|
Post by Dina Doo on Aug 4, 2014 15:49:21 GMT -8
Cloudy:
If Clyde had been holding anything other than a bottle of wine, he would have thrown it at Gabriel’s head. Clenching his teeth, he turned back to Edwin. He expected the questions, and a hint of a smile pressed his lips. “Nephews. I suppose, unless they’re yours. But I’m sure you would have told me if you… met a woman.” His cheeks burned lightly, but he pushed on. “They’re Richard’s grandsons. And Kenneth is a pompous asshole. A ketsuki. The ketsuki leader.” He glanced up at Edwin, wondering if he knew that Clyde use to be leader, too. “I suppose he met them along the way, collecting more children for his children hoard.” Glancing behind him, as if looking for someone, he said, “Kenneth is Anderson’s son—August’s nephew. If you would really like to sit down, we can. But I can always wait. The children are around here somewhere, I bet you could—“
He heard a glass hit the ground and shatter. Clyde found the source. It was one of the twins, the one with the scar on his mouth. Which one was that? “Wh-“ Clyde began.
Anger twisted Scott’s face, so fierce that Clyde hadn’t expected it. “You bastard!” Scott screamed, tears filling his eyes. “How dare you show your face around here, after what you did! You bastard!” He forgot his broken glass and ran over to Edwin, tears filling his eyes. “You killed him!” Without letting Edwin give an explanation, he threw himself at Edwin, meaning to punch, scratch, or choke him. Whichever came first.
Shadow:
Edwin was of no use in the situation. Too dazed by the sudden attack, he had no time to speak, let alone react. He found himself on the floor, perhaps Scott was still on top, still attacking. From where Scott had come from, there came a loud, frightened screech. “Scotty!” Sam cried, dashing forward to grab at his brother. “Scotty! Stop it! Scotty, get off!”
Of course, remember Edwin was a malaki and he still had his partner. Though not as fierce as Rex, Lowell was still certainly capable and willing to defend his partner. The black wolf, emitting a fierce snarl, suddenly erupted into a large wolf that jumped forward. Upon the sight of a wolf that still haunted Sam’s dreams to this day, Sam let out a cry of fear and fell back, waiting for the wolf to maul either of them. Of course, the angry wolf was not one for the taste of the blood of children, and only tried to yank Scott off of his partner.
Cloudy:
Scott gasped as he was yanked off of his hated father. He squirmed and tried to hit the wolf that dragged him off, but fear shot through him. He’s going to kill me, too. Fear shot through him, but anger still raged. “Stop!” Clyde yowled. He reached down, trying to pull Scott up and away from the wolf. “Stop it! He’s not who you think he is!”
The short Malaki yowled, scrambling around and then he paused, breathing heavily. “What? What do you mean?”
“That’s Edwin not the other that fathered you,” Clyde said, just as breathily. “I would prefer if you did not kill him. At least not today.”
Shock filled Scott’s eyes. “N-No, that’s impossible. My uncle’s dead, th-that’s what the journals said.” He turned to look at Edwin, and then over at the wolf. His anger receded, letting him think. Edwin didn’t pull any guns out on him, and the wolf… the wolf didn’t tear him apart. And the wolf had yellow eyes, not red. “Who are you!?” Scott screeched at Edwin, still a bit angry. There’s no way he could be his uncle.
Shadow:
The wolf had stepped away from Scott once Clyde had stepped in, padding over to his owner. Edwin, with the help of Lowell, was able to stand up, though he placed a hand on his jaw, a place where Scott had managed to strike at him. “I thought I was dead too,” he muttered, rubbing the sore jaw. It didn’t appear broken, so that was good. Edwin finally glanced up at the two and watched silently as Sam hurried over to Scott, trying to pull his big brother close. The man smiled softly, knowing that he and his brother used to be like that.
“Until I woke up in the hospital,” Edwin finished quietly, trailing off. “You two must be,” he paused for a moment, searching through his memories, eyes narrowing in concentration. “Scott and Sam, right? Yeah, I’m Edwin, your uncle who’s not actually dead.” He smiled, laughing softly until he remembered something. “What.. journals are you talking about?”
