water lillies bloomed from chaos (and love) | chapter 2
summary: it’s not like they were connected to her by blood or a strong bond, but it was more like magic choose them in between perfection, chaos, love and something unknown to make them just perfect, broken and fixed as they were. Raleigh thought however, amidst her own broken pieces, that if something remained from their big love, it was all mixed in those three young witches: Zoe, Mallory and Madison. And she wasn’t going to give up in any of her lovechilds, as much trouble it could seem.
words: 4, 200
ao3 link: here!
song: queen of peace by florence + the machine
chapters: 1 - 2
the one with the catch up (zoe, pt. 1)
It was just a tug of magic what woke her up.
Zoe stood up with the easiness of someone that had done that multiple times. After the coven went public and they had a larger amount of students coming to them, that was something that used to wake her up easily. They had too much magic under one roof, so even the slightest change affected all of them.
At least, all of them that were able to feel it.
Sometimes it was just one of the younglings waking up before their usual schedule, other times it was an older student trying to go over yesterday's lesson just in case. But this time it was something she used to yearn to feel again for years. It was old, like Cordelia's magic; but cold instead of hot and ardent, like the autumn rain. It made her feel like she could take the whole world with only sheer determination and probably a can of soda.
Zoe was glad to have a room for herself, because she didn't like to cry in front of people. Not that she liked it before, but she was always prone to do so.
She missed this, God.
All the magic she once got used to live with was there reunited. In her own way, Zoe felt like her true family was finally complete, at least for the time being. After all that time, she always had a little negativity chiding in to remind her to stay grounded.
Wiping her tears, she got up from the bed and walked towards one of the windows, trying to peek into where that soothing source of magic was, pulling at her. It was a blessing that Cordelia decided to restructure the whole Academy, so their rooms - Queenie's and hers, since the master room was already there - faced the backyard too. There was Zoe and Madison's old room in the other end of the corridor, waiting for someone to take it.
Someone as in the woman doing push-ups in the backyard.
Or that's what Zoe hoped but Cordelia was still getting used to Raleigh's presence in the house again. Sharing room with Madison and Mallory was the nearest thing as a punishment for the trouble caused in that day, to which Raleigh didn't complain about or even fight.
Many years ago her mentor - Zoe still thought of Raleigh as that, her mentor, the one that always cheered for her - had confessed to her that it didn't matter what happened between the, now, Supreme and her, because she would always love her no matter what. It was a fact that popped out in Zoe's head as the days passed by, as she noticed how the taller woman tried her best to please Cordelia without letting herself be belittled or change her behavior.
Looking at Raleigh through her room's window, Zoe wondered if it was the right time for her to finally give her a chance. Since the day the woman came back, she felt…hesitant to put it in one word. Maybe it was the phantom pain in her left arm, where the elektrokinesis left her a huge scar; or maybe it was that her favourite student did all of that behind her back for Raleigh; or maybe because Queenie and her listened to Cordelia cry and cry again after she was left alone with too much weight on her shoulders.
The magic that was tugging at her did it a bit stronger and then Zoe discovered how Raleigh was starting to walk away.
If she was going to do something, it was now or never.
Raleigh turned around at the sudden sound of someone calling out her name. Her eyes tried to find the source and soon she realized the figure in one of the windows from the second floor. Seeing Zoe there, waiting for her to talk, was like a shot of warmth to her heart that started to spread slowly through her whole body.
“Good morning to you too,” she felt herself about to smile, but stopped from do so just in time. “I thought you’d wake up later.”
“Yeah, well,” Zoe’s voice was a bit muffled by the distance but she heard her just fine.
“Everything’s okay?” Raleigh asked when Zoe fell silent after that. She was feeling how her muscles were starting to relax and she still had to run a bit, but she was worried about whatever made the young witch to reach out for her.
“I was thinking…” with her hand in her forehead, Zoe seemed to try to say something coherent. “Do you mind if I join you? In your early jog, I mean.”
