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sorry hun, mom has to clock in to speaking in a shit khajiit accent for 4 hours on keizaal
The Dragonborn | M!Reader x Geralt of Rivia | Part II
Note: I split the oneshot because damn 12k does nobody want to read in one go xD
Fandoms: The Witcher (TV Series), The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim
Warnings: Non-Canon Story, Swearing, Gore, Slight OOC
Summary: Geralt and Jaskier meet a stranger in the woods while on the hunt for a special monster. They decide to team up but neither does Geralt realize that his prey is close to him nor does the stranger notice he's the one being hunted...
Word Count: 6938
If you want to be tagged in my stories send me a pm with the fandom/character name!
Please note that The Witcher is supposed to be around the Middle-Age. Homophobia existed.
Part I
_______
A few hours later, after they had eaten the rabbit, they began to look for tracks of the monster. There were a lot of them. For example, the scorched moss where Geralt almost turned into roasted meat, the dark footprints in the dirt, and the fallen trees.
The witcher was impressed by how good the warrior from Keizaal could search for tracks.
“You see that, Jaskier? The way the claws dig in the ground? It means the claws of the dovah are really big. That’s pretty unusual for female dragons, so it’s obvious we’re dealing with a male. But we uh... know that because Odahviing is male.”
While Jaskier and Y/N genuinely searched for any signs he just stared at the foreigner. He somehow felt like he had found a kindred spirit in the man standing in front with his back facing him.
A weird association, but there were only a few things that could really impress Geralt.
Magic, Fighting Skills, and usually breasts.
Which made him sound like a skirt chaser, but that wasn't it. It just meant what it meant. Dicks definitely didn't attract hi-
"What the hell?"
He lifted his eyes from the lower body of Y/N, and his breath hitched when those e/c eyes pierced his. Did he see...?
"The footprints are gone!"
Oh. That.
"That does make sense... Or not? It's a dragon, after all? They can fly. Or not? Can they?"
Jaskier stepped in front of him and obstructed his view on the other. Geralt turned and touched his face. His cheeks were burning. What's gotten into him? He remembered something Yennefer had told him once as a half-joke.
I sometimes think that if I haven't met you, you would have chosen someone who fights like you, thinks like you, who lives like you. And from what I believe that someone would have been a man. Because it needs a brute to move a brute's heart.
While his head was filled with thousand thoughts, Y/N and the bard inspected the tracks closer.
"It can't be that he took off. Do you see how the footprints are as deep as the others? If he wanted to fly away, they would be deeper because he had needed to shift his weight."
"Is that something you learned while hunting for the other dragons with the Dragonborn?"
The man from Keizaal nodded. Some locks fell into his face, and his expression was thoughtful while he searched for a plausible explanation. Geralt could see every feature of his sharp e/c eyes.
They were different from Yennefer's violet ones, their spark was different, but for other people, they must be as enthralling as the eyes of the sorceress to him. That's at least what he believed. They had a particular pull. He didn't feel it, but it was there. Puzzling, but powerful.
A cough pulled him away from Y/N's eyes, and Jaskier stared at him with a grin.
"What?" he asked, his voice almost defensive.
"Nothing," responded his friend with a knowing undertone. What the hell was going on?
"Well, I can't think of anything that happened. Witcher, what about you?"
The mesmerizing eyes turned to him, and he blinked. What was the question?
Thankfully, I always have a good answer ready.
"Hmm."
He shifted and knelt to see the footprints up close. They had a certain distance to each other as if the dragon was walking slowly. Y/N was right; he couldn't have flown away, the marks were too shallow. Either he disappeared into thin air, or the monster had an amazing control when it came to his weight.
"Strange..." was all he said.
He focused on the sounds around them, but there was nothing extraordinary. Just the whistle of the wind, a few birds singing, and the steady heartbeats of the other two men. It was a dead end.
"Fuck."
He looked up, surprised that he and the warrior of Keizaal said the same thing at the same time. Y/N shot him a grin, and Geralt snorted.
"Maybe we should try to set up a trap"
He turned and watched Jaskier's expression. It was a good idea, and they didn't have any other options, besides he wasn't really in the mood to search the whole forest for the dragon. The h/c haired man agreed and pulled a bow out of his satchel. The bard's eyes once again widened.
"I want a bag like this too."
"If you don't want to carry your things anymore, you can give them to me. I'll store them."
Jaskier smiled brightly, and Y/N returned it. Something flared up in Geralt's chest, but he ignored it. Damn bruises make my chest hurt.
The bard gave the foreigner their things, and he put them in his satchel.
"Let's think about the trap," the warrior tested the string of his bow and then focused his eyes on Geralt and Jaskier.
"Dragons are usually very picky about their food, but I belie- know that Odahviing is fine with deer meat. We should hunt some."
.
And they did. With the help of Geralt's tracking skills and crossbow and the Y/N's bow, they easily got two does. Although it took a while to find them since most animals steered free of the area where the dragon rampaged.
Geralt and Jaskier only watched, while Y/N slashed the throats of the already dead animals.
"Dovahs have a keen sense of smell; we have to cover our own scent."
He continued to drench his hands with the blood and even smeared some on his neck and armor. When he couldn't hear the other two approaching, Y/N turned around and tilted his head questioningly.
"U-Uh, what did you say?" asked the bard and avoided his gaze.
“What? Did I say something wrong? Can you... Is it a sacrilege to use doe bloo-"
Geralt interrupted him.
"We couldn't understand what you said because you spoke in a different language."
Y/N widened his eyes, and an apologetic look crossed his face.
"I'm sorry...”
Jaskier’s slightly odd expression concerned him and he examined the witcher. Geralt was more intrigued than scared by the fact the atmosphere in the woods seemed to have changed as soon as the other spoke in his probably native language.
The fact that Y/N’s voice got a lot deeper while he spoke, caused a shiver to run down his spine. The foreigner apologized again and then added:
“I said the dragon could smell us. We should cover our scent with the blood."
Jaskier didn't seem to like the idea, but the witcher nodded and followed his advice.
Soon the bard's and his hands were stained with doe blood. Geralt was unaffected by it since he already got used to it by hunting monsters for years, but the other man looked a little pale.
The warrior watched their actions and then approached the white-haired man. His yellow eyes followed all of his movements.
"You should also put some on your throat... It’s a place where a lot of sweat gathers."
As soon as Y/N touched his collarbone and neck, Geralt stiffened. Actually, he froze. Something about another man touching his carotid artery was really intimate. His nose caught the smell of iron, moss, and smoke.
Someone who lives like you.
Yennefer's words replayed in his mind, and he couldn't stop himself from unconsciously moving his head closer to the other man.
The warrior was only a few centimeters smaller than him, his head reached up to his eyebrows. The hands on his throat were rough and slippery, but they touched him with such gentleness, Geralt had to shiver.
He gulped, and his adam's apple pressed against Y/N's palm. The afternoon sun danced on the other man’s scars, and eyelashes and Geralt wondered if every man had such long ones. He breathed in and closed his eyes.
Is this the essence of a kindred spirit?
Suddenly Y/N's hands disappeared from his throat, and he could no longer feel the warrior's presence so close to him.
“Put some on your cheeks too.”
A little disappointed, he opened his eyes and noticed that the other man had already turned and now approached Jaskier just to do the same thing to the bard that he did to him.
Y/N's bare hands touched his friend's throat, and neck and Geralt suddenly had a very, very dark thought.
Abruptly he turned around and covered his lower face with his hand.
Did I... About this man...?
He could feel how heat crept up his neck, and he questioned the emotionlessness that every witcher was supposed to have.
What the fuck was he thinking? He has Yennefer!
Or at least had. Their relationship was somewhat in the stars at the moment. After their rather big fight last time...
Geralt didn't know why that mattered though.
He buried the fluttery feeling that had sprouted in his chest when the other man had touched him.
What he didn't realize, Y/N's heartbeat was pounding faster after the physical contact they had just shared.
