A/N: I freaking love Qaseem, does this some across in the story? ;) I think a lot about Molly having lessons in the Afghan culture it's fab. This is from episode 3 but I guess it could be from any. Enjoy :)
It was not rare to find Molly Dawes deep in conversation with Qaseem, trying to make sense of the culture that lay beyond the protective army bubble that they lived in. She was often seen pulling funny faces as she tried to pronounce words that were unfamiliar to her tongue and using extravagant hand gestures that helped her to envisage the vast array of things that she didn't understand when she was on patrol.
Molly's eagerness to learn astounded even herself as she previously thought herself to be a hopeless case, and it was this eagerness that impressed Qaseem who was now more than willing to teach her about his beautiful homeland.
Occasionally a few jokes were played on her and instead of teaching her to say, "Thank you for your kindness," Qaseem taught her, "Your feet stink of piss," which entertained the Afghan soldiers no end.
The only person who was not amused was the mysterious Sohail who kept out of conversation whenever the soldiers from both armies interacted with each other as a result of Molly and Qaseem's lessons. Sohail was usually the one to terminate the meetings, sending Qaseem to fetch water or do some other menial task which disbanded the group.
"Hal e shoma chetoor ast," Qaseem said slowly and patiently.
"Hal e shoma chetoor ast," Molly copied falteringly, smiling in relief when she finished.
"Yes, and that means how are you," Qaseem rewarded her. There was a brief silence.
"Qaseem, do you think that Afghan will ever be peaceful?"
"I can only pray for it to be restored to its former beauty. It is not up to me what happens in my country. I can only aid to do what's right."
"What about after that?"
"I have nothing to go back to," he sighed dejectedly. "My whole family are dead-"
"Well we are your family now. You could come to London and stay with me. Stay off Newport though, it's full of tossers like Smurf."
"Then maybe you should too stay away from the new port there. You could come and visit me when I'm old and grey. When this land is beautiful again. No more killing. No fighting. You'd like it. I'd like it."
Molly looked up into Qaseem's golden eyes which, although cheerful on the outside, held a deep unsaid sadness in them. There was also a fiery hopefulness and a thirst for peace and unity which brimmed over the edge of his eyes and spilled out through his speech and eagerness to teach. Over the next weeks and months of her service, Molly started to see the beauty in the country to which she'd been deployed. Every mountain, every valley, every flower, every running stream, every sunset, every life was suddenly so beautiful.
