Work Text:
Sophie was sitting on the windowsill. Everything was quiet outside. The moon drew shapes on the water.
There was still blood on Sophie’s dress. She had washed her hands, so there was only blood under her nails, but it wouldn’t come out of her dress. Her hair had long since come unbraided, and it tangled around the base of her neck.
Livvy touched her shoulder gently. It didn’t occur to Sophie to react until she had left, so she didn’t move. She heard Livvy rustling around the room. She heard her own shaky breathing, and Tiergan’s.
“I, um...” Livvy spoke softly, as if afraid of waking them. “I’m going to sleep a little. Call me if anything changes.”
“Ok.” Tiergan’s voice was dulled, all the heart gone from it.
Livvy left.
Sophie still didn’t move.
Her dress glittered in the moonlight, a mockingly beautiful dance. She had been dancing, there were candles and light, she had made a snide comment and her guardian had laughed, his voice retaining its silky darkness even when disguised. They had been playing games, counting the amount of times the Ogre king sneered, or the amount of times Bronte accidentally made a crude joke, or how many times he could switch the counselor’s glasses before they noticed.
She’d been so sure she could stop it.
She caught on to the plan, and she acted, just like she was supposed to. She had gotten them out- she had been right!
Tiergan had met them at the gates before they left. “Take care of him,” he’d said. He was laughing. He was joking. Sophie could only hear his voice. “Take care of him-“ and then his scream when they’d brought him back.
All the blood on her dress, all the blood on her hands, all the blood on his chest.
Blood on Tiergan’s hands, on his cheeks as he desperately sobbed Leto’s name into his matted hair.
Blood on Livvy’s apron, on her skirt.
On the blankets.
On the floor.
And it was so quiet. But Sophie’s head was so loud. It was crushing her.
Tiergan looked up at the soft thud. Sophie had fallen off the window. She was unconscious. Tiergan slid off the bed. His limbs felt weak, but he could pull her onto the bed. She looked so delicate in the moonlight, poor little girl. Soaked in the blood of someone she cared about, and left alone to panic while Tiergan got caught up in his own grief. ‘You have a duty to her,’ Leto would have said. ‘Take care of Sophie first.’
He ran a hand along her cheek, settling her more securely into the blankets. His darling’s little creation. His pride and joy, his victory and his delight.
It hurt to look at her. He pulled a blanket almost all the way over her head.
Stop being selfish, Tiergan. She needs you, no matter what happens. Especially if it happens.
Love her for me.
Tiergan lifted his head to see Leto. His dark hair fell across his face, his chest wrapped tightly, his hands patterned with cuts. The thought felt like it came from him, but it couldn’t.
That part of his mind was empty.
The rest of his head was screaming to compensate, clawing around in the void. Searching. Pretending everything was alright.
Pretending it wasn’t quiet.
Tiergan, alone.
He had been alone before, and it had been Leto that came to find him. Leto built him palaces, and gave him direction, and gave him love. No one had done that before.
Leto’s chest was still moving, slightly. Blood spilled out around the edge of one. Tiergan carefully cleaned it away with the edge of his ruined silk shirt.
“Tierg?”
Tiergan turned toward Sophie, startled.
“Hey.”
“I’m up here.”
“You passed out.”
“Fuck.”
“It’s understandable.” The blanket slipped off her shoulder and he put it back.
She caught his hand and clung to it.
He wanted to pull it away, but he also wanted to comfort her if he could, so he left it there.
Sophie’s eyes were very dark. Leto said they looked like gemstones when she was little. They looked distant now.
“I’m sorry.” Sophie whispered.
“What for?”
“You- you said to take care of him.”
Leto’s swift kiss as he bid Tiergan farewell. It would only be a couple days, he said. Don’t die over me. Sophie had laughed at them. Take care of him for me, kid.
Tiergan pressed her hand.
“You did take care of him.”
“I didn’t, he’s going to die.”
