The first thing she saw when she awoke was a pair of bright blue eyes staring into her own. The owner of the eyes smiled, the expression lighting up his scarred face, and reached out to trail a fingertip softly down her cheek. "Hey there," he said. "Good morning.." Murrue regarded the man blankly for a moment, mind still fuddled by sleep. "Wha-?" she mumbled, rubbing her eyes. The man chuckled. "Wake up, Murrue..."

What is he doing here? was her only thought. She knew who he was, of course, he was Colonel - wait. She blinked amber eyes slowly, memories of the previous day beginning to filter through her mind. There had been a battle, and Archangel had fought. Minerva had fired at her ship...then what? She gasped as the image of Akatsuki blocking the enemy positron cannon flitted through her memories, then what had happened afterwards...This man, he wasn't Colonel Lorrnoke. Not anymore. Instead, he was her greatest wish come true.

She reached out, much as he had done, and brushed a thin hand across his handsome face. The man's smile broadened, and he closed his eyes, tilting his head to lean into her touch. Murrue stared at him in amazement, her heart pounding. His skin was warm beneath her fingers, the rough feel of his stubble tickling her. He...really wasn't a dream?

"Mwu..." she whispered, and he laughed again, the cheerfully familiar sound bringing back dozens of memories. "Awake now, huh?" he asked, running a hand through her dark hair, letting the silky strands tangle in his fingers. "To be honest, when I woke up, I thought you were a dream too. I had some really weird dreams last night..hey, are you okay?" Because Murrue was staring at him still, tears trickling steadily down her cheeks. As he watched, she hiccupped quietly, the tears dripping from her chin to soak into the pillow. "I...I..." she murmured, then moved suddenly, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him as tightly as she could. Mwu smiled, returning her embrace. "Didn't I tell you there was no need to cry anymore? It's okay now, Murrue..." he said soothingly, stroking her back gently. "C'mon now..." he whispered, feeling her tears still falling to land on his bare chest. The woman sighed, although it sounded more like a sob, and rested her head on his shoulder. "You really did come back.." she said, tone disbelieving. Her hand moved slowly up his chest to his face, fingertips tracing his strong features as though memorising the way they felt. Mwu closed his eyes at the feather-light touch, pressing soft kisses to her fingers. "It's strange.." she said, as though talking to herself, "I'm used to the way your face feels when I touch it...but I'm still not used to the scar yet.." She leaned forward and kissed the scar on his shoulder gently, before snuggling back down in his arms.

"I missed you so much..." she said, breathing in the familiar scent of his skin. Mwu sighed, hugging her tightly. "I'm sorry." was all he could say. The woman in his arms smiled, her tawny eyes closed. "Don't be.." she replied. "You're here now, and that's all that matters. Just as long as you don't leave me again.."

He gazed down at her, blue eyes tracing over every inch of her face and body that he could see. Nothing much seemed to have changed about her in the last two years, except that her hair was longer. She was still just as beautiful as he remembered. Looking across at the clock, the blonde man grinned. "Shall we get up?" he asked, and Murrue sighed, cracking open one eye to look up at him. "We can't stay here?" she questioned plaintively, and the man laughed, leaning down to kiss her cheek. "If you want. But you're the captain, remember?"

She sighed, muttering something under her breath that sounded very much like a curse. Finally, she wriggled free of his arms, sitting up in the bed. Running a hand through her dark hair, she stretched, the sheet slipping from her body. Mwu groaned, moving to wrap his arms around her waist again. "I changed my mind. Let's stay here..." Murrue smiled, ruffling his hair. "We can't.." she told him, managing to escape his embrace and climb out of the bed. Wrapping her robe around herself, she made her way to the tiny bathroom, humming as she did so. Mwu huffed, slumping back in the bed and staring at the ceiling. This wasn't fair. He'd gotten his true self back less than sixteen hours ago, and been reunited with his loved one for only about twelve of those. And he had to share her already? Why the hell did I point out the time?

Murrue wandered back out of the bathroom, now clad in her blue and white uniform. She chuckled gently as she saw him still lying in the bed, and leaned down to kiss him. "Come on now.." she scolded, although the loving smile on her face belied her words. "I want to stay here too, but you know that we can't." Mwu looked up at her mournfully, reaching up to stroke her face. She closed her eyes for a moment at his touch, then grinned, poking his nose. "Get up."

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Later that day, Murrue sat in the mess hall, nibbling on a sandwich. Her day had been peaceful, uneventful, which was a welcome change after the battles and constant uncertainty. And...she couldn't stop the smile from creeping onto her face at the knowledge that whatever else happened, she wasn't alone anymore.

"Well, someone sure looks happy..." The woman turned around in surprise at the voice from the doorway. Miriallia-san and Lacus-san stood there, both smiling. Without another word, the two girls walked in and sat down at the same table. Miriallia's knowing grin caused Murrue to blush. "What?" she asked, her voice almost a squeak.

"Well, everyone's wondering what went on last night. Since you and the Colonel were so late for your shifts, I mean..." That statement made Murrue's blush deepen, and she looked down at her lap. "I...I..."

"But you look so happy," said Lacus softly. "It's all you could have wished for, isn't it?" The older woman didn't look up, hiding her crimson cheeks behind a curtain of auburn hair. But she did nod. Miriallia giggled. "And he's just as happy. The guys in the hangar bay aren't sure what happened to him. Yesterday he was pretty quiet, now he's laughing and joking with everyone, and whistling as he's working on his suit." Murrue smiled at that, peeking up at the younger women.

"What will you do now, Murrue-san?" Lacus wanted to know. "When we get home, I mean?"

"I...don't know.." the captain replied quietly. Her expression became serene, the bright red on her face fading to a light pink. "But whatever happens, I'll stay with him. That's all I need to know."

Miriallia laughed again, sounding delighted. "That's so romantic! But don't forget, will you?" Murrue blinked. "Forget? Forget what?"

The girl's grin became wicked. "To invite us all to the wedding."

The older woman's face flamed vivid scarlet. "M-Miriallia-san! I..." Her words were cut off by a merry chuckle from the doorway. "What wedding would this be? Am I invited too?" Murrue looked around, her blush not fading when she saw who the speaker was. Mwu stood there in the doorway, leaning against the frame. His scarred face wore a wicked grin to match Miriallia's, and his blue eyes twinkled with mischief. At the dark-haired woman's embarrassed stutters, he laughed again, walking in to sit beside her and plant a kiss on her reddened cheek.

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"We could, you know.." he said later as they sat on his bed together. Murrue looked up at that, confused. "Could what?" she asked, sighing in comfort as he wrapped his arms around her waist. He smiled warmly, leaning down to nuzzle his face into her hair. "Get married." he replied, chuckling as he watched the pink steal onto her face. "Not right away," he assured her, breathing in her scent. "But later. When we're used to being together again."

"I...I don't know.." she murmured, eyes closed. "I..."

"It's okay." he told her kindly. "But...we could try living together first. How does that sound?" Murrue was still blushing, but smiled. "That...sounds nice." She glanced up at him, amber eyes shining. "Thank you." Mwu blinked. "Thanks? For what?"

"For being here. For coming back." she said softly. "For being you."

He grinned at that. "You know, you're the only person who's ever thanked me for being myself. It's...nice. Especially now I know who 'myself' is..." He lay back on the bed, the young woman still wrapped securely in his arms. "You think we'll be happy?"

"Yeah..." she replied, eyes closed again

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( waffle waffle waffle...

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