Find My Way Back

KALT RAVENSHIRE As long as my blood runs red Racing through my veins    Blood pounded in his ears, drowning out most other sounds completely. He didn’t fully understand what had happened, and somewhere in his mind, he knew that might have been for the best. It came to him in flashes, but just how accurate were they? Felt like a dream...a nightmare.    There was an emptiness he remembered feeling. An empty silence within him that never answered whenever he called, but it was still there. Where ‘there’ was still was yet to be discovered.    He swallowed thickly, a familiar metallic taste in his mouth. He brought his hand to his lips and found blood staining the corner, leaving his gloves with a slight shine from the red liquid. He squeezed his eyes closed against the thudding in his head. What did he remember? Rather, what didn’t he remember? His memory was flawless, but here… Gods, it felt like he was missing months. Not completely, but flashes came to him in some bizarre and mixed order, in no possible way chronologically.    Something then came tearing through his memories, immediately shoving them aside. “Theea?” He croaked, his voice cracked, as a rough cough escaped him. His body ached, but it didn’t register with him, as he looked around to clear briefly blurred vision.    “Papa?” Came a small voice, and Kalt nearly collapsed from relief, his breath leaving him when he turned around to see the young girl atop his unicorn’s saddle. She had some bruises and very superficial injuries, but otherwise, was completely unharmed.    “Hey, Star,” he said with a lopsided smile. “Come here.” The assassin met Kysma halfway, his left leg straining - probably a muscle tear, if he was thinking clearly enough to diagnose himself - to keep him walking without some killer pain, but he had experienced plenty worse in his time before Caido. Strange that that was a comfort.    He slipped his glove off and took his daughter’s hand then kissed it, keeping contact with her to allow his magic to mend her small injuries. Whatever the fuck happened in those storms was no joke, and he felt his gut writhing under the thought, which made him even more anxious. Still, what was important was that they were alive. They were alive and together and…    Kalt looked around, realizing that they were nowhere near where they should have been. The fields? The woodlands? That would make sense. But he was...in the sanctuary? He had visions of potentially being in the woodland, but it was blurry, nearly violent. Had he...seized? Gods, it had been years since that last happened, and he had used his alteration to fix that, but now? If he wasn’t so focused on putting together his mind’s puzzle, he might have been more concerned.    Part of piecing together that puzzle was realizing something. That emptiness… The silence… It was gone. He closed his eyes with a smile, as he put his arm on Kysma’s saddle to walk beside her with some support. “The sanctuary,” he sent down a bond that once again filled his soul. "Meet me?"    Covered in bumps and bruises and blood was far from an unusual state for Ashetta to find him in, but after having disappeared for gods knew how long, he assumed he wasn’t going to receive the calmest of reactions. Regardless, he really wanted to fucking see her. And my heart still beating, I will fight til the end

ASHE question: how do you make a monster stop feeling so monsterous? you give her something she can hold in her palms without crushing, you give her something sweet and tell her to keep it.    Months she endured the silence, but she went on. She recovered. She trained. She ate. She reconnected with her family, refamiliarized herself with the world and the people in it. Every day the roaring storm grew quieter in her head, day to day life becoming her normal as opposed to her desperate fight for survival in the storms. She wasn't alone now, and still.. still, she had never felt such crushing loneliness as that emptiness where their bond should have been.    Ashe lay flat on her back upon the roof of the Guildhall. She had been sleeping, but her own head chased that away. The stars were out tonight, so she took the opportunity to just... look. To try not to let that loss drown her. His and Theea's absence was like a missing limb.    Until all at once, it wasn't. All at once, the emptiness was filled like a crashing flood.    Ashe sat bolt upright, her breath stopping, her eyes wide, her heart thundering---    "Kalt?" A moment passed. A minute. Longer. Shaking, the small woman shifted. A blue hummingbird descended and then landed in the street with the legs of a woman, sniffing, searching, reaching. He was here, he was here, she could feel him. "Kalt!" Where was he, where was he, where---    'The Santuary. Meet me?' She choked out a half sob, and it was upon four paws that she raced for the tug at the other end of the tether between souls. She could hardly think, hardly believe it, but there was nothing that could replicate what bound them together. She careened around one corner, another, and another, until their scents hit her and nearly made her trip. And there they were. Her chest tightened, and Ashe let out a loud bark, and moments before she reached him, she shifted once more.    She threw her arms over him, just barely taking enough stock to understand his injuries, to avoid them. She drew in a shuddering gasp, but then she saw Theea, and a sob cracked open in her chest. She released Kalt only to reach for the girl, pulling her into her arms from the back of Kysma. "My baby," she whispered, hugging her close -- gods, she had grown in such a short time. Over the top of Theea's head, she looked up at Kalt, her cheeks wet. She gave a near greedy pull on their bond, drowning herself in it, in him, and she smiled. "Inside," she breathed. "The temple, I'll get things from the tavern, and the infirmary." Healing. Food. Drink. Everything she had needed when she returned, but she found herself hardly able to move, unable to look away from her lost love. you wipe the blood from her hands you say her name, over and over like an absolution. you forgive her. you forgive her. you forgive.

