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shreddedparchment · 4 years ago

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Pseudo Princess Pt.36 - End

A Chance Meeting

08/08/2020

Pairing: King!Steve x Reader Word Count: 10,158

Warnings: language, angst, fluff, creepy dudes

A/N: The end. 😭 I hope you’ve enjoyed it. If you happen to reblog, thanks so much for helping me spread my work! xoxo

Please DO NOT repost my stories on any other sites or blogs. REBLOGS are always welcome.

*pictures relay only style of clothing and not physical appearance/race

Silken sheets that are cool to the touch. A roaring fire. The heartbreaking smell of peony blossoms.

A wooden bucket—your wooden bucket—full of ice-cold water.

A chill warmed by a feverish heat wrapped around your back.

All of these thoughts-no. They’re more like memories.

All of them have come to you over the course of a year.

They grow more elusive as they come.

Before you thought you could almost see a garden with an ocean of pink peonies in varying shades of blush to wine.

Now, after months of having these strange visions, they have become condensed into single colors at random. The most frequent is a shade of gold. A circle of blue.

You think these memories might be important but you cannot grasp onto them long enough to make any sense of them.

There’s also the fact that you know they cannot possibly be memories.

You have never seen a garden of peonies.

You’ve had plenty of chill in your life but a warmth like the one you’d recalled at the beginning of the year when the winter cold had been at its worst is as unfamiliar to you as the looming manor on the hill above the village.

With a small groan, you stop and set the bucket down. Your arms are strong enough to carry it but after so harsh a winter, you’d be a fool not to take care.

You’d only just managed to make it out alive after devoting so much time to your little one.

You suppose the golden hue you keep remembering is similar to your baby’s hair. Just a shade or two off. Just as beautiful.

The estate sits looming at the peak of a hill that sits almost a mile away from the village.

The manor itself, you can see, has been expanded. It has the appearance of a small castle now with towers and battlements. The parapet walls that now surround the structure offer crenels to whatever guard the now small castle may need.

It had sat there abandoned for so long, the lord once given task to watch over it and Bright Rise as well as several other small villages in this part of the kingdom having left.t

With the primary building made of wood, the added masonry has really given the old place new life.

What magnificent furnishings must it have? Gilded and ornate probably. Chairs worth more than everything you own.

What type of person has taken residence there? Is it someone you’d know?

Someone beautiful probably. A handsome lord and his gorgeous lady. Both of them probably members of his Majesty King Anthony’s court.

Do they have children? A young little lord or lady running around causing mischief.

You find yourself smiling, made happy by the image you paint in your head.

It makes you only a little sad that you picture yourself there. Your baby in your arms. Your husband…

My husband?

Silly…You don’t have a husband.

But you yearn for something you very nearly miss. Something you know you should have. Something…precious.

“Hello there, little mouse.”

You gasp, startled out of your daydreams and turn on your heel in search of the horrible voice.

With a stuttering heart you spot Phin, standing with his grimy hands in his tattered pockets.

“What do you want?” You ask him, voice cold but wavering as you grow wary.

Already you’re searching with a quick glance for the nearest route of escape.

You hunch over, grabbing your bucket and attempt and fail to stifle your groan of effort.

Phin lunges forward, his hand thrown out towards you. It makes you flinch. You keep your eyes shut as you wait for the blow.

It never comes.

Slowly you peek, searching for Phin's extended hand and find it wrapped around the rope handle of your bucket.

“What are you doing?” You ask, confused and fearful. “Let go.”

“I can treat you right, little mouse. I can give you proper protection. I’ll even pretend that bastard brat of yours is mine.

“I’ve been patient. I may not be able to wait much longer.” His voice is like sludge, creeping down your spine raising chills of terror as it goes.

You yank on the handle, urging him to release it. You meet his gaze, matching his threat with your own angry stubbornness.

You will not give in to him. Not now. Not ever. Even with your little one…you can’t.

He keeps holding it, refusing to let go until you feel like you’d rather drop the water and come back for more later.

He drops the rope and you stumble back a step, not having realized how much you were actually pulling on the bucket.

Some water spills but you’re just thankful to be free of Phin and you rush away to be even further. A glance back when you’re close to your small home shows you Phin still standing where you left him.

He’s watching you.

You hate him.

Getting inside, you shut the rickety door tight, resting your forehead against the splintered wood as you wait for your heart to stop pounding.

From behind you a sudden “goo" chases the tension and fear from your body. Your shoulders relax.

With a smile tugging at the corners of your lips, you turn in search of the cooing source.

Nestled into a bed of hay, covered with a thick blanket of navy fabric, is your little one.

A hair of golden hair and eyes as blue as the deepest ocean have enraptured you. Stolen your heart and changed your world.

“Are you finally awake?” You gush, moving to place your bucket by the crumbling and unlit fireplace before you make your way to him.

His chubby little legs kick away his tunic. A plain brown piece of linen you’d stitched together to keep him clothed.

At six months, he’s nearly outgrown it.

When you offer your arms, he throws his weight to his left until he can roll onto his stomach and then reaches for pivots towards you.

Sliding your hands underneath his arms, he grabs you and you lift him up then place several kisses to his chubby baby cheeks.

He's gorgeous, your baby boy. His smile is sun bright and the gleam in his eyes is sharp and observant.

The expressions he wears on his little face are familiar. They pull and tug at something too but you can’t focus on it long enough to care.

Your boy is your world and that’s all you need to know.

“Is my sweet boy hungry?” You wonder while moving for the bucket of water you’d lugged into the hut.

You dip your hand in and for a moment relish in the feel of the water on your hand. A sudden desire to be submerged in steaming hot water that smells like a spring garden overcomes you, but it’s gone by the time you gently swipe across your little one's face.

He protests you cleaning his face. Whining a little and twisting in your arms until you’re done and wait with both arms supporting him for his sputtering to stop.

He looks at you and after taking another moment to overcome his displeasure, he smiles again.

You chuckle and move to grab the swaddling blanket you’ve set aside for his use alone and sit with it in your lap as you lean back a little to expose your breast to feed him.

A song you feel you almost dreamt slips from your lips in a soothing hum. With your eyes shut you can almost see a beautiful gown sweep around your feet.

Strong arms hold you close as they lead you around a crowded room.

The image is like a dream too, part of the song you’re humming. You’ve never been in so vast a hall, tables laden with food and the satin gown you wear is softer than any rag you’ve ever worn.

No. You’ve never been bathed in such luxury.

This hovel is your home with its mostly dirt floor, loose cobblestones shoved around in spots you’d set aside to keep dry.

No windows. A door that hangs off its hinges. A straw bed. A patched roof.

As your son feeds and you allow your mind to put away the dream of nice things, you assess the hut you’ve made your home.

You’re almost certain that you’d had it in better condition before. The door had hung straight, the rickety fireplace had been sturdy and homely.

The floor had been more even. Your straw bed had been less lumpy.

You’d had another small shelf with your plates and cups. Your sewing kit safely stored in the cupboard below.

Your home had not been grand but it had been comfortable. It had been yours and you’d cared for it delicately and made it a sanctuary.

When had it changed so much?

As you attempt to remember when this place fell apart your mind is forced to confront several other unanswered questions that you seem to think on often but always forget.

It’s almost as if the thoughts are pushed from your mind until they are brought to the surface once more.

The one question that started it all…the one that had made you pause. You still remember the miller’s wife, staring at you at the small grocer's shop while you waited to pay for your bushel of potatoes.

“Oi, orphan. How much longer ‘til you have the babe?” She'd asked, her eyes narrowed as she considered your swollen belly.

You'd stroked it, smiling fondly at the little life growing within you.

“A fortnight.” You’d answered, happy and content despite your poor living.

“Ah, and who's the father?” She'd asked, then waited as your smile slowly fell.

You’d stood there for a few minutes, waiting your turn but lost in thought at the question that had never once occurred to you in the seven months since your belly began to grow.

“I…I don’t know.” You’d admitted to her and her eyes filled with a solemn worry.

“Looks like they finally cornered you. Didn’t get a look at ‘is face?” She'd wondered and it was then that you realized what she thought.

Your precious baby, your little growing bean, was the product of one of the village men forcing himself on you.

But it wasn’t true!

As you sit with your son in your arms, rocking him back and forth as he eats, you know without a doubt in your mind that your son was made with love.

You can feel it within your very soul. There was passion and love and devotion in his making.

A golden aura, warm and encompassing that gave you your own little ray of sunshine. But even though you know this you cannot see his father.

There is no father. Only your Joseph.

He stirs in your arms. You find him smiling, finished with his meal. And just like that, your thoughts are lost to his special allure.

“All done?” You ask him and he yawns.

You begin to wrap him up in the blanket you’d made for him and bring a basket from the corner of your hut.

It’s a decent size with straps sewn into the wicker so that you may put it on your back.

You place it before you, balanced between your legs and gently lay Joseph within. You make certain he's wrapped up tight and kiss his cheek before you fit a domed lid on top.

The lid covers his head and keeps him safe from the summer heat.

“We'll check the traps and then come right back.” You promise him and lift the basket onto your shoulders, listening as he coos long baby words that say nothing.

It’s like he’s talking to you, the quiver of his voice moving up and down with inflection as if he knows what he’s doing.

He takes a breath and then starts again, “Oooh-awhhhh-wahhhhhh-ooooohhhhhhh…”

You can’t help but smile, your skin greeted by scorching sun as you start your trek into the trees behind your home.

“Let's check the traps by the pond first, then we'll check the bog by the road.” Joseph coos along with you.

~~~~~~~~~~

The view is spectacular.

It’s downright scenic from up here so high on the hill. Even if the beautiful valley is slightly tarnished by the village below.

It’s part of the reason he decided to keep the purchase.

Several months ago, Steve had found the deed to the manor on Sunbright Hill.

He'd sat for nearly an hour while he'd considered the paperwork, trying to remember why he’d made the purchase of such a dilapidated plot.

The lord that had once resided here had apparently vacated when he'd married a lady of considerable wealth but she preferred the Capital city to Bright Rise below so, they’d left and never come back.

Slowly the manor began to rot and the village, without its caretaker, had also fallen into poverty and corruption.

The farms were all but dead. Only two were still in use and had the season failed once in the past few years, the village would have surely fallen.

“Steve?” Bucky sighs, moving into the renovated den.

Steve stands by the large arched windows behind his massive oak desk.

The chair is angled towards the glass, distracted as he's been lately, he can’t seem to get any work done.

“Steve?” Bucky says louder.

Steve blinks, pulled from his brooding to notice his friend. He turns and waits, saying nothing.

“She's here.” Bucky smiles.

Steve’s heart gives an eager stutter as his own bearded face breaks into a wide smile.

“Where?” He asks, moving towards his oldest friend.

“She’s with Nat in the dining room. She was hungry.”

Steve is already out the door, stomping with wide steps down the hallway, then another and another, down a staircase then to the east side of the manor towards the dining room.

It’s a long room, a table long enough to sit at least forty people takes up most of the center space.

Each wall has been adorned with tapestries and paintings, an iron chandelier with sixty candles hangs at the center of the room, currently unlit.

Instead, windows on both sides of the room sit open, a cool breeze blowing in to cool the manor from the summer heat.

As Steve thrusts the doors open, he spots a grouping of his closest friends. Sam, Wanda, Pietro, Peter who is actually squatting beside the chair they are all surrounding, and Natasha in the one beside it.

In the chair is a cherub. An angel. A literal princess dressed in pale pink. Her golden hair, a shade darker than Steve’s is pinned back on one side with clasp of small and ornate white peony blossoms.

“Maggie!” Steve calls, the honey in his deep voice soft and flowing as his heart swells in his chest.

The toddler turns her head, searching aimlessly as his voice echoes around the room. Her right hand full of jelly and toast as she’d sat munching, she now opens and holds her fingers wide as she isn’t coordinated enough to recognize when the food has fallen from her tiny grasp.

Everyone is watching her, despite the presence of their King and Steve cannot blame them. Her eyes find him and she releases a high squeal of excitement before she turns in her seat to take hold of the arm.

“Wait, Maggie, your hands are a mess.” Nat says, her voice full of amusement.

But little Maggie has no patience for cleanliness with her papa so close.

“Papa!” She screams, turning to look at him as she stands on the chair.

Her lips wrap around the name with a slur, her talking improving but still just beginning.

Nat continues to wipe her hands as Steve laughs and moves for her, arms extended.

Maggie bounces on her feet excitedly. Her pink dress swishing with every move.

As he reaches her, she allows herself to fall into his arms and he catches her, spinning her once as he presses a long kiss to her cheek.

Maggie laughs, her hands wrapped around Steve’s head so tightly that Steve wonders if her strength is increasing or it’s just his imagination.

“She has been asking about you all week.” Nat says, rising and then turning to Bucky as he approaches her to give her a kiss.

“We'll give you some space.” Wanda offers then moves around the chair towards the exit.

Steve stops his turning to watch her go, Pietro following.

“Will you be going back to Broklin?” He wonders, wondering if the twins only came to escort Maggie.

“No. We'll visit with Tony.” Pietro nods, then both of them stop at the door and bow before heading off at what must be Pietro’s run.

“How was the journey?” Steve worries, turning his eyes on Nat.

“It was fine. She was a little fussy last night but as soon as I explained that we were coming to see her papa, she converted her energy to enthusiastic impatience.” Nat chuckles. “She really has been asking for you. ‘Papa where?’, ‘Where Papa?’, ‘Papa, Papa, Papa…’. It’s almost as if it’s the only word she knows.”

“She’s never been away from him for so long.” Bucky observes, both he and Nat watching as Maggie places her little hands on Steve’s cheeks, her fingers exploring the edges of his beard while Steve admires her little face.

“I’m sorry, my treasure. I just wanted to make sure the manor would be ready when you arrived.” He tells her.

She seems to understand as she tilts her head to one side and throws her hand up, bent at the elbow as she babbles a string of words only she understands.

“Do you forgive me?” Steve begs.

Maggie giggles sleepily then leans forward to lay her head on his shoulder.

Steve strokes her tiny back, caressing her hair a bit as her eyes begin to close.

“How long will you stay, Nat?” Steve asks, his voice dropping a bit in volume to respect his sleeping toddler.

“Long enough for you and Sam to go and come back. Bucky and Peter will help me with Maggie.” She nods, looking for her faithful friend and Knight.

She spots him in another seat, head in hand, elbow on the table as he dozes lightly.

“He's been doting on her.” Nat explains. “Too much, perhaps?”

Sam huffs a laugh as he crosses his arms across his hard chest, tugging on the crimson tunic he’d quickly dressed himself in this morning.

“He’ll be angry we went to visit Morgana without him.” Sam observes and Steve can’t find it in him to deny it.

The romance that had bloomed between them had seemed to come out of nowhere for him.

In the back of his mind when he’s been laying in bed with Maggie beside him, he can almost remember a conversation about their eventual marriage. When he brought it up to Nat—he was fairly certain the topic had been discussed with a woman—she admitted to the thought never even crossing her mind.

She’d praised the match and teased Peter afterwards, but it has left Steve with another unanswered question.

So many…so many strings that he’s tried to pull on only to find the way blocked.

Maggie coos in his arm, another bout of baby babble in her sleep that pulls him from his pondering.

“We’ll head out in a few hours.” He tells Sam who straightens up and nods. “I would like to go now, but I want to spend a bit of time with Maggie before I leave her again.”

~~~~~~~~~~

A few hours with Maggie turned into thirty minutes.

The longer Steve sat with her in his arms, the more eager he was for her to wake.

He’s missed her but knows that she’s tired so in an effort to get the visit over with and return to his smiling princess, he tucks her into her crib in his bedroom then hands her care over to Nat who sits by the window while Bucky sees them out.

“How long will you be, your Majesty?” Bucky wonders, keeping pace with Steve’s quick and long stride.

“Not long. I’ve only to invite him to the ball in two weeks and we’ll return. I’m certain we’ll be back before dinner.” Steve assures him. “I hear you and Natasha are considering adopting a child?”

Bucky smiles. “There is another option, one that Natasha is most eager to try but I think I’ve convinced her to reconsider.”

Steve regards his friend skeptically.

“Truly, I think I have. She met with a witch a few weeks ago and apparently there is a way for Natasha to regain her ability to have a child.” Bucky explains, his expression a little darker.

Steve’s confusion is evident in the narrow of his brow. Despite his curiosity, he keeps his eyes fixed ahead as they move along the south hall to the stables.

The fall of their shoes echoes along the empty corridor, still only half decorated as it was only finished a few days ago. Steve can still smell the fresh clay between the stones underneath their feet.

He’ll have carpets put in to quell the sound.

“Isn’t that what you both want?” He wonders.

Bucky shakes his head. “I want her to be happy. She thinks I want a child of my own. Naturally my own. But I don’t care if the child is mine by blood. I just want to love her.”

“Magic like that of which she speaks comes with a hefty price.”

“That’s why I refuse to accept it.” Bucky sighs, the worries of his world evident on his shoulders.

“The price is too high?” Steve wonders, finally looking to his friend.

“We would be granted the ability to have our own child, but the mother would have to relinquish years of her own life. Five is what the witch told her. So, if it were Nat’s fate to die at the age of sixty, five years would be taken from that and she would die that much sooner.” Bucky laments, shaking his head in denial. “I cannot condone it.”

Steve sees his friend thinking things through, biting his lip as he wonders if he should speak what has consumed his mind aloud.

He gives in, “I know that it’s her choice. If she should want to do it, I only have some say in it. If having a child truly born of us both is what would make her happy then I would have no choice but to comply, but I would rather adopt a child who we will both love as our own anyway and have my wife for five years longer.”

Steve’s heart gives a painful ache.

Something in Bucky’s words makes him sad and breaks his heart.

My wife…Steve repeats in his head, the memory of feeling proud at that very thought overtaking his senses.

“Is it Margaret again?” Bucky wonders, stopping as they reach the end of the hall. “You’ve got that look on your face again.”

