Darius listened as Hunter shuffled around upstairs; moving furniture, whistling, stopping occasionally to consider his next moves.
The boy had recovered remarkably quickly from his episode in the kitchen. But... had he really recovered? Or was he simply shoving down his feelings and feigning normality? Darius truly could not tell. It certainly wasn't normal for a boy his age to have experienced anything that he had during his lifetime in the Emperor's Coven.
Rain hissed on the ground outside. The abomination shielding the house was faithful in its duties. The adult poured himself a cup of tea and leaned back in his armchair. There was work to be done, but he wanted to give Hunter the space and freedom to organize his room for a while, and maybe enjoy the new scroll.
Darius had a feeling that if he continued their efforts to clean the house, Hunter would hear the noise and come downstairs to help, rather than focus on his own ventures. It was important for his house guest to have his own space. Even more importantly, to take the time to create a good environment for himself.
Meanwhile, Hunter wandered around upstairs. He paced, pushed furniture every which way to rearrange it, and poked passively at his scroll.
I should pay Darius back for this scroll, and the old one. It's not like I don't have money put aside from when I was in the Coven. He thought to himself as he stared down at the little item in his hand. It's not much, but I can definitely afford to pay for things. Darius shouldn't have to financially support me like I'm some kind of a burden. I'm already taking up space in his house, and I need to pull my weight around here.
Hunter set about cleaning vigorously, working hard to pull the spare bedroom together into a place he could be comfortable in. Downstairs, Darius sounded like he was doing the same.
"Hunter!" The boy heard his caretaker call.
"Yes?" Hunter yelled back.
"I've got a spare mattress downstairs in the basement that you can use to sleep on, you want it?"
"Yeah, sounds great. Thanks Darius! I can help you bring it up," Hunter responded as walked to the top of the stairs, preparing to descend.
"No need, I've already got some of my men taking care of it." Darius reassured him. As he spoke, two little abominations made their way to the top of the basement stairs, mattress in tow. With ease, they made their way up the second set of stairs and shouldered past Hunter to enter the bedroom.
Hunter huffed a quiet and frustrated sigh. Darius thinks I'm incapable; that I'm weak and he needs to take care of me.
"Thanks, Darius. I'll be in my room." Hunter spoke, voice flat. The teenager turned to leave, and was inside his room with the door closed before Darius could fit a word in.
His scars hurt. His head still hurt, too. The bare mattress lay on his floor, random knick knacks, bed sheets, and clothing were strewn about the room. In a sweeping motion, he swiped up his new scroll and plopped down on the soft mattress. Penstagram sat open, waiting for him to input his username and password.
So much to do, and I'm wasting my time on social media. He still wasn't very good at typing, so it took a moment before he finally tapped in the correct information. Eventually, it worked, and a smiling photo of Willow's face popped up at the top of his feed. He smiled, happy to see her looking so joyful.
In the background of the photo was a building held together with the help of thick green vines, covered in flowers and leaves. The caption of the photo read "Helping the people of Bonesborough, one vine at a time!"
Hunter traced the large scar spanning across his face absentmindedly. Willow was out and busy helping people, while apparently he was busily dissociating for like 12 straight hours over some stupid incident at the castle.
Even the mighty have to fall at some point... I used to be so great, one of Belos's strongest men, and now look at me. Can't even handle a dead body. He vividly remembered the piercing eyes of the teenager half-trapped beneath the rubble. Sweat beaded on his palms.
Darius stood in front of him, hand on hip. "You teenagers and your scrolls," He was saying, sarcasm and sass lathering his tone. Hunter flinched at his caretaker's sudden appearance. When had he come in?
Darius noticed him flinch yet again. There was no way that the boy hadn't noticed him come in. The Coven Head had even knocked before coming in, and had vocally announced his presence.
"What's up?" Hunter's voice dragged him out of his own thoughts.