Tiergan pulled her up to him. She was shaking. He held her.
“You stayed with him. The last I saw from him was you. That’s...” he forced the rest of the sentence out. “All you could have done.”
“I have blood under my fingernails.”
“I know.”
They sat, looking at him. He always looked so elegant when he slept. Leto’s face was traced into the edifice of his memory.
Sophie hadn’t cried. Why hadn’t she cried? Tiergan’s eyes were mostly closed and scraped red, and when she touched his cheeks they were sticky from salt tears.
He was crying again, silently this time.
Sophie wasn’t crying. She was trembling.
Tiergan was holding her.
He didn’t like touching usually.
If she tried to move, he pulled her back into his arms again, so she didn’t. She felt safer here anyway.
“Why aren’t I crying?”
“Shock, probably.” His voice was torn.
“Why are you crying then?”
“Am I?”
Tiergan touched the side of his forehead absently. Sophie didn’t think he knew he had done it. Leto had kissed him there before they left.
“Tiergan?”
“Yeah?”
“It’s ok, you know. You don’t have to comfort me.”
“Yeah I do. Makes me feel better.”
“Oh. That’s good then.”
The silence felt sick.
“Tiergan?”
“Yeah?”
Sophie didn’t know what to say.
“It’s way too quiet, isn’t it.” Tiergan was petting her hair. It felt soft.
“He took up so much space.”
“Yeah.”
“Now it’s all empty.”
Tiergan didn’t respond. He was crying again. Sophie looked up at him. He touched her cheek with his free hand.
Suddenly her face was hot, and her chest was heaving, and she was clinging to Tiergan while she choked on her own tears. She felt so tiny.
What good was a moonlark that couldn’t even save her creator?
“I wouldn’t rather it was you, you know.”
Sophie couldn’t respond through her sobs but she looked at him for a second.
“You’re angry at yourself, and I understand, so I thought I’d say that-“ he took a breath. “That if it were you I’d be just as... flattened.”
Sophie sobbed harder. Tiergan held her.
The door clicked. Livvy was back. She said something to them, but they didn’t hear her.
Sophie’s head went all dark and heavy. Livvy was wrapping her in a blanket.
Tiergan didn’t let go of her hand.
Livvy must have knocked Tiergan out too. There was sunlight on his face now. His skin hurt, and his throat hurt, and he felt weak.
Sophie’s hand was still nestled into his. She was wrapped in a blanket and tucked into a chair beside the bed. Tiergan was lying on the bed besides Leto. His warmth was so familiar that it took him a minute to remember what was wrong.
He leaned over and touched Leto’s cheek. He kissed it.
He kissed his cheek every morning. Leto would uncurl, tossing his midnight hair out of his face and giving Tiergan a tender smile.
“Good morning, darling.” Tiergan whispered.
Livvy was bent over him, retying the bandages. Tiergan watched as if it were normal. It was not.
Sophie made a small noise. He turned and looked at her.
“Hi, Sophie.”
“Hello, Tiergan.” Her voice was as raw as his.
“My dress is still coated in blood.”
“You should shower.”
“Yeah.”
She didn’t move.
Someone had to take care of her. Tiergan gathered his tattered courage. He leaned forward and nudged her.
“Go on.”
She gave him what was almost a smile. It had no light to it, but given the circumstances, it was a miracle.
“Alright, Tierg. I’m going.”
She dragged the blanket after her like a cape.
“How is he?” He asked Livvy.
“Alive, and that’s the crucial bit.”
“He gonna stay alive?”
Livvy sighed. “I think so. I hope so.”
Tiergan punched the bed hard.
“I know. I wish I could give you more-“
“No, I understand. I’m not mad at you. I mean, I am, but it’s irrational. He’s alive.”
Tiergan lifted Leto’s limp hands to his lips and kissed it tenderly.
Keep living, my sweetheart, he whispered into the void where Leto had been over and over. Come back, darling, we need you.
