Robyn Sheva||The Crimson Lady's Story

"Yes, yes I can. There's going to be a rough road ahead of us, all of us. But we'll be their by each others sides, weathering the flames," He told her and she looked up at him the way his arms tightened around her, wasn't lost on her, nor was the way his eyes went wide when she spoke.
She had to admit, she hadn't even considered the others. That was wrong and she felt a little guilty for it. She didn't feel this for them, not even Casey....feel what, she wasn't entirely sure, but whatever it was, she felt it strong for him. Perhaps it was the linger effects from the ritual.

But I also believe that this storm is a ways off yet. But while it brews I know that I'll be here." He told her and she looked up at him still in his arms, but face to face with him once again

His words kicked her heart up a bit. "I'll be here." echoed in her mind, as she watched his eyes for the truth in those words. She needed him here. She needed this safety, this warmth that she only felt with him. Her eyes fell again, lingered on his lips for a breath before she moved them to his eyes once more.

"Do you promise?" She asked softly, her eyes searching his. "Say yes."

"Do you promise? Say yes." She asked this as she looked up at him, her eyes locking onto his. Though he noticed that flicker once again, wondering what it could be. His words reached his eyes, the feeling and truth behind them. He truly meant what he had said, he was one that always kept his word if he could help it.

That slow easy grin widened across his face, his eyes seeming to light up slightly. His hand moved to cup her cheek again, brushing away the last of her tears and the paint. He leaned in placing his head next to hers, his voice barely a whisper. "Yes." He usually didn't promise, well, anything. One could never be sure of what was to come, but he had a good feeling about this one. The event itself he wasn't sure about how well they'd make it out, but getting there he was fairly sure that they'd get to that point alright.

The hand on her cheek moved up and brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear. There was a warmth spreading through him slowly, radiating from his chest. It wasn't a physical warmth as much as it wasn't a fire in his blood. It wasn't the lust and passion he'd felt for her before, this was something deeper. He knew the feeling, he'd felt it before, but he'd also had it taken from him before. But this time also felt different somehow, there was a deeper connection. If he was being honest with himself it was a feeling that he knew he shouldn't be feeling, for various reasons, but he wasn't opposed to the feeling. "I promise litu dloo," he said, his chocolate eyes locked to her amber ones.

Robyn watched slow, easy smile stretch across his lips, and brighten his face, her eyes fell to his lips once before his hand rose to her cheek, brushing a gentle thumb over skin, drying her tears. He moved forward, pressing his cheek to hers to whisper. "Yes." into her ear.

She hadn't known she wasn't breathing until she let out a breath. His hand moved from her cheek, and brushed a dark lock behind her ear, causing chills to rise on her skin. Her heart thumped against her chest. She watched his eyes, trying to find the meaning on of this, what she felt, what she was feeling behind them. Fear shot through her, suddenly, knowing she'd been here before. Realization dawning. She'd been to eager before, too quick to believe, too naive before. It had been a lie before. She knew that wasn't what this- whatever it is- was. He was safe, warm, two things she'd never felt from anyone before. She didn't want to be the only one, not again.

"I promise litu dloo," He told her, his eyes searching hers. She believed him, or at the very least wanted to. She felt herself lean forward, ever so slowly before she stopped just before their lips meet, indecision halting her.

"Do you trust me?" His words echoed in her head as well as hers.

She leaned up, her eyes closing before she bridged the small gap between with with a feather light touch.

"I trust you."

Her lips sent a fire he'd forgotten through his veins. His hand slipped behind her head and cradled it gently, the other holding her close. Their lips were barely touching, but it sent that fire through him all the same, so he let her guide it. When they parted he gently kissed her forehead then rested his against hers. That slow easy smile of his seemed somewhat brighter as he slowly opened his eyes. He took in every detail of her face, memorizing it in a new light.

