Soft eyes can pierce through even the strongest of resistances, searching deep into the hardened face before them, gently reaching into the depths of a man’s soul and touching the inner-most emotions that surge through his being. Those soft eyes can, amazingly, grow softer still as they continue searching the quickly fading eyes of that man, eyes fading not due to fatigue but by the pure emotion pumping out from within.

Eyes that seek the tears that brim around them, for they are not tears of sadness... no, not at all.

A mouth which smiles softly to lighten those eyes, those eyes that broke down the strong-willed man in a matter of minutes. Lips which curl gently with the smile, as an angel brings her face ever-closer to the man, to bless his lips with her own. A moment of bliss, a moment the man never wishes to part with... yet all moments do eventually fade, and with the parting of this kiss he’s left with no more than the aftershocks of the tender feeling.

A smile of his own... it signifies his completion. It signifies his dreams which will eventually come true—dreams more important to him now then even those which he’d held as a child long ago.

As much as he loves everything that he does... he loves her more, and it’s truthfully her that completes him in the end.

There’s a pause, a soft laugh which escapes the angel’s lips, her eyes dancing beneath the soft moonlight above the two. The man laughs softly in return, bringing his thumb to brush the tear of joy from the angel’s cheek, carefully brushing aside the trail from her eye that it left as well. She sniffles softly, bringing her face closer to his once more to capture his lips in yet another incredible kiss.

Everything seems so perfect, everything seems so clear...

Truly, this is the calm before the storm... and this man intends to enjoy every moment of it.

In case you could not wonder, this man is Dominic Pericolo; and in case you’re now wondering, despite the oncoming circumstances... he has not a care in the world but the angel before him.

“You’re so amazing...” he whispers to her, the night sky above he and his angel, Suki Minamoto, twinkling with the stars that dust across it, “How did a guy like me ever end up with someone like you?”

A soft laugh once again, Suki looks into his eyes and lightly shakes her head; “Sometimes... I really feel the same.”

He feigns a hurt expression as she gives him a confused one, and he quickly answers her unvoiced questions with an overdramatic statement; “You wonder how I ended up wi—“

A playful slap to the arm, and the two burst into laughter.

“You know good and well what I meant, Domi.” She smiles at him, giving him a look that only makes him grin even more. Yes, despite his tough persona, this man melts around Suki and is driven to moments of tenderness and, sometimes, even goofy tendencies.

The world quickly seems to fade back in around the joyful couple, as the gently swaying trees alongside the river become more apparent, and the soft sound of the flowing water fills their ears. Dominic casts a sideways glance at the wooden railing beside them, the bridge beneath their feet keeping them from the dark depths below.

“It really is nice out here...” he sighs contently, eyes lifting to the heavens above. The moon is in a crescent, but the glow is still quite strong. He lets a smile cross his features to the beauty of it all, and the perfect coupling the scenery has with the angel before him.

In truth, he believed he was completely surrounded by beauty, and he was nothing more than a wanderer through it all—much as the Wandering Samurai of his imagination would pass through the continent he roamed.

This brought a chuckle to him—though only in his mind, as he kept silently staring at the wonders around him. There was a slight tapping against his shoulder then, bringing him back from his euphoric state of mind, and he brought his eyes back down again to look into the amused eyes of the angel before him.

“You let your mind wander far too much.” She said playfully, poking at his nose with her finger. He smiled back at her and hugged her to him, burying his face into the crook of her neck.

“Never about the wrong things...” he whispered to her, a new feeling of completion spreading through his veins. He let his happiness out with a sigh, the strain on his chest from the pure emotion in him still making even the beating of his heart a difficult action.

A playful shove, and Suki was staring up at his face with a look of mocked anger; “You’d best not be thinkin’ no wrong things, sheet; I’ll straight—“

“And you,” Dominic interrupted, grinning broadly as he stepped up to lean forward slightly and poke her nose with his finger, “Ruin the moment far too much.”

She then grinned at him and nipped at his finger, causing him to withdraw it and laugh softly. She shook her head and stepped forward to hug him again, letting a sigh of her own pass through her lips.

“I love you so much Domi...” she said, bringing another smile to his lips.

“I love you too, Suki.”

Nothing else mattered to Dominic at this point... nothing but her, and the way that she made him feel. It was of course a moment for him to enjoy... after all, he’d be stepping back into chaos in a matter of days.

As has been said... this is nothing more than the calm before the storm; and knowing what he shall have to face... what a storm it will be.