Isaac and Lenna spent most of the night laying on their backs looking up at the night sky. Isaac used his shadows to silence their speech so they could carry on pleasant conversation and speculation without waking their guide. They stopped for the usual breaks to relieve themselves or to get something to eat but otherwise they passed the night away just enjoying each other's company, much like they usually did, only this time without walking.

"Lenna," Isaac began after a long moment of companionable silence. "I, I don't like some of what you've done in the past."

Lenna glanced at her husband just long enough to see that he was staring up at the twinkling stars above and not at her. "I'm listening." She assured him. Whatever he said, she mentally prepared herself to take it all in, think deeply about it, and then reply properly in a way that wouldn't cause any misunderstandings. She owed it to both of them to keep misunderstandings from happening.

"The silent treatment, it hurts." Isaac began with words of vulnerability that only Lenna would ever hear first hand. "You said that you are going to protect me from everything, but then you turned around and hurt me in a way that only you can." He cut himself off there before he pointed out her hypocrisy by using the actual word itself. He let her infer it as she usually did with her regular speech.

Lenna did as she had planned. She let the silence reign as she processed how correct Isaac was. She had been hypocritical and she had hurt him. She felt a pang of guilt and regret at having done so. The silent treatment was the nicest way that she had ever been punished and she had internalized it in a way that led her to use it on her mate of all people. He didn't need to be punished. She wasn't in any position to punish him, just like he wasn't in one to punish her. They were equals and delivering punishments was not something that equals should do.

Lenna nodded after the silence had dragged on for quite some time. "I see." She told him and took a deep breath. "You are right. I should not have done that. I am sorry. I should never be the one hurting you. A shield with a thorny handle is not one that I would like to wield. I am sorry that I forced you to." She paused as Isaac grabbed her hand and wove their fingers together. She grasped his hand tightly. "I will do better."

Isaac nodded. "Thank you." He said and gave her a warm smile. "I am still not happy about your decision to take every blow for me, just to make sure that you are aware that my feelings on the matter have not changed. I know that you are aware that there are plenty of times when it is physically impossible for you to do that, and taking my consequences for me might cause me to get too relaxed with the understanding that I will not be the one taking the hits. If that happens, I might take a hit one day that I could have avoided. It would be a damned shame if it was the last hit that I would ever take, wouldn't it?"

Lenna was still cementing her previous resolution into her psyche when Isaac had continued onto his second topic. Lenna was silent for a while again as she finished processing everything that she had agreed to and everything that Isaac had just said. It was a lot, a bit more than she was prepared for if she was being honest with herself, but she would do her best for both of their sakes.

It had been far longer than was comfortable for Isaac before Lenna spoke up: "I see." She replied and felt Isaac squeeze her hand in his. "I cannot agree to stop doing that right now." She told him. "I see where you are coming from. I have seen it. But I cannot let you get hurt."

Lenna was silent for another long moment but Isaac didn't interrupt. He could see her mind working as she tried to put together whatever else she needed to say.

"If you couldn't magically heal," Lenna prefaced her analogy. "and you had to take a hit. Would you take it in the arm with the high chance of losing the arm, or would you take it across your entire body in a way that could be healed naturally over time?" She turned to look at him and locked gazes with the familiar silver eyes that she always caught staring at her. "You are a part of me, a fragile part of me, or at least you are less tough than the rest, and I would rather take the hit across all or almost all of me than have you take it and risk losing you. To do anything else feels like I am purposefully risking a part of myself."

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Isaac listened to her every word and offered her the same courtesy that she had offered him. He sat quietly until she had finished and then sat quietly for another long while as he thought about his response. "Lenna, I get what you are saying, but I am not your arm. I may be a part of you, but I am also a distinct and separate entity. I am another person. Pain is an amazing teacher and unless something is going to kill me but wouldn't kill you, you should let me learn from my own mistakes." He told her. "I am still young and have a lot to learn." He reminded her. "Gods I can't believe I just said that out loud." He whispered under his breath. "And you need to let me learn so neither of us will need to get hurt as much in the future."