The moment felt so nice he almost forgot about the burns on his arms, the kink in his neck, and the foreboding visions...almost. Thing was, the burning in his arms was still a dull throb, the kink in his neck had come back damn near locking it up, and the visions were still nagging at the back of his mind. But pushing those away he moved the hand behind her head back to her cheek, his thumb lightly brushing back and forth.

It wasn't often he didn't know what to say, or not to say, but he hadn't a clue at this moment. It had all happened so relatively fast, he was still assimilating what he was feeling, and what she was obviously feeling. So he simply smiled and absently played with her hair, staunchly ignoring the kink in his neck.

Soon the kiss was over, and it felt different. Everything felt different and honestly she had no idea what to do, or how to process it. Anger wouldn't work, nor was she wiling to try. When they broke the kiss, and he pressed his forehead to hers, she could only close her eyes to take in the moment. Everything seem blissfully quiet, she wasn't the Crimson Lady, the outlaw, the bandit, she was just Robyn, the woman, someone she hadn't been in long time, if ever.

His hand moved from the back of her head, where it had been during the kiss, and back to her cheek, where it rested, his thumb brushing softly against her skin. Her eyes opened and she found him smiling that easy smile that sent her heart into a tail spin.

She'd felt that before and she had to admit it was scary, Cole wasn't the same but it happened just as fast, she knew nothing of him, and that ended up serving to hurt her in the end. Cole wasn't that, but she couldn't say for sure.

This caused her to pull herself away, and feeling colder both inside and out for it. She smiled quickly, as if to reassure him that this is what she wanted...but that she just didn't know what the 'this' was entirely. This was all very strange, very new, and very fast. He might not have remembered what happened but she did and perhaps they both were feeling particularly vulnerable. She looked at him, her gaze soft, unsure what to say or do next until she remembered how she found him, hours ago. She knew deep down she was only trying to avoid discussing that kiss and what it meant. It meant something, that she knew but what, she couldn't or wouldn't say.

She moved behind him, and rose to her knees and placed her hands on his back. "A few nights ago, I'd woken up and found you's fallen asleep sitting up, you've been stiff ever since, I noticed." She said her voice just over a whisper. She placed her thumbs at the base of his neck, and between pressing in small circles, moving the stiff muscles away from his spine. Her touch was firm but gentle all the same, each rotation thoughtful and considerate, loving even. "You aren't light, you know." She said with a smile laugh in her tone as she worked the muscles, kneading them until they were soft. She watched his skin for chill bumps, those would tell her if she was doing it right.

He couldn't say that he wasn't surprised when she pulled away. He knew she was probably having more trouble dealing with the feelings than he was, and he was having a hell of a time himself. He also knew that she wouldn't want to talk about it right now, if ever. He wanted to, but he couldn't force a bird to sing after all.

She moved around him and he raised an eyebrow at it but didn't move as she placed her hands on his back. "A few nights ago, I'd woken up and found you's fallen asleep sitting up, you've been stiff ever since, I noticed." She started moving her thumbs and he let out an involuntary moan, his body seeming to shut down under her touch. His shoulders and neck slacked, letting her work without him accidentally tensing up anywhere. The chill bumps were indeed there, if the involuntary sounds of delight he was making hadn't been enough indication that she was spot on. "You aren't light, you know."

He started to laugh, then the laugh kept going. "Oh thank god," he said wiping tears of mirth from his eyes. "I'd thought that maybe Casey had been the one that had put me back. That would have been...well, awkward." The laughter slowly faded as she continued to work, any tension that was left bleeding away with each rotation of her thumbs. Under her hands he was basically reduced to putty.

Robyn felt her own chills rise on her skin at the moans he was breathing out. She knew she was hitting the spot but honestly, she had little doubt, it was one of the first things she learned to do in her time at the pleasure house. She watched as his shoulders went slack, his neck relaxed, all under the pressure of her hands. Normally, this would have filled her with a rush, she'd liked being in control, bending a man to her will but instead, she was just glad to help, though the sounds he was making did cause a bit of heat.