KALT RAVENSHIRE As long as my blood runs red Racing through my veins    His eyes were halfway closed, though he was just as aware as he would have been had they remained wide open. Part of the reason might have been that he was genuinely tired, or maybe it was just that he didn’t feel the sense of any immediate danger. His gut was always right, after all.    A small grin tugged at his lips when he heard the padding of paws, then her sharp bark brought his eyes open to look at the bounding she-wolf. There was hardly a moment to calculate her force of impact, as she shifted and threw her arms around him. Kalt tightened his grip on the horn of the saddle, as her body fit against his, and he ground out a short laugh, wrapping his free arm around her and holding her closely.    He released his hold on her, as she reached for Theea, and he urged Kysma to keep walking, leading them to the temple as quickly as he could manage without wanting to saw his own leg off. He kept his eyes on the raven-haired girl with their daughter in her arms the entire time, flashing her a small smile and willingly pushing and pulling on the bond as they each needed. Way too long apart, and they needed a minute to feel each other again.    They made their way to the temple, and Kalt removed Kysma’s saddle, not about to let the poor beast stay tacked for gods only knew how long they would stay there. All he knew was that he needed to fix his fucking leg. If he could walk properly, everything else would be fine.    Inside, he took a seat and stretched his leg out. Definitely a torn muscle. He started mending his tissue, but since it was his own body, the process was a touch slower. Thankfully, staring at his mate with their child, he wasn’t going anywhere.    “Just set her up to go to sleep for a little while,” Kalt said quietly, his eyes flicking to Theea. The little girl needed a good rest or tomorrow would be absolute hell for all of them. Besides, call him selfish, but he wanted some time with Ashe because, fuck, they had a lot to catch up on. And my heart still beating, I will fight til the end

ASHE question: how do you make a monster stop feeling so monsterous? you give her something she can hold in her palms without crushing, you give her something sweet and tell her to keep it.    In the temple, Ashe followed Kalt with Theea held tightly in her arms. She murmured softly to her as they walked, pressing kisses to her dark hair and breathing her in. She stayed standing with her as Kalt stretched out his leg --- injured, from the twinge of pain down the bond. A million questions were alive on her tongue, but she simply nodded, turning her face into Theea's hair.    "You're alright now. We'll be home soon enough," she whispered as she turned away, and Theea tightened her arms around her. Ashe wore a quiet smile as she set the girl up on a pew across from them, tucking her blue cloak closely around her. She crouched in front of where her hesd lay, brushing her fingers through her hair and gently over her forehead. "Papa is right there, okay?" She kissed her brow, ensured she was comfortable, and then set out for supplies.    A quick trip to the infirmary and then the Rathskelter below. Theea was asleep by the time Ashe returned with all they would need. All the while, she was basking in the warmth of that bond finally so full of life and love and need. Her hands shook as she draped a real blanket over Theea, and finally---finally---returned to Kalt.    She knelt down on her knees upon the floor beside him. She gave him a flask of water, a heel of bread, and placed the clean rags from the infirmary on the bench behind him. Her heart was racing, everything reeling, and she couldn't find any words. Just whatever raw feeling he would get from the other end of the tether. Love. Relief. Joy. Love. Love.    Finally she looked up, and she met the crystal blue eyes she had been aching for for two seasons. No, there weren't words, not yet. Before she knew what she was doing, Ashe brushed her hand over his jaw, leaned in, and she claimed his lips for her own. you wipe the blood from her hands you say her name, over and over like an absolution. you forgive her. you forgive her. you forgive.

