When two worlds collide.
He wasn’t ready for this. And that was bad.. really bad. Because… Michael took a deep breath. It wasn’t his future that was at stake here. It was Scott’s! .And that was why he had to be ready. No matter what his nerves were telling him. After all this had been his plan! The urge to add a couple of adjectives.. stupid…..unworkable, for example was almost overwhelming, but he forced himself not too. After all if he didn’t go into this with conviction than how could he hope to win over Scott’s family? And he was convinced! He KNEW that Scott was an asset. To the team! To the Institute! To the so called normal world as a whole! That was never in doubt even for a moment!
Still…. Michaels crutches slipped on the dew laden grass as he made his way down to the boat house, causing him to curse silently under his breath…. surely he wasn’t the best person to convince them of that. And yet….. he had chosen this path. It would have been easier by far to send Hood to meet with the fairies. His elf persona! Fleet of foot! Sound of limb! One supernatural being going to greet another! Yeah! And what would that have proved? Nothing! Nothing of importance anyway!
What really mattered was Michael’s humanity and that was what he was going to let them see. “Warts and all, as Cromwell once said” he muttered as he approached the pavilion. That Scott and Hood had a connection would have been perhaps within the bounds of possibility for the fairy’s family. That Scott and Michael had such a bond…. that, he suspected, would raise more questions. But then again those were the questions that needed answers.
After all he now slept with a family heirloom next to his bed! For all that Scott chose to make little of it! Him! A human child! With all of the failings that came with that state. If they though humanity frail then he was walking, or rather limping, proof that they were right. Pain and need covered him like a cloak, all too easy to read and he wasn’t going to try to hide that.. Not under these circumstances.
Oh at another time he would have. Indeed at another time this whole meeting would have left him starry eyed and dumbstruck with wonder .Dear lord this was after all the stuff that dreams were made of! Never in his wildest dreams had he ever imagined being in such a situation. Well that wasn’t strictly true. He had dreamed of such a meeting, ever since he had first read Thomas the Rhymer. Fairie beings coming to take him away because of some awesome creative potential they saw in him! Like that was ever going to happen! Though now .it seemed that the old stories were truer than even he had thought.
It wasn’t how he had imagined it. This meeting. First of all, he hadn’t envisaged it taking place in the here and now. Or in fact taking place at al!. And certainly not with him in this state! Damn it all, Bottom had cut a better figure before Titania than he was going to do before Scott’s mother! And yet he knew what he was walking into. And why! And that in the end was the real difference. Because this was real! For him. For Scott! Right from the outset.. The future was in the balance. And no matter what faced him now it was up to him to swing it in their favour!
The thin pale hand, of the thin pale boy lifted itself from the crutches to knock on the wooden door before him. His hair was cut, his trousers held up by a belt rather than string, his shirt chosen with care. He still looked frail and pain ridden and human. And………. infinitely resolute.
Time was usually not a thing to worry for, but these days it seemed like a mortal fear for the Queen. Thankfully her sons had gone to play, a thing in itself that ought to fill her heart with glee and yet instead it felt as if still something heavy tugged it down. It would be so much nicer not to think of such things, and yet think of them she did, worry and fret and question all that the Queen had only moments before promised herself she'd put aside. And it was as if a part of her psyche had called out for aid in the debate, a knocking at the entrance to this kindly offered shelter pulled her from the troubled thoughts. With all the elegence of both race and rank, the curious Queen moved towards the door, her steps so smooth it was almost as if she glided across the floor. A hand reached out, the soft rustle of pure white moonsilk brushed silently across the floor and hang from her wrists, though never seemed to burden the fairy as she drew the door open.
A striking blue peered across at the figure on the other side; flakes of violet speckled the Queen's eyes, making it seem to almost change hue as the light hit it on certain angles. Lips of a natural red seemed to curve warmly, soft in their gentleness, inviting with their kindness, it was not difficult to recognize the human for who he was, her son described his friends very well. It seemed as if an unfelt wind seemed to caress her features, her long hair cascaded down her back, small strips fallen over her shoulders neatly, everything seemed without flaw, her skin itself appeared to soak up with vibrancy from light of the day.
"Michael," Softly spoken, an air of affection coloured the tone, a loving tenderness as if the boy were a child she’d watched grown from an infant to the young man he was today. It was difficult not to be fond of her son’s friends… her youngest made so few, but these ones he had now made a lasting impression in her son. Which made this so much more difficult. "Please," Gracefully the Queen opened the door further for the human, stepping back so that he may enter unhindered by her presence, her hand raising to rest the tips of her fingers over her heart with a slight bow of her head in a gesture of respected welcome. "Had I known, I would have readied a place for you," Once Michael was in the door, it was closed behind him and her body seemed to glide in fluid steps towards where she had previously sat. Beside her a few books piled on the table, with one opened face down and a plate of sweets and containers of drink at the ready for her, already a craftily twisted wine glass sat half filled with a fruity sweet liquid of purple hue. "A drink," It seemed another delicate looking wine glass was already being filled as she seemed more to state it then ask, her other hand lifting a plate of ordinary chocolate cookies that Scott had given her to try. "Vohan says you name these cookies, not as sweet as what we’re used to, but strangely enticing nevertheless," The lack of strong taste meant the Queen could nibble on many of them and not feel bloated, which for her reading sessions, was a very good thing, for Vohan’s mother did love to snack as she read her books.
Re: When two worlds collide.
She floated. There was no other word. Grace was left far behind when it came to describing her motion. Michael had been prepared for beauty, or so he had though. But this! This was by definition the barrier that lay between Scott’s world and his own.
