Private Tales Ash and Iron

[Lorcán]

He frowned slightly. He knew well enough that he wouldn't be here without the small group of those closest to him.. "Get some good ones." he smirked weakly. "That's about the only advice I have after four hundred years." he let out a quiet laugh and rubbed at the back of his neck.

"Get a few good friends, and you'll get through whatever in fuck's name life throws at you."

Lòrcan grimaced as he settled himself down and flopped onto his back, his feathered wings a soft cushion against the stone. He stared up at the crystals and glowworms that sparkled on the stalactites and let his eyes close and breathing through the pain as he listened to the water around him.. "This wouldn't be a bad place to go.." he mused..

 

[Maeve]

Mae frowned and kept her eyes fixed on the pool. She wanted to ask how she could make friends knowing they would grow old and die whilst she stayed young but the words died on her tongue. He probably had no idea. His family - his friends - were all no doubt fae like him. In a way she was glad she had left that isle if she faced immortality; watching her clan live and die over and over would destroy her.

On the trail end of such thoughts, to hear him muse of death so casually, spiked her temper.

"New rule," she got to her feet abruptly. "No more conversations relating to death. Life is for living," with that she turned and ran towards the falling water. Just before she hit the tumbling waves she gave a whoop and dived into the dangerous crashing pool below.

 

[Lorcán]

The little spike in her temper was like a gust of warm air, his eyes snapping open and his brow quirking as he lifted his head to look at her. Lòrcan's lips twitched at her words. "I wasn't trying to be morbid I was jus--" he sat up, watching her leap into the falls. His head shook and he groaned as he got to his feet, laughing under his breath as he stripped to his shorts.

His wings disappeared with a roll of his shoulders, the shadows crawling over his tattoos skin for a moment before they too dissolved into nothing. "Fine." he huffed, and took a run toward the falls and leapt down into the pool after her.

 

[Maeve]

The pool below was icy cold and her dip earlier did nothing to prepare her for it. Underneath the surface the roar of the waterfall fell away and instead she was surrounded by silence. Bubbles caused by the pressure of the fall swirled about her and urged her further down towards the bottom of the pool. There was something wild and thrilling about swimming in lagoons like this one. With the jagged rocks and silvery fish that swam away as she passed, she wondered how many others had seen it.

Along the bottom tiny oysters clung to the rocks which she pried off with the knife that had been sheathed at her hip. Only when her lungs began to burn did she kick up for air.

As she broke the surface she took a deep breath and glanced around for any sight of the fae Prince before kicking for shore.

 

[Lorcán]

The shock of cold at least gave his body something other than pain to think about. He surfaced a short moment after her with a curse. He much preferred warm baths. 'Pampered prick' one of his brothers had enjoyed calling him, he couldn't help but agree. But it was beautiful.

Lòrcan watched her surface from the depths of the pool and he kicked off the rock as she headed toward shore, making to grab hold of her feet before surfacing in front of her, his dark hair covering his eyes as it clung to his face.

A mouthful of water fountained from his mouth and he grinned boyishly. "This is living?.." he chittered at her. Cold air, he could deal with, but icy cold water was another monster entirely.

 

[Maeve]

The Princess gave an undignified screech as he grabbed a hold of her feet and yanked her back, sending her back below the surface in the process. She shot him a glare as she coughed up the mouthful of water she had swallowed though it was tempered somewhat by the amusement that sparkled in her emerald eyes.

"I'm sorry poor Princeling, can you not handle a little bit of cold?" she kicked for a rock this time halfway between the falls and the shore. She didn't trust him not to try something else that endangered the food in her arms so she scrambled onto the jutting stone and carefully deposited the oysters there for safe keeping. It was as she was about to dive back into the pool she had an idea.

Crouching down to that her fingers barely grazed the mirror like surface she closed her eyes and conjured the anger that usually triggered the heat of flame inside of her. The memories clawed at her but she hung on to the feeling rather than the images and very slowly the pool began to warm.

 

[Lorcán]

Poor Princeling?.... Lòrcan's brows rose and he gaped at her, lapsed into an affronted silence for a long moment.

"So in almost two days you've gone from fearing me so much that you chose to work in a smith with a multitude of ash and iron weapons at your disposal - to calling me 'poor princeling'? Do you enjoy taunting dying males, dear Maeve?.." he asked with a wolfish grin, kicking up his legs to float on his back and watch the sun-blushed clouds rolling by above.