At her words, he laughed, and laughed hard, causing her to chuckle herself. A full smile stretched her lips, showing the chipped tooth that she'd skillfully hidden with her smirks. She had no idea why he was laughing, but she smiled all the same. Maybe it was a release of her own tension.
"Oh thank god," He said, wiping tears that formed. She couldn't see them, but the smile he wore was large enough she could see his native cheekbones from the back of his head. "I'd thought that maybe Casey had been the one that had put me back. That would have been...well, awkward." He told her and she looked at him oddly. The imagine of Casey hefting the man over his shoulder played in her mind and she laughed. The first full laugh she'd done in a long time. She could hardly breath as her laughing causing her to shrink back on her knees for a moment. "Oh that image." She said between breathes. She shook her head and continued to kneed his muscles. "That--" She chuckled a few more times. "That was me, I half lifted, half guided back to your bedroll, which was on the other side of the bloody cave by the way, what is that?" She said, realizing how far she had to drag him. "I noticed you don't like being inside the cave, and I can't imagine you being claustrophobic." She asked him, looking over his shoulder for a moment. "Why is that?" She asked truly curious and honestly, she did want to know more about him, especially what with that kiss meaning more than she was prepared for.

"I noticed you don't like being inside the cave, and I can't imagine you being claustrophobic. Why is that?" She leaned over his shoulder, a curious look on her face.

He shrugged, or rather, attempted to, he was still basically shut off physically. "My spirit is that of a hawk, hawks are meant to fly free. You're right, I'm not claustrophobic, I have no fear of enclosed spaces. I just don't like being in a cage, so to speak. I've spent enough time in them, mentally and physically..." His voice trailed off towards the end, the words having come out almost on their own. He figured it was only fair, he knew about her while she knew nothing about him.

His hand subconsciously went to a large scar on his side. It was a wide thin scar that seemed to have a counterpart on his back, as if something had been stuck through him. There were also a number of bullet-scars in his gut and a couple on his back that seemed to be of the same age as the large one. He was covered in scars, but none were quite as prominent as the one in his side. She would feel his shoulders tense slightly, then relax as his shoulders slumped. He chuckled slightly, "guess we both have our scars eh?" He turned his head to face hers. "If theres anything you'd like to know, ask away, fair is fair after all," he said with that easy smile of his.

"My spirit is that of a hawk, hawks are meant to fly free. You're right, I'm not claustrophobic., I have no fear of enclosed spaces. I just don't like being in a cage, so to speak. I've spent enough time in them, mentally and physically..." He told her, his voice trailing off. She looked at him her hands resting on his shoulders. It was clear he suffered as well. He seemed so...self-reliant that it hadn't fully occurred to her that he probably suffered as much as she had, not in the same way, but probably just as much, The New World was not a place for those with darker skin.

His hand moved to his side, and her eyes followed. It was as if he'd been impaled by something and a myriad as bullet wounds. She'd seen those before but she hadn't noticed the larger one. It took all she had not to brush her fingers over the them. His shoulders tensed under her hands a moment, before relaxing again. He chuckled. "Guess we both have our scars eh?" He told her, turning to look at her. She was suddenly keenly aware of how close they were and reminded of the kiss from moments ago.

"If there's anything you'd like to know, ask away, fair is fair after all,"He told her and she paused, looking at him. She wanted to know about him but now faced with it, she didn't know what to ask. She moved back to her original position and began working the muscles again, quiet as she mused. What did she want to know? She thought and thought until she realized. She wanted to know it all.

"Tell me your story," She said. "Who is Cole Black-Thorn, where did he come from..." Her fingers brushes against the bullet wounds on his back. "How did he get here...?" She said softly. "What does he want?" Her fingers moved back to the base of his neck, and working her way out.

"Tell me your story, Who is Cole Black-Thorn, where did he come from... How did he get here...? What does he want?" Her voice was soft as her fingers worked their magic. He thought for a moment, unsure of what he wanted to reveal about himself. He then realized she deserved to know basically everything, as he knew so much about her. So, gathering his thoughts he began.

