#SMASH THE WATERMELON!! you're doing great sweetheart

[lululeighsworld]

A Smashing Good Time

Nothing beats a day at the beach! As the warm weather arrives after the war, Corrin and company take a day trip to one of Hoshido’s beaches, with Gunter and Yukimura joining in on the fun as well. How will these two spend their vacation day, and will they be able to survive the heat? Set in an AU where Gunter is rescued by Corrin and decided to join him in fighting for Hoshido.

For @ferarepair-week2k17! The prompts for Day 6 are water/sand/shell and I think I managed to include all three in some shape or form. More notes to follow and enjoy!

On AO3

The coarse sand that gets between one’s toes, almost too hot to the touch from absorbing the rays of the bright sun above. The relaxing sound of the ocean as waves rolled against the shore, bringing with them small amounts of rocks and seashells. The loud cheers of people as they ran down to the water, setting down their belongings along the way before they dipped their toes in. The beach, at least, this beach, was everything Gunter had expected and more.

Since the end of the war and the ceremony for Ryoma to become the new king, things had been relatively quiet in the old soldier’s life. Rather than wasting away in the room he had been given, he often accompanied Yukimura and whatever his duties involved for the day. The pair had become quite close since their first meeting during the war, and it was now rare to find the two separated, many joking that they were now attached at the hip. Although they never announced their relationship publically, as both felt there was no real reason for it, a few had picked up on their bond, including Lord Corrin. He was the reason why they were at the beach today, insisting that everybody deserved a nice break from the duties at the castle to enjoy the beautiful summer weather. Ryoma had agreed to the plan after some persuasion, inviting anyone who was interested in joining them for a day of fun. Gunter was relieved that Yukimura didn’t turn down the idea, as he was unsure if the mechanist even enjoyed the sand and the salty sea air. Luckily he seemed quite excited for the small vacation, and after waiting a week for the perfect weather, they were off to the beach, joined by Corrin and his siblings as well as many of their retainers.

“You know in all my years, I think this is maybe the third time I’ve visited a beach? Then again, most Nohrian beaches are much rockier than this.” Gunter chuckled, laying a blanket down onto the sand so that they could both take a seat. They had chosen a spot not too far away from the rest of the group, shade provided by a tall palm tree. The beaches of Hoshido were much more pleasant and people friendly than what Gunter had experienced in Nohr. The sandy beaches and clear blue water gave off the vibe that they really were on vacation, even if it was only for a day.

“Well, I hope you’re able to take in all of which this beach has to offer.” Yukimura had made himself comfortable on the blanket and was looking out over the ocean, admiring its beauty from a safe distance. He didn’t completely trust the water, nor the wildlife that resided within it. The ocean was unpredictable and constantly changing, its currents capable of sweeping a person out to open waters before they had even realized it. While many of the young people enjoyed swimming and scuba diving, Yukimura much preferred to keep his feet on dry land. Despite this small fear however, he didn’t mind allowing the small waves to lap at his feet during walks along the beach’s edge.

“Don’t start daydreaming just yet. You’ll burn if you don’t put on sunscreen.” Gunter spoke and Yukimura was broken from his thoughts as a blue bottle was tossed towards him, barely having the time to dodge to the right as the bottle flew past his head.

“You could have simply passed it to me,” he said as he reached behind him and opened the cap of the bottle, pouring a generous amount of sunscreen into his palm. “The last thing I want today is an injury.”

“You’ll thank me later when you don’t have a sunburn.” Gunter smiled as he took a seat beside Yukimura.

After spending a few minutes rubbing the sunscreen onto his arms and legs, as he wore not one but two shirts that day, protecting his back from the harmful rays, he passed the bottle back to Gunter, who generously applied it to all the places he could manage on his own. They helped each other reach the more difficult places, Gunter placing a small amount on the back of Yukimura’s neck and Yukimura taking his time to make sure Gunter’s back was well covered.

They spent the beginning of the day relaxing in the shade, carrying on with one another as laughter and shouting could be heard all along the beach from the others who had also come along. Yukimura eventually convinced Gunter to build a sandcastle with him, though it was mostly the former who was sculpting and building as Gunter fetched buckets of the cold and wet sand. He also collected a few rocks and seashells to use as decorations, and as he combed the shore he found a small friend that he thought would put a smile on the other’s face.

“Yukimura, look what I found!” Gunter spoke excitedly as he placed a hand into the bucket he was carrying, pulling out a small sea creature living in a shell.

