Their lips broke from away from each other and slowly he felt his own turn up into a smile.  So easily he had been lulled, and with the mental exhaustion he was ready to curl up with her and let sleep finally come. “I wouldn’t describe it as being stuck with you…”  A light chuckle formed but was swiftly cut off as their lips pressed again, causing his eyelids to lightly flutter.  Without even thinking about it, his arms slowly slid around her waist, guiding her as she moved over top him.  As soon as she winced his eyes opened and he pulled his head back, looking up at her, eyes searching her face for signs of pain but finding only laughter.
 
This was something he needed to get over soon: she’d been in pain before, and likely would feel more of it once she was healed and they were back to working.  Right now it was just so much more amplified that he found himself having to hold back from babying her every time she did something.  Rather than go to the floor and pull her boots off for her, he busied himself with his own, eyes fixated on the buckles as he undid them.  The lapse in time gave him a moment to break away, remember where they were…and send blood rushing into his face.
 
But, Echo was Echo, and in time he was smiling, easing, watching her as she talked her way into one of his shirts.  Not surprisingly it swallowed her.  He wasn’t a particularly broad person, but she was so waif like and lean in muscle that her limbs were lost in the cloth.  Why in the world was that alluring?  Gently tugging the sleeves, he urged her into the bed with him and slipped under the cool covers.  It had been so long since he’d been home and just the smell of the cotton alone made his eyelids feel heavier.  Sitting up on his elbows, he pulled his shirt off over his head and let it drop to the floor. 
 
The bedsheets were as cool as water against his skin and he slowly breathed out; allowing the exhaustion to hit him fully as he wrapped her up in his arms. “I’ve already told you, it’s not being stuck with you…”  A tired smile graced his lips,
 
“That makes it sound like a punishment.  In any case: yes, I am more than ‘all right’ with that.”  He turned onto his side, keeping her held as he did so and resting his cheek against the pillow.  When he opened his eyes they were a soft emerald, lightly glowing against the pillow case and casting shadows onto her cheeks,
 
“I want to be with you, whatever that may mean.”  Leaning in, he gently kissed the bridge of her nose, “Remember?  No sad thoughts…Rest, and be happy.”  Slowly he slid a hand up into her hair, weaving his fingers between the fair locks as his eyes closed.

Echo was no delicate flower even in her most dire need. She was more like a battle worn bear ready to go another ride despite having lost a limb. She would wrestle him to the ground bleeding if she had to prove she was alright. Those amber eyes of hers were full of joy as she laughed about her own pain. It wasn’t nearly as pain as it had been. 

She flung her boots off without a care in the world. By this point, she was glad to just have them and not be concerned with if her arm was going to fall off or not. After getting into his shirt she noticed the way he was looking at her, it was oddly different than before she had put the shirt on. A light chuckle left her lips but she said nothing of it. It was how his eyes said what his mouth couldn’t and she was well read in the language of Naota.

He tugged her and she went willingly as they crawled into the cool bed together. She had honestly never been in much of a cool bed before thanks to the desert but it was nice here in the eternal autumn. She put her head onto the pillow with ease as he curled around her. “I don’t know you could like pain when it comes to me.” She joked lightly about being his torturer but soon he brushed those thoughts away.

“I want to be with you too.” She let out a big yawn as she snuggled her whole head and body into him. Her cheek pressed up against his bare shoulder. Her arms, as covered in the long sleeves as they were, wrapped around his waist lightly. “I love you, whatever that may mean.” She returned what he said but with a large yawn attached. She pressed her lips to his shoulder and chuckled a bit more before going to sleep.

In the morning, she found herself to be the first one awake. He looked so peaceful but his grip was loose. She took a breath and with a burst of soft magic she was at the feet of the bed. Her white hair was falling out of the bun to the crown of her head, the ultimate bed head if she had ever seen one. She adjusted the shirt, it was sort of bunched up on her from the long night of cuddling and set her sights on going outside.

The morning air was crisp as she went towards the edge of the airship. Leaning on the railing she stared over at the lake and the beautiful autumn leaves. It was like a dream and she was content for the first time in a long while. As Naota came out a wind caught the edges of the shirt and she panicked holding it down just before she noticed him.

A blush came to her face. “Good morning sleepy head.”

Her words drifted to his ears just as he started to lose himself to sleep, three of them in particular jolted him to wake more.  Had he just heard what she’d said correctly, or was it a trick to his hearing; merging together his wants in slumber to the reality going on around him?  Whatever it was, his eyes opened just enough to watch as she yawned into sleep.  Lips pulling in, he hesitated before leaning in and gently kissing her forehead, thinking it back for now: I love you too…
 
Sleep came soon after, and for once it was a nice dark silence; no nightmares, no fear, no memories.  This was what he needed more than anything, and by the time he woke up his arms and legs were sore form having been sedentary for so long.  Even when he was at his healthiest he never slept for so long, but in this place where he felt so safe his body and mind responded on their own to the smells and comforts of home.
 
