Kuno nodded, sending one last pile of books over to Theo. He turned to his huge pile of books to be sorted, letting out a soft sigh. Sinking onto the ground, Kuno reached for the first book. Hopefully, there wouldn't be too many canyu books in this batch. He didn't need all that anger.
By the time noon rolled around, Kuno had fallen asleep over a pile of books. It wasn't a deep sleep, which was probably a good thing. At least then there wasn't the chance he could have nightmares. He'd fought the drowsiness, but in the end, he'd lost. Part of that loss had been him totally forgetting he wasn't alone in the library.
Theo sorted the new books into the fiction and nonfiction stacks, then returned the realistic fiction novels he had been working on the day before. Raised to do their tasks quickly and efficiently, they managed to get halfway done with the fiction stack by the time noon came. A few of the sub-genres of fiction now had books on their shelves.
He was going to simply continue working, but he noticed the library was quiet. Too quiet. Did Kuno leave the room? Looking out the window and seeing the sun high in the sky, they wondered if he had decided to go to lunch without him. Sighing and started to feel the first pangs of hunger, he walked over to where Kuno worked.
Seems he indeed didn’t get enough sleep last night. Something bubbled inside Theo’s chest as he looked on the sleeping man, a feeling he couldn’t quite place. They shook it off, reaching to tap Kuno’s shoulder.
“Sir? We should probably go to lunch.”
The tap on his shoulder was just a tap, but Kuno's heart froze for a second. He gasped softly, his eye flying open. After a few breaths, he realized that it was just Theo. Oh, oben. It'd been a light touch, but it had reminded him of… well, that. Sol, he really needed to remember he wasn't alone anymore. Kuno glanced away for a second, clearing his throat. "You don't have to call me 'sir', qle-Theo." He quickly rose to his feet, brushing some of the stray locks of hair out of his face. "Just call me Kuno, ilah?" Kuno peeked back at Theo for a second, giving him a hesitant smile. Hopefully, they wouldn't care too much that he'd fallen asleep. "Let's go get lunch." He started towards the doors of the library.
"If you insist, Kuno," Theo replied. A ghost of a smile danced on their lips; he found it somewhat amusing how Kuno was so startled when he woke, though they weren't sure why.
Glad to not have a cold serpentine body wrapped around one of his limbs this time, he followed Kuno out the doors, redoing their ponytail as they walked.
The nap had refreshed him, which resulted in his walking pace increasing drastically. He resisted the urge to glance around nervously– because obviously there wasn't anything chasing him or out to get him. There was just Theo following him to lunch and the various people of the palace. Nothing sinister, no enemies. Sol, he had to get ahold of himself. Kuno forced a smile at the people in the kitchen, quickly collecting a bowl of a vegetable and rice dish. "I'm guessing you're joining me again?" He asked, turning towards Theo. "If so, this way." Kuno quickly headed out of the kitchen, towards the gardens. The lily pond was what he needed, even if there was someone else there with him.
Theo simply nodded, taking a bowl and continuing to follow Kuno. Thankfully they didn't stay in the kitchen for too long, it was just as loud and chaotic as yesterday. After last night, he also felt rather anxious at the moment and was pretty sure staying in the kitchen would not help.
As they walked through the gardens, Theo tried to think of something to say to Kuno so it wouldn't be too awkward, but he couldn't. Perhaps it was because now it felt as though mother was now haunting him, scolding them for socializing with the enemy. Perhaps it was best if they just didn't talk. When they came to the table they had sat at the previous day, he sat down, rather lost in thought.
Kuno sat down– well, dropped into his chair would be a more accurate description– with a soft sigh. He gave Theo a small glance, glad that he wasn't trying to ask him any questions or make any small talk. Kuno really couldn't deal with that at the moment. He ate quickly, wondering why he'd gotten that dream again. It had shaken him up much more than he liked. Kuno absentmindedly adjusted his eyepatch, fingers lingering on it. Sol… if only he could just get rid of those memories forever. They did no one any good at all. After taking the last bite, Kuno pushed his bowl back and stood. "If you're ready, you can head back to the library. I'm going to stay here for a little longer." He turned towards the pond and settled down at the edge, staring at the flowers with a pensive expression.
Theo merely played with his food, still finding it rather foreign. After a moment they took a bite, just to get it over with. Unsure how they felt about the taste, they took another. And another. Theo pushed the bowl away from him. It was too strange, and besides, he wasn't feeling that hungry anymore.