KALT RAVENSHIRE As long as my blood runs red Racing through my veins    Kalt sat on one of the pews with Theea and Ashetta in sight, a content kind of look worn on his face. With the bond gone and the storms obscuring any kind of reach to anyone for such a long period of time, he had worried that they lost each other again, worried that they wouldn’t find their way home. Never had being wrong felt so good.    He watched Ashe settle their daughter then depart, and he didn’t say a word, merely watched her, observed her movements and savored the sight of her. Until she disappeared of course.    When she returned with the supplies, Kalt accepted the water and took a short drink, but he had managed to keep himself and Theea relatively well-fed. Of course it wasn’t exactly the easiest all the time, but he had dealt with all kinds of environments and catastrophes, so it wasn’t entirely new to him. Regardless, fresh water was at least a nice reprieve from rivers and such.    A loved one’s return might have typically warranted questions and answers and a long conversation answering where the hells they had been, but the exchange between the two of them was unspoken. They would talk about what happened, but at the moment, drowning in the feeling of each other was more than enough.    She met his lips, and his hand glided over her cheek into her raven locks. He kissed her deeply, passionately, needing her and completely unwilling to let her go.    Eventually, letting go was necessary, but he didn’t completely. Kalt parted their lips, but he pulled her onto his lap, a slight painful cringe at his leg’s protests that bled into a huffed laugh. “Missed you,” he said quietly, touching his brow to hers with a comfortable grin. And my heart still beating, I will fight til the end

ASHE question: how do you make a monster stop feeling so monsterous? you give her something she can hold in her palms without crushing, you give her something sweet and tell her to keep it.    He parted from her too soon, but he was pulling her up, abandoning the things she brought. She had half a thought to protest--he was hurt--but he could take it, and she wasn't about to argue at being closer to him. Her legs on either side of him, her hands gripped the collar of his shirt as she leaned her head into his. "Missed you too," she said quietly, smiling, her eyes prickling.    Ashe stayed that way a moment, letting her eyes shut before she leaned down to rest her head over his shoulder, nose brushing his skin, taking in the scent of him like it was the only air she could breathe. It was a minute of silence, and then she sat up, her hands resting over his chest as she glanced once at Theea. Sleeping as soundly as she could on a temple pew. She needed her bed.    "You were gone," she murmured as she looked back at him, her hand rising to his face to brush away dirt, running back through his wind-blown hair. She could smell the storms on him, a unique sent on its own that she would never forget. Her throat tightened, and she glanced down to his chest, his rumpled clothing, pulling absently at the collar. "I woke up, and you were both gone."    It had been blinding panic, flying out the door, racing and hunting and scouring, until there was nowhere left to look, no where else she could try but the storms. Her lips pressed together as she looked him over, in better shape than she had been. Though she had started to gain some of the weight back, she hadn't fared so well looking for them. "What happened?" you wipe the blood from her hands you say her name, over and over like an absolution. you forgive her. you forgive her. you forgive.

KALT RAVENSHIRE As long as my blood runs red Racing through my veins    He breathed her in, feeling her over him. She tucked herself against him, and he held her, his eyes closed tightly, not wanting to release her. He had spent far too much time apart from her, and now that they were together again, it was almost nauseating to think of doing it again.    As she pulled away from him, looking over at their little girl, he rested his hands on her hips, his thumbs brushing over her waist. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, bringing his fingers up to brush along her cheek. He couldn’t stop looking at her. He knew that Theea was fine. They had been together the entire time, and he had kept her safe - a promise he would never fucking break - so he knew that everything was okay. Ashe, though, was the light that had been missing the past two seasons, and he needed her desperately.    Kalt shook his head slowly at her question. It was a difficult one to answer. He knew what had happened to get them into the storms, but what happened within them and how the fuck they got out was a jumbled mess in his mind that he didn’t have the current strength to sort out.    Part of him debated telling her about the possibilty that he had seized upon their exit, but he wasn’t sure. He didn’t want to worry her if it was simple memory loss from something in the storms, so he decided to keep it to himself until he figured that part out. If it wasn’t the storms themselves that jumbled his brain, he knew that was something that she would have to know. Sooner rather than later.    “Theea was with the sitter,” he said quietly, his eyes rolling for a brief moment. “I don’t know exactly what happened. Didn’t stick around long enough to find out. She was with Theea by the woods, and something happened where Theea wandered off into the Greatwood. The girl came crying to me, telling me Theea was gone, and I think you can guess my reaction.”    He had taken off without a second thought. Out for a ride with Kysma, Kalt had returned home to find the young babysitter frightened and in tears. Needless to say, there wasn’t a moment’s hesitation before Kalt had practically flown after her into the storms. He didn’t spared a thought to the bond, assuming he would tell Ashe about it afterwards: his sole thought was Theea’s safety, so when the bond disappeared and they couldn’t get back, he was filled with instant regret. Now that they were together again, regret thankfully faded into relief. And my heart still beating, I will fight til the end