-
After they had covered their scent with deer blood, they also smeared some dirt on their armor and clothes, much to the dismay of Jaskier. Then they decided to set up their stakeout one hundred meters away from the carcasses.
It was close enough to quickly attack, but also far away enough for them to be safe in case the dragon wanted to grill them. They sat on the mossy ground and leaned on the trees surrounding them.
"Now, all we have to do is wait."
Patience was something every hunter was supposed to have, and both Geralt and Y/N obviously had it. The bard, on the other hand...
The witcher's left eyebrow twitched in annoyance. After his friend had whistled, he began to eye the two men. Jaskier's stare felt like a cockroach was crawling over his body. He had a bad premonition about the weird behavior of the brown-haired man. He glared at him, but he just grinned.
Stop staring!
Geralt turned his head away and noticed how the warrior from Keizaal seemed to concentrate on something around his neck. He clenched and unclenched his fist with an absent expression.
He watched for a while and then realized that Y/N was holding a ring that he wore on a necklace.
A sinking feeling appeared in his gut, and he suddenly felt like a mountain weighed his shoulders down.
"You have a wife?"
His mouth was faster than his thoughts.
The man startled and then shared eye contact with him.
"Something like that..."
Geralt frowned a little. What kind of answer was that? He stared at Y/N with a hard look, but the other added nothing else, just sighed and hid the ring under his heavy armor.
The witcher only grunted and turned to face the direction of their trap.
Shit, why was he so annoyed?
The idea of the warrior having a doting wife waiting for him in Keizaal made his heart clench, and his chest felt tight.
This time he couldn't blame the bruises on his rips.
He finally acknowledged that the h/c haired man intrigued him and caused some rather odd feelings to rise.
But this... Why... Why the fuck was he feeling jealous?
And it wasn't even that the man had a wife, no; he was jealous because some woman had Y/N.
That dragon must have indeed killed some of his brain cells.
His yellow eyes traveled back to the other man's figure. His broad shoulders were hidden under his armor, but Geralt had seen them.
Just after he had woken up, he had seen the man in regular clothes. Although he had worn a shirt, the witcher had been able to see how muscular Y/N was.
His body seemed to be covered with scars. Tiny cuts on his hands, big slashes on his collarbone, and even some nasty ones close to his throat. Geralt was sure there were many more, but he wasn't able to see them. They were proof of fierce fights and the experiences the man had had to go through.
Was it weird that they attracted him?
Like the hands in his dreams that had traveled over his, the Butcher of Blaviken wanted to trace Y/N's scars with his fingers. He wanted to feel how his body had healed him, wanted to know the story of every scratch and bruise, wanted to touch the energetic muscles bursting with strength.
A flame of desire began to burn in his body, and he lowered his head to hide the dark expression he wore on his face.
These thoughts needed to stop; they would only become problematic in the future.
Geralt scratched his neck and then examined the brown-red flakes under his fingernails.
He felt a stare on his body again, and he sighed.
God damn Jaskier...
When he lifted his head, he was surprised to see that it wasn't the bard who looked at him but the warrior from Keizaal. Y/N's e/c eyes were unfathomable, but he showed a somber expression. He paused for a second, and the world seemed to turn slower.
The witcher could see every blemish on the other man's skin, every mole, every freckle. Geralt breathed in slowly, and the warrior's hair swayed in the wind.
He's so handso... The wind?
Geralt abruptly stood up.
"The-the wind turned!" he muttered and gulped. His cheeks felt hot, and he bit his lip. Jaskier frowned.
"Doesn't this mean that our smell would be...?"
Y/N sighed and nodded.
"Is a lake close by?"
The bard shook his head.
"But, we're only a few miles away from the sea."
The witcher watched the other man closely while he questioned the other's exhausted expression.
"The wind has turned due to the late afternoon. We should move."
Geralt and Jaskier only watched when the other stood up and grabbed his bow.
"Why not wait until the wind turns again?" asked the bard, and he followed after the h/c haired man.
"That won't be the case until tomorrow. The sea has saved the warmth from the sun while the land cooled down. We have to wait until the land is warmer again."
Jaskier eyed Y/N carefully. Geralt could already guess what he was thinking. He understood what the warrior from Keizaal meant. He learned about it when he was training to become a witcher.
"So, what are we going to do now?"
They both contemplated for a while and then Geralt spoke:
"Maybe we should indeed wait for tomorrow. I think it would be best if you tell us some more things about your dragon before we storm into this unprepared."
He tried to suppress a triumphant smile when the other two agreed. Of course, he wouldn't admit that he actually just wanted to spend some more time with Y/N.
He had a thought that they wouldn't meet again after this whole thing was over.
"Then what do we do about the deer corpses?" asked Jaskier, and it was a reasonable question. If they left them, they could attract other animals...
Both the witcher and the warrior looked at each other and then huffed. The bard just stared between them, and his face gradually darkened.
"You're not... thinking about eating them are-are you?"
-
Two hours later, they had put up a camp close to a clear pond and already roasted some rabbit meat.
They had buried the does, and although the physical labor was annoying, Jaskier was relieved that the two brutes didn't decide to eat them. The dead animals had been lying in the sun for a long time after all.
Y/N was peeling his armor off and thinking about the situation he was in right now.
The fact that they were on the hunt for a dragon excited him. Not the actual part of the chase but the fact that he would meet another specimen of his current best friends.
After he had killed Alduin, he had lost himself in a killing spree. Paarthurnax had warned him to get a hold of himself, but he wasn’t able to. His dragon soul caused him to lose all rational thoughts.
When he finally realized that he could learn so much more about Akatosh and the dovahs, he had already committed mass slaughter, and Odahviing and the wise dragon from The Throat of the World were the last ones of their species.
Or that's at least what the three of them had thought. But they were wrong, and now he had the chance to meet another dragon! And probably also the chance to go home. If he wanted to.
But first, they had to get a hold of him.
"Jaskier?"
He faced the bard who currently played on his lute while also watching the fire. He hummed in response and looked up.
"We should wash off the blood in the pond. Do you want to go first?"
The man seemingly wanted to say yes but then shook his head and responded with a slight grin:
"No, you can go first. I'll watch the rabbit."
Y/N furrowed his brows but then smiled and thanked him. He left the pile of his armor and Jaskier behind and wandered to the pond, which was located behind some trees and big boulders.
The view from the camp was obscured, which meant he had some privacy. Not that he cared much, but he would rather not show his back to the two other men. Since it showed one more change he had gone through in the last year.
Although Geralt wasn't currently in the camp anyway, he left to get some more branches for the fire.
The man carefully opened his shirt and took it off. His boots, pants, and underwear soon followed suit, and he stepped to the shore where some reed grew.
The water was cold when he stepped in, but he endured it. His muscles just tensed a little.
Y/N walked in further until the water reached his abdomen. He wasn’t even halfway in the pond, it was fairly big.
He sucked in some air when he lowered himself into the water until it reached his chin. He had to rub his skin a little, but then the water around him turned slightly red.
The man watched how the deer blood twirled, and he stared at his reflection. The red blood on his cheeks conjured a cursed memory in his head, and he heaved.
Hii los dur, Dovahkiin. Hi aal krii zu'u nu nuz zu'u ahrk pah dii Zeymah fen koraav hi mah wah hin daan. You are cursed, Dragonborn. You may kill me now, but all my brethren and I will see how you fall to your doom.
The ominous words of the last dovah he had killed echoed in his mind. He hugged himself, and his fingers touched his shoulder blades.
The skin was still shedding. Y/N sighed. What was going on with his body? The shedding had started a few months ago but he had no idea why.
And since it only started after he had arrived here he couldn’t ask Odahviing or Paarthurnax.
He breathed out slowly and then dived underwater.
The coldness cleared his head a little, and he relaxed slightly. His feet left the muddy ground, and for a moment, he floated.
If I could just stay like this...
His hand clenched to a fist, and he released some Magicka. The small pressure on his nose disappeared, and he automatically breathed in.
