It was one of the few mornings when she awoke ahead of him. The whiskey had put him in a deep sleep from which he didn't wake even when she detangled herself from his embrace. It was all for the best. There was no need to hide from him, but she needed silence and peace to meditate.

She went to the foot of the bed and knelt on the fluffy rug. With her palms over her knees, she relaxed and closed her eyes. One slow deep breath in, one slow deep breath out. She cleared her mind and detached from the world around her until she felt herself floating in an endless void, stranded between worlds. A single thought formed in her mind and she let it echo into the nothingness, waiting for an answer to be carried back.

Images formed in front of her eyes. Andy and his wife, smiling and happy. If she was to help her brother, it would afford him the opportunity to fix things with his wife if he so chose to. Other faces appeared, ones she didn't know. It unfolded like a movie in front of her. The project would lead to a couple meeting, their child would be a gifted musician; another company would go bankrupt due to the development, the owner would end up changing her perspective on life and fund a charity that would help many people. The implications spread like a web, a small drop that caused ripples far beyond what anyone could imagine.

She had already decided to help Ciri. There was no rational need to search for more validation, but it never hurt to know what lay ahead. Her mind focused on Ciri, but the echo brought nothing. Stubborn as she was, instead of giving up, she focused on Geralt and the path that was before him, knowing that he would be inextricably linked to his child surprise. Sure enough, it produced an image. A burning sun and a snowstorm and Ciri caught in between the two, her face determined and proud. Beyond that, nothing. Interesting. She wasn't privy to the outcome. A faint noise made her open her eyes to see Geralt sitting up in bed, looking at her.

"What are you doing? My medallion started humming, and you looked as if you were in a trance."

"I was meditating, searching for answers." She got up and sat down next to him.

"About?" he asked guardedly.

"About you, me, Ciri. Do you want to know?"

He nodded, but he looked worried and unconvinced of his choice.

"I guess it's better to know."

"You'll have a significant influence over a key decision Ciri will make, but what will happen... hasn't been decided yet. It's not much to go on, but it confirms my assumption that you're very important."

There was silence between them. She laid back in bed, rolled onto her side, and closed her eyes. A shift in the mattress under her made her open her eyes to see him lying next to her. He caressed the side of her face; the gentleness he was capable of surprised her and the door to the abandoned house that was her heart creaked again. She couldn't help but stupidly let hope in.

"I thought about what you said last night and I don't know about plans and missions, I won't lie and pretend to believe in such things… But I very much like being with you and I'm glad you'll be there to help Ciri. Other than that, maybe we can just enjoy right now and see what happens?"

"Of course." It was the answer she expected. After all, she had found him to be a man who preferred to rely on instinct.

She pulled herself closer and softly kissed him. His response was passionate as always and they indulged in their pleasure until the alarm went off and they had to get out of bed.


"Have you made a decision about your brother?" he asked over breakfast.

"I have. I'll take on the project. Somehow it'll give him the choice to repair things in his marriage. I'm not sure about the particular details, but I'd be thrilled to see him happy again. It'll have many other effects that will make this world a better place, albeit in a small measure in the grand scheme of things, but I assume you don't want to hear about that again."

"Please don't take offence. I don't want to hear it simply because it's not my choice to make. You've already decided and you have your reasons, that's enough for me."

"I appreciate that, but you should know it'll be a time-consuming task, and I want to have my part in it done before we leave. That might not leave time for much else. So if I get buried in work, please know that I'm not ignoring you on purpose."

"I thought you said time isn't linear. Why not just continue when you get back? I assume you can return so close that almost no time will have passed for them."

She hesitated. "I want to leave my affairs in order before we leave."

Her words hit him like a hammer and his heart sunk into the pit of his stomach. She was preparing for her possible death; so she was a realist, after all. And not only that, but she was also willing to sacrifice her life for his - no - Ciri's cause. Thinking of failure was not something he did; it felt ill to tempt fate that way, yet ignoring the possibility completely was only proof of stupidity. She might not come back and they both knew it. Countless had died both chasing and protecting Ciri. He had tried to warn her it's not something she should involve herself in, but when she dismissed him, he didn't pursue it further. Not because he was convinced it was the right decision, but because he was selfish and wanted to have her around. Did that make him such a bad person? No. And yes, he thought. Despite how little he knew about her, she made him feel less alone and he just wasn't ready to let that go.

