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The sea was storming, raging, but when is that not the case for the Inazuman sea? Scaramouche just looked up above, the clouds a deep grey-tinted purple with electricity while rain blasted him in the face. It was especially aggressive where he sat on his small sailboat, the weather almost seeming attracted to the boat. He knew that wasn’t the case of course, but it sure seemed like it.
He held the Electro Gnosis in his hand, rubbing his thumb over the glass-like surface containing the Archon’s power. Bargaining with Yae Miko for it had been easy, just had to hand over that pathetic Traveler. They clearly hadn’t changed much since the last time they saw them in Monstadt with that hydro mage. He felt the gnosis in his hand tingle, almost like a spark had zapped him upon thinking about that mage. It glowed a cold violet, silently humming with power as he pushed his mind away from her. His thoughts occasionally wandered to her, begrudgingly admitting he was impressed that she was able to sense his murderous intent and save the Traveler upon seeing him. If only she didn’t so blindly believe in the stars; she could’ve been a useful ally, as painful as that truth was.
He sighed and put the gnosis back in his pocket, trying to lay down and rest despite the pouring rain. Maybe this was his “Mother’s” way of messing with him for taking the gnosis, who knows. Wasn’t exactly there when he woke up.
He gazed up at the sky, admiring the storm clouds before a giant wave crashed above him, causing him to topple over and hit his head against the wooden deck. Scaramouche bit his tongue, trying to fight off the pain coming from his head, the blackness wanting to encroach on his vision, his eyelids begging to fall. He couldn’t pass out now.
Another wave crashed over him into the boat, splashing him right in the face and causing his eyes to burn with seawater. He may be a puppet but he can still feel pain. He just barely managed to keep his stinging eyes open long enough to see the biggest wave of them all crash above, throwing him off the boat and into the sea. His body immediately went into fight or flight, trying to figure out which way was up and down. He was aware that his hat had fallen off, but it was the least of his concerns. It was hard to tread water, not with a pounding concussion and a body that just wanted to fall into the water and sleep. He never actually tested if he needed air to survive, he would assume not but he wasn’t taking that chance right now.
Lightning struck the water next to him, sending an electric shock through his body, and finally forced him to give in to possible endless sleep.
He wasn’t sure how long he had been out when he finally came to. He could feel the grating sand on his face, the waves lapping at his feet It took him a while to realize he wasn’t dead before he sat up. Looking around, it was as if the storm never existed, a bright blue sky staring down at him with clouds that looked like the purest snow in Snezhnaya. He could feel the soft warmth on his face, the sun above him.
It took him a minute to realize he had washed upon Musk Reef, the location where he had experienced that dream from the meteorite and saw…... Celestia sure loved making a fool out of him. He groaned into the sand, having to cough when he accidentally inhaled some. He did a quick check to see that no one saw that. A traveler was staring at him from a couple of meters away, and he groaned. Now he had to deal with people who wouldn’t listen to his every command, and who he couldn’t kill if they disobeyed. “Ahoy! You lost traveler?” The man said, coming up to him, “Got thrown off my boat in a storm, washed up here.” He said sternly, not bothering to look this lowlife in the eye. “You need a boat back to Mondstadt? I got room if ya need it.” He side-eyed him, a bright smile on the man’s face. He didn’t really have much of a choice, it would be too far for him to use the unknown powers of the gnosis to teleport back to the mainland, and he doubted he would have the stamina to swim all the way back. Plus he really didn’t want to get his clothes all wet again. He couldn’t bring himself to say anything that wouldn’t cause this man to leave him on the reef, so he nodded simply. The traveler grinned brightly and lead him to his boat, where they sailed back to the mainland in silence. Mainly.
“Completed a commission over there from the guild. Was hoping to make enough to have Mona read my stars or whatever. Heard of her?” He suddenly asked, seeming unable to handle the silence. “....that astrologist?”
“That’s the one. However, she got sick or something and isn’t accepting any requests right now. Shame, was really hoping to have my stars read,” the man sighed while he steered the boat. So that astrologist was sick….
“I’m a friend of hers, but haven’t seen her in a while. Could you show me where she lives? I wish to check up on her,” He lied. If he could get to her while she was sick, he could easily eliminate that pest from messing with his plans in the future. “Oh, sure! I’m sure she’d love to have a friend helping her while she’s sick.” Now, all Scaramouche had to do was wait for this low-life to lead him right to his target. Perfect. “Oh, also there are some clean clothes in the back if you need them. You probably don’t want to be in sand-filled clothes right now after being washed ashore I’m guessing.” He’ll deal with the astrologer after getting changed.
