with what happened to my brother. It still hurts, but it won't kick me back into becoming mara stricken anytime soon so quit wearing his face."
B/n's expression remained disappointed for a moment before he smiled once more, "You've got good instincts, I've always found that very interesting. I'm not Phantylia, you don't have to worry."
"Who are you, then?" y/n questioned.
"We've met before and you don't recall?"
"Nope."
B/n, or whatever was wearing his face, pouted, "Ouch... though I suppose it's no surprise you don't remember. You clearly didn't recognize me when we encountered one another some time ago, but I guess you could say we never really met before that."
Its pout was replaced with a little smile as it pointed at y/n, the woman giving it a wary look, "I remember you, though. A little Cloud Knight with a ferocious spirit and quite the short fuse... I must admit, I find you quite fascinating."
The thing pointed at her.
"Most of your people seem to be unable to withstand much contact with me, but you... you're able to hear my voice and remain yourself. I wonder why that is... perhaps that medicine you were given?"
Y/n's brow twitched at that, and she silently hoped this thing hadn't seen. Her hopes were crushed as the thing grinned, a look of delight on its face.
Nope, it noticed.
Whatever this thing was approached y/n but she stood her ground, watching it with guarded eyes as the thing walked on past her, "Whoever or whatever you are, stop using my brother's face, it pisses me off."
"Does it now? I apologize, I assumed that you would've been more comfortable with a familiar face." the voice changed, no longer that of y/n's brother. She tensed at the sound of it, it was a voice she had only heard in her dreams and memories as of late.
She whipped around with a furious look upon her face, "Damn you, that isn't any better! Cut it out!"
The thing, now wearing the appearance of Dan Heng— no, Dan Feng, glanced at her with a look of surprise, "Cut what out? Is this appearance not to your liking?"
"You know, you're wearing the face of someone I really wanna punch right now. Get over here so I get a few good hits in." y/n said with a cold stare as she rolled her shoulder, preparing to start throwing hands.
"You can't do anything to me, little one, calm yourself," the thing sighed with a shake of its head, "But... I suppose I should apologize for upsetting you. I don't want to risk overwhelming you right when I've finally managed to speak to you again."
"Go away. Or I'll throw myself into a sun."
"Don't do anything impetuous — I truly don't mean you any harm. I've been with you for a while now, but it's taken you a while to actually hear my voice."
Y/n gave the thing a puzzled look to which it gave her a little smile and a, "Ahh you seem puzzled... very well, I'll leave you to your date or whatever this little escapade happens to be, but you'll hear from me later. We have much to discuss."
"It's not a—!" she blinked and the thing was gone.
Y/n rubbed at her eyes, staring intensely at the spot where the thing once was before letting out a groan.
'Not this 💩 again.'
.𖥔 ݁ ˖˚
When Gepard returned, they got comfortable in some big 🍑 coats and hung up their clothes to dry. They didn't have to worry about staying warm as the cave was of moderate temperature, so they simply relaxed by the tree.
Y/n, once she was sure her reflection was reflecting correctly, returned to the water and dipped her feet into it with a pensive look on her face.
"How long do you think we'll be stuck here?" y/n inquired as she glanced back at Gepard, "A week."
"I don't think it'll come to that, but it's a possibility. I'd rather not think about it, but I'm certain we'll get out." Gepard paused with a small grimace, "...eventually."
The h/c haired woman's lips quirked up into a ghost of a smile as she patted the space next to her, "Come sit here, the water is nice! Just dip your feet in!"
Gepard didn't speak but his expression spoke for him.
"Come onnn just for a few minutes!"
The Captain gave in, joining y/n by the water and dipping his feet in as well. He stole a glance at her, curiously observing her expression as she stared at her hands in her lap.
"You seem awfully calm despite the situation we're in." Gepared commented, "I'm assuming it's not the first time you've been in this kind of situation?"
"Falling into a cave hidden beneath snow and ice and finding a whole underground lake with thriving plant life and a whole 🍑 tree?" y/n hummed, "No, not quite. But I have been stranded on planets before after starskiff crashes."
"Starskiffs...?"
"Like... floating boats that fly fast and can serve as weaponry for combat in the air."
"Ah, I see."
"I made the mistake of getting in a starskiff with a pilot who was notorious for getting in all kinds of wrecks, and I paid for it with a couple arrows to the throat every time." y/n continued, "But the time we spent on the planets was always a remarkable experience. Seeing so many new sights, new scents, hell, even some of the food was life changing for me! There's always something amazing to witness in these types of situations."
Gepard glanced back at the tree behind them, regarding it carefully before a small smile settled on his face, "I can see truth in that. To think a place like this would existence outside Belobog... I have so many questions, but I don't think I'll be getting any answers soon."
"We could find some."
