Dwyn got better after the week. To be fair, she got better within a few days, but Y/N was still concerned about her well being and stayed in case the illness made a return. Dwyn was a good sport about the whole thing, and though she teased the older girl for acting like a mother hen, she was happy to spend her days cared for by Y/N.
And Y/N was happy to stay within the magic surrounding their house, hiding from a Faer man. Like that, early summer lapsed into midsummer in the blink of an eye. Those days in the house were peaceful, and she tended to the garden, and cared for Dwyn, brushing her hair each morning, making her food and all those other responsibilities parents have.
"Your hair is so beautiful, Dwyn," Y/N hummed, running her finger through the girl's ringlets as she gently combed through them.
It was just as it had always been. A gorgeous gold colour, rich and glorious. It almost reminded her of the forsythia trees that bloomed in Aramore. They always had these beautiful yellow flowers that opened up like blossoms. They were known as the harbingers of spring, because they tended to become bright golden spots among the snow covered ground at the end of winter. A promise of what was to come.
"You say that every day."
"It's the truth, though."
Dwyn grinned a bit, and in the vanity mirror, it shone like the sun. Being able to spend time with her like this was one of the biggest joys in life. Though she was terrified of the Goddess' intentions, she couldn't help but feel blessed to have the girl every day.
"I- uummmm- like your hair, too," Dwyn said, softly.
"Awwh, thank you," In comparison to Dwyn's hair, Y/N's was drab and dull (then again, so was everyone else's hair compared to Dwyn... it wasn't exactly a fair competition), "We might need to trim the split ends soon, though."
She pinched the ends carefully, glancing at the way they hung uneven. Still stunning, though. However, Dwyn looked absolutely mortified at the thought, turning to look at Y/N from over her shoulder.
"No! You can't cut my hair!"
"I wouldn't be choppin all of it off, silly goose," She pinched her cheek lightly, "I know you love your hair, and it's very lovely, but trimmin encourages more growth. Your hair will be extra long."
"No, because you always cut a whole bunch off, you lying liar!"
"I don't cut a whole bunch off! I cut like, this much off," She held a finger and a thumb up, the space between being no more than two centimetres.
"NO! You cut THIS MUCH OFF!" Dwyn insisted, holding up her own finger and thumb and creating the shape of an 'L' as she stretched it to it's full capacity.
"I don't," Y/N shook her head, but Dwyn looked wholly unconvinced, "I only trim enough to make it all even!"
"I'll trim you!"
"Nahh..."
"YEAHHH!!" Dwyn glared, "My hair is my sacred treasure! The Goddess wouldn't want you to cut it."
"I think there's a reason she blessed us with scissors, mate."
"Lies and slander!"
"Ohhh, alright fine. But I'm just sayin, if you cut some of it off, it grows back quickly and more healthier, like."
At that, the young girl simply pouted. But their conversation was cut short when Y/N's ears picked up on something from a distance.
"Y/N-"
"Shh, one second, sweetie," She gently placed a hand ontop of the girl's head, her own ear tilted towards the window with the shutters left open.
The air had warmed up enough to justify short sleeves if one so desired, but Y/N still preferred long, airy sleeves. Honestly was about the only type of summer-fitted dress she even owned. And Y/N didn't like to go travelling to Aramore to ask for the local Seamstress to think about making more. And making her own was so tedious and often ended up with more pricked fingers than necessary.
Over the trees waving and leaves shuddering in the breeze, there was the sound of stone against stone clanging in a duhduh duhduh duhduh pattern, with something heavy behind it. Almost like the beating legs of a... horse? against the pavement of the path.
Cautiously, Y/N approached the window of her bedroom, unlatching it and pushing the lower half of the glass upwards to see said muddy brown horse approaching. And on it's back was a somewhat familiar face. Thomas. The stable hand assistant who was actually older than the original stable hand, with a wide brimmed hat from his partner, and a greasy black ponytail that matched the colour of his unshaved stubble.
Well, there were very few reasons anyone would travel out to her place. None of them could be good. Dread took root in her chest.
She leaned out the window and sent him a big wave. He didn't return it. He just kind of glared up at her, clearing the end of the path and landing on the grass, heading right for her porch. She sighed and pulled her upper body inside, shutting the window.
"Who is it?" Dwyn had already jumped off her chair (her toes still only brushed the ground when she sat down) and walked towards her older sister.
"It's just some guy from the village," Y/N sighed, stretching her arms above her head until her back popped, "Dunno why he's here... give me a sec, I'll go take a look."
The sound of knocks banging on the door made her grumble to herself as she headed out of the room. Like, yes, she knew he was here, and he knew she knew. Did he need to announce his presence in such an annoying way?
When she finally reached it, she shoved on her shoes and tore the door open. There he was: stood on the porch, his horse bending it's head down to graze on the grass nearby. It had a bright white mark on it's forehead and a light brown, wispy mane with long lashes, a great contrast to it's chocolate brown fur.
"Yes?" She asked, trying and failing to keep the snappish tone out of her voice.
"Don't get lippy with me, missy. I didn't wanna be here either," Tommy glared, leaning up against her door frame, "You've been gone for a week after that massive blow out in the town's square. A couple'a people were getting worried, so they sent me over like some kinda errand boy."
"A couple of them?" She narrowed her eyes.
"Yeppers."
His blue eyes met hers, hardly light like a winter's sky such as Chamille's, or blue agate like Ellowyn's, or oceanic like Dwyn's. They were milky, sort of. With a greyish undertone. And much like his horse, he had luscious lashes that were actually quite tasteful to look at. She was definitely not a bit jealous.
She folded her arms, a sneaking suspicion crept along the base of her skull, as if something was telling her he wanted to be let inside and that she shouldn't. She levelled him with a frown.
"Well, alright then. I was just lookin after Winnie. I already let my co-workers know, so I would've thought everyone else in the village knew by now."
"You want me to be honest?"
"Yeah."
"Seems like they wanted to make sure you weren't doing anything suspish in here. So let's make this easy on both of us. You let me have a looksie so I can tell 'em 'no' and we can part ways like this never happened."
Y/N weighed her options. She didn't really want some outsider waltzing around her childhood home- her home filled with memories. Her sacred space. But if it would get people like Margot off her back for a little while... well, she didn't really have anything to hide (that wasn't already hidden). Probably.
With a heavy sigh, she took herself out of the doorway, standing to the side and holding the door. He tipped his hat, placing it to his chest before putting it back on his head as he stepped inside. With no word of a thank you or apology, he started looking around.
"Wanna give me a ride back to town? Winnie's doin better than she was before, so I figure I might as well go back to work."
"Can do. Also, how is the kiddo? She came down with something, Gayle said."
"She's doin better than she was before," Y/N repeated.
From the top of the stairs, Dwyn poked her head, and just as Y/N was frantically gesturing 'no, go back upstairs!', Thomas caught a glimpse of her.
"There she is," He smiled with yellowing teeth, "How're you doing?"
"I'm... fine..." She looked back and forth between him and Y/N, "I got better a little bit ago but Y- Glory wanted to stay looking after me."
"Your hair is nice, see? It looks like well-harvested hay."
"Tha... aaanks?"
"Your welcome, kiddo," He did a tip of the hat again, this time just nodding his head and pulling at the brim, "Don't concern yourself with me, ight? You can go and act like I'm not even here. Goddess knows I don't wanna be. Your mother-..." He looked at Y/N, skeptically, "Sister?"
Y/N just shrugged with her hands. It wasn't very helpful, and Tom looked decidedly aggravated at the sight. But Y/N didn't really know what she'd call her relationship with Dwyn. She just loved the girl unconditionally. Sure, Dwyn had called her 'mom' when she was sick a while ago, but it hadn't come up since.
For the most part, she just decided that they were sisters because that made the most sense due to their age gap of eleven years. However, she'd be remiss to say that she hadn't cared for Dwyn in the way an older sister, aunt, and mother would.
During Dwyn's early life, she was passed around the village back and forth between houses. Y/N would play with her and the other kids whenever she and Cedric came into town. But it never extended beyond that until he left. Y/N was just fifteen-turning-sixteen when she took Dwyn under her wing, and Dwyn was just a toddler.
