LegendLand Big Bang Challenge - "Where is the Little Boy I Carried" (PG-15)
Title: Where is the Little Boy I Carried
Rating: PG-15; rated for violence and implied violence
Theme: Mother Confessors
Genre: Drama/Tragedy/Horror
Characters: Serena, Her son (I named him William)
Timeline/Spoilers: Spoilers for "Sacrifice"
Prompt: Destiny/Fate
Word Count: 1081
Author's Notes: My take on how Serena's son might have died
“Mother...”
William looked up from where he sat, turning his angel's face toward the shocked and heartbroken woman standing in the doorway.
“William...” Serena choked out, her chest tightening painfully. “William...”
“Hello mother,” he greeted her, darkly unconcerned with the hell that surrounded him.
Serena forced herself to step calmly into the library turned abattoir.
“William...”
The Confessor swallowed, trying to push down her horror. Carefully, she approached her son, trying to ignore the way her white sleeves were becoming stained a dark red-brown.
“William...”
“I didn't expect you today mother. Marta said you had gone to Aydindril,” the young boy said calmly, twirling a dagger on the flat of its blade. The metal made a hollowing ringing sound as it rubbed over the scarred wood of his study table.
“I wanted to be here,” Serena replied as steadily as she could. “With you...”
William tilted his head, as if measuring the truth of her words, which, she supposed, he was.
“Did you?”
The Confessor took a deep breath and almost gagged on fetid air. William tilted his head in the opposite direction, studying her. Serena took a shallow breath.
“Of course,” she said in a low, steady tone.
“Thank you, Mother,” William replied sincerely.
Serena stepped one step closer.
“William,” she said carefully. “William, what's happened?”
“Happened, Mother?”
The Confessor tried very hard not to look around herself, and instead kept all her attention on the boy that she had raised; had thought that love would keep safe.
“Hasn't something happened today, William?”
“Of course, Mother. Something always happens,” he replied, smiling at her sweetly. “Doesn't it?”
Serena tried to take another deep breath, but stopped herself. She took another step closer to the boy seated at the opposite side of the table.
“Yes; yes something always happens. But today, what happened today, Love?”
The child looked around the room as if seeing it for the first time, or more accurately, as if finally seeing that his surroundings related to his mother's question in some fashion.
“I got hurt,” William answered simply, tipping the dagger to point it's blade towards Serena. “Then I got mad,” he continued, hefting the blade carefully in his hand, as if considering it.
Serena licked her lips nervously.
“You were hurt today, William?”
She forced herself closer.
“Yes, Mother.”
“Did... did our friends hurt you?”
William's eyes flashed.
“They're not our friends,” he answered. “They're not our friends,” he repeated in a low, fierce voice. He nodded as if to emphasis the point. “They're not our friends, they're my friends,” he clarified in a calmer voice.
Serena again tried to not look around, focusing instead on the stained dagger in her son's hands.
“Did your friends hurt you?” She asked carefully.
“They said things,” William replied. “They said things that I did not like. Many things...”
William's eyes took on a distant sort of look.
“I did not like the things they said. It hurt. It hurt very much, Mother.”
The boy turned his attention back to Serena.
“It hurt very much, Mother, and I wished you were here. I wished very much that you had been here. You would have made it stop.”
His brown eyes welled up with tears.
“I wish you had been here, Mother.”
Serena closed the last of the distance between herself and the table. She felt the scarred wood dig into her legs and pressed against it, heedless of the dark fluids on it staining her white dress.
“I know, William,” she comforted the child. “I know. I wish I had been here too.”
“But you weren't,” the boy countered, suddenly fierce again. “You weren't...”
He took a breath, calming as abruptly has he had raged.
“You weren't here, so I did something about it.”
“What did you do?” Serena asked, trying to keep the horror and sadness from her voice.
William shrugged and started twirling his dagger again, the point pressed into the wood and turning a small hole there. He looked down, watching the steady flash of the blade in the light.
“I told them that I did not like the things they were saying,” the boy said. “I told them that my true friends would never say such things. I told them that you would not like them saying such things. And I told them that you loved me and so should they.”
William looked up to meet his mother's eyes.
“It's true isn't, Mother? You do love me?”
Serena took a breath.
“Yes, Baby... I love you very much. I have always loved you.”
William nodded to himself as if in confirmation.
“I told them.”
“William...” Serena said slowly. “William... after you confessed them, what happened?”
The child looked calmly around himself, apparently unaffected by the sight.
“I asked them so show me that they were sorry.”
He shrugged and look back to Serena.
“They were very sorry, Mother. I was glad to see that they were so sorry. It made me feel a little better. Though I still wish you had been here.”
“I wish I had been too,” she whispered.
Serena looked to the dagger in her son's hands.
“May I see that?”
Without any hesitation, the boy handed the blade to his mother. She gripped it in her hands painfully, and before either of them could stop, William and Serena reached out to each other. The Confessor plunged the blade into her son's chest, and William spread his small hand around her throat. For a moment, Serena felt the weight of Confession fall over her and she looked in horror at her hand holding the dagger.
“I just wanted them to love me like you do, Mommy...” William protested, his voice weak. “I just wanted...”
Serena felt the weight of Confession lift as her son died, and another more terrible weight take its place. She stumbled around the table to take her fallen son in her arms. Together, they sank to the floor.
“I just wanted you, William. I'm so sorry... I thought...”
She took a shuddering breath.
“I thought love would be enough...”
