Topic: Visiting The Tuttle Home

LadyAjaBird

Date: 2010-05-27 20:55 EST
It was a truly beautiful spring day, she thought as she rode along at an easy pace. Sure, she could've taken a car, but it had been a while since she taken Chiron out for a good ride and he was making it known that he minded by being antsy. "Alright, alright. I'm horrible about taking you out fer a run. I'll try to make time to ride more." She said grinning about talking to the horse, who seemed to understand anyway and settled down.

Arriving at Sivanna and Alec's, Aja slid off Chiron's saddle, setting the gift basket down to the side while she tied him off at the edge of the yard and then patting his neck gently. "Be back in a bit, buddy." She said while taking off her riding gloves and tucking them in her back pocket then picked up the basket. She wandered up to the front door of the Tuttle home looking around curiously.

She didn't come here often, and that made her feel guilty. She had been trying to make a change in the amount of time she spent with her friends outside the rings or Inn. Somewhere beyond the chaos, where honest connections could be made and maintained.

Tanner had once referred to people and relationship as plants, she had laughed at his comparison. But in the years since, it struck her that he was right. Some people were like cactus. Not needing much "water" to keep them growing. Others were like Orchids, needing more time, attention, and proper conditions. Never one for gardening, it took Aja a while to find a way to make that work for her. The problem with that had always been what do do when she saw something that required more than a conversation or a hug.

Delicate was something that Aja didn't do very well sometimes. She was more like a bull in a china shop most times, rather than the dainty hummingbird she was nicknamed after. So she was a little worried about the other reason for her visit.

Sivanna greeted her on the porch.

"Mellonamin." She said with a light tone of voice, maybe trying to dodge any sort of more serious conversation that she had to have known was coming given last night when she left the Inn. "Hi. I brought you and Alec a present. Tea fer you. Mami swears this is the best tea." She grinned. "I can't comment on it. Not much fer tea. The coffee is fer Alec, of course. Got a friend who imports it from this secluded mountain village. It's wonderful." "I'm sure he'll appreciate that." Sivanna took the basket from Aja.

Aja stood for a moment, unsure of when to say what was in her head. Then just figured that there was no time like the present, and she took a breath.

"Look, I'm just gonna toss this out there and then ya can do what ya want with it."

Aja took a deep breath, cause while she teased Sivanna about putting her in a snow bank if Aja asked too many questions, the truth was it was always a metaphorical snow bank she had always been talking about. Sivanna could chose never to speak to her again if she went too far on the whole mushy emotional scale, and Aja really didn't want to lose her for that. But this was deemed worth the risk, she had to take that chance if for no other reason than she honestly did care a great deal for the sometimes somber Cleric.

"I know I'm not the one you tell things to. I'm not super hip magic chick or even very serious most of the time." She gave a small grin at that before getting a more serious look. "But I ain't blind. I do see you, and I see that something is wrong." Aja motioned to Sivanna's hands then. "Yer usually very fashion forward but lately it seems you've taken an unnatural affection for gloves. Yer talking to Sal about something that made Parker's eyes bug out of his head with concern when I asked him about it. Whatever it is, and.." she held up a hand to indicate she wasn't trying to pry. "I'm not asking ya to tell me if ya don't want to' I just hope that you are asking someone fer help. Cause while I'm not the one you talk to about these serious things that go on in yer head, I am someone that loves you and would defend with my life if it ever came to that. If nothing else...I hope you know that." Aja exhaled slowly looking at Sivanna with concern, she gave her a warm, somewhat hopeful smile not knowing what she would say to any of that.

LadyAjaBird

Date: 2010-07-06 11:57 EST
Aja made her way back towards the Tuttle home after making her rounds in town. She saw Sivanna go into work, so it was perfect timing in her quest to have a conversation with Alec about things without the usual limitations of the Inn or Arena. Aja tied off Chiron at the tree again and walked up to the house for the second time that day. Alec was already sitting on his favorite rocking chair on the front porch. A mug of coffee was in hand. A coffee service was set up on a small table beside him, on the other side of which was another rocking chair. The journeyman watched as she approached.

