Title: Under the bright sun - Dylan's POV
Spoilers: None
Rating: PG
Pairing: Rommie/Dylan
Summary: Dylan and Rommie meet after years of being separated
Author's Note: I do not own Andromeda or its characters
Additional Note: First two paragraphs are taken from kiraananke's story
"The Pale Moon Gleams" (changed from third to first person). This story is
a sequel to hers.
Feedback: YES, please
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Part 1 - The Truth Revealed
Pausing just inside the monumental doors to the general conference room, I straightened my High Guard uniform and settled my gaze on the sole figure walking towards me. She was beautiful, unchanged, with her own High Guard uniform set off disturbingly well by the Nietzschean arm helix. Looking at her face, I noticed that she was crying. Opening my arms, I allowed my eyes to fall shut as her inhumanly strong arms wrapped around my neck, using all that remained of my strength to lift her from the ground and squeeze in a bear hug. Finally releasing her, I smiled, holding out a hand and accepting hers.
"Shining Path To Truth and Knowledge. It's good to see you're still around."
Almost immediately after saying those words, I wanted to kick myself in the ass. They were far from the ones I really wanted to say. They sounded so ...... dull, official, not expressing what I truly felt. I could see a little hurt in Rommie's eyes and bite my tongue for being so awkward at expressing my true emotions. But it was already too late. The words have been spoken and, like so many times before, I spoiled the magic of the moment, being so damn stubborn. Trying to correct what I could, I simply looked at her and said: "Rommie, I think we need to talk somewhere where we will not be disturbed."
She nodded, and I couldn't help myself but admire her. She seemed so ..... beautiful, so vibrant and yet so sad and longing for some words that would sooth her unmistakably deeply hurt soul. I could figure out what I saw in her eyes, but it had been so long since I had the chance to talk to her, that I was really afraid of saying more wrong words. After all, what did I know about her life since we last met? The fragments, which Trance told me, suggested, she has had a really rough time. And she deserved only the best. And only now I figured, she hadn't said a word since we met. It was somehow disturbing, so I turned to her and asked: "Rommie, you haven't said a word yet. Is something wrong?"
She finally spoke in a low, quiet voice, voice so familiar to me: "No, Dylan, I'm just so overwhelmed by emotions that I find it hard to speak. I don't know how much you know, but believe me, these past few years since we last met have not been nice to me. Not at all. And I'm just so happy to see you again, that I need some time to get over it." As she spoke I couldn't help but notice, how much have I been missing her voice, the tender look in her eyes, her appearance, in fact everything about her, for these last years. And I simply asked myself, if it was worth. Was it worth - my stubbornness, my half-imaginary son, my life with Trance/Liandra, which has in fact been a big lie? Was it worth missing Rommie's devotion, her loyalty, and her love? And the answer was more than clear. No, it wasn't worth. And as of the look on Rommie's face, she felt the same way too. What the hell has happened to us then, that we had to part so unexpected? Were we predestined to make it through this period of loneliness? I was finally beginning to understand, that I have been missing her terribly. Perhaps it was time, to try to make it all up to her now. To reward her deep devotion, to finally allow her to be happy.
With these thoughts still on my mind, I tried to concentrate on what I was in fact up to. I wanted desperately to convince Rommie, that I made a huge mistake when I let her go and I wanted even more desperately to convince her to come with me. And I wanted us to speak alone, without anyone interfering. So I said, trying to avoid her eyes: "I never thought that life would be nice on you. In fact, I didn't even know that you were still alive, not until recently. We have a lot to talk about. Is there any place, where we could speak undisturbed? I really want us to be alone."
She nodded and said, her voice still extremely quiet: "Yes, there is one such place. But we have to walk and it takes about half an hour to get there."
"I don't see a problem," I answered, still admiring her appearance.
As we set off, she was leading me by the hand, which she was somewhat unwilling to surrender. We walked out of the building and turned against the mountains that rose right behind the Command. The path got harder to walk, rising higher and higher until we could see the whole Center like lying on a palm of a hand. As we were walking, we were still holding our hands. I looked at her from time to time. Her beautiful face was just the same I remembered. She had not changed a bit. Well, perhaps there were some marks of past experiences, written on it. It seemed perhaps more ....... like a face, that has seen too much pain, death and trouble. I asked myself then, what all happened to her in the last few years. I have been living like a bird in a golden cage while Rommie had to fight, to see death and enough spilled blood to fill rivers. I saw the traces of vanished hopes, and of desperation. And all this in fulfilling dreams, my dreams, which I almost gave up on! I felt ashamed. I gave up and Rommie continued to fight for the ideals, ideals that in fact weren't hers. They were the ideals of humans, not ones of the AIs. And in this second, I realized, how much she must love me. She was willing to risk everything, her happiness, her soul, and even her life, just to fulfill my dreams. And myself? What have I done to deserve such sacrifice from her? Have I ever treated her like she really deserved? I couldn't help but admire her for her deeds. I stopped for a while and she looked at me in surprise: "Why have you stopped? We're almost there."
