-- Dozing Off --

The royal blue sky hung proud and clear in the air, making way for the incoming sunlight. The sun was a line of orange on the horizon, making its surroundings a peach colour. Clouds huddled around it, stretching at the start of the day. The air had a calmness that Fitz couldn't place, cold and alerting. It made his head clearer, which, unfortunately, meant the yelling beside him was much louder.

"I can't believe them! How dare they! I'm supposed to be the one who has to fix this whole mess, but they won't hold up a single conversation with me?" A blonde, chocolate-eyed elf threw her hands in dawn air, exasperated. She scrunched her eyebrows together and her gaze was unfocused, too many thoughts piled up in her head.

Fitz suppressed a grin, pinching the bridge of his nose. Sophie looked adorable when she was mad. "Yeah!" He agreed, following her to the Panakes tree, holding a bowl of starkflower stew. Sophie had two others, one for her and one for Calla's tree. The brave gnome had sacrificed herself to save her fellow gnomes, from a plague the ogres had released a few months ago. It was Sophie's favourite place to be, and he would often come over to give her presents and small gifts. He lived to see that smile on her pink face when she opened them. Though, the Black Swan so quiet, Sophie's reactions were much more distant and tired.

"Did you see the look on Tiergan's face yesterday? He knew much more than he was letting on!" She continued to rant, walking faster and clutching the bowls of stew in her hands tighter. They reached the tree and Sophie poured a bowl over its dark roots, then sat down by the trunk and shoved a spoonful of stew into her mouth.

Fitz plopped down next to her and leaned back on the trunk, his dark hair rippling in the wind, and he closed his eyes. He opened them to find Sophie staring and shot her a smile which she replied to by turning red. He pretended not to notice and took another spoonful.

"This is great, did you make it?" Fitz asked, looking over at her. "Yeah. It's... it's Calla's recipe" she choked on Calla's name and Fitz couldn't help but wrap an arm around her "Well, it's fantastic. She would have loved it." He grinned, pulling her closer. She smiled and his heart skipped a beat. 'Ugh, when am I going to stop doing that? She's my cognate!'

He shook off the thought, and Sophie yawned "You know, I forgot why I was mad." She looked around as if expecting to see the answer flying about.

"Huh" Fitz said, taking another sip. He knew, but didn't want her to start a new round of yelling at the Black Swan.

She closed her eyes for a moment, presumably thinking, before opening the again. "The Black Swan! Right!" Fitz stifled a laugh as she continued to criticize them. He wasn't paying attention, but her words slowed down and she leaned to the side. Suddenly, his heart racing, he felt her head on her shoulder and a soft snore escape her lips.

And that's when he panicked.

OH NO SHES ASLEEP SHE'S ASLEEP SHE'S ASLEEP WHAT SHOULD I DO NOW UGH SOMEONE HELP I CAN'T MOVE SHE'LL WAKE UP OMG SHE'S SO CUTE NO FITZ THIS IS NOT THE TIME WHAT DO I DO SHOULD I CALL ELWIN NO WHAT THE HECK FITZ IVE NEVER HAD A GIRL SLEEPING ON ME BEFORE OR ANYONE ACTUALLY UHH HELP SHE'S SLEEPING OMG SHOULD I GET EDALINE WHERE'S MY STUPID IMPARTER OH NO THAT’LL WAKE HER UP UHH WHAT SOMEONE HELP HH

Eventually, his thoughts subsided, and he shifted into a more comfortable position, careful not to disturb Sophie. Her eyes were closed and her face was morphed in the most peaceful expression he had seen on her for days. A smile crept onto his lips, as he rested his head on the trunk, closing his eyes. The warmth of her head on his shoulders and the gentle snores escaping her mouth pulled him to close his eyes. He fought to stay awake, for no dream was prettier than the way she slept. And, if anyone saw them, that would raise a mountain of questions. But, with her small body holding off the cold air, and the dark sky above, fighting sleep was no use. Only 5 minutes, his mind coaxed him into believing, and he closed his eyes.

Awww, look at them! Aren't they adorable! Hey, let me see! Shhhh, she's waking up! LET ME SEE!

Voices buzzed in Sophie's mind as she lifted her head and blinked away her dream. She squinted in the blurry scene, struggling to make out someone. Sophie got up "Hello?" She queried, getting up.

