Scoffing at Tradition (M'Baku x Black!Reader)

Prequel (Spoilers Ahead!)

Your patience grew thin as worried eyes scanned the snowy landscape, desperately searching for the Jabarian men to reveal any signal of their return. You remember the day he left the mountain as if it was yesterday.

News rung out of the late King T'Chaka's death, which meant more than ever that the kingdom needed the next successor. You knew that T'Challa had returned from America to be crowned the next Wakandan king, and as a result that meant Challenge Day was to be arranged.

What was Challenge Day exactly? It was a time for the different tribes to rally together and meet at Warrior Falls, causing grounds for a loud ceremonious celebration for the coronation of the new king. It was not only a time of celebration, but to grant those of royalty a fair chance to challenge the king-to-be (who would be stripped of his heightened abilities of the heart shaped herb) to a battle of strength in hopes of taking the throne.

It was... tradition. Something that you knew M'Baku held close to his heart since the day you knew him. It didn't help that you grew up so close to one another (one would say without you attached to his hip, he wouldn't have been able to make such conscious decisions for his people), but the two of you held different stances about your own culture.

M'Baku loved the traditional old ways of the Jabari tribe, knowing that respect from the elders is what fueled him to be better than the rest. There was nothing better than the safety of knowing exactly where the will of the people was headed as the generations of old laid it out for us perfectly.

However, (Y/N) couldn't care less. You were more interested in building from the old to bring new and innovative ways to your people if it meant advancing towards a better future. You couldn't help but applaud Princess Shuri for being able to use her smarts to bring Wakanda into a new and advanced technological age.

Hence, the two opposing forces always found themselves butting heads about anything. Their arguments could range from serious matters about the kingdom to introducing new vegetarian recipes at dinner to setting a simple curfew for the village teenagers. M'Baku swears up and down the mountain that (Y/N) still doesn't understand the concept of vegetarianism. Or was she really letting his joke go by unnoticed ears because his ass is lean as hell?

There was never a dull day with him and his traditionalist ideals. You knew that M'Baku would die if tradition laid out word for word how. But what you did not expect was the booming proclamation from the thick-headed Jabarian chief himself in the middle of his daily trip to your clinic.

The doors flew open, causing a stir in the room with those in waiting. Instead of getting caught up in the chaos, (Y/N) continued to work on patching her little patient. You remained completely unfazed by the fact that M'Baku was standing there on the other side of the table, his arms extended out wide while holding the toothy-est grin he has ever had.

"My people, I have come with great news!" M'Baku's booming voice filled the space. The children ran to his feet and rocked on their heels with obvious excitement to match. Y/N stood up and tugged at one of the gloves, hip leaning against the table as the child you were tending to hopped down to join in with the others.

"You're finally going to share some of those good furs of yours?" you questioned, a thick layer of sarcasm spread over your words, which was easily detected by M'Baku. He shot his gaze to you, knowing that these daily quips of yours were part of a routine.

"These are royal furs, Y/N," he said, running both hands down the two darkened pelts of fur on his shoulders. Hushed giggles circled around him once he continued. "Passed down from the great Jabarian chiefs that came before me all according to–"

"Tradition," you cut him off by finishing his sentence and moved your gloveless hand to your right cheek, causing your head to tilt a little to the same side.