How could the fairy bear it? Not to be in the presence of humanities ugliness but to be in the absence of this? 'Beauty is truth, truth beauty,—that is all Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know. He had though he had understood Keats well enough until now . When he came face to face with Scots mother. She was so far above anything he had ever seen.And yet she radiated kindness. But then again if she hadn’t then how could Scott have been her son?
It was that common feature with his team mate that saved Michael in those first moments of meeting, when he felt all the coarseness of his humanity and so much more weighing upon his shoulders. "Michael," The very though that she knew his name was almost too much for him, let alone what followed. "Please," the exquisite movement was all the more apparent as she opened the door leaving him to hobble as best he could into her presence. "Had I known, I would have readied a place for you,"
Michaels eyes opened wide in shock. She hadn’t been expecting him? Oh god. He had just turned up on her doorstep to do what?Convince her to leave her son at the school.? In what reasonable universe had that seemed a good plan? Or any plan at all? "A drink," There was a delicate glass full of grape coloured liquid offered his way followed by a plate of what looked like very earthly biscuits. “Vohan says you name these cookies, not as sweet as what we’re used to, but strangely enticing nevertheless,"
Legends! The very things that had been so deeply engrained as to let him see Scott in the first place cried out to him to refuse. That any food or drink offered by a fairy could entrap you into their world! Though to be honest Michael couldn’t see why anyone in the fairie realm would want him. Not crippled and awkward as he was.And Scott’s mother was,despite the incongruous plate of cookies in her hand, the embodiment of all that was fairie.
“Thanks , that would be nice” he said , knowing thanks to Scott that he risked in this situation nothing, except his own clumsiness. And Im sorry. I thought that you knew I was coming. Otherwise I’d never have just turned up like this. Havent the other s already come down to speak with you?
Re: When two worlds collide."Thanks , that would be nice" The boy was sweet, she could see it, being an empath of course she could see a lot more then just his sweetness, and for that ability it was clear to understand what the young prince Vohan saw in this mortal youth. "And Im sorry. I thought that you knew I was coming. Otherwise I’d never have just turned up like this. Havent the other s already come down to speak with you?" To which ‘others’ he meant exactly the Queen wasn’t entirely sure, though her son had hovered for a long while and though he stared and talked about everything save the one thing on his mind, no others had yet arrived… Was there something so important that needed to be discussed by so many? Vohan had seemed disturbed and awkward earlier, till his brothers saved him with promises of playful distractions… patience was the only way with her boys, and sometimes one needed a human lifetime worth of patience when it came to her boys. The plate was placed down carefully before the fairy queen had begun her reply.
"Other then my Vohan’s previous hour of hovering around staring at me as I read only to shy away whenever I looked at him, I have had few guests," There was a playful sweetness to her smile, a humour shown in her expression as she recalled her son’s odd behaviours. Though to say she was ignorant of his desires would be foolish, she knew well what drove her son’s actions and she could sense that he was pained and sad, to leave a world full of new friends and go back to the confines he had grown up in, the Queen could not hold fault to her sons desires to remain here. "Though I do admit, Michael, that had I to choose any guest to come, it would have been you," a cookie was brought up to her lips, held tenderly between her delicately thin fingers as if clutching something precious and much sought after, "I have long wished to meet the one my son speaks of so affectionately… many friends he has, and each one just as special to him, and yet …" Her smile brightened as violet eyes peered gently over the human youth, seeing only the strengths that shone inside, seeing what earned her sons respect, and even then she knew she only grazed the surface of this boys strength. "You have such a strength inside of you… I could weep for the pain it must cause you at times," A healer at heart she could not lie that it ached her to see one who suffers, and in so many ways… but not from a lack of friendship and support it would seem.
"I am sorry, even a Queen can ramble on… I am glade that it is you to come and discuss with me what is on all your minds," It was not her intention to make him uncomfortable, but it was difficult to explain how happy it made her to see people so fond and attached to her youngest son, he had so many lonely days in his life and it was these people who chased away such feelings. Michael was a wonder to Vohan as much as much as the Queen seemed at times to Michael she felt, there was a different sort of fondness inside of her son towards that of the half-breed her youngest Prince often mentioned, a softness of affection. Riley and Connor were both figures of authority and strength, they didn’t have the same sort of relationship, the loyalty and love was there, more so with Riley then the lesser-seen Connor, but the connection was different at a certain level. Carrying on like this however risked Michael being robbed completely of his voice, the boy poor looked taken back enough as it was and with every word to fall from her lips it seemed as he was just that more surprised. A small nibble was taken from the cookie, she wouldn’t lay the grounds of conversation any more then what she already had done, and yet the seemingly timeless fairy found herself already fretting to cause more pain to burden this mortals shoulders… had the boy not suffered enough in his so few years? Somehow… she had to make him understand it was for the best to take her son away… somehow she had to lessen the pain they all would feel… why did she have to know the things she knew? Sometimes the Queen envied the ignorance of most mortal creatures, so blissfully unaware of the true happenings, or naive of the powers around them, the darkness that swirls… the dreams that told of what would come, how could she ignore such horrible dreams?
Re: When two worlds collide."Other then my Vohan’s previous hour of hovering around staring at me as I read only to shy away whenever I looked at him, I have had few guests," Oh well.. it was only fair really. After all this little discussion session had been his idea so it was only right and fitting that he should be the one to get it underway. That didn’t make him any less nervous. It wasn’t Scot’s mother’s fault. She was going out of her way to be nice and make him feel at home. She was just so……. Fairy.. there was no other word for it! And even the simple everyday tasks she was undertaking and the banality of their surroundings did nothing to lessen that.
