Gratitude

Odin Sphere fic written by Mtakuja

Declaimer: I do now own Odin Sphere. The game belongs to Atlus and Vanillaware.

Pale hands slithered across the expanse of Oswald's smooth exposed chest, maneuvering in a way that was both skilled and clumsy as the person above him examined the severity of his injuries. His chest was covered in deep wounds and gashes that ran from the tip of his collar bone to just below his breast. The inflictions looked gruesome, and for Oswald to not shown any indication of being in pain, surely proved the strength of his own will.

"This injuries are grave," Gwendolyn announced, voice barely above a whisper. Oswald nodded briefly at her words, expression naturally grim as he watched his wife move away from his side. His eyes momentarily flickered seeing the brightness that was the candle light flitter through out Gwendolyn's beautiful silver mane, illuminating it and making it look almost ethereal.

The way her gown swayed only added to this image as she moved towards the desk situated next to the bed. Her fingers were trembling as she moved to grasp the several different antibiotics that she would need to treat his injuries.

When she came back to the bed, she was briefly taken back by the look of sheer intensity Oswald was regarding her with. For a moment she held his gaze, feeling weak and venerable as she sat down on the chair, sheepishly laying the medication on the bed that was not occupied by his body. All the while she broke eye contact with him, promptly lowering eyes as she applied some ointment to a paper cloth that had been placed there for her use.

"This will sting," she said in warning, feeling a tad bit foolish for stating the obvious, but still knowing she needed to tell him. Oswald looked away then, relaxing his tense muscle and taking a deep breath. He said nothing, only giving her another curt nod for her to begin. Gwendolyn swiftly moved from her sit once again, pressing the wet cloth against Oswald's heated skin.

She gently rubbed the liquid against the wounds, thoroughly cleansing them of any wandering germs and repeated the action on the other injuries. Only pausing to change cloths or pour more medication on the towels. Oswald let out weak gasp and grunts as the ointment stung his skin, his chest heaving up and down in his struggle not to cry out.

Soon the pain sub sided, giving him time to relax and watch Gwendolyn properly bandaged his wounds. He felt her small hands shack with the uncertainty of her movements, and the look of utter concentration on her beautiful features made him feel a tad bit uneasy.

"Gwendolyn," he found himself whispering, before he had time to comprehend what he wanted to say. "If you feel uneasy about treating me, surely there is a doctor somewhere in the facility that can treat me instead."

Her hands stilled, violent eyes slowly sliding up the length of his body to glance at his face with blazing resolve. "No," the room rang with her blunt reply. "I am your wife, and thus it is my job to treat you. Rest assure that I will do my best in making sure this wounds won't sustain you for long."

Oswald opened his mouth in protest, but quickly let the words die on deaf ears at seeing how Gwendolyn immediately took up another bandage to cover a smaller wound near his shoulder. He settled down then, feeling himself go slightly light-headed at the attention he was receiving. But the way she would removed her hands from his skin as quickly as the bandage was placed was certainly displeasing.

It seemed Gwendolyn was not fond of touching him longer then it deemed necessary. It was as if just touching him was a rather hard feat for her, and something she would not do if it hadn't been required of her to do so.

Oswald felt a wave of depression wash over him, feeling the last bandage being placed and Gwendolyn stepping away with a blank expression. She placed the ointments back onto the desk, and seemed quite unaware of her husband's darkening mood.

"Are you hungry?" She asked with lightness in her tone. Oswald was in his right mind to shack his head 'no', but couldn't deny the quivering in his gut. "I afraid I am quite famished," he admitted, slowly easing himself off the bed. His shoulders were seized immediately as Gwendolyn pushed him back down, shacking her head from side to side.

"What do you think you are doing? You are in no condition to be moving around." Oswald's eyes were wide at the strength behind Gwendolyn's hold on his shoulders. He had forgotten how strong she really was, her fragile appearance and lithe shoulders probably contributed to that. But hadn't it been just a month ago he had seen her fight valiantly in the war, slaying many of the fairy kingdom's men? She might have fallen easily to him, but that didn't mean the girl wasn't strong at all.

