Work Text:
Campfire crackled and popped, sparks floating up on hot air, shimmering much like the astral energy that glimmered all around. Alphen poked at the fire, stoking flames as he tended to the evening meal. His white hair fell messy around his face, sticking to his skin as heat caused sweat to form across his brow. Even now, he found the sting a welcome discomfort, reminding him that he could once more feel pain, and more.
Slender fingers entered his peripheral vision from behind, and threaded their way through his hair, combing it back. A few passes through, and he felt his hair gathered at the nape of his neck before being tied off. He looked up with a smile as Shionne moved to sit beside him on the overturned log he was using as a bench. She didn’t say anything, but words weren’t needed. They’d grown comfortable traveling just the two of them, and her head rested on his shoulder as he tended their dinner.
The peace didn’t last too long, as suddenly he felt a finger poke him between breastplate and fauld, and he grunted and twitched, looking at her with a frown. “What?”
“Still in your armor? Take it off and get comfortable already. I’ll make sure nothing burns while you remove it.”
He was about to complain, but noticed a faint red line quickly disappearing on her face, a mark from the harsh lines of his pauldrons, and realized she was complaining about her comfort more than his. He chuckled softly and nodded, removing gauntlets and vambrace first, before leaning over to work on greaves. It took time to remove each piece, and he carefully stacked the armor up behind him, intending to give it a good cleaning once their stomachs were filled.
Almost finished, he tilted towards her without a word to give her access to his shoulders and the buckles set there. He could do it himself, but it was so much easier to let her handle this part. He couldn’t feel her touch through his thick quilted gambeson, but somehow it was still an intimate moment that he appreciated. Once everything felt loose, he removed the last bits of armor and rolled his shoulders, encouraging muscles to relax after carrying that weight.
He stopped her before she could rest her head on his shoulder, and he pulled away to free himself of gambeson as well. He wanted to be able to feel her touch, for both of them to remember how freely they could enjoy such simplicity now. Settling back in place, he took the poker from her hands and wrapped his arm around her waist, encouraging her to get comfortable on his shoulder once more. She smiled warmly and snuggled up against his side, contentedly watching as he kept the fire burning at an even rate so their dinner would turn out well.
Shionne was lightly dozing when Alphen extricated himself from her hold to pull the food off the fire and set it aside. She watched him with exasperation as he put it down then looked at his hand as if in shock. “Just because you’re used to the Blazing Sword doesn’t mean you can just grab things from the fire, idiot!” she berated him, healing his hand, welts disappearing as fast as they had shown up. “How many times do I have to tell you this?”
“At least once more, it seems,” he laughed, feeling sheepish about his mistake. She scowled up at him and he gave her a reassuring smile. “I’ll try to remember, Shionne. I don’t worry you on purpose, I promise.”
“Sometimes it feels like you do,” she pouted, giving his shoulder a gentle smack. “Now serve up dinner, I’m starving.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
He handed over a large bowl of mabo curry and a separate plate with two hunks of bread, already hollowed out for her to stuff full of delicious food. She brightened at the sight, and eagerly set to filling up one of the hollow loaves, popping pieces of shredded bread into her mouth between every few spoons.
Alphen watched her with a smile, loving to see the joy she got out of a good meal at the end of a long day. “At one point, I thought maybe your thorns were the source of your appetite. But I guess that was wrong, huh?”
“What’re you saying?” she asked, miffed, glowering at him from over her stuffed bread.
“Nothing bad,” he laughed. “Just that I’ve never seen anyone eat quite so much as you. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s just part of who you are.” She made a soft and indignant ‘hmph’ and turned her attention back to her meal. He laughed harder at her reaction, grinning as he ate his own meal. When she seemed to hesitate, he took her bowl from her and refilled it so she could stuff the next loaf, and she blushed faintly as he read her so clearly. “I said there’s nothing wrong with it. Don’t start holding back now.”
