Fantasy +lumos; becoming the light+ (Closed)

[Sir Damien]

Weasley.

"Priiiick." Hunter was quick to flip off Cyrus just as he left. Deep down he knew that the guy was right, that Dru would understand if he just explained it, but she just never asked. It was the look on her face, the disgust, the hatred she had for marked ones. Hunter wasn't one by choice, yet it hurt all the same. And maybe he thought that she'd be better off? Deep down he believed that he was lesser than her, that someone out there would be able to give her a better life than him. He was just some idiot dragon catcher. She deserved the world.

As soon as his unlikely friend was gone Hunter tossed the newspaper on the coffee table with a heavy sigh. Kreacher would indeed push him down the stairs if he tried to help him again, but the thought of setting up the rooms for his clan was exhausting. He pushed himself to a seated position with a frustrated sigh, and just as he went to stand a small little creature was suddenly in his lap. "W-Whoa-- Jade?" His ginger brow arched curiously as large hands cupped the small niffler to pick her up. Wild squeaks came from her little snout and instantly Hunter could feel panic rising in his chest.

Now as much as he'd like to he couldn't speak niffler, or an beast language for that matter. He did understand the urgency of her squeaks. What was he to do though? It wasn't like he could go straight to the Malfoy manor. "Calm down there little one." The squeaking and whining subsided as the creature looked up at him with big watery eyes, like she was about to cry or something. "I'll find her. Okay? Just-- here." Hunter stood from the couch and deposited Jade into the breast pocket of his red and black plaid button up.

His mind instantly went to Fred and George. The two of them always had something up their sleeve, and if they could somehow get him inside the Malfoy manor he'd be able to find Dru and rescue her from whatever the hell was going on. "Hold on Jade." In a swirl of magic they were instantly standing right outside of the Burrows. Before he could even open the door it was flying open and Fred was immediately meeting Hunter in a familiar sense of panic. His heart dropped to his stomach, the small smile he had on his face to see his brother twisted with worry and concerned. "Where is she?"

Fred started rambling as they walked inside the house. How they found Dru in the field a bloody mess, how she fell unconscious. They carried her inside so that Molly could tend to her wounds and then took her up to Hunter's room to rest. Hunter had so many damned questions, none of which his brother had the answers to. When he asked the extent of her wounds, however, his brother fell silent. "You should really go see them for yourself." For a moment Hunter thought he'd vomit right then and there. Why wouldn't they tell him?

Jade squeaked as he made his way up the stairs to his room, just in time to run into Molly leaving said room. "Hunter dear she's still asleep. I don't know what happened, I can only speculate, but she's safe here. I'm sure she'll be happy to see you when she wakes." "Thanks mum." The two shared a sad smile, like the both of them knew just where Dru received her wounds. This was Hunter's fault. If he had just been honest with her, stopped her from going home then she'd of been safe.

Once Molly was gone Hunter slid inside the small homey room to see Dru asleep in his bed. She had a wound on her gorgeous perfect face and that alone was enough to fuel an unending rage in him, but as he looked down towards the foot of the bed he seen her leg propped up on a couple pillows. Half of her leg was freshly bandaged yet blood was already leaking through. The breath hitched in his chest as he fully processed his own speculations of the moment.

Dru didn't intend on coming here. She wanted to go somewhere else but something stopped her, and somehow in her apparation she ended up in the Burrows. Splinched. Red hot rage consumed him. His strong jaw clenched a couple times and his first instinct was to go to the manor and burn it down. It took everything in him to roughly grab the chair from the desk and pull it out and set it near the bed so he could take a seat. Gently he pulled Jade from the pocket and rested her next to Dru. "I'll make him pay Dru... No one gets away with doing this to you."

Maybe the mark could be used for good after all. If he joined the dark ones he could earn their trust, earn her fathers trust. And then he could kill the bastard and put an end to Dru's misery. Tears pricked at his eyes as he looked at her injured form. Quietly he unfolded the throw blanket at the foot of the bed and covered her body with it gingerly, doing everything he could not to wake her.

 

[Colt Voltage]

S. Longbottom

It wasn't until Delaney snatched the paper from his hands did Sebastian fully process what was happening. Adoption certificate. His dark eyes watched with furrowed brows as she dug further into the box, his brain working overtime to try and make some logical sense as to why Delaney would have a pure blooded name attached to her.

