#fable fic

[for-the-love-of-avo]

"#still read prevs fable fic im never letting go Jack" I'm picturing you laying on my Fable fics folder and me half dead in the water now. 😂 (No one's dying, it's just very melodramatic.)

[whosthere54]

I can’t find my original post about it but I did do a poll a while ago on what fic I should finish. Yes it’s been a WHILE but I finally did it so here’s the “If Icarus got that hug in family reunion” fic cause I can

Until Ao3 Works you get it here :]

The TWs for Family Reunion are Panic, Yelling, and Manipulation. Let me know if you believe anything else should be added and I’ll edit the list.

You know how it is, these themes will carry over to my fic so pls make sure to take care of yourselves first <3

“I never asked to be here at all. So why do I still have to face the fear of loosing it?” - Song: The fear of loosing this by Florist

Or - What if Icarus got that hug?

—=+=—

There’s a moment of silence between the two brothers, Rae glancing at Aax before speaking again.

“Do you… do you want a hug?”

They look up, surprise and confusion washing over them before they’re able to adjust their expression to something neutral.

“I… yeah. Please.” Their wings adjust on their back, draping themselves over their shoulders as they move their arms to cross over their chest.

Rae nods, glancing at Aax again who gives him a nod back. He takes a few test steps forward, when they don’t move he walks over to them. Aax follows, keeping a decent distance between her and Rae- letting him have space but making sure he’s safe. They can’t exactly blame him, like they said- the two don’t have the best track record when it comes to “talking” right now.

Rae gets close, and they instinctively take a small step back, feathers flaring for just a moment before settling again.

Rae stops, holding his hands out placatingly. He gives a gentle reassurance, a simple repeat of what they’d said before- another “we’re not here to hurt you” “I-I’m not mad.” and some other quiet reassurance they didn’t quite hear.

After a moment of hesitation, they take the next step forward- Rae immediately pulling them into a hug.

It was nice. They couldn’t remember the last time they had a hug from Rae.

Trying *so hard* not to let tears escape, they look at Aax over his shoulder. Though immediately regretting it when she just looks so… sad. Pity held in her gaze that makes them feel sick.

They hid their face against Rae’s neck, quiet shaky breaths the only indicator that they were trying not to cry. Rae sighs softly, and when he speaks again it sounds like he’s close to crying as well. “It’s gonna be okay Icarus… I’m still going to try- I promise I’m not going to give up on you.”

Maybe that causes some of their tears to fall, and maybe Rae holds them just slightly tighter.

When their knees shake and threaten to give out Rae adjusts them so they’re both sitting in the wet grass, not letting go of them. (Not letting them fall, even if it’s something as stupid as this.)

They hear Aax settle to sit nearby, facing away from the brother to scan for threats. It was comforting, they couldn’t do it themself and if Fable came back and did something to him they don’t think they’d be able to forgive themself.

They sit like that for a while, Rae occasionally murmuring soft reassurance not once loosening his hold. It was nice, a comforting pressure- a distraction away from the cave they were still sitting outside of. Rae seems to think of something then- adjusting slightly and causing Icarus to pull away. Not completely- just enough so the two brothers were looking at each other. Icarus tilts their head just slightly as Rae looks at them with renewed sadness- pity in his eyes causing them to look away, fidgeting with the hem of their sleeves.

“I… Icarus it’s four months today isn’t it…” He says it so softly and they can’t-

“Shut up-“ They mumble.

“Icarus-“

“No-no. He isn’t… he isn’t gone I can fix it I’m going to fix it! He’s gonna come back-“ They wrap their arms tight around their chest careful of the ever-changing wound still concealed.

“Icarus…” Rae tries again, but they cut him off just the same.

“No- if you’re gonna say what all of them have been saying I’m not- I don’t have to *mourn* him he’s gonna come back, I don’t have to think about it because when I fix it it’ll be fine… you can go back to normal and it’ll be fixed…”

Rae’s face contorted into something confused, and then shocked and it crumbles into something sad, he blinks tears away so he can see them clearly.

“Is that… is that why you’re working with him?”

They give him a weak laugh, head angled down so their hair covers their face- goggles having fallen to their neck earlier that day and they didn’t bother to put them back up.

“Icarus…” they can’t handle this. They can’t handle the way he’s talking to them, holding them so gently like they’re something that’s going to *break.* they can’t handle him looking at them like that- they can’t-

“You have to go.” They say their voice firm and monotone.

“Icarus no-“ Rae’s brows furrow slightly and his hands linger on their shoulders.