"Thomas Cole Smith Jr. son of Thomas Smith and his unwilling yet submissive wife Etka White-feather of the Apache born on the banks of the Missouri. His father was an abusive alcoholic ex-confederate soldier. His mother was a quiet native woman who was the light of the young mans life. She basically raised him and tried to shield him from his father. When the boy was 17 his father had a particularly bad outburst and pushed Etka down the stairs, snapping her neck and killing her. To give the father credit he realized his mistake and then, cradling the body of his murdered unwilling wife who took everything from him in her way, ate the barrel of his army service .45 colt." His eyes were drawn to his pile of gear, sitting on top of it were the tomahawk and the same .45 colt revolver, glinting darkly in the moonlight.

He sighed as he gathered his thoughts again. "Thomas Cole Smith Jr. had watched it all, from the push, to the pull of the trigger. Then taking the fated pistol and a few other items the 17 year old kid left. He became a translator, hunter, tracker anything he could do to scrape by in a world that would never accept him. But he tried, he tried so hard to fit in with the white mans world. He dressed in their clothes, talked like they did, he even got addicted to the fire-water, just like his father. He drank so much of the fire-water he felt like he would die without it. He spent years of his life spending each and every penny he had on alcohol, each and every minute of his life trying to please the white man and fit into his society."

Here he paused again, his hand going to the scar unconsciously again. There was plenty of things that had happened during those years, but he figured that she could guess what those were. And he didn't really want to relive those years of his past too much. "The young misguided man ran into a group of men who believed he'd do better in a cage than free. Ex-confederate members of the local chapter of that inglorious fraternity the Ku Klux Klan," the words dripping with a venom unaccustomed to his voice. "He was in a drunken stupor, and they jumped him from the dark. Beating him and dragging him behind their horses they took him out to a clearing in the middle of the desert. They tied him out on stakes and their 'colonel' stood over Thomas and slowly slid the blade of his sabre into his side, until it stuck in the sand beneath him."

His eyes had a far-away look, and he was barely moving, though there was no tension in his shoulders. He was recounting the past, it was a past he'd come to terms with, a past that had shaped who he was. Thomas had died that night, and Cole had been left standing in the ashes and blood. "He spent that night staring up into the sky, hanging in the balance between worlds. The alcoholic stupor having given way to pain and fever. Around him staked out much like he was were other people; native and black men, women, and children all splayed out around him already gone from this world. He started to slip, his consciousness slipping away. He saw himself drowning in a brown river, being dragged beneath by the bodies of his parents. Then as he was about to slip under a large black hawk plucked him out and deposited him in a nest of black thorns." He paused taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. "Thomas died that night, and I, Cole Black-Thorn remained. That night was filled with fighting and blood, darkness and fire, but obviously I came out on top of that situation. Bloody, and shot several several times I stumbled across the desert for days, until I stumbled across a tribe. They took me in and breathed life back into me."

He smiled that easy smile of his, remembering the small village of the Nez Pierce. He had no idea what any of them had been saying except for the one that spoke Apache. "I lived there for the better part of a year, recovering and training and finding myself. Its where I got these," he said indicating his tattoo, feathers, and medicine pouch. "Leaving them clean of my addiction and with a firmer grasp of who I was, I made my way back to more familiar territory, this area. From there I did what I was best at, tracking, hunting, and translating, taking the odd job here and there. Did my fair share of outlaw and shady work, but mostly translation and tracking work. Met Ilyana two-leaves her little brother and her father, and stayed with them until Quinto attacked while their father and I were out hunting. The father was an old friend of my mothers actually, and he'd taken Ilyana and her brother Etu in after their own parents had been killed. I wonder where old Timberwolf is now," he mused, his voice trailing off.