Still from what she had been saying Scott.. Vohan….had been just as on edge these last few hours, no doubt waiting for his friends to come down and do as they had promised. Explain to his mother just why she should let him stay at the Institute. Or try to at least. He was counting on them to be persuasive, not sit there tongue tied and awestruck, and Michael didn’t intend to let him down. It was just that it was hard not to just drink in her presence. And harder still to find a reply when she said things like . "Though I do admit, Michael, that had I to choose any guest to come, it would have been you,"
Why.. why would that be? The astral mutant couldn’t think of any conceivable reason why she would have wanted to see him as opposed to anyone else. The explanation wasn’t long in coming though. "I have long wished to meet the one my son speaks of so affectionately… many friends he has, and each one just as special to him, and yet …" Michael’s answering smile clearly reflected the friendship she spoke of, his attachment to her son recently formed it was true but deep rooted none the less. The fairies own smile grew even brighter in return, her beauty even more radiant, if such a thing was possible.
Michael could have been lost in the wonder of the sight if her next words hadn’t startled him back to awareness. "You have such a strength inside of you…” she told him unexpectedly “I could weep for the pain it must cause you at times." Strength? Him?Was she talking about Hood? That would have made sense but somehow that wasn’t the impression Michael got when she looked at him. His confusion must have been plain to see for Scot’s mother tried to brush over the sudden intensity of the moment saying . "I am sorry, even a Queen can ramble on… I am glad that it is you to come and discuss with me what is on all your minds,"
Michael heard very little after the word Queen.Not that his mind went blank. Far from it. Instead it filled with implications and complications….”A queen” he repeated in shock. “Then that means that Scott is…oh lord that changes everything!”
Re: When two worlds collide."A queen" The mortal boy repeated with a stunned air about himself, leaving the Queen to offer a slight tilt of her head. It was then, only, that she had recalled so long ago that Scott had said he kept secrets from those around him as far as his origins were concerned, and yet the Queen had never guessed he had done so with all the humans, his dearest friends included. "Then that means that Scott is…oh lord that changes everything!" A curious look fell about the Queens eyes, in some ways she supposed it did, but had she just done something that would change this boys interactions with her son?
"Tell me," The soft voice of the fairy Queen rang with a tenderness, like a mother speaking to her child, both wise and curious at the same time, "What does this change?" How odd, she knew so much over the years, and her life spanned so far beyond this human boy, and yet he knew something about her own son that she yearned to know, something that even her youngest could not seem to brave her and say it..."You all have such heavy hearts... " The mother inside her ached for her son's need to be surrounded by friends, and yet the Queen in her knew how important it was he return home. "...have i burdened you with this knowledge?" Sometimes people preferred ignorance for it's simplicity, and the ancient beauty found her eyes wondering over the youthful features of the child before her.
"He was forbidden to speak of such things... I thought he might have shared his secrets with those closest... or maybe he just wanted to be away from all that he had grown up with," There was a sadness in her eyes as she added, "I know he wants to stay away, ever since he was so little, when most feared leaving the safety of their homes, Vohan would embrace the freedom of a journey and never look so sad as when the walls of our home came once again into view," Gently the Queen stood, her gown gracing her with an otherworldly elegance that only enhanced her beauty so much more. It was easy to know what her son was upset about, but to have others be just as upset... this was something she had not though possible, something she had longed for her son to experience. A mother's love was one thing, but that of friends, that was something else, something all life deserved to share in, something her youngest seemed to find so difficult once he was locked away in the castle walls. Quietly the Queen reached out for the delicate roses in one of the pots, their deep red colour and perfect head seeming almost unnatural as the Queen's presence brought out the very best of the flowers radiance.
Re: When two worlds collide.
The plan, which had been perhaps in any case doomed from the very outset crashed and burned with this latest news. Scott’s mother was a queen. Which made Scott a prince! Which threw everythibng into dissaray
And yet Michael realised he shouldn’t have been surprised? After all this was, in every sense of the word ,a fairy tale. When had they ever concerned themselves with anything other than princes or princesses?
Still.. if he had known before he would have.. What? Given in? Certainly not! Scott was after all Scott. Whatever his rank or title, that hadn’t and would never change anything between them. The problem was that this particular issue wasn’t something that lay just between them as he was beginning to appreciate. Not that it ever had done so.
He had always known that he and the others would have had to convince a mother and father who cared for their son that there was a reason to leave him here in danger. And that was never going to be easy. Or even justified! Still Michael had been prepared to try to argue his case against Scott’s parents, no matter how otherworldly they might have been. Because he had genuinely believed that what Scott desired for himself was what was best. For everyone concerned. Fairy and human alike
A bond built, not just between two beings, but between two worlds. With Scott as a bridge! Understanding and hopefully understood. An ambassador! Important! Vital even and not merely on the individual level. A role that would change perhaps the destiny of two worlds! Worthy of a prince. But one that he, certainly not someone like him, could ask a prince to play.
. . "Tell me," Scott’s mother asked , "What does this change?" Nothing! Everything! Both were true. And yet neither reflected the entirety of the situation. ..."You all have such heavy hearts.....have i burdened you with this knowledge?"
No! In the end, they would have suffered even without this knowledge. Though it didn’t help Their hearts were heavy because Scott was leaving. Scott. Not some prince. Just Scott. Innocent! Naïve! Capable of seeing into their hearts and making a place in them that had nothing to do with his race or his power and everything to do with his own self! He was the clean slate against which they measured themselves. The mark to which they aspired! And the knowledge of his birthright was a burden he had kept to himself. For good eason it seemed.
"He was forbidden to speak of such things... the fairy queen continued I thought he might have shared his secrets with those closest... or maybe he just wanted to be away from all that he had grown up with," Michael smiled sadly. He understood his friend all too well. Honour rose up between them, not like the wall that should have separated them, but rather like the clasped hand that united them. Though one was a prince and the other a pauper! Oaths were sacred. They both understood that all too well. And neither would either have taken them lightly or betrayed them easily.