He politely nodded to the Traveler once he reached the shore, now in clean clothes that looked like the typical garb of commoners in Mondstadt. While he would normally wouldn’t lower himself to wearing such low-quality clothes, they were all that was available and would help him not to be recognized. “Mona lives in the house to the left with the inscription of a constellation on her door. Easy to find. Wish her well for me, alright?” The traveler grinned, “See you later stranger!”
Scaramouche, now left alone, slowly made his way to Mondstadt proper. Somehow despite being tossed about in the ocean still had his pouch of Mora on him, which would certainly make things easier for his future travels.
The stone archway of Mondstadt really wasn’t anything to write home about, and the actual city was plain and quaint. He wasn’t exactly sure why people seemed to adore it so much, it was simply lesser than the cities he had seen in Inazuma and Snezhnaya, he couldn’t understand why anyone would choose THIS over those.
“Simply another poor choice of the mage,” he muttered under his breath, stepping into the city to look for her house. It took longer than he would like to admit to find her house (he may or may not have stopped to grab some Sticky Honey Roast), but he eventually found the correct one. It was simple, nothing to write to Inazuma about. It was exactly like all the houses next to it, besides the burned constellation on the door, and the mailbox reading “Mona Megistus”. He couldn’t knock for obvious reasons, he wouldn’t be let in if she spotted him.
He turned the doorknob to find that it opened without any resistance. Looking closer, he could see the lock was broken. Idiot mage, couldn’t even get the lock on her door right. He entered slowly, cautiously, closing the door behind him. Her house was dark except for a few lit candles, but no astrologist to be found. Or a couch. Just tables covered in what looked to be like expensive equipment, a small kitchen with a table and chair, and…that was it. “Clearly that mage can’t even handle decorating her house,” he muttered, ignoring the pity he felt for her horrible decorating skills.
He quietly made his way up the stairs, trying his best not to step on any potentially creaky stairs and alert her of his presence. He expected to find a bedroom at the top of the stairs but was greeted with more expensive equipment, a telescope by the window, papers everywhere, and water everywhere. He saw a door to the side that must have been to the bathroom but….she wasn’t there. And didn’t seem to have a bedroom. Where did this witch even sleep?
He skimmed through some of the papers, there was stuff about the fates of others as told by the stars. So she was a fiction writer. He checked as much as he could, trying to see if he could find anything. Nothing. He frowned, had she not been home? Had that traveler lied to him? He glanced at the bathroom, guess there wasn’t any reason not to check it. He opened the door and then immediately shut it. What the-
He opened it slightly again, trying to confirm what he saw. That mage was sleeping in her bathtub. She was in her nightgown, while she seemed to float in the water of the bath, somehow not touching the sides of the tub. What in Celestia was this mage on?
He slowly opened the door further, stepping further inside. There was a toilet, a mirror, and a few beauty products. Normal girl stuff from what he could assume. Besides the mage in her nightgown sleeping in a bathtub. He leaned closer, this was his chance. Her plum hair was soaking wet, her eyes softly closed against her pale skin, and he could vaguely hear her murmuring in her sleep. He knelt down, staring at her. Water droplets had attached themselves to his skin and the crown of her hair. While most of her hair was in the water, floating gently, the top of her head was glittering with water droplets, looking like twinkling diamonds that cast little rainbows on the porcelain tub. Her nightgown was a pale lavender with specks of white that seemed to mimic constellations, with her vision hanging on a necklace that fell to her stomach. Despite her annoyingly beautiful appearance, Scaramouche still couldn’t understand why she was sleeping in the bathtub.
He was so baffled he didn’t realize he lost his chance, her pale sage eyes fluttered open slightly, before snapping open and dousing him in water, “What in the stars?!” Mona yelled, sitting up and glaring at him. The sudden blast of water knocked him off his feet (a forming trend he very much disliked) and he fell backward, his hands catching him before he hit the floor. “Why are you sleeping in a bathtub?! Why don’t you have a bed?!”
“Oh so you snooped in my house as well?! Well excuse me would-be-killer, it isn’t polite to barge into a ladies' house and snoop through her stuff!”
