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Pyro, Scott, Drift and Shelby were walking back to his and Scott's dorms, making their way through the felles hallways as pyro tried to stop his spinning brain. they had split off from the rest of the group, walking pyro back to his separate dorm, and it was quiet, painfully quiet, pyro knew it was his fault though. He knew that they knew if they tried to check on him, he would just snap at them, that's what they thought anyways, and to be fair he usually would, he just didn't have the energy.
Their head hurt like it was being clamped by a vice, waves of nausea rolling over him as his vision swayed. A hand landed on his arm, not holding him up, just there grounding, scott didnt look at him, and pyro would never admit how good his cool hands felt. The cold boy just kept staring forward as they walked, falling after pyro steadied his steps.
“Pyro are you…” drift started trailing off as they tried her best to check on him without damaging his ego.
“Well no, I'm sorry if I'm not all right, I did just escape being hung in a fucking bird cage for a week, so I'm sorry if I’m not allright” sweat beaded on his forehead and he wiped it off running his hands through his hair in the process.
“Hey” scott said, seemingly void if any emotion as his eyes cold as his skin as he looked at him, giving him a look with those deep locked away purple eyes, they used to look so bright and full, no, maybe they always looked like this, maybe he just didn't look at pyro like that anymore. His stomach churned his anxiety and migraines and exhaustion fighting to take over his body. How he could be so tired after spending most of the last week sleeping the day away in a tight cage.
“Im sorry, im sorry rea;lly i just…” pyro trailed off as they reached his dorm, and they slipped inside without another word.
The heat of his dorm enveloped him immediately, feeling sticky and wrong against his already practically burning skin. He dropped his bag to let cinder run around, too tired to try and control her, and flopped into their bed.
A sigh escaped them as they barely registered the hushed conversations and bootsteps of people walking away, two people.
“You two go ill make sure he takes care of himself” scott wasn't sure why he volunteered, ok maybe he knew exactly why. But that wasn't the point.
“Are you shure…” shelby questioned
“You guys dont exactly seem to… how do i put this”
“Get along” drift deadpanned filling in shelbys blank
“It's okay, I won't smother him in his sleep” Scott promised before shooing them quietly out of pyros dorm. He sighed, moving to check on his sleeping collapsed form, smiling as Aurora wriggled out of the backpack to go cuddle up with cinder on the blankets kicked to the end of the bed. Pyro was hot scott pressed the palm of his hand to his forehead, and yes, it was lovely for Scott because he was so cold all the time, but pyro certainly didn't seem to be enjoying it, so wet some towels trying his best to keep them cold in the hot room but giving up and making tea for when he woke up.
Hen Scott set down the tea on the bedside table leaning over pyro to check his temperature one more time, pressing his palm to his forehead, yup definitely still hot, pyro did the weirdest thing. His head buried into Scott's side from his seated position on the side of the bed, curling into the coolness emanating off scotts side, yup definitely still asleep, so scott stayed, he watched their dragons fight in the sleep, stretching and them rolling over each other, each trying to rd the other but leaning into each others polar temperature, Scott sighed, their dragons really were too much like them.
When pyro awoke, he was pressed into cold, strange he though, but he curled into it anyway, he was so hot and his head still hurt like Cindy's claws, or Scott's still cool gaze, speaking of scott
“Pyro?”
“Pyro.”
“I need you to get up, you've been sleeping on me for an hour and even i want to go to sleep soon, so will you get up and drink this ice tea and stop whimpering in your sleep” you, scott, because of course it was scott, who where they kidding someone this cold and and unaffected by his heat. Pyro sighed pushing himself up groggily and wincing as pain speed through his head
“Here” a cold mug was pressed into his hands, everything still a bit blurry as he took a sip of the almost frozen liquid.
It was chamomile, but it tasted like peppermint, he remembered. Pyro paused halfway from bringing the mug to their lips again.
“Yes i remembered, its not that big of a deal, now drink” scott said flicking the bottom of the mug so it jolted towards their mouth, pyro did his mind reeling. He had always had chronic migraines as a kid. He was surprised Scott would remember that, not like how Pyro remembered every little detail of Scott, engraving them into his memory like a lifeline. But no, he remembered this, how chamomile tea always helped with his head but he hated the flavor so scott would always fill it with mint so he could stand it, pyro love mint, it reminded him of scott.
