Beyond Time (closed)

[heartofcourage]

"Well, you have the next best thing. And entire family that is willing and able to give you all of the advice that you want." Dulan said as she settled into a seat beside Ashien.

 

[KieranSoares]

Brogan gave Dylandra a tired smile, reaching out to lay his hand over her own. "I'm glad yer here, lass. I think we would 'ave lost our little brother if no' fer you."

"You might have. But luckily for you lot, your little brother's quite the charmer," Ashien told Brogan with a smile, earning a hoarse chuckle in return.

 

[heartofcourage]

"He thinks he's a charmer." Dylan said as Brogan grinned. "But I'm not all together convinced. He does have a charming smile. I've heard he gets that from his older brothers. A nice smile and they can get out of anything."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Not anything. Not with Ma an' our wives, at least," Brogan shook his head with a smile. "Ash gets most o' his charm from Vincenzo."

 

[heartofcourage]

"So, I have him to blame." Dylan said with a chuckle. "What problem do you need an answer to?"

 

[KieranSoares]

"I'm jus' wonderin' how Da ever managed t'recover from war... But then again, 'e never came close t'losin' it like I did. In fact, he hardly ever lost a battle before 'is last with me." Brogan glanced back at the claymore on the mantle and ran a hand back through his long hair. "Migh' go visit 'is grave before long... See if I can' find some peace o' mind there."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Perhaps we should all find a reason to go." Dylan murmured, glancing at Ashien as Brogan suggested going to see his father's grave.

 

[KieranSoares]

"It's not really something I'd much care to do," Ashien murmured to Dylandra, and Brogan laid a hand on his shoulder.

"I know y'never really saw 'im as yer father, Ash. It's alrigh'. You an' Kay grew up thinkin' o' Vincenzo as yer Da. Tamblin was jus' Ma's husband t'you two."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Maybe one day it'll give you some peace." Dylan suggested as Ashien insisted that he did't want to go. "Until then, we don't have to worry about it. We just need to focus on getting you to sleep better."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I'll be alright, love," Ashien tried to insist, only for Brogan to chuckle at him.

"If she's anythin' like any of us, Ash, she won' believe you til there's proof. Now go spend some time with 'er. Ye've been layin' around useless fer days." He ushered them on their way before he went to rejoin Julia in their room.

 

[heartofcourage]

Dylan smiled as Brogan shooed them along to spend time together. She had nothing special planned and she was content to simply spend time with Ashien. It was nice to be with him when he wasn't stressed or frightened.

"Should we paint?" Dylan asked, looking up at him with a grin. "It's been a while since we've painted together."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Mhm, is that because you want to paint, or because of what us painting usually ends in?" Ashien asked with a small smirk.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I'm not going to push you into something you're not ready for, Ash." Dylan said with a sincere look. "I just want to enjoy time with you doing something that we both love. If it leads to other things, that's fine. If not, then I'll have at least spent some time with the man that I adore."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Love, I don't think I'll ever not be ready to steal away with you to bed," Ashien assured her with a kiss. "Even if we weren't apart long, spending time with you in the studio painting, chasing around, going for rides on a whim... Those were the things I thought about whenever I had a moment where I wasn't sleeping, planning, or fighting. And you and our family were all I could think about when I was in that prison..."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Ash." Dylan said softly as he confessed that she was what he thought about in the tough times after his capture. "I'm happy that I could give you some comfort but I wish none of it had ever happened. It was too high of a price to pay."

 

[KieranSoares]

"No price is too high for keeping my homeland, my people, and my family safe. I was never expected to be a soldier. In fact, Ma begged me not to be... But I am because I want to defend the people I love. And between my alliances to the isles and my home here... I can do that. I accepted long ago that I might pay the ultimate price one day... And I'd see plenty of men in my life who would pay that price while I lived, and I deal every day with the guilt of surviving men who I believe were much more deserving and much more relied upon. But I'll keep going, because there will always be people out there who might come to destroy what I hold dear."

 

[heartofcourage]

Dylan listened to Ashien passionately tell her why he fought and she found herself wrapping her arms around him and hugging him tightly. He was a good man, loving and fun, but he also had a deep sense of duty that made her love him all the more.

 

[KieranSoares]

Ashien kissed her forehead as she wrapped him up in her embrace, his own hands resting comfortably on her back. "I wanted to make sure the people of my homeland have as bright a future as we do, love. I hope you won't hold that against me, next time I go running off to bugles and drums."

 

[heartofcourage]

"How could I be mad at something like that?" Dylan asked, looking into her husband's dark gaze. "I might be frightened that you'll never come back, but I would never stop you from doing what you were meant to do."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Though I might need you to keep me from being too reckless." With a kiss and a smile, he brought her to their room and began pulling out his painting supplies.

 

[heartofcourage]

Dylan was excited to be doing such a normal activity with Ashien. His art had been dark and moody lately but he seemed to be in such a good mood today. She wasn't going to allow those dark thoughts to come back to him as they shared their peaceful moments together.

Dylan got her supplies set up as well, a canvas on her easel and her paints meticulously lined up for her to use. Then she realized that she had no idea what she wanted to paint. It had been so long since she had bothered to get everything set up that inspiration had passed her by.

"I don't know what to do." Dylan said, glancing over at Ashien.

 

[KieranSoares]

Ashien had already begun, but as Dylandra spoke up, he paused. "Something you haven't done yet... I will give this war one thing, it gave me a lot of ideas I'd like to try... What did you get up to back home beyond the usual? Not every painting has to be happy, either."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I didn't do much after you left." Dylan admitted, looking at Ashien as he painted. "I stayed in bed for a few days with Ballas. I didn't want to get up."

 

[KieranSoares]

"But surely you found something to do," Ashien insisted. "I'd hate to think that you moped around without me around. I can't be your only source of entertainment."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I moped around because I missed you, not because I was bored." Dylan muttered. "I took care of Ballas because Van insisted I wouldn't do anything else if I didn't."