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Post by Victoire de Trevalion on Jan 29, 2011 23:01:33 GMT -5
I hadn't been home much at all since Christien had been poisoned, spending my time at the Palace instead. Oftentimes I sat by his bedside, across from Coretta, with whom I shared an unspoken agreement that we would never leave Christien alone. One or the other of us was always there, even when we were so exhausted that we fell asleep there. Sometimes it was Marcel who stood vigil, or Bryanna. Maybe it was unnecessary, but I was terrified that someone would come back and finish the job.
Exhausted, I was going home today to sleep for awhile, since Coretta had said she was going to be with Christien all day. I caught her sometimes, looking at me speculatively, as if she wondered why I cared so for Christien, if there was more than friendship, but the truth was that while he and I might have considered experimenting with something more than friendship, it just wasn't there between us. That belonged to Silvana, and I had penned a letter to her daily, throwing them out without sending them because I didn't know what I should say.
I walked in the house and tossed my cloak down on a chair in the sitting room, pouring myself a drink and standing there, staring off into space, not really thinking about anything, my mind too numb to form anything coherent.
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Post by Cygnus de Trevalion on Jan 30, 2011 2:40:59 GMT -5
I had been reading a book that I had bought during my travels in the army, but had yet to find time to read. What with training and James hovering over my shoulder, the last thing I needed was the man ridiculing me for my choice in literature... or rather for reading at all. It was good to just relax and not have to worry about waking up at some ungodly hour the next day. I had partially fallen asleep whens suddenly a cloak was tossed right on top of me and I looked up to see Victoire walk right past me, completely oblivious.
She seemed deep in thought, worried. This was not the young girl I had left behind. Had time changed all of us so much? I watched her for a moment, unaware of my presence, before I finally cleared my throat, alerting her as I stood. "It's been a long time," I said, placing my book open and face down onto my chair as I approached her. "Is this a bad time?" I asked with a slight chuckle. It seemed I had caught her at a bad time.
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Post by Victoire de Trevalion on Jan 30, 2011 19:47:04 GMT -5
"Cygnus!" I exclaimed, jumping a bit when he spoke, so unexpected was his presence. I was on edge, and I realized that my heart was hammering a bit too fast and I had to take a deep breath and toss back the rest of my drink before I could compose a reply.
"I didn't realize you were in the City," I said, pouring another glass and offering it to him before refilling my own. "A bad time?" I laughed, but not with mirth, rather a mocking laugh that sounded odd coming from me. "It seems like it's been nothing but a bad time, practically since we arrived. La Serenissima is beckoning me home, I think."
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Post by Cygnus de Trevalion on Jan 31, 2011 21:09:01 GMT -5
“Victoire, calm down,” I said, reaching over to grab her hands and draw her towards me in a hug. She was probably shaken up, similar to Noemi, by all these poisoning and murder acts, though from what Noemi had told me, Victoire had been much closer to one of the victims, it made the reality that much worse. I knew what it was like, seeing people I had known for years suddenly dying beside me in the battlefield. It made me more hardened to such things, but to my sister, this must have been new, fresh.
“Did you not receive my letter?” I asked, looking over at the stand near the door where there was a pile of notes and letters. I shuffled through it and found mine, waving it with a slight chuckle. “I got called in after the entire event along with a few of the best from our division.” I had been called for more than one reason, of course, being of the royal line myself. With her mock laugh, I wrapped my arms around her and gave her a kiss on the brow, smoothing her hair down. “But you are here, sister, and so am I, I will keep you safe and after the waves have calmed, if you still want to return to La Serenissima, I will personally escort you.”
I sighed, knowing this was a heavy time for all of us and could have only wished I could have returned at another time. "Well, tell me... how have you faired these past couple of years?"
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Post by Victoire de Trevalion on Feb 6, 2011 15:32:10 GMT -5
I found with some surprise that Cygnus was a rather calming influence, as he pulled me in close and kissed my forehead. I relaxed some, realizing how tired I was, and how perhaps it was not the best thing that I spent so much time at Christien's bedside. What good did it serve, besides to make me feel hopeless and miserable?
I laughed softly as I plucked the letter from his hand and opened it. "Oh, Cygnus is coming home, that's lovely, I'll have someone make up a room for him." With a laugh, I glanced toward the stairs and shook my head. "I actually will need to have a room made up, or maybe Noemi already has, she has the wits of the family, I'll say that." Without her steady presence and head for taking care of things, I'd likely be an even worse mess these days.
"No, I think I shall stay, I think Christien would do the same for me, I can't leave now." I sighed and then dropped the letter back in the pile of unopened correspondence.
"We have been well, overall," I said, smiling. "Serenissima has been good to us, fun and carefree and all those things youth is supposed to be. Still, I suppose we all have to grow up sometimes. What about you? You seem all grown up, by far."
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