Clinging to his strength while he had it, he asked Livvy, “has someone handled this hell for the public?”
“I supervised Juline. She asked me to ask if you’d look over her statement. I wasn’t going to bother her, but if you’re up for it...”
“Can I see it?” Sophie had returned. She was wearing black jeans and a dark grey hoodie, and her hair was down but it was brushed.
“Um, sure.” Livvy tossed her the papers. Sophie sat down on the windowsill again, and studied them.
“I can do it, soph.”
“Ok but you don’t want to.” She had a firm, leader-like tone to her voice. “You don’t want to do the things he should do, do you? It’ll make you miserable. Sure,” she almost sounded amused, although in a hurt way. “I will also be miserable, but less miserable than if I just sat here staring at the bloodstains on the carpet forever, you know?”
Tiergan touched her forehead. “You’re so brave, Sophie.”
“I’m really trying.”
“You’re doing everything you need to, and far more besides.” Livvy chimed in. Sophie gave her another of her almost-smiles. She handed the file to Livvy.
“Tell Juline that this is very good. Tell her to add a bit about me stepping up. Since I’m planning to, I might as well brag.”
Livvy glanced at Tiergan for approval, and when he nodded, she took the file.
“Right away, Miss Foster.”
Sophie sat frozen until Livvy left, and then she looked at the bed and started to weep again.
Tiergan gave her hand a sympathetic squeeze.
“Hey, Sophie?” Tiergan woke her gently. “They’ve got something to show you.”
Sophie pulled her hood back so she could see him. He had brushed his hair, but he hadn’t changed clothes. There was still a little blood on his collar.
“What is it?” Her voice sounded snappier than she meant it to, but she was too drained to correct herself.
Juline knelt beside her chair. “We found his official statement to us before he got...”
“Stabbed repeatedly.” Sophie filled in. Tiergan flinched slightly.
“Um, yes.” Juline looked uncomfortable. She was undisguised, her hair was slightly disheveled.
“Go on.”
“Yes. Anyways so, he had this to say. You should listen to it. Both of you.” She glanced at Tiergan, who had retreated to the bed. Sophie met his eyes for a second, and he nodded slightly, wrapping Leto’s hand in his and squeezing it.
Juline looked at her. Sophie looked back.
“...May I...”
“Oh, yeah, go ahead.” She pulled her blanket tightly about her.
Juline clicked the machine on and gave it to her. Leto’s voice filled Sophie’s hands. It was so close to her, and so lifelike, that her eyes swam. Tiergan made a slight choking noise.
“This is in case of an emergency. If you are hearing it, something has gone horribly wrong.” A pause. “I am sorry.”
Another pause. He seemed to be taking a breath. “I hope you are all alright.”
Tiergan glanced at Sophie and she glanced back.
“In the event that I am incapacitated, I would like to remind everyone that Sophie is my heir, and needs to be respected and listened too, but also that she is just a child. Take care of her. I know she is capable of doing everything she needs to, if you give her time.”
Sophie felt small again.
“Sophie, you are everything I dreamed of you being. You are going to take the world by storm. Remember that.”
Sophie stopped hearing, her senses filled with his kind eyes at the Gala, his pride in her and his friendship.
His gasping goodbyes, the blood in the corner of his mouth.
Juline and Livvy were on either side of her, holding her hands. Someone had turned it off.
“The rest is for Tiergan.” Juline said gently.
“I’ll tell you what he says.” Tiergan added.
Sophie pulled the blanket back over her head.
There was too much at stake, too much for her to accomplish. He was proud of her, so she had to keep making him proud. The others needed a leader, so she had to do that. The world needed a storm, and she was it.
She wanted to sleep forever.
The world was too much.
She was just a child.
And there was still blood under her fingernails.
Tiergan stared at the device on his lap. Sophie was asleep again, she had been all day, and the others were gone. Leto was still breathing. His face was hot, which Livvy said was a good sign. Tiergan pressed the button.
