Finally they were healed enough to leave, and as they were taken out of the dead zone his heart thrummed faster and faster.  The sooner they were out of this place the better, and his eyes glared daggers at anyone that dared give them a look as they were escorted out.  Occurrences like what had happened were the very things that made him realize why he hated this race so much in the first place.  But then he thought of his sister’s face and calmed…No, she’d just be an exception.  All of this anger was too raw, in time it would fade back down but that would be so much easier once they were away for good.

As darkness turned to day he found himself breathing easier.  And then they were off again, back to what they usually did only now there wasn’t a job waiting for them.  Truth be told he was glad for it and would take the short break as a time to recuperate, and he knew just where to go.  Energy pulsed within him and for the first time in what felt like years he finally was connected to himself again.  A light pain in the back of his skull alerted him to Minasé’s presence and calmed him even further.  

Feeling his power come back made him grateful for it, but they were still so close to the vampire city that he wanted to use it now as if this close proximity would void it out all over again.  Now the turning in his stomach was for something different.  This place, it was personal…but it was safe, and if he couldn’t trust her here then what good was it giving her that kiss in the first place?  He looked over at her, eyes drifting down to her arm, glad that it was healed much better now, but always knowing there was a scar to remind them of what had happened.

His eyes found hers and he spoke before he could stop himself, “If you’re all right with it, I know where we can go…I have an airship.  It isn’t here though,” he shook his head, “It’s somewhere calm, well…calm to me at least.”  He chewed nervously at his bottom lip, eyes moving away from her but focusing on nothing,

“If you’d like then I could takes us there.  It would be a good place for us to rest and not have to worry about the basic necessities like we normally do.”

She was doing stretches all down the streets. She felt good, better than she had in days since the accident. She stared up at Naota and gave him a smile, at least they were getting out of this hell hole. She only stopped when he started to speak to her.  “Never flown in an airship before. Rosenites tend to stay on the ground.” It was just so lucky that she happened to be part of the many that could ride in the skies.

Taking the arm that had once been torn off she pet his face and smiled. “Anywhere with you is good.” With one good blink, they were on the airship. She was in awe as she left his arms and then side to look over the edge of his airship. Her white hair went everywhere as the wind swept it up. “This is amazing.” She looked back at him with the first genuinely happy face since the attack. Sure she had been happy but her face had a hard time showing it.

After a few happy moments on the top deck, they made their way to the cabins. She knew a guest bedroom when she saw one and wasn’t about to complain to him. Except, the thought hit her. “Is there even a point to us staying in separate rooms now?” There was an anxiety with him leaving her side as well. She wasn’t exactly completely there from the attack but also he comforted her anxiety as well.

She looked so happy and it melted all of his worries away.  After everything that had happened she deserved that, and he could finally feel himself relaxing.  The air was different here, cleaner, more crisp from the eternal autumn.  The lake looked like a crystal mirror from this height, dotted by a few fallen leaves, and the orange of the spread canopy reminded him of sunset.  It was nice having her here, and he leaned against the railing as they looked down; the wind gently rustling through their hair. 
 
“I’m glad that you like it, I’m glad that you can even come up on it…”  He looked over at her, thinking about how close both of them were to never experiencing things like this again.  As they moved from the deck he led her to one of the guest rooms below deck so that she could get rest, but his lips parted when she spoke. “I-I….well…”  He tried not to think of what she could be hinting towards and tried to keep his mind on track,
 
“I guess not…”  Warmth rushed into his cheeks as he closed the door to the spare room and headed instead to…his own.  Probably the most personal area, the only space he had to himself in all of Revaliir and yet that wasn’t what scared him about bringing her there.  No, he was worried about laying down with her, getting so comfortable in such an intimate area.  Maybe he could get away with leaving her on her own…they’d been around each other for so long though that he couldn’t imagine being far.  That flare of protection was still strong.
 
He opened the door and pulled her into his room, gently closing the door behind her and leading her over to the bed where he urged her to gently sit, “If you want I can stay in here with you, but I promise you’ll be safe…”  He moved a hand up and gently tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, “Nothing can harm you up here…”

She thought for a moment on his words and nodded. “Yeah, it was a close call if not for Angela…” She paused for a moment and took a great sigh. “A lot of things would be different right now if not for her.” The woman was too caring for her own good but for right now Echo was happy about that. “We should have thanked Aaryona for telling Angela about everything. I guess having friends in the shadows that even we don’t know about is a good thing.” How did Aaryona know her? Why was she so important? Who was Aaryona? It was questions she hadn’t even thought about asking that now seemed so important.