Y/N had acted as a guardian, a parent, a caregiver for Dwyn for the length of what was basically the girl's entire life.
Y/N didn't know what it was like to be a mother. She knew she hated the idea of giving birth, and if she didn't have to, she would probably never choose to. However, she didn't hate children as a concept. In fact, back then, the only kids from the village that she actually got along with were the ones younger than her. She didn't have much experience with a 'peer group'. She didn't know what was socially expected of her, and she didn't know how to connect with others or make friends, so she failed at every corner.
But playing babysitter for tired moms and running around with the youngins had been fun for her. And as a kid who rarely got out much, it helped with giving her variety and playtime that she didn't really get at their isolated house in the woods.
The love she felt for Dwyn was endless and unconditional. Y/N didn't always do things right when raising her. She wasn't a smart woman, and she wasn't strong, nor did she have a natural affinity for understanding people. In fact, she was so awkward and unsure of herself that she rarely knew what to say or how to connect with others.
However, she felt like her love for Dwyn was probably what most parents would feel for their children. Maybe what her dad felt for her, not exactly her mother.
"Gloria's just showing me around, see?"
Dwyn looked to Y/N, and at her nod, she gave a shaky smile to the interloper.
"Okay... have fun... bye," Dwyn waved goodbye and went back upstairs.
Thomas looked to Y/N, who just shook her head. She wasn't sure what question she was answering in his face, but he seemed to get the message that she didn't want him to ask it aloud, and resumed his perusing of her house. He looked out the window and commented on her garden, nodding when she said her older brother started it. He knocked on the basement door, joking mildly about them having children down there. But when he actually went down there and saw nothing he shrugged it off and moved on.
They didn't have a pipes system or anything. The water used through the house came from the tanks in the basement that her dad had set up for convenience. There were, of course, other things adding to it- such as how it was restocked and all that... but Tom wouldn't have thought of such questions just by looking. None of them had been to school, after all.
Onto rifling through her cupboards for anything he could latch onto. Then looking at the books in the living room, eyes darting over the titles and spines on the shelf before he reached up and grabbed one. She wasn't sure which one he was looking at, but it was a paperback and he began flicking through the pages.
"You know how to read?" He looked extremely unimpressed.
Well. She was a woman, after all. It wasn't a common skill for women.
"Not very well. I've been teachin Winnie, though."
"Why would she need to know?" He snapped the book closed and she tried not to be indignant about the question.
It was valid, technically.
"It could be useful in the future," She shrugged, "Besides, she really likes fairytale books. There's nothin much to do out here and it passes the time."
He hardly looked convinced, sliding the book back on the shelf and moving passed her to the sofa. She looked at the shelf, trying to place which book he'd picked up. It was a book about small remedies for illnesses by some unnamed peasant. Not published, but copied over and over again by hand and passed around. She'd gotten it from Beathán. That was even where she learned about honeyed milk and peppermint tea and other such cheap cures. They'd worked wonders so far.
She didn't know if Tommy had picked that one out on purpose or even if he knew how to read. However, when she turned back to address him, she found him unhooking he musket from the wall above the couch, hardly acknowledging the way Y/N barely restrained herself from rushing over and snatching it from his hands or her cut off yelp from when she clamped her mouth shut.
Without a word of warning, he was holding the thing in his arms. It's lock was obviously, well, locked, but it was loaded.
"So, whaddaya do with this?"
"Uhh... usually you shoot with it, but I guess you could hit people over the head with it-"
"You're so funny I forgot to laugh. I was asking what you're doing with it, missy."
What was he, her dad? Why did he feel the need to ask that?
"... I shoot with it."
"A woman with a gun, huh... and who taught you how?" He furrowed his brows, looking up from the musket and right at her.
"My brother."
"Riiiiight, I see, I see," He stared at it for a second more, before putting it back up on the wall, "The one who got away."
She didn't like that comment. It felt snide.
When he started heading for the stairs, her heart kicked into overdrive and she instantly rushed passed him, standing at the base of the stairs with one hand on the banister and other on the wall, using her body as a shield.
"What d'you think you're doin, mate??"
"I'm checking upstairs," He took a step forward towards the wall and she moved so most of her body was blocking the way.
"Uh. No, you're not," She fixed him with a glare.
"Yes I am."
However, when he went towards the banister, taking a step forward into her space, she put her hands on his shoulders and shoved him back harshly. He caught himself, hardly even stumbling, but the push had done it's job. Completely exasperated, the older man folded his arms and looked over her, dubiously.
"You're not comin upstairs, mate. This is where me and Dwyn sleep and dress and stuff. It's private."
"Now you listen here, I'm not looking for trouble. I just wanna have a quick nosy about so I can tell the folks to leave me alone. Then I'll be on my way. Don't be difficult."
"And what exactly d'you think you're gunna find up there?"
"Heck if I know, but you're not making yourself look any better with the way you're acting."
"Oh- what-?? So just because I value my privacy- and my sister's- I'm suddenly suspicious?!"
"It's mighty suspicious that you're hiding a whole part of your house!"
"Come off it, mate! You looked around the whole house and found NOUT ALL! I didn't even hafta let you in the front door! Why would I go this far just to cut you off here if I was weird this whole time, like??"
"Much as I want to, I can't leave until I've looked everywhere. I ain't looked everywhere yet, Glory. Just make this easy for us both."
"You don't need to look everywhere. This is my house, and I'm not gunna let you go rootin around our private rooms upstairs! You've seen everythin you need to to make a judgment!"
"I have better things to do than argue with you, see? Just move aside so I can get this inspection over with..."
"Make me," She proceeded to crack each one of her knuckles and the first digits of her fingers individually for emphasis.
He didn't seem to like that one bit, and his demeanour changed to something way less laid back, and far more hostile. His form became wider and somehow bigger as his slouch straightened out and his careless looking around became something targeted.
"Innocent people don't have anything to hide."
"Does being innocent somehow rescind my right to feel secure in my own home??" She challenged, "I let you look around my place. You've looked. Now, let's go."
It wasn't that she had anything suspicious up there. The fact of the matter was she didn't trust this guy. He very well could overpower her, and she didn't like the thought of him being so near Dwyn. Sure, both of them could move downstairs, but what if he blocked the way?
Upstairs held all of hers and Dwyn's personal effects, and all her dad's and brother's things that they happened to leave behind. Clothes, undergarments, trinkets. Who knows what this guy could lift and walk away with if he so pleased?
The only weird thing he'd find if he really looked was her dagger under her pillow. It was for self-defence but who knew what kind of story he could make out of that? A ceremonial dagger for her witchy rituals? Her favourite murder weapon for all the people she lured out into the forest? She didn't want to even give him the chance to find more stuff he could manipulate.
"You're two young women living alone, see. I don't have to listen to either of you if I don't want to. You don't want me to stop being Mr. Nice Guy."
"Winnie is a girl, not a woman," She snarled, "And your threats don't work on me. If you lay a single hand on my head, the whole village will know about how you tore through my house like a twister against my will, like. You're not gunna find anythin. End. Of. Story. So turn your arse around and walk back on outta here."
They had a strong stare-off. Neither one backed off for a moment, backs straight and glares heavy, burning into the other. It was obvious that this guy didn't like getting talked down to by a woman, and it was obvious she wasn't going to budge without a fight. So they were at an impasse.
Until he relented, with a groan.
"Tch. Heard," He took a step back, looking sour, "I didn't even wanna come here. So let me cut the crap. Why are you still out here?"
"What?"
"You're away from Summerville- from the community. Everyone thinks 'that girl ain't right'- they know there's a reason you're staying far away instead of living surrounded by people."
"This... this is my house," Y/N's face scrunched up, "My dad built this place up. We lived out here because he was a year-round hunter, so of course he needed to stay-"
"He was a hunter. But you're not a hunter, see? And he's not here anymore. So why haven't you moved into the village? You ain't got no reason to stay out here 'less you have something to hide."
"I... I don't have anythin to hide."
