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She's up, eyes flying open, a half-strangled scream in her throat, gasping desperately for air.
Her heart races frantically. Her hands are clenching her nightgown and sweat is rolling down her skin. She's here, she thinks, and she needs to get up, out, and away-
A pair of strong arms wrap around her waist, trapping her. She whips around, hair flying, and screams.
Golden eyes greet her, crinkled with concern. She screams because she knows those eyes. Those are Varg's eyes staring at her, Varg's eyes next to her. She thought she had watched them fade away but they're here, he's here, and she needs to move, to get away from him, but terror has struck her like lightning and she's paralysed and she can't do anything besides gape at him in horror. His mouth is moving, making out something, but she can't hear anything.
A low buzz rings in her ears and she knows, knows that she's going to die here, by the hand of her mother and in the hands of Varg. And that thought terrifies her, and where is Fritz, Fritz should be here by now, where is he?!
"-cette, Lucette, can you hear me? Lucette!"
That voice. She knows that voice. Fritz. Where is he? "Fritz," she gasps out shakily and twists in Varg's arms, trying to look for him. But his arms are tight around her, not letting her move. She tries to look over his shoulder but his stupid silver hair is blocking her view and-
Wait. Silver hair. She narrows her eyes and leans back as far as possible in her captor's arms. Varg's golden eyes bore into hers in concern, his face framed by shaggy silver hair that catches the moonlight. Varg doesn't have silver hair. The only person she knows with silver hair is...
"Fritz," she breathes. Her hands fly out and hook behind his neck and she all but tackles him. His arms quickly close whatever distance she had put between them and are tugging her fiercely to his chest. "Fritz, you're here."
Fritz squeezes her with intensity. "I am, Lucette. I will always be here."
"Don't leave," she whispers, sniffing back tears.
"Never," he whispers back into her ear, gentle but firm. He pulls back, and gently wipes the tears in her eyes. "I will never leave you, Lucette."
She trembles in his arms and breathes his scent in. He smells like pine, with a hint of metal. She has grown to love that smell because it is his scent, the scent of her home. He's soft and gentle towards her, and her love for him pour out in waves.
Her breathing is still unsteady, and her heart rate is still spiked. "Can you please just hold me?" She asks shakily, holding her breath for his answer.
Her mother's words of never show weakness ring through her head and for a moment she feels like a fool for asking him, and is about to pull back, to apologise, then l e a v e, when his arms wrap around her again with a soft "of course" pressed against her hair and all those thoughts dissipate like smoke.
She doesn't know how long they stay there for, only that they do. Eventually, she finds herself getting tired again. She lets out a small yawn, and shifts into a more comfortable position against Fritz's chest.
"I love you," he murmurs against her hair.
No 'What happened, no 'What was it about', and no 'Do you want to talk about it'' because he knows she would rather not answer. Instead, it was just 'I love you'.
A sleepy smile crosses her face as her love for him grows even stronger. "I love you too," she mumbles against his shirt. Lulled by the feel of the steady beating of his heart, she quickly falls back into the firm grasps of unconsciousness.
She has no more nightmares for the rest of the night.