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manonblaqkbeak · 3 years ago

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Renewal

...........this one absolutely kicked my ass today, it took me forever to get anything done lol

also, for the anon that asked for the prompt of rowan dancing with their daughter, i finally got around to it!!

cw: a lil bit of angst, like a tiny bit but otherwise its just fluff

1.1k words

enjoy! :)

It was the perfect spring day, the soft breeze sent the delicate smells of the wild-flowers that grew in Oakwald Forest. With her Fae hearing, Aelin could hear the gentle rushing of the river stream and the happy buzzing of bees.

Aelin spotted the Royal Painter working away, but soon Aelin's eyes found Rowan's as the Priestess stepped forward and began the speech of thanking everyone for coming to Aelin and Rowan's vow renewal after twenty-eight years of marriage—and what a blessed marriage it had been, the young priestess pointing towards their children that sat in the front row, dressed in finery and their hair neatly brushed and styled.

Aelin looked away from Rowan for a brief moment to take in her children. Everyday was a sharp reminder of how they were growing. Elentiya was fifteen now, Norrin was twelve, Alder nine, Isolde six and Elowynn was four and a half (who was considerably distracted by the Little Folk watching from the trees and bushes surrounding them). It still felt like yesterday when she held them all in her arms, falling asleep against her chest as she marvelled at the life that she and Rowan created.

Rowan laced his fingers through hers, bringing Aelin back into the present when she realised that it was time for the handfasting ceremony.

The ribbon was simple braided cotton rope, decorated with charms that the children had picked out months ago. There were personal charms that the King and Queen had picked out hidden among their children's.

When it was time to say the vows, Aelin recited hers in the Old Language, having secretly studied the language for years with her rare free time. She would never forget the unrestrained, glorious smile that Rowan responded with. And even though they weren't supposed to kiss until the priestess said so, her mate rushed forward and kissed her once she was finished. Aelin melted under his touch, nearly thirty years together and he still got her heart racing.

His vows were said in the Old Language, too, and despite their children only a couple feet away, with their loved ones around them, it was like they were the only two souls in the world.

“To whatever end, Fireheart,” Rowan said, his accent stronger when he spoke the Fae language.

“To whatever end.”

X X X X X X X

Perched on Rowan's lap, Aelin watched as her friends circled around the room, talking, eating and dancing when the band started anew.

She had no reason to be sad, but each time she saw her friends, they always looked a little bit older. Chaol's hair was half grey, half brown, his frame thinner, too. Dorian's eyes were wild with crow's feet, the lines more pronounced when he laughed or smiled.

Even Evangeline was grown now, when sometimes Aelin still saw that young girl that helped the Queen win back her kingdom.

She told herself that it was good, in a twisted way—that her friends got to live, and love and help rebuild the world, but one day, they would all leave it behind, as would their children, and their grandchildren when the time came about.

And Aelin didn't want that to happen. Hated that they were not immortal like her and Rowan and Fenrys. Gods, Aelin was fairly certain that she would even miss Lorcan when he died—his pitch black hair showed thin little lines of grey, too.

Rowan ran a hand up and down her bare arm, smoothing away the distress she must have sent down the bond.

Happy things, she was to think of happy things on her wedding day. Like how her mate's eyes darkened when he saw her walking down the aisle, the metallic gold velvet dress hugging her body almost indecently.

She knew that if they were alone, the dress wouldn't have lasted ten seconds without him ripping it off her and having his wicked way with her, right on the forest floor.

Happy things like how the day after tomorrow, they were leaving for Suria for a week and a half to stay in a manor house near the beach. It was just going to be the two of them, alone for the first time in who knew how long, and clothing was completely optional. All the loud, uninterrupted sex they were going to have.

Happy things like how handsome Rowan looked in his dark green and silver embroidered tunic and dark brown pants and polished boots.

Happy things like how her children were all dancing together and laughing and Lysandra dragging Aedion onto the marble floor to dance with her. Chaol and Yrene talking with their grandchildren.

Happy things like the bright smile that Elentiya wore as she made her way over to Aelin and Rowan.

Their eldest looked radiant in a silk dress the shade of purple wisteria. It was rare to see her dressed in such a fashion, because while she did inherit Aelin's admiration of fashion, Elentiya was very much like her father in the regard that she preferred simple and practical clothing and fabrics for day to day life; but today was special and Elentiya had picked out the dress herself, as well as the silver shoes and silver earrings and necklace.

Elentiya sat on Aelin's lap, the Queen's arms going around her daughter and she wiggled her toes in her shoes, telling her parents about the silly things that Dorian was talking about earlier. Mother and daughter picked at Rowan's half eaten chocolate hazelnut cake (nearly thirty years together, and he still didn't like sweets, but tolerate them from time to time. Aelin was determined that she would get him to like the treats at one point in her long life).

All three of them spoke among themselves when suddenly, Elentiya left Aelin's lap and smiled at her father.

“Papa, will you dance with me, please?”

“Of course,” Rowan said and kissed Aelin's cheek as she left his lap. Rowan escorted their eldest onto the floor, her hand tiny compared to his.

Aelin watched, joyful tears soon flooding her eyes as Rowan danced with Elentiya, picking her up and spinning her around, his smile wide as she giggled. They swept across the floor, everyone watching them now as they went through one dance and smoothly moved to another, their footsteps never getting tangled as the orchestra when from one symphony to another. They danced for a lifetime and Aelin would never get sick of the sight, never get over how much she used to hate Rowan but now loved him with every fiber of her being. How he loved their children and would go to hell and back and war again to ensure that they were happy and free.

The happy things were the most important in life, and with her heart near to bursting with love, Aelin crowned her mate and their child with bright crowns of fire and they continued their waltz, their smiles a mirror of the others.

#rowaelin #rowaelinmonth #my work

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glimmerglanger · 4 years ago

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in the woods, somewhere

So, I’ve been spit-balling an obikin idea over on Discord (so if this sounds very, very familiar to anyone, that’s why). I’ve just been thinking a lot about a knights-n-magic fantasy au that would feature crown prince Anakin and trapped fae/elf Obi-Wan, political intrigue, fae contracts, and so on.

The general idea is that King Qui-Gon rules the land of...hm, let’s go with Coruscant He had two older sons, but no one really talks about what happened to them. They’re just… no longer around. He won’t talk about them, and certainly no one else will break the silence.

The family is just him and his youngest - and sole remaining - son, Anakin, for as long as Anakin can remember. There are servants and guards, of course. And there's... Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan isn't a servant or a guard or a royal. Qui-Gon says he's a guest, every time Anakin asks, and he just rolls with that explanation. He doesn't look strictly human. Sometimes, in the right light, the shadows fall very strangely on his face, and there’s something wrong about the shape of his ears. No other person has eyes the same color as his.

But Anakin grows up used to him and doesn't think very much about his oddness. Certainly he doesn’t notice at first how deeply sad Obi-Wan seems, hanging out in the palace gardens and staring yearningly at the horizon, and always wearing these strange, thin, iron bracelets. Qui-Gon does tell Anakin he's never to take the bracelets off.

The one time Anakin brings them up, he gets in a lot of trouble, and doesn’t understand why. It’s one of the few times he recalls his father being legitimately angry with him.

At nine years old (thereabouts), Anakin starts telling people, including Obi-Wan, that he’s going to marry Obi-Wan someday. It made sense to him. Obi-Wan is preternaturally lovely and kind to him and seems very sad and surely he'll be happier if Anakin marries him. Obi-Wan treats the childish promise very seriously, due to the way Anakin made it, taking the bundle of wild flowers and rowan leaves that Anakin offers him with severity that makes Anakin feel good.

A tutor immediately tells him he can’t do such a foolish thing, and Anakin replies that he'll be king someday and can do as he wishes, then. The tutor gives a scowl and goes to tell Qui-Gon.

...and things go very unhappily for a bit. Anakin is told never to say such foolish things again and forbidden from even seeing Obi-Wan for a time. When he does catch glimpses of Obi-Wan he seems unwell and sadder than usual, and Anakin thinks its his fault, so he stops bringing it up, eventually all but forgetting he ever even went through such phase, though, of course, his interest in Obi-Wan’s strange and unchanging beauty changed as he grew into a man.

He has a pretty alright childhood, as these things go, aside from these few bumps. Things go badly wrong, though, at some point. There's an attack on the neighboring country of Naboo. Qui-Gon heads off to help, they've got treaties, after all. Anakin's chomping at the bit to do some fighting, too, so he goes along.

Qui-Gon doesn't make it back.

Anakin comes home - Naboo successfully defended - as King. He's lowkey - highkey - freaking out about it. Mourning his father. Trying to weather all these sudden changes. It's a comfort to find a single piece of normalcy when he gets back and Obi-Wan is the same as he ever was, the same as he's been since Anakin was old enough to remember, he never changes.

Anakin feels like none of his advisors are taking him seriously. They still treat him like a child. He's maybe projecting how worried he is about screwing things up onto them. Palpatine is around, giving him bad advice as grand vizier.

But Obi-Wan listens to him. Obi-Wan has always listened to him. Even when it was Anakin showing him bugs or a bird’s nest or whatever! And he's got a lot of experience. And no real position in court, so Anakin can talk to him about his worries and stress without worrying about it being used against him later.

And he's so pretty.

Court intrigue ensues. There are odd happenings, here and there. Things that have recurred occasionally through Anakin's childhood. Incursions from strange things from the great forest to the north.

Obi-Wan always has cryptic things to say about these incursions. Some of the older people in court give him sharp looks when they happen. A few murmur curses under their breath or make signs to ward off evil when Obi-Wan passes.

But no one is willing to tell Anakin what Obi-Wan’s deal is, even after he's King. They tell him that it doesn't matter, or lie and say they don't know. They just insist that Anakin MUST keep the iron bands in place.

....Anakin doesn't particularly like being ordered to do things

Still, maybe he would have, if Obi-Wan ever asked him to outright remove the bands. But he doesn't. Just gets wistful and sad when Anakin asks about them. And after someone tells Anakin what to do again, he snaps and decides they're coming off.

Anakin takes them off and drops them onto the floor, one after the other, and Obi-Wan...just stands there for a moment, breathing unsteadily, arms outstretched, trembling a little, staring at his freed skin -- burned black beneath the iron. Anakin stares at the damage and wonders how it could have come about.

He's a little distracted from asking about it, because there is a sudden.... odd silence stealing through the palace. Like the world is holding its breath. He looks around, trying to figure out what's going on, and there's a sensation of movement, a brush of touch across his mouth, and when he looks back, Obi-Wan is just gone.

And people are screaming something about the forest, panic in their voices.

By the time Anakin reaches the battlement, he can see that the trees are...moving? Shifting? As though many things are moving under them.

Someone demands to know where Obi-Wan is, grabs Anakin when he doesn't answer right away, asks if he took the damn bands off. Anakin shrugs, because he doesn't understand what's happening, and there is despairing cursing. Someone tells him he doesn't know what he's done.

He finally gets a council pulled together. And someone finally, haltingly, explains that Obi-Wan has been in the castle since Qui-Gon was much younger. Only recently King, stepping into his father’s position, a man with two sons and a growing kingdom.

There'd been...problems. With the folk of the forest. What folk, Anakin wants to know, because he's never heard of any folk living in the trees. They're empty. Barren.

No, one of his advisors tells him, they've just been waiting. Held back. Because Qui-Gon managed to find a way to protect them all, to keep them safe. The folk of the forest left them be while they held Obi-Wan. Left them alone for decades.

Anakin has to process that his oldest companion was, apparently, either a hostage or a prisoner or....something, while his advisors bemoan the fact that Anakin freed Obi-Wan and doomed them all, no doubt.

Anakin doesn't understand why they were fighting in the first place. They tell him stories about the folk of the forest being murderous and soulless, thieves of children, vicious, bloodthirsty.

He points out that Obi-Wan didn't really seem like any of those things and they claim it was the iron, the touch of it tamed him. There are a few men who remember when Qui-Gon dragged Obi-Wan back from the woods.

He was a wild thing, they say, all tangled hair and gnashing teeth, biting and scratching as they held him down, arms and legs pinned to cold stone, and closed the bands around his wrists. Civilizing him.

Anakin has nothing but their word to go on, though he's confused as to why the folk of the forest would leave them alone just over one person. No one gives him a straight answer about that. They're like who knows why they do anything? We have other things to worry about! Like the fact that they're probably going to attack us!

There are some very concerning sounds coming from the forest. Storm clouds building on the horizon and whispers stealing in through the wind.

Anakin decides he's going to go find out what's going on, over many, many protests. He does, eventually, agree to take a small army with him. His most trusted knights and warriors.

And they ride into the woods, which seem....unwelcoming in a way that Anakin has never known them to be. He sees moving things, always out of the corners of his eyes, hears noises, feels the branches scraping along his helm and his shoulders.

They're very deep in the woods when someone notices that the trail behind them is gone.

They try to find their way back, to no avail. Try to find water and have no luck. Someone climbs a tree to get a look and the forest seems....much much bigger than it should be. There's no sign of a border.

Anakin listens to the news with the hair rising on the back of his neck, turns around at the cool prickling of it, and barely gets his sword up in time to block a blow.

He doesn't recognize the warriors closing around them. They almost blend into the trees, all in greens and browns and creams, fast and silent, a blade an inch away from one of his knight's throats when someone - a familiar voice - orders it to stop.

And Anakin almost doesn't recognize Obi-Wan when he turns to look.

He's shed the robes and linens he wore in the city, revealing his skin and the whorls painted - maybe tattooed, Anakin can't tell - across it. The tips of his ears look different, his eyes look brighter. His teeth, do, perhaps, look sharper.

There are still bands of black around his wrists.

And he wants to know what, exactly, Anakin is doing in the woods.

Anakin says he just wants to know what's going on, why Obi-Wan left. Why he was....really there in the first place.

And Obi-Wan considers him. He's known Anakin for so long, known him since he was a giggling child who loved petting the castle's cats, a youth frustrated when he didn't learn things as quickly as he wanted, a new and unsure king.

Obi-Wan tilts his head to the side and tells him he won't like the story.

Anakin rolls his eyes, ignoring the very real threat in the air all around them, and reminds Obi-Wan that he's always liked Obi-Wan's stories.

Obi-Wan stares a moment longer - he doesn't seem to blink anymore - and finally agrees to talk to Anakin. Alone. The rest of them are to throw down their weapons. Anakin agrees over the protests of his knights and warriors, who are vehemently opposed to him going over with one of the fair folk.

Anakin really hates being told what to do. He throws down his sword and follows Obi-Wan down a path through the trees, aware that people are watching them from the edges of the path, from the branches of the trees.

Obi-Wan eventually climbs up onto a tree stump to look at him, and asks what he's been told about why Obi-Wan was in the city. Anakin lays it out, far too impatient to think about lying, and Obi-Wan snorts out a laugh.

And tells a very different story, built on the same general bones. There was conflict between their people. Many years of it, as Anakin's predecessors slowly moved into the area. The disagreements worsened when one of Qui-Gon's sons fell in with a practitioner in the dark arts, and engaged in open aggression against them.

Things boiled over. Both sides took losses. The son died, on a battlefield, dark magics failing him.

And perhaps it would have ended there, but it didn't. Qui-Gon grew furious about the death of his son. The battles grew more serious. Anakin's people had not expected the force of the fair folk. They wanted to end things.

Qui-Gon ended them by dragging Obi-Wan off a battlefield. Stealing him away. Not content merely to grant him an honorable death. Binding him with iron. Keeping him from home and hearth for decades.

And when Anakin still can't understand why they'd care so much about Obi-Wan, he shrugs and says that perhaps Qui-Gon wanted a prince for a prince.

Anakin asks what Obi-Wan is going to do now, then, and Obi-Wan says that will depend on their conversation. At which point he stiffens and demands to know if this was all a ploy, then, to distract him, before pointing out the smoke on the horizon.

It turns out that the kingdom has started trying to burn the woods, attacking without Anakin’s orders.Anakin tries to convince Obi-Wan that he wasn't involved in the sudden attack. But even if Obi-Wan believes him, the rest of Obi-Wan's people are not going to be as trusting....

In fact, they don’t believe him at all. He’s King, and a King answers for the actions of their people. The guards with Obi-Wan get very intense about potentially executing Anakin, and Obi-Wan asks if they are truly suggesting causing any harm to his betrothed?

If they are, he says, he’ll be forced to take steps to...resolve the issue.

Anakin thinks he's bluffing, at first. So do the other fae folk in the area. But a small ritual reveals that there is a betrothal pledge in place, a contract between them. Obi-Wan’s folk subside, grips easing off of weapons, leaving Anakin unharmed.

And, later, when they're alone and people are reluctantly offering Anakin the treatment he should get as Obi-Wan's betrothed, he asks how Obi-Wan did that, why he did that.

Obi-Wan smiles at him, eyes sparkling, and tells Anakin that he did it, does he not remember? The offer of flowers and the leaves from a certain tree? Obi-Wan only accepted them. Anakin made the offer.

Anakin, shocked and trying to process this all, blurts something about how it can't be true, they haven't even so much as kissed. And gets an amused look for his trouble, before Obi-Wan puts a hand on Anakin's cheek, rocks up onto his toes, and kisses him, shifting back a moment later while Anakin is just staring at him, heart racing.