Steve reaches up to stroke the spot on his chest where he can feel his heart beating. Every thump it gives sends more agony into the pit of his stomach making his head hurt.

Is it Margaret? Steve doesn’t think so.

The first time someone had asked him if it was Margaret he was mourning he admitted it was because it was easier than to tell his friends that no, it wasn’t his dead wife he was thinking of. In fact, he wasn’t sure who it was he was thinking of.

He shuts his eyes now, overcome with the sweet scent of oils. Lilac and juniper. Peonies. Fields of them. A garden full, just like back home.

A smile flitters past his sense. The image nearly chokes him. A laugh. A pout. A tear stained face made blurry as he can’t recall its beauty.

Maggie in womanly arms, pressed gently to her breast.

These elusive images that skim his mind are not Margaret. Everyone seems to ignore that Maggie is too young to be Margaret’s or perhaps they simply don’t care?

It’s almost a silent agreement that Maggie’s mother is not Margaret but who exactly she is, no one cares. No one will think on the possibility long enough for it to matter.

Even Steve loses focus after a few second of torment.

Even now, as his heart breaks painfully, Bucky puts his hand on his shoulder and gives him a shake.

Just like that, the images that pained him only moments ago are gone.

Steve smiles, breathing in deep before exhaling in a huff.

“I’ll be quick. I want to be back before it’s too dark.” With a nod from Bucky, Steve hastens his way into the stable.

Sam already has his horse saddled and waiting.

He hops on, adjusting his posture as he takes the reigns then turns to give Bucky one final wave.

“Keep my daughter happy until I return.” He orders.

Bucky waves them off and watches until they clear the large gate.

~~~~~~~~~~

Your hands are shaking with rage. Yet another night with nothing caught.

All of your snares are in fact, broken. A deliberate cut made to the wire you’d spent so much money on.

You think you know exactly who it was that came out to ruin your work. There’s only one person who would benefit from sabotaging your efforts to feed yourself and your boy.

The image of Phin standing across the field from your home, staring at you is burned into your mind.

If it weren’t for Joseph, you would happily starve before you accept Phin’s hand in marriage.

As it is, it isn’t only you. In order to feed your son, you must eat. With no one coming to you for mending—which you are also sure is thanks to Phin’s interference as it has only been happening the past few weeks—you have no money to buy anything. No grain. No bread. No meat.

If you do not eat, your son will starve.

You clutch the broken snare in your hand, squeezing so tight you can feel the wire dig into the palms of your hand.

Were they not so rough, you may have cut yourself.

You take a quick peek at the basket carefully nestled between the rough trunk of tree and large berry bush. Your little one still dozing peacefully and safely covered by the basket’s lid.

While he sleeps, you know you must be quick with the snares by the bog. It isn’t too far so you decide to let him sleep in the shade and make your way through the trees to the road’s edge.

It’s a very short walk. Should he cry you’ll hear him perfectly and be able to run back to him in less than ten seconds.

The sun beats down on the road here and the bog is nearly dried over from the heat of the summer sun.

Normally the mud within is a thick sticky paste that one can easily be caked in. You even remember fetching a purse for the old woman who used to care for you when you were little.

As you stop by its edge, you wonder where the old woman has gone. You attempt to recall the last time you’d seen her but the last memory you have is fetching her purse from the mud pit.

Forcing her from your mind, you look to the two snares you’d set up between two trees and right at the edge of the bog.

The one at the edge has also been cut. You kick it angrily before you move to the other and find that it has also been tampered with.

“Fuck!” You mutter, hating Phin with every fiber of your being.

You try to picture him beside you, laying claim over you as his wife. You think on the life you will live, trapped in your home, and expected to fulfill his every whim, wish, and desire. He will rule you with a heavy hand, command you to obey, and take what he wants from you with violence if need be.

Terror roots you to that spot between the trees, hunched over as your hands shake with anger at the lack of options for you and Joseph.

There is the other choice, the one you’ve refused to make because where might you go? Here in Bright Rise you at least have a roof over your head.

Soon fall will come, then winter after that. If you choose to leave, you might be condemning yourself and your son to a death by freeze and you can’t do that. You can’t make such a reckless choice with him so little still.

You gather as much of the wire as you can, carefully wrapping it around an empty spool you’d kept just in case, hoping to keep your anger from shifting into sorrow.

As you work, you can hear the sound of hooves behind you. Two horses at most. Perhaps three? The sound of shifting gravel too close.

There’s the clearing of a throat before a steady voice speaks. “Excuse me, might I trouble you, miss for some directions? My guard and I seem to have become lost in these backroads by the village.”

You sigh, still consumed with rage with Phin, but rise and turn to face the man who addresses you.

He’s godly, this man with golden hair and a beard to match. His eyes are piercing. Storm blue as they stare you down and you fidget with the spool in your hand as your heart does a sudden and unexpected dip into your belly where it explodes into a flurry of butterflies.

Voice choked in your throat, you look away from the beautiful man and tried to clear your head.

“His Majesty, King Steven has asked you a question, miss.” His guard says, shocking your system into an automatic curtsy as you intentionally avoid their gaze now.

“I’m sorry!” You gasp, worried you might have given offense.

“Sam, it’s alright.” King Steven says, his voice soft and coaxing.

You take a quick peek at his guard, another handsome man with deep umber skin and a soft bronze glow. His gaze is a little sterner but kind all the same.

“We did not mean to startle you.” King Steven says, the gentility in his voice luring you into taking another look at him.

When your eyes meet, you find that you can’t look away.

“I-I was checking my traps.” You relay, feeling stupid suddenly for giving him information that he has not asked for.

“I can see that.” King Steven nods, a small smile tugging up half of his full pink lips.

He’s exquisite. His dress is fine, luxurious satin and silk. His tunic is a royal blue, a silver stitching along every seam in what looks to be a small wavy pattern.

It looks familiar and your hand absentmindedly moves with the pattern of the stitch as if it remembers how to make it though you’ve never sewn on anything so fine in your life.

King Steven’s eyes notice the movement and he watches your hand before you remember yourself and speak again.

“Forgive me, your Majesty, you asked me a question.” You gasp, dropping the spool at your feet and moving around the mud pit to stand at the edge of the road, much closer to where he and his guard tarry.

King Steven smiles again, sending your heart into a pitter patter.

“If you head down this road, you will reach a fork with three smaller roads. You’ll want to take the Eastern most road for nearly four miles before you reach a second fork of two roads. Take the left and follow that road and do not stray. You will reach the Capital before noon.” You say, pointing as you give instruction.

As you finish you drop your arm and bring your hand to tug at the worn leather of your belt.

King Steven stares at you, smiling for so long that you look down at your feet and are suddenly aghast by the state of your shoes and skirts.

You’re so dirty that you’re ashamed to be seen by them. With a bite to your lip, you turn and hurry back around the mud pit to pick up your spool.

“Thank you.” King Steve says, his wide shoulders relaxed. “Might I pay you for your assistance? What is the customary amount? Five silver pieces?”

You throw out your hand to stop him, embarrassed to take payment for so small a favor. “No!”

Gasping you watch as the spool flies out of your hand. It hits the front of his horse then topples onto the road where it rolls along further down the rocky path.

King Steven dismounts as you rush forward in chase of the wire.

Both of you reach it at the same time but King Steven is first to bend over and take it.

“Oh, please…” You gasp, worried about the dirt and muck that must be caked on the tool. “You’ll dirty your hands.”

As King Steven stands upright, he dusts it off then offers it to you. “A little dirt never killed anyone.”

Your senses are assaulted by him and for a moment all you can do is stare at his hand as he waits for you to take your wire.

He smells like evergreen woods and oranges. No…limes…You’re not sure! It’s a citrus of some sort and it overwhelms your mind. His voice is deep and smooth. It works its way into your bones and nearly turns them into jelly.

“Will you not take it?” He asks, shaking the spool a little.

You look up to meet his gaze but find that his smile has disappeared. In its place is a look of severe concentration.

Is he angry with you? Have you insulted him by waiting so long to take your property?

The look in his eyes is intense. He looks almost as if he’s trying to recall an elusive memory.

You know the feeling…

Quickly you take the spool, ignoring the moment your hand brushes his. He must notice how rough your hands are. He must mix with ladies whose hands had never once known the strife of physical labor.

“Thank you, your Majesty.” You curtsy quickly, avoiding his gaze and move around him.

A hot, vice-like grip takes hold around your wrist.

You stop, turning to look at his hand then up to meet his gaze.

Gone is the look of confusion, replaced by a furrowed brow and what can only be hopeful searching within his storm blue eyes.

“Steve?” His guard warns, confused by the moment almost as much as you are.

“What are-” You whisper, voice so weak you’re surprised you can manage to speak at all.

You clear your throat and search for the courage to say your piece.

You don’t like this. The way his presence almost consumes you. His touch is burning, and you’re not sure why you feel as if you’ve also been waiting a lifetime for it.

“Unhand me.” You plead, twisting your wrist in his hand but refusing to look away from his slowly shifting expression.

He smiles and your heart stutters, fear of what it might mean making you yank a little harder, but King Steven uses the momentum of your pull to step towards you. He wraps his free arm around your waist, dipping his head down as he presses fevered lips against your own.

You’re frozen in his arms, wide eyes staring at his own now shut. His lips are fierce, his kiss is hard. It hurts a little and it takes you a moment to feel the warmth of their touch.

He drops your wrist and wraps his other arm around you, hand pressed to the back of your head as he tilts his own to one side and coaxes your lips open with a gentle swipe of his tongue.

The taste of him stuns you, your body freezing as your mind is assaulted with images all blurred together into one precious life that you’d most assuredly lost and now found again.

Your eyes grow blurry, tears flooding from the corners as your lips finally respond to Steve’s kiss.

With a gasp you pull away, sobbing once as you gobble up the sight of him.

Steve’s hands caress the sides of your face, stroking your hair and cheeks as he also devours your visage.

“I found you.” He whispers, throat tick with emotion.

You sob once more, arms pulling him towards you as you give in to the shocking relief you feel to be in his arms once more.

Your heart breaks as you clutch him close. Over a year of lost time with not only him but…

“Maggie!” You exclaim, voice barely above a whisper.

“She’s perfect,” Steve assures you, pulling back to meet your gaze once more. “She’s growing bigger every day. She has your sweetness, your love of jams and jellies.”

Steve laughs, so happy that his own tears fall too. “She calls me Papa, and she calls Sam birb.”

You laugh, shaking your head already knowing that Bucky’s to blame for that.

“I don’t think it’s that funny.” Sam suddenly says, pulling both your gazes towards him.

“Sam…” You smile.

“I’ve kept watch over her, just as I promised.” The recognition in his eyes is heavenly.

“How did this happen?” Steve asks, continuing the caress of your cheeks. “How did we lose each other.”

You sigh, licking your lips as you prepare to explain when your heart suddenly drops, and you remember another pair of storm blue waiting in a basket. “Steve…”

Without warning you turn and race into the trees, running as fast as you can to make sure that he wasn’t a dream.

You find the basket where you left it and pull it away from its hiding spot before you remove the lid, happy to find your little boy still fast asleep.

“Y/N!” Steve calls, racing up behind you where he skids to a stop. “What is it, my flower? What’s the matter?”

He sighs heavily when he finds you, moving to place his hands on your shoulders, needing to feel you it seems.

“Don’t run away from me like that…” He pleads, and your heart aches for him but this is much more important.

“Steve,” You begin, and turn to reveal the six-month-old baby in your arms. “You have a son.”

The step back he takes you attribute to shock. The heartbreak and confusion on his face you have only yourself to blame for.

“How-?” He asks, shaking his head as he stares at the tiny prince in your arms.

“Steve…” You begin, suddenly fearful of what he might say when you confess the deal you’d made with grandmother.

“No.” Steve cuts you off, reaching out to trace the shape of your arms through the dingy dress you wear. “Not here. Let’s go home.”

“To Broklin?” You wonder, relieved that he’s eager to resume your lives together.

“No, I-do you remember when I asked you if I should purchase your little hut?” Despite speaking to you, his eyes are still trained on your son.

Slowly, as he speaks, his hand skates across your arms until he can stroke Joseph’s little cheek with one tentative finger.

“Yes.” You frown, disapproving of the purchase as it isn’t your land to begin with.

“Well, when you forbade me from buying it, I bought the manor on the hill instead.” He confesses, finally meeting your gaze.

“Oh.” You’re stunned.

“I thought that it would be nice to have somewhere in Malibia to call our own. Visiting your family is something that I wanted you to feel free to do. I wanted to give you a space you could come to, somewhere near your home.” He explains sweetly sending your heart into a tizzy.

“Steve…” You reach up, pressing your palm to his warm bearded cheek while keeping a firm hold of your little one with the other.

“Come on.” Steve urges you, leaning down quickly to kiss you then pulls away slowly almost as if he doesn’t want to. “Our princess is waiting.”

~~~~~~~~~~

She’s as beautiful as the night you’d held her close, memorizing the little wheeze in her breath as she’d drifted to sleep.

She’s bigger. She’s walking, unsteadily but moving. She’s talking, indeed saying ‘Papa’ but she says other things that you’ve already picked up on.

Her little chubby limbs have stretched a bit and you can’t believe you’ve lost so much time with her.

Tears are still streaming down your cheeks while you sit here, staring at her sleeping face.

Steve’s hands support her little back as he holds her to his chest, his back resting against the ornate wooden headboard of your bed.

“She’ll know you soon enough.” Steve assures you as you nod and quickly wipe the tears from your eyes. “She was so little.”

“I know.” You reach out, caressing her little head before you look down at the even smaller boy between you both. He’s chewing on his fist, little legs up in the air as he quietly plays by himself.

He’s so good at just being alone, you feel terrible about it because you know that it’s your fault. You’ve needed him to be independent as you worked hard to earn money for both of you.

When he meets your eyes, he coos those long wordless streams of vowel. He’s talking to you, probably relishing in the plush mattress all four of you lay on.

“Shh, my sweet boy. Your sister is sleeping.” You stroke his little chest and he takes hold of your hand as he kicks his legs in excitement.

“Y/N…” Steve begins, and you know it’s finally time.

“I’m ready now.” You sniffle, meeting his look of somber confusion. “I’ll tell you what happened.”

It takes you less than five minutes to explain. Grandmother’s vision. Her actions to see it in greater detail. The truth of his imminent death. You tell him that you begged for his life and that night when Grandmother had interrupted your sleep, she’d come to tell you that she’d found a solution.

“She said the magic would ask for payment. Something that only I could give.” You hope that he doesn’t hate you, his expression unreadable as he watches you with his brooding brow all scrunched and focused. “I thought that it would be my ability to see or walk. My hearing perhaps? Or being able to speak…I never thought that it would take you and Maggie from me.

“My life perhaps? But not my memories of you. Not knowing you.” You sigh, waiting for his rage to show.

What you get instead, is a calm conversation and a gentle pout.

“But it wasn’t only your memories. It was everyone’s. The magic wiped your existence as my wife and Queen completely.” He observes.

“Yes.” You agree. “Even the villagers in Bright Rise acted as if I’d never gone anywhere. How can magic be so powerful as to erase me completely from so many minds?”

Steve shakes his head, his hand still absentmindedly stroking Maggie’s back.

“It was such a risk for you to take.” Steve frowns, his gaze piercing, and the guilt you’d felt building since you’d stepped foot in the manor crests. “How could you make such a choice without consulting with me? I’m your husband.”

“I know.” Your lip trembles. “I’m sorry. It all happened so quickly, and I had so little time to consider the consequences of my choice. All I knew was that your future was certain. You would die protecting the world and I could not give you up to it. If I had the power to save you, of course I would use it. So long as I knew that Maggie would have you, I could stand any future I had to live.”

“Even this one? Both of us separated forever?” Steve counters, holding a mirror to the past year of your life.

You shake your head, new tears springing forth as you look down at your boy who has fallen asleep once again.

“I thought I would have to marry Phin.” You admit, voice quiet so as not to disturb your little ones.

“Why?”

“I’m fairly certain he was orchestrating it. No one in the village were taking work from me to mend their clothing and today, you found me checking my snares for small game, but someone has been breaking them. Cutting the wire or simply tearing it down.

“He wanted me to be hungry enough to marry him and the bastard knew that I would do it, for Joseph if not for myself.” Your anger taints your vision red, Phin’s detestable face a memory you wish you could forget.

Mentioning your son brings Steve’s eyes back down to him. He takes one hand and reaches down, placing his finger into Joseph’s tiny open hand. He grasps his papa’s finger, a tiny fist full of surprisingly sturdy strength.

“Now that we’ve remembered, I’m panicked by the idea that you might have found a new Queen in my absence.” You confess, chewing nervously on your lip.

“Bucky and Sam suggested it. They brought Sharon around me often to try and convince to take her on, but something prevented me from doing so.” His words send your heart into your feet, your head is suddenly splitting.

Glad as you are that he doesn’t seem to have found a new wife, the possibility of it make you feel almost sick to your stomach with anxiety.

“I think perhaps I knew in some way, deep down, that I was already married. The very thought of sharing my bed with someone else drove my skin to crawl. I felt guilty, as if I were committing some grave sin.” He admits, unrelenting in his stare.

“I would not have blamed you…” You whisper, almost fearful to speak the words. “…if you had taken a new wife. If you’d had another child with someone else. I would have had no one to blame but myself.”

“No one could ever take your place.” He assures you. “Even though I didn’t remember you, your presence was greatly missed. I may not have known what it was I was yearning for, but I was wishing for you every moment of every day.”

You shut your eyes, allowing the pleasure his words give you to soak deep down into your bones.

Even though he doesn’t ask, you’d also felt the exact same way. Something had always told you that somewhere was a home waiting for you to take your place. Never would you have guessed that it was a castle in the next Kingdom over.

“Were you frightened?” Steve wonders, drawing your gaze once more.

