[FIN] Homeward Bound

[TawnyAngel]

Go back.

Walk the streets, sit on a rooftop. Go the market. The grand plaza.

Zevran had tensed in Abel's embrace but after a few moments he relaxed again and squeezed his arm. "I... I need to think about that. I think I would like that very much, and I think you would like Antiva City. I would love to show you the streets I know so well, the little stalls that sell the best food, the coffee bars, the plazas, the docks, and the views from rooftops...." Zevran trailed off there and laughed again, this time at himself. "I think I have made my decision then. Yes, I want to go. How daring shall we feel, sneaking in behind the Crows' backs! Ah, you would have to pretend to be Ferelden but I would forgive you for that." Zevran sighed softly and tilted his chin up so he could kiss Abel's jaw. Antiva! The sun, the sea, the food and the street life! "When can we go?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Abel chuckled too, a warm smile forming on his face, though his amusement was due to his boyfriend's capriciousness. This wasn't the first time his moods had changed abruptly in the span of a minute or two, and he suspected it wouldn't be the last. He'd not have him any other way than this though. "Well that was quick," he teased his love, leaning down a bit to kiss the side of his mouth. "Well we can't very well go right now, of course, and I shouldn't take off anymore time from work for a bit, but... How about when you're better? I'd feel better about it if I knew you were well again and could defend yourself if necessary. Not that I'd want it to be necessary of course, especially since we'll want to be sneaky about it, but just in case s**t happens or something, y'know?"  

[TawnyAngel]

"Yes. I know." Just as quickly as he had begun to sparkle Zevran deflated again and curled in on himself in Abel's arms. "I... I am sorry. I don't mean to get so carried away. I think you don't mind it, but then again I think you must think me callous. Just now I was regretting the fate of those children, and then so quickly I thought of my own desires for a holiday to my homeland. Can one so selfish deserve love? I was used to that being normal - casting off pain to think of pleasure it what we did - but... but is it alright? I don't think I can change it in myself now." Had it always been part of him anyway, or had the Crows built it into him? Was there anything original in him or only what they had created? There had to be something original, or they would all turn out the same. "I think perhaps I was always, would always have been spontaneous but...." And there he ran out of words again, and he didn't try to find any more.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

And there he went, his mood swinging another way. It always made his heart ache to see him so unlike himself. Regardless of either though, Abel hugged his boyfriend closer. "I don't mind it, sweetheart. I love you whether you think you deserve it or not. That was normal for them because they said it was," and the implication remained that whatever Zevran used to be, whatever he would have been, had been foregone in favor of molding him into a useful tool, "and no matter what you're spontaneous. I think that's a good thing though, it keeps things interesting and keeps me on my toes, yeah? It's... I feel bad about those kids, I really do, but I don't really know what we can do about them. We could always try and look for them when we do go for that visit, but even then I'm not sure what we could do if we even found them." Did any of that even make sense? Hopefully so.

In case he'd said too many words, he held his boyfriend closer still and buried his face in his hair. "No matter what, I love you with all my heart."  

[TawnyAngel]

Zevran swallowed a thick lump in this throat and held onto Abel more tightly; the fierceness of his grip made his chest burn but he didn't care, he needed to be close right now. "I don't think there is anything we can do. What do you do when you know people are suffering but you cannot help them?" He had never concerned himself with such things before. Back in Antiva, as successful Crow, he had tossed a few coins in the charity box at the Chantry because he vaguely remembered being a person in need of it before the Crows had recruited him. That and a few coins for beggars was as far as it had gone however and he hadn't thought about it. It had been an easy thing to do, and somehow he had thought it did him credit. He didn't feel the same now.

"Te amo." They would go to Antiva, he would love it, and try to forget the unpleasant parts.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Abel didn't hesitate to hold fast to his love, especially when he clung to him so tightly. "That's a difficult question," he admitted softly, feeling the weight of it slinking onto his shoulders too. "I guess all you can do is try to think of a way to help them anyway. We can try to think of something." Hopefully they'd be able to. It seemed so hopeless though, would they even be able to? "Te amo."

---

Dinner had passed pleasantly enough. Daniel spent it out in the barn, the reasoning behind which Joanna tactfully avoided discussing, and when they'd all more or less finished eating, she stood up with a smile aimed more at Zev than anyone else. "Alright, who wants to help me make some cookies? After I clean up after dinner, of course."

"No thanks," Aaron said as he grabbed a couple plates and stood up to bring them into the kitchen.

Abel smiled as he gathered up a few plates as well. "Cookies sound good."  

[TawnyAngel]

By the evening he was quite weary and yet not tired; something to occupy his mind sounded perfect.

"Ah, was I just volunteered?" Zevran winked at Joanna. "I would be glad to help in a little while, I would like to see how you make them actually." Perhaps after some baking he would be able to sleep well? He hoped so, he was tired of being tired.

"Can't bake, won't bake!" Taavi laughed and waved his hands in the air. "I'll clear up the baking stuff, does that sound okay? I ah, was going to-" He waved a hand vaguely towards the door and smiled a little awkwardly. Daniel wasn't here for some reason, and Daniel had been kind of off earlier... It wasn't his business to ask what had happened but he wanted to go see how he was.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Of course dear, you can go on out if you want to," Joanna said, smiling over at Taavi and waving him off. She promptly turned to Zevran with a smile and a wink in response. "You might've been! I do need to clean up a bit first, so it won't be for a bit yet, though you can watch me bake them and help with the icing after? Whatever you'd like to do dear! At least come on into the kitchen though so we can chat!" So saying she happily bustled into said kitchen with some plates in tow.

