Beyond Time (closed)

[heartofcourage]

"Just thinking." Dylan said as he kissed her and paused at her side. "I want a portrait of the both of us, but I don't know where to begin."

She didn't know if she could bring up the reason for her melancholy attitude. She was frightened of being rejected by the man that she loved.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Start right where we are, love." Ashien left her side a moment to fetch a little mirror from among his supplies, setting it next to the easel so Dylandra could see herself with Ashien's head resting on her shoulder.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I love you." Dylan said as he moved the mirror so that she could see and resting his head against her shoulder. "With all of my heart."

She pressed her lips against his forehead as she picked up a piece of charcoal and started to sketch. As she continued, she gathered her courage, glancing at Ashien in the mirror when she decided that she was going to talk to him about their future.

"Have you always wanted to be a father?" Dylan asked him in a soft voice.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Maybe not always, but for a very long time, yes," Ashien said with a slight nod. "Even if my father didn't make it easy... I grew up with an amazing family, after Da died, I knew one day I'd want to bring my own children to Ma and join in those big family dinners. With my brothers and sisters, I know my children would never want for anything in the way of family. Kayla would probably dote on them most if not Ma."

His eyes then turned to her in the mirror. "What about you? Have you ever wanted to be a mother?"

 

[heartofcourage]

"I'm not sure." Dylan said softly as she glanced towards Ashien. "I never had a good family life until my grandfather adopted me. My Mom and Dad were never around. It was just me and him. I'm not sure that I could even be a good mother."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Maybe wait til we spend some time with the little ones in the family this spring, hm? No doubt we'll be babysitting every so often for my brothers and Selena." He pressed another kiss to her cheek. "It isn't quite like having your own... But it'll give you a good idea. And you might become someone's favorite Aunt, especially with a beast like Ballas following you around. And you'll certainly stand out among a dark-haired family. I'll bet Durban and Selena's sons will love you."

 

[heartofcourage]

"You just like me for my blonde hair." She said with a grin as she nuzzled against her husband. "Maybe we will have some fair haired babies...eventually. Spending time with your family sounds perfect. It would give me time to make some choices."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Then we'll keep Ma's plans as best we can." Ashien murmured with a smile.

Little seemed to happen for a few days, and Lothair spent plenty of time with his hosts both at the palace and manor. He was a complete gentleman, and he and John forged an easy friendship when Lothair took a great interest in John's training and offered his own advice and expertise, being a fully-fledged knight himself.

The evening before Lothair was set to move on, Dylandra found herself briefly alone with Lothair and John riding casually around the manor grounds around twilight. Ashien had gone to fetch a cloak for Dylandra while Lothair and John talked about Lothair's own passions in sculpting and archery. Lothair looked to Dylandra then. "And what do you enjoy in your spare time, milady? I notice you going to the manor studio all the time but I never see what you're up to." Ashien kept the studio as a very private place for himself and Dylandra only, though Ballas was in and out and Van stopped in sometimes with tea.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I'm a painter." Dylan said as Lothiar asked what she was up to behind the doors of the studio. "I made a living doing that once upon a time. However, since I married Ashien, I don't have to worry about working any longer. I simply do it out of love for the art."

She glanced towards John as he chuckled softly. "John never appreciated how long I could get lost in a painting. Ashien, however, indulges me...perhaps a little too much."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I appreciated it for about twenty minutes because it was cute when you got smudges on your face," John told her. "But after that, I'm out."

"You two seem very close. Have you known each other a long time?" Lothair asked.

"We were engaged once, but we work better as friends now," John said with a nod. But then he paused. "Hold up. Stop."

Lothair pulled his horse to a halt, listening to the still night around them, suddenly very nervous.

 

[heartofcourage]

"We have been friends for a very long time." Dylan said with a smile towards John as he told them to stop. "What's wrong?"

She could feel her horse move nervously beneath her as everything suddenly went silent. She wanted to ask another question, but she stopped herself, knowing that it might mean life or death if there were danger.

 

[KieranSoares]

Lothair's breath suddenly caught in a gasp seconds later as he lurched forward. A crossbow bolt had struck him in the back. Though his thick jacket had absorbed most of the blow, it had still sunken into his shoulder. He drew his sword quickly, tugging the horse around to face in the direction of a cloaked man running toward them drawing a dagger.

Both John and Lothair were off their horses at the same time, John drawing his own blade like it was natural instinct. Lothair clashed with the man first, but was quickly disarmed and left with a dagger in his thigh. The assailant grabbed Lothair's sword just in time to deflect John's slash, and John grabbed Lothair, pulling him back before parrying a blow and then lunging into a stab that left the assassin with a vicious gash in his stomach.

Lothair stumbled back and threw the dagger away from himself, scrambling to get out of the way as John was backed up further and further, until John stepped on the dagger. Ducking a wide swing, John grabbed the dagger and practically tackled the man, driving the knife into his chest mercilessly. Both men fell to the ground, but John quickly rose again with his blade at the man's throat, only to find him already dead.