You find him watching Joseph once again, his thumb stroking the little one’s hand.

“Expecting him all on your own?” He clarifies.

“I was afraid of how I’d take care of him.” You smile, reaching to stroke the length of his little nose. “I knew I would be alright birthing him. It was long and taxing. But he was with me so suddenly. It was over before I even knew what was happening. The miller’s wife came to check on me and she helped me for a few days after, but I had no other choice than to push on. I was up and caring for him and myself before the week was out. That’s when my fear came.

“I knew that I had to feed myself in order to keep him fed and healthy and I wasn’t sure exactly how to do it with the village set so resolutely against me. An unwed mother with a bastard child?”

“I’ll have it burned to the ground.” Steve declares suddenly.

You smile wide, your heart melting as you watch the intensity in his gaze as new love blooms for his son.

“I wish you had spoken with me about Agatha’s vision before you made any decisions.” Steve laments, an anger growing in contrast with the new love.

It effectively wipes aware the happiness his love gives you as you regret having kept him in the dark.

“If I’d told you,” You begin, voice breaking and weak as emotion gets the better of you. The sound of it brings his gaze back to you and he seems to soften with it. “You would have kept me from doing what needed to be done. There was no question of saving you, Steve. I had only just found you. Our baby girl only just born. I could not lose you.”

Shutting your eyes, you let your head fall, burying your face into your pillow.

“Imsuhsawree.” You sob, muffled against the fluff of the bed.

The silence feels endless until you’ve just about made up your mind to look at him again when a sudden snort of laughter cuts the tension with ease.

You whip your head to face him, searching for the source of the laugh only to find Steve with his hand over his mouth as his body shakes with silent laughter.

“You’re laughing?” You gasp in disbelief; certain you must be seeing things.

Your husband cannot possibly be amused in this moment while your heart and soul are drowning in guilt and grief.

“I’m sorry.” Steve chortles, a whisper of giggles as he tries his best not to wake Maggie. “Forgive me, I…”

You frown at him, displeased with his humor but he reaches for you with his hand and hooks it behind your head in a soft caress.

“It’s not funny.” You insist.

“No.” Steve shakes his head. “It isn’t. I’m sorry, my flower. I’m just…so happy you’ve returned. I’ve missed you so much.”

And just like that, he’s forgiven.

The four of you lay there in bed for hours. Though your stomach is empty, you refuse to bring your hunger to Steve’s attention. Even though you know very well just how much he will be upset with you for it, you can’t bring yourself to tear your little family apart so very soon.

The sun is only just setting when Joseph decides it’s time to eat. He whimpers, a soft murmuring of whiney breaths until the air takes shape and his cries begin to grow louder.

Beside him Maggie also stirs, staring around with wide eyes as the crying rises in volume and she’s brought out of her blissful slumber.

Steve wakes last, while you are already scooping your little boy into your arms and propping yourself up against the headboard to feed him, he rubs his face and glances at the window.

“It’s already so late.” He realizes, turning back to you and Joseph while Maggie twists her body until she can lay on her stomach and then throw herself back to sit on her bottom.

Her eyes are glued to Joseph as he latches to your breast and begins to suckle. Your breasts are sore, and the pain is worse than you remember it being with Maggie, but you have no time to focus on the pain.

You make sure he can eat easily, watching him for any signs of distress.

“Did you get her a wet nurse?” You wonder, letting your eyes drift to Maggie who still sits watching you feed her brother.

“I did.” Steve nods, lifting the girl back up onto his lap. “She was so little.”

You look away, a quiver in your bottom lip as you try to push past the heartbreak that you hadn’t been there for your daughter like you’d wanted to be. “Yeah.”

Steve is familiar with you enough that he knows you don’t want to dwell on it and changes the topic quickly.

“Shall we have dinner in here? I don’t want to share either of you yet.” He confesses, stroking the back of Maggie’s little head.

“Yes.” You nod, perhaps a bit too enthusiastically at the mention of food because Steve frowns.

“Damn it, Y/N.” He gripes and gently places Maggie back on the bed before he marches towards the doors. “If you were hungry, you should have said something. After your meal, I’ll have Natasha draw you a bath.”