Air filled his lungs, and the Dragonborn smiled. Peace washed over him, and he spread his arms.
He slowly floated to the surface, and his face broke through it. Water droplets pearled from his cheeks and eyelashes, and he stared into the sky. The tree crowns whistled, and he watched how some clouds traveled across the darkening sky. The sun was already setting.
This was the ending of the first day together with the bard and the witcher. Geralt's face came to his mind, and he bit his lip.
The white-haired man reminded him of Farkas, but he was also completely different. His attitude for example. Farkas was openly benevolent and also voiced his concerns. The witcher seemed to be reluctant. Although Y/N was able to feel that he cared deeply for his friend.
They shared the same keen instincts, but Geralt's came from the harsh trials witchers had to go through while his love had them because he had been a werewolf.
I can't believe that you chose Farkas over Vilkas. Do you like strength more than brains?
Aela's voice sounded in his head, and Y/N huffed.
The huntress had probably been right. He was attracted to the Butcher of Blaviken. These yellow eyes... They had something animalistic and penetrating that stirred an urge deep inside of him.
He sighed and put his hands on his face. Then he scrubbed and splashed his face with water.
Suddenly, he caught sight of a person standing behind a tree at the other side of the pond after he had wiped droplets from his eyes and opened them again.
Y/N breath stopped, and a wail got caught in his throat. He abruptly stood up again, although it felt like he had still no ground under his feet. What...?
Light blue eyes framed by black war paint stared at him with a resentful look.
"Fa-Far..."
His voice failed, but he agitatedly began to move across the pond, trying to reach his lost lover and husband.
Breath erratic and tears were pricking in the corners of his eyes, but at that moment, he only felt happiness and relief. Farkas was alive!
"D-Dii Shul!" My Sunshine!
The ground suddenly declined, he lost his footing and dived involuntarily underwater.
Nevertheless, he was still able to hear the words that had left the lips he had kissed so often.
"So, you've abandoned me."
An ice-cold feeling washed over him, and his heart broke.
No, that's not true! I would never! You were gone! You left me! You died!
A disturbing scream erupted from his throat, and the skin around his mouth tore. The scream turned into a roar, and he clawed at his face. The e/c eyes shook, and the black pupils turned to slits.
Shreds of flesh got caught by growing claws, and gigantic fangs emerged from the man's jaws.
H/C hair parted, shrunk, and gave way for two enormous horns. His whole body shook, and his limbs twisted and cracked. His spine grew longer, broke through his lower back, and two bony wings arose from his back.
The murky water of the pond turned red and swirled around the tremoring creature who rapidly grew until it was able to stand on the pond bed. Flesh turned hard and into black scales. New tissue engulfed its wings and tail and also got covered by rockhard scales.
Burning heat crawled up its throat, and furious flames burst from its maw. It broke through the pond's surface, and the splashed water evaporated immediately.
The dragon spread its wings, and they created waterfalls when they left the water. The wingspan was as big as half of the pond, and when it pulled them closer to its body ready for takeoff, the leaves and needles of the surrounding trees shook.
A thunderous boom announced the beast's presence, and it tensed its huge muscles.
When it thrust off the pond bed, the water turned into waves and flooded over the shore and soaked shoes and clothes. Branches broke like grass when the dragon's wings grazed them, and trees lost all their leaves from the harsh wind which got created.
A scent caught the dragon’s attention and it whipped its head around. A triumphant roar shook the earth when it dashed towards the direction the smell came from.
The beast ignored the scared brown-haired human that stared at it from a small campsite.
-
Geralt was grabbing some more branches when he saw some Celandine, and he swiftly decided to take them with him. They were always helpful, after all.
Putting the branches on the ground, he knelt and carefully tore the flowers and the not yet bloomed buds from their stems.
While he stored them, his thoughts trailed off to the mysterious man who accompanied him and Jaskier.
Y/N had sparked something inside of him, and now he was questioning his heart, which confused him even more since the person he found interesting was a man.
On the other hand, he couldn't quite tell if the feeling in his chest was something along the lines of romantic attraction or just common interest.
Deep down in Geralt's heart, he knew that him eyeing the other man's ass was definitely not something one would call a platonic interest, but he just couldn't admit that he, who never thought about other men like that, suddenly liked one.
He didn't feel disgusted, but the thought alarmed him.
He had seen a lot of things during his time as a witcher, and relationships between two men were never something that ended well. Various churches took care of that.
An image in his head made his fists clench unconsciously.
And there was still Yennefer. They never openly ended their relationship so... Was he still involved with her? He couldn't tell.
The Butcher of Blaviken sighed and then noticed a pebble in the moss. It had white streaks over its grey shape, and they reminded him of the scars in the foreigner's face.
Was he seriously associating weird things to Y/N now?
Maybe the other cursed him.
While he pondered some more about the other man, it took a while for him to notice that the forest had turned unnaturally silent.
Birds stopped singing as if they held their breaths in fear, and suddenly a roar disrupted the silence. It came from far away, but Geralt was able to hear it loud and clear because of his mutated hearing.
He abruptly stood up and turned towards the direction. It came from the camp, and Geralt's heart sank.
Please no.
He disregarded the branches he had meticulously collected and started to rush back the way he came from. Thankfully he had taken his swords with him, and he unsheathed the silver one.
The image of the bard and the foreigner being killed carried his feet forward and pushed him to almost inhumane speed.
He wasn't even halfway back when a shadow cast on the moss stopped him in his tracks. A gigantic black dragon soared through the sky, and his wings caused the surrounding trees to shake. Geralt could feel the wind pressure, and the aura that the beast released caused a shiver to run down his spine.
The witcher grinned darkly. That bastard had an impressive bloodthirst. Geralt's hunter instincts wanted to fight that monster, but his heart worried for his best friend and his potential love interest.
He cursed himself for not taking his small bag with the various vials with potions and bombs, but he had no time to get annoyed because the dragon suddenly dived down, and he had to roll out of the way or else he would have been crushed.
When he stood up again and turned, he came face to face with the beast's massive head, and his heart skipped a beat.
Y/N fought against such big monsters? Repeatedly?
His respect for the other man increased significantly.
Geralt couldn't avoid his legs to tense, but the dragon didn't attack. Instead, its e/c eyes examined him, and the witcher wondered if the monster's pupils acted like a human's because they widened considerably.
This is a dovah...
The beast was at least as big as a typical villager house, and Geralt was sure that the spikes on its body would cause massive damage to any attacker. The black scales seemed impenetrable, and the monster slayer seriously questioned his chances of survival.
He had already felt it before when he had run from the dragon. It wasn't an enemy who he could overpower. If he had to fight, it would be either an overpriced victory or death. But escaping wasn't an option anymore, the dragon's tail had trapped him before the beast.
His grip around his sword tightened, and he was ready to use Quen on himself when the beast shifted and held its head up high. A growl escaped from its throat, and Geralt tensed even more. Unexpectedly, the dragon spoke:
"Dii rii lovaas fah hi. Wo los hi? Hi los ni rok."
The witcher obviously didn't understand, but the voice of the dragon shook him to the core. It was as if someone was screaming in his ear, and he had to press his hands on them. For that, he carelessly let go of his sword, but he felt like his eardrums would explode at any time.
His chest tingled, and the echo of the dragon's word resounded through his whole body. Geralt's legs gave out, and he fell to his knees.
The beast lowered its head until its throat almost touched the ground, and then it snorted.
Hot air blew his hair back, and the Butcher of Blaviken came to his senses again. He needed to get his sword back! Right when he stretched out his hand to take his silver sword, the dragon crept forward until its snout was dangerously close.
Geralt froze. If the monster decided to eat him now, he would have no time to react. This was the end.
The realization hit him, and regret washed over him like a seastorm. There were many things in his life that he hadn't resolved yet—many things he wanted to achieve and also many things he wanted to try.
E/c eyes showed up in his mind, and his heart burned. If the dragon ate him now, would they meet in death?
