Work Text:
Water dripping, rushing, sitting still and silent, the crackling of fire at the end of the world, in the depths of the earth, in the underbelly of a rotting kingdom. The air tasting of ash and old rain, of burnt flesh and withered roots, acrid to the senses and bitter on the tongue; along the ground vines snaked and tangled together, a bed for the deceased, for the forgotten. Lost in the depths was a cloaked figure and the flicker of torchlight, the clatter of old leather boots on stone, a face twisted by fear, molded by pressure, scarred like old bark. The caverns twisted and twisted and ahead of the lost mage a sconce held a flame which illuminated the vast dungeon in shades of green and gold.
“AJ.”
Mismatched eyes flickered in the light, the flame danced once, twice, in their depths. An auburn braid, a green cloak, a black spiral which twisted and twisted… a face which normally held an array of emotions, of questions, of answers, staring back at the lost mage with nothing. Treebark untapped, unmoored. Eyes stagnant, set like still water.
A cascade of horror fell over the lost mage like an avalanche.
Blood, blood, and more blood ran a sickly river down the figure’s coat, streaked across her face and down her sides. In one hand held in a tight fist was a leather glove, in the other a lock of chestnut hair. If she looked close enough, the lost mage could just barely make out the faint shape of glowberries tangled in its strands.
“No. No, no, no.”
The lost mage realized after a few seconds that the voice screaming was in fact her own.
“AJ, please.”
A pleading voice broke through the barrier of apathy. For a moment, mismatched eyes settled on the lost mage, and there was more than just her own reflection staring back at her.
The next moment, the figure was in the ground.
There was the sound of the earth opening its maw, the grinding of stone and gravel, the vision of the land torn in two like ripped fabric, then there was nothing. Just the gentle light of an old flame.
The one who remained fell to her knees and wept.
For a brief moment she recalled her name.
It wasn’t the lost mage, the figure, or the one who remained.
It was AJ.
AJ woke with a start.
She was lying on her back in the tall grass, a few yards away from the water. Sand held to her scarf and sweat clung heavy to her petrified frame. She sat up with a shaky breath and looked around wildly. Flick settled by her leg and watched her carefully. It was a nightmare, only a nightmare; she repeated the phrase like a mantra as her fingers twitched for one of her daggers. Fuck. Fuck me, I am never setting foot in that damned crypt again. She repeated the thought like a prayer and hoped it would will away the thundering of her heart and the unsteadiness of her breath.
Magpie.
The thought sat like a heavy weight in her mind, a stone turned once and over again; visions of a future filled with blood and betrayal, fear and obedience, pain and loyalty. Ever since AJ had discovered the woodland mage’s phrase she had envisioned yet another way life could unravel around her, fall apart at the seams, evolve into an array of torment. AJ feared and schemed and worst of all she loved; she worried and fussed and didn’t know how to rid her mind of sappy sentiment. Magpie was a grenade midair, a match unlit, but when AJ saw her all she could envision was the softness of her hair, the warmth of her eyes, the emotion dripping from her words, the love in her expression. Love was a funny thing, a blinding light, a tempting weakness. AJ sighed and pulled herself to her feet.
She had passed out close to the bay, the setting sun now bathed the forest in a soft vermillion hue. Her pot of stew sat untouched over a dead campfire. The death mage watched as the last of its smoke evaporated midair. Flick flapped his wings urgently and AJ walked over to where she had placed her new backpack. Its leather was soft to the touch. She swung it onto her back and summoned Nicotine with a quick blast of her goat’s horn.
AJ had planned to place another Flick in the depths of the dragon crypt before day’s end, unfortunately for her daymares waited for no one.
Under the death mage’s eyes the goddess of sleep claimed repentance. Dark circles were far from unfamiliar to a girl who spent her whole life a half step ahead of death; who swung at shadows and tussled bruised and battered with fate. AJ pointedly avoided Flick’s gaze as Nico soared over the Summer Kingdom landscape.
“Hey, listen, maybe we’ll limit ourselves to one crypt a day, alright? I’ll get you into the dragon crypt tomorrow, relax.”
