Complications of Mortality | Druig x OC

IX | Methodology

 "It feels like I've been waiting seven thousand years to finally meet you."

There it was again. 

That strum in her chest. 

It felt like her lungs had collapsed in on themselves, crumbling at the result of just a few words strung together. Akiva was still propped up on her elbow, but she could feel the tip of it begin to run numb. She couldn't even fathom such a huge amount of time, trying to imagine what it would look like if seven thousand years were laid out in front of her. It wasn't tangible, but he was. 

His eyes were still gold as he watched her, no matter how many times he had tried to blink it away. But it wasn't his fault. She was too wound up, her thoughts had simply been so loud that she forced her way into his head yet again. Everything that came to mind lingered in the air between them. Maybe he was just pretending that he couldn't hear her thoughts, though he had already proven that he could fully well by responding to things unspoken, unasked. 

"Don't get your hopes up, golden boy," she warned, searching desperately for the right words to say. Somehow, she saw them in her head in bold lettering, but couldn't form any sentences to represent her thoughts. Instead, they came out messy. Sloppy communication that was either caused by her lack of sleep or the result of tense energy from anxious anticipation for the days moving forward. It was probably some concoction of both. "That's a big claim for first impressions." 

There was shifting in the bed, causing her to tilt her chin up ever so slightly to stay alert and awake. The sheets ruffled as he propped himself up on his arm as well. Akiva was thrown into panic as he leaned up towards her, eyes flicking around his features as his expression remained blank. His focus made her stomach turn into knots, but all she could do was just remain frozen in place. 

Druig hovered his face in front of her, taking a second to taste the way their breath intermingled in the chilled air. She was still so warm, he could feel her body temperature radiating off of her in waves. He wanted it to consume him, to steal her heat and bask in her humanity. 

"Darling, this is not the first time we've met," he told her, voice quiet and scratchy, saturated with his Irish accent. Akiva's eyes widened at his words, shocked expression boring into his golden irises. She opened her lips to speak, to somehow form a coherent thought enough to speak in refusal, but it was cut short. 

Druig's nose gently touched her own, and she could have sworn her lips fused together with the way she remained silent. The girl was completely thrown into pause. His nose slipped passed hers, gently nudging it to the side and her head with it. She let it happen, face turning towards the pillow and eyes removing themselves from his features. His lips accidentally brushing against her cheek was enough to send her into a spiral.

"I'm sorry, Akiva," he whispered, closing his eyes and taking total control within seconds. He reached around her, hand hovering in the air behind her neck and upper back. Her eyes shut as she was forced to fall asleep, mind going blank as it consumed her. 

He caught her as she fell back, hand caressing the base of her neck as he gently positioned her into something comfortable. He set her head down against the pillow, making sure nothing was twisted awkwardly or contorted in a way that would make her muscles ache the coming morning. 

The shallow and steady blue overtook the gold again once she was asleep, chest aching with what he had done. 

Druig never did it for power—using his mind control. He did it because he craved internal peace, and sharing it with the one thing he loved most: humans. Protecting them in that way was one of the only things he truly knew how to do. But for some reason, he felt guilty wiping the fear from Akiva and exchanging it for sleep instead. It was for her own good. He had to keep reminding himself of that. They needed a fighting chance come the next morning, and Akiva was a bigger piece to it all than she could ever imagine. 

His hand slid from under her, reaching up to smooth the hair away from her eyes. His fingertips hooked under the strands as he pulled each one away from her face, running his fingers through her thick locks. Every once in a while, he'd pull out a stray daisy from her braids earlier, remembering the way Thena and Sersi had teamed up to create them. 

Thena sat behind the human and weaved the strands together while Sersi searched for small, meaningless items to turn into daisies. They were so determined to preserve her hair while she slept off the deviant attack, rushing around to make sure it was void of any tangles or imperfections. 

Druig sunk back down into the bed, letting the blankets consume him. The grey sheets rested against his bare chest, staring up at the ceiling as he racked his brain. Maybe he had told her too much, but even with the plans the eternals had come up with in Akiva's absence, there was still no guarantee that she would make it out at all. She deserved to know as much as he could give her. They would try and salvage her life as much as they could. They all agreed to protect her for as long as possible without jeopardizing the greater picture. 

But if it came down to it...

They couldn't risk babysitting a single life for the lives of billions of others. 

He reached over to her, even though he had placed her so meticulously just before. His hands found her waist and her underarm, pulling her body over to his own as he craved the contact. He gathered her up in his own grasp, cradling her body to his own as he comforted the pending nightmares. Druig's fingertips dove into her hair once she was against him, holding her head to his shoulder. She held so much pain, so much abandonment. This was all she knew, and she was risking losing it all. 

His eyes pricked, feeling the sensation of a needle piercing his waterline over and over as his vision ran slightly blurry. He closed it away, eyelids shutting as he attempted to let the sleep consume him as well. Almost as if she could sense it in her sleep, her lazy grasp at his waist squeezed slightly, and her rhythmic heartbeat was his own personal lullaby. 

The Domo moved miles from ancient Babylon, tracker beeping away in the main room as it honed into the location of the emergence. 

Eventually, the crescent moon washed away from the night sky, and the sun shone onto their bodies once again. It banished the blue overcast from Akiva's room, filling it's place with swells of gold and orange hues. The light spilled over her frame, illuminating the sullen presence of boring bedsheets. It traced over the curve of her shoulder and stretched down the line of her spine, outlining her frame.

Heavy eyelashes beckoned her to fall back asleep, but she willed her eyelids open. She felt weighed down, palm pressing into the mattress and grasping the emptiness of it. Blinking awake, her attention was directed to her dresser by the door. Her combat suit was still folded as neatly as she left it, but any trace of Druig had been wiped away. His clothes were picked up off of the floor and dresser, but he left a single flower in it's place. 

Akiva swung her legs out of bed, moving them as if her blood had turned to lead. 

Climbing to her feet, she swayed for a second before walking to the door. It was a white lily. She stared at it for a second before picking it up by the stem, twirling it between her fingertips. Akiva had remembered the way they were sold by the bundle in the street markets of France, ushering them to visiting tourists or advertising the abundance of botanical gardens. It was so perfect, each petal fresh and seemingly untouched, as if it were just plucked. 

She set it to the side, gathering her combat suit in her hands instead. She shook it out before changing her clothes, trying to force her mind to remain blank. Her hair fell around her shoulders as she zipped up one boot after the other, not bothering to tie it up and out of her face. Her movements were robotic, falling into a rhythm as her headspace morphed into an empty void.

Today was the day. 

Akiva glanced out her window before opening the door and heading out, pleading to the gods that the sun would shine on her again. It was either the end of an era or the beginning of a new one.