#matilda sophos

[sparrowwritings]

Day Six: Curtain

Day Five -- Masterpost -- Day Seven

Five years after Warm

The weather in Greatwood was almost always consistent. Summers were hot and winters were cold, though neither normally had so great an extreme to cause alarm to its populace. Compared to places like its closest neighbor of West Plains, the city tended towards more mild climes. 

On occasion, however, the hot air of the south and the cold air of the north collided with Greatwood as its epicenter. Depending on the time of year, this could lead to either immense rainstorms or thick snows. 

The winter after his sister got married, a blizzard hit the city hard enough that Robert Sophos was forced to room with them until utilities could be restored to his own home. This meant that he would be living in the same house as two other adults and two young children for an unpredictable amount of time. Not only that, he couldn’t even retreat into his work or his books for very long due to the constant distractions of the household.

To say that Robert was unhappy was an understatement.

He could sense the watchful eyes of Caleb and Jerran boring holes into the back of his head as he attempted to type out his intended lesson plan for when university classes would resume. Very recent experience had taught him that merely ignoring the boys would have the same result as indulging in their antics. Still, Robert pretended not to notice them until they had taken places on each side of him. The grey eyes of his 12-year-old brother and the blue eyes of his 10-year-old nephew went wide with identical pleading expressions. He sighed through his nose, already giving up on having a productive day. The tone of his voice was flat as he said, “You have my attention. What is it, you two?”

“Brother, can you play with us?” Caleb started to pout, predicting Robert’s typical answer. There was a reason why their sister was his primary caregiver.

“Yeah, Uncle Robert, can you play with us?” Jerran, less used to his uncle’s behavior, smiled sweetly as he begged.

Robert called up a new tab on his browser and searched for the local weather. Once the page loaded, he pointed at the screen as if the boys couldn’t see it for themselves. “It’s already in the negatives out there, I can’t think of any game that would be worth the potential frostbite.”

Rolling his eyes, Caleb responded, “We didn’t ask for you to play with us outside, we just asked for you to play with us.”

“I’ll concede to that particular point, but I still wish to know what it is that the two of you want me to join you in playing before I agree to anything.” 

Caleb opened his mouth, then closed it with a frown. He was deep in thought when Jerran piped up, “Hide and seek, duh!”

Resisting the urge to mention that the younger boy’s suggestion was not the most obvious choice, Robert asked, “And I take it I would be “it” first?”

The boys looked at each other before turning back to him with faux-innocent expressions. “Well...we were *hoping* you would be…” Caleb gave a sheepish grin.

That left him with two options with similar unfavorable results. Either he declined and the boys bothered him until either his sister or her husband could distract them away or he agreed and got caught up in the children’s game for far too long. After a moment or two of deliberating (and realizing that he’d lose approximately the same amount of time working for both options), he sighed and covered his eyes. “I will count to 50. Neither of you can hide outside or in the bedrooms. Starting now.” Robert heard the boys scramble away as he started to count.

“That was nice of you,” Matilda commented. He took his hands away from his eyes to find that she had been standing just out of sight until that moment. “Usually you wait until the begging stage to give in and play. What gives?” 

Without looking, Robert carefully moved a hand so that it was pointing in the direction of the bedrooms upstairs without anyone being able to see him doing so from behind. “In the past four games of hide and seek, one or both of them have hidden behind a set of curtains in one of the bedrooms. I’m attempting to teach them how to be more creative.”

“Ohh, I see.” She grinned at him. “You’re actually giving yourself time to work some more while they find places to hide.”

He couldn’t help the smile that started to grow on his face. “Your words, not mine.”

[sparrowwritings]

Writing Challenge Day Nine: Abusive

Day Eight -- Masterpost -- Day Ten

WARNING: EX-VICTIM OF A TOXIC RELATIONSHIP/EMOTIONAL ABUSER GETS INTO A BIT OF A DOWNWARD SPIRAL HERE. SOME DEPRESSION LIKE SYMPTOMS HAPPEN BUT SHE HAS A SUPPORT SYSTEM AND IT’S HAPPIER IN THE END I PROMISE.

