Brother
Inspired by this illustration by @writingwolfwithin. Bittersweet future Rumbaby fic. I deliberately didn’t choose a name so that this could remain canon-compliant if we get a girl.
“Hi, Neal.” The eleven-year old girl sat down on the warm grass in front of the stone, all slim long limbs and coltish grace, and began tracing the letters of her brother’s name. It was part of the ritual. She’d done it the very first time they’d brought her here, her parents said, a toddler just learning to walk and holding on to the stone for balance. She’d started at the very first letter of “beloved” and methodically followed the lines of each letter until she’d reached the “y” of Cassidy. She wasn’t sure if she actually remembered it herself or she’d just heard the story so many times that it felt like a real memory. She’d known how to spell her brother’s name before she could write her own.
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Oh, this is absolutely perfect. I should not read such beautiful fics on public transport, where my heart can break far too visibly. Thank you so much for writing this, and you've no idea how excited I am to have a story accompanying something I drew. When I'm next at my computer I'll try to get a link to this fic in the sketch's post.
Gah. Heart still hurts. Must read again.