“Oh my, it looks like you’ve found a hermit crab! It seems like a rather big one too.” Yukimura smiled, halting construction on the sandcastle to observe the small sea critter.

“I think I’m going to name him ‘Barnacles’. What do you think?”

“So he’s yours now?”

“He can be ours. Consider him the first resident of our sandcastle.”

Yukimura just laughed, picking up his shovel again. “You’re hilarious. Now start fetching buckets again so I can make this into more than just a lump of sand.”

For the next little while they worked together to make the sandcastle look presentable, Gunter carefully placing the rocks and seashells in various places to add some colour to the structure. They even made a small moat for their friend, hoping he would at least hang out for a little while before returning to the ocean.

“Wow you guys! Your sandcastle looks amazing!” Both men turned their attention in the direction of Corrin’s voice, who was running towards them excitedly.

“Thank you, Lord Corrin. It’s quite an exquisite design, don’t you think?” Yukimura pushed his glasses back into place, looking rather proud of his work.

“I added the seashells and rocks,” Gunter spoke up, not wanting Yukimura to steal all the credit. Besides, he had carried all those buckets full of sand by himself, which he believed was worthy of at least a little recognition.

“If we were holding a sandcastle contest, I’m sure you two would win first prize!” Corrin smiled, happy to see that the pair were enjoying their day at the beach so far. “I’m sorry to bother you, but could I possibly borrow you for a second Yukimura? It’s about  that . A few people were hoping to start soon.”

“Of course. Will you excuse me for a moment, Gunter?” Yukimura stood up from where he had been sitting in the sand, dusting off his shorts. He nodded and after Yukimura gave him a small smile he left with Corrin, heading towards where the prince had left his stuff. Gunter preoccupied himself with placing a few more shells on the sandcastle’s towers, as well as shooing away a few curious seagulls who would do nothing but destroy the structure. Content with the finished product he went to go dip his hands in the water to rid them of sand, taking a moment once his hands were clean to look out over the vast ocean. It stretched all the way out to the horizon, a few islands scattered in the distance. Gunter wondered if they were inhabited, and if so, how long would it take by boat to reach them? He made a mental note to ask Yukimura about Hoshido’s islands later, interested in learning more about this country he still was not very familiar with.

“Come on Gunter! We’re going to start the game!” A shout came from across the beach, and as Gunter turned, broken away from his thoughts, he saw Corrin waving him over, Yukimura standing with him as well. A small group had started to form where they were standing, and out of curiosity, Gunter decided to check out what the excitement was all about.

“And what might that be now?”

“Just your traditional Hoshidan beach game: watermelon splitting!” Yukimura chimed in, holding the current object of interest. “Bet you never did anything like this in Nohr, huh?”

“Well I mean, watermelons are quite expensive, so I don’t imagine many have the extra money to just go out and buy one for fun.” Gunter chuckled, though his vision was plunged into darkness out of nowhere before he could ask any further questions. “Wh--”

“Since you’re new, you get to be the first one to give it a try!” Corrin cheered from behind him, tying a knot in whatever had been wrapped around his head to block his sight.

“I don’t even know the rules my lord.”

“No need to worry, they’re quite simple. Your main goal is to split the watermelon, except there are a few catches.” Yukimura said, smiling as Gunter looked more than a bit confused at what sort of game they were playing.

“Number one! You must be blindfolded! How many fingers am I holding up?” Corrin asked and Gunter could feel the other’s hand waving in front of his face, though he honestly couldn’t see a thing through the fabric.

“Uh… three?”

“Okay, he definitely can’t see.”

“Number two, you must be spun around three times to confuse your sense of direction.” Suddenly there was a pair of hands on his shoulders, urging him to spin around in a circle. Not once. Not twice. He was pretty sure it was four spins by the time he stopped moving, his head spinning slightly from the dizzying action.

“Congratulations, you’ve made me dizzy. Now wh--” Before Gunter could finish his sentence, he could feel a wooden stick being placed into his hands.  

“And number three, now your goal is to find the watermelon and split it using that stick.” Yukimura’s voice was no longer coming from directly behind him, meaning that during his spins he had either moved farther away, or that Yukimura had gone and moved himself to confuse him.

“This hardly seems fair at all.” Gunter placed one hand on the blindfold to try and remove it, but before he could do anything, another hand was on top of his, encouraging him to keep it on. “Come on Gunter, this will be fun! Besides, we can share the watermelon afterwards too.”

