So, the last chapter ended up being more filler than I had originally intended but this one will have more plot to it. The next post I make will probably be the Blaze x reader oneshot so Blaze girlies keep an eye out for that one!
Warnings: Fem!reader, depictions of violence, death, misunderstanding (I know, I hate it too)
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An mcd!Garroth x Reader (slight mcd!Gene x Reader)
"Why are you here?" The forest floor was cold beneath you and the midnight air failed to bring any extra warmth. There was no way he could see you from his position behind the tree you faced, but that didn't stop you from desperately biting back the shivers your previous distresses had kept hidden.
He chuckled, "Hold on now, you just asked me a question, it's my turn now."
Your scoff was louder than you'd intended but not exactly unwarranted. "What makes you think you're in a position to ask me anything? I'm the one with the sword."
"And I'm the one you didn't notice until I broke a tree branch. Are you still so sure you could catch me if I didn't want you to?"
His words set off every alarm bell your brain had. "I don't need to catch you. You clearly want something from me, or you wouldn't be here right now, and you can't take it by force, or you would have already." Wishful thinking, you knew that. But you were really banking on the off chance that it was true. At the very least it might throw him off enough to get him talking.
You could hear the smirk in his voice. "Why are you so convinced I'm here to hurt you? Maybe I just want to make a new friend. Did you ever think of that?"
"Maybe I'm 'so convinced' because everything you've done up to this point has been abnormal and everything you've been saying has been vaguely threatening."
His silence wasn't the answer you'd hoped for but before you could respond you saw a black gloved hand reach out from behind the tree with a sword, it was sheathed but you readied yourself regardless. You couldn't help how your muscles relaxed as he slid the sword closer to you. It felt a little dumb that you hadn't considered he was also armed but this seemed like a show of good faith, regardless of the fact that you knew he probably had other knives or weapons on his person as well. As the thought crossed your mind you watched two finely polished daggers tumble across the dirt before bumping into the previously discarded sword.
His voice came out softer than it had before, his previously cocky tone missing as he asked, "Can we talk now?"
You hesitated. "Ok. Talk."
"My name is Gene. I really shouldn't be talking to you or anyone else in the village, but I have some questions, and I think you might be the perfect person to answer them for me." His response seemed mostly genuine but there was still a palpable sense of unease, or was it just your anxiety?
"You don't actually need me to answer these questions. So, what are you actually talking to me for?"
He waited a moment, at this point you were starting to think he just liked putting emphasis on everything he said. Drama queen. "Cause I want to." Oh. That can't be good. "And I will get my answers way faster if I just ask someone."
"What makes you think I'd trust you with anything?" You asked.
He let out another chuckle. "I don't. That's why I haven't asked you anything yet." That caught you a bit off guard. "Come back to this spot each night after the sun sets. I'll be here. When you come back, we can talk, and if you don't trust me in a few days, I'll get my information my own way."
"You're toying with me, aren't you?"
He let out a full-fledged laugh this time. "Maybe."
That word made the hair on the back of your neck stand up. You really shouldn't be talking to him. But you couldn't deny, you were kind of having fun. It wasn't very often that you got to break from everyday village life, Aphmau and Garroth were your only real friends, and they were probably about to fall in love and then where would you be? Zenix was still a brother to you, but he'd been distant for a long time now no matter how hard you tried to talk to him. Plus, this guy hadn't brought up anything harmful or suspicious so maybe it was worth a shot.
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It was well past midnight when you'd made it back to bed, and the sun barely peaking over the tree line was enough to tell you Zenix was banging on your door entirely too early.
"Garroth is trying to keep it on the down low as much as possible. We have no idea how this happened."
You were still putting your belt and sword on as he led you up the hill to the docks. "Zenix, I need you to tell me what's going on."
He turned quickly and looked you dead in the eyes. "Visher is dead."
Your blood ran cold. Trying to move was pointless, you kept telling yourself to run, speak, anything, to no avail. What? The word was on the tip of your tongue. Maybe if you didn't ask, if you just stayed here a moment longer, you'd wake up, or realize you'd heard him wrong. Obviously, staying out so late had made your head a bit foggy.
Right. That had to be it.
