Even Knights Need to Rest
You yawned, feeling arms wrapped around you. You recognized the touch, the strong softness, the solidity of her. You had fallen asleep alone, but now, Jinx was curled up next to you, breathing softly and holding you as tight as possible. You tried to turn a little without waking her, shifting your position so you can wrap an arm around her as well. But despite your slow and meticulous movements, she stirred and woke. Her voice was rough from her sleep. Her words rushed out, even before she opened her eyes. "Did you sleep well? I love you. Do you like waking up next to me? Sorry I snuck into your room. I was scared, and I figured you wouldn't mind."
"Scared?" I asked groggily. She kinda sounded like she was rambling. This wasn't the first time this had happened. It used to only happen every once in a while, but now you woke up next to her every other morning. Sleepy Jinx has always been a lot more openly affectionate than usual. You found it endearing, so you never made her leave.
She nodded, hiding her face in your shirt. "Mm-hm. I had a nightmare." She mumbled, her nails scratching your back lightly. You enjoyed the sensation. Her nails are longer than yours. "I didn't want to be alone,"
I frowned. "What was the nightmare about?" You asked gently, your hands stroking her hair gently, twirling her braids and playing with the puft of hair she left to frame her face. She didn't push you away, but she shivered. From the nightmare or your touch, you weren't sure, but she didn't protest or move away, so you continued your gently steady movement.
"Just...Mylo and Claggor coming to bother me again. They can't even leave me alone in sleep." She exhaled shakily. "And these weird shadow people. Like large monsters coming to kill me. I couldn't get away from them."
You moved your hand from her hair to her back and rubbed it gently. She didn't talk about her nightmares or her hallucinations often, although you knew they got severe at times. You had come to her in the middle of her delusions, sometimes screaming, sometimes twitching and muttering. There wasn't much you could do during those times, but you found that just being there helps. You sometimes touched her lightly in those moments, and although she wasn't sure if it was you or her hallucinations, your soft reassurance helped ground her. "Well, they're not here now." You murmured and said jokingly, "I'll fight them if they come back."
Jinx giggled in your arms. She relaxed a little as she looked at you with a small smile. "You would? You're such a brave hero." She said playfully. Her tone was a lot lighter. Joking about it helped her focus less on her emotions and focus more on you, which helped her stability. Plus, she was quite funny when she wanted to be.
"I know, right? Your knight coming to save her damsel in distress."
She chuckled and rolled her eyes, poking your side playfully. "Hey, I am not a damsel in distress. I can take care of myself, thank you very much. She protested in mock offense.
"I'm sure you can, love," You rolled your eyes jokingly. She poked you again, harder this time, her nail stabbing your side. You laughed.
"Oh shut up. I can take on a whole army of monsters if I wanted to."
"But you're in my bed because you were scared of them?" You said between your laughing. She huffed in response, pressing her lips together in a pout.
"Yeah, well, that's different. I was still tired when I had the nightmare, so it doesn't count. Plus, your bed is comfy." She tried to act tough, but she was still clinging to you, tucking her head into the crook of your neck.
"Is it because I'm in it?" You said, a cocky grin on your face. You had finally stopped laughing, even though your stomach hurt from how hard you were laughing before. She rolled her eyes, but you didn't miss the red tint in her cheeks of embarrassment and fluster.
"Maybe. You make the bed more comfortable. Don't let it go to your head."
You laughed again at her blushing. Who's the tough criminal of Zaun, now? You thought triumphantly to yourself. She saw the look on your face and grumbled, hiding her face in your shirt again. "Oh, shut up. I can still kick your ass."
"I don't doubt it," You said, still grinning. Although you were having fun with Jinx, the sleepiness made your eyes heavy and your limbs slow. You wanted to stay awake, but your head lolled back as you closed your eyes, not falling asleep but resting your eyes. She smiled, nuzzling closer to you. Her body molded into yours as she held you tightly, her fingernails still tracing patterns on your back. She had put her hand underneath your shirt so you felt her fingers on your bare skin. It made you relax, encouraging sleep to come even more.
"You can sleep, you know. I'll keep the monsters away."
"I'm the knight, not you." You said with a soft smile, peeking an eye open at her. Her eyes were a soft blue, the shimmer not changing the tint of her eyes. You had noticed a while back that the shimmer got brighter the more upset and emotional she was, and right now, she wasn't upset at all. She was relaxed and peaceful, which was an incredible sight to see, considering she was normal a bundle of chaos. Her hand ruffled your hair, her eyes glinting.
"Yeah, yeah. You're the knight, I get it. But even nights need rest, silly. Go back to sleep." She said gently.
I smiled, bringing my lips to her forehead once before letting myself relax, holding her head with one hand and resting my other on her back, my thumb tracing lazy circle on the lower half of her spine. The warmth of her body was comforting to me. She smiled at you, and you could feel her eyes quietly watching you as you slept. She kissed your cheek affectionately, her lips so soft and gentle that you barely noticed. She then snuggled closer to you, positioning her head right above your heart on your chest.
"Sweet dreams, my knight. I'll be right here when you wake up."