His eyes flickered to the dragon, and that's when he realized something.
Although he had no time to elaborate the thought because the dragon moved its head forward until there was merely the distance of a hand between him and the beast.
He breathed out slowly, and his witcher heart beat faster. He wanted to face his enemy to the last second, but after so many fights, he thought that closing his eyes and embracing death that way seemed more peaceful and freeing. So he closed them and took one last breath.
I'm sorry, Ciri.
Seconds passed, where he only heard his heartbeat pounding in his ears. Until wind brushed his hair in his face, and he heard a sniff. A rumble shook the earth, and he slowly opened his eyes again.
The dragon breathed in and sniffed, its eyes closed, and Geralt couldn't believe it when the beast closed the distance, and the scaly snout touched his chest. Black shiny scales only a few centimeters from his face.
He searched the dragon's eyes, but they were closed. The rumble sounded again, and if he didn't know any better, the witcher would have guessed that the monster was humming.
When it opened its eyes again, and yellow and e/c met, Geralt had an unbelievable thought, and he whispered:
"Y-Y/N?"
The look in the dragon's eyes changed, and it pulled its head back abruptly.
A growl erupted from the beast's throat, and it only took a matter of seconds for it to tense its muscles and take off the ground.
Geralt was left in a daze, panic, and realization the only thing he believed to have seen in the dragon's expression.
Leaves fluttered to the ground, and the deep claw marks in the dirt before him were the only proof for the monster's presence.
What... What just happened?
The dragon had touched him. He slowly lifted his hand and put it on his chest. It's warm. The dovah had an unexpectedly high body temperature.
Why did it...? Y/N... Was it really him? H-How...
He remembered something the foreigner had told them.
His dragon soul was too much for his human body, and he slowly turned into a dovah.
"The dovahkiin..."
Geralt lifted himself off the ground and took off running to the direction the dragon left for.
-
The dragon didn't make it far.
Geralt saw him soaring through the sky and circling above a clearing in the forest. The witcher could see a small hut standing at the clearing border, and he remembered another thing that Y/N had told him and Jaskier.
I've been staying here in the forest for a few weeks in a hut half a mile from here.
Geralt slowly realized that his intuition was probably correct.
When he arrived at the clearing, the black dragon had already landed.
Although it was more like a crash. Long furrows plowed the forest ground. But the Butcher of Blaviken couldn't see the dragon lying there because a strange fog obstructed his view. He was hesitant about approaching the steam, but he really wanted to know if his theory was correct. A voice interrupted his twisting thoughts:
"Bormah, Bormah... Aak dovah!"
It was deep and raspy, and he didn't understand what it said, but Geralt could recognize it instantly. It was him.
Y/N was the dragon.
-
His whole body hurt.
"Why are you doing this to yourself?"
Blue eyes watched him with a worried expression. He didn't reply. What was there to say? The dovah needed to die. He was the only one capable of killing them.
Why couldn't he understand?
"Think about it, Y/N. You're one of them, so you shouldn-"
"Don't you dare compare me to them! I AM THE DRAGONBORN! Dii Zahkrii kriin Dovah ni aak niin!"
He knew he went too far as soon as he saw the other's expression.
Farkas stared at him with slightly widened eyes.
"Control yourself, Dovahkiin. Or else disaster will fall upon you and the ones you love."
Arngeir stepped forward and put a shoulder on his lover's shoulder. He could feel how his pupils flickered. Anger welled in his stomach.
"Don't touch him..."
His voice was low and threatening. Farkas scoffed, but his face only showed hurt.
"Don't worry about me, Dragonborn."
The distance in his words was like a thorn in his heart. The idea that Farkas couldn't understand his thoughts tore his heart in two. Y/N only watched when his significant other walked out of the room, Arngeir following him.
"Wa-Wait, Farkas, no!"
He reached out his hand to stop him, but the other man was already so far away.
"Akatosh, Akatosh, help me!"
Tears welled up in his eyes, and a wail escaped his lips.
Arngeir was right. Disaster fell upon him.
The skin shedding on his back, his pupils turning to slits, the increased usage of Dovahzul, all were signs for his slow transformation.
He couldn't believe that the stories Odahviing had told him jokingly were real. His dragon soul was changing his body and personality.
And now it had happened. He turned into a dragon.
How many times had he already done that? The witcher mentioned that the monster they were hunting tormented the villagers.
What had he done?!
The pain he felt after transforming was nothing compared to the pain in his heart. Y/N became the monster he had thought he was slaying when he had eradicated all the dragons from Skyrim.
The scars he had received from all the dovah burned, and shame clung to his heart.
Why didn't he listen to Arngeir?
The greybeard was wise and only wanted his best after the dragonborn distanced himself from the Blades. His loved one died because he didn't listen!
And now he... He turned into an inhumane beast.
Suddenly he remembered the bard. Did he attack him?! A sinking feeling struck his gut.
Please, no, no, NO!
What about Geralt?
Oh Talos... I have to return to the camp!
He tried to open his eyes, but his eyelids were heavy. He groaned.
What if the two others were bleeding out while he laid here? If the witcher died... Y/N was sure he could never forgive himself.
Farkas's death was something that he could slowly overcome, although it took him years, and he still hadn't let him go but... If the witcher's death joined, he was sure his shoulders would give in under all the regret.
Just imagining how these beautiful yellow eyes lost their light, he couldn't take it.
He didn't realize it immediately, but his heart was already in the hands of Geralt. He had already lost.
Y/N finally regained some strength, and he used it to open his eyes. His vision was blurry, but he could see that the sky had already turned dark blue.
He knew what lurked in the forest at night.
The thought reminded him again of the witcher. What an irony that it took the white-haired man less than a day to sweep him off his feet. It was the complete opposite with Farkas. Maybe they weren't that similar at all.
He turned on his side and soon realized that his back felt different. The cold wind gave his arms goosebumps, but his back felt perfectly warm. He lifted his arm and cricked it to reach his shoulderblade. When his fingers grazed his back, he sucked in some air.
That definitely wasn't flesh. That smooth texture... Y/N would recognize it everywhere. He had felt it so many times after all.
His back was full of scales.
Panic and adrenaline gave him strength, and he sat up, ignoring the pain that bolted through his torso. Only now did he realize that he was completely naked.
That shocked him less than the fact that only a few meters away stood the Butcher of Blaviken with wide eyes, his sword in his hand ready to attack.
"Y-You..." Geralt didn’t continue.
Y/N opened his mouth but didn't say anything as soon as he saw how the other man flinched.
His heart pounded loud in his ears, and he felt light-headed. He breathed in, it sounded strained.
A smile crept on his lips, and he grinned exhausted.
"Thank Talos, you're alive..."
.
The witcher didn't know what to respond.
He was frozen although he couldn't tell if it was because the person before him was a fire-spitting dragon or because the man was butt naked. Something that usually wouldn't impress him but after realizing that Y/N attracted him... He was conflicted.
"You... you turned into a dragon," he finally said with a neutral tone.
The man sitting in the crater nodded slowly. He looked as lost as Geralt felt.
Did he not know?
"Are you... Are you the dovahkiin?"
Y/N nodded again, and he lowered his head.
The witcher could see the shame on his face. After receiving this information, he didn't know what to do with it. It should probably agitate him, all the villagers that had their cattle stolen and all the lost prey on hunts, but Geralt felt nothing. The shock was perhaps too deep.
One is a sorceress, one a dragon. It seems like I fall in love with extraordinary people. Wait...
His eyes found the e/c ones. Did he really...? Y/n watched him with a conflicted expression.
"Do you want to kill me?"
The question surprised him; he hadn't thought about it. But he opposed it.
"Should I?"
His voice had a challenging undertone, but it sounded light, and his heart fluttered a little when the other man smiled weakly.
Geralt lowered his sword. Y/N didn't feel like a threat; in fact, he looked defeated.
The h/c haired man leaned back and exposed his torso. The witcher was right. Even his chest was full of scars, and most of them looked like claw marks.