Flick opened his wings wider and did a little twirl in the wind, AJ let his words settle in her ears, fall heavy on her back, “It was just a stupid nightmare, Flick. You know the human crypt gets into my head. That Sleepy is good at playing dress up, I will tell you. Nothing I can’t handle, though. Just a minor slip up today; but to be fair, that was the last place I expected to see Smart One.” AJ shook her head and listened to the wind howling in her ears. “Anyway, it’s all being sorted out, it sucks, but I’ve got it under control,” AJ grimaced as she felt wings flutter closer and a beak pull a strand of her hair with force, “Okay, Okay! Maybe everything is kind of a mess right now, but I’m trying, Flick! I’m going home right now, okay? I’m going to go see her. Even though I’m scared shitless, is that what you want to hear? That I’m scared?” A pause, Flick cawed softly and Nico descended slowly as the trio approached Basketon’s bay. “I will try to sleep tonight, for real. I will. I’m gonna try, Flick. I am trying,” AJ’s sentence petered out softly and the salt of the sea hit her tongue like a welcome invitation. The ocean breeze battered her hair with vigor and a smile quirked at AJ’s lips. Her insides were fuzzy like cotton, soft like a warm breeze, despite herself, despite everything.
Nicotine stretched lackadaisically in the beachgrass, the descent had been smooth, the winds tonight were calm. AJ noted the way the waves beckoned to her, corrupted water knew how to sing a siren’s song. Flick announced the decay mage’s arrival by heading straight for the treehouse; AJ pried open the entrance between snaking roots and let out a shaky breath. When she entered the base of the trunk and began scaling its ropes; bugs followed her upward, watching, waiting.
Home.
AJ had never truly had a home, a place, a person. She was a kite lost in the wind, a bird in constant migration, a bottle carried by the tides; the only home she had ever known was the midnight sky, stars suspended, unchanging, a moon that always cast her in the softest hues. A crow nestled on her chest, the tools at her belt.
So why then, does Basketon feel the same?
It was then she remembered her friend’s words,
“Oh, but AJ, you’ve already changed.”
Metamorphosis was a funny thing.
The bark gave way to that familiar canopy, now held in violet shadow as the sun dipped below the horizon. It was quiet except for the steady drip of water out of a shoddy sink. When AJ stepped out into the flattened floor, her eyes immediately found auburn hair. As their eyes met, the sound of bugs skittering increased in volume.
“Hey, Magpie.”
“AJ.”
A beat of silence.
AJ found her gaze hovering on Magpie’s loungewear, the soft fabrics, the casual way her spiral climbed up and around her neck. Her long hair was loose from a tight braid, flowing down and over her shoulders. It took quite a while for AJ to remember not to stare.
Magpie’s ears reddened and AJ finally spoke, “I’m gonna get changed in the bathroom and then I’ll meet you in the moon bed, yeah?”
She turned and made her way to the restroom to wash up, even without looking she could sense Magpie’s tension, the wringing of calloused hands and the nervous darting of mismatched eyes.
“Oh, you were serious about that.”
“Did I seem not serious about it, Magpie?”
AJ hung her backpack on a nearby shelf, she noted once again the careful stitching on the dark leather. Her friend didn’t immediately respond and AJ paused at the door, hand ghosting over the handle.
“Hey, if it’s too much for you, that’s okay. I don’t want you to—“
“No! It’s not that I don’t want to. It’s, well—“ AJ waited, uncharacteristically patient, for her friend to continue, “—I’ve never cuddled with anyone before, but I do want to try, with you.” Magpie’s voice quieted, as if speaking the desire out into the world was some sort of sin. Her friend’s shame made something in AJ’s gut clench, an emotion she couldn’t quite place.
“It’s okay, I know. Anything you want to try with me, I’ll walk you through, okay? And if it’s ever too much,” if I’m ever too much, “just promise you’ll tell me.” I only want to do whatever you want to do. I only want to be whatever you want me to be. Wow, AJ, when did you turn into such a sap?
Magpie responded with a nod and a soft, “Mmhm.”
Okay, AJ, breathe.
She shut the door.
AJ began shedding off all her excess gear once again, leaving a mess in her wake. An old watch, layers of muddied clothing, her shoes kicked off next to the toilet. She stripped down to her white tank top and boxers, not wanting to soil the bed with clumps of sand and gravel.
AJ peered briefly in the mirror, someone she only half recognized peered back.
Under the phantom pain, the tearing of muscle and flesh, the aching of bone, her heart still rattled around, beating thunderously with a noise that reached her ears.
