ships:
rayllum
word count:
5250
original publication date:
january 29, 2019
summary: Several small snippets of life after the war.
Based off of a "Rayllum headcanons" post I made on tumblr
notes:
So I originally meant for this to be a small drabble, but got carried away. A few parts are a bit rushed (sry!) but I tried to go through a possibility of what their life would be like after returning Zym and forging a peace treaty to end the war.
__________
It started off simple. A small, slowly growing flame that often diminished to the point of almost non-existence.
But it was there, and when Rayla first realized what was happening she pushed the feelings as deep into her subconscious as possible.
They had a mission, they had to return the dragon prince to his mother. Nothing more, nothing less.
Their time together would eventually end. She wasn't going to fall in love.
• • •
Callum didn't know exactly when he began developing feelings for Rayla. He just knew that it was a silly crush, and it would pass eventually.
After all, who wouldn't like the sarcastic, smart, funny, intelligent, cute, awkward, amazing, talented elf in that way.
When the crush wasn't fading, Callum began to grow concerned. It was as if, with every passing day, his love grew and grew.
He'd fallen down a deep hole called love, and he wasn't sure he ever wanted to leave.
• • •
When they first revealed their feelings for each other, it was completely by accident.
The dragon prince had been returned to his mother, and the dragang had finally returned to Katolis, where Harrow had managed to escape Viren's curse and return to his rightful place at the throne. Peace negotiations were being made, and a formal celebration was held at Katolis' main ballroom, where several political leaders — both human and elf — had gathered for peace treaty negotiations.
There had been several people around their age as well, and they even managed to get a message out to Ellis, who joined Ezran in exploring secret passageways and stealing jelly tarts throughout the night.
The problem was the elves and humans around Callum and Rayla's age. The elves were the children of high-ranking Xadia elves, and the humans the children of nobles.
Callum had left Rayla for a split-second to grab the two of them drinks (moonberry juice, of course) when a random human girl approached him, laughing flirtatiously at something he said. The dress she wore was much more extravagant than Rayla's (there was no way anyone was getting her into one of those frilly ball gowns, and it had taken Claudia hours to convince Rayla to wear the corset-less sea foam colored one she had on), and Rayla's heart seemed to burn at the sight of Callum's awkward laughter and silent glance he sent her way.
It was a plea for help, one she'd seen several times on their short journey together.
And so, Rayla approached them, taking one glass of moonberry juice from Callum's hand, and then replacing the empty space with her own hand.
The girl seemed to falter at the sight of the elf, who simply smiled in return. The humans could hate her all they wanted, but that didn't mean she had to give them valid reasons to hate her.
The conversation dwindled, and the human girl eventually left to join her other human girls, whom Rayla could clearly hear gossiping about the stuck-up elf that had interrupted her conversation with the prince, who was close to marrying age.
Seeing how awkward the conversation with the other girl had made him made a spark of jealously fill her chest, and she gave his hand a comforting squeeze, which he returned.
They didn't separate after that, not until Harrow approached them and asked Rayla to find Ezran, as both princes were needed for a diplomatic address. Rayla nodded, quickly saying farewell to Callum and making her way out of the ballroom and to the secret passage Ezran had shown her earlier.
"It's the best one to steal jelly tarts at events," he'd told her. She could only assume that's where he and Ellis had made their base.
Sure enough, he was there, and she sent him off to find the king. Ezran and Ellis stealthily slopped our through a ballroom vent as Rayla made her way to the less conspicuous entrance, a ways away from the party.
When she exited and let a tapestry fall over the hidden doorway, she heard voices.
"I can't believe they let elves into the castle!"
"I know right? And that one who was hanging out with the prince, how on Earth did she manage to earn his trust?"
"Probably some weird voodoo magic they use in Xadia."
She bit her lip. The voices were coming from around the corner, in the passageway that led back to the ballroom.
"Are you sure you saw her come out here? What if she never left the ballroom, then we'd be missing the king's speech for nothing."
"Oh hush, she's out here. We just have to find out what she's doing and ruin her reputation so that the prince sees she's nothing but a lowly elf who doesn't deserve his time."
She turned to face the tapestry, maybe Rayla could just hide out in the passageway until they left. Unfortunately, they had different plans.