"Ah, hello Aja," he said with a warm and welcoming smile. He glanced over at Chiron. "You didn't have to tie him up, did you?" Aja heard his voice and grinned brightly seeing Alec sitting on the porch then glances back to Chiron at Alec's mention. "I ain't had him out in a while, he might wander off." She chuckled trying to joke off why exactly she hadn't been riding lately like she normally did. "It's what I get fer not payin attention to the little things like that." she lifted the bag in her hand and wiggled it a little as she got closer to the porch. "I brought goodies." She stepped up on the porch, smiling at Alec. "Trade ya a scone or muffin fer some coffee and a bit of conversation?" "Deal." Alec grinned and set down his mug so that he could pour Aja her own mug of coffee. "I think you'll like this. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee. I've never found anything better." He motioned to the rocker beside him. "Have a seat, darlin'." He offers her the freshly poured mug.

Aja smiled as she settled in the other chair, opening the bag and rolling the sides down to reveal the goodies inside. There were a couple of different flavors of scones. Blueberry, raspberry and a few muffins, both of the same flavors as the scones. "Bakery I went to was raving about the raspberry crop they had. Got a couple of each." Aja rambled about the bakery for a bit, taking a moment to settle and feel that comfortable air that Alec had around him start to surround her too. She knew it would happen soon enough. He was good like that. She gave him a grin then. "Little old lady who ran the place seemed happy about that." she set the bag near the coffee pot within easy reach for both of them.

"Hm. Thank you." Alec looks over the selection and picks up a raspberry scone, dipping it quickly into his coffee and taking a bite. "Ah, yes...not too bad, at all." He picks up his mug and settles back into his chair, rocking sedately back and forth as he munches on his scone for a quiet moment. "So. How have you been" We haven't spoken in a while." Aja leaned back in the chair, picking up the coffee mug and curling up in the chair with it. There were times she was very kid like. She couldn't just sit in a chair like a normal person. "Oh I know. I think that's been my fault honestly. I've been working so much, that I tend to forget the rest of the world is out here. But then.." she smiled at Alec. "It's kinda why I've been doing it. Looking for any project to keep me busy, out of the house. Out of range of Tru and his insanity. Away from the potential of him finding out everything and dying on me." The journeyman listened in tranquil silence as she explained why she was absent lately. This was something he could understand, being Bonded like she was. "I can see where you are coming from. I've come to learn that when you are Bonded, there are any number of issues that can crop up to disrupt your routine." He finally turned those serene hazel eyes onto her, as if surveying something that lingered just below the mask of matter. "You really are worried about him, aren't you?" Aja nodded slowly to the question about being worried about Tru.

"I don't want him dead, Alec. And I know that can happen if I move to fast on anything. And even then, he could still die if he chose to." she tilted her head to the side thinking about it a little more. "If what I read is accurate. I've been reading into the elven bond, looking for answers." Alec nodded and sipped his coffee, considering his words carefully before he replies. "Anyone can die if they chose to, Hummingbird. You have a choice to make...and then so will he." He finishes his coffee, then leans over to refill his mug. "From what I've studied, there are precious few instances of the elven Bond being broken. But this is Rhy'Din. Anything is possible." Aja took a sip of the coffee and relaxed back into the chair listening to Alec. "I'm hoping that the RhyDin variable will kick in here." Aja turned her head, looking over at Alec, resting her head on the back of the chair. "It's not like I want him dead. Yeah. What he did...was stupid. No question. Should never pull that on someone without talking to them. Making sure they understand fully what is happening. But it's Tru." she let out a small puff of laughter. "He's never been normal." Aja took another sip of the coffee and closed her eyes for a moment thinking about it. "And if that's all I had to consider...was Tru. Me. I could find a way to live with it. I had pretty much figured there was no way out and had kind of adjusted to it. As sad as that sounds." "There is always a way out." Alec frowns as he considers that. "The Ippon Bond...perfectly permanent, from one Ippon to another. There was one time that it was achieved between an Ippon and an elf...it didn't work out so well." He sighs and shakes his head. "I'd like to try something, if you don't mind. If you'll permit me to touch your mind, maybe I can get a better idea of the shape of this elven version of Bonding." Aja looked at Alec oddly for a moment considering the request, then nodded slowly. She trusted Alec with her life, her head was similar territory. "I don't mind, I just wonder if you'll get lost." She gave him a smile then. "Got a series of blocks up. Protecting secrets, and some protect Tru from feeling what is happening." "Oh." He pauses, considering, then smiles. "Don't worry. I didn't plan on going too deep. I haven't had a rabies shot, and I don't know that Algie has ever had one, either." He grins and sets down his mug, resting his palms on the armrests of his chair and pushing himself up. Walking until he stands behind Aja's rocker, he touches her shoulders calmingly. "Close your eyes. Relax. Just breathe...in and out. Clear your mind, as much as possible." The fingertips of his right hand brush up against the side of her face, gently touching the appropriate neural contact points there.