A strong warrior.
"I caused you a lot of trouble. If I have to pay for it, I'll gladly do it with my life. It's not worth much anymore."
These words caused him to frown. The man sounded like he had already given up. Where was his will to fight?
The imposing aura Geralt had felt when he stood tall as a dragon was gone without a trace. This man was broken. He couldn't imagine what Y/N had gone through, but he wouldn't let a warrior like him die a fool's death.
"It's true. You caused me a lot of trouble..."
The Dragonborn watched him with an apologetic expression. Geralt eyed him from head to toe, his stare burning.
"But instead of paying with your life, why not pay me with something else?"
Y/N blinked and stared blankly, then he blushed furiously. The witcher’s heart skipped a beat.
Did Y/N also...?
It excited Geralt that he apparently knew what he was hinting at and reacted this strongly. It meant he had a chance. Then he remembered the ring. Geralt examined the naked man and realized the necklace was gone.
"Your ring..."
Y/N touched his throat. Nothing was there. Geralt expected his face to turn panicked, but only a melancholic expression showed up.
"It's fine. It's time to move on."
The witcher didn't pry further, but he knew he didn't have to. The smile on Y/N's lips said enough.
"So, how am I supposed to repay you?"
The man lifted an eyebrow and grinned. He gulped, he didn't expect the man to be this willing. Suddenly he felt bad about his desires.
"Toss me a coin."
The warrior from Keizaal tilted his head and puckered his lips. Then he smiled, and his e/c eyes turned into crescents. They looked happy. But most importantly, human.
Warmth spread in his chest.
He had a thought that his future would be a lot more interesting with the dovahkiin by his side and Jaskier.
Wait...
Both of them opened their mouth and shouted:
“Jaskier!”
_______
Endnote: Congrats! You made it! Like I said at the beginning, this fic is based on a headcanon of mine. Where the dragonborn slowly turns into a dragon because of his dragon soul. The dovahkiin is able to live a lot longer than any other human due to his dragon nature and it’s taking a toll on him. The scales are something I had imagined from the start. This is a drawing of my dragonborn which I used as inspiration for this fic:
I wanted the story to end in a rather light tone which some might not find appropriate but I honestly got a little exhausted. I wrote this as a oneshot of 12k words, which was definitely too much xD Writing so much is new to me. But I’m proud that I made it this far :)
I wanted Yennefer to play a part here but more like the one of a former lover. She was also a tool to give Geralt a reason why he likes Y/N since he’s officially straight in canon.
I already decided to create a fic where Geralt gets taken to Skyrim but I haven’t decided if it’s going to be a sequel to this yet. We’ll see I guess.
Some sentences that were spoken in Dovahzul were purposely not translated because it was either from Geralt’s sight or it was to show that the dragonborn was slowly changing. But they meant the following:
Dii rii lovaas fah hi. Wo los hi? Hi los ni rok = My soul sings for you. Who are you? You are not him (as in Farkas).
Dii Zahkrii kriin Dovah ni aak niin = My Sword slays dragons not help them
Thank you for reading and being patient with me :D
The Dragonborn | M!Reader x Geralt of Rivia | Part I
Just an idea I had after reading an awesome story by @waiting4inspiration
Notes: I never finished Skyrim. Also, many things I’ve written here are based on The Witcher 3 game, since the lore of the Series is not covering everything. Also, also, this story is inspired by a headcanon of mine about the Dragonborn. I will elaborate further in the next part :)
Fandoms: The Witcher (TV Series), The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim
Warnings: Non-Canon Story, Swearing, Gore, Slight OOC
Summary: Geralt and Jaskier meet a stranger in the woods while on the hunt for a special monster. They decide to team up but neither does Geralt realize that his prey is close to him nor does the stranger notice he's the one being hunted...
Word Count: 5785
Taglist: @yes-captainstark @stuckupstucky
If you want to be tagged in my stories send me a pm with the fandom/character name!
Please note that The Witcher is supposed to be around the Middle-Age. Homophobia existed.
Part II
_______
He definitely had to rethink his decisions when it came to helping villagers.
Geralt usually never hunted monsters that weren't on the information boards in towns, but when he heard the rumors in the tavern and the worried glances from every villager, he made an exception—something he regretted now.
He wanted Jaskier to stay at the tavern, but the bard was stubborn and just tagged along into the forest.
"Don't worry, Geralt. I won't get in your way."
The witcher didn't say it out loud, but that wasn't exactly why he wanted him to stay behind. Hunts with unknown monsters were dangerous even for an experienced monster slayer like him.
The Butcher of Blaviken couldn't prepare his silver sword with special oils since he didn't know what he would encounter. But from the rumors he had heard, the monster seemed to be a draconide, so Geralt used some strengthening potion on himself.
He didn't find any other clues, and the whole search for information hadn't helped at all. So he decided to just go for it. He would probably regret it later, but when did he not?
And now here they were. In the middle of a dark forest. It was almost nighttime, and Geralt and Jaskier hadn't found shit.
The witcher had left his horse in the stable of the village's tavern because the forest was close, and he didn't want Roach to get hurt in case the draconide wanted her as food.
So they had to carry everything by themselves. Thankfully, Jaskier insisted on taking their sleeping blankets and food rations.
"You know this could be a great opportunity for a new song. An unknown monster to slay, a dark and eerie forest, the Butcher of Blaviken..."
The bard appeared to be as lively as ever, Geralt on the other hand couldn't share his excitement. In fact, every muscle in his body was tense, and he concentrated hard on his hearing. The forest was whispering, and he heard a twig snap in front of them.
"...be something along the lines of Slay-"
"Shhhh."
The bard's expression changed, and he stopped talking immediately. The witcher unsheathed his sword and listened intensely.
There it was again. A shuffle in the bushes, the crunch of fallen leaves. A presence coming towards them. His shoulders tightened, ready to attack when the bushes parted, and a man tumbled before their feet.
"Oh, greetings, strangers."
Jaskier just stared at the newcomer while Geralt pointed his sword at his neck. The man was wearing the strangest armor he had ever seen. It was black with blood-red features and had pointy shoulder pauldrons.
It gave the man an intimidating aura, and the large scars in his face didn't help. But the way he greeted them and how he awkwardly scratched his head in uncertainty, made him look less dangerous. Oh, and the fact that his sword was sheathed.
"Wha-what an odd turn of events," commented Jaskier, who tried to hide the fact that his legs almost gave out when the stranger had appeared before them.
Geralt studied the man with a strange feeling in his chest. He could sense it. Something was strange about him. Maybe it was his accent, or the foreign armor, or how he looked completely calm when a blade was pointed at his throat.
"Do you not know what lurks in this forest at night?"
His tone was harsh, the stranger slightly agitated him, although the witcher didn't know why. The other just watched him for a few seconds, his e/c eyes scanning him. A shiver ran down Geralt's spine.
"I'm hunting."
Jaskier seemed to feel the strange atmosphere between the two because he said with a light undertone:
"Well, we do too."
The witcher gave him an angry look, but the bard looked purposely in another direction to avoid his disapproving eyes. The stranger's expression turned somber when he heard these words, and Geralt furrowed his eyebrows, this fellow was definitely strange.
"I assume you're a witcher?"
His voice was missing any disgust or contempt which surprised him. Geralt didn't respond, but he didn't have to because Jaskier, the babbler, took the word, as always.
"Yes! He is Geralt of Rivia, the Butcher of Blaviken. And I am his humble friend, Jaskier, who tells the world his noble deeds. And who are you?"
The stranger seemed stunned by Jaskier's cheerful behavior, but then he returned the smile and bowed a little. It looked weird with his intimidating armor. Geralt squinted his eyes. Was this man a fool? His adam's apple almost touched his sword now.
"Call me Y/N. I do not have a last name, but I come from Keizaal, a faraway land. And I’ve been staying here in the forest for a few weeks in a hut half a mile from here."
Keizaal? The witcher had never heard of it before, and it disturbed him. All the studying he had to do when he was younger, but the homeland of this person was unknown to him.
