Throw sadness to the wind, sorrow to the sky…

A Revolution fic (Blackout AU): Sebastian (Bass) Monroe/Charlotte (Charlie) Matheson; Charloe. The Monroe Republic has fallen and President Bass Monroe escapes to a small island off the coast of New England. Charlie is searching for him so that she can get revenge for her family. When her small boat crashes and she washes up on Bass's shore… will he look after her? Will she let him? (based on a prompt on the Good Ship Charloe writers page).

Rating M…

Authors note: Hi there, and thanks so much for reading – this chapter is a sort of happy ever after wrap up, hope you enjoy… :) Magpie

Throw sadness to the wind, sorrow to the sky…

Chapter 11, Throw sadness to the wind…

The press boat had finally gone, headed back ahead of the weather to Stonington and the hotels and café's waiting for them there and the big white house on the hill seemed happy to be full of people as voices, laughter and good smells wafted around from the front garden through the hall to the large, wood and stone summer house in back where meat was cooking on the barbecue… The kitchen, with its large bay window facing out over the back garden, was warm and cosy with its lamps lit and the smell of fresh bread and mulled, spiced cider wafting from the oven.

Charlie and Rosie were arranging platters of baked potatoes and sweet corn, corn bread, biscuits and sourdough bread made with flour from Hannah's mill, a dumb waiter groaning under the weight of food… Priscilla was sitting in the rocking chair, a fed, happy and gurgling Alice in her arms…

'She's so good, Charlie, and I'd forgotten that lovely baby smell…' Priscilla's eyes were soft as she looked down and she bent down to press a kiss to the soft, blond curls, taking a long breath in as she did…'and I love this little romper suit she's wearing, where on earth did you find new ones?'

Charlie looked up from cutting some bread…'is that what they're called? I found a box full of baby things in one of the houses in Town Landing just before Ben was born… ' She smiled…'they'd never been used, we were so lucky no one else found them…'

Alice gazed up at Priscilla's face, her big blue eyes wide and innocent, then a stream of spit bubbles came from the full pink lips along with a loud raspberry sound… Priscilla laughed and rocked gently, one of her fingers stroking the soft, rounded cheek of the baby's face… 'You are just gorgeous, Alice…and you know it don't you…'

Charlie chuckled… 'She likes having you all to herself…'

'I love her too… have she started on solids yet?' Priscilla was playing with the waving feet, her fingers teasing the little toes and making Alice squeal and arch her back in delight…

Charlie finished slicing some corn bread and piled it on a platter with the rest… 'Not yet, but she's started to watch us when we eat and Bass swears she salivates when we have braised rabbit…' she laughed… 'and Ben sits next to her and tells her what we're having and whether he thinks she'll like it or not…'

Rosie joined in the laughter, piling potatoes in a bowl…'it won't be long now then….' She looked around, the cats were gone from their usual place near the warmth of the range…'so where is Ben? And I could have sworn the cats were just over there when we came in…'

'He took Aaron up into the tower room to show him the telescope...' Charlie started on another platter 'the cats'll be up there too, they follow him everywhere…' she finished piling potatoes, looked around in satisfaction, stroked her hands down over her apron and reached behind to undo the ties.

The apron was one of her favourite finds; white fabric with a frilly lace edging… Bass had nearly chopped a finger off when she wore it the first time in the kitchen – with nothing else underneath… She grinned at the memory… and then, well… they both thought that was when Alice had happened, so… She patted it affectionately, lifted it over her head and hung it on the hook near the sink. She turned to Rosie and Priscilla…'I think we're almost ready to go join the guys, don't you…?'

Rosie jumped…'Oh…I've just got to whip up the cream for the pies then we're all done…'

Charlie reached for her apron again… she was wearing a long sleeved dress she'd been saving for something special, and damned if she was going to get anything on it's velvety crimson folds, not yet anyway…

…

Bass, Miles, Jeremy and Connor were outside with Jake and Sam and gathered round the BBQ, the smells of cooking meat making their mouths water. There was an enjoyable sense of urgency to the preparations as the sky darkened with the coming of evening and the air grew heavy with the promise of rain, although Bass had re-thought his prediction and had announced that the rain was going to hold off till the morning.

