Things didn't not seem to improve, much like the weather. Reaching up slowly, Erik placed the back of his hand against Liesel's forehead. She didn't move, she continued to lean up against the wall of the elevator. They had rushed all the way back to the hotel, only while they journeyed it became increasingly obvious that Liesel was struggling. Clearly her earlier stunt in the bank had long lasting effects. Long lasting effects that she seemed her hardest to ignore and shrug off. Erik wasn't an idiot. Nor was he oblivious. He could see her paling even more and finding it harder to actually keep her eyes open. 

At one point through their return journey, he thought she was honestly going to faint. This caused him to clasp onto her arm and steady her and even pull her along to hurry up. The sooner they got back, the sooner she could rest up. But then the sooner they got back, the sooner the next part of their little mission would take place. And truthfully, seeing as how Liesel was, Erik had to seriously deliberate between certain things. Like leaving her here, and giving her directions of where to go to meet up at a later date. Or possibly talking her into travelling still, even if she felt unwell.

He couldn't leave her. How could he? But even still...she didn't look able to do anything right now. Removing his hand, he sighed gently. Her eyes opened slowly, and after blinking several times, she seemed to get them to focus on him. She felt cold, yet warm. Quite possibly a temperature mixed with her energy rebuilding. Hearing the doors open, the two of them exited and walked along the corridor in silence. Seeing as how she was petering off to go down the other corridor which led to her room, Erik stopped walking and watched her go. He frowned slowly, a small amount of reservation appeared within him as he watched her enter her room and close the door.

Readjusting the grip he had on the briefcase he turned and entered his room. Honestly, he did not wholly like the idea of her being on her own. She was barely conscious, what if something happened? As much as he would like to say Liesel was one for common sense and whatnot, he couldn't help but ponder over this. With a quiet groan, he pushed open his hotel room and shut the door with more force than needed. Pushing a hand through his damp hair, he threw the briefcase onto the bed and moved around the room. Not having much luggage to begin with, it didn't take long to find something to change into. His damp and drying clothes got cramped into the holdall with very little care. Zipping it up, he picked it up along with the briefcase and exited the room.

Hearing the sluggish footsteps beyond the door in front of him, he looked down at Liesel as she looked confused at the sight of him knocking on her door. "Sorry I'm not room service." He said while nodding at her, she let out a quiet laugh and rubbed her eyes. Moving backwards she gestured a hand to him.

"What brings you here?"

"You."

Liesel looked over her shoulder with a raised eyebrow. Erik sighed and shut the door, moving more into the room, he placed his things by the table and sat down slowly. He was quite glad to see that she had had the sense to change. Being in a rather cosy, but baggy jumper and pyjama trousers made it rather clear that before he appeared, she was hunkered down in bed. She smiled and sat cross legged on the bed, playing with the duvet she picked at the cover and looked over to him. "You're worried about me?"

"You fainted back there, and almost did again when we were coming back here. Is there reason for me not to be worried over this?"

She mused and shrugged slowly. "Sorry." She said instead of answering his question.

"Never apologise for succeeding in what was asked of you. Just try to not lay yourself out in the process, yes?"

Liesel held up a hand and nodded. "I give you my word."

"Good."

Rubbing a hand to her forehead she eyed him curiously. "Why else are you here? You're not solely here to check on me, what is it?"

Erik sighed, he was rather pleased in a way that she had bought this up rather than himself. "How do you feel? Do you think by tonight you will be okay, or do you think you'll feel better in the morning?"

"Why?" She asked confused while pushing the pillows against the headboard. Leaning back she sunk into the comfortable pillows she'd surrounded herself with and pulled the duvet over her legs.

"We have to leave." Erik said blankly while looking at her with a serious gaze. She perked up and tilted her head to the side. "The sooner the better."

Rolling her eyes she looked distantly up at the ceiling. Sitting in silence for a few moments she nodded slowly. "Okay," sitting upright she pushed the covers and pillows away from herself, and swung her legs over the bed. Rubbing her eyes with the heels of her hands she inhaled deeply before pushing herself up and away from the bed. "Give me a minute to get changed then we can go." She didn't need to be told twice. It was rather obvious really that they wouldn't be able to stay here for much longer. The sooner the alarm went out, the sooner people would be out looking for them.

Pottering around, she rummaged in what little luggage she had and moved to the bathroom to change. While she did Erik sat in silence waiting for her return. He looked out of the window, rather pleased that the rain had passed. It was growing dark though, which meant that no doubt it would rain again later on. Hearing shuffling he looked over to where Liesel stood pulling on a pair of boots. Tugging on her coat, she winced at the damp feel and quickly packed her things away. Turning and looking about the room she gave a nod.

