all exits look the same

there's a white flag waving

"It is just a little farther..you remember the way." Remi said, trying to keep his voice light despite the oppressive weariness he felt in his bones. The closer they came, the more Remi's mind called out for Isla. The smart thing to do would be to take Ashe to the infirmary. But...the alchemist wasn't entirely sure who ran it now. Phoebe, maybe? But Phoebe wasn't family. Not this family anyways. Once the dark unicorn's mind filtered into his own, Remi latched onto it immediately. Get Vai. Carry her back. Have her bring Felix if she can. How Isla would manage to communicate that information to the witch was beyond what Remi could reasonably think about at this moment. All he wanted was to get Ashe home.

To get her to Ronin.

Finally clambering against the big guild hall doors, the alchemist threw them open and wearily tugged he and Ashe inside. How many times had he thrust open the door only to scream Ronin's name at the top of his lungs? Too many times to count, so what was once more?

"RONIN—" He called, the near-ecstatic and slightly frenzied tone of his voice hopefully suggesting to his soon-to-be-husband that he should wear pants and also come as quickly as possibly (two things Remi normally encouraged the exact opposite of).

where my heart is on the ground

Coding base by Sky!

Ashe    "I could still climb a mountain if I wanted," Ashe rasped.    She leaned heavily on Remi, dragging her feet beneath her. Her empty stomach kept the world tilting around her, and the pain radiating from her arm with every cold shiver was no help. It was a force of will that kept her legs moving, her weary eyes ahead. More than just exhaustion, hunger, or pain had her legs trembling with every step. There were no ferocious winds, icy rain, or traitorous lightning. She could rely on the earth under her. She wasn't alone.    Ashe kept her good arm wrapped tightly around Remi's waist, hanging onto the way his voice sounded, and how it felt to hear anyone at all.  The stormwinds howling in her ears grew quieter with every step towards the guildhall, and oh gods the sight of it --    Ashe's head spun even as her vision blurred, and it took her a moment to realize that she was being hauled through the threshold. Remi called out into the guildhall, so full of familiar scents that her chest ached. "Ronin--?" and when i show my wounds to the stars, i'll be dead.

the baffled king composing hallelujah

The sound of his name being called, echoing through the guildhall, was practically an alarm system by now for Ronin. As if knowing the drill by now, a pale dragon soared from deep within the guildhall to land upon one of the beams overhead, peeping down at them with fierce blue eyes. At the sight of Remi in one piece she relaxed, but Ashetta...

Sugar let out a shrieking roar intended to echo the sentiments of the two standing in the doorway, and Ronin's footsteps were already thundering on the stairs. He arrived barefoot and buttoning his pants, shirtless and sleepy (naps were becoming an increasing part of his daily ritual as of late). Still, at the sight of Ashe his lips parted in open shock, the hunter taking the few short steps to close the distance between them.

Ashe was easy to squash into a hug alongside Remi, and so Ronin held them both tightly. "What the fuck happened," he breathed, already ushering them further into the guildhall.

there's a white flag waving

It didn't take long for Sugar to appear, her bright and anxious trills evidence that she did in fact remember Ashe. The last thing any of them needed was an unexpected dragon attack. Not the time for it certainly, but Remi couldn't help at all the way his heart sped up in his chest and something boyish and giddy lodged low in his throat at the dishevelled sight of Ronin. Hardly-awake-and-shirtless-Ronin was one of his most favourite versions of his partner after all. But, with a wounded Ashe nestled against him it was easy to stifle his affections, or at least re-direct them.

"Her arm is broken, careful." Remi whispered in a low voice, nudging Ronin with an almost brotherly-roughness.

"As for what happened, I will let Ashe fill you in. Isla is going to fetch Vai and Felix." Pulling back slightly, having already had his reunion with the assassin, Remi headed towards the kitchen. "Tea? Something stronger perhaps?" He asked, flashing a grin towards the dark-haired pair.

where my heart is on the ground

Coding base by Sky!

