The Wings of a Valkyrie: Male Reader x Pyrrha Nikos (Part II)

Chapter VI: In His Eyes

Author's Note: Due to popular demand, I have uploaded this chapter early. Please know that the next part will not be out for quite some time, as I have no more chapters ready, and writing even a single chapter takes hours and is often a multi day process.

It all seemed very surreal. Everything was still and the forest had gone completely silent, save the crackling of the small fire. A light gust of wind caused the leaves on the ground to dance in the air in the space between (F/N) and Pyrrha, until the breeze carried them away.

The two continued to stare at each other with wide eyes. It was several seconds before Pyrrha began to slowly walk towards him, almost like she was sleepwalking. She stopped before him, her hands slowly coming up to remove the hood that obscured his face. (F/N) exhaled calmly but heavily as he felt her hands on either side of his face. He bowed his head, his hair falling into his eyes. Pyrrha moved her hands from his face and locked her arms around his neck, and (F/N) gently placed his hand on the back of her head, placing his forehead against hers.

A wide array of emotions swelled in their hearts and tears fell from their closed eyes. Their hearts beat as one and their breathing synced. Neither wanted to let the other go, but after several minutes, they separated.

Pyrrha looked the same as (F/N) remembered. Her red hair danced like the autumn leaves in the cool breeze and her cheeks glistened with tears that fell from her green eyes but did not mar her beauty. She looked just as beautiful as she had appeared in (F/N)'s dreams, if not more so.

(F/N)'s appearance on the other hand had changed to a point almost beyond recognition. His hair had grown in the four months since Pyrrha had last seen him. His facial features were mostly hidden behind a wiry beard that covered the lower half of his face. What the hair didn't cover looked like it had been weathered by exposure to the elements, lines creeping along his forehead and under his eyes, almost as if his true age were trying to claw its way out from behind the youthful mask. To most, he would have been unrecognizable, but Pyrrha saw him. It was his eyes that gave him away. They were, undeniably, older and tired, but they still held the same gentle tenderness that Pyrrha had come to love, and it was through this that she truly recognized him.

"How did you find me?"

"Ozpin."

(F/N) grunted. "That man needs to learn to mind his own damn business." He said to himself. The sound of Pyrrha sniffling drew his attention back to the present.

"(F/N)," she began shakily, "I am so, so sorry."

"Don't." (F/N) interrupted. "You don't have anything to apologize for."

"Yes, yes I do. I keep reliving that day over and over again. You needed me, but I let you go. All because I was scared of what everyone would think of me. I'm a coward."

"If anyone's a coward it's me." (F/N) said. "I lied to you Pyrrha. All I ever did was lie to you."

"Only because you didn't want me to see you that way. You told me if I knew what you'd done I wouldn't look at you the same, and you were right."

"Still," He said, "you deserved better. You should have heard it from me, not somebody on the street."

"It doesn't matter." Pyrrha said, taking an eager step closer to (F/N). "None of that matters now. I'm here. I found you. And this time, I'm not letting you go."

Gently, she placed the palms of her hands on (F/N)'s chest. Rising on the balls of her feet, she angled her chin upwards, eyes closed and mouth open, waiting expectantly for (F/N)'s lips to meet her own. When they didn't, she pulled back in confusion. His gaze was askance, eyes directed at the ground as he avoided looking at her.