Obi-Wan says they have not the time to discuss it, at the moment, but he would not be opposed to a wedding on the winter solstice. Anakin can only ask why, still dazed, and Obi-Wan winks at him, tells him it is, after all, the longest night of the year.

Anakin sets that thought aside. There is a lot of other stuff happening. He needs to process the fact that the fair folk exist, that Obi-Wan is one of them, that he was kept a captive by Qui-Gon, that his own people are staging an attack without his permission….

He sends scouts to find out what is happening and eventually finds out that Palaptine has taken steps to convince everyone that Anakin is ensorcelled.

So they've got to fight, and it probably takes some time, there's lots of worries about betrayal. Discussions of what it felt like for Obi-Wan to live so long among humans. Discussions of what he actually is like. Anakin already had...feelings, and they’re getting increasingly more complicated by the day.

Anakin eventually asks about the iron bands and what the hell they did. Obi-Wan explains that they...cut him off. Made him feel as though he'd lost a sense or a limb. And hurt, always. Left him feeling like ants were crawling under his skin, like his bones were afire inside, for decades.

Anakin brushes his thumb across one of the dark lines that will - apparently - not go away. Asks how Obi-Wan didn't go mad, in such a situation. Obi-Wan says maybe he did - certainly, some of his people say he's gone mad, standing up for Anakin, trusting him - and Anakin shakes his head. Dares to curl his shoulders down while drawing Obi-Wan's wrist up, pressing the softest of kisses to the inside of his wrist, over the mark, with an apology on his lips for the sins of his father.

The first time they’ve kissed since Obi-Wan spoke of their betrothal.

Obi-Wan makes no protests, when Anakin trails kisses down his forearm. His breath hitches, instead. And perhaps Anakin would have continued, certainly he wanted to, were they not interrupted by more news of the fighting.

They are drawn apart. The fighting wages on. Eventually they find out Palpatine was the one who gave Qui-Gon the idea to bind Obi-Wan in such a way, had his own plans, and is trying to seize power. There are some battles. Obi-Wan makes it clear that he never wants to be contained by iron again. But does something incredibly reckless, anyway, probably to save Anakin, and ends up captured.

Everything comes to a head in a final brawl, probably in Anakin's castle, where he corners Palpatine, who orders Obi-Wan dragged in and he's... limp but not unconscious, unable even to pass out, because Palpatine put him in a shirt and pants of iron chainmail.

His eyes are huge and full of agony, his cheeks streaked with tears, but his jaw is clenched shut, holding in any screams that try to escape, as he refuses to give Palpatine the satisfaction.

Anakin snaps and manages to win the fight. He pulls the iron off, whispering words of comfort as he does. Obi-Wan is alive but fading quickly, passing out in Anakin’s arms. His people take him back, hoping they can treat him, and Anakin is left to pick up the pieces of everything broken while he was away, not even knowing if Obi-Wan survived.

Weeks pass.

They turn into months.

There are no further attacks from the fair folk. The harvest comes in. Anakin looks to the side, often, expecting to see Obi-Wan there, as ever he has been, and he is missing. He feels as though he is in mourning, and receives, eventually, an offer of marriage from the ruler of Naboo…

He sets it aside, though all his advisors tell him he should accept it, though he was very fond of Queen Amidala. He promises to consider it after the turning of the year, haunting the halls of his own palace as the days get shorter and colder.

It is nearly the darkest part of the year, when word comes of a delegation arriving from the forest. Anakin rushes out to meet them, finds them riding the strange, horned horses they favor. Finds Obi-Wan, sliding from his mount, looking wan and tired but alive and warm when Anakin grabs him and pulls him close, asking what he is doing, why he’s come

And Obi-Wan says that he could not very well miss his own wedding, could he?

#obikin #my writing #swords and magic and elves oh my #no major warnings #mentions of canon typical violence #less than wonderful qui-gon #some kissing #happy ending

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marvelgirl7 · 3 years ago

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Cocoa Memories

So me and @whimsicalrogers came up with this idea I hope everyone enjoys this happy but also angsty little fic.

Rowan is our lovely character that @whimsicalrogers and myself have came up with and are so excited to share with everyone a glimpse into Rowan :) she will be appearing a lot in future fics :)

Written for @the-ce-horniest-book-club‘s Festive Fall Theme

Theme: Hot Cocoa

Character: Ransom

If all things go well @whimsicalrogers and I have a little Ransom story in the works based off this little fic. :)

Warnings: Angst, Sadness, Hurt, Fluffy and some happiness

Parings: Ransom X Rowan

MoodBoard and divider made by the amazing and Super Talented @whimsicalrogers

His house may be big and fancy no expenses were spared on this place but there was always one thing missing well someone missing. Ransom sighs as he opens the cupboard reaching for a cup as a packet of swiss miss falls out. Ransom stops his eyes take in the package he runs his fingers over it.

“Marshmallows was always your favorite.” He whispers as he thinks back to those memories when his life made sense when he was happy and had the best person in his life.

13 years it’s been since he’s seen her his Ro.

-Flashback-

“Ran! I know you’re out here!” Rowan looks all around for him. She pouts it’s cold out here and she was wanting to enjoy her coco with Ransom.

“I’m going to leave without you Ran!” Rowan stomps her feet as she heads inside Ransom’s grandfather's house. She walks by a big pile of leaves.

A wild mess of dark locks jumps out of the pile and pounces on Rowan. She squeals as they fall to the ground.

“Pinned ya!” Ransom giggles quoting Lion King as they roll in the leaves together. Rowan laughs at him.

“Ran! You scared me!” He smiles at her his big blue eyes shine with so much affection towards her.

“Sorry, my bee.” He kisses her nose as he grabs her hands and holds her close. He stares into her big brown eyes as he smiles big. He notices her cheeks are getting red he frowns as he feels how cold she is.

“Oh, no let's get you warmed up.” Lacing his hands in hers he leads her inside.

“Cocoa time!” Rowan gets excited as Great Nana Thrombey, helps she smiles they were such cute, sweet kids. Out of all the grandkids her great-grandson had to be her favorite. He was such a sweet polite little boy who reminded her a lot of Harlen. She smiles watching as they make their cocoa.

“Whip cream Ro?” She nods smiling as Ransom gently swirls the mugs of cocoa. Great Nana Thrombey just smiles.

“I’ll be in my study if you two need anything.” Ransom smiles at her as she leaves them. Ro grabs a dab of whip cream and places it on the tip of his nose. Ransom laughs as they sip their cocoa together.

“Ro will you promise me we’ll always be like this just you and me forever?” Rowan smiles at him as his blue eyes glow. Rowan takes a hold of his hand she squeezes it as she smiles brightly at him.

“Forever and ever Ran. You’re my Ran for life.” She whispers as Ransom leans over and kisses her nose again.

“Forever my Bee.”

Ransom sighs as he sits at his counter staring at the packet of hot cocoa how he wished that would have been true. How he wishes Rowan and him would have been together forever.

When she moved away Rowan promised she’d write and call which she never did. Ransom always waited for a letter or a phone call but sadly they never came so, he gave up. The smiling happy little boy didn’t exist anymore, and Ransom became cold and cruel the asshole everyone knows.

Sure, they were young 13 and 14 when Rowan moved away. What did he expect? She dropped him as soon as she could.

Ransom just stares at the hot cocoa packet and frowns his heart turned cold losing his bee. She was always like a little honey bee buzzing around happy as ever. When she moved, she took all that joy and happiness with her.

Taking a breath, he picks up the hot cocoa packet and drops it in the trash. No more memories of Rowan today Ransom didn’t want all those painful thoughts to hit him. He needed a distraction as he grabs the keys to his Beamer and slipping on one of his wool coats he needed to bury himself into something else forget all these memories of her.

“Eat Shit.” He grumbles storming out of his house and squealing the tires as he drives out of his driveway.

Rowan sits at her favorite little coffee shop as Renee smiles at her as they talk about a fun weekend planned.

The waitress sits down their order as Rowan takes in the sight of the whipped cream mug of cocoa. Taking a deep breath, she brings the mug to her lips.

Images and memories of a brown-haired boy with big blue eyes flash in her mind as she thinks about him. Gently blowing on the drink she whispers to herself.

“I hope your happy and safe Ran wherever you are.”

Sorry for the angst ending there but if all goes well a future story is in the works all about them!

To be tagged send me an ask!

Tag List: @godofplumsandthunder, @hiddles-rose, @jobean12-blog, @jewels2876, @loricameback, @lizette50, @randomfandompenguin, @whimsicalrobots, @charmed-asylum, @marshyrebelcloud, @lostinthoughtsandfeelings, @jamesbarnesappreciationclub, @iluvsumbucky, @nohemi2500, @marvelfansworld, @the-wayward-robot, @captainchrisstan, @book-dragon-13 @film-enthusiastt, @marvelfansworld, @mostly-marvel-musings, @harrysthiccthighss, @omgbrianab, @unknownmystery22, @moonlacebeam, @vibraniumsergeant @emmabarnes @csigeoblue, @bbmommy0902, @evanstylestan @moonlacebeam , @onlyferorder66, @bbl32 @teenagedreams-bucky, @underdevelopedangst

#ransom drysdale fanfiction #ransom drysdale imagine #ransom drysdale x ofc #ransom drysdale x original female character #ransom x rowan #rowan #The CE HBC #hbc festive fall #ransom angst

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eyeofthedrgn · 3 years ago

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A Heavy Battle Symphony Chapter 16

Catch up here!

TW: language, mental abuse, verbal abuse, physical abuse, violence, depression, anxiety, panic attacks, self harm, self-esteem issues, sexual abuse (only alluded to briefly in future chapters), drinking (comes up late in the story) just a lot of trauma, angst, smut

word count: 1060

Notes: I feel like these chapters are really short now compared to my new fic. Anyway, things are going to get a little rocky for a bit. There's some good stuff in there too, but uh yeah. There's more hurt and angst a-comin'.

Chapter 16 - Crawling

Crawling in my skin

These wounds, they will not heal

Fear is how I fall

Confusing what is real

Lorcan was in the shop again. The window was open, the cool, evening spring breeze flowing through the room. It was peaceful. The unfinished box that Mr. Whitethorn had left was now finished and sat wrapped up in simple brown paper tied with string on the workbench, waiting for Mother's Day.

Barb may not be his mother, but she was the closest he ever had. She deserved this gift. Lorcan had gotten help from Rowan on stain choices and overall final design. So, he felt it was technically from both of them.

Mother's day came and went. It was a beautiful day filled with tears and hugs. Rowan was there via video call. Barb loved the box that encompassed her three favorite men. It now lived on the bookshelf in the living room where everyone could see it.

---

It was nearing July and the summer heat had finally made it to Orynth. Lorcan was having an off day. Maybe it was the heat, but he couldn't focus on the project he was working on which caused him to keep making mistakes. He was going to ask Barb if they could put a window air conditioner in the shop to help with the rest of the summer, but he never got that chance.

After giving up in the shop, he spent his afternoon cleaning the kitchen. Barb walked in with the mail in her hand, her purse still looped over her arm, shoes still on. Lorcan was finishing up when she had walked in. He dried his hands and asked her what was wrong.

All she did was give him a sad smile as she handed him a manila envelope. Lorcan took it and furrowed his brow. He never got mail. Except when Rowan was feeling like a romantic and sent him handwritten letters, all of which went to a box he had made for himself.

But this piece of mail was a punch in the gut. The return address was for the Morath Justice System. He knew he had a bad feeling about today.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Barb shuffled around him and she came back into view with a glass of wine.

"Do you want privacy, love?"

He just shook his head, then proceeded to open the envelope. The first page was a letter outlining the court date and that he was being asked to testify. The following pages were about the lawyer who had been appointed to him, and the charges against his aunt and Perrington.

Setting the papers down, he turned to the fridge and grabbed a soda. Opening it, he downed half of it and then leaned his forearms on the cool marble.

The court date was in a month.

One month.

Rowan walked in the door, he seemed chipper as he called for them. He had been at Aelin's with everyone enjoying their pool. Lorcan hadn't felt like being around that many people today. Or ever really, but sometimes he put up with it for Rowan.

After walking into the kitchen, he broke the silence by saying, "Who died?"

Lorcan huffed a laugh, then slid papers toward him. He watched those green eyes dart over the paper. "That's only a month away!" He kept reading, scowling at the papers in his hands.

"Well, shit. There goes our plans for the rest of the summer." Rowan had wanted to take Lorcan on a road trip. He wanted to take him to see Elide in Perranth, but it seemed that would have to wait.

"Your lawyer seems like a good one, though," he tapped the paper with his finger. "Nesta Archeron. That name seems familiar." He looked up, trying to think of why.

Barb chimed in, "Because she's an amazing lawyer who put away Graves, Tamlin Spring, Baron Vanserra, among others. She's a badass."

"Oh yeah!" Realization forming over his face.

"That's honestly comforting and terrifying all at once."

"Terrifying?" Lorcan didn't understand.

"Well, she probably gets threats a lot and her clients are probably put at a higher risk because of it." Lorcan's face paled. "Not that that's a problem here,” he added quickly.

"Rowan, shut up before you give the boy a panic attack."

Too late.

His chest felt tight, palms sweaty.

Rowan dragged his hands down his face in his stupidity for speaking before thinking. He walked over to Lorcan and started running his hands up and down his arms to try and calm the rush of emotions he caused. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. I'm sure everything will be fine."

After Lorcan came down from his mini panic attack. They ordered pizza and then watched movies all night. Lorcan was out after the first thirty minutes.

++++

Rowan was laying on the couch, head on the arm rest. Lorcan was laying on top of him, hips nestled between his legs, his arms wrapped under Rowan's back. His head over his heart.

Rowan was idly running his hands over his back, doing his best to soothe the worry that lined his sleeping face. His mom was sitting in her recliner reading over the papers again and on her laptop. He assumed she was doing research. She always went into situations knowing as much as she could.

The movie was over and Barb looked over at the boys. They were both asleep. She smiled at them. After gently tucking them in on the couch, she went off to bed.

++++

Lorcan startled awake.

"Wha's wrong?" Rowan immediately woke up when he felt Lorcan jolt awake. He noticed Lorcan was sweaty and panting. "I gotchu, love. It was just a nightmare."

"They found you," his voice sounded broken. Then a sob wracked his body.

"I'm fine. They didn't get me." He tightened his arms and for extra measure, wrapped his legs around Lorcan's hips. "'M right here, wrapped around you." He kissed the top of his head and tucked him in under his chin. "Everything is okay. I'm right here."

Rowan just held Lorcan and continued his comforting words until he finally felt sleep take over the man in his arms. Running his fingers through that silky, midnight hair, he just stared at the ceiling, hoping that everything would be okay.

___

Thanks for readings! Let me know if you'd like to be tagged.

@thenerdandfandoms @starlightorstarfire @tanvee1231

#rowcan #rowan x lorcan #rowcan fanfic #rowan whitethorn #lorcan salvaterre #linkin park #heavy battle symphony #crackship #throne of glass

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lifeofkaze · 4 years ago

Text

An Art of Balance #23

Orion Amari x MC

Warning: Mention of alcohol (I feel like this is getting out of hand)

Word Count: ~ 2.600

_______________________________________________

Chapter 23: The Morning After

After Rowan had left them, it had taken Lizzie a long time to stop crying. Orion had held her close the whole time, his hands stroking her back with soothing motions. His movements had stopped when she had told him the whole story in between her sobs, but still he hadn’t let go of her.

He had just watched her in silence until she had calmed down enough to think straight. When she had finally gathered enough courage to look him in the face, the sadness visible in his eyes had threatened to tear her apart once more.

“Why did you lie to me?” It was apparent that Orion tried to keep his voice level, but Lizzie could feel the hurt and disappointment ringing in his words. He had said so himself; he had trusted her.

Ashamed of herself, she cast down her eyes and shook her head. “How could I have told you the truth?” she whispered into the darkness surrounding them. They were sitting far from any place the silver light of the moon could reach.

Orion took his time to answer. “I don’t know; I just wish you had.”

Lizzie felt like crying once again, but there was not a single tear left she hadn’t shed already; she felt empty inside. “Me too.”

They had walked back to the Common Room in silence, but it couldn’t have been a greater contrast to the way they had wandered the castle earlier. Where it had been a comfortable silence before, it now hung heavy between them, neither of them knowing what to say.

Lizzie desperately wished for him to say something, anything, to let her know he understood and everything would be okay; but Orion remained silent until they reached the Common Room.

They had been gone longer than what Lizzie had thought; all the lights were extinguished and the fire was burning low in the fireplace, casting the tiniest flickers of light over the few remaining figures sleeping in armchairs or on some of the sofas.

It brought back the memory of another time they had found themselves alone in here in the middle of the night. Lizzie remembered bitterly how much she had hoped Orion would catch on to her words and give her the opportunity to tell him the truth; but he hadn’t and she had been too much of a coward to break both of their hearts on her own accord.

“You should get some sleep now,” Orion told her quietly. He pulled her into a hug and Lizzie closed her eyes as she rested her cheek against his chest, not wanting the moment to end. “Get some rest and we’ll talk tomorrow.”

She reluctantly let go of him as she registered the shift in his position towards the entrance door. “What are you doing?”

He brushed a rogue strand of her hair out of her face as he looked ponderingly down at her. “Both our spirits are troubled with what has happened. Sometimes being alone is the best way to bring order into the chaos of the mind.”