“There isn’t even anything interesting to look at! Just weird-looking equipment while you don’t even have a couch!” Mona stood up above him, glaring down at him on the floor. He ignored how the light behind her gave her an almost ethereal appearance.
Until she sneezed. The spell was broken, and she seemed to catch herself off guard. He suddenly remembered she was supposedly sick, and now looking at her, he could see it in her red nose and the bags under her eyes. Her glare was still fierce, but it was hard to take a sick-looking lady in her nightgown standing in her bathtub seriously.
He got up and put his hand on her forehead, feeling the warmth emanating from her, unlike his cool skin that would never be warm. “W-what are you doing?!” She nearly shrieked, “I-I should r-report you to-!” she sneezed again and groaned. “I-if you’re here to kill me, don’t bother! Either I die from this cold or I beat you in a fight! You don’t stand a chance!” She crossed her arms and looked down at him haughtily. She was very obviously lying, pretty pathetically as well. “Would be a waste of time killing you,” he spoke before his brain caught up. What? “Oh, so I’m not even worthy of a decent death? Fine! Just go away and get yourself pounded by the traveler!” They could beat you with ease.” She spoke smugly, “L-Like I still can!” she quickly added, looking away.
He just deadpanned her. “Why were you sleeping in a bathtub?” he asked, ignoring her pathetic attempt to appear strong when she obviously couldn’t kill a slime. “W-What are you talking about?! I just happened to fall asleep during my bath, that’s all!”
“You’re wearing a nightgown.” She instantly went red at his comment, everywhere from her cheeks to her ears down to her neck blushing. “It isn’t proper to stare at a lady in her nightgown you know!” She stated, stepping out of the tub and staring him in the eye. Her hair was still soaking wet past her shoulders, falling in wet clumps to her waist. Except for the crown of her head, still glittering with jewels.
“You don’t have a bed.” It wasn’t a question, “Or a couch. Or any decorating skills.” Her cheeks puffed up with anger at that, “I-I’m on a budget you know! Decorating comes second to astrology!” She sneezed again, tiredness clear in her eyes, “Can’t even afford the medication to help myself heal faster…” she murmured, so quiet he barely caught it. “So you’re an idiot who doesn’t have her priorities straight?” She looked at him offended, before quickly seeming defeated. “That’s not an…entirely wrong assessment,” she admitted, turning back to the bathtub. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need more rest to get over this archon forsaken cold.”
He just stared at her a few seconds later before…silently walking away, down the stairs, and out of the house. His mind was blank, his feet carrying him to stores, his mouth moving on its own accord. It was a blur he couldn’t understand. When he finally felt the fog be lifted, he was back outside Mona’s house with some goulash in his hands.
“What in the Tsaritsa-?!” He felt himself muttering, almost dropping the bowl. Why did he even buy this?! It took a while for him to come up with a reason, “If she trusts me, she’ll be easier to eliminate,” he decided, entering the house once more.
“Hey, starry-eyed idiot, got you some goulash.” He called out from outside the door to the bathroom. He could practically sense her hesitance before he heard her slowly get out of the tub and walk towards the door, he could hear the sound of the water dripping from her. She opened the door and she glanced at him, before down at his hands where he did indeed, have some goulash. “Did you poison it?” She asked simply, “It’s wise to not accept food from a Fatui Harbinger.” He was getting slightly annoyed but kept his cool, “No. Bought it from a restaurant or something. Now do you want it or not?” He stated, unable to stop the bite in his voice from being heard.
She stared at him once more while he ignored the uncomfortable feeling it caused in him, before gently taking the soup from him, walking past him to the stairs, and heading down. He followed to see she had grabbed a spoon from her small kitchen and was sitting at the very small table and eating. “I’m so glad I cleaned the spoon before I got sick,” she muttered, seeming to try to keep herself from inhaling the food.
“Do you not have other spoons?” He asked confused, which she froze. “Oh my archons you are an idiot,” not quite believing how someone can both manage to not have a bed or couch, and only have one singular spoon. “M-my equipment is e-expens-” she sneezed and ended up cutting herself off. He could just feel the headache of her bad spending habits coming on, still a little unable to believe how ridiculous her living situation is. “How do you even live like this?” he wondered in complete disbelief. “Astrology comes before mortal needs, it’s a form of testing one’s strength to rid themselves of mortal comforts while they pursue the knowledge of the stars,” She replied, seeming very full of herself for a moment. “...you really are a starry-eyed idiot. I’m impressed I’ve never met someone so prideful yet so lacking in intelligence,” he commented, trying to somehow make sense of Mona. She glared at him, but she didn’t respond, just continuing to eat her soup while trying to not look like a slob.