ASHE question: how do you make a monster stop feeling so monsterous? you give her something she can hold in her palms without crushing, you give her something sweet and tell her to keep it.    Ashe leaned into his touch, her relief palpable in the way her shoulders sank down, her hands that flattened over his chest and felt his heart beating beneath. She sank deeper into their bond, finally back the way it was supposed to be. She had known he was alive, there had been no doubt, but after failing to find them...    There was a ripple of change in his thoughts, but it passed quickly as he explained. As he did, a white-hot anger flared in her chest, crackling in snaps and bursts in her blood. It didn't take much to know exactly what he had done, going after Theea, gods, finding her... but not finding his way home.    Her lip feathered as her heart surged, but she took a long and deep breath, pursing her lips just barely. "If she's smart, she'll never let me see her," she half growled on the babysitter, and left it at that. She moved her hand up from his chest to brush her thumb over his jaw, her eyes softening. "You kept her safe," she stated silently, knowing he would understand the depth of what that meant to her.    She looked over at Theea again when she stirred, keeping her eyes on her for a minute. "I looked for you," she said. "I knew you weren't dead. I just...couldn't feel you." She turned to look at him again, moving her arms to wrap underneath his and around his back as she tucked herself against him again, holding herself close. "I only made it home a few weeks ago. Remi, Amalia, and Jigano found me just within the storms, after months..." Months alone out there. Every moment was a vivid, exhausting, harrowing memory. She managed a half smile anyways, huffing a laugh against his skin. "Ronin said you'd find us first." you wipe the blood from her hands you say her name, over and over like an absolution. you forgive her. you forgive her. you forgive.

KALT RAVENSHIRE As long as my blood runs red Racing through my veins    Kalt grinned at the anger that flared within her at his explanation of what had happened. When it was fresh, he felt the same way - an insatiable fury that he couldn’t suppress if he tried - but after months of being lost in the storms, after months of simply wanting to go home to Ashe, wanting to make sure Theea was safe in her bed… Well, the anger eventually dissipated.    She mentioned his keeping Theea safe, and Kalt didn’t comment, only giving a small and flickering grin in return. Ashe was possibly more protective of the little girl than Kalt was, as she felt responsible for Theea being discovered in the Guild. Having spent five years with her, Kalt was more than accustomed to dealing with a young child and numerous dangers at the same time.    Not yet standing, Kalt carefully began knitting together his own injuries, healing the torn muscle in his leg until he could walk on it without issue. They couldn’t stay in the temple the entire time, and if he was being honest, he missed his bed. Luxury was something he wasn’t willing to live without, and it wasn’t something he’d had access to in too long.    He listened to her tell about how she was welcomed home, and he nodded softly. Her brother, some girl he didn't know and therefore didn’t actually care about, and the white-haired man that Kalt considered something of a friend. He thought briefly about reconnecting with Jigano. “I always find you,” he whispered.    “Speaking of home,” he muttered, encouraging her from his lap. Kalt pushed himself to his feet, wincing only slightly as his magic continued its work. He walked around the pew and bent over the sleeping child, picking her up with Ashe’s cloak bundled around her. Theea hardly stirred, just wrapping her arms around Kalt’s neck and laying on his shoulder. “Let’s go home,” he spoke into her mind. He flashed a smile to Ashe and started towards the door to get back to their house. ~End Thread~ And my heart still beating, I will fight til the end