637: All My Days

by -=/\=- Zanh Liis
81029.15
After Light The Sky
Soundtrack: Walk Forever By My Side by The Alarm
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-=O'Sullivan Residence, Ireland, Earth=-

After the fireworks ended, Liis and Keiran set about the bittersweet task of saying goodnight to their remaining guests.

She could hardly wait until the next time she could talk to Salvek, Kellyn, and Rada. She just didn't know how to thank them for their help with the fireworks.

She would to take care to watch out for a future opportunity to repay them for all the work they'd put into the display; making the end of the evening one of the most memorable events not only of her wedding day, but of her life.

As they said their parting words to the rest of the O'Sullivans, Liis' head was swimming. She was still more than a little overwhelmed by the sheer number of them, and again tried her very best to put the right name with the right one of Keiran's neices and nephews. She knew it'd take time to be correct with any confidence or consistency, but fortunately, they were a very patient lot.

*My neices and nephews,* She was astounded at the thought.

She hugged each of Keiran's three brothers fiercely, thanking them again for all the work they'd put into not only the house but the wedding as well.

His three sisters hugged her fiercely, each one quietly thanking her for all she'd done to make Keiran so happy.

No thanks needed, she assured them; she felt she was the one by far getting the better end of the bargain.

She promised to send them all copies of the family holoimages they'd posed for over the course of the evening- which, she figured were probably responsible at least in part for the fact that she was seeing everything through a flash-induced haze.

Or maybe it was just that she was so happy she couldn't see straight.

Last of all they'd found Carrick, sneaking a cigarette out back where he thought no one would find him.

Liis sighed and took it from his mouth without comment. She plunked it down into the glass of water he held in his right hand, and Carrick couldn't help but laugh. "He warned me you'd do that if ya caught me."

"Aye, I did." Keiran confirmed.

"You'd be wise to listen to any warnings your father gives you about me, Carrick. Anything he says, it's all true." Liis tried to glare menacingly but the smile affixed to her face made the attempt rather unconvincing.

Carrick set the glass aside, and suddenly he was hugging her.

"I'm so happy for you, la," he whispered, and she knew he was sincere. She felt tears return to her eyes as she remembered another hug they'd shared, in the alternate reality that they both still recalled with devastating clarity. "For the both of ya. Mind that."

"We love you, Carrick," Liis whispered back, kissing him on the cheek. "You mind that."

"I'll be wantin' to spend some time with ya before we go back to the ship," Keiran hugged his son next, and Carrick nodded.

"Aye, Da. But 'tis your honeymoon and all..."

"We'll make the time." Liis insisted.

Keiran nodded in agreement. "I'll ring you in a day or so."

"See ya, then." Liis kissed his face one last time, and as Carrick was about to say goodnight, he realized he had a dilemma.

"Goodnight...Captain?" His tone indicated he wasn't sure what he should call her, and Liis shook her head.

"Liis." She replied. "Just Liis."

Carrick grinned. "Goodnight, Just Liis."

"Oh, the sense of humor. I know right where you got it."

He winked at her, and they watched him walk until he finally disappeared down the hill toward his uncle's house.

Keiran took Liis' hand and led her back around to the front of their home. They stood on the porch and gazed out into the yard, which gave no indication now that there had been such a huge celebration here such a short time ago.

Without saying a word, Keiran swept her into his arms and carried her over the threshold into the house.

Setting her down once they reached the living room, he turned to the entertainment console and switched it on. Music began to play. "I was wantin' to ask you if..."

Suddenly he noticed something in the room he had not observed before, and he froze in place.

She spoke his name softly in question, sweeping up behind him and placing her hand on his shoulder. She followed the line of his vision until she came to a small picture, framed and sitting on the shelf.

It was an image of his parents, on their wedding day.

Keiran picked it up and stared at it. A lump came to his throat as he missed his mother now gone, and his father, rapidly disappearing.

"I'm sorry they couldn't be here," she whispered, putting her arm around him.

"They were," he replied softly, "Right here." he patted his hand against his chest and Liis closed her eyes; too struck by the sight to do anything else. "She loved him, ya know. No matter what, she always loved him."

"That's the thing about O'Sullivan men." Liis answered, turning him around to face her. "Once you fall in love with one, it's forever."

He gently set the picture back down and was about to finish the question he had previously begun to ask, but Liis held her hand up.

"Oh! I almost forgot. Be right back." She hurried to the coat closet in the entry way, rifled around on the top shelf and pulled out a small wrapped package. She handed it to him and he tilted his head in confusion.

"Your wedding gift."

"I thought the cufflinks were my wedding gift."

"They were, really. This is just...something more."

Intrigued, Keiran began to loosen the paper gently at the edges, but stopped. "I don't have anything for you."

Liis laughed out loud. "Are you kidding? Do you see where I'm standing?"

She twirled in a circle and her dress rustled softly. "You gave me our home, Keiran. You built that beautiful bed upstairs. And these," She held her left hand out and regarded her rings with amazement.

