Ambrose's Family Values 2/8
Title: Ambrose’s Family Values 2/8
Characters/Pairing: Ambrose/Cain and suggested CC/OC
Rating: T
Summary: Ambrose and Cain go to Ambrose’s family reunion, but his family is a lot more secretive than he remembers.
In This Chapter: Grandmas, grammar, and the gallows.
Warning: Angst, slight incest.
Cain could remember the Cain family reunions at Uncle Eustace’s farm quite fondly. Wrestling his cousins, racing horses through the countryside, chasing the automobiles of lost city folk as they rumbled down the dirt road... Good, simple fun. The annual family reunions were always a highlight for Cain.
As the four of them, Cain, Ambrose, Lucas, and their mother, Sybil, sat in the parlor, drinking tea while an overeager young maid waited on them, Cain wondered what sorts of things rich families like Ambrose’s did for fun. He would probably find out later, he thought. At the moment, the family seemed much more interesting in talking.
“A letter from your brother, Augustine, arrived this morning. He was forced to make a stop in a village due to poor weather, but said he should be here by nightfall.” Sybil was a very striking woman, almost exactly like Ambrose in regards to looks. Cain guessed that Lucas resembled their father...
“Mother, where is Father?”
Ambrose must have been thinking the same thing. Cain grinned slightly.
For a moment, Sybil bit her lower lip, mulling over the answer as she placed the teacup on the coffee table with great care. “Your father was executed many annuals ago,” she said, staring squarely at the floor.
Ambrose looked like he had been hit, and, sure that he was going to start crying again, Cain put his own hand over the man’s shaking one. “Father, executed?...” He cleared his throat, attempting to regain his composure. “I suppose it makes sense. He was a lord.”
“Oh yeah, I remember watching that.” The utter lack of emotion on Lucas’ face as he giddily recalled the gruesome act disturbed Cain considerably. “Yes, yes, it was midday, about fourteen annuals ago... There were lots of them there, lining up in the gallows... Oh, Grandpa Jerry was there, too!”
Ambrose dropped the teacup and rushed out of the room. Cain heard the maid squeaking like a mouse, Lucas laughing hysterically, and Sybil halfheartedly reprimanding him for being cruel to his brother... But, he ignored it, focusing all of his attention on Ambrose.
The man in question was leaning against the wall of the main hall, struggling to keep himself together. Cain put a hand on his shoulder and said, “Ambrose... Glitch, it’ll be OK. You’ll be OK.”
“My father... Grandpa Jerry...” His head snapped around to face Cain, tears spilling out of his eyes. “How many more of my loved ones are going to turn up dead, Cain? I... I can’t take this...”
Months before, he had received a letter from his Auntie Mae, the official bearer of bad news for the Cain clan. Two of his brothers, Ernie and Caleb, had joined the resistance and died in combat; his brother, Ed, had joined the Longcoats and was missing, assumed dead; his sister, Robin, had died during childbirth; his Uncle Hank and cousin Nell had died after being caught in the crossfire during a Rebels/Longcoat skirmish in the Central City Marketplace; and his cousin Tuck, who had always been more like a brother to him, had been imprisoned for theft.
Wyatt Cain knew loss. He moved closer to give Ambrose a hug-
“Ambrose? Is that you?”
They turned to face to the voice. Hobbling out of the kitchen was an elderly woman in a floral sundress. Her long, frizzy white hair had a yellow poppy in it.
“Grandma Vivi!” Ambrose practically pushed Cain out of the way to get to the woman, who hugged him tightly.
“Now, there, there, dearie... Dry your tears...” She was considerably shorter than he was, and looked up into his eyes, smiling kindly. “I suppose your mother already told you the bad news.”
“She did, and I was fine, Grandma, really...”
“Oh, what would Grandma Wendy do if she saw you like this?”
He sniffed slightly and grinned. “She’d knock my teeth out... But, I was fine until Lucas butted in...”
“Oh, forget about silly old Luke. Come, I was just in the middle of baking cookies...” She paused and turned to face Cain. “Ambrose, why didn’t you introduce me to your friend?”
Ambrose wiped his eyes on his sleeve and blinked. “Oh, right!” He beamed and jumped over to Cain, pushing the man forward. “Grandma Vivi, this is Wyatt Cain, my... friend.” Cain shot Ambrose a dirty look, but he only grinned sheepishly in return. “Cain, this is my paternal grandmother, Vivian Burke.”
“Nice to meet you, ma’am.” He shook her hand, and suddenly realized something. “I knew your face was familiar! You’re a cook! My wife used to buy all your cookbooks!”