“But my lord Corrin…”

“Yukimura’s watching. You wanna show him how strong you are, right?” Gunter was blind as a bat, but he could tell the young lord was grinning from ear to ear. Taking hold of the wooden stick with an intense grip, Gunter began to take a few steps forward to get a feel for his surroundings. It was time to smash a watermelon.

It didn’t take long for Gunter to find the towel the watermelon had been placed upon, the small crowd of people cheering him on as they stood in a circle around him. Now that he had found the watermelon, the hardest task came next: hitting it with enough accuracy and force to split it. A few small hits wouldn’t do it either; if he was really going to show his strength, he would need to get this right the first time.

Gunter assumed the watermelon had been placed in the middle of the towel, though he could not be sure this either, deciding to take his chances and hoping his gut feeling was correct. He would need to take about one and a half steps forward to be at the perfect distance to strike. As he placed one foot in front of the other to have a balanced stance, he raised the stick,  praying , that when he swung downward it would be the perfect strike—

Thwack!!  With a loud crack the watermelon was split, a proud look on Gunter’s face as he realized the sound of success. He could hear the excitement coming from the crowd as he removed the blindfold, his heart beating just the tiniest bit faster when he noticed that Yukimura was cheering as well. He returned the blindfold and stick to Corrin, the watermelon he had smashed being taken away to cut properly and another replacing it.  As he joined Yukimura in the crowd he could hear Corrin picking the next target for the second round.

“How was that? Everyone seems to be quite excited.”

“It was most impressive indeed. Even experienced players don’t normally split it on the first try.”

“Did I look cool?” Gunter winked as he asked the question, and Yukimura just laughed.

“As cool as an old man can look splitting a watermelon.”

“Hey!” Gunter frowned playfully and Yukimura laughed again before taking his hand, causing Gunter’s heart to skip a small beat.  

“The watermelon slices should be ready soon. Let’s go get some while everyone is preoccupied here.” Gunter smiled and nodded in agreement, Yukimura guiding him through the crowd of people until they were free from the madness. The knight’s heart was still beating rather quickly from Yukimura’s forward gesture back in the crowd, and as they picked up a few slices of watermelon from Sakura, he could only think about how nice of a feeling it was to experience again.

After watching a few more rounds of watermelon smashing they returned to their quiet spot in the shade, amazed to see that their sandcastle was still standing. As the day continued, Gunter eventually convinced Yukimura to go on a walk with him along the shore, bringing up his question about the islands he had remembered from earlier. Together they walked hand in hand all the way down to the end of the beach and back, and by the time they returned the sun had begun its slow descent towards the horizon, painting the sky in beautiful colours of red, orange and yellow. As Gunter sat down, legs tired from the long walk, he noticed a large group gathering in the middle of the beach again, wondering what on earth they could be possibly up to now.

“There are more things to do at the beach than I realized,” he mused, and Yukimura looked over to him with a curious expression on his face.

“Did you not visit the beach when you were younger?”

“I believe once or twice. That was back more years ago than I want to think about though, if I’m being honest.” Yukimura nodded, about to add something about how the imagination of young adults probably contributes to the number of activities they can think of doing, however he noticed out of the corner of his eye that someone was headed in their direction.

“Yukimura! Gunter!” Corrin called out as he ran towards them, stopping for a moment to catch his breath before continuing. “A group of us are about to go exploring in the caves at the end of the beach before we have to head back to the castle. Would you look to join? Ryoma will be leading the way.”

Yukimura looked over to Gunter hesitantly, aware that he was still quite a bit tired from their previous walk. As interesting as exploring the caves sounded, the mechanist had some other ideas in mind that required less physical energy on both their parts.

“You all go have your fun. We’ll meet up with the group when it's time to leave for the evening.” Yukimura smiled and Corrin nodded, running off to join the others as they started their long walk to the caves located at the end of the beach.

“Did we really just turn down cave exploring?” Gunter laughed as he asked the question, Yukimura shaking his head as he sat down beside him once again.

“I figured the last thing you wanted was to fall on a slippery patch of rocks and injure yourself. Sitting here and having a nice drink as the sun sets seems much more enjoyable anyways.”

“Ah, so that was your plan all along?”

“Are you opposed?” Yukimura smiled, reaching into the bag they had brought along and pulling out a bottle of sake and two cups. “It’s a different kind from last time, so hopefully you find the taste a bit more enjoyable.”