“Tiergan. You know as well as I do, a million words can’t compare to us. You’ll just have to...imagine. What I feel. You’ve seen and heard so many times. I love you.”
Tiergan’s face was raw, and his tears hurt.
“I know you’ll look after them. My friends, my children, my work. You already do most of my work.” His laughter was a band of thorns around Tiergan’s chest, constructing until he couldn’t breathe. “You’re brave. Whatever happened, you’ll be alright, my life. I know you will. Although...” Leto’s voice sighed. “I cannot imagine the rift, if I’m really gone... I promise, Tiergan, that I will do everything in my power to come back to you. I’d fight death itself.” He sounded so brave. Tiergan believed him.
The recording clicked off.
“Are you going to fight death for me?” He asked Leto’s sleeping form. “Will you come back? You promised-“ his voice choked away entirely, and he sank forwards onto the bed. The silk mocked him with its touch. His own body mocked him by living when Leto did not. It spited him, and he hated it.
The world felt sideways. He dug his fingers into Leto’s hand, trying to see through the blinding pain in his head. He might have been screaming.
He was tearing apart, falling into the gap Leto had left and losing the world.
Winter nights by a fire, arms around him, kisses on his neck. Hard, silky music whispered into his hair while it rained outside the window. Sharp blows, playful tussling, laughing all the while. A kiss in the rain, a kiss in the dark, a kiss warmed by the sun. Ebony hair and gentle blushes and indigo eyes so potent they drowned light within them.
The void was indigo, but it was sharp. It cut him. He pressed against the hurt, because it distracted from the pain in his chest. He didn’t feel himself anymore, not his blistered cheeks or his pounding head or his aching limbs. It cut him and it soothed him.
He saw the castle that was Leto’s mind, like he had seen it when they had first met. The arches were crumbling, the great towers crashing towards the sea. Tiergan crumbled with it, letting it dismantle him until even it was abstracted, and there was nothing but shades of indigo.
And drops of blood.
Tiergan.
His name, from somewhere in the emptiness.
It almost sounded like Leto. Sophie could sound so much like him when she needed to.
He forced himself back into order, focused on the heat and the pain, drew himself back into some sort of human shape.
“Sophie.”
Her head shot up from her blankets. “Hm?” She looked mostly asleep.
Tiergan furrowed his brow. “Did you call me back?”
“...no? I’ve been unconscious all day.”
“Hm.” Tiergan looked down at Leto’s hand, still in his.
“Now that I’m awake, what did he say?”
“That he loved me. That he’d fight for me.”
Sophie gave him an understanding look. “You sane?”
“No.”
“Me neither.”
Sophie looked at him with her dark eyes.
“There’s too much of him.”
“Yeah?”
“I can’t... I can’t do it. I have to but I can’t.”
“We can do it.” Tiergan presented her with the broken pieces of a smile.
“Can we?”
“We have to.”
Sophie curled up again. Tiergan leaned over and pulled the blanket back over her head.
She was just a child.
Resigned, Tiergan shoved himself off the bed. His legs trembled. There was a pile of files to look through on the bedside table. Someone had to check the other offices, too. Tiergan combed his hair with his fingers and tapped the ‘help’ button Livvy had left. She appeared a minute later.
“Can you bring me the others, please? There are things that should be done.”
“Are you ok?” She asked.
“No. What do you expect. I’m conscious.”
Livvy nodded once and left. Tiergan opened one of the files and started scanning it, tapping the pen against the edge of the page with his mind. Leto always tapped the pen, no matter how many times Tiergan asked him to stop.
Sophie sobbed quietly in her sleep. Tiergan brushed her hair with his fingers. He didn’t wake her.
—•—
“I’m sorry I haven’t been helping you.” Sophie was dressed for the first time since it all happened. She was wearing a knee-length dress of deep emerald, black leggings and boots, and a human jacket she had that was also black. Tiergan had tied green ribbons in her hair. He had an emerald tunic and black pants as well, and a cloak that she thought was Leto’s. She didn’t ask.