And with that, he left her alone with the dying fire and her burning conscience.

Lizzie felt completely exhausted from both the physical exhaustion of playing Quidditch and the onslaught of emotions raging inside her. She actually contemplated going to bed for a moment, but with all the thoughts running through her mind on repeat, she knew there was not the slightest chance to find sleep anytime soon.

Besides, Rowan would probably be up in their dorm by now. Lizzie shuddered at the thought of confronting her friend over the mess she had created. She knew she would have to eventually, but not tonight. Orion was right; she should probably try to get some rest.

She wandered over to the big sofa in front of the fire place. Brian, the Hufflepuff Keeper, was slumping in an armchair close to it; he was fast asleep, nestling a half empty bottle of Firewhiskey in the crook of his arm.

Careful not to wake him, she pried the bottle from his hands, swaying it lightly as she contemplated her options. The amber liquid inside sloshed back and forth, illuminated by the dim light of the fire.

Lizzie shrugged before she settled on the couch, staring into the flames. It wasn’t like the night could get worse anyway.

The first sip she took had her coughing and grimacing at the sharp taste that set her mouth on fire. The second one was equally as bad. But as she took a third, fourth and fifth sip directly out of the bottle, it finally brought her the comfortable numbness she had been hoping for.

Snuggling deeper into the cushions, she watched as the fire burned out, slowly but surely drifting into a blissfully oblivious sleep.

Lizzie woke to an incredibly stiff neck and a mouth dry as parchment. Her head felt stuffy and she tried as hard as she could to hold onto the dream she’d had.

It had been a nice dream; someone had sat beside her in the darkness, gently stroking her hair and covering her with something warm and fuzzy. Her eyes still closed, Lizzie sighed sleepily and snuggled deeper into her blanket. The smell of ginger, patchouli and cilantro brought a dreamy smile to her face.

After a moment, her brow furrowed. This was not what her blanket smelled like; in fact, this wasn’t what her bed felt like either. Reluctantly, she opened her eyes the tiniest bit and glanced at her arm resting next to her head, almost disappearing in a dark brown sleeve that was way too long to be her own.

As the realisation of what she was wearing hit her, Lizzie abruptly jerked upright. She regretted the sudden motion immediately as the Common Room started spinning around her and a searing pain shot through her temples down into her clenched jaws. With a groan, she let herself fall backwards onto the couch and closed her eyes again.

With the pain in her head, the memories of the night before returned to her.

Incredulous of what she had done, she covered her face with her hands as she remembered she and Orion racing through the nightly hallways, their conversation on top of the Astronomy Tower and the way time had seemed to stop as they had kissed. Even now, Lizzie felt the butterflies dancing in her stomach and her heart was beating faster at the memory of how perfect his lips had felt against hers.

But she also remembered how she had watched Rowan’s heart break right in front of her, as well as her bitter accusations; the pain she had caused her friend left her chocked up with a sour taste in her mouth.

Lizzie sat up again, this time considerably slower and untangled herself from the colourful quilt laying across her body; she didn’t even remember getting it before she had passed out. She carefully stood up, gripping the backrest for support as her head started spinning again.

She waited until the nauseous feeling had passed before she gingerly tapped into the direction of the dormitories. She noted how clean the Common Room was despite the raging party going down the night before; she was the only one in the room as well. It must have been already pretty late in the day for no one to be here. Sure enough, the big grandfather clock in one the reading nooks told her it wasn’t long until breakfast would be over.

When she entered her dorm, Lizzie was glad to find it almost empty. Neither Rowan, Penny nor Tonks were anywhere to be seen; only Skye was still lying in her bed, her black and blue mess of a hair sticking up in all directions. Her mouth was hanging open and she was snoring softly.

Lizzie tiptoed over to her own bed and shrugged out of Orion’s coat. The fire in their wood stove must have gone out some time during the night, leaving the room defenceless against the cold from the stone walls. The fine hairs on Lizzie’s arms immediately stood on end at the contact with the cool air.

She missed the warmth of the heavy fabric as she hung it over the end of her bed. Seeing it lying there on her yellow quilt brought back the reality of what she had done, even more forceful than before.

Lizzie stared at the coat Orion was so rarely seen without but in her mind the scenes of last night were playing again. If she concentrated enough, she could still taste his soft lips brushing over her own, feel his breath on her neck. She remembered how his strong hands had felt on her waist, her back, in her hair and had to suppress a shudder as her body started tingling at the memory.

The sensation died in its tracks as her gaze fell onto her nightstand. Between the pictures of her friends, family and the Quidditch team, one was missing. The picture of Rowan and her she had gotten for Christmas lay on the ground between their beds, the glass of the cover broken into countless shards scattered over the floor.

Suddenly feeling empty inside, Lizzie bent down to pick it up; she was forced to grab onto the edge of her bed as another rush of vertigo made the room sway in front of her eyes. When everything had settled again, she saw Mouse had jumped on her bed and gotten comfortable on Orion’s coat. Her green eyes followed the unsteady movements of her owner as Lizzie started looking for her washbag with what seemed like disdain.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Lizzie snapped, “I know I botched it big time, alright?”

But Mouse was already asleep again, clearly not caring very much for the misery of her human.

Shutting the door of the bathroom behind her, Lizzie waited until steam was hanging in the air until she stepped under the scalding hot shower. She tried not to flinch away from the initial feeling of pain as the hot water hit her cold skin but soon found her tense muscles relaxing as she let the water wash over her.

Her friends were always joking about how hot Lizzie liked her shower but she didn’t care. She concentrated on the stinging sensation on her skin as the heat returned to her body. It allowed her to tune out all of her other thoughts. For a few divine moments, she felt nothing but warmth and the release of the tension inside her shoulders.

She relished the feeling of the trickle running down her spine until the water slowly started getting colder. When it became too cold for her to stand, Lizzie stepped out of the shower again, careful not to fall on the slippery tiles.

Her skin was flushed a deep red, making all the cuts and bruises she’d taken back from the pitch even more sensitive. She winced as she wrapped herself in a huge fluffy towel and stepped in front of the fogged mirror.

Lizzie couldn’t help the wry smile forming on her lips as she took in her ghastly reflection. Her wet hair hung around her face that still looked oddly pale, despite the boiling hot water. Her eyes had huge dark shadows laying underneath them, making her look more dead than alive.

Her cheeks blushed as she saw the trace of small red love bites on her collarbone, quickly pushing the thought of how exactly they got there out of her mind. The embarrassment faded as she inspected the huge, black bruise on her sternum, however. It had the shape of a star and the memory of Rowan’s spell hitting her body hurt her more than the rubbing of the towel against her battered skin ever could.

But sulking about what had been said and done wouldn’t help her solve the situation. Although she looked like death and felt even worse, the least she could do was set things right again.

Lizzie quickly put on enough make up to not be mistaken for one of the Hogwarts ghosts anymore and changed into her most comfortable pair of jeans and an old, worn out black sweater that hung loose around her body. She tried pulling her hair up into a pony tail, but the way her hair band pulled at her roots only intensified the pain inside her hammering head, so she just left it as it was.

When she left the bathroom again, she found Skye sitting up in her bed, looking about as fresh as Lizzie felt herself. She was swaying a tiny little bottle with her right hand as if not quite sure whether she should drink its contents or not. It was their own version of a Pepper-Up Potion; Penny had found a way to modify it some time ago. Instead of healing a common cold, it was the girls’ first choice of remedy against a nasty hangover.

Skye tipped the potion into her mouth and closed her eyes as the effect hit. She opened her mouth and blew out the steam that was a by-product of the concoction. She pursed her lips to form it into a ring and laughed as it drifted towards the ceiling.

“Morning,” she greeted Lizzie with a grin, her voice still raspy from drinking and the potion. “What a party, huh?”

Lizzie only hummed in response; she wasn’t in the mood for recounting last night’s highlights. She went over to the drawer where Penny kept her potions and grimaced as she found it empty.

“Sorry, got the last one right there,” Skye grinned. “Damn, you do look like you’d have needed it, Jameson. When did you get so wasted? Last time I saw you- “

She stopped there, suddenly looking at her quizzically. “Come to think of it, where were you the whole time? Didn’t see you anywhere.”

Lizzie avoided her eyes and busied herself with looking for a pair of sneakers in the chaos of her cupboard. “The crowd was a bit too much, I needed some fresh air to think,” she mumbled.

Skye snickered. “You’re starting to sound like Orion, you know.” She fell silent as her own words sunk in and she saw Lizzie blushing despite her best efforts. Her gaze shifted to the brown coat still lying on Lizzie’s bed. Now fully awake, her eyes went wide.

“Jameson, whose coat is that?”

Lizzie grimaced. “I don’t want to talk about it,” she deflected the question as she put her shoes on but Skye wasn’t so easily put off. She swung her legs out of her bed and got up; like Lizzie before, she was wobbly on her knees and had to hold onto her bedpost for a second.

“You’re going to tell me what happened, right now,” she cried as she tried to steady herself.

Lizzie had wanted to leave the coat in their dorm until she found a quiet moment to return it to Orion without anyone noticing. But with Skye on her trail, that was out of the question. With a sigh, she folded it up and shoved it under her arm. Skye was still waiting for her answer, though.

“I’m talking to you, you know?” she complained while she was still trying to get her body under control.

But Lizzie only rolled her eyes. “Sod off, Parkin.”

Without another word, Lizzie left their room and shut the door in Skye’s incredulous face.

#hphm #hogwarts mystery #quidditch #orion amari #orion amari x mc #art of balance #aob #lizzie jameson #the quidditch squad

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cordonian-literature · 4 years ago

Text

The Aftermath - Ch. 14

Goodbye, NYC

SUMMARY: The group leaves for Cordonia

Word Count: ~3.8k

Warnings: Mention of character death

A/N: i am soooo sorry that i haven’t updated as regularly, i’ve been pretty drained this past week but hopefully it won’t happen again. & also i just wanted to give my thanks to each and every one of you for all the comments, likes, & reblogs. it means more than you all could know <3

*All characters belong to Pixelberry, except those that are unique to my story (I've also used some characters and fictional instances from Donna Tartt's "The Goldfinch")*

Catch up here!

Tags: @captain-kingliamsqueen @marshmallowsaremyfavorite @gkittylove99 @lovablegranny @loudbluebirdlover @mom2000aggie @kingliam2019 @queenrileyrose @shanzay44 @cordonianroyalty @hopefulmoonobject @hopelessromanticmonie @cinnamonspongecake @queenjilian @kuladekiwi @twinkle-320 @iaminlovewithtrr @charlotteg234 @amandablink @texaskitten30 @tinkie1973 @louiseingram1208 @queencatherynerhys @pens-girl-87 @missevabean @ladyangel70 @sanchita012 @cordonianprincess

I hope I got everyone tagged! If I missed anyone, or anyone wants to be added/removed, let me know!

✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧

- Eleanor -

Today was our last day of school since we were all leaving for Cordonia tomorrow. When Rowan dropped us off, she told us that it was okay to feel sad about leaving. That made me think I was going to tear up when I would have to say goodbye to all my friends, but surprisingly, it wasn't that difficult, considering that I knew I would never see these people again in my life.

When Rowan picked us back up, I decided to ask Gabe how his day had gone. Ever since that dinner with Mama and Liam, he had been distant. And honestly, that upset me.

All of the adults had were occupied lately, helping Mama get to her appointments and trying to make her feel better. Grandma and Rowan had been helping us pack, and Rowan was always busy trying to make sure that Grandma didn't change her mind about us going with Liam. So since everyone else had something to do, I only had Gabe to spend the day with, and now that Gabe was distancing himself from me, I was technically alone.

Rowan opens up the door to our penthouse, telling us to go inside. She said that she would be back in a couple of hours and had to go home and pack (since Grandma decided that the only way she was going to let us go was if Rowan came with us). I closed the door and turned to tell Gabe about my day, but he had disappeared.

I walked into the living room, finding it empty. I heard voices from the dining room, but I didn't feel like talking to Liam's friends at the moment, so I go towards our bedrooms, leaving my backpack next to the couch.

Once I reach Gabe's door, I knock. I hear him cough from the other side, so I try to open the door, but the handle doesn't turn.

"Gaaaaabbbeee!" I call to him. "Please don't lock yourself in your room again!"

"Go away!" he shouts at me. "Leave me alone! And stop being annoying!"

I shake the door handle a few more times, to which Gabe responds, "Stop it! Don't break my door!"

"I won't break it if you open it!" I call back.

"No!"

I feel tears burning at the backs of my eyes. If Gabe wasn't going to talk to me, who was? Everyone else in the house was busy. And all I wanted was to talk about my day at school.

I look around me at the empty hallway and suddenly feel so alone. I feel empty, but at the same time, I feel like there are so many emotions inside of me that I was going to burst.

So... if Gabe wasn't going to talk to me, and I had said goodbye to all of my friends in school today... did that mean that I really had no companions to speak with anymore?

I feel so far away from everyone else. I couldn't go into the dining room with everyone because I didn't belong there (and they probably didn't want a crying baby to ruin the mood), and I couldn't go to Gabe either because he didn't want me near him.

I had never really felt lonely before. Friendly people always surrounded me, and there was still a shoulder for me to cry on. Now there was no one and nothing.

If I felt like this at home in New York... then would I feel worse in Cordonia? Where I didn't know what the houses or apartments looked like, how the other kids acted, how their subways worked?

Suddenly I didn't want to leave. I wanted to stay. I wanted the loneliness to go instead of me. Why did Gabe want me to be alone? Weren't we supposed to be in this together?

I ball my fists and start pounding on Gabe's door, and eventually start crying, too. The tears blur my vision, and I couldn't even see the outline of the door, but as long as my hand hurt a little when it made contact with whatever was in front of me, I took that as a good sign.

I was about to start kicking the door, but a pair of large, soft hands grab my arms and pin them to my sides. The person turns me towards them, and I come face-to-face with Liam. His eyebrows are slightly furrowed, and the corners of his mouth tilt downwards in concern.

I stop crying for a moment, allowing the remaining tears in my eyes to fall so that I could fully see Liam.

Daddy used to make the same expression that was on Liam's face, and for half a second, I actually see my father instead of Liam. Even though Liam's hair was blond and his eyes are blue, while Daddy's hair was dark brown, and his green eyes were always on the other side of a pair of glasses — their expressions are frighteningly similar. I have to stop myself from referring to Liam as my father.

And that took a lot of energy. I take a shaky breath to stop the words from escaping, and when I see Daddy again after Liam's eyes twitch, I bury my face in Liam's neck and continue crying.

"Oh, Ella, it's alright." He wraps his arms around me, which is so comforting that I start crying even harder. I missed having someone envelop me such safe hugs. Liam rubs a hand along my back. "It's alright. You're alright, I'm here."

I hear the click of a lock and know that Gabriel has opened his door. I can't see him, but I feel Liam's neck crane upward to look at Gabe.

"Sorry, Ella," my brother says. "I didn't realize you were outside."

"You're lying," I mumble into Liam's neck.

Liam sighs but keeps me in his arms until my crying subsides. I hear Gabe retreat into his room again. Liam pats my back, and I remove myself from his embrace to follow my brother into his room, wiping my tears on my sleeve, my bout of angry sadness over.

Gabe is on his bed, playing with his Nintendo Switch. I can't tell what game he's playing, but I hear the animated characters' grunts and catchphrases. Looking around his room, I see that the shelves along the walls of the room are half empty. There were open suitcases in front of his closet, which still had a few clothes that needed to be packed. (Thankfully, Grandma had already helped me pack all of my things, so I didn't have to worry about my own clothes).

I look at Gabe, wondering if he would talk to me now. Understanding that he wasn't going to glance up from his game, I'm about to ask him if I can use his PlayStation before he puts it away, but Liam speaks up.

"I know it must be difficult for both of you—" he stares at Gabe, trying to get his attention, "—having to leave your home and everything you know to start living in a foreign country. It's not going to be the same there as it is for you here." His shoulders are tense, and he pulls his hand behind his back. Liam seems uncomfortable, and it's not a good look for him. "You will also spend a lot of time under public attention, and that may be difficult to adjust to. I want you both to know that if there's anything you need, I'll always be there to help you through it."

"Yeah, you said that already," Gabe mumbles, still playing his game.

Liam's face falls. He opens his mouth a little but then closes it again. Liam turns to look at me, and I smile at him.

He hesitates for another moment before saying, "How was school today, Eleanor?"

"It was nice!" I tell him, suddenly giddy with excitement, remembering all the events of the day. "My teacher told the gym teacher that today was my last day, and so the gym teacher brought out these scooters that we had to sit on, and we played football on the scooters! And then look!" I hold out my finger to him, and he cups my hand in his to bring it closer to his face. "My team was about to win, and I had the ball, but then this girl from the other team, Veronica, who doesn't like me, made her scooter go over my finger and then my nail broke a little bit and started bleeding a little and then I had to go to the nurse, and the nurse gave me a lollipop! I would give it to you, but I ate it already. Sorry."

He looks back at my face, gently running his thumb over my bandaged finger. One corner of Liam's mouth lifts, and he says, "That's alright. It seems like you had an exciting day. Did Veronica get in trouble?"

"Nuh-uh," I exclaim, shaking my head. "She rolled away. And then when I came back from the nurse, everyone was waiting because we had to go back to our class and when we got there the teacher gave us pizza and tiny cupcakes! But then I had to say goodbye to everyone, and it was sad."