He shrugged, "the rest you know I suppose. As to what do I want?" He thought on that a moment. "I'm not sure, I just kinda take things day by day. But getting rich could never hurt eh," he chuckled and turned his head to her with a wink. "I guess though that eventually I'd like to find a quiet place to live out my days where I'm not pressured to change who I am to fit into 'society'," the sarcasm of the word fairly dripping from his voice. "But until then, I'm feeling good right here."

Robyn listened to Cole's tale, and couldn't believe how nearly it mirrored hers. The one person who cared for them, loved them, was taken from them too soon, how a cluster of seconds after turned their lives on their heads, killing who they could have been, and from those ashes who they are now. She was no longer a little slave girl, and was now the Crimson Lady, He was no longer Thomas Smith, but Cole Black-Thorn. Their lives mirrored so closely, even down to finding someone that took pity on a violent, stoic, mess of a person and giving them purpose, giving them life again. She had Blackjack and his boys, and he had this Timberwolf fellow and his tribe. He truly was a kindred spirit. Two sides of the same broken but mended coin. She knew him now. She understood him, and surely he could understand her. Provided she'd tell him the full details of her life, if he wanted to know them.

"the rest you know I suppose. As to what do I want?" He said, and paused thoughtfully. Her hands stopped at a few points during his tale, particularly during the drunken stupor and his torture at the hands of the Klan. She could have laughed. He was tortured, just as she had been. Just for breathing. His wasn't as deprived but she was a woman, that was to be expected. She began to work the muscle's out yet again. "I'm not sure, I just kinda take things day by day. But getting rich could never hurt eh," He said and found it within him to chuckle, turned to her with a wink that made her smile softly. "I guess though that eventually I'd like to find a quiet place to live out my days where I'm not pressured to change who I am to fit into 'society'," He told her. "But until then, I'm feeling good right here." He said and she was quiet for a long moment before she turned, angling herself so she could reach up, placing her hand on his jaw and bring it up so she could kiss him. It was a quick kiss but it lingered a moment before she pulled away resting forehead to forehead. "You managed to find the one person in the world, who lived your tale." She said softly. "I'd tell you my story, all of it if you wanted, but you already know it, you've lived it, different means, same ends." She said, with a rueful chuckle. "You asked me to trust you, and to be honest, I didn't want to, I was afraid because I didn't know you, but I trusted you anyway, I didn't know why, but I said yes, because it was true, perhaps it because I knew you all along..." She said, pulling back and looking him in the eyes. As if seeing him truly for the first time. "Two sides of the same fucked up coin." She said and a smirk touched her lips. "We really do all have our scars."

"You managed to find the one person in the world, who lived your tale. I'd tell you my story, all of it if you wanted, but you already know it, you've lived it, different means, same ends." He could guess what she had gone through, he had seen what the klansmen and Quinto had done to their female victims. And he had seen it a dozen times in-between those events. He had no desire to bring up those memories. Some parts of a persons life are just not meant to be relived. "You asked me to trust you, and to be honest, I didn't want to, I was afraid because I didn't know you, but I trusted you anyway, I didn't know why, but I said yes, because it was true, perhaps it because I knew you all along..." He raised a hand and cupped her cheek, his thumb brushing back and forth rhythmically as she pulled away. "Two sides of the same fucked up coin. We really do all have our scars."

He smiled that easy smile of his. "Two sides of a coin, two drops in the same pond. And we're stronger for enduring the fire that tempered us." He chuckled and rolled his shoulders and neck, feeling how loose they were thanks to her work. He felt he just had to return the favor. "Your turn," he said as he rested his forehead against hers and slipped his hands to either side of her neck, his fingers gently yet firmly moving in little circles. He wasn't sure how she'd take to a full on back massage on account of her scars, so he would wait for her to lead his hands. But for now they were dancing across the back and where her collarbone curved into her neck.

