a line at the edge

Ashe the woods are lovely, dark, and deep but i have promises to keep    As she followed after Remi, Ashe's eyes found the strange collection of objects that made up a.. dragon's den. She blinked and smiled softly at the little white dragon that she could just barely see, somehow unsurprised by the sight of it. "Who is that?" she asked as she moved towards the basinet, gesturing to the mythical creature she'd yet to meet. She tried not to dwell on how that alone was an indicator of what sort of friend she'd been... as if looking down upon Aoife for the first time wasn't enough of a reminder.    Breath caught roughly in her throat at the sight of the baby girl, a grin flashing across her face as quickly as tears sprang to her eyes. She didn't have the words - she didn't need to say how much the little one looked like her parents, or how beautiful she was, or how healthy she looked, Remi knew all of that and the look on her face said more than she could with her voice.    She glanced up at her friend, as if assuring herself it was okay, before she leaned over the bassinet. A scarred hand reached down so that Aoife could wrap her little fingers around Ashe's, and she let out a shakey breath with another grin. "Hello little one," she cooed softly. Her expressions were exaggerated with the infant, scrunching her nose with her smile as her finger - whether held or not - tickled at Aoife's chest. "You are are a ham aren't you? Spoiled properly?" Her chest was swelling with overwhelming emotion she couldn't pick apart - the last time she had truly interacted with a baby... three years ago, before she had lost Theea for so long.    She glanced at Remi with glassy eyes behind her smile, smiling with the powerful hurt that lived in her, the regret. "Her eyes... Safrin's doing?" She glanced back down to Aoife, to her dazzling, star-filled eyes. She remained silent for a moment, smiling with nothing short of adoration at the girl. "I'm going to go and speak with Safrin," she confessed quietly, without looking up. She wasn't sure how Remi would feel about it. "To see if there is anything to be done... I have to know." and miles to go before i sleep.

REMI ABRUZZO When these weary days, when these days are done We'll be in the sun "Sugar." The alchemist replied. For her part, the dragonling huffed an acknowledgement in the back of her throat. "Ronin found her as an egg near the glade. There was an ice damn. I believe hers was the only egg to survive it and actually hatch." Remi explained in a low voice. Meeting Ashe's gaze with one of affection and weighty sadness, he reached to gently squeeze her shoulder as his eyes drifted back towards Aoife. "Oh she is that. Even with ROnin not around I am certain she picked it up from him." Remi said through a tightening throat as he watched the way Aoife reached for Ashe's finger happily, cooing and gurgling and revealing many chins as she scrunched herself back and laughed. "Mmm." The alchemist agreed with a somewhat distant nod, his expression entirely one of rapt adoration as he looked down at Aoife. "A...ahh, an elixer given to Vanya just before LongNight to make Aoife healthy.." He recited almost tonelessly, trying hard not to shutter at the memory of all that it entailed. As Ashe mentioned her plans, for a long few moments the alchemist was silent. He watched the way Aoife's eyebrows bobbed and bucked as she tried to mimic Ashe's exaggerated expressions. Would Safrin be able to do anything? Remi didn't believe so—wouldn't she have done in the pit, if she had?—but of course it was worth a try. "Alright." He whispered after a moment. "I understand. If she...if she requires anything...you know you can count on me for anything." Remi added after a moment. When these weary days, when these days are through I'll be working my way back to you

Ashe the woods are lovely, dark, and deep but i have promises to keep    Ashe looked over her shoulder once more at the dragon within her den, a sad smile pulling at her lips. ”Sugar,” she repeated warmly, somberly. She should have met the little dragon already - gods, a dragon. Seeing the little creature tugged at her heart in a strange way, twisting with yearning for something too far out of reach.    She looked back at the squeeze to her shoulder, and back down at the sound of laughter. It turned her smile into a wide grin, chest tightening as she returned a light laugh at the little one. She listened to Remi explain Aoife’s eyes while she made more faces, scrunching her nose or puffing out her cheeks, her fingers lightly tickling beneath her soft cheeks or at her collar bones. ”Who else could have given you such a grin, hm?” she cooed. Gods, every time she thought there was nothing left, her eyes started to prickle again.    Her eyes were drawn up once more to Remi, round and raw and hopeful. ”Thank you,” she said quietly. ”I don’t know what will happen. You should stay with Aoife, I don’t…. I don’t know what will be asked of me.” She looked back down to Ronin’s little girl, and smiled tightly at her with an adoring gaze. ”But I have to do something, huh?” Maybe it was avoiding her grief, maybe it was insane, but she didn’t care - she couldn’t just let him go. and miles to go before i sleep.

