Afire Love- Paladin Danse x Reader (COMPLETE)

tour of duty

i just realized prydwyn was spelled prydwen not prydwyn ahaha i'm so stupid
"It's been too long since I've been aboard..."
The paladin said to himself. "There's Captain Kells. Follow me and stay calm."
The two of you walked down the wing to the main walkway, where a man stood facing you two.
"Permission to come aboard, sir," Danse greeted him.
"Permission granted. Welcome back, Paladin. It's my honor to congratulate you on a successful mission," the man said. "Is this our new recruit?" he added, turning to you.
"Yes, sir. I've promoted her to the rank of Initiate and would personally sponsor her entry."
"Yes, we read your report. Elder Maxson has approved your request and placed her in your charge."
"Thank you, sir. And my current orders?"
"You are to remain on the Prydwen and await further instruction."
"Very good, sir. Ad Victoriam, Captain," Danse said, saluting to him.
"Ad Victoriam, Paladin."
Danse walked off and waited by a flight of stairs.
"I guess Paladin Danse decided to take you under his wing." He looked you over. "You don't look like a soldier to me..."
"Let's hope I can prove you wrong," you said firmly.
He smirked at you. "I think we're going to get along nicely. But let me tell you- we came to the Commonwealth with a specific goal in mind. And as the captain of the vessel, I won't allow anyone to jeopardize our mission, no matter what their rank is. Understood?"
"Understood," you echoed.
"Excellent. As of now, your orders are to proceed to the Command Deck for the address, after which Elder Maxson wishes to have a word with you. You are dismissed." Captain Kells turned and walked away.
The Command Deck...
You found Danse talking to a scribe beside the set of stairs. He saw you coming and excused himself.
"How was it?" He asked, walking up to you.
"It went well. I think he likes me. He told me to go to the Command Deck. Where's that?"
"Just up the stairs, through the door. I'll be waiting by the ladder inside when you're done."
"Thanks, Paladin."
You went up the stairs to the door, where a soldier in power armor greeted you. "If you're here for the address, Elder Maxson is through there," he said, nodding toward the door.
"Thank you, sir," you replied.
You opened the door to a small room. There was a set of stairs leading down to what looked like a control room. In front of you was a ladder leading to the upper deck, where Danse was to meet you. Beyond that was another room where a man stood in front of a crowd of people.
That must be the address, you thought. You wove around the staircase and into the room.
The man talking to the people looked rather intimidating. The way he held himself said dangerous. His jet black hair was shaved at the sides, and he grew a beard from the sides of his cheeks. What put you off the most was the long scar drawn across his cheek. You immediately knew this was Elder Maxson, and he had earned his rank.
"Brothers and sisters," he began, "the road behind has been log and fraught with difficulty. Each and every one of you has surpassed my expectations by rapidly facilitating our arrival in the Commonwealth." Maxson began pacing across the room. "You have accomplished this amazing feat without a hint of purpose or direction, and most importantly, without question. Now that the ship is in position, it is time to reveal our purpose and our mission." He turned to face a window that showed the whole of the Boston airport. "Beneath the Commonwealth, there is a cancer, known as the Institute, a malignant growth that needs to be cut before it infects the surface." You remembered the first time you saw a synth, the piecing amber eyes staring at you through the dim light. It sent a shiver down your spine. Disgusting.
Maxson turned back around. "They are experimenting with dangerous technologies that could prove to be the world's undoing for the second time in recent history. The Institute scientists have created a weapon that transcends the destructive nature of the atom bomb. They call their creation the synth, a robotic abomination of technology that is free-thinking and masquerades as a human being. The notion that a machine could be granted free will is not only offensive, but horribly dangerous. And, like the atom, if it isn't harnessed properly, it has the potential of rendering us extinct as a species. I am not prepared to allow the Institute to continue this line of experimentation. Therefore, the Institute and their synths are considered enemies of the Brotherhood of Steel, and should be dealt with swiftly and mercilessly. This campaign will be costly, and many lives will be lost. But in the end, we will be saving humankind from its worst enemy... itself. Ad Victoriam!"
"Ad Victoriam!" you said back along with everyone else.
As the crowd dissipated, you approached the Elder, who was looking out the window again.
"Excuse me, Elder."
"I care about them, you know. The people of the Commonwealth. Our people," he said quietly, not looking back.
"Yes, I could tell from your speech. It was very inspiring, you know."
"It needed to be. They need to see that the people are in danger, and we're the only ones who can pull them back from the edge. I won't let the mistakes of the past happen again."
"You've got me convinced."
"Paladin Danse made your feelings toward the Brotherhood very clear in his report. He concludes you'll be an asset to us. And because Danse is one of my most respected field officers, you couldn't get a better recommendation. So from this moment forward, I'm granting you the rank of Knight. With that, we've provided you with a suit of power armor to use in battle. Wear it with pride."
"Thank you, sir. I'll live up to it."
"I know you will. Once you've finished getting to know the place, report to the flight deck for your orders. Welcome to the the Brotherhood," he said, saluting to you. You copied him and began to walk away.
