Summary: Gratitude. Lovely moments between Cattleya and Claudia Hodgins.

The Bellflowers in Bloom

His red man bun was messier than usual as he knocked on Cattleya's door, and she could see him pacing in the street from the lace curtain of her window.

She had never seen him this way, not once at the office, so downright frazzled, and perhaps that is what made her sprint to putting on something that didn't reveal more than it should.

"Claudia?" Cattleya looked down the street and back to him as she held the top of her coat around her voluptuous form, as she opened her door wider, the glow of her lantern casted light on his worried face. "What is it? What happened?"

"Can I come in?" In the dark night, she could not see his eyes very well, only a shadow where kind bright blue eyes would look her way, but she knew. He was not his right mind.

"Sure." She opened her door wider, an invitation. "Come in."

When he was inside her home, she went into the kitchen, methodically putting on a tea, not even asking if he would like some, and perhaps giving him some time to settle in her living room, and get whatever was worrying him in complete sentences.

"Is this about the Company?" She asked as the kettle warmed, looking over her shoulder as he was pacing the living room.

"No."

"Are you in trouble?"

"No," he sighed, finally taking a seat, "this isn't about me."

"Oh." There was nothing else she could really say to that.

When she came with his tea in one of her nicest tea cups, his head was in his knees, his hands in his hair, and she set the useless hot beverage in front of him, knowing that this was not going to help him tonight. Some old part of herself, the one that had worked at the Full Moon Club, would have settled in his lap, fixed his man bun, while working him for the information he was killing to share, but instead she politely took the loveseat, crossing her legs, and then trying not to look impatient.

She didn't last long, "Did someone get hurt?" His eyes widened at her words, and she had to ask. "Did someone… die?" She must have hit the nail on the head because her new boss dipped his head lower, gripping his hair tighter, and clamming up like a virgin on her first date.

She knew this wasn't good. "What happened?"

"It already happened. We couldn't save him, I keep remembering it, but I couldn't save him, we couldn't even find his body." He said in a pathetic tone she had never heard from him before. For some reason that just made her heart beat faster. She took the seat right next to him, gently touching his arm, and his shoulder settled into her palm. "It won't leave me alone."

Cattleya hummed at that. "It was a really bad dream then."

Claudia nodded.

She shook her head slowly, there was not much one could do for those, but she remembered a few ways she could help. "Come here Claudia."

His eyes widened for a moment, and she chuckled, cradling his head, and bringing him to rest it on her more than adequate chest, "just close your eyes." He did, his breathing rapid for a moment, and then settling when he knew for sure this was all they were going to do.

She ran her fingers through his man-bun, releasing the delicious red strands, and letting her fingers thread through it, "just go to sleep now, no more worrying about the war. Your here. You're safe." She hummed a tune her mother had once done for her, closing her own eyes, and letting sleep take them both from the nightmares of their past.