Hope Falls

"She is, and you are her mate which gives you just as much influence. The two of you are all but equal in the eyes of those who are worth your time and effort." Matilida hummed, kicking her shoes off and throwing herself onto the mattress beside him. Taking a few swigs of the bottle before wiggling it to him in offering.

---

"Oh." Sarika whispered in surprise. Tracing her fingers up the skin of his back, slowly until one arm hooked over his shoulder to secure him in place; the other hand finding itself in his hair. "I- I've got you. It's all over, Izsak. It's done."

---

"Did you mean that or was it a faked nicety? It won't meet a warm reception."

“Promise me if it ever looks like I’m to be captured again you’ll kill me first, Sar?” Izsak whispered thickly. “I can’t go back there, promise me I’ll die before I go back there.”

---

“I meant it. I won’t take her child from her, and we know there are ways to suppress the beast within… As a mother with no child, I can’t take hers from her… and on another note, if she is with child, and that child turns out to be Adair’s… we will have his only living child and so we will be at the advantage.”

---

Draven rolled his eyes at her words before taking the bottle and gulping it down

"You are never, ever going to go back there." Sarika promised, turning her head to whispered it into his ear.  "You have been so brave, sweetheart. So resilient. You're safe now, I've got you now."

---

"Hey what was that for," Matilda challenged with a raised eyebrow. "Do not do that with your eyes at me, Mr Adair, you are not a child." She shook her head tutting; "Terrible."

---

"Mm," Aodhän hummed, trying to remain neutral though his silence said more than words could - nose wrinkling is disgust.

(( Night night ))

“I don’t want a Wolf in these walls either, Aodhän… it is the last thing I want. But for twenty years it will hardly be a Wolf until it changes for a start, and you wanted me to bond with her and compromise. Síofra was taken cruelly from me, I cannot do the same to another woman.” Isolde whispered, playing with her hands then. “Besides… like I say. It may very well be Draven Adair’s… and if it is then it is a beneficial hand to be dealt.”

---

“Can’t go back.” Izsak affirmed drowsily, repeating jr several times over before he fell asleep against her. His body relaxing completely.

---

“I feel like a child being sent to the naughty corner. Except I’m not a child and the naughty corner is the damn whipping post.” Draven snorted, winking at her with a grin.

Sarika let out a breath, keeping her arms around him tight as she let her own eyes close; listening to his breathing.

---

"I hate that bloody thing; the post. It's cruel, I don't know why she has kept it when she insisted that the monarchs were savages." Matilda answered with a frown, though it was only until the wink which made a laugh erupt from her lips. Grabbing one of the pillows and hitting him gently across the head with it.

---

"I see your points, but the idea of it still makes me uncomfortable."

“She’s probably not even pregnant and once the healersnconfirk it there’s nothing to worry about mm?”

---

“I’m the injured party here! You’re supposed to be aiding me not smothering me with a pillow!”

"It's the ancient art of pillow massage." Matilda laughed, snatching the whisky bottle back off of him and finishing whatever was left in it. "If I wanted to smother you I would have done it years ago."

---

"Lets hope for that scenario," Aodhän nodded.

“I have a no doubt about that, and the fact that my face is the only thing that’s saved me from such a fate.”

---

“She saw me with your grandchild too… thought it may be of some comfort for you to know for sure that Kael will live long enough to father a child. I know you worry.”

"You could have been non-identical and you still would have been saved from that fare; you're his brother..he is around to fight in your corner anymore, that leaves the job to me." Matilda answered matter-of-factly; swinging her legs over the side of the bed and walking to the corner of a room where a grand piano was nestled between hanging sheets and fairy lights - almost camouflaging into the wall despite its size. Quietly she placed herself in front of it, running her fingertips up along the keys from a lower to higher register and back again.

---

"Oh." Aodhän whispered, shifting his weight to wrap his arms around her waist and adding happily. "And you live long enough to meet them. That is very mych a relief."

“It is I who promised to protect you, it needn’t be the other way around.” Draven shook his head, moving to sit up and watch her play.

---

“Another few decades at least, a relief indeed.”

"Well, we look after each other then." Matilida laughed softly, going from one note to the other on the piano as she fell into silent thought. Approaching a minute later, voice a whisper; "Do you want to hear it? What he helped compose for you?"

---

Aodhän nodded, leaning in to press his lips to hers.

“Can my heart take it right now Tilly?” Draven asked quietly, it intending to be a joke question, though falling flat.

---

“Do I get my reward for following orders now? I played nice.” Isolde chuckled against his lips.

"I don't know," She answered quietly, though tried a sequence of notes of anyway as she tried to jolt her memory. "I think... I think you need it now. I think it might sting, but it'll make you feel full."

---

"You done very well," Aodhän almost purred against her lips, pulling her into him as he deepened the kiss.

“A roast chicken can make me feel full, if that’s what I need.” Draven chuckled, though nodded at her words.

---

“Bedroom? Bedroom.”

"Okay," Matilda nodded, shifting her weight to make herself more comfortable on the stool. Closing her eyes for a few moments, breathing slowly before she began. The piece of music floated across the whole range of the notes, lilting up to crescendos before crashing back down to almost whispers; the tempo adjusting differing as a new age of the brothers became representing. The melody being a constant harmony; a mixture of perfect and disjointed. The song finishing with lighter notes, her fingers pressing delicately on the keys.

---

"If you command it." He grinned, sweeping her into his arms as he got to his feet and headed into the bedroom. Using his foot to close the door behind himself.

Draven slowly moved off the bed to stand behind her during the song, moving to gently rest his hands over her shoulder as he listened.

Matilida slowly moved her hands from the keys and back down to her lap when she was done, leaning back towards his touch without a word.

“Thank you.” Draven murmured almost silently as he rested his head on hers, staring at the keys in contemplation.

"I'm just the messenger, it was his vision." Matilda whispered, leaning her head back to look up at him with the offer of a sad smile. "He loved you so much."

“He loves you too, loved you too.” Draven nodded, kissing the top of her head.

Matilda quietly rose to her feet, wrapping an arm around his shoulders to try and encourage him back to the bed. "Lets get some sleep."

Draven nodded, kicking off his shoes and climbing in.

"My dress, the uh.. fabric is too delicate so if I sleep in it I risk ripping it." Matilda began to explain as if they hadn't already spent the past few nights together, it being her own bedroom making it feel more intimate as she pulled her dress up over her head so all that remained was her underwear. Wandering across to look at herself in the mirror as she took out a small nose stud and placed it on the dressing table.

“Won’t that close up if you take it out?” Draven asked sleepily, half keeping an eye on her.

"I have a smaller one to put in over night. Somewhere...." Matilda whispered, opening up one of the draws to rifle through. "I did see it here earlier."