Hope Falls

“Your lack of sleep is showing.” Indira said softly, falling silent as she began to concentrate once more. After a long while the pressure came to a stop after she had worked through Kael’s shoulders. Remaining where she was and just gently brushing her hands up and down his shoulder blades, eventually coming to a complete stop.

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“Do you think he would have found a way to stop all of this if he were here?”

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“No. Enjoying it would feel a betrayal…”

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“You’d get more appreciation which I believe you deserve. But if you don’t want it… then I thank you anyway, for lying for me still.”

"I think he would have found a way to take the emotion out of it all, which would have made us enraged. It would have wanted us to rip him to pieces and accused him of being too stoic, too this, too that but it would have made us stop and think, it would have calmed us and made us see what was important." Magnus swallowed. "As royals we are all hot headed, we are all used to getting what we want. Having people in our lives that remind us of hard truths are the most important kind of people to have on your side, Aesira. They always get that balance just right."

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"I wouldn't feel betrayed. I would be happy for you, I have felt so guilty, for so long that you have lost your family because of me. If you get them back it will be a comfort."

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"I got noticed, and it hurt. I don't want the recognition again, thank you though."

"Don't take your hands off of me?" Kael spoke breathlessly, a request more than a command. "Don't go back to your room, either. St - stay. Please."

“One day Lucian will come to his senses, apologise to you for how he treated you for saving him. Thank you for it. I hope that day is soon.” Liara squeezed her hand gently before getting up off of the bed, stretching gingerly.

---

“Now you sound like my mother.” Aesira laughed sadly.

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“You didn’t force me into anything Conan. I knew what I was doing, what I was risking that night… and I’d do it again. Every time I would do it all again…”

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“I can stay.” Indira confirmed quietly, gently making circles against his shoulder blades with her thumbs. “I can stay…”

"I never expected the second to be anything more than what it was, it just saddens me that the friendship has gone when it has been so many decades since I had one."

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"Your mother and I are friends for a reason." Magnus hummed.

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Conan swallowed back a sob, leaning his head forward to bury his face on the crook of her neck. "I am so - so sorry."

[Hr)
"All night?"

“If you want me here all night I’ll need to take my hands off you at some point, I cannot stay sat on you forever.” Indira let out a small laugh. “Or at least one hand may have to be removed. Maybe I can keep the other on you.”

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“How did you become friends?”

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“We were dealt an awful hand… there is nothing to be sorry for, my love.” Dagmar moved her hands into his hair. “We both made the choice that night, and every night after. You didn’t make me do anything. I did it willingly, very willingly. And I would again to be with you… I won’t stop fighting to come home, to come home to you and the children. If they make me leave I won’t stop until we are back together, as long as it is something that you want too I’ll be fighting for it.”

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“I consider you a friend… I hope you can do the same for me. Being able to call someone a friend here would feel very nice…”

"One hand on me at all times, it is an order." Kael hummed contently, closing his eyes. "Your banned from your own quarters until after we have food in the morning. The uh, what I collected for you on my travels I can only give you at sunrise otherwise it'll be lack lustre."

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“I adore gifts, you know me so well.” Indira grinned, leaving one hand on his shoulder as ordered as she moved from his back to lay beside him, moving her hand to his cheek shortly after.

Kael didn't move his body, only turning his head in her direction so that he could look at her. "Of course you do, you are Princess, I expect nothing less then having to shower you with gifts. The gifts always have to be very specific though, don't they? If they aren't as breath-taking as you are then there is little point in even getting them."

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"Your mother and I? Oh it isn't as fun of a story as you would think it would be. She would just so happen to have something to tell me or Thea whenever parties were being organised, or when they were being held. She would stay far longer than she was suppose to, we would... jest. I got the inkling that your father would always use my name with envy, before your parents were even together, he was threatened." Magnus offered a warm smile. "It just naturally built, over the years. As my friendship with Emmett Aster did. You have your forest boy, mm? That was a chance meeting, that grew through forced proximity. People are put in our paths for a reason."

"You should have seen Uncle Luca when Tadgh came for lunch yesterday, flinching every time he moved his hand. He is determined still that Tadgh will kill us all."

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Conan tangled his fingers in the back of her dress, his other hand moving to her hair as he took in deep breathes. Mumbling quietly, "It is cruel, God, The Fates... they are all cruel."