"I know he wants to stay away, ever since he was so little,That was surely wrong.Or so Michael thought till she continued and he finally understood. when most feared leaving the safety of their homes, Vohan would embrace the freedom of a journey and never look so sad as when the walls of our home came once again into view,"
“No” he said ” Or yes.. I mean..” Awkwardness faded from him as he tried to explain what he had felt and what Scott was perhaps too close to express. “Scott..” quickly he corrected himself “ Vohan, loves you all more than anything..he holds onto you and his family each and every day.. Its not that he wants to be away from you.. its just that..
Michael sighed and smiled I had this speech all worked out.. It probably wasn’t very good to start with but it was something at least. All about how with us Vohan felt he had a role to play here that only he could fill. And how it was true.
“It was pretentious. Even though I didn’t know he was a prince” The young mutant lowered his eyes, looking at his human hands and the stupid biscuits they held, symbols none the less of Scott’s mothers willingness to understand her sons place in this world so far removed from their own “it was full of words like ambassador and friend and team mate.. and it spoke of the difference Vohan had made in our lives..my life.. and how we would be there for him no matter what..
Darkness and light balanced themselves precariously in Michael’s compromised soul, a soul betrayed through no fault of his own, and yet somehow he was still here fighting on the right side. How much of that was due to Scott’s existence and his gift and how much to Michael’s own essence was difficult to say. But the fairies aide was unmistakable. Dreams that should have corrupted had been held back by the artefact he had ceded. The bright hope of his very existence had been thrown like a rope when Michael could have descended into darkness.
“I wanted him to stay.. we wanted him to stay.. It was selfish ..Michael admitted though it was clear that he was being nothing but honest when he continued but Vohan .. he wanted it so much as well.. I came here for him.. as much as for me.. but I didnt know he was a prince.. with all the duties that implies
Maybe ..if he hadn’t had other responsibilities.. then I could have argued something that didn’t sound too stupid but as it is.. Michael drew himself up, simply being himself. Which was after all what he did best. “I know being a prince makes things more difficult but you’re his mum..and that whoever he is you’ll do what’s best for him.. and all I can say is what he means to us and what he maybe cant say for himself.. that he wants to stay here and that we want him to stay and that we’ll be there for him like he’s here for us..
The young mutants grey eyes clouded before raisin again to hers, full of inttelligence and sad comprehension And if you’re here in person after all these years .. then that’s going to count.. but its not going to be enough, is it?
Re: When two worlds collide.
“No” The youth replied, drawing the Queen's attention to himself as her soft gaze settled on him, ” Or yes.. I mean..” It wasn't often she caused children so young to struggle so hard for words that were meant to somehow make her understand, and for some reason the fact Michael was trying made the Queen see just what her youngest son must see in these mortal friends. “Scott..” Began the boy, who quickly seemed to change the name her son had chosen to the one she had chosen for hm,“ Vohan, loves you all more than anything..he holds onto you and his family each and every day.. Its not that he wants to be away from you.. its just that.." Oh she knew, part of her did anyway, being an Empath didn't make for people keeping secrets from her, and yet Vohan's heart never fluttered as much as back home like when he spoke of this place, of the people, the things he did and believed and wanted from being here.
"I had this speech all worked out.. It probably wasn’t very good to start with but it was something at least. All about how with us Vohan felt he had a role to play here that only he could fill. And how it was true." and if Michael said it, the Queen would have agreed, but agreeing or not, could she leave Vohan out here all on his own without any way of seeing them for who knew how long... years, centuries? The King was not willing to give Vohan the chance to ask to stay away, strict as he could be, he was Vohan's father, and of all his children, Vohan was one he would protect the most, even if it were not what Vohan wished. Though, that was a parents role, to protect the child from their own choices, the Queen just hoped this was the right choice on their part.
“It was pretentious. Even though I didn’t know he was a prince” A soft smile crept over the royal fairy's lips, leaving a sad tenderness glowing on her features, they wanted to try so hard to help Vohan stay here with them, they wanted to only help him get what he really wanted...And a large part of the Queen knew he did not have that back home, he was almost denied such things, too risky for a young Prince to be able to wander around, too risky for him to be able to make friends outside the castle walls...was all this worth sacrificing just to get him back to the safety of their home? "it was full of words like ambassador and friend and team mate.. and it spoke of the difference Vohan had made in our lives..my life.. and how we would be there for him no matter what.." The deep mystic gaze seemed to shy away, lost behind delicate lashes as her eyes closed, her hands pulling together and raising to rest gently against the front of her lower face, her fingers lacing together and her lips pressed softly against her hands.
“I wanted him to stay.. we wanted him to stay.. It was selfish .." No wonder her son wished to stay here, who else but these people would speak of him in such a way, to consider it selfish to want him around... yet was it any more or less selfish compared to their own need, the over protective parents not yet ready to leave their son alone to fend for himself. And part of the Queen had convinced herself she could use his aid, he was old enough to travel more with her around the castle, to help her like he once did so often as a younger child, to take on more responsibility...it seemed like something worth this sacrifice, but she was growing more uncertain with every moment spent here. "but Vohan .. he wanted it so much as well.. I came here for him.. as much as for me.. but I didnt know he was a prince.. with all the duties that implies." There was a slight nod of her head, the dark curls seeming so elegent as they framed her magnificant features.
