I was wondering if youâd write a Ethari x Reader (pronouns are she/her) x Runaan where it takes place in the time of the assassination of King Harrow.
Ethari and reader witnesses the assassins flowers sink one by one leading down to Rayla and Runaan.
Days later, it depends on how many days Runaan was in the dungeon before he got trapped in a coin. They witness Runaanâs flower sink and are of course struck by grief.
If itâs not a bother could you write days later after Runaanâs "death" the time where Callum and Rayla goes to their house.
Reader is reading a book while Ethari is crafting weapons and he witnesses Rayla from the reflection and you know what happens next.
If you donât want to write this itâs completely fine! Once again, I love your writing!!â¨đ¤đ
Floating Flowers
Poly!Runaan X Reader X Poly!Ethari
Warnings: angst, kinda sad ngl, mentions of death and some descriptions of violence
One does not love without sacrifice, and one does not truly want to take the risk unless they know it's worth it. With all that at stake, it does not make sense to ever really let someone in. To love, is to let your heart beat in time with anotherâwith many, and in so few words, all of it can disappear.
In a blink.
In an instant.
Within a single breath.
All love causes is pain. You thought you knew the worst of it, felt the bitter edge of loss, but you were so wrong. You had it all figured out only a year ago. You had Runaan... A voice of reason and rock. You had Raela... In all her stubbornness and sweet personality. You have Ethari... As your warmth, and your light. You loved all three extensively, dove head first into the chasm of loveâhopeful and invested. They gave you purpose and warmth, and that's all you ever wanted.
You thought the price of love was worth all the pain, but now as you fold your arms over your knotted up stomach. You could barely tear your eyes away from Runaan and Rayla prepare for the mission. The one to avenge all of Xadia, but it was not worth it to you. Nothing in all of the realms was worth the price of watching them walk out of this village.
Soon it would be just you and Ethariâyou begged for a minute longer as Runaan's palm embraces your cheek, "Goodbye my love." The words taste acidic, another minute of him would never be enough. You'd plead for hour after hour, for every second was worth a thousand pleas.
While Runaan notes your rigid form, the distant look in your eyesâhe knows that he cannot stay. "It is not good bye..." He whispers quietly, "I will always return to you both." Your lips press into that all too familiar line, shaking your head as you part from him completely.
Hating the distance, but knowing you must let him go.
"Do not make us promises you cannot keep." Your words are dark, striking cold fear into Ethariâthe sensation of pain mirrors into him.
Hesitantly, Ethari embraces Runaan and Rayla throws herself into your arms. You told Runaan she was not ready, that you were not ready to let her go into a battle she may not return from.
She's the closest you ever came to a child, you are certain that she'll be the only child you ever have. All her life was spent under your careful gaze, and embraced tightly in your arms. Your cheek rests atop her hair, and even when your eyes mist overâyou do not let yourself cry.
"I love you Rayla... All the way to the moon." You insisted she was more like you, more like Ethari, but Runaan was certain. And when he was certain, there was no reason to try to talk sense into him.
When you finally gather enough strength to look up at Runaan, Rayla at his side and Ethari's palm on the small of your back. Runaan gives a tight smile, one he only gives when he is not sure.
"I love you..." You don't know if you'd forgive yourself if he didn't hear it at least once more, you see the softness of his eyes. "Both of you, and we expect you home before 30 nights have passed."
Soon enough, they disappear and leave only floating flowers in their wake. No one moved from the fountain, too many souls rest upon the surfaceâhardly a ripple as the air catches deep in your throat.
When the day came to pass, the crowd was thick with anxiety without a word of comfort to be shared. No one could say anything at all. Ethari held you close, unable to stop the tightening of his grip as each flower sunk to rest on the bottom. The ripples were jarring, the water stirred with grief.
The cries were haunting, even when no one knew who would come next... The tears remained locked up. And with each sunken flower, you felt a wave of guilt and relief because you wished it to be anyone else. Until it was only them.
All you had was the hope that they had succeeded, and were already halfway home right now. It is all that you have left.
"Come to bed starlight." Ethari's sweet nickname sounded so soft, you could hardly enjoy the comfort, but it was there nonetheless. "I miss your warmth..." You tear your eyes rom the water, and stare into his. You wonder if he knows how much you adore him, how safe and welcoming his arms had become since they found you. "I miss sharing a bed..." You hardly slept since they left, leaving Ethari to an empty home most days. Ethari and Runaan had saved you all those years ago, brought you back from the edge of the universeâa startouch elf who could hardly bring themselves to love. To care.
"Just tonight..." You take his outstretched hand, his hope brought you optimism. Gave you hope. That meant something to you.
"I miss you too."
In the quiet and dark, you lay entangled in your husbandâembraced tightly in the linens and his arms. The shadows crest through the window, a moonlit night, but you struggle to see through the light. Almost certain that there isânot evil, but nothing good coming your way.
Ethari's arms tighten around and bring you closer than before, chin nuzzled into your neck. His hair is soft against your arm, there is so much on your mind and sleep seems distant.