Robyn turned her cheek into his palm as he brushed his thumb gently across it. "Two sides of a coin, two drops int he same pond. And we're stronger for enduring the fire that tempered us." He said with a chuckle before rolling his shoulders and neck. She smiled softly, proud of the work she'd done. He looked much more relaxed and his muscles less tense.

"Your turn," He told her, resting his forehead against her and his hands slid down to her neck and shoulders. She stiffened but relaxed just as quickly. She wasn't exactly used to having someone's hand around her neck and that end well but she trusted him, with her heart of hearts.

"You don't ha--" a soft moan bled into her words as he began to apply small circles of pressure on her tense muscles. Her eyes fluttered closed and she sighed. She could only imagine what she felt like, she could feel the weight of the tension herself, she knew she must have felt like a stone beneath his hand.

Soon though, his skillful hands kneaded the muscles of her lats into soft tissue. She reached up, taking his hands and gently guiding them back. There was an immediate spike of apprehension as his hand brushed the start of her scar lines, mostly out of habit but she shook it, opening her eyes and looking up at him, her eyes dusting over his lips for a moment before she spoke.

"Most of the tensions here." She told him softly, her voice just over a whisper. Her scars were always a reminder of how weak she'd been, how naive, and foolish. She trusted a man, before knowing him, but looking at Cole now, having done the same thing, trusting a man she did not know, finding out who he was after, they weren't that anymore, they were a reminder that she was strong, that she endured.

He smiled kissed her forehead briefly before sliding around he and sitting behind her cross-legged. His hands rested on the curve of her neck while his thumbs started at the base of her neck. Applying firm yet gently pressure his thumbs started moving in small circles, slowly working their way outwards, the rest of his hand sliding along her shoulders with them. When they rested on the outsides of her shoulders his thumbs lowered and he worked his way back in. When they were back in the center he balled his hands so the first knuckles of each hand were resting just above the curve of her shoulder blades. He then pressed those knuckles in gently and moved them in a circle while his thumbs worked in an opposite circle, working out the knots, spreading the tension to be worked by his fingers.

As his hands glided over her back easing out the tension he was acutely aware of the scars under his hands. Each rise and fall in the flesh, every twist in the hard tissue, and the story each stripe undoubtedly had. He could only imagine the pain she'd gone through in her time, the hardships she'd had to endure. He could also feel years of tension under his hands, knots that had worked themselves hard over years of similar hardship. His fingers worked at them, the gentle pressure gradually working at the tightness and tension he was feeling just beneath his fingers.

As he worked he started humming softly. The tune was something he'd heard long ago, a lullaby of sorts. He wasn't quite sure where he'd heard it, or why he was humming it. It seemed to come out on its own. But there it was, so he continued to hum softly as he gently rubbed the tension out of Robyns shoulders and back.

Robyn's eyes fluttered as he pressed a kiss to her forehead. She noticed he did that a lot, and she wasn't opposed to it, especially not anymore. He then moved behind her and she took a breath. A small twinge of nervousness stiffened her shoulders as he placed his hands on her. She wanted to shake it, but the trauma still lingered.

"He won't let her go, she killed him, and he still won't let her go." She remembered herself saying before. It was true. He never went away, he never died fully. He caused her fear of tight spaces, her distrust of men, her aversion to have her back to anyone.
But as Cole's hands began to move, his fingers working out the knots, it was going away, he wasn't dead yet but he was dying, at least while Cole was around.

She reached around, grabbing her hair and pulling it to the front of her, giving him unrestricted access to her back. It was hard trying not to tense up with each touch of her scars but she managed. It wasn't until he began to hum a sweet song until that she was lulled into allowing his hands to work their magic. Her eyes closed, her shoulders relaxed and she sighed.

"Daley" She whispered after a moment. "That was the name you couldn't remember." She told him ."I wish you could remember what you saw, it would be one more person to know him, " She said mournfully and then decided she'd talked about him, tell Cole about him so that he would live on and at least one other person. "He found me one day, I too was orphaned, I lived on the street, and ate what I could, most of it was old, rancid and it would make me shake after I ate it, so everyone in the town took to calling 'Shiva'." She smirked. The bastards. "When he found me, I was eating chum, didn't know it at the time, and because it was fish I thought I could eat it, he saw me, and stopped me, telling me that it would only make me sick." She said, remembering how she distrusted him at first time.

