Disclaimer : I don't own Claymore

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The improvement of Raki and Clare's relationship could be measured by their sleeping arrangements in the morning.

When the pair started traveling again after their reunion, things had been the same as before : they set up camp for the night, Clare would stick her sword into the ground, Raki would take his sleeping roll and they would drift off in their respective positions. Clare typically tended to sleep less as a result of her solitary years, and Raki was a heavy sleeper. Therefore she was the first one to wake up most of the time.

If one was to stay with them for a few weeks, they would notice that the distance between them was steadily decreasing without them realizing it, until they slept side by side, him in his roll and her against her sword.

One morning, she found out that her hand had grabbed his at some point and was holding it when she woke up.

The night after, her head somehow fell to the side as she slept, leaving her in an uncomfortable position, her back bending sideways and using Raki's chest as a pillow. Her back was killing her but this had been the best sleep she'd had in years.

After that, it only became more embarrassing. Despite her efforts to stop, every night she sought him in her sleep.

Apparently her body had remembered the lesson because the next day, she awoke feeling the warmth of his body instead of the cold steel of her blade, her body laying fully pressed against his.

At least she hadn't snuck under the covers, she thought with her cheeks red from embarrassment.

Unfortunately for her, this particular scenario did happen a couple of nights later; and to top it off she wound up hugging him like a giant teddy bear.

Gods, how could it get worse?

This was answered as her subconscious decided it was not satisfied with feeling Raki's warmth through his clothes. Her mornings started to involve having to pull his shirt back down before he awakened as somehow, she was always pushing it up in her sleep to gain access to his soothing heartbeat, his warm, muscled chest and his washboard stomach…

She now had to include a quick, cold bath to her morning routine too.

The baths suddenly got a lot longer because her hands soon gained a perverted side as well. There was no other explanation for them to end up inside his pants every morning.

And this morning… she simply gave up.

"Clare?" Raki asked, having woken up at the same moment as her. "I know we didn't go to sleep like this… so can you tell me… what are you doing here?"

"Sleeping." she simply answered.

"Okay… and why are we both… you know… naked?" His kind brown eyes were filled with confusion and embarrassment at the feeling of nothing but soft flesh and silky skin against his completely unclothed body.

"Don't ask." Clare stated warningly, mentally cursing her traitorous hands for their unwanted nightly actions.

Raki gulped. "Yes Ma'am." He had yet to notice that his own hands had moved of their own volition and were now gently squeezing her bottom.

Clare did notice, but she didn't say anything. A small smile tugged at her lips. "Good. Oh, by the way…"

"Yes?"

"We're sleeping like this from now on."