The prospect of a full belly and a luxuriously hot bath which you hadn’t realized you’d grown so fond of is so dreamy that your heart gives a clench and once more you feel so very happy you just might cry again.

~~~~~~~~~~

“How’s your bath, my petal?” Steve checks, moving to the edge of the bed once more as the children sleep on.

After their dinner they’d quickly begun to play. They’d explored each other’s boundaries and Maggie had made Joseph cry only once for a few minutes before they were sharing Maggie’s soft cloth dolls.

They each sleep with one in their hands, huddled close together at the center of the bed.

“Is the water too hot?” Steve pulls over a small yellow footstool, sitting upon the soft cushion.

He doesn’t wait for your answer and dips his left hand into the water, testing the temperature as you lay yourself back against the large copper tub.

“Your hand is going to smell like peonies and rose oils.” You tease him, bringing your hand up above the fragrant water.

You take a peony petal and carefully tuck it behind his ear, gentle drops of water skirting down into his beard as the pink stands in pleasant contrast to the gold of his hair.

Biting your lip, you comb it back, tracing the shape of his jaw with damp fingers.

“Even though I didn’t know you, my heart and soul yearned for you.” You whisper, sliding your hand down to rest upon his shoulders.

“And I you.” He smiles, eyes shut as you lean in to press a gentle kiss to his lips.

“I wonder,” You begin, pulling back to examine and rememorize every inch of his face. “Now that we are together again, whether this will negate in some way the effect of the spell?”

This thought raises a new worry in you. A fear that by meeting again you have somehow doomed Steve to die.

“Even if it has, I will not part with you again. I won’t die either.” Steve promises, but how can you take him at his word.

Magic is wicked and it will take its price one way or another.

“I have to speak to grandmother.” You counter, your gentle caress of his shoulders turned into a desperate cling.

“She’s gone.” Steve says, sending your heart into a pit within your belly. “No one has seen her since all of this started. However, there is something that I found in my office back home.”

Steve rises, moving towards his cloak left to rest on the back of a chair at the opposite end of the room.

When he returns, he holds in his hand a sealed piece of parchment, folded twice to keep its contents secure. The wax seal is a deep purple, her insignia that of a cat, back arched and head tilted up as if to yowl towards the moon.

You reach for your towel nearby and dry your hands then take the letter as Steve holds it out.

“I’ve been carrying it with me everywhere I go, hoping it would yield some explanation as to why I have been feeling so…empty.” He tells you, picking up his stool and moving to place it a bit more near the head of the tub where you sit. “Scoot forward.”

You do as he asks, staring at the letter and consider what its contents might be.

Steve’s hands disappear beneath the surface of your bathwater and emerge with a small porous sponge. It’s rough at first but with water and under Steve’s heavy hand, it becomes malleable and he begins to stroke your back, cleaning the peasant grime from your body.

“Why haven’t you opened it?” You wonder, turning it over almost expecting it to billow with glittering smoke.

“I attempted to many times. I couldn’t. The seal would not break. See there at the bottom of the fold?” He instructs.

You turn it over to look at the side with the seal and spot the small loopy writing at the bottom. The penmanship is so exquisite, you’re almost certain now that grandmother had indeed once been of noble blood.

For the Queen of Broklin.

“For me?” You gasp.

“I think it will only open for you, petal.” Steve explains as he leans closer to get the tops of your arms and then following the flow of muscle over your shoulders and down along your sides slowly.

Eager now, knowing this letter is meant for you, you tear it open and the seal breaks without fuss.

“Can you read it?” Steve wonders, no note of teasing in his voice.

Like you, he must be wondering whether so long a time away from life at the castle has made you forget everything you’d learned.

“I think so.” And with bated breath, you read, glad that you’d tried so hard to learn and only slightly surprised that you understand every single word she’s written.

If you are reading this note, it means that I was right.

First, believe me when I tell you that every word I spoke of King Rogers’s death was true. There is indeed a threat that would take his life and that of your father’s and King Thor’s as well.

I thought that perhaps King Rogers’s death would be enough to convince you that what we needed to do would be necessary and I am glad to say I was right.

What I did not tell you is that I knew the price to be asked would be the life you’d built within the castle in Broklin. I could not bear to tell you that you’d spent all that time suffering and building a family with him only to have it ripped from you.

Somehow, I don’t think you would have changed your mind even if I had.

After you spoke to me of your connection with the Asgardian king, I was wary of what it might mean for your future as Queen in the kingdom. There was only one chance to break the curse dealt by the spell to save your husband’s life and that was if you and he were always meant to be together.

Soulmates, I believe they call it. Two halves of one whole, set at opposite ends of the world to meet each other in just the right way to create what we know as destiny. In this case, the opposite ends you were placed in were poverty and wealth.

Your husband had every advantage in life while you had none. You were given no loves in life and King Rogers was given one big enough to eclipse the pull you would have for him when and if you met.

At the time, I worried that King Thor might be your true mate. The two of you were so well suited and perhaps I’m right? But if you’re reading this, it means that you and King Rogers found each other once again.

By some miracle, he or you have lifted the curse, and you can once more be together to live your lives and King and Queen of Broklin.

A fate you might not have found had I not thrown my purse into that bog by the road. I hope you appreciate my efforts, girl. I have worked very hard to walk you through this life but must now leave you to shape it on your own.

Don’t worry. I might not be with you every day, but should you need me, I will come. You don’t need to send for me. I’ll know. And rest assured, your husband’s life is safe.

There will always be evil in the world and he will always rise to fight it but be content to know that his life you most certainly have saved. Take care.

-Grandmother

You read the letter at least three times before Steve’s chin finds your shoulder, the scruff of his beard pleasantly rough against your skin.

“What does it say?” He wonders, tilting his head to kiss your neck.

You fold the letter and toss it away so that it won’t get wet, then lean back until you’re relaxed and can turn to look and admire your husband’s storm blue eyes.

“It says that no matter what might come to tear us apart, you will always find me.” You smile, reaching up to scratch underneath his chin.

Steve’s lips curl up on one side, a dashing smirk if you ever saw one.

“Always.”

#king!steve x reader #medieval fantasy au #royal au #arranged marriage au #steve rogers x reader #marvel fanfiction #marvel au #steve x reader fanfiction #steve rogers x reader fanfiction #king!steve x reader fanfiction #king!steve x you #steve rogers x you #pseudo princess #avengers x reader #pseudo princess pt36 #shreddedparchment

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for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride · 4 years ago

Text

SOS: (Semi-Completed Roleplay Between Nortrom, Akasha and Abaddon)

longlivethequeenofpain:

The journey to Avernus had been long and tiring. Too much blinking, her wings were so sore. Yet, because of the circumstances, she paid it no mind and continued on as fast as she could. A scroll would have been nice, but of course, she hadn’t exactly been expecting to need one. That occasional movement on her wrist kept pushing her forward. Each time she felt it, she whispered out a soft apology, unsure whether he could actually hear her or not.

By the time she reached the semi familiar place, guards greeted her outside, one of which seemed to recognize her, surprisingly, by the look on his face. He was excited to see her, but seeing the weak state she was in, the puffiness around her eyes and the makeup smeared down her face, he frowned and gave her a look of confusion.

"I… I need to see your lord… Please tell me he’s here…" She was practically panting at this point, her wings drooping behind her, succumbing to gravity.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

The Captain of the guard, a middle aged man with green eyes and a broad shoulders and a thick black beard looked the Succubus up and down, she was dishevelled and obviously under tremendous stress. “Normally yes my lady, but he is in meditation right now and must not be disturbed unless absolutely necessary” he responded quickly, removing his helm.

"What is the issue at hand? Can I be of assistance to you my lady? My lord left instructions that our aid was to be given to you." The Captain offered, remembering his Lords orders, orders he held to his core as surly and as devotedly as he wore the black plate armour of the House of Avernus.

longlivethequeenofpain:

That was a relief to hear. His people were meant to care for her and help her when she needed it. With a long sigh, she looked up to the concerned, rather handsome looking knight, looking right into his bright green with her own dull red. “It’s about Nortrom. The Violet Silencer. The deal. I lost. Tell him that. Please. He’ll understand. I need his help.”

She didn’t mean to sound as desperate as she did, but she was nearly sobbing explaining those words to a stranger who had no idea what she was even talking about. The bracelet pulsated on her wrist again and she whimpered softly, pulling her arm up to her chest and cradling that bracelet against her bust and covering it with her other hand. Looking back up at the guard, a single tear rolled down her face. “Please.”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

The Captain of the guard hesitated for a moment as the Demon spluttered words, but at the mention of the Violet Silencer the Captain accepted he did not have the auto rite nor the confidence to turn her away without doubt.

"Follow me" he insisted, turning to the second guard and signalling for him to remain at his post. Leading the Demon through the grand manor that she had visited once before, the guard brought her through the ground floor at to a small corridor at the end of which stood a bright silver door, leading Akasha to the door the guard finally spoon again.

"My Lord Abaddon is within, conversing with the fo…" before the man could finish the door swung wide open, obviously having been pulled furiously backward. I the doorway stood the Lord of Avernus, tall and as regal as ever, his eyes glowing incredibly bright, mist seeping from his body is ever diminishing qualities, he had left his meditation mere seconds ago.

"You lost!?" He voice called, echoing deeply? Angrily, mournfully through Akasha’s very being.

longlivethequeenofpain:

As the pair travelled through that semi familiar hallways, Akasha couldn’t help but look around the place in awe. The last time she was here, she wasn’t in good condition and couldn’t really appreciate the beauty of the place. It was a nice small distraction from what was to come. She knew Abaddon was going to at the very least be extremely disappointed with her, but it was going to be worse than that. It would be naive to think otherwise.

The slamming open of the doors and the booming voice of the lord just confirmed what she was already thinking. She flinched as his scream seemed to echo through her entire body, bouncing off bone and muscle making her shiver and take a small step backwards. “I… He’s here…” She said softly, lifting her wrist and holding it out, showing him the bracelet that was infused with Nortrom’s soul. “But…” She wasn’t exactly sure how to explain the note so she just unfolded the crumbled paper and held that out in her other hand. “I think he was going to say it… He just didn’t get the chance… He wrote it down, though. That counts doesn’t it? You can fix this, right?” It took all her strength to not start sobbing as she explained the situation, and even still a few tears began rolling down her cheeks once again.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Swinging his fist violently, Abaddon struck at the masonry to his left, his gauntlet sending debris flying into the hallway. “Dam it!” He roared, anger flaring in his veins. She had one job! She just had to get this right and everything would have been fine.

Before he could say another word, Akasha’s own words sunk in, “he is…” he began, looking down at the bracelet. Surely enough, there sat Nortrom’s fate and therefore his soul, a writhing force of energy contained within the the bracelet.

His anger only fuelled at the barbaric treatment of such a noble solider, Abaddon snatched the note from Akasha’s hand and rapidly read it, the anger in him only growing as he realised the just how close the bet had been; unbeknown to Akasha a single tear when down the Lords face beneath his helm.

"Come with me" he said firmly, indicating for Akasha to follow him into an adjacent room, small study with a few chairs and a dark fireplace.

"Tell me what happened, everything,now" he ordered, ignoring the tears upon her face, he could not feel for her pain as he felt for the Silencers, she was still walking.

longlivethequeenofpain:

After following as instructed to a smaller room, away from the strangers and most of the guards around, Akasha took a seat in one of the chairs, running her hands across her face and over her horns, sighing and trying to compose herself before explaining. Wiping away tears, smudging make up even more, glitter getting all over her cheeks.

"Nevermore gave me this bracelet a few weeks ago. It had a countdown timer. I thought it was only just counting down until Frostivus day, not the exact time he would come seeking payment. Nortrom and I were going to spend the day together. I was going to tell him that… That I loved him… And hoped that would be enough. I thought that if I said it first, and he felt the same way, he would be able to say it back to me. I just… I wasn’t aware I had so little time left… He was so close. He gave me a gift, a new dagger. We kissed… He held me… He took me to a small clearing out of the snow and sat me down. He told me there was one more thing he wanted to do and pulled out that note. And. Then the clock hit zero. Nevermore showed up and took his soul. There was nothing I could do. He wouldn’t give me any more time. And I guess as some sort of sick joke, he bound the soul to this bracelet that supposedly I’ll never be able to remove."

After explaining the situation, she got that strange sensation on her wrist. The soul moving, writing around against her skin. She had been able to maintain herself as she spoke but that feeling caused her to double over forward and cry out. “I can feel him there! I don’t know if he can hear me but I can feel him moving and I know he’s hurting and I can’t take this!” She had her forehead resting on her knees and the arm with the bracelet held out away from her body, that hand visibly trembling. “…I’m sorry…”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon listened to the story with cold contempt, he had little love for demons or there methods. Looking to the bracelet as the Demon weeped for her lost list Abaddon saw the Silencer moving about within the bracelet. The Green energy shimmering before Abaddon as clear as day.

"He is aware of your distress" he remarked simply. "But I have more pressing concerns, he will survive. What I do not understand was why you agreed to this deal in the first place? Why would you agree to it? I know you fate was changing and has…" he paused, he had said to much, quickly he moved on, hoping that Akasha would not glean the significance of what he had just said.

"But why did you? It sounds to me that you lost the bet fairly? Not that I am happy with its result." The Lord continued.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Those very questions were ones she had been asking herself since the very day she did agree to it. It took her a moment to calm down, to catch her breath and stop crying. Hearing that he would survive was very happy news, but she still didn’t understand how. He was surviving now wasn’t he? In a sense?

She sat up but didn’t look to the Lord, placing her lovers soul in her lap and staring down at it. “Pride, I suppose. At first… Well, no. That isn’t entirely true. In the same conversation Nevermore told me of the lightness on my soul, we made this deal. It was prideful, yes. But. At that point, I think I did want Nortrom’s love. Or, rather his attention. His affection. It was selfish, but I’ve made men and women alike fall in love with me without even trying. I thought it would be easy. I didn’t think I would grow to… To love him as well… I didn’t even know I was capable…”

Thinking back over the words he had said, trying to make sure she answered all his questions to the best of her ability, something stood out. “You said my fate was changing… Has changed? Do you mean because I lost?”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

"Pride is the do unallocated of demons as ever it was then" the Lord said unto himself, sighing deeply. Shaking his head he poured himself a drink, "No, not because you have lost, that change has yet to take effect." He took a sip from the dark wine he had just poured, swirling the glass in his hand as he contemplated what was at hand. "It is normal for ones fate to change constantly, but this event seems to have, frozen it, these series of events are not yet resolved and thus, your fate, is yet undecided." Abaddon froze as he spoke, placing his glass down he looked to Akasha, "which means we are missing something!" He exclaimed, striding to the chair beside Akasha and taking it.

"Tell me exactly what the deal was Akasha, word for word, these deals are complicated and full of bureaucracy. Maybe something is incorrect." He shook his head, "no no no something must be wrong, your fate is at a crossroads, we must be able to undo this! The deal, now!" He continued with vigour. He had searched the Libiary of Avernus for weeks after he had discovered Akasha’s deal, but his studies had proved fruitless, in the end, he had had to pursue a method of information seldom traveled, a certain wandering creature of such age he may very well be timeless, an ancient herald or an even older god.

longlivethequeenofpain:

As the lord perked up all a sudden, Akasha’s eyes grew wide and she watched him curiously. He sat next to her and seemed to even be leaning towards her as he demanded the details of the deal. Squeezing her eyes shut for a moment and leaning back in the chair, she shook her head. “I… I don’t know. It was only three months ago but it seems like a lifetime. I…”

She sighed and opened her eyes again, looking down at the bracelet in her lap trying to remember Nevermore’s exact words. “Mm. After three months if he didn’t feel anything for me stronger than that of just friendship… If he didn’t love me I suppose… Then his soul was getting taken… He told me doing this would nurture the lightness within me and make me stronger. He wanted me to not get rid of this but to embrace it…”

Looking up across the room, staring at nothing just lost in thought, her head unconsciously tilted sideways. “He said he would examine Nortrom’s soul on the last day and if he didn’t feel anything for me, I lose… But that letter… I don’t know. I can’t remember much else. He was certain things would work out in my favor though… Very reassuring…”

Finally looking towards Abaddon who was still watching her intently, she quickly turned her gaze back down to Nortrom in her lap. “Does that help?”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon remained silent for a moment, contemplating the Demons words, ‘if he didn’t feel something more than friendship?’ He clearly did, even if Akasha had not shown him the letter Abaddon would have assumed affection existed from his friend, he had spent far to much time with her, and Nortrom was not renowned for being social.

He sighed, “perhaps, did the deal contain anything about having to tell one another you felt…” he paused, “well, in love” he managed, opening his hands before the Demon in an act of curiosity, “this deal is off, something was done wrong, if i know what, I may be able to use the information I bought to some use.” He explained, his mind whirling through possibilities,his gaze occasionally shifting to the bracelet upon which Nortrom’s soul and fate resided.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Taking a moment to think, trying to remember more details, the more she thought about it the more vague it all seemed to be. “He didn’t say we had to say it to one another. But, isn’t that how you express such emotion? You tell the other person? I don’t know… Nevermore wasn’t happy about this. He didn’t keep the soul for himself. He gave it to me.. That doesn’t make sense. When we first spoke on it, that was his end of the deal. That’s what he would get out of it. Either I would get the lover or he would get to devour another soul.”

The fact that the things she was saying weren’t exactly helping was worrying. “Every time I asked why such a short amount of time, or even why he wouldn’t give me another few seconds just to talk to Nortrom at the end, it was always because of that damned Oracle. Not the Oracle we know that fights for the Ancients, but the soul of one. It’s attached to a skull. It’s like he was doing all this for that thing.”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon shook his head, “I do not know this Oracle, though it does not matter. I feel that Nevermore has claimed the soul, but not quite. If I am right, he can’t yet.” He sighed.

This wasn’t going to be easy, he thought to himself, ignoring Akasha’s other questions, shaking his head he fell into another seat in frustration. He hadn’t wanted to tell Akasha about his research yet, not without knowing what the difficulty was with the deal; for without that information his was useless. But he had to tell her now, even if it was painful, it could be useful,it could jog her mind.

“My studies Akasha proved fruitless, everyone has written about the Demons who make the deals or how to summon one, but never how these deals work exactly, the fine print, if you will; and with the Invoker and Demnok not present at the time, I had to seek alternative sources of information.” He admitted, leaning back, the Demons attention upon him now

“I went to Undying” he admitted, “the herald of the Dirge, my thoughts were that a being so involved with the dead and so old, would be able to provide me answers. He did, to an extent.” He continued, recalling the humour with which Undying had treated the conversation, it had been unsettling to him, which was a rare thing indeed.

“He said, that certain beings can claim against a soul, if a deal is wrongly performed, I suspect this one has been, though I am unsure how as yet, the language is vague. Anyway, if a deal is misconducted, certain beings can what Undying called “counter claim” against it, to take it for its own. Unfortunately, there are a lot of rules for who can claim and not. Demons cannot counter claim at all due to that Umbral pact Doom and Nevermore formed, Undying said it prevents demons counter claiming fellow demons, to prevent infighting, but even if that wasn’t the case, since you were apart of the deal you cannot claim.” He sighed, exasperated by the situation.

He dared not look at Akasha, he felt useless at this point, “I questioned Undying what exactly we would be appealing to, but he just laughed at that question, saying it does not matter. So I asked who else can claim, apparently, if the Zombie is to be beleived, he can, but he declined to become involved in, I quote, ‘demonic matters’, for unspecified reasons. However, he informed me how the Font of Avernus can claim, it is seemingly powerful enough to do that. But to do that I need to know what the issue is”. He finished, distraught at his own failures for his friend.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha sat listening to the Lord, trying her best to take in all this information and properly understand it but it was all so confusing. She knew little about soul magic and even less about the intricate ‘fine print’ when dealing with such things. Staring down at the bracelet, she ran the tips of her fingers over the cool metal flush with her skin, frowning in thought. “In simple terms, he needed to love me by the end date set, by today. He wrote that letter either today or before. He came to terms with his feelings for me by the looks of it. He just didn’t make it official by telling me. It was never stated that he needed to tell me outright, just that he was suppose to love me. Couldn’t that be the issue?”

After she said it, she realized how naive she sounded and sighed. It could be that simple. “What if we just break the bracelet? I’ll chop off my hand to get this damn thing off if just breaking it will fix the problem.” But then, it could be that simple either, could it?

