heavymetals | ( pixie led ) inbox

( Her hand tightens on his wrist — not enough to bruise, just a firm, startled grip, like she's surprised to see what she's seeing even though they specifically came here for it, even though he told her they were in the area. It's just different, seeing them up close. And it is them, one stag and one tiny, slight doe, treading lightly through the underbrush. Only the top half of the former emerges, antlers rising high and alert and proud, its eyes seeming to land directly on Erik, inscrutable, beautiful.

It isn't that the stag seems afraid, but the doe seems braver, continuing on further out from the trees one tentative step at a time, neck extended, curious, edging toward them.

Laura holds her breath, afraid even exhaling too loudly will scare it. Painfully slowly, with delicate gentleness, she raises a hand, like an offering. It isn't her the doe is drawn to, it's Erik, but Laura's the one reaching out, Laura's the one within sniffing distance, and a velvet-soft nose brushes against the tips of her fingers. Behind them, in the treeline, the stag exhales a loud huff, dipping its head once, like an idle warning, but it does not otherwise move. Be careful how you treat the small one, that's what she'd like to imagine it means, but she doesn't know deer nearly well enough to translate. )

[ Honestly, Erik was counting on maybe crossing paths with some bunnies or a hedgehog, that kind of smaller animal that exists in much larger numbers here. To encounter deer, not just one but two of them, and so early on at that, seems like a sort of unique serendipity that warms his heart.

Both creatures seem oddly friendly, or at least far more willing to approach than Erik would expect. It's been the same every time he's come to the woods here, though he hasn't quite figured out why, but this time around, he's just happy that it's worked out this way.

His eyes are on the larger animal, just in case— even being largely skittish and more prone to fleeing, the creature is still large enough to cause damage if it wanted to. As the smaller one approaches Laura, allowing her to touch, Erik's attention shifts, memories only really hitting him when her fingers slowly brush up the doe's head. It hits him hard and suddenly, though he doesn't make a single sound, even when tears well up in his eyes. Even wiping them away isn't an option, when he knows the slightest sound or movement could scare them away. ]

( Is anything truly serendipity in a realm made of wonder and magic? There's an equivalent amount of sadness and whimsy as there is darkness and trickery in the home of the fae; things are as beautiful as they are wrenching, as precious as they can be deadly. Perhaps it's that. Perhaps it's the magic Erik's been given, or perhaps it's the pain in his heart.

Or perhaps it's nothing, just coincidence, or that the trail they're traveling is actually a game trail commonly tread by several local creatures. It's impossible to know.

Laura is enraptured with the entire experience, the feeling of soft fur under her fingertips, the quiet, fragile feeling of the moment and how hushed the atmosphere has become to accommodate it. After a few stretching heartbeats, she flicks her eyes up to Erik to see what his reaction is to it — she's expecting one of those smiles he sometimes levels at her.

Not tears.

Her hand falters, dropping — and the doe pulls away, crossing the path to the forest on the opposite side. She's disappointed to see it go, and disappointed to watch the buck begin to stride after it with grace and majesty, until both are gone from her sight, then her hearing, then her smell.

Only then does she finally break the quiet. )

¿Estás herido?

[ Regardless of their current setting, it's still a nice enough coincidence for Erik to marvel at it. Then again, he's not very used to things that are simply good without consequence. It's a nice, simple moment without complication, even with the memories of what he's lost that come with it.

He does notice both animals leaving, and he knows Laura's attention has shifted to him. Knowing there's no risk of scaring off the animals, he quickly wipes his free hand across his cheeks, pushing down the emotions threatening to push past the surface as he shakes his head at her. ]

Estoy bien.

[ He does smile at her then, once he has a better handle on himself, if only to reassure her. ]

It was only a memory. [ Because he doesn't want to lie to her, but he also doesn't want to talk about it right now. ] Do you want to keep going?

( She wants to ask, of course she does — but she's perceptive. For a girl kept in captivity, she's demonstrated a fairly impressive tendency to read people. It might be because of the captivity, because of the constant need to walk on eggshells, to monitor body language for either threats or softness that can be taken advantage of. To anticipate based on expression what is in store for her. It served her well with Logan, and it's serving her again now.

He does not want to talk about it. She thinks of the day on the beach, when they both cried together. She knows he lost Charles, but she's beginning to think there's an echoing pain other than him.

So she holds his hand more tightly, and shakes her head. )

I'm tired now, and nothing will be as wonderful as the deer. Can we go back?

( She isn't tired; she doesn't get tired, physically. But she wants to make him comfortable, and besides, he kept his promise — she got to meet a lot of animals today. It has been good. )

[ He knows she's not tired. He also seriously doubts she wouldn't be happy to meet other animals out here, so he knows she's only saying this for his sake. He wants to tell her that she doesn't have to, that he really is fine, he would be more than happy to continue— but she's also right in that it was a wonderful encounter, in spite of the barrage of emotion that came with it.

So he's glad to call it a good day. Consider it a small victory. He smiles a litte warmer and squeezes her hand back, nodding at her question. ]

Of course we can.

[ Chances are they'll run into other animals on the way, but even if not, he's content to just talk to her, explore their surroundings a little more as they head back to the castle grounds. ]

( They walk back together — and as they go, she holds his hand the whole way. Even though he isn't sad anymore, even though she has no excuse for it, he doesn't take it away from her, and so she keeps on holding. This is the kind of casual touching that she grew up without, that she seeks out perpetually and cannot find. That she's seen parents do with their children. That he lets her do it is almost as nice as meeting the animals had been.

They go home. )

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wrapping; 😭