REMI ABRUZZO When these weary days, when these days are done We'll be in the sun The alchemist nodded. Unlike Ashe and Ronin who had always been at the forefront of mischief, it was only lately that the alchemist had been roped into that sort of life. Only a handful of months prior Remi had felt like a rebel visiting Loren in the library, given that a commoner such as he would have had no reason to be in such a place. Now though it felt a bit strange to be told to stay, to wait, to remain where it was safe. Remi understood of course, and would never risk Aoife's safety but... still. It was odd to acknowledge how much had changed in such a short amount of time. "He is not worth more than you are...if it ever comes down to that, I would not trade you to have him back." Remi murmured in a low tone, his hand gently squeezing Ashe's shoulder again, his eyes silently pleading for her to understand and accept what he was saying. Whether or not Safrin could do something he had no idea. But it wasn't just fate that had bound this ground of strange un-siblings together. They were alike in strange ways, and if Remi knew one thing, it was that Ashe probably would trade her life to get Ronin's back. How did he know? Because he would do the same. When these weary days, when these days are through I'll be working my way back to you

Ashe the woods are lovely, dark, and deep but i have promises to keep    Ashe looked up again at the squeeze to her shoulder, the weight of his words sinking down into her and wrapping around her heart. She hadn’t thought about it, not outright, but she knew there was every possibility that her life would be asked for in exchange for Ronin’s. She held Remi’s sea-glass green eyes, and the pleading she found there was hard to look at.    Because Ronin… he was worth more than her. Wasn’t he? He was a good man, with a good heart, and while she might have been working hard at healing… there was never going to be a time when the havoc she had wreaked for over a decade would leave her. The things she had done and gone through and allowed and craved would forever be a stain on her soul. She had done precious little to improve any life she entered, often made things worse. Ronin in contrast was a blazing light.    Still, she finally nodded. The alchemist.. He knew her better than she thought he did. She loved him, he loved her, and she wasn’t sure why it was surprise that he would know what kind of self-worth lay within her. At least, he certainly knew the depth of her love for their friend. And she had a feeling wouldn’t hesitate to offer such a sacrifice if he were in her place. ”I think Ronin would find a way to bring me back and kill me himself if I did something that,” she said with a sad sort of amusement.    Ashe reached her hand up to rest over the top of Remi’s, squeezing his hand gently and appreciating the contact. ”I won’t make you trade one grief for another,” she promised. and miles to go before i sleep.

REMI ABRUZZO When these weary days, when these days are done We'll be in the sun Surprised by the sound of it, Remi found himself laughing out loud. The muscles in his cheeks and throat shaking off the dust that came with lack of use, as he nodded. "Killing you might be a bit strong. But I am sure he would find a suitably embarrassing punishment for you. Something that involves crabs perhaps." Remi said with a wink. He wasn't entirely privy to how the nickname between the two had started, but it seemed a fitting addition just then. "I will hold you to that." The alchemist said, the smile on his lips coming slightly easier now as he breathed in deeply, exhaling a gentle sigh. When these weary days, when these days are through I'll be working my way back to you

Ashe the woods are lovely, dark, and deep but i have promises to keep    Ashe’s smile turned warm, and she turned her eyes down to watch Aoife. ”He wouldn’t touch a crab,” she joked, straightening from her bent over position and glancing for a second towards the painting. ”He screamed like a little girl and kicked it further than we could see when one crawled over his foot - it was an interesting way to meet.”    The sharp ache in her chest was not lessened in the slightest, even with the knowledge that she would be going to Safrin, that she would try. She tilted her head to Remi, her lips tightening. ”Is there anything you need, Remi?” she asked quietly. Of course, what they needed was Ronin back.. But he was tending to an infant all on his own. ”I’m here now, okay? I’m not.. I’m not gonna make the same mistake again.” No more vanishing and missing everything, no more running from what was thought about her pain and her scars and how she dealt with it. She would not lose anyone and look back with crushing regret on how absent she’d been again. and miles to go before i sleep.

REMI ABRUZZO When these weary days, when these days are done We'll be in the sun Raising a brow, Remi grinned, a chuckle he hadn't meant to let escape bubbling over his lips. "I can almost picture it." He mused, biting at he inside of his lip as if feeling guilty at the joy the imagined memory brought. "The first day I met him he strolled naked out of the ocean ... and then ended getting stabbed on the way back to my house for lunch." Frowning, Remi shook his head. "Or maybe he was stabbed after lunch." He added as if that somehow made it better. Glancing down at Ashe, Remi smiled and shrugged. "Yes and no. I know it is silly to say, but I...I am almost reluctant to start moving on." He admitted, swallowing down the tight ball of sadness having roamed from his belly into the back his throat. "I do not want to just...be sad, but I feel guilty every time I wonder if there will be a time I wake up and do not accidentally wonder when he will come home." So saying, the alchemist sighed and leaned into Ashe knowing she would understand. When these weary days, when these days are through I'll be working my way back to you