"I want to be prepared for anything, however unlikely. You shouldn't think too much about it and, for now, let's try to take it one step at a time," she said reassuringly, as was her style.

"Sure." He forced a smile. "Yesterday you said we should take it slow and somehow that led to you deciding to leave your world. One step at a time is sure to work out great."

"The irony isn't lost on me." She chuckled. "Geralt... I regret nothing! Now we should get going. I'll have the cleaning service pay us a visit tomorrow. The house is starting to become a mess and I don't have the energy to deal with it."

"Maybe we can also go to the gym today. I feel like I need to try extra hard to keep in shape on account of your cooking."

"Sure." She laughed. "I do like your shape very much and would hate for you to lose it on my account," she said as she pressed herself up against him and gave him one last indecent kiss before leaving the apartment.


The day went as expected and, after work, they went to the gym. It was busier than usual and Geralt ended up attracting some attention while working out. By the time Criss noticed what was happening, he already had a couple of girls swooning around him, asking all sorts of ridiculous questions and trying to cop a feel. He seemed unsure how to get out of the situation and was trying to catch her eye to get her to help him. Not wanting to leave him hanging for too long, she pretended she needed his help re-racking the weights.

"Thanks," he whispered as he moved away from the girls.

"Oh, I won't let anyone steal you away, you're too much of a catch." She winked playfully.

He helped her with the weights and gave her a quick kiss, just to make sure the girls didn't get any other ideas.

"Are you marking your territory?" she joked.

"More like making sure yours is properly fenced and secured."

"Mhm, yes, we need to make sure of that." She put her hand around his waist and kissed him, delicately slipping her tongue into his mouth. A proper kiss, nothing chaste about it. "I think you're good now," she joked as she moved her lips away.

"Now that's just mean, squashing all hope like that," he quipped back. "I have a few more sets and then I'm done. How about you?" he asked with that smile he got when his mind was on sex.

"Same... Can't wait to get home. I have a feeling the shower will be particularly interesting today..."

"Sounds promising…" He returned the kiss, making her knees go weak in a way only he knew how. "I'll go rush through those sets now," he said with a grin as he got back to his workout.


Later that afternoon, a trail of strewn clothes led from the door of the apartment to the shower room. He had her pressed up against the wall, holding her up with a hand under her ass. With her legs around his hips, he was free to do as he pleased, leaving her to enjoy the ride. Lucky for her, what pleased him was to make her scream his name in ecstasy, which was something he never failed at.

"Do you think we caused an earthquake?" he joked, still buried in her.

"Oh, earthquakes be damned! I don't care! Just don't fucking stop!" She clung to his neck for support and started moving her hips against his, taking him in with short, energetic movements. His fingers dug into her, stilling her efforts. That smug smile appeared once again, as it always did whenever he felt her desperation for him. It didn't bother her one bit. She knew half the reason he stopped was to make himself last longer, just to please her again.

"Don't worry… I plan to make you come at least once more… my needy little nymph…" he teased in a low voice before kissing her.

He thrust into her even harder than before and kept his promise, making her come again. Her whole body quivered and shook as his mouth pressed into her neck, panting into her wet skin. She threw her head back and closed her eyes, allowing herself to be swept up in the blissful waves. When she was with him, the world could have imploded and she wouldn't have cared, such was the sway he had over her. Nails dug into his shoulder as she tried to hold on for dear life when, once again, he hit that sweet spot at a cadence that got her moaning. Another wave of pleasure swallowed her whole, leaving her breathless and seeing stars. He carried her through the high before she felt him stagger as he finally came right alongside her. They spent a few more minutes still intertwined, just kissing languidly, enjoying the post-orgasm bliss before he put her down. She turned on the tap and water started running down his back as he was leaning against the wall, supporting his weight on his forearm.

"We could just quit the gym and do this instead. If that wasn't a workout, I don't know what is," he joked, his breathing still heavy.

She bit her lip, picked up the loofa and started rubbing it over him, lathering up his wide back. Scars and all, the man had a body that would make a 20-year-old envious. He turned his back against the wall so she could start lathering his chest. Apparently, he didn't mind a little pampering. After all, it was well deserved for his no small efforts to please her. With his eyes closed, he rested against the wall as her hands moved down. He smirked and took the loofa from her.

"You need to give me a break. I don't run on batteries, you know," he joked, and started rubbing his arms and shoulders.

"I'm sorry." She grinned. "I feel like it'll be awhile until I've had enough of you."

