Breathless

Jere sat bolt upright on the couch. The night was cold and dark, dawn still hours away, but something had disturbed the silence. Ylfa, curled up with her head on his lap - still completely unclothed - didn’t stir. Her breathing stayed steady, her ears unmoving. But he hadn’t imagined it. He was certain the air had shifted.

He boosted his hearing, straining for the faintest sound. Nothing came except Ylfa’s soft breaths and the gentle creak of the couch beneath them. His processors ticked over, trying to locate the anomaly. He wasn’t fully clothed himself - his chest bare - but at least he still had his specialised trousers on.

Ylfa murmured in her sleep, reminding him he was supposed to be cleaning her hair. He resumed the task, sifting through strands, lifting one to clean with precise care before letting it fall and selecting the next. But again he paused. A subtle pressure change. Something was happening.

He didn’t want to wake her - not when she was warm and peaceful on his lap - but the disturbance grew undeniable. A sudden whoosh followed, air displaced in huge volumes.

That did it. He shook her shoulder.

She murmured something incoherent. He shook her again, harder this time, until her breathing quickened and she raised her head. Her eyes blinked open, clearing gradually.

“Whhhat is it…” she mumbled.

“There’s something strange going on,” he said evenly. “We need to get up.”

She sighed and flopped back onto his lap.
“It’s probably nothing, darling…”

He shook her again until she reluctantly sat up, rubbing her eyes.

“No fair, darling… I want to sleep… I feel exhausted…”

He frowned, then realized exactly why she was exhausted, and chose not to comment. She stretched her arms, silhouette barely visible to anyone else in the dark - but Jere saw every detail. He quickly averted his eyes, which only let her lean into his side again, mumbling:

“I’m awake… I’m awake…”

He smiled faintly. He wanted to stay there, to soak in the warmth of her skin against his, but the disturbance nagged at him. He patted her head.

“Get dressed. We’re going outside.”

She groaned.
“Is it worth it…? We’re not going far, are we…? And I’ll just take them off again when we come back inside anyway…”

For a moment he wondered if he had married a nudist, but pushed the thought aside as he stood, forcing her to support herself.

“Just in case. Come on. You can go back to sleep afterward, I promise.”

She muttered something unintelligible and staggered to her feet.
“Okay… give me a minute…”

She wandered to the bedroom and soon returned, dressed in her usual crop top and skirt, clipping a lace choker to her neck as she approached him at the door - still sleepy, still adorable.

“Okay, I’m ready… Where are we going…?”

He shrugged.
“Just checking.”

She groaned.
“So you made me get up for something you’re not even sure about…”

“No,” he said, pushing the door open. “I’m quite sure.”

They stepped outside - and as the door clicked shut behind them he caught sight of a figure running up the hill, panting. He recognised the rabbit ears instantly, but Ylfa spoke first.

“Effie? What are you doing at this time?”

Effie froze like a startled animal, then sagged with relief, speaking between breaths.
“Oh… thank goodness… it’s just you two…”

Ylfa jogged down to her, Jere right behind.

“Effie, you’re out of breath. What happened?”

Effie let out a strained laugh, her exhaustion bleeding through.
“Oh, I thought… I thought Eny had… been kidnapped, but… if you’re awake at this hour, you must’ve… must’ve had something to do with it.”

The blood drained from Ylfa’s face. Her tail went rigid.

“But we haven’t seen Eny at all.”

Effie let out a breathy laugh - one that died the moment realization hit her.

“Oh…”

Ylfa glanced at Jere, eyes silently begging him to say it was a joke, a misunderstanding - anything. But he looked just as lost, just as startled. Panic rushed through her, sharp and cold, but she forced herself to stay steady. She grabbed Effie’s hand.

“Effie. Where did you last see her?”

Effie scratched the back of her head.
“After they all went to bed at… what, midnight?”

Ylfa grit her teeth.
“Midnight? Effie, she’s a child!”

Effie laughed, but the sound was paper-thin. Ylfa shook her.

“When did you notice she was gone?”

“Just before… something woke me up. So I went to check, and she was gone…”

“And she didn’t just run away?”

Effie shook her head.
“No. She left Miko behind…”

Ylfa blinked.
“Who’s Miko?”

“Oh, a toy she won at the festival. She’s been glued to it ever since.” Effie rubbed her neck, anxiety creeping into her voice. “She never lets it go.”

Tears began to well in Ylfa’s eyes. She released Effie and turned to Jere.

“J-Jere… did you sense her being kidnapped?”

He nodded slowly, the pieces aligning in his mind. After a moment, his processors completed their assessment - over ninety-eight percent certainty.

“It was Jaka. He kidnapped Eny.” His eyes darkened. “But I don’t know why.”

Ylfa grit her teeth as tears spilled freely down her cheeks.
“You seem awfully calm about all this. Our daughter has been kidnapped by a war machine just like you. How are we supposed to get her back?”

“Well, we could-”

“NO!”

Her shout startled both him and Effie. Ylfa stormed toward him, planting her fists against his chest.

“I DON’T WANT YOU TO JUMP TO SOLUTIONS, NOT THIS TIME! I DON’T WANT TO BE THE ONLY ONE WHO’S CRYING!”

She sobbed harder, voice breaking.

“I… don’t want to be the only one who’s crying…”

She struck his chest with a hard fist - not that it hurt him - but stayed pressed against him, shaking.

“Do you… even care that our daughter has been stolen from us?”

It clicked - she thought he didn’t care, simply because he wasn’t reacting like she was. Because he couldn’t react like she did. But he cared more deeply than she knew.

He wrapped his arms around her gently, lowering his voice to a whisper in her ear.

“Of course I care… I wouldn’t be trying to save her if I didn’t.”

She nodded, small broken laughs escaping through her sobs.

“I’m sorry… I’m making a big deal out of something insignificant… I’m sorry…”

He stroked her back with slow, careful motions, holding her securely as her crying softened.

“Don’t apologise. It’s my fault. I’ll try to learn, I promise.”

She let out another wobbly laugh, this one closer to genuine.
“Don’t worry, darling… I’m learning too…”

Effie watched with growing bewilderment, chalking the whole exchange up to exhaustion. But she nearly jumped when Ylfa pulled away from Jere, spun toward her, and snapped:

“Effie. Not a word. Got it?”

Effie nodded so quickly her ears flopped, opening her mouth without managing a single sound.

Ylfa turned back to Jere, eyes blazing with resolve.

“Okay. Let’s go save our daughter.”

He smiled as his wings slid from their panels, metal gleaming in the moonlight. He held her gaze.

They were going hunting.