Echo hadn’t really been thinking about the sexual thoughts of sleeping in the same bed but it had crossed her mind once she seen his face. She could only give a supportive smile as he pulled her along. She took a seat on the bed and let a yawn out, it was more relaxed than it was in Kurayo where she was forced to sleep. “It’s not just that.” Her eyes met his and she gave a smile. “Much more.” She blushed as he moved her hair and she chuckled. “I'm just used to having you around me now. Even if it wasn’t that long I don’t think I could sleep properly without you hovering over me or being nearby.” A lot had changed. Here she was admitting to things she would have brushed off.

“I was jealous of Holly being able to admit things for you. I half expected her to charge into Karuyo looking for you.” She looked away from him for a moment. “I am not an open person like she is. Though I do suppose that is a bard for you. Most of them wear their emotions on their sleeves.”  This was more difficult then she had imaged. She held his hand to her face and frowned. “Angela has always healed my wounds. She’s always known what went on behind closed doors. However, she left it to Lily to monitor and regulate. Even if her morals didn’t like what was happening it wasn’t her court nor her problem. She couldn’t just take over my life even if she hated what my mother did. No laws were broken during that training if I would have died it would have been different. When Angela healed my wounds she made them silver so my mother would always have to stare at them. She does it now just so they match.” Echo-Rose laughed a bit as she thought about it. “My mother never did apologize for what she did.”

He nodded, locking it in his mind for later to go and thank Aaryona for all that she had done for them.  He couldn’t help it that he had wanted them to leave as soon as they could.  That place would forever live in infamy in his memories now, but he still needed to seek her out and give her proper thanks.  Now that she mentioned it, he couldn’t recall a time where they had been apart from one another since they’d started off on jobs with each other.  Sure there were occasional times where they had to, but never for a full night.  Even if one were to sleep, the other would stay up and keep guard.

He smiled, a small one but real all the same, “I could say the same.  I suppose it’s something you never really think about until you’re faced with it…”  Letting her press his hand to her cheek, he shifted and sat down next to her on the bed, head tilting to the side as he listened to her speak.  His thumb gently brushed along her cheek, forever grateful for the warmth there and never again wanting to feel that sign of life go cold.

She spoke of Holly and his heart picked up.  It had been some time since he’d thought about her, and even longer since thinking about her in any way other than friendship.  The thought had never crossed his mind that she and Echo would have spent time with one another.  Hopefully they were happy meetings…There was no reason for her to have jealousy though and he shook his head, his hand on her cheek gently turning her face towards him as his eyes locked onto hers,

“There is no reason to feel jealous of Holly.  You and I both know that she’s an entirely different person than anyone else out there…she has her ways in life, you have yours.”  Again he smiled, “But that’s something that you and I have in common: it’s difficult for both of us to speak of our emotions so easily.”  Like before with the Lapis, he tried to show no signs of recognition when it came to Lily and her…regulating.  One day he’d have to tell her about how Lily had tasked him with taking Echo along on his jobs, but that day wasn’t today.

“I can agree with Angela on that: I’d want the person who hurt you to see every mark of damage she had done.  But,” he sighed, “At the same time I wouldn’t have wanted that person to have any connection to you at all, much less a visible mark that you would also have to look at every day.”  He thought about the silver markings, some thick, some spiderweb thin, but all of them littered about her body.  

His other hand lifted up, going to her other cheek to cup her face in his hands, “These are sad things…There will be plenty of time to think of them, but don’t let that time be right now.  Right now you need to rest and be happy…”  That’s all he wanted for her, and it was the very least of what she deserved.

Echo-Rose was comforted by his thumb as she let loose all of her insecurities. She did not want to over bear him with how she felt. Deep down she knew that Holly wasn’t as stable as she was. Holly had done the unmentionable because of how Naota had reacted. She wondered if he would react the same to her as well someday or if he was used to it. 

She snuggled into his hands as she stared into his eyes. “They’re not so bad Naota. At least they are pretty unlike most scars. I suppose I have that going for me.” She nodded to him as she thought about what would make her happy. She put both of her hands on his holding him to her face. Her thumbs gently rubbed against his skin. It felt so warm to her that she half way closed her eyes as she leaned in and kissed his lips. “What I want…”

She took a breath and steadied herself for a moment. “I want to know where we are. She softly gripped his hands more as she lowered them from her face and gave him a smile. “I’ve been running from it for so long that just started to feel natural to avoid it but then Kurayo happened.” She caught herself and shook her head. “No sad talk. That was where I decided I would tell you how I felt if I lived. I feel at peace with you.”