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon frowned at the Demons desperate words, chopping off her hand would be a desperate measure indeed, though, he admittedly internally, if he thought it would work and all else failed, he would not hesitate. Abaddon shook his head at the Succubus, “I do not think that would work my dear” he confessed, taking Akasha’s hand in his own, trying to comfort her. As he took her hand he saw Nortrom’s soul shimmer, maybe he felt his presence? Maybe he could hear them? He just didn’t know. “the risk is to great.” He continued sternly, still holding the Demons hand as he mused over her words.

'He didn't have to tell me outright… He wrote the letter today or just before…. but it couldn't be that simple…' the words of Akasha rang in his head, her normally sweet voice feeling so hollow as her torment echoed in his own mind. Through all of this Abaddon's sense of fate remained still, it was as if her was in the eye of a storm, he could see the torment of others in the do stance, but he was silent to there screams, the font seemingly was as single minded in this issue as Abaddon was, if he was in a philosophical mood Abaddon might have wondered if it was his own concern for his friend that was influencing the font.

"I just can’t see the issue… He told you…. He told y…." Abaddon trailed off suddenly. No, it can’t be that….. surely Nevermore was more careful than that? He turned to Akasha sharply, his eyes flaring. "It is that simple! He told you, he told you, nothing was said in the deal it had to be verbal, Nortrom told you in his letter…. He told you Akasha" he said with a smile forming slowly onto his lips as the prospect of his friends salvation dawned on him.

Standing sharply and sending his chair flying back Abaddon round the table, facing across from Akasha as he moved, “by the font one could have a case based on his change of behaviour around you! But the letter, the letter is the key!” He exclaimed with joy, his ethereal voice climbing to its usual tempo. "Guard, come at once! I have preparations to make!" The Lord called loudly.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha sat perfectly quiet as Abaddon thought on this issue. She looked up at his face occasionally. He seemed to wear the same distraught, defeated expression as she did. When he took her hand, she let him, enjoying the subtle contact of another if only for the fact that she had someone willing to comfort her for the time. Both of them watching the bracelet, she noticed that when the soul inside swirled and shimmered, letting it’s presence known, the Lord could very much tell just as much as she could except she had to feel it writhing against her skin. Her grip on his hand tightened slightly and she let out a soft whimper, trying her best to hold back the tears.

Then, almost too suddenly, Abaddon’s demeanor completely changed. No way could it be that simple… That just didn’t make sense. When he stood up so quickly it sent the chair flying backwards with a crash, Akasha jumped and her eyes widened. Was this seriously the answer? Looking to the letter on the table, she reached forward and took it in her hands, reading it over again. Seeing his words there again, she could almost hear him saying them as she read.

'And so, I have made up my mind after much deliberation. I am willing to give this, give you, a try. Neither of us are very good at this ‘love’ thing, but perhaps, together, we can learn.'

Those last few words… Oh how she wish she could have heard him actually say these things. A sad smile came over her face. He would have stumbled over his words and gotten flustered for sure… Hearing Abaddon call to his guard knocked her back into the moment. She quickly folded the note back up took it with her as she followed the lord. “What… Well, what are you going to do? And what should I do?”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

"Prepare the chamber of Avernus at once!" Abaddon called to the guard, his voice ringing with the formidable confidence that was so familar upon the battlefield. As the guard, a tall figure dressed in heavy Obsidian steel armour that the House of Avernus was famous for, ran off ahead of the Lord, Abaddon strode out of the small room and into the corridor, his metalic footfalls echoing heavily off of the stone floor.

Abaddon didn’t respond striaght away as he strode down the corridor, fierce determination in his heart now. He would need to enter meditation at once if he were to convene as Undying had informed him. The incense was ready, the room was almost certainly prepared, there was very little to prepare but the fires within.

As he strode onwards he became aware of Akasha’s footfalls behind him, turning his head to see her but not slowing his pace with spoke quickly and firmly, I am going to get him back, come with me, I will need you in the beginning, you have the letter yes?” He inquired swiftly, the letter was essential, even as he strode on through Avernus Abaddon could hear the font shifting it’s presence, it was with him on this, too many fates depended upon the Silencers return, and the Font demanded it be set right.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha nearly had to run to keep up with Abaddon as he was much taller and took greater strides than she did in the first place, but he was walking fast on top of that. Had this been under normal circumstances, Akasha would have been excited just about the fact that she got to see the Font, or rather the whole process involving it, but the fact they were possibly going to save Nortrom was greatly out shadowing her curiosity. As they got closer, she could feel the energy around them shifting only lifting her spirits even more.

"Yes, I have it!" She blinked herself in front of him by a few feet as she had been falling behind but just within a few steps he had caught back up to her. "What will I have to do?

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

"When I enter the chamber and my meditative state I will speak to you, when I ask you, you must announce yourself, your name, what you’re and who you’re providing evidence for" he nodded as he spoke, "that would be Nortrom by the way" he continued sternly. "And then you must state a void deal, that Nevermore broke your agreement. I will take It from their" he added reassuringly.

"After that, you must remain silent and still, sit and do not disturb me, it could be dangerous. Now" he sighed, "I need the letter Akasha" he sighed, opening his gauntleted palm as he stopped outside of a dark wooden door. He could hear the Font shifting violently in his mind as he awaited the letter, something like this had not happened for an age.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha nodded at each of his instructions, making note of them all and already trying to formulate what she would say in her mind. When he asked for the letter, she looked down at the folded piece of paper in her hands and bit on her lip. She didn’t want to give it to him for some reason. Perhaps because of what it said. Had Nortrom still been in his body, she wouldn’t have given up this letter for anyone or anything. But this was to get him back. That was much more important than sentimental value. With a sigh she lifted her shaky hand and placed the small folded note in his palm.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Noting the Deamons hesitation but saying nothing Abaddon took the letter and turned to open the door to the chamber of Avernus. Pushing the handle Abaddon discovered it was unlocked as he had expected, opening the door wide Abaddon strode into the hall, his cloak fluttering behind him as he walked. The hall was a large stone room plain of all furnishing except for a layered stone platform in the centre of the room, leading from the door to the plinth was a path surrounded by dark mist that floated above the ground, a living darkness.

As Abaddon strode down the path and onto the plinth he turned to Akasha as he climbed the plinth, “do not disturb the mist, in fact, stay there.” He ordered simply and firmly, turning back and placing himself in the middle of the plinth, cross legged and facing the Deamon. Taking a deep breath beneath the visage of the monstrous gargoyles that sat high above the plinth Abaddon began to relax his mind and open himself to the Font, it’s whisperings filling his mind once again. This wasn’t going to be easy, but it had to be done.

"I speak on behalf of the Font of Avernus, the Haunted mist. I am it’s herald Abaddon, Lord of the house of Avernus. I am speaking under the right of the Sul’varnor pact as informed to me by the Herald of Dirge, the Undying. I am speaking to you now for one who cannot, one who has been stricken with misfortune that should never have been." As he spoke mist began to grow in the ceiling of the hall, as if the ceiling were growing storms clouds, flashes of light, akin to lightening illuminating the shadows every few seconds.

"Speak Akasha" The Lord of Avernus declared bravely.

longlivethequeenofpain:

As the two walked into the chamber, Akasha’s jaw fell slack as she took in the haunting beauty of the place. It was basically empty but something about the mist… There didn’t need to be anything else. The succubus could feel the energy of the Font humming all around her and it only intensified the farther into the room they went. Unsure where to go as Abaddon walked up to the plinth in the center of the room, Akasha stayed relatively close to the door to await further instructions. Good choice, as he ended up telling her to stay put anyway.

Watching him sit and position himself, the mist around her seemed to stir to life, or more so, awaken. She shivered slightly but remained as still as she could. It was eerie and unsettling being here, yet intriguing at the same time. She silently wondered how many people had seen this. It seemed like something you needed special privileges to witness. So very curious. When he spoke, she listened and watched intently, waiting for him to give her permission to speak and state her claim to… To a bunch of mist. What actually was the Font? It just dawned on her that she had no idea who or what she would be even speaking to. More intense energy swirled through the chamber, mist began forming on the ceiling. It looked like rain clouds. Seeing the first flash of light, she flenched slightly but clenched her fists and bit on her lip to keep from over reacting. Was it storm clouds? That looked like lightning!

Finally once addressed to speak, Akasha looked to Abaddon and yet another epiphany: She had no idea what to say. Think woman, he told you literally a minute ago. Erm. Name! Name first. She took a deep breath, pushed her shoulders back and stood up tall. Was she suppose to be convincing? Would the Font know or care that she was scared and worried? On the off chance that it did indeed matter, she figured it best to put her acting skills to good use.

"I am Akasha, Queen of Pain." Shit, now what. Thinkthinkthink. Come on don’t fuck this up, this is your only shot to get him back. Erm. Oh, right. Wow I’m an idiot. “I am here to provide evidence for the soul of Nortrom the Silencer. Nevermore, the Shadow Fiend and I made a bet regarding said soul. I won said bet and Nevermore broke our agreement by claiming the soul anyway.” Was… Is that good? Am I suppose to explain the entire last three months or what? I mean, it probably knows already, right? Ugh. I don’t know. Abaddon said he’d take over after I said that… So… I guess I’ll keep my mouth shut. That’s all he told me to say anyway…

Akasha nervously bit down on her bottom lip and looked to Abaddon, hoping what she said was sufficient. God, I hope this works…

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

As Akasha fell silent the flashes of white and blue light increased in tempo, vibrant and brief lightening across the black mist of the the Font. though no thunder was given off by the mist, one could feel it in their heart as the flashes continued.

Breathing the black mist deep into his lungs, Abaddon felt it seep into his veins, a dark elixir to his body, a potent addition to his already formidable power; eyes flashing beneath his closed eyes, Abaddon stepped into the void of the council beyond the spiritual plane. It was neither cold nor warm here, it was a void of emptiness that would surly send one into madness if they but focused upon it, but Abaddon would not fall to such trivial dangers, no, he had come for much greater tasks. Even as he walked he felt the thunder of the Font of Avernus quite in his mind, its power becoming one with him, for the font was the source of all fate, all chance and all choice beyond ones knowledge. It was eternal and ancient beyond measure, as necessary as the Chaos night and as forgotten as the first words of everything.

As Abaddon stepped into a deeper part of the void he felt a presence appear, one? two? three? he could not count them, nor did he care too, standing tall and proud Abaddon bowed to the abyss from which these ancient figures appeared, there visage beyond mortal tongue to describe. “I am Abaddon, lord of the House of Avernus, herald of the Font of fates, the Haunted mist. I have come as herald to lay claim by my right to the Soul of the Silencer, Nortrom; by the Right of Akasha; as you heard declared.” he declared himself proudly and without hesitation, he could feel the Font urging him on, bringing greater zeal and strength with every second, he would not be dissuaded, he would not leave without Nortrom.

Back in the material plane Akasha could hear Abaddon speak for his mouth moved and spoke the same words he was declaring in the void; while in the roof of the mist did the lightening flashes reveal more than just illumination. With each flash an image of the Lord appeared as he stood in the void, the images coming together with each flash of lightening, if one looked closely, they could even hear and see the long forgotten council that spoke to the Lord.

Its words ethereal beyond compare and its physique indescribable in the mortal tongue, the first creature spoke, “You cometh to claim much, would be herald. But you come with ancient knowledge, knowledge long lost to the dead and forgotten souls of your world. Who gave you this knowledge?” it demanded, leaning closer to the Lord as the many other watched in still silence of oblivion.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Watching the lightning flashing in the mist overhead Akasha thought it strange that there was no thunder, but then it wasn’t a rain cloud, was it? That was, until she felt the rumble within her chest. She gasped slightly at first, not at all expecting the feeling. It wasn’t exactly painful, just unsettling. Not something one would want to feel on a constant basis surely.

Seeing all that black mist flowing into Abaddon, Akasha tilted her head slightly, ever curious about this whole process. What exactly was he doing? Was the Font a person or a being? Who was he trying to plead to? This was all so hard to comprehend and while he sat there in his strange sort of trance, Akasha’s mind wandered back to only a few hours ago when she and Nortrom had met in that snowy field. The dagger he gave rest in the sheath on her hip and she slowly moved her hand to run along the hilt. The vines made of metal, the thorns, the rose center piece. So beautifully crafted and so very fitting. Such a thoughtful gift. And what did she get him in return? His soul attached to a bracelet. Happy Frostivus indeed.

Speaking of, the soul on her wrist was remaining relatively still for the time being. Was he aware of what was going on? Still in anticipation? Perhaps. In a way, she was thankful he was calm for the time. Each movement made her skin crawl and it was so hard holding back tears.

When Abaddon began speaking again, Akasha nearly blinked it had startled her so much. Her wings extended instinctively but once she actually heard what he was saying, she relaxed. Why was he repeating what he had already said? And then she caught glimpse of the scene playing out in the mist overhead. She saw the lord in some sort of darkness. He looked to be speaking to someone. More than one someone?

When she heard the others voice, her eyes grew wide. She couldn’t quite see who the voice belonged to as she was only getting flashes of this image, but it certainly wasn’t of this realm, whoever it was. If she spoke, would they be able to hear her? Not that she would, just a passing curious thought. Was that who she was speaking to when Abaddon told her to explain her situation? Nervously chewing on her lip, the succubus watched and waited.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon's eyes flashed in response to the figure, "I am no would be herald, I am here, by my right!" he declared firmly, he knew now was not a time for hesitation, he could not fail, even if this creature was beyond his comprehension. in truth, it was taking a lot to maintain his nerve, this place was beyond void like, there was nothing here, not even darkness, no sound truly carried, no smell and no sensation were to be felt; only the curiosity of ones mind was able to fill the emptiness of this void.

"I was given this knowledge by the favour of the Undying, Herald of Dirge, God of the Dead. Would you question or deprive this knowledge of me, gained by my own inquiry?" the Lord demanded, straightening his posture. The creature was quick to retort as the Lord fell silent. "Such knowledge is best left hidden, but what is done, is done. As this claim is, what right would you have, what evidence would you give to propose an invalidation of a soul deal?" the creature demanded, its voice becoming heavier as it spoke, it clearly did not want the Lord here.

Pulling the letter from the cuff of his wrist guard Abaddon smiled beneath his helm, this was it, make or break. "I have here a letter!" he declared proudly, "from Nortrom the Silencer, to Akasha, his love" at this the creature scowled but before it could speak Abaddon continued confidently, "This letter is a confession of that love, the love Nortrom felt for Akasha. As you're well aware Akasha confessed her love to Nortrom in the moments before his soul was wrongly taken away." Suddenly he pointed to the creature, "this deal, the one you steward is false, nothing was demanded that these two unfortunate creatures must confess there love verbally!" at this the creature shifted visibly, almost taken aback.

"The requirements of the contract were fulfilled" Abaddon added, calmer than before, he dreaded to think of the violent lightening storm that would be the hall of Avernus at this point, he hoped Akasha had stayed still. "I agree, maybe they were not fulfilled in the most conventional means, but they were fulfilled. Now see the evidence for yourself" he ordered, offering the letter to the creature.

"I doubt you wish to keep a soul not earnt under your own rules Abaddon added smugly.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha was biting into her lip so hard it was bleeding at this point as she watched Abaddon speak and make the claim to this creature. It didn’t sound or look convinced when the lord first showed the letter which made her heart sink but as he explained, the creature seemed to be more open to hearing Abaddon’s argument, thankfully.

As time went on and Abaddon explained, the lightning storm in the hall grew much more intense, several flashes a second. It truly was intimidating to just have to stand there underneath it all. Not to mention the thunder pounding in her chest. As the storm increased and grew more violent, the pounding on her heart did as well. She wanted to leave, to back out of the hall until this was all over, but she had been specifically instructed to not move. No way was she risking messing this up.

As the storm grew ever more violent, the soul bound to her wrist began writhing and squirming as if it was trying to force its way out of the bracelet. As slowly as possible, she lifted her arm and laid it across her chest, closing her eyes and trying her best to comfort her lover. How exactly do you comfort a soul? She pressed the bracelet above her breast and could feel her rapid heartbeat bouncing against her skin. Could he feel that as well?

Clenching her jaw, Akasha was shaking as Nortrom grew more erratic and restless but she held him close to her regardless. You’ll be out of there soon, Nortrom. I promise… I’m so sorry. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she watched the creature contemplate the things Abaddon had said.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Extending a clawed hand outwards the creature took the letter from Abaddon and seemingly began to examine it through what one would presume were eyes. It the emptiness of the void Abaddon felt the creature examine the letter, pouring over its words, looking for what he had spoken of, looking for the emotion the love.

"Never does this one say, what was agreed… and yet, I see it…. In the curve of its script… I see…. I see" dropping the note from its hand, the parchment floating serenely through the void and into Abaddon’s outstretched hand.

"You would ask to free him, Correct herald?" The creature uttered, it’s words stronger than before, it seemed to accept Abaddon now and his case.

"I would call for his soul to be released immediately, and for him to be placed in my house, I would see him well and intact." The Lord declared his voice ecoing against the void in its ethereal nature.

"You doubt the faithful completion of the deal Herald?" The creature snarled suddenly, shifting forward in what one would presume was wrath. "It is by a broken deal I am here" he retorted simply, he was unphased by this creature, he could hear the font whispering to him, confidence was all he needed and confidence he had.

"I do not leave my deals incomplete, now, I wish him returned, to my house, immediatly. You have your evidence, do you need more?"

The creature paused as Abaddon spoke, “I require nothing more Mortal.” "Then release him!" The Lord ordered, his patience thinning as the creature continued.

"It is already done" the creature chuckled hauntingly, opening his hand to reveal a parchment that was instantly engulfed in flames. The light from the flames was akin to birthing stars in the void of this world, the Lord had to turn away from the light in an attempt to evade its ferocity.

Back in the hall of Avernus all fell silent and Abaddon opened his luminous eyes.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Did… Did they really agree?! Was it really that easy? Well, probably not for Abaddon, but it could have been worse! Watching the flashing visions above her, Akasha placed her hand over the bracelet resting against her chest and smiled from ear to ear hearing that they accepted the terms and agreed to release him.

Then, almost too suddenly, she felt all the energy and magic flow out of the bracelet. It was just cold metal now. Looking down at it, she ran her fingertips over it and there was no motion, no writhing. Nothing. He wasn’t there anymore. He truly wasn’t there anymore! Just as Abaddon opened his eyes, she glanced up to him and nearly blinked up and hugged him, but he made it very adamant she didn’t move while in this room.

"I don’t feel him anymore." She said to him softly, smiling and biting on her lip with excitement. Tears began forming in her eyes, but she held them back. There was the possibility that those creatures could have been lying and only removed the soul from the bracelet. Though, they seemed serious about such a deal. Either way, she was beyond excited.

nortromthesilencer

Events played out in reverse, the pulling, ripping, violent struggle of a soul being contorted this time out of an object and into a body. For a moment there was peace. For a moment there was silence. Nortrom could feel again, the cool air in where ever he was burning like icy needles upon his skin, senses from naught, unused to such feeling. The chamber echoed in ambience, quiet, yet deafeningly loud to one’s ears who had heard nothing before.

Abruptly Nortrom jolted up, eyes wide, terror, thoughts, fear, panic. Tasting again. Hearing again. Feeling again. Seeing again. It was far to much, to sudden, all at once every sense erupted into action from the murky depths of imprisonment and stasis and the man screamed. Clutching at his own head he had to drown out the feelings, the sounds, and without even a thought he had instinctively bathed the manor in silence.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Standing slowly and methodically from the altar Abaddon nodded to to the Succubus, a smile on his face. As he stood up mist seeped from his form, the energy of the Font returning to its source, it was a strange experience for Abaddon; to feel so much so deeply and then to return to, normality, at least for him.

As he stepped down from the altar, his metalic footfalls echoing off of the stone walls with shallow thunder for brief seconds. Abaddon opened his mouth to speak to Akasha yet as he opened his mouth nothing emerged but silence, a silence unakin to the void but deep still.

Chuckling silently to himself Abaddon waved for Akasha to stand and striding from the room took Akasha from the Hall, the Silence of Nortrom fading as they left the room.

"I guess the Silencer has rerurned" the Lord remarked happily as he turned to one of the waiting guards who had took position outside the hall just after they themselves had entered themselves. "Prepare food and drink, we have a guest from Aeol Drais"

Turning to Akasha as the Guard strode off with a quick bow to his Lord Abaddon spoke, “I beleive I know where he is, the court of souls are very methodical, they would have Brough him back to one place; The old quarters for the Ambassador of Aeol Drais. Follow me Akasha.” He declared striding off in the opposite direction to the guard.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Normally, in every other case she could think of, that silence would have been an utter annoyance and would have royally pissed her off. This time though, it filled her with overwhelming joy. That was Nortrom’s silence. He was back. He was truly back! As Abaddon lead them from the hall and the silence lifted, she was giggling like a school girl only to hold back her tears of joy.

