#oc will

This redraw made me feel a little better. Even gave me eneryg to go back and do somethings for comic.

old version

i want your secrets, your clementine fields

Characters:

Will (They/Them)

Sam (They/Them)

EDIT: Sam's pronouns have changed to they/them, this change has not been reflected in this story

— — — — —

The first days of spring. Meant to usher in the warm, pleasant summer, with gentle rains and flourishing flowers; there was not, however, meant to be a mild snowstorm. Yet due to the changing climate you could have a week without a hint of frost, only to be buried under a foot of snow overnight. On one of those nights, two unlucky people would come to meet.

Sam sat in the low branches of a tree, along the edge of a steep hill that stretched for what seemed like miles. Well, miles to the ten centimeter tall borrower, at least. He pulled his cloak tight around himself in an attempt to cling to what little warmth was held in his small frame. “Sorry I won’t be able to pay you back for this, Isaac.” The borrower muttered to themself.

Their first time outside coinciding with heavy snowfall was not what Sam was hoping for. That's what you get for showing yourself to a human. Sam guessed. What were you even hoping for? A friend? Stupid. Humans… are nothing… but trouble. 

Sam’s eyes, heavy with exhaustion, closed as the evening's events weighed down on the borrower and sent them into a deep sleep. Nearby, someone else was dealing with the sudden storm almost as poorly, despite being much larger.

— — — — —

This is what I get for not checking the weather forecast. Will thought to themself. They adjusted their scarf and pulled their hat down over their ears before stuffing their hands back in their pockets. I should have brought my mittens. Something warmer than a windbreaker too. Will looked up to the cloudy sky, snowflakes falling all around them. “The view was worth it though.” Will spoke aloud to nobody in particular, “It's a shame you can't see this much starlight in the city.”

As Will continued his trek down the mountain towards the quaint little cabin, the path took a sharp turn and became a bit precarious for the intrepid stargazer. I should be fine as long as I don't- As if to demonstrate what he shouldn't do as he explained it to himself, Will made the immediate mistake of looking down.

There must have been a foot of snow, at least, covering the ground, yet they could see the broken branches and long-dead shrubs sticking out of the snow clearly. Will tried their best to quell the anxiety that began to stir inside them, but that left them distracted; their next step hit soft powder, which broke under their weight and sent them tumbling down the steep slope with a loud yelp.

— — — — —

Sam jolted awake. “Wha?” They opened their eyes and held their aching body tight. I must have… passed out? Sam thought, Isn't that bad to do in the cold? Sam took a moment to calm down a bit of anxiety that began to creep up on him, when he noticed a low, rumbling sound approaching him.

It was like an avalanche. A massive object rolled towards him, bringing with it an amount of snow that would easily bury him if he wasn't already in the safety of the tree.

Thunk! The thin tree shook wildly from the impact as whatever was rolling down collided with the tree Sam was perched in.

Sam managed to grab the branch underneath him while he was still on it, only to watch his pack fling off into the distance. “I'm not getting that back…” Sam mumbled as he started pulling himself up. 

Another, smaller impact shook the tree, and caused the borrower to lose his grip and plummet to what was surely his end.

— — — — —

Will clutched their aching body. Their clothes were torn, their body bruised and covered in scrapes and scratches. Annoyed, they slammed the tree they had been leaning against with their elbow, which only elicited a further wince as a stabbing pain shot up their shoulder. Clutching their right arm, they pulled their hand back to find a thin line of blood drawn across their palm. Need to grab a bandage… Will reached for their pack, and noticed they didn't have it with them. Did I drop it somewhere? 

Taking a moment to look around, Will couldn't see their pack on the hill they fell from, and didn't notice any of it sticking out of the snow around them. “Damn,” they muttered, “Must have left up on the patio.” They considered wrapping their scarf around the wound, but a quick check showed it was mostly bruised and had already stopped bleeding. Their scarf was mostly unwound from their neck. It draped off one of their shoulders and onto the ground next to them. Looking down, they finally noticed the figure that was laying on it; Will nearly jumped in surprise when he saw i t-no, them- move.