Taking turns, they each poured the other some sake, and with a unified “cheers!” they drank. Gunter noted that the taste was a bit better than the kind he had tried before, although he wasn’t sure he could say he was a fan of the drink just yet.

They sat there for awhile together, leisurely taking sips of sake as the waves rolled against the sand, the tide slowly creeping up the beach as it came in for the night. Somewhere between looking out over the ocean and Gunter trying to guess the aroma of the sake their fingers became intertwined, Yukimura coming to rest his head on Gunter’s shoulder as he kept him guessing.

“You really are no good at this you know.” Yukimura chuckled, taking another drink as Gunter sighed in frustration.

“My apologies for not being a sake expert. The only alcohol I’m a fan of is beer. Though I will admit… this does taste better than before.”

“So you’ll keep drinking with me then?” Yukimura smiled, picking up the bottle and offering to refill the other’s cup. Gunter rolled his eyes and let him fill up his cup once more, wondering just how much of the sake was left. Yukimura had drunk nearly double of what Gunter had managed, and yet he still seemed unaffected, only a light blush dusting his cheeks. He watched from out of the corner of his eye, noticing that Yukimura had an intense gaze fixed open the ocean. By this time the sun had almost completely set, its rays peeking out just slightly from behind one of the small islands that dotted the horizon.

“Something caught your attention?” Gunter asked after finishing his drink, setting the cup to the side and squeezing Yukimura’s hand in his own.

“We should take a vacation. Just you and me. Now that the war is over, what else do we have left to do?”

Gunter chuckled and decided to humour his idea for the moment. “And where would you like to go?”

“Mm… maybe one of those islands? I hear they’re quite peaceful during this time of year.” Yukimura paused for a moment, offering his cup to Gunter so that he could have another drink. “Is there anywhere you’d like to go?”

“Hmm… I suppose I’d like to visit the mountains where I lived for part of my life. In the spring the fields are in bloom with all different kinds of beautiful flowers. I think you’d rather like it.”

“... let’s go then.”

“Really? You’d agree that quickly?”

“Why wouldn’t I? We have lots of free time on our hands now. As long as you’re there, I’m sure we’d have lots of fun.” Yukimura squeezed Gunter’s hand tight, the latter swearing that his heart skipped another beat. He had lost count of how many times it had happened that day, but he supposed if it didn’t cause his heart to stop permanently there was no real need for worry. Silence fell between them again for a short moment, Yukimura offering Gunter another drink, which he agreed to, as long as the other promised that it could be his last. With his cup refilled he took to looking out over the ocean again, wondering which island would be the best for a visit.

“You know... it was kind of hot when you smashed that watermelon earlier…” The calmness was immediately shattered as Yukimura muttered those words under his breath, hoping the other hadn’t heard him, which was quite the opposite. Gunter choked on the sip of sake he had taken, coughing and sputtering as it burned down his throat.

“E-excuse me??”

“You didn’t hear me say a word.” A yes, the typical response Yukimura gave whenever he was in denial, despite being very drunk. Gunter knew his ears weren’t playing tricks on him, and the blush rising on the other’s cheeks was a dead giveaway. There was no way he was getting away with a compliment like that, and so Gunter reached forward with his free hand, placing a hand on Yukimura’s cheek to draw him close so he could give him a kiss. It was brief, but it was enough, and as Gunter pulled away with a grin on his face, he was glad to see that the other was now blushing bright red.  

“Thank you. Maybe I should start showing off my muscles more often?” Gunter laughed and Yukimura blushed deeper, looking in the other direction as his imagination ran wild. One day he would get him back from that remark, but for now Yukimura decided it was best to stay quiet before he said something else that was even more embarrassing.

“Did your nose get sunburnt? In fact, your cheeks look a little bit red too.” Gunter smirked, obviously referring to the present blush on Yukimura’s nose and cheeks that refused to go away no matter how hard he willed it.

“...Just sunburnt.” Yukimura mumbled, looking down at the ground and burying his toes in the sand.

“I’ll be sure to put some aloe on it when we get back then.” Gunter chuckled, wanting to reach out and place another kiss on Yukimura’s cheek. He held himself back though, not wanting to turn the other into a complete fumbling mess right before they joined the rest of the group to head back to the castle.