I didn't want to tell her the truth, not yet, so I just muttered: "I was just thinking of how you survived all these years, being surrounded by not always friendly humans, Nietzscheans, and other species. And I admire you for that."
She hanged her eyes and smiled shyly: "I had a very good reason to keep on fighting. I was just hoping it would be over some day. Now, I really don't know: is it over, Dylan? Will you help me finish it?"
I raised my hand and caressed her cheek, still carrying traces of spilt tears: "Rommie, I will do everything possible to make it over. If you'll only let me."
Her smile grew wider and with the other hand, she gently touched mine, still caressing her face. She cocked her head slightly and pressed my palm against her cheek. "You don't have to have any doubts about me letting you, Dylan. I have been waiting for so long to hear these words from you ..... But, let's go further. We will be there in two or three minutes."
I nodded and we continued walking. This time it was me who was unwilling to let her hand go.
About two minutes later, we reached the small plateau, overlooking the center. The view was fantastic. Not far away from the edge, a small rock was situated just like a bench. Rommie led me there and we sat down, staying silent for a while.
"It's wonderful here," I finally spoke. "It makes you feel so free, so undisturbed and yet so close to everything down there." I looked around. It really was a magnificent panorama. High mountains ranging behind us and a flat, widespread desert at our feet, with all the buildings of the center, runways, hangars and other facilities sitting down there like children's toys. Everything seemed so close. As if I could reach out my hand and touch it. And yet, I felt serenity, only occasional blows of wind interrupted the silence.
Rommie sat still and after a while, spoke as if she would be speaking to herself: "This is my place. You're the only one who is allowed to come here. Every time I was depressed, when the past haunted me, when I needed to escape from everything and everyone, I came up here. I used to sit here for hours, just watching down, trying to forget the past, trying to convince myself, I have to go on with my life, with my mission. But it didn't always help."
TBC
******************************
Part 1 - The Truth Revealed
Pausing just inside the monumental doors to the general conference room, I straightened my High Guard uniform and settled my gaze on the sole figure walking towards me. She was beautiful, unchanged, with her own High Guard uniform set off disturbingly well by the Nietzschean arm helix. Looking at her face, I noticed that she was crying. Opening my arms, I allowed my eyes to fall shut as her inhumanly strong arms wrapped around my neck, using all that remained of my strength to lift her from the ground and squeeze in a bear hug. Finally releasing her, I smiled, holding out a hand and accepting hers.
"Shining Path To Truth and Knowledge. It's good to see you're still around."
Almost immediately after saying those words, I wanted to kick myself in the ass. They were far from the ones I really wanted to say. They sounded so ...... dull, official, not expressing what I truly felt. I could see a little hurt in Rommie's eyes and bite my tongue for being so awkward at expressing my true emotions. But it was already too late. The words have been spoken and, like so many times before, I spoiled the magic of the moment, being so damn stubborn. Trying to correct what I could, I simply looked at her and said: "Rommie, I think we need to talk somewhere where we will not be disturbed."
She nodded, and I couldn't help myself but admire her. She seemed so ..... beautiful, so vibrant and yet so sad and longing for some words that would sooth her unmistakably deeply hurt soul. I could figure out what I saw in her eyes, but it had been so long since I had the chance to talk to her, that I was really afraid of saying more wrong words. After all, what did I know about her life since we last met? The fragments, which Trance told me, suggested, she has had a really rough time. And she deserved only the best. And only now I figured, she hadn't said a word since we met. It was somehow disturbing, so I turned to her and asked: "Rommie, you haven't said a word yet. Is something wrong?"