It was technically a lie, and technically the truth. She desperately tried to mask her growing panic- the way her heart pounded against her chest- yes, of course she had things to hide from Summerville. But that wasn't all. This house was her only worldly possession that she could never give up. She could sell everything else. The furniture, the clothes on her back. But when it came to material possessions, this place and all the memories that came with it were it for her.
"This is the place I was raised in. This is- this is my home. It's our home, mine and Dwyn's... it's the last piece of my dad, and it's where Ric will look first if he comes back-"
"You honestly believe that boy is coming back?" The man raised a brow.
And Y/N... Y/N... didn't know. She wanted to believe he was. All along, she'd been hoping, waiting each passing day for him to come back. Maybe one day he'd see just how much she'd been hurt and apologise for acting rashly.
"There's nothing for you here, kid," At her silence, Thomas continued, "You can't be staying here anymore. Everyone thinks somethings going on. I dunno if I believe it... if you were carrying the Preeminent's spawn, I think I'd know just from the look of your place. You're clean as far as I'm bothering to care. But other people ain't gonna feel the same. There ain't no way they'll let you off the hook just cuz I did. And if you are doing something bad, they'll find out even if you try to hide it here."
"Uhhhh... what??"
The Preeminent- the living embodiment of the Cursed Realm, by which evil spirits are consumed and from which spiders were born from the belly of the beast (that last part was just her personal theory, though). It was said to be a huge monster chained to the bottom of the ocean after the Goddess' loyal prophet, Nyad, defeated it and sealed it down there, becoming its eternal guard.
A creation of a prominent demonic being (Y/N didn't remember what his name was in the legends)- said to be the Goddess' lover or brother or father or close friend, depending on who was recounting the tale. His role in Hell is ambiguous. Some say he's the ruler. Some say he simply lives there, others say he IS Hell, in the same way that the Preeminent is the Cursed Realm. He was interchangeably deemed as the/a 'devil', although that was a term stolen from some other disconnected fairytales as far as her father had said.
It's said that at the End of Times (a day in the far future), all living souls will be reaped from their bodies and judged by the Master- the first prophet from the Beginning of humanity. But before that, the remaining humans will be tested for their faith by the Goddess. At dawn, all prophets will be brought to Paradise- including Nyad- and the Preeminent will break free and begin inadvertently cleansing the world of evil spirits since that is the only food it can consume.
A whole bunch of other stuff happens, but large Sects of faith believe that since only the Goddess' power is infallible, that means that it's very possible that the Preeminent could use it's thrall on humans and lure them to the dark side even under Nyad's watch.
'Bugger.'
He pushed his hat back to massage his temples. But she noticed the way his eyes flickered up towards where the stairs cut off passed his limited vision. She subtly shifted more so she was in the way if he tried to run up there.
"You know the deal, the thing that-"
"I know the deal, mate," Y/N interrupted, "Whose sayin crap like that, like?"
"It's just a bunch of bullhonkey from she-who-shall-not-be-named. Don't think there's any truth to it, but you're definitely doing something weird out here, that's for sure."
And of course, Y/N knew instantly who he was referring to.
"I'm litchrally not."
He readjusted his hat again and gave a noncommittal hum of acknowledgement.
"As far as I can see, yep. But humans can't see a lot of things with our eyes. We're far from the ocean and you haven't got anything the least bit suspish in here, so I doubt you have anything to do with the damn thing. I'll just go tell 'em that and wash my hands of this mess. This has been way more trouble than it's worth."
Y/N relaxed a bit. He was still being overly casual for her liking, and having him in her home was making her a bit anxious.
"Are we going?" He questioned, looking entirely bored with the whole affair.
"Yeah, just give me a sec to see my sister."
He turned on his heel and headed for the door, prompting her to scurry up towards the top of the stairs, where Dwyn was already waiting in the doorway of her room, looking a bit worried.
"Is everything okay, Y/N...?"
"Everythin's fine. It's just that stupid old hag from the village," Y/N rolled her eyes, leaning forward and opening her arms so Dwyn could leap right into them, enthusiastically.
"Will we be okay?"
"Yeah, we will. I sent him off. I'm goin with him, though."
"You're going back??"
"I'm goin back..." She sounded far too resigned for her liking.
"Why?" Dwyn looked up at her as they pulled away, arms loosely hanging around one another.
"It's about time I get back to work, anyways. And if I come in with that dunderhead, then it'll be clear enough that I'm innocent of... whatever they were expectin of me," She closed her eyes, an annoyed breath leaving her mouth.
"Okay, don't worry about me, then, I'll be fine!"
"That's right, sweetie. You're a big strong girl now!" Y/N chuckled, pinching her cheek and watching the endearing way she glared up at her, "I better be goin then. Stay in the barrier."
"Yeah, I will!"
With that, Y/N took her leave, pulling on her shoes at the door. Tommy was already waiting, saddling up as Y/N closed the door behind her. And as they left, Y/N having been pulled onto the horse with a single yank from Tom, she watched Dwyn wave exaggeratedly from the window. And neither of them stopped waving at each other until the house was too far away to see clearly.
"You really love that kid, don'tcha?"
"What's not to love?" Y/N asked, tucking some stray hair behind her ear as the world whizzed passed.
The man didn't respond, but that didn't make the journey any less tense. The silence was between two people who had some animosity between one another, so it couldn't exactly be friendly. It was a good thing neither one of them said anything. Y/N was fairly certain she'd start getting defensive if he tried to bring up Dwyn or another house inspection.
As she admired the blur of the surroundings, she thought she saw something shimmering through the trees, and her head naturally followed as they flounced by. It was something lightly coloured, something alive. Something that made her chest squeeze with dread and concern. When she turned her head to Tommy, he hadn't noticed anything. But Y/N knew. Even if she'd only gotten a glance, she'd never forget that ethereal sandy blonde hair.
Her chest shuddered with a deep sigh. She knew what was coming. He was waiting for her. And there was no escaping. She'd never heard any success stories of people trying to outsmart the Fae.
In the end, the Fae always got what they wanted.
======================
"Geez, I didn't take Tom for such a douchebag," Chamille stated, sweeping up the flour spill (oooooooohhh how she hated that stupid brand of flour!! Expensive to the point of price gouging- she could go on-) that Dareth had caused and then promptly abandoned.
Honestly, Y/N hadn't planned on telling anyone about what had happened in her house, since she didn't want to rock the boat with Margot and anybody else who may have thought Y/N was some vindictive arse wipe, but after Gayle had left for the day the consequences of speaking out about her negative experiences felt somewhat lessened.
After all, Chamille wasn't the gossip type. She was reserved about the things she was told in confidence- and she had heard a lot since she could disappear into the background so quickly and easily.
"Yeah, neither did I," Y/N tilted her head towards the ceiling.
She hadn't spoken to Thomas much before their unfortunate crossing of paths that day. They had spoken once or twice, but mostly when he was talking to Balthazar or Beathán or Dareth, and she happened to join in on the conversation. Still, she expected some more basic courtesy from the guy.
How many people had started getting suspicious of her? How many people had encouraged him to 'investigate' her? How much of the village should she be wary of?
Whatever, now she just had to focus on staying vigilant. If she could keep her wits about her for the rest of summer, she'd probably fly under the radar when the seasons changed, and the Fall Festival raised spirits a bit more. With time, that baseless gossip would be washed away. She had a good reputation with a lot of people in town already, but the scorn she faced today was palpable from some small groups of people.
"Why don't you move in around these parts?"
"Well, I like it out in the woods for one. It's peaceful."
"You say that like Summerville is chaotic," The woman rolled her eyes, "I don't see how it could get any more peaceful around here."
"Yeah, well, my house has all my memories there. Plus there's less people."
"I feel you on that last part... and I can't say much else. You can grab and move everything you can here, can't you? Start a new garden- grab the seeds...? At least before winter hits..."
"It wouldn't be the same."
"You stay picky, Glory," Chamille leaned against the counter with a contemplative look, "Wouldn't you rather get the weird looks dropped from you? You're lucky Pastor Vex likes you. He keeps talking about the Sunday Sermon again, saying you'll be there."
Y/N didn't agree to that... but then, with the situation as it was, it wasn't like she could refuse, could she? She groaned under her breath.
