[Hadyn's Apartment] Do You Trust Me?

[Orion Michaels]

54th of Spring, 514 AV
Just Outside Hadyn's Apartment
20th Bell

Three days. Three long days since everything had come undone. What was supposed to be a nearing of a major accomplishment was nothing. A new step in his life was no longer set to be taken. Fate, in its fickle way, had once again saw it fit to make the doctor-turned cook-turned back to doctor-turned squire start at the bottom. He should have been used to it by now.

Doesn't mean it gets any easier..

Orion had hardly slept since the event three days ago. Emily's kidnapping. Lyla's reemergence. A trade to save lives. An unwanted mark from a god. It sounded like something a bard would bullshyke about in a tavern. It was a story. Something to entertain. Or it should have been.

For Orion it was very real and it had ruined everything.

He wasn't sure how long he'd been sitting just outside of Hadyn's apartment. One. Maybe two bells? The words that he needed to tell her were so very hard to find. 'I'm leaving' was too cold. 'Goodbye' was too hard. 'I've left the Order' was impossible. But he needed to explain something to her. He couldn't just vanish, right?

"Dad, why are we just sitting hewre? Why can't I go play?" It was a miracle that Emily had kept her patience as they sat there. It was an even bigger one that she didn't seem to remember much about the night. A bad person had taken her and her father had saved her. It did wonders for their relationship, even if the long term results weren't clear yet. The girl had thrown a fit when he left her with the nanny, but it had been the last time. He'd gone to Dinah to officially leave the knights, turn in his equipment, and move on with his life. He'd expected resistance from his former patron, but she simply hugged him and wished him all the luck she could find.

What he faced was bigger than his commitment to the knights.

"We've got to talk to Hadyn. Can't leave until your dad figures out what to say." It was the truth as he saw it. He had to find the right way to say the words which needed said. It was a long shot as it were, even if he said exactly what needed to be said. If he messed it up then he would be out of ideas on how to care for Liam and Emily. And Hadyn, if he were honest with himself.

For Emily, that wasn't going to work. Unacceptable response.

Emily scowled, shook her head, and stood. Orion should have guessed what she was doing. While they had a real father-daughter relationship now, it hadn't instilled the ability to wait more than she wanted to. Little feet pattered against the ground. Little feet came to a stop in front of Hadyn's door. Little fists pounded violently against wooden door.

"Missss Haaaaadynnn!! My dad needs to talk to youuuu!"

"Emily!!"

Orion's hand went directly to his face. She was nothing if not direct.

"When you are done with Miss Hadyn can we go get candy?" One track mind.

"If I'm still alive afterwards, I'll treat us all."

In case Hadyn was actually home, Orion scrambled to his feet as to not have to explain why he'd been seated outside her apartment. "If she asks, we just got here."

"I'm not lying."

Orion sighed. "Good girl."

[Hadyn Skellig]

"Up, up up!" the brunette lifted her son above her, his small face staring down at the figure of his mother laying on the bed. Holding him aloft Hadyn laughed as the boy showed his toothless mouth in a wide smile. His chubby legs cycled and his arms alternated between trying to grasp the woman's wrist and trying to catch invisible objects in the air. Bringing Liam back down to her Hadyn touched their noses, causing the infant to giggle and she quickly followed suit. The sight of his mother's happiness caused an even larger smile to pull the corners of Liam's lips.

Ready to send him into the atmosphere again Hadyn paused mid-raise as the sound of tiny drumbeats against her door and the unmistakeable voice of Liam's sister cut through the wood and stone. With a twitch of her nose the woman pulled her son back down while simultaneously sitting up. The little girl's words were difficult to discern but she announced her presence in no uncertain terms. Liam sat on her lap now, a somewhat bemused expression on his fair face. Blue eyes watched as his mother pulled her unbound hair over one shoulder and addressed him with a grin.

"Your sister awaits," Hadyn remarked as she stood, bringing the baby to her shoulder. Unable to reach the dark hair on the other shoulder the boy had to be satisfied with gumming the edge of her beige shirt. Departing the bedroom the woman made a note to stoke the coals. Having enjoyed most of her evening in her chambers with the baby the hearth lay in ruins, coals burning pathetically. The hem of her grey skirt dragged on the ground behind her, sullied by dirt and soot.