Once he was done he felt much better but he was still so warm, leaning into Scott's hand as he pressed it to his forehead before trailing it all the way down his jaw, some temperature check I mean really what was his goal to make his face any more red that it already was? Pyro sighed though, involuntarily leaning into the cool hand and humming with pleasure.
“You are really hot” scott whispered almost to himself, pyro felt butterflies in their chest even though he knew the real meaning.
Scott sighed long and heavy before whispering
“Would you like me to stay and help keep you cool?” and to be honest pyro wanted nothing more, ok maybe he would rather kiss the ice mage or have him be his or have them not fight but he nodded quickly taking what he could get outside the fantasy relay and letting out a breath of relief as Scott scooted down in the bed next to him getting comfortable before letting pyro wrap around him quietly, he was shivering and leaned into pyros body heat as their temperatures somewhat evened out. Scott's hands slowly drifted from his face to his neck and collar bones, moving slowly over his upper body, smoothing out folds in his clothes and soothing himself and pyro in some odd way.
“Hey scott” pyro whispered
“Yeah?” his hands stilled on each side of the base of their neck.
“I, you know I would still run away, if given the chanse” scott tensed slightly, involuntarily shifting away at the sensitive topic
“But! I need you to know that I regretted it everyday, I missed you but I needed a purpose Scott, I needed a story, i know you don’t understand and probably never will but i just… i dont want this- this rift between us to keep growing” scott leaned back in hands moving to the top of his neck and pulling pyro down to his lips, it was quick and full of emotion and something pyro couldn't quite discern, just like he had that day by their lake. The day pyro had left, where Scott found him and kissed him, just like this, tying off their situationship with a little blue bow and then letting him leave, letting him leave? no, what could he have done to stop pyro from going, not much, tell them he loved him maybe?
Pyro was exploring Scott's mouth, finding every spot that made him squirm, dragging his tongue along the roof of his mouth, and even nipping at his lip. It was crazy and wild and Scott was doing it too, exploring, memorising, taking pyro in.
Pyro hummed into the kiss hands moving to tangle into Scott's hair, he wanted them closer, even as the kiss ended and scott stayed close he pulled him closer, cold skin mingling with theirs, he ignored the tears on his cheeks at whatever they were, he just pulled him closer and closer and closer.
“Pyro” scott said, his voice was less gruff now, letting the tiniest spark of emotion into it, progress, they hummed as acknowledgement.
“I really did love you youknow”
All pyro heard was did,
Did,
Did,
Did.
Because of course he fucked up his chance whith the ice mage, maybe he did regret leaving a little, maybe now he would have stayed, whatever, it didn’t matter now.
“There's still a chance i can” scott was tucked into his chest, not meeting their eyes as he whispered this. Pyro sighed
“I loved you two, im not sure i ever really stopped loving you, i mean i know i didn’t write but nobody wanted to bring a letter to one of the most remote mountain towns in the world, and neither did i, maybe i would have if it was easier, but then i would have been acknowledging what i was loosing, and i- i dont think i could have done it then.”
“Do you… do you want to try again?” Scott whispered a cold breath on his warm neck. The fire mage nodded, and so Scott pulled him down for another kiss, this one slower and more intimate.Pyro's hands were wrapped firmly around his waist holding him close as they kissed, and sure he was still mad, but he had wanted this for so, so long.
When Scott woke he was warm.
He was almost never warm and it took him a moment to realize that the warmth was not his but was pyros, wafting of the mage as they curled close into him, Scott's hands still rested on their collar noses, his palms now thrumming with a pleasant warmth as pyro breathed into the corner of his neck. Cindy and Aurora were still curled at the bottom of the bed, tucked into each other's temperature vinyl wing flung over Aurora as the cold dragon pushed her snout under the warm one. He sighed shifting under pyros tight grip, he was hungry, so she shoved the fire mage a bit.
