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You found the general standing frozen outside, her hand in mid-air where you guessed she was going to knock on the wooden door you had just opened.
“Lady Kujou?!” You couldn't help the surprised whisper-shout, a part of you still mindful of the silent night where people were putting down their weary heads to rest, and the general had only tightened her lips into a line as a reply.
You wasted no time ushering her inside your place, chasing away the cold breeze on her back, and she had put on this troubled look on her face, one you recognized that her line of thinking must have gone down to something like I probably shouldn't be doing this, or This isn't proper of me, or maybe something like I'm imposing, I'm not wanted here and I'm going to be a burden–
All these thoughts of hers you were guessing flashed one by one, and it was concerning to you how deep her brows were beginning to furrow, so you led her into your living room by her hand, which you weren't even sure if she had registered. Pointing it out wouldn't do any good, because she'd feel like you were obligated to say that you didn't think of it that way at all, so the best thing to do was with action. By now, she would have made a fuss about it, or pulled her hand away, and since neither of those has happened– yet?– it was really telling of how Lady Kujou was out of it tonight. And that... Was a very valid cause of concern for you.
The living room was lit by candles that you were meant to put out to go to sleep, already you had extinguished the lanterns for light source, and you had to sit the general down because otherwise she had remained quietly unresponsive, but not unwilling to follow you. She snapped to attention when shrugging off her shoes, but then fell back into a stoney daze once more. She was awkwardly still, only moving when you were moving her.
You had heard footsteps outside of your door, ones that you distantly recognized, and there were that nervous shuffling you had come to be fond of. It was only surprising to you finding Lady Kujou outside your door was because of how... You had missed her. Truly. That it felt like your silent longing was answered, and there she was! It was hard not to feel, everything, seeing the very person you wanted to see at your door.
But, you can tamp down your yearning for now, somewhat. The general's well-being came first in this moment. You can do that, of course you can.
You would care for her even if it meant stealing her away from her duties, from the world, if only for a night.
Lady Kujou stared absently down at her lap, studying her gloved hands. You sat down in front of her, taking her hands into yours. You held them, in what you wish was reassurance, and you saw the way Lady Kujou breathed in, pained, and breathed out. Her shoulders slowly sagged from the rigid form she had sat down with, curling in on herself. The stress, the fatigue, it was catching up to her again tonight.
You couldn't help yourself. You leaned forward on your knees to gather her up in a tight hug, breathing in deeply. It ached, seeing her like this. A noise of complaint softly made it out of her, the only sound she had made that night, but she made no move to push you off.
Instead, she held the back of your shirt timidly, resting her head on your shoulder, and sighed. You could feel her breathe a little easier.
You took this chance to pepper gentle kisses on her temple, moving then to kiss her forehead, down to her eyebrow, both of them, her eyelids where she had closed them, and then the crown of her head, which usually made her shy away from embarrassment. And that she did, blinking her eyes open as colour bloomed in her cheeks.
“Beautiful.” You whispered close.
A scoff, but it had no bite.
“I don't need to be beautiful.”
“And yet you are the most.” She sucked in a breath. You continued, “The only one who matters to me.”
You watched as she shivered slightly, and delighted in the way she hid her face in your shoulder again. You wondered absently, if you could get the chance to praise her so often that her wings might pop out. An experiment for another time.
“Let me take care of you. You must be exhausted,” You gave another gentle kiss to the side of her head before sitting back down. “Thank you for coming to me.”
“What I feel shouldn't–” She had started at the same time you squeezed her hands in yours.
“Uh-uh. Nope. You know saying what you might say will just make me kiss you more to shut you up.”
The first time, she had stormed off out of your care when you told her that it very much mattered that she didn't work herself to the bone, that she would be as useful as fish on dry land if she came to you in this state. When she came back, you had apologized if she felt like you were dismissing her cause, why she was working this hard, her efforts and hard work, and that you only wanted her to take care of herself. That night, she had silently let you treat her wounds and cuts, bruises and aches, all the while with a furrow on her brows, as if she was seriously considering what you were saying, for the first time the notion that someone cared about her beyond her work was incomprehensible.
And you knew it to be true, because she kept coming back to you, after all. As you'd hoped, as you'd wanted. It was enough for now– She still got hurt, still trained vigorously, violently disciplined, cruelly efficient, but she still came to you to mend what's been broken, instead of letting her wounds go without nursing.
“I– But– You shouldn't kiss me either–” Lady Kujou said with a little flushed, almost close to a whine, almost, but alas she was too self-conscious to truly express herself, besides the colour on her cheeks that she could not physically control.