Transferring the baby to her hip as she reached the door the weaponsmith unlocked and pulled it open to reveal the lovely Emily and the less-so Orion. Smiling at the girl Hadyn pulled the door open further to allow the pair admittance. Raising her gaze to the blue-eyed squire her visage faltered slightly. He appeared utterly exhausted and gaunt. And something else. Stepping back the brunette tilted her head, concerning rewriting her expression.

"Evenin' Emily," she greeted politely though her eyes never left Orion. "Wasn't expectin' you. Come in. Candied almonds on the table if you'd like." Closing the door behind them with her free hand Hadyn studied the man for a moment her expression just shy of suspicious before readjusting the baby on her hip. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

[Orion Michaels]

Orion forced a half smile when Hadyn opened the door, though smiling was the last thing on his mind. He was utterly exhausted, weary, and nearly defeated. Nothing was to be gained by sharing that with Hadyn. Not with so much that he needed to say.

Just wanted to check on Liam. We were in the area. Just wondering how things were going. Emily wanted to see you. Emily wanted to see Liam. Emily wanted to play with those toys again. All (mostly) believable things. All things he should have said and then pretended like he hadn’t had a real reason for coming.

“We need to talk,” he said, the idiot he was.

Emily’s attention had shifted instantly at the offer of some sort of candy. Any sort of candy. The blue eyed girl took off stalking through the apartment for this foreign sweet that Hadyn had promised her. Her sweet tooth was insatiable.

“Emily, play around in here, alright? I need to talk to Hadyn in private.”

“Don’t be gross.” The barbs were second nature.

Just because they were getting along didn’t mean that she didn’t dig at him. “I’m not…ergh. Just be good.”

Orion motioned for Hadyn to follow him into the other room, face twisted into an uncharacteristically serious expression for the blue eyed man. He didn’t need to concern Emily with the things he had to say. She was still recovering from her trials. The ones she would face in the future could wait.

The bedroom was cozy and quaint as it had been each time he’d visited. Orion had spent countless hours with his son just holding him, talking to him, being spit up on, and tending to a powerful cry. If only he was dealing with the peaceful sound of wailing.

There was no sense in wasting any more time.

“I..Hadyn..” Orion shook his head, tongue tying at the worst of times. “Just let me finish what I have to say before you say anything back, okay?” Where to start? He’d spent the last few days trying to figure that out. As he’d packed up his stuff in his dorm room and moved it to a small place in the Traveler’s Row, he’d had all the time he could want to play out the upcoming scenario.

“A lot has happened…Emily was kidnapped three days back. Someone wanted revenge against me..someone was..jealous,” he said. He had to stay vague as possible. Lyla said that they would start to hurt people if he actually explained what was going on. Orion couldn’t take that risk. “Took her to the Aylasa Caves, down into this abyss within its depths.” That people lived in that darkness still didn’t sit right with the former physician. “She nearly died. She had been poisoned. I rescued her, barely, but it messed up everything, Hadyn. I can’t…”

The bed creaked as Orion took a seat at its edge. He stared forward, past the weaponsmith and into the wall behind her. “I’ve left the Order. I’m leaving Syliras for Sunberth. And…” He took a deep breath. “And I need you and Liam to come with me and Emily.”

It was a ridiculous request.

No one in their right mind would ask a new mother and a newborn babe to come to such a horrible city. He knew her answer already, but he had no choice but ask. “I know it’s insane. But you have to understand. I can’t trust the Knights. The person that took Emily..well…they said they’d come after you and Liam next. They took Emily out from beneath the nose of our so called protectors.” Gritting his teeth, his blue eyes trailed to the ground. Anger surged once more as he played back the scene where he’d found out about Emily’s disappearance. They’d all sat around so helpless.

“They didn’t do anything,” he hissed, balling his hands into fists. “It was all me. I protected her.” Silence overcame the room as the doctor fought back his watery eyes. The trek would be a struggle. The dangers of the wild were well documented and all the preparation in the world could still not be enough. Would the mark that Yahal forced upon him be enough to guide him?

“Go on. Tell me no. You’d be a petching fool to agree to this. But Gods, Hadyn. If ever I needed you to trust me, it’s now.” How desperate did he sound? How desperate was he? Orion refused to look at her until she spoke, if she spoke. Moist eyes would rise as the drained visage rested on Hadyn’s face.

