Sharing Is Caring

You lead Zoe through the Syndicate, making your way back towards the entrance of the mountain as if you were going to make your way down into it and towards the Training Grounds, "I thought you said we weren't training yet?" she asks, slightly confused but you stay silent and give her a smile before turning before the stairs down and heading to the side, making your way down the road, "Oh?" she skips in her step, "What are we doing?" she asks curiously. "oh Darien!!!" she sings.

Still you don't say anything as you hold her hand and lead her through the streets of the Syndicate and after a couple minutes you come to a stop, holding Zoe in place, "W-What's up?!" she looks at you and smiles, still confused. You nod your head towards a little crack in the mountain which looks to angle up, "What's that?" she questions, slightly curious.

Without any more words you turn your body to the crack and pull Zoe along, making your way into the entrance of the mountain. Once the two of you make your way into the crack, you start to feel a little claustrophobic from all the tight walls and jagged shapes but eventually as you walk through it another another ten minutes or so and it will lead you up and to the edge of the mountain, the same place Lexie showed you, the same place Lexie and her mother went to share special memories and the very same place you proposed to Lexie.

You wanted to show this place to Zoe, open up to her and really tell her how much she as a person means to you as well. She was a lowly warrior in Murnic, someone who was trying her best to defend her family against a group of warriors that was very well older, stronger and more overpowering than her, but still, she held a kitchen knife and did her best to defend against any intruders. That is something that you knew was amazing, something you loved about her. She had so much passion, so much charisma, so much drive that it made you truly start to really care for her and want to train her as hard as you could.

As the two of you walk through the exit of the tight caverns you come across a plateau on the mountain. A somewhat flat piece of rock which is about only twenty of thirty square feet and at the edge, it plummets down into the desert grounds below. It was mid day and the sun was still high in the sky but still the sight of it is pretty spectacular. "Whooaaaaaaaa!!!" Zoe finally breaks your grasp and walks forward, making her way towards the edge as her head tilts side to side and looks all around, "This place is coooool!" her arms are held out far to the side as if she's trying to take in the entire view.

It got her mind off the Snuff incident and honestly, her reaction was the same reaction you had when you first came up here. You step up to her side and give her an ear to ear smile before you reach down and grab her wrist once more. "Huh? There's more!" her eyes go wide, "What are you, where are you, what is going on!?" she asks but continues to be oh so very curious.

You lead Zoe over to the little lip on the mountain side, probably only about ten inches in length, but the one that wraps around to that special spot away from all others, that tiny little cove in the mountain where you had so many special memories.

With another nod, you release Zoe's wrist and hug the mountain, shuffling your feet around the edge and being extremely careful, "Whoa Darien!! What are you?! Oh my Syndicate Suns be careful!!!" she's wailing out. It doesn't stop you, as you move around the edge and suddenly you can't see Zoe anymore as you make it to the cut out section in the mountain, the tiny little plateau, probably ten feet in diameter, as well as a cut out section in the mountain side which almost looks like it was placed there, a carved out room in the stone. "Darien!?!?!" Zoe asks.

"Come around." you eventually say your first words in quite awhile.

After another minute of waiting because you think maybe Zoe doesn't want to do anything, you see the girl with her chest flat against the wall as she's holding onto the rocks with her dear life. She's slowly shuffling her feet, inch by inch around the rock ledge, holding onto every little piece of stone she can as she's basically terrified for her life.

When she eventually gets into your arms length, you reach out and grip her body to help guide to her around the ledge, "WHEW!" she exhales, catching her breath, "That was nerve wracking but why did you....." she trails off as her eyes look at the tiny plateau they are on now. Her head turns around, seeing the carved out section in the mountain, sees two unlit torches, a blanket and pillow which were placed on the ground and where covered in a tiny layer of dust which means they have been there for a long time, "YOU!!!" she jumps in place and turns back towards your body, "I'm not going to sleep with you! Darien! OH MY GOD!!!" she takes a step back and holds her hands out, "Nope nope nope!!! As amazing as this place is, I won't! I won't fall to your charms!!! You try so hard!!! WOW!!!"

"Zoe, that's not..." you stumble out as your breath gets caught, "I'm not..."

"You're pulling out everything now! Oh man! Oh wow!" she dances in place before she moves over to the carved out section of mountain and kneels down by the pillow and blanket, trailing her fingers across the fabric, "This is super super fancy and soft too!!! Darien!!!" her head snaps back as her eyes are wide. "I can't believe you are doing this!!! WOW!!!"

"Zoe!!!" you groan out as you step up next to her, "That's not what I was doing..." you turn around and lower yourself down on the blanket before leaning your back against the mountain. As you do, your eyes look off into the distance, gazing into the desert for many miles as you watch the golden rays of sunlight shine upon all the grounds. Shortly after you pat your hand on the blanket right next to your body, "Come on Zoe, sit." you look into her mysterious ashen eyes. "Sit here with me." you grin at her.

"I'll sit with you!" she gives you a stern look, "But not sleep with you!" you shuffles over towards your location, "But if you touch me, or make a move on me, or do something that will try to get me to sleep with you...Oooohh Darien!!! Don't make me fight against you!" she beams a smile, "I see where you're going!!!"

"Zoe!!!" you mumble out, "I'm not trying to..." you groan out, "Ughhh, whatever!!!" you tell her, "Fine, you win!!!" you grin and then shortly afterwards the girl plops her booty down next to yours on the blanket and sits back, leaning against the mountainside just like yourself.

"It is a pretty view!" she exclaims as her eyes finally gaze off into the distance and her body cuddles up close against your own.