Before she could make any decision, the girls turned the corner, spotting the elf standing there awkwardly.
There was a long moment of silence, before Rayla lifted her chin, and began walking past them.
A hand flew out to stop her shoulder, sharp, filed nails digging into her exposed skin.
"You're that one elf girl, correct?" she asked.
Rayla recognized her as the one who's been talking to Callum.
"I'm sorry?" Rayla replied, suddenly aware of how much her accent stood out compared to the girls.
The girl rolled her eyes — which were a surprisingly sharp blue — and went on to mimic her voice, "'Ah-m soh-ray', oh shut up. You know what I mean."
Rayla stared at the girl in surprise, before commencing to look them up and down.
She could easily take them out, even without her weapons — which were tucked away back in her temporary room. A simple sweep under the legs and they'd be out of commission. They were the ones who'd chosen to wear heels instead of flats.
But if she did that they'd undoubtably twist the story, saying she attacked out of nowhere, and the humans would be outraged and war would start again.
And so, she remained silent, throwing a small glare over her shoulder.
The girl's grip on her shoulder tightened, Rayla ignored the growing pain. She survived having a binding slowly crushing her wrist, this was nothing.
"I mean, really. What does the prince see in an elf?"
Her hand released Rayla's shoulder, leaving several small, red lines forming thin crescent shapes. What happened next was worse than the pain.
The girl reached to the thin, see-through layer that stretched across the surface of her dress' base. In one swift, clean motion that suggested she'd done this before, a large tear was ripped in the expensive material.
One of the other girls gasped, "Kathleen—"
"Oh, please, Charlotte, as if the elf would risk telling anyone. If she does we'll just play the victim rout, should be easy enough."
Rayla simply stared at the dress, slowly taking several steps backwards. The now-loose fabric dragged along the ground, and Rayla's foot caught onto it, the sound of ripping fabric filling the air as she fell back and hit the wall behind her.
"You know, rags really do suit you," the blue-eyed girl continued, the one the other girl had deemed Kathleen.
It was a blur on what happened after that, but Rayla did recall a simple notion filling her mind.
Don't lash out, don't lash out.
An elf couldn't afford to hurt them.
It ended when Rayla's fear got the better of her, and an arm flew out, hitting the nearest object — or in this case, human.
When Rayla opened her eyes, she saw the shocked faces of four girls. Kathleen's cheek was a bright red, and a thin line slowly began to grow where Rayla's hit had sliced open the girl's cheek.
The look of confusion slowly gave way to that of anger. Of pure, blistering rage.
She hoisted up her dress, turning on her heels and making her way down the hall, her three friends following, their voices hushed and terrified.
Rayla took in a deep breath, swallowing back the tears that threatened to escape her eyes. Rayla slowly pulled herself to her feet, slowly looking down to examine the damage.
Her dress was a mess. The jewels that had been carefully sewn into the hems were loose, several had scattered on the floor around her. The lower parts of her dress had huge gashes exposing her legs. The cuffs that had been positioned on her arms were bent, one was missing. Her necklace, one made by Runaan's boyfriend for the occasion, had been forcefully yanked off of her neck and lay shattered on the floor, where one of the girls had "accidentally" stepped on it.
And so, Rayla collected the fallen gems, slipped them into her pockets, and began making her way away from the ballroom.
It was cold out. Scattered leaves lined the entrance to the garden. Callum had mentioned the place once before, when she'd seen a drawing he'd done of it. It looked much different in autumn, when the flowers weren't in bloom and all of the plants were dying.
Rayla found herself falling to a sitting position on a bench, her eyes stinging as she tried desperately to hold back tears.
She would not cry. She would not cry. She would not cry.
A sob escaped her lips.
Rayla hates crying. The feeling of pain in her chest was an immense, crushing feeling, and the tears blurred her vision to the point of blindness.
She really was pathetic to think she'd be able to attend without some jealous, racists ruining it for her.
Her breath fogged in the air around her, and the cold pricked painfully at her skin as wind raced through the empty garden.
She didn't know how long she sat out there, alone, but when someone finally found her she'd cried out all of her tears.
