Nick mumbled in protest to Mel leaving but didn't push for as he had already left the room. He was too tired and much too weak to yell.
Easton gave a wave before continuing to walk with Abrose down the hall. "Thank you for bringing the tea my love." he gave a soft kiss to Abrose's cheek. "Now what should we do while we wait I mean. Abrose and I will have to leave soon and Nick has to come with us. He needs to get away from here just like the rest of us. It's only a matter of time before the queen might find us. If Nick isn't better soon, I can't risk him coming overseas. It's probably nothing I'm stressing out too much." Easton squeezed Abrose's hand.
Abrose leaned into the gentle kiss and nodded slightly. "Of course. Hopefully Nick recovers soon." He glanced over towards Mel, who up until now had been unnatural quiet. Abrise gently touched his free hand to Mel's shoulder, pulling him out of his state.
Mel gave an apologetic smile and nodded slightly in response to Easton. "I'm sure he will be well enough to travel. Veda is the best doctor around, I'm sure he'll be able to help Nick recover in no time. If that isn't the case, we'll be leaving soon after you and Abrose. Once we get our things in order, we'll come over to the southern continent. Nick would be more than welcome to travel with us if his injuries do not allow them to travel sooner." Mel offered gently, shaking his head slightly "you have every reason to be worried over him. Much has happened in the past few days, it's only natural to be on edge." He gave a reassuring smile as they came to a stop at the entrance of the estate, nodding his thanks to a male fae who handed off a riding jacket and muttered a few words to Mel about a horse being ready. "You are both more than welcome to explore the estate further. I'm sure abrose knows the layout well enough to guide you around Easton. If you have any questions or concerns, everyone else will be happy to provide answers. I'll be back by tonight, I'll try and bring back anything salvageable from your home, Rose." He promised, giving his friend a gentle squeeze before heading out to the awaiting stallion.
Easton nodded and watched Mel leave the estate. "I think he's going to have to ride with Mel over. Somethings off I can feel it but I have no idea what it is." Easton hugged Abrose letting his head lean into his shoulder. "Here I thought everything was finally going to be okay." Easton took a deep breath in and out. "Do you think I'm worrying too much? I mean if I had stayed with him, he probably wouldn't even be like this. He went up against most of the queen's best guards I mean-" Easton gave a heavy sigh. "It's not like I can reverse time so, I should just hope and trust that it's nothing and I'm just overreacting."
Abrose hugged Easton back, gently pressing a kiss to his temple and soothingly running his hands through the male's hair. He shook his head and tilted his head back a bit to look at his beloved. "No dear, you have every right to be worried. Like Mel said, it's been a rough week." He pressed a second kiss to Easton's brow, his own eyebrows creased in worry for the well-being of all his friends and family. "There was a reason why you and Nick were first and second, right? I'm sure he could have gone up a lot worse. But it's good that Mel got him out when he did." Abrose gently nuzzled Easton's cheek "overreact and coddle all you'd like my love, We did just almost die." He reasoned, giving Easton a small smile. "Let's distract you for a bit so you don't exhaust yourself, okay? Where would you like to go next?" He asked softly, rubbing Easton's back
Easton shook his head and smiled in return for his offer. "You already know where I want to go. Instead, let us go where you want to. I remember saying you wanted to go somewhere before we left. I can't exactly remember where, but how about we do that. I need to get out of this estate anyway. As much I love kissing you and touching you in a very…" He interlocked their fingers together, while he kept his gaze on Abrose. "…comfortable bed. I, too, need to get out and get some fresh air. It's such a nice day, and I would hate to ruin it inside all day. Well…you wouldn't ruin it since I get to have you all to myself, but you know I mean, though." He gave a happy sigh. "I've become so selfish because of you, not that I'm complaining."
