Cold Hands, War[m] Heart [Namingtoohard & Fanatasia]

[Fanatasia]

(Sorry for being absent! My computer is broken, and I've just now gone on Spring Break to go home for my parents laptop. It's a long story. I haven't had a laptop in a month+).

Aine smiled briefly, fingers tightening in her husbands hand as she leaned against his embrace. When he spoke, her smile widened, and she murmured softly, "Who needs a kingdom when you could have a family?" She leaned to press a kiss to the man's chin.

"I'm glad we did it." She shifted to reach out, feeling around for the food; thankfully it was mostly finger foods and nothing she could mess up. She claimed what she thought to be a strawberry, and pressed it to her lips, biting slowly. She'd had to learn that she could not deny the fact she had to use her senses, and that some foods felt similar. She just had to trust, and learn to like everything.

"I missed you." She mused, cuddling into the man, absently listening to the children. "Will we have to deal with the kingdom's dealings again?" She asked, softly.

[Namingtoohard]

(All good, I figured there had to be a good reason. Did you still want to move along to their next child being born and end it there, or should we just finish it off with them all watching the sunset or something like that?)

A small smile would flicker across Leith's features as he listened to his wife's words, and he would absentmindedly give a small nod of agreement. It was a strange thought, really. When he was younger, the king would never have considered such a thing possible - perhaps in part due to the family he had grown up with. Now, however, Aine's words rang true. Frankly, he had a difficult time imagining it any other way, and disliked the fact that he had once thought it so. Would things have turned out differently if he hadn't? That was one question that would remain forever unanswered.

"With a little bit of luck, no" Leith would answer rather simply, once his wife had posed her question. It seemed only natural that she would want to know the specifics of the deal that he had made, and now seemed as good a time as any. "There are a few events that they may call upon us for, but most of them are ceremonial. They only come about once a year, and our participation will be superficial at best. Enough to remind the council why they are paying us, and why we maintain our royal status, but no more"

The king would pause there to adjust his position a little, tightening his grip on Aine and hugging her to his side gently. Fiora would nod once, supposedly in acceptance of these terms, whilst snuggling up against Sorei in much the same manner Aine had moved close to her husband.

"Oron and Irina can be called upon to defend Sinder's borders if totally necessary, but only that - they can't be used to attack foreign powers. Naturally, one of us will have to tag along to control them should that ever prove to be the case" he said, before giving something akin to a casual shrug. "Apart from that, we're totally free, unless I'm forgetting something obvious"

[Fanatasia]

(Let's end at a sunset. xD I have a new plot to throw at you. :P)

Aine nodded, smiling lightly. "Good..." She leaned to kiss her husband's cheek, nuzzling into him. She could hear the children eating, and everything was okay. Everything was good–everyone was safe, happy, pleased. "What does the sky look like, Leith?"

It was the only question she had. She wanted to see the sunset, but her failing vision only allowed her to see bits of color, splashes in no specific order. "Describe it, please." She whispered, snuggling into him as she closed her eyes, content to listen to his description. She would be content to listen to his description for years; even if it was repetitive, and hen ever figured out newer ways to describe the sky.

[Namingtoohard]

(Oooh, really? Now I'm definitely excited~)

A gentle smile would flicker across Leith's features as his wife cuddled up against him, before his brow would furrow briefly as he contemplated her question. It was a reasonable enough request, given her lack of eyesight - no, that was hardly the root of his concerns this time. Rather, he was contemplating just how best to go about the task that he had been assigned. Describing a sunset in basic terms was an easy endeavour, but finding the words to accurately describe one in full - in all its vivid detail - would be a much more difficult task. Regardless, he was willing to attempt it, if that was really what Aine wished.

"Its..." he started, before hesitating just briefly, taking a few moments to collect his thoughts. "The sun itself is sitting just above the horizon, right on the cusp of sinking below. Its surrounded by a few clouds, but most of them have been turned a deep red by what little light remains. Beyond that, most of the sky is yellow. The areas closest to the sun are nice and vibrant, but it seems to fade out the further away it gets. There's a small hint of blue left, right on the opposite side of the sky, but I highly doubt it will last more than a few moments, at most"

His task mostly completed, the king would fall silent for a moment, sinking into contemplation. While his choice of words seemed suitable, now that he had spoken them, they didn't seem to portray any of the majesty he could see in front of him. In that instant, Leith was determined to do better tomorrow. He would spend most of the day tomorrow thinking on it, if doing so would help him give Aine a better impression of the beautiful vista laid out before him. Yes, that seemed a good idea - spending the early days of his retirement with his wife, whittling away the hours as they enjoyed each other's company.

After all, they had nothing but time.