She pulled her hair tie loose and let sand scatter to the floor.
She turned on the faucet.
A few minutes later, she found herself at least half-way presentable. Her hair lay flat in dark, wet strands, her face, cleansed of dirt, now only showed a small bruise, a remnant of her earlier blunder (only one of many) in the human crypt. She gave her face one last scrub and opened the door.
The first floor was dark, silent. AJ felt fatigue weighing down on her as she climbed the steps to her bed. Magpie was sitting in front of it, wringing her hands and muttering something to the bug on her shoulder. When she saw AJ, she jumped to her feet.
“Hi, Magpie,” AJ’s voice lilted into a tease. Magpie frowned.
“Ugh, I can’t believe I’m about to do this with you,” she had meant the statement to have more bite, but AJ could tell Magpie was all soft edges in this moment, she could see it in the way her gaze turned away, pointedly avoiding how exposed AJ looked, the wetness of her loose hair and the casualness of her sleepwear. Her ears had once again turned a shade of deep crimson.
“Feel free to back out at any time, Smart One,” AJ’s teasing grin only grew.
“You know I won’t.”
“I know you won’t.”
AJ climbed up into bed first.
She propped her head up with her elbow and one of her knees bounced with unsung energy.
“Well, the first thing you’ll want to do is come up into bed next to me.”
“Okay,” the defensive tone was gone, replaced by a bleeding vulnerability. Magpie climbed up slowly, carefully, as if every instinct were telling her to run. AJ could see the war being waged in her friend’s mind, the push and pull. AJ felt her heart beat just a bit faster as Magpie settled in close to her smaller frame. Now mere inches apart, two eyes peered into her own, two pools of life, of light, of unanswered questions and unwritten futures. AJ secretly hoped that Magpie could tolerate the dark, dead gaze which peered back.
“So, cuddling.”
“So, cuddling,” Magpie repeated nervously.
AJ shifted in the small bed, moving so she was face to face with the woodland mage, the height difference was stark enough that she could easily settle, curl up at Magpie’s torso, if she wanted to. She wasn’t ready to settle in quite yet. “So, you move in really close to someone else, wrap your arms, your legs, around them, do you want me to demonstrate?”
Magpie let out a little hum of permission and AJ closed the distance between them, she noted quickly the pounding of Megii’s heart, the shivering which took hold of her at the contact. The chattering of teeth, it sent AJ’s gut plummeting to the earth.
“Do you want me to–”
“No, don’t stop. I just need a second. This is new for me.”
AJ let her body fully relax, trying to show Magpie that it was okay, that everything could be okay, it was just her. Just them, two birds in a tree. Two animals pulled apart and brought back together again.
“Does it hurt?” AJ whispered.
“No.” Slowly the chattering subsided, their bodies together, AJ’s legs tucked into Magpie’s torso, her arms folded at her chest. Their faces less than an inch apart. All AJ could smell was the scent of fallen leaves, of pine needles. The scent of the forest like a warm return home to her senses. Somewhere nearby the crickets began their song.
“So, what do we do next?” Magpie’s voice was barely audible, a whisper laced with curiosity as her fear slowly ebbed away. A floaty feeling soared in AJ’s chest. She smiled.
“Well, usually one person tucks their head under the other person’s chin. Or they can rest their head on their partner’s chest. It depends, really.”
“Oh,” Magpie breathed. “I think I want to try that. Um, my head, under your chin? What do you want to do?”
AJ’s voice was level, an indicator that she desperately wanted a point to be made, “I want whatever you want, Magpie.” I want you to want something. And I want you to ask for it without shame.
“Really?” Magpie’s eyes were wide, her breath sent a shiver down AJ’s spine. They looked at each other and there was too many words at the edge of AJ’s lips, at the tip of her tongue, a soliloquy being written in real time, but she couldn’t find a way to say it, so instead she said, “Ask me anything, and I’ll do it.”
She shifted so that her head was above Magpie’s and the taller mage could access her neck. There was a beat of hesitation and then she felt a weight settle, auburn hair filled her vision, the smell of a fall day in her nose. AJ couldn’t resist settling her own nose in Magpie’s hair, taking a deep breath in. Magpie mimicked the action, snuggling into AJ’s neck, something seemed a hair’s breadth from bursting, the dam one high tide away from breaking. A ferocity in their bones, a magnetism they had always sensed, a desire to be absorbed by the other like the way rain wants the sea.
