[ P ] silver lining

Everything about their encounters so far was new to him. The feelings that Raith stirred within him and the discoveries that venturing into his world brought. To Atlas the fae were just as fascinating as the butterflies that he had obsessively observed as a child. It was a new field of study for the lawyer-to-be to plunge himself into. Life was full of endless lessons and he was ready to learn as much as he could before he eventually passed away. He hoped that it would naturally bring them closer together, but without any certainty that he wasn't just a nuisance that Raith tolerated, he couldn't allow the fragile flame of hope that was burning in his heart to grow any bigger. Managing expectations was harder than he anticipated because with every word and gaze exchanged he was falling deeper into dangerous territory.

“Untrue. I had hurt you…” His rejection of Atlas’ impression of him made him feel a little deflated, but he was not defeated by his scepticism. “I was an intruder so you were only doing your duty. I don't think anyone else would have been as forgiving of my actions and I’m grateful for that,” he pointed out, pale lips offering him a reassuring smile. The flame point student let those words sink in while the most important question lingered between them. Did Raith consider him to be an enemy? He didn't entirely know what Raith was thinking, but his actions had given him some hope that he trusted him even if just a little.

His blunt proclamation of liking him sent the blood rushing to his face and ears and made his restless heart beat so fast he was worried it might escape from his chest especially when his nose touched his cheek so gently. “Excuse me for a moment,” he mumbled, and awkwardly attempted to roll on his back so that he could look up at Raith. It was as graceful as a turtle trying to flip over, but he succeeded. With peach forepaws outstretched he attempted to hug Raith. “I like you too,” he finally said, knowing that both of their likes were probably different, but that didn't matter. He was simply overjoyed that Raith liked him.

Burning the midnight oil

code // art

RAITH SAMAIRE
Temperance is my virtue

He popped his tongue along the roof of his mouth as the other made excuses for his prior cruelty, though that frustration would shed and make him weaker at the following remark. Where he didn’t wish it to be so, his kin, his people, despite not having executions under Jacob for crimes, individually they all seemed so set on capital punishment before ever listening to anything. From what he understood of what a lawyer was, their impartial stances fit him better than the world he had dwelled in among those of his culture. He didn’t like jumping to murder or violence at the tip of a hat unless it was truly deserving and even those that might deserve it, he didn’t always wholly agree with needing such extremes. Imprisonment though, it was crueler than death in his own eyes after what he had witnessed for himself.

He wasn’t sure what to make of this world but with each passing day and each moment he was with this other male, he was losing everything he once thought to be real. None of it was tangible anymore and it made him, in a way, scared. What to do with his future, what to do with those he saw as more approachable than those he should be the closest to. Family had always been what he knew and he had never turned his back on it yet here he was now, feeling as though he was doing that very thing. As that realization hit about how much he had changed in such a short time, only a few months, his body shook against his wishes. He stopped seeking the praise of his family. Stopped seeking his parent’s bed for warmth. Stopped fighting.

Raith. That name didn’t really fit him anymore nor did his face. It stung him deeply. He always knew he was a failure but he had never known he had fallen so far away from it all. He’d swallow, only allowing the conversation that followed to capture his mind and stop it from wandering to even colder places. Feelings weren’t his strong suit but they were a good distraction and his mind faded easier with this place than had he been home.

A red head would tilt as the other requested what he thought was time to himself, causing the larger male to start to pull back and release him. The flip would make the smallest smile touch his lips but before he could draw himself away any further, a pair of arms would seemingly come out of nowhere and make him lose his balance. Eye would widen a touch as he fell into the hug though hardly of his own choice. The boy rested there, feeling the water rise up and down due to such brash movements.

It was like he was hypnotized for a few moments, staring into the hazy void and in that silence, tears would start to flood down his face, darkening his cheeks as he clenched his teeth with a lift of his lips, trying to fight the tears away. He would stop fighting it and concede, allowing his head to fall and his eyes and muzzle tuck away against a cream neck as he cried into Atlas’ fur as the weight of everything seemed to overcome him as he found solace in the pale embrace. He would stay that way for as long as the other allowed, letting all his sorrow pool out from his insides.

code by claerie

Atlas’ words seemed to weigh heavily on the ember giant, and from what little he had learned from studying his stoic visage, the minor tics and twitches of frustration from his lips to his brow suggested internal strife. He held his tongue for the moment and offered what he hoped was a comforting smile. Feeling the slope of Raith’s back tremble and shake as the sobs and sighs erupted moments after Atlas enclosed him in a hug, the smaller male was stunned, and then concerned. Atlas’ large paws clumsily brushed over his shoulders in rhythmic and gentle strokes of reassurance. He didn’t know if he was responsible for Raith’s sudden burst of emotion, but he hoped that he could be the remedy for his pain at this moment. “I’m sorry,” he softly murmured in a whisper close to Raith’s ear, expressing the regret that swelled in his heart for triggering the inner turmoil that was unfolding before him.

Atlas allowed Raith to melt into his embrace, forepaws bringing him in close to his chest and letting him cry into his fur. There wasn’t much he could do other than offer affection because his words would be of no use to him unless Raith decided to disclose to him what was causing him so much torment. A soft gentle humming was all the noise he did make, a tune that his mother had sung to him when he was a child. It was rough and clumsy compared to the melody that his mother could produce, but there was a certain beauty in his voice that held potential.

Burning the midnight oil

code // art

RAITH SAMAIRE
Temperance is my virtue

The larger male would take great notice of the stroking of a paw along his back, for it sent shivers along the spine as if a feather was being dusted back and forth along it. He wanted to steal those shivers. Each tremble made it all the more obvious where their bodies were touching due to the resistance of another frame where flow wasn’t nearly as smooth as if it were only air. He ignored it at first, choosing to stay soaked in his own woe over the way this hold made him feel, that sensory overstimulation that was slowly growing and making hyperaware with each passing shudder and sob. It wasn’t the same as if his mother or sister were pressed firmly against his form but it brought with it a security, one he wished to flee from.

He didn’t deserve this promise of affection. He didn’t deserve to be consoled by a wolf that barely knew him besides as the monster that once wished to break his neck. All forgiven or not, he didn’t forgive himself as he raised his head to gaze into those darling amethysts that no longer brought his skin to crawl in a bad way.

A paw would raise to try and swipe away his own tears. Drawing in a breath, time seemed to stand still just as the nature around them did. Puffing out a few more breaths more so on purpose, he tested to see if the cold was returning but no fog would raise from his lips. So why? Why did it feel like it was so much colder than his body right now?

Instead of focusing on the how, his mind seemed to lull in a different direction as his head lowered to gently press his lips against the pair that was so privy to care for him. He sought the warmth the air wasn’t providing, that his life had stripped away so cruelly. Each puff of the other’s lungs was like a beacon to the very warmth he sought. It didn’t cross his mind in the slightest how the other might react to this action, half forgetting he was alive at all.

He sure felt dead.

Yet... more alive than he had in months.

The flicker within his own heart would spook him, peeling from the other male as life was reminded. Like a ghost, he was there and then he wasn't, fleeing from the very scene he had caused, unable to face Atlas after such a deed even if this was all just a dream.

-Raith flees until the fog vanishes and with it Atlas-

code by claerie