Temporary (Tighnari X Reader)

13

Staring right back into his thinned pupils, she pushed his finger away from her lips as she whispered in a pin-drop voice. "Who?"

"You'll see for yourself.. follow me closely and please, for Archons sake, don't make a sound."

Taken aback by his change in demeanour, she followed him closely as they slinked out of the cellar, keeping close to the ground as Tighnari shifted the wooden hatch back into place on the floor. (Y/N) waved up at the bartender who stared at them through his foggy eyes, unblinking.

"Pst!"

Her attention turned back to Tighnari, his hat flattened intensely on his head. When she crept close enough to him, he whispered again even quieter than before. "On my mark, we'll hop over the counter together and we'll get out of here as quick as a pair of foxes. Got it?"

'Well, you're the only fox here...' She thought, then nodded and held her breath and he inched his eyes over the counter again, staring at whoever had his fur sticking up. The shelves surrounding her were filled with ancient bottles of wine and cobwebs that attracted more dust than bugs, including a shotgun with rusted metal that matched its wooden exterior. Even the slightest anxious twitch of Tighnari's bulky boots was enough to blow a small cloud of dust her way, and she held her nose tightly to prevent any unwanted sneezes.

"Okay, their backs are turned... ready? Go!"

This was the first time that she had seen Tighnari in real action. The bar counter was just above his waistline, so when he effortlessly glided over it and landed on the other side with only a squeak in the floorboards, she too attempted to follow suit and hopped over the counter, only for her foot to be caught on the ledge.

She cascaded downward, her mind quickly swapping from being as stealthy as possible to alerts going off in her head, her survival instincts in full throttle as her face was soon coming into contact with the dusty wooden floor.

Buzzing pain spiralled across her face, and she wobbly sat up with a whimper, trying to hold back from crying out loud to avoid drawing any more attention. Well, given how small the bar was there was no way no one had heard her fumble, she might as well cry it out.

That is, until she realized that Tighnari was next to her, holding her elbow and shoulder tenderly while speaking- not to her, rather to the person behind him.

"I'm a medical professional, I assure you I can handle this situation. My friend here is not any of your concern."

The brim of his hat had blocked off their eye contact, yet his voice was as stern and sharp as ever, as if he was directly facing that person. She leaned to the side to get a view of who was interrogating him so harshly, only to feel her stomach tightly scrunch up.

She could have recognized that fat belly anywhere. A grimace overtook her face as she leaned back in front of Tighnari, partially out of sight from the man. Now Tighnari's avoidance made sense. If it weren't for his sharp aim that one day, it would have most likely been the end of them both in that garden.

"Your little 'friend' took quite the tumble. With the way you're dressed and how your little friend there is super quiet, I'm gonna have to get my pal here involved. He's in the police force."

That same gruff voice sent memories back into her mind, and her anxiety grew in her chest. Even so, she had to help Tighnari out. "S-sir, thanks for looking out for me but really, I-I'm fine. We'll be taking our leave now."

She had adjusted strands of her hair to cover her face when she got on her feet, and she held Tighnari's hand firmly as she took the first few steps out of the bar, the door just a few mere meters away.