He mphed and pulled himself somehow closer, and yes the heat felt lovely but let a man prepare some breakfast for the love of god. So he shoved a pyro one more time, with enough force from his muscles to send him flopping to the other side of the bed with a groan.
Scott moved to pyro's small kitchen fixing some pancakes with a simple recipe.
So when hands wrapped around his waist he startled because excuse you he was tired but relaxed into pyros warmth. Dagmeare had buried his face into Scott's neck clearly chasing his cold skin, especially near his head. Scott let him for a moment before turning in their arms to press his palm on their forehead once more. He was considerably less warm than before, but still stiflingly hot against Scott's cold skin.
“Morning to you too” scott said, wriggling out of pyro’s hold to flip his pancakes, pyro followed however to lean against the counter next to him, eyes tracking Scott's movements. They stood like that for a while, in silent harmony, a big change from just yesterday, most of the tense atmosphere resolved. Scott shoved a plate of pancakes into pyro's hands before moving himself to the couch to make himself comfortable, pyro joined him a moment later sitting close enough that their sides were pressed together, and Scott could admit he leaned into him. Pyro cut a piece of pancake popping it into his mouth and pausing, after he chewed he whispered quietly,
“It tastes like my mothers” his voice was raw and quiet and it hurt Scott more than he was willing to admit.
“She taught me, she taught me how to make them not long after you left, i figured- sorry if this was wrong of me to assume, but i figured you would appreciate it if i made them for you” scott said, a little worried now that he had hurt pyros feelings, what did it matter though, hed hurt scott, scott shook that thought off. He felt a wave of warmth wash over him as pyro shook his head, laying their head on his shoulder as he continued to eat his pancakes. Once he was done and both of their plates were set on the coffee table, Scott folded into him a little more, curling up into pyro’s warmth, I mean really though did this man have any blankets besides the one the dragons were currently inhabiting, pushed to the end of his bed. Now that Scott was here the room had moved to more of a normal temperature, not the usual freezing walls and icicle covered beams of scotts, but not as warm as before either, so he relied on pyro for warmth. Pyro wrapped an arm around him, pulling him in for a kiss. Scott still tucked into his side, he no longer had to lean down the tiniest inch, an inch pyro would never admit, as his posture made them on the same level, it was an intimate kiss, where their foreheads touched and lips pressed hard. Less like their others, less like where they fought for dominance, they agreed, they shared. It was quiet and calm and they sat there for a long time quietly kissing over the taste of pancakes and each other's calming temperatures. Light wafted from the window that stretched one wall, and Scott could hear their dragons waking up in the lofts, continuing their perpetual fighting, little stories and the sounds of wings flapping filling the quiet moments. It was quiet and peaceful and Scott had missed this, he hadn't even realized this, not the kissing, no, they'd only really ever kissed once before he left, pyro, just pyro. His heta hsi expressions and little faces, and how Scott could, always, always read him.
A knock sounded on the door, and they pulled apart, lips a little red, and faces tinted pink, still tangled closely together.
“Scooot, pyroooo”
It was shelby
“Please tell me you guys didn't kill each other in your sleep,” and drift, of course it was both of them
“If you slept at all” shelby whispered quietly, giggling sounded from the other side of the door, pyro sighed slipping of the couch and trying to put on his grumpy face again, but Scott pulled him down for one more quick kiss, whispering in his ear,
“im coming over again tonight, you better get used to this” scott said, before letting go of his shirt collar. Now Scott was good at making him angry, but apparently he was good at making him blush too. He moved to the door, still in his rumpled clothes from the door, that made Scott unconsciously rub down his pants, his shirt too tight to wrinkle.
“Pyro opened the door, before coming back to flop down, on the other side of the couch to scott now, he made a fake pouty face before returning to his usual monotone look.
“Goodmoooorniiing!!” drift sing-songed coming into the room with a hop in her step while Shelby went to go grab one of the pancakes still in a slightly warm pile, her eyes lit up as she shoved the half eaten pancake at drift, wordlessly telling her to take a bit, she did and immediately went to get her own. So here the four of them were sitting on the couch eating pancakes while Shelby and drift quietly came up with theories on what happened last night and why no banter had happened so far from the two quiet men.