Eyes Up, Guardian

Chapter 27

"You may not think so, but you help him plenty. Kylie and I have been noticing the way you two help each other out. He gives you strength, you give him an anchor." He explained to her. "You complement each other." Tessa smiled at that, and a few moments of silence passed before Echo spoke again. "You love him." He said, though it was still a bit of a question, waiting for her to confirm it.

Her cheeks flushed as she smiled at him. "I do." She said, "I mean, I've never loved anyone before like this, do you think I told him too early?" She asked him. "Do you think he felt... pressured to say it back?"

Echo's frame shook from side to side as though he were shaking his head. "No." He said firmly, "Damian is honest, if he didn't love you he wouldn't have said it back. I know that much for sure."

She nodded and sighed, deep in the back of her mind, she'd known so as well. But hearing it from another person soothed something inside her, especially since Damian was gone so soon after she'd told him. She knew it didn't correlate, but worry was an infection, quelled only by her constant reminders to shove it away.

"You're right." She said, sitting up and tossing the blankets off her as she climbed out of the bed. "Let's go see about my dress."

Tessa, happy to go for a walk through the city, showered, dressed and headed out about an hour later. She shopped for the upcoming Dawning, searching for gifts for her friends to make the celebration a little brighter. Unfortunately, she didn't find anything that really struck her as meaningful gifts for her friends, but she realized that if they were going into the Skotadi territory in the next few days, she might be able to buy them weapons from the blacksmith there, and perhaps Damian could help her infuse them with light.

She was able to find herself a few sweaters she liked and even a scarf, as well as a few simple items she thought would be nice around her apartment. Thankfully, she enjoyed a bit more success on the gift front than she had in the beginning of her outing, and her luck continued from there. When she made it to the tailor where she'd gotten her dress, Serena told her the dress had already been paid for and that she couldn't return it- not that Tessa had wanted to.

***

Damian returned late that evening, and they left for the Skotadi territory the next morning. They'd flown the ship as far as they could, then had docked the ship and Damian had flown them most of the way in, though they were forced to stop earlier than they would have liked due to harsh winds and snow. Tessa didn't mind it, though, as they were able to find a cave not too far out of their way, and when Tessa explored it, she found a hot spring bubbling not too far in, the water warm, though a bit smelly.

"Will you be able to control your light without a bond once we make it into the territory?" Tessa asked Damian as she sat within the pool, the heat pushing the cold that had seeped into her bones after the long day.

"I should be okay." Damian said, laying on the ground a few feet away, his wings spread over a patch of snow he'd brought in to numb their aching before he would join her in the spring without them.

"How?" Tessa asked, her tone a bit prodding. He smiled at her, at her not believing him. He didn't believe himself either.

"Well," He said, shifting a bit and letting out a sigh as a bone cracked underneath him, "I enjoy night flights and the nearby cliffs are prone to lightning storms." He told her.

She laughed, the sound echoing in the space. Traveler, he loved her. If she hadn't said it first the other night, after that awful party, he would have, he was sure of it. The words had been just a moment off his lips, like she'd stolen them from him, not that he minded, of course. Kylie had gushed about it to him on his way to Mars. He'd never seen her gush like that, over him and Tessa. It was endearing, even when all her talk brought to mind his worries of rushing Tessa, of messing something up. Every day, every touch brought him wanting more. He felt like he and Tessa were connected somehow, her very being drawing him in, bringing him closer in ways he'd never experienced before. He would wait for her, of course, but he wanted her, and more than that he wanted to be hers. He couldn't hope to explain it.