Abrose blushed at Easton's comments and shook his head with a light laugh, glad that Easton was back to smiling again. He gently pressed a kiss to Easton's hand. "You're more than welcome to be selfish my love. I wouldn't mind a full day just spent in a comfortable Bed cuddled up with you." He gently tugged Easton into a walk back towards their bedroom. "And yes I did. I want to visit my mother and sister's grave before we go. There's something I want to bring with us." He said, gently nudging open the door to their room and heading over to the closet to grab some cloaks. "We'll probably need these though just in case we run into any of the Queen's other guards. Though we'll be on the outskirts of the town so it should be alright." He reassured, biting his lip nervously yet he still felt hopeful. "I'm gonna miss it here. Of course not the terrible things but I had good memories here too, of my mom and sister, of Mel and you. Of all the people that came to the shop." A whistful smile crossed his features before he pulled the cloak around his shoulders and the hood over his head, his red hair now completely hidden with in the fabric
Easton tugged the cloak over his body. "I hate that you have to hide this gorgeous hair of yours. I think it's one of your best qualities." Easton pulled the hood over his head. "Let's go visit your Mother and sister, shall we.? I can't wait to meet them and tell them how much I love you." He took Abrose's hands, giving an unpretentious kiss to both of them. "I have a recommendation for when we get back. I think…you should take off your corset because every time I want to feel your waist there, it's always in the way. I want to be able to…" Easton moved closer to Abrose, "touch…" their noses now touching, "every part of you Abrose Nightingale." His voice came across in a whisper as he let the words linger in his mouth. "I hope that's okay?"
Abrose smiled softly as he gently squeezed Easton's hand. If you had asked him months ago if he would ever be able show any fae something so personal and close to his heart such as his family's grave, he would have absolutely not, but now being with easton, he no doubtdedly wanted to share both himself and his own experiences with the one he loved. Pink stained his cheeks and nose as he touched noses with the fae male. "That more sounds like a request my dear." He replied in an equally low of a whisper, breath mingling together in the little space between them. "that's more than okay." He murmured, eyes fluttering closed as he closed the gap between their lips, drawing out their kiss.
"I'm happy we agree," he mumbled into the kiss. Easton pulled Abrose closer to him he slowly pulled away. "Easy there, I wouldn't want to keep your mother and sister waiting. You know how I get when you give me this type of special treatment. As much as I want to, we can't so let's go say our hellos goodbyes, and then we can pick up where this left off hm? That sounds like a lovely idea to me." Easton opened the door to their room, letting Abrose go through before him. "After you darling."
Abrose wrapped his arms around Easton's neck, wanting to get lost in in the kiss instead of worrying about the queen and theur current situation. He pouted slightly when Easton pulled away but knew he was right, they would spend the entire day tucked away in their room instead of getting ready to leave the continent. "You're right, I know you're right. We'll have enough time later for all of this soon." He pressed one last kiss to Easton's cheek and adjusted the hood of the cloak before heading out the door. "Thank you my dear." He smiled at Easton and gently took his hand, lacing their hands together. "They would have loved you, once they saw you weren't a stick up fae guard." He teased with a laugh. "Especially my little sister."
"Really? What was she like?" Easton smiled. "I've always been fond of younger children. Sadly enough they've never been fond of me. Honestly, I don't think anyone has before you and that horse." Easton chuckled he couldn't keep a straight face with Abrose. Once they were through the halls he opened the door that led outside. He was hesitant, afraid that as soon as he stepped out of this estate the queen would be waiting for him and Abrose. With men that were ready to kill for her. Easton shook his head and took a deep breath while his hands clenched the doorhandle before opening it. The sunlight felt nice as well as seeing the outside world in all its glory. "Lead the way, my love."
