He drifts awake to the murmur of quiet-familiar-safe voices in his ear and a slender, calloused hand combing through his hair. Everything is warm-safe-content, from the hum of Alexis’ soulmark to the press of spiritual power all around them, and he turns his head slightly to bury his face a bit more in his pillow.
“Good morning, sleepyhead,” Alexis says kindly, leaning over to press a kiss to his temple.
Erich grunts. Turns his head a bit more. Gets distracted by the muffled laughter that definitely isn’t coming from his wife.
“I told you,” Alexis says in amusement. “Given half the chance, Erich’s a night owl at heart.”
“I see that,” Degurechaff replies, and maybe he should be embarrassed, maybe he should force himself up, but…
Why should he bother?
(She’s seen him panicked and exhausted and wounded and helpless, and still she’s stood by him.)
(Why would this be the thing that changes her mind?)
Alexis’ fingers run through his hair again, fingernails lightly scraping his scalp, and he hums in enjoyment. He doesn’t have many opportunities to rest these days, and if they’re going to let him then he’s going to take advantage of it.
“Degurechaff and I have been discussing what happened yesterday evening and the training she’s going to need now,” Alexis informs him, knowing full-well that he’s perfectly capable of remembering even if he rarely responds when he’s in this state. “I offered to give her the basics she’s going to need for control, but you’re probably the best one to guide her after that.”
Erich makes an agreeable noise. Either of them could teach Degurechaff the basics, but if Alexis is offering then that’s fine by him. It frees him up to observe and make notes on how Degurechaff’s abilities differ from a Quincy’s, which will be important when they try to advance her training any further.
(He’s always been better at improvising and innovating, always trying to push the boundaries of his skills when he can…)
(It will be fascinating to see what Degurechaff is capable of.)
“She’s quite the talent,” Alexis continues, a hint of pride in her voice and contentment-pleasure-confidence sliding through their mark. “I’m certain she’ll have much of the basics mastered in no time at all.”
“I do my best,” Degurechaff demurs, then hesitates a moment before she blurts out, “Sir, I think you should take the day to rest and recover. I can handle the men just fine, and we’re not planning on doing more than sending a few scouts out. We’ve got the chance and I know most of the men are going to use it to sleep in, so…”
Alexis presses need-want-listen across their bond and Erich snorts at the heavy-handedness she’s displaying but… he can’t disagree.
(Almost collapsing after the Reaper left was… not a good sign.)
“He’ll listen,” Alexis says for him as he lets sleepy agreement-acceptance-calm drift back to her. “Thank you again, Colonel Degurechaff. Remember to practice what I taught you whenever you think of it today, it needs to become almost as automatic as breathing.”
“I will.” There’s a rustle, quiet steps that fade away, and then the presence pressing like a heavy blanket across his body lifts.
(She’s stronger than he thought.)
(Oh dear…)
“Well then, now that I’ve got you alone…”
Erich twitches as Alexis kisses his cheek, her hand sliding from his hair and down his neck and side. Her hand is warm against his skin when she slips it beneath his shirt, her fingers tracing absent patterns that makes him shiver. Love-warmth-intent presses like fire through their bond, making the breath catch in his throat and the half-hearted protests die unvoiced in his throat.
(They’ll just have to be quiet.)
(It has been far too long, after all…)
He stretches. Reaches out. Pulls Alexis on top of him and into a kiss.
The world can wait a few hours.
“So, what do you want to do about our little soulmate problem?” Alexis asks as she sits up, one hand braced on his chest and her back arching into a stretch.
Erich takes a moment to admire his wife as he considers the question, trying to find the words he needs to answer it. He’s… conflicted about the Reaper, fear and caution and a touch of hate warring with the hope he’d once had and the spark of fondness that had grown in those first few days.
(He can’t forget that he slept the best he had in years because of the man.)
(He can’t forget that he’s healed because of him…)
“I don’t know,” he says with a sigh, reaching to the side to fumble for his glasses. “He’s a Reaper, but…”
“Pretty odd actions for a Reaper,” Alexis finishes for him as she settles back, the hand on his chest sliding down to rest on his hip. “Think he has actually left them?”
“Or been kicked out.” Which Erich suspects is the more likely scenario. There’s something about the man and the emotions he can sense from him that make him suspect the current situation is not entirely of the Reaper’s free will. Not that that absolves the Reaper of anything; without knowing the reason, he can’t fairly judge anything about the situation.
(Can he even trust anything the Reaper says…?)