Watching Kuno move to the edge of the pond, they pressed their fingers to their lips, silently reciting what they would say. Better to tell him sooner rather then later, they supposed.
"Alright then," he began a little shakily, "And just so you're aware, I've decided to attend the taveni-jolu celebration."
He still felt anxious, but now he wasn't sure why. It was just a dream, nothing more. He'd only been stressed last night because it had been their first day here, surely. They stood. Going to the library would help. Organizing and sorting allowed them not to think, and not thinking sounded like a very good idea at the moment.
Something made him pause. "Is everything alright, Kuno?"
"Oh?" Kuno turned back to look at Theo, his expression lifting slightly. "That's wonderful! Uh… remember not to eat breakfast before you come to the library tomorrow. You don't want to miss the taveni-jolu breakfast, right?" He laughed lightly and turned back towards the pond. Theo's next question made him freeze. The smile, still on his lips, slowly died. Was everything alright? Of course, it was. The war was over, and everyone was finally safe. He didn't need to worry anymore. So… why didn't he feel alright? Sol, why did Theo have to ask that? Kuno pressed his lips together, still facing the pond. "Iesa. I'm fine. Thank you for asking." He tried to relax his shoulders, but couldn't manage it. Hopefully, Theo would leave soon. Kuno really didn't need to break down in front of someone who was basically a stranger– not that he was going to break down at all, of course. Just… it would be more awkward in front of Theo. If it did happen. Which it wouldn't. Because there was no reason for it.
"No, I suppose I wouldn't," Theo replied. They watched Kuno intently. Just from his body language alone, Theo could tell he wanted the matter closed, even if they detected hints of uncertainty in his voice. They couldn't blame him; if the roles had been reversed, Theo would say and do the same thing. Yet, he couldn't help but wonder why. There was always the question of why when it came to this man.
He started tapping a finger on his leg, his anxiety suddenly returning. He couldn't stay here, it would be wrong somehow. Mother wouldn't want them to stay here.
"O-of course," he said, "Just concerned."
He turned, taking their bowl and heading back to the kitchen to put it up.
Kuno nodded his head, eyes locking on a particularly beautiful flower. He stayed there on the edge of the water for what was probably too long. But at the end of it, he did feel somewhat better. Less weird, at least. He stood slowly and grabbed the empty bowl from the table. In the kitchen, he said hello to Ry, who wanted to know why his assistant had come in earlier and alone. In response, he just gave her an annoyed look and left the kitchen. Even though he'd been away from the library for a while now, he still didn't want to go in just yet. He didn't think he could deal with much more of those terribly incorrect books. Kuno pushed through the doors of the library, pondering what else he could do. He could move the canyu books away and then think of something else as he did. Yes, that could work.
Theo wasn’t sure how long they’d been in the library before Kuno returned. All that was on his mind was getting the books organized, and quickly so he wouldn’t have to think about things. Unfortunately, sometimes his mind would get the better of them and they would sit and think much too hard about certain books and their contents and where they should go, which in turn fed into his stress.
It was just a matter of taking a breath and forcing himself to keep sorting, though. The fiction stack was steadily decreasing in number. Theo glanced at the doors when they opened, but never stopped their work.
Kuno glanced in Theo's direction, but he seemed like he was doing fine. There was no need to interrupt them, even if he wanted to. And he really didn't. Kuno studied the various pile of books, then carefully picked one up. There wasn't a need to do magic this time– he was perfectly able to pick up a pile of books by himself. Kuno carried pile after pile of books back to the storage, going slower than needed. After that, he grudgingly settled back into sorting, which unfortunately lasted until the end of the day. At least the next day was a day off. And probably the day after that, too, since taveni-jolu usually went very late and no one wanted to do anything after it.
Theo eventually settled into a somewhat less stressful pattern, almost going on autopilot as he skimmed through titles and sorted books on shelves. By the end of the day, the fiction pile had disappeared. A solid chunk of the library’s shelves were now full, arranged perfectly by genre in alphabetical order.
Theo found themself on the floor, staring blankly at the nonfiction stack. They couldn’t summon the willpower to begin working on it, and yet at the same time he was worried about being caught not doing anything. It was a strange sense of paralysis, though familiar too. He tried to keep his eyes open, even as a yawn escaped him.