Geralt examined the man closer. For someone who apparently stayed in the forest for a long time, he looked a little too clean. But maybe people from Keizaal had a different washing methods. His thoughts trailed off.
"A pleasure to meet you, Y/N," replied Jaskier and bowed in return, he gave Geralt a look and the witcher only hummed, although lowering his sword.
"What are you hunting if I may ask?" requested the h/c haired man while he absently watched how the moon appeared in the sky over the tree line. It was fully night now, and Jaskier unconsciously took a step closer to Geralt. The witcher had no problems seeing in the dark, and the stranger didn't appear to either.
"None of your concern."
Once again, he gave the man the cold shoulder, but Y/N ignored it. He only raised an eyebrow and grinned slightly. Surprisingly, it made Geralt's blood boil. That bastard's presence was bothersome.
"It looks like we need to part ways again, but it was a pleasant surprise to meet the witcher everyone is talking about."
He tensed at the mocking undertone.
What was that supposed to mea-
A scream disrupted the three of them, and both Geralt and Y/N turned around to see from where the sound came from.
"Jaskier," grunted the witcher, and the bard stepped behind him.
"The Nightwraith," murmured the foreigner, and his head whipped around to him.
"How do you know that?"
Geralt's voice was sharp and menacing, but Y/N didn't respond, he unsheathed his sword and swung it in his hand with practiced ease. His defensive stance screamed mighty warrior, and a shiver once again ran down Geralt's spine.
What is this strange feeling?
He could hear Jaskier's heart pounding fast with the help of his increased hearing. The foreigner's heartbeat, on the other hand, was calm and steady as ever.
"It might be best if you protect your companion."
These words were the last ones of the stranger before he disappeared through the bushes.
"What are you doing?!" shouted Geralt, but Y/N was already gone.
-
The man ran until he confirmed that the distance between him and the two others was big enough. He clenched his hand and concentrated on his Magicka. The spell for detecting any undead engulfed his eyes, and he saw the Nightwraith 30 meters in front of him. The ghost looked straight at him and once again screamed like bloody murder.
"What a shame that the ghosts here cannot be captured in soul gems..."
Y/N grimaced and decided to attack first. As long as the spell was activated, he was able see the monster even when she was in her ethereal form. It would decrease her chance of escaping and attacking the witcher and the bard. So he decided to charge.
"WULD NAH KEST"
A whipping sound erupted, and a familiar feeling washed over him as he dashed towards the Nightwraith with inhumane speed. The creature screeched in surprise and pain as soon as his enchanted ebony sword hit her. He understood the confusion of the ghost, his weapon was not from this world, and neither was he. That's why he was able to harm her even when she was in immaterial form.
He had fought against thousands of monsters, slew giants, trolls, werewolves, and even daedras. And obviously dragons. A mere ghost like the Nightwraith was nothing for him.
He slashed the monster's gown, and the cloth sizzled and turned to ash when the ebony touched it.
She tried to fight back, raised her clawed hand in an attempt to attack his head, which was the only part of Y/N's body that wasn't covered by his armor, but her claws didn't connect. His sword impaled her rotten body, and a howl full of agony erupted from her mouth.
A tremor in her body and the lack of physical resistance to his sword showed him that she was about to split into three copies of herself, but he wouldn't let her do that. The man shifted, ignoring how her body disappeared and then turned around to face her petty trick.
A fiery heat crept up his throat, and the ground shook slightly when he shouted:
"YOL TOOR SHUL"
The copies that appeared behind him got engulfed in green flames and turned to dust. With a twirl of his hand, Y/N rammed his sword inside the original Nightwraith's skull, who emerged from the left.
A wail escaped from the monster's lips when her body too exploded in green flames and vanished.
The man's legs buckled under him, and he had to use his sword as support not to fall.
Using two shouts so quickly after another had always weakened him. Even when his body began to adapt to his soul. Slowly he sat down on the moss-covered ground and took a deep breath. Exhaustion washed over him like a wave and he huffed.
Maybe they had heard the Nightwraith's dying scream because he could listen to fast footsteps approaching him. He only glanced into their direction, and when he saw that the witcher and the bard looked unscathed, he sighed in relief.
"What the fuck were you thinking?!"
Geralt of Rivia was fuming, he could smell it, and his voice clearly gave it away.
"I was trained to kill monsters; I am a witcher! Did you believe a mere human could kill a Nightwraith?! Be happy you didn't find it. It would have torn you to shreds!"
When he heard the insult, his eyes twitched, and he closed them. It wasn't a good idea to show them to the angry witcher at the moment.
After so many years with his dragon soul, which prolonged his life, his body began to go through chances. His pupils turning to slits when he was agitated was one example.
The fact that the bard had watched the white-haired man with a surprised expression showed him that he wouldn't normally react this strongly. Y/N shifted, and the clinking of his armor drowned out his scornful snort.
"Well, I am quite happy because I was indeed able to kill her."
He didn't see the witcher's expression, but the silence said enough. The corner of his lips twitched, and when his eyes stopped hurting slightly, he opened them again and stared into Geralt's yellow ones.
"But I'm exhausted now. I don't think I can stand up and return to my hut."
Jaskier exhaled through his nose and muttered: "with this armor, no wonder." The bard turned to face his companion, and they held a short silent conversation before he set down his lute next to Y/N and said with a lively voice:
"Well, since it's already night, let's camp here together."
"NO!" yelled both of the armed men at the same time. Geralt glared at him, and the other returned it with a scowl.
Jaskier eyed his partner suspiciously and then turned to the h/c haired man who's intense stare made him unconsciously lick his lips. Oh, he saw what this was.
"Come on. We cannot leave Y/N alone out here if he isn’t even able to stand up. We will light a fire and give you some of our food."
In the end, they both complied even though not without grunting and murmuring curses under their breath. Geralt lit the branches he gathered while Y/N peeled off his armor with skillful efficiency. His clothes underneath looked elegant, but they were dirty and had brown stains, which most likely were blood.
Jaskier prepared some bread and cheese that they had taken from the tavern back at the village and then sat on his sleeping blanket. The witcher watched as the foreigner and the bard started a conversation.
"How far away is Keizaal? I never heard of it."
The man took some time before he replied.
"I had to cross the ocean for a year to get to you."
"A year?! Mercy! Did you hear that, Geralt?"
He only grunted. Skellige was already so far away, how many miles had the man traveled to get here? That fact impressed him a little, but he didn't show it and just continued stacking the branches he collected.
"You look skilled with the sword..."
Y/N looked at his strange weapon, and Geralt couldn't help himself to listen carefully when the other began to talk about his life.
"From where I come from, men have no choice but to learn how to fight. There was a civil war when I first came to Keizaal, or Skyrim how the natives call it. I had to pick sides, and many people relied on me. Fights with monsters like the Nightwraith", he pointed to the heap of dust a few meters away from their camp, "happened daily. Your continent and Redania is similar to Keizaal in that matter. You can die anytime. If you're not careful."
The man had a longing in his voice when he spoke of his homeland, and his silhouette looked lonely. Then he laughed, but it sounded bitter.
"Oh, but there's one difference to your land. We had dragons."
Geralt stood up and turned to face the man.
"We have dragons too."
Y/N shook his head and dismissed the comment with his hand.
"I mean real dragons, not your pathetic lindworms. The first time I met one, fire rained down on earth, and a whole town was burned to ashes. Keizaal was in the claws of terror for years. His name was Alduin, the World Eater."
Jaskier's jaw dropped, and he grabbed his lute.
"Tell me more! I get inspiration from stories!"
The h/c haired man shifted to sit more comfortably and then started to tell the story of the most significant threat Keizaal had ever faced.
-
"...and that's how the Dragonborn slew Alduin and returned to Keizaal."
Jaskier's eyes were beaming, and his face showed a slightly scary expression, but Geralt knew that the bard just imagined all the things the warrior had told them.