"Maybe ..if he hadn’t had other responsibilities.. then I could have argued something that didn’t sound too stupid but as it is.." Her eyes opened to study the human boy, wondering if Vohan could see things as this youth did, sometimes it wasn't as easy when it effected you, outsiders so often seemed to understand what those who should know try so hard to avoid.. “I know being a prince makes things more difficult but you’re his mum..and that whoever he is you’ll do what’s best for him.. and all I can say is what he means to us and what he maybe cant say for himself.. that he wants to stay here and that we want him to stay and that we’ll be there for him like he’s here for us.." Slowly the Queen's hands lowered to the front of her dress, folding over each other quietly, resting against the flat of her stomach as her eyes met those of the mortal youth. "And if you’re here in person after all these years .. then that’s going to count.. but its not going to be enough, is it?"
"He's so young," For a moment it seemed that may have been the only defense she could come up with, as if no other reason were needed, though it ached inside her, a hearty goth heavy with remorse, love, duty and need. "There is so much left to teach him," her voice was almost silken, sad and longing, as if her very words wished to wrap about her son in a loving embrace. "I always knew he would leave... I knew he would take a journey that would lead him through dangers that I could not protect him from," Dangers like her own travels, at least that is how she thought it would be, venturing the lands far and wide... but still within their own realms, instead he ventured further then she ever dared at his age. "I was told so very long ago that I would need to let him go... that he would be needed to fight for all those he loved, of all my sons... all the battle ready, head-strong boys, it had been Vohan who she had spoken of," There was a distant air of remembrace in the Queen's voice, her eyes inwardly remembering the face of the strange young fairy that had told her all this...it was so difficult to decide how to think of it all. "But it is too soon... there are too many things still left to teach him before he is ready, he still lacks control over his own abilities, and with his healing I can teach him...With his duties his father can guide him... he is a good King, Michael, and he loves his sons, he has so much to teach them all, and if Vohan does not come now, I do not know when shall be the next time I see him," She had never told Vohan of the strange girl who had spoken of him so many centuries again, the wild halfbreed who had seemed to come from nowhere and vanish soon after. "I must make sure he is ready for whatever it is his future holds," It was more as if all this were not only for Michael's knowledge, but as if she were working over it all by speaking it out loud, hoping it somehow made more sense if she could just say it all. "There is a war coming, I do not know how it differs from what we already face but the darkness grows stronger, and we must protect ourselves.. though I promise you Michael.. as soon as he is ready, I shall release him to his own choices.. and perhaps you two shall meet once more."
Re: When two worlds collide."He's so young," The was a world of love in those words. A need to hold and protect her child, even if she knew the world, be it this one or another, would someday claim him. It was something Michael had never known. Oh his mother loved him in her own way, but the idea of him leaving the nest had never bothered her. It would simply be one less mouth to feed! As well as one more possible source of income! Protection in any form or guise had never been her forte. And while this might be something that Scott railed against, perhaps with just cause, still Michael couldn’t help but long for it. To be cherished. How would that feel? He honestly couldn’t imagine. But he knew that Scott was.
"There is so much left to teach him," the fairy queen went on, obviously troubled by what Michael had said. "I always knew he would leave... I knew he would take a journey that would lead him through dangers that I could not protect him from,"
It was so hard to watch her suffer. Harder still to know that he was the cause! Or no .. not the cause but merely a reminder, for as she spoke Michael realised that this was something she had lived with for a long time. Like some dire prediction of death and spinning wheels. "I was told so very long ago “ she said “that I would need to let him go... that he would be needed to fight for all those he loved, of all my sons... all the battle ready, head-strong boys, it had been Vohan who she had spoken of,"
Michael didn’t need to know of whom she spoke. This was a fairy tale and in fairy tales ,as indeed in any other context, prophesies were something either to be overcome or to be fulfilled at any price. Which would it be for Scott? Michael could only wait and pray.
"But it is too soon there are too many things still left to teach him before he is ready, ...” Relief filled the Scottish mutant. This was no ogre then arriving to claim the youngest son. It was rather a sword waiting to be pulled from a stone.And , despite all that Scott’s mother was saying; Michael could think of no one better qualified to do so than his friend. Still he could better understand her worries.
“ he still lacks control over his own abilities,” the fairy told him “and with his healing I can teach him...With his duties his father can guide him..” He could learn control here! Part of Michael wanted to advance that as an argument but before the queens obvious distress he found that he couldn’t. Besides she already knew that. This wasn’t about training. This was about family. And against that he had no right to interfere.
But still he had caused this unearthly being to show her all to ‘human’ heart, even now justifying the actions of a king to a nobody simply because he had the pretension to call her son ‘friend’ “he is a good King, Michael,” she went on and he loves his sons, he has so much to teach them all, and if Vohan does not come now, I do not know when shall be the next time I see him, I must make sure he is ready for whatever it is his future holds," "
How could he argue against that? Against love and duty and honour and.. Destiny. Because she was talking of nothing less! And his petty needs.. even the needs of the team or the school or the world were swept away in the face of that. "There is a war coming” Strange that the idea of conflict in Scott's birthplace should shock him so. He was Scottish. His view of what lay on the other side of the fairy veil wasn’t all sweetness and light. In the tales of the sidh there was arrogance and power ever present. But all his actual contact with them had been sweet and innocent. Had been Scott and Tess.
War didn’t seem to be in their nature. Though defending what was right! That was a different matter. And from what the Queen was saying that would be the case here. I do not know how it differs from what we already face’ she said but the darkness grows stronger, and we must protect ourselves.. though I promise you Michael.. as soon as he is ready, I shall release him to his own choices.. and perhaps you two shall meet once more."
Perhaps! If he lived to be old enough! Maybe someone would turn up at his door and find him old and senile while they had never changed. Or maybe he would pass on the tale to his children and they would wait for some Peter Pan to fly in their window one night and ask for their lamp. Neither scenario seemed very likely. He had been too badly broken for either a long life or for love. But that wasn’t something he was going to lay at the queen’s door. Just as he had never discussed the possibility with her son!