Gwendolyn heaved a heavy sigh, removing her hands from his shoulders. "I shall bring you some soup, don't you try to move." Not waiting for a reply, she easily moved out of the room, leaving Oswald laying awake in the bed. He didn't have to wait long, for his wife returned shortly with a bowl of soup in her hand and a spoon. He tried to sit up once again, but the glare Gwendolyn fixated on him stopped him once again in his tracks.

"What did I tell you about moving!?" She scolded him, much like a mother did to her child, but there was no trace of anger behind it. Gwendolyn sat at his side again, setting the food aside for a moment, she grabbed the second pillow from the bed and placed it under Oswald's head. This way his head was slightly inclined upwards, making it much easier for him to gaze at her. Gwendolyn reclaimed the bowl once again and spooned some soup of it, blowing on it and holding it out to Oswald.

There was a long, silent pause as Oswald simply stared at the spoon and back at her as if she had grown a second head. "Gwendolyn, what are you doing?" He asked, seemingly mortified at her actions.

"I am feeding you Oswald."

A very queer look passed over Oswald's face and Gwendolyn would have laughed if she wasn't trying to be serious. Several more seconds passed and still no reaction from Oswald, the valkyrie had the strong urge to tell him to say 'ahh' just so he would open his mouth. Oswald-from what she knew of him-was quite accustomed to being told what to do. Surely if she asked him, then he would obey.

However she found that she didn't need to command him, for Oswald was already moving forward, an unsure look in his eyes. The knight fidget slightly, taking the spoon between his lips and thoroughly devouring it. When he pulled his head away, he swallowed curtly, licking his lips to from any excess fluids.

"Is it to your liking Oswald?" Gwendolyn asked, mildly curious of what he had thought of it. The soup was something she had made herself earlier, and Oswald was going to have to get use to her cooking, terrible or not.

"Actually it is quite good." Oswald admitted, opening his mouth when another round came to him. It was certainly awkward for the both them. The warrior was not quite used to being fed like a child, or treated as kindly as he was right now. And like wise, Gwendolyn wasn't use to feeding anyone, much less showing affection in any way. Affection was something both of them was severely lacking, and this moment between them was certainly proving just that.

Gwendolyn found a small smile forming on her lips as she fed him. Founding the look of brief bashfulness on his features as he took food from her quite intriguing . Never before had she seen him with his guard dropped so low, and she found she quite enjoy this side to him. Suddenly Oswald raised an eyebrow at her, swallowing his last bite of soup.

"Gwendolyn are you smiling?"

Apparently Gwendolyn must have allowed her smile to linger a bit to long. She found herself blushing and turning her head away hurriedly, taking the bowl and soup and standing up. "Of course I wasn't," she denied quickly, hoping the man hadn't seen her blush. She hadn't bothered to ask Oswald if he was finished eating, but seeing the nearly empty bowl of soup gone, she quickly made that decision for him.

"I'll be taking my leave now." Gwendolyn said, wishing beyond anything to go somewhere else and cool down her head. When she came close to the door, she let out a startled gasp as a hand reached out and grasped itself on her forearm. The princess barely had time to react when she was turned around to face Oswald looking down at her--and out of his bed.

The hand on her forearm went towards her hand, taking it within his much larger one. Gwendolyn watched as he moved her small hand up towards his lips, letting a small kiss plant itself there. Oswald let his lips linger for a good fraction of a second, before looking up. Deep crimson eyes seducing her behind beautiful long lashes.

The blush came back with full force, lighting up her features in a intense way.

"My thanks Gwendolyn." He whispered, the hold on her hand tightening with his words. Oswald saw the blush on her face and had to resist the urge to smirk in satisfaction. Gwendolyn looked down at their combined hands and quickly removed her hand from his grasp.

"I'll be taking my leave now!" She repeated, turning on her small heals and opening the door. In a flash she was gone, the only sound indicating her departure was the loud ringing of the door being slammed. Oswald sighed, letting himself lay back down on the bed. He gritted his teeth a bit when his injuries protested against his prolonged movement, but this pain was the furthest thing from his mind. Right now a renewed sense of hope filled his heart for his marriage, and as sleep gripped his mind, he found himself grinning for the very first time.

Outside of the room Gwendolyn smiled softly, eyes holding a look of serenity as she practically ran down the hall. Letting Oswald get a much needed nights rest.

Ending Notes-My first Odin Sphere fic so easy on the reviews alright? More is coming soon as I write them.