“But you like it, and I like it too. I want to, in fact. Now sit tight, let me see you.” With that, you let go of her hands, mentally capturing the picture of how Lady Kujou had subconsciously followed your hands up when you stood, keeping your giggle short to huffs to not embarrass her.
You retrieved the first aid kit and sat down again, although this time you sat cross-legged. Lady Kujou stayed unmoving from her position, legs folded under her and was back to looking at her hands again.
You set the kit aside, taking one hand and turning it over, then kissing over the gloved knuckle, one by one.
You didn't mind the way she twitched in your grasp, and by the time you've placed kisses on each of her joints on her fingers, she was trembling minutely.
You thought to yourself how she deserved kisses like these, how much gentleness should always be the go-to when it came to her. She deserved this and more, deserved the world and everything that she wanted in it and everything in between. Something desperate welled up in your chest when you look up to see how intensely she was looking at you, her cheeks once again scarlet.
“You're beautiful.” Another kiss, turning over to her palm, the heat from your cheeks warming even through her gloved cold hand.
She responded by hiding her face behind her arm.
You giggled.
Okay okay– Fun time pausing, for now.
You peeled off her glove, being careful to not aggravate any wounds that she could have, even though you had very much squeezed and kissed around her hand earlier–
The tips of her fingers were red and raw, blisters already beginning to form. Of course you understood that it was because the use of her Electro, but it still made you frown regardless. You just hoped that, gaining a Vision meant gaining some semblance of resistance or even immunity towards the elements that they would wield, but alas.
It could have been worse if it weren't for the protection of her gloves, so you tried not to feel too saddened. But even when they were specialised for her, the number of times she must have practised with her Vision must had done a number on her like this. Lady Kujou had only just recovered before, the ointments and medicinal balms you have weren't exactly miracle workers, but they could help with faster healing. Now, if she could just help and not worsen things...
You sighed fondly. Lady Kujou twitched again, her fingers curling in towards her palm in your grasp.
You moved to take the hand shielding her face and took off that glove as well, finding that this hand had line indents on her middle and ring finger no doubt from when she was practicing with the bow, pulling the string taut and releasing it hundreds or thousands of times over, who knows if she kept count.
“I don't know if you're reckless or just...” You didn't try to continue, shaking your head when you feel Lady Kujou stiffen. You try not to feel too angry about everything she had to shoulder through, not being able to give herself a chance to just be, and hasn't had the opportunity to for a long time before she met you.
No worries. She was yours for the night.
Hmm. That might have made you a little more than happy. You felt your face heat up.
“What are you thinking about?” Her voice was quiet, but not stern. Lady Kujou looked at you, staring, and your eyes darted to the way she had her lips parted before looking into her eyes again.
“You.”
An exasperated sigh, although it was fond.
“Don't tease me.”
You made an offended huff. “Am not! I really am thinking about you. I always think about you.”
She simply hummed then, but you could tell she was just the slightest bit... Pleased? Content? Because her expression had lost the tightness in them, and she was relaxed again.
You popped open the small lid on tin can containing a soothing medicinal balm for burns, and warmed it up in between your palms before rubbing and massaging it gently into her fingers, her palm, and the back of her hand. You repeated it with her other hand, and all the while your heart grew with fondness over how docile she was to let you take care of her this time around as well.
“Are there anywhere else that need attention, Lady Kujou?” You gently guided her hands back down to her lap, holding them there, warming her up.
She seemed to give it some thought, with the way her face scrunched a little. “Sara.”
What? “What? Oh I– Pardon?”
“When we're here... Just us. You can call me Sara.” She looked away, flushing. Your heart grew full. These little... Moments, when she let her emotions show were so precious to you, so you committed them to your memory.
“Sara... What do you need? I'll do anything.”
“Can I,” she started slowly, pausing a beat longer than you'd expect out of her. “May I...”
“I will, if you let me. May you...?”
Sara opened and closed her mouth several times, and she started to fidget with her fingers, which you pried them apart with the same gentleness you always gave her, holding them there, less she worried her blisters open.
There was a moment when suddenly the silence was tense, her eyes darting everywhere on your face, seemingly searching for something, and her confidence grew by the second she opened her mouth to speak.
“Can you...”
Can I...?
“I want to...”
She wanted to...?
“Ki–... Ugh. This is stupid, I–”
Oh– Oh. Oh.
You didn't let her spiral, would never have the heart to make her wait, surging forward to give her a quick kiss on her lips. She gave a surprised yelp, but it was only for a moment that she hesitated, immediately leaning in for more.
Your head was spinning.
She was asking. She asked. She thought of it.
She wanted to kiss you. She wanted you to kiss her.
It was exciting. It was exhilarating. Most wonderful. Lovely. It was what you wanted. You both wanted.
She was so beautiful.