#004: "It's In The Blood"
Title: It's In The Blood
Game: Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu
Word Count: 498
Pairings/Characters: Lex
Warnings: Backstory spoilers, language
Whack.
He'd chosen this particular tree because he knew he couldn't do much damage to it. It was at least nine feet tall, thick and hard, its branches pointing up and out.
Whack. Whack.
In other words, the perfect tree to beat the crap out of after a fight with Dad.
Boy, when are you going to stop being so foolish and act like a prince oughta act?
"Fuck you, Dad," Lex growled, taking an extra-hard whack at the tree. He'd never gotten along with his father, but lately it seemed they couldn't even say hello to each other without getting into a heated argument. Dad criticized Lex's behavior and reputation, Lex criticized Dad's jealousy and bitterness towards Lord Byron. It never failed.
It's in the blood, Mom used to say; Dad was a hothead like his father before him, who was the spitting image of his own dad. Seemed to be a side effect of Neir's bloodline, incredible strength and a bad temper.
Danan used to say the way to handle Dad was to agree with him, and that's why he was the favorite son...that, of course, and he was the first son. But Lex knew better, Danan wasn't just the first son, he was the first son of the first wife. He knew how the first Lady of Dozel and her would-be second child had died, how Dad had remarried almost immediately, how it had taken them years just to have Lex and how after the second Lady Dozel passed away he hadn't bothered with another remarriage.
Decades' worth of sordid family secrets learned in one afternoon.
Whack. Whack. Whack.
It was the real reason Dad hated him, Lex had decided. It wasn't about bad temper clashing with bad temper, neither of them knowing when to back down or which sore spots to steer clear of in conversations. It was simply because he was the second son of the second wife.
Whack. Whack. Whack.
He wished he was heartless enough to feel true, pure, unbridled hatred towards the man. That he didn't still care about Dad even after being shouted down and stepped on and treated like shit just for being himself. At least when he criticized his father's behavior towards Chalphy, he was actually concerned for Dozel's well-being. It wouldn't do them or the rest of Grandbell for two noble houses to end up in some petty squabble that could escalate into a war. But Dad just wouldn't listen to reason.
Whack. Whack.
When he criticized Lex, it was pure self-interest. Be more like a real prince should be so I look good. Meet my expectations and be what I want you to be, or you're worthless.
Whack.
The tree shook slightly with the impact of the last hit, and Lex dropped the axe at his feet. He studied the wood's surface, noticing marks he hadn't left there himself. He remembered sometimes Dad would come out here "to be alone", and realized he wasn't the only one taking his anger out on this tree.
Maybe it was in the blood after all.
Game: Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu
Word Count: 498
Pairings/Characters: Lex
Warnings: Backstory spoilers, language
Whack.
He'd chosen this particular tree because he knew he couldn't do much damage to it. It was at least nine feet tall, thick and hard, its branches pointing up and out.
Whack. Whack.
In other words, the perfect tree to beat the crap out of after a fight with Dad.
Boy, when are you going to stop being so foolish and act like a prince oughta act?
"Fuck you, Dad," Lex growled, taking an extra-hard whack at the tree. He'd never gotten along with his father, but lately it seemed they couldn't even say hello to each other without getting into a heated argument. Dad criticized Lex's behavior and reputation, Lex criticized Dad's jealousy and bitterness towards Lord Byron. It never failed.
It's in the blood, Mom used to say; Dad was a hothead like his father before him, who was the spitting image of his own dad. Seemed to be a side effect of Neir's bloodline, incredible strength and a bad temper.
Danan used to say the way to handle Dad was to agree with him, and that's why he was the favorite son...that, of course, and he was the first son. But Lex knew better, Danan wasn't just the first son, he was the first son of the first wife. He knew how the first Lady of Dozel and her would-be second child had died, how Dad had remarried almost immediately, how it had taken them years just to have Lex and how after the second Lady Dozel passed away he hadn't bothered with another remarriage.
Decades' worth of sordid family secrets learned in one afternoon.
Whack. Whack. Whack.
It was the real reason Dad hated him, Lex had decided. It wasn't about bad temper clashing with bad temper, neither of them knowing when to back down or which sore spots to steer clear of in conversations. It was simply because he was the second son of the second wife.
Whack. Whack. Whack.
He wished he was heartless enough to feel true, pure, unbridled hatred towards the man. That he didn't still care about Dad even after being shouted down and stepped on and treated like shit just for being himself. At least when he criticized his father's behavior towards Chalphy, he was actually concerned for Dozel's well-being. It wouldn't do them or the rest of Grandbell for two noble houses to end up in some petty squabble that could escalate into a war. But Dad just wouldn't listen to reason.
Whack. Whack.
When he criticized Lex, it was pure self-interest. Be more like a real prince should be so I look good. Meet my expectations and be what I want you to be, or you're worthless.
Whack.
The tree shook slightly with the impact of the last hit, and Lex dropped the axe at his feet. He studied the wood's surface, noticing marks he hadn't left there himself. He remembered sometimes Dad would come out here "to be alone", and realized he wasn't the only one taking his anger out on this tree.
Maybe it was in the blood after all.