Frostbite [Niko]
Apr. 29th, 2017 11:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
roesslyngTitle: Frostbite
Fandom: Stand Still Stay Silent (OCs)
Characters: Niko + misc others
Rating: 0+
Length: 500 words
Summary: It's a harsh night to be out on watch, but somebody has to do it.
Other: Companion ficlet to Wind Chill.
Frostbite
It was cold.
Niko shuddered. Shrugged into his coat, dipped his face into his collar. Peered out from his hat's frame into the dark.
Nothing.
The cold was bad, but the wind was the worst. It bit at his cheeks, pinched his face, slipped its long icy fingers beneath his coat.
It made winter night patrol even more harrowing than usual. But he only had himself to blame. Volunteering to go on nights had seemed like a good idea at the time, a nice way to pay back Iiro for that favour last month, but –
Oh, well.
Beneath the wind, he could hear the sound of footsteps. Boots crunching against snow. Niko turned, squinting at the dark figure coming up to him. As it got closer, he recognized it. Enni was coming to relieve him.
She gave him a nod. He opened his mouth to greet her – and then the wind blew again, and he ducked his face into his coat.
Enni nudged him toward the warm-up shack without a word.
Twenty minutes out. Then inside to warm up. Then out again after a while. It wasn't the way any of them would prefer to go about things, but on such a miserable night, it was the only way to do the watch without risk.
Niko stepped into the warmth. Pressed the door tightly shut after him. Breathed in the smell of damp wool and woodsmoke and mint tea, and felt the cold leave him. The hoarfrost was already starting to melt from his eyelashes and the furry edges of his hat. His cheeks felt tight from the cold.
The woodstove gnawed away at its logs.
A few of the others that had come in from night patrol earlier stood around it, warming their hands. Some of them nodded in his direction. In one of the corners, he could see the dark shapes of two people, and hear the low tones of a spell against frostbite.
The door opened again. It shut quickly, but not before an icy wind slipped in and made everyone shiver, a few of them uttering soft curses, answered with a half-hearted apology.
Someone passed Niko a hot mug.
"Shitty night, ain't it."
Niko smiled. He'd recognize Hilja's rough, rolling voice anywhere. "Well, it's not the best," he said, glancing at the broad-shouldered form beside him, hard to make out in the dim light. Raised the mug in thanks, then took a sip – and realized there was something more than just mint in that tea. He quickly handed it back to her.
She snorted, as if she could see his expression in the dark. "That's one way to put it."
"Well..." Niko nodded toward the door. "It isn't great out there, sure. But nothing's going to be out on a night like this."
The wind shrieked, shaking the little shack. But it was only the wind. They all knew it.
"Count our blessings, eh?"
"That's right."
That night, outside their walls, nothing stirred.
Only the wind screamed.
Fandom: Stand Still Stay Silent (OCs)
Characters: Niko + misc others
Rating: 0+
Length: 500 words
Summary: It's a harsh night to be out on watch, but somebody has to do it.
Other: Companion ficlet to Wind Chill.
Frostbite
It was cold.
Niko shuddered. Shrugged into his coat, dipped his face into his collar. Peered out from his hat's frame into the dark.
Nothing.
The cold was bad, but the wind was the worst. It bit at his cheeks, pinched his face, slipped its long icy fingers beneath his coat.
It made winter night patrol even more harrowing than usual. But he only had himself to blame. Volunteering to go on nights had seemed like a good idea at the time, a nice way to pay back Iiro for that favour last month, but –
Oh, well.
Beneath the wind, he could hear the sound of footsteps. Boots crunching against snow. Niko turned, squinting at the dark figure coming up to him. As it got closer, he recognized it. Enni was coming to relieve him.
She gave him a nod. He opened his mouth to greet her – and then the wind blew again, and he ducked his face into his coat.
Enni nudged him toward the warm-up shack without a word.
Twenty minutes out. Then inside to warm up. Then out again after a while. It wasn't the way any of them would prefer to go about things, but on such a miserable night, it was the only way to do the watch without risk.
Niko stepped into the warmth. Pressed the door tightly shut after him. Breathed in the smell of damp wool and woodsmoke and mint tea, and felt the cold leave him. The hoarfrost was already starting to melt from his eyelashes and the furry edges of his hat. His cheeks felt tight from the cold.
The woodstove gnawed away at its logs.
A few of the others that had come in from night patrol earlier stood around it, warming their hands. Some of them nodded in his direction. In one of the corners, he could see the dark shapes of two people, and hear the low tones of a spell against frostbite.
The door opened again. It shut quickly, but not before an icy wind slipped in and made everyone shiver, a few of them uttering soft curses, answered with a half-hearted apology.
Someone passed Niko a hot mug.
"Shitty night, ain't it."
Niko smiled. He'd recognize Hilja's rough, rolling voice anywhere. "Well, it's not the best," he said, glancing at the broad-shouldered form beside him, hard to make out in the dim light. Raised the mug in thanks, then took a sip – and realized there was something more than just mint in that tea. He quickly handed it back to her.
She snorted, as if she could see his expression in the dark. "That's one way to put it."
"Well..." Niko nodded toward the door. "It isn't great out there, sure. But nothing's going to be out on a night like this."
The wind shrieked, shaking the little shack. But it was only the wind. They all knew it.
"Count our blessings, eh?"
"That's right."
That night, outside their walls, nothing stirred.
Only the wind screamed.