"I hope you never have enough, but I appreciate the odd break here and there."

She grinned and started washing herself instead, making sure to use her hands in the most enticing ways possible.

"What do you want to do tonight?" she asked innocently as his eyes followed the not-so-innocent movements of her hands. "I thought maybe we could go out. You know… have a proper first date like a normal couple."

His eyes darted back to her face, searching curiously, as if he wasn't sure he had heard right.

"I'd like that..." he answered in an earnest tone that held a hint of surprise.


He was still in a daze, surprised by how good he felt at the prospect of normality. It was something he had always longed for, but knew it was impossible. And maybe it still was, but for one night they could both pretend. Couldn't they?

She got out of the shower to towel off, leaving him to enjoy the hot water running over his face. Strange thing what wonders a little warm water could work. It reminded him of home, of warm summer rain and rare careless days. Yes, he was careless for now, but he knew it couldn't last. His mind was ever restless and always looking for the next source of discontent, the next obstacle to be overcome, never allowing him to enjoy anything for too long. A necessary force of habit that had always kept him from getting his hopes up. So now that restless mind of his made him wonder how long it would be before he returned to his world. It wasn't like he wasn't enjoying himself here with her. No, he most definitely was. This, her. It was everything he had never dared hope he'd have. Yet, somehow, he felt useless in this blissful world. Like he had stepped inside a beautiful dream that he didn't earn. Aside from the weekly training sessions, there was no genuine opportunity for him to put his skills to use, and that meant no way to earn his keep. And that had irked him. He needed to find something useful to do before his slight annoyance turned into full, bitter resentment. He shook his head and cursed himself; he wasn't about to ruin his - no - their night like that. They both yearned for one evening of normality and he was going to do his damned best to make that happen. Other concerns could take a backseat for now.

He walked into the bedroom to find her in bed with the laptop in front of her, searching for a restaurant.

"Do you have any preference for food?" she asked him.

"Not really. As long as the food is cooked, it's fine. I'm not a big fan of raw meat."

"You ate raw meat?" She sounded disgusted.

"You'd be surprised what you end up doing just to survive. I'd even eat a wolf if I needed to, but if you ask me about preference... that would be my last choice."

"Makes me think I'll need to toughen up."

She was probably right, but he said nothing for fear of offending her. Either way, she sensed his concern.

"Oh, dear! Your silence is answer enough! So it's that bad, huh?"

"Not always, but even when it's good, there are no supermarkets, no phones, no internet. You can probably use magic to compensate for some things... like running hot water."

"No baths?" She winced. "Oh, you're really getting me to worry!"

"I don't mean to worry you. There are baths, but they're not as common as they are here." He sat next to her and kissed her cheek. "Actually, I just wanted to know if I should get you your own horse or if you'll ride on Roach with me."

"You named your horse Roach?"

"I name all my horses Roach," he replied matter-of-factly.

"You really like to simplify things, don't you?"

"When I can." He nodded towards the screen. "Did you choose a place?"

"This looks cozy." She turned the laptop towards him so he could see the images she was looking at. "And it's within walking distance, which should be nice." He agreed.

"I have to warn you that you should wear a jacket and not just because it's getting colder outside. They have a dress code."

"Fine... if I must," he agreed mirthlessly.

He looked on as she picked out a fitted, knee-length dark burgundy dress with a deep v-neckline and matching shoes, then put her hair up in a stylish bun held together with a detailed jewelled hairpin. Watching her dress was almost as satisfying as undressing her. There was something about only seeing part of a woman's body that enticed him even more than if she was simply naked. He forced his eyes away. Tonight he'd promised himself he'd not get distracted by his lust; he wanted to enjoy her company, get to know her and savour the glimpse of normality he was about to get.

Since he had to conform to the dress code, he ended up choosing a simple black suit with a white shirt, no tie. After looking him over, she undid the first two buttons on his shirt.

"Now it's perfect! And, I must say, you look very good in a suit."

"Hmm, I was wondering how long it would take you before you tried to get me to wear something like this." It wasn't exactly a doublet but it wasn't far off either.

"If it were up to me... you'd be wearing nothing at all... ever," she whispered seductively in his ear, her hands slithering under his jacket.

"Oh, my little nymph, you're worse than a succubus!" He laughed.

"Fine! I'll behave! But we should go now, else the succubus in me might start to see a meal in you."