|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:04 pm
Her eyes shot up to his when he said Death, but it wasn't until Gale said whenever we pleased and Legacy of Death that a spark was seen in them. A terrible, dangerous spark that hadn't been there in months, years even, that seemed to really highlight how weary Stormy truly was in the way a bright light could cast harsher shadows around it. For a moment, she didn't care about Otto, or saving the island, or anything else that didn't pertain to this one central idea that was quickly taking root in her barren mind.
"We could bring Nevada back," she whispered.
Because now she had the spark of hope.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:10 pm
It was not as if he hadn't thought of it.
The first thought in Gale's mind upon receiving the mark had been Leslie, of course; but his sister was long gone, and he had already accepted it, had already moved past the devastation and the desire. And besides, she was not dead; she was merely podded, so using the wish would probably not have worked anyway.
But bringing Nevada back had not been far from his mind either, because Stormy had never been the same since she had died, had never truly recovered, not really. There was always a part of her missing, a part that Gale, no matter how hard he tried, could not fill.
And now, watching her - seeing the bright light in her eyes that had not been there for months, longer even - was like looking in a mirror that showed not herself, but her past self.
Gale drew in a sharp breath and exhaled it slowly.
"We could," he said quietly, again wanting to reach out and take her hand and again refraining from doing so. "But...I don't know the consequences yet. It could be dangerous."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:20 pm
"Consequences...?" she repeated thoughtlessly. The word sank in through the thick roots one letter at a time. "Consequences," Stormy said again, somehow softer than before. The lights were dimming, the spark now a shard of glass slowly embedding itself into her heart again. Just like the good old days.
She should have known better. Nothing had been free for years now.
"Consequences." Her mouth trembled as if she might cry despite her eyes remaining dry.
Slowly Stormy let go of his arm and framed his face between her hands. "If I'm not allowed to leave, neither are you," she said. "You know that, right? They can't take you too. You know."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:26 pm
He almost regretted saying it. Watching the light ebb slowly from her eyes, watching the way she curled in on herself was painful, his heart aching; but he couldn't let her go into anything without knowing what would happen first. If there was a chance that they could revive Nevada, he would do it in a heartbeat, but caution was needed.
"I'm sorry," Gale whispered, his voice filled with a sorrow that he couldn't quite hide. "Stormy, I - "
Her hands touched his face, and he blinked rapidly at her, words dying in his throat, his chest feeling tight. Slowly Gale lifted his own hands and covered Stormy's, fingers trembling a little as they laid across before he curled them around hers.
"I know," he said softly, and leaned his head forward, forehead against hers. Something in his voice broke a little. "I know."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:55 pm
"They can't," she mumbled emphatically, her eyes still fixed on his face as they touched foreheads. "No more. S'my turn to take things from them. Don't say sorry," and she didn't fail to see the irony there, "just don't let them take you." Nevada had taken a piece, and she was limping along; Gale would take what was left, and then there would be nothing.
Stormy took a breath and sighed, closing her eyes briefly. "You should know." Sitting up, she slid her hands out from under his and fumbled with her season-inappropriate long sleeves, tugging them back to her elbows before turning her arms over. Several small lines were on the underside of her arm and wrist, lighter in color like most of her other scars. "No secrets," she mumbled, her head bent and eyes averted, shame creeping into her tone. "Haven't done it in a while. But I-I won't again. I won't." I'll try.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 7:38 pm
He squeezed her fingers gently. "I won't," Gale said quietly. "They can't have me."
No one but you, was the unspoken rest of his sentence. His eyes fluttered a little as she moved back, and he felt her hands slip away from his. Gale's gaze went down, expression slightly confused at what she was doing - but a second later it had melted away into understanding, and a little bit of despair, a little bit of sadness that he had not seen these before, that he had not noticed. Where had he been when she had been hurting? At work, probably, or on a mission, and the ache in his chest increased, because he had always put Stormy first, even when she had told him to think of himself, and here he was, not doing what he had promised to do all this time.
Gale reached out and took her hands.
"I'm sorry," he said, and this time it wasn't in reference to what he'd said sorry for before. "For keeping things from you, for...for not being here, Stormy, I'm so sorry."
He blinked rapidly, feeling a wetness on his lashes. Gale's fingers shook a little on hers.
"No secrets," he whispered.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 11:11 pm
She turned her arms back over and took his hands, grasping in bundles rather than intertwining. Clutches rather than something softer. "No secrets, Galestorm," Stormy said softly, surprisingly steady, "and no sorries." Because there was nothing Gale could have done to stop her, in the end. He was as powerless as she had been when the vines had taken him to Peter Pan. It an ugly fact to face that not everything could be prevented, that they didn't always have the power to be each other's saviors. But she was learning that not everything could be mourned; it was too draining on the soul, too much wasted on the what could have been instead of the what is.
And the what is was already terrifying enough, if she had learned anything from what Gale had talked about.
She felt a lump in her throat settle when her first instinct upon seeing Gale's tears was to shy away. Stormy had cried and mourned enough in her blue period, she didn't want to see more. But the little moments of contact had reminded her of how starved she was for something meaningful again and, forgetting that Tink was still in her lap, sank against Gale and buried her face into him. "What time's the mission again?" she asked, mostly muffled.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jun 25, 2015 12:58 pm
He returned her grasp with firm ones of his own that bordered on desperate, but didn't quite reach it to that extent. Gale gave a slow nod, breath shuddering a little, because she was right; no more secrets, no more regrets, no more focusing on shouda, coulda, woulda. They did not have the luxury, after all, to be looking backwards instead of forwards.
He did not cry easily, and he had not meant to let his emotions run free this time either. But Gale took a deep, steadying breath, blinking rapidly, and then gave a soft sound of surprise as Stormy collapsed against him, Tink giving a little rattle of protest. His arms went around her almost immediately, Gale burying his face into her hair, and he had missed this, missed her closeness, her warmth.
"...six in the morning," he mumbled, slightly dryly. "Thanks to Caelius' usual ability to make us get up at the crack of dawn."
Gale pressed a kiss to the top of Stormy's head, eyes squeezed shut.
"I love you," he murmured softly, and ran his fingers gently through her hair.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2015 1:02 am
She hummed first into him, and then, muffled, "Love you too." It felt rusty, saying it aloud again after months of wordless fragments in every listless movement. Growing self-conscious, she allowed Gale several seconds of extra contact and then stirred and sat up again, giving Tink several apologizing coos as she smoothed out the minipet's figure.
"Means we ought to start getting things ready and go to sleep early," Stormy thought aloud as she got to her feet. Pausing, she turned and leaned down to kiss Gale's hair in return, a shadow of a smile on her face. "I'll get the tea, and we'll get started."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Jun 29, 2015 11:58 am
He felt some of the tension ease out of his shoulders, Gale's arms falling away from Stormy to let her shift backwards. He touched her face briefly before his fingers slipped to stroke Tink's spiny head, the little dragon giving a puff of unhappiness at being squished between their two owners.
"Yes," said Gale, taking a deep, steadying breath. His eyes fluttered at the kiss to his hair, his heart twisting at the brief contact, and Gale picked Tink up and stood as well, feeling much less twisted with anxiety than he had at the start of their conversation.
"Earl Grey or Green for me, please," he said, locking Tink back into her cage for the time being and Gale moved to the closet to get their bags.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
