Beyond Time (closed)

[KieranSoares]

"Exactly," Ashien murmured without taking his eyes off the canvas. "I'll have to catch you again some morning like this one, still in bed with your hair fanned out around you. But today, this is just about right..." He was already getting into the color of her skin, finding the perfect mix of paint.

 

[heartofcourage]

"You had your chance to do that this morning, but you decided that it was a good idea we get married." Dylan said with a smile. "Not that I'm questioning your choices, dear husband."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I was going to, but just like now, it was your suggestion. I'm just taking your advice," he reasoned, leaning over to steal a playful kiss. "But I can't think of anything I'd rather do on my wedding day... Paint, make love, and just see that beautiful face."

 

[heartofcourage]

Dylandra laughed softly as he told her that today he wanted to paint, make love, and simply see her face. He was playful that day, without worries or cares. She loved Ashien deeply and pulled him in for another kiss before she nuzzled her nose against his own.

"You should send this painting to your mother so that she can see the woman that stole your heart." Dylan murmured softly.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Or I could just make her wait," he said with a chuckle, knowing his mother would just about kill him by now. "It's fun to have a secret love. But you know the one I really can't wait for you to meet is Boar. He's absolutely melted for every single woman in the family and I think he'll really soften up for you. They'll all love you."

 

[heartofcourage]

"If they're all like you, I don't stand a chance." Dyllan murmured as he told her a little bit about his family while he painted. "You are about as charming as I can stand."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Only my mother is as charming as I am. And perhaps my sister," he assured her. "And they both have other people to use that charm on, even if Kay won't admit she's hopelessly in love with her Irish Captain."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Your twin sister, right?" Dylan asked as he mentioned Kay in a gentle tone. "You seem to love her very much."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Kayla's been the light of my life our entire lives, and I've done both the bravest and stupidest things for her sake. When we parted for her to go off to the court of Edinburgh and I came to England, I felt like I was abandoning her and losing the most important part of myself. But she's done so well there without me. I think she needed to prove to herself and everyone else that she's not a baby anymore, much as we want to think she is. She's become one of Queen Marianne's most favorite ladies in waiting, and she's done incredibly well for herself. Twins or not, I'm still her big brother and I couldn't be prouder. Neither could Da... Not Tamblin, but Vincenzo. He's always been our father more than Tamblin ever was."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Vincenzo is the one who your mother is married to now?" Dylan asked as he told her a little bit more about his family in Scotland. "You get a look of pride on your face when you talk about him. He obviously means a lot to you."

 

[KieranSoares]

"He's the reason Ma even survived to have Kay and I, and he's our half-sister Valentina's father. He's from Italy, but he finally came to Scotland to stay last time I was in Inverness. He and Ma got married almost immediately. If only for the sake of not ending up like most of her children, Ma managed to stop herself from just dragging him to a church the moment he arrived. We have a habit of two weddings per couple, but Ma's always gotten after us for it. Durban married Marri after he only knew her for two days and they've had ten happy years now. Brogan married Julia in Chester to satisfy her family, and Boar did with Emma just about the same thing we did. Selena... I don't know about her. She has a son, but she never talks about his father. Kay's next on the list with her Captain, but I think she'll be like Ma. And Val... I have no idea if she's even looking for someone to love. She's too wrapped up in being like Vincenzo."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Your family sounds lovely. It's been just me for far too long." Dylan said softly as Ashien talked about the large Ghis family. "Especially when my grandfather died. I loved him like he was my father. I barely knew my Mum and Dad before they died."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Your grandfather was a lovely man... especially to talk over the fine arts and play chess with. I really wish my grandparents were still around for you to meet them. My grandfather Martin passed away a couple years back, and my grandmother Lucina only a month after because she just couldn't live happily without him. But the one I really wish you could meet... that'd be Ghell. Tamblin contracted him to be a bodyguard for my mother before Brogan was born, and he stayed even when Tamblin stopped paying him and tried to banish him. He disappeared a month after Selena ran away to Edinburgh, and we don't know what happened to him. But Brogan's still looking for him. He's been looking ever since the day he took over the throne."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Grandpa taught me so much. He taught me how to draw and how to enjoy a book. He taught me funny songs. I miss him greatly." Dylandra said as Ashien spoke about Ghell and how much he had meant to the family. "You'll find him one day if he means that much to you."

