Stardust [Norway x Reader]

It was not every day that Lukas was awoken from his peaceful slumber by the demanding-yet-frightened voice of a young girl coming from what appeared to be directly above him.

"Are you the warlock?!"

With an irritated grunt, Lukas forced his deep blue eyes to open only to find himself gazing straight in the face of what was indeed a young woman, with (e/c) eyes that glittered with a determined fire and unruly (h/c) hair, as if she had been traveling around in the wind. The two stared at one another for one full minute, before the girl repeated her question: "Are you the warlock?!"

Lukas blinked twice, before his lips twisted into a displeased grimace, and he said in an obviously annoyed tone, "I believe I should be the one asking you who you are, considering the fact you have broken into my house and so rudely woke me."

Apparently, the girl had not been expecting that answer.

She growled, placing her hands on Lukas' shoulders and shaking him, almost causing his head to bounce against the wooden headboard of his bed. The movement caused him to be jostled slightly out of his woolen blankets, allowing the chill of the air to brush over his skin with icy fingertips. "Dammit, answer me! Are you the warlock? You have to be, since your home is carved into the side of the mountain and you live all alone!"

"Alone?" Lukas rose a pale eyebrow as his gaze slid to the other side of the spacious room he called his home, where a figure was sitting up in another bed.

"Brother? What's going on?" Emil asked in a tired voice, yawning and rubbing his pale lavender eyes.

Again, the girl had not been expecting that either.

She yelped and scrambled back from the white-blonde haired young man whom she had currently been nearly throttling, (e/c) eyes darting this way and that in nervousness. "O-oh, damn…you're n-not the warlock then, are you?" Her face fell, as if some inner hope had been crushed, before it completely transformed into utter terror. "P-please don't call a soldier to arrest me! H-Honest, I thought you were the warlock everyone says that lives somewhere on this mountain! I-I was just looking for someone to help me—I-I'll go now, I swear!"

As the girl fretted, Lukas took the time to study her. She was anxious about more than just an arrest, that much was obvious. By the way his younger brother Emil was frowning as he looked at her as well, he was under the same impression. On closer inspection, her ruddy and torn garments were that of a working-class peasant, who obviously did not have much money—and said clothes did not look extremely fit for the harsh winters that were so common around this particular area.

The girl, apparently becoming even more bothered by the two boys' lack of speaking, blurted out, "Well, come on then; say something!"

"…who are you?" It was the only thing Lukas could think to say, which surprised him. Under any other circumstance, an unknown person entering what he thought to be his and Emil's secret home would have sent him immediately into defense mode, reaching for the dagger he kept beneath his mattress. However, this girl gave off a completely different vibe, despite the tough façade she had been putting on only moments before. It was an odd feeling, to be perplexed rather than defensive.

She gulped, avoiding his icy blue gaze. "…(n-name)," she mumbled, pulling her worn shawl around her tighter and picking at a loose string on it.

"Hm. I am Lukas. (Name)…" Lukas let the name roll off of his tongue, before sitting up straight and glancing over at his brother. Emil was obviously shocked by his older brother's lack of aggressive wariness, but said nothing and only gave him a look.

(Name) nodded. "Y-Yes."

"And you are looking…for a warlock?"

Again, she nodded. "E-Er…yes."

"Why?"

(Name) opened her mouth and snapped it shut immediately. There was a nervous dance behind her (e/c) eyes, as if she was deciding between some quickly made up lie or the truth. Eventually her shoulders slumped, and she mumbled out, "Because I heard the warlock is a great healer. I need him to heal my older sister. She's…going to d-die soon. I can't let that happen. And since my village is at the foot of this mountain, and it's now winter, I just…I had to. So, I'm sorry I disturbed you. I'll leave now. Uh…s-sorry again. Bye."

She turned around and began to march towards the door that had taken Lukas so long to fit perfectly into the stone wall—she must have been very clever to find a way to unlock it without breaking the hinges—but at the word, "Halt!" she froze in her tracks. It took Lukas a moment to realize it had been he who had spoken.

"I may not be a warlock, or whatever it is your village speaks about, but perhaps my brother Emil and I can help you."