She finally spoke in a low, quiet voice, voice so familiar to me: "No, Dylan, I'm just so overwhelmed by emotions that I find it hard to speak. I don't know how much you know, but believe me, these past few years since we last met have not been nice to me. Not at all. And I'm just so happy to see you again, that I need some time to get over it." As she spoke I couldn't help but notice, how much have I been missing her voice, the tender look in her eyes, her appearance, in fact everything about her, for these last years. And I simply asked myself, if it was worth. Was it worth - my stubbornness, my half-imaginary son, my life with Trance/Liandra, which has in fact been a big lie? Was it worth missing Rommie's devotion, her loyalty, and her love? And the answer was more than clear. No, it wasn't worth. And as of the look on Rommie's face, she felt the same way too. What the hell has happened to us then, that we had to part so unexpected? Were we predestined to make it through this period of loneliness? I was finally beginning to understand, that I have been missing her terribly. Perhaps it was time, to try to make it all up to her now. To reward her deep devotion, to finally allow her to be happy.
With these thoughts still on my mind, I tried to concentrate on what I was in fact up to. I wanted desperately to convince Rommie, that I made a huge mistake when I let her go and I wanted even more desperately to convince her to come with me. And I wanted us to speak alone, without anyone interfering. So I said, trying to avoid her eyes: "I never thought that life would be nice on you. In fact, I didn't even know that you were still alive, not until recently. We have a lot to talk about. Is there any place, where we could speak undisturbed? I really want us to be alone."
She nodded and said, her voice still extremely quiet: "Yes, there is one such place. But we have to walk and it takes about half an hour to get there."
"I don't see a problem," I answered, still admiring her appearance.
As we set off, she was leading me by the hand, which she was somewhat unwilling to surrender. We walked out of the building and turned against the mountains that rose right behind the Command. The path got harder to walk, rising higher and higher until we could see the whole Center like lying on a palm of a hand. As we were walking, we were still holding our hands. I looked at her from time to time. Her beautiful face was just the same I remembered. She had not changed a bit. Well, perhaps there were some marks of past experiences, written on it. It seemed perhaps more ....... like a face, that has seen too much pain, death and trouble. I asked myself then, what all happened to her in the last few years. I have been living like a bird in a golden cage while Rommie had to fight, to see death and enough spilled blood to fill rivers. I saw the traces of vanished hopes, and of desperation. And all this in fulfilling dreams, my dreams, which I almost gave up on! I felt ashamed. I gave up and Rommie continued to fight for the ideals, ideals that in fact weren't hers. They were the ideals of humans, not ones of the AIs. And in this second, I realized, how much she must love me. She was willing to risk everything, her happiness, her soul, and even her life, just to fulfill my dreams. And myself? What have I done to deserve such sacrifice from her? Have I ever treated her like she really deserved? I couldn't help but admire her for her deeds. I stopped for a while and she looked at me in surprise: "Why have you stopped? We're almost there."
I didn't want to tell her the truth, not yet, so I just muttered: "I was just thinking of how you survived all these years, being surrounded by not always friendly humans, Nietzscheans, and other species. And I admire you for that."
She hanged her eyes and smiled shyly: "I had a very good reason to keep on fighting. I was just hoping it would be over some day. Now, I really don't know: is it over, Dylan? Will you help me finish it?"
I raised my hand and caressed her cheek, still carrying traces of spilt tears: "Rommie, I will do everything possible to make it over. If you'll only let me."
Her smile grew wider and with the other hand, she gently touched mine, still caressing her face. She cocked her head slightly and pressed my palm against her cheek. "You don't have to have any doubts about me letting you, Dylan. I have been waiting for so long to hear these words from you ..... But, let's go further. We will be there in two or three minutes."
I nodded and we continued walking. This time it was me who was unwilling to let her hand go.
About two minutes later, we reached the small plateau, overlooking the center. The view was fantastic. Not far away from the edge, a small rock was situated just like a bench. Rommie led me there and we sat down, staying silent for a while.
"It's wonderful here," I finally spoke. "It makes you feel so free, so undisturbed and yet so close to everything down there." I looked around. It really was a magnificent panorama. High mountains ranging behind us and a flat, widespread desert at our feet, with all the buildings of the center, runways, hangars and other facilities sitting down there like children's toys. Everything seemed so close. As if I could reach out my hand and touch it. And yet, I felt serenity, only occasional blows of wind interrupted the silence.
Rommie sat still and after a while, spoke as if she would be speaking to herself: "This is my place. You're the only one who is allowed to come here. Every time I was depressed, when the past haunted me, when I needed to escape from everything and everyone, I came up here. I used to sit here for hours, just watching down, trying to forget the past, trying to convince myself, I have to go on with my life, with my mission. But it didn't always help."
TBC