He went over, putting his elbows on the table while he watched her. The better understanding he has of Mona, the easier she would be to eliminate. “You really are a slob, you got something right-” he used his thumb to wipe a bit of soup off the corner of her mouth, not realizing until after he took the action how inappropriate it was. She stared at him, dumbfounded. Her cheeks were becoming a deep red, “I’m not ashamed,” he quickly stated to try to cover up his own embarrassment upon realizing the intimacy of touching her lips implied. “Oh really?” she asked, seeming annoyingly amused, “Never knew the Balladeer was so confident with girls.”
“Just what are you implying?”
“Oh, nothing,” she said with a smug look on her face, “I’ve seen better.”
“...What does that even mean?” She groaned and muttered a “Nevermind” before she finally finished up her soup and sighed, “Back to my bed for me now. And….thank you. As much as it pains me to admit it,” he rolled his eyes at that, “It was….nice.” She fell silent after that, and even Scaramouche couldn’t understand why his voice was refusing to work. “The Fatui are paid well,” he finally managed to muster up (he may not technically be one anymore but he still has a decent sum on him) “Much better than some astrologist must be paid,” he commented with a smirk.
“As we established, my mora goes to the study of the stars, not mortal pleasures,” she glared once more, pouting a little. Cute. Wait, what?
“Stay here,” he growled, “Need to grab some things,” he said, pushing himself up from where he was on his knees on the table and out the door. This was all to get her to trust him, then at the right moment, he could slit her throat, and he would be done with her. The sun was starting to set now, but vendors and businesses were still open. Perfect.
“Oi, young gentleman!” He heard being called, and turned around to see a seller next to a weird-looking mattress, “You a traveler?” he was a little curious, so he nodded. “Newest technology for travelers from Fontaine, the land of beauty and comfort! A water bed! Easily able to be filled up with water from the clear streams around Teyvat so one can sleep much more easily, instead of on the ground.” The man was smiling, “If you buy now, you can also receive a discount on traveling pillows and blankets! So what do you say? 5,000 mora, take it or leave it?”
He stared at the man for a second. 5,000 more might seem like a lot to a commoner, but the Fatui did have a nice paycheck of several times that. He nodded and the man beamed a bright smile while he handed over the mora. He pointed to a few other pillows and blankets, which the man happily gave over, “Have a wonderful sleep dear gentleman!” the man laughed as Scaramouche refused to question his life choices as he carried the deflated bed, pillows, and blankets.
Since he knew the door couldn’t possibly be locked, he just kicked it open with his foot and let all the items in his hands fall to the ground inside. “What in Celestia-?!” He heard and saw Mona rushing down the stairs before freezing at the sight. “W-what is this?”
“Water bed. Blankets. Pillows. Now you can stop acting all high and mighty for not owning a bed.” He committed with a sneer. She seemed to be shocked into silence as she slowly approached, bending down to pick up the pillows and blankets. “I-I….” she sneezed again, but hugged a fluffy white star pillow tight, “Thank you….” he elected to ignore the happiness he felt, the tightening of his throat at the sight of her smiling softly at him.
“W-Well now, you bought this for me, so you are required to help me set it up!” she said, falling back into her high and might facade. He rolled his eyes, but obliged, picking up some of the blankets and pillows while Mona picked up the bed. She motioned for him to follow upstairs; getting up the stairs was a little tricky with his lack of being able to see much due to the big pillows, but he safely made it. He put them down and immediately noticed the area was slightly more cleaned up than when he last saw it, the floor is clean and dry now, and fewer papers are scattered about. “So um….how does this bed work?” She asked a little awkwardly, looking at the deflated roll in her arms. “The seller said it was a waterbed from Fontaine. I thought since you clearly are fond of the strange habit of sleeping in water, along with the hydro vision, you could fill it up easily. Unless that’s too much work for the great and powerful mage you claim to be,” he commented with a look.