"Ah, lunch is ready. It's just reheated mushroom stew." Darius answered.
Hunter nodded in response, humming vacantly. He tossed his scroll to the side, and it plopped onto the empty mattress. The boy brushed past Darius as he exited the room, and padded down the wooden stairs into the kitchen. Darius turned to follow him.
Lunch sat innocently in ceramic bowls on the table. Hunter plopped down in a chair, and waited for Darius to join him. After the adult took his first bite, Hunter followed suit. They ate in silence. The stew was still just as good as it was the last time they ate it, but it felt like gravel in Hunter's mouth.
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The storm stopped in the early evening, just as the sun was beginning to sink into the ocean. As the last drops of boiling water finished their descent, Darius summoned the abomination shield that cradled the house to slink back inside and between the floorboards. Just as it appeared this morning, gathering into a large creature, it dispersed itself into every available crevice. Hunter was still equally amazed at how well it could hide itself. Darius had created quite the impressive security system.
As the storm moved further out into the ocean and away from the Isles, Hunter's scars began to hurt a little less. The absence of pain left him feeling tired and worn. His room was only still half put together, but it would have to do for the evening until Hunter had more energy to continue his endeavors in the morning.
Once dinner was finished and the washing completed, the teenager slunk quietly back to his room. He texted Willow and Gus over Penstagram, talking to them about anything and everything. Their presence, though virtual, filled Hunter's heart with joy. He was happier when he had friends to talk to. He was happier when he could act like a normal teenager.
He texted his friends until the moon rose high in the sky, its light bouncing off the trees and onto the forest floor. A quick glance at the clock on his wall revealed it to be half past midnight. With a roll of his eyes, he closed his scroll, placed it on a box that he was using as a nightstand, and went to scrub his teeth with toothpaste.
Bathroom light constricted his pupils, and he squinted while he waited for them to adjust. Once he could see, he jammed a toothbrush lathered with paste into his mouth, and absentmindedly scrubbed. The bathroom lights flickered overhead, before suddenly going out. The room was plunged in darkness.
A deep, cold feeling of terror trickled down his spine, and he felt his face pale. He frantically flicked the lightswitch. The only light in the bathroom came from the moonlight streaming in from the door. His hands shook, and his heart rate increased.
A glance in the mirror. Dark, slimy goo traveling up the crevices of every scar on his body. A voice, his Uncle, whispering things in his ears. With breath locked deep in his lungs, unwilling to burst free, he stumbled backwards until he hit a wall and slid down it.
He flings his hands out to try to stabilize himself as he descends towards the floor, but to no avail. He knocks things off of the decorative shelves attached to the walls, and they go careening to the floor. Glass shatters.
Darius hears the noise and throws himself out of bed in an instant. Hunter's loud breathing and panicked sobs help the adult quickly locate the source of the problem. The bathroom door slams open, casting the scene in eerie silver light.
Hunter cowers on the floor, pointing a jagged piece of glass at the man in the doorway. A picture frame is shattered on the floor, tiny shards of glass glitter in the moonlight like snow.
"G-get away, Belos! I'll kill myself before I ever let you use my body again!" Darius watches as Hunter cries out, unfocused eyes skittering around the shadowy room. The older man steels himself with a deep and slow breath. Then, with a swift movement a tendril of abomination slime shoots out of the floor.
It disarms Hunter immediately, sending the makeshift weapon flying. Hunter desperately grabs at it. While the boy is momentarily distracted, Darius steps fully into the bathroom and flicks the lightswitch.
No longer is the room bathed in darkness and moonlight, but rather the warm yellow orange lightbulb. Hunter pushes himself further into the wall with the sudden assault of bright light until his whole body is pressed firmly into the furthest corner away from the doorway.
"No... No, I can't, not again, I can't-" Hunter babbles, shielding his body with his arms as much as he can. Darius is at a loss for what to do. The boy is incoherent.