Cloudy:
Scott watched the face that he was so use to being angry and mean. Now it was laughing. He glanced over at Sam, pulling him close to assure his brother that he was alright. He then looked over at Edwin, blinking away tears. “I’m sorry,” Scott said, feeling extremely guilty now. He broke away from Sam and then held up his hands to show that he meant no danger. “I’m Scott, that is Sam. I’m sorry… I just…” Scott sighed, shaking his head. “I thought you were him—Edmund.” He walked up to Edwin, if he could, and slowly reached up to check his jaw for him.
“I’m a doctor,” Scott explained. “And I’m not that strong. Everything looks okay, can you move your mouth a bit for me?” His brows collapsed and he looked to the side, trying to adjust to the new facts coming to him. Instead of taking away his hands, he kept them on Edwin’s face, staring up at him. “You just look so much like him. Which makes sense, because you’re twins…” Tears bit his eyes and he glared at the ground, as if trying to clear away the tears. He slowly dropped his hands, his throat a bit scratchy as he said. “He wrote journals when he was younger. The first one was advised by his therapist….” He had to step away from Edwin and stop looking at him, because he kept remembering who he lost. Glancing up at Sam, he sent him a single look, wishing his brother would come over and hug him. He needed emotional support.
Shadow:
Perhaps Edwin did as he was told, moving his jaw around for Scott. “Yeah, we’re twins. It just so happens that that gene tends to run in the family.” Oh Edwin, no time for jokes. And now that it was safe, Sam crept closer to Scott, watching curiously. Some part of him wished it was Edmund, because he really missed his daddy. But he knew his brother would never feel the same way.
Before Edwin could even ask, Sam beat him to it. “Do you wanna read the journals?”
Another soft laugh. “I would, yes.” But Edwin wasn’t smiling on the inside. A therapist? What had happened to his little brother? Did he really want to dwell into the journals, already having a sense that darkness no doubt clouded the pages? Of course, even when a small Elijah recited the tales of Edmund so long ago, that had never been enough to deter the love he felt for his brother. Nothing could. “Is your little brother here with you too?” He meant Elijah, having no idea about Elliot and Elias.
Cloudy:
Scott glanced at Sam and then up at Edwin. “Um, well… Elias and Elliot are here. Elijah isn’t.” Darkness clouded Scott’s face once again. “He… he’s been…” Kidnapped. And we haven’t done anything to help him. We’ve just sat here on our asses, worrying about him, and then cuddling with each other, and others. “How did you know about us, anyways?”
He raised an eyebrow, watching Edwin curiously. “If you’ve been pretending to be dead all this time, then that probably means you aren’t caught up with everything, are you?” Scott then glanced over at Clyde, suddenly remembering he was there.
“Oh, no. Keep him occupied. I have wine to drink.” Clyde waved it in the air. “You have your family reunion. I’m going to bed. Don’t kill each other.” He turned and went to walk upstairs, but he paused to wave at Edwin, “Stop by before you leave.”
“Want to...” Scott shrugged, “go meet Elias and Elliot? I guess I need to get another glass of water… will you, Sammy? And I will bring him to Elias and Elliot?”
Shadow:
“Don’t worry, I doubt I’d be able to leave without saying goodbye. I’ve learned that well,” Edwin mused, glancing towards Clyde, referring to an incident that may or may not have been true. But then he glanced back at Scott, frowning. “I wasn’t pretending to be dead, Scott. It’s.. complicated.” But instead of getting into it, he just went with it. “Sure, I’d love to meet your other brothers.” He smirked. “I’m sure Richard’s with them too, isn’t he?” Oh Richard.
“Of course Scotty,” Sam chirped, smiling brightly once more. Perhaps, just because Sam is the cutest ever, perhaps he placed a little kiss on his brother’s cheek before hopping away, retrieving a glass of water from the kitchen for his dear littler brother.