Something so little shouldn’t have meant so much, but as Matilda stared down at the shattered remains of the mug she burst into tears. 

Daeglan, who had rushed into the kitchen the minute he heard shattering glass, took one look at his girlfriend’s state and hugged her tightly. “There, there, it’s just a mug…”

“But it’s my fault it’s broken…” Her voice was already hoarse. She stood there limply, the solid weight of Daeglan’s arms keeping her from falling onto the shards. 

“Okay so you dropped it. That’s fine. Everything is just fine.” He kept his voice steady and calm--a rock that she could cling to even in the darkest depths of her mind. “No one was hurt, only a thing got broken. You’re just fine, Mat.” She turned around and buried her face in his chest with a sob.

Even three years after Ch--after He had left her behind, there was still a trace of Him that was almost impossible for Matilda to get rid of on her own. Even with Daeglan’s help, she still had days where she felt as if everything she was doing was wrong, and that she’d be punished for it with frosty silences and isolation. Her therapist (something else fairly new in her life--she finally took steps into seeking professional help with her problems) had warned her that such sudden bursts of emotion were normal. Expected, even. 

“Trauma isn’t something you can just cure,” Dr. Resen had said in their most recent session. “And losing even an emotionally abusive relationship is reason enough to have grief over what was lost. Having sudden bouts of emotion that are unrelated to what immediately happened is what’s known as a ‘grief burst.’ There is no way to predict when they will happen, but the fact that you’re having them in an environment where you feel safe is a good sign, I feel.” He’d adjusted his glasses. “Now this is more my professional opinion than it is strictly medical fact, but I believe that you having these bursts around your partner means that your mind feels safe enough to process the feelings you have related to your ex. You were stifled in your previous environment, and now that you have been given a place where you can express yourself, your body is reacting to it by letting you feel far more intensely than before. You’ve made excellent progress, Matilda.”

Right now, she didn’t feel like she’d made any progress at all. Matilda felt stuck, pulled deeper and deeper into hopeless despair and the quagmire of painful memories and mistakes. Only Daeglan’s warm embrace kept her from drowning. 

After a while more of sobbing, her breathing slowly calmed. *Nothing’s quite like a good cry when it comes to letting the emotions out.* She thought as she breathed in her boyfriend’s natural scent. Her mouth opened and closed a few times before Matilda gave up and returned the embrace. From the way he squeezed her a little tighter, she was sure that he’d gotten the message.

“I’m thinking we order pizza tonight.” His voice was still in her ear as a comforting rumble. Nothing at all like the sharp, almost hissing sounds of her ex’s disapproval. Daeglan’s words were just enough to keep that very same voice inside her head quiet, if only for the moment.

“Pizza sounds good. After we sweep up the floor. Don’t want the boys hurting themselves.“ She murmured back to him, feeling so very tired after all of those tears. Even if she’d felt like cooking, Matilda wasn’t sure if she could in her current state.

“We can do that in a minute.” 

The two stayed in the same position for far longer than a minute, but neither of them minded.

[sparrowwritings]

Writing Challenge Day 23: Warm

Day Twenty-two -- Masterpost -- Day Twenty-four

“Just what do you think you’re doing?” Matilda giggled as facial hair of her tickled the side of her face. Strong arms were also wrapped around her waist as she continued to mix the ingredients of dinner together. 

Daeglan responded by burying his face into the side of her neck. “Trying to absorb the warmth,” He responded. She could feel more than hear his voice, quiet as it was at the moment. Looking outside, she noticed the dark grey sky and wondered if the weather was calling for snow. 

