...How had they ended up back here? How long has it been...? Their children, and what will happen to them now... Cain, Caterina, Jacob, Ed, Rose -- so many familiar faces he was realizing, now, were tied to Paradisa and always had been.
But he puts them aside -- perhaps selfishly, pressing little kisses to her lips and thumbs running over her cheeks where he cups them, just... desperate like a man dying of thirst finally given the first cup of water. She's... here, and alright. Whole, with him. This is their second chance, and it isn't over, yet. It isn't over...
In some ways, the castle for all its trials and tests of endurance, was as much a paradise as Paris in its own right when its halls were filled with her. He can't deny that ignorance had been so... inexplicably kind to him -- but that life... that happiness... it was one he didn't deserve. One he sadly would never earn... here, or at home.
But he could pay his penance, and have her by his side, now. That... was what he needed. He wanted to believe it was where he belonged... with her. His brother; Caterina... their children, their friends -- however many of those pieces he's lost, he'll pray they are still in that happy place they deserve. He's grown enough to know that sometimes, separation is the best way to protect someone else's heart.
Lord knows how long it takes, and his head is a mess when the can finally see without the blur of tears even if the sting is left behind, but... finally, he can look on her. Smooth red hair from her brow... stroke the backs of his fingers down the side of her face. His wife... is here. And despite the pleasant sense of waking up from a dream they shared together... he knows, he has--
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...How had they ended up back here? How long has it been...? Their children, and what will happen to them now... Cain, Caterina, Jacob, Ed, Rose -- so many familiar faces he was realizing, now, were tied to Paradisa and always had been.
But he puts them aside -- perhaps selfishly, pressing little kisses to her lips and thumbs running over her cheeks where he cups them, just... desperate like a man dying of thirst finally given the first cup of water. She's... here, and alright. Whole, with him. This is their second chance, and it isn't over, yet. It isn't over...
In some ways, the castle for all its trials and tests of endurance, was as much a paradise as Paris in its own right when its halls were filled with her. He can't deny that ignorance had been so... inexplicably kind to him -- but that life... that happiness... it was one he didn't deserve. One he sadly would never earn... here, or at home.
But he could pay his penance, and have her by his side, now. That... was what he needed. He wanted to believe it was where he belonged... with her. His brother; Caterina... their children, their friends -- however many of those pieces he's lost, he'll pray they are still in that happy place they deserve. He's grown enough to know that sometimes, separation is the best way to protect someone else's heart.
Lord knows how long it takes, and his head is a mess when the can finally see without the blur of tears even if the sting is left behind, but... finally, he can look on her. Smooth red hair from her brow... stroke the backs of his fingers down the side of her face. His wife... is here. And despite the pleasant sense of waking up from a dream they shared together... he knows, he has--
"...I missed you."