The rest of the platoon were either billeted in the newly renovated houses in Town Landing or camped out on the wide lawns and paddocks around the house within easy reach of the fresh water springs that rippled down from the hills above. The sound of tent pegs being hammered in echoed from all around and the scent of wood smoke and food cooking came from cook fires dotted around everywhere.. Bass and Charlie had prepared plenty of rabbits and venison for the visitors so there was plenty to go around. Jake had brought a couple of sides of mutton as well and of course the troops had brought supplies with them too, including coffee, tea and whiskey, barrels of beer…

Apparently the troopers were going to stay - for a while at least… After the incident on the jetty, Miles had told Bass and Charlie that he was going to leave most of them on the island to beef up protection for the area – and his daughter's family; they hadn't argued much, Bass was happy to hand over the reins of his little group of trainees to the regulars and they'd both been looking forward to Town Landing coming alive again…there was still plenty of room for their other settlers.

It felt like a party – or a festival…

…..

Miles, Bass and Jeremy were sitting on some of the dozen or so camp chairs Bass had set up on the paved area under the pergola around the big cooking plate, drinking some of the whiskey that Bass had also found on the island, Connor was over with Jake and Sam – focused on the food, and the local cider…

Miles took a sip, savoured it for a moment and sighed…'this is really good shit, Bass…'

Jeremy took a sip and let out a satisfied sigh…'Yeah…' he lifted his glass to Bass…'trust you to find possibly the last stash of Pappy Van Winkle in the entire country if not the world…'

Bass poured them all another round…'The old guy who owned this place left four crates of it in the basement…' He put the bottle back on the table and sat back down, a smile curving his lips…'there's about three and a half three crates left…'

Jeremy sat forward…'Do you remember a certain card game back in Philly, Bass? Not long before you, well, you know…' his lips twisted in his wry smile, 'you still owe me thirty diamonds, but I reckon a bottle of Pappy's will just about cover it…'

Bass nodded, matching the smile… 'I figure I owe you a whole lot more than one bottle, Jer, but just to start things off I've packed up half a dozen each for you and Miles to take back to Washington…' the smile spread into a grin…'I didn't want to give either one of you more than that though' he glanced at Miles whose own smile spread from ear to ear…'not wanting to be accused of contributing to the bad habits of the President and one of his Generals…' he shrugged…'you can write me when you want more…'

Jeremy looked down for a moment, then back up, so much in that blue gaze…'That's... damn it… Bass, you don't have to do that…'

'Yes I do, and I want to do it... I wasn't myself back then, Jer…' Bass cleared his throat…'I know that's no excuse, but I don't know how else to say it…'

Miles sniffed, although he was still smiling… 'Now before you two go getting all mushy, just remember I'm the President, I can order you to stop…'

Bass chuckled…'Yeah, right…and I don't expect a rider from you inside of six months, Mr President… so don't drink it all in the first week and ask me for more, cause you won't get any…' he looked Miles up and down… 'You're looking a bit soft, brother, and you need to look after your liver…'

Miles was staring at him…'who are you and what did you do with Bass Monroe the alcoholic?'

'I found something worth living for, Miles…' Bass leaned towards him…'why don't you do the same…' then he put his glass down and stood up…'hey..I've just remembered something…' he grinned, turned and started loping over to the house, calling back over his shoulder…. 'Back in a minute'

Jeremy looked after him, his face full of a sort of wonder…'If I hadn't seen it for myself, I'd never have believed it…' he turned back to Miles…'Hell, if I believed in them I'd say it was a miracle….'

'He's happy, Jer…' Miles took another sip, savouring it….'that can make a big difference to your outlook on things…'

Connor wandered over, his eyes a tiny bit hazy… He saluted…'This cider is excellent, Sir… can I get you a glass?'

