Private Tactical Retreat

[Aldric Laurent]

Aldric frowned, and watched as the fear on her face lessened. It was a harsh reminder of everything she had been through, and after they had promised to be safe for another, it felt like a cruel joke by fate to spring such a surprise on them. On her, especially.

"It's okay," He whispered, as she leaned against him. He coiled her arms around her protectively, to shield her from all the worry and heartache the galaxy had tried to give her, and had already given her, "It's okay…"

They sat like that for a few long moments, and Aldric reluctantly pulled away only as she did, leaning forward to join her in a tender kiss. At her apology, he chuckled softly, "Sorry for scaring you." It wasn't exactly something that was within his power to have avoided completely, but now he felt undeniably bad about it, even as he tried to inject that laugh into his apology. The cut stung, but was little more than a flesh wound, and not even a particularly deep one. Not as much as it could have been, anyway.

Her offer to leave was met with a look of worry, and sadness, "...You don't wanna see if there's anything else worth exploring down here?" She had seemed awfully interested in finding whatever might be left behind, and Aldric would've hated to turn away because of a spider. But as he looked again, leaving now was probably the best for her sake as much as his. And so he just nodded solemnly, "...Okay. Sure. Sounds nice…" Aldric put on a gentle, reassuring smile, and stood them both up.

Valery Noble​

 

[Valery Noble]

"You don't have to say sorry," Valery said softly in response to his apology. She knew why he said it - he had picked up on her fear and worries and wanted to comfort her. That meant a lot to her but none of this was his fault. As her adrenaline faded and things returned to normal, the only conclusion she could draw is that she should have turned back when she first sensed something.

But she didn't and now he was hurt.

"I should have been more careful." She was about to apologize in return but figured he wasn't going to accept it either. So instead, she just faintly smiled and enjoyed the protectiveness and warmth of his embrace quietly a moment longer.

In response to his hesitation about leaving, though, she looked back up into his eyes. It had been her request to go here but none of that earlier excitement was left, and all she seemed to want was just be with him.

Aldric quickly picked up on it.

"Sorry if it's...disappointing. I just." She paused and let out a deep sigh. "It's hard seeing you get hurt after what happened with Kahlil. So yeah... I'd like to just get you patched up, make some food and cuddle by a warm fire." Valery blushed and let him help them both up to their feet before reaching for one of his hands to hold it for a moment. "Let's get you out of here, hm?"

She looked up at him with a smile, but she really hoped she wasn't scaring him away with this nervous wnd overly protective behavior.

 

[Aldric Laurent]

Aldric held her a little longer, running a hand through Valery's hair, "I'm saying it anyway," He muttered. Fault or not, he just wanted her to start feeling better. When she tried to make further judgments of herself, he just gently shook his head against her shoulder.

There was nothing left here for them. Not anymore. And so Aldric accepted that it was time to move on. With everything Valery had been through, this was probably the most distressing series of events that could have happened, barring an even worse injury. "I understand, Val," He assured, taking hold of her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze, "Let's."

Aldric smiled back, and together they headed back the way they had come. It was the kind of stress he had accepted would likely be a part of this relationship going forward. Dating Valery, a widow, was going to have its own unique hurdles that they would have to overcome, but it didn't change how he felt about her. Aldric truly believed they had something special, and he was more than willing to help shoulder this burden.

Kamparas wasn't exactly the quaint little getaway they had anticipated, but they at least got through it together. Maybe the next few days would make up for it.

Valery Noble​