“Kavo! Hawk!”
With a tired groan, Kavo woke sluggishly. Beside him, he felt Hawk slowly stir to life.
“Hawk!” The voice continued to shout. “Kavo!”
Kavo groaned again and resisted the urge to bury his head and shy away from the loud noises. Hawk, using the only useful limb he had left, managed to sit up and then push his hair out of his face.
“Did you hear that as well?” he asked in a long-suffering tone.
“Yeah,” Kavo replied, “I think so.”
They both winced as the voice called for them again. Now that Kavo was awake, he was reasonably sure that he recognized that voice as a certain amiable youth. Had Aizel found them already?
“We are alive,” Hawk shouted back, making Kavo’s ears ring.
“Fuck, Chayton, warn me next time before you try to scream off my ears.”
“I apologize,” he said with a look that clearly said he didn’t.
Foliage outside rustled. Kavo heard Aizel mumbling something to himself, probably in search for wherever his friends were hiding. Kavo was working on standing when Aizel finally ducked into the cave.
“I can’t believe you two are alive!” he breathed excitedly. Relief flooded Kavo; now that they’d been found, he could relax a little. “We were all so worried. Even Zeric and Belle were scared something had happened to you.”
“Well,” Kavo said, “Hawk’s not exactly in the best of states. He’ll need someone to take good care of him.”
Hawk gave him another look, one that said that if it weren’t Kavo, he didn’t want anyone near him. Kavo could understand; he could tell how much Hawk hated being viewed as weak, and such injuries were definitely weaknesses. He also knew that Hawk didn’t particularly like anyone looking at his scars. The fact that he’d let Kavo trace over them was surprise enough.
Aizel just smiled at them brightly. Kavo realized that he must have known what was going on then. How long had he known? The whole time? Or did he only just figure it out?
“Are you guys ready to head back to the ship?”
“I think so.” Kavo finally stood and held out a hand for Hawk, who took it gratefully. It took him a moment to stand with only that useful hand. “I don’t suppose you have any replacement hands for him onboard, do you?” he half-joked.
“Not any good ones. We have the first one he used to use, but anything like the one he had takes hours to attach or detach, so we didn’t think it would ever need replaced…”
“I didn’t know he ever used a different one,” Kavo remarked.
“Oh, it was a long time ago. Two years or so.”
Kavo sighed. If he hadn’t let Hawk run away on his own, he would still have that high-quality hand that he deserved.
“Is there any way to get another one?” Kavo asked.
“Maybe if we head back to Sol,” Aizel said. “Anyway, Mum’s going to be getting impatient soon. The ship’s just outside; I’ll go tell her you’re both okay.”
As Aizel jogged off, Kavo stared at the ground. He should have been there for Hawk to prevent this sort of injury.
“Kavo, do not blame yourself. I was the one who disappeared before the sunrise.”
“I know, but… I shouldn’t have agreed to let you leave.”
“I would have regardless of whether you wanted me to go or not.”
Kavo rested his head on Hawk’s shoulder lightly. “Don’t do this again, Chayton. It hurts.”
“I will be okay; I promise. We will steal another prosthetic for me, and I will teach you how to attach it. There is no need for such theatrics.”
“I know…”
“Let us make our way to the airship, my tackila. I do believe Aizel said that his mother was growing impatient in wait.”
Kavo smiled, unsure. “Right.” He wrapped his arm back around Hawk’s waist and started leading him back out of the mouth of the cave. He tried to comfort himself with the thoughts that at least they were both alive and well, but it didn’t work. He still felt guilty that Hawk was injured and that the mechanical hand he wore had been ruined. Now, all that remained was the metal ring on his arm that they likely used to attach it.
“You are still blaming yourself.”
“No I’m not,” Kavo argued.
“You are. I can tell. Kavo, you know that I would have done this regardless of whether you even existed. Why do you blame yourself? If anything you have saved my life. I would have died without you.”
“I just feel like you rushed to do this because of me. You had been perfectly content to live on the airship until two nights ago.”
“And why do you think that was?”
“I don’t know,” Kavo groaned, frustrated.
“Kavo, you gave me a reason to live. I had thought that when I attempted this, I would be killed; I had known that my life would not continue for long. Yet when I kissed you, that changed. That first time we kissed, Kavo, my world was perfect. I was so afraid I would lose you and so afraid that I did not deserve you that I let those fears keep me from happiness. When we made love, I was determined that I would not be restrained by my fears any longer. I knew that I could fight.”
“So it is my fault,” Kavo murmured.
“If you want to see it that way, yes, it is your fault that I feel happier than I have been for years. Even injured, I am happy. Before you, I was never happy. Would you prefer me uninjured and apathetic or injured and pleased?”
“I like you happy,” Kavo said, “But I don’t want you hurt, ever. I wanted to protect you from the world.”
“Kavo, I do not need your protection. I need your love and your commitment, and I need your support, but I do not need your protection.”
“I know you don’t need it. Tell me this, though: do you want to protect me?”
“Of course I do.”
“I don’t need it, either.”
Hawk gave a wry smile. “I suppose you may have this victory. I can see your point.”
Finally at least slightly pleased, Kavo led the way outside into the glaring sun. Luckily, their destination was not too far away; Kavo was starting to get fatigued from carting around a man who was practically twice his weight.
“Hawk! Kavo!” Surprisingly, it was Torian’s voice which broke the silence. “Do you need help?”
Hawk opened his mouth to protest someone else’s hands on him, but Kavo replied with a grateful, “Please.”
Soon, Torian’s arm was wound around Hawk’s midsection as well. Hawk looked much less than happy with the situation, but they made it onboard in record time and quickly escorted Hawk to his cabin to lie down. Torian bustled off to do something else, leaving Kavo to look over him.
He remembered the same sort of circumstances but with quite a different role.
“We’ve been this way before,” he noted. “This is my first time watching over you, though.”
“I have to admit that I have not been cared for since my arrival on this ship.”
“Why not?”
“I was never injured.”
Kavo’s eyes widened. “Never?” He’d been a great captain and soldier, but even he had sustained many injuries in battle. Hawk was an enormous target and he stood in plain sight on top of the lookout post, yet he’d never been injured. How was that?
“Never,” he confirmed.
“How? I mean, you’re not exactly an easy person to miss.”
“I always injured them first.”
Kavo laughed. “You are unbelievable.”
“Am I?”
“You are.” He leaned forward and kissed Hawk’s cheek. “If you need anything, you can call, but I think I’m going to go fill in your job. Aizel should be nearby in case of emergencies.” He headed for the door, his mood lifted slightly by Hawk’s good mood. At least if he could chat, his health wasn’t in too poor a condition.
“Kavo.”
“Hm?”
“…thank you.”
Kavo smiled over his shoulder. “Anything for you, Chay.”
“Do not call me that.”
Kavo laughed. “Hey, you have a nickname for me.”
“That is different. It is a pet name. Chayton is my real name; call me that if you must.”
Kavo rolled his eyes, still smiling. “Fine then, Chayton, if you insist.”
“I do.”
Kavo’s smile didn’t fade on his way out. Hawk was hilarious sometimes.
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