Magi x Reader One Shots

Reassurance | Ja'far x Reader

Ja'far woke with a start.

His heart pounded in his chest at just the mere memory of his reoccurring nightmare. His worries only began to ease once his black eyes adjusted to the darkness and spotted you laying sound asleep in bed beside him. He managed to breathe out a shaky sigh of relief when he realized you were unharmed. It was only a dream. At least, this time it was.

He slowly slid out of bed, being careful not to wake you. The salty breeze of the nearby ocean wafted through his senses and compelled him towards the bedroom balcony. Even the nights in Sindria were warm and beautiful. Not a cloud was to be seen in the starry sky.

Despite the distance between the palace and ocean, Ja'far could perfectly hear the ocean waves crashing onto the large island. It was a soothing sound; one that nearly lulled him back to sleep if it wasn't for his heart-wrenching fear of what he would see in his dreams.

One would assume that after enduring the same nightmare for years, he wouldn't be affected by it any longer. Perhaps that would've been the case if it wasn't you he saw every night.

There's no denying that Ja'far was in a dark place before King Sinbad found him. Committing murder came as natural to him as sleeping or eating did. He didn't care if his victims were old or young, male or female; he saw them as nothing more than a pesky bug in need of being swatted.

That's even how he first thought of you.

You couldn't have been any older than he was at the time; just a small, defenseless little girl who had the misfortune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Despite the deadly weapons Ja'far wielded, you couldn't fear him. Through all of his darkness and all the blood he's spilled, you could perfectly see the small fragment of light buried deep within him just begging to get out.

With a hard tug on one his wires, he easily managed to knock you off your feet. In mere seconds, he hovered over you with the wire blade gripped in his bloody hands, ready to take your life. At least, he would've if he hadn't been so distracted by your curious look. Even with his weapon mere inches away from piercing your body, you didn't scream nor did you cry. The thing you were most concerned about was why a boy your age was committing such unthinkable acts.

"Your suffering won't be eased by causing others pain," you said softly, your [eye color] hues staring up at him without a hint of fear.

He hesitated for the first time since he started killing and that brief hesitation was all the time needed for Sinbad to arrive. Your life was saved and in a way, so was Ja'far's. He was spared the burden of knowing he stole the life of someone as kind-hearted as you. Even so, he could never forget that there was a time when he tried to hurt you, even if it was so very long ago and something you had long since forgiven him for.

Averting his gaze from the sky, he looked down at his pale hands. To anyone else, they were as clean as could be but to him, the stain of blood could never be washed away. It pained him to realize that those were the same hands that threatened to harm you at one point.

These memories refused to leave him, not even in his dreams...

"Couldn't sleep?" you mumbled through a yawn, appearing beside him on the balcony.

"Did I wake you, [name]?" he asked, his tone apologetic.

"No, I needed a drink. I was worried when I noticed you weren't in bed."

Ja'far extended his arm to you and happily accepted his embrace. A shiver went down your spine when a cool breeze blew across the two of you. You snuggled up close to his body for warmth and frowned when you realized his attention was elsewhere. While his left arm was wrapped around your body, his right hand rested on the banister where his eyes examined it with a look that was almost loathful in a way.

"You know," you whispered, placing your head in the crook of his neck, "you've changed a lot since the day we met."

"How are you not afraid of me, [name]? I tried to kill you that day yet you still care for me so much."

"That's the thing; you didn't kill me."

He suddenly pulled away and averted his gaze from yours, guilt strickening his features. "That's only because Sin-"

"No," you said, shaking your head. You cupped his face in your hands and smiled. "You could've killed me before Sinbad got there, but you hesitated and that hesitation gave him enough time to arrive. Ultimately, you're the one who decided to let me live, Ja'far."

Your lips slowly connected with his for a small, yet loving kiss which he so desperately needed. If only for a brief moment, the feeling of your soft lips against his washed away his sorrow.

No words could ever manage to relieve him from his years worth of guilt, but yours managed to lighten his burden ever so slightly.