Abel smiled and leaned in to press a kiss to Zevran's temple. "I'll help clean up if you want to go on in."  

[TawnyAngel]

"Great!" Taavi grinned, finished his drink off and hopped to his feet. "Let me grab a few things? I'll go out by the kitchen." He might as well be useful on the way out!

"Ah, I have seen straight through your tangled web! For cookies however I will forgive your wiles, and help however you will allow me." After what had happened earlier he would really appreciate an easy win. Zevran rose to his feet and started after Aaron, but only after he had returned Abel's kiss. "Thank you carino."  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Aaron had already grabbed a number of things, but there were several dishes still left on the table for anyone else to grab. Abel smiled up at his boyfriend and grabbed a few of them and stood.

"Oho, how kind of you!" Joanna chuckled from the kitchen.

Aaron, meanwhile, made an amused face as he headed through to the kitchen as well, as Abel stood up and made to follow after his boyfriend.

David and Delilah wanted to join as well, it seemed; the excitable pair of eeveelutions darted out from under the table and wove around Aaron's legs. The youngest Gray responded with the grace and eloquence of a Tauros in a china shop; he staggered backwards with a surprised "gah!" but in the end he managed to catch himself before falling over, and managed not to tip any of the plates or drop and break them by swinging his arm backward somewhat.

...into Zevran's chest.  

[TawnyAngel]

Just ahead of Aaron Taavi managed to avoid the imminent disaster with an "Oop!" and a quick sidestep; having lived in a small apartment with a lot of pokemon for more than a year had made him pretty good at knee-level dodgem.

Zevran wasn't quite as lucky or quite as quick, his reflexes were definitely not at their best and so while he saw Aaron stumbling and flailing towards him and had time to register 'mierda' he didn't have time to get out of the way.

Pain was too small a word for it, lancing sharp and searing through him. He wasn't aware of crying out - a raw, animal noise - or of staggering backwards clutching his chest, there was nothing but the surge of agony and a ringing in his ears.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Taavi's little word drew Abel's attention first and he saw his brother stumbling, and with a sinking feeling knew what was about to happen. While he was unable to stop it he did practically throw the plates he held back down onto the table and moved to carefully grab Zevran's shoulders just as his pained cry shot an arrow right through his heart. "Here -- I've got you."

Aaron half-turned once he regained his footing, his expression immediately apologetic and embarrassed. "Ah, sorry, I-- ah," he paused at the cry and the way Zevran reacted, and for a moment didn't really seem to know what to do.

Joanna was immediately on high alert. "What happened? What's wrong?"  

[TawnyAngel]

Oh shi-

Taavi quickly dumped the dishes he'd brought through on the counter and hurried back to the others, where he hovered anxiously. He thought about asking if everything was alright but uh, obviously it wasn't.

Zevran hissed several curses under his breath in Spanish in between shallow breaths but after the initial shock passed he collected himself, straightened up, and laughed briefly. "Ah, nothing serious! Your elbows are sharper than your brother's Aaron." The 'nothing serious' was put into some doubt by the fact that Zevran had gone white and was still breathing irregularly, still shielding his chest with one hand and gripping Abel's arm with the other. He was smiling but this didn't help, and possibly made it worse depending on your point of view. "That certainly awoke me from my after dinner torpor, could be useful to keep people awake in long meetings? You should consider a kickstarter." If in doubt add a joke even if it was a terrible one, and not the good sort of terrible either. In his defence however he did currently feel like he wanted to throw up and as though his chest had been ripped open, neither was especially conducive to sparkling wit.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Uh," Aaron replied eloquently, glancing back and forth between his brother and Zevran. "Sorry, I didn't mean to--uh, I uh.." He floundered a bit more, gestured with the plates he still held in both hands, and then beat a hasty retreat into the kitchen.

Unlike his brother who didn't have any idea what to do, Abel immediately pulled out a chair from the table with his free hand. "Here, sit," he said gently, carefully but firmly gripping Zevran's arms to make sure he stayed more or less upright. The last thing he wanted was for him to fall down or something and make it even worse than it already was.  

[TawnyAngel]

An audience probably wasn't what Zev wanted right now but he felt as though he should stay and... and help? Somehow. With something. That was probably dumb, right? It was, it was well meaning but it was dumb. "Um. Yeah. Sucky way to get woken up though," he managed after a few moments. "I'll just... uh, go outside and stop hanging around uselessly but you know I'm here if you need me?" Uuuugh, why was he so awkward?

"Ah, don't worry, no harm done," Zevran replied to Aaron, a bold lie in the face of the facts. With Abel's help he eased himself down into the chair, and once seated and sure he wasn't going to pass out or anything embarrassing like that he smiled at Taavi. "I know, thank you." Hopefully now he would leave instead of hovering around like- ah, yes, there he went.

"Thank you," he continued to Abel, squeezing his arm again and smiling up at him rather tightly as he spoke. "I think I might just... stay here for a minute." Until he stopped feeling as though he was being skewered every time he took a breath.