The figure was dazed, confused, and unmistakably human. Will could barely believe it, but there was a tiny, shivering person laid out on their scarf. They couldn't be more than a few inches tall, half-covered by some sort of white cloak.  Will could make out visible stitching on the gray t-shirt and pants they wore, made from what Will guessed were scraps from similar, larger pieces of cloth.

— — — — —

Snow-covered branches whizzed past the falling borrower. Sam attempted to twist his body in the air for a better landing; only to unexpectedly slam into an, oddly soft, wall. Sam tumbled down the steep slope, landing on his back on another soft surface. Sam lay there, wind knocked out of him, gasping for breath. While he looked up to see what he had hit on his way down, it only confirmed his fears. His eyes followed the green scarf he was laying on past the gray wall of a coat and up to the pale face of the giant he was faced with.

They were looking away. If Sam could just roll off the scarf and into the snow... He'd be practically invisible under his cloak, l and just had to hope the human didn't get too close when they stood up. He rolled onto his side, only to break out into a coughing fit from his aching lungs. When his coughing subsided there was a noticeable silence. Sam looked up to the giant to see two giant, sapphire-coloured eyes staring back; He had run out of time.

 — — — — —

Their attention shifted to the tiny person's features, the first thing Will noticed was curly, brownish-orange hair. Their skin was pale, though it was hard to tell the exact shade with the amount of freckles that covered their face and arms. Looking into their tiny, emerald eyes, Will asked:

“Are you ok?” The small person only shuffled back further, nearly falling off the end of the scarf. Will saw their hands and face were unnaturally pink. It was hard to tell whether the tiny was trembling more from fear or from the cold.

“You're freezing...” Will muttered. They reached down towards them, only to stop after seeing the tiny wince. “S-sorry. I wasn't thinking. Is it alright if I hold you, and try to warm you up?” 

That seemed to surprise them more than trying to grab them. After what felt like a long, grueling silence for the human, The small figure gave a nod, and Will gently scooped them into their hands.

— — — — —

When the giant hands closed around Sam his first instinct was to flee. The idea quickly faded as he felt the heat emanating from them. They were nearly as pink as his own at this point, but even then they were still much warmer than Sam would ever be able to get on his own. He quickly settled into the giant's grasp, and began to fight a sudden tiredness. It's warm…

— — — — —

Will needed to get home soon. They went over to the tree and held their hand holding the tiny up to the nearest branch. Instead of climbing off, the tiny remained sat in Will's hand and looked at them with a pleading expression.

“Do you… want to come with me?” A nervous nod confirmed Will's guess. Will used their free hand to pull their scarf, and let the tiny person climb down onto their shoulder before wrapping the end of it around their neck. They felt the tiny adjust their position, sliding their legs under the collar of Will's shirt and leaned against Will's neck. After making sure their little passenger was secure, they resumed their trek through the forest, towards home.

Not long after that they found the clearing and Will was able to spot a light not that far in the distance.

“Alright, the cabin's that way. We're almost there.” Now that they knew the direction they quickened their pace and made it home just a few minutes later. 

Built by Will's grandmother when she was young, the cabin must have been at least fifty years old. Will was surprised at how long it lasted without any visitors, but from what they heard about their grandmother it made sense.

They pushed open the door and let out a thankful sigh at the warmth that enveloped them as they stepped inside, shutting the door behind them.

Will slipped one hand under their scarf to support the tiny passenger as they used their other to slowly unwrap it from their neck. 

“Well,” Will said, “We made it.” They looked down to find the little one curled up in their palm, eyes closed. The last thing Will wanted was to wake their potential new friend, so they gently laid their scarf on the console in a way for it to resemble a nest, and placed the tiny person in the middle.

Will got to work removing their gear, taking heed not to get too close to the console.

“Thank you for bringing me out of the cold…” Will looked down to see their mini guest sat up in the scarf, groggily rubbing their eyes. So they do have a voice…

“No problem.” Will responds, “I'm Will by the way. They/Them. And you?”

“I'm Sam…” They looked down, and cocked their head to the side, as if in contemplation. “I'm… not sure if I want to use he, or they…”

“Sam's a nice name,” Will responded, “You could always use both, and put whatever pronoun you prefer over the other first.”

Still a little confused, Sam responded with a nod and a “I'll think on it, then.”

“Okay” Will smiled, “It's nice meeting you by the way.”