Mat naturally produced more heat than her boyfriend did. This was a fact that hadn’t been noticed until very recently--when they two had started spending more time in his home than her own. Luckily winter was approaching, so the ex-military man had been taking full advantage of her living heater status. Jerran, his 5-year-old son, had also been taking to using Matilda to warm up. In the past few days she’d learned that napping on the couch was an invitation for everyone to join her in them. She also learned--once again--that both of the Faires could be pretty clingy when they wanted to.

Not that she minded. Matilda had been flustered at first, but the attention and physical affection was much appreciated.

Even if it meant she had to take longer to cook as of late. “I’ll still be warm when I’m finished here, Dae.” She giggled as he held her a little tighter. “So unless you want feta cheese all over your sweater, I think you’ll have to let me go.”

“I can take that risk.” Daeglan mumbled. 

“What about when I have to put the layers into the pan? Or set it into the oven?”

He gave a slight whine. “If I have to I’ll move...” In this moment in particular it was hard to remember that he’d been through any hardships in his lifetime. He sounded like it would take a herculean effort to separate from his girlfriend, when in reality it only took one thing in particular. 

With a gentle sigh, Matilda put the bowl she was holding on the counter in front of her and turned around her boyfriend’s arms to face him. “Just one kiss, then I have to go back to making the lasagna.” 

She’d barely made it through the sentence before Dae had pressed his lips against hers. They were slightly chapped, probably from the weather, but not unpleasantly so. Mat let herself relax against him for just a moment before finally pressing her fingertips against his shoulder and separating from him. He gave her a wide, lazy smile as his arms fell away from her. She couldn’t help but smile back.

“It’ll just be a few more minutes.” Matilda teased as she started to prep the pan. “Surely you won’t freeze in that amount of time.”

“We’ll just have to wait and see, then.” Came the automatic response. 

[sparrowwritings]

Writing Challenge 11: Booklet

Previous Day -- Original Post -- Next Day

“You know you don’t need to keep your face in that tourist info thing the whole time, right?” Daeglan called from where he was walking a few steps ahead. “You’ll run into something at this rate. Or someone.” 

Robert looked up from his reading and adjusted his glasses to get a better look at the other man. “I’m well versed in reading and walking, thank you.” 

“He used to do it a lot when we were kids,” Matilda chimed in. She was currently holding Dae’s hand as they walked side by side. 

“What, that’s changed since then?” Daeglan asked sarcastically. They both laughed while Robert rolled his eyes. 

It was the first vacation that the Sophos family had been on together in a very long time. It was also the first to include Daeglan Faires and his son Jerran. Robert had brought up the idea of going to the historical city of Capital during his summer break, but Matilda had argued that all three siblings go. It had taken considerably more convincing for her to get her older brother to agree to bring Daeglan and Jerran along. He’d finally agreed when she had mentioned that their younger brother needed someone to play with while the adults were busy looking at the ruins and artifacts that the city housed. The fact that Matilda was currently dating Daeglan was just a side benefit. Or so Robert had been assured. 

Right now, he was getting a little tired of being witness to the two of them being a couple. All the more reason to keep his face in a booklet for the whole trip, in his opinion.

7-year-old Caleb and 5-year-old Jerran, who had both been preoccupied with the display in a shop window, sprinted ahead to chase after the pigeons that plagued the city. Matilda let go of Daeglan’s hand to go after them. As he watched her leave, Robert couldn’t help but notice where the other man’s eyes were going. It reminded him all too well of the LAST man to look at his sister that way, and what had resulted from it. The booklet wasn’t very large, but he managed to close it with a loud enough thump to get Daeglan’s attention.

“I’ve been meaning to speak to you for a while now, Daeglan,” Robert began, adjusting his glasses as he spoke. There was a smudge on one of the lenses, much to his annoyance. “About your relationship with my sister.” 

Daeglan’s face went from confused to cautious in an instant. “What about it?” His tone was defensive, and he drew himself to his full height. When faced against such a physically stronger, severely scarred, and larger man, any other person might have been scared for their life. Instead, Robert chose to take his glasses case out of a pocket and use the cloth inside to wipe the lenses clean. It was best to avoid eye contact for the moment, anyway.

