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 Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2025 11:24 pm
Quote: The Calling (10) : A beautiful melody drifts on the air from somewhere far away. The vocals are in a language you don't quite recognize, but feel somehow familiar to you. Something about the song calls to you, but no matter where you go, the song seems to sound the same distance away. The longer it goes on, the more emotional the song becomes--and the more emotional you become. Something about the song is possessive and consuming, like it's all you can think of. Something resonates in you as the song crescendos, and the feeling is at its strongest--be they good, bad, anything, but suddenly the song fades, and there's only an emptiness inside of you. The feeling of loss is strong, and can leave someone feeling emotionally numb. Someone out there was calling to you, and you couldn't find them. It was late, not as late as other nights, but late enough that when he came home, Desiree was sleeping and not there to greet him. At least it was due to working at the university this time, and not the Negaverse, so he didn't need to worry about someone following him to his home for that reason. Putting his coat in the closet and setting his bag down by the door, he went to hang up his scarf as he heard a sound. Everything in him froze for a moment as he tried to place the melody, as he tried to carefully sift through his memories while dodging the landmines of his past. It didn't give him that luxury, though, and he found himself wandering forward through his home, climbing the stairs slowly and down the hall towards the unused side of the manor. The rooms had been mostly cleared, and as he stepped forward, the sound grew more insistent, resonating in his chest as he felt like finding its source would fix the cracks that even Liam couldn't heal. Pushing the door open, he stepped into the last room where his late grandfather's things were stored. It had been barely touched, only enough to be cleaned and checked over for pests. The moment he reached for the fluttering curtain, the song stopped, and he let out a gasp, feeling the strength leave his knees as he sank to the ground. Again, even in a different form, he was being taunted.
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Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2025 2:44 pm
Liam had been awake, because of course he was, he knew Aloysius had a late night at work and he didn't have an issue with it...not really. His husband was a busy person, though not as busy as he'd once been, and Liam accepted that. He just made sure to add plenty of powders to the others meals to keep him healthy, and with energhy, he wasn't going to fail his spouse in keeping him healthy and fit. It was because he cared so much for his partner that he was up, sitting in bed reading, when he heard them return home.
Calling out it went unanswered so he tried again. Again - no answer. Now he got up out of bed and followed after the other, who by now was up stairs and drifting down the hall. Not only was Aloysius heading down the hall but he was headed towards the unused rooms, the ones they'd cleaned out but didn't use, he was still thinking they should find uses for the rooms...he just wasn't sure what uses. There were so many rooms he knew they couldn't use them all. But that didn't matter as he followed him, trailed behind him and hung back leaning against the doior frame, as Aloysius entere dhis grandfathers former bedroom.
He hoped Agatha didn't hear anything and decide to investigate, though she seemed good at keeping out of certain things...personal buisness.
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Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 1:43 pm
Hollow, numb, cored out with the silence left behind, even as any fading echo of the song had disappeared. It was difficult even to take in another breath as he sat on the floor, his hands shaking as they held on to the edge of the curtain. The air felt thick but not still, almost like someone was here with him, but it took a moment for him to turn back and look at his husband. Letting go of the curtain, he held himself tight as he looked up at them from where he sat crumpled on the floor, his lips moving but no words coming out as he found himself struggling with the whiplash of things. At least, out of the small group that now lived in this too-large manor, it was the one who mattered most who was here now with him. "Liam," he croaked, once he finally managed to get a word out. Reaching out for them, he let himself sit a bit more solidly on the floor, even if it stirred up a bit of the remaining dust.
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Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 10:08 pm
Watching as his spo1use sat themself on the floor he felt himself worrying more and more, they weren't making a sound and it was eerie to say the least, something was wrong and he knew it. The problem was what to do?? Did he go over and hug them? Did he let Aloysius know he was behind him and watching? Not knowing the frame of mind he was, at least not exactly, made it a bit more difficult in how to handle things. He didn't know what had caused this so he didn't know what was being triggered, and he didn't know everything which bothered his husband so it might still be unknown to him even if he knew thetrigger.
When they turned to him, spoke his name, he finally moved. Pushing off the doorway Liam came to the others side. Seating himself on the fust covered floor, ignoring the dust for now, he pulled the other into his side and held him there. "What's going on?" Whispered, not wanting to disturb things, not wanting to be too loud, it felt like there was something in the air and he couldn't disturb it.