"I feel you, girl. I'm not a fan of the church either. It's cold as balls. But we can manage."
She rolled her shoulder blade, listening to the distant cracking echoing within, much to Chamille's visible disgust. Y/N had fallen a bit out of practice with sword training over the week she had off, and so she spent her lunch break getting back into it with Beathán. That, on top of her terrible shift (spent making macarons and she was very, very bad at making those, so she had to keep asking for help over and over again and it was just very tedious), meant that it all came pouring out when Chamille stepped in- scaring the living daylights out of Y/N- and it was just them alone while she prepped for the evening shift.
"Yeah, I guess I'll be there," She tried not to sound too annoyed about it, since that would be even more suspicious than just her staying out of town, "And, honestly, I get why it's weird to people that I'm not livin in town, but is it so weird that I have to have some guy storm my place like the bloody royal guard?"
Chamille gave her a funny look, but she wasn't sure what it was about because as soon as Y/N looked over her face was wiped clean and she instead took on something more sombre.
"Sure you're not just making excuses, Glory?" Y/N startled at that, blinking owlishly at Chamille's remorseful intonation, "... Juliette has been taking care of her grandparents, so her getting married so late in the game makes sense. But you haven't been boshed about looking for a husband."
It suddenly felt as if she was put in the hot seat, subjected to an analysing stare from someone she had been so comfortable around not even moments ago. And the worst part, was that it wasn't like the Fae's deeply cutting look. It was something filled with pity.
"You won't leave your house because it's where you grew up."
"Yeah...?"
"And- putting aside that the guy's a bozo- the reason you won't marry Laurence is because you'd have to leave your house."
"Y-Yeah."
Chamille tutted, shaking her head.
"That house is holding you back, girl. All the major decisions that could make a good future for you are getting kicked away because you can't let go of that place. It's got a chokehold on you," She threw the tea towel strewn over the counter over her shoulder, and headed to the rack on the wall to hang it up.
Y/N felt something twist in her heart. Chamille's words were casual and nonchalant, but somehow, they dug right into her. Why? Because she was right?
Y/N had told the Fae before that she'd feel sorry for a woman who dresses like a floosey, because that must mean she was ready to endure the scorn for it. Was Y/N not in a similar position? Living out in the woods away from the village, refusing marriage despite knowing that she'd receive weird looks and rumours over it?
It was her choice to do such things, just as the mythical woman in their back and forth had made the choice to dress that way. Y/N had asked if it would be worth all of the backlash, and Chamille had done the same. In the end, was Y/N not just some bitter woman clinging to the past? How far would she be willing to go just to hold onto something that was already dead and gone?
"It's not..." But she couldn't find the words to defend herself.
"It's not what?" Chamille asked, hands on her hips, looking dubious, "Glory... to put it bluntly, your dad had that house because he was a hunter. And he's dead now. Ricky had the right idea, leaving that place behind to start a family. Sounds to me like you're just looking for excuses... don't you think it's time to move on?"
Move on? She'd already accepted her dad was dead. And wasn't it enough that she'd accepted her brother's abandonment, even if she wasn't happy about it?
She was apathetic when her mother passed away- you could call that moving on. Sepsis took to her and she just got worse and worse. Cedric had been with her that night. Holding her hand, saying goodbye as she died violently to cholera that had taken over her weakened system. Apparently, in her last moments, she only called for Celine to come back. Cedric had told her that a few months after their dad left. The two of them laid side by side and he confessed that truth that had been weighing on his heart for years. He was right in front of her, and she only wanted her daughter back. She didn't even see him.
He never moved on, but she didn't really feel anything for her mother. Maybe she'd just been too young to understand and she just didn't know the woman all that well.
Even so, she still loved her brother dearly- to the point that it disgusted her these days. Perhaps this was how Cedric had felt for their mother. Unable to stop lingering on thoughts of her, unable to keep replying the final moments they spent together and feeling nothing but loneliness as there was no acknowledgement from the other side. Y/N spent her whole life by his side. They were all each other had. And maybe... maybe she really was waiting for him and hoping for him to return. Maybe she hadn't moved on. But Y/N didn't think it was such a bad thing. If there was even a chance, she wanted to take it, because she still loved him.
And even with all that devotion, all the times Y/N had stood by him, he still didn't see her when he left. How could that even be fair? She believed- or she wanted to believe that he'd see the error of his ways and return. Even if he returned with his wretch of a wife, she'd still be happy to just see him.
"Move on...? I... I'm movin forward," Y/N insisted.
"Okay, think of this, then," Chamille leaned against the wall, thoughtfully, "If you didn't have the house, would you get married to someone in the village and move in?"
"I... guess so...? Why couldn't they just move in with me?"
"If you didn't have the house, Glory, keep up."
"Alright- fine! I... I'd need to bring Dwyn with me, but I never expected to marry for love anyways, so yeah... I'd move into the village if I had to."
"Then there you have it. You're not moving forward at all, or else you'd be able to carry your memories with you instead of needing the things they left behind."
Y/N had seen a lot of death, stepping over plagued corpses in the streets, staring at crosses etched into doors. The head on the pike in the middle of town that she stared up at. Moving on from all that had been nothing. It was normal for people to die when they were sick, and for their bodies to be moved by the pile. It was normal for people to be executed when they did something wrong.
It was normal for fathers to die at war, too.
But Y/N couldn't just leave all her memories behind because it was normal, could she? She didn't want to. And maybe that made her selfish, or suspicious, or abnormal. But how could she leave it all behind.
"Death is a part of life. Do you think your family want you to stay isolated and alone? Do you think they'd want you to be treated this way if they were still here?"
Y/N frowned, deeply. Her dad... definitely not. His marriage with her mom had fallen apart pretty early on, but he still cared about her and did his best to take care of her where he could. Because her mother ended up being so dependent on him, he would've encouraged Y/N to leave with Laurence- an independent, travelling man with prospects who would probably never end up dependent on Y/N.
If Cedric were there... well, she didn't think she even knew who Cedric was anymore. But before he met Odette, he probably would've discouraged her from marrying Laurence, and insisted that she feel him out first, and only do it if she truly loved him. Because he wanted her to be happier than what their mother was.
"And if you never marry at all, that's fine. You can just live with me forever!" He used to joke, and she had smiled each time and proclaimed that would be best for both of them.
They used to be inseparable like that...
"No... of course not. But whether I do or don't- that's my business, like," She looked up from staring vacantly at her palms, and met Chamille's eyes.
"Naturally, it's your choice- but we all care about you. We want you to do what's best for you."
They were just looking out for her best interests... when did it get to the point that Y/N suddenly wasn't willing to listen just because she didn't like what she was hearing? When did she start closing herself off just because she knew that other people were right and she didn't want to accept it?
"But, y'know, I don't think any of this warrants what Tom did to my arse. I get your guys' concern for me, and I'm glad you get where I'm comin from to some extent... but invadin my house just because others don't get why...? I mean, it's two girls livin alone, and one of them is infamously crap at self-defence. It worries me, because he said himself that he doesn't have to listen to us..."
"Bet. If that douche ever tries that again, hit him with the ol' one-two, alright? I'll have your back."
"I'll get him with the razzle dazzle. He won't even know what's comin," Y/N agreed, grinning as Chamille burst out in laughter and the tension in the air seemed to alleviate a bit.
Soon, she'd be going home again. She didn't like the idea of being caught out there with Dwyn waiting at home as that Faer man popped out and stalled her, no doubt ready to pummel her with questions about what she was doing on horseback.
For real, if Tommy had seen him on the way to Summerville that morning, then she would've been so totally screwed. Lots of people knew he was going to visit her. Not only did she have no idea where to hide a body, but everyone would suspect she'd done something to him!
"Okay, Glory. Save your razzling and dazzling for when you truly need it. You never know who might get caught in the crossfire. It's far too powerful for a normal mortal to withstand," Chamille warned, sagely.
Y/N snickered a bit.
"Will do."
Then, an alarm went off- a timer telling Chamille to get something or another out of the oven. She rushed to slam it off, and then carefully opened said oven, and a wave of heat rolled out. With thick oven mitts, she produced a tray of baked bread from within, and then carefully placed it down. Y/N was already on the other side of the oven, waiting for the scalding hot tray to be moved before she shut the oven for the black-haired girl.