Aja grinned at the joke about Algie and held still doing what he asked. It was a similar thing that Tanner used to do. So it wasn't anything she was going to be afraid of.

The nerve clusters in the pads of his fingers interface with those contact points. The journeyman conducts a simple scan along the surface of her mind. "Those blocks you spoke of, the ones that keep Tru from knowing everything about what is going on...how did you create those?" Alec was curious for some reason, though he doesn't elaborate for the moment.

"Takes a long time to sit quietly and do." Alec should understand how hard that was for her. "But it's like I imagine there being a wall put up around the force of it. Sounds stupid, but it works." "Not at all, darlin'. It might surprise you to learn that I do something very similar against your garden-variety psionic attack." It wasn't something he could ever do within his Bond to Sivanna, though, which was what surprised him about her answer. He leans down as he continues the scan, getting the shape of her mind and the Bond that permeates it, until his cheek was all but brushing against her own. "You see, the Ippon mind and soul are considered one and the same. But I've learned that many races consider them separately." She wanted to nod at Alec to let her know, but didn't cause she's not sure what that would do.

"I never thought about it that closely. I've always just accepted I was different than most people. This thing with Tru, it took some time to fully block him out where he didn't really notice. He's mostly kinda in his own little world. I wonder if he even paid attention to the slow withdrawl." "Hard telling. I couldn't imagine not noticing." She would feel the faint presence of his cursory scan ease off for a moment. "Okay. I'm going in just a little bit deeper, this time. I want to gage the effect of this Bond on your neural pathways. You might feel a thingling sensation here and there." His mental presence slips in past the outer barriers of her mind, activating a succession of neural chains as he studious examines how the Bond interacts with her physical brain. All the while, she might hear the faintest whispers of his thoughts, the process of which occurs in strict, logical chains. Aja held completely still thinking about what he said.

"I think Tru operates on a different level then we do, just because of the brain damage he has from the drug use." She kept her breathing normal, trying to keep everything calm and even.

"Drug use?" He shakes his head, activating one neural chain after the other and keeping his mental intrusion strictly out of her memories. "My dad always said that you learn something new every day." Having acquired a perfect three-dimensional model of her mind and how the Bond affected it, he turned his attention on the shape of the Bond itself. "Tell me something, Aja. Do you feel that this Bond permeates your soul, as well. Or only your mind?" "Just my head." Aja kept breathing slowly in and out. "I deemed it too risky to allow access anything else. Bad enough he could access some of what hides in my head." "I'd hate to imagine," he said with a mischievous smile. "Alright, I think that's about all I need for now." His mental presence slowly recedes, like the tide in a bay ebbing inexorably outward, and his fingertips release from the side of her face. He straightens up his posture and pats her shoulder, then returns to his rocker. Picking up his coffee mug and a random scone, he returns to some sedate and idle munching. Aja blinked a few times, feeling him leave her head, then looked over at Alec with a soft smile. "Yer one of the very few people in the world who are allowed to do that. Got more than ship designs and a love of pixie sticks stuck in there." she gave him a wink. "Probably more than a few ship wrecks, too, right?" He replies with a wry grin and a wink. "I appreciate the trust you've shown me, Aja. Should the time come when a deeper connection has to be made, feel free to go poking around up here." He tapped his temple with a knowing smile and sipped his coffee.

Aja smiled over at Alec. "Might be dangerous. You know about all the spiffy toys if that Christmas gift was any indication. Not that I've had to use it, but I tested it. Makes a purdy hole in stuff." Aja chuckled and leaned back lifting the mug for a sip. "I think the only reason Tru hasn't noticed has been cause of the drugs. And maybe that could work in my favor too as I slowly draw back from it."

"I was thinking...it could be that such Bonds can die on their own. Think of it like a plant, where the roots have grown through your mind, and the stalk is that which connects you to Tru. Starve it of water, and..." He shrugs and sips his coffee, finishing it off and quietly refilling it. He sure could go through the stuff when he set his mind to it. "No telling how long it could take. But if it is a connection that goes only as deep as your mind, I know that I can sever it. Likely without directly harming Tru, too. Indirectly, though.." Another shrug. Again, some choices were out of their hands. Aja could only nod to that.

