Baldur x Reader

Fifteen

With a hiss, you danced over the ankle deep snow and tried not to stay too long in one spot. The cold bit your skin, stabbed into the soles of your feet and made it unbearable to walk.

With weak steps, you tried to keep up with Baldur, who walked as unbothered as one could be.

His steps were strong, making the ground shiver and his posture was straightened by pride.

As you watched him, you noticed how graceful he looked. Godlike almost.

Lost in thoughts and with your eyes glued to the blue tattoos on his back, you followed him like the lost puppy of a wolf.

But all of a sudden a sharp pain chased through your foot. With a shrill scream, you lost balance and fell to the ground.

Blood poured out of the sole, corrupting the pure snow and swelling into the earth.

Alarmed by the sound of your suffering, Baldur stopped. His eyes fell onto the red puddle and the splatters that covered your leg.

Wordlessly, he squatted down and offered you a hand.

At first you tried to get up by yourself. But the strength had disappeared from your legs, leaving you with nothing but numb limbs.

"You can't get up?", Baldur asked.

You shook your head. This made you feel weak and all just because of a small stone.

"I- I can't move...", you said ashamed. "My legs. They don't work anymore."

Tilting his head, he eyed your legs for a moment before grabbing you by the shoulders and pulling you up gently. It seemed as if you had no weight, at least none that could bother him.

"Hold on tight.", he said and pulled you onto his back so you could wrap your arms around his shoulder.

Breathing out softly, you tightened your grip, pressing your chest tightly against his back. The warmth of blood crawled over your leg and down your toes to draw a line of red dots into the snow.

"Baldur?", you asked after a while of silence.

The snow crunched underneath his feet while the birds chirped in the sky.

With every movement, his muscles moved as well. He was defined, athletic. His body was like a story and each movement told a new chapter, a new detail that his mouth refused to share.

You patted his shoulder, harsh enough for him to notice.

"Hm?", he stopped on top of some ruins to look down into a valley.

A single house was hiding between the trees. Steam rose from its chimney. It looked cozy, yet a bit sad as if there had been no effort to make it beautiful.

Taken by curiosity, you pushed yourself up to be able to see over his head and took a closer look.

"A house?", you asked. "What are we doing here?"

With surprising care, he slowly squatted down to place you on a stone.

"I'm here to hunt a Guardian.", he said and glanced over his shoulder.

You frowned.

"A what?"

"A Guardian. The Jötunn Guardian."

"Who's that?"

He huffed, gifting you a soft smile. His hand rose to your cheek again and squeezed to refresh the mark.

"You truly don't know anything, do you?", he asked and grabbed a strand of your (H/C) hair to twist it between his fingers. "How innocent you are despite the curse."

Blushing, you avoided his gaze and turned away to look at the house again.

"Will you hurt them?", you asked. "Maybe they'll just give you what you want if you ask nice."

He shook his head.

"I don't want to fight.", he moved his fingers, one by one and clenched them into a fist. "But if it's a necessary evil, I'm willing to."

You grabbed his arm.

"Be kind.", you asked of him.

A chuckle escaped him.

"You're too naive for this world, little butterfly. They won't give me what I want. They never do."

"Take me with you then."

"For you to get hurt?"

With a guilty shimmer in your eyes, you sighed.

"I'm sorry that I cant be of use to you.", you smiled and reached out to scratch the shaved sides of his hair. "But I have patience. Maybe I'll be able to convince them."

For a moment, his eyes locked with yours. (E/C) kissed the bright blue of his.

Not a single word was said in those moments. Nobody moved.

All you did was stare at him while his eyes refused to leave you.

All of a sudden, embarrassment made your face burn. You were still stroking through his short hair. And even though he didn't feel it, at least not in a way that could be considered comforting, you found it embarrassing.

At the same time it made you feel awfully close to him. Maybe a little too close.

Blinking, you swallowed hard and pulled away.

As soon as your hands left him, the expression on his face changed. But he didn't complain.

"You're fragile, little butterfly.", he finally said and got up. "This world hates fragile things. It grabs them and squeezes so hard that they shatter. But it would be a shame if you'd break. Your weakness brings me great joy. It's the closest I've felt to a real emotion for decades. I won't put it on the line."

With an amused smirk on his bearded face, he turned away and walked to the edge of the ruins. His eyes fell onto the house in the distance. A twitch chased through his eyes. His shoulder tensed and his hands clenched into fists.

But before leaving, Baldur threw another glance back at you. His lips formed a word while he drew a symbol onto his chest with two fingers.

Confused, you frowned and grabbed your neck out of reflex.

The amulet brushed against the tip of your fingers. Surprised, a soft gasp escaped your cracked lips as you noticed how warm it felt all of a sudden.

"It's not doing wonders.", he said. "But it will call me to your side whenever you need invulnerability. My invulnerability."

Without another word he turned around and jumped into the sky with such force that a shockwave hit you in the face.