"Not only did you give me the one I had my heart set on," she indicated the signet ring, "But this one. I have been wanting to ask you all night, why this one too?"

Keiran smiled a wistful, dreamy smile. "Two reasons."

He said no more, and Liis laughed again. "Do I have to guess?"

"I'm gettin' to it," he laughed too, trying to formulate the words. "Reason one; it takes only the slightest amount of light in the darkness to make diamonds shine. I wanted you to be able to look down at that ring, even on your most difficult days, and remember that "When it is darkest,"

"...men see the stars." Liis echoed his words as he quoted Emerson and looked away.

"Liis?" He was confused by her expression, having no way to know that was the very quote she had herself recited bitterly after his funeral while she was living the paradox.

"I'll remember." She was very grateful that she could now associate the words with the sound of his voice once again. "I promise. Curious, what was the second reason?"

He drew her hand up toward him, kissing it gently.

"The Perseids. I want you to look at the fire and light of those gems and think of them, knowin' that I love you even more now than I did the night I first showed them to you."

She kissed him slowly. "I will."

She smiled on him anew. "Go on, open your present. I warn you though it's nothing fancy." She laughed again as he tried so carefully to neatly remove the paper without tearing it. "Oh for heaven's sake, don't mind that, just have at it!"
He grinned and ripped the paper away, revealing a small, leather bound book.

He instantly recognized the symbol embedded in the cover, and now he was the one whose expression changed. He ran his hand over the spine, afraid to look inside.

"Go ahead," she nudged him gently. "Look."

He drew a slow, deep breath and steadied himself, opening the cover. His breath caught as he saw three words written in her hand upon the very first page.

Letters to Keiran
"Vol said," she explained, "That I needed to sort my feelings out somehow, if I didn't want to talk to him about them. He suggested that he didn't care how I did it, just as long as I did it." She indicated the pages, watching as his eyes brimmed with tears. "So, I wrote to you. I never imagined."

She threw her arms around him, "I'm so glad that you'll get to read them."

"You and I both, my darlin'." He set the book down on the nearest surface so he could embrace her. "'Tis the very best gift I could ever ask for. Thank you, Liis."

For an instant he thought of the other lives he'd lived; ones in which moments like this were only a memory.

He counted himself damn lucky that tonight was a brand new beginning.

"Let me take one more look at you, my bride."

He drew back and gazed at her as she shifted her weight from her heels to her toes and back again. Even after all the events of the day, she still looked stunning.

Holding his hand out to her, he bowed gallantly at the waist. "Would be honored, Mrs. O'Sullivan, if you'd share the last dance of the night with me."

"I thought you'd never ask. But first, one thing..." Liis raised her foot from the floor to try to unfasten the straps of her heels and teetered. Keiran quickly intervened.

"Please, allow me." He dropped to one knee and gently freed her from them, one shoe at a time. He set them aside and out of the way, and then rose.

He held his arms open to her, and Liis sighed contentedly as she settled into them.

"Have a confession to make," he declared, resting his chin against her head as they began to sway.

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Went to visit Ma today."

Liis looked up at him, suddenly nervous. She caught her lower lip between her teeth and waited for him to go on.

"Was lovely of you to take flowers."

"Was wishing that she could be here, to see you and Carrick together again." She paused, "How did you know it was me?"

"I know you."

He kissed the crown of her head, knowing too that he couldn't live with keeping the rest from her. "I also...know that ya went there to talk to somebody else."

Liis grew concerned, but quickly found there was no need to be.

Keiran tilted her face up and kissed her passionately, in his way thanking her for all she'd said while standing in that cemetery.

Slowly he danced her around the room, singing into her ear along with the words of the song he'd chosen for just this dance alone.

When their dance was over, Keiran once again lifted Liis into his arms and carried her through the house.

As they reached the bottom of the spiral staircase leading up to the bedroom, he observed the tight curl of the space, the length of her legs, and the train of her gown.

Slowly, he tilted her from side to side, considering.

"Hmm."

They looked at each other and burst into laughter.

"Best not try it, O'Sullivan," she warned. "Between the width of your wingspan and the berth of this dress, we're done."

"Wait a second." Keiran carried her back through the house the way they'd come, into the kitchen and to the standard, second staircase along the far wall.

"I knew I had them put these in for a reason!" He laughed. "Whoa!" She hurried to clasp her arms around his neck as the combination of her laughter and the silk of her gown made her slip, almost out of his grasp.

He reestablished his firm hold and effortlessly carried her up the stairs; through his own office space, down the hallway beyond the guest room, and finally into the bedroom via the secondary entrance to the master bathroom.

"Well, we've had a day in the country haven't we? I've enjoyed the grand tour..." She couldn't believe how determined he'd been to complete the task of spiriting her away as he saw fit. "But I could have just walked up the stairs on my own, you know."

Keiran grinned seductively. "Aye," he whispered, pressing his lips to her ear, "but where's the fun in that?"

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-=/\=- Zanh Liis (O'Sullivan)
-=Just Married=-
USS Serendipity NCC-2012