“It’s alright. It’s mostly my job anyways.” Tiergan wasn’t tugging on his cloak. He stood perfectly still.
“I mean, he said I was supposed to.”
“He said one day you would. He didn’t say ‘here, fifteen year old girl, stop grieving and take my place immediately.’ He’d never want that.”
“I know. I still manage to feel bad, though.”
“Life is horrible that way.”
They both laughed bitterly.
“I’m glad you’re awake.”
“Sorry about that, too.”
“No, it’s understandable. I wish I could pass out for three days, and yet...”
“Neither of us has that luxury, really.”
Tiergan took her gloved hand carefully.
“I still have blood under my fingernails.” She whispered.
He squeezed her hand. “It takes a while to come out. It will, though.”
She nodded.
Juline opened the door.
“They’re ready for you.”
Tiergan touched her shoulder. “We told them he was dead. It was one of his requests. Livvy says he’s getting better. We both need to remember that.”
Sophie nodded. She took a shaky breath and let Tiergan lead her down the hallway. It sparkled too much. It felt cold.
The counselors each wore something green. They still wore their colors, but they covered them with ill-matched green cloaks, or hair pieces, or sashes. Sophie hated them.
“Greetings, Sir Tiergan. Miss Foster.”
“Sophie.” Sophie interrupted firmly. If she heard ‘Miss Foster’ one more time from someone that wasn’t him-
“Sophie.” Emery corrected himself, and continued. “We are truly sorry for your loss, and are honored that you are willing to meet us nonetheless. It only goes to show the Black Swan’s resilience, that they are willing to think about the future at a time such as this. The council hopes that our alliance will bring much needed stability to our society.”
Sophie felt sick.
“We wish the same.” Tiergan said shortly. “However, you will forgive us if we are not in the mood for idle pleasantries. What do you want.”
Emery drew himself up slightly, but he nodded.
“We wish for an alliance. What we propose is that the Black Swan work with the counsel in order to be rid of the Neverseen. So, the Black Swan will officially be legalized, provided that each action they take be sanctioned by the council.”
“Not the counsel directly.” Sophie interjected. “We all know you can’t make a decision on short notice, and some actions need to be taken immediately when there is an actual war going on.”
“Appoint a representative to supervise us,” Tiergan cut in after her, “someone that you trust, and if they recognize a misdemeanor they can take it to the council. This,” he added venomously, “which is twice the supervision your foreign emissaries get.”
The council was quiet a moment. Alina looked furious, and so did a couple of the others, but for the most part they seemed resigned. Tiergan squeezed Sophie’s hand.
“Very well. We will appoint the supervisor, of course.”
“We would like the right to veto them. With good reason of course.” Sophie met Emery’s eyes.
“Alright.” He seemed slightly unsettled. Sophie felt a hot vindication in her chest. Tiergan snickered quietly.
“If that is settled,” Emery continued, “we have one more matter to take care of.”
“Continue.” Tiergan said.
“We suffered quite a loss with the destruction of the peace summit. The people have lost some of their faith in the council. While we understand why this may have happened, we cannot allow it to continue. Strength, more than anything, is what we need right now. Therefore, we ask that Sophie make a statement to the public. It doesn’t have to be much, just enough to make sure the people are on our side.”
Sophie’s mind went white. She stared at the ceiling, heat swimming at her from every side. Her eyes were watering.
“So this is what you care about.” Her voice sounded foreign, terrifying, and far stronger than she felt. “Someone is dead, and you care about your image? Fuck!” She dragged out the expletive, letting it echo. “I’m not doing it.”
“Miss-“
“I am not doing it! I will not be the one to cover your asses for the billionth time, when it was your mistakes that cost me the life of someone I love! I will not listen to one more carefully-worded, courteous sympathy, one more heart warming speech, when all you want is a way out! Clean up your own mess, you shitheads! Someone is dead! He is dead-“ her voice broke, and she fell to her knees.