Greengrass's were one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight. The Longbottom's, Gaunt's, Malfoy's, Hell even the Weasley's were on the list. They were a tried and true pure blooded family, and a name that Sebastian never in all of his life think that Delaney would be in any near relation to. Gran always had them believe that she was some common muggle born girl with an affinity for magic. It wouldn't have been the first muggle witch so he never really questioned it, not until now. Gran never lied to him-- not that he knew of. The woman was blunt, how could she have kept a secret like this all these years?

"Aquila?" His voice was calm yet inquisitive as he slid next to Delaney, his warm body leaning against hers gently to provide her some comfort. Steely eyes glanced over the paper once more to confirm that yeah, the father's name was burnt off. "I don't understand. The only reason a pure blooded woman would burn the fathers name off is if it was a muggle, or if--" His voice fell flat and his eyes widened. Everything in his head just clicked, like everything made complete sense all of a sudden. "You were the product of an affair with a married pure blooded man. He didn't want the world to know about you. That's the only reason that makes sense, right? A muggle father wouldn't be burning his name off, and Aquila loves her girls. She'd--" She'd of loved Delaney, but he bit his tongue. Delaney didn't need that, not right now.

To make matters worse, Delaney actively taught two of the Greengrass girls. Seb took a shaky breath and gently took the certificate to inspect it, turning it over a few times in attempts to see if there was any salvaging the fathers name. "There has to be a copy of this somewhere. The girls likely wouldn't know anything about this, and addressing Aquila is out of the question."

If only Gran was still alive. Seb had wanted to tell her about him and Delaney before she passed and that alone haunted him, but now this? Delaney was already bothered with her history, being abandoned, having no history of her life or herself. To find out like this had to be absolutely devastating. "Hey." Seb's index finger lifted her chin to pull her attention from the box to meet his gaze. "We'll figure this out. Okay? We have half our answers right now, now we just need to figure out the other half. Once we have the whole thing I can confront Aquila, see if she'd be willing to talk to us. I'm here with you. And no matter what just know you're my family, okay? And Neville's. No matter what you still have a family, and you always will."

With a reassuring smile he then leaned in to press his soft lips to her forehead for a long moment. "Is there anything else in the box that would give us clues?"

 

[ZombieBaee]

Druella “Dru” Malfoy

Consciousness came and went as the Weasley boys got Dru into the Burrow, Molly was instructing them and every so often Dru could make out her worried yet stern voice. At one point the rotund woman took advantage of a moment of consciousness for Dru and got her to gulp down some god awful concoction that tasted somehow of both black licorice and slug juice. According to Molly it would help with the pain and help her get some more peaceful rest. Apparently it did it’s job and then some because Dru was back out cold in a matter of seconds, out enough that the twins helped carry her up to Hunters room without her waking and out enough to have some scarily vivid dreams.

Drus formative years revolved around Death Eaters, most of her family was indoctrinated and their house was a headquarters for a lot of meetings. Her first year at school was the year the war got violet, the year Draco was born… it was the year she realized how wrong all of this was. Before Hogwarts her world was so small, she didn’t know anything outside of her family’s ideals and morals. Just a few weeks at Hogwarts and she realized how much bigger things were, how muggle born wizards and witches weren’t the enemy… how misguided her parents were. Her first letter about her muggle born friends was met with a sharp tongue from her father in response… telling her to stop being around that filth. It didn’t matter because soon after starting school her last name got more famous than she would have ever wanted and people began to avoid her naturally. Her dreams brought her flashes of all those times, of all her family members with their marks on their arms… of the types of people they were. Her aunt Bella… the woman who tried to train Dru to be the next best dark wizard in the family at the age of eleven and doing so by showing her how to torture and kill.

Then she saw Hunter. His smile. His warmth. How he took her to see the moon calves, how he saved her from her terrible at the ball… how he saved her in general. Hunter was the most amazing man she had ever met, he was brave and kind, he loved all sorts of creatures and understood the parts of her that made her different from her family… and when he shared his secret… Dru failed him. She remembered his face in the moment she drew her wand on him and that hurt more than any physical injury ever would. How could she have done that to him? It was so clear now that he was NOTHING like those people, they were terrible evil beings and he was so … good.