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"Friends, with the Queen? That sounds very risky." Devika answered lightly, though her smile warmed her eyes. Subtly nodding her real answer.

“All the flattery tonight, what is it you’re after?” Indira laughed softly, moving her thumb in gentle strokes across his cheek. “You’ve already had the best massage of your life. I’ve just undone all those months of travelling in an hour.”

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“Jest… you’d flirt with my mother wouldn’t you?” Aesira grimaced at the thought, turning to Cassius. “You could’ve been a Vampire if things went differently.” She snorted.

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“We must’ve been terrible people in a past life to warrant it all.”

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“Not risky, safe, I assure you.” Liara gave her a quick nod before heading out of the room to meet her guard outside.

Kael's eyes fluttered closed, "I have just missed you, that's all. Of all of the people I have met over the past few months I could not find someone who had a laugh as infectious, belly laughing with others is perfectly fine but it isn't the same."

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"No thank you," Cassius grimaced, shaking his head as he moved the pillow behind his head instead.

"She flirted right back, she loved every moment of it." Magnus snorted his laughter. "It was a dance the two of us had, it never had anything behind it other than fun. Neither of you have to worry."

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"Or this one, too many nights hiding in cottages that were glamoured away from the world. Too many drunken evenings in bars with humans pretending as if we were them to escape. If that is the reason though, I think that maybe the weighing scales are uneven."

“I am very pleased to hear that despite your best efforts nobody has replaced me.” Indira laughed softly, leaning up to gently kiss his forehead. “Sleep, I’ll sort Mor when she wakes, I imagine that being in your bed for the first time in months you’ll manage a long while under.”

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“How did she and Thea not end up at odds?”

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“Ah but those nights in bars we pretended to ourselves didn’t we? That that’s all it was.”

"Thea flirted with many, many men in front of me too. We were, like your parents, not meant to be together and it is because of that fact that we never said the words, never risked going near each other for a long, long time." Magnus took in a breath, "The first time I realised I could not stand a world without her, was just before the first war. I don't know if you are aware, but when one Seer is killed every other Seer on the continent will be dragged into a vision where they do not only see the death of their sister but feel it too. It short circuits their sight, too, leaves them unable to see anything for days if they are lucky. It was only ever rumoured before, legends. Seers are meant to be reverred by all, no malicious harm is ever suppose to come to them yet alone their powers used in warfare. One of Thea and Karina's sisters were killed, Thea was sat beside me. I thought it was a normal vision at first but she began to bleed from her eyes, her nose...." He swallowed, "It gurguled from her mouth and ears, nearly choked her and it just would not stop. It went on for so, so long. She went pale, she - and when it did end she was so weak, she fell into my arms like a ragdoll. Could barely breath... We didn't know if she would ever wake up. The fear was consuming, I..... there was no coming back from what it made me understand."

“Why does nobody around us ever seem to want to fall in love the normal way.” Aesira raised her eyebrows. “You and Dad falling for those expressly forbidden and them almost dying for it. Karina loving both Lucian and Emmett, Liara loving dad and not being loved back because he loves mother too much. Lucian loving a woman who was already married… Why couldn’t you all just go to a tavern or the market and find someone nice you liked and go from there. Why all the stories worthy of songs?”

"Being in such high places of power, we could drop a coin on the floor and the people would find some way to make a song and dance about it. In fact, meeting someone in a tavern and forming a connection would be something they would sing about even louder." Magnus reached over to rest fingertips beneath Aesira's chin lightly. "All is going to be fine, Aesira. Your mother will be, Eden will be. There are bigger disasters that could be happening."

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"I wish we could go back to them," Conan leant back to kiss the top of her head. "Or the lazy mornings in that cottage, you wrapped up in fur teasing me about the feather filled pillows and Egyptian cotton sheets. When we had a sanctuary to run away to. This is nothing more than a gilded cage, I don't know how my parents ever appeared so happy within it."

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"The inns I slept in were not uncomfortable, and they always went ridiculous overboard to make sure I had the best of what they had. I slept better when I would pitch up a shelter in the forest though, or just fall asleep star gazing."