"And then? What happened to him? I mean, you should know, you said you were his friend."
Y/N grimaced and let his rough fingers travel across his blade. He looked like he didn't want to talk about it, but in the end, the man sighed and just said:
"His dragon soul was too much for his human body, and he slowly turned into a dovah. His humanity was gone, and only a violent beast stayed. His other companions and I had to kill him."
Geralt noticed the pain in his eyes, and he felt bad for the man who had lost his best friend. Y/N lifted his head and realized that the witcher was looking at him. He turned away in slight embarrassment.
"We should sleep now. I will stay on watch first."
The Butcher of Blaviken only nodded, and Jaskier sighed.
"Then, I will take the next shift."
He didn't like taking the last shift, but Geralt didn't say anything and just laid down on his blanket, facing away from the two others.
Dovahkiin. It really sounded strange. The fact that there was a place out there so different from everything he had ever known... It intrigued Geralt. Y/N seemed to have been bound to fate, too, at least in a way.
He regretted yelling at the man, but at that time, he had really believed that he was just some fool who tried to boast about his skills. But Y/N had indeed killed the Nightwraith. Geralt had seen the remains.
He looked at the shadow of the foreigner that danced on the trunk of a tree close to him. Since he wasn't wearing his intimidating armor anymore, he just looked like a normal man, who had seen too many people die and fought against too many demons.
Just like me.
He felt a strange bond between himself and Y/N, and he decided to try and be a little friendlier tomorrow.
He closed his eyes, and the only thing he heard before he fell asleep was the steady breaths of Jaskier, the man humming and the fire's crackle.
.
Hands touched his shoulders. They were rough and big. Geralt shivered when they traveled across his back and all the scars he had received from his life as a witcher. "What are you doing?" he asked when he could feel a breath on his neck. "We are the same," replied a deep voice, and it sounded raspy. He wanted to turn around, but somehow he couldn't. "The same?" He stopped short when a warm body pressed against his back. The person snaked their arms around his torso and touched his chest. Geralt felt heat creeping up his body. Laying in the arms of this person, he felt safe but also slightly uneasy. His heart skipped a beat when two lips touched his neck. They were rough, but the kiss felt like a feather. The other person's breath tickled his skin, and he shivered, although it was pleasant. "Both of us are monsters." The hands on his chest suddenly began to claw into his skin and ripped deep wounds into his flesh. He began to scream.
"..ralt, Geralt! Wake up!"
He jolted awake and found himself staring into Jaskier's worried face.
He grunted "what's going on?" his voice deep from sleeping, and the bard bit his lip.
"Y/N went to take a piss, but he hasn't returned, and I heard a roar, a thunderous roar."
Geralt sat up and rubbed his eyes with one hand. His forehead was damp from sweating so much, and he cursed the person of his dream.
"He didn't run away?"
Jaskier shook his head and pointed to the armor next to the warrior's blanket.
"He woke me up for my shift and then said he would be right back. He wasn't even wearing his boots."
He didn't miss the worried undertone of his friend, and Geralt sighed deeply.
"I'll go look for him. Stay here. Don't let the fire die out and call out to me if something approaches the camp!"
The bard was definitely not happy with being left behind, but he knew that was better for all of them. He wasn't much of a help, not when it came to killing monsters. And the thing he had heard out there was definitely one.
Geralt took both of his swords and sheathed the one made out of steel. With the silver sword in his hand, he began to walk into the direction Jaskier had pointed to.
He saw the footsteps on the ground, leaving a trail of dark spots on the dewy moss. He followed them, and they led quite far away from their camp to a tree from where he could smell the stench of piss. He wrinkled his nose and searched for other tracks, but there weren't any.
"What in the worl-"
He was still able to turn his head around, but he couldn't avoid a black thing that slammed into him at full speed.
The witcher was sent flying, and when he crashed on the ground, it took his breath away and caused his vision to turn black for a few seconds. A roar shook the earth and the trees as if there were an earthquake and a storm at the same time. His ears rang and he lost focus for a second.
A shadow cast over him and Geralt's blood froze when he saw two rows of gigantic sharp teeth with a blurry vision. An orange glow appeared, and he could feel the heat radiating. He threw himself to the side; any second later, he would have been turned into roasted meat.
His instincts told him to run, and he did. Shameful, but a witcher knew when his opponent was too strong. He still couldn't see properly, his head was ringing painfully, and his ribs and chest felt like they would explode, but fear carried him forward.
Thundering footsteps could be heard behind him, and a roar erupted again from the beast's throat that pursued him. It shook him to the core, and he was sure that this was the monster the villagers had talked about. The beast was growling, and he paused mentally. Did this thing just say something?
Geralt took a step forward, but there was no ground underneath his foot, and he tumbled down a steep hill. Stones dug into his back, branches tore his undershirt, and his head hit a bolder. It felt like his energy was sucked away. Everything turned black.
-
"I found him!"
Y/N informed Jaskier and rushed down the small hill into the dry riverbed where an unconscious witcher laid. He knelt and checked Geralt's pulse. It was slow and slightly weak but there. He searched with his hands for any severe wounds, but besides the nasty gash on his temple, he was fine. Or that's all he could see for now.
He pushed the shirt of the Butcher of Blaviken up and touched his torso. He was correct. There were some bruises right over his ribs. Fortunately, nothing seemed broken. He pushed and felt around some more until he heard a cough, and he stiffened.
"What.. uhm, what are you doing?"
The bard's voice sounded suspiciously like he was grinning, and Y/N clenched his teeth in annoyance.
"He bruised his ribs. It will probably hurt for a while. We should take care of his temple wound."
Jaskier whistled, which caused him to furrow his eyes, but he didn't say anything; instead, he stood up and roughly grabbed the witcher and threw him with ease over his shoulder. Y/N turned and left the bard standing there with a gaping mouth. What a hassle.
It had been strange. When the man had woken up six hours ago, he had laid somewhere in the forest, his enchanted shirt torn at the back, and his hands and feet were dirty. His fingernails were stained black because of the earth under them, and he had a raspy throat. He had no memory of what had happened.
The sky was still dark, and next to Y/N laid a fallen tree that looked like it had been broken in the middle with force. Wood splinters surrounded him.
He had used one of his spells to find the way back to the camp, where he found Jaskier alone and scared shitless.
"You're alive!" was his greeting.
The bard told him how Geralt went looking for him, and breathlessly explained that he hadn't come back. He thought the warrior from Keizaal had died.
Y/N luckily didn't, and they decided to look for the witcher in the morning. Or he decided, Jaskier was firmly against it, but when he taunted the bard to search by himself, he gave in quietly. He knew that it was safer for both of them.
While he waited with sweaty hands, Y/N realized something and discreetly changed his torn shirt. He also wondered how his enchanted clothes could be damaged to such extremity.
When the sun rose, they had begun searching, which led up to now.
.
"Isn't he heavy?"
Jaskier's question made him chuckle.
"Try lifting my armor. If you're not strong in Keizaal, you'll die before you can hear the end of the Dragonborn song."
The bard suddenly grabbed his arm, and Y/N stopped walking. Jaskier's eyes were wide, and his face had a pleading look when he practically yelled:
"A song? Sing it to me, please!"
He blinked slowly. When was the last time someone asked him to do that? Was it 50, no 80 years ago? He didn't remember.
The ring on the necklace he wore around his neck seemed to burn his skin, and a pair of eyes flashed before him. It had been so many years, and his heart still hadn't let him go.
"I can't sing well... But if you really want me to..."
The smaller man nodded profusely.
"Yes! Absolutely. Please."
Y/N needed a moment to translate the text and remember the tune, then be began:
"Our hero, our hero
Claims a warrior's heart
I tell you, I tell you
The Dragonborn comes..."
-
Geralt woke up 2 hours later. His head was still pounding, and his ribs also hurt, which was strange. Did his healing abilities not work? And where was his undershirt? Why was his head bandaged? He looked at the crowns of the trees and pondered for a moment. What happened?