"Let's not push it." Gepard hesitated before deciding to speak, "Earlier, Caelus began to say something but Miss March cut him off while dragging him away. Do you have any idea what he was going on about."
Y/n stared at him, remembering the situation when she had to explain it to Jing Yuan before speaking.
"So, the thing is..."
For a couple of minutes, the woman yapped about the shenanigans her and Caelus had gotten up to when infiltrating the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus. The husband-wife lie they'd told, what they'd done to make it seem legit, Caelus acting like a dog and y/n getting her forearm hacked off.
Gepard looked absolute mortified as y/n explained the situation, and he was silent for a couple of seconds after she'd finished yapping about the whole situation.
"...Xianzhou Luofu, right...?"
"Mhm."
He let out a shaky breath and a small chuckle, "If I ever get the chance to leave Jarilo-VI, I don't think I'll ever visit that place without you."
"Hehe, don't worry, as long as you stay within more populated areas you don't have to worry about the mara struck. Mostly." y/n reassured him before looking up, "Besides, we're handling those cult freaks. You wouldn't have to worry about them, they're being taken care of."
"Hm... still, I would like you as my guide. So far I've only heard stories about you growing up there but I'd like to see these places too." Gepard murmured and the woman couldn't help the little huh that slipped out.
Y/n mulled over what he was saying before laughing, "That could be arranged! I don't think Jing Yuan would let me return to my Cloud Knight duties, but I know my way around paperwork. I could find time to give you a tour!"
"Your original position... wait a second, are you not traveling with the Astral Express anymore?" y/n winced, a reaction that didn't go unnoticed by Gepard whose eyes widened slightly, "Sorry... sensitive topic?"
"Eh... kind of. Everyone was super understanding and supportive about it, with just one exception..." y/n murmured as she withdrew her feet from the water, tucking her knees close to her chest with a downcast look, "We haven't spoken in a while and it's eating at me..."
Silence filled the space between them for a moment.
"Well, what about you?"
"Huh?"
"What about you?" Gepard repeated, "How do you feel about your decision? Do you feel satisfied with your choice to leave the Astral Express?"
Was she? She wasn't sure.
Sure, she no longer had her mother, but she couldn't just leave Yun alone. Her and Jing Yuan had only just reunited, it wouldn't be right for her to leave him behind again.
There were so many people she'd left behind so suddenly, she owed this time to them. She owed this time to him. However many years she had left, she wanted to give it to the Luofu, to Jing Yuan. She had to—
"Oh..." y/n breathed.
Gepard watched her face for a moment before clearing his throat, cheeks turning red, "My words may not mean much, but may I offer my opinion?"
Y/n couldn't find it in her to speak, but she managed a small nod. Gepard took a moment to think over his words before beginning in a careful tone, "Someone once told me that you'll have different phases in your life. You may be in one place for one, but you may be ready to venture elsewhere once you move on to the next."
"If you're not sure about where exactly you want to be during this new phase of your life, think about it this way. Which place does your heart belong? Which one do you want and which one do you need? Where will you feel complete?"
...
"I'm sorry—"
"Don't apologize!" y/n protested, "You've given me lots to think about and... I'm very grateful, Gepard."
"I know, but you're supposed to be relaxing... I don't want to stress you out." Gepard replied with a frown.
It was a brief moment before y/n grinned at him deviously, "You know how you can make me feel better?"
Gepard looked at her with a determined expression, "Tell me, I'll do wherever I can to make it up to you!"
"BAM!" y/n kicked Gepard back into the water, laughing as Gepard resurfaced while spluttering, "Gotcha! I can't believe you didn't see that coming!"
Gepard stared at y/n in disbelief as she laughed her 🍑 off before grabbing her by the ankle, causing her laughter to come to an abrupt halt as her face went blank.
"Huh. ACK—!"
She was dragged into the water as well with a shriek and it was Gepard's turn to laugh this time when she popped back to the surface looking like a wet cat.
"I'll get you for that!"
"Oh yeah? Do your worst!"
The two of them took to splashing one another, playing around and just goofing off without a care in the world. The matter y/n had begun to ponder over was quickly swept to the back of her mind as she played around instead.
Unbeknownst to the two of them, Lynx and GepardxY/n Fanclub Member Number 001 were peering around the corner at the two goofballs playing around in the water. With them, were a handful of silvermane guards who had come by to help with the rescue.
...and also happened to be fanclub members.
They were there to save the two, but... they'd just sit tight and let GepardxY/n Fanclub Member Number 001 work his magic so they'd have a lovely short story to read. Besides, y/n and Gepard seemed to be having fun!
How could they interrupt that?
(Sparkle was tweaking big time in her trailer and I'm terrified. Still rolling for her and if I don't get her, I'll go for Fu Xuan)