Ashe    Sugar bugled from above, and seconds later, solid arms folded around her. All at once, it was Ronin and Remi, and that was it in the world. Her breath caught at the movement in her arm, black splotches of pain blooming before her eyes. Her head drooped against his chest anyways, Ronin's voice rumbling from under her head, and she huffed a smile.    They were moving into the guildhall before she could form a reply, and she didn't move from the Guildmaster. Her eyes had been closed, she realized, as Remi left them. She blearily blinked them open to watch him go. She wanted to tell him something damn strong. Instead, her sluggish lips only croaked to Ronin, "You're warm, staryboy."    Ashe looked up at him, and her eyes welled at once, heart stumbling. She didn't have the strength to weep, however. She hadn't had any strength left out in those storms. It was sheer stubbornness that gave her that final push when she caught the scent of home on the winds. Even in that determination, there were the dark shadows of doubt, the whispers that she would return to Mort sooner rather than later.    "I was trapped in those storms," she said. Alone. "I couldn't find my way home." and when i show my wounds to the stars, i'll be dead.

the baffled king composing hallelujah

Frowning at the news about Ashetta’s broken arm but nonetheless loosening his grip on her, Ronin allowed Remi to escape his embrace so that he could fully focus on the sister he thought he had lost. ”Get the good wine,” he suggested to the alchemist with a weak smile; it was strong and it didn’t taste like vinegar - perfect for a reunion like this, no?

”I try,” he murmured to Ashe, leading her further into the guildhall so they could sit down in one of the comfortable chairs close to the hearth. If Isla was going to fetch Vai and Felix, they would have a lot on their hands very soon. Best to get comfortable and enjoy the quiet while they could. Smoothing the ex-assassin’s hair out of her face and looking her over, guilt flashed across Ronin’s face as he learned where she had been.

”Out in the storms? Fuck, Ashe. I’m so sorry... I just... I thought you and Kalt had taken off to explore, once the barrier had fallen.”

there's a white flag waving

Remi returned juggling three glasses and a bottle of wine against his chest. Setting them clumsily down on the table, he uncorked the wine with his teeth before pouring them each a healthy glass. Sitting with his back towards the fire, Remi crossed his legs. His teeth gnawed rather anxiously against the inside of his cheek as Ronin hinted at a possible reason that the pair hadn't actually been searching for Ashe.

"I thought with the barrier down you were eager to leave." Remi agreed with a slight wince, counting back the months since he'd last seen the assassin, realizing now she'd been lost and not wandering.

"I am so sorry Ashe. I had no idea..." He added with a soft frown, his shattered-gaze flickering temporarily to Ronin before he wet his dry lips with a mouthful of wine.

where my heart is on the ground

Coding base by Sky!

Ashe    Ashe was fairly certain she'd fall asleep on the spot the moment she was sat in that chair. It was her arm that kept her from settling back, a thick groan slipping through her teeth when she tried. She looked up at Ronin with her fingernails digging into the chair, but he still brought a weak smile forward as he brushed back her hair.    The smile vanished at Kalt's name, her chest tightening painfully. She dropped her eyes, and a shaking hand tipped back the wine glass Remi handed her. She focused on the flavor bursting in her mouth instead of the aching emptiness in her, slowing her racing heart and bringing a bloom of color to her cheeks.    Her trembling lips pressed together, and it was a long moment before she looked up. She forced a crooked smile. "Shut up," she said. "Both of you. I didn't exactly make it hard to believe that I'd do that, did I?"    Ashe took a slow breath and stared down into her wine. "I don't know where Kalt is. I don't know where Theea--" Her voice caught on the little girl's name. The silver ring on her hand gleamed with firelight, and she had to look back up at her brothers before the tears could gather. She gave them a wan smile.    "I tried to fly over the storm, to see if I could get in range enough to find him and it..." Screaming wind -- frost on her wings, her hands -- needling rain -- blinding sand -- falling and falling and falling -- "It pulled me in before I could even get over the top of it. I didn't...I didn't stand a chance." and when i show my wounds to the stars, i'll be dead.

