to miss the constellations for the stars (Another Horizon, fic)
Title: to miss the constellations for the stars
Fandom: Another Horizon by lassiterfics
Characters/Pairings: Will, Cassie (subtextual Will/Cassie)
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Subtextual incest.
Summary: The first night he finds Cassie on the balcony outside her new room, watching the sunset.
Author's Note: For Lass, who wrote me fic of my fake TV show in return and who is awesome. Plus, I kind of love this show. A lot. :D
+
The first night he finds Cassie on the balcony outside her new room, watching the sunset.
"My shift would be starting about now," she says quietly. "That feels a bit weird."
"Yeah, well, it was a shitty job and you hated it," Will says promptly, coming up to lean on the balcony beside her.
"That's not the point," she says.
"Then what is?"
"I don't really know," she admits, and they fall silent for a long time, watching the colors in the sky flare up and then fade to a deep blue. Cassie has always loved the sunset, and he wonders what she's thinking now, watching the sunset in another country - hell, another world. It's hard to tell. It always has been, with Cassie. When the sky is a deep blue, she steps away from the balcony into her room. "I'm going to check on Jesse and Del," she says casually. "They're probably getting into everywhere they shouldn't be."
"I'll do it," Will says. "You should sleep. We all should, it's been a long day."
"No, it's fine," Cassie says. "I've got this. Go get some sleep yourself." She smiles and leaves without waiting for him to answer, and he sighs in frustration. Perhaps it was foolish to think that in another world, back with their father, Cassie would allow herself to relax some. The stars are just coming out, and he glances up briefly and shuts his eyes to make a wish.
Keep Cassie safe.
+
"She was going to go down to the archery hall," the steward says when Will asks, and Will turns and retraces his steps. Of course she is. Cassie takes her duties seriously, even if they're completely absurd. Sure enough, she's there, listening intently to a soldier who's showing her the basics. He stops and leans against the wall, watching as the soldier adjusts her arms. She's still wearing her jeans and t-shirt - when he'd dropped by her room to see if she was there, the dress the maid had laid out for her was still on the chair, her tennis shoes kicked under it - but she's wearing the shoes, and her hair is elaborately braided.
"Right, now give it a try," the soldier says, and Cassie nods as he steps away, her expression tense as she releases the arrow. It thuds into the far right of the target and her mouth twitches before she draws another arrow from the quiver at her side and knocks it. Will smiles, torn between his desire for her to rest and his pride in her single-minded determination.
"You should give it a try, Will," she says without looking back, and he rolls his eyes. Of course she saw him. When does she not? "If there's a war, we should have some means of defending ourselves."
"Why not?" he says, and the soldier fetches another bow, bracer and quiver, stringing it for Will and then showing him the basics as he had Cassie. By the time Will lands his first arrow in the bottom of the target, Cassie's are landing in the third ring, a line of them marching ever closer to the center and the perfection she strives for. The next one lands on the very edge of the bull's-eye and she smiles in satisfaction and continues. Will knocks another arrow and aims.
+
As it happens, the practice does eventually pay off. Will has never been so thankful in his life.
+
"That's the Hare," Cassie says, pointing to the stars above them, and Will rolls over in his bedding and looks at her in surprise, trying to keep from yawning.
"What?" he says, and Cassie traces something in the sky.
"Aire's been showing me," she says. "That's the Hare, and just to the right of the Hare is the Archer. Look, see?" She shifts her bedding closer and lies close beside him, her shoulder warm against his as she points.
"Those three stars are the bow?" he says, and she nods, leaning her head against his.
"There's her head, and the quiver is those two stars," she says, moving her finger just slightly, and Will squints up at the sky and tries to make out the pattern.
"Her?" he says sleepily, and Cassie laughs, just a moment.
"Her name was Miri," she says. "Aire told me the story. She and her brother led the armies of this land into battle against a witch years and years ago. They won the battle, but both of them died. The dryads sang over their bodies for three days and nights, and on the third night their bodies became stardust and traveled to the skies. If you look, you can see her brother just to her right. They're back to back. Do you see his sword?"
"Yeah," Will says. "Still trying to protect his sister. He must have loved her."
"They were married," Cassie says casually, and Will's eyes flicker in surprise. He's still trying to figure out how he should respond to that when he realizes she's fallen asleep, her head still tucked up against his shoulder. He remains awake for some time, staring up at the sky and wondering what she had meant by that, if she had meant anything by that.
He falls asleep still wondering. When he wakes up in the morning, Cassie's bedroll is already packed and she's by the fire, stirring something in a pot.
