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Before Kieran had left on his ‘super special vanguard mission that he swore he’d tell us all about when he got back’, he laid down a few ground rules; first and foremost, don’t break the windows again. Second, really, no, don’t break the windows, it doesn’t matter that it was funny and it made ten guardians bust into the room in a panic- Ariz stop laughing- don’t do it. Third, be safe and don’t let another Ghaul incident happen while he’s gone.
The usual stuff.
Despite hundreds of assurances that they’d be fine, and numerous promises from Ariz to keep Saint-7 and himself out of trouble, Kieran still made Ariz and Saint both promise to be home every night instead of off meditating or doing whatever it was that Ariz got up to at night. After swearing on their ghost’s light that they’d keep their promises, Kieran left with a few forlorn looks back at the two of them and at least three kisses to each of them. Then it was just the two of them.
It wasn’t like Saint-7 didn’t spend a lot of alone time with Ariz, but recently things had been… tense. Just in general honestly. He partially attributed that to why Kieran was so hesitant to leave. After what happened on Mars, something just seemed to be off with Ariz. A shadow hung over him that neither had really seen before and he spent more and more time consumed in study and meditations than ever before.
It had even gotten Ikora’s attention after a while, resulting in Ariz being sent home and Saint getting clear orders to make sure he got some kind of rest.
Ariz’s pout when he locked all his grimoires and other such texts away in the back of his closet was honestly both the most hilarious and adorable thing Saint could honestly say he’d ever seen. A grown warlock pleading for at least
one
ancient, and possibly forbidden, text to have around for ‘light reading’ and outright huffing when denied was just as amusing and terrifying as it sounded- making it Ariz only made it adorably terrifying.
Luckily, they had an entire closet full of books they’d amassed over the years to pacify the adorably terrifying warlock with. Saint honestly didn’t know which one Ariz was reading at the moment, too consumed playing with the warlock’s dark purple hair and watching whatever came up on their holo-tv thing. The pair were all snuggled up together, lying chest to chest with legs tangled together while Saint reclined against the arm of the couch, Ariz’s book somehow floating just behind the back of Saint’s head. Honestly, Ariz amazed Saint sometimes by just how he managed to find snuggling with
metal
to be comfortable, but hey, he wasn’t complaining.
Another mind-numbingly bright and colorful commercial popped up, Saint questioningly mumbling under his breath as to why they even had commercials anymore, and the exo finally had enough with the tv, switching it off and pressing his face into Ariz’s shoulder- prompting a quiet laugh.
“Scootch, I wanna snuggle,” Saint pulled lightly on the back of his shirt, smiling in only the way he could as Ariz pushed himself up and scooted down slower than necessary. He squished him close the second he relaxed, humming happily to himself and pressing his mouth against his cheek in a mock kiss. “Love you.”
“Love you too,” Ariz smiled, bumping their heads lightly together. “Now let me read, apparently there’s spirits in this cabin.”
Saint couldn’t help but roll his eyes, absentmindedly playing with Ariz’s hair again and letting his thoughts drift off.
The cold air of Mars, the rumbling of the worm god, the stricken look on Ariz’s face as he heard the whispers of voices none of them could.
Saint gave Ariz a squeeze, opting to just hold him as close as he could for the time being. They talked about it all once the danger had passed, Ikora theorized that because of Ariz’s connection to the void, it made him more susceptible hearing the worm god’s whispers. Similarly to how Saint’s connection with all things arc made the infinite forest such an interesting experience. Still, the look on Ariz’s face when he realized they couldn’t hear it- when he realized he was facing whatever he was being told alone… how he’d been acting ever since. It all made a part of Saint wish Kieran told to Vanguard to suck it and stayed home where his light alone could keep any darkness away.
It was good for Kieran though, the whole Mars incident shook him up as well- hell, the Osiris incident shook him up. First getting trapped in the forest after he and Ariz got kicked out when Sagira was taken, then discovering that before his rebirth he had been involved with the Clovis Bray corporation- but not knowing how… He needed time to just be a guardian again. So, Saint would have to be bright enough in the meantime, scare away any darkness or random person with a job for them to do. Mainly the latter. A big gun really helped with the latter.
