Chapter Text
Of all the things that Augun could think to wish for as he raced through the forest, only two things came to mind. First, he wished his feet would move faster. Second, he wished the bumbling escort assigned to him would simply disappear from ear shot.
He knew that he would have no such luck the moment he heard the young man call after him again. “Mister Hearnap! You’re already running late!” He announced, beginning to sound somewhat breathless. “Mister Hollopiece is going to be furious! We should be going the other way! You know better than to keep him waiting!”
Augun’s feet don’t falter. He skips over stones and leaps over fallen trees, never looking back. He tries to sound agitated as he shouts back, “Just tell them to start without me.” He swats a branch from his eye line and uses the momentum to offer a dismissive wave of his hand. “I’m going to be a while, anyway. Just tell them that—“
“Not out here!” The escort screeches. “This meeting is urgent and the information they have asked of you is sensitive…” His voice begins to sound more distant and winded.
There’s no need for Augun to look over his shoulder to know that one of his wishes are being granted. Still, he stops and spins on his heel to offer the escort a sly grin. “When you catch your breath, go find Armanix and tell him that I got caught up with something!” He shouts before turning to start running again.
His feet move with utmost conviction, once more. Unburdened by the young man shouting at him about what he should be doing, even his first wish feels like it’s being granted.
As he approaches the foot of the hill, his breathing becomes a bit more labored. He hasn’t run with such intensity in Obdura knows when. But, even that feels minute when he considers what’s waiting for him at the top of that hill. A quaint little house, boundless gardens of flowers and herbs, and shelves of annotated books waiting for him to be read— the life he’s built, home.
His heart begins to beat even wilder in his chest as he finally sees the cobblestone and dark oak of the cottage. It draws nearer and nearer. Only when he realizes he’s about to reach the door does he try to slow his step, but it’s no use.
Augun crashes into the thick wood of the front door to the house, shoving past it on his way in.
He hardly registers the sound of wood falling heavily to the floor as his eyes scan over the living room in search of the one thing he needs most— a person. It only takes a moment for him to find her.
She lifts her head. Big, round curls of red peek from behind the back of his wife’s favorite chair as she looks back at him. She looks so effortlessly cozy draped in her favorite blanket, her glasses resting loosely on the tip of her nose.
Augun can’t help himself, making a few short strides to cross the room. He says nothing as he walks to the front of her chair and falls to his knees before her. With a soft sigh, he rests his head on her lap and wraps his arms around her. “Caera,” he whispers reverently, nearly like a prayer. “I’m home.”
He can feel Caera moving to set her book down before her fingers lace through his hair. It’s nearly enough to make him melt. That is, until her soft voice fills his ears.
“I thought you were meeting with Armanix as soon as you arrived home,” she says with a soft chuckle. “Don’t tell me it’s already over.”
Augun’s arms tighten around Caera for a moment longer before he lifts his head to look up at her. Shimmering amber eyes look down at him, carefully looking over each feature of his face as if making sure no harm befell him while he was away. “No,” he says softly. “I had more important matters to attend to first.” He raises his head further, making his face level with hers before leaning in.
Caera’s hand gently presses against his lips and pushes his face away, causing him to groan in protest. “Don’t start getting whiny, Augun,” she giggles. “You know that Armanix does not take well to waiting.”
“Neither do I,” he murmurs against her hand trying to lean forward again. “Please, just one kiss, and I swear I’ll go to that stupid, pointless meeting meant to keep me away from you.”
She presses more firmly, beginning to smirk. “I’m not sure that ‘stupid’ and ‘pointless’ are the words I would use for that meeting,” she coos. “Armanix hasn’t stopped talking about all that would need to be done as soon as you arrived. The sooner you get it out of the way, the sooner you can truly come home.”
With the roll of his eyes, Augun pulls his head away from her hand and groans once more. “This just isn’t right. Do you know how hard it is to be away from you for half a day, let alone half a year?” He pouts. “There’s no time for me to even look ask about your book and you won’t even compromise with a kiss? Come now, Caera. Surely, you love me more than that.”
“I haven’t even started reading yet. Not really, anyway.” Caera’s hand moves to cup his cheek gently as her smirk softens into another gentle smile. She takes a moment to look him over again. Missing those blue eyes and that sun-kissed face hasn’t been easy for either. Brushing a strand of hair from his face, she chuckles, “Your hair has gotten so long. And your freckles have gotten darker.”
“What does that have to do with anything?” Augun asked, taking her hand in his own. His lips were gentle as they pressed to the soft skin on the back of her hand.
She shook her head. “Nothing. I just missed you too, I guess,” she answered. She tilted her head up and met her husband’s eyes, feeling her stomach flutter the way it always did for him. “Fine, one kiss. But, you have to swear that you’ll go to that meeting right after.”