He kneels down on one knee so that our faces are at the same level. "Well, I know it must be upsetting to say goodbye to your friends, but I'm sure you'll make new ones in Cordonia."

I shrug, not really believing him.

"Oh, don't be like that. I know many children in court that would love to be your friend!"

"Like who?" I ask him.

"Well..." he looks away, deep in thought. "How about Bartie?"

"Bartie never wants to do anything!" I tell him.

"And all he does," Gabe speaks up, finally putting his game down, "is walk around saying, 'I mustn't, Your Highness. No, thank you, Your Highness.' He's so boring. And why does he call me that? My name is Gabriel."

I notice that Gabe put his Switch on the bed, so I run for it and start trying to play the game.

Liam stands and comes to sit on the edge of the bed. "Since we are going to announce to the public that you are my son, you will be anointed as my heir and will be the Crown Prince. Whenever someone speaks to you, they will refer to you as 'Your Highness.'"

"Why?" Gabe asks. He leans into my side, trying to see what I'm doing in the game. I make my character, a really buff dude with a red headband, jump around other characters who are chasing him.

"That's how it works," Liam states. "They refer to their king and queen as 'Your Majesty,' whose Latin root word is 'greatness.' They call the prince or princesses 'Your Highness,' because of their high status. Bartie is accustomed to a life of formality, so it's natural for him."

"So...," Gabe turns to Liam, "they call you 'Your Majesty' because you're the king, right?"

"Nuh-uh!" I exclaim. Liam chuckles, and when I turn to look at him and laugh along, the Nintendo Switch vibrates, and a man's voice from the game screams 'GAME OVER!'

Gabe takes the device from my hands and starts another game. Liam points at Gabe's suitcases. "Do you need any help packing the rest of your things?"

"Nah, I'm good. Grandma said she'd give me a hand with everything that's left," Gabe responds. As an afterthought, he adds, "Thank you, though."

Liam gives a small nod. "Well, then... I wanted to let you both know that I am leaving for Cordonia today."

Gabriel looks up. "I thought we were all leaving together?"

"Yes, but since the press doesn't know that you're my son, we have to be discreet and enter the country at different times to make sure news or rumors don't get out before we're ready to give an announcement."

"So when are we going to see you?" I ask.

"A few days after you settle in with the Beaumonts, I'll come to see how you are all doing, and I'll bring you back to the capital for the social season."

"That's the thing you were asking Mama about?" I question.

He gives a small smile. "Yes, your mother has gone through the social season before."

Bastien interrupts our little conversation by knocking on the door. "Your Majesty," he says. "The jet should be ready now. Shall we depart?"

"Yes, thank you for alerting me, Bastien." Liam stands and turns back to us. "I'll see you two very soon."

"Okay!" I exclaim, getting off of the bed to give Liam a hug.

He puts a hand on my head, and when I back away, he tells me, "If there are any mean Veronicas in Cordonia, promise you'll tell me if they bother you?"

I laugh a little and then promise.

When we part, I see Gabe and Liam stare at each other awkwardly, but neither of them makes a move. After a few moments, Gabriel lifts his hand in farewell. Liam smiles and nods, and then leaves.

For a few more minutes, I watch Gabe play, waiting for him to give me a turn. Before he gets a chance to start the game again and give it to me, we hear his phone vibrating from the inside of his backpack. When he crosses the room to take it out, before answering it, he tells me, "It's Uncle Boris!"

Uncle Boris was Daddy's college friend, and also our Godfather. We hadn't seen him in a while. He was traveling around Europe for business and to spend time with his wife and kids. We were actually supposed to visit him a couple weeks ago, but because of the bombing, we couldn't.

Gabe answers the phone and puts it on speakerphone. We both huddle in front of it and a nostalgic joy vibrates in my heart when I hear Uncle Boris' thick Russian accent call out, "Hello, zayats!"

We giggle at the nickname that hasn't worn off since Gabe lost his front teeth (when they came back in, Uncle Boris had commented that he looked like a little rabbit), and then in union we say, "Hi, Uncle Boris!"

"Rowan tells me today was last day of school for you two?" he asks us in his broken English.

"Yeah," Gabe answers. "We're leaving for Cordonia."

"Cordonia, eh?" (He pronounces it 'CARdonia'). "That is not an hour's flight from where I am!"

"Really?" I ask. "Are you going to visit us? Can you please visit us?"

"If your Mama allows, then yes, I visit. But what you children go to Cordonia for?"

"Because apparently Liam is Gabe's dad that Mama never told us about," I ramble, "and since Daddy's not here anymore and Mama doesn't have a lot of her memory, we have to go with him and his friends."

"Liam?" Uncle Boris questions. "Liam, who?"

"Uh." Gabe frowns. "I don't know his last name. But he says he's a king."

"Which is fake!" I blurt out. "I bet he's lying about it."

"Ah!" Uncle Boris exclaims. "King Liam! Yes, yes, your mother tell me and Potter about him." (Uncle Boris has always called Daddy 'Potter' because Daddy's glasses used to remind Uncle Boris of Harry Potter). "What he wants?"

"He's bringing us to Cordonia with him," Gabe states.

"Pfft. Nonsense king. Bringing small child to foreign country to keep stupid monarchy alive. You know why countries have no more monarchy? Take Russia as example—."

He continues rambling, and I genuinely think he doesn't remember he's talking to us. Gabe looks up at me and whispers, "I think he's drunk!" He coughs loudly into his elbow, and the vibration I hear from the back of his throat tells me the cough was genuine. But Uncle Boris doesn't seem to notice and keeps talking.

I cover my mouth and giggle. There's another knock on the door, and we turn to see Rowan, followed by Maxwell.

"What's up, baby blossoms?" Maxwell calls to us.

In a loud whisper, Gabe responds, "Talking to Uncle Boris!"

"It's okay," Rowan says, grabbing the phone and taking it off of speakerphone. "I've got this. There's food for you guys if you want something to eat?"

"C'mon, blossoms!" Maxwell exclaims, leading us towards the dining room. "Are you guys excited to get to Cordonia tomorrow?"

We shrug and nod, trying our best to seem somewhat enthusiastic.

"Aw, don't worry. I'm sure you'll love it when you finally get there. Your mom came to adore it after just spending a short time there." He pauses for a moment, then lowers his voice before continuing, and I don't think Gabe and I are meant to hear what he said when he goes, "That's why it was so much of a surprise when she left."

Gabe and I share a worried glance. In the short time that we had known Maxwell, he was always cheerful. But his last sentence was carried out with a heavy voice. "At least it's good that she's finally going back?" Gabe states, accidentally making it sound like a question.

Maxwell looks down at him, patting Gabe's head. "It sure is, baby blossom. It sure is."

- Drake -

The day after Liam left, the Beaumonts, Drake, Rowan, Riley, and her kids were all in the airport waiting for the pilot to get ready. Liam had told Drake before leaving that he thought it would be best if he went back home with the Beaumonts so he could help Riley and the kids settle in. Drake wanted to tell him that he already decided that, but he believed that it would be best not to agitate Liam, who was already stressed.

When it was time to finally get on the jet, Drake tells Maxwell to grab Riley's crutches before she can reach them. Drake then offers to carry Riley in his arms to help her board the plane.

She blushes and argues that she can do it herself, but then accepts after Drake persists. Her kids follow closely behind, not taking their eyes off of their mother.

Inside, he puts her down and takes the seat right next to her, while the kids take the seats in front of them. While everyone else settles in, Drake notices Riley moving around.

"You good, Brooks?" he asks her.

"Yeah," she says. "My leg's making me a bit uncomfortable, though."

"The doctor said that you had to keep it elevated. Here." Drake gently grabs her injured leg and sets it down on his knee. "That better?"

"Yeah, thanks." She smiles at him.

For the rest of the plane ride, Riley goes in and out of naps, resting her head on Drake's shoulder. The children talk with Rowan and Maxwell, who seem to be getting friendly with one another. Bartie stares out of the window for the most part but does his best to include himself in conversations with Gabriel and Eleanor. Savannah and Bertrand murmur amongst themselves, and occasionally Bertrand stands to make sure that Riley's doing alright.

Drake sits silently, glancing at Riley while she slept, doing his best not to remind himself of the first time he and Maxwell had brought her to Cordonia.

He promised himself that he would do everything that he could to make sure there would be no repeat of the social season or the Engagement Tour.

I'll be damned if I let the court ruin Riley and her kids, he thinks to himself.

Drake watches Maxwell teach Gabriel and Eleanor a game he just created. When he glances out the window, Drake takes a moment to stare at the expanse of water that had separated him from Riley for so long. He checks the time, trying to estimate when they would be able to view Cordonia out the window, hoping to wake Riley to let her see the shore. He hated that she still didn't remember any of them; there were still so many questions they needed to ask her.

He stares down at her sleeping face, and for a moment, his heart aches for everything that she's gone through. There's a sense of guilt that vibrates within him, for everything that he did and didn't do. And there's also... reluctance. He's almost scared to bring her back, to bring happiness back. They had all spent so much time in a deep hole of 'if only' that leaving the hole felt unnatural. Eventually though, that all fades away as Drake drifts into sleep, Riley's peaceful features having allured him.

- Bastien -

Due to unpredictable weather the night before, King Liam's jet was unable to take flight for Cordonia when he had wished it to. The delay lasted for hours, and King Liam's aircraft was finally in the air only an hour before the Beaumont's plane was predicted to take off. Liam told Bastien it would be best not to tell the Beaumont's about his delay, seeing that they still had to give off the illusion that everyone was arriving from a different place, but Bastien saw the reluctance in his king's eyes; the man wanted to go with them, but couldn’t.

As King Liam's jet lands in the capital, Bastien sends a radio message to the rest of the King's Guard to keep away paparazzi and to make sure there was no threat in any surrounding areas. Near the entrance of the airport, there's a limo waiting for the king. Bastien opens the door for Liam, then goes to sit in the front.

He sends out another message to the guards still in the palace, alerting them that the king was returning, and reminding them to report anything pressing. Bastien receives messages stating that there was nothing eventful going on, except small preparations for the social season. Bastien breathes out, glad that his king would not have more to bother him.

When they reach the palace, Bastien jumps out of the car and follows King Liam, who is already through the entrance.

There's noise on the other end of his earpiece, and Bastien is about to ignore it and shut it off before a female guard's voice states, "Alert His Majesty that he has someone waiting to speak to him."

Bastien doesn't say anything back into the radio, since King Liam was walking right beside him. Before Bastien can tell his king the news, the woman's voice sounds again.

"Bas, can you hear me? Prince Leo wants His Majesty to know that he's waiting to talk to him. He says it's important."

#the royal romance #choices trr #trr fanfic #trr fandom #the royal romance fanfic #choices fanfiction #trr #trr liam x mc #liam x riley #trr fanfiction

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theladyofdeath · 5 years ago

Text

After the Fall {1}

Throne of Glass fanfiction.

Warning: mature content throughout.

Centered dominantly around Aelin + Rowan, Lysandra + Aedion. Others make appearances throughout.

Click here for the masterlist.

Arobynn didn’t say a word.

Aelin sat in anxiety-ridden anticipation.

“Say something,” Aelin begged, and wasn’t sure why she cared so much what his reaction would be.

She had never cared before what he thought. He didn’t want her, anyway. He only allowed the girls to stay because it was his late wife’s wish.

“Whose is it?” He asked, at last, with a deadly calm.

Aelin didn’t answer.

Arobynn’s fist hit the counter, making Aelin jump. “Damn it! Whose is it?!”

His name didn’t come out. “I don’t know,” she lied.

Arobynn spun around, hatred lighting up his grey eyes. “Whore.”

Aelin lifted her chin, as if the word wasn’t a slap in the face.

“I’ll make you an appointment at the clinic,” he spat.

“I haven’t decided yet what I’m going to-“

“I’ll set the appointment.”

And with that, he left, leaving Aelin sitting at the kitchen table alone.

Arobynn slammed the door behind him on the way out.

Aelin didn’t flinch.

. . . . . .

Aelin was surrounded by shit.

Arobynn had been a hoarder.

A foul, abusive asshole of a parent and a hoarder.

“We leave in half an hour!” Lysandra called from the kitchen.

“I can wear my sweatpants, right?” Aelin called back.

She heard Lysandra laugh, forcing her own smile to spread.

“Why are we even going?” Aelin asked, not bothering to go through anything she promised to go through. A heavy feeling set into the pit of Aelin’s stomach.

“Because we’re expected to,” Lysandra replied. “And I want to be the first to spit on his coffin.”

Aelin felt the same, although she would never have the nerve.

Not after everything that had happened.

Besides, she had other reasons for wanting to go to the cemetery. And for those reasons, she would stand by Arobynn’s gravesite and pretend that he was a genuine, loving father.

A knock on the door had Aelin jumping up on her feet, but it was pushed open before she even took a step.

Long, golden hair and golden-turquoise eyes that were identical to her own greeted her.

Aelin raised a brow, glancing at the old, crooked clock on the wall behind her. “You’re early.”

Aedion grinned. “You sound surprised.”

“I have known you since birth, Cousin, and you were even late then. Born two days after your due date. Your poor mother had to birth a ten-pound baby.”

Aedion chuckled. “I doubt that had to do with me being late.”

“Debatable,” Aelin winked.

Lysandra swept through the threshold of the living room and froze. “Ah, I thought I heard the prince of stupidity enter.”

Aedion’s grin only widened. “I know that means that you love me, so go on.”

Lysandra rolled her eyes. “I’ll get everything together.”

She left, and when Aedion once again met his cousin’s gaze, which was lit with fondness and curiosity. “Will you ever get bored of trying to gain her affection?”

“Gain her affection?” Aedion repeated. “What the hell does that even-”

A soft cry came from the bedroom in the back, the one that Lysandra had shared with Aelin since the day that she had come to live with Arobynn and Naomi.

Aelin made her familiar hurry to the bedroom, then to the crib that sat in the corner. At three months old, the infant had finally managed a decent sleep schedule. Although it seemed like her afternoon nap was growing shorter and shorter as the days passed. Her eyes had turned a dark shade of brown, identical to those of her father’s. To Aelin’s amusement, little tufts of golden hair had begun to grow.

“Hello, sweet love,” Aelin crooned, lifting her daughter out of her crib and cradling her against her chest. “Did you have a nice nap?”

“She knows Uncle Aedion came,” Aedion said from the doorway. “She couldn’t wait to see me.”

Aelin rolled her eyes. “Good, you’re here. That means you can change her diaper.”

Before Aedion could protest, he was holding his niece and Aelin was hurrying out of the room before a proper protest could even be thought of. And, to her pleasant surprise, by the time she helped Lysandra gather everything the baby needed, Aedion had changed her diaper and changed her out of her pajamas.

“She’s all ready to go with her uncle and have a break from you ladies,” Aedion said. “Now, where’s my woman?”

“Not your woman!” Lysandra called, once again, from the kitchen.

Aedion grinned. “Did she at least put a sandwich in the diaper bag for me? She knows I get hungry.”

Aelin opened the bag only to find a ham and cheese sandwich right on top.

“Thank you, my love!” Aedion called, as he slung the diaper bag over his shoulder and made his way to the front door.

“Only because that sweet little girl does not need you getting hangry and you can’t make yourself anything other than a bowl of cereal!”

Aedion laughed. “She knows me well.”

Aelin sighed. “Focus, please. I shouldn’t be more than a few hours. She’ll need a bottle as soon as you get to your apartment. Please try to keep her awake, I prefer to sleep tonight. Don’t-”

“I’ve got it, Aelin,” Aedion groaned. “I’ve done this before.”

Aelin sighed. “I know...Just-”

“I’ll text every half hour with an update,” he promised.

“Okay,” Aelin caved. She gave her daughter a kiss on the cheek before watching Aedion strap her in her car seat and leave.

She wandered into the kitchen to find Lysandra fixing her lipstick in the reflection of the metal toaster. “You know, you could at least give him the time of day.”

Lysandra smiled. “I could, but what fun would that be? Now, get dressed. I’ll be waiting in the car.”

Aelin did as she was told, although it was the last thing she wanted to do. She found a black pair of jeans and a tank top, and she figured that was more than Arobynn deserved.

Lysandra didn’t seem tense, but she drove so slowly that Aelin knew she was struggling. She typically drove like a madwoman.

To no surprise, there was hardly anyone at the gravesite. The cheap coffin had yet to be lowered into the ground, and Aelin could hardly force herself to look at it.

They stood among the few others that had come, although there were hardly any that Aelin recognized. Arobynn had hardly left the house in years - unless it was to go to the bar - and had no living relatives. That left the sad lot that was standing in the grass among the dead.

The poor dead. Aelin pitied them. They now had Arobynn in their midst.

The preacher said a few kind words that there was no way he could have meant. And when it was all over, they lowered the coffin into the ground. The two young women sat and watched the only father their teenager years had known being buried.

Aelin felt no remorse. “To be honest, I thought I would feel the slightest bit of sadness, but I feel nothing. Not because I loved him but because...I don’t know.”

“He was all we had,” Lysandra said, quietly. “That bastard was all we had.”

Aelin took Lysandra’s hand and sighed as the final bits of dirt were being shoveled onto his grave. They didn’t bother with a fancy headstone. All that sat at the head of the stretch of dirt in the middle of the graveyard was a little stone that read, Arobynn Hamel. 1968-2019.

