ʜ ᴇ ʀ ᴏ // Teldryn Sero

o.2.1 // hibiscus

——
No one's POV
——

Rhea sat at the desk yet again, one hand tangled in her hair while the other wrote frantically in her journal. The sound of the quill scratching on the parchment was the lone sound in Honeyside, along with the crackling of wood in the fireplace. It was oddly comforting to a weary soul as the Dragonborn's. However, it was not as comforting to the Dunmeri Sellsword that sat at the table next to her.

Teldryn didn't want to distract his partner, but he had to do something, yes? She had been working for days on end with this...shout - thing. It was awfully annoying to watch his employer forget all of her other duties, so the elf stood up, walking over to the cooking pot.

Rhea didn't notice at all.

This shouldn't be too difficult, right? The dunmer thought as he grabbed a few ingredients from the cupboard. Perfect. Teldryn added some dried hibiscus flowers to a cup, starting to boil some water over the fire. Once the water had come to a boil, he slowly poured it into the cup.

"Fuck-!"

Teldryn bit his tongue, quickly looking back at Rhea. Again, she hadn't moved. He wrapped his burning finger in a towel and continued his methods.

Finally, he grabbed a jar of fresh honey and poured a bit into the cup. With a final stir and a strain of the petals, the gorgeous pink concoction was complete.

Hibiscus tea.

Teldryn grinned, taking the cup over to the table and setting it in front of the Dragonborn. Rhea finally looked up, seeing the cup placed between her and the inkwell. She frowned before turning to see Teldryn above her with a proud smirk.

She smiled. "Tel, what's this?" She chuckled, setting down her quill to take a sip of the tea. The warmth flooded her veins, sending a shiver down her spine. Rhea hummed, setting the cup down.

Teldryn watched, hands folded together. "You like-? I tried to make it how i used to, but that was...centuries ago." He drawled. Rhea nodded.

"It's lovely, Teldryn. Thank you." She sighed, leaning back in her chair. The moment was sweet until-

The damned Nord went back to writing.

Teldryn scowled. "I made you tea, and you just go back to writing? Gods, you're insufferable." He huffed.

Rhea raised an eyebrow, glancing up at him from her pages. "I'm insufferable? I'm lucky to be able to have this amount of silence, you goofy fucking elf." She scoffed.

Teldryn gave her the finger. "Oh, fine. I can clearly tell when I'm not wanted, you jackass. That's the last kind thing i'll ever do for you."

Rhea rolled her eyes. "How mature, dickhead. I'm trying not to get my own ass murdered in Apocrypha." She sat her quill down, pinching the bridge of her nose.

...

A crack of laughter was heard. Barking laughter. Teldryn cackled, covering his mouth and taking his seat. Soon, Rhea's own laughter came.

The Nord wiped her eyes. "Oh my Gods, Teldryn, you're such a brat." She giggled, taking a deep breath.

The Dunmer grinned, propping his elbows against the table. "And you're so serious. By Azura, do you know how your face looked?"

"Shut up!"

———

A knock sounded at the door. Hours had passed and Rhea was meditating over the shout she had come up with. She opened an eye, scowling. Teldryn, who was sprawled across the bed whilst reading a book, looked up.