[BL] I Didn't Sign Up For This-Chapter 111: In Which We’re Tourists (And It’s Weird)

The Covenant stronghold had burned.

Three hours there by rift passage and ground transport, twenty minutes to breach their wards, another ten to eliminate everyone inside and destroy the facility so thoroughly that nothing would ever grow there again.

Efficient.

Clinical.

Satisfying in a way that felt both right and wrong...my mother’s killers were gone, but the hollow space where grief should have resolved still sat in my chest like unfinished business.

We were standing in the parking area where we’d left the SUV, early morning light turning the Swiss Alps pink and gold, and I was trying to figure out what the hell we were supposed to do now.

Azryth’s hand found my waist, steady and grounding, and through the binding I felt his understanding. He knew what I was feeling, the completion that didn’t quite feel like closure, the satisfaction mixed with hollow grief.

"We should do something," Mara said suddenly, breaking the silence.

Everyone looked at her.

"What kind of something?" Henrik asked carefully, like he suspected this was a trap.

"Something normal." She gestured at the mountains around us. "We’re in Switzerland. We just destroyed an ancient organization before breakfast. I think we’ve earned a day off."

"A day off," I repeated slowly.

"Yes. Tourist things, chocolate, fondue, overpriced watches. Whatever normal people do when they’re not committing organized violence."

Ryota was already nodding. "That sounds good, it’s not like we have much to do back at the fortress."

Azryth’s thumb brushed against my spine through my shirt, a small question through the binding. *You want this?*

*Yeah,* I sent back. *I think I need it.*

His hand tightened slightly, agreement and support in one gesture.

"You want to be tourists," Azryth said aloud, and I felt his amusement through the binding even though his voice stayed neutral.

"I want to do something that doesn’t involve dimensional tears or people trying to kill us." Mara looked at me. "When’s the last time you did something normal?"

I thought about it. "Before the amulet, probably. So... months ago?"

"Exactly. We’re taking a day." She pulled out her phone, already searching. "There’s a village twenty minutes from here. Interlaken. Very picturesque, very Swiss, very unlikely to contain cosmic horrors."

"We don’t know that," Henrik pointed out.

"We’re going anyway."

Void, who’d been settled on my shoulder throughout the entire Covenant assault without making a single sound, chose that moment to create a small sparkle-sphere that popped enthusiastically.

Apparently it approved of this plan.

I looked up at Azryth. "Want to be weird tourists with me?"

His hand slid from my back to my waist, pulling me slightly closer. "Always."

I felt his contentment at the idea of just existing somewhere with me, doing something absurdly normal.

"Fine," I said to the group. "Let’s be weird tourists."

***

Interlaken was aggressively picturesque.

Like someone had taken every Swiss stereotype and compressed them into one village specifically designed to make tourists take photos and spend money. Chalets with flower boxes, mountains in every direction, a lake so blue it looked Photoshopped.

We parked and walked into the main street, Azryth’s hand finding mine immediately. Not possessive exactly, just... present, like he needed the contact as much as I did.

Normal people doing normal things surrounded us. Families, couples, tourists with cameras and hiking gear. Nobody looked like they’d just razed an ancient organization’s headquarters.

Void chittered from my shoulder, eyes tracking everything with obvious fascination.

"First time seeing normal civilization?" I asked it quietly.

It made a small humming sound that felt affirmative.

Azryth’s thumb brushed over my knuckles. "First time for me too. Like this."

I looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"Existing somewhere without purpose. Not governing, not hiding, not fighting. Just..." He glanced at our joined hands. "Being."

Something warm flooded through me that had nothing to do with the binding.

"We’re being very good at being," I said.

His lips curved slightly. "Exceptionally good."

Mara had found a chocolate shop and made a beeline for it with the determination of someone who’d earned this through violence.

The shop was small, warm, smelling like cocoa and sugar in ways that made my brain short-circuit after weeks of ration bars and whatever coalition food happened to be available.

"We’re getting everything," Mara announced, already pointing at displays. "Truffles, pralines, those things with the hazelnuts...everything."

The woman behind the counter smiled, clearly used to enthusiastic tourists. "Would you like to try samples?"

"Yes," Mara said immediately.

Azryth’s hand was still in mine as we moved to the counter, and I felt his amusement through the binding as Mara started trying samples with the focus of someone conducting important research.

The woman brought out a small tray of chocolate samples.

Void’s eyes brightened immediately, leaning forward on my shoulder to examine them with intense focus.

"You can’t eat those," I told it quietly.

It made an offended chirp.

"Well, you DON’T have a mouth."

Another chirp, more insistent, and a sparkle-sphere appeared near the chocolate like it was making a point.

"Void."

It created three more sparkles in rapid succession, clearly having opinions about being told no.