Miles lifted an eyebrow…'You're officially off duty, Lieutenant, you can drop the 'Sir', stop fucking saluting and call me Miles, or Mr President, or something…' he lifted his glass, the liquid inside glinting a smoky gold…'and this is excellent whiskey, cider is a soft drink'

Connor frowned, looking confused…'what's soft about it?' he looked at his glass…'it's fizzy and it's got bubbles…?'

Miles laughed…'Cider's soft, whiskey's hard, simple…'

Connor still looked confused, but nodded…'ok, if you say so, Sir'

'I do say so, Connor' Miles narrowed his eyes…'now how's the food going, I could nearly eat one of the horses'

'Meat's nearly done, Jake asked me to go check on how things were progressing in the kitchen…'

'Well?'

'Well what, Sir?'

'How are things progressing in the kitchen, you idiot…?' Miles grinned, taking the sting out of the words… 'And drop the 'Sir for crying out loud, it makes me feel like I'm about ninety…'

Connor blinked…'Ok, Mr President, Miles…' he grinned…'I'm going now….' He turned and headed off towards the kitchen at a fast walk…

Miles chuckled… 'He's a good kid, and I'm glad he likes the cider, cause I'm not sharing…'

Jeremy nodded, settling back in his chair...'He's much too young to appreciate a good whiskey anyway…'

…

Connor got to the back door and met Bass coming out, a long, black, leather case in his hand… the two men almost running into each other…

'Whoa…where are you going in such a hurry, Connor?' Bass carefully re-balanced the case….

'Sorry… Mr King… I'm going to see if they need a hand in the kitchen, the President's hungry…' Connor held the door open…

'The girls are still getting things ready and the President can wait a little longer' Bass put the case down, gently, its weight keeping the door open… 'Connor, you know who I am, don't you?'

The younger man nodded, his dark eyes steady, neutral…'you're General Sebastian Monroe, and, possibly, my father…'

Bass took a deep breath…'Yeah… well, that's what your mom told me, and just by the way, I'm not a General, not any more…' He cleared his throat…'and I'm not sure if it's true that I'm your dad, or whether your mom really thought it was true, or said it was true for her own reasons…' he hesitated… 'Listen… Connor… I'd be very proud to call you my son… but I'll leave it to you decide if it's what you want…'

Connor was very still…

Bass looked down at his feet, then back…'You're a grown man, and you've got a responsible and trusted position with someone that I regard as my brother…' He held a hand out… 'What I'm trying to say Connor, is that I consider you family already, no matter what you decide…'

Connor stood quiet for a moment, then took the hand, and shook it… 'Thank you, and I will think about it…' He smiled, and shrugged…'I guess it doesn't really matter though, does it? I mean there's no way to tell for sure…'

Bass sighed and let go…'No, not really… and Connor… about your mom? I just want you to know that you were the last thing she thought of, the last thing she talked about…before, before she went…' He swallowed the lump that had just appeared in his throat…'and one thing I absolutely know for sure is that she loved you very much…' He bent to pick up the case again…

Connor's tongue dipped out over his bottom lip in a move so like Miles that Bass was almost startled into saying something…

Then he stood to attention…'Thanks for telling me, Sir, I know that my Mom died in Jasper, your home town, and I know that you had taken her prisoner to get Miles to surrender to you and that one of Miles men killed her…' He took a breath…'I'm a soldier… I've been a soldier for years now and I know that bad things happen sometimes, things that you wish hadn't…' he looked Bass in the eye…'But we need to look to the future now, make the world better, so that those things don't happen, as much anyway…'

Bass nodded, a slow smile curving his mouth…'That's a good way of looking at things, Connor…' he tipped his head towards the kitchen…'Now you'd better go help out with the food, Jake doesn't like his steaks overcooked…'

Connor grinned, 'yes sir'

Bass shook his head…'you're really gonna have to lose all the 'sir' crap, Connor, it makes me feel like…'

Connor smirked…'like an old man…? Sir…?'