“What do I do with my hands?”
AJ smirked, “Whatever you want to do, Smart One,” she got a pinch in the side for her efforts, “What? Did I say something?” She teased. Magpie simply growled into her skin and AJ felt heat creep from her gut up into her neck.
“Ugh, AJ, you’re impossible.”
“I know, and you love it.”
“Hm.”
AJ shifted her own hands so they were close to Magpie’s arms. “Well, there’s genuinely lots of things you could do. You could rub the person’s sides, or their back, you could just rest them on your partner, or you can comb through their hair—”
“I want to do the last one, I think.”
A pleasant tingle ran down AJ’s spine at the thought. “Hm, I approve of that, if you want to.”
There was a nervousness in the air as Magpie raised her hands up, one rested on the decay mage’s neck, the other started a slow, gentle combing through her dark hair. AJ hoped Magpie could feel the shudder which ran down her spine.
“You love this,” the woodland mage marveled.
“Mm, yeah, I’m a simple girl. When a pretty woman touches my hair I basically fall apart.”
Magpie sputtered and AJ’s smile lit up. Too easy.
“Is there anything in particular you want me to do with my hands?” AJ asked softly, Magpie hummed, thinking.
“Um, I wouldn’t mind if you tried rubbing my back, if you want to.”
AJ let out a laugh, a small, dry chuckle, “Remember Smart One, I want what you want.”
The fingers combing gently through AJ’s hair twitched as the decay mage lowered her own hands to Magpie’s shoulder, down to her sides, just barely reaching her lower back. Her touch was light at first, as if waiting for the moment where she’d be rejected, pushed away. That moment didn’t come, and AJ started rubbing small circles into the shirt fabric.
Magpie released a sigh into her neck and that hot feeling returned with tenacity, climbing up to her face and filling her sinuses with cotton.
“Feel good?”
“Yeah. Do you?”
“Of course.”
AJ filled the ensuing silence with a gentle tease, “Is this what you were imagining when you slept in my bed the other day?”
An offended snort sounded out, and AJ felt the grip in her hair grow tighter, before she could stop herself, she let out a pleased hum at the force.
Magpie paused for a moment, then looked up into AJ’s eyes, curiosity sparking in her gaze, as well as something else, something a little darker, a little more fierce in the way her pupils dilated when she met AJ’s expression, “What was that?”
AJ’s smile grew wider, “Well, when something feels good, you might make a little noise to show your appreciation, that’s all.”
“Huh, and what exactly did you like?”
“When you pulled my hair.”
“Hm,” Magpie’s eyes widened a fraction, “I hadn’t meant to do that, but that’s good to know.”
There was a pause as Magpie’s eyes fell down AJ’s neck, then back up to her face again, AJ felt herself practically melting as she was studied, like ice on a hot day, and she enjoyed every second of it, “You’re blushing,” Magpie smirked, teasing, confident. AJ squirmed like a bug in the talons of a hawk.
“Yeah, and?”
“And, that must mean I’m doing something right.”
“Did I ever say you weren’t?”
“No.”
Magpie’s gaze traveled up and down AJ again, and AJ felt like a wire pulled taut, a tension threatening to snap.
“What are you thinking about, Megii-Magpie?”
“I’m not sure,” and the answer that came was thoroughly honest.
AJ continued rubbing her back, the shirt fabric bunching up under her touch, Magpie went back to snuggling into her neck. As she got more comfortable, her weight on AJ grew heavier, her muscles relaxing under AJ’s ministrations.
“My Ma rubbed my back a couple times.”
AJ let that confession settle in the night air before responding, “And how did you feel about that?”
At the back of her mind a memory threatened its way to the surface, those few times when AJ was but a child herself, the few moments of calm, when her own caretaker would show her that rare, gentle touch. A shudder threatened to overtake her.
“I didn’t really understand it,” Magpie whispered, “It always hurt. Not because it was my Ma doing it, but because it was usually after…well…” the other girl shifted, a sorrow crept its way up AJ’s throat, “..after I did what I was told to do, you know? She would sometimes treat me gently, but it always hurt.”
“Believe me, I understand.”
A silence settled on them again, before Magpie continued, “This doesn’t hurt, though. Surprisingly.”