“Please”

And that makes Rae pause.

“I don’t… Icarus I don’t want to leave you alone here. I- even if I don’t… *like* him Fable isn’t here right now. I’d rather you at least have him here.” When Icarus frowns at that Rae asks another question that leaves them thinking- more than they should be. When they think it doesn’t usually lead to anything good.

“Icarus how long has fable left you alone?”

They shrug. They really haven’t been keeping track of the time he was gone.

“He’s… he’s busy. The faster he gets whatever he’s doing done, the faster we can get this over with.” They mumble. It feels like they’ve said the same things over and over and *over* again and it still seems like nobody understands what they’re doing even after they explain it. Geez how many times have they done this circle of conversations with the things in the past four months?

“So you’ve been… you’ve been alone out here most of the time?”

They shrug, and nod. (They don’t want to lie anymore. It leaves them feeling sick and *wrong*)

“Icarus…”

Aax gets up quickly, face contorting into muffled anger, motioning at them to get up as well.

Rae turns to them- “Icarus-“ but they shake their head, getting up and helping Rae up as well.

“You have to go-“ They repeat the words, this time fueled by anxiety.

“Icarus!”

“Rae!”

“Icarus!” Fable’s booming voice echoes through the small clearing and they back away muttering a quiet apology under their breath that only Rae was meant to hear.

“Are you alright? Are they… are they here for anything?” He pulls out the reaver and it takes all of their power to look away from the blade glinting in the rain dimmed light.

“I’m okay… I ’m-I’m okay.”

“We’re not here to fight.” Rae’s gaze lingers on them for just a moment to long that it makes their skin crawl, arms wrapping around their torso and wings pulling slightly tighter to their back as Fable sighs.

“Of course. I see that it is only the two of you.”

Aax moves to stand only slightly in front of Rae, trident out and ready to attack if necessary. His voice carries confidently actress the clearing, low and sharp. An easy enough warning to understand. “We wouldn’t be stupid enough to come just the two of us if we were here for a fight.”

“No. You wouldn’t be that… stupid. No one would be.” He looks at Icarus then, solid gold meeting heterochromatic gold and purple. His eyes are too sharp, and they look away, casting their head down again.

He turns back to Rae, head held high. “But why are you here?”

“I’m here for Icarus.” They look at Rae through unkempt bangs, eyes darting between Rae and Aax as if analyzing them for a threat.

“Because they don’t need to be alone out here with just you, isolated from everyone else.” His tone holds more anger with Fable than it had with them.

“I’m not alone.” They say, loud and probably too sharp. They wince at the sound of their own voice casting their eyes to Fable when he looks at them again.

“Yes.” He looks away, and they do too. “They have me, they have Ven, they have Arisanna…”

“Which don’t know where you are?”

They cast their eyes down once more shuffling their feet.

“This place is supposed to be a secret for a *reason*, Rae. To keep others safe.”

“From… what, exactly? We’re not the ones running around hurting people.”

“Perhaps not now.”

“You haven’t changed! You’ve always hurt people! I’m starting to remember more of that now! You’ve always been like this… and now…” Rae turns to them, his voice softening just slightly again. “Look, Icarus he’s not a good person!”

“Neither am I!” They hold their head up as they say that, regretting it immediately in the way Rae shuffles and glances between them, Fable, and Aax.

“None of us are good people right now, Rae.”

He starts talking, he starts talking and they try so hard to tune him out. They don’t want it- they don’t want him to say more stupid words that get them to comply because they’ll comply regardless of what he says. They don’t think he knows that, but they will. They don’t… like him. They don’t trust him. But they’re good at putting on a show, and they can pretend they do. (Maybe deep down they do. They try not to, they know he’s wrong and they know what he’s doing to them -they don’t want to acknowledge the fact that it *is* working- but they love him. He’s their dad after all, and when they have no memory of their childhood he’s something that they can cling to)

“You hit me!” Rae says, anger disappearing to leave a suffocating tone of sadness fear, and *betrayal* that lingered in his voice.

“I did.”

They just look between him and Rae feet shuffling against the grass, begging their head to go blank like it tends to do. They’re feeling too much and it’s too wrong and they’re thinking- thinking leads to questioning and questioning leads to things they don’t want to know-

“Where is she.” Rae’s voice wobbles with anger and unshed tears. They glance up to Fable as he turns to them- “Where…”

“Icarus, do you wish to see your mother?”