Suddenly a warmth enveloped her, one that made her mind calm and her body adjusted slightly in her sleep, her arms wrapping around the quilt and hugging it tightly. “Hunter?” Dru spoke so softly in her sleep, her voice a mixture of sadness and hopeful. Then a small few sniffles at her face followed by the pressure of a small body climbing across her torso to curl up between her and the wall made her eyes flutter open. Dru first glanced down at the furry face that was tucking itself into her arm and smiled gently. “Jade, you found me. Good girl.” Her voice was hoarse from her screaming, it made her sound like she had the worst cold of her life. A few moments later she felt the presence on the other side of her, then she caught the scent of leather and cinnamon and her heart began racing.

Dru twisted her head to the side and the instant she saw him tears began to slide down her cheeks in steady streams. “Hunter.” It was so natural how quickly she tried to sit up and move to him, only to be met with a sharp pain in her calf and the physical reminder of her injury. It didn’t matter, it wasn’t stopping her. Well not from at least using her hand. Her thin pale finger reached towards his hand where it sat on his knee, the first touch made her flinch slightly, honestly a part of her had thought he was a hallucination. “Hunter I’m so sorry.” Her hand rested over his, her fingers wrapping around his tightly as she stared into his eyes with icy resolve. “I- there’s no reason - I… how do I even explain myself. There’s no explanation! I am the absolute fucking worst and I walked away when you needed me the most. I hate that I did that to you. I ha-“ Dru paused to cough, her scratchy throat protesting at her increasing volume and urgency but she needed to say this. Right now she didn’t care about her injuries, she didn’t care that she was hurt and probably already being hunted down by her father. All Dru cared about was making sure Hunter knew she wasn’t scared of him, that she would be there for him forever and that she meant it this time, truly. This was the biggest road block she could ever imagine for them and she refused to let it have power over her. Hunter was the best thing that ever happened to her. “I love you Hunter Weasley, I love you more than the moon and the stars love the night. I love you more than I knew was even possible. I love you more than I fear them.” She swallowed the last part, her voice quieting to make sure it remained between them only. “And I won’t ever be able to express how truly sorry I am that I walked away… really. I understand if you hate me now, I understand if you can’t trust me again. But I needed you to know.”

 

[EclipseRosee]

Larkyn Gaunt

“I don’t need your protection Sapphira!” Larkyn yelled, shoving a hand through his hair in frustration as he looked over her troubled face. “What I need is for you to not add more fucking shit to worry about to my plate right now!” He watched her as she moved to grab the letter from where he had tossed it on the bed and his face twisted once more, it was an expression mixed between frustration and pure anxiety. “You think that because you can leisurely fly you can handle the real world out there?” He laughed curtly, turning away to gather the rest of his things for work before looking back at her. The glare that Sapphira gave him wasn’t lost on him, it stabbed him through the chest like a white hot dagger, but he refused to be bothered, he refused to show another person any sort of fucking weakness. Not when this shit keeps happening. Not when he keeps getting made into a fucking villain.

“It’s because of this!” Larkyn snapped, waving his hands up and down at her. She was perfectly painted, her hair pinned all in place and wearing an outfit that was gorgeous on her. “Sapphira you do not present as a woman built for violence, or adventure or fighting. You are kind and just and love to see the good in people and help them out of their darkness. The world that I work in does not have space for wanting to see the best in people. Once they are on our list there is no hope for them beyond capture and trial, there is no room for us to want to fix them. You have too big of a heart and too much hope in the world to do this job well.” Larkyn stared at her as he spoke, he was positive she would take this all as an insult but he didn’t mean it to be one. He LOVED how Sapphira viewed the world, he adored that despite the terrible shit that had been thrown her way she was still kind and gentle to those who may be misunderstood. Hell that was probably the only reason she put up with him in the first place, that willingness and patience with people. Being an auror would get her hurt and it would darken her view on society.

