Zen sighed as he closed the door beside him, one hand lingering on the handle even as he raised his other to brush across his lips which were still tingling from the stolen kiss, and he couldn't stop the smile that crept across his face. They still had a lot to talk about, and he needed to broach the topic of what he'd told his brother before leaving as there was no way Izana was just going to let that go, and he couldn't let Shirayuki walk blindly into the situation. Still, there was still time to deal with that, and the most important thing was that Shirayuki was back at his side, and they would be heading home in a couple of days. She's coming home, he closed his eyes for a moment, still riding on a wave of relief. He'd been terrified when Kazuki had asked her to stay, after all she had just found her father and it was her home country, how could she refuse an offer like that? What could he offer her that compared? And yet there had been no hesitation in her refusal.
"Ahem!" Jolting violently at the noise he whirled around to find Kiki and Mitsuhide staring at him with knowing eyes, amused smiles appearing as he felt himself turning crimson for the third time that night and he hastily glanced to the side with an awkward cough.
"Quiet," he grumbled but without any real heat, slowly feeling his face regaining its normal colour even as he turned back to look at them, seeing the expectant looks on their faces and nearly groaning as he remembered that he'd had to admit to them what he'd told his brother to get the permission to leave. It was also clear from their expressions that they thought that he might have already taken the chance to talk to Shirayuki about it. I tried, he thought with a pout, not that he could really blame her for falling asleep on him given the time and everything she'd been through over the last couple of days. "We were just talking about her father and Tanbarun…nothing else," he admitted, reaching up to rub the back of his head with a sheepish grin as he peered at them.
"Zen…" Mitsuhide groaned.
"I know," Zen muttered with a grimace, fully aware that it wasn't a topic that could be avoided forever even if part of him wanted to spare Shirayuki that, before gesturing at the room behind him and adding somewhat defensively. "She fell asleep before I could talk to her about it."
"Well she's been through a lot," Kiki interjected before Mitsuhide could protest, shooting her partner a small glare to silence him when he tried to continue all the same and he immediately gulped and turned away with a nod. With a slight smile playing around her lips she turned back to Zen, noting the amusement in his eyes as he watched the interaction between them, and there was a mischievous glint in her eyes as she met his gaze. "I'm sure you'll get the chance to tell her on the way home." Zen swallowed as he caught the silent, you will, that was hidden within her words and he hastily nodded in agreement, even as he wondered what he'd done to deserve such a frightening attendant.
"Yeah…" He agreed at once, glowering at Mitsuhide who was making a poor attempt to hide his mirth, but he was saved from having to come up with a retort by Kiki reaching out and smacking her partner on the arm, his wince and abruptly serious expression telling them both that he'd got the message. "Let's go to bed," Zen added wearily in the silence that followed, the stress of the last few weeks and particularly the last couple of days catching up with him all at once. It really hadn't been the best idea to spend so long talking, although there was no way he could have left Shirayuki after she'd asked him to stay a little longer and his eyes darkened as he recalled how badly she'd been trembling as she grabbed him to stop him from leaving.
"Zen?" Mitsuhide asked in concern, sharing a worried look with Kiki and Zen hastily brought himself back into the present, not wanting to worry them unnecessarily.
"If anything happens come and get me," he said turning to look at Kiki, waiting until he received her nod of agreement before finally allowing a still worried Mitsuhide to herd him towards the stairs, glancing back one last time and staring at Shirayuki's room.
She's here…she's safe.
Kiki jolted awake, automatically reaching for the sword that she had laid beside her pillow before falling asleep, refusing to be caught off guard when they'd just managed to get Shirayuki back. Grasping the weapon, she glanced around, but there seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary in her room and she was about to brush it aside as her imagination, she'd been on edge since they'd heard that Kazuki was heading for Tanbarun and she knew that she wouldn't be able to relax completely until they were back at the castle. Just as she was relaxing her hold on her weapon there was a faint cry from the room next door and her eyes widened in alarm. Shirayuki! Sword drawn she shot out of the bed, uncaring of the fact that she was dressed for bed as she darted for the other room. If something else happens to her…
She burst into the next room, half-expecting to find attackers looming over the red-head and she came up short when she found that the room was empty apart from Shirayuki who looked to still be asleep despite the noise she'd just made. Frowning she cautiously sheathed her weapon, still glancing around, unwilling to dismiss another attack although there as far as they knew all those who'd been after the girl had been captured. A soft noise from the bed drew her attention back to the redhead, and comprehension dawned as she watched Shirayuki shifting, her face drawn into an expression of distress, and Kiki's heart constricted as she caught the damp trails marking pale cheeks which she'd missed before. Nightmares, I guess we should have expected that…
"Zen…Zen," Shirayuki was murmuring under her breath now, pleading and crying as she stretched out a searching hand, her expression becoming more pained when she couldn't find anything to grab onto and Kiki found herself moving forwards with a pained expression of her own. She knew that whatever Umihebi had said to Shirayuki had scared her, recalling the dulled, fearful look in the green eyes that had met her gaze when they'd first been reunited on the ship. Clearly some of that fear had remained, even though the pirates should now be safely locked up at the castle and Shirayuki had Zen back at her side. "ZEN!"