"Brother! What are you saying?" Emil hissed, eyes wide with surprise. "She's…she could…I thought we were…!"

"Silence, Emil," the elder brother answered in not a cruel yet not a pleasant tone either. It was a platonic, almost careless voice. He turned his attention to (name), who was staring at him with eyes as wide as plates. "I repeat: I am not a warlock. My brother and I are merely strangers to this land who happened to settle in the mountain when we could find nowhere else. I can heal, yes, because I am quite adept at herbs and plants that can be concocted into medicine. I see my reputation precedes me, however; a laughable thing, that when I have not been down to that village for a year or two."

Now Lukas peered closer at the girl, who swallowed thickly. "…how old are you, girl?"

"S-seventeen."

Ah. Just two years younger than I, and two years older than Emil.

"Emil. Get dressed. We are going to the village." With those words, Lukas' younger brother leapt up and immediately rushed to the back of the dry, spacious cavern the two brothers had furnished into a respectable home, going behind the screen they used for bathing and dressing. Lukas, on the other hand, slowly slid out of bed and over to the cabinet against the wall. He opened it up and a pungent aroma of many different herbs filled the air, making (name) wrinkle her nose as he began to place certain ones in a satchel.

"Wait, I don't understand…I broke into your home! Why are you helping me?" she questioned, gazing at Lukas as if he were a troll with warts on his nose.

Lukas paused, running a slender and pale hand through his equally as pale hair, before shrugging nonchalantly. "I am not exactly sure myself. Perhaps it is because I can read eyes and see you are being honest. Or perhaps it is because you have an older sister, and I understand the need of protecting your sibling as much as you can—regardless of the age difference."

He turned around and met her eyes, and for one minute there was an uncomfortable silence. (Name) looked extremely weary and fatigued, her early bravado completely vanished. Yet there was still that fiery determination hidden within her exhausted face; it made Lukas believe that perhaps that was why he had decided to help.

After all, he and Emil looked out only for one another. Lukas knew the consequences of people finding out he had a gift with medicine. It was the whole reason the brothers had retreated to this almost barren land with its mountains and winters. No one would bother them. Or so he had thought.

"I'm ready," Emil called, jostling Lukas from his thoughts. His younger brother stepped out, dressed for the weather outside, and Lukas nodded as he grabbed his cloak from the hook on the wall. He was always dressed for a stroll outside—there were certain plants that managed to brave the ice, after all. Who knew when the urge to search for them would come upon him?

"Let us go, then," he said to (name). "You lead the way." (Name) nodded, still looking a bit dazed by the sudden change in demeanor, and stepped outside into the blustering winter. It was morning, though one would not be able to tell so easily by the constant expanse of white. As the three ventured outside, Emil stood close to his brother's side, allowing a few inches between them and (name).

"Brother, I don't understand," Emil whispered to Lukas in confusion. "You said you'd never do anything like this again. So why are you…?"

Lukas merely shrugged. "I see her honesty. I appreciate honesty. It is strange; something I cannot exactly explain. Do not worry, though…if she is lying and I did not see it, I've packed some poison in as well."

Emil sighed. "Lukas, we haven't been to the village for two years…what if someone recognizes us? What if they know what we…did?"

Lukas scoffed. "I doubt it. Our home is many miles away from here. I do not think there is anyone in this village who would recognize us."

"Hey," (name) suddenly interrupted, turning around and practically shouting over the snow. "I don't mind to pry, but…where are your parents? Why are two boys around my age living by themselves?"

It was then that the certain protectiveness that settled upon Lukas when concerning familial matters at last made itself known. He locked eyes with her and answered in a low, no nonsense tone, "…they are dead."

"…oh."

The rest of the journey to the village was silent after that. (Name) appeared to know her way around the mountain trails, which made Lukas wonder just how long she had been searching for her "warlock." She knew the rocky terrain almost as well as he did, even in the slight blizzard. It was about an hour until they at last reached the small settlement, and by then the snow had died down to a slow rain of flurries.