There was a little hurt in her eyes but it went away as she tried to push through with courage. “I’m not expecting you to say the same things or even feel the same way.” But they were pushing the boundaries, weren’t they? She moved the thought aside. “I just know where I want to be and what to do.” She gave a smile again to him.

His eyes softened, of course she would have thought of a way to make them positive.  She wasn’t wrong either, there was something beautiful about them.  They showed that she was a survivor, that she had gone through something horrible and come out the other end stronger for it.  That was incredibly beautiful.  As her hands rested over his he moved closer to her, urged to wrap his arms and keep her pulled close into himself, safe and warm, but he didn’t want to overwhelm her so soon.  She still needed to lay down and rest, they were much better in body, but in mind…well, there likely weren’t enough naps in the world for the type of escape their heads would need.
 
And then her lips were on his, so soft and gentle as if afraid she’d break him.  With as much care he pressed his back to hers, letting his eyes close for just a moment as he pulled her face closer to his, letting them keep that closeness for just a while longer.  Even as she pulled hers back to speak he kept his forehead gently rested against hers, not daring to let his eyes open just yet.  His fingers slowly curled around hers as she lowered them down from his face and he took in each word she spoke. 
 
He didn’t know what to say to her.  Here she was telling him that she wanted to stay here, was happy with him, but he still had that fear lingering in the back of his head.  In his youth he had been afraid of himself, of the monster that shared a body with him, but now…Now he was more worried about the lifestyle he led.  Had it not been for the grace of a deity then they wouldn’t even be here right now.  They wouldn’t have any more opportunities to laugh with each other, eat, or even just have small conversations in the rain. 
 
No matter what he should have taken into account the possibility of what had happened.  He’d let his guard down, had tried to trust their kind since they’d called on Echo and himself for help…but it was wrong.  Did this mean that everything he’d started to work through was for nothing?  It left him confused and doubtful and he felt like he was back to square one.  His eyes opened to look back at her, comforted slightly by her smile as he tried to find the words to say back,
 
“You know…I can’t really recall a time I’ve felt for someone the way I feel for you.”  His eyes searched hers for a brief second, “It makes me happy.”  He smiled, but it was short lived, “But…it also makes me worried.  What happened before…?  In the dead zone?  I can’t let that happen again…”
 
His eyes drifted down her chest to where the Lapis rested, moving steadily with her breathing as a constant reminder that she was alive and well.  For now.  “I need to tell you something…”  She was happy with him, and he was glad for it, but she deserved to know.  He looked back up to her eyes, his own dimming slightly as his heart raced faster, “When I came to you at the stables, to invite you to the festival…?”  He hesitated, nervous now that he had started, “Lily had come and spoken to me…She wanted me to take you with me, get you away.  It’s as you’ve said: she cares for you so greatly and I know she’d be upset at me for telling you, but that’s the reason I asked you to come with me…and the reason I asked you to continue on with me in my travels and jobs.”
 
A lump formed in his throat, the guilt already gnawing as his stomach.  That may have been how everything had started, but it wasn’t the way things were now.  He didn’t want her to stay with him because of the promise he’d made to Lily, he wanted her to stay with him because…he wanted her.  “That isn’t how it is now, but…”  He pulled his hands back from hers, swallowing against the dryness in his mouth, “I couldn’t keep it from you, not now, not after that…I want you to stay, but I had to tell you…”

Echo felt a deep blush to her lips as she thought about his words. “You said no sad talk. However, it’s not just your burden. It’s mine as well even if we weren’t to travel together I would be doing this. I would be doing the same line of work and I know if you hadn’t been there I would have been dead before Angela showed up. You saved me just as much as she did.”

For a moment she had a look of disappointment on her face before laughing. “Go figure, she is always meddling in things. I’m not mad at you. I’m actually glad she asked because we wouldn’t be here right now. I figured she knows eventually you would tell me if things got serious between us. That’s just how Lily works and if things get serious with us I’m more likely not to come rampaging back to Arri and demanding answers.”