They blink, looking back up at him with a muted look of confusion. “Yeah…” they said it too quietly, too much emotion filling their voice that wasn’t supposed to be there. They can tell in the way they feel Rae’s gaze on them again. They try to cover it up- “Yeah, yes, yes.” But then Fable starts to walk towards the stupid fucking cave and-

“W-wait- wait” they stare with wide eyes as Fable creates a small opening, just enough for them to get through. “Uhm..” Rae glances at them again, Aax moves to stand in front of Rae, trident in hand face contorted into disgust and then anger. “Wait-wait where…” He pulls his shield out.

“It was the one place I did not think anyone would go.” He breaks a small hole through the stone, just enough that they would be able to walk through. Rae walks closer to him, while Aax lingers behind.

“Uhm…. Um…” They walk towards him, stopping about the same distance Rae is away from the entrance for a moment before moving up to stand beside Fable.

They don’t want to be here anymore- they don’t want to be that close. They don’t want to *see* it again- they can’t…

Their breathing shakes.

“Where are you… where is…” Aax moves quickly back in front of Rae. “Where is that? What are you…”

“She is in a pocket dimension. Just as Enderian had held her before.” He says his sister's name with a sneer. “I will bring you Rae, and I will bring Icarus to see her.”

They can’t breathe- they look through the space Fable had cleared into the cave. The first thing they noticed was that there was still blood on the floor… theirs or Centross’s they couldn’t quite tell. Their eyes fell on the slab, seeing their blood still dried on the smooth stone and splattered on the ground in front of it. Fuck they can’t breathe… their chest *hurts* they can’t-

They manage to pull their gaze away from the cave back onto Fable as he speaks again.

“I’m sorry, Aax, but I will not let you see her. I cannot take the risk.”

“Why… why does it smell like death in there?” They turn to look at Aax, his tone settling on a heavy undertone of sadness as they speak.

They try to bring themself to explain.

“It… it’s-“ Fable cuts them off sharply. “Because it is a place that I thought was of life. I was *foolish* enough to believe it was of life. But it is a place of death. This is where the first mortals were made by me. This is the place where I first mourned them when they *died.*”

“This is where… Centross… died.”

“And you’re taking him in there alone, just the two of you?”

“Yes. I know you do not trust me…”

Their chest aches. They have to take a moment to breathe through a wave of pain that courses through their chest, through their ribs. They tune back into the conversation a moment later when Fable says their name again, though they don’t pay much attention. Their mind won’t stop wandering, and the things won’t stop talking.

“If *anything* happens to him. Know that I will be hunting you to the ends of the earth.”

“As you should. Rae is important to you, as he is to me.” He turns and walks into the cave, but before they can even *think* about following him Aax stops them.

“Icarus. I need you to promise…”

They nod, trying to get their thoughts to work to the current conversation. “Yeah… I’m- he won’t-“

“Promise me he’ll be okay.” Aax asks, and they nod firmly this time.

“He’ll-he’ll be okay.” They can’t tell if they’re trying to reassure her or themself.

“Okay.”

Icarus turns to the entrance, hesitating a moment before heading inside.

“Are you ready?”

“We’re going… in?”

“Yes. I did not think Enderian had this power. I thought she could simply create the bubbles, but she could move if she wished it. If she had other abilities I now hold. She might have been able to escape at any time if she had known. If she could’ve held the same powers I now have .”

They have to take another minute to even out their breathing.

“She couldn’t escape. She- she gave them to me. She was trapped there.”

“Just as Isla was. But now we can move freely to see her.”

They nod lightly. “Okay.”

Fable inhales, “Here we go.” They teleport into the small pocket dimension.

It was a bright, glow stone blinding encircling the small space. As soon as they looked up at their mother- blonde hair blocking a face they couldn’t even remember- they felt an overwhelming sense of dread. It was almost like anxiety, the way it thrummed through their veins. Just a sense of something was wrong.

They couldn’t tell if Rae felt it, but when they got in there they knew he was more distressed, probably at the sight of their mother in a stasis chamber than anything else.

“Icarus I can… I can help. You don’t need him- I can- I can help her! I can help us…” They don’t know what to say, but they get cut off by Fable before they could respond.

“How, Rae?”

“I… I’m not going to tell you. I’m not going to let you do something else to her. Or screw up trying.” He spits the last part with lingering anger, tears beginning to form in his eyes.

“Rae…” He turns to look at them a moment before turning back to Fable as he speaks again.

“You will not give me the chance to help your mother? *My wife?* To bring her back to us.”

Rae doesn’t speak, he simply shakes his head.

Fable frowns. “No?”

“No.” Rae says softly.

“You’d have her stay here?” Rae’s expression crumbles.