And so he did the only thing possible. The one thing his heart dictated in the face of all rhyme or reason. He couldn’t kneel, his body didn’t work that way any more. But he did his best all the same, despite the pain. “I know you are not my queen” he told her trying to keep his voice steady as his legs screamed their protest. “But… I have a sword. And it is your’s.. it is Vohan’s to call on in this war. If it can ever be of any service”
Re: When two worlds collide.
The emotions of the youth before her were wild, burning deep within, the pain in his eyes, the strength in his heart, the fear surpassed by courage few humans were known to have, how she wished for just a moment that her people could see into the heart and will of this mortal boy. Maybe there was hope, to see a mortal so passionate about one of their own kind, to see there was more to the ancient tales then fear and death.
“I know you are not my queen” It took great restrain to reach out as the young human knelt with an awkward stiffness, every part of her cried out to lend aid and ease the suffering before her, always a healer and helper first and a Queen after. The words seemed strange, and yet the gesture was known to her, strange as if... why was he declaring that he was not her Queen, even she could not recall a time where a human lay allegiance to her family. “But… I have a sword. And it is your’s.. it is Vohan’s to call on in this war. If it can ever be of any service” The devotion! Violet eyes seemed to shimmer with a brilliance of emotions as the Queen watched Michael’s gesture, the pain it caused to do so simple bow, the strain needed to keep it, a show of loyalty that was not possible to be given without the sacrifice Michael knew it would bring, the pain so obvious and unavoidable. How odd, that right now she would be so torn, to respect the suffering he was enduring, or to reach for him and ease his pains.
Fingers reached out, graceful in their motion, tender in their touch, resting upon the top of the blond hair, the words that followed spoken in her native tongue, filled with a power and warmth and softness that seemed to know no limits. Would he know of the blessing she had given him? No, as a human hadn't learned the words of her peolple in longer then the Queen could remember. Would he understand she had taken his vow in high regard.. perhaps. Would he think she felt pity towards his wretched form? No. There was nothing in he Queen's mannerism to show she even thought for a moment his offer was humorous. This was serious, he was serious, and in turn, no matter how much she longed to insist he not suffer for her, she knew that no true warrior of the heart would deserve anything less then the respect they showed.
And as her voice trailed off, the most exquisite smile caressed the Queen’s lips as she spoke with compassion and truth to her words, "I would wish for none other to stand beside my Prince," And again she wondered if pulling him away from these people was indeed the right thing to do... and yet... it had to be, because he wasn’t around, and she knew there were things to be done before he was, and until she felt there was no doubt in her mind... she was told she would know when the time was right, there should be no question when it arrives if it was her place to stand in the way or not.
"Come," The Queen announced, her hand remaining extended for him to take hold of, "I would wish to celebrate such heart and courage, as is our customs.. no vow of loyalty goes unrewarded," She may not have the power here to unravel the damage done to the boys legs, but that did not mean she could not use her talents to help ease his suffering, even if just slightly... how she wished to take so noble a spirit back to her homelands and heal what has been broken. Perhaps she would not completely rid him of his physical pains, but surely one of her abilities and rank could find something to help her son’s dearest brethrens, such as this mortal youth. "And I just happen to have come baring treats, first, I wish to see this place my child calls his home, and those he calls his friends and allies," All she yearned for right now was just to have him take her hand, she wanted to ask him, she wanted to rest it against the boys cheeks until the pain ebbed away, and if she could, she would have taken the youths pain into herself. And yet, even she could see it would be something he would not wish to share with any other, and while she ached from the thought, she still hoped he’d allow her the chance to show, in turn, her loyalty to him, even if in so simple a form.
Re: When two worlds collide.
There were tales throughout human literature of knights proving their loyalty to their queen. Usually by slaying the dragon or storming the castle. Only Lancelot, flawed as he was, ever proved it through suffering and humiliation. And his relationship with that particular queen had been questionable to say the least. Now though, pain was all Michael had to offer in guise of his devotion, and he offered it without reserve. Whether that in turn led to humiliation was out of his hands.
If Vohan’s mother laughed it would probably kill him. Or at least cripple his spirit as thoroughly as the car had crippled his body. But then he would hardly have forced himself to endure this if he had thought that she was the kind of person to laugh at his efforts.
Pity though that was a real possibility. As was a gentle rejection! Even under the best conditions Michael knew he was untried as a warrior. If indeed he could even lay claim to that title one day. He was far from being some champion on a white charger whose presence could change the course of battles. He was just a boy with a sword. But it was a sword formed by his spirit, and that spirit was devoted to her son. Would that be enough though?
In the world of literature he had a chance. Galadriel had looked upon all members of the fellowship with equal regard, knowing that even the smallest person could play a part in the war to come. This though.. unbelievable as it may have seemed.. was real life. A real life where the worst horrors were intermingled with unseen possibilities! And whose infinite range was still opening up before Michael’s widening eyes.
This though…. This act of commitment to a cause, however strange, was right. He could feel that. It was what he was meant to do. By birthright! By belief! By friendship! By everything he was. It was a potential in him that had attracted demons. And one which kept them silent now, in this moment when forces beyond their control came into affect.
So Michael waited for what seemed an eternity to feel the queen’s hand upon his head. In acknowledgement of all that he was and all that he could be! It wasn’t the hand of a mother on a child that he wanted. It was the acknowledgement of a monarch for a warrior. In his own world he had been recognised as such. That was what his inclusion into a team at Xavier’s had meant to him. But this..
This went beyond even that. This tore down barriers Scott had hinted were high indeed.