Lenna knew that he was right. But even so, it was just too hard for her to do at the moment. She was not perfect. She knew that and so did he. Some things were just beyond her current abilities. She could only handle one conviction at a time. One day, maybe soon, she would be able to do as he had asked. "I'm sorry." Lenna told him. "I need time. When I can, I will try. Until then, I am sorry." She confessed.

Isaac listened patiently until she was finished and then nodded and squeezed her hand again. "Okay." Was all he said and then turned to look back up at the twinkling night sky. The pair laid there in silence for the better part of an hour until another word was spoken. "They are beautiful, aren't they? Like a painting of pleasant memories."

Lenna nodded. "Yes." She agreed. "Like my life after I met you."

Isaac smiled. Lenna just had a way into his heart that bypassed any and all defenses. He couldn't have even blunted the warm feelings that her words sent through him if he tried. He just wished that she could realize exactly how much sway she had over his heart and the emotions that he didn't show the world. "I love you." He told her with a warm smile that came to his face entirely unbidden.

"I love you too." She said with a smile that was less face-encompassing but no less warm. Even when either of them fell short, the other would always be there for them. Even when said shortcomings caused the other difficulty or pain. Maybe that wasn't how love was for other people, or maybe it was, but that was how their love worked, and neither of them would have it any other way.

—

Walter was mildly annoyed. He knew that it wasn't their fault, but he was prickly when it came to his sleep. The duo that he had agreed to guide through the Rainbow Jungle had done their best to keep quiet. Unfortunately, that meant the occasional gentle stirring of mana. Now, if they were in town, he might or might not have noticed it. In the jungle it was a bit different. There was too high of a risk of certain magical creatures sneaking up and trying to eat him in his sleep. A near silent stirring of mana could be a snake drifting through the soil, a panther stalking into the best position to pounce, a wolf asking the plants where its next meal could be found, or any other number of deadly and hungry magical beasts that made their homes in the area.

Eventually, the sky turned gray and Walter knew that he wouldn't be able to fall back to sleep. He sat up and stretched with bleary eyes. He looked up and to his left and saw Copper standing over him. She noticed him wake up and then huffed before she laid down on the grass and gravel next to him to take a nap. She would be out for around an hour, which was plenty long enough for him to get breakfast and start on the enchanting that he had agreed to. His mixture of meditation and sleep had made sure that he had actually achieved enough rest, but no matter how old he had become, he still always wanted more sleep.

Walter dug through his saddlebags until he found a slab of goat ham that had been cooked for him by the lady that ran the inn that he had stayed at in Nualt. He pulled out a steel plate that was big enough to handle the entire ham. He used a knife to slice almost half of it off of the bone and then put the rest back into his expanded storage. Next he broke up the ham and made a bowl shape with it on the steel plate. He then cracked a chicken egg into the middle of it. Isaac and Lenna had been watching him as he worked but he paid them no mind. If they didn't feel like bringing real food along on a trip, that was their problem. He at least liked to eat well while on the road.

"A forge is where a smith needs it, it is not a place that always is, but a place that is when needed. Fire on the mountainside, fire in the dunes, fire on the water, and fire in the plains. That is where a smith needs it." Walter chanted with his hands hovering over the steel plate and his meal. A stirring of mana and a moment later, the steel plate started to softly glow a deep red. Walter knew how much magic the spell needed to be able to cook on from countless failed attempts so it was just hot enough to cook his egg completely through before the bottom burned completely to the steel.

Walter's food was just finishing when he felt like something was looking at him. He cut the power to his spell and let the metal finish cooking his breakfast on its own. He stood up and turned towards the east where a four-legged shadow stared back at him with hungry emerald eyes. Isaac and Lenna hadn't even noticed it until Walter had locked eyes with it. On one hand, it had never been after them. On the other, it proved just how stealthy the silent giant cats could be. "Damned pumas." Walter swore under his breath and mentally got ready to deal with their new visitor.

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