[Hadyn Skellig]

Hadyn couldn't quite put a name to the expression on Orion's face but a dark brow rose when he announced they needed to talk. She was ready to respond with a rhetorical question on the nature of their relationship but kept silent as the man addressed his daughter. With a silent nod the brunette followed him into the bedroom, concern displayed without shame. Whatever it was was clearly eating him up. Joining the squire the new mother glanced down at their son. Should she set him down for this?

When Orion launched into an explanation with as much trepidation and anxiety as she'd ever seen Hadyn frowned, coming around the bed so she could put the yawning baby in his crib. A single nod was given to the man's request to remain silent til he finished, joining him again on the other side of the bed once the baby was down. Swallowing she waited patiently for the squire to find his words. She stood opposite Orion arms crossed loosely over her chest, brown eyes watching him with uncertainty. Her lips parted as if to say something but, mindful of her agreement, kept silent, standing in shock as his tale unraveled. When he sat Hadyn thought she caught the glassy sheen of tears in the poor candlelight.

Swallowing as he made his request the brunette looked away, fingers running along the fabric of her sleeves as she tried to process everything he'd told her. It was an outlandish story but she knew Orion well enough to know he wasn't exaggerating. Letting out a breath more akin to a sigh the brown eyed weaponsmith dropped her gaze to the ground at his feet. She didn't know how to answer. He'd left the Knighthood. He was on the run it seemed. And he wanted her and Liam to join him.

Hadyn had never left Syliras. Barely set foot outside its walls and now he was asking her to not only pack up and flee the city but take their newborn son along. And to Sunberth. The idea was laughable but neither of them were cracking smiles. The silence hung heavy in the negative space as she was the one rendered speechless. She didn't like being put on the spot even less so when it was such a serious and pressing matter. Who could possibly care enough about her and Liam to come after them? Someone who wanted to hurt Orion, of course. But it all sounded so ridiculous.

She was ready to tell him it was insane. Ready to defy this supposed threat and reaffirm she and Liam were safe. But when she raised her eyes to meet his the desperation and misery in their depths cut the words right off her tongue. Taking a step forward Hadyn knelt on the floor in front of Orion so they were nearly eye level. Placing a hand on his knee, brow furrowed gently she spoke.

"Who're these people?" she asked quietly with a hint of anger, the thought of anyone hurting Emily or her son sparking fury. Her touch was meant to be reassuring despite her words. To impart her acceptance of the crazy story he'd shared with her. Brown eyes searched his for understanding. After a pause she posed a more pertinent question. "Why Sunberth? of all the cities why must you leave Syliras for that place? and to take Emily..."

Hadyn quieted. She realized he was in a serious predicament. There was no down playing it. But the choice of relocation made no sense. No one in their right mind would take a child to that stain which had the audacity to call itself a civilization. Softening her expression the woman tilted her head slightly, her hand still resting on his knee.

"Orion, I don't doubt what you've told me. But I need a little more than that to pick up an' go. Especially with Liam." She frowned dropping her eyes, the stone beneath her knees digging into her skin. He knew better than anyone she'd never just blindly follow a man. And though she knew he was being honest it didn't keep suspicion from rising in her breast. Though a part of her wanted to console him for the trials and suffering he'd experienced the more practical side of her needed answers. The most she could do was leave that hand on his knee. Any other form of comfort would have to come after he responded.

[Orion Michaels]

She was going to cooperate with him. Good. If she'd refused to follow him, if she'd interrupted his speaking he would have fallen apart. Orion was completely on edge, and the slightest of pushes would have sent him flailing into the abyss. He'd felt helpless before, but never to this magnitude.

Orion's placed his hands together in nervous motion, locking his fingers together and then separating them again and again as he spoke. The story sounded unbelievable when he heard it coming from his lips. If he hadn't been there, he'd have called himself a liar. Even with the experience in his memories, he still didn't want to believe it true. The expressions he caught coming from Hadyn only reinforced it. Was it too late to say he was joking about it and retreat?

He instantly felt guilt after he made his request. Who would actually agree to such a thing? It was madness to pack up and leave for Sunberth. With Orion. With Liam. Based on a story missing so many details. She was right to be so suspcisious. She would be right to say no. But he couldn't let her walk away so easy. To leave her and his son behind in Syliras would eat at the back of his mind for however long his travels would be. For seasons, for years he would wonder if they were even alive, and all for what? To soothe the anger and jealousy of a woman dead long ago?