"Did it just argue with you?" Azryth asked, and I felt his amusement deepen.

"Yes. It’s sassy."

"I’m noticing."

The woman behind the counter was staring at Void with polite confusion. "Your... pet is very unusual."

"Exotic breed," I said quickly. "Very rare."

"It’s... floating."

"Specialty feature."

Void chose that moment to spin once, showing off, creating a cascade of sparkles that made the woman blink rapidly.

"That’s... remarkable."

Azryth squeezed my hand gently, and through the binding I felt his quiet laughter.

Mara was making sounds that were probably inappropriate for a public space as she tried different chocolates. "Oh my god. This is incredible, we’re buying all of these."

She bought three boxes.

Henrik bought two more, studying the packaging with the attention of someone cataloging important data.

Ryota, who’d claimed he didn’t like sweets, bought one anyway.

I was examining the milk chocolate selection when Azryth leaned in close, his breath warm against my ear. "Try this one."

He held out a piece of dark chocolate with sea salt, and I took it from his fingers, our hands touching longer than necessary.

The chocolate was good, rich and complex in ways I wasn’t sophisticated enough to describe... but I was more focused on the way Azryth was looking at me, the binding humming warmly between us.

"Good?" he asked.

"Very."

His hand found my waist again, thumb brushing against my hip through my pants. Small touches that felt deliberate, claiming, loving.

I leaned into him slightly, and he pulled me closer without hesitation.

We left the shop with enough chocolate to feed a small army, my hand back in Azryth’s, and I was already eating mine because delayed gratification was for people who hadn’t just committed justified murder.

"There’s a fondue place," Ryota said, checking his phone. "Supposed to be traditional."

"We’re getting fondue," Mara decided.

"It’s nine in the morning," Henrik pointed out.

"We just destroyed the Covenant before breakfast. Time is meaningless. We’re getting fondue."

***

The fondue restaurant was exactly what you’d expect from a place that took Swiss tradition very seriously.

Wooden everything, checkered tablecloths, a waitress who looked like she’d stepped out of a tourism ad and spoke four languages fluently.

We got a table, and Azryth immediately pulled his chair closer to mine before sitting, his leg pressing against mine under the table.

Small contact, constant awareness.

I loved it.

We ordered fondue because Mara had decided we were doing this properly.

The waitress brought bread, potatoes, vegetables, and a pot of melted cheese that smelled incredible.

Void watched the whole process with obvious fascination, eyes tracking the bread being dipped into cheese with the focus of someone studying advanced physics.

It leaned forward on my shoulder, making small interested sounds.

"You can’t eat it," I reminded it.

A sad warble.

"You don’t have a mouth."

It created a single small sparkle near the cheese pot, mournful, longing.

"I know, I’m sorry. It does look good."

Azryth speared a piece of bread, dipped it in cheese, and held it out to me instead of eating it himself.

"What are you doing?" I asked. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

"Feeding you."

"I have hands."

"I’m aware." His eyes met mine, amber and warm. "Humor me."

Through the binding, I felt his need for this..small gestures of care, feeding me, taking care of me in ways that felt intimate even in public.

I took the bread from his fork, and his satisfaction rippled through the binding.

"How is it?" he asked.

"Very good." I speared my own piece and held it out to him. "Your turn."

His lips curved slightly as he took it, and I felt the warmth of his amusement mixing with contentment.

Mara was explaining the finer points of fondue etiquette to Henrik, who was taking notes on his phone like this was important tactical information.

"If you drop your bread in the cheese, you have to kiss the person next to you," Mara said.

"That’s not a real rule," Henrik replied.

"It absolutely is. Swiss tradition."

"You’re making that up."

Azryth’s hand found my thigh under the table, warm and possessive.

"If you drop your bread," he said quietly, just for me, "I’m kissing you regardless of Swiss tradition."

Heat crept up my neck. "Noted."

His thumb brushed against my leg, and I felt his satisfaction at making me flustered.

Void made a sound that was distinctly judgmental and created a sparkle near the cheese pot like it was commentary on our behavior.

"Mind your business," I told it.

It created two more sparkles in rapid succession...definitely sassy.

"I really do like it more now," Mara observed.

Ryota was eating with quiet efficiency, but I caught him almost-smiling at our ridiculous dynamics.

We ate until the pot was empty, Azryth’s hand never leaving my leg, small touches and shared food making everything feel intimate despite the public setting.

When we finally finished, his hand slid to my waist as we stood, keeping me close.

"Cable car is next," Ryota said, checking his phone. "Scenic route up the mountain. It’s a twenty-minute ride, with views of the Alps."

"We’re doing everything," Mara declared.

Azryth’s hand tightened on my waist. "All of it?"

"All of it," I confirmed, leaning into him.