"Me too," Ashleigh agreed. "Well, I'll be sad to leave this behind." The sun and the sand might not really be her idea of a perfect holiday, but not being at work was blissful, being able to fill her days with museums and art and dance, and her evenings with Aisling. "It's been wonderful," she agreed, "but Russia will be even better." That was more Ashleigh's kind of holiday - a city, one she'd never been to, with more to do than sit on the beach. So, really, it made a lot of sense that it was Aisling's gift to her. "Are you going to sneak Xavier out for a day in November, as well?" she teased. "I don't mind if you do." She really didn't mind. If Xavier made Aisling happy, then he was welcome. Of course, she realised it might be too soon to predict the future like that.
She shook her head slightly. "These weren't modern models," she explained. "These were historical ones. They couldn't be technologically animated without taking them apart, and adding new pieces." Ashleigh wasn't a historian, but she doubted very much that anyone who was would ever hear of such a thing. "Magic wouldn't disrupt their structure in the same way. Even if the pieces themselves couldn't be made to move, an illusion of troops could be laid over it, and then removed." And of course, now she was wondering if there were magical models from historical magical battles. Those might already be animated. Military history wasn't her strong suit, so she had no idea whether such things existed. Taking the water back, Ashleigh nodded. "I brought my book. Sapphire Seas. In case you fail to keep me entertained."