It wasn't fair to put her on the spot, but he hardly had a choice. He was trapped. The very fact that Lyla had been able to steal Emily from Syliras was proof enough of her power. There was no doubt in his mind that she could follow through with any threats that she made. Yet with all of that, he still couldn't tell Hadyn anything. Sworn to secrecy, he had to leave out truths for all of their sake. "I..don't really know who it is," he lied, avoiding her gaze. The soothing she attempted to offer by placing her hand on his knee only made him more uncertain. "But all I know is that they've targeted me, and as a result you. They knew about my past, about my goals, and about you and Liam. Disturbing levels of detail." He licked his lips, moistening them as he recounted the traumatizing events of evenings past.

It was difficult to find an answer to her next question. Why Sunberth? Why Sunberth? If that wasn't the million miza question, Orion didn't know which was. If it were up to him, he'd never go to that hole in the ground ever again. If it were up to him, he'd have wiped that pit from the face of the planet. Nothing but horrible memories awaited him there. Lyla was no exception.

She hadn't received enough information. Orion could never give her enough. Based on what he said, there was no way that the woman would be willing to give up her home, her job, and her safety. His words couldn't overcome the perceived shelter that she and Liam had. Without another word, Orion stood, shaking her hand off of his knee. What could he say that could convince her of how vital it was that she traveled with him. He couldn't speak on Lyla. He couldn't speak on Krysus.

But maybe I can show..

Orion faced his back to Hadyn, and lifted up the back of his shirt revealing his newfound mark of Ennervism. "I'm the plaything of the Gods, Hadyn. I'm a tool, a pawn in something so much bigger than either of us." Divinely placed wings almost danced where they stood, Intricate, detailed, and surreal, the mark of Yahal spoke volumes that Orion couldn't say himself. "I've been dragged into a battle, and no one is targeting me directly." He stood there a few moments more to let the revelation sink in more.

"You're not safe here. I know it's absurd to say you'd be any better off in Sunberth, but at least I can try and protect you all there. If I'm thousands of miles away, well, there's nothing I can do. I wouldn't have picked Sunberth, but..Yahal had his own ideas.." He managed a wry smile as he let his shirt fall back down. "Please. Come with me. I..I can't leave either of you here. I just can't."

Orion turned to face her once again before turning his head to look over to Liam's crib. "I never thought to get you..either of you..involved in anything like this. Nothing is ever easy with Orion Michaels."

[Hadyn Skellig]

The lump settling in her throat was only becoming more difficult to swallow as he answered. They targeted him. It was unambiguous but Hadyn had a sneaking suspicion there was more to it then he was letting on. But why not be completely honest about this if he was being brutally truthful about the rest? Without pressing him on it she would never know. But something about his demeanor and the unhappiness on his face kept her from pushing the matter.

Hadyn couldn't help but frown when he stood, her hand falling carelessly from his knee. How could she awkwardly and poorly comfort him if he made it so difficult? Looking at the emptiness he left the woman maintained a thoughtful if not uncertain expression. One moment she was playing with her son the next the baby's father was telling her to pack up and go to the most dangerous city in the region. It was challenging to wrap her head around it.

Turning her head and looking up the woman's brows rose along with the former squire's shirt. The poor light didn't afford her much in the way of detail but she could make out the dark marks across his once bare skin. Lips parted a word escaped her in a hushed whisper as she stood, squinting to make out the tattoo better.

"Gods," she breathed. He'd been granted a mark by a god. Reaching a hand toward him her fingers brushed softly along the edge of one dark wing as if to confirm its existence. Yahal. She'd only seen those wings once before as a child. But their ethereal magnitude was not forgotten. Hadyn barely caught his last comment, her gaze locked on the intricately beautiful marks crossing his back.

Hadyn blinked as he continued, the thought of him protecting her less than palatable. Sure he'd trained to serve and protect. But they were two very independent people who abhorred any sort of commitment beyond what they were forced into. If she were to really think on it his plea made sense. He wasn't just protecting her. He was protecting his son's mother. And she'd never fault him for it. But this unknown threat didn't sit well with a woman who spent the majority of her life protecting herself. As his shirt fell to cover the mark of Yahal he implored once more, turning to face her.