Larkyn softened but only slightly as her hand gripped his. His icy blue eyes searched her face for a long moment and just seeing how much she was begging him to be okay with this almost broke him… almost. His eyes hardened and his shoulders went stiff before he looked away towards the window. “Sapphira I am not asking you to sit around and do nothing all day, I’m asking you to find other ways to help. There’s plenty of other things that help the cause that aren’t actively out there tracking and fighting. If you don’t want anything secretarial we can figure it out but …” Larkyn sighed and looked back at her, his eyes rimmed with red but serious and unmoving. “I will not endorse you wanting to be an auror, if you go to this meeting and they decide to move forward with bringing you on… I will make it more than clear to my superiors that i will not work with you on any assignments and that I do not believe you are fit for the job.”

 

[KAYDEN]

Cyrus

After about a half an hour of trying to push pass the various staff members who came out to try and get Cyrus to sit down, he finally gave up and took a seat. The only thing that got through to him was the witch who made him realize that him distracting them would only make things worse for Loire in the end. They were no stranger to him just as Loire was no stranger to them, many of the times where she was rushed here… so was Cyrus and Larkyn. Dru as well although she handled this sort of thing as cool as a cucumber. Often times Cyrus forgot She was even there because he was so hellbent on getting back to sit with Loire. Honestly it was shocking that Larkyn never realized how madly in love Cyrus was with Loire back then…

In the time Loire was back there, Cyrus paced, he asked a thousand questions, sat, paced some more. There was no fucking way he could possibly sit still! Not until he saw that she was okay, that she was awake and breathing. His mind kept going back to how limp and light she felt in his arms, her skin has gone cold and he noticed when her frail hand lost the strength it had as it held onto his sleeve earlier. Cyrus was fucking terrified that she would die, or that she would be disabled even further than she already was from her childhood traumas. Loire already had enough health issues to deal with… it hurt his heart to think of her having to handle more.

“Cyrus? We can take you back now.” That was all he needed to hear before he jumped up from the seat he had been waiting in and rushed to the side of the woman who had been dealing with him for the last few hours. “So she’s awake?” There was no need for an answer because the moment the two of them made Their way through the double doors back towards the patient area he could hear Loire making demands of the staff. It shouldn’t have but it brought a wide grin to his face, honestly if she want yelling at them he would have been taken back to his worry and fear. Ordering around her doctors after a near death experience was exactly what he expected from her.

“Loire be nice.” Cyrus gave her a relieved smile, leaning in to brush his lips over her bruised cheek before sitting down in the chair besides her bed. She looked… awful for lack of a better term and he already could tell that the cast on her arm was going to totally piss the woman off for weeks. “They’re right you know, you should stay and make sure you’re all safe and healthy for a night or two.” Loire hated the hospital but… Cyrus knew this wasn’t a walk if off type of injury. She had looked fucking dead. The image flashed back in his mind and he felt a bit choked up as he leaned forward to brush a few stray locks of her stained hair from her face. Just a few hours ago it had been soaked in her blood… “It would make me feel better if you were given the full stamp of approval from the doctor Loire. I mean-“ Merlin he didn’t want to tell her she had looked dead when he found her but she fucking did! “I’ll stay here with you, right in this chair the whole time. I just want to make sure you’re okay- it was scary there when I found you. I know you’ve been through some shit before but Loire this was- this was insane. I’ve never seen anything like it and I don’t want to ever again. So please just stay so they can make sure you’re going to be okay?”

 

[Pax Pardus Hale]

Sapphira

Sapphira never made Larkyn into the villain. She always justified his actions, always saw the good deep down in what he said and did. Did she agree with some of his choices? Not entirely. But she loved him, she supported his choices, she put that man on a fucking pedestal. He never returned the favor. The auburn haired woman was pouring out her entire soul for him, revealing that she desperately wanted to do something to help protect him, yet he laughed at her. He made her feel small.

He blamed her looks, and above all? Larkyn didn't want to work with her. That was the nail in the coffin.

"All I do is add stress on your shoulders. Right?" Her usually cheerful tone was gone and left nothing but a wavering one that fought back tears. "I'll leave. You can get your sister back, your best friends. It's clear you don't need me, so you won't have to worry about me anymore." The tears won. Big tears spilled from her eyes and streamed down her cheek as her emerald looked away from him so she could stay strong. "I'm not just a pretty face, Larkyn. I kickbox back at home. Mountain climb, rock climb. I-I can do whatever I set my mind to. And if you don't want me to protect you then, fine. I couldn't protect Cedric but I'm going to help protect those kids."