Serena buried her face in the fading warmth of her son's body, and wept...
Rating: PG-15; rated for violence and implied violence
Theme: Mother Confessors
Genre: Drama/Tragedy/Horror
Characters: Serena, Her son (I named him William)
Timeline/Spoilers: Spoilers for "Sacrifice"
Prompt: Destiny/Fate
Word Count: 1081
Author's Notes: My take on how Serena's son might have died
“Mother...”
William looked up from where he sat, turning his angel's face toward the shocked and heartbroken woman standing in the doorway.
“William...” Serena choked out, her chest tightening painfully. “William...”
“Hello mother,” he greeted her, darkly unconcerned with the hell that surrounded him.
Serena forced herself to step calmly into the library turned abattoir.
“William...”
The Confessor swallowed, trying to push down her horror. Carefully, she approached her son, trying to ignore the way her white sleeves were becoming stained a dark red-brown.
“William...”
“I didn't expect you today mother. Marta said you had gone to Aydindril,” the young boy said calmly, twirling a dagger on the flat of its blade. The metal made a hollowing ringing sound as it rubbed over the scarred wood of his study table.
“I wanted to be here,” Serena replied as steadily as she could. “With you...”
William tilted his head, as if measuring the truth of her words, which, she supposed, he was.
“Did you?”
The Confessor took a deep breath and almost gagged on fetid air. William tilted his head in the opposite direction, studying her. Serena took a shallow breath.
“Of course,” she said in a low, steady tone.
“Thank you, Mother,” William replied sincerely.
Serena stepped one step closer.
“William,” she said carefully. “William, what's happened?”
“Happened, Mother?”
The Confessor tried very hard not to look around herself, and instead kept all her attention on the boy that she had raised; had thought that love would keep safe.
“Hasn't something happened today, William?”
“Of course, Mother. Something always happens,” he replied, smiling at her sweetly. “Doesn't it?”
Serena tried to take another deep breath, but stopped herself. She took another step closer to the boy seated at the opposite side of the table.
“Yes; yes something always happens. But today, what happened today, Love?”
The child looked around the room as if seeing it for the first time, or more accurately, as if finally seeing that his surroundings related to his mother's question in some fashion.
“I got hurt,” William answered simply, tipping the dagger to point it's blade towards Serena. “Then I got mad,” he continued, hefting the blade carefully in his hand, as if considering it.
Serena licked her lips nervously.
“You were hurt today, William?”
She forced herself closer.
“Yes, Mother.”
“Did... did our friends hurt you?”
William's eyes flashed.
“They're not our friends,” he answered. “They're not our friends,” he repeated in a low, fierce voice. He nodded as if to emphasis the point. “They're not our friends, they're my friends,” he clarified in a calmer voice.
Serena again tried to not look around, focusing instead on the stained dagger in her son's hands.
“Did your friends hurt you?” She asked carefully.
“They said things,” William replied. “They said things that I did not like. Many things...”
William's eyes took on a distant sort of look.
“I did not like the things they said. It hurt. It hurt very much, Mother.”
The boy turned his attention back to Serena.
“It hurt very much, Mother, and I wished you were here. I wished very much that you had been here. You would have made it stop.”
His brown eyes welled up with tears.
“I wish you had been here, Mother.”
Serena closed the last of the distance between herself and the table. She felt the scarred wood dig into her legs and pressed against it, heedless of the dark fluids on it staining her white dress.
“I know, William,” she comforted the child. “I know. I wish I had been here too.”
“But you weren't,” the boy countered, suddenly fierce again. “You weren't...”
He took a breath, calming as abruptly has he had raged.
“You weren't here, so I did something about it.”
“What did you do?” Serena asked, trying to keep the horror and sadness from her voice.
William shrugged and started twirling his dagger again, the point pressed into the wood and turning a small hole there. He looked down, watching the steady flash of the blade in the light.
“I told them that I did not like the things they were saying,” the boy said. “I told them that my true friends would never say such things. I told them that you would not like them saying such things. And I told them that you loved me and so should they.”
William looked up to meet his mother's eyes.
“It's true isn't, Mother? You do love me?”
Serena took a breath.
“Yes, Baby... I love you very much. I have always loved you.”
William nodded to himself as if in confirmation.
“I told them.”
“William...” Serena said slowly. “William... after you confessed them, what happened?”
The child looked calmly around himself, apparently unaffected by the sight.
“I asked them so show me that they were sorry.”
He shrugged and look back to Serena.
“They were very sorry, Mother. I was glad to see that they were so sorry. It made me feel a little better. Though I still wish you had been here.”
“I wish I had been too,” she whispered.
Serena looked to the dagger in her son's hands.
“May I see that?”
Without any hesitation, the boy handed the blade to his mother. She gripped it in her hands painfully, and before either of them could stop, William and Serena reached out to each other. The Confessor plunged the blade into her son's chest, and William spread his small hand around her throat. For a moment, Serena felt the weight of Confession fall over her and she looked in horror at her hand holding the dagger.
“I just wanted them to love me like you do, Mommy...” William protested, his voice weak. “I just wanted...”
Serena felt the weight of Confession lift as her son died, and another more terrible weight take its place. She stumbled around the table to take her fallen son in her arms. Together, they sank to the floor.
“I just wanted you, William. I'm so sorry... I thought...”
She took a shuddering breath.
“I thought love would be enough...”
Serena buried her face in the fading warmth of her son's body, and wept...