Obviously, you didn't know Visher that well, but you still knew him. You just saw him yesterday; he was perfectly healthy and- "Paul... Is Paul...?"
Zenix turns to continue on your way. "Paul is safe for now but we need to hurry."
The two of you made it to...what remained of the docks. Zenix immediately went to help Dale who has been wading through the water picking up pieces of driftwood, some pieces still lit with flames. Alone, Garroth knelt by the edge of the water inspecting something in the sand.
You noticed Paul frozen at the edge of the tree line. He looked so distant, too horrified to move and too tired to cry, though by the looks of it he'd already done his fair share of the later. Approaching him needed to be gentle but you knew he wouldn't want to be treated delicately. If you knew your friend at all, he was angry, overflowing with a rage he was far too kind to express.
All it took was silently standing beside the man, and broken expressions of grief began to pour out of him. "He- I...H-his family..." You raised your hand to his shoulder, silently encouraging him to continue. "He was... a brother to me. I know his wife. H-His child...his boy... How could anyone..."
You turn to him, his eyes still fixed on the scene before you. It was shocking that Paul would think someone did this on purpose, not because they wouldn't but because that's just not how Paul saw people. His words continue, "I trust you. If someone did this...find them. P-Please. That is all I will ever ask you." He meets your gaze, and you can finally see just how red his eyes have grown.
"You can always ask me for anything my friend. But this, you don't even need to ask." He gave a curt nod at your words before turning back to the water in silence.
With that, you made your way to Garroth who had risen from the sand, now inspecting the little wood that remained in the ground. "Care to catch me up on the situation?" He jumped slightly as you spoke, turning to you as you knelt down to see what he'd been looking at. He sighed, watching you take a closer look. "Is that..."
"Gunpowder" You whispered the word in unison.
He knelt beside you, continuing to speak in hushed tones. "Neither Paul or Visher had any gunpowder, nor anything requiring gunpowder in their possession when they arrived. I made a point to note any potential weapons after they docked."
"You searched their boat?"
"Call me paranoid all you want, but make sure you do it when a ship hasn't exploded." His snappy rebuttal did not go unnoticed, you knew Garroth's background was rough, and he knew you were the only person in town who never took his anxieties as a joke. Though all things considered, it was probably best to let that slide for the time being.
"So, someone actually did this on purpose..."
Another sigh left him, less frustrated than the last, it was probably better classified as a controlled sob... He turned to you and nodded. You couldn't help but notice the all too familiar blue of his eyes just barely peeking out of his helm. It almost made you forget that you were currently investigating a murder for a good friend. It also reminded you of the very uncomfortable conversation you'd had with Garroth about his thing for Aphmau. Somehow talking to a mysterious shadow man in the woods had actually made you forget about that.
Wait...Gene...could it have been him? No there's no way. He was with you till...well, probably about four hours ago. That could have been enough time to travel about three miles through the woods and across town, and (somehow) quietly blow up a ship with someone on it.
"Garroth, when did it happen?" He straightened slightly at your question.
"No one actually heard the explosion, which throws a wrench in timing for sure. But as far as the timeline we have now: Paul discovered the scene and immediately began searching for Visher before finding the body and then making his way to the guard station."
You turned to look at him, shock evident on your features. "Paul was the one who found him?" The only response you received was a grim nod. "Oh my Irene..."
Garroth continued with the account. "All of that took an estimated thirty-two minutes, and another forty-five was spent trying to put out most of the fire before I sent Zenix to get you. Based the extent of fire damage to the dock itself and surrounding areas, beyond what an initial explosion would've caused, I'm fairly confident that the explosion would've taken place almost three hours before Paul arrived."
"So, a little over four hours ago?"
He stood and extended his hand, giving another nod. You took his hand and stood before taking a step back and running a hand through your hair. "I was still awake when it happened..."
"You were? There's no way it was quiet enough that you wouldn't have heard it from just over the hill..." You were slightly annoyed at the suspicion in his tone.
Shaking your head you began to elaborate. "No, I was still in the woods we'd been searching. I'm not saying I should've heard it it's just...I haven't had firsthand experience with death before, at least not that I can remember. I'm just processing it I guess."
His head tilts a bit. "You were still in the woods? I thought you were headed home?"
