Topic: Moonlit Conversation

SiannaFraiser

Date: 2007-10-08 02:26 EST
Moonlight streamed in the window, turning the bedroom to silver and shadows. Johnny was awake, tired but unable to sleep, and so he took up one of his favorite occupations - watching Sianna sleep. Her skin was luminous in the moonlight, dark lashes curled on her cheeks, and her lips were slightly parted. In sleep she looked younger, vulnerable in a way she rarely did awake. He sometimes thought he lived for these small moments in time, and his lips curved up in a smile as he watched her silently.

She stirred slightly, her lips forming a tiny pout, before turning on her side towards him. Hands lightly clasped were nestled between pillow and cheek, a contented sleepy sigh escaping as sleep guided her back into its depths. Her hair was a tumultous cascade and thick sheaves of curls extended every which way and the sheet has somehow managed to work its way down to her waist, her thin nightgown her only covering.

His smile deepened at the little pout on her lips as she turned towards him, casting her face into the shadows. The moonlight caught in her hair, curls lit with the silver glow, and he couldn't resist reaching out to brush some of the tangled mass lightly back from her face. Gentle fingers lingered on her cheek for a moment before his hand slid lightly down, barely brushing over her skin, to come to rest at her waist where the sheet crossed the fabric of her nightgown.

In her dream they were swinging in a hammock, an enormous pair of oaks anchoring it securely, the soft sound of running water from a hidden brook or creek the underlying thrum to the twitter of songbirds. Things kept slipping in and out of focus before his fingertips brushed her skin just as she dreamed it, the added dimension of reality causing her to call out his name tenderly, "Johnny..."

He chuckled quietly, the noise barely audible in the quiet of the stillness of the room, a rumble more vibration than true sound. Whether she said it waking or sleeping, he loved hearing his name on her lips, in her sweet voice. He lifted his hand from her waist to brush it lightly over her face again, tracing along the curve of her jaw. If she slept, it wouldn't disturb her, and he couldn't resist reaching out at the soft call.

SiannaFraiser

Date: 2007-10-08 02:27 EST
Sleep released her and she floated to the surface like a bubble. Turning her head towards the touch, her lips pursed to give a kiss, her eyes opened as her lips touched solid flesh. Glancing at him slantwise, a slow grin pulled her lips into a deep curve, Flopping a bit dramatically, she snuggled closer towards him and deeper into the mattress' embrace. "For a moment ye seemed like ye stepped from my dream, a leannan," she chuckled, "but then again, 'tis a verra familiar sensation in regards tae ye."

He chuckled again at the dramatic flopping, shifting to pull her into the curve of his arm. He returned her kiss, then stole another one on top of that before he answered. "I'm glad tha' ya think tha' way, bu' i' makes me afrai' tha' one day ya migh' wake up, m'love. Ain' no dream man, an' I ain' goin' ta preten' ta be."

She chuckled softly, moving to smooth out the furrow between his brows with a flurry of soft kisses there. Once satisfied, her arm rested over his waist, fingers tracing featherlight patterns on the broad expanse of his back. "Ye have naught tae fear, my Jo. I ken ye are no' but a man, but for a man ye do have th' most marvelous way of making a lassie's dreams tae take shape." Pressing her body to his, she rested her head on his chest, the steady rhythm of his heartbeat a quiet echo in her ear. "But are ye really afraid that I'd leave ye?" Her query was a quiet whisper as if to avoid the ears of the absent eavesdropper.

His arm tightened around her with a light squeeze, and he bent his head to kiss the top of hers. The faint rose scent drifting from her hair was intoxicating, and he waited several moments, simply breathing in the scent that was roses and cotton and her skin, before he answered, his voice as quiet ats hers. "Sometimes, yeah. I ain' tha' interestin', really. An' yer so talented, an' beautiful. There're plen'y 'a men tha' ge' struck by ya, an' I get ta fearin'. Tha' I'm too borin', tha' I ain' good enough fer ya, an' one day yer goin' ta realize it."

"Which do ye fear more, aye? Them... or me?" A smile was held at bay while she continued on. "Because I tell ye th' honest truth that I'd no' have any other but my braw, skilled, bonny lad... his love is more'n enough for me." A kiss then to his collarbone, another to his shoulder.

He smiled crookedly, tilting up her chin to place a kiss lightly on her full lips. "An' I'm always glad ta hear ya say tha', m'love. Ain' sayin' m'fears are reasonable, 'r righ'. Jus'... tha' they're there. Don' wan' ta hide thin's from ya. Seems like tha's more'n anythin' why all th' relationships aroun' here die off so quick. Don' wan' us ta be one'a those couples tha' joins one day an' splits th' next."