He isn’t dead. But this is how they’d act if he was. She allowed her anger to raise around her, but instead of pressing the emotion outward, she lashed out with her mind.
The world felt raw to her touch, humming, crashing, waves of energy falling onto her from all sides and breaking on the surface of her outrage.
She could do anything she wanted. She could tear apart the palace, leave it nothing but a pile of glittering dust. She could tear apart their minds if she wanted to. She could make all the frivolous people in the world, the ones that didn’t know and didn’t care and didn’t deserve to be ok when he wasn’t- she could make them shut up.
She didn’t have to see another crystal tower again.
Something shattered. A great force was pounding on the air in the room, pulsing like a headache, only, her head was quiet and cool. Everything else hurt for her.
There was glass in the air. Shards of it hung around their heads like reflected light from a mirror. The walls of the chamber were gone. Sunlight and bewildered emissaries crept in the broken places. The counselors didn’t move. Most of them looked infinitely sorry. Tiergan was still holding her hand. He looked cruelly proud.
Everything was still.
Sophie let the glass fall. It made a sound like the wind chime she had on her porch when she was little. She sank against Tiergan’s side.
“Sophie?” Bronte asked, shell shocked but gentle. “Can I say something?”
“Depends on what it is.” She sounded weak again.
“It was bullshit of them to ask that of you. We rescind the request. Will you sign the treaty anyways?” His eyes were kind.
She studied his face.
“Leto liked you.” She said. She picked up the pen and signed.
Before waiting for the others, she turned on her heels and stalked out. Tiergan was right behind her.
“I’m tired. Are we almost done?” Sophie asked?
“You can sleep, soph. Only a couple more, and I can do them.”
Sophie opened her mouth to protest, but her eyes were dull with exhaustion.
“Really.” Tiergan pressed. “It’s ok.”
She kissed his forehead. “Goodnight, Tiergan.”
“Goodnight.”
Tiergan didn’t like being alone. Silence still made him shaky. It had teeth, and bloody hands. He focused on the scratching of his pen, on the last couple paragraphs there were to write. His concentration wavered every second or two, as his Leto traipsed back and forth through his memory. His eyes were blurry again, but he wiped them on his sleeve and kept going. He felt strung out, stretched, as if he were a single thread holding him into reality. Leto always said the best work was done right before the thread snapped.
The night’s energy felt odd. The air wasn’t quite warm, but it wasn’t cold either. The layers of space in Tiergan’s head aligned oddly. Like gossamer they caught on each other and slipped past in every direction, leaving odd trails of unsettling texture on every side. Drone noise from everywhere popped and crackled with little sparks. Leto always used to hold him on nights like this. They’d fortify their little kingdom against the shifting universe. It was dark outside, but there was a shift somewhere. He couldn’t quite pinpoint it. The lyrics to a song Leto liked sang somewhere in his head.
Well it was one of those days, larger than life; when your friends came to dinner, and stayed the night.
Tiergan started humming to fill the silence.
And they cleaned out the refrigerator, they ate everything in sight.
And then they stayed up in the living room, and they cried all night.
There was more light than there should have been, Tiergan was sure. Somewhere, in the vacant place, there was a glowing. It was warm, and familiar, and almost-
...indigo...
Strange angels, singing just for me. Old stories, they’re haunting me. This is nothing like I thought it’d be.
That song always got stuck in Tiergan’s head when Leto was asleep, it was as if he dreamed the lyrics to it. Was he dreaming now?
They say heaven is like TV; a perfect little world, where they don’t really need you...
That’s the wrong verse, he thought at the void. It didn’t seem to care. Tiergan prodded vaguely at it, unsure of what he was feeling.
At least sing the song in order, he told the void.
Where’s the fun in that? The void answered. The void sounded dark, and silky, and melodic.
Tiergan stiffened.