"Geez, where did the time go?" She muttered, before turning to Y/N, "You know what that means, Glory?"
She gestured heavily to the timer. Y/N awkwardly shrugged, much to the woman's dismay.
"It means it's been about half an hour since I got here..." When Y/N didn't reply, Chamille glared, "That means it's late, and you need to go home."
"Ooohhhhhhh..." Y/N trailed off.
With that, Chamille clapped her mitts together, the dull sound of fabric clashing with fabric radiating through their ears as.
"No 'ohh', girl. Get a move on," She began shooing Y/N out of the back door of the bakery, "Get out, chop chop."
"Yeah, yeah. I'm on it."
"Great! Now, 'on it' faster!"
With it now being in the throes of summer, night encroached at far later times. So when she tripped over the step (as always) and caught herself, she found the sky above was still bright with the setting sun. It was a bright red sky like tomato soup, but unlike it's warm colours, the cold had set in very quickly and goosebumps rippled up Y/N's thinly guarded arms.
"It's cold!" She complained, but the woman in the bob cut simply shrugged with a smug smile, her hands on the door as she slowly began to close it.
"You better hurry and get home then!"
The door closed, the light of the bakery disappearing from the slim line that had cast over the girl's face, leaving her in the cold air and an open sky. Y/N stared at the door, as if it would somehow magically reopen and Chamille would peer out and toss her a coat or something. But after a few moments, she came to terms with her wishful thinking, rubbing frantically at the raised skin of her arms and glaring at the open air.
"I think you're the douchebag, like..." She mumbled, as she turned away to start the march home.
Ingrid would've given her a coat or something.
She paused, heart shuddering. Then she continued her trek, rubbing her arms to warm them up, to no avail. She missed Ingrid a lot. It felt weird not having her at the bakery. But hey. That's life. People come and go all the time. She'd surely get used to it.
... get used to it, huh? Chamille was right about her. Y/N hadn't moved on. She didn't want to move on. She'd be fine even if she never did. Out of all the things in life- every material possession under her name- her house was the one thing she could never give up on. Dwyn was the one person she would never give up, but the house was the one thing she would never abandon. It was everything to her.
Just another thing she was wrong for.
.
.
.
"Who were you with this morning-?"
"AAAAHHH!!"
She damn well nearly jumped twenty feet into the air! She physically leapt, the sound of a sudden voice from the treeline catching her off guard. By the Goddess!
Honestly, she should've been expecting it. Perhaps she was silly for NOT expecting it. Somewhere during the journey, the sounds of owl hoots and quiet bird calls had disappeared- so she knew it was coming. And because of that, she had been wound up, full of tension, and it all snapped at once when his voice disrupted the silence.
Behind her, she could hear him go 'ppfffffft' as if it were the most hilarious thing in the world (an exaggeration). Instead of addressing him, she indignantly spent a moment collecting herself while his stifled laughter sounded out behind her. He was desperately clamouring to hide it. But she knew. And she was about four steps away from smacking him over the head.
If only he wasn't an extremely powerful being made from pure magic. Then, she would absolutely show him what was what!
She assured herself of this, a hand on her chest to soothe her screaming heart which was close to breaking a rib and tearing out of her skin. All this stress was bound to give her a stroke one of these days.
"I-" He snickered, "I'm s- pppbbffft- are- are you okay?"
After taking a few deep breaths and feeling the ends of her shaking vision smooth out, she finally whipped around to him with a strong glare.
"You bloody NINJA!! You scared the livin daylights out of me, mate!! I swear, my heart damn well nearly stopped-!" She yelled, but her anger quickly drained out of her- she didn't have the energy to deal with strong emotions, as if all that anxiety suddenly crashed, sinking down from her centre and into her toes, "Just- bugger- just... what?"
"What what?"
"What..." She exhaled a deep and weary breath, "What... d'you want, mate?"
His eyes widened a fraction, the amusement washed out of his face as he seemed to recall the reason he'd felt the need to appear out of nowhere and smack the soul right out of her body. Thankfully, he didn't look angry. But the calm mask not betraying any of his feelings still made her wary.
"I haven't seen you for a while."
"Yeah... I was busy with somethin at home so I haven't had the time to go about."
For a moment, he held her gaze. But he didn't comment any further on the topic.
"This morning, you were riding a horse- I saw you," He spoke as if he were expecting her to deny it- a sort of mild accusation.
"I gathered that. Still weird, by the way."
"You were with someone," He elaborated quickly, brushing passed her words, "Who was it?"
At that, she let out another sigh. Bloody hell, this day only seemed to steal more and more out of her until she was about ready to collapse into bed and end the day there.
"Just some guy from the village I go to... bugger- he was checkin up on me, kinda. Cuz'a the fact I was away for a while, he and a few other people were... wantin to see what I was doin, like."
The Fae's eyebrows did that signature jerk she was used to seeing as he looked her up and down.
"What were you doing?"
"The thing that I cut off our last conversation for."
"Okay, and what was that?"
"Mate, why are you actin like I'm cheatin on you or somethin?"
She had had enough of being questioned today! It was nobody's business what she did in her free time. It wasn't Tom's business, it wasn't this Fae's business. She didn't need to let Thomas force his way into her house and snoop about. She didn't need to tell the Fae that she had a sister (and put her in danger). This was just the cherry on top of an already perfect day, wasn't it!!
But quickly, she took a deep breath and calmed herself. Her rudeness wasn't needed. For one, the Fae didn't deserve that... well, actually, she was being quite generous with the things she decided he did and didn't deserve when it came to her attitude, all things considered, but she still felt bad about snapping at him. She was just frustrated, but did that mean she was suddenly allowed to take her anger out on him? No.
Well... if he didn't like it, he was always free to leave her alone.
'You are such an idiot, Y/N...' She complained to herself, smacking the sides of her head with the heels of her hands, 'Get a grip.'
Because like it or not, when it came to this Faer Man who had wormed his way into her life, it didn't matter whether she was ticked off at him, or whether she felt bad about lashing out on him. Her survival came first before any of her personal feelings. And if she enraged him, he would surely just kill her. He was very capable of it, after all.
Still, she felt the need to remind herself of it over and over again, lest she let her guard down like she did the last time they spoke.
"Sor-" She came to a forceful stop, damn near groaning as the frustration returned and she carefully changed her words, "My bad, so- I mean..." She sighed again, not bothering to even mentally address the way he smirked, "Look, it's nobod-... I'm not gunna tell you what I was doin, that's the thing about that. But I shouldn't be gettin upset at you just because you asked. That's my bad."
At the very least, he didn't look offended by her straight-forwardness- it's just that she was getting sick of having to talk around her words at this point.
Maybe she shouldn't be accepting fault around a Fae... would he somehow twist that into her needing to make up for it with a favour...? She hadn't outright apologised... the apprehension weighed down on her shoulders.
"Okay, sure..." He turned her words over in his head for a moment, "Why the horse, though?"
Good, great... she was in the clear. Thank the Goddess...
"He came out with it. I figured he might as well take me in with it, too. It's definitely faster than walkin."
"Do you know him well?"
"No, not at all. Honestly, if I didn't have to talk to him, I wouldn't have."
"Is he a problem for you?"
When she looked up from her shuffling feet, she found his iridescent eyes staring back at her. The sun had half-breached the horizon, and the sky was still bright as he stood off the path just opposite her. There was a wide birth between them, a separation that should've made Y/N feel secure. But with the way his pupils narrowed with a hidden threat, she couldn't have felt more like she was standing beneath a ringing dinner bell in those moments. The red in the sky was almost a warning of the red that would come if her blood were spilled.
She nervously chewed on the inside of her cheek and shook her head.
Earlier in the day, she'd been thought about how she might've had to have killed Thomas. But realistically speaking, that was just a fearful consideration in the moment. Thomas wasn't a bad person. He was a jerk and a twit, but he wasn't deserving of a Fae's wrath. He'd made it clear that he was sort of peer pressured into the search of her place anyways.
