𝔏𝔢𝔶𝔩𝔞 𝔅𝔞𝔯𝔟𝔲

sylus  couldn’t  help  his  laughter  at  leyla’s  worries.  it  was  so  small,  yet  so  significantly  her.  he  understood  it  all  too  well.  

“  well,  i  think  if  you  just  hide  behind  me  no  one  will  see  you.  i’m  big  enough  to  sneak  you  in  without  being  seen.  ”  he  chuckles  quietly.  the  picture  of  the  two  of  them  suspiciously  making  their  way  back  into  the  castle  with  leyla  tucked  behind  him  was  perhaps  too  silly  -  even  for  him.  

“  oh,  my  lady,  you  have  done  everything  right,  ”  sylus  says  with  a  shake  of  his  head.  he  glances  down  at  her,  taking  in  the  softness  of  her  cheeks  and  the  fan  of  her  eyelashes  before  looking  away.  “  you  are  a  gem  of  your  own.  anyone  who  can’t  see  that  and  treat  you  accordingly  is,  dare  i  say,  blind.  ”

          “That... sounds like a plan!” a soft laugh escaped her lips as she imagined them trying to sneak into the castle. It was a thrilling idea, maybe a little crazy one too, but it should work! At least her slightly drunk mind thought it should. He was big, while she was shorter and petite, what was there not to work?

there  is  a  moment  of  memory  as  leyla  moves  closer.  images  of  a  woman  he  can’t  recgonize  flicker  through  his  mind.  lost,  forgotten,  left  behind  as  time  continues  to  move  forward  -  further  and  further  away  as  he  lives  a  life  that  doesn’t  belong  to  an  older  version  of  him.  

it  is  swift,  but  it  brings  grief  right  to  his  front  door,  knocking  and  knocking  and  knocking.  

slamming  right  into  him.  

leyla  wraps  her  arms  around  him,  and  he  is  thankful  that  she  can’t  see  the  expression  on  his  face.  he  doesn’t  want  her  to  know  he  is  any  more  of  a  broken  man  than  he  already  physically  is.  and,  it  is  a  reprieve  from  the  onslaught  of  sadness  that  he  deals  with  on  quiet  nights.  it’s  silly,  just  how  quickly  his  sorrows  will  dissipate  with  just  one  touch.  he  relishes  in  her embrace,  squeezing  her  just  a  little  harder  than  usual  -  because  he  needs  it.  

“  of  course,  ”  he  mutters,  unable  to  hold  her  gaze  when  she  pulls  away  from  him.  “  couldn’t  leave  you  alone  in  this  world,  could  i  ?  ”  there’s  a  pause,  a  moment  of  silence  as  he  gathers  himself.  “  i  hope  you  know  just  how  important  you  are.  i…  ”  he  tries,  but  there  are  no  words  to  quite  explain  it.

          She felt him squeezing her tight, and she did the same. There was that realization at the back of her mind that the previous time she saw him could have been the very last one. Oh, she couldn’t even begin to think of losing him. In the somewhat short period of time they had known each other, she had gotten to know him so well that losing him would cause a great deal of pain.

[ JACKET ] : sender gives receiver their jacket after seeing them shiver in the cold.

          “Back home I thought I was a good daughter doing what my parents wanted, but... But I was never happy,” she shrugged with a small sigh as she was slowly walking beside him, enjoying the beautiful castle’s garden. “Now that I’m here finally doing what I want, it is so much better!” she beamed and looked up at him for a moment. “It’s scary, but I can be myself,” Leyla continued, her smile becoming smaller, but it was just as warm as before. “And I have you here,” she looked up at him, stepping a little closer as it was starting to get chilly.

          Unfortunately a warm smile was not enough and she felt a shiver run down he spine. Apparently she wasn’t the only one, who noticed that, because just a moment later Sylus put his jacket around her shoulders. She wanted to protest, Leyla felt bad for leaving him in cold, but she was sure it would be pointless to argue and he wouldn’t change his mind. “Thank you,” she smiled, looked at him and held onto him by his elbow.

          Her thumb brushed his skin while her hand softly cupped his cheek. If she hadn’t had that late night walk to clear her mind, she wouldn’t have noticed Sylus coming home holding his own shoulder while wincing in pain.

