After Dark

Auron was on the edge of falling into sleep, his eye slowly dropping and the ceiling his room was fading into black. He had had not heard the door as it opened ever so slowly and carefully by the Al Bhed thief who tiptoed so daintily to his bed. He did feel the weight of her sink into his bed as she crawled up to him but did not make any effort to stop her. He just lay there and hoped that sleep would not escape him despite her nuzzling her lips against his throat that murmured sweetly, "E muja oui, E muja oui…"

He felt her hands snake across his bare chest and caressed him slowly. He had not noticed that his body was a vessel of knots and he tried to relax under her touch. They had traveled for most of the day and fought fiends when they were least ready. He closed his eye and took a deep breath. Rikku's head lay upon him and bobbed up and down with his chest.

"Auron?"

He cracked his eye open and said, "Yes?"

Rikku did not say anything. She had just wanted to hear his voice, though she had gotten used to the silence whenever she sneaked in to sleep beside him or steal a few moments with him alone when they had set up camp and everyone too exhausted to care where she would run off. His low, rumbling baritone soothed her, the way it was firm and sure made her feel as though nothing could go wrong, just the sound of his commanding voice would put her at ease. It reminded her much of being a child, not that her father was ever reliable in granting comfort (Pop was never the kind of guy you could count on), but Auron gave her that feeling. He was the kind of guy you looked to when you were lost or when you were facing some mean merchant when he found that you snitched one of his wares. He was definite. He always had solutions.

Moments passed by and Auron was falling into sleep again yet Rikku's eyes were wide open. She glanced up at his face, she couldn't tell if he was asleep because the lights were off. She said, "Auron?"

Auron opened his eye again, he was mostly patient with her. "Yes, Rikku?"

She leveled her face with him and tried her best to see him through the dark. "E muja oui."

Auron took her by the arms and pulled her down so their lips could meet. Her lips were moist and he was surprisingly gentle, she lowered her head to his chest again and tried to fall asleep herself.

Though Auron soothed her Rikku couldn't quite understand why there was no assurance when she looked into his eyes.

Maybe it was the dark.

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This little ficlet doesn't sound too happy, does it? Auron is such a stiff. And GOD the shortness of it all. Oh well.

This is (hopefully) some kind of prologue to a longer (not sure how long) Aurikku fic I plan on writing. I don't know how long it's gonna take me to get something up again, I'm (a lot) rusty because I haven't written anything in so long.

RR please, it helps to know if anyone thinks it's interesting. Constructive criticism is encouraged.