The next time they look back at Isla, they can’t look away. This is the first time they’ve seen their mother in person. They don’t have any image of her in their memory other than the portrait that’s sat locked away in Fable’s house. She looks different, they can’t quite see her face but she seems so… tired. A lingering sense of sadness seems to be all she has in that small tube, and it almost physically pains them to see her like that. (To have her feel so similar to what they feel locked up in their house.)

“I have Enderian’s powers now. I could wield them.”

They look back at Fable then. “What?” They glance between him and Rae.

“You could do this! You could hurt her all over again!”

They frown. “He wouldn’t.”

“He did it the first time!” Stray tears are beginning to fall down Rae’s face now that make them stop.

“As a *mistake*, Rae.” He tries, but Rae isn’t having it.

“So what’s preventing you from making the same one?!”

Fable sighs. “Remembering what happened the first time. Seeing my wife’s face, and having it haunt-“

“She doesn’t want to be yours!” Rae yells, his voice echoing in the small chamber. There are more tears spilling down his face, and Icarus can’t help but take a step back as they take another shaky breath. They watch Fable's face, but he doesn’t seem to react. Simply responding calmly, anger quiet and reserved (as if that doesn’t scare them more.)

“She gets to make that choice. Not-“ Rae cuts him off again. “Does she?!”

Fable frowns, and his tone comes out just slightly more angry than he probably wanted it to. “Yes. When she is well, Rae.”

“You don’t get to make that choice, you tried to take that choice away from her. I won’t tell you shit!” Rae talks over what he tries to say next, words hitting their mark effectively when Fable sighs again.

“Rae!” They start, trying to maybe help in some way, try to get that information. But they go quiet as Fable talks again.

“I understand. If that is what you wish.” He inhales sharply again, and they are teleported back outside the bubble. Back into the cave.

They can hear Rae’s breathing shake, as he is ushered out of the cave by Fable. They take a lingering glance back, eyes falling on the slab, and then spot Centross died before Fable pushes them out.

They linger near the cave entrance as they hear Fable walk out behind them with a sigh. Rae goes to huddle next to Aax with his head down as he wipes the lingering stray tears from his face.

“Rae. When you are ready to help your mother and to fix our family, now you know where we are. You said it yourself, you can do that Rae. Bring her back to us. I have made mistakes in the past, but I have done my best to watch over *you* and your brother in her absence. I have protected you and your brother as best as I *could.*”

His tone changes then, more earnest, more desperate. It was all tinted with an undertone of anger a force perfectly covered as he says the words that hit their mark as Rae seems to cower as he says them.

“It was not perfect, I admit this, none of this has been perfect. None of this had been perfect. I have not been perfect, Rae. But *you* gave me a chance. All the same. As you have given so many others. *You* freed me from purgatory Rae. I owe you my life. You can do the same for your mother. You can give her a *chance.* When you are ready to give her that chance, we will be here.”

There’s a deafening silence as Rae takes a few steps back, eyes moving between Fable and Aax.

“We should go- we should go.” His voice sounds like he’s trying so desperately not to cry and something in them feels concerned, it does, but as Rae and Aax fly away all they can think of is that he didn’t say goodbye.

All they can think of is that he didn’t even look at him after they left the bubble. All they can think about is how he left them alone again without saying goodbye. He’d just said he wasn’t going to give up on them. That he wasn’t going to leave them alone here again, but that’s all they feel like is happening.

Fable ends up coaxing them inside. They take the confirmations and reassurance he gives them, ignoring the fact that they know that sometimes he’s lying to them. They ignore the things all yelling, ignoring the way they erupt again when Fable apologizes to them. Apologizing that he couldn’t remove Quixis from them. They ignore them as they say he just apologized for not killing them that day.

They just don’t want to think about it anymore. (They don’t want to remember… and that’s a concerningly familiar wish for them.)

Fable finally gets them to take their mind off it, changing their focus to the birds lingering at their bedside.

They eventually lie down, Fable leaving them to their own thoughts again. The things leave soon after that, sleeping or going somewhere else they still don’t exactly know.

The silence is so so much worse. They curl in on themself under the covers, their birds having fallen asleep a bit ago on the birch next to their bed, so they weren’t making any noise either.

There’s a lingering feeling they can’t quite explain. It’s something under their skin that just makes them want to cry. It’s the lingering feeling of their brother’s hug, his hands running through their hair and his arm wrapped securely around their back. Their wings try to compensate, wrapping around their curled-up figure tightly as their arms wrap around their chest and their tail falls over their legs.

