Rina's rude brother had shown Emrick to a room hidden below the inn not long after his and Isiah's little show of their powers. The little Prince had whisked Isiah off to another room and that had been the last he'd seen of him for the remainder of the night. They were supposed to get plenty of sleep before dawn, when they would launch their attack on the Ishini camp.

Somewhere outside his room, a drake chirped happily and cheerful voices replied to it. The people of Maeve were in surprisingly good spirits, considering what would happen once the sun rose. In reality, they had planned for it to happen in a week, but with the urgency of Isiah's journey, they pushed it to the next day. It would be better to get the army out of the way as soon as possible anyway.

For the first few hours after they arrived in Maeve and spoke to its tiny resistance, Emrick had found it strange that the army hadn't completely destroyed the town or at least killed everyone that lived there. When he'd asked, Benj had told him that they probably still wanted to use the town, but from the look on his face, he hadn't known for sure either. The actions and plans of King Harudan went unknown to everyone and it irritated him.

Whatever Harudan was doing, it wouldn't be good for anyone. It was stressing him out, making him want to rip his hair out, but he couldn't dedicate all of his focus to it, there was Isiah to worry about. They may not be speaking outside of having to translate the many conversations going on inside the resistance, but he would still protect him. He cared for him and couldn't just leave him to fend for himself.

With a sigh that echoed through the bare room, Emrick pulled out the fear stone. The spider earlier had been far easier to conjure than it had back in the abandoned house and Isiah's fears had been easier to see. The moment he'd pulled it out at the table, it had whispered to him all the minor fears of the people around him. Rina was scared of heights, her brother of wasps, others feared spiders or mermaids or the ocean. It was strange to hear it, the constant whisper in his mind.

Sitting on the bed with it in his hands, it was silent. There was no one around him for it to talk to him about. Isiah had gone to sleep and Rina was still out talking to her brother, even though the plan to wipe out the camp had already been sorted. He supposed it was because they hadn't seen each other in so long.

They were similar, the siblings, in both how they looked and how they acted. They were both headstrong, knew what they wanted and stopped at nothing to get it. Except Rina was far more respectful than her younger brother, but that could easily be chalked down to Prince Benj being jealous of her status and abilities, she was a better fighter than him after all, even with less training.

In the grand scheme of things, cutting her hair had been a bad idea. When she'd protested it, he'd assumed it was her wanting to stick to traditions, but if her brother was upset about it, then Askari traditions were far more important than he had first thought. Even so, if he hadn't, it would have risked her life during a fight.

He put the stone on the small bedside table and rolled under the covers. With Isiah in a different room, the cold was starting to seep in. If only he'd been able to keep his powers in check when he'd used the stone on him. He would have still been oblivious to the real reasons why Isiah didn't want them to be together, but they would have at least talked more than they were.

He hated it, the silence, but there was nothing he could do about it. Isiah didn't want to hear his apologies or excuses or anything else he wanted to say. All he wanted from him were translations. But he missed their late-night talks and the way they comforted each other. Sometimes, they didn't need to speak, like back at Askarune's Sanctum. All they'd done was sleep next to each other, content with the other's presence. Since the barn and the abandoned house, Isiah had slept as far from him as possible without letting him freeze.

The only time he'd been so close to someone was with Turian, and that was something entirely different. Once he got over his little period of infatuation, Turian had been more of a mentor to him, someone he could confide in. Isiah was the same but different, he was someone he could confide in, but also someone he could look after, someone he had once been able to see himself with.

He groaned in irritation and pulled the blankets over his head. He should have been worrying about how he was going to go in the morning, fighting for hours upon hours with a small group of people, but all he could think about was Isiah. Benj had asked him to fight too in any capacity he could, meaning that Emrick would have to protect him for the entirety of the battle. It would make his stress worse, but he wouldn't leave him.

The idea of battle was terrifying and with his mind mostly focusing on Isiah, it meant he wasn't able to think about what it all meant. He would be fighting with a small group of people against a force much larger. For hours upon hours, he would be fighting for his life and the lives of hundreds of people. All because Rina wanted to help her brother. He wanted to help them too, but it still scared him.

All he wanted to do was sleep, but despite his exhaustion, his mind wouldn't stay silent long enough for him to drift off. He couldn't go into battle exhausted, it would only hinder himself and those around him. The more he willed himself to sleep, the less it wanted to come.