She nodded slowly, and after another beat of hesitation, she started filling bread eagerly once more. He grinned but didn’t say another word, not wanting to make her feel any more self conscious than he already had this evening. Once they’d had their fill, she took over the cleaning duties for the night, the pair of them switching off each night. Tomorrow she would cook, and he would clean. While she worked on dishes, he set to tending his equipment, keeping it all in fighting shape.
Alphen stood up and stretched once he’d finished his task, wanting to keep his muscles limber. She watched him intently, and he found himself blushing for some reason at her attention. “What is it?”
“I know you say the armor isn’t that heavy, but watching you at the end of the day makes me think you’re lying.”
“I’m not lying, but maybe it’s just because it’s lighter than what I’m used to. Armor is still armor,” he shrugged, and took a seat beside her once more, stretching his legs out beside the fire. “When I first got it, I still only had some of my senses, it was hard to notice a lot of it. Once the mask was removed, well, at that point I was used to it. And, from what I remember, I think my old armor was heavier, and more difficult to move around in.”
“From when you served a Dahnan master?”
He nodded, a bit of his hair coming loose from the tie and tickling his face. “I was just a grunt, so my armor wasn’t anything special. Mass-produced from subpar materials, it was heavier and less protective.”
“It’s hard to imagine you ever having so lowly a position in any fighting force… Didn’t they see how incredible you are in battle?”
“It didn’t really matter. I wasn’t rich, so I couldn’t ever hope to have a high position, no matter how good I was. I just did what I was told. Only that I did accomplish my task was important, not the quality of my work.”
Shionne looked up at him, concern showing in her expression at his bitter voice. She took his hand between hers, bowing her head to touch to his fingertips “I’m sorry, Alphen. I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.”
He seemed surprised by her apology, and his hand closed around hers. “Don’t apologize, Shionne. Besides. Whatever did happen, it brought me here, to this time, with these goals, this drive… If I hadn’t experienced hardships, we wouldn’t be here like this.”
She looked up at him, still sorrowful, but the kindness of his eyes, the gentleness of his voice, they warmed her through and she smiled at him and gave a nod. “That’s true. Thank you, Alphen, for everything. For being the kind of person you are.”
His forehead bumped gently against hers and he smiled to her, bringing her hand up to brush fingertips across his lips. “No need to thank me. I don’t know how to be anyone else.”
The simple delivery of his words made her laugh, and she brushed her thumb over his bottom lip. “I guess not.” she murmured, then leaned in for a kiss. He released her hand, arms wrapping around her, enveloping her, holding her separate from the world at large, reducing space to just the two of them. She sighed happily, melting against him, letting him draw her close, to pull her onto his lap. These days together, just the two of them, were wonderful and sweet, a treasure in her life she could never tire of.
She never felt so safe as she did in his grip, his hold firm but gentle, as though to shield her from darkness and give her all his light. It was humbling, to have the affection of this sweet, idealistic man. She encouraged his touch, his kiss, leaning into him, guiding his hands, his lips, and being guided in turn. The rich air grew heavy with sighs of breath, sighs of clothes rustling, sighs of ground shifting as they moved to lay upon their bedrolls, laid out beside one another.
They took solace in one another, comfort, warmth. The fire crackled beside them, the sound a reminder of now-distant times, when touch would cause a similar sound as thorns tried to protect Shionne. With his weight atop her, his touch, his love, she could forget such dark times and lose herself in intimate joy. It was wonderful to be so free with touch, to be able to hold the one she loved, to be held in turn, and to experience such pleasures together.
Senses alive, Alphen loved to lose himself in the bliss of being so close with her. That she held on so tight, welcomed him whole-heartedly, was its own slice of paradise for the two of them to enjoy. He couldn’t remember ever feeling so at ease in all his life as he did when he held her tight. They reveled in sensation, emotion, the freedom to give in to such things and to experience them in their fullest. It was a blessing neither could ever take for granted.