As they walked, she grabbed the Lord’s hand and squeezed it, jogging along next to him to keep up with his large strides. “Thank you. Thank you thank you thank you. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to repay you for this, Abaddon!” Keeping hold of his hand, she blinked them both forward by several yards down the hallway, eager and excited yet not even knowing where they were going. This place was like a maze but she couldn’t help it. “Which room?! Where is it?! Where is he?!” She asked in the tone of an overly excited child, her voice high pitched and eager.

nortromthesilencer

Still clutching his head, Nortrom’s ragged breaths seemed to draw reality back into focus. Inhale. He was back in his body. Exhale.He was indoors, an unfamiliar place. Inhale. He had met with Akasha for Frostivus. Exhale. Nevermore came and did something to him.

Slowly piecing together reality the Silencer looked like a crazed fool, huddled in a ball, holding himself close, eyes wide and stare vacant. He had to get used to being corporeal again, the rest of these matters could wait for the time being. They had to. Mentally the man felt fatigued, terrified, an animal that had been cornered and scared. The bracelet was not a pleasant resting place, it’s otherworldly feeling ate away at his mind and perhaps for the first time in ages made Nortrom plead for humanities interaction. Now, even though he was back, he was still very much alone and that did little to comfort him.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

"You owe me nothing Akasha, I would not see a would be friend taken away like that." Smiling at the Demons enthusiasm Abaddon led her down another corridor to an older part of the manor, it was visited less frequently, not derelict by any means but certainly deprived of modernisation, the decor dating from his Father’s Lordship. This corridor had once been a Labyrinth of activity, diplomats and Ambassadors of all organisations and Kingdoms had existed here once, but with the House of Avernus’ allegiance to Ostarion, everything had changed, something Abaddon intended to change one day soon.

"I believe" Abaddon began, reaching a large double set of wooden doors, "through here, and into the quarters he may lie" he continued opening the doors and striding through the deserted and dusty study that had once acted as a meeting place for all ambassadors to Aeol Drais in this area. Striding through, Akasha just behind him, blinking in excitement Abaddon opened the final door,a large rosewood door engraved with the seal of Aeol Drais.

As he opened the door Abaddon saw the Silencer, curled up and clearly frightened, he could feel him now too, a sudden reconnection to his fate Abaddon saw fear, distress, sheer and utter anxiety,it was haunting. Slowing his strides Abaddon sat at a chair besides the Silencer.

"Nortrom, can you hear me? You’re safe, you’re in the house of Avernus. It is just me and Akasha." He insisted, trying to reassure the Silencer. Despite his ability to sense his discomfort, Abaddon could not imagine the torture the man had endured.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha was so cheerful and excited to see the man she love back the way he should be and not just his soul shoved inside a piece of jewelry—one of which she still needed to figure out how to get off, but that could come later. Through the final door they went and as soon as the succubus laid her eyes on the man, her smile fell. He looked awful. Scared, in pain, confused. Thinking about it, it made sense he would be this way. An overload of sensation after being but a soul in an object.

As Abaddon sat next to the man, she wasn’t sure whether she should go to Nortrom’s side or stay away. Would he be afraid of her? Not want her around? Would he understand all that had gone on? Seeing him looking the way he did, she couldn’t stay put any longer. Slowly, she strode over to the man and sat down on the floor next to him. She wasn’t sure if it would be alright to touch him or not. The look on his face… It was like just being was causing him pain.

"N-Nortrom?" She said softly, tilting her head as she watched him. "Everything is okay now…"

nortromthesilencer

Other. Life. Abaddon was the first to enter and the first to catch his sight. Without any thought or care the man lunged forward, wrapping himself around Abaddon’s waist and clinging to the other living being, shaking. The warmth, the breathing, it was at this moment in time that any thought of physical boundaries was tossed aside: Nortrom needed grounding. He needed to be reassured that this was real and not some strange hallucination.

Being in the bracelet, being just a soul without form, it all seemed so surreal at the time and now that he was back, the man wondered if any of it had really happened. The fear was real, the strange sights of glowing auras and echoing sounds emanating around him while feeling constricted and squashed; And now corporeal once more.

The Silencer’s breaths were heavy, and his grip firm. He heard another, Akasha, nearby and again his mind spun in confusion. What had happened that day? Why had it happened? There were so many questions, but no will to speak them. For now, he needed to concentrate on calming donw.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

The Lord took a small step back as the Silencer lunged towards him, clutching him about the waist in a crazed fever. He was breathing heavily, clearly in distress.

"Nortrom, you’re amongst friends." He began, placing his hands upon the man’s shoulders. Pausing for a moment Abaddon wondered what to say, this was undoubtedly a surreal experience for him, in his metative stage it had been strange enough in that void and he suspected it paled in comparison to what the Silencer had endured.

Pushing the man back Abaddon kneeled down before him, “Nortrom, breath, you’re safe, I am real. This is Real!” He emphasised slowly,looking ti Akasha, silently willing her to take it slowly with him.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Watching Nortrom lung for Abaddon worried her for more than one reason. One was selfish. She had hoped she would have been the first person he’d want to cling to. But then, Abaddon was the first person he saw and it was evident the man needed physical contact. It was familiar in a way. He had a similar look on his face that a succubi or an incubi would had they not fed in a long while. Desperately in need of the touch of another in any way possible. Though, he seemed more scared and confused than lustful for obvious reasons. So while she felt somewhat hurt, she acknowledged that it was selfish of her to feel that way and decided to just let things play out.

She was sitting on her knees a bit away from the two, not sure what more to do or say at the time. Seeing Abaddon look to her, she looked down away from his gaze. She had foolishly expected this reunion to be one of joy. But… The man she loved was so troubled all because of her. Too many emotions were rushing through her. she placed her hands on her thighs and dug her claws in, trying to relieve some of the stress through the stinging feeling. It didn’t do much. What was she suppose to do? What was she suppose to say?

After a moment of contemplation, she slowly crawled closer to the two and gently placed her hand on Nortrom’s shoulder. She didn’t know what to say, so she decided to stay quiet for now.

nortromthesilencer

He flinched at the contact on his shoulder, turning to face Akasha slowly, breaths coming out more calm. Closing his eyes he clutched his hair for a few moments, before words of barely a whisper were heard. "What… What happened…?"

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon noted the flinch but was happy to hear the Silencer voice, he was still in there. “You were taken, by Nevermore. When this happened Akasha sought my aid to save you and I did. But rest easy, I can go into the details when you’re rested. Understand?” The Lord explained, holding the Silencers shoulder firmly.

"You’re safe" he reiterated, his luminous eyes staring at the Silencer. He was in truth worried for the man, he had endured much and he may well not take some of this news lightly, especially not the deal for his soul; in his reasoned state he could expect an uncomfortable and irritated responce, now, no one knew.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha had expect his initial flinch but didn’t remove her hand. Instead, she slowly traced it down the back of his shoulder to rest in the center of his back. She listened quietly as Abaddon tried explaining. Best not go into details too early. Welcome back! Oh yeah, by the way, this all happened because I made a bet and the prize was your soul. Yeah, that’ll go over well…

Come to think of it, Akasha had no idea how she was going to explain this whole situation to him. She made a stupid bet, lost, and then didn’t lose? That was the very, very basic version, but how would she explain this without him absolutely hating her for it? The succubus sighed softly and nodded as if to agree with Abaddon, but internally, she had decided to just start at the beginning and be completely honest. Explain everything. All her feelings. The light. The deal. The love… Perhaps not now. When he recovered and got reaquainted with humanity. That would at least give her time to plan what to say.

nortromthesilencer

He backed off from Abaddon, eyes cast downward. Think, what happened? Nevermore interrupted his time date with Akasha, muttering something about it being ‘time’ or what not. She panicked and pleaded, said something about tell him some fact, then… Wait. She said something else, in his ear words of love before the sudden pain started. Did she know it was going to happen?

Turning to Akasha, mind still fraught with conflicting feelings and pained anxiety, he looked woefully into her eyes. “You knew. You knew what was going to happen.”

He didn’t want to jump to conclusions, to accuse her of treachery. Yet with every other event that seemed to occur, with people stabbing him in the back at every turn, Nortrom’s thoughts automatically turned to doubts and dread- feelings of betrayal and worry.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon listened with concern as the Silencer voiced his fears. He had hoped that Nortrom would have taken more time to recall the events, this was going to get very difficult.

Standing up slowly Abaddon let the question stand in the air, striding slowly over to the nearby desk Abaddon grabbed one of the chairs and dragged it over to his two guests. Taking a seat he sighed, “It is a long story my friend, and though Akasha did know of events that she hoped would never transpire. But I feel that this story may be explained better from Akasha, though I ask you to hear out the whole story before you react.” The Lord insisted.

"And food and drink will be here soon my friend" the Lord added, trying to lift the man’s spirits.

longlivethequeenofpain:

'You knew. You knew what was going to happen.'

The first thing he said and the last thing she wanted to hear. The pain and fear in his voice were almost too much to bare. Her expression instantly turned from that of worry to obvious regret and sadness that she couldn’t hid no matter how good of an actress she was. She covered her mouth with a hand as if trying to keep herself from falling into a fit of sobs and her wings instantly folded in and cradled her. Those first few words tore her heart in two. Of course she knew. She knew and she let it happen and it was all her fault…

Thankfully, Abaddon broke the seemingly eternal silence as the question just floated there between the three. She hadn’t even noticed he stood and retrieved a chair for himself until she looked over to him as he spoke. For whatever wonderful reason, that man always knew the right things to say. At this rate, she was going to be indebted to him for centuries.

Where do I even start..?

"He’s right… I did know. But I had been trying my hardest for so long to prevent it… Even still, it wasn’t even suppose to happen! I…" I what? I won? What did you win? I won the bet. This… Gods… I don’t know how to explain this at all… Keeping her gaze down on her thighs, she tucked her wings even farther around her body as if she were trying to keep out the emotions. Yet all she was doing was trapping them inside.

Frowning now, she shook her head. “This is going to take a long time to explain. I think you should eat first. Sleep even. Get use to your body again… I don’t want to push you and I don’t think you’re in the right state of mind to hear all of this yet…”

nortromthesilencer

His brow creased, the large eyed stare being very quickly replaced with an almost palpable anger. “Wasn’t supposed to happen?” Memories were flooding in fast, and it was confusing to sort through them all. Still, there were some words he could hear clear as day, something nevermore had spoken of…

"It’s time. He said it was time. This was planned, wasn’t it? This whole thing!" Rising to his feet, Nortrom suddenly had to stop, his head spinning and body not cooperating in motion. Growing dizzy he fell back down, hand holding his head and a broken sigh parting his lips. Instead of moving to look at either of them he let his head remain drooped, looking at the floor, at nothing.

"At least tell me what the hell he did to me. I— I don’t even know that, and I was the one going through it! Everything… Everything made no sense. It— The world—" The Silencer couldn’t even find words to describe the experience, his last recognizable feeling being pain before everything became so very untangible and sureal.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon was thankful that the Man’s rage had been quelled by his frail state, Abaddon would not tolerate such ill informed accusations. Remaining in his chair as the man continued, his questions becoming more acceptable Abaddon nodded, “If you keep your cool Silencer then we will have no issue explaining what occurred, but do not jump to conclusions” he iterated heavily, his voice echoing in its ethereal ways, the Lord was clearly short of patience.

"You had your soul torn from your body, that was the cost of Akasha losing her deal, a deal she had not choice in, I will point out" he added hastily, raising a hand to indicate to Nortrom to remain silent, an entertaining turn of the tables if the situation had not been so serious. "And though you could blame Akasha for not telling you Nortrom, it would be pointless, she was bound by the deal to never inform you, as were any of us fortunate enough to discover the deal ourselves. I myself looked for ways to break the deal before it could be completed, I was unsuccessful." he admitted begrudgingly, the secrets of Soul magic had been hidden well, had he had more time he might have sought out the Lich but the Lord had not known how Ethreain would have taken the situation, he was an oddly aggressive, neutral party.

"And now you’re back, back because someone" he turned to Akasha, "had the logic to seek out your friends when her own attempts at saving you failed." the Lord added bluntly.

As he finished speaking a knock came at the door, calling for the servant to come in, a young woman with raven hair and emerald eyes, Abaddon indicated for the tray of food and water to be left on the bedside table that stood nearest the Silencer. “Thank you Thren, That will be all for now.” the Lord commanded gently, watching the woman curtsey as she departed.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha was still eternally grateful that Abaddon spoke and tried explaining things. She was glad he didn’t blame her and knew that she really had no choice in the matter. One could argue she did indeed have a choice, but at the time the deal was struck, she had started caring about Nortrom. She didn’t understand why but she cared about him more than any mortal before. The way she saw it at the time, if she didn’t accept the deal, the Fiend was just going to just take his soul anyway. Yes, there was the aspect of her wanting to prove that she could make anyone fall in love with her and her ego was part of it, but it didn’t stay that way for long. Despite how much she denied it, looking back, she did fall in love with him.

As the girl came in with the food, Akasha took a breath in, not smelling the food, but smelling her. This whole ordeal had left her exhausted. Hungry. One of the few times she resented the way she was. Watching the girl leave, Akasha’s eyes were glowing, but the second she looked back to Nortrom, they quickly dulled again. She finally decided to quit stalling and start explaining.

Not looking to Nortrom, but obviously addressing him, she bit on her lip before she opened her mouth. “Do you remember about three months ago when I stumbled to your door a complete mess because someone spiked my drink? I think that was the night that started this whole thing. Nortrom, you treated me like a normal person that night and even the morning after. Had it been anyone else, they would have taken advantage of me. A succubus, a pleasure demon completely out of her mind? I know maybe three people tops that wouldn’t have jumped on that opportunity. I remember waking up on you the next morning being so surprised that we were both still dressed.” She gave a weak sort of laugh glancing up to him for a moment before continuing.

"The next morning even, I was trying to get your attention, trying to seduce you, trying to at least catch your eye, but all that really happened was you feeding me and letting me go on my way. I’ve never been treated like that Nortrom. Not before you. I was so intrigued and confused and… I wanted to know why you didn’t want me. Very, very few people resist me. Succubi in general. Yet you just saw me as person to be respected. You took care of me when I needed it even though you hate demons. I think that might have been when that seed of light got planted into my soul. The humanity. The part of me that has changed me and allowed me to truly care for you…"

She paused and sighed, unsure where to go from there. What happened between that day and the day Nevermore came to her… Oh! The incident with Doom. That probably wasn’t going to be fun to hear. “I was rather close to Lucifer at that point. I explained to him how you didn’t want me and I was pouty about it and he said he’d give me a gift to make up for it. Annnd then he brought you to my dungeon. I’m sure you remember that as well… I had originally planned on treating you like I treat my pets. Make them please me and punish them and make them do everything I say until they are trained into submission. During that entire situation I was confused, if I can be honest. Conflicted I guess would be a better word. My instincts enjoyed watching Doom do the things he had done to you, yet a part of me didn’t want that to happen. I didn’t know why… Lucifer kept insisting on taking me when all I wanted was you and the final straw was when he killed Liliana. The succubi I offered him… He sliced her in half like she meant nothing. At that point, I would have rather tortured him than you. I was already frustrated that he was trying to make the rules in my own home but that was the breaking point. I was tired of him, I didn’t want any harm to come to you, I only really wanted to have sex with you… I just wanted you to want me, I was upset and confused about why you didn’t. I’m not sure if any of this is making sense, but when you helped me take him down, and I let you leave, I knew there was something wrong with me. When I want something, I take it. I wanted you, yet I let you go. I was frustrated and confused and unsure about these emotions I hadn’t felt in hundreds of years.”

Slowly, she moved herself closer to Nortrom and slowly took both of his hands in her own and looked straight into his eyes. His were still bright despite the situation but her own were dull as she cried. “I never realized until you that I’ve always felt as though I am bound to so many but no one is bond to me. That I am just here to belong to anyone and everyone and that I have no say. And then you.” She smiled softly, a light pink coming to her cheeks as if she were embarrassed to admit what she was about to say. ”I spent hours and hours composing pieces of music about you and for you and trying to understand my feelings. I wrote so much about you.”

”'You rediscovered me like the rotting skeleton of a sunken ship and pulled me out of the sea. I thanked you for saving me and you told me I am not a tragedy.'" She quoted one of her poems, looking down at their hands still together, blushing more.

”'You give my hips a soft squeeze as we kiss. We sway and then fall into an embrace that requires our entire selves. Even my lungs are in love as we breathe together.'”

”'Your lips brush up against mine ever so softly that I barely register the touch as physical. I am used to volcanoes. I am used to getting burned. I am not used to the way you caress my face and cradle the nape of my neck. Like I am delicate, like I am something you don’t want to break. You are mist. You are the phenomenon of small water droplets suspended in air after volcanic activity. You are the calm after the storm. You are the dawn after the night. You are the gentle after the rough. You are unprecedented, tender love, and I decided that I can get used to this.'”

When she finished speaking, her face was still pink and still stricken with tears. “They are awful but they were the only way I knew how to explain the things I was feeling. I never intended on telling or showing you because I was unsure if any of that was even real, but I know now. I know it’s real. I know my feelings for you are as real as anything in this room.” She looked up into his eyes and forced a smile on her lips.

"Nortrom, I know that I’m not much but I want you to know that the best parts of me love you. The parts of me that have good intentions, the honest parts, the sincere parts, the parts of me that want to be better. The best parts of me love you, and I know that’s not much because you’re worth more than even the best parts of me can give… But… Nortrom… I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you. You are the best in me. I am so sorry I let this happen to you. I’m sorry I put you through this even though I promised you I’d always keep you safe. I understand if you hate me… You should, honestly. But please… Please know that I have never felt this way about anyone in the entire 312 years I have been alive… I love you and I am so glad you’re here…"

Another pause, another sigh. The next majorly important thing was when Nevermore came in. “Couple weeks later, after our… Erm… After our first date,” She was unsure how to explain the two of them fucking on top of a man they had previously tortured in front of Abaddon. “Uh, after that, after that and the first few times we spent time together, Nevermore approached me. He told me there was a stain of lightness in my soul. And that basically it was because of you. You brought that out of me. You changed me. I don’t know why or how but you did. I was so distraught about the fact that I had this tumours light within me that demons weren’t suppose to have. I thought I was going soft, changing for the worst. He told me that it was a good thing. He told me to embrace it. He told me that I was stronger around you than I ever had been. That the light wasn’t a weakness but a strength. He challenged me to nurture that seed and let it grow. I wasn’t too keen on the idea so he decided to strike me a deal: I embrace the light within me and make you fall in love with me within three months or he was going to take your soul. Permanently. Frostivus being the deadline.” Tears began welling up in her eyes as she explained, the stupidity of what she did was plainly obvious and she hated herself for it.

"I accepted because of my ego partially, I’ll admit. I make men and women fall in love with me without even trying all the time. But, whether you believe me or not, I didn’t want you to die. I didn’t want anything to happen to you. I thought that if I declined he would just go and do it anyway because I didn’t want the light within me so what would it matter if you were gone? I cared for you a lot at that point. I accepted and then went on to bother you for three months, trying my hardest to make you love me…" The tears that she had been trying her hardest to not let fall, cascaded down her face at that point.

Thinking on all those months, she suddenly laughed a bit through her tears. “Remember the wedding invitations that literally every hero got? I think people knew that I had feelings for you even before I did. I talked to Lanaya about my feelings for you, she insisted I was falling in love with you. Enchantress told me the same thing. Nevermore told me as well. I… I denied it for a long time, but eventually, only recently did I accept the fact that despite being a demon, I fell in love with you… I’m not sure how much you remember of Frostivus morning, but Nevermore took your soul wrongfully. You were suppose to fall in love with me. That’s all. You didn’t have to verbally say it to me. That wasn’t part of the deal… After he bound your soul to this bracelet, I was sitting there, crying over your body when I found the note you wrote, the thing you wanted to tell me… You… You did love me… I spoke to Abaddon about the deal previously and as he said he had been looking for a way to stop this if I were to fail, so I brought the note straight here. And… He saved you…” Looking up to the ceiling she let out another long sigh. That was basically everything wasn’t it? More tears began streaming down her face. No there was one more thing.