"He told me he'd take me to get something to eat but I wouldn't go with him, if I remember correctly, I might have told him to go away" She said and chuckled. "I was a smart ass then too" She looked back at Cole with a smirk. She turned back and continued. " He did, but he came back, having bought me a peach." She said and smiled. "I remember it tasted like a dream, I still love those things." She sighed, shaking her head. "He left that day, and I honestly, never thought I see him again but he came back on a fishing vessel that I used to think was huge. When he saw me, he didn't say anything until he came back with a peach." She said and smiled. " he would bring me a peach, every time he saw me, eventually, he sat with me and we ate together." She said, her smiling never faded but she felt pain her chest. It hurt but talking about him felt good all the same. " That was the day he gave me my name....and I learned my first curse." She said with a chuckled. "He was Irish, and called them all 'arseholes' for calling me 'Shiva' so he thought of a new name for me. He said where he was from there was a bird that he loved the sound of, it was small like me, but loud, like me. Robyn." She said and smiled. "I think I loved him then." She said the pain in her chest increased but she let it. "He was a smuggler," She said moving on. " I thought he was a pirate, wanted to be one, because of it " She paused. "When I was young, he gave me a wooden ship, with black sails, told me that's what pirates rode and from then on I wanted to be one, mostly because I thought he was, he told me he wasn't but I never believed him." She said with a soft smile. "I wanted be just like him." She said and thought about what he would think of her now. Would he even recognize her? She wasn't a pirate but she was close."I lost the ship, but never the dream, I suppose that's why I'm an outlaw, the only real difference is that I'm doing my thieving on land." She chuckled softly before it faded into silence.

The pain in her chest kept increasing until it pressured her eyes."Cole," She peeped"Why does it have to hurt?" She asked him, twisting to look at him ."I've known he was gone for years, but now that I'm not angry anymore, now that I know he loved me, that he didn't want to leave me, and was doing what he thought was best, I should feel good, right?" She asked him, tears in her eyes. "Why does this hurt more then it did before?" She said, a few blinks forced her tears to trickle down her cheek.

He stopped humming as she started to speak, listening with quiet rapt attention. Daley, Mr. Daley was the mans name. He'd basically been a father to the young Robyn. All the while his hands kept up with the rhythmic rubbing. She chuckled and it trailed off as she turned to him. ."Cole, Why does it have to hurt? I've known he was gone for years, but now that I'm not angry anymore, now that I know he loved me, that he didn't want to leave me, and was doing what he thought was best, I should feel good, right? Why does this hurt more then it did before?" Tears starting to make their way down her cheek.

He slid his arms around her shoulders and held her close to him, resting his cheek against hers. "The place you held for him you had shut away, filled it up with what you thought he had done. Now, that place has been opened back up, the anger and hate has been washed away. Its like you've lost him all over again." His voice conveyed the feeling of experience. He had gone through this himself. "I held hate in my heart for so long against my father that I was blind to the real issue, his alcoholism. It wasn't until I was drowning myself in it that I realized that he had near no control anymore, that who he had been had been shoved aside and suppressed by his addiction. It tore open that place in my heart and allowed me to truly grieve his loss, to grieve who he could have been, who WE could have been."

He gently tightened his arms around her, holding her in his warm embrace. "The pain fades, and all that will remain are the memories of him. And that way he'll never truly be gone from this world, he lives in you," he said placing a hand gently over her heart.