"Also, Knight, one more thing," he said. He turned and motioned for you to come over. "We have a rule here." He had suddenly taken on a serious, almost scary, tone. "It's not to spoil the fun, but to keep us in line and focused on our duties, and an anonymous member of the Brotherhood reported that you might have come a bit too close to breaking it. So I'm here to tell you-" he knelt down to speak directly into your ear, his cold breath making you shiver- "you are to not be engaged in a romantic relationship without anyone aboard this ship, or in the Brotherhood of Steel. Is that clear?"
"I- I understand, sir," you said, your voice shaking. Is this what Danse and Haylen were talking about this morning? What would Elder Maxson say if he found out?
Is this what Danse wanted to tell you before he let you fall asleep on his shoulder?
Why didn't anyone say anything?
Why didn't he tell you?
"Good," he said, leaning back out. "I trust you'll accept it into your life, or there will be... consequences. You are dismissed."
You left the room in a rush, completely brushing past Paladin Danse, who was waiting where he said he'd be. You walked out the door, down the steps, down the catwalk. It was night now.
"Hey, wait!" Danse called after you. "What happened back there?"
You ignored his calls and kept walking. You just wanted to think right now. He knew. You had reached the end of the catwalk now. He knew he wasn't allowed to do that. This part overlooked some abandoned military base. He wasn't allowed to sleep next to me, or run his fingers through my hair. You sat down behind the railing, letting your feet dangle from the edge and resting your head on the railing.
But he still did.
A heavy thumping followed you, which soon gave way to a quiet hissing sound. Danse sat down with you. You glanced over at him. He had gotten out of his armor.
"You don't have to say anything. But if you want to, please tell me what's going on. I want to know."
You remained quiet for a minute. "Paladin," you started. He looked up to you.
"How much do you care about me?"
He looked out to the horizon.
"If I told you, the Brotherhood would shoot me on sight. I'll leave that for you to think about."
You sat in silence with him for a while, staring off into the distance
"Ok," he said after a while. "We need to show you around." He stood up and offered you his hand. You giggled and took it. He lifted you up delicately and led you back to the Command Deck.
"What about your power armor?" you asked.
"Oh, I'll just leave it. It's not going anywhere."
You walked up the stairs with him and back through the door. "Climb up the ladder," he told you as you started to climb. It led to a huge cavity, the inside of the blimp. The paladin led you down every twist and turn, introducing you to everyone. Proctor Quilan, who was head of research development. Proctor Ingram, head of engineering. She explained why the vertibirds were louder during takeoff and landing, but you got lost somewhere in the middle of it. Proctor Teagan, the quartermaster. Knight- Captain Cade was the doctor.
"And here's your room," Danse said, pointing at a cot with a metal crate and the foot of it.
"This isn't a room!" you exclaimed. "This is a bunkhouse," you added, looking at all the other beds around you, some of them occupied.
"Joking, joking," he said defensively. "Look on the bright side. Next time you get promoted, you'll have your own quarters."
"When I'm a Paladin, like you?"
"Right."
You grinned at him. "Do you have a room?"
"Of course I do, I'm a Paladin."
"Can I see it?"
(a/n: no there's not gonna be smut it sounds like it's leading up to it but it's not I promise)
Danse shrugged. "Sure. This way."
You followed him back to the ladder and turned to the right. "This is it," he said, grabbing a key from one of his many pockets and unlocking the door. He opened it to let you in first and closed it behind him.
His room wasn't very special. There was a bed in the middle of the room, a desk off to the side, and a dresser across the room from that. A Brotherhood of Steel flag hung on a pole.
"Sorry if you were expecting something," he said. "I don't pay much attention to things like this."
Something on the desk caught your eye. You walked over to it and smiled. You flipped the radio on and turned up the volume as Danse sat down on the bed.
-they drop that bomb.
Crawl out through the fallout,
With the the greatest of aplomb.
"Do you dance?" You asked him.
"Oh, um," he said, his face bright red. "No. Well, not anymore."
You crossed your arms and smiled before pulling him to his feet. He blushed even more and went stiff. You laughed and put a hand on his shoulder and grabbed his hand with your free one. He smiled and let his hand rest on your hip and squeezed your hand as you began to dance together.
When you hear me call out
Baby, kick the wall out
And crawl out through the fallout
Back to me
The tempo picked up in the final verses, but the two of you swayed together as one.
Why don't you crawl out through the fallout back to me?
Why don't you crawl out through the fallout back to me?
Why don't you crawl you through the fallout back to... me?
The tempo began to slow as Danse raised up his arm. An implicit message. You twirled around a few times, your hair spiraling from the motion, before the last downbeat. The last downbeat, where you stood inches away from his face, your arms around his neck, his hands on your hips. His dark eyes taking in every inch of you. His mouth gaping open, not just because he was out of breath. In that moment you felt safe. It felt like you were the only people in the world. And at the same time, you couldn't breathe. Not until he pulled you even closer, at least. Not until he didn't even give you enough time to whisper his name. Not until he sent sparks through your body, or until he ran his gentle fingers through your hair.
In that moment, you both knew.
This was right. This was how it was supposed to be.
But then again, it wasn't.