Valkyrie (Complete)

13: Something New

Kaj is awake before Valkyrie the next morning and Phoenix gives him a quick rundown of the previous night. He's shocked, but also a bit proud of how Valkyrie handled herself. He doesn't know what to make of the soldier's warning either.

She's awake early, having been restless all night. Eventually, she gives up on sleep and joins the boys. They're across the room, eating some provisions from the survival kit they found in the room. She sits beside Phoenix and he hands her some, which she takes with a tired smile.

"How's your arm?" Kaj asks. "I heard we had an unwelcome guest last night."

"It's okay. A bit sore, but nothing I can't handle."

Phoenix wraps an arm around her shoulders and pulls her into his good side. "Did you sleep?"

She shakes her head and gives them a wry smile. "No, not really. I couldn't stop thinking about what the soldier said, and then how-" She cuts herself off as the image of the soldier stabbing himself with her blade flashes through her mind. Her stomach churns and it's all she can do not to throw up what little she ate.

"It's okay," Phoenix whispers gently to her. "You didn't do anything wrong." She turns her body and rests her cheek on his strong chest, offering her the support she needs in this moment.

"I think we should find somewhere else to stay," she says quietly. "If that soldier knew exactly where to find us, it won't be hard for the others. Besides, this place is falling apart more and more every day."

"Where should we go? Almost all the buildings in town have been destroyed, and Phoenix's house isn't the safest. It isn't that sturdy, not against an army." Kaj sounds unsure of her idea.

"It wouldn't be in town."

"Where would we go?"

She smiles slightly. "I know the perfect place."

* * *

They walk through the forest later that day. Each of them is carrying a heavy bag filled with enough provisions to last weeks.

They reach the place hours later. They left around midday and the sun has already begun to set, telling them just how far they've gone. It's a large cave with a narrow opening but a wide room inside. There's an underground river inside as a source of freshwater and places to hang lit torches for light. There's also a large boulder covering the entrance that allows them to hide inside without anyone being able to tell where they are.

"What is this place?" Kaj breathes in awe. Valkyrie drops her bag and pushes the boulder, her shoulder and leg screaming in protest. It's stuck and takes a moment to move, but she finally gets it. She takes a deep breath and walks inside. She imagines the torches bursting into flame and they light instantaneously.

"My dad showed me this place," she replies. "I was thirteen when my father brought me here. It was right after my mother was taken, after the Ankathians invaded the first time. He wanted me to have a safe place to go in case it ever happened again. I didn't remember it until last night when I couldn't sleep."

She sets her bag down once more and walks around a corner. She comes back carrying three rolled-up mattresses. She sets them down and disappears again, only to return with pillows and blankets.

"Your dad wasn't kidding about having somewhere to go," Kaj can't help but remark. "This is incredible."

She smiles and takes a seat. "It's safe, but it's a bit cramped. It's also dark and hard to tell what time of day it is because we have to keep the boulder over the opening in order to stay hidden. It was very smart, but not much fun."

She takes off her jacket, leaving her in a plain, tight t-shirt and her combat pants. She leans against the cave walls and feels sleep washing over her. A combination of their first battle, losing Eira, taking care of her friends, fighting the soldier and then hiking all day has caught up to her and she's suddenly struggling to keep her eyes open.

Phoenix moves beside her and unrolls his mattress. It's wider than the cots at The Academy and much more comfortable. He also lays out a couple blankets and makes the bed as cozy as he can. "Val," he murmurs. She opens her eyes a crack and he pats the mattress. "Come sleep."

She groans softly. "I don't want to move."

He chuckles slightly as he lifts her up and sets her on the mattress. She rests her head on his legs, using them as a pillow. He plays with her hair and gently takes out her braids, knowing that she hates sleeping with them in. Her eyes close and she smiles as she falls asleep.

Phoenix sits there and keeps playing with her hair even though he knows that she can't tell anymore. She's finally asleep. He breathes a sigh of relief, having been worried since she hadn't slept in over two days. He had no idea how she even had the energy to move at all.

He thinks back to his nightmare the previous night. It had been awful, he hadn't lied about that, but he didn't tell her why it was so awful. Obviously he doesn't want to lose her, but he didn't mean as just a teammate. He didn't even mean as just a friend.

If he lost her, there's no question in his mind that he would lose a good portion of himself. When he woke up from that nightmare, he was so scared that it wasn't a dream; that it had been real. Suddenly, he had known exactly how Kaj felt when Eira died. For him, it was't that hard to understand how difficult it was. All he had to do was picture Valkyrie on the ground instead of Eira, and it was agony.

He shifts so he's lying down beside her and then he wraps his arms around her. She responds immediately by curling up to his chest and sighing softly. He rests his face in the crook of her neck once more and sleep comes easily to him.

* * *

She wakes up to sounds of pain near her. She opens her eyes, half expecting Ankathians to have found them already, but it's dark except for the gentle glow of the torches. She looks around for the source of the sound when it comes from Phoenix, who is right beside her. He looks sad and a whimper comes from his lips.

She wakes him up like she did the other night, with a hand on his cheek and the other around his neck. It doesn't take long for him to wake up, and exactly the same as last night, he hugs her tightly. "Same dream?"

He nods, breathing heavily against her. She runs her fingers through his hair soothingly and he calms down quickly. His strong arms remain wound tightly around her shoulders and waist, though she can't imagine being anywhere else at the moment. After a few more minutes, his breathing has returned to normal. However, he makes no attempt to move, even as she squirms as his breath tickles her skin.

All of the sudden, she feels a tender kiss against her neck. She pulls her head away to give him a questioning look, but the look on his face and in his eyes makes her forget anything she was about to say. He leans closer and before she has time to process what's happening, his lips meet hers and butterflies erupt in her stomach. Any coherent thoughts become incoherent and it's like everything else disappears in the candy-like sweetness of this moment.

He pulls away and is about to say something when she closes the gap once more. "Don't stop," she murmurs before kissing him again.