Alexis hums and glances aside, fingers drumming against his hip as she thinks. “We’ll need to talk with him, which will be… awkward. We’ll have to involve Colonel Degurechaff for translation, and even then…”
“Think he knows anything about emotion-sensing?” Erich asks on a whim, knowing exactly how Alexis feels about the imprecision of the method. The look she fixes him with is dust dry and exasperated, and he can’t resist a smirk in return. “Well, why not?”
“We’ll not leaving our decision to emotional interpretation, love,” she says firmly, leaning forward to jab a finger into his sternum. “We’re Quincy, not gods.”
Erich laughs and catches her hand, bringing it up to press a kiss to her knuckles. “I know, Lexi, I know. But it can help us get a better read on him and his reactions.”
“If we have a baseline for understanding, which we don’t,” she counters with a frown. “I’m not yet as connected to him as you are, but what I feel is… concerning.”
“The loyalty.”
She nods. “The loyalty. Even I can feel how centered upon you it is, and that’s…”
“I know.” He’d already thought it before; what sort of man is capable of that level of loyalty to someone they don’t even know?
(It makes him wonder if the Reaper knows any other way of living.)
(If he was like Degurechaff, pressed into service too young to understand the repercussions, and now…)
(Now he’s adrift and lost and hurting from the rejection.)
“If we could guarantee that loyalty for us…” Alexis murmurs almost absently, her gaze turning distant.
Erich can almost see the wheels spinning in her mind, the potential plans forming and being discarded and—
If he looks at the whole thing from an officer’s point of view, he absolutely agrees. A man with the abilities of a Reaper on their side would be a boon, would help them survive the aftermath of this endless, brutal war that’s spawned more Hollows than Erich has ever seen before. With luck and patience they might even be able to adapt their skills to be more akin to a Reaper’s as well, which would make their descendants less of a target.
(He’s not naive enough to believe that the Reapers will leave them be, but… anything is better than nothing.)
Still…
“He’s a person, not an asset,” he reminds her softly, squeezing her hand to draw her attention back to him. It’s a way of thinking that’s all too common amongst the brass — a way of thinking even he falls into more often than not — but this isn’t a military problem, this is a personal problem, and he cannot bring military coldness to the table if they want something that will last. “Abusing his trust like that puts us dangerously close to becoming a reflection of our ancestors, love…”
She stares down at him, gaze unreadable and her emotions a jangling, discordant mess, before she sighs and closes her eyes as she slumps forward. “I know,” she mutters, hand tightening around his. “I know,” she repeats, voice stronger as her emotions finally begin to settle. “We approach this honestly and together or not at all. I know.”
Erich rubs his thumb across the back of her hand, pressing warmth-love-reassurance down their connection. “We’ll need to step cautiously even so,” he says with a bit of a frown, mind circling back to his previous thoughts. “There’s a chance that being a Reaper is all he ever knew, and if they cast him aside…”
Alexis snorts and shakes her head. “No bet,” she grumbles, a touch of weary resignation slipping in. “With the sort of loyalty he feels to you? No bet.” She slowly straightens back up and fixes him with a steady look, asking, “Is that our decision then? We’re giving him a chance?”
“Do you… not want to?” Erich asks, wondering if he’s managed to read her wrong for the first time in years.
“I think it’s dangerous. I think Colonel Degurechaff is going to have opinions about this decision. I think we could end up welcoming a viper amongst our family and that history will not look kindly upon us for doing so, if any of our people survive the fallout.” Alexis takes a deep breath, shoulders pulling back and chin tipping up a bit, her gaze steady on him as she finishes, “But I also think we can’t let fear determine our actions. He gets one chance, and we don’t bring him home until we are certain that he’s ours.”
The reaction of their family to this is going to be… a mess, Erich knows. Having a soulmate who’s older than him is already fertile ground for rumors, but bringing a Reaper home? To the place where their children are supposed to be safe? Where their elderly retire? Where their wounded recover?
They’re going to have to step very, very carefully, especially if they want to try and leverage Reaper skills into their own repertoire.
But it all starts with a single step.
“Tonight?” Erich asks, feeling something settle in him as the uncertainty drops away and a path clears in front of him.
“Tonight,” Alexis agrees. “We’ll see where we go from there.”
He breathes out a sigh and presses a kiss to her hand. “Beloved,” he murmurs against her skin, letting his love for her rise to the surface.
She meets his love with her own. Leans down and claims his mouth in a kiss. Skims her fingers across his chin to cradle his head in a gentle hand.
For a moment, they breathe each other in and let the world fade away.
For a moment, they drown in love reflected.
But only for a moment.
There’s work to be done.
It’s time to get started.