Cloudy:
“Ah hah,” Clyde replied, but he was smirking to himself as he continued to go back up the stairs. Scott found himself smiling at Sam. Even if Sam was only going to be away from him for a little bit, he didn’t like the feeling of being separated from him. Peeking at Edwin, he managed a small smile. “I’m sorry, again… I don’t…” A sigh left Scott. “I don’t know. I don’t view myself as a mean person, but I’m not being very nice, am I?” Shaking his head, he found himself smiling up at Edwin. “Richard is with them. Since he discovered us, he’s been hanging out with us. He’s… he’s kind of weird, but… I can tell he cares for us.” Scott started walking up the stairs, thinking. “Um, Elliot isn’t the brightest crayon in the box, so it might take a while for him to fully acknowledge that you’re not Edmund. Oh, and, um… well… Mom died and D- Edmund became an alcoholic. He abandoned Elias and Elliot, apparently sending them to Letha. They were adopted. I kinda forgot about them, Elijah completely forgot about them, but Sam remembered them. I became a doctor, Sam is an adventurer, Elliot is a writer, Elias is an amazing critic, and Elijah is a grumpy sleepy giant.” Scott probably had made it to the top of the stairs by now. “So… what about you? Did Richard raise you? What do you mean… about thinking you were dead?”
Shadow:
Edwin found himself smiling at his nephew’s words. Not necessarily at the content, but the way Scott had described it. “Well, we could always wait till we’re in the room before I tell you my entire life story. Not that it’s anything interesting. But I already know about Edmund and what he’s become. At least, I only know what your..” He paused, counting mentally. “Littlest brother told me. Elijah is the youngest right? Either way, I only as much as he did at the time.” He laughed softly in regards to Scott’s last comment. “No, no, I only said that because.. Hmm.” How could he describe it? “Well, I can just wait till later to tell you everything.”
Cloudy:
Scott pressed his lips together, looking forward. “Listening to you… well, I guess, look at you… smiling and stuff, it kind of reminds me of… before my mom died.” He ran his fingers through his hair, talking quietly now. “It’s weird… but I miss that time.” He wrapped his arms around himself, walking down the hallway. “Edmund killed my partner. Well, Rex killed my partner. But Edmund prompted it.” He stopped in front of the door, pressing his ear to the door. “Wait out here, just for a second. I’m-“ Scott blushed, “Going to make sure they’re presentable.” He slipped inside the room. “Guys, we need to clean up the room right now.”
Elliot sleepily looked up, still laying on the bed and napping like a bum. “Why?” He murmured.
“Yeah,” Richard probably laid beside Elliot, reading his novel. “Is someone visiting?”
“Um, yeah,” Scott said, he quickly crossed the room, picking up the clothes that were discarded on the floor, quickly trying to clean up the room. “Elliot! Get up and make the bed—brush your hair! We can’t look like complete hobos…”
“Who?” Elliot instantly got up, pulling Richard off the bed. Their grandpa fell to the floor, but continued reading anyway. Quickly, Elliot started making the bed, while at the same time trying to fix his hair.
“Elliot, Elias,” Scott breathed. “It’s… well, apparently our uncle who we thought was dead isn’t dead. He’s alive and outside of the door—“
“EDWIN!” Richard threw the book aside, running across the room. He threw the door open and threw himself upon his son. “WINNIE! IT’S BEEN SO LONG! I missed you so much! My beautiful baby!”
“I’m not done cleaning!” Scott gasped, throwing the clothes aside.
Shadow:
“Dad!” Edwin huffed, trying his best not to stumble over when his father nearly tackled him. When he had gained his composure, he sighed. “Dad, stop over exaggerating. It hasn’t even been that long. Maybe a few days..” He tried to lightly shove his father away from him.
You know what Elias was doing? Nothing. He was as motivated as his little brother was when it came to laying on beds. Meaning, he didn’t care who was visiting and that he still wanted to sleep. So, the tired little golbro burrowed himself further under the covers, hiding away.
But Edwin smiled once more. “Scott, it’s okay. You don’t have to clean up. It’s not like you need to impress anyone important. Especially Richard here.”
Cloudy:
Richard chuckled, but then began to pout. “You’re not being dramatic enough! I always miss you when you leave.” He then grinned as Scott pushed the last of the dirty clothes under the bed, huffing as he sat up. “Elias is still sleeping,” Richard nodded towards the bed.
Scott sighed, “Well, I kind of attacked you,” he looked over at Edwin. “Your first impression of me is probably very poor.”
Elliot stared at Edwin, but he managed to give a giggle. “Did you attack him because he looks like Dad?” He walked over to Edwin, looking up at him. He blinked quickly as if to stop tears. “This is his big brother, Dad’s big brother? This is what Dad looks like? I remember, but it’s all fuzzy too…”
“Edmund looks like that, but more alcoholic and less happy,” Scott sat on the bed, gently shaking Elias. “Elias, are you going to sleep and not meet your uncle?”