Sapphira move to grab her gym bag and stuffed it full of some of her clothes from the closet. No tedious folding, no gingerly care with her outfits, she just wanted out. Her small form trembled as the tears silently flowed down her face. She lost Delaney, Seb, her family, and Cedric, and this pain was nothing like any of that. Her heart was literally shattered into bits to the point to move, and all she wanted to do was fall to her knees and sob loudly for days. "It sounds like you'll be better off without me. If I pass the interview then I'll do my best to keep out of your way."

Her slim frame turned and did everything she could to avoid meeting his gaze. "And if not then I guess I'll go home to the muggle world. So tell your boss what you have to, Larkyn." Sapphira moved to the living room to finish packing her things. It... wasn't like Larkyn would care at all. All he saw in her was a pretty face, right? He'd move on quick.

 

[Pax Pardus Hale]

Loire Gaunt.

In her head Loire had a whole speech worked out in her head. How to let Cyrus down gently in hopes he'd understand her position and why she had to do this. Yet the moment she heard that familiar voice of his her heart sank to her stomach, the lips on her battered cheek shattering her entire being. Her good hand gripped the side of the bed as she took a deep shaky inhale through her nose to keep her centered. Loire wanted to find safety in his arms, hold him, follow their dreams and move in together.

They were just that though, dreams. There was no beating the odds for them. Cyrus was the first muggle born she had ever got well acquainted with. During the war they were literally never permitted to speak to anyone outside of their circle. Yet when they met he didn't hate them, didn't see them as some stuck up pure bloods. Cyrus saw them. No... Cyrus saw her. Larkyn was a friendly popular guy, he had others to talk to. Loire was just some quiet bookish girl with resting bitch face. He always tried to make her smile, to laugh, he treated her like she was her own person. She fell hard and fast for him, and that love never faded.

It was also never meant to be and it was cruel of them to pretend otherwise.

"We can't continue this Cyrus." Loire refused to look at him, refused to look at anything but the cream colored hospital tile flooring. "I can't be what you want. I can't-" She couldn't lose him. Her hand gripped the sheet tighter, and tighter, and before long the sheet was ripping from her sharp nails. "My duty is to marry and produce pure blooded heirs. I'm to fill in for Larkyn and follow in my father's footsteps. I'm to--" Her voice cracked. What Loire was saying went against everything she wanted in life. She wanted a life away from pure blood expectation, a life with Cyrus. A family one day, maybe, but she didn't want her life focused around popping out kids.

It was clear she was either being coerced to say these things or that torture actually made her believe the bullshit her family drilled into her. A single tear slid down her right cheek and Loire went to wipe it away with her arm, wincing as she found that it was in a cast. Embarrassing. She just wanted to shift and run away. Without another word she pushed herself to her feet with a loud wince, her left hand hugging her stitched stomach and her small frame nearly doubled over from the pain.

"I-It was foolish of us to think that I could escape this life. If you see me on the other side of this war do me the favor and put me out of my misery, yeah? I'd rather be dead then be locked up in Azkaban."

 

[Sir Damien]

Weasley.

Dru had only been asleep for a few minutes while Hunter sat at her bedside, but in those few moments the ginger headed dragon rider had made his grand plan in his head. Get Dru to the Order, bail and join the Eaters. Kill her father. Killing had never been on Hunter's radar, it wasn't something in his blood. He was raised to be a good person, to solve things with words, but to see what he could do to his daughter? Unforgivable. This was the last time that man hurt her. And if Hunter died in the process, well...

At least Dru would be finally free like she wanted to. That's all he wanted for her.

"Hm?" All it took was for her to say his name and he was being pulled back into the room. He blinked a couple times and sat straight up in the creaking chair, his fists balling up a couple times in attempts to calm his nerves. "I-I'm here Dru. I'm here." It took everything in him to be comforting right now instead of caving to his anger. Dru sounded... rough. Like she had just screamed for hours on end and it shattered him, it made him solidify the plan in his head.