"Well, he over reacts to things. And I can't protect him from the way it's going to feel when he discovers Tristan is alive and well and wants his wife back." Aja rubbed her head a little thinking about the whole situation. "It's why I've been doing the slow withdrawal. I thought that if I did it slow, then it wouldn't be a big shock all at once."

"Yes, I noticed that Tristan wants his wife back. The big question is...what does his wife want?" Alec leaned back in his chair and rocked slowly back and forth. The wooden planks beneath him creaked and groan in quiet protest to the movement. Aja lifted her mug lightly in a toast to Alec for catching that part. She rarely got asked.

"Well played." she smiled a little. "I missed him. Every day. For years. But you know how it goes. You learn to move forward. Deal with the loss. Deal with it just being you. Then wham. Hey, have yer hubby back and oh, by the way, he's got yer crazy Irish ex boyfriend stuck in his head too. It's a twofer!" she laughed at the insanity of the way it sounded. "I swear, the Gods have this list up there titled "Let's Toss This At Aja" and they throw a dart at it to pick stuff."

"That must be one hell of a dartboard those gods have on you. I'm not sure you really answered my question, though.? He smiles and returns her toast. The journeyman isn't entirely sure if he had just been adroitly deflected, or if he was just a little too dense to read the tea leaves in her answer. Aja gave Alec a sheepish look.

LadyAjaBird

Date: 2010-07-06 20:34 EST
"Noticed that did ya" Can't sneak past you like I can others." Aja tilted her head a little "I wish I could pick the version of him I got back." she toyed with the cup. "This one.." she shook her head a little. "Tristan with added Padriq. I don't know what to do with. I loved Tristan. As he was." "Now you're not so sure." It wasn't a question. He reached over a covered her hand with his own. "I don't envy you, Aja. How is it that Padriq wound up in Tristan's head, anyway?" "I don't know how much longer Padriq will be in his head." She glanced over at the question, taking a deep breath. "How is interesting. Tristan went out on a mission, to help some people. It took a bad turn and he was fatally injured, before he died. His spirit somehow, wound up tucked ..?" she pondered the use of that but figures Alec will get it, cause he was a smart guy. "into a baby that was being born. Wanna take a guess at who that baby was?" Aja nodded a bit, thinking of the strange turns life often took. "So. Flash forward to now. And Padriq being Padriq plus Tristan I guess...deciding that he was going to get a time machine and go back to before Tru did what he did. Somehow the time machine brought Tristan's body back from the moment before he took that fatal blow, to the present. And Padriq, simply ceased to be in RhyDin. He's alive out there, somewhere. Just his consciousness of his time in RhyDin, is still in Tristan's head." He listens to this story with no small amount of incredulity, finally shaking his head at its conclusion. "Damn. This realm just gets weirder and weirder...and I thought my back story was strange." Quietly sips his coffee for a long moment, nibbling on a scone before he continues. "Okay, so you reckon at some point Padriq will make something akin to a graceful exit from Tristan's noggin. I suppose at which point you would want to be with him again?" Aja nodded at that question. "If it was just Tristan' No contest. He was very truly my first real love. But with Padriq's influence, it's making him different. More reckless, impetuous. And I think there can only be one of those in a relationship at a time. I'm the one whose scattered. He's supposed ta be the slow and steady one." "He reminds me of someone," he remarked, punctuated by a knowing snicker. He then turns more serious, his serene hazel gaze leveling on her with the promise of results. "I can free you from this Bond, at whatever moment you are ready to proceed. But there will almost certainly be consequences that neither you or I can control...so before you decide to go forward, be absolutely damned sure that you are ready to live with them. I wouldn't put it past Tru to lay a guilt trip on you, so pack some sunscreen and be ready for the ride, yes?" Aja nodded her head slowly setting the cup down to reach over and take his hand, giving it a squeeze. "You have already helped a great deal by not going ballistic. Allows me to process this mess without having to worry about keeping someone else calm." Alec smiles and squeezes her hand in kind. "You'll always have my ear whenever you need it, Aja. And I'll even throw in the gray matter between them, and all the heart you can stand. Whatever I can do." His eyes sparkled as warmly as he regarded her. Aja smiled at him and taking a deep breath exhaling slowly. "I know it's gonna get ugly. Nothing I can do about that. Very technically, I am still married to Tristan. He's ...here. Alive. So that supersedes anything Tru might want to have. I really just don't want Tru to die. Cause he's not bad. He's Tru. Big goofball with hair." "Nobody wants him to die, of course. Nothing you and I will do will cause him to die. Directly. It's his reaction that you're more concerned about...will he go on, or will he chose to fade away?" He shrugged and gave her hand another squeeze. "Again, we cannot control his reaction, or the choice he will make afterwards. What you'll have to keep in mind is one simple fact: He Bonded to you without ever giving you a choice. Now that you want out of it...well, I may be a callous son-of-a-bitch to say 'tough shit' to him, but that's simply the way it is." Alec was trying to be gentle, and that made Aja smile. "I know. And it's not callous, it just is. Maybe I'm trying to hard to do as little damage as possible. And I'm not even sure that it's feasible. I think that it's just gonna be bad for him and that's that. If I was who I used ta be ..way back when, I wouldn't have cared. Just take what I wanted and left the bodies falling behind. But I haven't been her a very long time. I think I destroyed her in my quest to be better. What Tanner and Tristan taught me to be."