Elliot started laughing, “It’s funny, really funny, because Scott is pacifist! He’s pacifist, but he gets so angry! Especially when it comes to Dad.” He held out his hand, grinning up at Edwin. “I’m Elliot Benton. But, a Daniels too. I think Grandpa said you were a writer too?” Elliot blushed deeply. “Not that I am comparing my writing to yours, you’re probably a ton better than me, but…” Elliot sighed, shaking his head. “Never mind.”
Shadow:
“Why, do you write too?” Edwin inquired, suddenly very chipper and curious. His nephews were so cute! “If you write, then I’d love to see it.” The man went to sit down at the edge of the bed Elias was still sleeping in. His partner, the black wolf, happily jumped up. But Lowell, the wolf, was rather happy to meet new people, so he jumped down again and ventured over to Elliot, jumped up to lick at the cute little malaki’s face. Edwin laughed again. “I’m sorry about him, he loves meeting new people.”
He sat back for a moment. “I’m sure Dad’s already told you, but little Eddy used to be adorably quiet and shy. He’d like to hide behind me and I’d always interpret for him.”
“Scotty, I want to sleep,” Elias whined quietly, already blushing at the sound of a new voice. Oh gods, he couldn’t be seen now. Through the blankets, he muttered, “I hate meeting new people.”
Cloudy:
Elliot started laughing at the licks, trying to get away from the tongue. “No! It’s okay! It reminds me of Konrad!” He grinned, hopefully managing to escape the tongue. Richard closed the door behind them and walked into the room. He picked up Elliot’s book and went to hand it to Edwin, but Elliot let out a sound of horror and dove to grab the book. “Not in front of me! He can’t read it in front of me.” Throwing the book aside, he grinned up at Edwin. “Actually, in his journals he was a bit like that. It’s so cute!”
“Actually,” Richard smiled, sitting down on the floor. “Elias reminds me a lot of his father—the shyness. I remember that too.” Closing his eyes, he leaned his head back. “They were so cute!! Always so, so cute… Edmund hated to dark! He always use to cry whenever the lights went out!” Richard giggled.
“Ugh,” Scott sighed. “This is gross. Can we not talk about him?” He rolled his eyes, too tired of hearing his father’s name. And saying it. He smiled at Elias, though. His little brother was so cute. “Elias,” Scott said gently. “Come on, just say hi. You can keep the blankets on. You can sit in my lap too.”
Elliot scrambled over to their bags, going through them till he finally found the first old journal of Edmund’s. He then brought it over to Edwin. “Here it is, Dad’s journal.”
Shadow:
“I’m sure he’s still afraid of the dark,” Edwin said absentmindedly as he took the journal from Elliot. He paused for a moment, staring at its cover, hoping Edmund hadn’t suffered. However, he set the journal aside, not having enough will to read now, not in front of his father or his nephews. “I’m sure he’s still shy and quiet.. At least around me, maybe. He always was.”
Except, Edwin’s partner didn’t let up when Elliot walked away. The wolf really liked Elliot for some reason, and followed after him. He would wait until Elliot sat before sprawling out in the boy’s lap. As for Elias, his oldest brother’s prodding had finally caused the triplet to sit up, though he was still wrapped up and hidden in the comforter of the bed. His face was so red because he looked like that in front of someone new. “Is Sammy getting my water?” He asked quietly, meekly.
Cloudy:
Scott smiled at Elias and wrapped his arms around Elias, and slowly tried to pull him into his lap. “Yeah, I’m sorry. I dropped the glass on the ground. He should be back any time.” Scott pushed his nose into Elias’ hair, thinking that he was absolutely adorable with a red face. Glancing up at Edwin, he decided not to embarrass Elias yet and ran his fingers through Elias’ hair, trying to fix it up a bit.
Elliot let out a giggle when the wolf sat in his lap. He wrapped his arms around him and pulled him close, and then he began to pet him. “Hey, Uncle Edwin? What’s your partner’s name? He’s really cute.” He glanced up at Edwin, grinning. “Can you tell us more stories about Dad?”
Richard found himself grinning. “I bet he would! As long as he is… sober…” Richard said this quietly. “Because our family and alcohol doesn’t mix too well, trust me.”
