Tiz has always been a light sleeper. At home in Norende, he would wake with the dawn and the lambs, because he needed to tend to his flock. On his travels, he tried to wake with the dawn, because he wanted to tend to his friends. Unfortunately, all too often he wakes in the middle of the night for various reasons, such as the guilt that eats up his stomach as he lies alone in the dark, helplessly noting the absence of his brother's breathing beside him. Though he has come to note the breathing of Ringabel, of Agnes and Edea, it's not the same. It will never be the same.
Tonight is one in which he had already woken more than once, first at the heels of terrifying dreams of an untouchable monster, stabbing and choking him until he jerks awake and gasps down enough air to stabilize himself. Second when he hears the pained, gasping sound of his best friend - best male friend - as he stumbles out the door, until it shuts loudly behind him.
Sitting up in bed, Tiz meets Edea's eyes across the room, bright in the moonlight that comes in through the window.
There's understanding there and a little sadness, and it's she who slips out of bed to follow Ringabel tonight.
Tiz stays behind, his covers feeling heavy and too warm across his lap. He can hear more than see Agnes sleeping nearby, and has by now grown familiar with the quiet noises of distress she makes in her sleep. Those noises get louder.
He expects her to wake at any moment. She is sensitive to the feelings of others at times, even while asleep, and because she is still and always will be his shining ray of hope, Tiz slips out of bed so that he can be there she wakes from whatever plagues her tonight. So that she never has to feel alone as he has. As they all have, before.
He's sitting comfortably on the edge of her bed when she wakes some long moments later, a startled noise slipping past her lips, either at the phantom that woke her or the unexpected closeness of the boy.
"Sorry. Good morning," he whispers. There's really no need to speak so softly, as Airy usually doesn't stay in the same room as them. Her light is too bright, and impossible to turn off, she says. It keeps them awake at night, and while it's one thing when there's also a campfire nearby, it's another when the room is otherwise dark. As long as Agnes awakens the crystals, Airy seems to have no problem with a room to herself
Recently, Tiz has been finding it more of a relief than usual.
"Good morning?" Agnes replies, a little confused. She has reason to be, as the sun is still hours away from rising, but her reply is good-natured nonetheless. She blinks up at him in the darkness and though he knows she likely can't see much of his face, he smiles down at her, drawing one knee up to rest his arm on it. "Is something the matter? Did I disturb you?" She asks.
"Not at all," his free hand plays along the edge of her nightdress' sleeve. "Ringabel did." He pauses, and then continues, somewhat flustered, not sure of what he's implying. "I mean, he just- he stepped outside, and it was the door that woke me."
"Ringabel?" She props herself on one elbow, and looks toward the door. It seems very quiet with just the two of them. "Is he all right?"
Tiz knows that he isn't. But he probably will be. Right now, Edea's with him. And right now…
"He'll be fine," Tiz says, because that much is true. It's all that can be said. That with time, Ringabel will heal as much as he's able to, as much as any of them can. But right now, with things the way they are, they all have a lot of healing to do before they will ever be all right.
Agnes especially. Tiz's hand finds it way down her arm to shyly, hesitantly, take her hand. She's been through a lot, physically and mentally, and he'll do anything to support his beautiful ray of hope. Even if it's something as simple as sitting next to her in the dark when she wakes from her nightmares, just so she knows that she isn't alone.
She decides to sit up, and her hand stays in his through the movement, warm and soft from her years protected and sheltered in the temple. "Should we go after them, perhaps?"
Tiz shakes his head, his hair tousled more than usual after a night of tossing around. "No. Edea will bring him back when he's ready. And you need to get some rest, aren't you still tired?" They had wanted to give Agnes some rest between awakening crystals. It was always so taxing, he was always so worried that one day she would end up fainting from the sheer strain of it.
There is also the troubling matter of their all-too-recent discussion with the Yulyana Sage. He knows that's taken its toll on her, the overwhelming guilt and the crushing doubt that's settled on her thin shoulders. The invisible weight makes her seem smaller than she already is, and it's a weight that Tiz would gladly take at least half of, if he could.
And yet, she is as stubborn as any of them. "I'll be fine, Tiz." She says. And there's a pause before she continues. "However, the rest is… appreciated."
Acceptable, even? He smiles to himself at that private joke. "If you want to get some more sleep, just let me know. I'll stop bothering you." He's probably mothering her a bit too much; Agnes is older than he is, and can take care of herself. But he sincerely enjoys caring for others, and especially caring for her. When they had first met, Agnes had been a little… clueless. Very inexperienced with the world. Anyone would be naturally worried about her. But over time, that worry has changed, hasn't it?
She has to think on it, though she shakes her head, loosely braided hair swinging over her shoulder. "It is no bother. But perhaps more sleep will be nice." And though she moves to lie back down, there's some hesitation in her actions before she says. "Tiz, …"
"I'll stay here." He promises her, as though there were any chance of him being elsewhere.
Agnes shakes her head where it's cushioned on her pillow. "You must take care of yourself as much as you take care of us." She insists, and her hand is small, but surprisingly strong as she tugs him down.
Tiz barely catches himself with his other hand before he falls on top of her, a surprised, embarrassed cry getting past his lips. "W-what?" His face is suddenly burning and the room is suddenly warm, though she does not seem to have noticed.