They want their dad. As stupid as that sounds. They want their dad, they want Rae they want… they want Centross.

Four months.

Their hand moves to stifle a quiet sob.

They miss him- gods they miss him so much.

They miss him randomly interrupting what they were doing to get them out of their house. They miss talking with him, joking with him. They miss being *near* him, as pathetic as that sounds. His presence was always comforting. Something that made them feel *safe* and fuck they missed that feeling.

They miss his voice, they miss and they miss and they miss.

They *swear* they’re going crazy when they get the phantom feeling of fingers running through their hair, just closing their eyes and willing themself to just sleep as their breathing shakes through more muffled sobs.

It takes too long in their opinion. By the time they fall asleep, they’ve run out of tears. Sitting in heavy silence for too long until they finally fall asleep.

Maybe sleep isn’t much of a release, the only thing they see is the memories of their best friend, the happiness stained by a lingering sadness and guilt that follows them when they wake up in the morning because of the memory of the cathedral that the dream always ends with.

Soon.

That’s all they have to remember.

It will be over soon.

[vermilionskiinmorning]

Man Crush May

Prompt: @geekandbooknerd ‘s Man Crush May #17  “You can’t keep pretending it didn’t happen. Because guess what? It did.”

Fandom: Fable

Pairing: Hero of Brightwall/Reaver 

Words:

A/N: So I don’t know if I have any followers in the Fable fandom considering it’s kind of dead, but this line just seemed perfect for this little idea I’ve had for awhile. Whenever I feel like doing a run-through of Fable 3 I always save Elliot and have my Hero marry him after the ‘Kidnapped’ quest in Bowerstone Industrial. Her relationship with Elliot has been on the rocks ever since she took the throne. However, after the trials leading up to the Crawler battle she at least feels confident in herself as Queen. This takes place after the Crawler is defeated. 

The corset of her official court dress always felt tight, but something about it today made it feel even more so than before. Perhaps it was something to do with the fact that after defeating the Crawler she’d taken a vacation from court if only for a short time. Or, whispered a voice in the back of her head, it’s because Reaver was at court today -not that it should’ve surprised her at all to see him there. He’d disappeared just before the fighting started, but she’d heard he was back. Elliot had informed her nearly the moment she’d returned to the castle.

“Reaver’s back,” he’d said, no hello or even how was your trip. Just that. And of course. “I think you should have him removed from court.”

Oh, Elliot. She was frankly more concerned with what to do with him than Reaver at the moment. Reaver, she could avoid outside of official business, but Elliot was her husband. Things had not been well between them in sometime which was illustrated in the fact they both slept exclusively in their own quarters. At first it had been her nightmares about Aurora and the looming threat of the Crawler that had began the rift, but it had grown after Logan’s death. Elliot thought she did the right thing, but how could it be right with the execution still haunting her? She knew why. In her heart once she’d seen the Crawler she hadn’t been able to fully blame him for his actions. Even she had done things differently after that, she was different now.

Annika sighed. Fixing her blouse, she came out from behind the changing curtain staring at her empty room. Adventuring clothes were so much more comfortable; though, the quality of the cloth and leathers was higher now she was living in the castle again. Courtiers could handle her casual dress, but apparently not ‘peasant’ fabrics according to Hobson. She rolled her eyes. So long as she wasn’t expected to wear dresses all the time she’d manage. Smoothing a few wrinkles subconsciously, Annika headed for the door and subsequently the gardens.

The gardens were still her favorite place within the castle grounds. It was her little patch of green within the stony confines of Bowerstone and after all her adventures she needed it now more than before. Wanderlust, she knew, was in her blood. If she closed her eyes and just breathed she could almost imagine herself on the road again. However, it seemed the peace was never to last long, someone always shattered it an this time was no different.

    “ Hello~ your Majesty.”

It was Reaver’s prerogative that he was nearly always heard him before he was actually seen. Annika gave herself just a moment’s pause -holding onto the peace which was rapidly slipping through her grasp- before turning to face him. Despite the annoyance of being disturbed bubbling below the surface, she faced him with a small cordial smile upon her lips.

“Reaver. Court has been through for some hours now. If you’ve hung around in hopes of pressing your proposal, I’m afraid you’ve wasted your time.”

Simple and to the point. She’d found it to be the optimum fashion of communication when it came to the Industry tycoon -...in most cases that is. The twinkle of mischief in his eye told her it was most certainly not going to work this time and Annika had to swallow the beginning of a sigh.