"I don't know about all that. All I know is that I'm tremendously fond of you, as you are now. There is nothing I would change here," he shared affectionately. He finished his coffee and set his empty mug aside, deciding to give his stomach lining a break for the next few minutes. "Thank you for that. Means more to me than you know." Aja smiled warmly at him. "I just feel bad that we get to see so little of each other. And when we do, we're playing catch up or there's some big bro-hau hau going on." chuckles a little. "Life in RhyDin." "I guess we take what we can get," he said with a sullen smile. "You should come out here more often. Much more quiet than life in the big city." He settles back and crosses his ankle over his knee, turning his gaze out to the trees beyond the meadow. Aja joined his gaze out to the meadow with a smile. "Oh but I could. You know me, gotta be doing about eighty things at a time." Aja tried to laugh it off a little. "Actually, once this thing with Tru is settled, and I finish with Panabul...It'll be pretty calm again." "You just let me know when you are ready to proceed with freeing yourself from the Bond with Tru. It will be an involved procedure, but straightforward enough." A gentle squeeze of her hand, comfortingly. "As soon as time permits, we'll have another little get-together here." "Ok. I'll keep doing the gradual pull back thing from Tru. So when we get to the more involved, maybe." She raised her other hand, crossing her fingers. "it won't be as horrible as I think." she smiled and squeezed his hand. "And I would love to come here for a get together. Sivanna does know how to throw a party." "And she could use the distraction." He grinned and shook his head, considering. "She has wanted to arrange a little party here for some time. So I imagine she'll take any excuse to have at it." There was another quiet moment to take in the tranquil forest setting beyond. "Well..you'll know when the time is right." Aja smiled hearing Alec, then thought of the recent things she had seen with Sivanna and glanced over at Alec, taking a moment before she asked carefully. "Is she going to be ok?" "In spite of herself" Yes, I think she will." His mood turned much more sullen at this change of subject. "She is drawn to darker forces, and the I often wonder which is the real Sivanna...the one that is caring and loving, the face she displays to us, or the one that touched Death itself." Oddly this makes a lot of sense to her, she kept his hand in hers. "I've been noticing small things. But she is guarded most of the time. Gods forbid we care too much for her." she tried giving a small smile to Alec. "It's almost as if she doesn't believe she deserves that. And given the bits I do know about who she used to be...I can understand." she gave another smile to Alec then, more hopeful. "Just take care of our girl, as much as she'll let you."

"I do what I can. I never would have let her get as deeply into that mess as she did but," he says, offering a sigh as he framed the rest of his thoughts. "Often our Bond has become a one-way street. It worries me, because of what happened the only other time an Ippon Bond was formed with someone who wasn't Ippon." Her brows went up in concern and she looked at Alec with a soft smile hoping there was something she could do to help him and Sivanna. "Is there anything I can do to help you? Not that I'm hip magic chick. But. Anything in my power is yers." "No less hip on magic than I am, I assure you." He smiled, shaking his head fractionally. "I have no idea why the Bond is behaving this way. It could be a simple temporary quirk, or it could be the first stage of the Bond withering away. Only time will tell." Aja frowned a little, looking at the floor thinking about that. "I really hope it isn't. I believe that there is no one more perfect for Sivanna than you. You give her that solid love that I think she needs." She looked up at Alec, trying not to be mushy girl like and start to cry. "I was so thrilled when the two of you announced you were married. I thought she'd die alone honestly. She's so darn stubborn. But then there was you and I was hopeful that it would help her step fully into a new life."