It must have been quite early when (name) had so rudely interrupted Lukas' and Emil's sleep, for the village still appeared to be sleepy and inactive. (Name) quickly ushered the two boys to a small disheveled hut on the outskirts of the hamlet, opening the door carefully and slipping in. The air inside the hut was musty and smoky, and immediately a pile of blankets from one of the two beds stirred.

"(N-Name)…? What are you doing…up s-so early?" The inquiry was permeated by coughs, and (name) rushed over to peel away the blankets carefully, whispering something neither Lukas nor Emil could catch.

The blanket fell away to reveal a young woman perhaps a year or two older than Lukas, with dim emerald eyes and long brown hair that looked as if it hadn't been properly brushed in a long time. Her face was pale, deathly so, and there were dark circles beneath her eyes. Her gaze went from (name) to the two boys, and immediately she grabbed (name)'s hand.

"Who are they?" she murmured quietly so as to not irritate her throat.

(Name) smiled nervously. "W-well, Elizabeta…you know the rumors the village has about a powerful warlock hiding up on the mountain who can heal anyone? I've been looking, and this morning I…found these two instead. They said they would help!"

While the older girl stared at both Lukas and Emil warily, Lukas found himself gazing around the humble abode with scrutinizing eyes. It was plainly obvious poverty was something they were quite familiar with, from the shabby furnishing and lack of food. The small fireplace without much wood was a hint as well. To make matters more interesting, there seemed to be no sign of parents.

Lukas was beginning to think perhaps it was fate who had put the notion in him to help this girl, even if he had stopped believing in such a thing a very long time ago.

"But, (name), we have nothing to pay them with," the woman—Elizabeta—at last coughed out. Immediately (name)'s face fell, and she looked at Lukas sharply.

"U-Uh, that's all right! I've got something! Don't you worry, Liz, just…go back to sleep. Please? I promise, you'll be all better."

(Name)'s sister seemed to be too tired to care, and instantly she had settled back down and fallen into a deep sleep. The only thing abnormal was the raspy, shuttering breaths she took every minutes.

(Name), on the other hand, stared at Lukas hard. "…can you save her?" she whispered desperately, biting her lip. "I-I don't know what's wrong with her. Five years ago, a sickness swept through the village and killed a lot of people…including my parents. My sister and I were spared, but…last year she started getting sick. Fevers, coughing, sometimes not being able to wake up…w-what's wrong with her? C-can you make her better? P-please…! I don't know what to pay you with, but I will! If you can just…s-save her…"

Lukas had only seen one girl cry in his life, and that had been his mother over his father's makeshift grave. When the tears began to fall from (name)'s cheeks like a waterfall, something inside him stirred—emotions he had sworn to put aside for favor of keeping he and his brother safe.

Compassion. Empathy. And something else he could not explain.

Emil nudged Lukas in the chest with his elbow, his silvery hair falling into his pale lavender eyes. "…I don't know what you're thinking, Lukas, but I know she isn't lying. Yet…can we really afford this? Can you afford this—making medicine for someone? You know what happened…last time…"

Lukas brushed his brother away, just as he mentally did to a particularly unpleasant memory that rose up at his brother's words. Turning to the silently weeping (name), he placed an uncertain hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up at him with watery eyes and reddened cheeks. "…yes. I will try. I will think about a payment later. For now, I will worry about your sister."

The smile that broke across the girl's face was as if she thought Lukas a god.

"Oh, thank you…thank you so much, Lukas…thank you…!"

Lukas and Emil wasted no time. While the elder ordered (name) to look after her sister, the younger began to gather things together in the hut's meager supplies—more firewood, some wooden spoons and a couple of mixing bowls. Lukas began to pull out various leaves and roots from his satchel, fingers brushing over the poison for a moment. Again, the same memory flooded inside his mind, and he had to shove it back down violently.

No. Not now. I can do this. I will not make the same mistake as I did last time.

He would not have another life on his hands.

Lukas quickly went to work. Cutting this root into so many pieces. Grinding this leave into a fine pulp. Boiling this here in the pot over the small fire, mixing this there into a strong-scented mess—it was second nature to him. The plants spoke to him. They had always spoken to him. How long had it been since he had last done this for someone other than he and his brother? Too long. Not since…that day.