          It hurt her to see him in pain even though he tried his best not to show it. “It is easier said than done,” she replied with a small, slightly sad smile. “I will always worry.” It was in her nature to worry about everyone, who were dear to her.

ah.  the  anger  dissipates  within  a  moment.  this  isn’t  about  him.  sylus,  briefly,  wonders  if  he’s  made  a  fool  of  himself  for  acting  so  rashly.  

he  looks  away  from  leyla  to  the  drunken  man,  who  has  coincidentally  decided  to  sober  up  at  his  intervention.  it’s  no  surprise  that  he  wears  a  look  of  fear  on  his  features.  sylus  knows  he’s,  for  lack  of  a  better  word,  a  giant  man.  it’s  rare  to  find  anyone  who  looms  over  him  instead  of  the  other  way  around.  

with  a  jerk  of  his  chin  the  man  is  sent  scrambling  in  the  opposite  direction.  and,  finally,  he  looks  back  down  to  his  companion.  

“  certainly.  ”  he  offers  leyla  an  arm  to  take  before  leading  her  towards  the  door  and  into  the  open  air.  the  night  is  crisp  and  sylus  relishes  in  the  light  of  the  stars  above.  

“  i’ll  walk  you  back.  it’s  dark  out.  ”  and  where  there  is  darkness  there  are  monsters.  and  where  there  are  monsters,  there  are  men.  

sylus  glances  down  at  leyla,  “  apologies  for  my  behaviour.  you  shouldn’t  have  to  see  me  like  that,  ”  he  murmurs.  then,  hoping  to  ease  the  tension,  “  i  hope  you’ve  drunk  enough  to  forget  it  by  morning,  ”  he  jokes.

          If she didn’t know Sylus, she would have been afraid of him too. He was a big man and the anger previously heard in his voice didn’t help, and Leyla understood why the drunken man was so eager to get away from them when Sylus jerked his chin at the man. It was an amusing sight to see, and it made her lips curve in a small smile.

          She held onto his arm as they both walked out of the tavern. The cool air sobered her up a little. “Thank you,” Leyla softly replied and looked up at him. “I hope nobody will catch me sneaking back in the castle. I probably smell of ale and drunk people,” her brows furrowed and a small, embarrassed laugh fell from her lips. It was the ale taking control over her, Leyla was usually well mannered young lady, but the ale was making her lips loose, saying what was on her mind, doing whatever she wanted at that moment. She took a strand of her hair between her fingers and put it to her nose. At east her hair smelled of lavender like they always used to, so she brought her other arm up to her nose. The sleeve did seem to smell a bit strange.

there’s  a  moment  of  pause  as  sylus  considers  his  options.  he  isn’t  particularly  fond  of  the  way  the  man  is  looking  at  leyla,  beautiful  and  ethereal  as  she  is,  but  he  isn’t  quite  fond  of  the  consequences  for  sending  the  man  to  an  early  grave,  either.  

a  protective  hand  comes  up  to  press  atop  leyla’s  shoulder  as  she  bumps  into  him,  a  gesture  sylus  does  often  -  just  to  let  her  know  that  he  was  near,  that  he  had  her  back.  

“  the  lady  isn’t  interested,  ”  he  says,  doing  his  best  to  reel  in  his  anger  -  although  failing  quite  miserably.  “  i’d  suggest  leaving  her  alone.  ‘less  you’d  like  to  be  branded  like  the  animal  you  are,  ”  he  threatens,  eyes  narrowing  ever  so  slightly.  he  thinks  of  his  forge  back  in  his  keep,  hot,  burning,  seering.  

“  are  you  alright,  my  lady  ?  ”  he  shifts  his  attention  to  leyla,  hoping  that  by  looking  at  her  instead  of  the  man  he’ll  be  less  inclined  to  tear  the  tavern  apart.

          She was about to apologize for bumping into them so rudely when she felt a familiar hand on her shoulder and her worries and fears dissipated. She hadn’t noticed Sylus around when she was drinking with her friend, but she didn’t worry her head about it, all that mattered was that he was here and she could count on him to protect her. Leyla listened to him defending her and she could easily tell what this drunk man did bothered Sylus more than it should, she could hear anger dripping from his words. She put her hand over his, that was on her shoulder, and gently rubbed it, hoping it would help him to calm down.

— frances “baby” houseman / “dirty dancing”

Baby is innocent, idealistic, and kind. She might be an inexperienced upper-class girl, but Baby has a thirst for life and love— two things she’s never truly experienced until now.

— savannah curtis / “dear john”

Virtuous and sweet. Savannah doesn’t drink, smoke, or sleep around. Her wholesome nature contrasts with John’s combative personality, but that doesn’t prevent them from falling for each other. After all, opposites do attract.

— rapunzel / “tangled”