Kent hadn't slept well in years. It's not that he wasn't tired- if he could, he'd sleep for a century- it was that he didn't trust sleep anymore. Being unconscious meant being vulnerable. It didn't matter that he was in his own home and in his own bed, his body was too aware of its surroundings to properly rest. So it didn't surprise him much when he awoke to the sound of whimpering.

The noise was coming from the guest room, Venus's room. It was getting louder, more desperate. It wouldn't be a good idea to check on her. If someone were to wake him during one of his nightmares, they were sure to get injured. What would a djinni do if she were woken up from a nightmare? He shuddered to imagine. But then her whimpering turned into quiet sobs and Kent decided to risk whatever magical chaos ensued.

When she didn't wake at his soft knocking, he opened the door slowly into her chiffon covered room. Why did she have so much fabric hanging from everywhere? Did she not like the color of the walls? He could have painted her room.

Shaking his head and focusing on the small woman on the bed, he approached her slowly while quietly calling her name.

"Venus? Venus, wake up. You're having a nightmare."

Her cries only got more intense. She was gripping her pillow to her face, but Kent could see the tears running down an exposed cheek. He needed to wake her up. Bracing himself, he touched her shoulder gently.

POOF

The room exploded into red smoke and he felt the grains of glitter on his hand and falling all around. She was no longer in her bed.

"What're you doing?!" Her voice came from above him and Kent craned his neck to see Venus's body flat on the ceiling.

"You were crying." He stayed as still as possible, he didn't want her to think he was intruding. He was only trying to help.

"I was?" She said surprised.

Something wet touched his cheek. Her tears were raining down on him.

"You are."

Her hands flew to her face and quickly wiped her eyes. Taking two deep breaths, she steeled herself and floated back down to her bed.

"Was I that loud? Did I wake you? I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. I'm a light sleeper."

"I just… have nightmares sometimes."

She looked so uncomfortable, so unlike her carefree self. He needed to reassure her anyway he could.

"I do too. Sometimes."

"I know," she whispered.

"You do?" Had he been loud too?

"I hear you now and then," she continued. "You shout orders. Sometimes you just scream."

Kent felt his heart drop to his stomach. "Please- please, don't ever try to help me when I'm like that."

"It didn't really work when I tried anyway. I kept my distance and put a shield up in case you woke up, but magic can't break through the subconscious without conscious acceptance of its invasion while unconscious."

Kent nodded slowly, though not really understanding, and turned to sit on the edge of the bed next to her.

"Thanks for trying, I guess. It's been so long since the nightmares started, I don't always remember when I've had one. I've spent most of my time away from home in a submarine, but I've been on a few tours as well. The one I came back from right before you appeared was a rough one. I couldn't always trust my surroundings which meant I couldn't trust being fully asleep. I had a few close calls when I thought everything was safe. Eventually, I forgot what safe felt like. I don't think I ever remembered."

He almost let the memories overtake him but the soft touch of a warm hand on his brought him back to the beautiful woman wearing a black negligee sitting next to him.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that."

Kent shrugged. "It comes with the job."

Venus gave a sardonic laugh. "I know how that is." She took a deep breath. "I was dreaming I was stuck inside the bottle again. Alone." She gave him a shaky smile. "I don't want to be alone again."

Kent had always tried to keep a respectable distance from Venus because he knew her last master had been anything but honorable. He had strived to make his home a safe space for her and in doing so he felt protective of her. The two had come a long way from when they met. They'd become so close that when he saw the tears brimming in her eyes Kent didn't hesitate in wrapping an arm around Venus and brought her into his embrace. To his surprise, she clung quickly to him. Her breathing became heavy and he knew she was crying again. He held her tight and rubbed her back letting her tears wet his bare chest.

He wasn't sure how much time passed but eventually he felt her body grow heavy and snuck a peek to find her asleep. Carefully he laid her back down into her bed and rose up the sheets to cover her body. He turned to leave when his hand was caught.

"Would you stay with me?" Her voice was so soft he would've doubted she actually spoke if she hadn't been grasping his hand so tightly.

Kent hesitated for only a moment before crawling into the bed behind her. His body molded perfectly to hers and she did not scoot away from him. Instead, she burrowed herself backwards into him and held his hand securely to her chest.

The next morning Kent wondered if she had enchanted the bed. He hadn't slept so soundly since before he joined the Navy.

AN: Hope you're liking the story!