Page 153 of To Fight and To Fold

"You okay?" Aaryn asked, and pulled Runa close with an arm over her shoulders.

"Yeah." She nodded, but leaned into Aaryn anyway, stiff at first. "Just a lot, recently."

"I know," Aaryn agreed.

They let the flames warm them as the night went long. Someone began strumming a tune, and Aaryn's lids grew heavy. She met Thea's gaze through the peaks of fire lapping at the air, and she blinked⁠—

"Hey," Thea said, and Aaryn felt first the weight of Runa, who roused next to her. "Let's go get comfy."

Aaryn took the hand Thea held out, the world around her seemingly heavy. As she got to her feet, she let the weight of it carry her into Thea, whose arm wrapped around Aaryn's waist to steady her, bicep firm as she caught her, not effortlessly but with purpose.

Cute, Aaryn thought, and laughed.

The fire popped. She heard Runa’s and Carissa's voices, the syllables of their speech slow and dripping with drink and the late hour as they trailed away from the fire somewhat sloppily, and maybe a bit loudly for the calming crowd.

Thea chuckled, warm and syrupy at their antics. Aaryn felt her hand on her waist tighten as the earth dipped into a small incline. With the heat of the fire at their backs, they paused, giggles settling as they caught their breaths.

"Looks comfy enough to me," Thea sang, and pulled Aaryn toward the bed of clover.

Aaryn sank down with Thea. Carissa fell, her cackle a little sharp, choked off with an embarrassed yelp as they dissolved into muffled laughter. They playfully elbowed one another for precious space, and then groaned as Starspark and Stormstrike became the bookends of their little pile.

Once the giggles had passed and a comfortable rest dragged at them, Carissa murmured sleepily, full of mead and honesty, "Thanks for this. I needed it."

Runa, whose shoulder Aaryn felt at her side, stiffened.

Aaryn was equally uncomfortable with the sentiment. "Don't thank us," Aaryn said softly.

"Yeah," Thea echoed. "It's weird."

"Fine. Whatever. You're all terrible. Love you," Carissa muttered, and Aaryn heard the smile in her voice, the “oof” from Runa as Carissa snuggled up to her.

Aaryn's face hurt from smiling.

Something bumped against her hand, and she threaded her fingers with Thea's shy ones, rolling her head to the side to find Thea's eyes all shiny and happy, and she was still sleeveless, because Aaryn was wearing her jacket.

Aaryn was thinking about leaning up but that felt like a lot of work, and her gaze fell longingly to Thea's lips.

Thea read her mind and closed the distance, brushing their mouths together easily, smoothly, with a huff of a laugh that brushed over Aaryn's cheeks. It was silent, sweet, something that made her teeth ache and⁠—

"No kissing in the moss pit," Carissa drawled.

"It's clover," Thea corrected, and separated, smug and satisfied, while Aaryn burned to a crisp at her side despite being no closer to the fire than any of them.

She was a little mortified, but mostly excited, her belly queasy with the flight of a hoard of dragons.

"Goodnight," she squeaked out, and buried her face in Thea's shoulder. They fizzled into bubbly giggles for the last time before sleep claimed them, one by one.

32

ASLEEP

The sun was too bright, the morning chilly and sobering despite the heaviness of lingering alcohol.

Thea sat in the little clover nest with Aaryn still soundly sleeping behind her. Starspark had claimed her empty space with a small, delighted huff, curling around her back to get closer to Aaryn, his head nudged between where Thea's hip was resting against Aaryn's thigh.

As she stared down at Aaryn, breathing deeply with her hair cast wildly about the clover, the night came back to her in bubbles of humor and bursts of warmth.

Carissa and Runa were nowhere to be seen, and Stormstrike had likewise made himself scarce in the early morning. The dance of flames flickered through her mind, and Carissa's words echoed from their conversation by the fire. They'd stayed far from the conversation of Rolim until it was inevitable.