Once the area cleared, Aelin and Lysandra approached the little stone. Lysandra, true to her word, spat upon it. Aelin, despite the circumstance, laughed.

Once her laughter died down, she shivered. The hairs on her arms stood. She felt like he was there, watching them, hating them, resenting them, just as he did when he was alive. Perhaps he didn’t find the afterlife, perhaps he was in his own personal purgatory.

Unfinished business.

That’s what they say keeps the dead from moving on to the afterlife. If a soul has unfinished business, they haunt what’s left of their life until they are satisfied.

“Aelin!”

Aelin faced Lysandra, who was watching her with an arched brow.

“You okay?” she asked. “I called your name like five times.”

“Yeah,” Aelin said, but her voice wasn’t as strong as she had wanted it to be. “Do you think that anyone will ever-”

“No.”

“I didn’t get to finish my question.”

“I know what you were going to ask.”

The two stood in silence.

“Should we...say something?” Aelin asked.

Lysandra thought about it for a moment. “What were his last words to you?”

Aelin nibbled on her bottom lip. “Shut that baby up, you slut. Yes, he was drunk. Yes, it was nine in the morning.”

Lysandra’s jaw hardened. “I think your last words should be a reflection of his.”

Aelin nodded and stepped forward before kneeling in the dirt. “I….hope you have fun in Hell.”

A long silence followed until a loud, obnoxious laugh sputtered out of Lysandra’s lips. Aelin couldn’t help but join her and, before she knew it, they were both laughing together.

“Oh, gods, we’re going to Hell too, aren’t we?” Lysandra asked.

Aelin put her arm around her sister. “No. We’ve already lived through Hell.”

“And we survived.”

“Yes,” Aelin agreed. “We did.”

. . . . . . . . .

Lysandra had gone to wait in the car while Aelin made her way to the opposite end of the cemetery. All the anxiety that she had had from watching Arobynn’s burial had faded, and she felt lighter with every step that she took.

She found the headstone in which she was looking for and plopped herself down in front of it. It had been a while since she had visited him. It had been the day before she had gone into labor.

She was only four months along when he had died.

Aelin ran her fingers over the marble stone and smiled. “Hey. I missed you.” She pulled a tiny sock out of her pocket and laid it on top of the stone. “Look how little her feet are.” Aelin laughed as her eyes lined with tears. “She looks just like you. Although, I think she’ll be blonde. That’s something from me. That’s what you wanted, right? For her to look like me?” Aelin wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand. “I’m glad she looks like you, though. Your skin tone. Your eyes. Your lips. Your ears. Every time I look at her, I think of you. She’s so beautiful.” A moment of silence passed as a soft breeze blew wisps Aelin’s hair into her eyes.”We just buried Arobynn.” Even saying it aloud felt good. The wind blew again, as if her lost love approved. “I couldn’t forgive him. Not after all he did. Forgiveness was impossible.”

There were a thousand things that Aelin had wanted to say, but they were all lost as she sat in front of his grave.

“I love you,” she said, hoping that said it all. “Mara loves you, too. And as she grows up, I will always tell her stories of how amazing and kind her father was.”

Mara. The wind blew wildly at the sound of her name.

Aelin smiled and ran her fingers over the stone once more. “I love you. I miss you. I promise to visit again soon.”

She stood up and took a few steps back, her eyes on the stone, never wavering.

He was too young, too kind. He didn’t deserve the fate he’d been gifted. Aelin only hoped that putting Arobynn in the ground helped avenge him in some small way.

But she wouldn’t think about that.

Not anymore.

It was done.

It was over with.

Aelin shook the thought from her mind.

It was time to move forward. The future.

Aelin sighed as she read the words written on his stone one last time.

Sam Cortland.

1999-2018.

Beloved son and friend.

May he never be forgotten.

. . . . . . .

comment to be tagged.

@throne-of-ashes-and-beauty @highqueenofelfhame @mariamuses @photofeesh @cat5313 @lord-douglas-the-third @dayanna-hatter @onesadandlonelybear @rowaelinforeverworld @fourshizzle149 @chemica @acourtofrowaelinandfeysand @kirifan @lowhangingtreebranches @impossiblescissorspeachpaper @westofmoon @my-parabatai-is-a-herondale @littlehoneyybee @mis-lil-red @empress-ofbloodshed @tangledraysofsunshine @catherine-herondale-roseland @the-regal-warrior @butshesnotalone @runnybabbit9 @notyourclassicshadowhunter @deliciouslyuniquepizza @faerie-queen-fireheart @tonvstarktrash @faefromthenorth @alifletcher2012 @sleeping-and-books @secret-lil-rendez-vous @running-with-thieves @chemicha @ttakeitbacknoww

#throne of glass #fanfic #fanfiction #rowaelin #lysaedion #sam cortland #arobynn hamel #tog #eos #koa

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missnight0wl · 4 years ago

Text

Overflow

Summary: Helena sneaks out from the Hospital Wing. She’s followed by Charlie.

A rewrite of the events happening directly after the Portrait Vault. Because MC deserved to have a breakdown right then. Also, it somehow took me almost a year to finish it, and I was close to abandoning it entirely, but here we are.

Words: 2140

June 1989

The lights in the Great Hall never before seemed to be so bright. It was hard to adjust to them after the darkness of the Buried Vault. Helena managed to lift the upper part of her body, and she looked around to check on her companions. Bill was kneeling next to Charlie and holding his arms to support him, Ben was sitting a little further with his hand pressed to his mouth, and in the middle was…

“Merula!” Helena exclaimed in a strangled voice. Without getting up, she got closer to the girl who was lying motionless on the floor with her eyes half-open. The Ravenclaw realised then that there were other students around, clearly alarmed by the whole situation. “Give her some space!” she ordered, reaching her arm as if she was trying to build an invisible barrier. “Someone call help!”

She peeked at Merula and again at the small crowd of people drawing back when she noticed Diego among them. She called his name and tried to stand up, but she tripped. She would fall if not for the Hufflepuff’s quick reaction. She still felt dizzy after travelling by the Portkey.

“Helena, what happened?” Diego asked with concern. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. But Merula is not. Could you… could you look after her? You’re friends with her, right? And I can’t… I can’t now…”

“Calm down,” he said softly. “What happened with Merula?”

“She was tortured.” Diego’s expression became even more worried. “But maybe don’t mention that. Just… just try to distract her… Until we get help…”

Right after she said it, the door to the Great Hall opened and Dumbledore came in, Snape following right behind him. How did they get here so fast? They quickly reach to them and started asking about the events of recent hours. At some point, Madam Pomfrey showed up as well. Helena had problems to focus, but somehow, she was answering all the questions, almost automatically as in some kind of trance. The Portkey, the Vault, the dragon. Rakepick, the Cruciatus Curse, the Garrotting Gas…

“I’ll find her. She won’t get away with this.”

It was Professor Snape, looking very determined to keep his promise. Everyone wanted to find Rakepick… Of course, it’s understandable. Yet, why nobody had shown such concern when Jacob went missing? Does one have to commit an act as horrible as this to get attention? Jacob did bad things, too. He put the whole school in danger because of his Cursed Vaults obsession. At least that’s what people say... Did Snape also try to bring him to justice? If so, he obviously failed. And in that case, how can he even hope to find Rakepick now?

Helena heard fewer and fewer words exchanged by people next to her. She was looking at her friends, some students she could barely recognise after seeing them occasionally in the corridors. Finally, she spotted Rowan, her eyes glistening. She knew. Rowan always knew. She didn’t need to hear the story to tell that something bad had happened. Helena got past her professors, not being entirely sure if they’re talking to her or Merula, and walked down the platform. Rowan was next to her in a moment, embracing her tightly. They didn’t speak, they were just standing there. It felt like the only good thing left in Helena’s life so she didn’t want to let it go.

“That’s enough! You know the most important thing!” Madam Pomfrey’s voice sounded over conversations. “I’m taking them to the Hospital Wing. All of them,” the matron added firmly.

“We’re gonna talk later, okay?” Helena said to Rowan, releasing her from the hug. Her friend only nodded, wiping her cheek with the sleeve.

She didn’t remember exactly how they got transported from the Great Hall. Suddenly, she was sitting on a bed in the Hospital Wing when Madam Pomfrey approached her, moving a folding screen.

“Miss Ellis, I told you to change your clothes.”

The girl looked down at her outfit. Rakepick’s outfit. Well, not exactly, of course. It all started when she was with Rowan at some second-hand shop. She found then a waistcoat made of fabric similar to the one the Curse-Breaker usually wore. Brown shirt and trousers were much easier to get. With the addition of black cloak and some belts, the costume was completed. It wasn’t a perfect copy, but the resemblance was quite obvious. At the time, she thought it’d be funny, and maybe this kind of mockery would annoy Rakepick. And even though the latter goal wasn’t achieved – rather on the contrary – Helena grew to like this silly outfit. It was comfortable.

“Who’s that girl?” she asked, looking at a tall blonde bustling behind Madam Pomfrey.

“It’s Donna, a seventh-year Hufflepuff. She’s starting practice at St Mungo’s in Autumn. I reckoned she might be needed.”

The matron was just checking on her wrist. She was touching it gently, but only now Helena realised how much it hurt.

“I’m fine, Madam Pomfrey, it’s just a wrist,” she said instead. “I think Charlie has broken ribs, and Ben was wounded in the head pretty badly--”

“And how about you let me do my job, hm?”

“I just want to help…”

“You fought a dragon, dear,” Madam Pomfrey remarked softly. “Did you consider you might need help yourself?”

Helena looked at her blankly. “Not really, no.”

She barely spoke for the rest of her examination. Eventually, she was told to lay down. When she turned on the right side, she was facing an empty room. She wished to be left alone, so it was the best alternative for cutting herself off. All the noises became incredibly annoying. The Weasley brothers must’ve tried to come to her bed because Helena heard Madam Pomfrey yelling at them. She heard Merula arguing. She didn’t hear Ben, though. Finally, she got a potion that was supposed to help her sleep.

When she woke up, it was dark and silent. Perhaps it was later the same night, maybe it was the next one already. She knew one thing for sure – she was suffocating. It was that feeling of panic that disrupted her rest. She needed to leave the room immediately. She found her wand on the side table, but she didn’t want to draw attention by lightening it up right away, so she got up and blindly moved to the exit, trying very hard to not stumble.

“Lumos!” she mumbled under her breath when the door closed behind her.

The rest of the castle was just as quiet and calm as the Hospital Wing. Helena was pacing through the corridors, feeling her breath becoming more and more steady the further she got. She was nearing the stairs leading to the ground floor when she heard footsteps which weren’t her own. Her heart started beating faster again. The confrontation with Filch or one of the teachers was the last thing she needed at the moment. She extinguished the light at the end of her wand and hid behind the nearest statue. The steps were getting closer to her, so she instinctively pressed her lips in the hope it’d help her stay quiet.

“Nell?” she heard a whisper.

The redhead suddenly appeared in her view, and they both jumped when their eyes met.

“Charlie!” she hissed at him. “You scared me to death!”

“I scared you?” he raised his eyebrows. “I’m not the one hiding in the dark!”

“I thought you’re a teacher! What are you even doing here?”

“What are you doing here?”

“I just wanted to get some air. And don’t try to distract me,” she looked at him sternly. “You should be lying in bed.”

Charlie’s face got gentler. “So do you.”

“I’m fine, I could go back to my dormitory,” she replied, crossing her arms on the chest.

“You don’t look fine.”

“I’m fine, Charlie,” she said more firmly. “I wasn’t trapped under rubble, I wasn’t tortured--”

“Nell, you fought a dragon,” he cut in. “You got hurt. Don’t say--”

“I know I fought a fucking dragon!” she snapped. “Can people stop reminding me about that?” She stared at him coldly, but Charlie remained calm which only made her feel worse. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to yell,” she said and hid her face. “I… I just really need to get out of here.”

Charlie hesitated before reaching his hand towards her. “Well, can I go with you?” Helena only nodded and grabbed his palm without a word.

They didn’t speak on their way outside. The night was warm and the air fresh. They both were barefoot, but it was actually pleasant to step on the grass. They were still quiet by the time they reached the Black Lake.

“Y’know, it’s just weird…” Helena started out of nowhere. Not because the silence felt awkward or Charlie seemed to be pressing on her. It was growing in her, and she simply had to let it go. “I imagined the reunion with Jacob so many times, and I thought it’d be the most important day of my life. That I’d be so happy, or even sad, depending on the situation, or angry.” She stopped so abruptly that her hand slipped out of Charlie’s. “But I felt nothing.”

He turned to her and watched her for a moment, wondering what to say. “D’you want to talk about what happened before Bill and I came?”

It wasn’t the first time he gave her that look that night. He knew that it wasn’t just an awkward reunion, that something had happened. Bill knew as well. Helena hoped that he didn’t blame himself for hurrying to free Jacob. That there are no reasons to regret it, to begin with. She took a deep breath.

“Well…” she started slowly. “When I entered the inner chamber, Jacob was there, in the portrait…” She swallowed hard, remembering the picture. “He was happy to see me, and I was happy too. And I was about to touch that damn column when he said: ‘You can trust me’…”

Charlie frowned. “Well, yeah. He’s your brother. Why wouldn’t you trust him?”

“Exactly! That’s what I thought! So, I asked him why would he say that. I mean, I’ve spent five bloody years searching for him, following his stupid clues which were more confusing than helpful at times… How could he think that I wouldn’t trust him after that? I fought a dragon for him, and he didn’t even ask about that! Anyway…” She lowered her voice again and bit her lip. “He started explaining himself, and then you came. That’s pretty much it. I don’t know, Charlie… It just doesn’t make any sense. None of it makes sense. And I just… I just want to scream because of that.”

“So scream.”

“What?”

Charlie shrugged. “I mean, I sometimes want to scream from frustration, too. Maybe it’s healthy to let it out. And who’s gonna stop you now?” He touched her arm reassuringly and smiled gently. “I can join you if it’ll make you more comfortable.”

And then, he inhaled deeply and screamed at the top of his lungs. The sound spread over the water, but they were far enough from the castle that it shouldn’t have disturbed anyone. Helena dithered for a moment, but she quickly joined him – a bit shy at first, but with time passing, she felt like a gigantic weight was getting off her whole body. When they both stopped, she chuckled briefly, simply because of how silly the whole situation was: two teenagers in hospital pyjamas, in the middle of the night, yelling at the Black Lake.

The second scream Helena started on her own. However, this time, it brought relief only for a while. Suddenly, everything that had happened in the Vault came back to her. All images, all words, still so fresh in her memory. And that cold look which never before was that cold... Her shout gradually became a cry, and before she knew, tears were falling down her face. Charlie had to realise it before her because in the very next moment, he was holding her in a tight embrace, speaking softly.

“It’s okay, I’m here.”

She wanted to calm down, but the more she tried, the more painful it was. Just hours ago, she had almost everything. Most importantly, she had hope. Now, it all was taken from her – and she didn’t really understand how it could’ve gone so wrong.

She buried her face in Charlie’s chest and clutched his shirt. “Why she left me?” she sobbed.

He said nothing. Partially because he didn’t have an answer for that, but also because he wasn’t expecting that it’s the question on her mind. And since Helena couldn’t see his surprised expression, she was unaware how much she exposed herself when her walls had broken once more.

#hogwarts mystery #hphm #hphm mc #jacob's sibling #helena ellis #hphm jacob #patricia rakepick #charlie weasley #portrait vault #year 5 #my writing

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highqueenofelfhame · 5 years ago

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seems fitting for the rowaelin elevator au: “I suggest you wipe that grin off your face.”

Most days, Aelin was playfully flirty. Most days, there was a certain air about her that made her almost seem larger than life. Most days, she absolutely fit in with the legend of her surname, nobody doubting her for a single second. Everyday kind of went the same on weekdays. Aelin and Rowan typically got to work at the same time and shared an elevator ride together. Aelin would be snarky, Rowan would be borderline mean. It was a routine that Rowan found himself looking forward to some mornings when his alarm went off.

Today, Aelin Galathynius was very, very off. So off that it almost bothered Rowan when she stepped into the elevator with makeup that was smudged and likely left over from the night before. The air was tense, nothing like the odd friction that usually came with sharing an elevator ride with Aelin. Today, she stepped inside with a wrinkled button down tucked into her pencil skirt, and the way she leaned against the railing with her arms folded over her chest told Rowan that there was certainly something wrong. She didn’t even acknowledge him, didn’t make a joke about his clothes or the time two weeks ago when he’d been half naked. She merely stood with her arms crossed and stared blankly at her unusually smudged patent leather heels.

In an attempt to diffuse the tension, Rowan tried to offer her a smile. It didn’t go well.

“I suggest you wipe that grin off your face,” she said quietly, a single finger tapping against her shirt. Aelin hadn’t even looked up from her toes.

“Are you okay?” Rowan could see the tension in her shoulders when the question fell from his lips and he almost regretted asking at all. She reached up and rubbed at her eye, further smudging the makeup beneath it.

“No,” she said quietly, “But it isn’t like you necessarily care. So please do us both a favor and leave me alone.”

As if on cue, the elevator dinged and opened to Rowan’s office floor. Unsure of how to proceed, he stepped out but turned to look at her one more time, the beginning of her name forming on his lips, but the door closed the rest of the way.

