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"Nemo, honey, you're safe, alright?" Mary Katharine murmured, carding her fingers through his hair in an attempt to calm him. This was not an unusual occurrence, Nemo waking up from a nightmare, disoriented and terrified. Cyrus was still asleep beside them — he always did sleep deeper than Nemo or Mary.
Nemo squeezed his eyes shut, his breath ragged. He pressed his nails into his palms in an attempt to ground himself. Mary Katharine put her hands over his, coaxing his fists open to try and stop Nemo from hurting himself any more than he already had. Nemo gripped her hands tightly, and Mary Katharine brought them to her lips for a gentle kiss.
Nemo's breath began to slow as Mary Katharine whispered encouragements. Slowly, he opened his eyes, still seeming somewhat out of it. It did often take him a while to fully drag himself out of the hellscape that was his slumbering mind. He had plenty of demons — as did Mary — and they were nigh on impossible to fight alone. God knows Mary Katharine wouldn't have survived hers in she hadn't met Cyrus when she did.
"…Kat?"
Mary Katharine froze for a second, the word surprising her. 'Kat' wasn't ever a name Nemo had used for her. Cyrus called her that, had done ever since they started dating. Not all the time, but often enough that the crew knew about it. Nobody else ever used it, though Mary Katharine had been secretly hoping that Nemo would pick it up.
"Yeah, Nemo." Mary Katharine put her arm around him, letting him fall into her. "It's me. I'm here. Part of her felt a pang of sadness that he wouldn't likely remember this; these late night moments often slipped from his memory by the morning. Usually this would be a blessing — Nemo really didn't deserve to carry any more pain than he already did. But she wanted him to say it again, to call her 'Kat'.
Mary Katharine helped Nemo settle back down, coaxing him into her arms and back to sleep. In minutes, he was breathing steadily, his chest rising and falling against her. But it took significantly longer for Mary Katharine to fall asleep. Whenever she closed her eyes, all she could think of was Nemo.
Gods, she hadn't felt like this since she first met Cyrus. She felt bad for fixating on her own feeling when Nemo was sol hurt, but she just couldn't help it. It was still surprising to her how much she loved him. How much she cared. Not that she was usually unemotional, but the sheer depth of feeling she had for him was matched only by those for her husband or children.
It was… terrifying And exhilarating. There were four people in her life now that she loved more than anything. Four people she couldn't stand to loose. And yet, life was so delicate. Any of them could be gone in a second. She'd nearly lost all of them at one point, whether it be through the less than ideal birth of the twins, or battles where Cyrus and Nemo had been severely injured. If they died…
Mary Katharine shook her head, as though the action would scare off the thought. No use dwelling on what-ifs. You're all here now. She turned her mind back to the men sleeping next to her. To the name she never thought she'd come to love. Nicknames had always been a derogatory thing, something demeaning, to make her feel small or to tease her. But when they used them, it was a term of endearment. It was a way of showing they cared, that they knew her, hell, telling the whole world that they were in love, goddammit.
Nemo nuzzled his head closer into her chest. Mary Katharine leaned into the touch, shuffling herself to the side a little so that her back was flush with Cyrus' chest. As if by instinct, Cyrus' arm fell onto her, pulling her ever closer.
Gods, she loved them.
She'd tell Cyrus about what Nemo had said in the morning. See if they couldn't convince him to use it more often. Because Mary Katharine was pretty sure she'd do anything to hear that word from his lips, just once more.
Sunlight streamed through the curtains, casting a beam of light onto Mary Katharine's face. She awoke slowly, still very much tangled up in the limbs of her lovers. Cyrus would be out for a while — another byproduct of his deep sleeping being that, barring outside influence, he slept in until late morning. Nemo, however, was far more variable in his sleep patterns. If he'd had a nightmare, he would usually make up for it by waking up later.
A sleepy mumble to her left indicated that it was not one of those mornings. Mary Katharine turned as best she could, while remaining in Cyrus' embrace. "Good morning love." She whispered, craning her neck to press a soft kiss to his cheek. "Are you feeling better now?"
Nemo nodded, wiping the sleep from his eyes. "I think so. I don't remember a great deal, but I know I woke up." Mary Katharine refused to let even a sliver of disappointment on her face, even as the feeling flooded her mind.
"That's good." She smiled, mostly believing her own words.
Nemo hummed affirmatively. "How about you, Kat? Did you sleep well?" He said the words innocently, but there was a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. Nemo never did have a good poker face. Sheer joy swelled in her chest, as she fought the urge to kiss him senseless.
"I slept okay." She replied. "Although, someone did keep me up. I was…thinking about them for quite a while."
"Oh?" Nemo gave her an amused grin. "Was it something they said?"
"Uh huh." She replied, almost giddy with happiness. "Although I think I rather liked it."
"Well, here's hoping they say it again, my dear Kat."
Gods, this man is going to kill me.
"Here's hoping." She responded, laughing as Nemo moved forward to kiss her. The movement was enough to pull Cyrus from his ever-deep slumber.
"You two seem awfully awake this morning." He mumbled, sitting up. "What's got you all excited."
Nemo shot Mary Katharine a look, smiling widely. "Kat here was just asking me how I slept last night."
Cyrus looked confused for a minute, before Nemo's words actually registered in his brain. He smiled, looking over at Mary Katharine. "Kat asked you that, did she?"
"Yes, she did." Nemo replied gleefully. It was all Mary Katharine could do to stop herself from dragging them both closer, kissing them and never letting go. As it was, they were unfortunately due on the deck in a short while, so that particular plan was unfeasible.
That didn't mean she couldn't enjoy their company for a little while longer. Especially when they were now both making a point of calling her 'Kat' in every sentence.
Gods, she loved these idiots so much.