"Belos isn't here, Hunter. He's dead, remember?"
Hunter doesn't hear him. He's covering his ears, rocking back and forth, hyperventilating.
He's gotta calm down or he'll pass out , Darius reasoned. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing if he passed out.
The teenager doesn't pass out. His lungs heave, his body shakes like a leaf. His eyes dash around, pupils large and entirely unseeing. It's as if he's trapped in a terrible nightmare, stuck in the past. A flashback .
The realization hits Darius like a sack of bricks. This is a post traumatic flashback. Something in the bathroom triggered it, and now Hunter's stuck in this state.
"Breathe with me, boy. Deep breaths, count to five. You can do it, I know you can." Darius whispers as he folds the toilet set cover down to give himself a place to sit. He models the breathing technique, and Hunter does not initially respond.
It takes just over ten minutes before the blonde's breathing slows, just minutely. Darius waits as patiently as he can. Eventually, Hunter's pupils constrict a little bit, and appear to settle on a spot on the floor.
Darius reminds him to try breathing deeply again, and Hunter surprisingly makes an attempt to follow Darius's directions. They sit like that, breathing in rounds for many more minutes.
The former Coven Head tries to distract the boy with simple, quiet conversation. Darius is in the middle of telling Hunter a story about the time he and Eberwolf stole one of the massive sigil banners hanging in the castle when Hunter shifts and attempts to push himself standing.
"Take it slow, there's no rush. What can I do to help?" He prompts. Hunter does not answer, at first. Darius isn't even sure that he's capable of talking in his current state. However, after several more failed attempts to stand, the former Golden Guard eventually gets to his feet. The wall behind the boy bears most of his weight.
"S-sorry. Please excuse me," He says with a raw and scratchy voice. Pushing himself off the wall, he stumbles a little to the bathroom counter, and makes no move to exit the room. Darius relocates himself so that he can stay in Hunter's line of sight.
Hunter looks exhausted, but clearly too wired for sleep. He leans against the counter, looking down at the discarded and still soapy toothbrush that sits innocently in the sink, forgotten. Darius's thoughts are racing as he tries to think of what to do. He doesn't have experience with taking care of kids, let alone teenagers, let alone teenagers with what appears to be severe mental illness. Several minutes pass in silence, and neither occupant moves.
"So... It's pretty clear that we're both gonna be up for a little while. If I may be honest, I'm not comfortable leaving you alone for right now. How about we go downstairs, and read for a little while to distract ourselves, okay?" Darius says, breaking the tense silence.
Hunter does not speak, but instead slowly moves towards the doorway. After reaching the doorway, he slowly makes his way towards the stairs. Darius is careful to turn on lights before Hunter can reach a new section of the house.
Eventually, with much effort and care, they reach the twin armchairs residing in the living room. Darius watches as Hunter sinks into his usual armchair. He gingerly grabs his novel of choice off of the table with shaking hands. Setting it on his lap, he opts just to stare at the cover.
Darius, book in hand, settles in his own armchair, careful not to make any jarring movements. Hunter does not acknowledge the aforementioned movements, and instead chooses to continually stare blankly downwards.
The adult opens his book, and pretends to read without actually comprehending a single word on the page. He feels exhausted, still recovering from the chaos and fear from the last several weeks. After a while of occasionally glancing at the sixteen year old across from him, Darius's eyes begin to feel heavy.
He knows that he should stay awake. But he feels the ever-beckoning call of a restful sleep that only one of his favorite armchairs can provide. Finally, Darius gives into uneasy dreams; a tumultuous sleep.
Trying to highlight the fact that Darius isn't (and won't ever be) a perfect parent to Hunter, and with his initial introduction to parenthood, he makes mistakes and is vastly unprepared to handle the experiences and trauma of a child soldier. I'm hoping to bring in some different characters in the next chapter, especially Eda and Camila. I'm very excited for y'all to see what I have planned for this fic :)