"You’re awake?"
He turned his head and stared into the e/c eyes of the foreign warrior. His hair fell into his face, and Geralt thought that the scars in Y/N's face must have really hurt. Somehow he was relieved that the man was alive.
"What happened to the monster?"
Y/N furrowed his brows. He didn't seem to know what he was talking about. Slowly he sat up, and a groan escaped his lips when his chest protested.
"You should be careful, nothing's broken, but bruises can hurt anyway."
Geralt scoffed. "I had to endure worse things."
Then he paused. That's not what he wanted to say. Didn't he decide to be friendlier?
The warrior didn't reply, but his shoulders stiffened, and he realized that he might really be a little too unfriendly. But he was a man anyway, so why did it even matter? Maybe he got a concussion after that fall.
"Did you find me?"
He changed the topic, and when Y/N nodded, he looked away and hummed.
"Thank you."
He only received a pat on the back, and Geralt's heart skipped a beat. The man's hand felt like the one's from his dream. Was he thinking about Y/-
What a stupid thought. The witcher shifted and turned to face the fire where Jaskier sat and roasted a rabbit.
"Oh my, I had thought it before, but seeing you now... you look like shit if I'm allowed to say."
You already did.
"Well, you try and get chased by a fire-spitting beast."
The bard paused and exchanged a look with Y/N. He wondered when they got so close. Could people consider this to be close? Exchanging knowing looks? Geralt had no idea. He didn't even know why that mattered. Maybe he had really hit his head a little too hard.
"So that's what happened? You ran away?"
Jaskier was as considerate as ever. He clenched his jaw and then relaxed. Might as well tell the truth.
"Yes... I think that thing is completely different from anything I've ever hunted before. I wasn't able to see it properly, but it spitted fire and walked on two legs. The latter would suggest a wyvern, but the fire doesn't, and another thing was strange... I think it spoke? It said Gaan Vah Haas or something like that."
Y/N suddenly coughed. Both their heads turned to the h/c haired man.
"Gaan Lah Haas? Are you sure?!"
Geralt nodded, and the eyes of the man suddenly beamed. He blinked. The way the man's eyes turned into crescents had something... captivating.
His brain sputtered. He could only nod some more, his mind too focused on the strange thoughts.
"Do you perhaps know something about this beast?"
Jaskier continued to turn the rabbit over the fire, but his eyes were fixed on Y/N, who was silent for a while before answering.
"Truth be told, I only came here because I was searching for someone from Keizaal. He disappeared, and I was put in charge of bringing him back."
This new information made him regain focus.
"Are you implying the thing that chased me and tormented the villagers is the one you're looking for? It may have had two legs, but it definitely wasn't human."
The man shook his head and pulled a satchel out of nowhere. He put his hand inside, and Jaskier's eyes almost popped out when his arm entirely disappeared as if the satchel was much bigger than it looked. He retracted his hand and conjured a red scale. It was gigantic.
"This..." began Y/N, and his eyes held a look of melancholy, "is one of his scales. He's a dragon. Like Alduin."
The bard was still in shock about the magic satchel, while Geralt studied the scale from afar. It had a vibrating red color and beautiful iridescence. When the beast had chased him, he didn't see exactly what color it had, but if it’s scales were such a vibrant color, he would have surely noticed, right?
"A dragon from Keizaal?"
He received a nod.
"And you have to bring it back?"
"His name is Odahviing, and he's harmless. Also, yes, I have to bring him back."
"The thing out there definitely tried to kill me, I don't know about you, but that doesn't look harmless to me."
Y/N's expression turned dark.
"He's mostly harmless. But that's why I have to bring him back."
-
Truthfully, he was spouting horseshit.
All the things he had said up to this point, about his life in Keizaal, his journey, all were lies. He didn't travel a year to get to this continent, or more like this world. He walked through a goddamn portal and arrived in the middle of some forest he had never seen before.
Had he not met a kind but old soul who took him in and helped him, Y/N would have probably gone crazy. Or maybe he already did. After all these years, he wasn't so sure if that wasn't already the case.
Furthermore, he wasn't the Dragonborn's companion, no, he was him.
Or had been. He wasn't anymore.
After all, Alduin's death was 130 years ago, and everyone who knew his real story was already dead. Only his friends from the Mer side had remained. And Paarthurnax and also Odahviing.
Using his friend's name felt like a betrayal. But he couldn't really explain the portal thing without telling Geralt and Jaskier that he was the Archmage of Winterhold and he already said that the Dragonborn held that title, so...
That was also why he didn’t heal the wound of the other man although he really wanted to. He somehow couldn’t bear the thought of the witcher hurting.
Y/N used his friend as an excuse to not hurt the dragon.
He decided to spin a story around it.
Well, it was only half a lie. The thing that attacked the Butcher of Blaviken appeared to be a dragon from his world. The shout that Geralt had heard and obviously also had to endure was proof enough.
It was the Thu'um with which a dragon could drain the vitality of their prey. If Y/N had to guess, that was why they had to bandage his head wound and why the witcher's healing abilities weren't working for the time being. Besides the fact that the shout was otherworldly magic.
But what he didn't know was how a dovah from Keizaal could come to this world. The portal he walked through had appeared in the middle of the woods, but he had slain all the dragons after Alduin's death, so it didn't make sense.
Well, he would probably find out the truth in the next few days. And when he found the dragon, he would just ask them. They would probably also be the key for him to return home.
Y/N slightly paused. Did he even want to go back to Keizaal?
Most of his friends had already left for Sovngarde, and the ones who remained had been troubled by the personality changes he had gone through after his lover’s death.
Would they be happy if he returned?
Maybe I should stay... There's so much to learn about this continent and its inhabitants.
His eyes traveled to the witcher.
He would think about this later. The most important thing right now was to capture the dovah so that they could interrogate them.
"My job is usually to kill monsters. Not capture them."
The white-haired man pulled him out of his thoughts.
Y/N searched his eyes, and his heart stung a little when he realized once more how similar Geralt's yellow eyes were to Farkas's when he had turned into a werewolf. It devastated him but also drew him to the witcher.
Geralt was grumpy. Just like his love had been often. Talos, his heart...
"If I plead, will you not kill him? Or do I have to toss you a coin?"
The remark made Jaskier beam, and he grinned a little.
The bard was the complete opposite of the witcher. Maybe that was the reason why they were friends. Although it did look like the brown-haired man would just hang onto the other if he wanted to or not.
"You know the song?"
"Of course I do, there's not one tavern where I haven't heard it."
"You do not have to plead nor give me money. As long as that... as long as he stops terrorizing the villagers, I'll try not to kill him."
Geralt's voice sounded once again harsh, but Y/N could feel his sincere feelings, and he smiled at him.
"Thank you."
A silence fell over them, and Y/N was pleasantly surprised when the witcher returned his smile with a small but existing one. His heart skipped a beat, but he ignored it.
The atmosphere around them was peaceful for the first time they had met, but Jaskier interrupted it:
"So am I correct when I say that you just teamed up to capture this Odahviing? Oh, heavens, I just received your inspiration for a new song!"
While he grabbed his lute and began to mutter things along the lines of "Two warriors so great" and "Once upon a time, two monster hunters met and became friends," Geralt and Y/N exchanged a look and rolled their eyes simultaneously.
Maybe they would indeed become friends.
________
Wuld Nah Kest = Whirlwind Sprint (A shout that grants the ability to dash rapidly forward.)
Yol Toor Shul = Fire Breath (A shout that allows one to breathe a forceful blast of fire.)
Part II
WHO WANNA PLAY SKYRIM ROLEPLAY ON KEIZAAL ONLINE WITH ME
keizaal replied to your post: thank you guys for your answers! <3
Oh! Forgot about Murasakibara/Himuro too. Though they don’t really feature until series 2.
i had to google their names :'D but yeah i've definitely seen lots of pictures of those two in my dash. i'm quite eager to see them in the anime! (gotta catch up quickly)
thank you guys for your answers! <3
