Put the pieces back together

She swore she'd tell him everything in time, and for now... yeah, that was good enough for him. He always knew Kirsi was, well, capable of things he was not, but he'd never really wanted or been able to believe that that extended to him. Some small part of his soft heart looked back at him whenever they looked at each other. He held her tighter when she continued, sobbing quietly into his fur. He simply allowed her to, wishing he could just make everything better, erase the bad and heal what had broken and send them to a place where they could be okay, with nothing standing in their way.

"I know," he murmured gently, his deep voice as soft as velvet, "The past is past, we're here in the now, and our future can be as bright as we make it." His words left an unspoken promise hanging in the air between them. Time had not really healed his wounds, but it had given him fresh eyes to see how much he needed her. At times he feared he might discover he still could not fully trust her after what little he'd learned of her part in the betrayal, but right now his fears were being silenced by his overwhelming desire to bring her back into his life. Whether she was poison or panacea to his life felt irrelevant now. Living without her felt like being forced to take half as many breaths and still be alright. Too painful to manage.

The memory she brought up had him smiling despite himself. She'd looked so funny to him that day, seemingly unable to keep her eyes on the path ahead of her, and the way her eyes bugged out when she realized she was about to go tumbling. He'd laughed so hard his sides ached, but soon discovered he kept catching himself having that same infatuation. It was like she was magnetic and he was hopelessly drawn to her. "I always hated having to leave. Knowing there was always a time limit hanging over my head, cutting things short..." Every memory they had seemed to have been cut off too soon. His life had never been his own before, no matter how he tried to fight the oppressive responsibilities thrust on him. Even in the time of peace, he'd never felt at peace. Sometimes he felt foolish for caring that he'd been removed from the position of heir. It wasn't even the loss of position that angered him, he'd have gladly left it before without hesitation. It was how he'd been ousted. His brother would have a target on his back for the rest of their lives so far as Ignatius was concerned.

Finding that he was growing tense, Ignatius forced himself to relax and return his mind to the present when Kirsi pleaded for him not to make her leave again. Ah, there it was. That faint hint of trepidation that sung through his body like an electric shock. Ignatius ignored it, pulling back slightly to look her in the eye as he responded, "Kirsi, you have my word, so long as we both remain true I will never make you leave my side again. Our lives are our own now, we can make them what we wish, and never give a shit again what anyone else thinks or wants. I just need one thing from you." He eyed her seriously for a long moment before cracking the faintest hint of a smile. "Join my pack. Come home with me to Fýri and let the rest work itself out." In time he believed they could smooth out all the issues from the past. Maybe not easily at first, but he had to believe that it would all work out, that he could rule how he wanted with the love of his life standing by his side. Just once in life he wished for one chapter of his story to have a happy ending.