Vivian blushed and said coyly, “Well, I don’t know... I’ve been known to butter a pan or two in my day...”
“Nonsense!” Ambrose butted in. “Grandma is famous for her confectionaries! And for good reason, too!”
“Oh, you’re too kind, dearie.” As they walked into the kitchen, Vivian nudged Cain and whispered, “That boy, he’s a flatterer. When he was just a little boy, he would talk his way into getting whatever he wanted. We always used to say that he could charm his way right into the Queen’s lap...” She laughed. “We never thought that he’d actually succeed!”
“What are you two talking about back there?” Ambrose’s expression made Cain laugh as well, and soon they were all laughing; laughing at each other, at themselves, and at the fact that they knew they would die from grief if they ever stopped.
Lucas slunk into the room, eyeing them curiously. “What’s with all the laughter?”
Ambrose stopped suddenly, eyebrows knitted in thought. “... I... don’t remember...” He looked around. “Where-”
“Ambrose,” Cain whispered.
“What? Oh, hi Cain.” He frowned. “Weren’t we going to make some cookies?”
Vivian was visibly worried. “Is something wrong, Ambrose?”
“Ambrose isn’t right in the head,” Lucas said with a smirk.
“Oh, do stop, Lucas.” She led Ambrose over to the breakfast nook, sat him down, and went to the refrigerator to get him a drink. “You’re probably just tired from traveling and all the excitement. It’s been quite a long day.” Placing a silver tray carrying four glasses of lemonade and a plate of sugar cookies on the table, she gestured for Lucas and Cain to join them.
Lucas inched uncomfortably close to Cain, watching him intently. “I saw you guys in the papers,” he said airily. “With that pretty girl, and the wildman. You saved the world.”
“Yes, and we’re all very proud of you, Ambrose,” Vivian said with a smile. “My grandchild, the world-saver. That’ll show that old cow Lady Hatfield, with her son the Tin Man captain...”
“Cain was a Tin Man,” Ambrose said. “The Queen is even planning to make him Commissioner!”
“Really?” Cain asked.
“It was supposed to be a surprise... Don’t tell her you heard it from me,” he said sheepishly.
“Congratulations, dear. You have quite large shoes to fill, though.”
“Grandpa Jerry used to be the Commissioner,” Lucas told Cain. “You know, till they hung him.”
“Lucas,” Vivian warned. “If you use that type of language around Grandma Wendy-”
“I know, I know,” Lucas sighed. “It’s hanged, I know,”
No more relatives showed up that night, so they talked amongst themselves until the early hours of the morning. When they all went off to their separate bedrooms, Ambrose took Cain upstairs to see his old room. “I didn’t bring many things with me when I went to the university,” he said. “I wonder if they changed it.”
As it turned out, they hadn’t moved a thing. Ambrose’s bed was still as impeccably made as it was when he left that summer day long ago. Books on mechanics and astrology, and papers covered in crude, early sketches of inventions still scattered across his desk. He picked up a dress shirt from the floor and brought it close to his chest. “One summer, I had a growth spurt,” he explained. “I didn’t fit into any of my old clothes. My father lent me this shirt to wear while we went into the city to buy new ones. Afterwards, he said I could keep it.”
He leapt onto the bed, and was pleased to discover that it was just as comfortable as he remembered. “Ah, nothing better than your old- Cain? Where are you going?”
Cain, who was halfway out the door, turned around. “Your mother said there was a spare room down the hall. I was going there.”
“Yes, but... I thought we were going to sleep, you know, together-”
“Now, why ever would we do that?” Cain interjected sharply. “After all, we’re just friends, right?”
Ambrose cocked his head to the side in confusion, then blushed. “Oh, that... Cain, I’m so sorry, but-”
“I didn’t realize that you felt that way, Glitch.” He turned. “Goodnight.”
“Cain, wait!” Ambrose followed him down the hall. “Cain, I just can’t tell my family, especially my grandmother. She’s from a different time, a different place. She wouldn’t understand.”
“I don’t think you understand, actually.” They stopped, and Cain eyed him evenly. “What is it that you want, Ambrose?”
Ambrose bit his lower lip and stared at the floor; a family trait, Cain guessed. “I... I want you,” he said, blushing.
“Ah, you do, do you? Is that all?”
“I want to kiss you.”
“Now, I don’t know about that. Do people who are just friends kiss?”
Ambrose grinned, quickly looked both ways, and kissed Cain just as quickly. “They do now.”
