Second Time’s the Charm || Carmela & Rye
It went day by day, and before Rye knew it, a month had passed in Wisteria. It was well past Hallows Eve, and he was just now packing up, insisting that he leave. He’d said good-bye to Robin the night before, not trusting himself to actually leave if he saw the fae again the next day when he was determined to leave. His resolve never quite held out against Robin’s persistence.
But he needed to actually leave this time. Putting it off wasn’t going to make it any easier going back, no matter how much he wished he could glass over the anger that Oberon would spew out when he returned empty-handed. That’s all it would be though, anger, yelling, maybe throwing whatever was within arm’s reach. But he wouldn’t hurt Rye. That was never a question. So all that was left to do was return and face his brother’s anger, let it subside, and let things return to normal.
Rye saddled Nissa at the stable and handed off a generous tip to the stableboy that had been caring for her over the past few weeks. He leaned his head against hers and just stood there for a moment, dreading the return, but looking forward to the trip. That’s how it always seemed to go. Nights on the road, sleeping under the stars, with Nissa tied to a tree branch nearby, were probably his favorite times. He’d become accustomed to the overly plush beds and finer things that came along with nobility, but some things were just instilled in him ran through his veins in his mother’s blood.
“We’ll be home soon,” he reassured Nissa, running a hand down her neck before climbing up into the saddle. “Just one stop we have to make first.” He hated the words even as they left his lips. He had no reason for the stop, other than a sense of guilt at leaving without stopping just once more. Just to check. He’d be chased out tot he road, he knew that. And he was fine with that. Maybe he deserved it. But he had to try just once more. Knowing Julius’s daughter was in Wisteria, that her mother had contacted her, and not trying at least once more to do something to help, he wouldn’t make it halfway back to Belladonna before he’d have turned around if he tried. He knew himself well enough to know that.
So as they started out towards the main road, Rye took a detour back out to the house he’d been to only once, and where he’d left not on good terms. The home looked as beautiful and pristine as it had before, the gates closed firmly to keep out intruders, and Rye.
Vaguely, Rye wondered if he should drop the glamour, but he didn’t know who else lived in the home, or if she lived there alone. And besides that, she’d recognize his glamour anyway. No need to make it worse by showing her the face of the king’s brother if she still chose to see him only as that.
Instead of getting down from the saddle, Rye led Nissa right up alongside the gate and reached out to shake one of the bars until it rattled enough that it could be heard form inside. “Ms. Carmela!” He called out. “Won’t you come out and speak to me? Tell me to go to hell if you like, or give me a moment of your time.”
@hardened-halfling
