#ss code green

“My dear, you shouldn’t have.”

“You haven’t opened it yet,” she fires back with all the energy of a five year old, breathless with anticipation.

Another chuckle leaves his lips as he sits up properly, turning his attention to the small wrapped box. She sits next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder in an unconscious gesture of affection. Her ease of this motion speaks of time and faith, and it never fails to make him breathe.

Inside the box is a chain.

On the chain is a shield.

It looks rather like the Aegis item from the Institute- oh.

Night knows exactly what he holds now, for he can see her name carefully etched into the back, as can he see the symbols for protection and defense carefully inscribed into the front in such a way that they only show under a certain angle of light - symbols that no doubt Alexandra had carved herself. The item glimmers with a faint emerald sheen, and he knows it’s not just the sigils in the object, but her magic as well.

This custom is not something he has personally shared with Alexandra, but-

“I learnt about this when I asked Iris, a friend of mine, what I could get you. I needed to-” her voice wavers, and for once, Alexandra looks uncertain. She has no idea how to explain.

That’s okay, though, because Night knows, and so he unfastens the clasp with great ceremony, offering the necklace to her and turning so she could put it on. She goes still, and for a while there is only silence as she hangs the chain around his neck where it should be.

When this is complete he sweeps her into his arms, gently confessing his love for her with a kiss. She returns it, and it is only then that he feels the wetness from her cheeks as he cups them. Without answering he pulls away, wrapping his arms around her. She buries her face in his shoulder and exhales deeply, and he feels her tears as they dampen his shirt.

I love you too.

He had indeed been planning to do some paperwork, but tonight he’s sure that it can wait.

"Come on."

It's only then that she realises that he's speaking to her, his form relaxed in the doorway, his hands extended towards her. Her respnse to step towards him is almost automatic - it hadn't been long at all before she'd equated Night with safety. His hands wrap around hers and he gently draws her across the threshold until she takes her first steps back into the home she once knew.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" he asks her quietly, a hand looping around her waist.

She doesn't lean towards him, though - Alexandra pulls away, walking from the front to the back, scanning the place in an almost methodical fashion. Night trails behind her, somewhat bemused, and if Alexandra had turned around at any point she would've seen the emotions that were plain on his face as he stared at her back: A strange grief for the person he'd lost, a quiet nostalgia for the memories built in this very home...but also a deep, pure love for the woman she'd become that he was now following.

It's only when she halts that he stops too. She's before the doorway into the lounge, her gaze fixed upwards on the frame, the oddest expression on her face. Night dares to step forward and catch her attention, his hands rising to grasp hers. "Is something wrong?" he asks, his voice quiet so as to not disturb the mood she's in.

And she turns to him, a strange light in her eyes - are those tears? - her face shining with something that makes the breath catch in his throat, and replies with, "...I liked Christmas."

And though she's only said three words, Night knows exactly what she's remembered right then - and he can't help but lean in, his hands sweeping up to catch her face as he kisses her with a bright tenderness born of love. And when he finally pulls away, he only leans in again, and just before Alexandra shuts her eyes, she sees him rests his forehead against hers, his own eyes brilliant with unshed tears.

"...I love you," he whispers.

And so she wraps her arms around him, leaning into him in response, and replies in turn: "I love you too."

No, she overheard Renzus setting up what sounded like a big operation, and without hesitation she requested to accompany him. After all, it sounded like the final confrontation, as cliche as it were, and she needed to see this through. 

The bustle of Crows is soothing in a way - everybody is working like the cogs of a well oiled machine. Not a move is made that doesn't contribute to something. Meanwhile Alexandra finds herself a clear space in the now-empty living room, and takes a tailor's seat on the mat. Renzus is in the safehouse somewhere, no doubt with orders to give and plans to make, and Night is...she doesn't know, but he's assured her that he wouldn't leave the property, and that's something she will hold him to. It takes but a moment to exhale the stress of the recent attack, and her mind clears. Very soon the woman is deep in meditation, sitting on the carpet. Her mind is busy, tidying up her magic and tugging strands back into a more orderly fashion here and there. That done, she wavers at the borders to her own mind, well aware of the foggy places and the possible things that could set her off...no. Not today.

Not now.

Footsteps interrupt her reverie, and Alexandra slowly rises from the depths of her contemplations. Her eyes slowly open and she looks up. Night watches her from the doorway, much like he had before when he'd come to see her just after Marin had untangled her mind. Alexandra slowly rises, and steps towards him, wrapping her arms around his waist and leaning into him with a sort of timid trust much like a shy deer. Perhaps it startles him - she doesn't know. All she knows is that she wants to rest her face in his shoulder and just breathe for a moment - and so she does.

When this is over, she decides, she can sort out her mind then - and she knows that Night will be there to hold her hand when she takes that step.

But, for now, they have to be battle ready. For now, all she wants is to hold him while everyone prepares - while they prepare.

"I'm yours," she whispers, unsure of why she needs to say that, only that it makes her feel stronger.