“Why would I mind, sweet pea?” Raleigh couldn’t help but laugh surprised at that. “Chop chop, I’ll wait for you in the street.”
The old nickname rolled from her tongue easily and the awkwardness stayed with her, even when they both were jogging side by side twenty minutes later. In exchange with Madison, with which Raleigh was starting to warm up to, Zoe was someone she still was trying to be careful around. Out of all the reactions she expected - and not -, hers was the one that made her feel like she failed at something. Zoe kept looking at her from the distance for days and when she finally talked to her, it was a simple and quick ‘thank you’ because she helped her with some books.
Was it indifference? Well, whatever it was, it was killing her slowly.
Raleigh wanted to apologize with Zoe the most for a lot of things. For letting her down, for leaving without giving her some more guidance, for using her powers on her, for not being there when she was needed, for letting her die.
She had to close her eyes for a second to erase that last image from her head. Sure that she was going to dream again of that, Raleigh looked at the real Zoe running by her side, jumping to sort a hole in the sidewalk and smiling like a child for such little achievement. Grab that new memory, grab it and push it against the old one. It was something that was advised in one of the several books she had read in the last month, and it helped with small things that used to make her panic but with big things like that was more difficult.
Enjoying the silence while running, Raleigh wanted that moment to last forever.
Zoe didn’t seem to complain about going further from the Academy, so she kept her usual route towards the park. That park was her little breather after she came back, something none knew about, but it felt right for her to give it to Zoe. Maybe so she could make it her breather too or take it forever as hers and only hers, it didn't matter.
As long as Zoe was fine, it was fine for her too.
When they arrived to the park, Zoe's lungs were burning. She had a good while without going for a run or exercise at all, too caught up with stuff at the Academy and with the Council to even make a little time for that. She used to do it when they still were a few after Cordelia's raise to the power, but then she was too tired for it. Her legs felt like jelly when she managed to sit in a bench and she swore under her breath because of it.
"I feel like throwing up," she joked trying to not lie down there.
"I felt like that a few weeks ago when I started," Raleigh was soon by her side, with a bottle of water in her hand that she took immediately, downing the water quickly. "Easy kiddo, or you're going to throw up for real."
Zoe chuckled while the other woman sat by her side, all her magic in display for her to feel it again.
"I'll be lucky if I can move at all," another laugh and that one made Raleigh crack up a little smile. "How you do it? Is it what Cordelia makes you eat?"
"Oh god no," she shook her head and then put her hands in the big pocket from her hoodie, taking out the most sugary cereal bars she had laid her hands on. "This is the real deal. Two essays about some plant, which I had to reword differently, and a low level spell it's what costed me," then Zoe's eyes narrowed a bit at that and Raleigh pointed at her. "Now missy, what I told you once? Snitches end up…"
"...in ditches…" she completed, rolling her eyes and chuckling a bit more.
"...with stitches," that last bit was told at the same time before Raleigh gave Zoe one of the cereal bars. "So I hope this doesn't get its way to our dear boss."
Zoe couldn’t help but nod in agreement at that, smiling a bit awkwardly, and then she took a bite of the cereal bar. Cordelia was stressed out because of the woman she was sharing food with, it wouldn’t help anyone to stress her even more at the end of the day. Also, she couldn’t wait to hear from Misty how two of her students marked the highest score in an essay for once. She wasn’t that sure if the spell would actually work, since it was something more complicated than just a bunch of words thrown together. Zoe had the feeling that Raleigh didn’t tell that part to that one student on purpose, since it was own area of expertise and she knew how much it annoyed her.
Taking off her sweatshirt, Zoe got the little memory from a class they four - Madison, Nan, Queenie and her - had with Raleigh about spells. She never had seen her that...angry yet passionate about something. Only Nan was able to get the practical part done, but everything got stuck in their heads. Even in Madison’s.