"Orion, I..." she was at a loss for words, staring at him with unabashed uneasiness. "I'd do anything to protect Liam. And Emily." She paused, following his gaze to the crib. Though she hadn't expected to add his daughter to the list there was clear truth in her quiet tone. Both children were innocent and deserved as much security as she could offer. Rubbing a hand along the back of her neck, dark waves of hair falling across her shoulders, the woman tried to find the right words.

"This... leaving is hard." Hadyn frowned, unable to voice herself appropriately. How could she explain this to him after he'd been so candid with her? "I trust you, Orion. More than most. More than anyone in this city." She swallowed the intense urge to turn away and make a stupid callous joke after admitting something so damning. "I just... I wish I could know more. I don't like runnin' from the unknown."

Don't lie. You run from the unknown all the time, stupid.

"What will you... we... do in Sunberth? how long? I'm sorry. I don't suppose you even know the answer but... how do you know we aren't headin' straight into the mouth of the beast, so t'speak?"

[Orion Michaels]

She would see right through his lies and half-truths. When a man didn't actually want to lie, it only made it all the more difficult to do so. What was he supposed to say?

An agent of the Goddess of murder and pain as her eyes on you and threatened to turn you into a pain slave if I said anything? Not subtle enough? How about that my supposedly dead lover has returned and is the one responsible for the kidnapping and threats? Don't forget that she has a baker's dozen of horrible monsters following her around like ducklings to their mother.

Words he could never say.

His eyes closed slowly as Hadyn traced the outline of his mark. That blasted and completely unexpected mark. He wasn't someone that the gods should have noticed. Especially not Yahal. For a deity that so tied himself to ideals of purity, it was an amusing though to think he'd select Orion to further his cause. It was sobering to think that he'd forced Orion into furthering his cause. "It's quite the joke, isn't it? Me? Chosen by Yahal of all the petching gods out there. I assure you this is quite real. I'm as shocked as anyone." He sighed, thinking back to the stern yet understanding look that Yahal had given him.

"You know, I actually told him no. He offered me his protection, and I told him where to shove it. Apparently he mistook that for giving me a fancy pair of wings on my back." He let out a soft chuckle, trying to ease the tension he was responsible for. They had enough serious talk to last them so many life times, but it seemed they could never catch a break.

His smile faded as she spoke on Liam and, surprisingly, on Emily. The former squire turned on a coin and made closed the short distance between them, his expression softening. "Hadyn. I know this isn't..this isn't us. This isn't how we do things. We fumble along like idiots. We keep our distance as much as possible." He motioned to Liam with a wave of his hand. "It's only him that keeps us cooperating, right?" They'd have never thought to cross paths again if they'd not brought that beautiful little boy into the world thanks to their own combined stupidity.

"I'm not asking you to change our dynamic anymore than either of us are willing to. It's all for Liam and Emily. That's how it is for me, and how it will remain. I want Liam to have his family. I want Emily to have her family. And as much as we pretend like we aren't, well, we are. To them, we're what they know." He reached out and gently took one of her hands in his. "Not asking you to be anything more than Liam's mother. Might be a lot of chaos around it, but it all distills down to that fact." His thumb softly ran over the top of her hand for a brief moment before he released his grasp. For two people that had been intimate with one another, physical contact was still a dangerous game for them to play.

He was surprised by her admission of trust, though he tried to hide and downplay it. Such an open statement was rare from either of them. Both Hadyn and Orion were so guarded about their feelings that it was almost shocking when one of them offered up a hint that they were indeed human. He knew how awkward the entire thing must have been for her. Emotions that were normally hidden instead had decided to nearly bubble over at the slightest of provocations.

"Despite what our history might say, I'm not going to betray that trust. If you know me at all at this point, Hadyn, you know that this is real. You know what I'm saying is true and that I mean every word of it. If I thought you were safe here, I would have left a note and some coin and disappeared in the night." He'd thought about doing such a thing during the hardest of times between them. So much fighting, so much anger as she dealt with a pregnancy and a father-to-be that always seemed to be absent at the most convenient of times. It all seemed so laughable now.

"I wish I had any answers to give you, but all I can ask you to do is put your faith in a man trying his best. I don't know what awaits us in Sunberth, besides the madness that the city holds so dear. No one is in charge there, at least not entirely. It depends on what part of the city you're in. It's dog eat dog." He crossed his arms and sighed, shaking his head. "It's no place for Emily. For Liam. For you. Or for me." His frown said but what else can we do? though his lips didn't move. "I can assure you, however, that that's exactly what we're doing. The mouth of the beast."