“Hmph! Of course, the great Mona Megistus can handle filling up a simple bed! What do you take me for? A fool?” He was about to open his mouth before Mona suddenly covered it with her hands, “And don’t you DARE answer that!” she seethed. He could feel his breath hitch with Mona’a warm hands on his mouth. She was so much warmer than him.
She quickly pulled back, and Scaramouche was having a harder time keeping the fact that he liked her being near down. She spun on her heel and bent down by the bed, unrolling it and laying it out in the middle of the room. “I can do this!” She said, more to herself than anyone else. She placed her hand on top of the bed, and Scaramouche noticed her vision started glowing. The bed was slowly being filled up, but he could notice the sweat forming on her forehead, dripping down her face to her chin before resting on her neck. He remembered she was sick, so it might be a little more difficult than normal, but there wasn’t much he could do considering he wasn’t a Hydro vision holder.
It took a few minutes, but Mona finally finished filling up the bed before she prompt fell right onto it from where she was sitting and groaned loudly. He rolled his eyes once more and decided the logical decision would be to take the blanket and just drop it on her head. “H-Hey what was that for?!” she struggled with getting it off her head, taking her a second to pull it off and glare at him, her hair a mess due to the blanket. He laughed before he even realized it happened. She just looked so ridiculous, a kitten trying to play lion he couldn’t just help but laugh at her. She glared even harder before she suddenly stopped.
“You’re smiling!” She shot up, but the fact she was on a waterbed, immediately caused her to fall over due to the instability. “So? What if I did?” he asked, not liking where this conversation was going, “You never smile! I made you smile, so HA!” she said, sticking her nose up in the air as she sat up. He decided to not even ask as he grabbed the rest of the blankets and pillows and threw them onto the bed. She just stared at him. “What?” he asked, confused. “You can sit with me you know. It’s getting late and as much as it pains me to admit it….you helped me. I feel a lot better after having that soup and…you were kind enough to buy me this stuff. So you have regrettably earned a place to sit on this bed.”
He felt his eyes widen in surprise, and he felt himself become more surprised when he realized he wanted to sit down next to her. What was wrong with him?! “Well? I’m waiting,” she commented, and he found himself quickly listening to her command, sitting down next to her, his legs hanging off the bed. They fell into a somewhat awkward silence once more, and he risked a glance at Mona. She was still hugging the pillow from earlier, stuffing her face into it and sighing, “It’s getting late, I’m guessing you’re going to stay at the Goth Hotel?”
It suddenly occurred to Scaramouche that no, he couldn’t, because even if the news hadn’t reached Mondstadt that he went rogue, he wouldn’t want to risk the Tsarista finding out his location. “Already spent most of my mora buying you this stuff,” he lied, “Despite the Hotel being for the Fatui, it’s still very expensive for even us to stay in.” Mona seemed to ponder this for a second, “So you have no place to stay tonight?” He shook his head no. “Well….if you don’t mind possibly getting sick, we can um….share. You stay on your side of the bed, and I’ll stay on mine, got it?” He didn’t quite fully understand what she was saying, but he nodded anyway.
“Well then…goodnight Scaramouche,” She stated, before she fell back onto the bed, grabbing a pillow and blanket to cover herself. He glanced at her a moment longer before he scooted over to be slightly further away and laid down. He knew he needed sleep but he wasn’t that tired. One of the benefits of being artificial didn’t have as major requirements as mortals. Though he would gladly ignore the fact that having Mona next to him also would’ve made it harder to sleep. Everything was quiet, for a few minutes. It wasn’t long until he heard Mona groan and turn around to face him, seeming very annoyed. “I can’t sleep, so you’re going to tell me why you said the stars are a lie.”
“No.”
“Why not? I at least deserve an answer as to why you feel it is right to completely deny my beliefs.” She said, her pale eyes twinkling in the dark. Not that he noticed. “Classified Fatui business,” he stated, and he saw Mona about to argue back with him before he continued on, “And why would I want to believe the stars have my destiny mapped out? I’m glad being in control of my own fate,” he said, and Mona gave him a look. “The stars do have a path for you, I know they do,” she murmured softly. “Yeah? So what is it?” It could’ve been a trick of the light, but he swore he saw her go red, and mutter something under her breath. “What is it?” he asked again.
“Your fate is….I can’t read it,” she stated, “I’ve tried previously, but I can’t read it. Same as the Traveler’s and that strange bard who will do anything for booze,” he was about to bite back before she continued, “But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a fate. I just…can’t read it, that’s all.”
