all my life I've been heading for hell
but never had I thought I'd drag you down as well
I just couldn't resist what he was trying to sell
but never had I thought I'd drag you down as well
I just couldn't resist what he was trying to sell
They broke away from the meeting without anyone taking notice of them, following after Marisol once she had begun her trek away from the meeting and the judgmental, prying eyes that surely trailed after her. Skirting around the berth of the citizens with quiet speed, they followed the Halcyon Commander a good distance away before attempting to get her attention. The last thing that either of them wanted was for anyone from the meeting to follow and nose their way into what was presumably going to be a very private conversation, especially that loud-mouthed buckskin.
Ard didn’t like her. They’d never met and quite honestly, he hoped that he never had the displeasure of meeting her face to face. She was too loud, too obnoxious, too whiny, and far too annoying to be someone he handled on a regular basis, but the young warlock found himself proud of the way that Marisol had handled the situation.
Together he and Erd followed within Marisol’s wake, but only when they reached a few meters away that he cleared his throat and called to her, knowing that she would recognize the hoarse rasp of his voice in an instant. “Mari.” Not ‘Marisol’, not ‘Commander’, not ‘Queen’. Just ’Mari’. There was no need for such frivolous formality when talking between family.
With the black cloak billowing around his petite frame, Ard stepped up to the bay woman and pulled the hood down from over his head, letting the heavy fabric rest around the base of his neck. Even when they delivered messages for the Halcyon, he and Erd had never adopted the proper ‘Messenger’ colors, choosing instead to wear their matching black cloaks with deep green stitching, much to the Commander’s chagrin. He folded his wings, feathers ruffling, and the moment that his gaze caught Marisol’s piercing pale grey, the nerves rekindled within his gut, churning and grasping and stealing his breath.
Doubt filled his mind. What if she hadn’t forgive him for his taciturn way of speaking the last time they had seen one another? What if she hated him? What if she, now a Queen, didn’t have time for them?
No, no. That couldn’t be right. Marisol had been the first person to welcome them to Novus. She had taken them in when no one else would, offering them protection and a purpose. The woman, stalwart and determined and stoic as she could be, had understood their desire for peace yet their drive to help, urging them to take up the mantles of Messengers for the Halcyon instead of risking their lives on the front line. They’d done that enough back in Luminous.
Even though his mind warred with itself, trying to justify what he was feeling versus what he knew, the silver warlock felt Erd shift and step up next to him, pressing their sides flush together as though knowing he was terrified. Glancing to his brother, whose identical features were twisted in concern but warm with love and adoration, Ard let out a long breath before facing the Commander once more. Hesitantly he met her gaze, emotion swimming in his eyes.
“C-can… Can we talk?”
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