"So, Lexie showed me this spot." you begin as you place an arm around Zoe's shoulder and pull her body into your own, "Her mother and herself came here to relax. They wanted to get away from everybody and enjoy the sights, watch the sun, the moon and the stars." you take a deep breath as Zoe finally stays quiet, listening to your story, "I want to tell you this and you may already know, but I want you to hear it from me..." she tilts her head down, resting her cheek on your shoulder, "Claire, well, Luna was the previous Leader of the Sunriders and she was my sister. When she died, I was spiraling out of control and honestly didn't care anymore about anything in this world." you release a few puffs of air as you start to get a little upset.

After a few more breaths you begin to cool yourself down, "At the time, I was only fighting to find her and get her back in my life, I was going to do whatever I could to get back at Rathkin and the man who took her from me. That was my plan, my decision and my only goal in life but...but..., but Lexie..." you pull Zoe in harder as your hand rubs up and down her forearm, "Lexie did whatever she could to make me think of something else. She played with me, tickled me, trained with me, pushed my boundaries and eventually she trusted me enough to bring me here. She showed me this place and brought me out of that dark spot I was in. If it wasn't for her, I may already be dead, I may have done something stupid and truthfully, if it wasn't for her I don't know if I would have ever met you."

Zoe lifts her head and looks at you, giving you a friendly look. "Darien..." she mumbles out.

"And I'm showing this spot to you now!" You turn your head and connect your gaze with hers now, "Because I trust you, it got me out of that dark place and with that I know the struggles you are going through right now and I hope it can help you too. So whenever you need a minute or want to get away or you are feeling stressed, please come here, think of this place, the great memories, the friends you have and the people in your life. I hope you will use that to fight off any darkness you may have." you grin. "Actually, it was this very spot that I proposed to Lexie as well." you give a meaningful smile at Zoe, happy to share all these amazing memories with her.

"That means..." her face scrunches up almost playfully, "EW EW EW EWWWW!!!" she crawls away from you, the blanket and the pillow, "That means you two had sex here!!! EW EW EWWWW!!!" she continues to push herself across the ground as you can only begin to laugh. "I can't believe! Yuck! Did you wash these!?!" she rubs the stone ground, pretending to wipe away whatever she was touching, "Darien!!! Ahhhh!!" she yelps out before she connects to your gaze, "Oh Darien!!!"

"Zoe!!!" you chuckle out, "I'm sharing this place with you because I trust you and I know Lexie trusts you as well. To my understanding, you're only the fourth person to know about this place, Lexie, her mother, me and now you." you grin, watching her continue to smile and stare at you.

"You really are trying!" she nods her head, "Trying so hard to sleep with me! It's quite flattering I suppose!" she crawls back up to your side and scooches herself next to you once more, getting back into her same position as she tilts her head and rests her cheek against your shoulder.

All the while you throw your arm back around her, "But thank you." she whispers out, "But I know I did some things that made you mad and upset with me! I know you didn't like what I did but I'm trying, I am!" she exclaims, "I just wish I never did that thing at all, I want to still be on your good side, be going to war with you, fighting with you at your side!" Zoe pleads out.

"Hey, remember what I said though..." you begin to let her know, "I will always..."

"I'll protect Lexie!" she interrupts you with a smile, "I'll protect your child! I'll do that for you!" she turns her head, "I'm still mad you kicked me off the Sunriders but I know after you come home and everybody is safe and alive you'll be begging to have me back!" she leans forward and gives you a quick kiss on the cheek, "I know there aren't that many Sunrider's that are better warriors than me! Zoe the great! Zoe the best! I will train while you're gone so when you come back I'll kick your butt!" she gives you another peck on the cheek.

"Zoe!" you snap your head and look at her, "Stop putting on the moves! I'm NOT going to sleep with you!" you say playfully at her which only causes her to break out into giggles and laughter.

"That's not!!!" she growls out, "UGHHH!!!" she pouts causing you to laugh because that's exactly the same reaction you always give her when she claims you want to sleep with her. "I hate you sometimes!"

"I'll take what I can get." you return her gaze, "I'm glad to have you Zoe, glad you're in my life and I can't wait for the war to be over so I can get back here with you and be by your side to train with you again."

"Darien..." Zoe mumbles out as her head tilts towards the ground, "I'm mad you're making me stay here b-b-but..." she stutters out, "I'm glad to be here with Lexie because...she's truly like another mother to me." you hear her sniffle once as her body continues the emotional roller coaster.

"Zoe..." you hold her tighter, pulling your body into her harder, "Lexie loves you and I do as well. I hope you know that!"

"I-I...I do!" she sniffles again, "I-I want you to..." she pauses, "I-I'm s-s-sorry..." she mumbles out, "S-Sorry for ev-everything..."

"It's okay, Zoe..." you hold her tight, caressing her as well as you can and making sure to totally comfort the girl, "There's a reason I asked you to come to the Syndicate." you begin, "There's a reason I asked you to be a Sunrider..." you pause, watching her head slowly turn towards your own, "There's a reason I gave you my sister's Ulaks..., I know you will become the best. Better than this Snuff. Better than Rixx. Better than me." you smirk at her, "Keep training and you will be the greatest warrior in this world. I believe in that!" your lips curl up, happy as can be at the girl.

"Darien..." her eyes coat with a glaze of water as she's trying to process everything you're saying.

"Trust me..." you grumble out, "Zoe, train hard and you'll be the best..."

"T-Thank you Darien..." she tilts her head again, resting her cheek on your shoulder, "Thank you so much..."

The two of you sit there in the mid day sun, holding each other and staring off into the desert horizon sharing stories. It was times like this you would cherish, times like this, with the women that you love, making memories that would last a lifetime, memories which will help guide you on your journey to war...