Well I was out in my four door, with the top down.
Tiergan was reaching desperately through the void, looking for a concrete shape to match the voice.
And I looked up and there they were: millions of tiny teardrops, just sort of hanging there.
Tiergan saw the tear drops all around him. He saw indigo and gold and royal blue and then he saw the castle...
And I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. And I said to myself: what next, big sky?
The castle there, in its place on the horizon, with its rivers and towers and arches intact. Tiergan raced towards it, and towards the voice.
He must have been moving in reality as well, because he stumbled on the stairs, but he barely felt it.
Strange angels, singing just for me. Their spare change falls on top of me. Rain falling, falling all over me.
It was Leto - dark and beautiful and glowing and happy, and his arms were outstretched and he was singing. Tiergan poured himself down in rain upon the castle, weeping throughout his mind. Leto caught him in his arms, humming the rest of the song against his neck. Elation filled Tiergan, and relief, and desperation, and a great, careening love, filling every space. He felt as if Leto had picked up the shattered pieces of him and put them back together.
“Tiergan.” Leto whispered into his skin.
They were lying in that bed, the one he had grown to despise. The sheets were changed. They were blue now.
Leto’s hand was on his cheek. His fingers were cool and soft. Tiergan caught them and kissed them urgently. Leto smiled at him. His smile glistened. His indigo eyes filled Tiergan’s mind like they always did.
“Leto.” His name struck the world like the explosion of a star, bursting color across their vision.
“Tiergan.” They were curled against each other, as tightly as they fit. Leto ran his fingers through Tiergan’s hair.
“You’re alive.”
“I seem to be.”
“I’ve been...tortured.”
“I am so sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry, kiss me.”
Leto kissed him deeply, and Tiergan kissed him back.
“I love you always,” he whispered into Leto’s lips.
“I love you always.” Leto answered. “And I’ll always come back to you.”
Livvy had woken Sophie, a smile on her face. Sophie had forgotten how much she missed Livvy’s smiles. She had sat up too quickly and had to lie back down because her head rushed. Livvy hand practically scooped her out of bed, and she had run down the steps and into his room - and there he was. Sitting up in bed, his dark hair falling far too evenly over his shoulders, a new violet shirt on. Tiergan was sitting in his lap, kissing his hands and his face every chance he could. Juline sat on one side of him, smiling, and Tinker on the other. They both looked misty-eyed. Livvy took up a place by Tinker.
“It’ll never go away,” Tiergan was saying. “All the blood-“ he kissed him again.
“I know, darling, I know.” Leto hummed. “I’m here.” His voice was so familiar, and so gentle. Sophie couldn’t move.
“You really did scare us, you bastard.” Livvy poked him and he laughed. “I’ve told you, I am sorry.”
“We’ll see what Sophie says...” she trailed off. Leto was watching Sophie. Everyone was watching Sophie. She stood frozen a moment longer.
“I had your blood under my nails.” She said softly. “And on my dress, and in my hair...”
“Sophie.” He looked at her earnestly. “If there was anything I could do to rid you of that image, I would. I’m so sorry.”
Sophie considered him.
Then she darted across the room and threw her arms around his neck.
He clung to her. Tiergan hugged her too. She felt safe.
“It’s ok, Leto.” She gave him a little smile. He smiled back.
“I am so incredibly proud of you, my moonlark.”
Her smile was watery. She pressed her face against his shoulder.
“I’m never going away, I promise.” He murmured. He must be holding Tierg as well, she could feel his breath on her neck. She closed her eyes, sighing into him.
“I love you both.” Leto said softly.
“Love you too.” Sophie murmured. Above her head, Tiergan was whispering his love to Leto as well, she cracked an eye, and smiled fondly as she watched them with their foreheads pressed together, their lips brushing each other’s skin.
“It isn’t so quiet anymore, is it, Tiergan?”
“No, it isn’t.” Tiergan squeezed her hand. “It’s wonderful.”