Callum dropped his suit's jacket over her bare shoulders, blocking the chilly air from hitting her and providing her with an extra layer of warmth. He sat next to her on the stone bench, letting his head fall into his hands. They sat in silence for several minutes, neither of them wanting to break the comfortable silence they were accustomed to. They'd walked all the way to Xadia together, they were used to silence.
"We missed you at dad's speech."
Rayla nodded.
"He mentioned you. The brave elf who helped escort us safely to and from Xadia, returning the dragon prince to his rightful home."
She nodded again.
"A few minutes after the speech ended a girl around our age came in screaming about an elf attacking her."
"Kathleen?"
"Yeah. She was bleeding."
They fell into another silence, before Callum unconsciously moved closer to Rayla, trying to obtain any possible heat.
"I'm guessing there's a second side to the story."
Rayla had thought she'd cried enough tears, but her eyes had other plans. At what Callum said, tears began flowing all over again.
"She ruined your dress, didn't she?"
"I'm sorry," Rayla managed to choke out, "they'd cornered me, and I panicked! Okay? I didn't even know what I'd done until it was over!"
Callum wrapped his arms around her shoulders, "She'll be banned from all future events. When people see what she'd done to you they won't be able to protest."
"And why would they believe the word a lowly elf?"
"You're not— Rayla, you're more than just a 'lowly elf', you helped end a war!"
Rayla turned to face the boy at her side, "And what does that matter to them? There are centuries worth of hatred that isn't just going to be undone by some silly treaty!"
"Then we'll make them understand somehow," Callum suggested, "that'll be our next adventure, re-associating the two races and ending the stupid superstitions about bloodthirsty monsters."
Rayla laughed, "Because I'm positive they'll listen to an awkward prince and his elf friend he loves to annoy."
In response, Callum smirked, "You know you love me!" he teased.
"And you know you love me too!"
"Of course I do!"
The two suddenly paused, realization dawning on what they'd just accidentally said.
"W-wait!"
• • •
So far dating in secret was a huge success. The only others who knew were Ezran and Bait, which made sense, since they were the most epic group of friend on the face of the Earth.
Ezran had freaked out when they told him, saying "finally!" and "it was about time" without hesitation. He then declared that it was a "Romeo and Juliet" scenario after they explained how their relationship would work.
"Are you sure this place is safe?" Callum asked, his voice cracking as he narrowly avoided a spider web that just happened to be in the middle of the path.
"Ezran explores these passages all the time, we'll be fine."
"Easy for you to say, you're an epic, badass, monster-slaying assassin. I'm just a guy with a sketchbook."
"Oh hush, you love being the guy with the sketchbook."
"That would be true."
The hallway Ezran had showed them was similar to the one that led to Viren's old evil lair, only much more rarely used. Dust littered the floor, aside from small, Ezran-sized footprints that covered the length of the passageway. Unlit torches lined the wall, and Callum had originally suggested that they used the candle they had for light to ignite them, only to be shot down immediately. There was too much dust and too many cobwebs, it would be asking for disaster.
The room that the passageway led to appeared to be a part of some old shelter, a bunker designed for if war ever broke out or someone invaded the castle. It was obviously now unknown to anyone in the castle other than Ezran and the two of them. Ezran had a way of finding every one of the castle's secrets.
"There's meant to be an exit to a secret garden somewhere in here," Callum mentioned, "Ez told me that behind one of the walls is a staircase leading out to a small, hidden courtyard. There were several other passages along the way, some of which lead out of the castle and city."
"You mean like right here?" Rayla asked, pressing in a stone on the far wall. The bricks began receding to reveal a staircase like the one Callum mentioned.
"How did you do that?!"
"There was a jelly handprint."
"Of course there was."
The two entered the small staircase, ignoring the small passageways and stairs that branches out from the one they were currently on. Eventually moss began appearing on the stone steps, bits on light seeping in from what appeared to be a loosely concealed exit that was covered in roots and vines.
Rayla carefully parted the greenery, her breath catching in her throat as she took in the area around her. Flowers and various plants filled the area, a small tree was growing in the far corner, a small pond formed underneath from the lack of any drainage area.
Callum set their candle down to the side on the steps before following Rayla out of the stairwell. The walls towered high above them, with a few crumbling windows revealing what appeared to be more hidden passages.