(Sorry for the delay, life has been happening at a rather intense pace lately. :)
Kuno pulled himself back into a standing position and wandered over to where Theo was stationed. It looked remarkably better than it had earlier. Maybe the queens had been right about him needed an assistant. There was no way he would have been able to get all of this done. "You can go now," He said softly, not wanting to startle Theo. "This looks really good, by the way." Kuno gave them what he hoped was a thankful and encouraging smile. "Much better than what I could have done."
(no worries my dude, I've been in the middle of finals so my responses might be spotty too)
Kuno did startle him slightly; his head snapped in the other man's direction, and for a split second they worried he would be angry, though they weren't sure why. The softness of his voice calmed them, though surprise still lingered.
"It's good? Really?" they said, rather caught off guard by the compliment. "U-um, thank you."
He got to his feet. Probably due to his tiredness, his emotions were started to mush together. He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to compose himself.
"Uh, well, goodnight," they murmured, dropping their hand to their side. "I'll be looking forward to tomorrow."
(Cool! :)
"Of course." Kuno nodded, starting towards the door. "Mmm, me too." He sighed, holding the door open for Theo. After they exited, he closed and locked the door. "I'll see you here tomorrow, alright? Yeamuna." He gave Theo one last smile and started down the hall towards his room. He wanted to get a good night's sleep so he could enjoy the next day to the fullest. Hopefully, nightmares wouldn't appear and ruin the night. Kuno took his time getting ready to sleep, wanting to calm himself and have the best chance of not dredging up old memories.
"See you tomorrow," he replied, then made his way to their room. Ko was waiting for them, coiled up on the windowsill.
"So you decided to do something other than annoy me today?" he said, going up and stroking the scales on the snake's head.
She flicked her tongue at them. Yes, because I actually have hobbies other than annoying you, unlike someone I know.
Theo glared at her. "What kind of hobbies does a snake like you even have?"
Ones that a stupid human like you wouldn't understand, she huffed.
They laughed, which a rare occasion these days. "I think I understand the inclinations of a snake pretty well, on the contrary. Let me guess. You went exploring the grounds?"
A sharp hiss, which was most likely a gasp. How did you know?
"Turns out humans aren't so stupid after all," he smirked.
He got ready for bed fairly quickly, blew out the candle on his desk, and settled into the covers. Ko moved to curl in with them. Theo shuddered, hoping that tonight wouldn't be as bad as the first.
He was home, running through the fields with his friends. They were laughing, pretending to be birds. He must have been 7 or 8 years old since he wasn't working at the time. Kuno, not watching where he was going, tripped over a branch sticking up from the ground and fell to the ground. It didn't hurt too much and he bounced back up pretty quickly, turning to look for his friends with a laugh on his lips. In a second, the scene shifted. He was on a battlefield, the ground running with blood. His friends were older and unmoving in front of him. Dead, killed for wanting freedom. The laugh died, replaced by a horrified scream. He spun away from the scene, only to see his parents' headless bodies splayed in front of him. Executed because of his involvement in the war. He hadn't even been able to say goodbye to them.
Kuno woke up with hot tears running down his face, his heart beating in his throat. The images of his loved ones were still lingering in his vision. No matter how much he blinked, he couldn't get them to go away. He probably wouldn't forget those scenes for as long as he lived. Kuno breathed in a shaky breath, trembling hands wiping away the tears that still fell from his eyes.
Io.
The girl smiled, but Theo could tell she was tired. Her eyes were dull, shoulders slumped. Mother must have made her work hard today.
Io, Io, I have something for you.
Stop calling me that, Theo thought. It’s too painful.
She brought out her hands, folded over something. She opened them, and Theo seemed to be sucked into them, his vision tunneling into her palms before the scene rebuilt itself into the castle again. They were alone again. All alone.
Where are you? Don’t go! they called.
Did you find it yet? The girl’s voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere all at once. He was about to answer when he heard footsteps coming down the hall.
Theo, we need to talk.
It was their mother. Blood ran freely from the slit in her neck.
Io?
He couldn’t answer now.
Theo woke, anguish slowly trickling into his heart, replacing the numbness that usually invaded it. They took a shaky breath. They hadn’t expected that girl to show up. Why?
Ko was still coiled next to him, hogging the pillow but still asleep. Theo softly stroked her. The girl was strange, sure, but what really disturbed him was his mother’s appearance. She was dead, she looked dead in the dream. But she spoke to them, and not only that, she wanted ‘to talk.’ Mother was always her scariest when she wanted ‘to talk.’
The image of the girl’s smile rose back up in his mind.
“I miss you, Isla,” he whispered.
