Gut Feelings (Varian x Witch!Reader)

Quiet Night

Varian ended up sleeping on the floor of the boat with Ruddiger. I placed a blanket over them and a pillow under Varian's head so he'd be comfortable. I hummed softly to myself as I stared out into the water around us as we floated down the river. The river came along the edge of the road and I saw a large yellow caravan.

'Isn't that...?' I thought to myself as my eyes widened as I saw a girl with long golden hair sitting on top of it with a lantern to give her light. I smiled wide as I stood up and reached into my pocket for something to get her attention without waking up Varian. I pulled out a good size rock that I had picked up earlier that day.

'Don't hate me for this universe.' I thought to myself as I aimed right at the journal Rapunzel was writing in. I took a deep breathe and threw the rock making it hit the back of her journal. She looked up and picked up the rock before looking around. I waved my hands in the air so she'd see me better and we locked eyes.

She waved back at me and looked into the boat at Varian before looking back up at me. I gave her two thumbs up and waved once more as we pulled ahead of the caravan. She waved back and I turned back around to face the front of the boat.

I sat back down and continued to hum to myself before closing my eyes and taking a deep breathe before opening my eyes once more. Out of the corner of my eye I saw someone sitting next to me, but I'd already known they were there. "Hello Death." I said as I stared out to the water. "Hey kid." He said and we were left in a comfortable silence.

"Can I ask you something?" I asked keeping my eyes ahead of me. "Ask away." I took a deep breathe. "Am I doing the right thing? With bringing Varian along I mean." I asked softly. "Things will be tense for awhile, but it'll all work out in the end. Now stop worrying about the future and just enjoy this time you have." He said and I nodded.

"I know you already have a lot on your plate and you're really stressed out because of, well, everything. But if it makes you feel better, you're almost to the point where you can see and hear me without needing to meditate." He said and my eyes widened. "You mean I'm close to being able to see and hear practically everything?" I asked turning to face him and he nodded.

I turned back to face the water. "That's just...wow...s-so I'm improving! I-I'm actually getting better a-at...everything!" I said as I smiled and let out a soft laugh. "You didn't think you were improving?" Death asked and I shrugged my shoulders. "I-I knew I was getting stronger, b-but I've been feeling that while I tried to get stronger to keep Zhan away from me and my body, I wasn't really doing anything that actually dealt with what I do. Does that make sense?" I asked and he shrugged his shoulders.

"You have also been busy with everything that's been happening. You had to deal with Zhan taking over your boyfriend, dealt with being thrown in prison again, dealing with how he will react when he finds out you brought him along on a journey with the one person he despises right now. You've been busy! But now is the time to get back into the swing of things." He said and I nodded.

"I should probably connect with Demanitis soon huh?" I asked and Death shook his head no. "Some afterlife crap came up so I'm going to be filling in as your spirit guide. Plus I want to mess with the others some and I want to teach you a few tricks." He said leaning back and putting his arms behind his head.

I groaned at the thought of being stuck with Death for who knows how long. "What kind of tricks?" I asked. 'Probably something stupid like street magic.' I thought to myself and rolling my eyes. "First one you're going to learn is what I call the quick change." He said before snapping his fingers and being surrounded in black smoke. It quickly vanished and he was now wearing black slacks and a white button up.

"Just think of what you want and snap. Piece of cake. Now I got to run kid. I have a meeting with Hades and Fate that I need to get to." He said standing up. "Tell Hades I say hello and to have him tell Persephone hello for me. As for Fate, tell them I'd love to meet them one day." I said smiling and he nodded before rubbing my hair and messing up my hair. "Later kiddo." He said and I closed my eyes and opened them to be alone once more.

I stayed awake and I watched the sun rise. Varian slept like a log through the whole night. I picked up my satchel and reached in before pulling out a ukulele. I quietly tuned it and leaned against the side of the boat and put my feet up on the bench getting comfy. I saw Sunny yawn and stretch before getting up on the bench I was sitting on.

I strummed it quietly and hummed along with it. I closed my eyes as I completely relaxed. I opened my eyes and stopped my strumming when I heard rustling. I looked up and saw Varian stretching and Ruddiger already jumping into the bag that held all of the food.

After Varian stretched he looked at me. "Sorry I didn't mean to wake you up." I said softly and he shook his head. "You didn't wake me up." He said in a deep morning voice and he yawned. I giggled and continued to strum softly. "How'd you sleep?" I asked and he shrugged his shoulders. "I keep having nightmares." He said and I nodded. "Have you tried putting amethyst under your pillow?" I asked and he looked at me like I was crazy.

"Why would I put a rock under my pillow?" I rolled my eyes. "First of all, it's a crystal. Secondly, it can help prevent nightmares. I used it all the time when my mother first died. Works like a charm." I said as I smiled softly and he nodded. "How did you sleep?" He asked me. "Actually I didn't sleep." I said as I shrugged my shoulders.

"Why not?" He asked. "Just wasn't tired I guess. Plus one of us had to keep watch and you had already fallen asleep first." I said and he nodded. "We should be arriving to Vardaros later on today. From there we can set up camp somewhere and restock on food." I said as I strummed the same notes over and over. Varian nodded and got up and sat next to me. He gently pulled the ukulele from my hands and placed it in the floor before grabbing my hands and pulling me down so my head was on his lap.

"What are you doing?" I asked as I looked up at him. "You were up all night. You need your rest! I'll watch over everything, don't worry." He said smiling down at me. "I don't have a choice so I?" I asked and he shook his head no. I sighed and moved so I was more comfortable on his lap before closing my eyes and slowly drifting off to sleep.