Saint once again smiled in only the way he could, relaxing once again against the couch and closing his eyes- only for them to snap open when he heard the fluttering crash of a book falling.
“Ariz are you-” He cut himself off mid word, blinking at the fast asleep Warlock in his arms. Even his ghost floated out to look down at him, eye crinkling up in a smile before vanishing once again. “Well aren’t you adorable.”
Ariz mumbled a little in his sleep, shifting a little to get more comfortable before relaxing again with a quiet huff. Saint gave him a gentle squeeze, without a doubt certain that if he could he’d be grinning. Rest achieved-
sleep
achieved! Ariz hardly slept, only letting himself sleep if he felt comfortable enough to do so, so score one for Saint-7.
Saint leaned over to press his mouth against his forehead in a mock kiss before letting his head fall back against the couch, closing his own eyes again with a happy hum. May as well get some sleep himself, they could find something to do when they woke up…
Screams were never a good thing to wake up to. Especially when paired with a thrashing warlock in your arms.
Saint was awake pretty quickly, instinctively squeezing Ariz closer and sitting up the best he could. Without even thinking, slews of comforting words began to pour from his mouth as he tried to figure out what was even happening. Ariz was hyperventilating, tears were running down his face, his eyes were open and face stricken-
Saint screamed himself when a shimmering hand of life-eating-void barely missed his face, grabbing Ariz’s hand and cursing to himself with that just prompted another scream. Muttering a slew of curses that would make even the oldest guardian blush, Saint released Ariz the most he could to sit up more properly. Quickly he wrapped his arms back around Ariz, pulling him close to his chest and looking to his ghost with nothing but desperation.
“Calling Kieran now-”
“No, no, no,” Ariz’s voice rasped out, hands pushing weakly against his chest. “I’m fi- I’m fine, I’m awake, don’t- you don’t need to-”
“Hey, hey, it’s ok, it’s ok,” Saint immediately began, letting Ariz push himself away but finding himself running his hands along the warlock’s back and arms nervously. “Ghostie, don’t call him, it’s all good, see? No need to worry Mr Cotton Candy head…”
Hesitantly, his ghost relaxed, floating over closer and looking down at Ariz with worry.
“Night terrors,” Ariz’s own ghost piqued up, floating just a bit above him. “Normally I’d call Kieran, but since you were here Saint I… Regardless, he’ll be fine, shaken up, but fine. They happen all the time. Well. Not
all
the time. Usually only when he sleeps. I haven’t seen him have one when not asleep, come to think of it, that’d be very worrisome.”
“It’s all good, no need to ramble I hear ya and I got him,” Saint rambled himself, rubbing Ariz’s back in circles while they both caught their breath. “Just… turn on the lights, ok? We’re just gonna… turn on the lights and both calm down a bit.”
The lights slowly came on, bathing the room in a warm yellow. Saint carefully maneuvered Ariz to sit on the couch so he could sit more comfortably next to him, never having a hand off of him the entire time.
“I’m fi-fine, really, just fine.” Ariz mumbled, fidgeting with the hem of his shirt. “Just need to- I’m just- gotta calm down is all…”
“I know, I know,” Saint mumbled back, “You’re ok, just calming down, take your time, it’s all good, y’know? Take as long as you need to calm down, no rush, no hurry… Just… deep breaths and all that.”
Ariz couldn’t help but snort at that, managing a shaky smile, finally just clenching his hands together and leaning into Saint’s half-embrace- his thoughts still racing and heart still pounding in his chest. Saint rubbed his arm almost obsessively, obviously to calm himself down as much as trying to calm Ariz down.
“I’m okay,” Ariz finally spoke up, clearing his throat and reaching over to cover Saint’s hand with his own- stopping his motion. “I’m ok now, it’s all good.”
“Are you sure?” Saint asked hesitantly, “I mean, you’d know I just- I’m worried.”
“I know, but I’m really okay,” Ariz managed a smile, squeezing his hand gently and taking a deep, shaky breath. “Little shaken up, but ok.”
