Part 1

“An interesting bounty you’re suggesting this time,” Cyris raised her eyebrows at her fellow partner in crime - technically not crime, they were essentially just doing odd jobs together - holding her hand out expectantly for the bounty notice.

Hester handed her absolutely fuck all.

“So that’s the thing. There’s not an official bounty out for this, at the moment,” Hester said slowly, sitting down opposite Cyris and smiling a little apologetically. Cyris hated how much she loved that smile on Hester’s lips. In fact, she loved every single expression the other woman made, especially that grumpy little frown she did that scrunched up the end of her nose, when she was really pissed off at something. Usually something Cyris had done, but no matter. That just added another thrill to Cyris’ stomach anyway, since she loved to tease Hester.

Cyris adored proving that Hester wasn’t as cool, calm and collected as she always pretended to be.

“Uh huh, keep talking, sunshine,” Cyris said relaxedly, her cheek resting upon her inked palm. Hester’s eyes dropped briefly down to Cyris’ lips before descending further down to her neck, which was also practically covered in inked designs.

Hester loved Cyris’ tattoos. She had never seen all of them, because although Cyris had no problem showing a little skin, Hester knew that some of those designs on the other woman’s chest covered more than what was just visible around the tank tops, shirts and occasionally chain mail that Cyris wore.

Hester was basically dying to take Cyris’ clothes off. To see her tattoos obviously, and not for any other reason.

It had nothing to do with how when Cyris looked at her a certain way, her eyes glinting and her lips pulled back in a cocky, confident and yet sweet smile…it had nothing to do with how just a single look from Cyris could set Hester alight inside.

Hester cleared her throat.

“Princess Astira needs rescuing from her evil father, King Terrin. I suggest you storm the castle while I sneak in, rescue the princess, and then we all escape together.” Hester wasn’t entirely sure that would actually work - this was her fake plan A, because she wasn’t willing to reveal her legitimate plan to Cyris, at this point in time.

“Princess Astira? Isn’t she kept in a tower away from all humans except for her father? Who did you even hear about this from, or did you decide on it yourself?” Cyris enquired, tilting her head a little to one side, her thin eyes narrowing even more until they were basically slits as she regarded Hester. “Because if this is your own venture, it doesn’t really count as a bounty. Unless this princess of yours is paying,” Cyris finished, trying not to feel a twinge of jealousy at the thought that maybe there was something going on between the princess and Hester.

Surely not, right? King Terrin wasn’t that much older than the two bounty hunters - maybe a decade to fifteen years? So surely, his daughter would have to be somewhat young - a late teen, early adult at most, if not far younger. No one really knew anything about Princess Astira.

“You’re right. This is my own endeavour, Cyris. I’m sorry for lying,” Hester said a little dejectedly, but the strength in her eyes sent a burst of love directly into Cyris’ beings. She was so weak to Hester. Weak to her, but strong for her.

“Then,” Cyris said, a smile on her lips as she stood from her seat and extended a hand to Hester. “Shall we ready the horses? We have a princess to rescue.”

And that smile.

That smile.

It filled Hester’s heart right to the brim. Made her certain of this.

With Cyris at her side, Hester could rescue Princess Astira.

—————

Cyris really was terribly sexy in chain mail, to be completely honest. Hester wasn’t strong in the same way that Cyris was - the former could knock countless numbers of solders unconscious without doing a single sliver of permanent damage to them, if she so desired. Meanwhile Hester was precise, agile and quick.

And then Cyris was quite honestly, built like a small truck.

Tall and maddeningly strong, Cyris had muscles that were there to be used. Muscles that were derived from use. Cyris fought with a two handed great sword that Hester could barely even lift, and yet Cyris wielded it like the sword weighed nothing more than a crow’s feather.

It was so god damn sexy and Cyris knew this - she always made sure to give Hester a good show when twirling her sword around. Personally though, Cyris much preferred watching Hester fight - the other woman’s steps were so light and purposeful that it was as if watching a dancer; little did Cyris know that this was because Hester used to be a dancer.

Cyris didn’t see the appeal of bulging biceps or the like on other women - she liked it on herself, sure; but there was just something about the way that Hester fought that made Cyris fall more in love with her, every single day.

She knew that Hester didn’t want her in quite the same way as Cyris wanted Hester…the swordswoman was was aware that the attraction Hester had to her was first and foremost physical. But Cyris had been working with Hester for quite some time now, and she’d already seen Hester change in quite a few ways, regarding how she acted towards Cyris.

