It was the first bed Karria had seen in months. True, the room was tiny, and the provided nightshirt was barely big enough to cover, and the mirror hung on the wall was tiny and dirty, but Karria was just happy for a roof over her head, and a warm meal in her stomach. They were small luxuries, but luxury enough for the Elementalist.
She and the rest of her squad were stuck in Cavalon for the time being, a recent storm having blocked a good portion of a bridge they needed to cross. The tiny woman stretched out on her bed, nearly purring in delight at the softness at her back. She could have passed out right then and there if there hadn't been a knock at her door.
"Come in." She managed to mumble out, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. Exhaustion was pulling at her, but the visitor could be important. Or bringing more food. Instead, Red popped his head in the door, a wide smirk breaking out over his face at the sight of a barely clad woman.
"Oh, Karria, were you expecting me or something?" He dodged the stiletto boot the woman threw at him, meeting her pouty glare with a gentle smile. "Can I come in?" Karria rolled her eyes at that one.
"You're already standing in my room, bit late to ask." She stood and tried to pull the hemline of her shirt lower, feeling self-conscious now that the man was standing nearby. He wasn't even looking at her, however, gaze locked outside the window.
"Goddamn, Karria, if I had a view like this I wouldn't be laying in bed." She joined in at the mirror, gazing out at the sea, lit up by the sunset. Her lips quirked into a pleasant smile at the shades of gold and red.
"It's like someone poured oil on the ocean and set it on fire." Her voice was soft, so quiet Red almost didn't hear the words. He just smiled at made an agreeing sound, enjoying the presence of the tiny woman. Red chanced a glace at his comrade, the smile on his face growing at the content expression on her face. They never had time to just stand and watch the sunset. Usually nights were filled with fighting and running, small injuries and major ones.
Red was jerked out of his revere when the woman leaned against him, heat burning into his side. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her tighter against him. "It's been months since we did something like this." Karria mused, closing her eyes as she rested her head against his chest.
Red laughed. "Yes, and the last time we did you shoved me in a river and threatened to burn off the parts of me that make me a man." She joined in on his laughter, wiping tears of mirth from her eyes.
Silence fell, like it always did, as the sun dipped below the sea and everything turned shades of blue and purple. Karria left his side to light a candle, pale skin turning gold against the flame. Red watched her, leaning against the window, wondering when they both got so old. They weren't teens anymore, enlisting in the army to avenge dead parents. They were adults, war weary and cold. Briefly he wondered in Karria was feeling the same way.
She looked up at him, some flicker of emotion flashing across her face too quickly for the man to identify it. She took a couple steps towards him, reached out, touching his arm. Red reached out and hugged her, so tightly she almost gasped for air. "R-red." She squeaked out as he loosened his grip, bending to rest his chin on the top of her pale hair.
"Let's resign." He said, suddenly, with more conviction than he felt. "Just…walk away and never come back. We could help the people here, this creepy plague that's going on…we could make things change." Karria didn't say anything, but he felt the woman nod her head as she curled closer to the taller Elementalist. He sighed.
"Karria." He took a half step back, gazing down at the woman. Her brows knotted together in slight confusion at the seriousness in his voice. "We keep doing the same things. What are we?"
He wasn't expecting the response to be nonverbal. He didn't expect the small warm hands touching the side of his face, or the press of soft lips against his own, and experimental brush that ended before Red could blink. Part of him instantly wanted to remind the woman of what he had said at the river so long ago, but he squished the impulse at the fear of pissing the woman off. Karria looked anywhere but at him, cheeks burned a deep red.
"Never doubt." She said, throwing the man's words right back at him. She couldn't help but laugh then, snatching the woman into his arms and holding her tight there, still laughing. She smiled up at him, shyly, snuggled against a chest that radiated heat.
"Karria, I never expected to hear those words from you. You never used to take my advice." She grinned up at him fully with that, making a face that belonged on a child, not a late-20's soldier. Red just smiled back in return, capturing her lips in an earnest kiss this time. "I meant to do that years ago." He said quietly, when they pulled apart. Karria just nodded. They didn't have that kind of time back in training, and they had been sent to different squadrons soon after, never expecting to see each other after.
The world was black outside, stars creating only the small specks of light. Karria sighed. "I'd love to stay up and talk about this more, but I'm really exhausted." Red grinned cheekily at her, unable to help the next words that came out of his mouth.
"Don't worry, we can talk in bed too!"
Red pounded on the door, head hurting like hell when the other boot Karria threw at him hit its target. "Come on Karria, I was kidding!" There was no answer, and Red just sighed with a content smile on his face. At least things hadn't changed that much.