She was ready to leave. Which was a shame really, she quite liked Paris. "Where are we going?" She asked as they left the room and returned to the reception area. Erik looked at her and shook his head, getting the hint she leaned her chin on the high desk as he took to checking out the two of them.

Once that was done and a cheery smile got sent their way, they turned and left. The rain from earlier had left murky puddles scattered around the pavements. Some people went to great lengths to avoid walking through the dank rain water. But then there were others like Liesel who childishly enjoyed splashing through them, only to get looks shot at her for her behaviour. Those looks transpired to Erik, and he narrowed his eyes in return. He quite frankly didn't care for her being a child and splashing in puddles. Truth be told, it was rather good to see her suddenly perk up and look happy from such an action. Sitting up in bed she just looked miserable and pained.

"Switzerland."

"What?!" Liesel accidentally splashed a passer-by as she looked at Erik in shock. She earned shouted insults to be sent her way as the man continued grumbling and trying to wipe the rain water from his suit jacket. Liesel just ignored him and continued to look excitedly at Erik. She was shocked, confused even.

He smiled at her, she pouted slowly and shook her head. She had not misheard him, he was being serious. "What? I thought you always wished to travel." He stated, he could vaguely remember a much younger, smaller, slightly more naïve version of herself listing off all the places she wished to go and see. Safe to say Paris was checked off the list.

"But...why?" She decided to ask instead of registering his smug words. "What's there for us?"

"Truthfully? A banker."

"Another one?" Liesel's tone was bland, bored and there was a slight whine to it as she droned this out. Her shoulders sagged and she looked with a small pout up at him, a frown was on her face. Did Erik suddenly have a thing for banks and bankers or something?

"What do you mean by that? You've not met another one, and you definitely missed the one we were going to meet." Erik frowned and hailed a taxi for them. They had walked far enough from the hotel that if anyone was by chance perhaps looking for them, they'd have lost them in the crowd of milling people.

"Nothing! Just I thought we'd be meeting interesting people."

"Likeminded people you mean." Erik corrected as they both clambered into the taxi which stopped beside them. Sitting back in the worn leather seat, he looked to the side to see Liesel looking thoughtful. "I am not sure there are other people looking for him."

"Mainly because no one else knows of him." Her voice spoke quietly while she tightened her grip on her bag handle. "How can someone like him be so unknown?"

"Snakes are good at surviving. Burrowing underground to let dust settle before reappearing and rearing their heads." Erik looked away from the window and looked to her. She looked uncertain but nodded slowly. "We will find him." He said certainly. He wasn't setting out to do all of this only to fail.

"I know." Liesel replied while resting her head back against the headrest. Shutting her eyes she zoned out in the silence. She concentrated on calming her breaths and emptying her mind. She all but jumped when the taxi stopped and she got nudged on the arm to get out. The airport was a hub of activity. People were rushing about here, there and everywhere. There didn't seem to be anyone just standing doing nothing. All was motion and business. Liesel twirled on her heels and looked about herself, she never really took in the light space of the airport when she first arrived. Now that she was leaving, she wished to remember it.

"Liesel?"

"Ja?"

"Time to go," Erik had left her to get their tickets, when he returned he had to pull her out of her thoughts. She was looking distantly up at the ceiling. Tilting her head to the side she looked to the tickets in his hand and nodded slowly.

Soon sitting in a stiff seat, Liesel just kept reminding herself that she wasn't going to be on the plane long. She didn't care for flying, be truthful she actually quite liked it. But she really hated the uncomfortable seats. She looked rather sadly about herself. No one else seemed to care. Maybe she was just moping because a little under half an hour ago she was wrapped up in a warm bed? She really missed that bed now. Fidgeting, she decided she may as well make the most of this time of peace. She shut her eyes and zoned out of the low chatter about her and drifted slowly off to sleep. And she really did need sleep.

Beside her Erik looked about casually, yet alert. He was seeing if there was anyone of authority about, in all honesty, he was expecting to suddenly get caught. It was natural paranoia he supposed considering what he was carrying. He looked at the briefcase in his lap, not wholly trusting it to be out of his sight he then looked to Liesel, who ironically enough he also didn't trust being out of his sight. Resting his head back against his seat, he simply watched as she twitched slightly in her sleep. She looked so troubled. Most people looked relaxed and at peace when asleep, not her. She looked the opposite. He was surprised really how she even managed to get any sleep. Looking upwards as a metallic groan erupted lowly into the air, he looked back to Liesel happy that take off wasn't waking her up. They wouldn't be here long. An hour, perhaps a little more. That was surely enough time for her to catch up one some rest.