"Wow," was all Rayla could manage to say.
"I think this might've been a medicinal garden at one point," Callum mentioned, walking over to one of the green plants that seemed to break out of a border of stone that appeared to be separating different garden plots, "that's aloe, normally used for treating burns and several skin conditions."
"Was it for the bunker below?"
"I guess, this courtyard is really small and not visible from anywhere in the castle, it might've been an emergency area, since there's only roof paneling above it looks like it was made to be practically invisible from the outside. Not even the guard areas can see it."
"It's beautiful here."
"Yeah."
"And, this means no one will be able to find us!" Rayla happily exclaimed, "Which means I won't have to worry about Runaan's unavoidable lectures that would come with dating a human."
The elf smirked, leading to Callum pouting.
"Hey, humans aren't that bad!"
"According to you, a human!"
Callum shoved Rayla's arm, and the two laughed.
He leaned over and pressed a small kiss on her cheek, "I love you."
"I love you too."
• • •
Runaan knew.
She had been careless, talking and laughing with Callum like they always did, like what people were used to, then she made the unconscious mistake of reaching out to take his hand. She held his hand, like they always did when walking in hidden passages with no one around to see.
Their conversation had been about something stupid, and then they began talking about art, which eventually led to Callum talking about plans King Harrow had for them to take a diplomatic trip to Xadia. They'd be able to return to her home when she and Runaan left in a few weeks.
She'd turned into a ball of joy, "That's amazing, Callum!"
The stupid elf then forgot that they were meant to be "just friends" and kissed him. Right then and there.
She'd let her guard down, and didn't realize Runaan was walking towards them, from far down the hall.
"Rayla?"
The sound of his voice made her freeze. She'd turned toward the direction of the sound and saw Runaan standing there, a faint look of bewilderment crossing his face.
Rayla had then dropped Callum's hand, and began to run, trusting Callum to do the same.
Callum hadn't run, and later told her that Runaan wanted to speak with her.
Here she was, a week later, still avoiding the elder elf at any possible moment. She'd been avoiding sleeping in her assigned room, instead rotating through random guest rooms that were never used and running every time Runaan appeared.
Today was a problem, however. Runaan decided to chase her.
It was inevitable, really. But she was not ready for this conversation.
Runaan was far more experienced than her, they both knew this, but she knew the layout of the secret passageways better than him.
The only problem was that there were no entrances near where they were.
Oh, for the love of Xadia—
Rayla turned a random corner, making her way out to one of the guard walkways, and jumping over the wall, using her daggers to quickly scale down the wall and into the training courtyard, ignoring the baffled looks of those around her as she ran.
Runaan caught up to her in one of the empty hallways.
Her legs we pulled out from under her, and she went crashing to the floor.
"Rayla," Runaan shouted, "would it kill you to stop running for just one second and listen?"
She rolled onto her back, staring at her mentor with a silent fear in her eyes.
Runaan sighed, "Come in, let's go to a more private place."
The walk back felt like an eternity, and Rayla felt her cheeks redden at every thought of what he'd seen and what he was going to try talking to her about.
They reached her room, and Runaan closed the door behind them, leaning on it casually as if to say "you aren't getting out of this."
The silence was deafening to Rayla.
"So, how long has this been going on?" Runaan finally asked.
"Maybe six months or so, since that one event when my dress was ruined."
"And just how long were you two planning on hiding it?"
Rayla remained silent.
"Rayla—"
"I don't know! Okay?" she shouted, her hands wrapping around her chest in a false sense of comfort, "I don't know how any of this will end, I was just sort of hoping things would find a way to work."
"You do realize that people won't be happy with this."
"Yeah."
"There'll always be someone trying to find fault in both of your actions."
"I know."
"If you ever decide to try having kids they'll face all kinds of discrimination—"
"Okay, ew. Please don't say anything like that ever again."
Runaan let out an emotionless laugh.
"Never change, Rayla."
• • •
When they decided to go public with their relationship, Callum had just turned 17. There had been countless rumors beforehand, so it wasn't that big of a shock to anyone (King Harrow had known for almost as long as Runaan, but had decided to let them tell him when they were ready).