“We should probably start packing up?” Yukimura asked, changing the topic as he put the top back on the bottle which still had a bit of sake in it. “Come, walking will do good to clear our heads.” He stood up carefully and offered Gunter his hand, who groaned from his slight headache before accepting his assistance and standing up as well. Together they cleaned up the small area, packing up their belongings and making sure that nothing was left behind. Gunter had offered to carry the bag back as the alcohol Yukimura had consumed was slowly catching up with him, his steps slow and careful as they made their way back to the entrance of the beach. It seemed as though they had made good timing as people were slowly starting to gather there, and not too far away Gunter could see Corrin’s group returning from their adventure. The young prince waved to them, and as Gunter raised his arm in the air to wave back he didn’t notice the large dip in the sand he had stepped into, causing him to lose his footing and fall backwards towards the ground. He closed his eyes and braced for the impact of the coarse sand below him, however, he never hit the ground, only realizing upon opening his eyes that Yukimura had managed to catch him.

Despite the darkness of the night starting to settle in around them, Gunter could still make out Yukimura’s features perfectly, including the blush which he still wore on his cheeks. Gunter was positive he was blushing just as bad, before he realized that most likely everyone on the beach had just witnessed his fall. Regardless of the audience, Yukimura continued to hold him there, time seemingly frozen as they smiled at each other.

“Nice catch.”

“Am I a prince in shining armor now?”

“I’d say so. What would like for your prize?”

“How abo-- oof!!”

Yukimura had been paying so much attention to Gunter that he hadn’t realized he had lost his balance, sending both of them to the ground in a messy pile of limbs. Everything suddenly felt very sore, and Yukimura coughed, trying to expel all the sand that had gotten into his mouth. He could hear a groan from underneath him, and he was at least a little bit relieved to know that the fall hadn’t killed the old man.

“Could you please… Remove your elbow… From my ribcage… Yukimura…”

“O-oh! So sorry!” Yukimura scrambled to shift himself off Gunter, offering him a hand to sit up after the other had caught his breath.

“How did   not notice your elbow jabbing me in the ribca-- Yukimura, where are your glasses?”

“Oh no! Please don’t tell me…” After a few moments of looking around in the sand Gunter had spotted the glasses, the bridge broken clean in half, most likely from when they had fallen.

“Looks like I’ll be your guide all the way home.”

“This is not how I wanted this day to end at all.” Yukimura rubbed his temples, hoping that he had still had a spare pair of glasses tucked away in his desk.

Not before long Corrin and the others were running over towards them, having watched the whole scene and worried that someone may have gotten seriously hurt. Gunter reassured the group that they were both fine, with just a few sore bones to be had come morning and one broken pair of glasses. Soon they were both on their feet again and headed back towards the castle with the others, Yukimura clinging to Gunter’s arm for dear life as his world was blurry from both the alcohol and his lack of vision. Gunter held in his laughter until they returned, earning a few more jabs to the ribs once they were alone for the night. After drinking their fair share of water they settled in for the night, fingers intertwined just as they had been earlier, the castle having fallen quiet around them. Yukimura felt as though he could fall asleep as soon as he hit the pillow, however, he noticed that Gunter was still wide awake, staring up at the ceiling as though it would answer the question he clearly wore on his face.

“What’s wrong? You look puzzled.”

“You never got to say what you wanted for your prize earlier.”

“You’re still thinking about that?”

“Of course. You saved me from nearly breaking my back earlier.”

“...Promise me you’ll go on that vacation we were talking about then.” Yukimura let go of Gunter’s hand as he spoke, allowing him to move in closer so the other could easily wrap his arms around him.

“It’s a deal,” Gunter answered and placed a small kiss on Yukimura’s forehead, the latter sighing contently as he made himself comfortable in Gunter’s embrace. After a few more goodnight kisses they were both drifting off to sleep, cuddled close together despite the humid summer heat, dreams filled with the many adventures that they hopefully would be having soon, together.

~~~

So originally this started out as a small drabble based on the summer Twitter icons @icemountaincomix designed for us, and when I was informed about rarepair week I decided to expand on the story a bit!

As always I need to thank UntramenTaro and @thislittlekumquat for brainstorming this with me; it definitely wouldn’t have turned out as good without all of your ideas! Also UntramenTaro doodled a scene from this fic for today’s prompts, and you can check it out here on AO3 or on Tumblr!

If you’ve made it this far, thank you taking the time to read my work! I wish I had more ideas for the other prompts; hopefully next time around I’ll be able to participate a bit more!