#ncvaflows

Rudyard rapped upon the door, calling Liesel’s name with growing agitation. She had spent the better part of the blustery morning soaking in the tub. Now that storm clouds not only gathered over Piffling Beach but opened torrents of rain upon the coastline, Rudyard didn’t like being alone one bit. In the past, he might have sought Antigone’s company, only to regret it. 

But he had Liesel now. Or he would if she wasn’t so busy sulking and avoiding him. 

He couldn’t see why. Shouldn’t they spend the storm comforting each other? He didn’t know much about marriage, but he hoped that it would involve some amount of soothing when storms hit. 

Convinced she’d either drowned or fallen asleep in the tub, Rudyard gathered all the bravery he could muster and entered the bathroom. Thin bubbles covered Liesel’s body. To Rudyard’s relief, she lay in the tub in human form, her seal-skin draped over the side of the tub. Her lean frame was easy to make out under the waning veneer of the bubbles, thin with slight curves, and muscular from hours spent swimming in the open ocean. What right did she have to be so beautiful, even when she was angry with him?

Putting his hands on his hips, Rudyard surveyed the sight before him. His wife luxuriated in a bubble bath and yet frowned at him. What had he done to deserve her ire, besides barge into the bathroom? He thought.

Ah, yes.

“I know you’re upset I didn’t want you out on the beach today,” he said. “But the storm’s only gotten worse, so you have to admit, I was right for worrying.”

He took a step closer. Their row had probably contributed to the storm’s intensity - Rudyard wasn’t sure how much he affected the weather, but he knew that he did. Which was probably part of why Liesel was angry. He should have been able to call off the storm. He should have been able to, but Rudyard wasn’t skilled enough for that. 

He wanted to help somehow, though. 

He wanted her to be happy.

He wanted her to love him or, at the very least, comfort him while the storm raged.

Was that too much to ask for?

“Now, look at you. You’re safe inside, raising our heating bill when you could have just asked me to draw the bath for you,” he continued. “I bet the water’s gone cold, hasn’t it? I could have made it so it wouldn’t. I suppose I still could. If you’d let me.”

He approached her. Crouching by the tub, he dipped one finger in the water and looked at Liesel expectantly. He could magically make the water much nicer - warmer water, foamier bubbles, the works. But she wasn’t looking at him.

Anna stepped out onto the first class deck, breathing in the cool night air. It was almost relaxing, being out in the darkness, the night sky illuminated by nothing but stars. She looked out onto the vast ocean, her breath stolen from her lungs at the sight of it. It was frightening — the sea was seemingly endless, dark and cruel. At the same time, though, there was something beautiful about it. How small and insignificant it made all her problems seem.

She wished Hans were with her rather than his associates, both to experience the beauty of the sea and to keep her steady. Sighing, Anna tightened her shawl around her arms. He loved her... didn’t he?

She noticed another young woman standing just feet away, the same wistful look displayed across her features as she stared over the railing and into the darkness. If Hans were going to spend his time with others, why couldn’t she?

        the  next  words  die  on  her  lips  upon  hearing  her  father’s  reply,  body  immediately  pulling  away  from  its  previously  leaned  over  position  on  the  table.   that  might  have  been  enough  for  her  a  couple  years  ago,  but  not  now;  maria  wasn’t  a  child  anymore.   while  she  might  not  have  known  everything  about  what  went  on  outside  the  walls  of  their  palace,  she  knew  things  were  getting  bad  with  the  people  and  the  military,  and  she  could  only  assume  that  it  was  bad  in  terms  of  politics,  too.   their  pristine  marble  floors  and  painted  ceilings  couldn’t  keep  all  the  horrors  out  forever,  nor  could  it  keep  them  safe.

still,  her  father’s  disposition  is  unyielding,  and  she  knew  she  couldn’t  argue  with  a  tsar.   ❛    of  course,  father.    ❜    so  maria  lets  him  treat  her  like  she’s  still  a  little  girl  for  the  moment,  smiling  easily  though  thinly  as  she  pushes  the  chair  back  and  stands.   ❛    i  should  get  ready  for  supper.    ❜

Rapunzel looked up to the night sky and, with a light hop she beamed, pointing up toward the sky.  “Look look!” she called out, her smile widening across her face.  One of the many things she loved regarding the night sky was learning about new constellations, but she loved finding them for the first time even more.  It made all the research, readings, and gazing up at the stars above worth it.  “It’s Cassiopeia!”

“I see I was WRONG and I'm not so strong.” It wasn’t something he’d ever dare to admit. However, the overwhelming feeling of failure and disappointment was coursing through him. Everything he’d set out to do he didn’t. If he was someone who could no longer follow orders then what good was he? What was his PURPOSE? “I should have known all along that TIME would tell.” He had tried so hard to be the perfect soldier to live up to his father's name and no longer in his shadow. Perhaps he was never meant to do so. 

As he made his way across the room,  smiling and laughing with his guests, he spotted her. A woman standing alone in the corner. He would be remiss in his duties as a host if he didn’t at least try and greet her.

“I hope you’re having a decent time, madam. Might I offer you a drink?”