"Shirayuki!" Kiki abandoned her weapon completely and darted across the last of the distance as the sharp cry echoed in her ears, dropping to her knees beside the bed even as she reached out to shake the younger girl, eyes darkening with worry when Shirayuki flinched away from her touch. For a moment she drew back, trying to remind herself not to take it personally after everything that had happened. The events with the pirates had clearly shaken the redhead, although she had done an admirable job of hiding that fact since they'd left the pirates hideout and she cursed herself for being lulled by mask Shirayuki had adopted on the ride to the village. With that thought in mind she reached out once more, shaking the younger girl more firmly this time, although she carefully kept her voice firm but gentle as she called to her once more. "Shirayuki, wake up!"
"ZEN!" Shirayuki cried out desperately even as she jerked awake, reeling back as she realised that someone was leaning over her and not recognizing the room beyond. Was it a dream, did I imagine that Zen rescued me? Fresh tears trickled down her cheeks before slowly she realised that there was a hand resting gently on her shoulder and blinking to try and clear her vision she turned her gaze towards the figure knelt beside her, recognition dawning as she caught the familiar blonde hair and blue eyes in the faint light from the window. "Kiki-san….?" Her voice was shaking, but she felt herself calming slightly as Kiki nodded, memory coming back as she glanced around the room for a moment, her gaze lingering on the spot where she'd been sat with Zen only a few hours before.
"You were having a nightmare," Kiki explained softly when Shirayuki turned back to her, relieved to see the younger girl was looking somewhat calmer, unused to seeing the red-head anything but focused and determined. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah…" Shirayuki whispered with a faint shiver, not entirely sure that she believed her own words, and from the quiet disbelieving look she received it was clear that Kiki wasn't overly convinced either. She opened her mouth to apologise, feeling foolish for waking the older woman who still looked weary over something like a nightmare, but Kiki shook her head and offered her a small smile before she could speak, and she blinked in surprise.
"You have nothing to apologize for," Kiki pointed out sternly, determined to stop that train of thought before it could take hold, waiting until she got a hesitant nod from the red-head before rising gracefully to her feet and adding in a softer voice. "I'll go and fetch Zen." Whilst she knew that he needed his rest too, she knew that he wouldn't forgive her if she didn't fetch him, even if it was only a nightmare. Besides despite the act, she could tell that Shirayuki was still shaken by the nightmare, and she knew that Zen was the one with the best chance of calming her completely. Her lips quirked up slightly at that thought, well aware of the times that Zen had slipped off just to sit outside Shirayuki's rooms back at the castle when he'd had a particularly disturbing dream, now he could return the favour.
"But…." Shirayuki protested weakly, unable to keep the longing expression off her face even as she glanced towards the door with worried eyes, aware that Zen had been just as tired as she was, if not more so as he had been relentlessly searching for clues over the past few weeks, and she didn't want him to lose more sleep.
"You were calling for him," Kiki pointed out with a sigh, fighting the urge to shake her head at Shirayuki's stubbornness, she was well matched with Zen in that regard, especially as they both insisted on worrying more about the other than themselves. Mitsuhide is similar as well…Pushing that thought aside for the time being she refocused on Shirayuki, seeing the lingering protest in the green eyes, and straightening she added firmly. "And I promised to fetch him if anything happened." As expected the defiance seemed to fade away at the mention of a promise, and she smiled reassuringly at the younger girl. "I won't be long; will you be okay on your own till then?"
"Yes, thank you Kiki-san," Shirayuki replied softly, admitting to herself at least that she really wanted to see Zen, and not just to reassure herself that the images from her nightmare were just a dream. With a small smile Kiki nodded in acknowledgement, retrieving her sword before heading quietly out of the door without another word.
It was barely five minutes later that Shirayuki heard feet pounding up the stairs towards her room and she immediately slipped out of bed, only then realising that she was still fully dressed, her cheeks heating up as she realised that Zen must've carried her to bed. However, her embarrassment was completely forgotten as the door to her room burst open with a bang, and she had a brief glimpse of familiar white hair glowing silver in the moonlight before he was right in front of her, his arms slipping around her without hesitation and pulling her firmly against his chest.