"I'm here love." Because he would always be here for the other, he'd promised him that, he just needed to know how he could help...because he needed to help.
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Posted: Thu Jul 31, 2025 7:49 pm
Turning into Liam, he managed to finally take a shuddering breath. At first, he shook his head slightly before resting his face on their shoulder. Noticing how cold his own skin felt compared to theirs, even when he'd felt almost too warm when he'd gotten home, what only felt like a few moments before. Taking his time, he did shiver slightly but then tried to explain at least the little he did know. "I heard music, something familiar, and I..." he paused for a moment as he looked back at his grandfather's piano. Even if he thought that was what he'd heard, the dust on its lid hadn't been disturbed. Sighing slightly, he pressed his face against them a bit more. "It felt so close, I felt so happy and so warm like when he would teach me when my father was out, and when it stopped, it felt like I lost him all over again." Quieter now, so hopefully nobody else would hear, he felt that ache in his chest as he tried to muffle a sob in their shoulder.
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Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2025 8:31 am
[colorf=goldenrod] So cold, too cold, if you asked Liam. That in mind he did his best to curl around his taller partner, wanting to share some body heat if possible, he should get them into a hot shower and bed. "Music..." Trailing off as he heard his partners words. Where had the music come from? There was no music box, though there was a dust covered piano, in the room. "Magic?" He questioned gently, hands moving to rub soothing cicles along the others back.
"I think the magic did this...like that instance at the door that night." The one which had terrified his partner, that he'd had to step in to handle, it seemed the cities magic was still after his partner even this far outside of the city. It was just a different approach this time. Holdingh is partner tighter, fingers gripping at his shirt tightly, the blond moved to whisper to him.
"We should clean and tune the piano, together, and you can play it then. I can learn if you want." Or he could teach Dessire further, teach her the piece he'd just heard, so the house could be filled with that song once more. Something to bring a smile to his partners lips.
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2025 12:20 pm
There wasn't any need to comment, not as they managed to come to the conclusions he had just as quickly. It made things easier, and he already felt just slightly warmer with them, keeping him close. It was a heavy thing for him to even be in this room, and now, for what Liam was suggesting, he wasn't sure how to even begin. It hurt to be in this room, with how empty it felt, even though nothing had really been taken out of it. To move a single thing, to disturb anything, would hurt, but knowing that letting the instruments rot and go unused wouldn't be something his grandfather would want.
"Slowly...please.." It wasn't going to be easy, much like when they were going through all the boxes, but now there were more people around, and he didn't want all the additional eyes on him if he broke down. That was only for Liam to see, and even then, he never wanted to be pulled to that point. With his husband close, it wasn't as silent or cold. The sound of breathing, of a much calmer heartbeat, even if it wasn't as calm as it usually was, and the creaking of the floor as they shifted to hold him tighter. It gave him something to focus on that wasn't just that emptiness and loss that had been yanked up fresh for him to feel. "Always... always..." he mumbled slightly into their shoulder. "It always pulls me with that song... but usually it ends happier... I saw him last time..." Clinging a bit tighter, he felt the tears coming and didn't try to stop them.
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2025 7:30 pm
"Of course, you have all the time in the world love. I do think they would, in time, be best put to use...to bring joy once more." Something he thought his partner would enjoy eventually, the other needed to turn the negative into posative...but slowly, always slowly, he would never rush his other half.
As the tears came Liam moved them both, shifted them around, so he could hold the other in his arms and press Aloysius' face into the crook of his neck. It was to give comfort, to let him hide his tears, as he rubbed his back once more. "Shhh, we'll go slow. We'll fill this home with joy and music, we'll let his piano and it's music fill this home with happiness and warmth. But all at your pace." Because he would never push the other. He didn't have such hang up's with people, with memories, and family because he'd never had family up until recently and he had no such memories with his father. Liam didn't face the same problems as his spouse did and he tried to understand, but it was hard at times, so he did the best he could and ghave comfort and time. he gave of himself, because he was so very good at that, and he knew that in return Aloysius would be there for him when he needed him. Aloysius had given him so much already.
"I'll help you tube the piano when you do that. I want to see how it's done on a piano." Always wanting to learn about music, about the family buisness, he had embraced it all as much as he could. Coming from no family it was no wonder he clung to tradition and history, heritage, as much as he did. It was another reason he was happy to work for the family which had taken him in, which had given him a family, a thing he was certain Melody knew about him...had seen.
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