    “ Oh dear me has it? My deepest apologies your Grace-”

“You knew that court was over Reaver. You arrived late to court, but you were there. You knew it was over. And I’ve no taste for the titles outside of court -which you also know.” Annika turned slightly toward him as they fell into step next to each other and arched a brow delicately.

Reaver, to his credit, hardly missed a beat and the smarmy smirk on his lips never faltered at her admonishments. “Yes,” he drawled. “Well, I was only wishing to speak to you privately.”

She scoffed internally at that, but supposed she was grateful. Their private chats usually took place in her chambers as the man had no sense of propriety or privacy in him. So she was, grateful, if only slightly that he’d deigned to at least wait for her to leave her chambers before ambushing her. 

They rounded a corner to the more secluded section of the gardens, where the hedges grew tall enough that even Reaver’s rather lofty hat would be hidden were there someone on the other side. When Reaver did not speak right away Annika considered ignoring him and just continuing on her walk alone, but inevitably he launched into a spiel regarding business projects and propositions. For a while Annika was content to listen and nod her acknowledgement though not her agreement to many of his musings, but she knew this was not what he wished to speak of. After sometime of walking they found a stone bench, Annika took a seat and Reaver beside her angling himself towards her and frankly a bit too close. 

“Reaver.”

“Yes~”

“Why did you even come back?”

“Why, to serve my Queen of course.”

Annika’s lips pursed at that. His tone quite blatantly stated what she’d feared. He expected for them to pick up where they’d left off before his disappearing act -before she’d learned for certain who and what he was, and before he’d in no uncertain terms rejected to aid her.

   “I am not the hero you think I am darling. The incident described in your Father’s stories pet. I’m sure your father didn’t speak often of me, or well the hero of skill rather, because he knew it just as well as I. If I hadn’t been coerced, forced really, by the Blind Seer I’d not have been there.” 

Annika sighed. She rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. A part of her hoped what little she’d read or heard of the Hero of Skill had been exaggerated. Because as the battle drew nearer the more her confidence wavered. Sure she’d raised the money she needed for the army, kept most of her promises, but she’d made a few unsavory choices along the way -like allowing Reaver’s conversion of the shelter to a brothel.

That particular decision had been when all of this started -her and Reaver. She’d stormed out of her and Elliot’s shared chamber and run right into him just down the hall. Her blood had been running hot from the argument. Reaver had presented himself as a welcome distraction and that was how she came to be lying there in Reaver’s bed. 

Her tone was flat when she spoke, leaving little room for argument, but Annika knew that wouldn’t stop Reaver. “We can’t do this again.”

       “You can’t keep pretending it didn’t happen,” Reaver murmured, scooting closer to her on the bench leaning in. His lips barely brushed her neck. An involuntary shiver went down her spine and a gasp caught in her throat. “Because guess what my darling, it did. And I think-” His lips made their way slowly up the side of her neck leaving burning flesh and feathery kisses in their wake. “It will again.” He slid his hand up her thigh resting the tips of his fingers just shy of the leather ties for her trousers. “And again.” Nimble fingers tugged gently at the strings, but she grabbed his hand. Annika’s breath was caught in her throat. She held his hand firmly in her grip, but didn’t push him away. “And again.”

Reaver was smirking against the side of her neck. She didn’t know if she wanted to hit him or have him right there in the gardens. The only way they’d be seen from their current location was if someone went out onto the proper balcony and looked straight down. It wasn’t a good idea. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to resist him though if he pressed the issue. After their first little liaison she’d resisted him nearly banished him from court, but he’d kept coming back despite her threat -teasing her and wanting her in a way Elliot no longer seemed to until. Well there they were again. 

Despite herself, Annika turned to face him then staring deep into his blue eyes. They’d been brown before. She was certain of it. Oh, the sacrifice. His eyes were his own, but the side effect of his annual sacrifice were minute changes. Changed affected depending on the sacrifice. It suited him she decided. Reaver smirked as if he knew what was going through her head. A small shake of her head and she leaned forward sealing his damned lips in a kiss if only to stop him from speaking further. 

He’d been right of course. It would happen again. And it would keep happening. 

[for-the-love-of-avo]

So I reread shattered albion lmao

[nightingaletrash]

a late night sketch of my Hero trio. not 100% settled on certain aspects of their designs, but otherwise I’m happy with progress so far.

the goal was to do something different from previous Heroes, so having a more street-based look for Ves than Thunder’s big plate armour and Hammer’s monk attire, a noble dress for Ameya whereas Maze and Weaver went all in on the wizard look while Garth was evidently an adventurer and scholar, and Iggy being more patched up and rough around the edges than Briar-Rose and Reaver with their more put-together sense of fashion.