A light roll of her eyes caused her to laugh once more as she swooped in and kissed him. “I know it isn’t.” She reached around her neck and pulled the necklace off. “I had a feeling when I seen the Lapis that something had gone on. It was too coincidental that you had this.” She put it around his neck and smiled. “This is one of our greatest treasures and you just happened to put it around my neck? I knew there was something more. They gave it to you Naota and you didn’t fail at anything if that’s why you put it on me. You kept me alive and now I’m more happy than I ever could have been in Arri.”

She gently took his body and pulled it down with her. She snuggled herself right up into him and closed her eyes. “I can’t be mad at you for trying to help me. Method is questionable but I can understand why Lily wanted it done that way. I wouldn’t have left if it wasn’t someone like you asking at the time. I would have stayed home and been miserable. Probably waiting for my next job or staring at the walls to pass time. You give a lot of light to my life. I just want you now that’s it.”

His eyes closed with a relieved but shaky exhale, all but slumping when she didn’t get terribly angry.  She was so important to him that it apparently had scared him more than even he had realized at the thought of her getting upset.  Even if she had, he knew that she would have had right to be unhappy.  He knew full and well how bad a feeling it was to have people playing into your life without you knowing, keeping things from you for goodness knows how long.  That was likely a reason it was so difficult for him to hide things from those that he cared about, especially a person such as she.

Any worries or fears or justifications for anger that he might have tried to argue were quickly silenced by another press of her lips.  His eyes opened wide, still not used to being touched by her in such a way so freely, he didn’t dislike it though…Still, despite what she had said, he still didn’t feel right in wearing the Lapis, but he didn’t protest as she fixed it around his neck once more.  The weight was heavier against his chest now, bearing the load of how close he had gotten to completely failing her.  He’d made sure they hadn’t killed her, but if not for Angela it only would have been prolonging the inevitable.  No, that was all to do with Angela that she was still alive, but she was so persistent that he decided it best not to bring it up again.  For now.

He moved with her pull, his arms wrapping around her slowly.  She felt right there, this felt right.  Even if something happened and she found another person to love, this would always feel right.  For whatever reason she fit here, and he wouldn’t lose a chance to have her be a part of his life.  It was hard to picture her staring blankly at a wall.  This young woman that had so much fire and life in her didn’t work well in silence, and his arms wrapped tighter about her.  They had grown so much closer, but there were still things about one another that they hadn’t learned.

The scars on her skin told a story in their own way, but little things like this he wanted to know.  She seemed so compelled by work, he knew that feeling well: it was the best way to keep from having to face life’s other problems.  Well, that’s how it was for him at least.  If he was consumed by work then he didn’t have to think about other things, maybe she was the same way…It was a sad possibility.

Tilting his head, he gently kissed the top of her head through her hair, “I just want you to be happy, that’s all I want for you.”  He smiled, small but true, “And to be silly, to give me the business as you always have.”

His fingers began to slowly trace up and down her arm, her back, into her hair and back down in a constant soft motion, “I love arguing with you and not knowing which one of us is going to give in first.”  His lips moved lower, kissing her hairline now, “I want you to keep being stubborn.”  With one more dip of his head he pressed his lips to hers, softly parting them with his own.  Most of all, he just wanted her to continue being.

Echo-Rose lavished in being close to him. The tighter he pulled her in the better off she felt she was in that moment. He was giving her a sense of security that she had once pretended she had. Sure, she could have taken on a bear bare fist and killed it but mentally there had always been that doubt in her mind. She doubted herself. A smile came to her face as she closed her eyes and felt the kiss to the top of her head. “I can do that as long as you continue to be yourself. You make me happy as you are.”

She chuckled lightly at him and shook her head as he kissed her hairline. “Can you deal with it forever? You’ll be stuck with me a long time Naota.” Together they kissed and she moved over him. It was almost like an invitation as their lips moved. However, she winced and laughed. “Maybe not quite yet.”

She kicked her boots off her feet and made herself comfortable on the bed. “Let’s get comfortable and actually relax.” She tugged at him to follow her lead and before long she had managed to steal one of his comfortable shirts. It was longer on her frame and she had insisted on it. Even persisted until he gave in. “You said you liked it.” Was one of her more quotable lines as she started to act cute on him. She pulled her white hair up and laid down at the top of the bed.

“I just want to lay here with you. Talk about things and then sleep where I’m not constantly jumping out of my skin.” She chuckled a bit and waited for him to be next to her. She wrapped herself up in him like she had been originally. “You realize you are stuck with me for a long time barring any unsavory accidents along the way right? You are alright with that?”