She grinned softly before claiming his mouth again, eager to extract the doubts for a moment if not longer. Cupping his face with her hand, the pad of her thumb brushed lightly across the plain of soft stubble. A moment later the elusive dimple appeared. "I did no' think ye were hiding, my Jo... but I ken what ye mean. But have ye no' noticed how 'tis usually th' case that those folks are oft in relationships for wha' they might gain and no' what they might give? Seems tae me 'tis a bit ass backward, or bass akward as my Gran would say." Making sure he was focussed on her eyes, she nodded solemnly as if about to confide a universal secret. "I chose ye, m'ionmhuinn, because I wanted tae share every bit of my life wi' ye... no' another. And fer all yer doubts, ye're good and kind... a just th' sort of man I dreamed of when I was a wee bairn, aye?"

He couldn't help but smile to her words, her solemn nod, and his hand came up to curve over hers, press her palm against his cheek. "Yer a wonder, Sianna. A pure wonder, an' I'm so lucky tha' ya did choose me. Never think tha' I don' know tha'. Bu' now ya go' me curious, ya know? Wonderin' wha' ya were like as a kid, runnin' aroun'. Wha' ya dreamed abou', an' wha' ya wished fer." His emerald eyes were lighter now, brightened with curiousity and a sincere desire to hear whatever she would tell him.

SiannaFraiser

Date: 2007-10-08 02:28 EST
She arched a brow, her own eyes bright. "Well I must say 'tis good to no' hear ye state that I'll be th' death of ye." A coy wink, "An' ye're no' any luckier than I am, aye?" Placing a quick kiss to the corner of his mouth, she twisted a bit to get more comfortable, to not put as much pressure on his arm. It was the routine of any storyteller, a settling to the task at hand so as to not have to interrupt the story later. "I was a real ciogail, a terror, aye? My Da used tae say that if'n he'd had a girl first, his hair would've gone white and he wouldno' have had any others." She laughed then, letting the memories come. "I dinna think that I was all that -bad-, mind, just that I was... determined, and they were no' ready for it."

He laughed quietly, settling himself to listen. His hand trailed lightly through her curls, and his smile deepened as he pictured her words, a vivid image of her as a stubbon child with her chin jutted out in determination springing to his mind.

She smiled softly to herself, perfectly content and once again at awe at how much this level of connection had added to her life. It was true, these weeks had flown by, but they were so vibrant it cast a gloomy pall over the blur of years she'd spent alone. "Seems I'm no' exactly sure where tae begin, mo chridhe. When I was traveling, my past was of no consequence..." Her voice trailed away. "There's sae much tae tell it may get a wee bit confusing and I dinna want tae bore ye."

He smoothed down a stray lock of her hair, his voice quiet but filled with good humor as he answered her. "Had someone tell me once tha' when ya don' know wha' ta say, th' bes' course is ta star' at th' beginnin', tell th' middle, an' when ya ge' ta th' end, stop. Why don' ya start with yer Gran, 'r yer paren's?"

She nodded, a chuckle escaping her. "A wise lad ye are, Johnny my Jo.. verra wise indeed. My Gran was my Mam's mother. She died just before I turned one sae Gran came ta live with us and help Da with all th' bairns. Seems there was a babe just about every year or so and then a space of three before I came along..." She took a deep breath, letting the memories come unbidden. "The eldest are Alasdair and Alleyne, th' twins Gran used tae call the devilish duo when they were up tae tricks. Then came Kester, Hudson, Cailean, Nathaniel, and Beathan."

SiannaFraiser

Date: 2007-10-08 02:29 EST
A quiet chuckle slipped from his lips at the listing, and he bent a little to kiss the top of her head while he listened attentively - she had met his family, but it seemed unlikely that he would ever get to meet hers. To learn what shaped her, he had to learn what she would tell him.

"I was often told that I'd try tae climb out of th' cradle when the boys would take off out of th' house for the day, and that by the time I was five and could slip out from Gran's clutches," she chuckled quietly, "which was no' hard as she was verra.. broad..." She turned her head towards the ceiling, the moonlight spilling across her features. "Weel, I'd chase after them, only tae be brought back with scraped knees and a totally ruined frock."

He looked at her silently, small smile tugging at his lips. The moonlight was all the audience they had, and the stillness in the room felt of peace and not of tension or loneliness. It was a relatively new sensation for him, and he fixed this moment in his memory, a charm against future times that would not be so peaceful.

"Did ye no' have the same thing with yer sisters, my own? Now imagine that instead of being outnumbered that there were seven of ye and only one of them." She grinned. "Not that I think ye'd have been as mean as my brothers were, but I s'pose I can understand at not wanting tae play nursie tae their sister." Her hand sought out his arm, fingers sliding down his forearm and then along his palm before entwining with his long ones. The pad of her thumb lightly brushing back and forth over the mound of Venus at the base of his thumb.