Scott had built this bridge, by his character and his perseverance. He had made humans care for him. And Michael was sure that he wasn’t the only one who would follow him into battle if the need arose. But someone had to take this first step. And it was all too ironic that it was someone who needed help to walk at all who was called upon to make it.
Riley would have done it better. Hell anyone would have done it better. At least they would have seemed more of an advantage than a liability. And yet.. Michael gasped as the queen’s hand laid itself lightly on his head in the age old gesture of acceptance. Something passed between them that he was far from having imagined possible but was ready to accept all the same. Something otherworldly Something that caused the demons clutching to his soul like parasites to gasp and shrink back, blinded by the sudden light that flowed over them.
But then again.. this was why they were there. This was what had made him worth the money they had expended. And the effort they had put in ever since. Even if sometimes it had been a pleasure. Oh they had enjoyed torturing him even as he fought their influence. The lamp this queen's son had given him had held them at bay. But then again so had a vampires book. That was Michael’s gift. One that the world had stamped upon him! Not exactly understanding, though that did play a part! But at least the ability to look beyond appearances and reputations and judge people on their actions!
Now though those demons were clutching on for dear life. Struggling to keep their hold on a soul that should have been far out of reach of their malice! Betrayal though.. that was a force as primeval as that of the fairies. Especially betrayal between brothers! And Michael had been betrayed, not in a moment of jealousy as Abel had been by Cain but on a level far more profound. A level that had put his soul in the balance and sold it for money!
They were so far beyond her notice though, so insidiously worked into the fabric Michael’s soul that the queen, unsuspecting of any trace of malice in the boy before her , let them be, saying simply. "I would wish for none other to stand beside my Prince,"Michael himself thought that he must have misheard, Michael thought immediately. These words couldn’t be addressed to him. His grey eyes raised questioningly to hers to be met by a smile that reduced his attempts to conceal his emotions to nothing.
For there was a hand there for him to grasp , not one extended to a cripple who couldn’t rise on his own but rather one offered to a valued ally. "Come," the fairy queen said "I would wish to celebrate such heart and courage, as is our customs.. no vow of loyalty goes unrewarded. Michael bent his head again, as any knight should, though for the first time he fully realised why they did it. Not just out of loyalty. But also because their eyes would betray too much! And I just happen to have come baring treats, first, I wish to see this place my child calls his home, and those he calls his friends and allies.
Her words were light , talking of nothing more than cookies and lemonade , the usual everyday things that boys his age and her sons should be discussing. Except that whatever their friendship might have been or had just become with her acknowledgement of Michael’s worth, Scott and he were ages apart.
Eyes that betrayed not only acknowledgement of that fact but also the full extent of his commitment to them both and the pain it had cost him to make it , coupled to an appreciation of her own reaction, raised themselves to hers at the exact moment her healing efforts took effect.
Michael gasped as the pain unexpectedly faded, easing itself out of his body, with a grace that could only be supernatural. And which he couldn’t help but welcome. This was a freedom he had all too well imagined as Hood. But, not since the day of the accident, as himself!
It was a gift he had never believed he would have again! And one he knew couldn’t last. Otherwise Scot would have given it to him. But still ….. Amlarie had falsely given him something like this. Not an ease of the pain but at least a freedom from the need to pretend that all was right. A promise of home and acceptance that had been snatched away when she had turned her attention elsewhere!
This was different though. Scott’s mother didn’t think of him as a son. That thought hadn’t even crossed his mind. Or so he told himself. Though he was in dire need of such a mother! But … there was a care in her words and in her actions, both for him as an ally and in him as a … He didn’t have a word for it. Not as a child, though there was an element of that also in her But as a friend of her child…. And that was already enough.
Coupled with the release from pain it was indeed more than he could handle. She was there though asking him for a tour of the institute. Something well within the reach of his capabilities! Wasn’t it? Offering cookies and milk awkwardly perhaps in the terms of this world but in a way that was instantly recognisable to the young Scot!
So recognisable indeed, that coupled with the sudden ease of pain it broke down barriers he had set firmly in place leaving him neither Scott’s team mate before her nor a newly recruited knight, though he was fully both, and more but simply himself. Lost and hurt and 17. And for a few moments free of the pain that dominated his life. Thanks to her.
“I “Michael wanted to say *Can give you a guided tour. No problem. I can show you what Scott’s team mates are worth And what he means to us* But what came out was something different. And more revealing than he would ever have wanted. “ I don’t hurt.” he said instead “ You took the pain away.” And suddenly his strength gave way as he buried his face in her skirts and wept.
Supernatural a being as the Queen may be, that did not mean she bore no flaws, and perhaps her need to ease Michael’s pain was indeed a flaw, for no matter how much freedom she could offer the boy from his painful physical restraints, it was only if she were near, if not touching him, and what offer of freedom was it if the catch were that he could never leave her side without the ease fading back to the all too familiar pain. Sure, there were ways a human’s body could be fixed, yet the challenges to obtain such gifts were often treacherous and taxing, few humans were ever known to have succeeded in obtaining the rewards they sought from the enchanted realms.
The emotions pouring from the youth were strong and deep, and the Queen felt herself almost getting lost in the undercurrents of emotions pulling and tugging at her own, something all Empath’s had to grow to deal with. However, these emotions were broken free because of her own desperate need to offer some form of release... to show the boy something he probably didn’t let a day pass without wishing for, and yet perhaps the fading memory of what it was like to feel no pain would be better than suffering it and knowing, remembering so clearly moments free of the hurt.