“Why are you so insistent the stars have everything planned out?” he commented, annoyed and sitting up, “Why would you want your every action mapped out by someone else?”
“Because it makes things easier!” she yelled, before covering her mouth with her hands. “It….” she seemed to try to maintain her composure, “It’s…comforting. I know I’ll end up exactly where I need to be in life because the stars have mapped out my fate long before I was born. As long as I trust them, I’ll live my life as I’m supposed to.”
“What if you’re supposed to end up hurt? Or dead?” he accusingly asked, trying not to think about the lump in his throat at the thought of her being hurt. “If I die, then I have served my purpose in Teyvat. I have accepted that as reality.” Hearing her say that, the lump in his throat grew. “You shouldn’t have to die because of some stupid stars!” he yelled, his mouth moving faster than his brain. She gazed at him curiously at his outburst before a smug look formed on her face. “You care about me.”
It wasn’t a question. He glared hard at her, and he was vaguely aware of the presence of the gnosis in his pocket humming with power. “I don’t care about anyone,” he stated, both of them knowing it was a lie. “Well, I guess I can give you the honor of being considered a friend by the Mona Megistus. And with that honor comes a gift,” She stated, her eyes gleaming with mischief. He ignored the paradoxical feeling of warmth and cold at being called her friend, while she sat up and walked over to the wall, a lever on the side he hadn’t noticed before. “I spent two months of my paycheck getting this installed by some Snezhnayain workmen,” she stated before she pulled the lever.
He suddenly heard a loud groan, and the sound of metal moving above him before he felt Mona cover his eyes, “You can’t look yet. It will ruin its majesty.” Despite his kneejerk reaction being to immediately pull her hands away and look, he obliged. He could feel her shift to stand in front of him and lift his chin up with her finger, moving one of her hands off his eyes and placing his own to cover. “Now….look!” she exclaimed, and she pulled back her hand and he allowed his to drop. At first, all he could see was Mona’s smiling face before he looked directly up and saw the stars.
There were millions of stars above, the moon seeming to pale in comparison in their beauty. They were everywhere, the night sky is painted in little lights against a backdrop of blues and purples, with the occasional shooting star flying by. He just realized now that the roof was open, allowing him to see the beautiful sky above.
“The stars are ancient, they may even be gone now, and their light is just a fading memory,” Mona said, sitting down next to him and leaning against his shoulder as he continued to stare, “But they’re always so comforting to me. They won’t change in my lifetime, and even if I can’t always see them, they’ll always be there.”
He could feel the soft skin of her cheek against his shoulder as they both quietly admired the view. He couldn’t help but notice, however, that her eyes were shining brighter than any of the stars. He allowed himself that one smile at her beauty. They laid back on the bed and continued looking, till Scaramouche eventually could hear her soft snores beside him, and he glanced over. She looked even more beautiful than she did sleeping earlier, with the stars illuminating her face. Her hair fell over her face and her quiet breathing as she lay close to him.
He stared at her, knowing this was the best moment to kill her. He could wrap his hands around her neck, kill her, and be done with her, she wouldn’t be a problem anymore. He could stop pretending to be nice to gain her trust, he already did. But gazing at her face….he couldn’t find it in himself to harm her. He couldn’t bear the thought of anyone harming her.
“What sort of spell have you cast on me utsukushii? ” he murmured, finding his native tongue slipping out. She just murmured in her sleep as a response and cuddled closer to him till she was against his chest. He was trapped. He was trapped in body, mind, and heart. She trapped him. He didn’t want to leave her trap. He knew why he didn’t want to leave.
He knew that he couldn’t stay, not for long. Staying longer than necessary could put her in danger, and his main mission was to acquire the gnosis and learn how to use its power. He already had that, he just had to stay on the run till he could master it. All common sense was screaming at him to leave, tear Mona away from him, and leave before sunrise. His heart, however, no matter how artificial, wanted to stay. He wanted to stay in her trap, stay under her spell, under the stars with her. He couldn’t bear to part with her, not right now. There wasn’t much of an increased danger waiting until the sun rose to set off.
Putting his anxieties away, he allowed himself this one moment of reprieve, one moment of relief, as he wrapped his arms around her waist and gently kissed her forehead, savoring the feeling of his lips against her skin, before falling into a blissful sleep.