(Untitled)
There's no reason to visit the Nexus, no real need to be here. Events are coming to fruition in Brian's world: dark, cthonic forces are on the move once more, and the forces of good are assembling for one last, final battle. No one can foresee the outcome
( Read more... )
By December, Enfys is still wearing the engagement ring of a man she's never going to be able to marry and so busy that most of the time she just forgets to hurt. She hasn't paused in the nexus longer than it takes to get from one place to another for months (since Before, which has a capital in her head and never anything else because she knows what comes After and doesn't need reminding), sending her letters to Derrick or Fred through the post there and walking through portals from Valdis to Ossus and back again. There is so much she has to do, and she does it, with a new tattoo on her wrist and Betrys not yet born and the sculpture that Garion sent sitting on her writing desk unanswered.
Today would probably be one of those same days if it weren't for the fact that she sees a ghost and feels like the air's just been sucked out of her lungs.
"Oh, fuck you, nexus," she says, looking up just so she doesn't have to look at.
Reply
He looks, then thinks about walking away. He actually does for a minute, talking about six strides away in the opposite direction. Until he remembers how he wishes he could have kissed her one last time, joked with her one last time, told her he--
He's takes those steps back, more prepared for this (or so he thinks). And then he really looks at her, taking in the very obvious bump of her stomach, the distress, the --is that his grandmother's ring?
"This. This isn't even fair." As if the universe is capable of dealing a low blow.
Reply
In this place, 'be careful what you wish for' is taken to whole new extremes. Enfys stares at him with an expression that's a hundred different internal reactions all at once, and after a tight silence she says, "Yeah, well, it's sort of a bitch from this side of things, too."
Reply
A hand frees itself again to ruffle his hair and then, finally, he sits back down, gripping onto the seat of the bench until his knuckles turn white. It's something to do, something to focus on.
Finally, he manages, "I can leave. If you want me to."
Reply
"No," she exhales. "I don't- I mean- shit, this is- no, maybe we should just...I want to talk. If that's okay."
Reply
Reply
"Okay."
After a long, awkward hesitation, Enfys sits down on the bench that he'd vacated moments ago. "...I'm not sure what I want to talk about."
Reply
Reply
"I guess we were, if I look so fucking odd to you," she says, wryly. "It was a few years...it's still really weird, talking about it in the past tense. Like he's gone." He is gone.
Reply
"Several months for us. It was about a year ago." He's fairly sure she can pick up the things not being said. "I still find myself wondering what she'd think of everything that's going on."
Reply
Enfys considered him for a moment, and then tugged her sleeve up a bit and held her left wrist out to him. I have no king inked into her skin - in Elvish, of course, so to the casual observer she looked like the most ridiculous of nerds.
Reply
"I wasn't really able to...put it into words until I finally saw Alice and Adam again. They tried to stay apart when we were all in the same room, but I didn't even care at that point." He looks at her, briefly, for the first time since he sat down, "Alfred said something about rainbows making me forget evening stars."
Reply
"He bitched a lot," she says, reflectively. "He was all over the living room like he was fucking possessed- well, not like that, I've seen that and it's different, I mean, the figure of speech- and I started laughing, so he calmed down a bit. But he still bitched a lot."
The rainbow in question doesn't really know how to respond to the rest of that, so it hangs brittle in the air between them and she wraps her coat around herself tighter.
"Alfred likes me," she says, finally.
Reply
He doesn't consider what he said a mistake (something like that could never be a mistake) but he'll leave off those sorts of comments, no matter how small he tries to make them sound. Regret and boundaries don't always cooperate well.
"You keep in contact?" It's not that he's too surprised --but pleased, definitely.
Reply
"I worked for him," she elaborates. "And he's friends with Grandpa. So I do a bit, yeah. And I write to your da. I got a half dozen offers from him and Erin and Frank to stay, but I've been staying with Candice and her mercenary 'til Betrys is born, which is great fun for him because she's up the duff as well."
Reply
And then he catches himself, going back to that passing mention. "Betrys." He likes the almost-combination of their two names. "Dad must be crapping a brick."
Reply
Leave a comment