44 and 60, 1 and 10. zouis, pls? love your miiind, so excited to read your answers for these
Hi zouis anon - I found your original ask!!!
I only did one but it’s quite long so I hope that’s fine. I can still do the 44&60 one later, maybe.
For now, though, I just quickly wanted to say that for 1 & 10 (Historical AU & Airport/Travel AU) this would absolutely have to be nothing else but a Dinotopia AU.
Like. Imagine protoceratops babies in the hatchery, Louis being a local Dinotopian and Zayn on his self-discovery voyage gets shipwrecked/crashes with a plane and ends up washing up ashore. Obviously Zayn with his drawing talents would go and make sure to capture everything in drawings. Louis would hate this Outsider, this dolphinback, who in his opinion is just annoying and doesn’t belong, doesn’t understand anything about Dinotopia and where did he even come from?!
Louis is a Skybax rider (the first on a Titanopteryx) and like there’d obviously be some sort of ominous adventure that’d be the trigger to bring Zayn and Louis closer together…
OH - okay so in Dinotopia there’s this machine called the Heliconoid Geochronograph, that essentially measures time on the island as both moving forward as well as circular. Instead of measuring time in hours, it looks at biological clocks such as the life cycle of various indigenous plants and fauna.
It’s super important because this is where history is recorded, essentially. So imagine the problem it causes when the geochronograph is destroyed and the Keeper goes missing???
Louis immediately volunteers to leave Waterfall City (capital of Dinotopia) and go search for whoever captured the Keeper - and Zayn tags along because since he’s new, he doesn’t have a function yet and so noone will miss him, as rude as it sounds.
Titan actually allows Zayn to climb aboard alongside Louis, which is incredibly annoying. Louis worked for months to gain Titan’s trust, and he was so proud and happy when they’d formed a tentative friendship, had cried tears of joy the first time he’d been up in the air, sat on Titan’s back. And he knows Titan hates saddles - usually Louis goes without, despite regulations and whatever Roman may say about it. The Troodon has a point of course, and Louis is always as safe as can be, and he knows Titan is too. But he’s not going to risk anything with this newbie, this dolphinback, latching onto him.
So a saddle it is, and somehow Titan had just accepted it, and the added weight of Zayn. It’s rather unfair. He still sneaks Titan an extra roll of food, because he’s behaving exceptionally well and he doesn’t want to see Zayn plummet to his death, just because Titan decided it’d be fun to do some loops.
Louis might like belly rolls, he realises not everyone does.
And like Louis doesn’t get yet, maybe, that Dinotopia is kind of a shock and it’s difficult trying to fit in, and Zayn likes just being by himself, watching from afar- rather than be in the middle of everything. But Zayn’s smart and talented and actually really nice, not half as quiet as he might seem to be.
“Is it normal - where you’re from, is it normal to have those markings?” Louis points at Zayn’s overall chest and arms, not sure what he’s even asking, or why. It’s certainly not because he’d like to see Zayn’s naked chest up close again. Definitely not.
Zayn smiles ruefully and shakes his head. ‘They’re - it’s not normal, I’d say. But there are a number of people who get them. For different reasons, really. Some like the art, like I do. Others get them done for tribal reasons. Part of their culture, to have certain patterns on their skin.’
“I don’t think I like them,” Louis blurts out, then sees how Zayn’s face falls slightly - retreating back into his shell with an too easy smile. So Louis backtracks, hastily clarifying what he means. “On me, I don’t think. They suit you, though. Looks - good. Part of your skin.”
Zayn tucks his chin in and Louis could swear there’s a small blush settling on his cheeks. ‘Thank you, I think.’
He likes the soft, small smile that graces Zayn’s features next. Much better than his scowl. Though admittedly, even his scowl is pretty great.
THEN they find out that the timekeeper went into the jungle to NEST because they’re laying an egg, and Zayn basically sacrifices himself as a giganotosaurus discovers their camp. Thanks to Titan, who distracts the giganotosaurus long enough for them to escape, they make it back to safety, but not without Zayn having gotten severely injured.
‘You’re such an idiot! Of fucking course a dumb dolphinback would risk his life against a Giganotosaurus! Are you insane?!’ Louis rants as he inspects the wounds on Zayn’s back. He is pretty lucky, as far as Louis can tell he’s got a broken arm and a superficial fleshwound on his back - but he’s alive.
“Language, Lewis,” Renna chastises him, as the small Stenonychosaurus carries a miraculously sleeping baby Diego in her arms.
Louis just huffs and continues to prod Zayn’s upper body to check for other injuries. Titan’s standing off to the side, his beady little eyes judging Louis like he knows his Skybax tends to do.
Zayn’s been quiet all this time, and Louis sighs then reaches for the bag he brought with him. “Here - it’s got special herbs in it that’ll numb the pain a little.”
‘Thanks,’ Zayn starts, then clears his throat. ‘Others first, self last’. Louis stills as Zayn recites part of Dinotopia’s codex rules. He wasn’t aware Zayn even knew them, let alone by heart.
‘I get it now. I didn’t get it before. I get you.’ Zayn says softly, eyes focused on where Louis’ hand is still resting on Zayn’s shoulder where he’d been rubbing the healing cream.
‘You’re not aggressive, or loud, or feisty. You’re protective, and selfless, and brave. You live by those rules so effortlessly, even though it may look like you’re a rule breaker. You’d die before anything were to happen to Dinotopia.’
Zayn lifts his uninjured hand and slowly hikes up Louis’ shirt, revealing the gash on his own ribs. “It’s fine,” Louis says stubbornly, but before he knows it, Zayn’s putting the ointment on him as well.
He stays quiet, lets Zayn rub in the ointment, then stares at the small fire they’ve got going on as they eat their final dinner in the jungle before making the trek back to Waterfall City.
‘I - thank you. I know I didn’t say it before, but thank you. You probably saved our lives back there. Even though you don’t really care - I know you want to leave and I’m sorry you can’t.’ Louis confesses. He hadn’t meant to spy, but he’s seen the drawings in Zayn’s notebook. Has seen the notes lining the pages, memories of a world Louis doesn’t know splayed out on the paper.
He’s never longed for a different world but his own. He realises it must be hard for Zayn to miss everything, knowing it’s permanent.
“It’s alright. I - I didn’t really fit in there? Weirdly enough, I like being at the Hatchery. It’s the first place in my life that I felt comfortable right away.” Zayn confesses, and Louis smiles at that.
Zayn smiles back at him, a big, goofy one that morphs into a grimace as he forgets for a hot second he’s broken his arm, making Louis laugh at his misery.
“Oh I see how it is,” Zayn grunts, but there’s still a twinkle in his eyes and Louis can’t help but admit he’s drawn to it like a moth to a flame.
And then obviously on the way back Renna absolutely teases them to death because as Keeper she knows everything and she has seen this time and again and knows exactly that these two are destined to fall in love. Titan makes sure to feign ‘turbulence’ in the air so they get shuffled closer together and Louis has to hold Zayn tight (as he’s sitting in front of him bc of his broken arm). It’s close and intimate and everything Louis never knew he was craving.
And then obviously they go back to the Hatchery and Zayn ends up working there and they end up kissing in the middle of a whole new litter of newborn protoceratops. Also Louis’d feature heavily in all of Zayn’s drawings that are later included in the Dinotopia book!! Just, there, a steady presence always in the background of all the sketches.
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