"Clearly I've been far too nice to you, to make you forget how afraid you should be.." he taunted back, and let his eyes close as he drew in a few deep breaths and enjoyed the weightlessness of water. His brow furrowed after a few moments as he felt the pool start to grow steadily warmer, his lips curling into a wide grin as he realised...

"Clever girl." he rumbled.

 

[Maeve]

"Fear you?" Maeve spluttered and her refreshed temper heated the pool the rest of the way whether she intended it or not. She snatched her hand back and folded her arms under her breasts, glaring at his floating form. She wondered if she would be able to shoot fire from her eyes with that look one day. "I didn't fear you," she huffed and carefully dipped a foot into the water. It felt like a freshly drawn bath.

"I..." Maeve ran her fingers through her red locks. "I feared not having a choice in my future. You... your deal with my parents..." she shrugged in an irritated manner as though she almost thought he should have already known how she felt. "I wanted to be somewhere I could at least stand a chance of fighting for my life. But I guess now you're planning on dying..." she left off the rock and back into the water.

 

[Lorcán]

The prince grinned at that flare in her temper and he quietly groaned as the pool heated more, steam rising from its surface. He knew she hadn't feared him, from the moment she'd set eyes on him she'd been as fierce as a cornered animal, but with all of her sneering and snarling at him, he knew that she wanted to kill him with hate in her heart, but not fear. He didn't know which was worse.

"I know." he rumbled in answer, deciding the water was hot enough. "I never wanted you to fear me." he admitted quietly. "I don't take pride in being feared by mortals." he frowned, his father's wicked grin flashing in his mind. He felt a crack in his chest and his eyes closed for another moment as he willed those images away.

"And I'm not 'planning' on dying I'm simply accepting my fate and choosing not to waste my last few days of life fretting about it." he sighed, letting his legs fall back below the surface to tread the hot water. He swallowed at the sight of her.

"What will you do..after?.." he asked as casually as he could.

 

[Maeve]

Maeve might not have been as whiny as the prince when it came to the cold but even she had to admit the warmer water was much nicer to swim in. When she broke the surface she gave a contented sigh and instead of a brisk stroke she lazily paddled her way over to where he had begun to tread water. His question made her pause though, mainly because she had never considered there being an 'after'. His death still didn't seem real.

The Princess scowled.

"What I was going to do after these three days were up anyway," she said truthfully and rolled onto her back once she reached him, gazing up at the clouds where there was no hint of the storm that had been there only minutes ago. "Work until I'm qualified enough to get my own forge and then... find something else to learn. Maybe a new town. If I end up like Laith when he had his deal with Fiadh then I have a lot of time to kill. I want to use some of it to work out what I want to... do with it."

 

[Lorcán]

He watched her for a moment as she floated in front of him, taking in her words with an odd hollow feeling that came with thinking of the world moving on without him. It would, of course. Maeve would go on, and he wondered how far she would go. His brothers and Ama would mourn him, but they would go on without him. His father wouldn't mourn, the bastard would live on tormenting whomever the fuck he pleased, and Raph would have to work twice as hard without Lòrcan to do a proportion of the torturing..

Lòrcan kicked back again to float by her side, as though the pair were laid out on a bed of petals, his fingers laced over his stomach in attempt to hide some of the ghastly black tendrils. "Well." he sighed. "Whatever you do, remember what I said about friends." he smirked lazily with a glance at her. "Tomorrow is never promised, not even for us. Don't live in misery." he grunted.

..."And don't miss me too much.." he grinned.

 

[Maeve]

Maeve couldn't bring herself to look at him because, she realised with twisting nausea, she was going to miss him. Even if he had been the villain for most of her story he had been a constant. With her home a place she could never return to and him gone she had... nothing. Laith had always promised her a home but her grandfather was as miserable and lacking as she was. At least that was what she saw in his eyes every time he gazed wistfully out at sea towards the spot they knew their isle sat. She didn't want to be around that.

"Do you know what happens when you die?" her voice was small and fragile to her own ears so she kept her eyes locked firmly on the clouds and refused to cry. Stupid! Stupid, foolish girl. You were willing to kill him only yesterday and now you lay here trying not to cry over the thought of him leaving!

"Do the fae have a story of the afterlife?"

 

[Lorcán]

His eyes closed and he breathed deeply as he let the hot water soothe his aching muscles. Her question prompted another long sigh and he shrugged.. "Some have the same childish fantasies as mortals do, believing that we're reborn, or that we go to some peaceful undying lands or become stars and watch over our loved ones. Any time I've dreamt of dying it's just been...nothing. Just, dark nothing. I think that's all it is.." he swallowed, pushing down the fear he denied.

