Yourself

Echoes of war

In the morning, when Reiner opened his heavy eyelids, the day was still very young. It seemed like they both somehow shifted in sleep - Reiner now had his nose and forehead pressed to Leda's back, who also shifted to her side at night. The blanket was tossed to the other side of the bed. It was slightly cool in the room. He knew he'd better move a little to grab a blanket but he didn't want to break this kind of friction he had with Leda now, so he laid in this position for a few more minutes, before finally getting into seated position to reach for the blanket.

At first Reiner covered Leda, making sure she's covered well, and only after that got under what was left of the blanket. He already slept much more than the usual mere sleeping hours he has, but he'd just like to stay in that proximity to Leda. He carefully pressed his forehead to the back of her head, not to wake her up. He'd like to spoon her, warm her in the cool morning, but he felt like they both must have crossed the line at night and he didn't want to do anything that might potentially be disliked by Leda. So he was already satisfied with what he had at the moment. It was the best morning he had had recently anyway, Reiner cannot even dream of more at the point.

He closed his eyes again, leaving a faint satisfied smile on his face.

As the first ray of light softly outlined the shapes of the surrounding revealing the secrets of the night just passed, a chilly breeze made Leda's skin crawl.

She was still half asleep when she felt a caring hand covering her with a blanket, then a light pressure on the back of her head

Slowly, Leda turned to her other side, switching position. She felt an unfamiliar presence in the bed next to her. A warm, soothing presence.

Her hands moved according to an instinctive drive and she ran them around the young man lying next to her, not daring to open her eyes in fear that doing so she would have discovered that it was all a dream.

She curled up against the warm body, smiling softly. It was all so wrong on so many levels, but she didn't care.

Against that young man's body she felt safe, calm. Protected.

Slowly she opened her eyes to meet his gaze, a lazy smile curled her lips immediately.

Unwilling to break the peaceful silence of the morning, Reiner simply hummed silently greeting Leda. He carefully adjusted the blanket, to cover Leda's shoulders and she won't get cold.

Reiner's hand instinctively moved to her face, as her soft smile almost invited him to caress her cheek. He moved his thumb up and down her cheek and smiled as well.

Reiner squeezed Leda's shoulder, covered with blanket, in another attempt to keep her warm and peaceful this morning. He looked at Leda's face, studying her features - he has already got used to this grown up, and at the same time still so small, version of Leda. Sometimes Reiner didn't know how all this vigour fit in that small shape of hers, and why his bulky shape didn't manage to fit the same amount of strength she had, which only resulted in him feeling half-empty and never enough.

Reiner recalled the night - that nightmare of his, which caught her attention, so that she came to that room, laid by his side to wake up this morning side by side felt like deus ex machina, though Reiner couldn't even imagine what kind of divine powers could have been used to brought them too to this moment.

Leda leaned into Reiner, relishing the feeling of his strong arms placed in her shoulder. The weight of his body was comforting, making her feel protected and cared for. She couldn't recall the last time she had felt so at ease.

Reiner's presence brought her a sense of calm that she rarely experienced. His warmth radiated through the blanket, enveloping her in a feeling of safety and security. As she closed her eyes and listened to the sound of his heartbeat, she let out a soft sigh of contentment. Her mind was clear, her thoughts calm, and for a moment, everything was right in the world.