Scott thought that enough time had passed, so he looked up at Edwin and said, “This is Elias. He is the middle one of the triplets.”
Shadow:
Poor Elias, he really wanted to crawl under the bed, but when he felt Edwin’s gaze turn to him, the middle triplet froze like a deer in headlights. “H-hi,” he chirped quietly before he disappeared in the blankets he was hiding in. Oh how he wanted to cry.
Edwin seemed to understand Elias’ shyness, his brother had been the same. So, he just smiled softly. Oh Elias.. So cute. He returned his gaze to Elliot. “His name’s Lowell.” And as he spoke, the wolf lulled his head against Elliot’s shoulder and pressed his nose into the boy’s neck. How cute. “Well, there was one time when the two of us were younger. There was a storm and your father was really scared for some reason, no matter how much I tried comforting him. So, Edmund went under the bed, but we soon figured out he couldn’t get out. Your father spent the rest of the day under the bed until (Pearl/Richard/Howard) came home to help out.”
Cloudy:
Scott couldn’t help himself. Laughter burst from him and he held Elias close, shaking his head. “It sounds like something Sam would do!” Then he realized what he said, and what he was doing. He quickly cut off his laughter, or at least he tried to. The power of the laughter was too strong and he hid his face into the mound of blankets on his lap, giggling.
Elliot found himself giggling too, both because of Lowell and because of the story. “That sounds so cute! It really does!” He grinned, looking up at Edwin. Running his fingers through Lowell’s fur, he took a breath, but fell into giggles again.
Richard, who probably already heard this story, was grinning and sitting on the floor. He looked up at his son, and then his smile widened. “How about some stupid stories about you, Edwin? How about that one time when you slammed the bathroom door—after I told you not to—and you locked yourself in the bathroom. I had to break the knob off for you to come out!” Now Elliot really started laughing. Too bad he had a ton of stupid stories too.
Shadow:
Edwin wasn’t smiling as much anymore upon hearing the story, rolling his eyes and shaking his head. “If you lived with someone like Richard, you’d want to lock yourself in a room too, trust me.” Poor Edwin. In response to Elliot’s laughter, the wolf in his lap reached up and tried licking at the adorable golbro again.
And, not a moment too soon, Sam returned to the room carrying a glass of water. As usual, Sam smiled brightly upon entering the room. “Scotty, I’m back~!! And I brought you your water, littler brother~!” Carefully, he skipped over to his two brothers. Sam giggled sweetly when he saw the middle triplet hiding in the blanket. “Littler brother! I can’t give you your water if you’re hiding!”
Elias did not come out of his hiding at all upon his big brother’s request. Instead, he hid further in the blanket and probably turned in Scott’s lap to push his into Scott’s chest. Sam giggled sweetly and set the water down, only to join his twin and sat next to him, lulling his head on Scott’s shoulder if he could.
Cloudy:
Scott winced when Elias did all of his turning, but it was because he was trying to suppress the urge to laugh his ass off. The moving tickled. Luckily, he was able to suppress it so he did not look like an utter and complete fool. A grin spread across his lips, looking up at Edwin. “It’s okay, um,” he blushed slightly, unsure what to call Edwin, “Elliot has a lot of stories.”
“NO!” Elliot yelped. He had been enjoying and giggling over the doggy kisses, but when he overheard Scott, he tried to get up. A deep blush filled his cheeks, making him as red as a tomato. “Can’t I just have one day where a relative of mine doesn’t think I’m a complete and total idiot?”
“You’re not a complete and total idiot, Elliot,” Scott said, but he was trying not to laugh.
“Stop!” Elliot picked up a pillow and hit Scott with it. He then hopped over to Edwin, reaching over to grab the journal. “Please, just read this before they start, please?” Elliot pouted, hoping to look a little bit convincing.
“Well,” Richard stood up. “I’m going to go check on the horses.” In reality, he was escaping Edwin. In fact, he felt extremely guilty for what Edmund went through. If no one said anything, he quickly left.
Shadow:
Edwin was surprised how quickly his father had left. If it had anything to do with the journals, then he decided that he should leave his nephews alone. He stood, taking the journal with him. “I guess I’ll find somewhere else to settle and read this.” He smiled warmly at his nephews. “It was nice meeting you all, I’ll see you guys later, okay?” The uncle stepped towards the door, but paused and glanced back at Lowell. “Do you want to stay here with Elliot, your new favorite person?” He asked with a soft laugh.
