#timekeeper x reader

The Time Balance Department smelled like burnt metal.

That wasn't normal. The scent of scorched time only appeared when a timeline collapsed incorrectly, but what filled the main chamber was worse: it was the aroma of something broken that was never meant to break.

Timekeeper Cookie felt it before she saw it.Her clockwork eye spun violently. The floating gears around her all stopped at once. The silence was absolute.

—Assistant —she called.

No answer.Normally, you would appear within the next second with your logbook and your patient half-smile. But this time there was only the echo of her own voice bouncing off the chamber walls.Her hand tightened around the handle of the Sonic Embroider.

—Assistant —she repeated, louder.The silence grew heavier.Then she remembered: you had gone to timeline T-842. A terrible war had broken out there. Not just any war — a temporal war, the kind you don't win with armies, but by erasing enemies from the past. You went because you were the only one who could read future documents and find a peaceful solution.Timekeeper let you go because she trusted you.That was her meShe appeared on the battlefield of T-842 without a sound.

The sky was ash-gray.

The air smelled of molten metal and torn time. And at the center of the crater, surrounded by smoking debris, stood the Timecraft.

Your Timecraft.

The ship she had personally designed for you to travel between timelines. Now it was just a heap of dying sparks and cracked crystals. The wings were bent at an impossible angle. The cockpit… the cockpit was torn open like a rusted tin can.

Timekeeper stepped down from the Sonic Embroider with slow, heavy steps.Her eye scanned the wreckage. The temporal propulsion system had exploded from within. It wasn't an external attack. It was an overload failure. Someone had tried to make an emergency jump without fixed coordinates.Someone who was no longer there.

—No —she whispered.

She knelt among the debris. Her mechanical fingers touched the edge of the pilot's seat. There was your logbook, open to the last page.

The letters trembled, written in haste:"Director, if you're reading this: the war can't be stopped from outside. I had to jump to the epicenter. I'm going to rewrite the origin of the conflict. I don't know if I'll come back. Please take care of the Department for me."

Below, in smaller, almost childlike handwriting:"Thank you for letting me be your assistant. It was the best job in all the timelines."Timekeeper closed the logbook with a sharp snap.

Her eye spun. Fast. Faster. Then it stopped.—Fool —she murmured.But her voice trembled.

—Fool, fool, fool… —she pressed the book against her chest—. Who gave you permission to die?The ash wind did not answer.

Timekeeper Cookie didn't cry. Time goddesses didn't shed tears because time didn't stop for anyone.But then something warm rolled down her cheek. She touched it in disbelief. It was salt water.

—Oh —she said in a voice she didn't recognize as her own—. So this is what it feels like.

She stood up. Her gaze sharpened like the scissors that accompanied her.

—No. I'm not accepting this.

She raised the logbook toward the gray sky.—HEY THERE, TIMELINE T-842! —she shouted—. YOU'VE TAKEN THE ONLY THING I NEEDED AND I'M GOING TO MAKE YOU REGRET IT!The sky didn't answer.

But she didn't need permission. She was Timekeeper Cookie. She was the permission.With a snap of her fingers, the Sonic Embroider transformed into its largest form. Its gears roared like awakened beasts.

—I'm going to find every atom of you —she whispered to the wind, as if you could still hear her—. And if you don't exist, I'll invent you again. It might take me a thousand years, but…She closed her eyes. For one second — just one second — her mask of an indifferent goddess cracked completely.

—…but I'm not going to be alone again. Not anymore.She opened her eyes. The swirl of her pupil burned with a determination no clock could measure.

—Wait for me, Assistant. Wherever you are.And she leaped into the void of time, your logbook pressed against her chest and the name of every star as her only prayer

Centuries later, in a timeline no one remembers creating…A girl woke up in a bed she didn't recognize.

The sheets smelled like cinnamon and freshly oiled gears.

On the nightstand, there was a logbook with a sticky note attached:"Found you. Don't run off without telling me again. — T.K."

You smiled. And behind the door, leaning against the frame, Timekeeper Cookie smiled too.She never told you how much she cried that day.

But every time she saw you sleeping, she would brush your cheek with her cold fingers and whisper

Don't leave. Not ever again.

𓏵Crush : How would they crush on someone?

~ to be able to capture the attention of the keeper of time themselves is no small feat, though this could be from many different aspects like you being an anomaly in time or being a particularly hardworking and or interesting employee of the TBD. either way you've caught her interest, needless to say you had to be very unpredictable.

"oh! How interesting, i couldn't predict that move, consider my interest piqued~"

~ when crushing the director isn't obvious nor discreet, if there's a line for attraction and merely being nice she would be toying with it. one minute they could be all up in your personal space, the next she could disappear with that one eeire smile on their face that reveals nothing.

"me? my dear employee fret not! i'm just having fun, and you happen to be very entertaining to watch!"

~ while she is pretty subtle with hints. they will undoubtedly be hints when she do give them. like randomly appearing next to you and gifting you one of a kind gifts that never existed in your timeline in the first place or always sparing you at least a clock tick or two of time, which is absurdly rare considering her reputation of spending their time oh so effeciently.

