The Knight and the Paladin - A series of Oneshots

09 Being childish

Kat giggled mischievously, sitting at the roof of her Red Rocket Station. Before she went up there she prepared some balloons, she found them some time ago, and filled them with purified water. To her luck it wasn't that rare anymore, and she had her own purifier anyway. A bowl of water bombs was sitting at the desk in the garage with a little note attached to it. 'Come find me', it read.

It was a beautiful day in the Commonwealth and she thought spending it with a hide-and-seek water balloon fight was the best she could do. She just had to wait until Danse was finally there again.
The clanking of power armor told her that he had arrived. She heard the trademark hiss of the opening suit and soft steps walking around it. He muttered something under his breath.
Kat heard how he came to a halt and then seconds later his foot steps clearly came into her direction.

SPLASH!

The first water bomb hit him in the neck. It was cold and he yelped in surprise. "Kathryn!", he yelled and she burst into a fit of laughter. "Come and get me!", she yelled back rubbing away a tear of laughter. Danse walked back inside and grabbed the bowl she prepared. He knew she was outside but couldn't make out where correctly. He turned around and looked up just in time to see one of her curls fly in the wind and he aimed.

"God, Danse! How?", she yelled down, clothes wet after he hit her. She just heard him chuckle and needed to switch tactics. She silently made her way down the roof where she jumped down at the other side of the station. She was crouching around the corner and saw how Danse still was looking up to find her. Another balloon hit him, this time in the face. She laughed her hearty laugh and just as she tried to calm down Danse threw a balloon at her which splashed all over her, making her freeze.

"REVENGE!!", she screamed as she started to run in Danse's direction. A balloon flew over his head and he ducked in the last second. That's when he realized that Kat was almost in reach. He threw another water bomb that splashed just right in front of her feet, but didn't stop her run towards him. Instead he himself started to run away and he got hit on the arm. Dogmeat eventually joined the fight and caught the water bombs midair. Danse and Kat stopped to run, instead they threw their last water filled balloons to the barking dog. His brown eyes fixated on the next throw, tongue lolling out like he was smiling.

They both laughed as they ran in circles getting each other as wet as someone could get. Dusk slowly settled in when they both stood outside the garage, completely dripping. Kat felt cold as the sun was setting behind the hills. It just happened that Dogmeat came and shook himself dry. Danse, of course, laughed. Kathryn on the other hand got angry. But she didn't know if it was because of the dog or the laughing Paladin.

Her head was steaming as she stomped to the bathroom and undressed herself. She took a long and hot shower. She was so angry that she didn't care about Danse. After half an hour she was finally warm enough again and put on some fresh clothes. Kat chose a pair of grey sweatpants and an over-sized matching comfy hooded sweater (It was Danse's actually). Her hair was still damp after she stepped out of the bathroom and put it into a messy bun. The smell of freshly cooked food filled her nose and she felt how her stomach was rumbling.

Danse stood at the cooking station, back to her when she walked towards him. "That smells amazing.", she said in a soft tone. He jumped a little and he turned around, cheeks flushed and a little smile on his face. "I hope it will taste as good as you say it smells.", he eventually said. Kat chuckled. Dogmeat laid next to the fire pit with his head between his front paws, looking up at them and begging with a shimmer of hope in his puppy brown eyes.

Danse gave Kat a plate full and her eyes were glistening. She sat down and waited until Danse sat down, too. "Well, bon appetit.", he said and took a bite. She eyed him closely as he slowly chewed, swallowed, nodded and taking another bite. He smiled a little and Kat focused on her own plate. She took a bite and, oh it was amazing! She blushed and took a second bite. "Wow, I didn't know you were such a talented cook?", she said between two bites. It warmed her from the inside and she instantly felt better.

After they finished their meal Dogmeat ate the rest and licked their plates clean. To her surprise, Danse was also doing the dishes. The sun had finally set and the stars came out to shine. He still wore his damp clothes from the water bomb fight. "You should get a warm shower, too, Danse.", Kat stated. He just looked at her and shrugged. "You're probably right.", he answered and went to the bathroom. Ten minutes later he came out again, wearing the same sweatpants like Kat and bare chested.

She still flushed when he walked around half naked. She gazed over his back and admired how each and every muscle moved under his skin. Then he turned around and looked straight into her blue eyes. "I know that you wear my sweater." Kat blushed even more and shrinked into the over-sized fabric. Her face was half hidden under the collar as she gazed back at him. Danse rose an eyebrow and walked over the refrigerator and took out two beers, then he sat down next to her and handed over one of the bottles. The fire he made for cooking was still warm and covered them in an orange light.

They both leaned against the wall and enjoyed the comfortable silence. A silent plopp was audible as Danse opened his beer. Kat copied him and they gently clanked their bottles together and both took a swig. Dogmeat laid down at Kat's feet, curled into a giant fluffball, softly snoring as he already was sound asleep. Kathryn leaned her head against Danse's shoulder. He tensed a bit and his cheeks flushed.

"We should do this more often.", Kat said.
"What?", Danse asked.
"All of today."
"Cheers to that."