The wolf barked and padded over to sit next to Elliot. Edwin snorted. “Fine, fine. You stay here.” And with that, their uncle left and Lowell looked up at Elliot, a wolfish grin appearing on his muzzle.
“Did I miss anything important?” Sam asked quietly, perhaps going to wrap his arms around his big brother’s shoulders.
Cloudy:
“No, not really,” Elliot answered. A grin lifted his lips and he plopped down beside Lowell, wrapping his arms tightly around the wolf. “Well, Uncle Edwin is really nice. He was telling us stories about Dad! I’m sure later we can ask him for more stories.” He peered over the bed, grinning at Sam. “Next thing we know it, we’ll have another aunt coming here and telling us that Edmund never knew she existed.”
Scott laughed, shaking his head, “Probably. Hey, Elias?” Scott murmured, pressing his face to the warm lump. “You can come out now, if you want. If you stay there any longer, Sam might get jealous.” He began to whisper, a smirk quirking his lips, “Let’s see how long it takes for Sam to get jealous.”
Shadow:
“Good,” the little triplet mumbled from under the blanket. “Sammy can eat his heart out.” Though, there was a little smile curling the triplet’s lips, even if it couldn’t be seen.
Sam huffed and pulled away from Scott. He slid off the bed and made his way over to Elliot. “Fine! Elliot’s mine then!” The cute little twin tried pulling his little brother close if he could.
Cloudy:
Scott started laughing, holding Elias closer. “That didn’t take very long, did it, Elias?” He grinned, watching as Elliot gladly accepted his big brother’s cuddles and slipped onto his lap. He leaned back against Sam, giggling as he snuggled against Sam.
“This is Lowell, he’s a lot happier than Rex.” He ran his fingers through Lowell’s fur.
[SKIP]
Richard didn’t know how long it had been, but he had finished grooming two horses and was giving a third a small bath. This one always enjoyed the baths and looked forward to it, so Richard always made time for her. Taking care of horses calmed him down, and he needed that right now.
Especially since Edwin was reading those journals.
Richard’s brows fell together as he scrubbed the horse, suds sprouting out everywhere. He was considerably wet, which wasn’t good, but he smiled even still. His smile faltered. How quickly had he started blaming himself when he read those journals? Edwin would either blame himself, or blame him. He didn’t know which was worse.
Shadow:
Richard was right. And that would soon be made apparent. Edwin had finished reading the journal too soon. Too soon. He wanted to know more. He needed to. He needed to know more about his brother. Oh gods, how could he have been so stupid! Why couldn’t he have gone to see his brother?
Soon enough, Edwin had made his way into the Richard, seething with anger, angry because it hurt too much knowing he was at fault too. “Dad!” The older son hissed, stepping over to his father. “Have you read these? Do you know what happened to Edmund?!”
Cloudy:
Richard flinched when he heard his son’s voice. He glanced over at him, his brows crashing together as tears pricked his eyes. “I read all the journals, Edwin. I-I...” He looked away, pressing his lips tightly together. “I know what happened to him, and I feel so guilty… I didn’t know, though, Winnie, you have to hear me out.”
Looking over at Edwin, his brows fell together and his lips trembling. “If I knew that he was going through all that, I would have gotten him, I swear… I… I didn’t know. I…” It didn’t matter, he realized. He can make all these excuses, but his poor baby boy had been abused and shot at. He had Howard’s head delivered to him. “I’m so sorry…” Richard whimpered.
Shadow:
“You’re sorry?” Edwin hissed, his voice quiet, unable to express the full extent of his anger. “You could have just gotten him! It would have been so easy! But you left your son, my brother, with that freak! And you’re sorry?!” Anger consumed him and in a fit of fury, he probably kicked something over. “Gods! Some father you are! You could have at least checked!”
He started to pace angrily back and forth. “Anything that happened was your fault, everything that happened was your fault! My slut of a dad decides to sleep around with a stranger and fucks up the marriage! Why couldn’t you have just left them alone? Have just left everyone alone? Left me alone, brought me back to my brother!”