"I was going to, I just got distracted I guess-"
"Distracted?" His tone is harsh but even more quiet than before. "You can't stay out in the middle of nowhere that late! What if you'd run into this murderer! I knew I shouldn't have left; Irene I'm such an idiot."
You couldn't help scoffing at his words. "Ok first of all. You forget I've spent years wandering across Ru'uan by myself. I've had my fair share of thugs and killers and despite not having fancy guard training I can take care of myself, and you know that."
Garroth took a moment before responding. "You're right. I know you can handle yourself; I apologize. I do trust you, more than anyone. I just worry."
"I know. I accept your apology. Now, who are your leads."
He let out the quietest nervous laugh and you felt your stomach drop. "No one."
He continued. "As of right now, our plan is to have Aphmau escort Paul back to Brightport with Visher's body so they can inform his wife of what happened."
"Wait, Aphmau? Why are we sending Aphmau?" Just because he had a crush on her doesn't mean she'd be up to this. Was she even awake yet? Oh, Irene Aph doesn't know any of this yet... "Shouldn't our acting lord stay here anyway?"
"Well...I have a feeling that even when Lady Aphmau is informed that she's up for the position of Lord, she would want to take on these tasks herself."
Slowly you turned to face him. "Garroth. You have told Aphmau that you assigned her as acting lord...right?" He silently kept his gaze trained on the water. "Oh...my Irene...That poor girl. You mean you can tell her you have feelings for her, but you can't tell her that you assigned her a political position? What if she doesn't accept?" He remained silent. "...You haven't talked to her at all have you."
He turned his head and held your gaze for a moment. There was an air of pain in the silence that you couldn't bring yourself to push past.
"Zenix!" His call had clashed with the hushed conversation you'd been having with him, and it caused you to jump slightly. "When you see Lady Aphmau send her to town. I must speak with her urgently."
Zenix let out a few grumbles about not being an errand boy as Garroth walked past him. You left a pat on his shoulder and followed Garroth into the village. "I wasn't trying to offend you, Garroth."
"You didn't." He kept walking.
"Ok, awesome. Cause it feels like I did, and I really just want to put it out there that if something is wrong, especially something I did or said, I'd like you to tell me."
You continued on his trail. He didn't so much as look at you when he responded. "Are you upset that I wanted Lady Aphmau to go on this journey instead of you? The only reason I didn't send you is because you said you wanted to stay, but I'd hate for you to feel stuck here."
You grabbed his arm, spinning him to face you. "Ok Garroth, I don't know what I did but you're being mean. Yes, I was a little hurt that you didn't at least ask me to go, because Paul is my friend and this is important, and you know my skill and passion for travel, and we have no idea if that's even remotely in Aph's wheelhouse, so yes, it was also kind of a blow to my 'ex-adventurer' ego but I can get over it, and the Garroth I know is fully aware that if someone else needs to do something, that's ok. All he needs to do is talk to me and I'll trust him. Don't shut me out over something you won't even talk to me about, I'm begging you!"
He stared at you for a moment. "Who should it be then? Her? ...Or you?"
That question felt unnecessarily loaded and you couldn't for the life of you figure out why. Obviously, you wanted to be his first choice for everything, but if she was going to take on the role of lord there were things she would have to do. She wouldn't be like the last lord where all that was keeping him loyal was duty. She was a good person who would naturally become his priority, especially if feelings were involved.
It also didn't escape your mind that a journey to Brightport would mean being gone for a few days, especially for someone like you who got caught up in various tasks for people around town, and you definitely wanted to make sure you were home the next few nights. You'd eliminated Gene from the pool of suspects who actually committed the act, but that didn't mean he didn't know anything.
Who knows maybe if you stay you can also figure out what's been bothering Garroth so much. Maybe it was for the best that you gave up your old ways of adventuring. It was starting to look like the adventure you'd spent so long looking for had settled in town just as you did anyway. So, it's settled, the only logical conclusion. "Her."
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A/N: Ok you guys, sorry if this one is a bit weird. It's 5 in the morning rn and idk if anything I just typed made sense but I'm gonna post it and double check in the morning. Love ya'! Thanks for reading!