Cain followed Ambrose back to the room.
Characters/Pairing: Ambrose/Cain and suggested CC/OC
Rating: T
Summary: Ambrose and Cain go to Ambrose’s family reunion, but his family is a lot more secretive than he remembers.
In This Chapter: Grandmas, grammar, and the gallows.
Warning: Angst, slight incest.
Cain could remember the Cain family reunions at Uncle Eustace’s farm quite fondly. Wrestling his cousins, racing horses through the countryside, chasing the automobiles of lost city folk as they rumbled down the dirt road... Good, simple fun. The annual family reunions were always a highlight for Cain.
As the four of them, Cain, Ambrose, Lucas, and their mother, Sybil, sat in the parlor, drinking tea while an overeager young maid waited on them, Cain wondered what sorts of things rich families like Ambrose’s did for fun. He would probably find out later, he thought. At the moment, the family seemed much more interesting in talking.
“A letter from your brother, Augustine, arrived this morning. He was forced to make a stop in a village due to poor weather, but said he should be here by nightfall.” Sybil was a very striking woman, almost exactly like Ambrose in regards to looks. Cain guessed that Lucas resembled their father...
“Mother, where is Father?”
Ambrose must have been thinking the same thing. Cain grinned slightly.
For a moment, Sybil bit her lower lip, mulling over the answer as she placed the teacup on the coffee table with great care. “Your father was executed many annuals ago,” she said, staring squarely at the floor.
Ambrose looked like he had been hit, and, sure that he was going to start crying again, Cain put his own hand over the man’s shaking one. “Father, executed?...” He cleared his throat, attempting to regain his composure. “I suppose it makes sense. He was a lord.”
“Oh yeah, I remember watching that.” The utter lack of emotion on Lucas’ face as he giddily recalled the gruesome act disturbed Cain considerably. “Yes, yes, it was midday, about fourteen annuals ago... There were lots of them there, lining up in the gallows... Oh, Grandpa Jerry was there, too!”
Ambrose dropped the teacup and rushed out of the room. Cain heard the maid squeaking like a mouse, Lucas laughing hysterically, and Sybil halfheartedly reprimanding him for being cruel to his brother... But, he ignored it, focusing all of his attention on Ambrose.
The man in question was leaning against the wall of the main hall, struggling to keep himself together. Cain put a hand on his shoulder and said, “Ambrose... Glitch, it’ll be OK. You’ll be OK.”
“My father... Grandpa Jerry...” His head snapped around to face Cain, tears spilling out of his eyes. “How many more of my loved ones are going to turn up dead, Cain? I... I can’t take this...”
Months before, he had received a letter from his Auntie Mae, the official bearer of bad news for the Cain clan. Two of his brothers, Ernie and Caleb, had joined the resistance and died in combat; his brother, Ed, had joined the Longcoats and was missing, assumed dead; his sister, Robin, had died during childbirth; his Uncle Hank and cousin Nell had died after being caught in the crossfire during a Rebels/Longcoat skirmish in the Central City Marketplace; and his cousin Tuck, who had always been more like a brother to him, had been imprisoned for theft.
Wyatt Cain knew loss. He moved closer to give Ambrose a hug-
“Ambrose? Is that you?”
They turned to face to the voice. Hobbling out of the kitchen was an elderly woman in a floral sundress. Her long, frizzy white hair had a yellow poppy in it.
“Grandma Vivi!” Ambrose practically pushed Cain out of the way to get to the woman, who hugged him tightly.
“Now, there, there, dearie... Dry your tears...” She was considerably shorter than he was, and looked up into his eyes, smiling kindly. “I suppose your mother already told you the bad news.”
“She did, and I was fine, Grandma, really...”
“Oh, what would Grandma Wendy do if she saw you like this?”
He sniffed slightly and grinned. “She’d knock my teeth out... But, I was fine until Lucas butted in...”
“Oh, forget about silly old Luke. Come, I was just in the middle of baking cookies...” She paused and turned to face Cain. “Ambrose, why didn’t you introduce me to your friend?”
Ambrose wiped his eyes on his sleeve and blinked. “Oh, right!” He beamed and jumped over to Cain, pushing the man forward. “Grandma Vivi, this is Wyatt Cain, my... friend.” Cain shot Ambrose a dirty look, but he only grinned sheepishly in return. “Cain, this is my paternal grandmother, Vivian Burke.”
“Nice to meet you, ma’am.” He shook her hand, and suddenly realized something. “I knew your face was familiar! You’re a cook! My wife used to buy all your cookbooks!”