nortromthesilencer

He wanted to be livid. He wanted to scream, to shout, to lash out and take his feelings out on everyone and everything around him. His soul? Taken? Over a bet? it was insane to even think about, that all of this was because of some arrogance between daemon’s, that all of this was because of…

…Love.

Nortrom cast his gaze to the side, looking at the wall. This was a lot to take in, and his current mind state refused to be rational. It was a flurry of emotions, all manner of extremes, and they barraged him from every angle. Some parts dictated that this was an abuse of trust and Akasha should be cast aside because of it. Other parts were overjoyed that perhaps his feelings over time were shared in a more concrete fashion. No matter the case, there was far to much going on inside of the man’s head for him to make any sense of it all.

Running his hands through his hair with a tired groan, Nortrom rest his forehead in his palms. “I… I don’t know what to say…” Never good with emotions or speaking on them, this was even more foreign territory for the Silencer. “T-Thank you, Abaddon, for releasing me.” That was a start, at least. Somewhere inside, Nortrom wondered just how the hell the Lord of Avernus did it, but at the same time he didn’t really think it was a good idea to ask or even know. There was too much information to digest already. "Akasha… I… Did—" His words, broken stammers of wavering confusion, were excruciatingly hard to come by. Another deep sigh, head being lowered even further until it touched his legs, "Does that mean… you read the letter?" This was awkward, and not at all how he wanted to have this conversation. This wasn’t the Frostivus day envisioned in his head, the kissing under the moonlit snowfall, the gift giving, the joyful tears. This was anything but.

Slowly the Silencer lifted his head, attempting to meet her eyes once more. it was hard, his own showing an obvious sheen of wetness and anxiety. “It was more than just some bet then? More than… Than arrogance to seduce the one who rejected you?” Nortrom’s head tilted pathetically, a meek look of a questioning puppy dog feeling unsure and scared. “… Because I did mean… I- er… I meant everything I said, or… well, wrote…”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Nodding his head at the Silencers thanks Abaddon sighed to himself, a lot had been said and done and he was thankful that people’s tempers had remained in check. Looking to Nortrom Abaddon noted how his fate was twisting and turning violently, a lot was to be decided here and it didn’t take a fortune teller to say what that was. But even as he noted the violent turning Abaddon saw some of the fates twist begin to settle and lie still; it would appear that things were beginning to settle, somewhat anyway.

"I can tell you more of the details when you’re rested Nortrom, you can stay here as long as necessary, my house is open to you. Though it is ironic you would be found here" he smirked beneath his helm. "bu before Akasha interjects, i would like to make a point, if it was a case of pride… of arrogance, then she would have had no reason to save you, she lost, so be it. But she didn’t, she sought help and considering the fact I am hostile to demons you can guess her desperation." the Lord reiterated, he in all honesty wanted this conversation to end, Nortrom needed to rest and all of these worries and questions could be answered at a later date; but he conceded it wouldn’t and couldn’t be that simple.

Standing up Abaddon poured a water into the chalice that had been brought with the food for Nortrom, a mixture of red meats, potatoes, bread, chopped vegetables and other assorted foods. Filling the Chalice to three quarters, Abaddon passed the drink to Nortrom , making sure his hand clasped firmly around it, “Drink my friend, you have been out of sorts for a while, you must eat and drink.” It was a stressful situation in truth, he had been fortunate that his source of information, The Undying, had been so forthcoming with information, Abaddon had noted his particular hostility for the demonic kind had certainly fulled his decision to assist, but Abaddon could not shake that it would not be the end of such an arrangement.

Sitting back down as his own mind reeled in the complicated situation that now sat before him, Abaddon focused his eyes on Akasha and her words to Nortrom; such worries could wait.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha had been about to speak when Abaddon interjected. Though, what he said she had no issues with. He defended her. Glancing up to him, wiping at her tear stained cheeks she gave an appreciative smile before looking back to Nortrom, nodding in agreement. Though, when there was a pause she took the chance to answer his question. “Yes, I read the note… That note got you back here…” She explained with a soft smile on her face glad to hear him say he meant it. Of course he did, if he hadn’t he’d still be gone, yet it was so pleasing to actually hear him say it. Was that selfish?

Watching as the Lord poor Nortrom a drink and passed it to him, she nodded in agreement again. He needed to eat, sleep, rest. More could be discussed later. They would probably have a lot more to talk about of course, but for now, she had said all she could say on the matter. The succubus had been completely honest and spilled out all of her feelings and was truthful. Now, all there was left to do was wait and see how he felt once he processed it all.

nortromthesilencer

He held the chalice between two less than stable hands, watching the water sway slightly from his shaking. Nodding in thanks, the man waited a moment before attempting to drink, forcing himself to swallow despite his body protesting the action. Nortrom worried he wouldn’t be able to keep any food down at the moment, his stomach twisted in knots, body shaking, and the fact he was still getting used to being physical once more.

Another drink, though this time it followed up with a cough. Attempting to breath and swallow at the same time wasn’t the best of ideas, yet being preoccupied in thought, the Silencer wasn’t paying that much attention to what would be normal habits of humans. Coughing some more and attempting to not spill the drink, he sighed, looking away from the pair sheepishly, feeling quite pathetic at the moment.

"Y-you’re right…" Nortrom set cup down on the side table, every movement slow and deliberate, "I… I really should lie down…" He was exhausted, the very act of living seeming to drain his energy at the moment. Perhaps it was a side effect of being nothing more than a soul trapped in stasis for a while, but his limbs were heavy, sluggish masses sort of tacked on to his abdomen at the moment, and felt very out of place. Eyes half lidded, no longer fear filled or panicking, the man looked pale and sunken.

"Th-thank you. Again."

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Nodding at Nortrom’s words, Abaddon stood up from his chair, his luminous eyes moving from Nortrom to Akasha. In truth he was relieved that the Silencer had chosen rest, it would be exhausting to tell the story of what had occured, never mind hear it; that and Abaddon could only imagine how weak Nortrom must be from having been disconnected from his body for so long.

"We will leave you to rest Nortrom, both of us" he added, looking to Akasha, as much as he suspected she wanted to stay but he hoped she understood his reasoning, Nortrom had to be alone right now, he needed rest over anything.

"Guards will be at the door Nortrom" the Lord indicated the door behind them that led to the diplomatic space for Aorl Drias. "They will be at your beck and call for anything you require." Nodding his head to Nortrom again the Lord turned and motioned for Akasha to rise, "the maid you saw bring Nortrom’s food, she is in the main hallway and will take you to some temporary quarters, they will be aviable to you for as long as you deem necessary".

Finally nodding to Akasha Abaddon spoke, “we will meet after we have all rested”, turning quickly after he spoke the Lird departed from the room, his shredded cloak billowing behind him as he strode through the corridors. He hadn’t noticed it when he had been talking? But he was beyond exhausted, his powers had been pushed to their limits and beyond. On the verge of collapse by the time he reached his quarters, the Lords armour began to fade to mist, and he fell into bed and slumber.

longlivethequeenofpain:

When the Lord insisted they both take their leave, Akasha wanted to protest, to stay with Nortrom as long as she could and be there for him, but perhaps after all she explained and after everything he went through, it was better this way. Everyone off on their own for a while.

Abaddon left first and when it was just the two left, the succubus sighed and didn’t look to Nortrom. She only stood, silently helped him too his feet and over to the bed. She didn’t want to just leave him there on the floor and given that he could hardly even hold a glass of water, she thought it best to at least do him that favor. “The bed is probably a lot more comfortable than the floor, love.” She said softly as she stepped away and moved towards the door.

"Rest well…" She nearly whispered, not looking back his way as she walked out of the room, motioning for the guards to close it behind her. As she walked back down the hallway from which they had originally came from, Akasha wiped away her tears and inhaled, trying to shake off the emotion and focus on the sounds and smells around her. She followed the scent of the girl Abaddon mentioned until she saw her right where he said she’d be. Upon seeing Akasha, the girl gave a shy sort of nervous looking smile. “Is there a piano here somewhere?” Akasha asked as she approached. The girl obviously hadn’t expected that question as a look of surprise washed over her face but she nodded. “Oh, of course. This way.”

After another maze of hallways and staircases, the girl finally lead Akasha into a rather nice room. It wasn’t a music room, there was only the piano, but it wasn’t a study or a bedroom either. A desk, a bookshelf, a chaise, a nice big window. Not that it matter to her what this room was used for, Akasha simply nodded to the girl and went and sat at the stool.

"Is there anything else you need?" The girl asked, standing in the doorway. The succubus ran her fingers cross the keys, playing a few minor chords softly and shook her head. "No. Thank you." The temptation to snack on her was there, but as she began dancing her fingers along the keys, she drifted into a sort of trance, letting everything else wash out of her mind for the time. She didn’t even notice the girl standing and listening for about five minutes before excusing herself and leaving Akasha alone with her music.

nortromthesilencer

Accepting the help and moving to the bed, Nortrom nodded at Akasha, still trying to piece together all of what had occurred. The water was hard enough to stomach, and while the food at the bedside smelt good he didn’t wish to get sick from taking too much too soon. Testing his fortitude the Silencer took a small bite of the meat, cringing as he swallowed; It’s texture and mass going down felt out of place, much like the rest of his body at the moment, and he knew this wasn’t going to work.

With a sigh he put the glass of water down and curled up on the bed, back facing the door. At least it was quiet here, even if everything else was a shock to his system. Nortrom knew he owed Abaddon his life- no- his very soul for this, and couldn’t even begin to fathom how he would pay back such a debt. As for Akasha… He felt the warm sting of tears leave his eyes, slow and silent, still heavily conflicted on that front. She had bet his soul because of arrogance, and in his doubting state Nortorm wondered just how much of her proclamations were true and how much was her trying to smooth things over.

Such matters could wait. It could all wait.

For now, Exhaustion plagued his mind and left him heavy-hearted. Taking Abaddons advice, he closed his eyes and tried to get some rest.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon did not sleep well, his mind was a turmoil of consequence and counter consequence. The fates of wholes peoples and civilization spiraling in his head, a maelstrom of falling mortar, breaking hearts and clashing steel. It would be damnation for any not raised in its thunderous wailing. he could see Josephine of Aquataina across the distant sea throw away her ring for a man who Abaddon knew simply wanted the jewel from it. In the mountains north of the distant horizon A keen like folk begin there journey into the depths, only for ruin ti lie ahead of them. And finally, here, in the region of the ancients fate lay still over the house of Avernus, so much to be decided, so much to be discussed.

His luminous eyes opening suddenly, Abaddon gave a quick breath as he returned to the world of the living. Waking up always did feel like a resurrection to him. It had in his younger years, made him wonder what happened to him in his sleep, did he die when he slept only to be reborn? he didn't know, and long ago he had given up ever finding out. Sitting up and shaking his head he rang a small ornate brass bell that stood upon his bedside table, the light ringing cutting through air in a strange yet cheerful manner.

As the sound cut through the air the servant Thren entered the Lords room, a smile upon her face. “How can I serve you my Lord?” the servant inquired with a bow.

Abaddon swung himself out of bed and standing quickly he formed his armour over himself, he could enjoy simpler clothing if he wished, but the recent events had him somewhat on edge. “Do not see to me Thren, see to our guests, Nortrom first and then Akasha, fetch them anything they desire, food, water” he paused, “Company if a volunteer is willing. Oh and send a messenger to Aeol Drias at once, let them know that their champion is well before foul rumors spread.”

“Of course my Lord, call if you require anything” Thren responded, curtsying as she departed to undertake her given tasks.

Sighing to himself Abaddon walked to his desk and looked upon the map of the lands he had pinned above it, it was an old and weathered map, but it was still accurate, Aeol Drias was at least three days hard ride from here, hopefully news would not have reached them yet of their Champions temporary incapacitation. Shaking his head as his eyes fell upon the kingdom of Ostarion Abaddon turned away from the blight upon the land that that kingdom symbolized. He had no intention of staying aliened to that would be King much longer, he just needed a way out, to secure his home. Turning away from the map that had haunted his thoughts for years Abaddon strode from his room and towards the Silencers temporary quarters. On his way there a young boy came upon the Lord a scroll in hand, it was the message to be sent to Aeol Drias, reading the message over quickly Abaddon nodded and sealing it with the signet ring upon his hand he sent the boy away and upon his mission.

As he walked down those long forgotten corridors of his home, the Lord could not help but recall a time, though brief, when these corridors had been the hub of the house, a market of diplomacy and allegiance, friendship and trade, it had been a golden time for the house of Avernus, but then war and allegiance with Ostarion had come and everything had changed.

Looking up from his though Abaddon found himself before the guards of the Silencers room, they quickly bowed in their Obsidian armour, halberds in hand. “Anything to report?” he inquired simply, his voice taking on its ethereal quality in ever greater strokes as he truly woke up.

“Nothing my Lord Abaddon” the younger of the two answered, “the Silencer has slept as far as we can tell. We left him to his rest and did not disturb him. Though Thren did come by just a head of you to give him some food” “Very good, both of you, go and get some food yourselves and rest, also inform the Captain that I want a change of guards for this post, you stood here all night, you deserve the break.” The Lord commanded, waving for them men to go, which they did, with thanks and a parting bow.

“Oh” he called, turning back to the parting guards, “And inform Thren to find Akasha and bring her here if she is capable”. Without waiting for a response Abaddon knocked and opened the doors of the Silencers quarters, the old diplomatic quarters of Aeol Drias.

“Good Morning Nortrom”

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha had spent most of the evening playing various songs, zoning and keeping complete focus on the music instead of letting her mind wander to the events that had taken place over the last few days. Occasionally she would get a flash of that little field, watching the bright blue dull to a grey. The music flowing from her fingers would reflect, taking a drastic turn in tone depending on which memory came back. That one in particular filled the room with a somber, more dramaticFuneral March — if one could even imagine such a piece getting any more dramatic.

The succubus managed, though. She played through many different pieces all different tones and tempos, never once stopping, only morphing the notes to mash together in a sort of sick, monster of a waltz. A tragic, repeating love story that never got it’s happy ending before starting over again.

Once or twice, when the music wasn’t enough, Akasha left the seclusion of that little piano room and ventured out to find someone to bother or play with. It wasn’t hard to find a “victim” as there were guards stationed all over the enormous, maze like building. She would attempt to flirt, to see how much it would take to get them to leave their post, but when they actually agreed to leave and go with her, she wouldn’t accept their company or hold true to the many promises made while teasing.

Instead, the succubus would just saunter off, leaving them confused and probably embarrassed about the fact that they actually were persuaded by a demon; Still wanting for her regardless and annoyed that she simply left without a word. Then back she went to the piano room to drown in the music once more.

Akasha hadn’t been keeping up with the time, but during one of her outings, she and the little servant girl from before nearly toppled over one another, the girl immediately falling into a round of apologies. The Queen gave a soft smile and placed her hand on the girls cheek. “Calm down, calm down. Did you need me?”

With a light pink rising to her cheeks, the girl nodded. “My Lord requests your presence in the Aeol Drias quarter.” She muttered. The succubus nodded. “Of course. Is it morning already? Hm.” Looking around for any sign of the time, she shrugged. “I’m not sure where that is. You’ll take me there?” The girl nodded and began walking back from where she came. Akasha followed behind with her hands hanging in the air in front of her. As if on ivory, her fingers twitched and danced and she hummed the missing notes softly to herself.

nortromthesilencer

The sleep was anything but restful. While initially sheer exhaustion brought the man down into black slumber almost immediately, once the existential hangover of sorts passed Nortrom found himself tossing and turning the rest of the night. Dreams felt akin to being trapped outside of his own body, the elements at play around him felt out of place still, and overall there was not much comfort in the quiet of the evening. Alone. Again.

When Abaddon rapped upon the door and entered the room, the Silencer was tangled in his sheets with a leg hanging off the bed. Drearily he shifted himself to look at the Lord, not at all ashamed of his unkempt self due to other matters occupying his thoughts. “Hm…” A grumbling welcome was all the man could muster as he sat up and rubbed his hands through his hair. It’s not that he wasn’t thankful for the help, but more that he was in-between a state of shock, anger and disbelief coupled by a lack of sleep.

Swining his feet over the edge and sitting upright now, Nortrom pulled the mass of sheets over his waist and finally gave a more concrete greeting to his benefactor. “Not so good, but thank you all the same.”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

The Lord was not surprised at the the Silencers disheveled state, it would be quite a while before the man recovered fully, weeks he expected in truth. Walking forwards Abaddon grabbed the clothes at the end of the bed and passed them up to the Nortrom, the servants had been in the night and washed and pressed the clothing under his orders.

“Understandable” he responded to the question, turning away and towards the dusty desk that sat against the opposing wall; this way Nortrom could dress in private. “I would not expect you to readjust so quickly as that Nortrom. Though I am glad you got some rest at least.” he remarked, running his gauntlet along the dusty desk upon which long abandoned parchment and quill stood, it had been a rush to abandon these quarters after all.

“I have sent world to Aeol Drias that you’re alive and well, so do not fret about that.” the Lord continued, still facing away from Nortrom. “I know Akasha will be on her way shortly, but I must ask, is there anything you wish to discuss with me before she arrives?” he queried, suspecting Nortrom had a myriad of questions and confusions, many of which he did not dare propose in front of the demon.

longlivethequeenofpain:

“What did you say your name was again?” Akasha asked as the two walked along, her hands still moving as if they were on a piano. “Thren.” the girl replied simply. The succubus frowned and nodded. “Right. We’ve done this before, haven’t we?” “Done what, exactly?” “The name game.”

Thren smiled and glanced back at Akasha over her shoulder. “Yes, but from what I understand, you’ve been through a lot. I didn’t expect you to remember the name of a simple servant.” She shrugged and faced forward again. “You also didn’t sleep to my knowledge, you must be exhausted.”

Akasha looked off to the side, avoiding eye contact. “Didn’t you help when I was injured?” “Yes.” “There is no excuse for my lack of memory then.” “…I didn’t expect one with such a title and reputation to be so humble.” That kept the succubus quiet. Humble was never a word anyone used to describe her. Thinking on it, it still didn’t seem fitting.

A few more minutes went by and the two didn’t speak again until they got there. “Thank you Thren.” Akasha gentle pet the girl, stroking her hair. She smiled shyly and nodded. “If that’s all, I should go check on the meals.” Akasha returned the nod. “Go ahead.”

The servant turned and started back the way they came and Akasha tapped lightly on the door letting them know she was coming in before she entered.

“Morning.” She muttered looked to each of them. The room felt tense all of a sudden. “I’m not interrupting anything, am I?” She asked almost rhetorically, shutting the door behind her. It seemed that way, but she walked over to where Abaddon sat, regardless.

With her fingers still moving in the air, she hopped up on the corner of the desk, trying to avoid sitting on anything and resumed humming the notes she was miming.

nortromthesilencer

Taking the clothes with a nod the man began to dress, thinking on what was said the night before- at least what he could remember of it. Another sound, another person, another familiar face. Akasha strode in and both looked her way, saying nothing for the time being. Nortrom pulled his doublet over his arms but didn’t button it for the time being. “Akasha.” His greeting lacked any real grace or emotion, just a plain nod of acknowledgement for the time being.

Getting to his feet the Silencer stretched, hobbling slightly and having to balance against one of the bedposts. His own body felt like a strange suit not tailored for him still, the fit was wrong and it wasn’t comfortable. In time, he assumed, that would remedy itself.

“I know you both attempted some semblance of explanation last night,” He sighed, a hand running through his black hair and tangling itself up anxiously, “But truth be told I remember little. The entire evening is hazy- no, the entire week.” Was it a week? Nortrom had no way to quantify time while pulled from his flesh, and only made an educated guess. Casting the thought aside he waved his fingers, “I want to know just what happened. All of it.”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Turning to see the Silencer somewhat dressed, Abaddon gave a nod as he spoke. “Of course Nortrom, I expected as much. The fact is” he began indicating Akasha with his right hand, “Akasha will have to fill you in on the early details, but I can tell you that once I discovered the deal, and it’s restrictions, I bent my time to discovering a back up plan if Akasha’s own attempts failed. I will go over these details once Akasha has spoken up and too her conversation with me.” As he finished, he turned to Akasha, indicating it was up to her at this point.

As the Demon began to speak Abaddon settled himself into a chair besides Nortrom’s bed and faced Akasha. This morning was going to be strange indeed.

longlivethequeenofpain:

So… What, he doesn’t remember me confessing my love to him? Are you kidding me? It was embarrassing enough the first time!… Maybe… Maybe it’s for the best that he doesn’t…

The succubus stopped humming and put her hands down on her thighs, rocking her feet back and forth, looking between Abaddon and Nortrom. Where to start? Gaze stopping on Nortrom, she shrugged and finally spoke up.

“Fine. What do you remember, then?”

nortromthesilencer

