Kirk's job before this had, at the least, prepared him for the dreams. When he was home, beside his lover, they were eased, but they never quite dimmed. Not anymore. He was lucky his mind chose to discard most of them come the waking hours, but some of them stuck with him, clawing at the shadows and invading the relative safety of the daylight.

"I should warn you now, I do not know the state of my home," he warmed her, holding out his arm for her to take. They might live in tunnels, but no reason not to be a gentleman. "I haven't been back in a number of weeks, and I have no clue what Waver and Iskandar get up to when I'm gone."