All day, Rowan couldn’t stop thinking about the haunted look in her eyes. The way she had seemed so lifeless, defeated, and nearly dull. Everything about her had been almost lacklustre when she was one to shine so bright you couldn’t look away.

He thought about her all day, wondering if she was okay through his morning meetings that couldn’t quite hold his attention. By the time lunch swung around, he found himself down at his favorite coffee shop around the corner and ordering her a hazelnut hot chocolate before he really figured out what he was doing. It was only when he stepped off the elevator on her floor that he felt completely and utterly stupid.

Rowan made his way to the white marbled receptionist’s desk, waiting for the uniquely beautiful brown-haired woman to look up at him. When she finally did, her lips parted only just and her brow furrowed.

“Mr… Whitethorn, is it?”

“I’m here to see Aelin?” It came out as a confused question, like he wasn’t sure if that was the right thing to say, if it was the right thing to do. At this point, Rowan wasn’t even sure that breathing in the same air space as Aelin was smart given how cold she had been this morning.

“She’s… just a minute. I’ll see if she’s available,” the girl, Lysandra according to her nameplate, excused herself from her desk and disappeared behind a large wall of emerald marble. A golden stag was engraved on the fixture, and as Rowan looked around he realized that the entire office was in shades of emerald, silver, gold, and black. All the colors of Terrasen so beautifully executed in the mostly open space.

“Rowan?” Her voice pulled him from his thoughts, still so much more soft and timid than it usually was. When he looked at her, however, she was much more put together than she had been hours ago in the elevator. She wore a freshly pressed button down now, that was tucked into slacks that made her legs go on for days. Her makeup was barely there and polished, but she wore no lipstick which was unusual for Rowan to see. Come to think of it, he wasn’t so sure he’d ever seen her lips bare before.

“I uh… I wanted to… this morning was…” He sighed and let his eyes fall shut for a moment before opening them to look at her. “Hot chocolate. The um… it has hazelnut in it? You coffee always smells like hazelnuts so I thought you liked it and well. Hot chocolate. It’s cold outside and… I’m sorry. For this morning.”

“You know what kind of coffee I drink every morning?” She asked, taking a few steps towards him and taking the cup from his hands. With a careful sip, her lips tugged up at the corners. “Thank you. I’m sorry, for this morning. I get mean when I’m tired.”

Rowan nodded, though he had a gut feeling that she wasn’t just tired. Maybe she was tired, but not from lack of sleep. It felt more like the kind of tired that you feel in your bones, that drains your soul. Even now, perfectly polished in every way, something about her seemed detached and far away. Whatever it was that so greatly plagued her, he wanted to heal and mend the sadness, to chase it all away.

“I should get back, I just wanted to…” Rowan gestured toward the coffee and Aelin bit down on her lip.

“You have no idea how to talk to a woman, do you?” Despite how exhausted her tone was, there was a bit of playfulness back in her extraordinary eyes.

“This might be the longest I’ve ever talked to one,” he admitted. Not true, but for some reason every time he was around her it all felt like a first. It felt like the first breath after awakening from a coma, it felt like going down the first hill of a roller coaster. Every time he saw her it was like he was experiencing a little bit of magic, like his blood hummed when she stepped into that 6x6 metal box every morning.

She laughed at his little quip and took a step back, retreating for her office. Aelin took another sip, then raised the cup toward him in thanks as he bowed his head and turned to leave the office. When he looked back over at the receptionist’s desk as the elevator door closed, Aelin was still watching him with a small smile on her lips.

@starseternalnighttriumphant @musicmaam @mariamuses @empire-of-wildfire @schmlip-scribble @kandasboi @the-regal-warrior @myfeyrelady @city-of-fae @nalgenewhore @velarian-trash @ttakeitbacknoww @westofmoon @vi0let-femmes @shyvioletcat

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rowan-of-asgard · 4 years ago

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Five Times Touched

@shieldedsouls Your daily dose of Firewood.

Send "Five Times ______ed" for a Drabble of 5 different times our characters... did that.

It didn’t take much of Sof to have a smile quickly spreading over Rowan's face.

Memories, as clear and real to her now as the day they were made, danced in her mind as she watched the rise and fall of their chest. Their first meeting had been short but it had been the start to something wonderful. Rowan hadn’t been planning to be knocked from her feet by the pack of children her age running past her as they played, though when one of them bumped into her that was exactly what happened. Her eyes had closed and her body tensed in expectation to meet the ground but instead, she felt someone grab and steady her, and her hickory brown eyes opened to meet the cinnamon hued gaze of Sof’s for the first time. They were children then, but the instant bond between the two was undisguisable when she’d asked her to come play with the rest of them, and she’d readily accepted after a glance up at her mother and a promise to be home for dinner.

While their childhood had been one of joy, their time spent running through the woods and streets of Asgard; their teenage years held struggles. The most keenly felt of which was the death of Rowan’s father. She knew the dwarves that had killed him, drained his blood into mead with no thought to the family he left behind, and she knew the hate for them that bubbled within her own blood. If not for Sof, for the strong arms around her and the gentle words to ease the fire in her veins, she might have lost herself to it and turned her trees to weapons of revenge. But Sof held her, stroked her hair as she cried and screamed and mourned. It was Sof’s hand Rowan clutched when her father’s body was brought home and rested on a ship. It was Sof she clutched tighter as the arrow’s flame pierced the sky and set alight her father’s final vessel, and it was Sof’s shoulder that caught her tears after everyone else had left.

And though there was plenty of turmoil and struggle, there was also joy during their young adulthood. Sof had an effect on Rowan that helped her forget, however temporarily, the sadness and grief that were still there just on the edges of her heart, and she used it well. It was that effect that had Rowan following her to the city center towards the music and laughter and joy. It was that effect that had her spinning around, adding her own laughter to the chorus as she danced with Sof. Her eyes lifted to meet the other’s and, in that moment, she felt her stomach and heart join the dance as strong and true as her own feet. That night she asked her mother to tell her the story of how she fell in love, her heart speaking images of Sof into her mind as her mother described exactly what she had felt earlier that day.

Rowan grew into her duties protecting the trees of the forests around her home, and Sof had grown into her own abilities, able to spin flames at her fingers as easily as others spun wool into yarn on a wheel. They walked often, through the same quiet forests they had run through as children, conversation easy and light between them the way it’d always been though something thrummed under the surface of their friendship, as strong and alive as the forest around them and the ground beneath their feet. It started slowly, first in glances not meant to be shared, then walks spent shoulder to shoulder, hands and fingertips just barely brushing the other’s before slowly intertwining. It was easy, taking the next step with Sof, even if life tried to change their plans, they took life one step at a time.

They settled into their normal easily when they had the chance. Walks through the streets, hand-in-hand; soft touches on the arm, shoulders, cheeks; late night spent talking and laughing as the black and blue of night gave way to the yellows and pinks of dawn. It was as easy as breathing, and it brought them joy that still surprised Rowan some days, the days when that lingering sadness and grief dragged their cold fingers over her heart. It was one of those days where Sof had first kissed her, after her form-shifting abilities had manifested. She'd decided to drag Sof out of her room, to ask her to go on a walk and talk but had stopped dead in her tracks in the doorway when she saw them sitting on their bed. She'd almost called for help, called for someone, but she knew those eyes, cinnamon and full of love and happiness even if tinted with fear and concern. She knew her Sof by the way her name passed through their lips, the gentle touch as they took her hand.

In that moment Rowan crumbled, launching herself into their arms, tears streaming down her cheeks as she buried her face in their chest. They ran their fingers through her hair to soothe her, whispered gentle words in her ear, kept her close to their chest. She was grateful to Sof and had meant to thank them when she looked up, but her eyes met cinnamon and her words left her. She wasn't sure how long they sat like that, staring into each others' eyes like the world had fallen away with Rowan held to their chest, all she knew is in Sof's arms- even now -she felt home. They were slow at first, so slow she nearly hadn't noticed Sof moving until the hand in her hair cupped the back of her head. Her own hands relaxed on Sof's chest, her eyes sliding shut as she lifted herself the rest of the way to meet their lips. There was fire in it, like everything Sof did but the heat did nothing to dissuade her, only spurring her on to move one hand to cup their cheek. The kiss broke, slow as it had started and as their eyes met, Rowan knew she was undone.

#Written In The Leave || Drabbles #Firewood || Sof x Rowan #shieldedsouls

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zephryine · 4 years ago

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Fluff alphabet

Hailey hunt and Barnaby first the jupiter and talbott the. merula and Pheionex. And lastly penny and Caleb.

Attractive( what do they find most attractive about each other.)

For Hailey its Barnabys smile she loves his smile and her heart melts every time he's excited for something.

For Barnaby it's Haileys big brown eyes he always gets lost in them when there in a conversation and Hailey has to snap her fingers when he's Just sitting there and staring into her eyes. Another thing is how Hailey is bilingual she speaks French and it drives him crazy when she speaks it and he is confused in what she is saying.

Baby( do they have a family together)

If course they do. They have there son a few months after there wedding and after 3 years they have a daughter.

Cuddle ( how do they cuddle)

Well the cuddle every single cuddleing position and something barnaby catches Hailey off guard like if she is reading on the couch he will grab her by the waist and pull her on to him and lay down on the couch together.

Dates( do they go on dates)

Yes it starts out with them dueling then it goes from there to a picnic under a willow tree at sunset and ends with them riding abraxans

everything ( you are my...)

Hailey: you are my love

Barnaby: you are my flower

Feeling( when did they fall in love)

Umm see it's complicated on how they fell in love at first Hailey was too busy with the vaults to even think about love. When the celestial ball came around bill was nagging her to find a date. So she just took Barnaby she was too busy thinking about what she could be getting done with the vaults to even notice Barnaby was trying to make a move. But then one day rowan was like "take a break from looking for a while and live a little" so she did. that was the day she realized she was madly head over heels for barnaby. It was accually the day rowan had the impirus curse on her.

How Barnaby fell for her was when he found out ismelda had a crush on him and was thinking about who he would have a crush on her and realized he wanted her to always be happy and always wanted to around her.

Gentle (are the gentle. If so how?)

Ok we all know Barnaby's a gentle bloke so when he is around Hailey he is very gentle. He acts like she is a baby puffskien. In every class they have together he hugs her at the beginning some of the professors think it's cute especially Hagrid he ships those 2 like crazy. Snape on the other hand... He need a to get a pepper up potion so he doesn't get sick on how lovey dovey they are. But Hailey she is not that gentle

Hands( do they hold hands)

Oh boy. Well see they act like children when they hold hands. Hailey gets confused with a metamorphamagus when she blushes. With Barnaby he is very confused and asks her. "Are you sure you're not a metamorphamagus?"

Impressions (what was there first impression)

Hailey: just another one of merulas goons... He is accually kinda cute

Barnaby: dang she is short and spunky...in a cute way.

Jealous ( they get jelous)

Barnaby gets jelous cause he over heard one of his roommates saying how beautiful they think Hailey hunt is and was wondering if she was single when they first started dating.

Hailey gets very jelous cause she is a hot head Barnaby thinks it's cute and he has to reassure that she is the one. And one of her roommates started having a crush on him. And well she threatened her they way barnaby did when they first met.

Kiss(how do they kiss? And who initiated the first kiss)

Umm well Barnaby initiated the first kiss and it was cute cause he asked her for permission to kiss her. She turned red and nodes really fast. And every time Barnaby surprised her with a kiss it was sometimes a french kiss.

Love( who said I love you first)

Well accually they said the loved each other when they decided to become a couple. And it was when they realized that they could lose each other. So they ran around the Castle looking for each other. And when they found each other they both turned Red clenched there fists looked down and screamed I LOVE YOU. And the entire school heard it and just stared.

Memory ( what is there favorite memory)

It's probably the time when they went on there second date during the Gildory Lockheart incident. NOT THE PART AT MADEM PUDDIFOOTS TEA SHOP it was when Barnaby kissed her cheek.

Nickel( do they spoil one another)

Barnaby spoils her with flowers ( casa blanca lillys)

Peppermint toads and any thing that reminds him on her

Orange ( what color reminds them of there other half)

For barnaby it's pink. Cause Hailey always wears a pink off should crop top with high waisted jeans

For hailey it's emerald green cause it's the same color of his eyes.

Pet names( what do they call each other)

Barnaby calls her love or little flower

Hailey calls him prince charming 😂

Quaint ( what is there favorite old fashioned thing)

Well they both enjoy old fashioned donuts.

Hailey enjoys the old-fashioned dress style she always wears dresses from the eaightys when they go to a formal event.

Barnaby likes how Hailey dresses old-fashioned when they go to formal events

Rainy days( what do they do on rainy days)

Sometimes they go to town in there nicest clothes and dance down the streets. Another thing the go outside to the magical creatures resurve they live in and get on any creatures that can fly and go above the clouds. And do the titanic thing.

Sad ( how do they cheer each other up)

When Barnaby is sad all Hailey has to do is sit next to him kiss him on the cheek and ask if he is ok

For Hailey all Barnaby needs to do is come running in the room and say "THE CRUPS SMELL SADNESS IS EVERYTHING OK?!?!" And bursts into laughter

Talking ( what do they mostly talk about)

They talk about there day they both have different jobs but Hailey works with Barnaby in the magical creatures resurve they live on. And when Hailey returns from work as an auror she is welcomed by a hug and kiss and a question about how her day was. And when Barnaby comes back into the house from a had day of working on the magical creatures resurve Hailey also hugs and kisses him and asks him about his day. And they also talk about there families and about anything that comes to mind

Unencumbered ( what helps them relax)

See with Hailey ever since rowan died she gets small panic attacks and starts crying and what Barnaby does is he goes over to were ever she is and hugs her untill she stops crying

With Barnaby since he has had a terrible child hood I imagine he has anger issues so what Hailey does is she goes up to him rests her hands on his chest and looks up him wraps her arms around his neck and and hugs him it's kind hard without him holding her by the waist cause he is tall and she is short.

Vaunt ( what do they like showing off)

With Hailey she likes to show off he charms skills and when she can't get a spell right she gets angry and throws her wand.

With Barnaby he likes to show off his affection for her in font of there friends. And all the girls except jupiter and merula are in awe while every one else is like " ok we get it you a cute couple not stop kissing and reminding some of us we are lonely'

Wedding ( when, how do they prepose)

Hailey and Barnaby preposed to each other at the exact same time it was really cute. And there wedding was a cheap wedding they used herbivicus to grow a lilly path for hailey to walk on Andre created the outfits. They put up fairy lights and had there wedding under a willow tree. Hailey had adopted sickelworth and he was the ring bearer. Bill was the one who married them. And they used white fold up chairs and there wedding was in the winter so it snowed on there wedding day. Jacob was there but only for a split second to congratulate them and left.

Xilaphone ( what is there song)

For Haileys end it's I won't say I'm in love from the Disney movie hurculies cause she was too stubborn to admit she was in love with him.

And for Barnabys end it was lost in the woods from frozen 2 cause when Hailey is gone for a long time with her auror job, Barnaby is lost without her

And for both of them it is Neverland by zendaya

Zebra ( what pets do they have)

Well they mostly have magical creatures cause they live in a resurve but one thing no one would ever thaught they would have us a fox from the muggle world.the resin being is cause Hailey liked muggle creatures she thinks they are unique from all the other magi creatures.

Well this took all day to write so I hope you enjoyed.

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sarah-bae-maas · 6 years ago

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You can call this the trope to end all tropes. Happy reading!

(my masterlist is here if you feel like you might wanna read some more)

***

Nesryn wiped at her eyes, desperate to keep herself awake.

She was waiting for Sartaq, again, on their anniversary, again, and he was late, again.

She was tired.

She got up from the table, waving away the servants who approached with the intention of clearing the food she had made and packing away the presents she had gotten him. It may have been petty, but she wanted him to see it.

As she left their dining hall and stepped wearily to their room, she had to stop herself halfway. The ache in her chest was near impossible to ignore, and her heart fluttered to her abdomen as the slight flutter inside her reminded her of the other thing she had wanted to tell Sartaq of tonight. She wanted to cry, not from sadness but from anger. He had promised that he wouldn’t be late.

The last thing she wanted to do right now was see him, which was quite comical, considering she had spent the last five hours desperately waiting for him to come to her. So, she spun on her heels and away from their quarters and took the long winding staircase to the aviary.

Salkhi was there and huddled up as he slept, and he merely opened an eye at her sudden appearance and let his wings loose so she could climb in under one. She scooted in close to him and rested against his feathery underside, his wing more useful than any walls against the hot wind that pressed in through the large open ways. She refused to let any tears fall and cursed the name of her lover under her breath. She closed her eyes, hopeful that here she might sleep.

____

She felt herself being lifted, orange light making her squint as she awoke. She might have panicked, if she hadn’t known exactly who it was that held her from their scent, the familiar feel of their arms, the hair that brushed her face as he walked with her in his grip.

She looked up at the face of Sartaq and then to the world outside.

Sunrise.

“You’re awake, I worried when you didn’t come to our room last night,” he said.

She squirmed until she was out of his arms and standing on her own two feet. She took a step back from him, crossing her arms over her chest and raising a brow.

“I’m sorry I missed out on dinner yesterday, can we reschedule for tonight?” He was smirking, the kind that usually made women and men fall at his feet. That usually made her more than willing to strip wherever they were, so she could feel as much of him as possible.