Getting a better feel for his body and probably the first real conscious physical exertion since ending up here, the man paced around in a small, awkward, circle as he spoke. Blue eyes staring down in thought, it was hard putting together the night before. “Hmmm… Something about a deal you and Nevermore struck a while ago, the deadline Frostivus. You failed, but… didn’t? I-I’m sorry, it didn’t make much sense to me at the time, and even less now that I can only seem to recall bits and pieces.”

He stopped his rounds. Nortrom looked up at the other’s, then solely on Abaddon with a nod. “I do recall you speaking of negotiating the terms with the font, and liberating me from the confines of, well, wherever it was I was trapped.”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon nodded at the Silencers words, looking up to him with his luminous eyes, he had noted Akasha’s brief discomfort at the Silencers words but had chosen not to address it.

"You’re partially correct Nortrom, I did negotiate your release, that is true. But the whole situation is far more complicated than that. I do not come into this tale for quite some time and in your state I would rather keep this explanation as simple as possible. No offence of course Nortrom, but you’re exhausted and it is not just your own mental strength that will be tested here, but Akasha’s emotional strength too" he added, turning his game upon the Succubus.

As he was about to speak a knock came at the door. At the Lords invitation Thren entered the room carrying a platter of breads and cheeses, followed by seven other maids with varying assortments of foods, everything from a platter of meats, to jugs of wine and a basket of fruit; there was even raw animal meat and blood for Akasha, upon a separate plate if she so desired it.

"Thank you Thren" the Lord finished as the server vanished from the room. "I did not know what you could stomach Nortrom, so I had some of everything made" he explained as the smell of the food, water and wine filled the room with heavenly scents.

"Anyway, as I was saying" he continued, not caring if anyone was getting food. "Akasha, why don’t you start us off at the beginning?"

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha had already been up at the table of food when Abaddon mentioned she should start retelling things. Again. Both her hands were wrapped around a goblet full of warm blood that she held up to her mouth. Upon hearing her name, her eyes darted open and she looked between the both of them, not moving the cup as she thought on which beginning she should start at.

The same place she started last night? The beginning of the bet? Was she willing to go through the emotional stress of admitting her feelings to him for a third time? Looking him over, he seemed so out of place still. So uncomfortable. Everything he went through was because of her. She owed him the truth. The whole truth.

Setting the now empty goblet back down on the table, Akasha licked her lips and went to sit back on the desk she had been sitting on previously. She grabbed one of the raw steaks first though. Once comfortable with the plate resting on her thighs, she sighed and began ripping it apart into bite sized pieces.

“Uhm. Well.” A pause to take a bite, chew and swallow it. “Beginning. That would be the night I stumbled into your house drunk I guess. That light tumor in my soul? That whole event was what set it off as far as I’m aware. I don’t know why, but it did. The only logical answer for it I’ve been able to come up with is because you didn’t take advantage of me. You treated me like a person instead of a thing. It’s been a while since anything like that has happened to me. Replace you with just about anyone else in that same situation, I would have been raped and possibly even killed.”

She stopped to take another bite and looked to the Lord. “I say just about because I know there are a few people who would have acted the same way, but the fact remains it was you,” Glance shifting back to Nortrom. “who took care of me and helped me. I don’t know if there was something special about you or if you just happened to be at the right place at the right time. Or wrong, if you want to look at it that way.”

Looking back down at her plate, frowning at a sudden epiphany, she sighed. “Please tell me you at least have your long-term memory and know what I’m talking about.”

nortromthesilencer

The food smelled amazing. Churning with a want, Nortrom’s gut demanded he finally attempt to eat something and the Silencer was all to happy to oblige. He picked small portions of a few different plates on to his own, and when satisfied found himself a comfy spot on the bed and sat down cross legged. Carefully deciding on what to consume first and controlling himself to not eat too fast no matter how famished, the man listened intently to every word as he deliberately placed pieces of the meal in his mouth.

Nortrom swallowed, the feeling foreign but manageable. Looking up at Akasha he nodded, remembering quite clearly their first real meeting outside of battle. “Y-yes… I want to kick you out at the time, but was worried someone would do exactly as you described. At the time I think… Hm, I think I was just glad you didn’t stab me or take advantage of me.” He glanced upwards in thought, popping another piece of meat between his teeth. What a strange happenstance that was.

More silence as they ate, but eventually Nortrom brook it with his musings. “Much later you told me of that soul light, the tumour. Something about giving you emotions not normally applicable for your race- a slow growing ailment of sorts. Did you make the deal with Nevermore before or after finding out about such things?” It was hard not getting immediately upset about the fact Akasha willingly bargained his soul over some egotistical challenge, but there had to be more to it than that, right? Better not to jump to conclusions for now, and only make matters worse

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

As the two spoke, Abaddon rose to his feet and poured himself a glass of mild wine and gathered a small plate of cheese and bread, he would leave the meat for the others for now. His helm vanishing in a whirl of mist the Lord sipped from his chosen chalice and strode back to his chair, still listening intently to the conversation. “If I recall correctly, which I may not, Akasha made the deal after learning such information. How long was it after the deal that we discussed the deal?” The Lord added,indicating Akasha.

Settling into his chair, his obsidian skill perfectly smooth and devoid of any blemishes contrasting with his luminous eyes in an supernatural fashion; his dreads floating a little above his shoulders.

"Is the food acceptable?" The Lord inquired absentmindedly, he knew they were enjoying it, the hunger in their eyes said enough, never mind their full mouths.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Akasha only nodded when asked about the food. It was good. It didn’t do much to sate the gnawing hunger but it helped a little bit. “Yes, thank you.” She said softly before popping another bite sized chunk of raw meat into her mouth.

“But, uhm, it technically all happened at the same time. It was after the incident with Lucifer in my dungeon, when he brought you to me as a present and we killed him.” She smiled remembering that. It was still funny, even now. She shook her head. “That idiot.” She muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes.

Another small bite. “That happened and I was confused about my own actions. And theeeenn I broke into your house that one night and you asked me out on a date. Heh. “Date.” Ohhh. Yeah, that happened annndd theeenn I think Nevermore approached me a few days after. A week maybe. I was so confused about just everything because I was feeling things I hadn’t in hundreds of years…” She trailed off feeling the heat rising to her cheeks. Distraction with another bite in attempts to calm down.

“He came to me and explained what was going on and why I got a tingly feeling in my stomach every time I saw you and why the thought of any other woman being near you made me so angry and why I wanted nothing more than to keep you safe and why I was willing to be so selfless for you and only you…” The pinkness became more apparent as she went on.

“He told me there was light within me. A seed that had been planted long ago that was starting to grow and flourish. He said I should embrace it because it would make me stronger. At first I was appalled and wanted it gone, but he told me that around you, I’m stronger than I’ve ever been… So I agreed and told him I would try and let this thing bloom and grow. And then I guess just to make sure I actually did, he sprung the bet on me.” She stopped, tilted her head back and stared at the ceiling. Choose your next words wisely, Akasha.

“I’ll admit, at first it was just my ego playing up. The way I saw it, making you fall in love with me in three months would be a piece of cake. A win win situation. I would get the satisfaction of winning a bet as well as your attention and affection that I was craving so much. But… As I got to know you more and spend more time with you, it became less about winning for the sake of winning and more about winning for the sake of not wanting to lose you… My whole life started to revolve around doing my best at keeping you safe and making you happy and trying to get you to love me so what happened, wouldn’t…”

“…And I guess I fell in love with you in the process…”

nortromthesilencer

Swallowing what was bitten, the man nodded at Abaddon’s question. “Yes, my thanks. It feels like I haven’t eaten for ages.” As if to reiterate his point the man ended up coughing, choking on a small piece of fat and having to take a large swig of water to wash it down. He sheepishly cast a side look away from the pair, resolving to eat more slowly.

Explanations were long winded but necessary, and the Silencer hung on to every word and attempted to put all of the pieces in place. Nortrom felt almost as embarrassed as Akasha as she spoke of her feelings for him, and nervous habits crept up in the form of drumming fingers over his lap and hopefully out of sight. The eating stopped, as did any attempt at looking towards them. Head bowed the man fidgeted with his fingers some more as he spoke. “I- I want to punch you right now Akasha, you know that? But I can’t, because somehow I understand… This entire thing between us wasn’t supposed to occur. No one would have guessed it. Yet…” He pursed his lips into a lopsided smile, though it didn’t hold for long, “…Yet here we are.” Everything took time to sink in, to manage mentally, and so the man took another sip of his water and contemplated some more in silence. She did use his soul as a bet, so was it the bet or own intentions that kept bringing her back to his place and his company? Did she willingly pester him, or only continue for the sake of not being beaten? He wanted to be upset, to yell and shout and scream and cry- to let everything out in one horribly immature temper tantrum, but wouldn’t allow it. No, because at the end of the day, at the end of all of this, Akasha seemed sincere.

Nortrom steeled his resolve and sat up straight as he put his glass down harshly. Looking her dead in the eyes, he took on an authoritative tone. “Akasha, I need you to do something. Right now. I need to hear your sincerity and know it true, from the silence between your words. I need to hear you are sorry and won’t toy with me as an object of amusement again.”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon remained quiet as the couple spoke, he knew of what both sides had to say, and how hurt they both were in their own way; it was written as clearly to him upon their souls as the sonnet is to a playmaster.

Not saying a word but listening with intent, the Lord of Avernus turned to Akasha and waited for her response, his story could wait at this point, these two lost love birds had to resolve their supposed difficulties.

longlivethequeenofpain:

Hearing that he wanted to punch her wasn’t exactly the best thing in the world, but at least he didn’t actually do it and seemed to understand. That was definitely a plus. She understood, as well. He should have punched her, in her opinion. She deserved it. No, she deserved more than just that.

There was a long silence between the three of them. The succubus took this time to eat a bit more of her chunk of meat. With each piece, she sucked the blood from it before actually chewing and swallowing it. The tiny bursts of energy she could siphon from it were nice but there was that still a constant need for more. Fighting back that feeling was difficult, but she managed. Not thinking on it helped but with the lack of conversation, there wasn’t much keeping her mind off of it even despite the situation they were in. Unfortunately, it was just… her nature.

Casually glancing over to Abaddon, her time with him after the incident with Red came to mind and she was right back there in that moment; Her on his lap, his hands crawling over her naked body, the teasing… Stop… Shaking her head and looking away from him, she clenched her jaw and retrieved the dagger she had on her hip, setting the plate aside. It was the gift from Nortrom. The beautifully hand crafted dagger with the huge blood red rose center piece. Such a gorgeous blade.

Looking it over took her back to that snowy field before the Fiend came along. She had been so happy when he presented it to her. They kissed for what turned out to be possibly the last time. She could almost feel his lips pressed up against hers which flashed visions of all the other intimate moments they shared. The bloody date, the aftermath from the strawberry war, the playful bondage… Hearing the knock of the glass on the table knocked her out of that world and back into reality. She had been pressing her thumb against a few of the serrated teeth of the blade to the point of drawing blood. She hadn’t even realized. Lifting her thumb to her mouth, she looked up at Nortrom when he called her name.

There was a flutter in her stomach from the nerves. This was probably the deciding point. Whatever he said now was going to be the end of things one way or another. Whether it be the true end or the end along with a new beginning, she was unsure. His request wasn’t out of the ordinary, yet she found herself at a lack of words. Staring at him emotionless with her thumb in her mouth, she ran over all the things she could say but none of them seemed good enough. The truth. Just go with the truth. Be honest and sincere. Let that light inside guide you. You can do this.

Finally after a moment of just staring, Akasha moved her thumb out of her mouth, set the dagger on the desk next to the plate and stood up. Looking to the Lord for any sign of reassurance, she gave him a weak smile and moved over to the bed where Nortrom was sitting. Taking a spot next to him on the edge next to where he sat, she faced him and looked right in his eyes. A sigh to steady her nerves.

“Nortrom, I am so sorry. I am so, so sorry for doing what I did. I should have never used your soul as a betting token to fuel my stupid pride. I regret it more than anything, but I have to be honest. At the same time, if I had the chance, I wouldn’t change any of it. Just as you said, none of this was really suppose to happen but it did. I think I told you this once before; I am always thankful for the bad things that happened in my past because without them, none of the great things would have happened either.”

“If I went back and didn’t agree to the stupid bet, I probably wouldn’t have pursued you like I did. All of the amazing, wonderful times we had together never would have happened. Or maybe they would have, I don’t know, that’s the point. That’s why I wouldn’t change it. I hate that what happened to you did and I’ll never be able to make up for it… That being said, I would never put you through something like that again. Never ever. No matter what I could get from it.”

She looked up towards the ceiling holding back the misting tears forming in her eyes before going on. “…They say the greatest thing you’ll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return and I could not agree more.” She lowered her head once more and smiled weakly. “Thank you for that even if it was only for a little while. If you want nothing more to do with me and never want to see my face again, I completely understand. That’s more than what I deserve for what I’ve done…”

nortromthesilencer

His eyes pierced intently, a gaze that scoured and watched the succubus as she spoke. Unmoving the man listened, staring, judging. No expression gave away what Nortrom was thinking as she spilled her soul forward. When done he continued to look at her sternly in silence, time ticking by and the seconds feeling like hours, tense and foreboding.

And then, he gave. Nortrom fell forward, his head pressed against her stomach and lap, his arms wrapping themselves about her waist, and just lost himself. Tears streamed down his face, memories good and bad flood back in droves, emotions overtaking every part of him: mind and body. Clenching his eyes shut he shook and took comfort in her warmth. The Silencer needed to hear those words, needed someone to be close- not just anyone, but Akasha, to be his rock at this moment in time, else it would all be for nothing.

Between broken sniffles the man attempted to speak, though his words were muffled under the mass of hair hanging over his face, “I don’t want you to go… For once I had something, someone to care for and who seemed to care for me… I won’t let go so easily!”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon remained silent as Akasha had spoken, sipping at his wine before she had begun. Her words ran with such heavy emotion, the Lord could not help but be turned. Here she was, pure unedited affection, coming fourth from the mouth of a demon; Abaddon had thought he would never see the day.

Her words had touched him and though he did not doubt that they had touched Nortrom, he could not look into as he stared into Akasha’s eyes, their was nothing to see, this time was devoid of fate, only the individuals could make their choices in this time.

When the Silencer suddenly began to cry the Lord was surprised for a moment, here was the steadfast Silencer, crying. Yet, as understanding washed over him it became clear. The devastation of the events these last few days and hours must have placed intolerable strain on the man. And to hear such words from one he loved, it would move all to tears; Abaddon knew this first hand.

As the man cried into Akasha, Abaddon could not help but smile beneath his helm, he seldom saw events unfold naturally, he was glad to see this one at least. Love, chosen, not designed.

“She is not going anywhere my friend” he reassured Nortrom, not moving from his chair. “And neither are you” he continued gently

longlivethequeenofpain:

There was a long pause between them which didn’t help settle Akasha’s nerves. Then, out of nowhere, he fell into her lap and wrapped his arms around her. Instinctively, she tensed and flinched back until she realized he was crying. Of course, she relaxed, but was still unsure what to do. Unsure what this meant. She stroked his hair, pushing it back, trying to see his face but he was practically one with her lap at this point.

She glanced back to Abaddon for a split second, looking for help until she heard Nortrom’s muffled voice and felt the vibrations of him speaking against her stomach. Those words. Those sweet words. So unexpected but in that moment, she suddenly realized just how much she had wanted to hear them. Her own floodgates instantly fell open and she let out a soft, relieved laugh, almost in disbelief.

There was nothing left to say. If she tried getting out words, they would just be inaudible mumbles through her sobs. Instead, she simply wrapped her arms around him, leaned down to press her forehead against him and moved her wings around them both. A little cocoon for just the two of them blocking out the rest of the world.

It took a little while, but Akasha finally managed to push out a few words. Muffled and tearful, she whispered, “I’ll be here for you as long as you want me.”

nortromthesilencer

He just lay in her lap, holding tight, the tears subsiding to a muffled sob. Nortrom stood by his words, refusing to let go at the moment. He needed this, needed her right then and there after being left a bodyless soul hovering in a void of nothing for so long. During that time he didn’t know if he was doomed to that fate forever, to live as a scared morsel in a dark and loud confine for the rest of time. Thankfully this wasn’t the case, but to both hear Akasha say those words and to think on what had occured he didn’t want to be stirred. Not yet.

“Thank you. Both of you.” Managing his words from between broken breaths, the Silencer owed Abaddon a world of debt, and Akasha a world of love.

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

Abaddon shook his head as the Silencer thank him again, his repeated apologies were unnecessary, he could do no less; the world required a Silencer…. or so he had said. A note of serious falling across his mind Abaddon shook his head again, this time slower, his excitement fading.

“I do not require your thanks Nortrom, I simply wish for an opportunity, an opportunity to lead my house upon a new path.” he spoke up, his voice taking a more serious turn. He did not desire to end these happy thoughts so quickly, but he had to vocalise these thoughts before they became lost in the days celebrations. “My talks with you can wait until you’re rested, but their is a tale I must tell you, you see” the Lord breathed deeply, “We are not the only two you will have to thank in the end” he added cryptically, he didn’t want to ruin the moment, but the truth was, it probably already was.

longlivethequeenofpain:

He mumbled thanks that the succubus felt she didn’t deserve. She didn’t do anything. Nothing good, anyway. She bet his soul and got it taken from his body. Abaddon did all the work. He was the one who went to what looked like a place worse than hell and negotiated with… Fate? Whatever that thing was. He fought against it and won Nortrom back. Akasha didn’t respond to his thanks. She didn’t deserve it. Him forgiving her was more than enough. Too much, but she wasn’t about to give him up now.

Hearing Abaddon’s voice, she had almost forgotten he was actually there. In attempts to calm down and be as respectful as possible, Akasha unwrapped her wings around the two of them, moving them back to their resting position and tried turning to face him. Nortrom’s hold was tight. Not uncomfortably so, more like almost laughably tight. He was clinging on to her as if his life depended on it. She tried facing Abaddon but ended up having to just strain her neck to look his way. His words didn’t make sense and didn’t seem to even really by much of her business.

Who else was there left to thank? With everything that had just gone on, her mind was blank aside from those immediately involved. The three of them and the Fiend and surely he didn’t mean him. “Who do you–” Another attempt to turn failed. It was improper to not look at someone when you speak to them so she decided to just… not. It wasn’t important at the moment and Nortrom certainly wasn’t letting up. She just shook her head and laughed a little, stroking her fingers through his hair just the way he liked, claws scraping gently along his scalp.

nortromthesilencer

Slowly he calmed down, her warmth, their voices, and the gentle touches all bringing an end to his tears while his breaths began to steady. Nortrom didn’t want to let go, but the voice of their host reminded him there was more going on around them, outside of this moment, and that caused the Silencer to grow self conscious about his emotional outburst. Gradually loosening his grip and wiping away his eyes, the man pushed himself up from Akasha with a a deep sigh.

The sheets provided ample material to dry his tears. Face still red, it took much of Nortrom’s self control to compose himself. A deep breath, a small stretch, a clean slate- with mind more clear and relieved that this wasn’t an end but a beginning he managed to look at Akasha once more. “Th-Thankyou. I needed that.”

He lingered on her for some time, eyes meeting her own, before eventually turning and guiding themselves to match Abaddon’s icy gaze. “And you as well. I know you said I– I don’t need to thank you, but I really do. Your actions played a vital role in… Well… My liberation.” Another small sniffle, nose still running. Awkwardly he wiped it with one of the serviettes, casting his look aside. “I… I also don’t wish to cast aside your words, but– may I ask for business to wait? At least… Well, perhaps tomorrow.”

for-the-haunted-mist-i-ride:

The Lord of Avernus listened to the words of the Silencer gently, Akasha’s own futile attempts at communication with him causing a smile to form over his face. As the Silencer requested that business wait until the morrow, Abaddon nodded, it was no rush, the Lord had simply wished to make the issue obvious so that it could be addressed in the coming days.

“It is my pleasure Nortrom, your thanks is appreciated, I am simply glad that i could intervene in time.” Abaddon explained simply, thankful for the recognition, though he had expected none.

As the Nortrom requested they wait, Abaddon nodded, “As you wish Nortrom, I am in no rush” he began confidently, “You and Akasha re welcome for as long as you desire to stay, food and drink will be provided, as well as guards. I have already sent a messenger to Aeol Drias, they will know you’re safe within the next few days.” the lord continued, doing his best to reassure the Silencer.”

“Would you like me to leave you two?” he added, leaning back into his chair as he spoke, he would understand if the two of them wished him gone.

#Dota 2 #Roleplay #nortromthesilencer #longlivethequeenofpain #Abaddon

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