Cole's hands moved to her shoulders, pulling her into a warm embrace. She rested her cheek to his adn she sighed. The place you held for him you had shut away, filled it up with what you thought he had done. Now, that place has been opened back up, the anger and hate has been washed away. Its like you've lost him all over again." Robyn choked out a sob. It was new. It felt entirely different now. It felt like he just died. She noted how he spoke from experience and she turned some, to look at him. "I held hate in my heart for so long against my father that I was blind to the real issue, his alcoholism. It wasn't until I was drowning myself in it that I realized that he had near no control anymore, that who he had been had been shoved aside and suppressed by his addiction. It tore open that place in my heart and allowed me to truly grieve his loss, to grieve who he could have been, who WE could have been." He told her and she sniffed as his grip strengthened around her. "The pain fades, and all that will remain are the memories of him. And that way he'll never truly be gone from this world, he lives in you," He told her, placing his hand over her heart. Her hand rose to his and she bit her lip, trying to let the pain take its course.

Eventually the tears were gone, and though the pain was still there, it hurt a little less. She had his face clearer in her mind than she had in years and now that she knew the truth, she could allow herself to grieve, and as he said, he wasn't gone, not while she lived.

She closed her fingers around his hand and turned to him. "Thank you..." She said, and those words didn't seem to do what she felt justice but it was all she had.

Her fingers closed around his with "Thank you..."

He cupped her cheek and gently brought her lips to his, leaving them there for a lingering moment. Pulling away he rested his forehead against hers. "Of course litu dloo," he said with that easy smile arcing across his face. He held her for a little while longer before the darkness around them was too much to ignore. Pulling back slightly he looked around them, the forest around them lit dimly by the pale light of the full moon. He had no idea how long they'd been out there, and he didn't rightly care. "We should probably be getting back to the cave soon, its starting to get cold out here." Even he was beginning to feel the night chill.

Robyn's eyes fluttered as his hand cupped her cheek and pulled her into a kiss. She melted into his kiss with one of her own before he pulled away and pressed his forehead to hers. Another easy smile graced his lips and she smiled softly as he spoke again. "Of course, litu dloo"

They were quiet for a while, his arms around her, and her back against his chest. She wouldn't say it, but she knew what this was now. Sitting here, in silent bliss, wrapped in his arms. She wasn't ready for it, not yet, but rarely did she have a choice in the matter.

"We should probably be getting back to the cave soon, its starting to get cold out here,." He said, and she looked up with a smile. "I thought you didn't get cold?" She teased softly. She was warm but of course she was, for one, she was dressed, and she had blanket made out of Cole. She turned and stood, holding out her hand to him so she could pull him to his feet. Her eyes fell to his leg, remember how he said an old injury caused it to lock up on occasion. It didn't seem to be bothering him much which was good but still. That was a massage for another time. Her eyes went to his arms and remembered the burns. She turned his arms over, her fingers dancing on the edge of the burns. She rose one of his arms to her lips and pressed a kiss where here fingers once danced. He got them reaching around a flame to help her. He should have let go but he didn't and for it, she was able to grieve and move on. "Do they hurt?" She asked softly, finding the odd way the burns were shaped a little amusing. She could have sworn it looked like a fox's tail and a hawk's wing. It might have just been a trick of the light but still. It would have made this whole thing that much more...meaningful if it were. Two drops in the same pond.

Cole hopped up with her help, pausing as she took his arms and traced around the burns, kissing the one that looked like a hawk. Her lips were cool against the heat of the burn. "Do they hurt?"

He looked at the marks on his arms, one in the shape of a hawks wing, the other the fox's tail. It certainly was interesting, how the fire had branded him with the marks of both their spirits. It was almost like they were trying to tell him something. He had a pretty good guess as to what that was, but as with most everything there were small tendrils of doubt in the back of his mind. He wanted what he was feeling to turn out to be real, but only time would truly tell.

He smiled that slow easy smile of his before answering. "Not all that much, its more of a dull heat. I think I'll heal," he said with a wink. He quickly gathered his things and then extended his elbow to her. "Well then, shall we away," he asked, the moonlight adding a gleam to his eyes that complimented his easy grin.