Without knowing what to say aside of keep the sweet silence between them, Zoe was about to follow that line of old memories to calm herself a bit. Until she felt soft fingertips against her arm, grazing ever so softly where her skin was different, and her eyes went first to Raleigh’s hand and then to her face.
The look of utter panic in the woman’s hazel eyes made Zoe shake to the core.
“It didn’t hurt,” her words were almost a whisper, looking at the marks that never fade away. “I woke up and it was sore, that’s all. Not even the blisters hurt.”
“Your heart,” she never saw her that distressed and Zoe took her hand quickly, forgetting about how she felt about touching all of a sudden.
“You didn’t electroshock my heart, only my arm,” taking a deep breath, Raleigh’s body trembled like an autumn leaf. “Believe me, Cordelia kept monitoring me for a whole month to make sure I wasn’t going to have a stroke.”
She chuckled at that, trying to make the older woman laugh too, but she didn’t succeed.
“Now I know why you didn’t want to be near me,” Raleigh muttered again. “Or any of you for that matter.”
Zoe thought she was going to let go of her hand, but she didn’t. And as much as her head told her to pull away, her heart overcame that tiny voice and stood still where she was. It was difficult to form words at this point, but soon Raleigh was talking again and doing the job she was so afraid to get done.
“When I was gone...how things were at the Academy?” her tiny question was full of curiosity but also something that escaped Zoe’s comprehension.
“The first few months after that were...a bit hellish, not gonna lie,” she replied, frowning slightly to the memory. “You’d had started a riot I swear, the first riot under any reign of a Supreme. The girls were so...messy? They had like no control. Myrtle stayed around until...well, she ended up in the Ancient room; but she helped to settle things,” Zoe missed how Raleigh had to look away for a second with that last bit of information. “Queenie and I thought we were going full breakdown at some point, but when Misty came back...Cordelia just got like a shot of energy and soon we were going smoothly over everything,” Zoe laughed at that, her thoughts messy but clear at the same time? it was difficult to put three years in a few words.
“Please tell me someone caught the kitchen on fire at least,” Raleigh’s soft smile caught her off guard. “I don’t believe everything was smooth for the next three years after that.”
Right there is where Zoe saw a side of Raleigh she never thought she would see. It was like she was...open to whatever Zoe was willing to tell her and that was a huge change of demeanour. When they were at the Academy back in Fiona’s last days, Raleigh always seemed too caught up with whatever was going in her head and every time someone wanted to talk to her it was a nightmare. As if she didn’t care at all.
But having her there, with clear eyes and clear feelings, made something in Zoe turn and ease. And she dove in it, the peace Raleigh used to give her in the past before everything went downhill and seemed to be back now.
Raleigh couldn’t help but keep smiling when Zoe started to relax and spill every bean in the pot. Hearing her laugh with every turn and get really serious in the best parts, it made her heart squeeze and wait with expectation for the way a new giggle started to show in Zoe’s features. She listened carefully to every detail, taking it as the actual truth instead of all those memories her brain was trying to push over it. And even when Zoe entered the days in which Cordelia and Misty started to be a thing, she didn't flinch nor told her to stop.
Raleigh was starting to feel okay with that, it didn't hurt as much as three months ago.
"...I swear, you would had smacked their heads like pumpkins," Zoe laughed one last time at that, followed by a low chuckle from Raleigh and then sighed content. "Queenie did the best impersonation of you though."
"Oh really?" Raleigh raised an eyebrow, amused with the image in her head.
"Completely," Zoe rubbed her thighs with both hands, shaking her head a bit before falling silent for a couple of seconds before saying the next thing. "She laughed at it."
"Hmm? Who?"
"Cordelia," the name rolled between them easily, both not wanting to look at each other. "She laughed for real, I think I've never heard her laughing like that," Zoe looked down to her lap and smiled softly. “Even Misty got surprised, we couldn’t make her crack more than a smile.”