So Cyris wasn’t worried, or god forbid upset, because she suspected that it was only a matter of time before her feelings were reciprocated.

Or at least, she severely hoped so.

—————

Hester gently wrapped the bandage around Cyris’ arm, the inked skin split and bruised from a particularly nasty fight that frankly, Hester was more that a little amazed that they’d even survived the whole ordeal.

“You’re doing amazingly, my sweet,” Hester cooed, smiling apologetically as Cyris’ left eye twitched - the only sign of pain that the bounty hunter let slip.

“My sweet? That one’s new,” Cyris teased, raising an eyebrow. Hester shrugged, bending down to press a gentle kiss to the skin just peeking above the bandage. “Is it? I had no idea. I’ve been referring to you that way in my head for quite some time now, after all,” Hester said softly, her eyes whispering many emotions to Cyris that she thought she may never see in those eyes.

“I- I see. Make sure you say it aloud, from now on. Each time you think it,” Cyris sputtered back, her face feeling warm. Surely she wasn’t blushing now, was she?

Hester’s smile cracked into a beautiful grin. “Looks like you can get flustered after all,” she said quietly, leaning towards Cyris almost imperceptibly. The swordswoman leant forwards just the tiniest bit, too.

“You frequently get me flustered, love.”

Hester leaned forwards a hairs breadth, her eyes momentarily flickering down to Cyris’ lips before darting up to the other bounty hunter’s deep eyes again. “Do you love me?” Hester asked so softly that Cyris would have missed it, had she not been holding her breath, waiting for the other woman’s response.

“I don’t know, what do you think?”

Hester let out a little huff of laughter, pressing her hand to Cyris’ thigh momentarily before retreating back a little. “Stop teasing me, Cyris,” god the swordswoman loved her name on Hester’s lips - “just say whatever you really mean.”

“That’s rich coming from you, madam. No one has ever referred to me as ‘sweet’ before,” Cyris leaned forwards again, regaining back the space that Hester let appear between them when she moved. Cyris had no way of telling if Hester would rise to this, or if she would back down again.

They were always like this. Flirty, close, just a beat away from stealing each other’s breath and gasping the other’s name out in a heated, passionate moment. They knew that the moment their lips touched, there would be no going back.

It would be all or nothing, and whether Hester was ready for it this time, was always the deciding factor.

So Cyris wasn’t getting her hoped up. She wasn’t expecting anything - in fact, she was expecting the opposite. She assumed that Hester would move away again, and that would be that.

Hester leaned forwards.

“But how? You are practically the sweetest person I know, Cyris.”

And she wasn’t lying.

Hester wasn’t lying.

“But- how? I’m not- I’m not sweet, I’m scary and intimidating and threatening and I-“ Cyris clamped her mouth shut, watching the emotion in Hester’s eyes.

“Oh, my sweetheart. You are all those things to other people, I’m sure. But to me, you have never been a single thing other than as sweet as honey,” Hester whispered, pressing her fingers to Cyris’ cheek lightly.

Cyris had never craved a woman’s touch the way she did Hester’s.

“Kiss me, please?” The swordswoman begged.

“I was already planning to,” the dancer replied, that warm smile waltzing across her lips.

It was more than Cyris could have ever imagined. Sweet, powerful, passionate, beautiful, graceful, inelegant, burning, searing…it was everything she had hoped for and so, so much more.

Hester was impossibly, achingly beautiful.

—————

Hester had intended to help bandage Cyris’ wounds, not add scratches and bite marks to them. Cyris, apparently, did not mind a single bit. In fact, she was possibly happier than Hester had ever seen the other woman before.

She knew how she felt. She felt like that too, herself. Hester didn’t know if she could ever feel happier than she did in this moment-

Princess Astira.

When the princess was safely with Hester, then she would be impossibly happy.

But was she being greedy, to want both Astira and Cyris by her side? Surely that wasn’t too unreasonable of a desire?

Hester just wanted the two people she loved by her side.

“I…love Cyris?” She whispered incredulously, a small smile spreading across her features. She loved Cyris. She was in love. Hester didn’t think she’d ever have this kind of chance again, not after everything that had happened with Astira. But dare she say it…Hester thought that Cyris might actually love her back, too.

And that made Hester so unbelievably happy.