"Nah. He's nothin."
The Fae regarded her once more with those incandescent eyes that reflected the light like jewels, and Y/N took the time to regard him, too. He was as uncannily beautiful as ever, like something straight from a painting or book. The sort of beauty ripped right from a surreal piece. His face was the same as ever, perfectly symmetrical, with big, wide eyes of jade green. Something pure and untainted that shone and shifted colours in the sunlight.
Gold earrings hung from pointed ears, long and delicate. And she noticed there was a golden bracelet clasped around his wrist, and a thin, golden chain of an anklet on his foot that twinkled against the black markings with white spots on the backs of his limbs.
Over the past few days, he'd actually worn hardly any earrings. The first time they met, he'd been covered in it, but he hadn't worn much like it since. His outfit today was far more intricate, with a shirt made from silk- split in two down the right pectoral after the collar swooped down over it and sealed together with two ivy-like broaches of gold.
It was white, sleeveless and shimmered under the light, with a bright green draconian pattern on the large left half. And for once, all the skin of his torso was covered as its length reached his mid-thigh, beneath which he was wearing another pair of shorts that cut off just passed the knees.
His hair was different, too. The blonde reflected the red light of the sky in a sort of orange-gold halo, and the curly length around his neck had been pulled back into a ponytail, revealing the golden apple charms on the ends of his earrings, and the small diamond studs that sat in the thin lobes on either side.
There was also a flowering laurel of snowberries, small white geraniums, rich purple flowers that looked as if each petal were individually painted, from the vibrant tips to the gentle coloured ruffles in the centre. On the edges of the crown were light purple lilacs and cerulean forget-me-nots, and adorned throughout were small green gems that she couldn't see clearly. But she knew that they paled in comparison to his flawless irises, like pools of magic.
"You look nice, today," She admitted, without really thinking about it.
It was true. Sure, he was still a bit unnerving, but the golden trim shirt highlighted the broadness of his speckled shoulders, and it was all very complimentary to his ethereal appearance. He looked lovely by all accounts.
When she glanced back up to his face, she saw his cheeks, and the ends of his ears lightly tinted pink.
She couldn't help but tilt her head, looking at him from a different angle as if the colour would disappear like an optical illusion. It didn't. If anything, he only averted his gaze as his cheeks deepened in colour. It was cute, in the way that he was always cute when he got like this. He was less scary, and he felt more human. But she couldn't understand why.
Dareth became flustered when he was the butt of a joke. Malik, whenever he saw Ellowyn in the vicinity. Gayle, whenever she was confronted head on about something she had no defence for (usually her gossiping). Balthazar became flustered when Julietta flirted or joked with him, but she wasn't flirting nor was she joking. She was actually very serious, he was incredibly attractive. In fact, with or without the spiffy outfit, he was the most attractive person she'd ever seen.
Then again, Y/N became flustered when she received compliments. Perhaps it was that.
"Er- it's not... it wasn't my choice. Kai and Nya are the ones who dressed me up like this-... I'm- er- glad you like it, at least..."
Kai and Nya? Odd names- well. Nyad... Nya. Even so, that was an old, old name, very unusual for current times. Although, they were Faer so it made sense that they didn't have the same names that humans did. She wondered what this man's name was? Perhaps something like Tam Lin, like from the fairytale. Or something more abstract like... well, she couldn't actually think of anything.
She wouldn't dare ask him, of course.
"Wait," A realisation landed in her mind, "You were dressed by other people, like?"
Was he rich?? Did the Fae have a class system??! Should she be speaking more formally?
"No! I can dress myself," He pouted, folding his arms over his wide chest, "They chose the outfit... I don't normally dress like this because it's constricting, but I had to this time."
Riiight. Maybe he had to get dressed up for one of those Faer meet-ups summoned by the chime of bluebells, maybe? It was none of her business, though.
"Constrictin? It looks very comfortable, though."
Certainly, it was a lot different from the formal get-ups she'd seen at the town she used to live at (she actually couldn't remember the name, but it was something like something-keep... Redkeep or... Redrun, one or the other)... all those dresses with high collars and big, poofy skirts and tight waistlines with three layers looked very stifling. She'd never actually worn anything like it, but in comparison, the Fae seemed loose and casual.
Wordlessly, he lifted up his arm, and bangles jangled as he shook it. Thin, golden bracelets clicked against each other. Yet somehow, when he lowered it to his side, none tumbled off his wrists.
"Ah."
"Yeah," He confirmed, with a fatigued nod, "You're out here late, again."
"I started the day late. Usually, I go to work earlier but I was... doin things..." Her eyes shifted to the side, as if making eye contact would cause her to spew out the whole truth and nothing but the truth, "So I couldn't. Or, I didn't, like."
"When do you normally start work?"
She opened her mouth to give an answer but stopped herself just before she could speak. The grin on his face was almost haunting, the way it screamed 'gotcha'. There was no way she'd let down her guard again, almost enough to tell him her schedule and give him the perfect times for him to find her once more.
She clamped her jaw closed, took a deep breath, and shrugged with shaky hands.
"Whenever I'm asked to go in for. Anyway, your friends have good taste. I think you look splendid."
Again, colour amassed in his cheeks, and he rubbed the back of his neck, an awkward smile setting in. The previous topic was forgotten.
"Sure... I'll- er..." He glared a bit at the ground, as if kicking himself mentally, "Everyone else knows more about fashion than me. Kai is always annoyed that I don't learn anything. I'm glad I have them to help because I'm hopeless."
"Yeah, you're always barefoot," She wiggled a finger at his toes in the grass, "I guess you don't have to worry about it because the forest accepts you and stuff, but I'm still shocked your feet aren't cut up to high hell, like."
"I'm more worried about the iron in your path," He frowned at it, his upper lip pinching in an adorable way that made Y/N chuckle.
"Yeah, I guess. How're your feet, by the way- after that, like?"
"They're healed. I said they would heal, didn't I?" He then gestured to his lip, "Your wound is gone, too."
"Yeahh," She pressed a finger to it, thoughtfully, before she realised she had no idea how to follow up.
Small talk was not Y/N's strong suit. Continuing conversations was hard. That was part of the reason she preferred to avoid people entirely. So they just kind of... stood in silence for a while until Y/N thought of something to break the silence with.
"Um... I'm awkward, so... I dunno what to say. I guess... it's good to hear you're better?"
He snickered.
"How is your sword training? Have you made any progress?"
"No, still gettin knocked on my arse," She confessed, without a shred of hesitation, much to his amusement, "He went harsh on me today, too. Like, bugger, is it necessary to nearly knock my arms out of my sockets every bloody time? I was out of practice, too. It's not even fair."
"I could teach you a few things if you want."
"No thaaa-... I mean, I appreciate it... but that's not necessary," She held up a palm with a shake of the head, "One hard arse of a teacher is enough. Plus, you were able to lift me like a sack of potatoes. It's one thing for Bea to smack me around, but if I tried against you, you'd probably crush my bones into a fine powder. By accident."
(And it would still be a better alternative to that bloody Chumsworth Mills flour that her boss was obsessed with using and that she wished she could curb stomp into hell.)
At that, he outright laughed. Her concerns were serious, though. Beathán at least knew his strength against her. He just kicked her down all the time on purpose. But a Faer wouldn't be experienced in fighting humans and would probably destroy her before they realised it. This guy had lifted her effortlessly before.
As she thought back to that ruthless match against Beathán, she couldn't help but think back on the rest of the day as well, her face twisting in slight distress.
"Can I ask you a question, like?" She asked, suddenly.
"Is that a request?" He shot back, and instantly, she soured.
She was still curious, but definitely not enough to owe a Fae. Over a single question, too? Nah, if she was going to trade her free will, she'd rather it be for something worthwhile... well, she'd rather not trade her free will at all, but y'know. Semantics.
"No. Never mind," She turned to leave, but quickly stopped in her tracks when his shadow burst by her side on the edge of the path, landing from a great height.
Ah. He was being careful of the path now. Great, that meant she wouldn't have any more of him grabbing her suddenly!
"Wait! You can ask the question!" He giggled, "I can't promise I'll answer, though."