 

[KieranSoares]

"We know he's in Europe if he's still alive, but... well, that's about it. I think I still have the one painting I made before he disappeared." He set his brush aside to go rifle through his paintings that were stored away in cabinets in his gallery. Soon, he returned with a canvas that pictured a great grey werewolf in a deerskin vest and dark trousers, sitting with a dark-haired woman on a stone bench in a garden. "I made it for Selena, but after she ran off to get away from Tamblin and Ghell disappeared, her heart couldn't bear for her to take it. He was more her father and her guardian than any of us."

 

[heartofcourage]

"You should send it to her. It's beautiful and I'm sure she would love to have it now. Your heart grows fonder the more time and distance there is between you and the object of your wants and needs." Dylan said as she gave her husband a smile and pulled him in for a gentle kiss.

 

[KieranSoares]

Ashien chuckled when she kissed him. "I'll ask her next time I go home. He reached out to touch her, cheek, but then something strange happened, like a flicker in the world around her. Ashien's eyes grew wide, looking at her, but before he could say a word, Dylandra was being shaken awake. A police officer stood over her as she lay among ruins.

"Miss, you can't be here. You're trespassing," the officer told her firmly. Not too far away, there were sounds of construction and great vehicles.

 

[heartofcourage]

The look of fear in Ashien's eyes made her afraid. She tried to grab onto him but before she could, he was gone. She was being shaken awake by a police officer, his voice strong and firm as he told her that she couldn't be there.

Pushing herself up onto her elbow, she glanced around Darkwood Manor and found it to be a pile of ruble and ancient ruins. "This is my home." She said softly. "What happened?"

 

[KieranSoares]

"Are you lost? You seem confused." The officer knelt, concerned at her claim of the ruins being her home. "Do you know where you live, ma'am? Why don't you come down to the station with me and we'll have someone pick you up."

Through the collapsed wall, Dylandra could see the ballroom, part of its floor collapsing, and the piano sitting in the middle, half-burned and completely ruined with several keys cracked or missing. Ancient canvases covered with dust and some even rotted away hung haphazardly from the walls. The ceiling above her was gone and blue sky shone clearly.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I live here." Dylan insisted as she got to her feet, looking at the ruins of her once beautiful house. "Darkwood Manor is my home."

She moved past the officer, making her way towards the piano. As she pressed the old keys, no sound came out. A look of horror crossed her features as she looked around the ballroom, struggling to make sense of just what had happened.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Ma'am, Darkwood Estate belongs to a historical society in town. But it's set to be sold and torn down in a month. You need to leave, or I'm going to be forced to escort you out," the officer warned her, his expression showing a deep confusion and concern for her mental health.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Dylandra Jennings is who it belongs to!" Dylan said, looking at the man as if he weren't making any sense. "It's been in my family for years. It was standing the last time that I saw it. I demand to know what has happened to my home!"

 

[KieranSoares]

The officer grew a little more wary as she shouted at him, and he stepped forward then. "Alright, sweetie, calm down. We'll get you someone to talk to and figure this out." He drew his handcuffs from his belt. "Cooperate with me and I won't use these, alright? Let's go down to my car." He motioned toward a metal ramp that had been put in place of the collapsed stairs.

 

[heartofcourage]

Dylan glanced towards the handcuff and then towards the area where the studio would have been. Perhaps if she could get back to where she had been when she disappeared, it would trigger the shift in time again.

"This is me being calm." Dylan said as she moved away from the piano and made her way towards the studio.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Ma'am," the officer said firmly, finally stepping forward to catch her wrist and latch one cuff around it before reaching for the other. He called out toward the ramp, "Mark! Come up here and help me!" Another officer came up the metal ramp then, trotting over to help his partner.