Zoe looked at Raleigh after that statement only to find her smiling ever so softly, holding all this sadness in her gesture. Maybe she crossed the line with that, her mind trying to come up with something to change the flow of the conversation. But something in her, the part that was buried with Cordelia’s tears, made her keep pushing down the same line.
“She missed you, a lot; she cried rivers for you,” she mumbled, the old annoying tingle of anger in the back of her head. “Yet she laughed because of you.”
“No, Zoe,” Raleigh’s tone was soft, making the anger vanish as if it was her mother who was talking to her. “You all made her laugh, made her happy,” her hand went to Zoe’s nape and gave her a light squeeze there. “Not me.”
“She is happier now that you are here,”
“We both know that’s not true,” Raleigh then stood up, stretching her arms over her head and then offered a hand to the young teacher. “Let’s go back, it’s getting late.”
As if that last sentence pushed a button, Zoe’s phone started to ring. And it was the woman they were talking about, calling to know where she was since apparently they had council meeting that morning. When she hanged up the phone, Raleigh couldn’t help to chuckle.
“What a troublemaker,” Zoe whined a bit when she finally stood up with Raleigh’s help, her legs feeling like wood sticks. “Can you walk?”
“I can try,” giggling, the young witch took a few careful steps before starting to jog a little, feeling less sore by doing that than walking. “Oh no, this means that I’ll have to keep running until we arrive there?”
Raleigh shook her head before starting to jog by Zoe’s side. She didn’t want her to get in trouble with Cordelia, even less if it was her fault. So with care they started making their way back to the house, but Zoe only made the half of it before her legs decided to not take it anymore. While looking for a solution to their problem, Raleigh thought that next time her protegeé decided to go running with her, she would take her not that far from the Academy or at least make her warm up before going full throttle.
"Queenie is going to laugh her ass off," Zoe was covering her face with both hands, sitting in the sidewalk.
"Queenie's always laughing her ass off," Raleigh put her hand in Zoe's head, patting it lightly. "Why don't we call a cab?"
"That's like giving her the gun with six bullets and refill," another grunt and then her voice sounded more tired.
And then the idea came to Raleigh's mind like a shooting star.
Zoe couldn’t think what crossed her own mind to agree to that, but it was worth the shot. She tightened a bit her hold, afraid of falling, but the hold on her legs was strong enough to not let her. It only drew a chuckle from the other woman, her breath a bit caught in her throat. Like a child having a piggyback ride from her parents, Zoe hid her face in Raleigh’s neck, embarrassed for the position. If they wanted to arrive not that late, it was the only solution.
Arms sore to sore legs, what a pair.
“We can’t say a thing about this,” she mumbled in her embarrassment.
“The secret is forever ours, sweet pea,” Raleigh laughed openly at that, her hands going to a bit back to accommodate Zoe in her back better. “I’m dropping you a street from home, so none will ever know.”
Nodding softly, she knew the older woman wouldn’t break her promise. Now Zoe’s mind was too focused in how to make Cordelia not go full on rant about how irresponsible she was or whatever crossed her mind in that moment. Not that the Supreme ever did that, well, not in the last times - Zoe still remember the only time Cordelia was mad at her and it wasn’t even that, she was just serious. But the worry still ate her alive for some reason.
“Remember the first time we talked more than ‘read that spell’?” Raleigh brought her back to Earth with that tiny remark. “You were so...scared, I didn’t know what to do.”
After all those years, Zoe still had that memory as one of her favourites even with the sad undertone. It was after the zombie attack, too tired to be with the rest, both witches had found themselves side by side in the backyard sharing theirs cups of tea and their thoughts. Strange at it was, they talked about love in some way.
“Any boy in sight?” Zoe repeated the question trying to imitate the latina witch.