"I think she still has one foot in both lives." He glances over towards her, the hint of a smile playing at the corners of his lips. "I'm trying very hard to pull her completely into a new life here. It seems that I'm not enough." He pulls his gaze away, staring off into the distance. "I almost left her the other night." She gave him another warm squeeze to his hand in silent support not quite knowing what to say for a moment as she stares off in the same direction he is. The silence goes on for a half minute more before she quietly asked. "Does she know that' And you don't have to tell me if you don't want to." "She knows. She keeps asking me...begging me not to give up on her. It's in her nature to push me away." Squeezes her hand, matching her warmth and grateful for the offering of it. "It difficult sometimes, holding onto to someone who keeps pushing you away. But you probably already knew that."

Aja smiled a bit sadly and nods. "Yeah. Not the easiest thing in the world to love someone who has an instinct to swat that hand that tries to help." She sat holding his hand staring off to the distance, figuring that it makes it easier to speak of such things. "We could toss her in a closet. Hold her hostage till she comes back to common sense." She offered a small joke to lighten the mood. "Yeah. But she has the ability to teleport, so..." Has absolutely no problem holding onto her hand. Seems a perfectly natural thing, to him. He smirks and turns a crooked smile over to her. "Maybe if we tape her mouth shut. It seems there is a verbal component to her apparition spell." Aja gave him a small grin. "With a binding spell on the door." she shook her head. "I really hope she realizes the treasure she has in you. Start realizing that the power love has is so much more rewarding." she paused for a moment thinking about something. "It's really too bad I can't give her the memory of Trevor being born. How that felt, the overwhelming amount of absolute love. Felt like I could've taken over the world at that moment."

"Hm. There might be something to that." A small smile as he considers something related to the thought of having children with Sivanna, but soon enough he turns his mind away from that. "Lord knows that I came into this relationship with my own issues. But there is literally nothing I wouldn't do for her. For us. I just love her so damned much, the thought of our Bond slipping away hurts like nothing else I can imagine." Aja nodded hearing that, feeling like she could understand that emotion if not the actual part of the bond. "Anything I can do. Heck, I'll risk the frostbite and hug the stuffing out of her if it would help."

"Frostbite." Now that got a smile and chuckle out of him. "I don't know what would help, but I reckon the hug part couldn't hurt much." He grinned with mirth as he regards her with that hazel gaze. "Wouldn't hurt her much, anyway."

"Oh I got hugs a plenty. Unlimited supply. You and her are welcome to every single one if that will save her...even from herself. And if it isn't enough, I got a Hochi hug monster at my disposal." There was a bigger grin then thinking of Sivanna with Hochi.

"As uneasy as she is around children" Hugs from Hochi might just do the trick. If nothing else, it might drive her ever closer to me again." He smiled and squeezed her hand, grateful for the levity of the moment.

"He's getting so big now. Maybe a slightly bigger Hochi won't frighten her as much." Aja gave him a warm smile. "I don't want to lose her either, Alec. She's a challenge but a worthwhile one." "I'll hold on to her. Hell, I've already dived over the edge of a cliff for her once...I might as well keep proving to her just how committed I am." Offers her a offhanded wink and smile, which she returned. "Sure. Cause ya know, nothing says I love you like a little cliff-diving. Ok. Most people are doing it recreationally, but...that just semantics." There was a dramatic pause, and Alec should've known it was coming from her really. "And we love us some-antics." He rolled his eyes. "You're horrible, Aja." He shakes his head and replies. "Speak for yourself. I could go the rest of my life without any more antics. I'd love to live out the rest of my life, bored to tears." Aja chuckled and leaned over to kiss his hand. "Just doing my best to make sure there's a silver lining somewhere in the dark clouds. Tiny glimmer of light to keep us going." "Yes, well...you generally do a good job of it. Keep it up." Squeezes her hand, running the pad of his thumb back and forth lightly across the top of it. "Anything for those I love. It's all because of you and the rest that I'm even remotely in one piece right now." There was a warm smile for Alec then, giving him a warm smile. "We'll be alright if we just stick together. Storm will blow itself out." "They always do. Just have to have a place to take shelter until they do. What is it you sailors say in a storm' Baton down the hatches?" He asked with a wry grin. "Yep. Also, look for a friendly port." Aja smiled at him warmly. "That you have. Anytime at all."

They fell into a companionable silence then. Just two friends hanging out on a porch drinking coffee together. Aja could appreciate Alec's quiet nature, with all the things that went on in a day in her world, this, was a little slice of heaven.