“Where we you?” she asked.

He named a woman he had been training with lately. A woman from the east he’d heard stories about and flown to see, a woman who now resided here so that they may learn from each other.

They’d been training. Apparently.

“So, dinner tonight? And breakfast now if you’re up for it.” Still smiling, as if he’d just missed another simple dinner.

Nesryn did not return the look. She pinched her fingers to the bridge of her nose in an effort not to let her welling tears fall. She glared at him over her fingers and his smile fell slightly.

“Dinner tonight then,” was all she said before turning on her heels and leaving. Let the fool figure out himself that he’d missed their anniversary.

She walked until she got to the dining room she’d been in the night before. The food was there still, spoiled and rank from the heat, and the presents unmoved. He hadn’t bothered to come at all then, not to even see if she was still there.

Disheartened, she shoved the small gifts into the pockets of her pants until she had to have a hand on her waistband so that her pants didn’t fall from the weight in her pockets. She went to her room, dumped them in a corner, and threw a blanket over them in a half-assed attempt to hide them.

Her night’s rest left much to be desired, and although there were duties that she was neglecting, she padded over to her bed and laid atop the covers. Her eyes fluttered shut, and with it came a dream she’d been having for the last month.

She was standing in a crowd at the steps of the palace. She looked up to see her friend Queen Aelin and Chaol there too. She wondered where Dorian was, and why when Sartaq came to their side she wasn’t with him. The Khagan then appeared and placed a stag horn crown on his head. Sartaq then called for his wife, and Nesryn went to move to his side, but was stopped by a sentry who’s face beheld nothing but indifference towards her.

And then the female Sartaq had been training with stepped out in a gown more elegant than anything Nesryn had ever worn, and Nesryn had to watch as Sartaq kissed his wife – a woman that was not her.

Nesryn woke in a sweat, just as she did every time. It didn’t take a genius to decipher her dream, but Nesryn would never let it cloud her love for Sartaq. They mightn’t be married or even betrothed yet, but one day. One day.

_____

He wasn’t there. Another meal wasted, another piece of kindling to her burning anger.

Nesryn liked to think she was a very level-headed person, but of late her emotions had been all over the place. She thought maybe the man she was in love with might be able to help her, but if he showed up for more than five minutes it was a miracle.

Nesryn decided to do something that she might regret later.

She stormed down to where she was sure he would be, to where her dreams had convinced her he would be, and she was ready to give him a piece of her mind.

She was too impatient to go all the way down to the training yard, so she decided that yelling at him from the balcony would be just as good.

She approached the edge of the window and looked down, and her lips turned to a thin line when she saw Sartaq still training with that woman.

She was beautiful. Her skin a deep brown and her hair braided to her waist, she was wielding twin swords against him.

And as Nesryn watched as they laughed together, and he smiled at her the way he did to Nesryn, she felt a deep sadness enter her.

But it was nothing compared to when the woman dropped her weapons and stood close to him. Their faces were angled closely together, and Nesryn could see him talking but not make out the words. And then the woman, standing on the tips of her toes, kissed him.

Nesryn let out a choked sound, so loud that both turned and looked up in her direction.

“Nesryn!” Sartaq shouted, but she was already leaving.

Her steps were hurried and her breathing thick as she rushed to the aviary. This time it was not to sleep, but to escape. Maybe she was more emotional because of her health, or maybe it was because she was so damn sick of being a second choice for men, but she sprinted. The moment she saw Selkhi he knew something was going on, and even Kadara ruffled her feathers, ready for Sartaq to come saddle her too.

The Ruk had two sorts of gear. Saddles meant for long haul flights, and racing saddles, light and only for speed. She chose the latter – it was easier to get on, and then she could get the fuck out of here.

The saddle was on when she heard someone call her name from the bottom of the stairs. With a shuddering breath, she climbed onto Selkhi and whistled, the Ruk flapping into the air and speeding off.

_____

Nesryn only stopped for water and small rest breaks until she reached Terrasen.

“I hope you like the snow,” she muttered to her Ruk.

The days it took to fly here were ones she took to rationalise what she’d seen. She went over it again and again in her head, and every time she came to the same conclusion. Sartaq had wanted her less and less lately, whether it had been in the bedroom or simply for company. Now she knew why.

Nesryn thought she had felt true heartbreak in her life, but the insurmountable pain she was feeling now was overwhelming. She felt like with every breath she might break.

They landed in the courtyard of the palace of Orynth, guards rushing to her and stopping once they realized who she was. A few braver guards offered to take her Ruk to water, and she thanked them, asking if they could also take him to the stables to warm himself. They nodded and left with Selkhi in tow, the creature more than happy to be led along.

Nesryn wandered up to castle steps, wanting to see a familiar face. A friend.

She came to Aelin Ashryver Whitethorn Galathynius’s door and knocked lightly.

She was met with a whooshas it was yanked open, a pink faced, smiling Aelin in the other side of it.

“Nesryn! What a happy surprise.” Aelin ushered her into the room, and Nesryn raised a brow at the paperwork strewn across it, as if the queen had thrown it half-heartedly in the direction of the roaring fireplace.

“Long time no see,” Nesryn said as greeting.

“Too long,” Aelin agreed. “What brings you here?”

Nesryn’s throat constricted, and just the simple gesture of someone being so happy to be in her presence made her tear up for the first time since she’d stormed away from the Southern Continent.

“Nesryn? Are you alright?”

She shook her head ever so slightly.

Aelin’s eyes looked over her with concern, the woman grabbing her hands lightly to link their fingers. “What is it?”

“It’s-” her voice trembled on the word. “I saw Sartaq with someone else.”

Aelin cocked her head in either disbelief or misunderstanding. “Sartaq? With another woman?”

Nesryn nodded, and wildfire set Aelin aflame.

“I will kill him for you. I will go right now.” She squeezed Nesryn’s hands.

Nesryn sniffled. “That won’t be necessary.”

Aelin brought her in for a hug, one so warm and comforting that Nesryn found herself melting into it. She was grateful that she still had Aelin as a friend, that their years apart had not dwindled their comradery and that letters were enough to keep their bond strong.

“We’ll do what Lysandra, Elide and I always do when we’re feeling down. Come with me.”

Aelin led her away from the office. They walked through the castle, and Aelin only stopped to mutter a few quick words to her staff to tell Rowan was what happening, and to also deliver chocolate and wine to her room. Lots, and lots of chocolate.

Aelin brought Nesryn to her private quarters where she drew her a steaming bath to wash off the muck of days in the air. Nesryn was grateful, and Aelin sat beside the sink, the two conversing.

When Nesryn was so clean she felt anew, Aelin gave her a pair of snuggly, soft pyjamas. Aelin herself dressed in some, and then both women climbed into bed with Nesryn’s head on Aelin’s chest while Aelin ran her fingers through her hair.

“So, this is what you all do when your men fuck up?”

Aelin laughed. “Yes. Just last week I had Elide here after Lorcan had done something with that pig-head of his. Lysandra last month. I once summoned them both here when Rowan and I fought.”

Nesryn’s lib wobbled. “I don’t know if we’re going to come back from this.”

“Do you want to cry while seeing how much food we can fit in our mouths?”

“That sounds excellent.”

______

Nesryn felt a little bad that she had commandeered Rowan’s wife and bed, but the male seemed more than happy to sleep in a different room while Aelin comforted her. Nesryn was right, her old friend could manage to cheer her up. So much so, that after that first night sleeping in her bed, crying while telling her everything that happened and also what Nesryn was expecting – Aelin’s face fell at that – Nesryn spent the next two weeks in the guest room.

But her bubble had to burst eventually.

She was giving lessons to Aelin’s archers when she saw a Ruk soaring overhead. She could never mistake Kadara for another, and the anxiety that settled in her stomach was intense enough for her to stop her lesson short. The archers all thanked her profusely as they weeded away, but Nesryn stayed right where she stood. There was no way Sartaq hadn’t seen the dozens of archers as he flew by, so it was only a matter of time before he found her, so why prolong it?

She was setting away equipment when Rowan came into the yard, a hard look in his face.

“One word,” the immortal male said, “and he’ll be gone.”

Nesryn’s lips quirked. “Let the fool explain himself.”

“As you wish.”

Rowan left and was replaced by Sartaq.

His hands were clenching and twisting in front of him. There were heavy bags under his eyes, and his hair was in the worst braid she thought she’d ever seen.

“Are you going to say something, or just stand there?”

“I’m sorry I took so long to find you. I went to Borte and Adarlan before I came here.”

“Good for you.”

“Nes, it’s not what you think. I swear.”

She scoffed. “How do you know what I’m thinking?”

“I was shocked when she kissed me. You reacted quicker than I did, that’s why I hadn’t pushed her away.”

“Let me tell you what I’m thinking.” She stalked until she was in front of him, a bow still in her hand. “I think you fell in love with me through the stories that you’d heard about me. I think that what you heard about her made you feel the same way. I think you were too much of a coward to tell me you were doubting our relationship, even though you know I’ve been hurt because of that in the past. I think you forgot about me while you were with her. I think you missed our anniversary because you were with her. I think you are with her.”

He let about a shaking breath. “No, Nesryn I promise I’m not. I can’t apologize to you enough.”

“Even if that kiss was the first, and you didn’t kiss her back, you have still been distant for weeks. You missed our anniversary. And you know how much they mean to me.” Nesryn could admit to herself that maybe if she had only seen the kiss and nothing else then maybe Sartaq was telling her the truth. But with that and everything else, the answer seemed obvious. It didn’t matter that the Sartaq she knew would never do that.

His eyes lined with silver, and he reached a hand out to her. “Come home and I will explain everything. I will show you where I’ve been.”

She shook her head, and his face fell.

“I will do anything. Please, tell me what to do to make you stay with me.”

Nesryn looked over him again. She turned her back and out the bow away, her feet dragging. She could practically feel his nerves as she stayed silent and thought.

What would it take for her to believe him?

“I need the truth.”

_____

Nesryn thanked Aelin profusely before leaving, the queen reiterating that she can return anytime.

She and Sartaq barely spoke on the way back, and even her Ruk seemed to be giving him the cold shoulder.

The days long journey was awkward enough, and thankfully Sartaq didn’t ask questions when she either swooped low for a sudden stop or just hurled into the air. She might have taken not much effort to avoid him, but poor Kadara didn’t deserve having Nesryn’s vomit on her lovely feathers.

They made it back in record time. Nesryn was relieved to be back in the Southern Continent where the heat made her bones feel stronger and the air felt lighter. She didn’t miss Sartaq’s constant stares, although she guessed it was a sick way of the Gods twisting her desires for him to pay more attention to her.

Nesryn expected them to fly to the palace, but Sartaq gestured for her to follow him somewhere else. As they flew, she noted that they were going east of the palace and flying low over an affluent area. Ahead, she saw an unfamiliar sight. There was a hill that had stood vacant for all the years she’d been here. The climb up was steep and hard, and it used to be overflowing with overgrown plant life. Now, it was clear, a small home smack bang in the centre of it.

They landed and Sartaq jumped off Kadara. Kadara shook her feathers out and settled in, as though she was used to this sort of thing.

“Where are we?” Nesryn asked.

“This is a house – our house.”

Nesryn raised a brow. “Excuse me?”

Sartaq rung his hands in front of him. “I know it’s small, but I thought that you might want a place away from the palace to live before I become khagan. I’ve been here every day. I wanted it to be a surprise, so I had as few workers with me as possible. I wanted to feel like I had made this for you, like I gave you something, even if it could never equal what you have given me. I’ve barely been training with that woman at all, but when I did it always had to be at night. It is true, I did find her through stories, but not like you. Never, like you. She was a potential asset, you were a… dream.”

Nesryn walked past him and into the house. It was small, quaint, and looked to have three little bedrooms. It wasn’t finished, the kitchen was still nothing but a bench and there were no floors or furniture, but Nesryn could see that one day it would be lovely.

Sartaq followed her in. He gave her a small tour, there wasn’t much to see yet, and said he made it like this so that if she wanted, she could make it bigger, grander, as their lives changed.

“You built this.”

“Yes.”

“For us.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

He looked at her, biting his lower lip nervously. “I know, Nesryn. I’ve known for weeks.” He looked at her stomach, and Nesryn’s hand instinctively flew to cover it.

“What do you know?”

“It was obvious. It started out just like how it did with Duva and Borte. The signs were the same, I was just waiting for you to tell me. But either way, I knew that I wanted to be ready, and that the palace would likely be the most stressful place to have a baby.”

Nesryn ran a hand over her face and through her hair, dislodging her braids and helping to clear her mind.

“So, to get this straight, the reason you’ve been so absent was because you were building this, you’ve known about my pregnancy and didn’t tell me, and me seeing the kiss between you and that woman was just a coincidence?”

He slowly approached her, his hand replacing hers on her face. He cradled her cheeks, resting his forehead on hers. “I’m so sorry,” he said. “Even if I didn’t do the things you thought, I still made you think that I could have. I still hurt you, still skipped all those dinners and missed our anniversary. I am so, so sorry.”

Her lips were a thin line, and she looked away from him, not being able to stand the hope in his eyes.

“I need to think,” she whispered.

She moved away from him. She left him in that house, head hung low, while she climbed atop Sulkhi.

Yes, some time to think on this knew knowledge would be good.

#nestaq #throne of glass #koa #koa spoilers #nesryn #sartaq #rowaelin

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twodaysintojune · 6 years ago

Text

I’m Not Jesus

Supernatural, Debriel, Warnings: Issues with catholic religion, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Torture. There’s nothing explicit but it’s definitely there.

Finde me at AO3

Loosely based on the song I'm not Jesus by Apocalyptica ft. Corey Taylor. I've always had an issue when certain people don't get the punishment they deserve and I always have wanted to see justice happen. Fast forward to today and when I happened to stumble on the song once more after such a long time I immediately knew Gabriel would definitely give their just desserts to these kind of disgraceful bastards and not hold back on the punishment. This is still darker than the things I've written so far so please tread lightly. The Debriel at the end was just me indulging in my ship.

“SON OF A BITCH!”

A notebook and some pens flew across the motel room. Dean had had enough composure to not throw the laptop away along the other stuff.

“Dean, calm down.”

“Calm down? Calm down!? This bastard could be doing something to any of those kids RIGHT NOW and we don’t have a way to get anywhere near them or get them out!”

Sam sighed while Dean dragged his hands through his hair in desperation.

“We can’t help it, after those kids tried to escape two days ago security has been reinforced…”

“Maybe we should just shoot the bastard down.”

“Dean, we don’t have actual proof that he is doing anything to them...”

“Sam, that kid Jason was trembling, TREMBLING when the cops told him they had to take him away from me and towards that bastard! You saw him crying for god’s sake!”

“...And it would be really bad if we caught the attention of the police if we suddenly disappear after the deed is done.”

Dean just glared at his brother. He was obviously right but it still sucked to be placed in this situation. They had come because they had read the corpse of a kid had been found in a riverbank nearby, the odd thing was that the kid had been at an orphanage run by a local church that according to rumours had apparently been missing children throughout the years that the church said they had transferred but never arrived to their destination.

After Jason and the other kid Rhys escaped, Dean was dreading that it had actually been the absolutely not supernatural but just as monstrous priest the one that had killed these kids. The worse was that now that the priest knew their faces they were unable to even walk two blocks near the building before any of the people at his congregation pointed them out and shooed them off. What could he actually do to gather proof that these kids needed to be rescued? He started to pace around the room trying to think of something.

“We need to think this out.”

“A fucking miracle, that’s what we need...” Suddenly, Dean stopped in his tracks. “Of course!”

Sam watched his brother sit at the edge of the bed and join his hands in prayer.

“Uh, maybe it would be easier to just use the phone, Cas can’t answer back with a prayer.”

“Shhh, dammit I’m trying to concentrate”

“Well maybe you could try harder, your prayers are the most laughable thing I’ve ever heard.”

Sam turned towards the newcomer’s voice, gun in hand before realising who it was.

“Gabriel!?”

“The One and Only” Gabriel winked at Sam “So—oomph!” Gabriel had been almost tackled by Dean with how hard the hunter had thrown himself to hug him.

“Man! I’m so glad you came! We need your help so bad! You’re my only hope.”

“Wow, I.. I’m happy to see you too...”

Sam looked at Gabriel with suspicion, he wasn’t sure if he had just seen the archangel blush for a fraction of a second. Quickly, Dean filled him in on the situation at hand. It was frightening to see how his usual aloof stance slowly turned into a mask shadowed by something terrible.

“...That’s why I called you, I want you to fly yourself in there and find proof against that bastard.”

“Oh, I’ll find proof alright.”

“...Gabe?”

After a snap of his fingers, Gabriel delighted himself with the look of shock both hunters gave him. In front of them, instead of the usual archangel, a fourteen or something year old version of Gabriel stood back at them. A thinner, more delicate frame than what was expected of him, soft locks of brown blondish hair curled over his blushed face, fairer skin that enhanced his rosy pouted lips. An evil grin that reflected the sparkle in his huge whiskey coloured eyes was the only thing that broke the angelical image he was giving out right now.

“Well, how do I look?”

Dean gulped down dryly.

“I mean this in the best worst possible way given the situation Gabe but… Man, you look like you’re literally asking for a banging from that son of a bitch.”