For a moment, she debated if it was even worth it. If she got into explaining why, it might come off like venting, which would be annoying...
Actually, being annoying would be the perfect reason for him to leave her alone! With reckless abandon, she took that thought and ran with it.
"How does marriage work for the Faer?" She asked, but at the sight of his adorably embarrassed face, she realised she'd have to clarify, "I mean... like, what time do Fae women get married? Is it even necessary for them? How does it work? Is it political- actually, do politics even exist in the Fairie Realm...?"
"Woah, one question at a time!" At the very least, he'd managed to compose himself as he waved his hands, calling her to a stop, "How about we ask a question for a question. You clearly have a lot to say, and there's a lot I'm curious about, too."
She narrowed her eyes a bit, quirking a brow.
"Can I refuse to answer...?"
"Sure, but that means I also get to refuse to answer, and if one of us refuses, we can change the question. That guarantees equivalent exchange."
"Equiverent?? What's that?"
"Equivalent. It means equal."
"Oohhh... oh," She wanted to smack herself, "Right, well, it sounds obvious now that you say it. Okay... um... okay, that sounds fine."
"Er, Fae marriages happen when they create a bond. Falling in love isn't a prerequisite, but that's the norm. At the wedding, the newly weds participate in the bowl sharing and then the private exchange ceremony, which makes them equal no matter the rank. Does that sound different to human marriages?"
Ranks... so there was some sort of class system in the Fae Realm.
"Uhhh, kinda? For us, we have a short period of courtin, then the proposal, then you get the marriage confirmed by a member of the clergy in a church to have it blessed by the Goddess. The wife walks down the aisle, then the couple exchanges rings and vows with their families and friends as a witness."
"We have courting rituals, too. They're different from yours, though... and it sounds like our version of marriage is the same. I've never heard of a wedding being 'blessed' by anyone but the parents."
Here we go, implementing her incredible strategy: volunteering meaningless information.
"Honestly, some of us can straight up skip the courtin phase. Humans get married for all sorts of reasons... it doesn't have to be love, sometimes."
"Seriously??"
"Yeah. I don't expect to get married for love, either."
"Huh-? Why not!?" He actually looked very sympathetic and perhaps a little concerned for her,
It was a sweet sentiment.
"Well... how should I...?" She muttered to herself, not finishing the question, "Um... well, the options aren't good... and I just kinda don't wanna, but I have to anyways, so..."
With her hands, she helplessly gestured to the world, as if it were physically forcing her hand into a marriage she didn't want. The Fae didn't look reassured by this.
"Why would you need to? That makes no sense. I-... I know political marriages exist, they happen in Fae culture, but you're a commoner. That shouldn't be a concern for you. What other reason would you have to get married if not for love??""
"Because I'm a woman."
"What does that matter??"
That's... four. Technically five, but... she'd already half-asked a question before, so it was only fair to cancel out one of his mistakes with her own. It wouldn't be fair to hold him to a standard and not herself.
"Women have to get married. It's important to the Goddess, like. We were given the gift of childbirth, so we need to marry a man and have his children. That's our whole purpose in life."
"Your purpose...?" He looked so distraught that Y/N couldn't bring herself to count that one, "That's not your purpose! You're a person, not a baby factory!"
She couldn't help but be surprised by that. Baby factory...? She'd never considered that to be a woman's role. Women were given this gift because that's their divine duty. Most women are happy to uphold that duty because they love the Goddess, and they love raising children. It's what women are supposed to do.
It felt a bit dehumanizing to deem it become a factory for pushing out kids. That's not the role of women. Right...? That's not it. That's not...
"That's not the way they think of us... mothers always go on about how much they love havin kids, and it's the world's greatest joy..." Still, her expression didn't really agree with her words...
Oh, whatever. Thinking about this was too hard. Y/N had a very limited amount of mind space to harbour these questions. She was no... big questioner of big things!! (The term was 'philosopher', but she didn't know that.)
"Anyways, it's my turn," She stopped him before he could argue, trying to ignore the way he stared daggers into her, "What age do Fae women get married at, like?"
"I..." He still looked stuck on what she'd said, but let it go in favour of answering her question, "Whenever they're ready. As long as it's after the age of maturity and they've formed a bond. Splitting couples is difficult since a lot of magic goes into the marriage bond, so they need to be serious about the arrangement. Now, why do you-"
"I still get three questions."
He paused and couldn't help but blink owlishly, long fluffy brown lashes brushing against his youthful, freckled face.
"Huh?"
It was nerve-wracking, interrupting a Fae. But strangely, she didn't feel in danger of retaliation. Perhaps that was the problem...
"I asked a question, then you asked one on return, followed by four more. So I get four questions."
"Huh-? When did I-?!" He stopped for a moment until his whole face bloomed red, right to the tips of his ears, "Tha- THAT'S NOT-! THAT'S CHEATING!"
Yeah, if Ingrid were there, she'd definitely say Y/N was cheeky for it. It was a strategy she used on Dwyn. She'd just say stuff that she was sure Dwyn would ask questions about. By fostering her curiosity, a lot of their lessons were more engaging for her.
In this case, she had definitely played dirty. That was sort of her whole thing. She couldn't win spars against Beathán when she fought honourably. She couldn't win against a Fae if she abided by his every whim. So the only hope was to be underhanded.
"It's not cheatin. I answered your questions, so you answer mine. That was the agreement, right?" She could barely stifle the smug undertone to her words.
The Fae looked positively thwarted, indignant, bashful. But then he wilted, murmuring something to himself that she couldn't quite catch. At the very least, he didn't look like he was about to argue with her. That was win enough in her books. He stood up tall, arms folded, and he only looked mildly annoyed.
"Okay, sure... I can't believe this... but I'm counting that as a question, by the way!"
"WHA-!? Oh- ohhh! That's so rude."
"You're the one who tricked me first!!" He exclaimed, somehow baffled, indignant, and embarrassed all at once, "I can't believe- I never thought..." He groaned, cutting himself off, shaking his head, seemingly questioning his whole existence before speaking up again, "You're full of surprises, aren't you, Gloria...?"
"Is that one of your questions, like?" She gave him a teasing smile, and he clamped up with pink dusting his cheekbones.
"W-Whatever! Just ask what you want to ask!"
And so, she did.
"What exactly..." She felt a bit embarrassed about this, actually... getting advice from the Fae, "If a- say there was a Fae woman... and there was a man pursuin her, but she didn't really like him all that much. How d'you think she could grow to like him?"
He stared at her, uncomprehendingly.
"Huh?"
"What would she do if- this doesn't count as a third question, by the way," She glared a bit, and there was mirth in his smile as she tried again, "In your culture, things are different, I know that. But if there was a man who was pursin a woman, and the woman didn't like him because of a first impression... but everyone was sayin she should try to get on with him... how would she... go about doin that?"
"Er..." His eyes looked vacant (despite their ever-present beauty), "She wouldn't, unless she was highly ranked in one of the courts. Betrothal is a two-way street, though. They'd be expected to spend a lot of time together to grow their bond. If they had a bad first impression, then that would be resolved over time..."
As he said that, his eyes were like pins stabbing into her, locking her to the spot. She wasn't sure why he was looking so pointedly at her. She wasn't keen to find out, either.
The advice he'd just given her was... basically the same thing Balthazar and Julietta had said. Get to know him. There was no new insight to be found. Great.
"Right... and what about..." How to word this... "Fae are immortal, ri- uh, hmm... let's say a Faer woman was gettin married to someone of... another court. And so, she'd have to leave her current court to be with her fiance, but she didn't want to leave her family and her stuff behind. How... would they compromise with that?"
"They could just go home any time they want, though," The Fae replied, without missing a beat, "Marriage is a big deal. You wouldn't get married if you aren't ready to leave your family."
Right. Because Fae culture is different from hers. Bitterly, she looked to the side. What kind of advice was she expecting? Fae and humans were just too different. The Fae didn't have the same values that humans did. And their people were immortal, so it would be difficult to give advice on moving on from grief if they rarely ever felt it.
This was stupid.
"Why do you want to know all this?" He asked.
And Y/N... exhaled heavily, trying to keep her negative emotions in check.