The beast named Lyla. Marked of Krysus. Cruel woman, no, cruel monster.

"Yahal has sent me on a mission to cleanse some darkness from this world, but for some inexplicable reason it's Sunberth he chose. If you polish shyke, you still have shyke. I'd figure a god would have known this."

[Hadyn Skellig]

Hadyn managed to maintain her expression when he moved close to her, unsure of the appropriate response. She nodded mutely when Orion voiced their commitment to Liam and Emily. They were a family, albeit outrageously dysfunctional and non-traditional. The brunette agreed silently to uphold that for the children's sake. Her eyes dropped to the hand he held, surprised he initiated physical contact but simultaneously eased by it. When he released her hand she met his gaze again.

He promised not to betray her trust. In spite of everything she'd trained herself to say and do Hadyn merely nodded again. What could she possibly say? he was right. There was no pretending the harsh truth he'd brought to her doorstep. No sugar coating. Never for them. Swallowing the weaponsmith took a breath. His description of Sunberth was horrifying at best. Dog eat dog. And they'd be bringing two small children into its depths. Were they both mad? but she didn't know an alternative.

It was beginning to settle on her - the weight of this decision. This plea. Nothing seemed as significant or unbearably difficult as the choice he was asking her to make. There was no undoing it once it was done. There was no turning around. Especially if his fears were legitimate. Though concern for her own well being was pathetic at best the fierce protectiveness she felt for Liam and Emily... even Orion made it more apparent as the moments passed that she couldn't ignore him. It was more than she could manage right now.

Removing the narrow distance between them Hadyn wrapped her arms around the man, her chin on his shoulder. In a rare moment she needed him. She wanted to feel the heat of his body, inhale his scent - as if it would convince her this was actually occurring. It wasn't some nightmare she was soon to wake from in a sheen of sweat, cursing stupid fears in the darkness. Orion's muscles were tense beneath her fingers as if he were the string of a bow stretched taut for too long. The exhaustion was made more apparent the closer she was.

"I wish you were lying," she whispered, her lips brushing his ear as her eyes closed. Her voice was hollow, accepting. There was nothing for it. Without saying so Hadyn was agreeing to leave everything she'd known and take her newborn son into the heart of chaos, following a man she was never fully sure she knew.

It was completely insane.

Unbidden Hadyn felt angry tears prick the back of her eyelids, which she kept closed to avoid them spilling. The source of the tears was not sorrow or even regret. A surge of ire surged through her veins, its object none other than the gods. No one was safe it seemed. They were all puerile puppets maneuvered and manipulated against their will and without their direct knowledge. She was a fool for thinking she'd avoided it all these years. Relaxing the tight hold she had on Orion Hadyn tried to calm herself. No use making it worse.

While it was uncharacteristic of her to engage him in a display of affection and physical desire for nearness Hadyn was surprisingly unconcerned by it. Given the information he'd shared and the absolution of their new path the woman couldn't think of anything else to do. And the necessity to touch him to ground her in the reality of it outweighed any idiotic awkwardness.

She needed him in that moment. It was just that simple.

[Orion Michaels]

Orion made no initial reaction as she embraced him. Was it acceptance? More likely defeat. Defeat as the reality of his truths settled in. If she were to agree to come along, she would be leaving everything she's ever known on the promises of man proven unstable.

After a few tense moments, the former squire wrapped his arms around the weapon smith. He was tired. Oh so tired. She would be, too, if she came along. Long days of travel would await them. Hopefully eventful days. The Syliras-Zeltiva Road was patrolled quite frequently, but he'd been accosted by some manner of beast or bandit on nearly every trip he'd taken. The weariness they felt now would compare not at all to what they faced.

"If only I were.." Orion would have given everything for it to be a lie. He could go back to trusting the knighthood. He could leave on his own quest to complete his training and fully become a member of the order. He'd have no fears for Emily, Liam, or Hadyn. Life would continue on in its unpredictable, yet mundane way.

Calloused fingers traced their way through the brunette's long hair as they both sought quiet comfort from each other's nearness. Two independent people could accept reliance upon one another, if for a moment. No yelling, no fighting. No laughing, no crying. "I'd never fault you if you didn't come. No one would," he whispered, turning his head slightly to rest it against hers. "I know you'll always do what you feel is best for Liam..for our son. I'm doing the same." It was all they could do. Two fools trying their best. Two selfish people that had finally started to figure out how to live for other people. Children. Family. Syliras. The greater good. Whatever motivation they drew, it had created a change.