“Love is always a good topic to keep the mind out of the worry,” Raleigh’s laugh was something so rare to hear back in the days that having her being like that was really something else. “At least in teenage girls,” she shrugged lightly and tilted her head enough to bump into Zoe’s. “And you ended up having one, so I wasn’t that wrong.”
“Yeah well,” Zoe frowned a bit and then sighed softly. “It didn’t work out in the end, so what was the point after all.”
“That’s what I noticed,” another sigh and Zoe felt Raleigh’s thumbs caressing her thighs with care for a second, as if she was reassuring her in some way. “Sometimes be like that, sweet pea, we can’t control that stuff.”
“You know about that a lot, don’t you?”
“Heck that I do,” a sad chuckle but the woman still found the will to do it. “And that’s why I can tell you that something will come your way, when you least expect it,” Raleigh coughed a bit, the tiredness of carrying both Zoe and her own body was starting to show up. “I may not have my Sight anymore, but my mother said the tingle is forever so I’m positive about it.”
Zoe was glad that Raleigh was too tired to keep digging in the new topic, because she still couldn’t wrap her head in how everything the woman said was so close to the truth. Kyle and her didn’t work out, yeah, but they broke up almost two years ago and her heart had already fixed itself with much care and...love. She wasn’t sure if that love was actually mutual, but she was looking forward to it as much as she could.
Not even when they stopped a street away, as they accorded, she could get her head from her new hope. Both kept walking in silence for the rest of the time, side by side as if they were used to exercise together or as if they never grew apart. And Zoe liked that, she missed that so much that her chest felt full of energy even when they both were drained.
Stopping in front of the fence, they shared a meaningful look.
“Blame it on me,” Raleigh whispered as she put her hand in one of the bars, ready to press her magic against it and open.
Putting her hand over Raleigh’s, Zoe didn’t say anything about that but nodded to let her know that she did listen. Having their magic flows together once again felt like coming home after a long, long time, and even with that everything was worth it for some reason.
When they saw Cordelia standing by the main stairs, waiting worriedly for Zoe apparently, Raleigh’s whole demeanour changed again. She softened and her magic was nowhere to be felt, her hands ready in case she had to explain something to the Supreme...but any of that was necessary because the blonde woman seemed to forget what she was going to say as soon as she spotted them side by side.
“I’m sorry for being late Cordelia,” Zoe was the first one to say something. “We got lost in time and went too far awa-”
“It’s okay sweetheart,” the sweet word was followed by a soft smile from the Supreme, who gestured with her hand towards her office. “Misty and Queenie are waiting for us, go ahead and I’ll be there in two,” the young woman seemed relieved that her boss didn’t seemed mad at her at all.
Zoe never knew if both women shared something after she left them, but in her heart she felt like she owed one to her mentor. A little one at least, for the ride back home in her back and for keep trying to reach for them even when they didn’t want her at first. Show her some...respect maybe? No, the word she was looking for was trust. Zoe sat there, listening to what they were discussing and trying to not focus in how much her legs hurt, while a part of her mind started to wander around that little thing.
How to submit that request to an audience that was divided in opinions? But she was the ‘actual’ head of the council, her opinion was stronger...right? Taking a deep breath when they seemed to be done with the main concern of the meeting, she stood up before the rest did.
“I have a request to submit to the rest of the council members,” Misty and Queenie looked worriedly at Zoe, still not used to hear her serious voice. “And to our Supreme.”
“What’s the matter?” Cordelia’s brown eyes were full of curiosity, her hands resting over her desk, waiting patiently for her to talk.
“It’s about our sisters, Raleigh Ocean and Madison Montgomery,” she felt the temperature go down in the room, but she kept at it.
They were then in silence, waiting for her to say everything. Zoe had to remind herself to not cross paths with both Cordelia and Misty for the next following days, but seeing Queenie crack the tiniest of the smiles encouraged her more. Madison was something she was going to suggest eventually, after much deliberation between Queenie and her, so why not push it too?
“I think it’s time for them to be useful for this coven again.”