"She was the family's spark. Always bubbly and excited to just live. Mama suspected her to have abilities too. Something with liquid or something but she was still too young for us to figure that out." Abrose explained, a smile on his featires as he spoke about his little sister. "She looked just like me, so much so that we sometimes twinned just to tease Mama. She had red hair like mine but it was longer and really pretty. I used to braid it all the time cuz she hated how it got in her face." He laughed softly at the memory. "I think she would have loved you. She probably would have followed you everywhere, ask you so many questions, ask about the fae and your abilities, all of that and more." Abrose barely noticed tears were forming on the corners if his eyes until he felt them slide down his face. He took a deep breath and wiped away the tears before pausing by the main door beside Easton. He glanced up at Easton and gently squeezed his hand in reassurance as he opened the door. He shivered in delight at the warmth, extremely tempted to pull off the cloak but decided against it. He nodded slightly and gently pulled Easton towards the dirt road leading to the forests beyond the estate, directly against the outer most homes if the village that dotted the landscape
He listened to Abrose without interruptions. It was a nice stroll on an extremely nice day, talking about sweet memories and he wanted to hear every part of it. "She seems like an angel. I'm sure we would get along very well." Easton kissed Abrose's temple before fallowing him. through the path. "Somehow I feel like your mom would be every skeptical of me. If she really didn't like me I'm pretty sure I would do anything just to be able to spend and hour with you. Even then I would probably waste it on cuddles and kisses than actually talking because I would've longed for you day in and out." Easton huffed a laugh. "Enough of my essay abut how much I love you tell me about your mom."
"you're probably right about the skeptical part, though I don't think Mama would've kept us from seeing each other, not if she saw that you genuinely cared." He gave a laugh and shook his head "I wouldn't consider that a waste at all, dear. In fact that sounds like absolute heaven, just being able to relax and snuggle with you." He lightly rested his head against Easton's shoulder, a whistful smile falling upon his lips "if my sister was the spark, Mama was the flame. She was beautiful. We got our red hair from her. She was feisty but in a way you knew she cared about a lot. She was stubborn but kind and she wasn't afraid to show her abilities off no matter the consequences. She reasoned that if it was to help others, it didn't matter what stupud law she was breaking. And I decided to follow that mindset even after their deaths as a way to honor them." He huffed a small sigh, trying his best to keep it together. "You would have liked her, even with her feistiness. She had that affect on everyone it seemed."
Easton watched him speak, spacing out at times. He was so focused on the smile on Abrose face. Easton stopped in his tracks, pulling Abrose close to him. "I can see where you get your personality from. To me, it seems like you're the same person. I just want you know, maybe you already do, but it seems like you need a reminder. She would be so proud of you and she is always in your heart whether you believe in god or not, she was will always be with you. Every step of the way. She's not gone. Okay? I'm sure I would've loved her." Easton kissed Abrose's forehead. "It's okay to cry you know, if you need a few minutes I wouldn't mind standing here for a few seconds while you cried it out."
Abrose looked up in surprise when he was pulled close to Easton's form. He fell silent as Easton spoke about his mom and then him, biting his lip to keep it from wobbling. A strangle sob escaped him as he looked away and let his head drop to Easton's chest, hand clamped over his mouth to muffle his crying. For the longest time he had kept hua grief to himself, having never had anyone close enough to cry with, other than Mel.
His knees buckled beneath him , only catching himself by holding onto Easton. He burried his face in Easton's chest and finally let himself cry for his list family, something he hadn't done in years.
"It's alright. I've got you." Easton embraced Abrose with love. He wasn't much of a crier but he knew how to comfort people. That much he knew. Easton stroked Abrose's hair, sometimes kissing the top of his head. "Let's go say hi to your Mother and Sister. We can stay as long as you need to. I'm not going anywhere." Easton lifted Abrose's chin and wiped away the tears staining his cheeks. "I bet they would love to hear how far you've come, yeah?" He looked into his eyes, almost tearing up himself just gazing at Abrose.
Abrose weeped into Easton's shirt for what seemed to him like a few minutes. He eventually quieted his crying to muffled sobs, his eyes and cheeks now red and splotchy from salty tears. He nodded slightly, a whispery "okay," escaping him as he clung to Easton, only breaking away far enough to look up at his live. He leaned into his hand, a shakey laugh managed to leave him as he finally looked up at Easton, comforted to know there was someone who was with him going to see his family instead of just him alone. He wiped away his tears with his blouse sleeve and nodded a bit more enthusiastically. "I'm sure they'll be happy to hear the one being I've avoided my whole life is now the the person I'm in love with." He shook his head and took a deep breath, leaning back into Easton's embrace for one more moment. "Thank you. This means a lot to me, Easton."