[heroonlybyblood]

A Perfect World // Fic

Sparrow awoke to Rose calling his name and he nearly cried with joy. The dream had been so real and it terrified him. He was a child again and Rose wasn’t dead. They weren’t even living in Old Town, so how could it have been so real? “Come on little Sparrow, mum and dad are in town and they won’t be back for ages,” she said as they exited the house.

He spent the day kicking the chickens back in their pen, killing beetles, and shooting bottles. And still in the back of his mind the dream lingered. Sparrow shook his head. It couldn’t have been real, he’s lived with Rose and his parents in this house for as long as he could remember.

That night was a restless night, woken up by the sound of a music box. He stood at the window as he tried to place where he’s heard it before. “Go back to bed little Sparrow.” Finally it stopped and he slowly made his way back to bed, a hollow feeling swelling up in him. Where had he heard that before?

The next morning he woke up and Rose said the exact same thing as the day before. Not being one to not take advantage of no parents he went out and kicked the chickens back in their pen, killed beetles, and shot bottles like he did the previous day. When night fell, he and Rose went to bed.

Again, he woke up to the music box. He stood at the window with Rose behind him telling him to go back to sleep. Finally he placed it. “THE DREAM! Rose, I heard the music box in my dream!”

He fell silent as he remember what it brought. “I don’t like the music box, Rose. In the dream, we were orphans and we did odd jobs to get enough gold pieces to buy it. When we used it and made our wish, Lord Lucien called up to his castle and killed you!” He was nearly in tears now, but he felt compelled to finish telling his sister about the dream.

"I’m not going anywhere little Sparrow, I’ll always be with you," Rose told him as she held Sparrow in her arms as he sobbed. They may be five years apart, but Rose cared deeply for her younger brother. He fell asleep holding onto her, afraid she would disappear.

The next morning he awoke in his own bed, and just like the other mornings, Rose was telling him to get up. “Rose, I don’t want to play today. When will mother and father be back?”

"It’ll be a while little Sparrow. I’ve set up bottles around the farm to shoot, there are beetles in the garden, and the chickens need rounding up."

"I don’t feel like doing anything, Rose. I’m going to sleep some more," was all Sparrow said before turning his back on her and facing the wall. Did she not remember the dream?

It was night when he woke up, the music box playing loudly. He got up and put his shoes on. He needed to find answers and he knew the music box would have them. Rose tailed behind him, telling him to go back to sleep, that mother and father would be angry. Sparrow hesitated for a split second before he continued on his march.

It wasn’t until he got to the gate when Rose’s words stopped him cold. “Please, I don’t want to be alone anymore!” He turned and nearly ran to her. Her face twisted in pain and grief.

"Rose, I’ll come back, I promise. Or you could come with me!" She shook her head and backed up slightly. "Then I’ll be back, I swear." Sparrow walked past the gates and Rose screamed and the sky turned blood red. He turned to look at her, but couldn’t find her.

"Rose? Rose?!" He ran to the house, but she wasn’t there. Oh gods, did he kill his sister? Tears pricked at his eyes and he wanted to cry so badly, but he would not let himself, not yet. Not until he got to the music box.

He ran past the gates before stopping, eyes wide in horror.  All the dead bodies either impaled or burning.  He shook his head.  He had to move on.  ”Just focus on the road Sparrow.  Don’t look, just run,” he whispered to himself as he forced his body to move.

He slowed down as he reached the music box, reaching out.  He stopped himself from touching it.  Did he really want to?  His mind flashed to Rose’s scream.  It was the same scream as when Lucien shot her.

Sparrow sank to the floor, unable to control his tears any longer.  The longer he sobbed, the more real the dream seemed until finally he couldn’t tell what was the dream and what was real.

He sat there for what felt like days.  And as his sobbing subsided, a determination settled over his soul.  He knew he needed to pick up the music box.  He needed to quiet it’s song; he needed answers.

He picked himself up and reached for the music box again.  Suddenly he was enveloped in darkness.  After a moment scenes from Sparrow’s past began to play out.  He watched his last morning with Rose and her death.  He watched as his 18 year old self entered the Chamber of Secrets.  He watched all the important steps in his journey, watched how he changed from bad to worse.  He watched until he was staring down the barrel of Lucien’s gun again.

"The last time I killed you, it tore my heart out.  Of course, you were only a child… But then… so was I."

Blinding white light filled his vision and he covered his eyes; the music box no long in his hands, but in his bag.