The light brushing of her thumb over his hand prompted a shiver, and he pulled her a bit closer before he answered, baritone voice a low amused rumble. "Tha's one thin' tha' havin' a twin's good fer - go' ta split all th' taggin' alon' 'tween us. An' ya soun' like ya weren' slowin' them down tha' much, if'n th' scrapes an' ruined dresses 'r anythin' ta judge by."

She laughed at that. "They'd no' wait for me. The eldest lads had tae be out in the fields, the younger had chores a plenty. They did no' think collecting eggs or pulling weeds th' same sort of responsibility, so they'd take off at a near sprint and pray that I'd no' catch up."

He nodded understanding to that - technology to help or no, and not much of it on Hope to begin with, the chores of farming were essentially the same everywhere. And he had hated collecting eggs.

"They'd hide behind th' chicken coop tae ruffle th' clucks whilst I was inside, hoping tae get me scared of it so that it'd take me longer tae finish. At least they did until my Da caught them at it. Getting a thrashing and no' being able tae eat anything wi' eggs in it for a week corrected their behavior right quick." Her laughter was infectous, her mirth causing her eyes to water. "Oh how sad they looked at breakfast while Gran kept plying me wi' coddled eggs and hot scones."

SiannaFraiser

Date: 2007-10-08 02:29 EST
He laughed as well, clearly able to imagine the described scene. "Easies' way ta punish a man - int'rfere with his food. I think yer Da was a wise man, t' be hones'."

"Absolutely. He was no' overly patient, but at th' end of the day, he was wise and tried tae be verra fair." She tilted her head back and kissed him then, her eyes a blue-grey. "For as dark-heided as he was, as liquid black as a silkie's coat, ye remind me verra much of him, my Jo." She nodded decidedly before kissing him with a restrained exuberance. "He would have liked ye immensely. And no' just for taming his wild daughter."

"Tha's reassurin', anyway. Still livin' in th' fear tha' yer bros are goin' ta take a dislikin' ta me if'n I ever get ta meet'em. Wha' was yer da like, 'r yer bros?" He returned the kiss with enthusiasm before he continued. "I mean, all I know abou' 'em is tha' they'd tormen' ya when y'all were li'l. They all farmers?"

She nibbled at his bottom lip. "Who cares if they like ye, hmmm? They're no' the ones ye want tae marry, aye? Besides, all's I'll have tae do is adjust their frame of thinking. I'm no' afraid tae clack a few thick skulls together if they are unreasonable." She smiled then, a slight shrug to her shoulders as she squeezed his hand and scooted closer. "Aye, for th' most part. A couple keep kine, some sheep... then there's fishing on th' loch, forestry, crops."

He laughed quietly at her threat to alter her brother's thinking before he shifted to rest her head more comfortably on his shoulder. "Bu' there's seven of 'em, an' I ge' th' feelin' they could ge' in a' leas' one good beatin' b'fore ya talked sense inta 'em." He stifled a yawn, pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "Soun's like 'tween th' group y'all had abou' everythin' covered ta live withou' even a town nearby."

She giggled, the yawn contagiously echoed. "Who said I'd be no' th' one doing th' beating, aye? Ye canna reason with a Scot when their danders up." She squirmed slightly at the kiss, wrapping her arms about him. "But we were verra self-sufficient and the lads took upon themselves tae make sure that none of th' families suffered with lack."

He nodded, then yawned again and squeezed her lightly before he answered. "Tha's th' second time ya mentioned th' families, plural. How many 'a yer bros 'r married?"

Her attempt at swallowing the yawn was anything but gracefully successful. "All of them by now, I'm sure. Alasdair, Alleyne, Kester and Hudson all were th' last I saw them, wi' Cailean, Natty, and Beathan all with verra serious affections for specific lassies." His squeeze was the catalyst to her own, her feet lightly brushing against his ankles. "But there were more than jus' the immediate families on th' land, aye? Da was laird... head of a solid little pocket of th' Fraiser kin and some adopted ones as well."

Sleepy blink followed a shift down further into the pillows - he finally felt tired enough to sleep, as much as he was enjoying the conversation. "Y'all were th' lord's children, then? S'prised they..." yawn, "le' ya take off an' go wanderin'."

"I did no' gie them th' chance tae stop me, mmmm?" The last syllables morphing into the most fantastic of yawns, gulping for air as sleep once again fought to reclaim her. "B'sides.. if I'd no' have followed th' road, I'd no' have found my heart...." Her voice faded away into nothing, her face nestling into the curve of his neck, a final kiss placed just beneath his jawline.

He would have smiled at that, but his eyes were already closed. Sleep had finally crept up and ambushed him only a few words into her last sentence, and dragged him down to peaceful dreams.