"I" The human seemed, just for a moment, to be willing to almost ignore the effects of her touch as the enchantment wove its way through his form, yet the words to follow steadily broke down what little remained of the barrier which held the young mortal’s head firmly high and stubborn. "I don’t hurt." He spoke with almost raw emotion as he added, "You took the pain away." And with that, she bore witness to the fragile side of the youth which Michael forced so hard to be hidden from sight, a deep seeded pain and anguish that lived alongside him as emotionally as it did physically, and never had the Queen seen a human child cry before, at least not one from this realm in any case. Though the humans of her realm didn’t always socialize with her people, the fear of the humans still kept her kind withdrawn and secretive.
"We all need a moment of peace, Michael," The Queen whispered, her hands resting about the youth, a warmth in her voice and gentle of touch, yet her heart couldn’t help but ache for the human boy, she couldn’t help but wonder how her son had felt all these passing months dwelling with a friend whom suffered both so obviously and yet so secretly at the same time. "...There is so much left for you to face, and I have no doubt that you will face all your trials with strength and determination, for even in loss there is no failure I fear you cannot overcome," Did he even want to hear all the trials and pain bound to occur in his life? Even if it seemed to the Queen that it would be Michael himself that chose to walk the paths which lead him there? "You give so much Michael, I yearn that I could give you something more then these moments of relief, sadly there is little I can offer you that does not bare a heavy price I would wish never to ask of you to consider, save that of my loyalty to you and any you hold dear,"
Re: When two worlds collide.
It should have felt like a defeat. After all he had gone there to try to convince Scott’s mother that her son had people around him that could and would protect him against whatever life threw at him. But instead he had ended up weeping in her arms.
It was hardly the ideal image of a team mate, and would certainly expose the sword he had offered up into Vohan’s service for what it really was. A toy, wielded by nothing more than an admittedly fervent child. ‘Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing’
Deep down Michael knew all of that. Indeed his brain was already telling him that this meeting was nothing less than a disaster. But his heart… Ah god.. That was a different matter altogether.
Michael’s heart, despite all of his efforts to the contrary, was simply drinking in this moment of peace that the queen was talking about, and somehow finding it good. One brief instant in time when nothing hurt! And in which it was somehow all right to acknowledge, for once, that that was how things should be. Though they never would be again!
The pain was something he had had to come to terms with long ago. As was the cause of it! While it had all been put down to a stupid accident he had somehow managed to deal with it. Or at least pretend to.
The idea of having his life ripped apart by irresponsible drug addicts had been hard enough to accept but he had somehow forced himself to do so.. The knowledge, however, that he had been deliberately targeted that day when the car had crashed into him because of his brother’s calculated plans was something else altogether.
It wasn’t fair! It never would be! Yet if he screamed that from the rooftops, as he sometimes wanted to, what would it accomplish? Apart from making him feel better. It certainly wouldn’t give him back his legs. Running, jumping, just walking casually to and from the library, with or without a girls hand in his, all of that was gone, to be replaced by an insidious suffering that, like it or not, ate away at him constantly till he though that he would surely break and let the world see how bad things really were.
He didn’t though. Or at least he hadn’t until now. Instead he had kept it all locked up inside, putting on a brave face in public even if it was an uphill struggle. But what the queen had done was too much and above all too sudden for him to hide his feelings this time.
Catharsis! ‘the purging of the emotions or relieving of emotional tensions, especially through certain kinds of art, such as tragedy or music.’ That was the dictionary definition, and one Michael knew by heart, having used the word countless times in the course of his literary studies. Now though he realised that he had never understood what it meant. Not really!
It was as if the psychological suffering he had endured since the accident and especially in these last few horrendous months was being eased just as his physical pain had been. As if the queen’s gentle hand was stroking not just his hair but his very heart and leaving it healed.
Yet the words she spoke to him were not addressed to a child, nor did she seem to think any the less of him despite his breakdown. "...There is so much left for you to face,” she told him and I have no doubt that you will face all your trials with strength and determination, for even in loss there is no failure I fear you cannot overcome," How could she see strength in him when he had showed her nothing but weakness? And yet it was obvious that she was speaking nothing but the truth.
"You give so much Michael,” she went on, her voice tinged with sadness I yearn that I could give you something more then these moments of relief, sadly there is little I can offer you that does not bare a heavy price I would wish never to ask of you to consider, save that of my loyalty to you and any you hold dear,"
There was no elegant way back from this situation, no smart reply that might somehow make them both forget how broken and vulnerable he had just shown himself to be. The young Scot should have been looking for a hole to crawl into and hide but somehow he wasn’t. Oh no doubt the embarrassment would come later when he looked back on what had happened and how badly he had failed Scott. But for the moment strange, as it may have seemed, he didn’t feel humiliated. Instead he felt comforted, as if this ethereal being recognised that no one could be strong all the time. That even a warrior sometimes had to let go. Though that didn’t mean he had stopped fighting.
Michael had needed this release more than even he had imagined. But this was only a lull in the battle he would still have to wage every day. And now it was time to get back into the fray. So he pushed himself back up to his feet, the movements still awkward even if for once blissfully pain free,
“I was supposed to be pledging my loyalty to you not the other way about” he told Scott's mother ruefully, dredging up a smile to accompany the words. “Though things didn’t go exactly the way I had planned. I had been hoping for a little more solemn dignity and a little less …. well….melodrama, but” . Michael sighed “… the offer was sincere anyway. . Already he was starting to pull himself together again, regaining some semblance of composure, as he added “and of course I would be honoured to show you round the Institute.. if you’re sure you wouldn’t rather wait for Vohan to do it, that is? I would just need to tidy up a bit before we go.”
He didn’t need to say more. The marks of his tears still showed fresh and revealing on his face, his grey eyes swollen by their passage. “Keeping up appearances, your majesty.” Michael told her with a wistful smile “Some times it’s all you can do. And I usually do it quite well. But then again I’ve had a lot of practice“
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