“Oh, ok, good, good…” Saint visibly relaxed, slumping his head against Ariz’s shoulder with a sigh. “Thank the Traveler, I had no idea what to do or what I was doing, I was scared I’d somehow kill you.”
Ariz laughed a little at that, resting his head against Saint’s own and taking another slow breath. Just focus on the rise and fall, ground yourself in reality again, it’s all okay again…
“That’d be impressive if you somehow did,” He mumbled, “It’d be less surprising if I accidentally killed you- I mean, night terrors paired with nova bomb? Not the best idea.”
“I mean, you did almost devour my face with your hand,” Saint pointed out, “Just purple swirly vortexness, coming right at my face. Screamed louder than you did.”
“I remember, it woke me up,” Ariz laughed breathlessly, “Glad I didn’t kill you or your face.”
“You and me both.” The pair fell silent, Ariz focusing once again on grounding himself and Saint trying desperately to calm his still pounding heart- pseudo-heart? Whatever was pounding in his chest, he was trying to calm it down.
Saint knew Ariz had nightmares, he’d woken him up from some nightmares and gotten Kieran for others, but he’d never seen
this
. His thoughts swirled back to the look on Ariz’s face, flashing back to Mars, to Earth, to- He shook his head the best he could and pulled the warlock closer. He was
petrified
, he’d only seen that look in moments that’d stay with them forever- in losing the light, in almost losing each other-
“Are you okay?” Ariz’s question shook Saint out of his thoughts,
“I should be asking you that,” Saint got a look for that, sighing in response and hiding his face back in Ariz’s shoulder. “I was scared, am still a little scared, worried about you, but going to be just okay.”
Silence fell over them both again, Ariz reaching up to sling an arm over Saint’s shoulder’s the best he could and return the side hug. It was quiet for a good long while before Saint’s ghost appeared again.
“Ikora is trying to patch in- should I let her?” He asked, shifting nervously.
“Go ahead,” Ariz smiled, sitting up a little more.
“Saint- Ariz- I’ve got guardians going around saying they heard screams from the both of you earlier tonight, is everything alright?” Ikora’s calm and even voice settled down over the room, tension lifting off of it as the pair relaxed.
“Yes, everything’s fine, just some night terrors is all.” Ariz answered, Saint finally sitting up and meeting his gaze.
“Ah, I understand, I trust the situation is being handled?”
“Yes, all is well, my apologies for-”
“Don’t. You have nothing to apologise for, Guardian. Relax, you two, I’ll take care of the worried public out here.”
“Thanks.” Saint managed, letting go of Ariz only to take his hand. His ghost fizzled out when the call ended, leaving the two alone again.
“Well,” Saint said after a good minute, “I’ll take those stupid commercials we as a race should have evolved past now.” He reached for the remote, Ariz rolling his eyes and squeezing his hand. It wasn’t long before he was planting himself in the exo’s lap, resting his head back on his shoulder to watch another frighteningly colorful ad pop up on screen- gasping in scandal along with Saint. He pretended not to notice when arms wrapped nervously around his middle, holding him like he may fall apart at any minute. He placed his arms over Saint’s own, squeezing them the best he could in reassurance.
Breath in, out. Rise, fall. Stay in the now.
Saint squeezed him gently back, bringing a smile to Ariz’s face. Yeah, he was going to be just fine.
BONUS:
Kieran smiled as he unlocked the door, excited to see his two favorite guardians after three days of not even getting a chance to call them.
“Guys, I’m-”
“HONESTLY, this time is wasn’t even like five minutes of the show!” Saint shouted, glaring at the old watch he held in his hands.
“This is an affront to all those reborn from light- this is an act of the
darkness
itself!” Ariz shouted before falling back into the cushiony seats of the couch.
“Exactly! Evil, pure, pure evil!” Saint slumped down with him, the two glaring at the annoyingly bright tv screen.
“Home?” Kieran finished, blinking at the two owlishly as they both shot up as they realized he was there. Before they could do anymore, he took a step back and closed the door again. Maybe Zavala needed some help with the walls or strikes or something…
“No, Kieran, come back!”
“Look what we became without you- don’t leave us again!”
Fin