Fic time - Anton Rose (from Queen of Swords)
Note: I know next to nothing about this series, only saw Neil in it, so all of this stuff is my hc. Have fun 🤍
Also: this is a series, slow-ish burn, so no spice in chapter 1 yet
It's a little angsty because of the tension with his mom
Sweet Escape
The shouting was so loud that no soul on the estate could escape it. It was not the first time Lady Rose had an argument with her son Anton, but this seemed a particularly fierce one. And he was fighting back more these last months too. I couldn't sleep of course. It was way too early to get up and start my errands yet, but I figured, maybe that would be for the best because this tension made my heart clench everytime I heard his broken, defeated retort.
I knew Anton for 2 years by then. It was only him and his mom, and everyone who worked for them knew this: since his dad died in a violent way years ago, Lady Rose was very overprotective of Anton.
It was approximately a year ago when Anton came up to me - an insecure approach but sporting that troublemaker half-smirk - to ask me if I could teach him to shoot a pistol. I was ready to say no but then he glanced down at his feet nervously, admitting that his mom made a scene after finding a pistol in his bag and forbade him to learn self-defence because that would only "earn him trouble" in her words. Anton didn't need to say it out loud how miserable he felt, trapped with a bossy controlling overprotective mom until he finds some higher class girl to marry. I knew it very well. But the way he showed it, how vulnerable he let himself be in front of me- it moved something in me that made my chest tighten. I decided to teach him. And that is how we got closer. Since then he often called me "his lady friend" or "partner in crime". Of course, Lady Rose could not know about any of it. I had a lot to be grateful for to her, to be honest. She took me in and gave me a job when I lost my home to a fire. I did not want to seem ungrateful... but Anton made it impossible to ignore him.
So, as we spent more time together during shooting practice I started to like him more. Which meant, feeling for him when his mom literally drove him crazy. After these kind of horrible arguments he usually was left broken and shaking, upset and full of self-doubts. She was not doing any good for his mental health, for sure.
So, I couldn't stand to listen to it that night and I got dressed to go out and check on the horses. As I was toying with the saddles and trying to pass time there, to clear my own head in the cold night air, suddenly Anton stormed in the stables, heaving heavy breaths. When he saw me, he stopped in his tracks.
"Uh. What are you doing here-?" - he frowned at me. I turned to him and leaned against a wooden table with my hip.
"Couldn't sleep. Um. You guys were kind of loud..."
"Ughhh"- he looked down with a heavy sigh, shaking his head. "Sorry."
"What? For being yelled at?"- I stepped closer but not close enough to take his hand, but my voice was especially warm. "Don't be sorry, Darling. Not your fault."
"Yeah, well. She would disagree" - he scrunched up his nose cynically, then he looked down, the usual pain clouding his eyes. "I am clearly the problem..."
"Bullshit" - I couldn't resist a comforting touch this time, placing my palm on his arm, right above where his sleeves were folded up.- "Do you want to talk about it?"
"Nah"- he flinched with his head but did not pull his arm away. He huffed.- "I just want to leave."
"And go where?" - my eyes grew wide.
"I don't know.. don't care" - he groaned and he already started to prepare his horse, Monty.
"So you don't know but you are going, huh?" - my voice turned a little teasing. I have always been telling him to think with a cold head, especially in a fight, and this was the opposite of that.
"Well what should I do, hm?! Ask for another slap?" - his voice was so irritated and upset and hurt that I instantly regretted teasing him. I stepped closer to him, my eyes searching his. He avoided looking at me.
"She hit you?"
Anton did not answer, just looked down. His cheeks turned pink in the dim light, ashamed. He needed to leave... it was not a rushed childish revenge on his mother- it was fleeing. He needed space to breathe. And I wanted to help.
"Anton. Hey, look at me"- I cupped his cheek, my fingers gently touching his heated skin. - "I know where we could go."