“I swear, my beloved. One kiss, and I’ll get out of that gorgeous head of hair of yours,” Augun smiled brightly, rising to his knees and leaning closer to his wife. His face is so close to hers that she can feel his breath on her lips and chin.
“You’re stalling, Mister Hearnap,” she grins.
He shakes his head, “Not true, I’m savoring the sweet moment.”
“Savor it later, Augun,” she says, brushing her lips against his.
His lips capture hers a moment later. It takes every ounce of control that he has to keep himself from pouring months of longing into it— all of the I miss you’s and I will never leave without you again’s.
He grumbles as he pulls away from her face, “Fine.” Then, he reluctantly stands and looks to the door with a heavy sigh.
“Augun,” Caera starts, “we made a deal.”
“I know,” he grumbles before motioning to the door. “It’s just…” His hand rubs at the back of his neck as he continues to stare. “I think I ripped the door off its hinges.”
Caera looks over the back of her chair, eyebrows raising in surprised amusement. “Don’t seem so surprised. It’s not the first time, and it likely won’t be the last,” she giggles. “We’ll repair it later, but you need to go. Don’t make me say it again.”
Augun sighs and leaves one more kiss on his wife’s forehead before turning to leave. As he reaches the door, he looks back once more. “I’ll be back as soon as they allow. Make sure you annotate that book while I’m gone. Don’t concern yourself too much over dinner,” he says with a smile. Then, he leaves, wrestling the door back into its place.
The meeting went nearly as expected, save for the fact that Armanix was much more severe in his lectures after everyone else left. Augun took it all in stride, doing his best to appear as though he was listening to his leader as he went on and on about priorities. By the time he left, Armanix’s face was a more reasonable shade of pink rather than the deep red it had been when he arrived.
It was all worth it, for this— for the relief of walking through his ruined front door into his home.
He kicked the door, jamming it back into place, and making a mental note to make repairs some time the next day. In this moment, however, all he’s worried about is the beautiful woman sitting right where he left her.
Somehow, her hair is messier than it was roughly five hours ago. It sticks out every which direction as her eyes scan the pages. Bringing her pen to her mouth, she clenches her teeth over the lid and pulls it away before writing.
The sight is enough to warm him from the inside out.
He steps forward, softly clearing his throat. “I’m back,” he announces as he sinks onto the arm of her chair. He glances down at her book, catching a glimpse of the notes she’s making in the margins before she closes it. “You’ve made considerable progress since I’ve left.”
“You should see the stack of books waiting for you in the bedroom,” she giggles looking up at him and setting the book down in her lap. “How mad was Armanix?” She asks, hesitantly.
Augun huffs and throws himself over his wife’s lap. “I think you may be waiting for that peaceful family dinner for a few weeks,” he laments. “He spent longer lecturing me about how to keep my head on straight than he did on the debrief. Whenever I thought he was done, I’d start to apologize which only prompted more of a tongue-lashing.”
“Have you ever considered just doing as he asks you to from time to time?” Caera asks, brushing her fingers through his hair.
He shrugs, allowing his eyes to flutter closed. “Mm, occasionally,” he says and then pauses. “It really depends. The issue is that we simply do not see eye to eye on how my priorities are aligned. Aside from that, I could probably stand to pay him a bit more attention.”
Caera levels a serious look at him and sighs before looking away. “You really could stand to approach some matters with a bit more urgency,” she says quietly.
“Nonsense,” he chortles. “I give adequate attention to all of my passions and obligations. My priorities are well in order. You first, and everything else follows. Always.”
“Is that so?” She asks, leaning down to kiss his forehead. “I’m more important to you than everything else?”
Augun nods silently.
“More than blackberry pie?” She asks, her voice lilting.
His eyes open widely. Bright blue eyes begin to glimmer with child-like wonder as he sits up slightly. “Homemade?” He asks.
“With fresh berries from the orchard,” she tells him. “It’s waiting on the counter for you, might still be warm if you hurry.” She pauses a moment and then adds, “And there may even be a glass of milk waiting next to it, too.”
Augun is up in an instant. “By Obdura, I love you more than words can say,” he blurts, squeezing her hand once more before scurrying into the kitchen.
Caera laughs softly and shakes her head before lifting her book from her lap again. She’s hardly opened it back to the page she left off on by the time that her husband returns to the room.
He strides eagerly across the room, chewing the bite he took as he ventured back from the kitchen. Gently setting down his plate on the arm of Caera’s chair, he offers her his glass of milk before lifting her from where she sits. He sinks into the chair and settles her over his lap before reaching for his plate again. “Where’s the book?” He asks, wrapping his arms around her.
