Of Monsters and Men || Solo (Past)
He had been avoiding it, facing his mother. Lorcan would never again unleash his wrath upon anyone. He wouldn’t be there to call the shots and decide what was worth his time and what was cause for punishment. He wouldn’t leave anymore scars. Unfortunately, his father was still alive though. In Azkaban. And this would all be put on Sean, for his mistake. Of all the scars his father had left, none were readily visible in a shirt. The man had been smart about his actions. He’d only left temporary bruises where visible.
It was Isole that left the mark on Sean’s cheek.
It was her that gave him the mark to taint and reveal the truth. Lorcan was a monster of sorts, but Isole had to be one as well to survive the life...
He’d come home late, the manor entirely dark, hoping to slip in and grab some things and get out. His mother had been sitting in the great room near the stairs, flipping on the light the moment he turned from quietly closing the front door.
“Was wondering when you’d be making an appearance, darling,” came the voice of his mother, cold as ice even through the fake little smile she was donning.
Sean cleared his throat, chin inclined somewhat to regard her.
“Don’t you look down on me like that.” She narrowed her eyes, rising to meet him, crossing the room with grace even despite the ire seeping from her tongue.
“Yes, ma’am.” He lowered his chin, looking at her through his lashes instead though there was no guilt present in his tone or bright blues.
“What did you do you?” Sean said nothing. A glimmer of a sneer flashed across Isole’s face before she repeated herself, “What have you done, Sean?”
“I made a mista-”
“You’ve ruined the Travers name!” Isole raised her voice, cutting him off.
“If anyone knew what really went on in this fecked up family. If they knew what ye let go on in this house-” His reply was cut off by the sound of a smack as his mother backhanded him across the face. It rang out and echoed in the otherwise quiet house. Her ring had sliced his cheek but neither one reacted to it.
“You do not speak to me like that.”
Sean’s head was still turned to the side, jaw clenched, looking at his mother sideways. “No, I don’t speak at all, right? Lorcan does all the talkin’ an’ punishin’ while you stand by an’ watch.” He turned to face her again.
“You ungrateful child. We gave you everything and this is how you repay us?”
“Ye’ve turned me into a monster!” He finally raised his voice in return.
Isole laughed bitterly. “There’s power in fear. Don’t act like you don’t enjoy it. Like you’re not stronger because of it. We only gave you the tools, you’re the one responsible for your own actions.”
Sean blinked, lips curled into a sneer of his own, eyeing her distastefully. “Ya turned me into yerself..”
She smiled, the tiniest of smiles. Isole never smiled. Sean blinked, uncertain. He’d never seen his mother quite like he saw his father and this was an interaction like none they’d ever had before. She was showing her true colors and for the first time, Sean was actually looking. “And you’ve squandered any opportunity you might have been given. You could have had it all. Take your things and get out.”
He wiped the blood trickling down his cheek before turning from her.
“And Sean?”
He stopped, tense as she came up behind him.
“Don’t come back.”
Sean only nodded and moved toward the stairs, halting once again as he reached the bottom step. “I should’ve left long ago.”
Isole laughed, unable to contain it. “You’re weak and pathetic. Go cry somewhere else and learn to choose your battles more carefully you stupid boy. You wouldn’t have survived this long without us. We carried you even when you were sorted into Gryffindor.”
“Ye both ‘ave had it out for me since that, huh?”
“You still could have gone far.”
“Is that what ya told ‘im before he beat me when I came back?”
“That’s what he told me.”