From The Ashes [#NaNoWriMo16]

Chapter Thirty Eight - Arlo Ashryn

Their house was perfect. It was a little cottage thing off the main city of Ioven Island, overlooking a large icy lake in the privacy of a frosty forest. There was a big fireplace on the far wall of the living room that had become their favourite spot, cuddled up with a blanket as they played games. Hallee had relaxed visibly ever since she healed from the wound inflicted upon her when she killed the bandits, but still she didn't talk to Arlo about it. He never took it personally, and was never upset when she refused to speak of it. He knew how hard it was for her to come to terms with what they had done to her, let alone what she had done to them. But every day they spent together was another day he got to show her how much she was loved, and that nothing bad would ever happen to her again.

"Arlo, hurry, you are going to miss it!"

Arlo grinned from where he sat, tying his ice-skating boots to his feet. It was the middle of the night, and they were going to skate across the lake in the moonlight until the shower started. All signs of the weather pointed towards a rain of meteors streaking through the sky at exactly five minutes past midnight, but Arlo suspected a shooting star and nothing else. It always ended up being a shooting star. But Hallee was so excited, and who was he to deny the love of his life happiness?

"Coming!" he called back, reaching across to the table that sat before him. He tucked the little box in his pocket and got up, waddling over to the door with his furs tugged tight around his body. They were both struggling to adapt to the cold, but that was fair enough considering they had only been living here for a few days now. Still, it felt more like home than anything ever had for Arlo, and he was content.

Hallee suddenly cried out from the lake, and Arlo laughed as he made his way over, outstretching his hand to her from where he stood on solid ground. She took it and rose shakily to her feet, dusting the snow from her furs that had stuck before hitting him in the arm.

"Do not laugh at me," she muttered. "I am still learning."

"Amin hiraetha," he replied, a wide grin spreading over his face before he held his arm out to her again. "Come on, I'll help you." She slid her own arm through his and waited as he stepped onto the ice before he pushed off, taking Hallee with him. She laughed in delight as they skated smoothly forward, and she clung to him tighter when he swerved and turned, making a circle before continuing on. He smiled at her as she laughed.

"This is so beautiful!" she exclaimed, whooping as Arlo spun her again before catching her and pulling her back into him. "How do you do this?"

"With years and years of training," Arlo replied seriously, his face calm as he took her around the lake. "I learned the movements from my forefathers, and them from their forefathers and so on. It takes great concentration and a will of iron to perfect. It has changed me, made me see the world differently. I am not the same man I once was."

Hallee rolled her eyes at him as he spun her again. "You need to work on some better jokes," she admitted when she came back to him, and he suddenly let go of her arm and skidded to a halt as she dropped immediately. He skated over, tilting his head down at her as she turned on her back and peered up at him.

"What's that?" he asked. "I need to work on some better what now?"

She grinned, and at one swift movement from her arm Arlo was toppling down too, and with a yelp he caught himself as he landed over Hallee, the only thing separating them being his arms that were holding him up. Her grin widened as she looked up at him.

"Your reflexes, too," she added. "I'd teach you, but I'm already so busy fake laughing at all your jokes-"

Arlo leaned down and planted a long, gentle kiss on her lips, silencing her immediately as she obliged by kissing him back. When he finally pulled away, his own grin widened as he looked down at her.

"I think you need to work on your reflexes," he admitted. "As for my jokes, well..." He pushed himself away with his right arm and wriggled closer to Hallee as he too lay with his back against the ice, looking up at the stars. "Let's say I'm working on it, shall we?"

Hallee was smiling beside him, he could tell. He reached out subconsciously and took her hand in his, holding it to his chest as he sighed and continued looking up.

"How do you think Issey is holding up?" Hallee asked finally, her voice careful and quiet. Arlo hesitated.

"I think she'll be okay," he admitted finally. "At least she has her duties to distract her."

"That is true," Hallee agreed. "I am glad Ryia does not, though. I am proud of what she did."

"Surprisingly, so am I," Arlo murmured. "She deserves to be happy, just as much as everyone else. And if that's what makes her happy, who am I to judge? Those bastards deserved everything they got."

Silence followed as they lay there, thinking about what was said as they waited for the sky to light up. It was a beautiful night; not as cold as it could have been, but still snowing, and there was quiet all around them. Everyone else, from miles away, were asleep when so much was still awake around them, and it made Arlo sad to think about. But he wouldn't give up this small bliss he'd made himself right here, in the middle of a moonlit night with the woman he loved. He wouldn't give it up for the world.

"Look, up there!" Hallee gasped, and Arlo lifted his eyes just in time to see the streak of light fly through the sky before it disappeared again, forever gone. He smiled to himself, tightening his grip on Hallee's hand.

"Make a wish," he murmured as he lifted it to his mouth, kissing the glove that she wore. She turned on her side, forcing Arlo to copy so he could see her and what she was about to say. For the longest time, they just looked into each other's eyes, until finally Hallee smiled a beautiful smile and kissed him lightly.

"I wish for you," she whispered against his lips, and he pulled the little box out of his pocket as she spoke and held it between them when the kiss broke off. He glanced down at it, and held Hallee's gaze softly.

"I wish for you too," he murmured, and when the little box was opened, he had to sit up quickly as she did, the box no longer in his hand. He laughed as he brushed the snow from his side and back as Hallee gazed in at the contents of the box, obviously beyond words. Finally, she took the pretty little silver ring out from its cushion and slid it onto her finger smoothly. Perfect fit.

"Hula noiman so tu, to was," she whispered before throwing her arms around him tightly. His eyes widened in surprise as he held her back, his heart thumping in his chest.

"I've never heard you speak Yaasmish before," he whispered back, and he pulled away to look in her eyes. "What did you say?"

She smiled, her white eyes glittering in the light of the moon above them. He could see the tears glistening beneath the light as well and his heart clenched in his chest. "I told you how much I love you," she told him softly. His own smile threatened to come back.

"And how much is that?" he pressed, holding her hands tightly between them as she started laughing through the tears.

"More than anything," she exclaimed, and he was holding her to him again. "More than anything in the world." And seeing that look in her eyes, Arlo believed her.

He was the Daredevil, after all.