The way his eyes are shut so lightly, lashes brushing his cheeks and while not a smileâhis face is not contorted with nightmares. To be honest, this is the first time since Runaan left that you've seen Ethari sleep so peacefully. While you could not bring yourself to sleep, you were never too far away as to not soothe away the nightmares when they came to him. He truly is the last testament of your sanity. As light as you can manage, you brush your thumb along the highest point of his cheek.
"If you wanted me awake, you should have just asked." Sleep clouds his visit, but he sees you so clearly against the sharp contrast of night. A vision of pure, unscathedâstarlight.
He tilts his head up so that he is looking at you, a look of pure admiration. "Have I told you how beautiful you are, starlight?" You find it in yourself to smile.
"More often with every passing day." He returns your smile, Ethari always was the one who stood in awe of you even when you doubted yourself. Your good nature seemed to move in step with his own, but something about the stars that danced in your eyesâyou often seemed otherworldly to him.
"Good, I will never allow you to forget." And you know that he's telling the truth, you believe every word. "They'll come home to us. I know they will." Yet you are not as sure, humans are too unforgivable. Too dangerous and unpredictable. You hate them, and fear what else they are capable of taking away from you.
Neither of you say another word, finding comfort in each other. Letting the comfort exist in this singular moment, tomorrow you will face more fear and anxiety. Tonight, you find peace in Ethari's arms.
"Hope for the both of us, my love. I can only hope it's enough."
Only when you watched Runaan's flower sink so suddenly, when the ripples began to shatter the surface of the water. Your entire world seemed to shatter with your reflection. It felt like the world was on fire, and completely still; all at once, you had little left. Stones burn your knees in scrapes as you cry out for him, even the slam of the door is not enough to rouse you from your torture.
The way Ethari saw you and then saw the flower in the bottom of the pool. The heave as he sees the sunken hope. It was always a fool's mission, but the sensation of your crying form within his own arms is enough to send him into tears. The way your hands grip him without remorseâscreaming at the universe that they can't have them.
Runaan is gone.
It hits Ethari like the whole of Xadia was put directly on his shoulders, their husband is dead.
He's gone, and he isn't coming back.
Ethari attempted to focus on the task at hand, the tools and weapons atop his desk never seemed so far from him. It felt as though he was staring at a puzzle he was no longer capable of understanding, but he did his best to keep himself occupied when the silence of the house threatened to consume.
Is this grief? Or is this the new normal?
Where you used to find comfort in Ethari, he could only ever reach you when the books were far from your grasp. A cycle of three titles, meticulously memorizing each page because it reminded you of Runaan. The nights when you would stay up with Runaan when the nightmares were too much, and you would read to him until he lulled off to sleep.
Neither really said a word, silent and long days until the time came to crawl into bed. Only then, arms around each other and duvets tightly enveloping both formsâdid the tears freely flow. Did the pain finally mount and the length of the universe seemed to weigh heavy on you both.
However, by the time morning breaks, the silence returns and the image of a sunken flower haunts your vision. Ethari closes his eyes, adjusting himself and returns his gaze to his work. Only something catches his eye, a glimpseânothing short of a miracle, one that causes his expression to falter.
Rayla...
Unable to turn for a moment, he pauses before walking out the door. Knowing that she would follow, unable to break your heart anymore than it has been already.
"Rayla. Before you left, I told Runaan that you were to goodhearted for the work of an assassin. Y/N told him too." He pauses, glancing into the reflection once more. "So I know you did not betray them out of malice. But that doesn't matter. They're gone. He's gone. Because you abandoned them." His words are harsh, not loud, but there is a sharpness as he recalls your cries from the night before.
Even when she disappeared from the reflection, Ethari was already back inside of the home. You had not moved from your position, and for a moment, Ethari wishes you could have seen her. Known she was alright, even if she cannot come home.
He exhales deeply, gathering what he needs before leaving once more to find her. "This will only break the spell for a moment, but I couldn't bear to let you leave without seeing you one last time." Ethari had to know, to hear her out, and find some comfort in her words. "But I don't understand, Rayla. How could you abandon them?"
She looked the same, different and more worn in others, but he saw her as she was. "I failed them. it was my fault we were discovered, btu I didn't run away." She pauses. "Ethari, we found something. Callum, show him."
"Oh uh..." Ethari turns his attention to the human, smiling a little. "I'm Rayla's earthblood elf friend. Trees to meet you."
"Trees to meet you, too."
"Don't humor him. We found the dragon prince."
"The egg wasn't destroyed."
"And I knew that if we could get him home to his mother, there could be peace."
"It's a miracle. I can't believe it." Ethari's eyes darken, recalling the letter he received from Ibis not too long ago. "But, Rayla, you need to know. The Dragon Queen is dying. Since the death of her mate, she's fallen very ill."
"We have to get to her. It's the only way." Ethari pauses, as he watches Rayla's eyes trail to the home. "Where is Y/N? Can I see them?" Looking through the window to spot you, to catch your gaze.