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When night had fallen several hours later, Karina stepped into hers and Lucian's room - water dripping from her dress making every step even heavier than they already had been, blood shot eyes giving away her tears where the rain droplets would have disguised her tear tracks.  Shoulders trembling from the cold, though she made no attempt to warm herself up - tiredly searching the room for Lucian.

“Easy to say when your mother isn’t the one at risk.” Aesira mumbled miserably as she closed her eyes, moving to hug Magnus with sadness.

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“Your parents had nothing to compare to the way you had centuries to revel in freedom… they never had. It is easy to be happy with what you have when you do not know there is better out there.”

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“Dangerous to do so though, you are not inconspicuous, everyone knows that the Prince is tall, handsome, incredibly young with a mark from the wasting. Anyone could have spotted you. You were not afraid?”

"Handsome? Mm, what is the reason for your flattery?" He allowed his eyes open, just enough to squint at her through blurred vision. "No, no I wasn't afraid."

---

Magnus hugged her back gently, "If I thought this was a disaster then I would be telling you so, lying isn't worth the energy more than half of the time."

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Conan nodded, gently resting a hand against her cheek.

“I couldn’t exactly call you an ugly beast whilst I am lying beside you could I?” Indira smirked, ripping the end of his nose.

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“Where do we go from here? What are Cass and I supposed to do now?”

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“You cannot say what you have said to me without me telling you the same thing.” Dagmar moved a hand to brush hair from his face. “If I go, you must try to be happy too. If not with Liara, then someone else. Replace me as mistress. You’re a person who needs holding, and I cannot do that if I am so far away.”

"A person who needs holding is a very kind way of saying that I am embarrassingly soft, weak." Conan laughed humourlessly. "I dont think I like that. I don't- you are irreplaceable."

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"Exactly what you were doing only a few hours ago. You have friends, Ira will need you as much as you will need him. Both of you experiencing loss at the same time may be helpful, you'll all be able to lean on each other."

“Not weak. You need love in that way. The same way that Cass needs it physically too. Aesira makes do with words and praise. People need their cup filling in different ways. Not weak, my love. A weak man wouldn’t be here. A weak man would be far away from here.”

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Aesira nodded in defeat, moving to sit back.

"Perhaps you have a thing for ugly beasts, it is not unheard of." Kael laughed gently, leaning his head forward to touch his forehead to hers with a slight smile. "People think ugly things are beautiful more often than not. Look at half of the people who have children, babies often arrive looked like some experiments the dark angels created but their family will think of them to be the best thing since the discovery of the rose."

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"If I could take you and the children, if we could all run then that is something I would do right now without hesitation. We would bring Eden with us too, of course. Far, far from where those Guardian's could ever find us."

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"Just breath, for now. Take the evening to settle in the quiet of it all, as soon as your father has finished speaking to your mother then I will make sure she comes here to see you both. It will all work out okay, Aesira, you will see."

“Their faces settle down within a day or so and then all children are wonderful!” Indira protested. “Did your parents tell you that you were an ugly child and so you must reason that they all are?” She laughed, brushing her nose against his. “I can see it, you being an ugly little potato of a baby.”

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“If only there was somewhere to hide mm?”

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“If it does not I’ll be knocking on your doors.”

(( Do you want to play Lucian and Karina or do you want to leave it? ))

"The Guardians only ever seem to mind our business, do you think there are separate ones in the East? Do you think the two groups communicate with each other if there is?"

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"For comfort or with a stake in hand?"

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"I come home after so long just for you to insult me? I have heard that I was a perfectly normal looking baby, which probably is like an ugly potato if we base it on what people think normal is." Kael grinned.

Indira laughed properly then, shaking her head with a laugh.

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“There are Guardians for each landmass, mm. I believe they have a council among themselves. Though where it is based I have no idea. I trained with Valkyries who went elsewhere, they never come back. There was never any shuffling around between continents, just countries and kingdoms within them…”

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“What do you think?”

((I’m not too fussed for it, are you?))

"Would we be significant enough for them all to speak to each other, if we were to run? Maybe we can slip out, maybe it could buy us all more time..."

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"The latter, most certainly the latter." Magnus ruffled her hair. "You would get no where close to me, little Princess. Even if you had the skills, you would not have it in you/"

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Kael gently brushed his fingertips against the crinkles that filled her face where she had laughed, leaning in to kiss her deeply.

{{ If you aren't bothered then it is fine ))