No. Stop thinking about it, Lukas. Not now.

As Lukas was lost in his world, Emil could not help but switch his eyes from his brother to (name), who had dried up her tears and was murmuring quiet words to her sister and brushing her face with a damp washcloth. Every so often Elizabeta would let out a soft little groan and her eyes would flutter beneath the lids, but she stayed asleep. At last, Emil could not take the silence anymore and asked as discreetly as he could, "What exactly does your village say about a warlock?"

(Name) paused, looking pensive, before answering. "Basically what I already told you. That he's powerful and can heal anything. That he came from a foreign land. But how did they find out about you both, if you haven't left your mountain?"

Emil was quiet for a few moments. "…because when we first arrived here, my brother pretended to be older than he was and would heal people for money. He'd go around looking for those who needed it. It wasn't until…" He trailed off, looking sheepish. "…never mind."

The (h/c)-haired girl did not pry any more. She seemed to understand that it was something Emil did not wish to talk about. Instead, she set the washcloth aside and shuffled over to where Lukas was working with the herbs and medicine. "May I watch?" she murmured softly, which seemed to startle him. He jumped slightly, turning his head up to see her, before nodding and going straight back to his work. It was silent in the little hut, no one saying a word, yet somehow a type of understanding wormed its way through the three (conscious) young people's minds.

After what seemed to be hours, but in reality was only minutes, Lukas finally pulled out the last ingredient from his satchel. It was one that he had promised himself to save only for emergencies, but this was as good as an emergency as he was going to get in the isolated life he had chosen to follow. The flower in his hands was sweet smelling and emanated a sense of divine delicacy, its snow white petals splayed out like a star and its cream-colored center still as spongy as the day it had been when it was picked. The dark green stem was tough and durable, and Lukas ran a finger down it affectionately.

(Name), meanwhile, stared at it with disbelieving eyes. "Is that…?"

Lukas's lips twitched upwards in the slightest of movements—the closest to a smile he normally got to. "…yes. It is. It is a måneblomst. In your language, moonflower. A plant that blooms only during the full moon once every decade, whose petals are known to cure any sickness when properly combined. When not, it is the most deadly poison in the world. This is the only one I have ever seen, and I am going to use it to cure your sister. Some say…" he began to stroke the petals fondly, that odd half smile still on his face. "…that bits of stardust falling to the earth long ago and settling in the ground caused the seed of some unknown flower to germinate into this. It bestowed the plants with their almost divine power. While I don't believe in superstitious ideas, I do believe in the healing properties of this flower. After all…"

The smile slid from his face, and his shoulders slumped.

"…it was what killed my father five years ago."

(Name) struggled to show her surprised, yet it was plastered clearly on her face. Lukas and Emil both exchanged glances before the elder continued. "You see, my father was a healer; an apothecary of sorts, just as I have turned out to be. Because of this, he was well sought-out in my home country. One day, a duke came to him, promising a large sum of money if my father could heal the duke's wife, who had become extremely ill during childbirth. My father complied, of course, thinking he could use the money to give my brother and mother and I a better home.

"However, the duke was known to be a slimy bastard whose only motives were for rarities and power. When my father proclaimed he had a moonflower to heal the duchess, the duke immediately demanded he prepare it into a medicine. Father complied again; only what he did not know was that the duke had one of his men sneak a wrong ingredient into the potion. When my father brought it to the duchess, the duke made him take a sip of it to test it.

"…the poisonous side of a måneblomst is one that acts quickly. There is no pain. Within five minutes, your heart stops beating, and you collapse to the ground. Dead. That is what happened to my father. When it did, the duke immediately sent soldiers to my home, ready to round us up and throw us in jail because we had 'conspired against him' along with my father."

"…I'm so sorry, Lukas, Emil," (name) whispered softly when he paused for breath. But Lukas was not finished yet.

"We were lucky. The duke's home was a day away from our village. My father had a physician friend in the duke's court who found this out and sent us a message. Together, my mother and brother and I fled, despite our grief. We made our way to here, a relative barren land in a country close to ours. It was also during that time when the sickness you spoke of was happening in your village. Our mother...caught it. The cruel thing about it? She caught it two years ago, after we thought it had completely passed. Evidently, the sickness refused to let go of humans."