Rayla is struck by confusion at your still formâyou were never that still. Never so quiet. Her eyes wander the way you seem awake, locked in on the book and every so often sheâd catch Ethari glance over with concern.
Ethari watches Rayla, as she looks at youââWhen we met Y/N, they were deeply wounded by abandonment. Alone and on the cusp of giving up.â His eyes are sad, she notes how he casts you loving glances in between the concern. âRunaan is dead. You exiled. Something in them finally snapped.â
âWill they ever be the same?â
âNo Rayla. I donât think that they will, they might recover, but Y/N has faced great lossesâŚMore than most, itâs why they loved you so dear. Because youâve lost a lot too.â
Ethari whistles: "You can ride faster than you can walk. I'll see a message to the Dragon Queen. If she knows her little one still lives, perhaps she'll hold on."
"Ethari, can I ever come home again?"
"I don't know." His eyes are sad, he knows the devastation you felt when the rumors spread. When the word shifted to call Rayla a betrayer and to ghost her. You fought against it, but soon even you could not fight the thought. Consider the possibility that there might have been some truth to the village's words. "It's a real moon opal..." He holds it out to her. "When I gave its match to Runaan, I told him, "My love will be with you even when the moon is not."
Rayla looks through the window once more and then back at Ethari: "Good bye, Rayla."
Ethari came into the home with a purpose as he gathered another arrow, preparing it to be fired and for the first time since, you looked up at him. Eyes wandering to the message, to the way he seemed certain.
Something in the way he moved, it reminded you of who he once was. "What are you doing?" He meets your eyes, seeing the whole universe fall together in a dance as you rise to your feet.
"I have found us hope." Still, even now, he is holding onto the hope that he can somehow fix this. Change the way things are and you trust him.
"Runaan, the last time I made you one of these, it carried a message of death. but this arrow will carry a message of life. Regina Draconis!" While you do not understand completely, you understand enough to know that Ethari is still fighting for you. Still fighting for your future, the one you will share together. And you trust him.
Long before you loved Ethari and Runaan, before the turn of the centuryâeons before written history began. There was you and your brother, Aarravos. It was all you knew, and it was all you thought you needed. Masters of the primal energiesâthe epitome of Star Touch Elf perfection. There was no beauty like yours, and no power that tasted as sweet as the power you possessed.
However, it was never enough for Aarravos and soon enough, you had lost him completely. Your entire existence seemed to erase itself with his loss, the universe seemed so much smaller. It seemed so much more void. No longer did stars shine for you, and soon enough, you saw only the darkness. A never ending abyss of despair, and confusion. You no longer knew what your purpose was beyond the world you were building with your brother. It meant nothing without someone to share the success with.
You lean into the darkness, you found comfort in the silenceâperhaps comfort is the wrong word. You found silence in the darkness, your bottomless pit of despair was less violent and loud. Your wandering felt less aimless when you accepted the loneliness. You were not at peace, but the numbness felt bitterly better than the pain of loss.
The greatest of your sins was never looking for him, for you assumed he had simply left you to your misery. Had finally had enough, and so you left him to his adventuresâyou imagined he must have left you willingly, no one could against the power you wielded.
Seven centuries, long and painful blistering years, in that time you only heard whispers of your brothers antics. Until you heard nothing at all.
Soon enough the sadness no longer touched you, or perhaps you wore it proudlyâyou rarely missed the brother that had left you alone. If he cared, he would have taken you with him.
A crest of moonlight breaks over the treetops and reflects off the waterfalls, the crisp blue hue brings a soft smile to your lip. Knelt before the basin, you submerge your palms into the clear water and bring it to your lips. The water is not bitter or heavy with minerals, you finish what is in your palm and remove the canteen from your hip. Using one hand, you pinch the lid and the other you submerge the object and wait for the bubbles to stop.
Crack!, you stiffenâeyes flickering to the left side, someone or something is near. The forest has gone quiet, and it leaves you to think that it is a someone. You hum, shifting your leg out from under you and leaning onto itâknife on your hip, another on your chest and ankle. You cap the canteen and tie it off to your belt, swallowing as you place the final knot. Only to hear the rustling once more.
Trying your best not to move, to hush your body and heighten your sensesâyour fingers curl tightly around the blade, clutching onto it just as the pair of elves break the clearing. You turn quickly, drawing your weapon and posing it highââIf youâre here to start something, itâs probably best you leave.â Before, with Aarravos, you were the voice of reasonâdiplomatic and poise, but now it is different. It is just you. Their eyes widen significantly, as startled by you as you are by them.
One is smaller physically, but his hair is much longerâhe seems more muscular, less lean. While the other seems to be just as imposing, but not physicallyâthere is knowledge behind those eyes. He is the first one to speak, âYouâre a Startouch elf.â You nod, posing your weapon higher. âFascinating.â
However, when your weapon does not drop it is the other who steps protectively in front of the scholarâhis expression less than kind. âStartouch or not, please drop your knife. We never meant you any harm.
.
.
.
âWe never looked back. It was just the three of us against all of Xadia.â
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