AJ hummed in response, she noted the way the spiral curved just under Magpie’s chin. Felt the other mage’s heartbeat start to meld with her own.
“It doesn’t hurt me either.”
Eyes met AJ’s own again, an expression of joy, of contentment in Magpie’s face, in the way her jaw was unclenched and her eyes open, trusting. AJ for once did not feel the urge to run.
Mismatched eyes fell to AJ’s lips, down her neck, back up to meet her gaze once again. AJ felt bold enough to voice the question that had long sat between them. Lingering like smoke after a fire. The moon watched overhead, looking down in somber remembrance, for what, AJ wasn’t sure.
“Do you want me to kiss you, Magpie?”
The sputtering was back, and AJ could not stop her own stupid, wry smile from returning in full force.
“No! No, definitely not.”
“Definitely not?”
“Well–” and suddenly fear found its way back, descending in quick shivers that AJ could feel running down her friend’s frame. “It’s complicated.”
“I know.”
“If you ever want to,” AJ was serious again, “just say the word, and I’ll show you what a good kiss looks like.”
Magpie’s heartbeat thundered through AJ’s bones, ricocheted in her own ribcage. Felt indiscernible from her own. AJ wondered if her own life force felt the same in Magpie’s bones. Two animals conjoined at the heart.
“I want to,” came as a small noise, one unsure. AJ felt like ice water had just been dumped over her head, chills ran fierce down her spine.
“Okay then, Magpie.”
For a beat, nothing happened. The sound of crickets picked up, the moon glowed everbrighter as it now approached the midway point of its rotation.
“I’ll just start with a peck, then.”
“Y-yeah.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck. This is actually happening.
She slowly leaned in, the hands which had been rubbing circles moved, ghosting just at her friend’s shoulderblades, Magpie scooched up so that they could be face to face. Her eyes were wide, curious, afraid, waiting.
Then the distance was closed, and the dam burst.
AJ felt soft lips envelop her own, she closed her eyes, and the rain met the water. She felt hands tangle deeper into her hair, waiting. In a split second, it was over.
When she pulled away, AJ noted the heaviness of Magpie’s breath.
“That, that’s it?”
“Well, there’s more, but that’s–”
“Fuck,” the soft light left Megii’s eyes for a brief moment as fear took its place, “What would Drift think of this? Of us? Whatever we are?”
AJ blinked, a guilt threatened to wash over her but she stuffed it down somewhere deeper, somewhere darker. What should she say to that? That she knows Drift is someone important, but the pieces are slowly being lost? That they’re really only fake dating? That she doesn’t know what Drift is to her and the more she thinks about her the faster she forgets her? It was all too much, too terrifying for AJ to truly voice, but she hoped Magpie could see her emotions in the way her expression darkened. “There’s a lot about me and Drift’s relationship that you don’t know, Magpie. Honestly, she would never fault you.”
Megii sighed, “I think I just made things a lot more complicated.”
“It’s us,” AJ said with a short, barking laugh, a cold thing, “We’re always going to be complicated.”
“Hm,” AJ noted the way Magpie’s eyes kept falling back to her lips. A heat returned to her chest.
“I’m not going to say it.”
“Say what?” AJ feigned ignorance, Magpie’s eyes narrowed. That smile returned to AJ’s face.
“That I want to kiss you again.”
“Then don’t.”
“Hm,” two warring states returned to Megii’s mind, AJ could see it in the way fingers twitched where they still rested in her hair, the way she dug a fang into her lower lip, AJ couldn’t peel her gaze away.
“Then don’t,” AJ repeated again, a whisper. A prayer, for what, AJ wasn’t sure.
Their faces leaned closer together again, AJ’s hands gently gripped the fabric of Megii’s shirt, and in response, the grip in her dark locks tightened. She was sure her own face was now a deep shade of crimson.
“Fine, just do it.”
“Do what, Megii-Magpie? I need you to say it.”
AJ would never admit that the growl Magpie elicited in response sent a bolt of excitement down her spine.
“Fine! Just kiss me again, I want you to kiss me again.”
AJ’s expression turned serious, searching. “Another peck on the lips?”
“Or, try something else, if you want.”
“Something else?” the wry grin returned. AJ leaned in, a strong breeze swept the treehouse leaves into a frenzy.