"I'd have thought you'd be happy to see me go." he quirked a brow, but his eyes remained closed...

 

[Maeve]

Dark nothing.

Maeve had thought the same about death quietly, and to herself. Her own people believed in another life without mortal constraints where you told of your great accomplishments and the famous bards of old added you to their songs. It had always made her wonder about those that did nothing worthy to be sung about - a problem she had worried about when she had thought she might be Queen. Now nothing seemed less daunting than it had back then.

His question made her stiffen.

"I will!" she snapped though there was no real passion or force behind her words. The lie screamed at her. "I won't have to carry around ash with me all the time; do you know how expensive that is?" she huffed and kept her eyes firmly fixed on the sky.

 

[Lorcán]

Lòrcan's cheeks dimpled as his grin grew wide and he let out a husky laugh. "I'll reimburse you for the inconvenience.." he mused, his eyes opening on the coral sky.

"I wouldn't have harmed you, you know. I couldn't have. It was, part of the deal.. not that I'd ever have had intention to in the first place. If it hadn't been for this, I might never have come at all.." he admitted quietly. "You wouldn't have been safe there, and I couldn't protect you." he swallowed and forced a smile.

"Not that it matters now.." he added.

"And, for the record.. I've rather enjoyed your company too." he fought a smirk.

 

[Maeve]

Maeve's scowl softened the more he spoke.

"I know," she said so quietly it wouldn't have been heard by normal ears over the sound of the waterfall at their backs. "I can... feel it," through whatever odd bond now lay between them due to this deal she could feel when he was telling her the truth. Even more so when he meant it. Sensing his emotions made her uncomfortable but it went some way to explaining why she felt so relaxed laying here next to him far removed from anyone who might have been able to help.

She paused, pushing her tongue against the inside of her cheek as she debated her next words.

"Is that how you knew what I was thinking about just now?" Mae had been talking about the afterlife when he had commented on her missing him. She was pretty sure she hadn't said anything out loud. Her eyes flickered finally towards him.

 

[Lorcán]

"Mm-hm.." he answered quietly and turned his face to look at her, his dark eyes studying her for a brief moment before he had to look away. It was like staring at the sun for too long, and he knew it'd only damage him.

He sighed out a breath and slowly sunk below the surface of the water, letting his weight carry him to the rocky bed below where he lay, looking up at her silhouetted form floating above. His chest ached, but it had nothing to do with the lack of air. He could do nothing to hide it.

Lòrcan had purposefully stayed away all this time, ignoring the draw to her for her own safety, now he'd let himself be around her and it wasn't long enough. She was only making it more difficult for him to go.

 

[Maeve]

Those golden eyes lingered in her mind after he had sunken beneath the surface. Staring into them was like drowning in honey and she just knew she was waiting to be stung if she dwelled on them too long. Maeve wasn't a blind woman nor unfeeling when it came to pretty men. Usually though when it came to the fae her fear and weariness kept her admiration for their heart stopping beauty as simply that: admiration. Like one would appreciate a work of art but dare not touch it for fear of breaking it.

But this time?

The worst bit of all was that she couldn't work out if they were her own emotions or this bond that had been put there against her wishes. Was that what was making her feel so calm within his presence? Why his smile made her toes curl? Had it been put there to make her more compliant when he came to whisk her off?

It would be easy to blame something she had had no power over. But deep down she knew... knew she was just being a foolish girl.

 

[Lorcán]

What the fuck was he doing? He couldn't help agree with his father about his stupidity, really. Over four hundred years old and some of his decisions were still made as impulsively as they had been in his late teens. He knew he couldn't have hurt her, he should've just gone to the mountains. Though, he hadn't wanted to be alone..

His lungs started to burn the longer he forced himself to stay laying at the bottom of the pool. By the time he pushed himself back above the surface he had to drag in a few starving lungfuls of air at the edge. He clung to the rock, half glancing over his shoulder at her. He was growing weaker as the day wore on and he huffed quietly at the feeling of frustration it brought..

"We should head back down.." before he could no longer fly. He wiped the drips from his face and pulled himself out of the water, summoning his clothes with a wince.

 

[Maeve]

Was the bond growing stronger or was she just no longer refusing to acknowledge it? The tumble of regret, fear, confusion... she pushed aside the causes of that last one.