Shutting his own eyes, he intended on trying to have a light sleep too, only to open his eyes and look downwards when an odd noise came from her. Something between a whimper and a moan came from between her lips. Leaning away from his seat, he turned and placed a hand on her shoulder. If she made more noise, he was sure someone would come over and ask if all was well. He resisted calling out when a shock travelled through his hand as Liesel snapped to reality. He looked worriedly upwards as the lights flickered too and the plane dipped in the air only to regain itself when she became more aware. It seemed she had regained enough strength to not only shock him, but also to interfere with equipment.

"Sorry!" She exclaimed quietly while turning in her seat and looking at him.

Shaking his hand, he looked at her. "Don't worry." He said awkwardly, he honestly didn't expect to get shocked twice in one day. She looked flustered, she bit her lip and seemed to deliberate between checking his hand or sitting on her hands to keep them away from anything. "What was it?"

"Nightmare."

"Do you wish to talk about it?" Erik asked while she looked about with wide eyes and shook her head quickly. He looked at her firmly. "Come on, that look says otherwise."

"No, no...it doesn't matter...do you have nightmares?" She hesitantly asked, she never asked such personal things like this with Erik. Mainly because he acted so closed off, when it came to things from the past. The experiences they went through were barely mentioned, it happened and now it was a closed off part of their lives. She didn't know if he had dreams let alone nightmares.

He raised an eyebrow at the sudden turnaround but thought about it before shaking his head. "No. Dreams, perhaps. Not that I can remember them. I tend to remember memories when I do dream, on the rare occasion."

"What do you remember?" Liesel asked, sounding almost hopeful of a topic that would take her mind off of the horrible events she just subconsciously had.

Erik looked at her before rolling his eyes. Him talking was clearly distracting her from her own troubles. "You know what, against wishing to school does crop up."

"Uh! Why would your mind wish to remember that? School is one thing I'd wish to never remember."

Erik laughed quietly and nodded. Settling back in his seat he shut his eyes with another nod. "Yes, it's a crime to recall such torture." He commented sarcastically.

"Which school though?" Liesel had to ask. Naturally before they had initially met they had both gone to different schools. But afterwards they attended the same one. And that one was really quite horrid, not that school was meant to be nice.

"My school," he simply replied, Liesel leaned against the armrest and placed her chin on her fist. She looked to him interestedly, he didn't often open up and talk about the past. Or rather his past, before they both came into each other's lives.

"I'm rather sure that classes as a nightmare, Erik. Anything involving school is."

"Perhaps you're right." He mused while opening his eyes and looking distantly at the back of the seat in front of him. It didn't feel like a nightmare, none of his dreams seemed like it.

"Was it a nice school?"

"It was standard. But then it turned hostile, naturally." He looked down at her, Liesel blinked and blew a stray piece of hair out of her face. She seemed rather engrossed in what he was saying, though he had to admit he wasn't sure if that was good or not considering the topic.

"Friends?"

"Some, but then I'm sure like you, they went. Distanced themselves and turned away. However, there was one who didn't."

"Oh, do tell."

Erik smiled and shook his head. "You sound like an old gossip."

"Watch who you're calling old." She laughed and hit him gently on the arm.

"She-"

"She?! Oh...oh you! No way!" She clapped her hands together. Erik didn't quite like the oddly dreamy look she suddenly had in her eyes. "Did you love her?" Liesel simply asked, he frowned and blanched over the question. She had certainly changed her tune from moments ago.

"Where'd you get that notion from?"

Liesel smiled slowly and looked at him knowingly. "You looked fond immediately upon mentioning her...what was her name?"

"Magda."

"And?"

"And what?" Erik asked bluntly while Liesel nudged him on the arm. With a groan he swatted her hand away with annoyance and even held onto her hand because she was going to playfully hit him again to answer her prompting. "I was young, Liesel. I don't know if it was love or just mere fancy."

"You must've pursued this avenue to find out which it was." Liesel said, sounding hopeful. The thought of the stoic boy, and man she had grown to know, having a childhood sweetheart before life went to hell, warmed her heart. She had never seen Erik truly happy; yes, she had had happy moments with him while growing up, but it always seemed hindered in someway. Like he didn't quite want the real him, and his real feelings to appear. But a young Erik with a girl? Liesel couldn't help but gush slightly, all she'd ever want, was for Erik to be happy.

"I did rig a javelin throw in class once to impress her, so I'll give you that much. Perhaps I did pursue it." Erik mused and looked around, no one else seemed to be paying attention to them. "Won a medal, and got it taken away." He seemed to wish to add on bitterly.