It was nearly dawn. Kuno was drowning in memories. His father braiding flowers into his hair– the earliest taveni-jolu he could remember. Kuno's fingers followed the ghosts of his father's, weaving solar qbi-kiqei blooms into his hair. It was slow. He needed it. The sunlight gradually bled into his room, and he was still sitting there. The warm rays wrapped him in an embrace, making him feel as though those he lost were there. They were there, watching over him. Keeping him safe. It took longer, but he eventually started out of his room with three bouquets of flowers for the queens and Theo. He didn't look as though he'd just had a nightmare– he'd made sure of that. The queens would worry if they thought he was having any sort of trouble, and they had enough to worry about already. He could worry about himself just fine. Kuno arrived at the library, remembering to hide the flowers at the last moment. He wanted to give them all at once.
Meanwhile, Theo tried to purge himself of any memories from before the war. He couldn’t think of those things right now, it was silly to. Father would say they were being too sentimental, to just focus on the task at hand.
As more light gradually filtered into the room, they decided to simply dress how they had whenever they celebrated Jiyo, as they weren’t sure how else to present themself for the occasion. Combing his hair and putting it half up half down, a few strands falling in his face; putting on a loose, light colored dress with puffed sleeves and lace. They found an earpiece that he hadn’t worn in a long time, an assembled cluster of pearls and seashells that framed the outer cartilage and dangled from the earlobe. Usually the servants would dress him up much more lavishly, and apply makeup, but Theo was on their own. They didn’t want to wear anything lavish, and weren’t skilled enough to put on makeup. The dress, earpiece, and change of hairdo were fine with him.
Just when he was about to reach for the door to leave, Ko curled around his collarbone, Theo’s breath caught in his throat. The girl’s voice echoed in his mind.
Io, Io, it’s Jiyo today! Come and play in the lake with me! No one will find us.
I’m sorry, I can’t, he thought. Not then, and not now. Oh, why do you have to be the one to haunt me now?
They gritted their teeth and pushed open the door, making his way to the library.
Theo wasn't there when he arrived, so Kuno leaned against the door to wait for them. He didn't sit down for fear of wrinkling his clothes, though he desperately wanted to. They were still black– his usual color– but these ones had golden embroidery sweeping along the hems, designs reminiscent of the sun and its rays made out of circles and lines. Kuno let out a small sigh as he stared at the embroidery. It was beautiful, but it also called attention to him. After all, it was a symbol of saya and yuqpol– heroes and important figures, respectively. Well… his eyes wandered to his fingers, specifically the missing parts of them, and sighed again. There was no way he could not stand out at this point. A little gold couldn't do much of a difference. He looked up and down the hallway. Hopefully, this breakfast would allow him to get ahold of his emotions more. That way he could effectively talk to people without breaking down.
Theo had walked about ten feet before they realized they were heading in the direction of the kitchen when they were supposed to go straight to the library. Silently cursing himself, he changed direction, remembering there was a breakfast he had to go to.
Are you alright, Theo? Ko asked.
“How genuinely concerned you seem,” he quietly replied. “I’m fine.”
The snake seemed to roll her eyes. Sure you are. And of course I’m concerned. Why wouldn’t I be?
“Because you always make it sound like you’re being sarcastic,” they retorted.
Finally making it just outside of the library and finding Kuno leaning against the wall, Theo became slightly nervous. The other man looked very nice in the black and gold, but it made them wonder if there was a dress code he didn’t know about.
After taking a breath, they approached him and said, “Good morning, Kuno.”
Kuno glanced over at Theo and gave him a small nod. "Good morning, qle-Theo." For a second, his gaze was locked on the pearls and seashells on their ear. It was really pretty– well, Theo's entire outfit was pretty. It looked good on him. "Um. This way." He waved for them to follow him and started down the hallway. He didn't have time to admire Theo's outfit. Since Theo was coming as well, the queens had decided to have breakfast in the gardens instead of in their rooms like they'd planned. Theo was a complete stranger to them, after all. Kuno led Theo to a beautiful little pavilion in the center of the gardens. The queens were both sitting there already, though they stood the moment they saw Kuno and Theo.
"Ah, Kuno! And you must be Theo, right?" The blonde woman smiled warmly at them both. "In case you don't know, my name is Elia. This is my wife, Lainei." She gestured at the other woman, who gave them both a huge smile.
"Hello! I'm glad you decided to join us!" Her voice was full of life, and Kuno had to smile at it. The two each gave him a warm hug before motioning for him and Theo to sit down.
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