Bass narrowed his eyes although his lips were twitching, and tipped his head towards the kitchen again… 'Go on, kid, get outta here, and the name's Bass…' and he chuckled as Connor grinned back at him then went on his way… That had gone a whole lot better than he probably deserved, but hell, he was grateful and sort of impressed, Connor was turning out to be quite interesting, …

He headed out the back again, checking the sky as he went… looked like the rain had changed its mind for sure, the sky was almost clear….

Miles was just pouring another round for Jeremy and himself when Bass came back…'Hey, what kept you?' his voice tailed off when he saw what Bass was carrying…

Bass sat back down and laid the case carefully down on the ground in front of Miles…'I was talking to Connor… He's a good kid, Miles, cheeky though… ' He chuckled and unclipped the case…'I found this in a house on the other side of the Island…thought you might like it…'

Miles put his glass down, then reached out and opened the case… Then he sat there for a long moment, just looking…'I don't know what to say, Bass' he choked off a laugh…'do you know what this is?'

'It's a guitar, do you like it?'

'Do I like it?' Miles bent down and picked the instrument up, handling it gently, reverently…' Bass, this is a Martin D-28 marquis, with a solid Adirondack spruce top, east Indian rosewood sides, mahogany neck and an ebony fretboard…' he settled the guitar across his lap, his fingers trailing over the strings; the sound sweet even though it was out of tune… 'I always wanted one of these…'

Bass smiled…'I put some new strings on for you, and there's picks and more spare strings in the case, more inside too, the guy had a whole studio set up, drums kit, recording gear, you name it…' he sat back…'I figured you'd want to check it out yourself, might be other stuff you want…'

Miles started adjusting the tuning, his fingers graceful and precise, the strings sliding quickly to true…'I haven't played for years, Bass…'

Jeremy leaned forward…'you had a guitar back at the first camp we set up, remember Miles?' you and some other guys got a band together? And Tom Neville kept trying out to be the singer, but he had this thing about doing Lionel Ritchie…'

Miles chuckled…'He was so pissed when we said thanks but no thanks…'

Bass frowned a little at the name…'what happened to Neville after the Tower?'

Miles was quiet for a moment... 'He was in Bradbury when the Nano shit really hit the fan, Bass. Jack Davis had somehow gotten hold of Julia after the bombs and kept her hostage so Tom and Jason were working for them, looking for you amongst others, I think... The Nano got to Tom after Texas executed Jason for assassinating General Carver...' he strummed a chord… eerie and sad, dissonant… 'He died there along with a lot of the others…'

'You saw him? Dead I mean'

Miles nodded…'yeah, none of the people the Nano took over for any length of time woke up once Rachel, you know, did her thing…' he played a tune fragment…

Bass recognised the intro to the Stones' 'Paint it black…' He sat up a little…'I'm sorry, Miles, about Rachel? She and I had our differences I know, but I'm sorry…'

Miles played on, the tune changing to a twelve bar blues…'Its ok, Bass, I've come to terms with things now I guess, so many people lost so much… maybe it is time to start over….' he caught Bass' eyes with his…'And finding Charlie alive? That was something I'd pretty much given up hoping for, and to find her with you, well…' he shook his head…'I suppose I should have known though, that girl could always find anything or anyone she set her mind to…'

Jeremy drained his glass, setting it down on the table, 'speaking of Charlie…' he stood up… 'Looks like it's dinner time, guys…'

…

Charlie sent Connor off with the trolley, Rosie just behind him with more platters… Priscilla had offered to keep looking after Alice, and as her baby girl seemed quite happy with the arrangement, Charlie relaxed and went in search of Ben and Aaron…

'Ben? Aaron?' she was at the bottom of the spiral stairs, leading up to the lookout room…'dinner time'

A small face peered down at her over the railings from the room above…'coming mommy…'

Aaron appeared behind him…'let me go first Ben, in case I slip or something…' he looked down, 'it looks a hell of a lot steeper from up here, Charlie…'

She chuckled… 'Come down backwards, Aaron, it helps, believe me…' She watched as her friend and almost second (third?) father made his way carefully backwards down the stairs. He might seem cautious and timid sometimes but Charlie knew him to be one of the bravest people she'd ever known; ever, bar none... He kept on going, even when he was scared, even when things looked really bad… and he always came through for his friends, his family...