That's when she realized she had fallen asleep.

On Fitz.

Her face turned scarlet as she looked back at him. He was leaning on the trunk, as cute as ever, eyes closed and snoring. She wiped a drop of drool from the side of her mouth and rubbed her eyes, her vision clearing. The sun had risen by now, and it was high in the pale blue sky. Stray clouds travelled through it, making shapes that could've be interpreted as animals. "Hello?" She tried again. Something shuffled in the bushes, and Biana, Della and Edaline came tumbling out, all the girls stifling their giggles.

Sophie watched them, frozen in shock and panic. She fumbled with her words "W-what are you doing?"

Biana giggled. "Well... You weren't home, and we needed you for something, so Edaline asked me to go fetch you! I saw you and Fitz cuddling and just had to show Edaline and Della!" Sophie's face turned red, much like the scarlet tunic she was wearing. "We weren't- I wasn't- What?" She stammered, stumbling back.

Biana opened her mouth to retort, but Edaline put a hand on her shoulder, silencing her with a smile. "Of course not, honey. We wanted to see what Biana you. Isn't that right, Della?" She turned to Della, who nodded with a small smile. "We weren't disappointed."

Sophie's cheeks burned, and she opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a drowsy voice "Wha..."

Sophie whipped around, to find Fitz rubbing his eyes as he sat up. Their eyes met, wide and embarrassed. "Sorry." They both blurted out, averting their gaze.

Which only fueled Biana and Della's giggles. Even Edaline let out a chuckle. Sophie turned to them, and a new emotion filled her eyes. Accusation, and anger. "Honestly!" She snapped, clenching her fists "How Dare You! It was an accident, and nothing more!"

Biana stumbled back, but Della and Edaline looked impressed of this newfound rage. They exchanged a glance which made Sophie blush. What had gotten into her? This was Della and her mother! "Sorry, I guess I'm just tired.” She mumbled, stepping back.

Sophie tripped over a root and landed in Fitzs lap, who let out a hearty 'oof'. She scrambled off, apologising repeatedly, hoping her face wasn't as red as it felt. Fitz shrugged it off and smiled.

Biana was now back to giggling, and Sophie shot her a glare, which didn't do much good. Della just smiled. “We'll leave you to it. I'm sure our talk can wait till tomorrow, you have much more important business to attend to.” And with that they walked off, leaving a red Sophie and confused Fitz.

He cleared his throat, and Sophie turned towards him, hoping her hair covered most of her blush. He was just as embarrassed, if not more.

"Sorry about my mom. She gets excited over this stuff." He said, scratching the back of his neck. Sophie nodded, not trusting her voice. 'It's fine. Sorry about... you know.' She transmitted.

A smile appeared on his face 'It's fine, don't worry! I didn't mind. Sorry for not waking you up. It's just that you looked so at peace for the first time in weeks. I didn't think I could live with myself if I interrupted you.' Sophie swallowed, a lump forming in her throat. Yeah, well it's fine. Really isn't your fault though. And sorry about the um falling on your lap thing. I’m really clumsy. I wish the black swan considered balance and coordination when they designed me.

Fitz let out a friendly laugh. 'I’ve grown used to catching you. I can’t imagine a Sophie Foster that doesn’t fall into my arms every day.'

She blushed, brushing a strand of hair out of her eyes. 'Yeah, well still. I would live.'

Fitz smiled, and he straightened out his tunic and brushed Panakes’ blossoms off his shoulders. His gaze wandered to a stray Panakes flower, which he picked up and cradled in his palms. He got up and walked over to Sophie, placing it in her hair, behind her ear. Her heart flipped at the touch, and she stepped back, blushing.

“What are you doing?” She stammered, glancing up at him. He grinned “It looks good on you. Should I take it off?” Sophie shook her head, her hand reaching up to it. It was practically glowing in the daylight. “No, it’s fine. I- I like it.”

His smile widened, his eyes sparkling, and he looked over to where Della had vanished. “We should get back. I don’t want them spreading rumours.”

Sophie nodded in agreement and followed him.

--

before you comment, yes, I am bookbir-d on wattpad, and I am not stealing content lol heres the link to the story on wattpad --> https://www.wattpad.com/559335332-kotlc-one-shots-dozing-off-fitzphie/page/2