"why of course! i have to spare time for my favorite little helper around here! nothing odd now is it?"

~ when the crushing escalates further, i can also see them looking into other timelines to see where you'll end up. not your timeline though, for one she wants to experience it first hand with you. so if you see them shocked or caught off guard around you, that very well may be their genuine, unfiltered reaction which is still unsurprisingly uncharacteristic to see.

"unexpected, i welcome it!"

~ while she's still calculative and mysterious given their the director for a reason even if stroken down by the weight of love, they are no less whimsical than their normal self. sometimes she'll still ask silly things about you that no one would typically hear her ask like asking you about your day or the amount of apples you think you've eaten in the past year even though they can learn it all across timelines in a few clock ticks, it's just more fun to see your confusion seeping in. plus she'll get more reasons to hang around your personal space and stare for longer, it's just a win-win situation for them.

"oh my, that look of confusion on your face is just far too entertaining~! do bare with me for staring."

𓏵Confession: How, where, when would they confess?

~ given that she's pretty much always certain about their choices, there's not much room for doubt of what she means when they do confess about their feelings.

"i like your unpredictability, which means i like you, tag along now!"

~ of course she's already memorised your preferences to a t long before the moment, obviously they'll keep those in mind when they prepare the scene

"how'd i know your preferences you ask? i have my ways of course my dear!"

~ although tweaking timelines and messing with a few things isn't what the TBD enjoys seeing, she does it anyways since surely a few things moving around for the perfect scene just for you wouldn't affect the core timeline too much would it?

"me altering the timelines? how could i?~"

~ they would randomly teleport in your workspace as she always does, abruptly extending their hand at you with a knowing smile, inviting you to go on a "mysterious adventure" with them.

"say what? Go on a little detour with me and we both get to clock out early? "

~ they would definitely be grand about it with no doubt, afterall she's the keeper of time herself in the dough. it would be injust for her to not atleast be a little over the top no? they wouldn't say it outright but if you do praise their efforts she would indefinitely feel atleast a bit giddy inside.

"pfft-- dramatic? nonsense!~ what kind of detour would this be if i didn't add a single drop of flair to it hm?"

~ probably looked through the timelines where you did end up together and looked at what the other hers did to gain your affection, thus she has a rough idea of the things to say in order to maximize their chances.

~ if you eventually do accept they will give a tiny little smile with a little comment of how she already knows your answer even if she never really looked at this version of you's future.

"oh splendid! though of course i already knew you would agree hehe~"

𓏵Dating: how would they behave in a relationship?

~ things don't really change much right after the relationship started, she'll still randomly appear beside you albeit they'll now tackle you with hugs or surprise kisses.

~ definitely very openly affectionate now that you're official. they would always be with you whenever she could, be it having her face in your neck or hair. they love ruffling and messing up your hair randomly too, affectionately of course.

"my dearest~!! has anyone ever told you how sweet your hair smells? hehe, i know im the first."

~ a few weeks into your relationship you'll find that not only is she the director of the TBD but apparently their also the director of pet names. said pet names would be ranging from common ones like "darling" or "my love" to ones that are absolutely absurd like "my lovely, dearest clockwork cog that smells like the sweetest cotton candy." the more you protest against her strange nicknames, the weirder they become. there's no way of winning againist her when it comes to affectionate titles.

"absurd? oh no my darling— tis but a fraction of the creativity yours truly holds~"

~ they would definitely have a little charm they made for you so you'd have a piece of accessory to carry around that'll remind you of her even when she's not near. though usually they'd appear shortly after you begin to miss them and spoil you with words of affection, or acts of it if that's what you prefer.

~ as a lover they're mostly whimsical and teasing, she loves to poke fun at you just to see your reactions. she might already know said reactions even if she doesn't read your future directly as afterall she has studied the countless other versions of you, though surprise them with a reaction they didn't expect and they'd be delighted.

"ah~ there's the unpredictability i love, always a variable i cant quite predict hm?"

~ even if the reaction she draws from you is what she expected, they'd still be delighted the same, afterall she fell in love with this version of you rather than the dozens of others they have seen for a reason.

"dear one, how come you always manage to capture my attention regardless? such a wonder indeed~"

~ despite all her teasing, they do genuinely adore you, expect them to randomly appear when you're feeling down with your favorite cup of tea ready and tons of hugs to give, and she'd certainly clock you out for you during it. afterall, she's the director, whose going to stop them from clocking their favourite employee out of work when said employee is upset?

"come now my love, i know the exact treatment you require to feel all the more better~" (they'd say while extending their arms towards you with that causal smile on her lips)

~ for days when the core timeline genuinely needs her presence to restore, and if that day is a special one like your birthday or valentine's, she'd place a pile if not a mountain of gifts be it flowers or sweets at your door with a note expressing care likely carrying a little doodle in the corner, signed of course. no matter how much they adore you, duties do need to come first when it comes to situations like this but she'd never forget to show just a fraction of her care though a few gifts.

"apologies, seems like it's something i cannot clock out early on! though I'll be beside you the clock tick after the mission's finished hm?"