"Shirayuki," his voice was husky with sleep, but the sound was warm and comforting and with a muffled sob she buried her face against his chest, her own hands coming up to clutch at the material of his night-shirt even as she felt fresh tears trickling down her cheeks. Haven't I cried enough? She thought as she recalled how much she had cried when he'd first rescued her, and yet the tears continued to flow, and she was relieved when he merely tightened his hold on her, one hand moving up to card through her hair. I nearly lost this…She knew that was what had shaken her the most, the utter certainty in Umihebi's eyes when she'd said that she couldn't go home again…home was Clarines…the castle, and its pharmacy and the people within it…home was Zen. Back when Raji's attention had forced her to flee she hadn't really hesitated, easily able to turn and walk away from the country where she'd been born. It hadn't been that long but she knew that she could never do that now. "Shirayuki?" Zen asked as he felt the change in her posture, and reluctantly she pulled away to peer up at him.
"I'm sorry I woke you," she whispered, and he sighed in exasperation, reaching up to gently wipe away the drying tears on her cheeks and she blinked as she realised that his own cheeks were suspiciously moist as well. "Zen…" Unable to fight the urge she reached up and mimicked his actions, shivering slightly as her fingers trailed over the contours of his face, feeling her cheeks heating up once more although she was comforted to see him turning red as well. They stood like that for a few minutes, slowly calming down as the other brushed away the evidence of their tears, but eventually Zen reluctantly lowered his hand before asking softly.
"Kiki said you had a nightmare?"
"I lost you…" She whispered as she lowered her head, unable to look at him, her hands returning to their previous position of clutching desperately at his shirt as she tried to remind herself that he was right there in front of her. Zen didn't speak, but his arms were around her once more and she took that as encouragement to continue, although the words were trying to stick in her throat and by the time she was able to continue she was sure she must be leaving bruises as she clung to him.
"You were trying to rescue me…and she…she…killed you. I couldn't save you." A full body shudder went through her as she recalled the sight of Zen lying in front of her, crimson staining his front and the floor around them, her own hands covered in his blood as she watched him slip away from her.
Zen…
"I'm right here," Zen whispered gently, staring down at her bowed head with shocked eyes. He'd thought that it would have been a nightmare about being back with the pirates, of not being rescued, not something like that and his heart constricted as he realised just how badly she was trembling. Shirayuki… His own hands trembled slightly as he reluctantly removed his arms from around her, reaching out to gently cup her chin and tilt her face upwards so that they were staring at one another, the sight of fresh tears swimming in her eyes cutting him to the core. "It was just a nightmare, I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere without you! In a few days we'll be home at the castle, and I'll be buried under paperwork whilst Chief Garrack and Ryu will have you running around. We're going home Shirayuki," he finished on a whispered, relieved to see a spark of light in her eyes and he couldn't stop himself from leaning down to capture her lips, lips curving into a warm smile as she leant into the kiss even as he felt the heat from her blush, not that he was doing much better.
Slowly they pulled apart and he was delighted to see that she was smiling again, and he immediately pulled her back against his chest, feeling her arms go around him in a much more relaxed manner than before and he pressed a soft kiss to the top her head.
"Better…?"
"Much…Thank you Zen," Shirayuki whispered tilting her head so that she could peer up at him, smiling as she took in the lingering blush in his cheeks, although there was no hint of uncertainty in the glittering blue eyes that met and held her gaze. "I'm glad we're going back to Clarines, but…"
"But?" Zen couldn't quite keep the anxiety out of his voice as he stared at her, was she changing her mind? Or regretting brushing aside the invitation to stay? He tried to calm himself by reminding himself of how she'd responded earlier, and the fact that his talk of going home seemed to have helped settle her, but it wasn't enough to completely quell his fear and his arms tightened as though to hold her in place, and he was caught completely off guard when she rose on tiptoes to press her lips to his. It was a brief kiss, but he felt his heart beginning to race as he realised that it was the first time she had initiated one and he could only stare wide-eyed as she pulled back, only the sound of her giggling shaking him out of his stupor. "Shirayuki...?"
"I'm already home…" She whispered going crimson under his confused stare and realising that he didn't fully comprehend what she was saying she rested her head against his chest, feeling the way his heart was pounding beneath her ear. "This is home." Zen closed his eyes as he realised what she was saying, a soft smile on his face as he rested his head against hers.
"Yeah, this is home."