And then there were the goddamned tears. "Dru, I--" Hunter couldn't even get the words out before she was moving to sit up. It caused Hunter to scoot closer to her and shaking his head, his large warm hand gently touching her non injured leg. "Don't move too much, okay?" With a small encouraging smile he tried to reassure her that everything would be okay as he listened to her, his free hand moving to the hand on his knee and resting on top of it. It was clear Dru needed to get some things off her chest and he would listen to every thing she had to say... because he had a few things to say himself. 'Sorry I'm such an idiot', was the first one.

He sat there quietly while the hand on her thigh moved to grab the glass of water on the nightstand. "Here. Drink." Dru continued to talk and it caused his heart to ache, yet he continued to listen as he pointed the straw towards her mouth. She loved him... of course she did. She was willing to step outside of her comfort zone and move in with him, away from her family. They were going to start a life together and then he fucked it all up. He let her go to the manor, and he let her get hurt.

"Dru... I love you more than life itself." A genuine smile tugged at his lips and tears began to well in the corner of his eyes. "I'm sorry. Okay? I... I wanted to tell you. I was scared. It was--" The deep voice cracked for a moment as a lone tear slid down pale cheek. The back of his hand quickly wiped it away and he shook his head quickly. "You deserve to know. How I was out tracking one morning and everything went black. How I woke up to unimaginable pain, to a couple hooded Eaters laughing at me. Weasel. Blood traitor. Muggle lover. The mockery was endless as the crucio'ed me days on end. I -- I thought they were going to kill me." A shudder breath slipped out and his body shivered at the thought. A flash of pain shot across his eyes in an instant before he blinked it away and shook his head.

"A week had gone by. They gave me an option to live, or die. I had my siblings, my parents. I loved my life. So I chose to live, and they chose to give me a mark that would ruin me. So I abandoned everything. For years I abandoned my entire family. A-And then I met you. Then I fell in love with you and that was the best thing in my whole life. It was also the scariest. I-I wanted to be completely honest with you, completely candid, but I was so fucking scared of losing you. I-I froze when you found out, and..." Hunter let out a long exhale before flashing her another gentle smile. "So-- there's no forgiving you, because I never held anything against you. If anything I should ask for forgiveness for being such a dumbass."

 

[KAYDEN]

Cyrus

Loire was alive, she was alive and moving and breathing. It just kept repeating itself over and over in his head as he tried to force out the image of her lying so broken on the ground in front of her family’s estate. He pulled back from her and looked over her face and gave her a bright smile for a moment until it turned sour… “Loire what’s that face for?” She looked so serious, so downtrodden… Cyrus supposed that wasn’t too strange considering what she had gone through but it wasn’t like her to be so stoic. Well, at least not with him. Not like this.

The next words she said were ones he thought he would never hear from her mouth. They had come so far at this point, they had jumped over all of their hurdles and finally became a couple. Now she wanted to be done? Already? It felt like someone had stabbed Cyrus in the check with a knife made of ice. He continued to listen to her words, to the bullshit that he knew full well she didn’t actually believe. Not once did he interrupt her as he watched, her pale hands clutching the sheets and her eyes staring holes through the flooring below them.

“Oh fuck your duty.” It escaped his lips with a scoff, his body leaning forward in the chair he had pulled to her bedside until he was able to grasp her face between his hands and gently force her to look him in the eye. “Loire you are everything I want just as you are. Your duty is bullshit, your family is bullshit and both you and Larkyn know it. Pure blooded heirs, do you even hear yourself Loire?” She pulled away from him and stood with a wince that made Cyrus’ anger bubble up in his chest.

“Will you stop!” Cyrus stood, moving to block her path again and gaining looks from a few of the other patients around them. “You’re not fighting on their side Loire, you’re not walking away from this. I’m not letting you. Even if you decide you don’t want me, can’t be with me… it would kill me but I still wouldn’t let you go back to that house. Back to them.” He said the last few words with so much venom that a chill ran down Cyrus’ spine. “I will lock you up in Azkaban myself if it’ll keep you from this plan of yours.”

Then a plan of his own chimed into his head like a lightbulb going off.

Cyrus gently took her free hand and leaned forward to press his forehead to hers. “Just, take some more time to think this through please. For me. I can take you somewhere safe to heal a bit more and think.” They couldn’t apparate into Grimmauld place nor out of St Mungos but as soon as he could get her outside he would apparate the two of them as close to the townhouse as he could. Then once they were there, he’d find a way to lock her in if he had to until he could talk some fucking sense into her.