Rose’s voice fluttered through the air.  ”You have passed the test.  You’re rewards are the opportunity to confront your enemy… and the means to destroy him.  Take the box and go to him.”

Sparrow nodded.  ”I will Rose.  Lucien will die tonight.”  The Hero took a shaky breath as the light faded away.  ”I love you,” he whispered before it all went black again.  When he awoke, he in the Spire’s dock.  A calmness settled over him and determination shaped his features.  This ended now.

[heroonlybyblood]

A Rose for Rose // Short Fic

Sparrow never knew what happened to Rose's body the night she died.  He supposed it just got dumped into the river, but he never dwelled on where her body was.  As soon as he became king, he held a small informal funeral for her.  He later on found Derek and explained what happened that night, apologizing for getting him fired.  He also offered another posting for Derek, whether it be castle guard or town guard.  He took the Old Town's posting again.

"...and you should have seen him go Rose!  I know I've told you before, but he was fast.  It was no wonder they called him Dash.  He must have had some Hero blood in him..."

There were days when Sparrow would talk to her grave to sort through decisions that needed to be made, and days when he would just sit in comfortable silence.  But most of all were the tears he shed over her grave.  Whether it was for her or his actions, it never mattered.

He spoke of his broken promises to her, and pleaded for her forgiveness knowing that it wasn't possible.  He never was one for religion.  Sparrow would often fall asleep curled up next to her gravestone after these visits.  No one had the heart to wake him or move him.

The visits would eventually become less and less frequent until eventually they stopped all together.  His kingly duties took up most of his time, and so did his family once was married.

Sparrow was old now and it was once again nearing Rose's birthday.  There was a lull in the castle activity that day so Sparrow snuck out, heading towards Rose's grave.  Along the path, there was a rose bush in full bloom.  They were the most gorgeous roses he'd ever seen.  Most were the bright red ones the stalls sold, but there were a few yellow ones and ones mixed in.  He smiled and cut a white one.

Arriving at her gravestone, he sat and stuck the rose in the ground next to it.  "Happy early birthday Rose, it's been a long time.  I'm sorry for being gone for so long.  The people have a lot of questions and requests, and Logan is demanding more of my attention."  Sparrow chuckled.  "You would have loved him.  He's ten now, can you believe it?  And Marie is expecting another child very soon.  We've decided if it's female, we'll name her Rose.  Rose Black.  We aren't sure about a male name though."

Sparrow sighed and leaned back on the grass, watching the sky.  "The castle is completely remodeled now.  You would like it.  The study has been moved.  That area where... well, it's been sealed up.  I know I shouldn't have, but I don't think I could stand that room.  You might though, you've always been stronger than I have.  Perhaps if things were different.

"I miss you so much, but I'm a lot better now.  The people say I'm a benevolent king and most, if not all, either forgive my decision in that damned Spire or don't remember or know.  They've not forgotten how far I had fallen, but they don't hold it against me I don't think."

Sparrow sighed deeply, closing his eyes.  "I've done good, Rose.  I hope you're proud of me.  The last I heard of Hammer was that she was pretty high up with the monks.  I haven't heard from Garth since we split up all those years ago, and Reaver is still an arse.  It will be a long time before that man dies."

Sparrow fell silent for a while after that.  He watched the clouds, and eventually he dozed off.  He had a pleasant dream that night, something he hasn't had in years.

It was dusk when he woke up again feeling more refreshed and light than he had in ages.  Logan came running up and attempted to jump onto his father, but Sparrow sat up and caught him.

"Father!  There you are!  We've been looking everywhere for you.  I thought you went on another adventure, but it looks like you were just sleeping.  That's boring."

Sparrow chuckled.  "Where is your mother?"

"I'm right here," Marie said as she came into view.

"Father, why are you sleeping next to a grave stone?"

"I didn't mean to child, but come, let us have dinner.  I might even convince the chef to let us have dessert first."

Logan smiled brightly and Marie laughed.  "You'll spoil him if you do that."

Sparrow stood up and brushed himself off.  "It's not often Marie, think of it as a treat.  Now, let's hurry.  We don't want him asleep when we get back do we?"

Logan shook his head and ran off, Marie shaking her head and walking back to the castle.  Sparrow turned back to Rose's grave and smiled.  "Thank you Rose," was all he said before catching up to his wife, feeling content.

It would be another five years before Sparrow could make another day trip to her grave before death claimed him.  And in that time he still spoke as if she could hear him, keeping her up to date with his life and telling her stories just like he used to.