PREAMBUL; And Now... You're Dead. Again.

Vasya Stuff

Casya's painting in hobby room. It filled lots of paintings and several musical instruments. Vasyl approached Casya slowly, he took a plastic chair and sit next to her.

"Why are you sad?"

Casya smiled a little, brushed a brush on the canvas and look at him, "What makes you think like that?"

"Your shoulders are down, your paintings are abstract, and you are lacking sleep," Vasyl replied, "what's wrong?"

Casya let out a long sigh, "I don't want you to go again."

Vasyl fell silent.

"This is like a war, right? You leave for days, no one knows when you come back, no one knows how long you'd stayed. I see the way you eat, that was... wrench. Also bruises and wounds all over Grier's body. Although Eidlan tried hard to treat it, and of course he succeeded, there is still a mark." Casya returned to painting, "Mother's concern is true, what if you won't be able to com–"

A hug stopped her words. Slightly trembling with a warm feeling, her throat burned. While slowly hug him back, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry," Vasyl whispered, "but I will definitely go again. You know, as long as they're still around, we're never safe. Forgive me because you have to be dragged into this. Worried for us, waiting for us..."

"It's not your fault." She sits back and let him wipe her tears, "I want to wait for you, I want to worry about you, I'm glad Eidlan trusted me more than anything. The guilty ones are them. So if you leave again later, give them a worthwhile reply, okay? And promise me you'll be back."

Vasyl gave respect like a real soldier, "Sir, yes sir!"

Casya laughs, followed by him. Glance a little, he notices how tears leave marks on her cheeks. Invisible one, not red — Gratefully. It reminds him about every single things he had. Private islands, jets, mansions, money and jewelries... Uncountable. Those are great, those are wonderful. But if those have to gone to replace the marks on her cheeks into a smile, a laugh, a blush, or age lines he hopefully could see, he will lose all of those.

His hand moves to her cheeks for one more time, "Don't worry too much, okay? Live a normal life, be thankful for that. I'll write letters if I can, Alesh will definitely help."

She nodded, looking back at his eyes. Those eyes always spark with sorrow, thing that Vasyl hates to death. He doesn't know whether anyone else notice that or not, he doesn't know what is the reason, all he knows is he will do anything to make them gleam a happy light.

And that only happen whenever he near her or make her laughs, "After all you're ugly when you're sulking. "

Casya frowned, snickered and continued her painting. Vasyl laughs, pulling her slowly to his shoulder. Looking at her eyes, he glad the sorrow has reduce. Wishing one day he could vanish it forever, he hugs her tightly.

Casya finished her painting, "We should help others."

"Alesh and Grier forbade me to cook." He shows a smirk, "want to go out with me?"

"Well–"

"Great. It's a date, then."

Casya burst into laugh. Vasyl grabbed her hand, they ran with his powers. For a moment, that power feels so much fun. As if it was created for laugh, not sorrow. As if it was created to be an advantage, not cursed.

*****

"Oh my God!"

Casya who was just paying their ice cream (with Vasyl's money) frowned, "What's wrong?"

"Can't you see it? Someone spilled something on you!"

"What? What thing?" She shakes her hair, "is it there? Is it already gone?"

Vasyl grabbed her hand, "It can't be gone. It's perfection."

Casya need a few secs to understand, "Aaahhh! I thought you were serious!"

"What? I am serious."

She turned to red. Vasyl laughs, wrapping his hands around her shoulder and continues, "Your middle name is Google, right?"

"No... I don't even have last name. It's just 'Casya', remember?"

"That's weird, you have everything I look for."

That girl pushes Vasyl and hit him with reddening face. The boy just laughs, "Don't be mad! Just count it as a payback since you're a thief!"

"No I'm not! I never steal anything!"

"You stole my heart."

She turned so red that Vasyl lose control of his laugh. He never laughs this hard before, not after he has to fight on stupid war.

Casya buried her face on his shoulder, "Who teaches you to say all of that stuff?"

It was Alesh, but Vasyl took the credit, "Just me and my genius brain."

"Eidlan's genius, you just a crackhead!"

"Which you really, really love!" He winks, "right?"

"No..."

Vasyl pull her to decrease their space, "Are you sure?"

"No..."

"Great." He took her hand, "come on. Let's took some pictures."

"'Kay."

Started with a smile, the photo section ended up in silly faces as Vasyl keep making jokes. He paid for the pictures, split it into two and keep his on his wallet, near his family picture, while Casya keep her on her bag.

"How old you are in that picture?"

"Oh, this? About seven." Vasyl pull out the picture, make the other picture fell off. He quickly catch that, "I forgot that I have two. Want to keep the other one?"

"Can I?" Casya sounds surprise, "really?"

"Of course. Every Kenway should have the old Kenway picture." He winks, "including the future-will-be one."

She turned to red again, "You can't stop it, can you?"

"I don't want to." He frowned like a cute little bear, "should I?"

"Nooooo!" Casya turned and hug him from back, knowing that she might hurt him if she asked him to stop, "I like that."

That could make he grinned, "I'll tell you more... Later."

"Promise?"

"Are you kidding me? Of course I promise!" He took her hand, "right after I kick some ass, meet my family, I go straight up to you!"

She smiled, "I'll wait."