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Fafnir watched the steady rise and fall of Makoto’s chest as he slept, it had been awhile since the dragon had last watched the human throughout the night and he had almost forgotten how mesmerizing it was.
The way his body would twitch in reaction to whatever occured in the dream, the occasional smile if it was something pleasant, and if Fafnir listened closely he could hear the heavy beating of the sleeping mans heart.
In recent times if he so desired he could move closer to the man's stomach and hear their child’s heartbeat, faster than Makoto’s but just as strong. He was beginning to do just that when Makoto's dream apparently took a turn, Fafnir watched as his face twisted slightly and his body jerked more.
When he let out a distressed noise Fafnir ran a hand through his hair, something that soothed Makoto even when he was asleep, tonight however it did little to help. After another moment passed and it was clear the dream was only getting worse Fafnir lightly shook his shoulder, an action that caused Makoto to jolt awake.
He looked around in confusion before settling on Fafnir, a mixture of emotions flashed through before he finally gave the dragon a small smile. “Sorry, didn’t mean to disturb you. If you’d like I can sleep on the couch?”
Fafnir stared at the man for a moment before shaking his head, “I don’t mind.”
Makoto’s smile became more genuine at hearing that and he laid back down, “alright, but if I wake you up again i’ll be sure to move.”
Fafnir said nothing on how he didn’t need as much sleep as the human and that most nights he was merely resting his eyes, he also noted that Makoto laid facing away from him this time and after a moment of hesitation Fafnir layed down and put his arms around the other.
Makoto had mentioned once whilst drunk that he liked being held by the other and Fafnir did feel some odd emotion when he held the man. Yet tonight Makoto remained tense and even after a few hours his breathing had not slowed down nor had his heart.
By the time his phone chimed to signal it was time to start the day Fafnir knew that Makoto had not slept at all since the nightmare. Yet the human still rose and greeted him with a smile, and he went about the small apartment doing what he usually did each morning.
Soon Fafnir was handed a simple breakfast which he took with a nod, when the other failed to sit with him he stared at the human who was looking elsewhere with a hand on his stomach. Feeling eyes on him he snapped out of his thoughts and gave Fafnir a guilty look, “sorry I’m not eating with you, but I woke up feeling really nauseous. I’m pretty sure if I ate anything it wouldn’t stay down.”
Fafnir gave him a hard look before returning to his meal, “eat a larger lunch today then.”
Makoto nodded and looked at the time, “well I guess I’ll be off then. See you tonight, Fafnir.”
With that the human left and Fafnir was left staring at the place he just stood, it wasn’t often Makoto called him anything then Faf-kun and when did use his real name it was in more serious circumstances. His appetite gone Fafnir stood and threw away the rest of his breakfast before sitting down at the computer, he tried to stay focused but his mind kept drifting.
His character died to many times to count and as the hours ticked by his frustration grew, he was a powerful dragon and yet the thought of a mere human having a difficult night was enough to drive under his skin was irritating on it's own. By the time the door opened and Makoto walked in Fafnir had given up playing and was watching some silly anime.
“I’m home.” Fafnir heard how tired he sounded and he crossed his arms tighter, but when the human stepped into view he felt his frustration fizzle away and replaced by something more akin to concern. Makoto didn’t just look exhausted he seemed to radiate it; the dark bags under his eyes were a testament to his lack of sleep, his hair was unmused and looked like it had been run through many times, he was bent over slightly but even then it was obvious to see how tense he was. Yet he still gave the dragon a small smile when he saw his face, and Fafnir felt himself tense at whatever was obviously wrong with the man.
Silence stretched between them and Makoto sucked in a breath before talking, “so I’ve been thinking. You must have some stuff you need to take care of in the other world, right? Like your treasure and your cave to name a few.” Fafnir was having a hard time seeing where this was going and Makoto seemed to steady himself before continuing.
“I think you should go and sort that stuff out-”
“Absolutely not.”
Fafnir was not about to leave his human alone and vulnerable for any length of time, it was out of the question. His vehement refusal seemed to catch Makoto off guard however, “if you’re worried about me I could probably stay with Miss. Kobayashi and Tohru, or even Elma if I made her food.”
At this Fafnir felt a deep growlrumble in his chest at the thought of it and Makoto seemed to jump slightly at the noise.
“Why?”
The question Fafnir asked was simple, yet filled with an endless amount of other questions. Makoto still hadn’t met his eyes and when Fafnir stepped forward the human took half a step back, causing the dragon to freeze. “I would not harm you.”
Makoto looked up immediately, “I know, and I trust you but-” He placed a hand on his slightly distended stomach, and Fafnir tried to recall a time when Makoto had ever seemed so vulnerable before but came up with nothing.
“I’m just being selfish, I thought that if you went now that it would mean you wouldn’t leave later. I know you have things in the other world and even in this one but I- I can’t do this alone. I don’t know what's going to happen towards the end and I’m scared, but the thought of being alone and going through it is terrifying. It’s selfish I know, and you shouldn’t be forced to do anything if you don’t want to.”
Towards the end Makoto was crying and after he finished a hand went to his mouth to muffle a sob. Fafnir had only seen the human tear up a few times in the past but never like this, and the knowledge that he was partially to blame made the pain even worse.
Yet no words formed to comfort Makoto and he found the only thing he could think of was to wrap the human in his arms. Immediately Makoto buried his face in the dragon's neck and after a few moments of the other crying Fafnir decided to tell the truth.
“There is nothing in this world or the other that would make me leave you.”
This seemed to stun Makoto and he pulled back to look at the other, “but isn’t your treasure something very precious to you.”
Fafnir thought for a moment and nodded, “yes but it is not the most precious thing to me.” The words ‘you are’ went unspoken but still hung in the air.