He was in his workroom too, moving around, hitting and breaking things. It didn't look like he was trying to fix anything. Or, if he was, his anger meant he was failing spectacularly. Haven hung out at the entrance of her nest and watched him rage around, letting him work through things. She still wasn’t even sure what happened, what he saw, why they suddenly ran back to the ship.
All she did know was that, after returning, Vytln spoke to Tanin in an aside, out of earshot, then suddenly Tanin was messaging the others. Things were moving very quickly after that. Haven saw the guys moving around the ship while Goldie, Garnet, and Grace were hurried back into it. Like they were being hidden away. Maybe not literally trapped like Haven, but there was definitely a sense that they were circling the wagons.
“Can I getting into out now?” She asked after some time had passed and it was clear that Vytln wasn’t slowing down.
“No,” he snapped, slamming his hammer down on a piece of steel. It was literally flat steel that he was leaving heavy dents in. She was pretty sure that was one of the interior panels, though he wasn’t doing anything but taking his anger out on it.
“Want to talking about it?”
“No,” he beat harder at the steel.
“Might being making you feeling better.”
He didn't respond, but just beat harder at the steel. Not even pretending that he was doing something besides beating it senselessly. Slam. Slam. Slam! SLAM!CRACK!
The metal body of the hammer snapped back, bent at a ninety degree angle, almost snapped off completely, from the force of his strikes. Vytln roared as he turned, throwing the hammer against the wall. It clanged and bounced down, landing amongst the broken and half finished projects he had filling one wall. Vytln glared at it, teeth clenched, breathing hard like he had just been running. The glow of his eyes and scars seemed even brighter than usual.
“Feeling better?” Haven asked, resting her head on her chin.
Apparently not, because he grabbed the beaten and warped panel and threw that too. Then his not-wrench. Then one of his projects. More tools. More projects. Anything that could come to hand he chucked like it had personally offended him.
“Woo!” Haven cheered, roaring along with him. Getting him more hyped. She shook her fist in the air, banged it on the outside of the trap. When he ran out of things to throw, heroared and just slammed his own fists down onto the worktable. Haven roared along with him. The two of them shouted at nothing, his huge voice easily swallowing hers, but her higher pitch echoing around despite his volume.
Vytln’s voice cut as he ran out of air. Haven let her own voice fade as she stared at his heaving back, waiting to see what he did next.
The silence in the wake of their yells seemed that much louder. Vytln let out a long breath, his head dropping further. She couldn’t see his face, but she could read the distress on him clearly. She might not know what happened, but it clearly hurt him so much he couldn’t contain it.
“Do you want to coming in?” She asked, her voice soft in complete contrast to their raging.
Vytln didn’t move for another long moment before saying softly, “If I go in, I won’t be able to get out again.”
He wasn’t talking about the trap, she knew. He meant her. For this tenuous thing that kind of existed between them. The thing she was happy to accept, but that she knew he was hesitant about. Because of the woman in his past that she didn’t know and already didn’t like.
She was happy to welcome him though. Even now. Especially now, when it was clear that he needed the comfort so dearly.
“Coming in,” she told him. “I won’t forcing you. But if you are willing to trusting me, if you are willing to risk it, I am willing to holding you.”
Giving a smile to his back, Haven released her grip on the entrance and slid back into the nest. She landed with a soft‘oomph’ on the cushions and moved away, giving him room to join her. If he wanted.
For a long time, nothing happened. The workroom was quiet except for the gentle rumble of the engine continuing to hum. It was comforting, like white noise, to her. But it also covered any soft movements Vytln might be making.
She didn’t want to pressure him. She was just offering respite if he was willing to take it. But if not, she would instead give him peace and space.
Still, her chest was tense as she waited. Her toes curled and uncurled in her shoes. She licked her lips, then dried them, then licked them again. All the while, she watched the hole. And just when she was sure that Vytln was going to reject her offer, to choose to stay alone-
The panels around the hole slid apart, opening the hole once again. Haven tensed, but she didn’t move or call out. She continued waiting.
Another long moment later, Vytln appeared in the entrance. His eyes seemed dimmer than before, but they smoldered as he lifted himself inside. The trap didn’t close behind him, remaining open and free, as he slid down. He didn’t land on his butt like her but instead landed on his knees with the easy familiarity of someone who had come into this small space a dozen times before.
Haven didn’t hesitate. She didn’t let him have a chance to regret or question his decision. She threw herself at him. Her arms around his torso. Her face smooshed into his chest. He was so much bigger than her, it was like hugging a tree. But she loved the warmth, the hardness of his body, as he stiffened in surprise.
But it only lasted a moment. He groaned and collapsed, near folding his body over her. She grunted, immediately overwhelmed by his weight. She hated to tell him to move when he just gave in enough to join her, but her muscles immediately started shaking.
She didn’t need to choose between her physical safety and his emotional one, however. He picked up on what was wrong and turned them slightly. They fell on their sides instead. The way he adjusted meant that her head came down on his arm. His other arm tightened around her as he partially covered her body. It was a weight still, but it wasn’t suffocating.
Haven smiled and snuggled deeper into his arms. She did her best to hold him back, even knowing that her limbs weren’t big enough to cover him like he did her. She hoped that he still had enough comfort from the action.
For a while, they didn’t speak. Her eyes drifted closed as she listened to the heavy thumping of his heart. It was unusual – one singular, loud thump in contrast to the twin thumps she was used to hearing. It was accompanied by the rushing of air in and out of his huge lungs. Combined with the thudding of his heart, it was like listening to a well-oiled and steady machine. Comforting, easy, peaceful. She had invited him in here to offer him those things, but she was getting it instead.