Lothair was possibly breathing even harder than John, his eyes wide with fear and shock as he looked up at the man who'd intervened and saved him. John turned back to look at him, then to Dylandra. The only thing he could say was a soft, "Dylan... get help."

 

[heartofcourage]

Dylan reigned in her horse as it spooked, shying away from the skirmish that was taking place. It snorted and whinnied, tossing his head. When it was over and John the victor, everyone was quiet with shock. Shock that it had happened and shocked that John had come out the better of everyone.

"Right." She murmured as he told her to get some help.

She let the reigns loose, kicking into the horse's sides until he set off at a gallop. She could see Ashien riding towards her after she rounded a hill and stopped him in his tracks.

"We were attacked. Lothiar is hurt." She managed to say as she panted.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Get Van. Then go to the room next to the studio, there's a cupboard full of medical supplies. Bring bandages and thread and a needle. They should be in a case," Ashien said quickly before kicking his horse into a gallop toward Lothair and John.

Van heard the racing hooves as Dylandra arrived, coming out to meet her.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Lothair has been attacked." Dylan said as Van stepped into the courtyard as he heard her horse riding in. "I'll get the medical supplies. Ashien needs your help."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Go then. I'll get a cart so we can carry him back," Van took her horse and headed for the stables. He was back by the time she came out again, and they headed out to get Lothair. Ashien had him on the ground, and between himself and John, they were applying pressure to his wounds. Lothair was pale but managing to stay awake. The moment Ashien had the medical supplies, he put his field medic training to good use binding the wounds.

"John, once we get him in the cart, I need you to ride into town and get Doctor Harris. He lives just next to the blacksmith. Bring him here."

Of course by this time, Lothair's small guard was alerted and they were quickly re-securing the grounds trying to figure out how someone had gotten past their defenses. It had taken a great assassin or a fantastic plan to get by perhaps the second-best guardian force in the empire.

Between the four of them, they carefully put Lothair in the cart and Ashien had Dylandra hold Lothair's head in her lap to keep him still and make sure he didn't pass out or stop breathing. "Just keep him awake," Ashien murmured, still carefully wrapping and monitoring Lothair's deep wounds. He had truly fallen into his role as a soldier, stone-faced and focused on keeping what he perhaps considered a comrade alive.

 

[heartofcourage]

Dylan played her role as dutifully as possible, following Ashien's directions as he gave them to her. She nodded as he told her to hold Lothair's head in her lap to keep him still. She kept glancing towards her husband from time to time, wondering if their friend would pull through this. She had come to enjoy Lothair's humor and friendship in the time that he had been staying with them at Darkwood. It should have been a time of good cheer. Instead, it was turning into a horrible nightmare.

 

[KieranSoares]

Once Lothair was set up in his room and Ashien was carefully watching over him, Van set to getting things ready for the doctor's arrival. The bolt head in Lothair's shoulder needed to be removed, and Ashien's stitching skills were not up to par to help Lothair. John was quick to return and Doctor Harris set to work right away. Ashien soon took Dylandra to his studio to sit down with her.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Why did that happen, Ash?" Dylan asked in a quiet voice as she paced the studio. "Why did that have to happen on our lands?"

 

[KieranSoares]

"It has nothing to do with us or our home," Ashien told her softly while he settled into his chair with a sigh. "This would've happened in Henry's palace too, or in the Emperor's home. With his guard, we were as well protected as we could've been. But an assassin found a crack in the defenses, and he exploited it." he reached up to run his hand back through his hair- a nervous habit- and murmured, "I'm not so worried for our reputation as I am for Lothair's continued safety... If he makes it through, he might still be in danger no matter where he is..."

Ashien then looked at her. "I'm going to request a regiment from Henry. If Lothair's own men can't do it... I'll secure these grounds as best I can."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I don't like the idea of so many men on the property." Dylan said with a slight frown. "Of course, we need to protect our friend...but it's more people we would have to support. More people to feed. More people to simply be around."

 

[KieranSoares]

"You won't have to worry about those things, love, and it won't be for long. They won't be staying in the manor and they'll be responsible for their own upkeep outside of my paying them, of course. But I may keep a couple guards close to the front door and Lothair. Otherwise, little will be different."

 

[heartofcourage]

"This is so totally different from what I'm use to, Ash." Dylan said softly as she took a seat beside him. "If something like this were to happen in my time, you just call the cops. They take care of the rest."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Assuming I understand what... 'cops' are, this is about as close as you'll get," Ashien told her. "When things go wrong, you call for the nearest guard. In this case, I'm a cavalry Major. I'm the nearest man of military power. Therefore, I tend to my own problems. Seeing as an Imperial Prince is involved, I cannot afford to do any less than everything to protect him while he heals and get him back home safely."

 

[heartofcourage]

"You would tend to this at the expense of your own safety?" Dylan asked him, suddenly fearful that her husband might be killed in action one day, a threat that was very real to a military man.