He kicked something else, throwing the journal somewhere, somewhere where he’d be able to retrieve it later. “Don’t cry like a baby! Why can’t you grow up and act like a man? Like a real father would?!” Edwin opened his mouth to say more, but suddenly collapsed onto his knees. He bowed his head, pressing it to the cool barn floor. His one and only hand pressed tightly to his face, shielding his own tears. But he couldn’t escape from the fact that it was his fault too.
Why did I mess up?
Why didn’t I just check myself?
Why didn’t I just go home?
Cloudy:
Edwin’s words hurt. For once, he didn’t throw himself on the ground and start crying. Somewhere inside of Richard was the man that Edwin had pleaded for. Waiting for Edwin to get done, and he watched his son throw himself on the ground. Is that what you really wished for, right? For me to be better. Manlier. More grown up.
Wiping away his self-loathing, he stepped over to Edwin and crouched down in front of him. “You know,” Richard said quietly, his face not showing any of the pain that Edwin had inflicted onto him. “Blame me. It’s alright, I blame myself, too. I’ll tell you a secret, though,” Richard wrapped his arms around Edwin, pushing his face into Edwin’s back. “Blaming people, or trying to find blame doesn’t help anything. It really doesn’t.”
Quietly, Richard whispered, “I always blamed myself for my parent’s deaths, even though it was no way possible I could have anything to do with it. I was in Era at the time. I blamed myself for not spending every last moment with them, and I blamed myself for being a terrible, disgusting son that they hated.”
He looked up at the barn wall, blinking away the tears that came to his eyes. “When you guys were born, I thought maybe that I could clean up my act. I didn’t want to disappoint you guys, too. Every day when I went to see you usually ended up with me having a bruised rib, or a broken rib, or another hole in my body, but I didn’t care. I loved you guys. Me messing up like that was the best thing that could have ever happened to me in my entire life… because I was gifted with the two of you.”
Swallowing thickly, Richard continued in a low voice. “After Pearl died, I didn’t have anyone to keep Howard off of me. In truth, I was terrified that if I went to go see him, that he would kill me. I tried to keep tabs on your brother, but… I didn’t do well enough. I blame myself for being a coward, and I blame myself for being a terrible father. You deserve so much more, Edwin… and your brother too…” Pausing, he pressed his brows together and said, “It’s never too late, though, to… to go see him.”
Shadow:
Edwin made no comment about Richard’s earlier words, the anger that coursed through his veins suppressed them. “No, it is too late… You read all the journals, you know what he’s been through. He’d hate me. Dad, I’ve lost my brother, it’s too late…” Despite the fact that he was mad at his father and had hurt him, Edwin lifted his head and maybe tried resting it on Richard’s shoulder. Richard was still a daddy after all. “We’ve grown too far apart…”
Cloudy:
A small smile quirked up Richard’s lips. “Edwin, I don’t think it’s too late. It’s never too late, Edwin… plus, if he hates you for a bit, it doesn’t mean he’ll hate you forever.” Gently, he rubbed Edwin’s back. “I think he’s always had a place saved for you. I bet that all these years he’s been waiting for you to be there. He’s been all alone for quite some time… I think that he would be more than happy to have his brother back.” Closing his eyes, Richard gently rubbed Edwin’s back. “We can read the rest of the journals together, Edwin… so you don’t have to be alone.”
Shadow:
Edwin closed his eyes tightly, forcing the last of his tears to snake down his cheeks. His father’s words comforted him, but he worried still anyway. “I’m sorry,” he whimpered. “For what I said to you. I didn’t mean it.” Because it was always best to apologize. “I’m sorry, Dad… I don’t think I want to read any more of his journals right now. Not yet.”
Cloudy:
Richard let some of his pain slipped out, he squeezed Edwin more tightly as a sob shook his chest. He forced the rest down, blinking as the tears slid down. “It’s alright, Edwin. We all say cruel things while we’re angry. How about you help me finish washing this horse? And then I can make something for us to eat, or we could even invite your nephews to dinner. I’m sure Clyde would love to attend too, he loves formal gatherings like that.”