“Other kinds…of kissing. Whatever you want, okay? I want to keep feeling, okay? I want to keep feeling this.”
“Feeling what? Good?”
“Whole.”
AJ blinked, a little confused at the word choice. Magpie simply looked back at her, steady, searching in her own way.
“Okay.”
AJ leaned back in, and felt her lips envelop Magpie’s own, she felt the warmth of the woodland mage sapping the cold from her touch, the decay from her bones, the fear from her heart. This time, Magpie closed her eyes, mimicking what she had seen AJ do last time. Smart One learns fast, of course.
The grip in AJ’s hair was swept into their push and pull, one moment gentle, the next rough, messy, fierce. AJ let her grip on Magpie’s shirt tighten, in response, Magpie let out a little hum of approval, AJ swallowed it, and then their lips separated again.
It had still been closed-mouthed, careful, a gentle ghost of a thing. Yet they both breathed heavier.
“Hm, so, sometimes kissing can happen on the side of the mouth, or the neck. I’d still keep things simple, gentle. No biting, unless you want me to.”
Magpie simply nodded, looking dazed, “Maybe just what you said, for now. You can kiss my face, or my head, the neck is…well, I’m not sure yet.”
“And that’s totally okay,” AJ rubbed another little circle into Megii’s back, and felt a full body shiver in response.
“It’s not that I don’t want to. It’s just, this is all new to me. I don’t want to accidentally overwhelm myself.”
“Understood.”
“Did I do that right? I know communication is important.”
“Don’t worry, Smart One, that was perfect.”
You’re perfect.
AJ leaned back in, lips grazing Magpie’s own, their bodies pressed together, a curious hand moved from her tangled hair to ghost over the shell of her ear, to press at the back of her neck. AJ moved her lips to the side of Magpie’s mouth, leaving a soft kiss at the edge, before ghosting over her cheek and leaving another peck, up to her forehead, where she breathed in that smell of a crisp fall day, planting the longest kiss there, a need communicated in the way her hands moved from Megii’s back to her sides, holding her steady. Two hands mimicked her, wrapping around the small of AJ’s back, pushing them even closer together.
AJ pulled away, and Magpie maneuvered their bodies so that she was nestled into the shorter girl’s neck again.
“Wow,” AJ had never heard her friend’s voice so airy, so light.
“Good? What would you give me as a review out of five stars?”
AJ felt a kick to the shin for her efforts, “Fuck off, AJ.”
“Hm, I’ll take that as a five.”
“Maybe,” Magpie mumbled, her limbs heavy again, they flipped slightly so that AJ was underneath, Megii resting on top of her like a warm blanket.
A flutter of wings told AJ that Flick had returned from a hunt, he settled at the taller girl’s feet, curled up like a small animal.
AJ was all sentiment and weakness, all rough exterior and soft interior, she didn’t know what to do with herself, didn’t know what to think. She was a bird in a battered nest, but Megii was the same. She let her arms curl around her friend’s upper back, let the crickets play their song. Let the world turn ever faster.
“I’ve been having nightmares.”
There was a jostle as Megii made herself more comfortable, “Mm, what kind of nightmares?”
Nightmares about you. Nightmares about Drift. Nightmares about me.
“Oh, this and that.”
Megii huffed, “Cryptic, I shouldn’t be surprised.”
A hand ran softly through Magpie’s hair, and she practically purred in response, entirely forgetting her own irritation. Well, that works.
“I will tell you when I’m ready.”
I want to tell you, but I can’t make the words come out.
Because when AJ thought about her nightmares she could still see those tangled chestnut strands, the blood soaked floor.
A Magpie that was not hers. Not the one she knew.
“Hm,” sleep took the bite out of the woodland mage and AJ felt her own eyes beginning to close. Before they could drift off to sleep, they spoke once more.
“I understand, I’ve been having nightmares too.”
“About?”
But before Megii could answer, sleep took her. AJ sighed and ran her hands through long hair, feeling Magpie’s heartbeat slow in tandem with her own. Limbs a tangle, a mess, together.
It was funny, normally fear gripped AJ right before sleep, pulled her into the black kicking and screaming. The goddess of sleep watched, waited for the moment AJ let her guard down, for that chink in the armor to form, before striking with blood and ash and visions of places far below reach.
But tonight, with Magpie at her side, AJ descended for once into a peaceful, dream free slumber.