"I guess I was... just hopin to hear somethin different," She lifted her hands, idly rubbing her cold arms with a frown on her face, "It's a bit weird... I think I was just tryna put off the inevitable..."
What had she even been expecting? It was her duty to marry, to have children. It's what she was born for, what she'd grown up to do. The Goddess willed it, and so it was. Just as the sky was blue and the oceans were vast the sun rose in the east and the grass was green. Everything was made by her, for her. Y/N was no exception.
What question did she even want to ask him, now that all her fears had been confirmed?
"What exactly d'you want out of life, Blondie?"
Y/N was not an ambitious woman. She didn't have any long-term plans. But if she had to wish for something for herself, she'd wish to be able to capture beautiful moments, places, and memories. The ocean, glaciers, colourful festivals, beautiful fields of flowers. Perhaps Laurence could give Dwyn and her that. She wasn't sure.
He froze up, stunned. Eyes wide and verdant, astonished. And then his shock crumbled into something uncertain.
"I want to help the people I care about and protect my people," He offered, evasively, "Are... you okay, Gloria?"
He stepped forward, toes brushing the path, arm stretched out to touch her.
Y/N smiled a bit. It was so strange. Out of everyone, he was the one asking that. The only one who had asked that. But she couldn't reply. Because if she said 'no' that would be weird to say to a stranger. The expected answer is always 'yes'. But if she tried to say that, it'd be a lie. And you can't lie to the Fae. It's rude. She might die if she lied to the Fae... again.
"I will be... okay," She tried, "I mean, you don't hafta worry about me. It's just silly human stuff. It's not important."
"I don't care if I don't have to worry about you. It is important because it's you," He insisted, crossing the threshold and stepping off the grass, closing the distance between them so he could cup her face in his hands.
His feet didn't burn. Luckily. Or... unluckily, depending on who you asked. Y/N couldn't help but lean into the warmth of his touch for a split second before pulling back. His hands remained steadfast on her cheeks. He didn't pull or pinch or force her head in any way. His touch was feather-light and gentle like petals brushing against skin. And his eyes were filled with so much fondness, Y/N wasn't even sure why.
"But... I'm just some human, though. It shouldn't matter to you."
"You're not just some human," His brows furrowed, "It's your life. You should be able to live your life the way you want to. If you don't want to be a wife or mother, you don't have to."
He looked shy when he said it. Y/N felt sick to her stomach and yet somehow comforted all the same. It was a strange oxymoron of a feeling. He was terrifying, but he looked so gentle like this. It sent dread swelling in her chest and the warm sparks of skinship through her face. She spoke bitterly.
"That would be nice. I wish that were the case, y'know."
He smiled again. Soft, solemn, yet ominous. It made her feel like she was the only girl in the world, as if he were looking at something truly special and unmatched to anything else. It made her feel something harrowing, an animalistic fear, primal and trapped and anxious.
"Yes," His face twisted a bit, "What do you want to do with your life?"
"I want... to take care of my family, my home. I don't need anythin else, really."
"Then do that," He leaned down so their noses were almost touching, "You told me that I didn't have to do anything I don't want to... it's the same for you, isn't it?"
"No," She smiled sadly.
"If you were Mine, it would be."
"I highly doubt that."
"It wouldn't just be that," He amended, and, for some reason, Y/N was too exhausted to find his words anything but funny.
"What are your friends like, in the Fae Realm? You mentioned Kai and Nyad..."
"Nya," He corrected, huffing in amusement, "My friends can be annoying, but they're great in their own ways. I'd be lost without them. Kai is self-absorbed, but reliable. Cole is laid back. Nya is stubborn and loyal, and she always comes to my rescue when I need it the most. Zane is smart, Pix is great at everything... even if she nags, she means well. And Jay is the most annoying of them all. He never stops talking. But he's bubbly and supportive, and he has his own charm. We're... like family."
He had a lot to gush about, it seemed. It was nice to see him genuinely passionate about something, his warm palms burning against her skin. She wanted to sink into it and disappear. His chipper mood was sort of contagious, she felt herself smiling just because he was smiling.
"What about your friends? Human friendships must be very different, you have no time to get to know each other."
"I wouldn't say that..." Although it probably seemed that way to immortal beings like him, "I'm not sure what to say. I like all my co-workers, and they're very kind to me... but they're, like, the only people I know. Like, my idiot of a boss- but he's funny, y'know? It's like that for this guy I work with, 'n all... and Thazar- he's like the muscle of the bakery. He carries stuff. My mentor- Bea- he can be an arse but I really cherish him. Then there's Ga- this one woman- she gossips all the time about anythin and everythin. Even me, apparently."
"She sounds exhausting."
"She kinda is, sometimes. But she has her moments, like. It's just that so little goes on at our town, so she takes what entertainment she can get, y'know? I think that's the same for most people, like this woman who works night shift, and my good friend who left town recently... most the people I know are older or younger than me..."
The Fae smiled.
"You could meet my friends one day."
"Nah, mate. I'm good, like," She rejected, without missing a beat.
"W-W-Whuh- huh!?" He spluttered and she tried to hide her chuckles as her smirk stretched across her face, "Why not!?"
"One Fae stalker is enough," She ignored talked over his attempt to protest, "Besides, I'd have to go to the Fairie Realm in that case, and I'm not keen on gettin stolen away."
"It wouldn't be stealing..." He grumbled.
"Yeah, it would be, cuz'a the fact I won't ever let you have me," She spoke casually despite how much she was terrified of any retaliation.
However, the Fae didn't look angry or dissuaded by her insistence. Instead, his smile broadened, and his eyes sharpened as he pressed his forehead to hers. Y/N's heart sank.
The Fae always got what they wanted, in the end.
"You will."
She opened her mouth to ask- but she stopped, and her jaw clicked shut. If she asked, his expression might've changed to the cute, flustered one she knew of well. Or, it might've become the smarmy, predatory smile she knew much better- all pointed teeth and malice.
Either way, she didn't want to know.
"Gloria...?" His voice was a little quieter when he spoke, as if preserving the moment.
"Yeah?"
"What's a 'ninja'?"
She paused.
"... I dunno. A sneaky person?"
"You don't know? But that's what you called me earlier."
"My dad used to call me one all the time when I was a kid, because I'd jump out of nowhere and scare him. But I never asked what a one of them was."
"Oh..." He hummed in consideration, "I see..."
.
.
.
"We should get scented candles... because you always smell weird, Y/N," Dwyn had huffed at some point when Y/N returned home.
She was just going through the motions of settling down for the evening. Including changing into some warmer pyjamas after freezing her arse off outside. And she was so, so tired. Yet somehow, she found the energy to entertain her picky little sister.
Snickering, she tackled Dwyn onto her bed, listening to her squeal and kick back as she attacked the girl with kisses.
"Then I'll be doin too many jobs, Winnie! I'll be all three: the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker! The economy would never recover!"
"LET ME GOOOO!" She cried out, laughing and struggling.
And Y/N found that her heart was full.
Just this, she only needed this.
------------------------------
a.n
HAHA MY JOKES I'M SO FUNNY HAHA DO YOU GET IT? NINJA!! BECAUSE HE'S THE GREEN NIN- *jaw is broken from a stray punch flown out from the audience*
honestly, one of my favourite parts about writing the side characters is that even though they are suppressing her and just peddling the patriarchal rhetoric that's all around them, there are useful bits of advice in there.
cringe meme because it's my story and I decide what goes in here
Okay, but the actual art
Lloyd got the drip. He's also drinking the respect women juice, good for him
"closing the distance between them so he could cup her face in his hands.
His feet didn't burn. Luckily. Or... unluckily, depending on who you asked. Y/N couldn't help but lean into the warmth of his touch for a split second before pulling back. His hands remained steadfast on her cheeks. He didn't pull or pinch or force her head in any way. His touch was feather-light and gentle like petals brushing against skin. And his eyes were filled with so much fondness, Y/N wasn't even sure why."
if you have any complaints about my background making skills, then no you don't. I will admit it's amateurish, I've seen gorgeous background art before, I'm aware of the disparity. I tried my best though, that's what counts.