There was an outrage, as expected. A mob of protestors appeared outside of the castle gates the very next day, and the two lovebirds decided to run off to their secret garden with Ezran in order to avoid the press.
"So, are we still going to raid the kitchens tonight?" Ezran asked, pushing through the curtain of vines and joining the other two in the small courtyard, Bait clutched securely in his arms.
"Of course! What else are we meant to do on a full moon?"
"You two are ridiculous," Callum signed, letting a hand rest on his forehead, "Ezran, you're the crown prince, just ask for some jelly tarts to be brought to your quarters and you'll have a plate in the next ten minutes."
"But that takes the fun out of it!" the younger boy protested, Rayla nodded in agreement.
"Besides, sooner or later the baker will come to a realization that the sweets disappear only on the full moon, we have to collect as many as possible before they discover our plan," Rayla explained.
Callum rolled his eyes, "Rayla, you know I love you. But why do you insist on using your spooky, magical, epic full-moon mode on stealing jelly tarts?"
"Well, I'm not an assassin anymore, what else am I meant to do with my magic?"
"I don't know, something cool?"
"My dear brother, are you suggesting that stealing jelly tarts in the middle of the night isn't cool?"
"Um, that's not what I meant—"
"I think he is, Ezran," Rayla accused.
Bait croaked in agreement.
"Fine then, we won't share any of our loot with you tonight!"
"But Ez!"
Callum ended up helping with their theft that night.
• • •
When Rayla next returned to Katolis, their reunion played out how it usually did. Callum was waiting at the gates when her group of elves arrived, and as soon as she saw him she was sprinting to close their distance. In the next second they were in each other's arms, Callum spinning the elf around before kissing her.
You'd think that by their reunion it had been years since their last meeting. No, Rayla had only been gone for a couple of months.
It was just how they'd grown used to seeing each other again.
The two of them spent around an hour at the castle, talking, before heading off to the city.
The streets of Katolis' capital were crowded with people. It wasn't a surprise, really, considering the fact that the now-annual festival for peace between humans and elves was today.
The late-summer air was filled with the feint chill of winter, though the extra layer of Rayla's cloak dismissed any bit of cold lingering in the air. Callum had painted over her markings with a tan oil, and the gloves on her hand were a much more advanced disguise than the ones she'd used when traveling with the two princes. There was a prosthetic fifth finger, sewn into the glove so that whenever she moved her pinky the extra finger moved as well.
Callum's disguise was much more simple, he'd found a way to create a sort of wig, so that his hair was a dark black instead of brown, and changed into much cheaper clothing. If anyone were to look at them they wouldn't see the crown prince and his moonshadow elf girlfriend, but two random people strolling the streets.
Music drifted throughout the street, with a clearing up ahead holding a dance area. The concrete was covered in various chalks and paints, and there was a group of children creating their own messy artwork on the cobblestone.
"Callum, look," Rayla suddenly said, getting her boyfriend's attention.
In the window of one of the several shops was a painting. It depicted two people, one was a human boy, and one was very clearly a moonshadow elf, or what she assumed the artist thought moonshadow elves looked like. They faced each other, foreheads touching and their hands cupped around what appeared to be a small star, illuminating their faces in a soft glow.
Callum bought the painting on their way back to the palace.
• • •
"So when are you going to ask Rayla to marry you?"
The question came as such a surprise that Callum choked on his moonberry juice.
"I'm sorry?"
"You two have been dating for years now. When are you gonna marry her?" Ezran asked again.
He asked it so nonchalantly, before going back to eating another jelly tart.
He turned to look at Rayla, who was currently on the other side of the dining room, conversing with their dad as if he wasn't even a king. It always amazed Callum at how quickly the king took a liking to Rayla, treating her more like family than an elf assassin that once tried to kill him (though she never actually got around to killing him).
"You're eighteen now, you know. Most princes get married at sixteen," Ezran mentioned, stressing the fact that yes, today he turned eighteen. He was officially an "adult".
"Ezran!"
And so, the next several month were spend in a complete and utter mode of panic.
For once he was actually glad Rayla had to return to Xadia for the next month, because he didn't know how he would be able to act around her. Ezran must've known his words had an effect on him, because he kept finding a tray of jelly tarts at the foot of the door that led to Ezran's room most nights.