She was really hoping that he and Priscilla might decide to come and stay on the Island… and that maybe, when Miles had finished being President that he would come too… She and Bass had found a house on the other side of the Island that would be just perfect for him…

Ben waited politely for a puffing Aaron to get to the bottom, then came rushing down the last couple of steps and into her arms…

She picked him up, giving him a huge hug and he hugged her back, his small, strong body all muscle and action. She breathed him in, he smelled of life and energy and – fish? 'Have you been letting Aycee and Deecee groom your hair again, Ben?' she pulled back so she could look into the bright blue, laughing eyes…

He giggled…'They love me…'

She swung him onto her hip… 'Yes, I know they do… So what did you two see out there?' she turned to Aaron, steering them all towards the back door...

Aaron was still puffing a little…'well, there was an awful lot of water…'

'And Islands, Aaron, and boats, and birds – and a man fell in the water…'

Charlie caught Aaron's eye, he discreetly held a hand up, fingers like a gun…

She understood, oh…'did he now?'

Aaron looked at her over Ben's head, his eyes telling her a lot more…'Yes, he did, we thought he wanted to go swimming, didn't we, Ben…'

Ben nodded…'swimming…'

Charlie put Ben down… taking his hand, smiling into the blue eyes looking up at her…'that's nice… but hey Ben, guess what? It's dinner time, lets go find your daddy and grand daddy…'

'Daddy and Grand daddy, Mommy' he pulled her along, out the door, Aaron following behind them…

…

That night seemed magical to Charlie…

Her family and friends sat around the garden by the light of the fire, the moon and a multitude of stars…

They ate and drank, talked and told stories of things that had happened… mostly the lighter stuff though, no one seemed to want to spoil the mood by talking too much about the sad things…

Miles played his guitar most of the night, he and Jake hitting it off straight away, knowing almost all the same songs, and once Jake brought out his case of harmonicas, they just kept going through the night… Connor joining in on songs that he knew – his rich tenor voice, with a slight Mexican accent, surprising everyone, even Miles…

Ben was totally fascinated by the music and sat at Miles feet for most of the evening, just watching him play… and although Miles had made his feelings about being referred to as 'grand daddy' very clear, telling Ben to call him by his name; he seemed to enjoy the adoration, telling Ben the names of each song, and who sang it, showing him finger picking patterns, chord shapes…

Jeremy and Bass sat talking about horses, women, whiskey, fishing and boats and the life of a lighthouse keeper…

Charlie, Aaron, Priscilla and Rosie sat together, Priscilla still holding Alice, conversation moving from babies to books to plans for a school on the island, the library and new University in Boston…

Charlie glanced at Priscilla; she was relaxed and smiling, leaning against Aaron, every now and then gently rocking Alice, the baby asleep in her arms… Alice was due for a feed soon, but for now Priscilla seemed to be enjoying holding her so much... Charlie smiled... there was no way to replace her girls, but Alice did seem to be doing her good...

Then she looked across at Bass, catching him looking at her – it happened so often now that she wasn't surprised; she smiled at him and his eyes lit up like they always did when their eyes met… They'd have time for themselves a bit later though, and for always after that, now was for family, and friends…new and old.

She toasted him with her fruit juice, and he blew her a kiss… and that was a kind of magic too, because she felt it land…

…

AN: …Sigh… I loved giving them their peaceful time together after everything, I hope you enjoyed it too… cheers, Magpie