They'd both witnessed the growth in one another, even if it hadn't been easy.

In what was one of their hardest shared experiences, however, it was so very simple to relax in the embrace of the other.

Orion wasn't sure how long he stood there with her, silently relishing the closeness that he'd lacked for so long. It had taken a very roundabout path, but the truth of the matter was simple. He trusted Hadyn as she trusted him. It seemed impossible if anyone viewed what shreds of relationship they'd managed, but it was his reality. "Hadyn..I..."

"EWWWWWWWWW."

Emily's voice cut through the tension like the sharpest of blades. The little blonde had consumed the contents of the bowl and had come searching for more candy, some toys with which to play, or preferably both. There was nothing she could find of interest in the first room, so she'd made her way to the bedroom. What she'd come across was disgusting. Her father and Miss Hadyn were...were...hugging. Her face twisted into a scowl and her tiny arms crossed her chest. "I thought I told you not to be gross, Dad."

Orion smiled. Then he grinned. And then he laughed.

The blue eyed man released Hadyn from his hold and turned to Emily. "Oh, Emily. You're going to have to find another dad if you don't want them to be gross." He closed the distance quickly with long strides. Emily's eyes opened wide and she tried to retreat but she was captured in her father's arms. The loudmouthed child found herself being lifted into the air and embraced tightly. "Everything will be okay." He stated.

"Miss Hadyn! Help! My dad is weird! Let me down! Let. Me. Down!" The girl thrashed wildly, but Orion didn't mind. Her antics were exactly what he'd needed. He tossed a sideways glance at Hadyn. "I promise that, if nothing else, we won't be bored." He was still tired. The mood was still heavy, and he hadn't forgotten what he'd asked her to do. But what he did have was hope they could make it happen. Emily acting like his daughter instead of a stranger was evidence. Hadyn not turning him away instantly at his request was proof.

[Hadyn Skellig]

How something so simple and unassuming could be the exact thing she needed was beyond her understanding. His fingers ran through her hair almost in remembrance of their original embrace almost a year ago. But this... this was far more profound. It was a yielding of two stupidly stubborn closed-off adults accepting they needed one another, even if it was just for a moment. Hadyn shied from these interactions like a fox from the hounds, clawing her way through all manner of etiquette and emotion to avoid vulnerability. To stand there - no, initiate such dangerous contact should have her completely rabid with fear and anxiety. Instead she welcomed his touch and quiet words.

The embrace, like all good things in their strange relationship, was short lived. Emily made her utterly disgusted presence known resulting in Orion untangling himself from the weaponsmith. She offered the girl an awkward smile, not sure it was worth trying to explain the nature of their "grossness". But Orion remedied the situation by laughing and initiating even more hugs, this time for his unimpressed severely displeased daughter. The brunette smiled as he swooped the girl up in his arms despite her protests.

"No," she agreed. "I suppose not."

Taking a few steps forward Hadyn smiled again as she watched Emily and her father. Although their relationship wasn't ideal there was an undeniable love between them. It pleased the weaponsmith to see the blonde child interacting the way she ought with Orion. She couldn't quite place her finger on it but something about Emily had changed. Hadyn didn't bother to think very long on it. But she was glad for Orion's sake that the girl appeared far more amenable to his presence and attention. Gods willing he would have the same relationship with his son. Brushing a golden curl from Emily's face the brown eyed Hadyn grinned before looking at Orion.

"You two need a place t'stay?" she glanced to their right at the bed. It wasn't huge but it would hold the two of them comfortably. "There's a sleeping cot at the smithy I could bring over. No sense in you wastin' your coin at the Row if you have a free bed here."

Though the thought of sharing the already small apartment with two more bodies would've seemed entirely unappealing a few bells before Hadyn figured they may as well get used to each other. And it seemed ridiculous to her that Orion would have to put himself and Emily up for Miza when she was able to offer them a place. She didn't expect him to accept but she wanted to offer anyway. She would have to get accustomed to not only sharing her space but thinking beyond herself and Liam. Emily would likely spend a majority of the trip with her and Liam. The brunette would have to begin thinking of the child's needs before her own.