The thoughts in his mind shifted from Isiah to something that was becoming more and more familiar. Spiders and snake and bats, loneliness and murder, the death of his friends. Even without asking for it, the stone told him Isiah's fears. He didn't have to dig, once he'd done it the first time, he knew them all, but he didn't know why it whispered to him until there was a knock on the door.

"Isiah?" he called, a frown pulling at his lips.

The door creaked open and the familiar dark hair and beard peeked around the edge of it. "How did you know it was me?" he asked.

"The stone," he answered, but he sounded unsure even in his own ears. He still hadn't figured out how it worked completely, but he was getting there. "Come in. Are you alright?"

Isiah didn't answer once he walked in and closed the door behind him. He stood by the door, wringing his hands together and staring down at the worn floorboards. Emrick's legs were tangled in the bedsheets and he almost tripped when he tried to stand. A soft sound filled the room, Isiah's quiet laugh. He couldn't help but smile at it.

Throwing the sheets on the bed with a huff, he walked towards the other man. "What's wrong?" he asked and Isiah bit down hard on his lip. "Are you worried about tomorrow? You don't need to be. You'll be hidden away and... I'll make sure no one hurts you. It's going to be fine."

"It's not me I'm worried about," Isiah said in a quiet voice. Of course, of course, how could he think he was worried about himself? It was Isiah, after all, the man cared more about other people than himself.

Emrick didn't touch him, not even a graze of his hand, no matter how much he wanted to. "I'll be alright. I can look after myself, I promise" he said, hoping the words would be comforting enough.

Isiah looked uncomfortable as if he had been forced into the room by someone. All Emrick could think about was the night in the barn and the vision the stone had shown him. He couldn't break his promise. He didn't want to, both for himself and Isiah, but whatever happened at dawn would be unpredictable.

"Emrick-"

"Isiah-"

They both fell silent, Isiah looking down at him. He wasn't much taller than him and Emrick hadn't noticed it before, but in the strange silence that fell between them, it was obvious.

"You go first," Isiah said, staring down at their feet.

"You sure?" Emrick asked, but all he did was nod. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Look, I just wanted to say... I'm sorry about the other day. I didn't mean to go so deep and I didn't mean for you to experience any of that and I'm so sorry you did. I know I wasn't so supposed to see any of that-"

Isiah stopped him and not in any normal way, by launching forward and wrapping his arms around him. Emrick gasped and hesitated for a moment before hugging him back, gripping tightly to Isiah's tunic. "It was an accident," Isiah whispered, his voice muffled by Emrick's shoulder. "You don't need to apologise. I understand. It's okay. It's okay."

Emrick wasn't sure which one of them he was saying it to, but it didn't matter. "I'm still sorry," he replied and moved a hand to cup the back of Isiah's head. "It never should have happened."

"There's nothing we can do about it now. I'm just glad it was you and not someone else," Isiah said as he pulled away, sighing loudly. "This isn't what I came in here to talk about."

"Why did you come here?" he asked. He still had his hands on Isiah's back. He didn't want to move away, scared of whatever it was Isiah had to say. It couldn't be good, despite his apology, and there was a sick feeling in his stomach. He couldn't take any more heartbreak, it hurt him enough already.

Instead of speaking, Isiah pulled away completely and Emrick's arms dropped to his sides. There was panic in his eyes, nervousness, and it only made Emrick feel worse. Perhaps he could make him leave, make him wait until after the battle was done, but if he was so worried about it, then it had to be something he wanted to say in case one of them died.

"Isiah," he said but stopped when the other man looked up at him.

"Rina was talking to me before we got here and she made me realise some things," Isiah said and ran a hand down his face. He sat on the bed, staring up at him with watery eyes. "Like how much of an idiot I am."

Emrick let out a little huff of amusement. "You're not an idiot," he replied, but didn't sit next to him.

"I am! I really am!" Isiah replied, staring up at him desperately. "I rejected you selfishly, for stupid reasons. Rina helped me see that. I didn't even have to tell her much, I think she could see how much I..."

"How much you what?" Emrick asked, but Isiah didn't say a word. With a sigh, he sat next to him, their knees touching. He was warm again, Isiah's stone somewhere on his person, warming them both up. His cheeks were flushed, but he wasn't sure if it was from the heat or their conversation. There were many ways Isiah's sentence could end and all of them were good, from what he could think of, anyway.

Isiah leaned against his shoulder. "I shouldn't have said what I did back in the barn. I was wrong," he whispered and Emrick's breath caught in his throat. For the last few nights, similar conversations had plagued his dreams but he'd never thought they would actually happen. He had expected Isiah to stick with his words, that what he said was final.