Here Lukas' voice caught ever-so-slightly, and Emil stared at the wall.

"I was still not as adept as my father with medicinal herbs and the like. I tried to save her…but I couldn't. I mixed together the wrong ingredients…and ended up watching her die from some poison rather than recover."

A pained silence settled upon the room, one that spoke louder than a scream.

"Afterwards…I devoted myself to what we managed to save of my father's work. I harvested as many plants as I could find on that mountain. Occasionally, I ventured down for some money. But I stopped after a while, because I could not bear the sight of other people, save for my brother. Since when had they done me any kindness? And then…you came along, (name)."

Lukas took a deep breath, sapphire eyes glittering in the dull light of the fire. "…and for some reason, I wanted to help you. I still do not exactly understand why, but I promise you this: I will save your sister."

(Name) could only gaze at the strange, beautiful boy whose face was lined with years of pain that had been pushed back inside from forcing tears away, and his brother who shared a similar look. She at last swallowed, glanced over at Elizabeta, and wrung her hands on her dirty shawl.

"…thank you, Lukas."

Perhaps it was the way she had said it that made Lukas' chest clench—the tone that clearly screamed, "None of that was your fault." Or perhaps it was how lovely he just noticed how she looked when he glanced at her just right; lovely and honest and true and desperate to not let her last family member slip away.

No matter what, Lukas was saving this girl's sister.

The next half hour was like a dream. All he did was grind and cut and boil and mix to perfection, slender fingertips carefully carrying out every action in a reverent and steady manner. Emil obediently handed him whatever he needed, and (name) merely watched in content, her (e/c) eyes full of an almost breathless wonder at how beautiful the simple action of making medicine could be. No, not simple—godly. Lukas could save lives if he tried. There was nothing simple about it.

At last, with a satisfied nod, Lukas declared the potion complete.

He poured the steaming mixture into a cup, handing it to (name). She stared down at the liquid expectantly, which was completely clear and had a pleasant smell. "Have Elizabeta drink every drop. Be certain not to spill."

(Name) nodded determinedly and sat on the edge of her sister's bed, rousing her as politely as she could. "Sister…I have something that will make you better. Here, open your mouth…"

Elizabeta was not entirely coherent enough to fully understand what was going on, but she did as she was told. Very carefully and slowly, her younger sister helped her to gulp down the potion, who was glad to notice that she did not cough or grimace at the substance that was coating her tone. When it was completely diminished, Elizabeta slumped back into the bed, already asleep. Yet, this time, her breathing was more even, and her face seemed to regain a bit more color.

"It works very quickly," Lukas commented. "By tomorrow, she will be much more active. In a week, she will be back to her old self, I presume. Now, it is time for my brother and I to return home, for we—"

"W-wait!"

(Name) shot up and scrambled over to Lukas, who had already begun to gather his things. The white-blonde young man looked up in surprise, and his face was absolutely priceless when she perched up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against his smooth, pale cheek. A rosy flush brighter than the fire's flames grew across his skin, and he stuttered out, "W-what w-was that for?"

(Name) blushed slightly, giving Lukas a bashful smile. "…my thanks and my payment. For now. I promise I'll repay you some day. But for now…can you please take that? Oh, and just for the record, that thing about the moonflowers being created because of stardust?"

Her smile widened, and she let a small, nervous laugh escape her lips. "…I think that your brother and you were blessed by stardust as well, even if you can't really see it. You're my heroes now. I guess I'll start wishing upon you both instead of stars from now on." The last bit was added in a joking tone, yet there was something about those words that seemed completely real and honest.

Neither Lukas nor Emil could find the proper words to say at that moment.

Instead, both of them felt their faces heat up—Lukas' even more than before—and merely nodded shakily.

"Th-thank you, (name). We…appreciate that."

With those words, the two boys with sapphires and amethysts for eyes and hair woven straight from starlight walked out of the humble little hut and into the fat flakes of snow, back into the mountain of isolation.

Perhaps, however, from now on…

They would make more visits to the village, if only to see the girl who had declared them blessed by stardust.