 

[ZombieBaee]

Druella “Dru” Malfoy

Hunter wasn’t flinching away from her, he wasn’t pushing her away, he wasn’t looking at her like she was the worst person in the world. Hunter was watching her with care and touching her gently, just that was enough to nearly reduce Dru to tears. She wouldn’t blame him if her hated her but she wasn’t sure if her heart could have handled having him look at her with any hint of disdain. Her steel toned eyes followed his hand as he reached for water and while she appreciated the offer, she ignored it until she was done getting all of the words off her chest. When she was finally done she did finally take the cup and take a long drink before setting it back on the side table and returning her attention to him.

Then Hunter said that he loved her and Dru felt her heart nearly explode in her chest. A small sob escaped her lips as she released a breath she didn’t realize she had been holding in. How had she almost let this go? She was in one of the rockiest and most uncertain times of her life yet just hearing him say he loved her made Dru feel like she was glowing. “No, no Hunter don’t apologize.”

Dru pushed herself up on her arms, cringing a little as her leg moved against the mattress but she needed to sit up and engage in his story. His story that absolutely shattered her heart, she was so upset and angry for him that for a few long moments Dru didn’t even know what to say, what to do. “I told my mom about you.” It just kind of came out, she wasn’t really sure why that was where her mind decided to start but it was. Hunter probably wouldn’t be thrilled to learn that Dru had spoken to the wife of a known death eater about him and his mark but… what she had told Dru gave her some peace of mind and she hoped it could for him as well. “I know it doesn’t change what happened to you, or make it any better. Hearing what they did to you makes me want to kill someone, truly. But my mother made a good point to me when I was struggling with all of this, that you couldn’t have gotten that mark by your own free will. That someone did this to you. You aren’t them Hunter, you didn’t want this and you don’t believe in their message. You don’t bear their mark, you bear a scar with a really really shitty history and culture.” Dru reached over and took his hand, lacing her fingers through his carefully. “I’m sorry I never asked, I’m sorry that I even thought that you might have been… I don’t even know. I know you, I know your heart. I’m just sorry I didn’t trust it.”

“I’ll never run away from you again. No matter what.” Dru leaned forward and rested her forehead against his, closing her eyes and taking in a few long breaths. “We will find a way to be away from all of that darkness, if Potter really is correct about… him… being back, there’s going to come a time where we both end up roped back into that darkness and I won’t let us fall into it. Hunter you are the thing that saved me, I love you so very much and I don’t want to lose our future.” Dru opened her eyes as a few tears slid down her cheeks, her lips spreading into a thin smile that pulled at the wound on her cheek. “Even if you are truly a dork.”

 

[EclipseRosee]

Larkyn Gaunt

“You know what Sapphira, I’m sorry it’s not enough for you that I gave up everything for you. That I walked away from my family and friends. That I ruined relationships. That I now have people looking at me like a fucking monster because of how this all went down.” Larkyn growled, looking over at her with pressed lips and silvery eyes. The whites rimmed with red as he fought the tears that tried to break him. She was worth all of it and he knew it but his sense of self was already waning to thin that the idea of also giving up his true and only place he was fully himself, sharing it with her and the risks that it entailed… it completely broke his mind. The shredding of his already fragile sense of self combating with the terror he had for Sapphira being in this world all the time.. it was too much. “We moved from the places I know to come to London for you, why not also give up the last thing that truly is mine.”

Larkyn clenched his fists over and over as he watched her, the tears falling down her face made him want to move to her and comfort her but he couldn’t. He was just so angry. That’s all he was lately, just anger and frustration, even if his brain could make sense of things logically his rage always seemed to win out. “I didn’t fucking kill him Sapphira ! Why don’t keep throwing that in my face like I don’t already feel terrible enough for not doing my job. You keep bringing up how you failed to protect people but no one every fucking asked you to so just stop!” He yelled after her as she moved out to the living room and after a few moments of blinding rage he stalked out after her.

Larkyn didn’t know what came over him when she mentioned leaving but his vision went red and suddenly he had grabbed her bag and whipped it to the corner of the room roughly. “So things get hard and you bail? I’m not the perfect prince of a man you wanted, it’s not easy to be with me and you give up? Wow Saph.” He scoffed, shoving a hand through his now tossled white locks and smirking wryly. “I thought you loved me but I guess I was wrong.”