Or perhaps she has. There's strain in her voice as she continues. "You... must rest as well." And he knows that she cares about him - about all of them - but wonders why she chooses to be so focused on him now of all times, when it's her who's in most need!
His voice cracks. "I, ah… I'll be fine, Agnes. I'll be right here."
"I know you will be here," and her voice is soft and gentle like a lamb's wool, and his heart jumps painfully. Her other hand has found his in the darkness, and though he swallows hard, he allows himself to relax just slightly, curling up slightly on his side next to her in the biggest bed in the room. After a moment, Agnes turns to face him, fingers curled around his.
She smiles, and it shines in the moonlight.
"Forgive me," she says, and there's a slight laugh to her voice that makes him ache to hear. "But I worry about you, too. Though I know you do not want me to, it's only natural, is it not?"
"Yeah," he admits, his voice soft and quiet across the scant inches that separate them. "You're so kind, Agnes." His eyes slip shut for just a moment. He is tired from lack of sleep, after all, and her bed is very comfortable and soft, the exact reason it's been designated as hers.
He feels the gentlest of motions against his forehead, a feeling of wings brushing against his temples, and his eyes fly open, though he doesn't dare move. Agnes has moved ever closer, and now her forehead leans gently against his. He's so close he can count every single last eyelash that rests against her cheek and remarkably, she's still smiling.
"I thank you, Tiz." She says, and his chest aches again. Her breath is warm and he wants nothing more than to take all of the sadness that he hears in her voice and bury it into his own heart.
Tiz swallows hard before he answers, his voice soft. "I should be thanking you, Agnes." For everything. For giving him hope again, a ray of light to focus on during the darkest time of his life. Not only that, but she led him to Ringabel and Edea, and the four of them together have filled each other's days with laughter and love despite the hardships, the pain, and the different worlds they have to face.
And even if the future seems uncertain, especially in the face of what they've just learned about the different worlds, the past and the possible future, Tiz knows one thing will never waver.
He sucks in a deep breath and exhales it a little too shakily, noting how warm Agnes is beside him, even with the barrier of her blanket between them. He has always slept better with the warmth of another person next to him, even back in Norende before it all ended, when nightmares were few.
"Agnes," he says, unsure of himself, and the woman's eyelashes flutter as though she had been drifting off. Perhaps she had. And he hesitates for a moment before leaning back just enough to kiss her on the forehead, lips pressing tenderly for just a moment.
That's… that's enough. At least for now.
As he settles back against the pillow, his cheeks burning, as Agnes opens her brown eyes again to look at him with a startled gaze and a face that feels hot at their close distance, he feels her hand shift, and their fingers intertwine. It's an intimate movement, for her.
He doesn't know what he'd expected otherwise. Agnes isn't like Edea; she doesn't lash out to against unwanted physical affection with punches. Her strength is internal rather than external, but just as strong.
She makes a noise, a little embarrassed noise not unlike the ones he's heard in the past when they were discussing such things as that horrible bravo bikini, or sex appeal, or when Ringabel made one of his more unacceptable comments. It makes him smile, even if he's blushing. He thinks he might hear the voices of Ringabel and Edea outside the door, and though it gives him pause, they soon fade.
His heart is pounding too much to afford him sleep, and he instead lies in comfortable silence with Agnes, listening to the sound of her breathing, their hands flexing every so often, her fingers entwined with his.
In the darkness, Tiz is thinking, and judging by the way that he can see the light reflecting in Agnes' eyes, so is she. It's a comfortable silence, and it stays for a while as he thinks.
The crystals, their world… those come first. To awaken the world and save it from the suffocating darkness. It is a task that would not be easy for anyone, less so a Vestal who believed herself all alone in the world. It's a task he wants to help her with as much as he can, and if that means staying beside her at night so that she can rest, or holding her hands to support her, physically or mentally, he'll do it. Maybe the task is too big for a sleepy shepherd like himself, but it's one he'll take on.
Not just for Agnes, but the others. Ringabel may be older than him, but Tiz has spent so long as the older brother, it's hard to let go of old habits. He doesn't mind being treated as the little brother, and he finds it nice at times when he's having difficulty with his nightmares, but especially as of late, it's Tiz who wants to comfort the other boy. Let him know he's not alone. That he can talk to someone. That he's trusted, and believed in.
Edea is independent. She's like the sister he'd never had, someone who's there to tease him in the same breath that she's worrying about him. Encouraging him. But even she needs encouragement at times, and if he's slowly learning just how to give her that encouragement, then all the better.
In the quiet darkness, peace slowly overtakes him. He leans forward to press another kiss against Agnes' forehead, this one more gentle than the last, less shy than the last, and murmurs a soft goodnight to her as he settles down to try and get more sleep. His forehead presses against hers, and their breaths intermingle warmly. He'll probably never hear the end of it from Ringabel and Edea if they're caught like this, and he has a feeling that the courage he's built in the darkness might shy away in the night, but right now he's peaceful, and Agnes seems peaceful and happy, and that is really all that matters to him.
Shepherds are there to tend to their flock, and that's what he intends to do to the very end, if need be.