the baffled king composing hallelujah

Accepting the glass of wine from Remi and flashing his lover a small smile, Ronin took a healthy sip of his drink before turning his attention back to Ashe. Instantly he regretted mentioning Kalt; even without the ex-assassin's explanation, he would have known from her face alone that the news wasn't good. That Theea was missing as well was the final nail in the coffin. Still, his apology halted on his lips after Ashe scolded them both for their assumptions, Ronin giving a lopsided smile instead and reaching forward to take her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"You're back now," he said. "You're home. Your mother and brother will be along soon, so just sit tight until then, okay? You're welcome to stay for as long as you need." He glanced at Remi, assuming the other man would be in agreement given that he'd brought Ashe to the guildhall, but he still wanted to make sure.

there's a white flag waving

Had the moment not been so dire, Remi might have jokingly sneered at Ronin, offering him a quip of It is so nice to be asked before inviting house guests, isn't it? The tension wouldn't stand for such a light-hearted joke though, but it did make the alchemist realize that Ashe would have no idea that he and Ronin were together. This this was their home now. That they were getting married in just a few days. Then again, all that Ashe had just said about Kalt didn't really seem to be the best segue into explaining their situation, and so the alchemist merely offered Ronin a small smile and nodded.

"Perhaps I can .... do something with your ring. Increase the range." Remi offered with a small smile, wanting to offer hope even in the face of torrential storms keeping Ashe and her partner apart.

where my heart is on the ground

Coding base by Sky!

Ashe    Ronin took her hand, and she squeezed her fingers around his. She hadn't thought about where she'd stay yet. She had her own house, beautiful within and full of everything that made it their home. Hers and Kalt's and Theea's. She had to go back, she had to find Soot and Percy, and her things.. But to stay there alone? "Thank you," she said with a grateful smile, to exhausted to come up with anything clever to say back.    "Perhaps I can .... do something with your ring. Increase the range." Ashe looked to Remi when he spoke, her heart stalling. She blinked at him and then looked down to the ring of twisting silver branches, her thumb turning the old metal around her finger. "The bond was meant to have a vast range," she replied as she met his shattered-glass eyes. "Wherever he's gone, it's far, and he got there fucking fast."    Was that a touch of bitterness in her tone? She didn't want to believe he had just left with Theea. He'd have taken off the ring, wouldn't he? Or there would be no vast, emptiness stretching between her and wherever he was. There would simply be.. nothing. Like when Alistair had removed it. Wouldn't he have taken it off he truly didn't want to come back?    She let out a slow breath and adjusted where she sat with a wince. "If you think you can... yes." Ashe glanced between them. "But right now... what have I missed?" and when i show my wounds to the stars, i'll be dead.

the baffled king composing hallelujah

"No need to thank us. If you'd like us to come back to your place to look it over, too, just say the word," Ronin murmured, his smile sad as he glanced between Ashe and Remi and they spoke about the rings she and Kalt shared. "We'll find him," he said quietly. "Or in all likelihood, he will find us instead. But I don't need to tell you that." He forced his smile into something a little brighter for Ashe's benefit.

As for what she had missed? Well, where the hell to start? His cheeks warming a touch as he gazed at Remi, Ronin took a deep breath and let it out again. "It is a long story," he muttered. But it was a tale he would be happy to tell, even if it took all night.

Quietly, and with plenty of wine to keep him fuelled, Ronin began to reacquaint Ashetta with the world she had missed, handing over to Remi in places and eventually, when she arrived, Vervain as well. They would talk long into the night, and by the end of it Ronin realised, truly, how far they had come since the fall of the barrier and the breach of the Spire.

Still. There was no rest for the wicked.

~END