 

[Pax Pardus Hale]

Sapphira.

This wasn't fair, none of it was. Sapphira knew that Larkyn was just terrified of losing her, he was hurt, he was lashing out. But how long was Sapphira just supposed to sit on the sidelines and do nothing? Even if he didn't want to be her partner-- it hurt like all hell, but to threaten the only thing that was giving her hope right now? It felt out of line, discouraging. They were both adults, they should be able to pursue whatever dream they had and support each other. And right now this was the only thing that made sense for her to do.

"I never wanted you to give up everyone. I've pushed and pushed for you to make up with Loire and your friends, all I get is rejection. You don't want me to throw a party and reach out, you won't invite them over. I understand you're mad at them Larkyn but you have to make up with them eventually, whether I'm here or not." Sapphira busied herself collecting a few things that she'd need for a few night. She wasn't quite sure how long it'd be until they made up, or even if they'd make up... the thought made tears sting in those pretty green orbs. Losing him was like losing the piece of herself that made her feel whole.

However, those thoughts instantly disappeared the moment her bag was ripped from her hands. It was like everything inside of her went silent; no anxiety, no sadness, no pain. She turned to stare at him with the most broken look on her face, her tears disappearing and leaving glossy eyes. How was this the same man she loved? Who made her feel so happy?

"I never asked for a prince, Larkyn. I asked for you." Sapph took a shaky breath and felt her slim fingers push back some of those copper bangs of hers. "I-I still want you. You and all your smart and protective ways. Even that overly stubborn side of you that's just too damned afraid to lose me." There was no smile on her face, she didn't even know how he could be smiling in this damned moment. "I love you so much Larkyn. This isn't like you. I thought some space would help us, but maybe we could talk to someone, to get an outside perspective. How about Loire or Cyrus?"

For a moment she looked to the bag in the corner and felt almost sick to her stomach. She could take the bag and leave, get some peace of mind, or she could stay and hopefully bring Larkyn back to his senses. No one else was going to help him. "You're right. I'm sorry I tried to leave. Can we take a breath please?" Sapphira took a step closer to him and moved her hands to smooth out a wrinkle on his shirt. With a small awkward smile she looked up at him, hoping that seeing her smile would help calm him down. No tears, no yelling. "I'm not trying to take your identity from you or anything, and I'm not blaming you at all, love. These last few months have been really hard on us both. Let's not take it out on each other."

 

[Pax Pardus Hale]

Loire Gaunt.

Why were boys so dumb? Couldn't he see why she was doing this? Loire wasn't afraid for her life, she was afraid for his. She would've endured so much worse torture even death if it came down to just her life. But threatening Cyrus, he was her one weakness. Surely he knew that right? Loire wanted to reassure him how much she loved him, how much she fucking hated doing this, but she wouldn't have the strength to walk away after that.

Pale blues watched him with a stern expression as he moved to block her path. She almost preferred living the rest of her life in Azkaban over a minute more with her family, but that wasn't the deal. Marry, serve, obey, and Cyrus ad Larkyn would be left unharmed. Before she could argue him, however, he was leaning close to her again and making her pale face heat up to a rosy tint. Her better senses were telling her to pull from him and refuse his offer, but instincts had her leaning against his forehead in turn, her free hand giving his a small squeeze in return.

"I'll rest there for a few days Cyrus. For you... After that you know I have to go back." Her eyes begged him to understand her situation, to accept it, but she knew it was a futile effort. The least she could do was give him a few days after all that hell he went though saving her. A small sigh slipped past her lips and she leaned up to affectionately brush her nose against his. It killed her to cause him any pain, Cyrus deserved nothing but good things and all Loire ever did was hurt him. He'd be better off without her in the long run.

She wanted to kiss him or comfort him in some sort of way, yet instead she peeled herself away from him and walked out the door. She walked at a much slower paced than normal as every step hurt her aching body. Yet, Loire was always fierce and stubborn, she'd be damned if she let anyone know just how bad she hurt. Eventually the battered woman stepped outside of St Mungo's, her cast arm held close to her as her attention went to Cyrus. "They broke my wand. So I'll have to rely on you for transportation."