Shadow:
“I don’t know,” the son mumbled into his father’s shoulder. “Clyde’s probably hidden himself away in his wine cellar. We won’t be seeing much of him..” Edwin finally pulled away from his father when he felt he had mustered the strength to do so and stood. “If you want, I can help. But I’m not much of a horse person…” For a moment, Edwin walked away, retrieving the journal he had thrown before returning to his father. Wanting to change the subject, he asked, “What do you think of your grandchildren?”
Cloudy:
Richard slowly stood, too, smiling weakly. He then forced a brighter smile on his lips. “I’ve certainly raised you wrong if you don’t like horses.” He walked over to the horse and continued to scrub her down. “I love them all, Edwin. They’re darling. Scott is incredibly smart! He’s a doctor, you know? And he gets sick all the time like me!” Richard hummed happily, and he began to rinse off his horse. “Sam is lovely and very kind. He loves to read books too! They definitely take care of their two brothers together. Oh, and Elias is so sweet! He is so shy, though! Always hiding, and always embarrassed…”
Richard stared at the horse, smiling to himself. “I’m not sure if you saw, but… he is missing an arm…” He led the horse out of the cleaning stall and sent her out into the fields so she could dry off. Turning to Edwin, he smiled softly. “Elliot is quite charming, too, and quite funny. He doesn’t really think before he speaks.” He looked up at Edwin. “I haven’t met Elijah. What do you think? Of them, I mean.”
Shadow:
“I think they’re all great kids. It surprises me that Edmund was able to have such adorable children, and it’s cute when you’re able to see their father in them.” Edwin gave a reminiscent smile, thinking of Edmund when he was a kid, but he returned to the present when he registered Richard’s words about Elias. “Mm, him two? I guess it runs in the family. I couldn’t tell though, he was hidden in a blanket. He reminds me the most of little Mundy.” A soft laugh. “Ah, and I’m supposed to read the books Elliot wrote. That will be fun,” he meant that light-heartedly.
Cloudy:
Richard let out a laugh, “For a man who writes as a career, you’re awfully… what is it? Pessimistic? Especially about reading.” He smirked and walked over to Edwin. “It’s actually quite charming. Definitely a first novel, though. But I remember your first book, you were so proud!” Letting out a sigh, Richard smiled sadly down at Edwin. “I wonder where you guys got writing from. I’ve never been a good writer…” He looked at Edwin, and then he smirked and left his arm on his head. “But none of you inherited my height, that’s for sure.” Chuckling, he kissed Edwin’s head.
Shadow:
Edwin smirked lightly. “You’ll see, one day there’ll be a Daniels who is taller than you. And you’re just upset because you’re not as creative.” He laughed softly, perhaps going to lightly shove his father. “Go back to taking care of your horses. The horses that Clyde doesn’t even use because he never leaves the house, let alone his wine cellar.”
Cloudy:
Richard let out a laugh, stumbling backwards. “One day, but Edwin, all the Daniels I know are so asexual that it makes up for my activities previous to you.” Looking around, he found his partner and motioned for him to come forward. He rubbed Aragon’s nose, smiling lightly. “He doesn’t use them, does? I worked for him because my parents shut down the ranch. Maybe someday I should start it back up…” He wrapped his arms around Aragon’s nose and glanced back at Edwin, a grin lifting his lips. “You don’t want to stay around here and watch me. Why don’t you go in and cuddle with Clyde? He’ll be probably more than happy. He’s been really stressed lately, and there have been more attempts on his life..” Richard smiled. “Not that I’m trying to get rid of you,” he moved over to Edwin and tightly wrapped his arms around Edwin, squeezing as tightly as he could, “I love you sooooo much!” And he started planting cheesy kisses all over Edwin, meaning to get him to laugh.
Shadow:
And Edwin did laugh, one of the few Daniels who was actually cheerful. “I know you do, Dad. You’d never let me forget that.” He watched his father for a minute, before taking a step back. “Well, why don’t we head back to the house? We do what you suggested; have dinner with the little spawns of Edmund? I think that sounds nice.”
Cloudy:
“Spawns of Edmund,” Richard mused, and a grin lifted his lips. “Sounds good. But don’t… don’t remind Scott too much of that. He dislikes Edmund. From my understanding, Edmund’s partner went after Scott’s partner and… Scott’s partner died.” He looked less happy at that. Almost immediately, he grinned again, only because he reminded himself that he made Edwin laugh. “Come on, then, let’s go wake up the mini-bears.”
|
|