Sera had become used to sleeping alone. The sounds of other people in the hotel room was foreign to her. It took her a long while to make out that they were the sounds of Sabian and Lani’s voices. She propped up on her elbow and listened.

“You need to be the couch cushion,” Sabian was saying.

“I’m a couch cushion!”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“My name is Zippy the couch cushion. I maybe look soft but I can- Oof!” 

The muffled smacking sound of a little girl getting bonked by a soft fabric cushion. So, hard-edged Sabian Delain had a soft spot after all.

“Knock it off, silly. I’m serious. Let’s assess. What is our combat situation here?”

“I’m punching a couch cushion?”

...

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