"I'm sure they will, my love." He kissed his cheek before tugging Abrose along the road. "Of course, darling. I'll come with you whenever or wherever you need me." Easton looked down on his shirt that had a puddle of salty tears stain his shirt. "It'll dry, most likely. However, I don't think they'll be too happy about me hunting you, falling in love with you, getting you arrested, baling you out of execution, and bringing you someplace deep in the woods that no one had heard about. Not to mention, we've never had a good first date together because it always ended up in someone getting hurt physically or emotionally. Well, the dinner was nice, but I did lie to you a lot that night…anyway! Let's move on from that." He chuckled.
Abrose gave an apologetic smile as he tried to dab away at the stain with his cloak. "Well, maybe not about the hunting or arresting part. But I'm sure they'd be reasonable about the rest." He laughed again, more calm.now than before as he wiped away the rest of his tears. He followed Easton towards the forest, a hopeful smile on his features. "Oh really? What did you lie about, hm? I hope it wasn't about my food." He teased, pressing a gentle kiss to their intertwined hands as he lead them deeper into the woods. "They're not that far from here, we should be there soon."
"Alright, I'm following you, my love." He stuffed his hands into his pockets as he thought about the question. "When you asked me how I was, I said fine. When you asked me if anything happened that say I said no, and when you asked me why I went into the castle I lied about why I was there. I really hated lying to you. For no reason to. I fessed up in the end, but…I still don't feel right about lying to you about it." Easton squeezed his hand.
Abrose nodded and gently squeezed Easton's hand as he led him through the trees and brush. "Well, I can't really hold that against you. I honestly would have done the same. We were on a date and you wanted to keep things carefree for once." He replied as he looked on ahead to an approaching rockface in front of them. He followed it towards the north, eventually finding small, naturally carved out rock face with two grave next to each other. One was smaller than the other but both were surrounded by orange flowers as well as herbs. Abfose smiled softly and knelt down in the wind grass. "Hey mama. Hey Lilly." He whispered softly, gently pulling Easton down next to him.
Easton kneeled down, but couldn't help but smile at the grave. "Hi, Abrose's mom and Lily." He took a deep breath in, releasing it slowly. "I know I'm not the most welcoming and I've been a jackass to Abrose, but I love him. A lot. He's given me some sass, but only when I was the one being rude. Very understandable." Easton nudged Abrose's shoulder, kissing him a temple. "He's made me happy. Considering everything he's taught me and done to help others, you would be very proud of him Mrs. Nightingale." Easton rested his hand on Abrose's shoulder so he could balance easier.
Abrise let Easton speak first, finding it difficult to talk considering it was the last time he'd see the grave. A smile flicked acrose his features at the mention of him being sassy. He lightly leaned into the kiss andet what was left if his tear slide down his cheeks. "Easton's been good to me mama, you don't have to worry. I love him very much. I bet you both would have loved him." He said softly. He slowly stood so that Easton wouldn't gobble over and walked behind the grave stones where a small shovel was hidden among the plants. He took a steading breath as he continued on speaking, finding it easier to talk now with Easton with him. "You should have seen him all dressed up for our first few dates. Maybe one day if we come back we'll have a dinner here with you two." He missed, starting to dig a shallow hole beside the grave.
Easton watched Abrose closely, nodding at his words. "We will come back and have dinner with you guys. I didn't get that dressed up. For our first one, I was so excited I didn't bother to change out my uniform. As for the second one, are we counting the drunk night we had together or the one where I had to do manual labor for the first time? Which by the way, Lily, those plants showed me no mercy." Easton tilted his head in confusion as he watched Abrose dig a hole. "What are you doing, my love?"