Vivian blushed and said coyly, “Well, I don’t know... I’ve been known to butter a pan or two in my day...”
“Nonsense!” Ambrose butted in. “Grandma is famous for her confectionaries! And for good reason, too!”
“Oh, you’re too kind, dearie.” As they walked into the kitchen, Vivian nudged Cain and whispered, “That boy, he’s a flatterer. When he was just a little boy, he would talk his way into getting whatever he wanted. We always used to say that he could charm his way right into the Queen’s lap...” She laughed. “We never thought that he’d actually succeed!”
“What are you two talking about back there?” Ambrose’s expression made Cain laugh as well, and soon they were all laughing; laughing at each other, at themselves, and at the fact that they knew they would die from grief if they ever stopped.
Lucas slunk into the room, eyeing them curiously. “What’s with all the laughter?”
Ambrose stopped suddenly, eyebrows knitted in thought. “... I... don’t remember...” He looked around. “Where-”
“Ambrose,” Cain whispered.
“What? Oh, hi Cain.” He frowned. “Weren’t we going to make some cookies?”
Vivian was visibly worried. “Is something wrong, Ambrose?”
“Ambrose isn’t right in the head,” Lucas said with a smirk.
“Oh, do stop, Lucas.” She led Ambrose over to the breakfast nook, sat him down, and went to the refrigerator to get him a drink. “You’re probably just tired from traveling and all the excitement. It’s been quite a long day.” Placing a silver tray carrying four glasses of lemonade and a plate of sugar cookies on the table, she gestured for Lucas and Cain to join them.
Lucas inched uncomfortably close to Cain, watching him intently. “I saw you guys in the papers,” he said airily. “With that pretty girl, and the wildman. You saved the world.”
“Yes, and we’re all very proud of you, Ambrose,” Vivian said with a smile. “My grandchild, the world-saver. That’ll show that old cow Lady Hatfield, with her son the Tin Man captain...”
“Cain was a Tin Man,” Ambrose said. “The Queen is even planning to make him Commissioner!”
“Really?” Cain asked.
“It was supposed to be a surprise... Don’t tell her you heard it from me,” he said sheepishly.
“Congratulations, dear. You have quite large shoes to fill, though.”
“Grandpa Jerry used to be the Commissioner,” Lucas told Cain. “You know, till they hung him.”
“Lucas,” Vivian warned. “If you use that type of language around Grandma Wendy-”
“I know, I know,” Lucas sighed. “It’s hanged, I know,”
No more relatives showed up that night, so they talked amongst themselves until the early hours of the morning. When they all went off to their separate bedrooms, Ambrose took Cain upstairs to see his old room. “I didn’t bring many things with me when I went to the university,” he said. “I wonder if they changed it.”
As it turned out, they hadn’t moved a thing. Ambrose’s bed was still as impeccably made as it was when he left that summer day long ago. Books on mechanics and astrology, and papers covered in crude, early sketches of inventions still scattered across his desk. He picked up a dress shirt from the floor and brought it close to his chest. “One summer, I had a growth spurt,” he explained. “I didn’t fit into any of my old clothes. My father lent me this shirt to wear while we went into the city to buy new ones. Afterwards, he said I could keep it.”
He leapt onto the bed, and was pleased to discover that it was just as comfortable as he remembered. “Ah, nothing better than your old- Cain? Where are you going?”
Cain, who was halfway out the door, turned around. “Your mother said there was a spare room down the hall. I was going there.”
“Yes, but... I thought we were going to sleep, you know, together-”
“Now, why ever would we do that?” Cain interjected sharply. “After all, we’re just friends, right?”
Ambrose cocked his head to the side in confusion, then blushed. “Oh, that... Cain, I’m so sorry, but-”
“I didn’t realize that you felt that way, Glitch.” He turned. “Goodnight.”
“Cain, wait!” Ambrose followed him down the hall. “Cain, I just can’t tell my family, especially my grandmother. She’s from a different time, a different place. She wouldn’t understand.”
“I don’t think you understand, actually.” They stopped, and Cain eyed him evenly. “What is it that you want, Ambrose?”
Ambrose bit his lower lip and stared at the floor; a family trait, Cain guessed. “I... I want you,” he said, blushing.
“Ah, you do, do you? Is that all?”
“I want to kiss you.”
“Now, I don’t know about that. Do people who are just friends kiss?”
Ambrose grinned, quickly looked both ways, and kissed Cain just as quickly. “They do now.”
Cain followed Ambrose back to the room.