Sam snapped his head towards Dean with a glare of disapproval. It was true that right now Gabriel looked like a… depraved man’s wettest dream with such angelic looks but surely there was some sort of punishment for saying something like THAT to the face of a friggin’ actual archangel!

Surprisingly for Sam, this actually made Gabriel smile more. He snapped his fingers once more and surely a lightning came out of nowhere outside and rain started to fall, a minute later it was literally a downpour. Taking off his jacket and giving it to Dean he messed his hair more, undid the laces of his boots and a wave of his hand made him look like he had not been able to sleep under a roof for a week. He went to open the door.

“Well, I’m off.”

Before he stepped out, he felt someone holding his arm for a second. Gabriel turned to look at Dean.

“Gabe… be careful.”

Gabriel laughed. It was obvious the only person who would have to be careful was that bastard priest, he didn’t understand the reason Dean looked so concerned.

“Sure Dean-o, don’t worry about it.”

Confidently, he stepped outside and made a run towards the church five blocks away because of-fucking-course he had to be that extra with the scenario. Dean stood at the door until he could no longer see Gabriel before closing it back, went for a beer and sat down on the edge of the bed once more.

“Do you think he’ll gather enough proof to get that bastard in jail in just a night?”

Dean turned at his brother with an odd look.

“Sammy... If he gets proof that he’s doing something, anything, to those children; he’s not gonna let that bastard rot in jail.”

It took Sam a couple of seconds to realize that they had literally unleashed the wrath of heavens against the fucker, he was not going to survive the night. His concept of right and wrong told him that letting Gabriel kill that man was almost as bad as shooting him in the face but still, it was Gabriel the Archangel the one delivering judgement. That had to count for something, right? Sam grabbed a beer and sat by Dean’s side.

“Well then I guess that’ll serve him right.”

“Just desserts alright...”

They drank their beer in awkward silence, getting ready to wait for Gabriel to show up once more. This was going to be a long night.

---

It took Father Roland almost an hour more than usual to bid goodbye to everyone that night because of the sudden downpour and he was already getting on edge having to smile so much at Mrs. Rowan’s stupid idle remarks on yesterday’s tv show. He had to do something about this frustration soon, little Rhys still had to pay some punishment for trying to escape like that. He had just closed the door when a sudden movement at the nearest corner called his attention, looking closely in the dimmed lights it looked like a person.

Father Roland neared them cautiously until he was upfront. “Who are you?”

The crouching figure jumped scared and turned towards the priest taking his breath away. Behind layers of sticky and wet dirt beautiful melted golden eyes and features that could put all the angels in heaven to shame were staring at him in fright.

“Please don’t sack me. I… I won’t do anything bad.”

Father Roland gave him the disgustingly sweet smile he gave to his favorite boys.

“Dear me boy, I would never think of sacking you. My god you’re drenched, let’s get you dry. Come on over this way, you can clean up at the house.”

Listening at the man’s thoughts disgusted him. Images of bruised flesh and screams of innocent children filled his brain. So Gabriel focused on the charade of pretending to be a sad little runaway runt that was being picked up by the (overly) caring priest. He had promised Dean he would get enough proof first so he just had to wait a little more and stoically stand the bastard’s hands holding him up with a bit too more strength than what should be normal. He expected it wouldn’t take long, the first point of alarm had been triggered when he clearly read how Father Roland was rejoicing on the fact he had in his hands a boy that apparently no one would miss.

So you’re already sinning in mind eh, Father Roland?

He was led to a bathroom in a small apartment adjacent to the church and was told to wash himself. Sighing, Gabriel made a go to undress. He was disappointed when the priest didn’t actually attack him while taking his bath but that obviously was because he preferred to be a voyeur, otherwise there was no reason for the shower not having any curtains. Gabriel took some time to finish his shower considering that a boy that hadn’t taken a bath in such a long time wouldn’t really rush. In the middle of it the priest arrived with a towel and some clothes. Gabriel covered himself in apparent shame while the priest laughed it off telling him it was perfectly alright and not to feel ashamed.

“Don’t feel ashamed my ass, you obviously scanned me over entirely in the process.” mumbled Gabriel after the priest had left him once more. Second point of alarm triggered.

Finishing the shower, he dried himself and cursed under his breath. A deteriorated large t-shirt and some old tight shorts. For someone dealing with an orphanage it didn't look like he cared much about the things he had for the children. Third point.

“Well look at that! You look like a completely different boy now! Come, have a seat, let's have dinner.”

Gabriel sat in front of him mumbling something he hoped passed as ‘thank you’. Taking a bite of the mashed potatoes he groaned in pleasure he didn’t expect.

“You like it?”

“Yes… did you do this?”

He leaned forward a bit and winked at the boy. “One needs to find joy in the simple daily tasks.”

Well fuck it thought Gabriel, this is why this world seems so unfair most of the time. Here I am, sitting in front of a child abuser that prepares mashed potatoes worth of a showdown against Dean’s. If it weren’t for how he’s looking at me right now I wouldn’t suspect a thing, heck, he could be poisoning me right now and… Gabriel stopped his train of thought and carefully began to disentangle the molecules that formed the mashed potatoes.

(C6H10O5)n

That was starch, definitely from the potatoes, and over there were the fat molecules and further more salt and testing a little bit more water and lactose and...

C16H12FN3O3

Oh.

There it was. Roofies.

It was so obvious, crush the bitches and mix them in the mashed potatoes. Not a single kid would find out. Well, too bad for you Father Roland, I’m not a normal kid at all.

So far all evidence had been circumstantial, Dean’s telling of the events, sinning in mind was still not an action so he could easily make the priest repent on that, even being a disgusting voyeuristic pervert could be forgiven to a point if he didn’t do anything else, he would eventually land in Hell when he died but that wouldn’t be Gabriel’s problem. But things had changed now that he was actively trying to drug him.

“What’s your name kid?”

Gabriel turned to look at the man, if he was going to do this then it was going to be all tricks out and for a man that falsely professed upon religion, a religious styled punishment was the most fitting things of all.

He left his fork down at the plate and gave him a smile.

“Gabriel. They call me Gabriel.”

“Gabriel eh? That’s a very nice name, did you know that your name is the name of an angel?”

“An angel?” Gabriel went forward to drink a bit of the adulterated soda.

“An Archangel actually. They hold the highest of ranks in Heaven just below God.”

“Who else holds that rank?”

“Well, there’s Michael and Raphael.”

Gabriel frowned a little.

“What about Lucifer?”

“What about him?”

“He’s an Archangel too.”

“No he’s not.”

“Why not?”

“Because he has fallen. He cannot hold the title of Archangel because he refused of it when he fought against God’s will.”

“How do you know? Where is that written in the Bible?”

Father Roland stammered for a second.

“That’s just the way it is kid.”

“Just like that? Shouldn’t we like, reeeally check the book? Or maybe ask Lucifer about it?”

The priest snorted, he was obviously getting frustrated. Figures, thought Gabriel, a person that preaches religion but doesn’t believe in God wouldn’t really spend much time actually reading his books.

“You cannot ask anything to the Devil boy, if you mess with him, you’ll end up in Hell.”

“Have you even tried?”

“Are you asking me to give up my faith?”

“I’m just telling you to fact-check your statements, it wouldn’t do good if a priest was unable to talk about the most basic of things with his congregation.”

Father Roland stood up livid and moved towards Gabriel’s seat with a forced smile.

“You’re getting a little snappy, maybe we should rest and keep with this very interesting talk tomorrow.”

“Oh I think not. I like myself snappy, thank you.” Gabriel smirked at him.

The priest slapped Gabriel with so much force that any normal kid would have literally been thrown off the chair. Gabriel just turned his head a little.

“Don’t be disrespectful to me!”

It took the priest a couple of seconds to perceive the unnatural pain in his hand, when he turned to look at it it was already turning red and swelling a bit.

“Is everything alright Father Roland?”

Gabriel could practically see the cogs in his brain turning at full speed trying to understand how on earth this kid was unfaced and unblemished despite how hard he had hit him. A second later the man was picking Gabriel up from the shirt with evident anger. He obviously had to be more thorough with this little brat. Gabriel wanted to see what his plan of action was so he allowed the priest to manhandle him.

Father Roland dragged Gabriel to a tiny room at the end of a stretch hallway and threw him on a bed. Gabriel perceived the acrid undertones of sweat drenched with fear and other less graceful fluids. It apparently was the same room where the priest sleeped. This was beyond disgusting, he acted like an animal, revolving over his past victories and dragging them on, only to increase the fear of the next child. He was visually frantic, his orderly plan of drugging the kid was not working at all but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t get away with what he wanted. He always got away with what he wanted.

And he wanted Gabriel.

The priest placed himself on top of Gabriel while turning him around, holding his hands backwards, tying him up with a rope he naturally had at hand.

“We’ll have to give you some lessons on how to respect your elders you little piece of shit.”

“What are you gonna do?” Muffled Gabriel through the sheets.

“Wait and see.”

A moment later, the man was pulling Gabriel’s shorts down and the next one he was thrown against the wall by an unknown force. The priest had a grunt forced out of him with the impact, it had been so hard that he temporarily lost his sight, almost fainting.

“Aaaaand... That’s it.”

The priest looked upwards and looked at Gabriel disoriented. Instead of the old clothes he had given him, he was wearing the clothes he had before, only now they were clean and nice.

“What the hell!? What’s going on!? Put me down you little bitch!”

Gabriel magicked himself a chair and sat down to properly look at the man. It was funny to see how out of his element he was right now. This was his space, this was his room and in just a flash Gabriel had turned it all over and made him feel defenseless. He radiated hate towards the archangel. Gabriel laughed in mirth. It was a laugh that would have been labeled as beautiful if the situation had been a completely different one.

“Are you sure you should be using that kind of language with me? Right now I’m the one holding you at will.”

“I don’t know how you’re doing this but once I find out...”

“What? You’ll make me pay for it? Oh man, don’t be an idiot. You’ve been beating and raping kids for years and you managed to keep yourself out of punishment until now. Too bad for you the Winchesters found you along the way… Long story short Roland, you picked the short end of the straw this time and I’m here to pass on some good ol’ Judgement. But not before you tell me what you did with the rest of the kids.”

Father Roland laughed, he was desperately trying to hold onto some sort of power.

“Good luck with that, I’ll die first before telling you a thing.”

Gabriel smirked “You just don’t know how happy I am to hear those words Roland, there’s no other way I’d prefer to go around this.”

With a movement of his hand Gabriel brought Roland back down and on his knees and stood up in front of him.

“But first, maybe a demonstration of what will come to you if you don’t start talking.”

With a snap, Gabriel turned the floor below the priest’s knees into heated coal. Immediately burning his flesh. The man wailed in pain throughout the long 15 seconds the torture lasted. He was sweating already when the lumps of coal disappeared once more. Threads of burnt polyester fabric from his pants adhering painfully to the raw flesh.

“So, Roland. Feeling up for a confession?”

Four hours later, the priest’s entire body was covered in burnt flesh and blisters. And it hadn’t been the man’s fault, with the type of torture he had received he would have confessed everything in less than 20 minutes if Gabriel hadn’t taken his voice away every time he was about to talk.

“What did you say? I can’t hear you Roland! Are you sure you’re trying enough??”

Eventually, Gabriel allowed him to talk. Moments after Roland would have collapsed if it weren’t for the fact that Gabriel was keeping him awake.

“No can’t do Roland, these are your last moments alive, you should treasure them instead of letting them go by.”

Roland started to cry, he couldn’t keep the farce of strength any more.

“Wh… What are... Are you a demon?”

Gabriel turned to look at him like he had grown a second head, sitting sideways on his chair.

“You didn’t listen to me well when I told you my name did you?”

Gabriel loved it, that moment of realization hitting a person’s eyes. The myriad of questions flowing at once. How? Why? All followed by denial.

“You can’t be Gabriel...” His voice was fading away.

“How come?”

“Gabriel is… an archangel… from Heaven… He wouldn’t…”

“You know Roland, I think you’re forgetting a very important thing.”

Roland looked at him, expecting his words, it wasn’t like he could do much anymore.

“All angels are soldiers, and I am a High Commander of My Father’s legions.”

Eyes flashed bright blue and wings spanned behind him in light while he stood up with pride. He could literally feel how Roland paralyzed in fear, tears streaming down his wrecked features while his lips mumbled the first words of the Lord’s Prayer.

Sam and Dean woke up startled by the sound of a Fire truck siren and police cars passing by the road next to the motel. After a couple of hours waiting for Gabriel, they had eventually fallen to a light sleep on the same bed watching tv. Looking at each other, they strode outside the room and ran outside, a dark cloud of smoke rising up from the place they knew the church was.

They ran towards the church, a group of kids were already herded two blocks away from the commotion, the two kids Dean had found broke into a run towards him when they saw him and held themselves to him despite the efforts of the policeman. Dean calmed the man down and moved with the kids closer to their group so that he wouldn’t make a fuzz.

“Are you alright kids? What happened?”

“The church’s on fire.”

“I woke up to go to the bathroom and I smelled the smoke, I made the call.”

“That was very brave of you.”

The kid smiled, it was the very first smile Dean had seen on him. He left them to approach his brother.

“The fire started on the priest’s house, it’s apparently been controlled at the moment without danger of it reaching other buildings but they’re still on hold...”

“And what about the priest?”

Sam looked at Dean with a look that showed him he was unwilling to say more about it with the kids so close.

“Pretty sure he’s well past the Reception Committee downstairs by now. Thanks for bringing my jacket by the way.”

Both men got startled when the currently teen Gabriel talked behind them and grabbed the piece of clothing Dean had under his arm. The man looked at him trying to assess his expression.

“Are you okay Gabe?”

Gabriel stared at Dean with a funny look.

“Of course I’m okay, why wouldn’t I?”

“I’m sorry but with the way you look right now I...”

“...You were actually worried about me? Like, for real?”

“It’s not like I don’t understand you’re still an archangel, I just—”

Dean was cut short when Gabriel gave him a kiss on the cheek.

“Thanks.”

Sam felt just as shocked as his brother but just as him tried to ignore what had just happened to keep his own sanity if for nothing else.

Two weeks later Dean was still following up the news on the priest case despite being five states away at the bunker. When the flames of the priest’s home had been finally doused, they discovered all the evidence of the child abuse in his bedroom which had been miraculously untouched by the fire and the investigation began. Just that morning the police had discovered the remains of a third child, probably the last they would find considering the time that had passed from their disappearances until now. All the children at the orphanage had been moved to different places. Rhys and Jason had called Dean twice already, once to tell him where they were going to land and then when they arrived, he had given them his phone in case they needed him for anything, at all. Someone reached over his shoulder to look at the screen of his laptop.

“Still looking at that?”

Dean turned to look back at Gabriel, he was back to being the man he had always known. It was the first time he had seen him after the events of that night, the archangel had excused himself by stating that there were some things in heaven that needed to be addressed. He looked at him for a second before starting to quote a part of the article.

“It has been a miracle that all the evidence of the whereabouts of these poor children was intact after the fire. Even when there is nothing we can do to help them now, at least they can be given proper burial, their memory shall remain.”

Gabriel looked at the screen while taking a seat by Dean’s side, he was unfazed by the text.

“Is there anything funny ‘bout that?”

“...You made up some of that evidence to lead the police, didn’t you?”

“Hmm, maybe?”

Dean looked at the archangel profoundly and nodded gravely.

“... Thanks Gabe.”

Gabriel just arched up his eyebrows in surprise. He actually expected Dean to tell him off for making up evidence after he had answered so nonchalantly. Not for him to give him that look of… of… of what?

“Uh… You know it’s not like I care much about this but… are you alright Dean?”

Dean tore his eyes once more from the screen towards Gabriel.

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing.. I mean… it’s just… you… you should already be lashing back at me for something… anything” Gabriel waved his hands like he couldn’t get anything around him. “Heck, you didn’t even complain about the beer I got from your stash!” Now he waved his hand in front of him where he was indeed holding out a beer from the dark ale six pack Dean had bought for a special dinner a week ago.

“What are you talking about? What you did was amazing! You helped so many children to escape an awful fate with that bastard! Why would I scream at you for that?”

“Because I don’t know you anymore! I can’t handle you this way!”

Dean was taken aback for a moment, Gabriel was upset now and it was obvious he didn’t understand what the problem about Dean being grateful towards him made him panic like that. But Dean got it. He understood that feeling of helplessness when the world around you turned in a way you never expected better than anyone else. And he also understood another thing, it was true that he liked the archangel enough to trust him like family despite all of their differences or probably because of all of them.

“Then you’ll have to learn how to handle me again.” He looked at Gabriel with a look that said ‘Come at me’.

Gabriel blushed and looked away, was there anything he could say to banter against him now?

“But I am kind of angry about the beer. I hope you know how to make it up to me before I fry your wings in holy oil.”

Gabriel turned back to him, the tone of his voice was definitely not even close to upset. It was soft and warm and… and what?

“Well, good luck making me do that, I could make some killer burgers but I have nothing to work with here.”

Dean smirked.

“I think that can be arranged.”

He stood up and began moving towards the kitchen, stopping just a moment to wait for Gabriel. Cautiously, the archangel stood up and went to follow Dean. Other times the hunter would have already been kicking him out but to be honest Gabriel didn’t really mind having a Dean that looked forward to something he had cooked.

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