"Sure," Mae said meekly, not feeling the desire to banter as she had before. Not when she knew he was so worried about losing the power of flight. She rolled onto her stomach and swam her way back to shore, collecting the oysters on her way. Her tunic was soaked but she pulled on her breeches and squelched into her boots without complaint despite the cold which began to nip at her.

When she stepped into the circle of his arms she pressed her hand against his chest before he could protest. She couldn't remember how to heal really... but she willed some of her energy, some of magic into him.

"So you don't drop me," she half smiled.

 

[Lorcán]

His breath caught in his throat as she pressed her hand to his chest. The wave of warmth and reprieve of pain had been so unexpected that he shuddered and near stumbled forward as the breath tumbled from his lips and he remembered to breathe back in. His eyes blinked heavily as he looked down at her hand, and then to her face as she spoke, only half aware that he was looking at her as though he'd just discovered some priceless artefact or a rare gem. He swallowed, collecting himself.

He couldn't be angry. Not when she smiled up at him like that, but he took her hand and squeezed at it. "Thank you, Mae." he rumbled quietly and scooped her into his arms with a light smirk. "I won't drop you." he assured, his dark wings forming from shadows on his back before solidifying and pulling them both into the air with one strong beat.

He didn't go straight to the cabin. He wanted to see more, to show her more. To stay up here. His throat ached as he stared down at the rolling hills and winding rivers, and the forests that went on for days. He thought of the flights with his brothers, and he didn't bother to fight the tear that rolled down his cheek at the thought..

The cool wind whipped at their damp hair and clothes, but he kept her held close to his chest and his arms tightly held around her, flying until the sun dipped low on the horizon and threw up a myriad of colour into the darkening sky and the stars fought for dominance over it's dying light.

"Still hate heights?.." he asked gently as he circled reluctantly down toward the cabin below..

 

[Maeve]

This time she could feel the promise alongside the words. Even still it didn't stop her heart from racing at the thought of going back into the endless void of sky where nothing but the ground below tugged at her. Yet whilst her arms were tight around his neck as he jumped once more into the air, his promise gave her the courage to look more on their flight home. On the journey here she had just stolen glances in-between waves of nausea but now she forced herself to look properly at the world around her.

His world.

This was how he saw her realm. Even she could see its fragility despite its beauty from up here. It all seemed so... insignificant. Yet its beauty made it all the more precious because of that.

When his tear rolled down his cheek she brushed it away with her thumb without a word.

"I think... that I do not hate heights," she measured her words carefully as they circled the cabin wide and slow. "I just fear falling and..." their feet touched solid ground. "And I guess I no longer fear falling with you."

 

[Lorcán]

He couldn't look at her as she brushed the tear away. There weren't many people in this world that he could let his emotions run free with, but he'd given up trying to conceal them. He didn't have the strength to waste.

Something in his chest cracked at her words and Lórcan stared at her, forgetting to put her down. That he'd managed to rid her of the fear that he'd caused her was more retribution than she could know. That she didn't fear him, that she trusted anything about him... He was still staring, his expression blank and distant.

His wings ruffled and he blinked and set her down, reaching a hand behind his back and wincing slightly as he yanked at a wing and held out a large, black feather to her with a small smile.

"Then don't forget how rewarding it can be to face your fears.." he said quietly.. Don't forget me..

The huge wings dissolved into black smoke and shadow that swirled around them in the breeze and dissipated, his back feeling light and bare. He sighed deeply and rolled his shoulders. "Thanks for coming with me." he smirked.

 

[Maeve]

Maeve twirled the feather between her thumb and forefinger, marvelling at it as though she had never seen a feather before in her life. It was softer than she thought it would be, nothing like the birds they mimicked. When it caught the evening light she could just make out the hint of blue and purple that made up the special shade of black that was unique to him. Not like shadows at all but rather the darkness of the night. A faint blush coloured her cheeks when she realised she had been quiet for some time after his words.

"Well, I wouldn't have been able to concentrate if you had just sat there sulking on the shore all day," as she returned his smirk she began to braid a section of her hair back from her face and secured the feather firmly against the red locks by doing so.

"Have you had oysters before?" She asked as she set off for the cabin.

 

[Lorcán]

His cheeks dimpled as he reminded himself to smile instead of staring so blankly at her.. "Yes, I suppose that would have been insufferable.." he answered coyly and ran his fingers through his dark waves, trying to sort them back into some sort of order.

The feather she wove into her hair was black as coal next to the fiery red of her hair. "Looks better on you.." he winked playfully as he turned to walk her back to the cabin, albeit a little slower than before..

"I can't say that I have.." his brows rose..