Still, Callum wasn't able to sleep soundly and act normally until he'd managed to plan out every bit and piece of how he'd propose to Rayla — if that ever even happened.
He accidentally proposed to her a year later.
It wasn't supposed to happen the way it did.
He'd gotten the ring ready and everything, and was confident in his decision, sure. But he just didn't want it to happen in that exact way.
It was meant to be a perfect day. They'd go for a walk through the castle gardens, spend the whole day out in the sun and possibly go swimming before having a late lunch and—
Well, none of that really mattered anymore.
They didn't even make it outside.
When walking through the castle halls, they managed to walk past the place where the two of them first met and, well, it just sorta slipped from his mouth.
"Hey, remember the one time you tried to kill me when I was walking down this very hall?"
"Oh, that was here, right! I'd almost forgotten."
"I'm glad Ez and I aren't dead."
"Me too."
"...ugh I can't do this anymore."
"What?"
"Nothing, I'm just stressed about how I'm going to ask you to marry... me...."
He'd trailed off as he realized what exactly he'd said.
Rayla said yes, of course. But still. It wasn't the best way to ask someone to marry you.
• • •
It isn't until years later, we'll after they're married and happy when the subject of children came up.
It took forever for Rayla to get pregnant, and when it looked like she was, she and Callum didn't tell anyone except Harrow, Ezran, Amaya, and Runaan. They didn't want to get the kingdom's hopes up; after all, despite the portion that hated their relationship, the majority seemed to actually ship them. Ezran discovered this when he accidentally found a "black market" dedicated to fanart and fanfiction for his brother and friend.
When it became clear that Rayla definitely was expecting a child, she and Callum cried. They began worrying about the smallest things. Callum wanted to be there for the child, able to live and see them grow, to fill in a needed place that he'd only ever known from Harrow (it occurred to Rayla that Callum didn't know anything about his birth father, other than that Sarai never ended up staying with the man). She was worried about being there for the child as well, worried about not being able to live up to expectations, and not wanting to leave only for someone else to take her place.
Several months later, the child was born.
It was a cold night at the beginning of December, and when she came it was all too clear what her name would be.
After all, it wasn't every day a child was born on the same date as their grandmother.
She was small, much smaller than she would've thought, with fuzzy hair bordering on white, with the occasional dark streak running through it. From what she could tell of her eyes, they were currently a mix of blue and green. She knew that as her daughter grew they'd grow to become a bright emerald green to match his father's. The small trace of horns that had yet to grow in could be felt on her small head. She had five fingers on each hand and five toes on each foot, and slightly pointed ears with such pale skin she looked like a ghost.
To Rayla and Callum, their daughter Sarai was perfect in every way, shape, and form.
When Callum left the room to speak with Harrow about all of the small details about the birth (she was a new princess — that was kinda a big deal), Rayla was left with the baby girl.
She moved a small tuff of hair off of the child's forehead, spending time taking in every little detail she could. Small thoughts began filling her mind, about the hate she would eventually receive, how she'll grow up seeing that no one around her looked all that similar, or how no one but her mother seemed to have horns or markings.
A sudden cry bubbled up from the baby, as if Sarai had sensed the unsettling thoughts that drifted throughout Rayla's mind.
"Shh, don't cry," Rayla whispered, holding the child closer, "I know everything is new, and scary, and you have this weird old elf looking at you."
Rayla started to cry, she didn't exactly know why, but once she started, she couldn't stop.
"There are going to be people out there who try to hurt you, because you're different, because you're special," the child's cries slowly faded as Rayla was talking, the baby helplessly opening her eyes and attempting to stare at her mother, "but you're more amazing than any of them will ever be. You know why?"
The child couldn't understand any of this, Rayla knew. Perhaps the words were more for herself than anything else.
"Because you're surrounded by people who will love you, and care for you, and hold you tightly in their arms whenever needed. You're a miracle that most say shouldn't be able to exist. But you're here!"
The baby's eyes closed, and by the soft breaths Rayla guessed that she'd fallen asleep.
"Because your father and I love you so, so much," Rayla leaned down, pressing a soft kiss against her daughter's forehead, "welcome to your life."