“Are you aware that she had been in a serious relationship before you both started dating?” Robert could feel Daeglan’s bright blue eyes bore into the side of his head. “There is a point that I would like to get to with this, I’d appreciate it if you would humor me for a moment.” He held the silver frames close to his face and squinted at the glass. The lens was still smudged. He tried to clean it again.

Daeglan was quiet for a moment before he answered. “She didn’t give me a lot of solid details, but it’s clear that he wasn’t good for her.” Near sighted as Robert was, he still could tell that he was no longer being watched by the other man. A brief glimpse through his glasses focused the shape of Faires’ face and showed it to be gazing into the middle distance. “It’s--we’re--” He sighed. “There’s times when she’ll make a mistake. Something really small, usually. And Mat’ll just, apologize for it over and over again like she’s expecting something bad to happen to her if she doesn’t. It’s only been recently that she’s let me show more than just a little bit of affection in public. Apparently the other guy--I don’t remember his name and honestly I don’t want to--didn’t like it? And she just kinda took it to heart? It’s just, really upsetting to think about.” 

Robert, having finally managed to remove the smudge, returned his glasses to where they belonged on his face. When they were settled, he gave a curt nod. “Without going into specifics, you’re right on all accounts.” He absently tapped the cover of the booklet while glancing up at Daeglan. “So you can understand my concern when Matilda insisted on bringing you with us on our vacation. 

“He--and I shall similarly not name him--had been a frequent guest of ours when we went on trips with our parents. After our father died and our mother...” Robert had to pause and turn away, as he always did went talking about his mother, but he continued, “Became unfit to raise our brother, he left as soon as Matilda had gained legal custody of Caleb. She’s done a fine job of raising him, but the emotional toll on her was quite heavy. Her burden seems to have greatly lightened since she met you.” Robert directed his dark blue gaze onto Daeglan’s bright blue one. “If my sister returns to the place where she was before she met you, there will be consequences.”

Slowly, realization took over Daeglan’s face. “Wait, is this your version of the ‘if you break her heart, i’ll break you’ conversation? Really?” A smile played at his lips. “I honestly didn’t know you had it in you, Rob.” 

Ignoring the nickname, Robert crossed his arms. “I wasn’t talking about my own ability to harm you should Matilda come to harm, though I would do everything in my power to make certain you’d suffer.” Daeglan looked like he was about to laugh. Robert didn’t blame him. After all, what was a history professor to do against an ex-military man? “I was talking about how devastated she would be should she be betrayed in that way again.” 

The laughter vanished from the taller man’s face and was replaced with sheer panic.  “I can’t--I wouldn’t--I swear I would NEVER--She means too much to me for me to--” Robert raised up a hand to stop the babbling. He started smiling, despite himself.

“This response is one of many reasons why I’ve decided to trust you. You’ve shown nothing but kindness and caring for Matilda. I might have been annoyed by the displays of affection you both have given each other, but they have all been real.” His smile grew a little wider. “It’s clear that you love her enough that you would rather die than see her truly upset. I say this having been called ‘the most love blind idiot in the known universe’ by a colleague.” 

Daeglan, who had been in a state of bewilderment, snorted. “They were right if you only just NOW noticed that.” 

“I can safely assure you that I noticed before this moment.” Robert glanced up the street, where Matilda was leading the energetic boys back down the path by their hands. “If it helps matters, I do wish to spend more time getting to know you, Daeglan. Part of my hesitance in doing so did indeed come from previous experience, you understand.” 

Daeglan looked where Robert did and his expression softened. “Completely.” Just before the three got close enough to hear the conversation he added, “You know you can just call me Dae, right?”

“I didn’t wish to do so without permission.” Robert paused. “Though I would like to say that I prefer Robert over Rob.”

“Gotcha.”

The vacation was a lot better for everyone after that.