"Good morning," she says when she sees he's awake, smiling. He misses the feel of her by his side already.
Fandom: Another Horizon by lassiterfics
Characters/Pairings: Will, Cassie (subtextual Will/Cassie)
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Subtextual incest.
Summary: The first night he finds Cassie on the balcony outside her new room, watching the sunset.
Author's Note: For Lass, who wrote me fic of my fake TV show in return and who is awesome. Plus, I kind of love this show. A lot. :D
+
The first night he finds Cassie on the balcony outside her new room, watching the sunset.
"My shift would be starting about now," she says quietly. "That feels a bit weird."
"Yeah, well, it was a shitty job and you hated it," Will says promptly, coming up to lean on the balcony beside her.
"That's not the point," she says.
"Then what is?"
"I don't really know," she admits, and they fall silent for a long time, watching the colors in the sky flare up and then fade to a deep blue. Cassie has always loved the sunset, and he wonders what she's thinking now, watching the sunset in another country - hell, another world. It's hard to tell. It always has been, with Cassie. When the sky is a deep blue, she steps away from the balcony into her room. "I'm going to check on Jesse and Del," she says casually. "They're probably getting into everywhere they shouldn't be."
"I'll do it," Will says. "You should sleep. We all should, it's been a long day."
"No, it's fine," Cassie says. "I've got this. Go get some sleep yourself." She smiles and leaves without waiting for him to answer, and he sighs in frustration. Perhaps it was foolish to think that in another world, back with their father, Cassie would allow herself to relax some. The stars are just coming out, and he glances up briefly and shuts his eyes to make a wish.
Keep Cassie safe.
+
"She was going to go down to the archery hall," the steward says when Will asks, and Will turns and retraces his steps. Of course she is. Cassie takes her duties seriously, even if they're completely absurd. Sure enough, she's there, listening intently to a soldier who's showing her the basics. He stops and leans against the wall, watching as the soldier adjusts her arms. She's still wearing her jeans and t-shirt - when he'd dropped by her room to see if she was there, the dress the maid had laid out for her was still on the chair, her tennis shoes kicked under it - but she's wearing the shoes, and her hair is elaborately braided.
"Right, now give it a try," the soldier says, and Cassie nods as he steps away, her expression tense as she releases the arrow. It thuds into the far right of the target and her mouth twitches before she draws another arrow from the quiver at her side and knocks it. Will smiles, torn between his desire for her to rest and his pride in her single-minded determination.
"You should give it a try, Will," she says without looking back, and he rolls his eyes. Of course she saw him. When does she not? "If there's a war, we should have some means of defending ourselves."
"Why not?" he says, and the soldier fetches another bow, bracer and quiver, stringing it for Will and then showing him the basics as he had Cassie. By the time Will lands his first arrow in the bottom of the target, Cassie's are landing in the third ring, a line of them marching ever closer to the center and the perfection she strives for. The next one lands on the very edge of the bull's-eye and she smiles in satisfaction and continues. Will knocks another arrow and aims.
+
As it happens, the practice does eventually pay off. Will has never been so thankful in his life.
+
"That's the Hare," Cassie says, pointing to the stars above them, and Will rolls over in his bedding and looks at her in surprise, trying to keep from yawning.
"What?" he says, and Cassie traces something in the sky.
"Aire's been showing me," she says. "That's the Hare, and just to the right of the Hare is the Archer. Look, see?" She shifts her bedding closer and lies close beside him, her shoulder warm against his as she points.
"Those three stars are the bow?" he says, and she nods, leaning her head against his.
"There's her head, and the quiver is those two stars," she says, moving her finger just slightly, and Will squints up at the sky and tries to make out the pattern.
"Her?" he says sleepily, and Cassie laughs, just a moment.
"Her name was Miri," she says. "Aire told me the story. She and her brother led the armies of this land into battle against a witch years and years ago. They won the battle, but both of them died. The dryads sang over their bodies for three days and nights, and on the third night their bodies became stardust and traveled to the skies. If you look, you can see her brother just to her right. They're back to back. Do you see his sword?"
"Yeah," Will says. "Still trying to protect his sister. He must have loved her."
"They were married," Cassie says casually, and Will's eyes flicker in surprise. He's still trying to figure out how he should respond to that when he realizes she's fallen asleep, her head still tucked up against his shoulder. He remains awake for some time, staring up at the sky and wondering what she had meant by that, if she had meant anything by that.
He falls asleep still wondering. When he wakes up in the morning, Cassie's bedroll is already packed and she's by the fire, stirring something in a pot.
"Good morning," she says when she sees he's awake, smiling. He misses the feel of her by his side already.