The Cape Rouge, Port of Fandom, Monday

[betterthanaplan]

Right. So. This morning was a thing that had happened. On the one hand, Octavia seemed ready to talk, finally. On the other, it felt like Duke had just played "swap the important person in your life who's pissed at you".

"I'll make some coffee," Duke said, leading Octavia into the galley. "And . . . breakfast? Maybe?"

[for the girl]

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[betterthanaplan]

"It's fine," Duke insisted. "I get it. I fucked up. I wouldn't want to stay here if I were you either."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia's hands fell from his hair - only to land on his shoulders.

"I want to stay," she said firmly, shaking her head a little. "I just don't know if it's the best thing for us right now."

[betterthanaplan]

Duke finally made eye contact again. "I'm being an idiot again, aren't I."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia tried for a ghost of a smile. It was lopsided and a little wobbly.

"Maybe a little."

[betterthanaplan]

"I don't know why I do that."

It was painfully obvious to a lot of people why he did that.

"You're really not leaving?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia gave up on her efforts to get back to working on his hair, and slid her arms around him so she could press closer to him, instead.

"I'm really not leaving," she promised, her face tilted up towards him. "You can find me whenever you want. Ai swega klin, jaka.."

[betterthanaplan]

They'd get back to his hair in a minute. Right now, he was just going to kind of bury himself against her.

"I don't want to make you stay," he said, voice tight. "But I don't know what I'd do if you did leave."

[okteiviakom]

"Then don't make me," Octavia told him. Like she was actually asking him to. "Because last time... It was hard enough."

[betterthanaplan]

"Last time. . . ." Duke let out a soft, faintly bitter laugh. "Last time I should have done what you're doing. Made sure you knew I just needed a minute. Not forever."

[okteiviakom]

"Now I know," Octavia said, squeezing him a little tighter to herself. "That matters."

[betterthanaplan]

"Do you forgive me?"

Duke's voice was as wet as they shower was.

[okteiviakom]

That may have influenced how fierce Octavia's answering nod was.

"Ai wigod yu op, snogon."

[betterthanaplan]

Duke's laugh was an echo of the one from Lucifer's. "When you -- you ran like that. After you were a raccoon. I really thought that was it. I'd finally fucked up all the way."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia had done okay keeping everything together until now. But that laugh set her eyes stinging, suddenly.

"I just needed more time," she said, her own voice a little tight, now. "It was too soon. Too sudden."

[betterthanaplan]

"I know," Duke said. And this time he really meant it. "That's just how I felt, after the trouble. Like if I didn't get room right then I was going to explode. . . . I think that's when I really got it. How bad I'd fucked things up in Haven."

[okteiviakom]

Both of Octavia's hands found their way to the back of his neck.

"But we've both come back."

[betterthanaplan]

"And -- you're really not leaving," Duke said, just managing to make it less of a question. "We're gonna put ourselves back together and . . . see where we are? I guess?"

[okteiviakom]

"Yeah," Octavia replied, not much louder than a sigh. She nodded, though, another fierce one. Determined. "It's just going to be like... Something a little more like it was before. When we weren't living together."

[betterthanaplan]

"Okay. Yeah. We can . . . figure each other out again. Like we should have when you first got back."

[okteiviakom]

This sigh managed to be a much quieter one still.

"Yeah," Octavia said, finally letting her head hang forward.

Yeah, that was exactly what they should have done. But she'd been so desperate to cling to him after seven years that there'd been no room for it.

[betterthanaplan]

And he’d been so determined to be everything she needed that he hadn’t stopped to think that maybe they both needed something different.

“Okay,” he said. “Okay. This . . . this is good. It’s going to be good..”

[okteiviakom]

Octavia nodded again.

Then urged him to rest his head against hers.

"I love you," she murmured. "So much. Hod yu in krei bitam. And I want to keep doing that."

[betterthanaplan]

“I love you too,” Duke said, closing his eyes and leaning against her. “More than I even knew I could.”

[okteiviakom]

Octavia shuddered a little, like it was the only way she knew how to relax into the embrace.

Or maybe it was something giving out at the thought that he still loved her.

[betterthanaplan]

He always had. Even when he was shocked or appalled by what she’d done.

He hadn’t lied. That feeling, that core of love, hadn’t changed.

“Let’s rinse off,” he said softly. “And take care of that leg. We don’t want your tattoo to stay wet for too long.”