"By?"

"Who do you think?" He asked cynically.

"Ah..." Liesel cottoned on and managed to figure that this all happened with the uprising of the Nazi regime. Of course a Jewish boy winning over those of supposed superior lineage was unheard of. "So?"

"So what? It doesn't take much to figure out what happens next."

"I meant what happened to her?" Liesel asked, sounding less hopeful. If this girl's parents were nationalists, they'd never let Erik near. The thought of a heartbroken Erik hurt her in return. She didn't want to think of him hurt.

He fell silent then, and seemed troubled. "She got taken." He looked to her as she sat up straight, her expression dwindling. His words could only mean a few things. "Gypsy camp...and we both know how that went. I never saw her again, Liesel." Erik admitted, shutting his eyes again as Liesel looked down at her lap sadly. That was somehow worse than her previous thought of nationalist parents...chances are very high, that Magda was dead. Although Erik seemed rather to the point about it, Liesel could tell with his tone, and how his eyes darkened when talking about her, that her death still affected him. Of course it would.

"Love is fleeting, innocent, harsh and fickle. First love is even harder, in the sense of learning from it, and recovering."

"You sound like you're speaking from experience." Erik pointed out, his hands flattening against the briefcase as he raised an eyebrow from her rather wise sounding words.

"Me? No. Never loved anyone other than my family." Liesel admitted. She was too young at the time to find a childhood love before she was taken and imprisoned.

"No secret boyfriends you've hidden away?" Erik asked while opening his eyes and listening to her scoff quietly over what he said. Though his words were meant as a joke, and she took them as such, his tone was not wholly one of joking. More of tense seriousness.

"What? No! No, of course not." She laughed and smirked while she leaned back against her seat. "Was it a nice medal?"

"It was."

"Should've stolen it back."

"It wasn't that good."

"I've never won anything. I'm a little jealous." Liesel said while leaning her head against his shoulder.

"Want to talk about it yet?" He asked while glancing down at the top of her head, he flicked his eyes to the side and watched as someone walked passed and took to their seat. The man looked a little peaky and pale in comparison to most. He thought automatically the worst when hearing footsteps and had naturally tensed, only to relax and look away from the ill man. Erik also figured that he could perhaps let his guard down somewhat while finally asking Liesel about her nightmare. He thought that his distracting talk of school and the past would be enough to prompt her to open up in return.

She shut her eyes and nodded slowly. "Drowning." Was all she said. She did in fact have quite a horrid fear of water, vast expanses of water that is. Baths were a no go, thanks to past trials and experiments, the sea was horrific and oceans, don't even get her started. "I just found I couldn't breathe, and I felt so heavy. I don't know...dreams suck."

"Yes, they can be somewhat troubling."

"We're not staying for long, are we?" She looked up at him, he didn't seem to really mind her using him as a human pillow.

"No. Well...I hope not. I didn't have it in mind for us to stay in the country for the day, or night." Erik said, his blue eyes staring down into her bright green ones, if anything the lighting on the plane made the shocking colour stand out more.

"So, it's the case of getting off this plane, going to see Mr Banker and then getting back on a plane?"

"Got it in one."

"We're going to be so jet lagged." She sighed and shut her eyes. If she was going to be plane hopping as much as it seemed, then she was going to sit and finally try and get a quick power nap while she could. "May I suggest you getting some rest too? Even you're not immune to exhaustion." She said, nestling her head more against his jacket and letting out a content sigh.

"One of us best stay awake." Erik pointed out honestly.

"Do you honestly think something's going to happen?" Liesel frowned and narrowed her eyes to the seat in front of her. "No one knew we were even in the country. No one knew we left. We were not noticed by anyone, so therefore; there shouldn't be a need to be so alert. If something was going to happen, I think it would've by now."

"Perhaps on this rare occasion, you're right."

"Rare occasion!" Liesel repeated sounding truly offended. She went to say more only to have a hand held up to silence her. In return she swatted his hand away and crossed her arms tightly in defiance. Shutting her eyes tightly she instead let out a quiet huffing noise and got more comfortable against his shoulder. He was far comfier to lean against then the horrid aeroplane seats. Her eyes opened a fraction when she felt a hesitant weight lean on top of her head. Her eyes slid to a slow close, she wasn't used to being used as a human pillow in return...yet she found it somewhat comforting, and oddly pleasing. With a gentle shrug, she decided to just stop pondering and tune out of the background noise about her. Eventually after a few more silent moments she did in fact drift off to a dreamless sleep.

----

Edited: 7/June/2019

Reedited: 13/August/2021