She holds it up, keeping her finger between the pages to hold her place. “I have it right here,” she announces. “You would rather look at this instead of the stacks of other books already annotated for you in the bedroom? I ought to remind you that you have a lot to catch up on.”
He nods, lifting his fork to his mouth for another bite of pie. A soft, satisfied groan rises from the back of his throat as he chews and nods. Before he even swallows that bite, he separates another bite from the remainder of his slice. Then, he lifts it to Caera’s lips and says with his mouth full, “I can start on those tomorrow.” He swallows and adds, “Right now, I’m more concerned with being close to you. We can call it a sneak peek.”
“Fine,” she sighs, “I suppose that’s fair.” She hands him the book, rolling her eyes playfully and then takes the bite he’s offering her.
Augun smiles brightly, opening the book to its first page. He doesn’t even bother with the actual content of the book, eyes wandering directly to the writing in the margins. Caera’s handwriting is just as neat and pristine as usual, swirling in near elegant script. He’s always loved everything about her, including something as minute as her penmanship. More than that, he’s always loved the thoughts captured within the ink she adds to the pages.
They’re both quiet, sharing the slice of pie in contentment as Augun reads. After some time, Caera takes the plate and sets it on the floor in front of them before wrapping her arms around her husband and resting her head on his chest. It would still be another hour before Augun would speak again.
He moves the book so that she can see the page he’s on before he points to one of the notes in the margins. “What’s this about?” He asks, eyebrows furrowed.
“‘Most times, evil deeds manifest from grief that has yet to be understood,’” she reads in a whisper, as if jogging her own memory. Her lips purse a moment before cracking into a soft grin. “Ah, I knew that would get your attention. What do you think it’s about?” She counters.
“When have you ever known me to ask questions that I know the answer to?” Augun laughs causing Caera to scoff lightly. “Alright, alright,” he sighs. “I guess it means that you think that all evil roots from pure intentions?”
Caera shakes her head. “Not quite,” she answers. “Simply that people who wreak havoc are deeply wounded themselves, and have no other way to express it. Loss, betrayal, guilt… those things are enough to drive anyone to madness.” Her voice goes silent for a moment and her eyes wander to meet his for a bit before looking away. With another deep breath, she continues, “If there is no one attempting to understand the depths of it or help one find their way back to the light, the world only has itself to blame for what happens next.”
Augun stares at his wife thoughtfully. He tilts his head and frowns slightly. “Is that what you really think? That the world has itself to blame for the evil within it?”
“At the most basic level, yes,” she says confidently. “Not all of the time, though. I only think that if the world were kinder there would be less evil. With a little bit of compassion and understanding, the world could be much better.”
“I can’t argue with you on that note,” he says quietly. “But, evil has a clear definition. No matter the intention or the cause, evil is still just that. It’s wicked, there’s no justification for it.”
Caera makes a tutting sound with her tongue as she shakes her head. Her hand reaches out and gently takes the book from Augun’s hand. “You just don’t get it,” she sighs.
“Well, explain it another way,” her husband pouts at her. “I want to get it.”
She stands up and presses a finger to her lips as she considers his request another beat. “I guess the best way to put it at this rate is to say that some emotions and feelings are so big that it is not the individual that utilizes them. Sometimes, it is the feelings using the person.”
Augun stares at her blankly, trying to wrap his head around the thought before ultimately nodding. He’s still not fully convinced, but he can give it some more time. Perhaps, when he finished all of the books in the bedroom he could come back to this one and actually read it. There’s always the possibility that the context from the story could help him fill in the gaps. That would have to wait though.
Right now, he can see how tired Caera’s eyes are. He can feel the exhaustion from his own day beginning to settle over him, too. So, he merely nods and stands up with her. “Alright. We can come back to this another time. But, what do you say to both of us heading on to bed?” He asks, taking her hand.
Caera seems to physically melt in an instant, a soft sigh falling from her lips. “I thought you’d never ask.”
Augun chuckles and scoops Caera into his arms. He presses a kiss to her cheek and carries her to the bedroom. After he sets her down on the bed, he looks around realizing he hasn’t stepped foot in there since he’s been home. Everything is just as pristine as the day he’d left. The bed is perfectly made, a soft breeze billowing the curtains on the window that hangs over it. Stacks of books are piled on top of the shelf next to his side of the bed. His favorite blanket is no longer thrown over the back of his chair, but rather thrown over the top of the bed.
He makes quick work of preparing himself for bed, and Caera does the same.
Before long, they find themselves in bed. Arms and legs are tangled with one another, their hearts pressed to one another. Augun hasn’t known a peace like this in months. It makes falling asleep one of the most effortless things he’s ever done.