Nocturne doesn't get to speak another word before he's forcibly dragged back into their residence. As his vision swims alarmingly, a gentle hand steadies him, and for a moment panic crept up on him. For what, he couldn't possibly name, but it was there all the same.
"Nine, it's not what it looks like," he blurts out, now beyond panicked.
Nocturne looks into Nine's deep, blue eyes, and he –
"Isn't it?" Nine said, her voice deceptively calm.
The words just send Nocturne deeper into his panic, and when Nine sighs, with the faintest tinge of exhaustion in her voice, Nocturne all but breaks.
Nine breathes out with as much patience as she can. She can already see her Nox's eyes blur with fatigue that hadn't been there before, most likely because he was finally back in a place that he deemed safe and free from the grips of their war.
Without another word, she bodily hauls her partner into the bed, pressing him down pointedly. When he makes no move to resist, she nods in satisfaction, proceeding to pull the blankets around him, and, dare she say it, fusses until she feels something hard within her abate at his obedience.
Just as quickly, she pulls a chair from her interspatial ring, sitting in it as she directs pointed eyes at Nocturne.
"Nine - " he says, struggling out from under the blankets. He lifts his head off the -divine- pillow, trying to clarify things.
Nine reaches forward and pushes his head back down with her index finger, eyeing him in displeasure.
"Nin - "
Push.
"Ni - "
Push.
Nine lets out a huff of laugher when Nocturne grabs her index finger and directs a glare at her, but it's much too cute to be a glare. He looked more like he was batting at her finger petulantly like a kitten.
"Sleep," Nine says gently, and she sees Nocturne visibly relax.
Nocturne let out an indignant huff, and says, "No!"
Nine glares at her stubborn husband. Was he really going against her orders to sleep now? Even the dead could see that this man was practically swaying on his feet. He needed all the sleep he could get! Especially since he was more liable to go around working himself till he ran out of magic completely before ever stopping. No. Even then, he would still help out with things like manual labour.
"Not until I clarify things with you," Nocturne amends, the fight draining from his tone.
Nine raised an eyebrow. "Really. So, you didn't throw magic on the walls at the frontline directed on the undead until you were completely drained dry of magic when I specifically told you to leave at least a bit?" she said, her voice as dry as the desert.
"No – well, yes, but!"
"So, you didn't move yourself to the medic tent to continue treating people when you were already about to drop when I told you to come back to sleep before you ran yourself into the ground again?" Nine continued, her feelings bursting out of her.
"No – yes! But that's not what I wanted to clarify with you," Nocturne said, trailing off sheepishly.
"And, what exactly is it that you want to clarify?" Nine said coolly, crossing her arms, settling back in the armchair.
This time, when Nocturne makes to sit up, she doesn't stop him, wondering what exactly he thought he was clarifying. Wasn't the most important thing the promise he made to her that he broke? Instead of trying to keep his promise now, what exactly was he trying to say here?
"I didn't cheat on you with that medic, okay! I would never cheat on you!"
Nine, "???"
The pure confusion that bubbles up eradicates all the remaining anger and sadness that had been lingering in her chest like a bad infection. The words he said were so random that she suddenly felt like they weren't on the same page at all.
"What medic?" Nine questions carefully, baffled. Since when had she ever accused him of cheating on her?
This time, it's Nocturne that stares at her, stunned. "I – huh?"
Nine furrows her brows as she thinks back about where she found him, digging deeper into the memory as it clicks into place. She barely withholds a snort. "Oh. Her. Why would I ever think that you would be cheating on me with her?" she says, raising a brow. To be completely honest, even now, she couldn't remember the medic's face at all. She hadn't even registered her presence in the first place.
The picture of disdain Nine makes causes Nocturne to lose his breath as he stares at the otherworldly visage that Nine makes whenever she looks at him. Even with the slightest tinges of anger lingering in her eyes, Nocturne could never feel the love he felt for anyone else.
"Then… what exactly are you angry about?" Nocturne questions, baffled.
That was the wrong thing to say, because Nine's face darkened.
"Indeed," she says slowly, her voice dripping with fury. "What exactly could it be? Maybe, just yesterday, you who promised me you would come back right after you finished on the frontlines to rest for a while? Do you even remember?"
Nocturne pauses before rapidly paling. "Ah," he says. "I'm sorry, Nine! I just got caught up in the flurry of work, and - "
Nine holds up a hand and stops him before he gets too far. "I don't want excuses. What I want is the assurance that you'll keep your word to me in the future. Do I have it?"
"Yes," Nocturne says immediately, relief flooding deep as it seeps into his very bones.
Nine finally smiles gently at him for the first time that night, and Nocturne feels like the world has righted itself again. This time, when she pushes him back down onto the bed, he willingly goes, lying back on the soft, soft pillow.
When Nine climbs into bed next to him, Nocturne turns to face her, looking at his dear husband's features that contained the hints of fatigue. He feels a sharp stab of guilt, realizing that just like himself, Nine was also overworking herself.
She had probably wanted to relax together to get rid of the fatigue plaguing them, but instead, she had come back to their residence only to find that he had broken his promise.
Seeing the guilt on Nocturne's features, Nine slid a thumb on his cheek, pressing kisses to his eyelids. "My darling Nox," she said, her voice soft. Had he not been a Vampire, he would not have heart her words. "There may be reasons why I'm angry with you, and you with me, but I'll never entertain the thought that we would be disloyal to each other."
Nocturne gave a small nod, still feeling slightly fragile from the emotional rollercoaster he just went through.
Nine smiled. "Do you even know how you look at me?" Nine questioned, exchanging soft kisses with her beloved.
Sensing Nocturne's puzzlement, she continued. "You look at me like I hung the moon and the stars. You look at me as if I created the sun, blessed the lands, and descended from the heavens. How could I ever think that you would be disloyal to me? I love you. I trust you. Don't you trust me as well?"
Nocturne surged forward, pressing his lips against hers. His cheeks were flushed a deep shade of red, but he felt pleased. He never realized that was how he had looked at Nine, but he wouldn't have it any other way. "Of course!"
"See?" Nine murmured, hugging him. She pressed his hand to her chest. Nocturne's fingers twitched as he felt how hard her heart was beating, just for him. "It's always like this."
Nocturne simultaneously felt blessed and pleased at the same time, breaking into a smile.
"Besides," Nine continued. "Even if I know you won't cheat on me, it doesn't mean that other people won't tempt you to try. I'll take great pleasure in breaking them of their hopes," she said, a dark smile lingering on her lips.
Nine looked at Nocturne's dazed expression and felt that he was adorable.
"Sleep," she said, brushing his hair.
Almost immediately, Nocturne drifted off to sleep. Nine traced the dark smudges under his eyes, and let herself fall into the arms of slumber, just as her wife was.
Tomorrow would be another day that they would face together.