"If it's what you believe, then... I don't want you changing your opinions because you feel bad or because Rina made you or anything like that," he said. He wouldn't be with him if he didn't truly want it.

But Isiah shook his head and a cold hand reached over to cup his cheek, turning him to face him. "It's not what I believe. It's- It's what I thought was best for us, but I was wrong. I thought that if we weren't together and something happened to you, then I wouldn't have been so attached, it wouldn't have hurt as much," he whispered. There were tears in his eyes and Emrick wanted nothing more than to wipe them away, but he held back. "But Rina, she told me that I'd regret it more, not allowing myself to be happy if something did happen. And I still do believe what I said earlier, that we barely know each other and I have so much on my shoulders, but I think... I think I want to be happy, at least for a little while."

Emrick's voice was stuck in his throat as he stared at the other man. So many thoughts were running through his head and he wasn't able to focus on any of them enough to get them out. So he did the only thing that made sense, he pulled Isiah forward and buried his head against his shoulder.

Isiah's hand rested in his thick hair. "Emrick? Did I say something wrong?" he asked in a soothing voice.

He shook his head. "No, I just didn't expect you to change your mind," he answered, whispering into Isiah's neck. "What does this mean for us then?"

"I don't know. I want to be with you, never should have said otherwise in the first place," he said.

"You had every right to."

"I was being stupid."

Emrick shook his head. "You were doing what you thought was right for you."

"I don't think it was right for me though. I've never felt more lonely these last few days. You make me happy, even though we've only known each other for a few weeks. I don't want to lose that," Isiah said and pulled him closer.

Emrick sighed, content. "So we won't, simple as that," he whispered. Part of it felt like a dream, but he knew it was reality. "We can get to know each other more after the battle, on our way to the Sanctum, in our own way."

"I don't even know how to do any of this," Isiah said and gestured between them, letting out a nervous laugh. "Do you?"

"Not really. There were a few boys and girls in the town near Turian's place when I was a teen, but nothing serious," he replied and sat back so that they were at eye level. "We'll figure it out as we go, alright? We do whatever makes us both comfortable, how does that sound?"

There was a smile on Isiah's face, small and sweet and it made him grin in response. "I like the sound of that," Isiah said and paused, his lip between his teeth. "I'm sorry I was so stupid about it earlier."

"You don't need to apologise for that. I completely understood," he replied.

"I hurt you."

"I still understood," he said and cupped his cheek. "You don't need to worry about that anymore. If you're sure this is what you want, then it can be left in the past."

Isiah smiled again, bright and proud. "I'm sure," he told him. His eyes darted down, paused on his lips before shooting back up again and a sly smile spread across Emrick's face. "Can I kiss you?"

"Of course."

It was only a peck, a soft thing, nothing like the desperation Isiah had shown back in Huton, but it felt amazing. There was a hand on the nape of his neck, another on his side and Isiah's dark hair tickling his face. Emrick kept his hand on his cheek, his eyes closed tight as he savoured the feeling.

He never thought that anything could happen between them after the night in the barn, but there they were. Isiah's cheek was wet with tears and his own throat ached with unshed ones, but it didn't matter. He kissed a little harder, wanting Isiah to know how he truly felt and ran his thumb along his cheekbone.

Isiah pulled away and smiled at him again. "Do you think maybe I could stay the night in here?" he asked. "It's alright if I can't. It's just... I think I sleep better with you around and I don't really want to be alone right now-"

Emrick silenced him with another short kiss. "Of course," he said again, his voice quiet. He pulled him further up the bed, where the tangled bedsheets waited. Once they were sorted, he shuffled under them and gestured for Isiah to follow suit. His stomach was still a bundle of nerves, but he was more excited than worried.

When they were both under the covers, the stones on the bedside table, Isiah rolled to face him and ran a hand down his cheek. "I'm glad I didn't mess everything up," he whispered and Emrick pressed a kiss to his forehead.

"We're okay," he said and brushed a lock of hair out of his eyes. "Now sleep." Tentatively, he placed a hand on Isiah's waist and when the other man didn't move, he shuffled the tiniest bit closer.

As Isiah settled next to him, exhaustion washed over Emrick again and he closed his eyes. His mind was still trying to register everything that had happened in the last thirty minutes, but there was a smile on his face that he was sure wouldn't go away any time soon. The two of them could be happy together. All he had to do was make sure neither of them died in the battle at dawn. He couldn't have gained something amazing only to lose it straight away. He wasn't going to let it happen, he would keep both himself and Isiah safe.