The spot next to him was cold, and a sleepy arm moved about the sheets in search of her.  Her absence woke him much faster and he bolted up into a sit; his head jerking from side to side in search of her but seeing only his quiet and empty room.  Where was she?  His hands became aglow, one circled in bright white light, the other in pulsating darkness as he moved from the bed and instantly teleported onto the deck.  His heart leapt into his throat when he saw her poised next to the edge, perfectly safe and sound though a gust of wind was blowing her hair around violent as well as the tail of his shirt she was wearing.
 
Of course she was safe…There were so many wards and alarms on this ship that no one could have come on undetected.  He slowly lowered his hands back down and moved them behind his back, willing the energy to go back down, not wanting her to realize how quick to worry he had gotten.  A nervous smile edged onto his lips as he walked towards her, “G-Good morning.  You seem happy…”  As soon as the energy had seeped back into his body he was able to trust his hands to move from behind his back. 
 
Deciding to join her at the railing, he softly moved his fingertips over her arm where it had been reattached, though his fingers brushed along cloth instead of skin.  He couldn’t help but always be worried about that one spot…Realizing himself, he pulled his hand back from her shoulder and rested both palms on the edge, turning himself to look forward and out into the constant autumn. “So sorry about that, I don’t normally sleep that long, but it’s been a while since I’ve been home.”

If she had known how quick he was to come and try to save her she would have wrestled him down and shown who saved who. At least that’s what she would have liked to think if she would have seen Naota.  “After everything we’ve been through happiness is very welcomed here.” She gave a soft smile as she watched his fingertips glide along where her wound had been. “It feels a lot better and attached. Actually, a lot of the pain has gone away thanks to the good night’s rest I got.”

Echo-Rose chuckled and shook her head. “You look liked you needed it, love.” She gave a smile. “I had to teleport out of your arms just to get free.” She teased him gently. “I didn’t want to wake you up. I should have left a note or something that I would be out here. I’m sorry if I worried you.” She didn’t want him thinking she would abandon him after everything.

She gave a cheeky smile before resting herself more on the railing. “It’s been a while since either of us had a real bed to sleep in. If we weren’t tearing creatures apart we were under the stars. It’s certainly different now… Isn’t it?” Having a thought she moved over to him and took him away from the railing. “I have an idea about just taking some time off and doing whatever it is we want to do. I say we vacation before throwing ourselves back into the fight.” 

She wrapped his arms around her and smiled. “Might be good for us. We’re always fighting everything and to be honest after that last bit… I could use some peace and quiet. So what do we want to do? What do we want to see? I know one thing..” She waved her hand and a bottle of wine appeared. “I happened to get gifted a bottle of Angela’s wine for a job I did for her a while back. Would be a shame if I didn’t have someone to drink it with.” Maybe she wouldn’t even think about getting dressed.

“What do you say about a vacation?” She brought him down to her, they were 10 inches apart in height after all and kissed him gently. She had never realized just how much smaller she was compared to him. Her elvish body was quite small compared to that of someone like him.

He moved with her pulls, smiling more with raised eyebrows.  It was good to see her so happy, so filled with life once again.  If anything it only strengthened the fierceness with which he wanted to keep her safe.  He looked over at the wine as it appeared between her fingers and gently laughed. “So you want us to drink and be merry on vacation on an airship…?”  An eyebrow quirked playfully,
 
“Are you quite sure you aren’t a pirate…?”  She pulled his arms around her and he wrapped them tighter with a light grip at her sides as if even here she could be taken away.  Or blown away, from how small she was. “It seems only fitting that you enjoy a wine gifted from her so soon after she’s saved your life.  I’d actually be very honored to share it with you.”  He leaned down, gently touching his lips to her forehead before unwrapping his arms from her, but letting one hand softly hold her fingers as he pulled her. 
 
All comedics aside she really was a tiny little thing and didn’t want a particularly large gust of wind to take advantage of that fact.  He brought her over to the light dip in the deck and sat down, urging her to do so with him. “And where would you like to go for this vacation?  I keep my docking here but can of course take her out anywhere we’d like to go.”  Though it would be strange to leave the golden shores of Jasumin Lake, he couldn’t deny his wanderlust since he wasn’t used to staying in one place for so long.

Echo tilted her head at him with a grin on her face. “Well… If I was a pirate the booty would be mine.” She gave his ass a nice slap and seemed quite pleased with her joke. Soon she was close to him and he was kissing her forehead. He was so much more gentle than she was, she had to admit. “Indeed. It will be nice to kick back and relax.” She kissed the tip of his nose before he led her away from the high winds.

She held his hand tightly. Sitting down with him she thought about it. “No place dark or dreary. How about Apoy for the hot springs and beach? We could go to the Hanging Gardens for a picnic? Though Apoy sounds a lot more fun to me.” She thought about it and she chuckled a bit. “I’m not use to staying still in a spot for so long. It has my fingers itching to get out since I was stuck in a bed for a bit.”

Tilting her head a smile came to her face. “We can set conditions for each other. Like a game almost. Say you want me to wear something, I have to do it. Little things like that.” She could see it ending badly for her since almost everyone she had ever met wanted her in pretty frilly dresses. She had to resist the urge to glare since she had talked herself into a corner if he would take it. 

“Would also get us away from Koschei if we went farther away. Apoy sounds more appealing now.” She groaned a bit as she thought about the island. “My condition, no sadness.” She snuggled into him. “That’s all I want is not to remember that place. What do you want?”