Rhydar tilted his head towards Lily, showing her that he was listening as he walked. It didn't take long to reach his chambers, and he used his free hand to open the door and pull her into his bedroom, as it was late and it'd be easier for them both to fall asleep if they were already in there. Though, he knew he'd be giving her the bed for the entire night. He didn't mind.
The flooring was a deep mahogany, stretching throughout the entire bedroom and covered by the simple woven forest green rug beneath the soft green-themed canopy bed and the desk sitting next to the headboard. There were lamps sitting on multiple surfaces—shelves, the dresser, the bookshelf, the desk, anything—all burning at a low light and casting the area in a warm glow. The walls had random pencil sketches drawn all over them from a child-like boredom, but the stretches of twine decorated with false autumn leaves hanging from the ceiling drew the eye from them. There was one specific stand with a hand-carved mirror hanging above it that was covered in small boxes of jewelry and trinkets. Another chest was sitting next to that with presumably more larger trinkets. A door led to his walk-in closet, and another one—that was open—led to a seemingly empty room save for the single piano sitting grand and proud.
Lily had fallen silent again, waiting until they were at their destination to talk, only to find herself momentarily distracted. She came to a stop just inside Rhydar's room, blinking a few times as she looked around. It definitely screamed Rhydar. From the trinkets, to the nature-esque color scheme and decorations, everything fit together like pieces of a puzzle. "It doesn't look quite like I pictured, but it's somehow even more fitting." She commented, her hand still tucked in his. She looked back at him, eyes crinkling slightly in a tiny smile. Almost as if she was afraid of breaking something, she padded carefully further into the room, still looking around. "Are those leaves?"
Rhydar followed her in, stopping and walking whenever she did so he didn't disconnect their hands. All he could do was watch her and smile as she took in his room. She was so adorable, and he couldn't help but melt even more when she turned around and offered a tiny smile. She was getting better, he noted, albeit slowly. Slowly was better than never, however, so he'd take it. When she asked about the leaves, he tipped his head up and awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. I got bored one day and found some twine while looking at the autumn leaves, then asked the local artisans how to make false leaves so they didn't decay over time. Entertained me for about a week, and I haven't felt like taking them down."
((No?? This is a private and already ongoing roleplay))
“They’re so pretty.” Lily said, eyes trailing alone the twine and fake leaves as a smile stuck to her lips. Small, still. But there. “Your room has so much more…personality than the one I’m staying in. Mine is so empty, minus the gifted flowers. Yours though, it reminds me a bit of the forests along my family’s farm.” Her smile grew a bit, fingers playing with his again as she spoke. “Oh, right. I uh. I had to tell you something.”
Rhydar laughed softly, then gently tugged her over to his bed so they could sit down. "Well, I've been stuck here for a lot longer than you have," he commented, leaving most of the curtains around his bed drawn back so it didn't get even darker than the room already was. He pulled Lily onto the cushioned mattress covered with a thick but cool silk comforter, then let go of her hand to slide off and retrieve a light for them. He didn't get one of the lamps set out, but a decorated lantern that was hanging in his closet. He was quick to come back to Lily, the lantern already lit, and set it in front of her as he crawled back onto the bed on the other side of the light. "What is it?" he asked once settled.
When Rhydar sat back down, she scooted just a tiny bit closer to him, fiddling with her hands. Mainly, obviously, the ring. "It was a vision. Not one I had—I don't have visions—but Wolf's. And it was more….what he saw." Carefully, Lily relayed the vision, word for word what Wolf had told her. She'd made sure to memorize that, for the sake of not getting any details wrong. This wasn't something to screw up. "I think….I think he might have seen your wings. It was important, he said, and it…everything seemed to be a hint."
Rhydar's lips parted as he listened to Lily, and by the time she stopped talking, his heart was beating a mile a minute. He looked away and ran his hand up and down his face, then dug it into his hair. "Are you sure?" he asked softy, as if afraid of what her answer would be. He had long accepted what he had lost, but now, with that possibility… He was hopeful, but scared. He wanted it to be right, to believe Lily was right and that he could get his wings back, but he was also scared that it'd all be ripped away from him again.
Lily looked up from her hands when Rhydar spoke, wary softening. She reached out, gently taking one of his hands in hers. "I am. Rhydar, the only other thing I've been this sure about is you. I believe the Fates have granted your brother the keys to the location of your wings. I think we can find them, and get them back to you. I'll do everything I possibly can to do so." She promised softly, cupping his hand in hers and nodding. She would get them back if she had to kill for them. Because Rhydar deserved that.
Rhydar's shoulders slumped and his head bowed; his eyes closed and his hand twisted to grasp Lily's. He couldn't believe it. Years have gone by, years of missing something incredibly important to him, and now he had the chance to get it back. But he also had something new that was important to him—he had Lily. He thought of himself as incredibly lucky to just have her, the idea of getting both was almost like entertaining the idea of the impossible. "Thank you," he whispered, the hand in his hair dropping to his lap and curling around his jacket. I need to change. He almost laughed at the sudden thought. He truly was going insane.
"Of course, dear." There was no simple way to say 'I would do anything for you, this seems like second nature.' But she hoped it was obvious, hoped he could see how grateful she was that he was still there, and that she wanted to repay everything he'd done for her, somehow. "You should change into more comfortable clothes, though. It's not fair for me to be the only one out of these fancy damn clothes." Lily said, lips twitching into a tiny smile for a moment as she squeezed his hand.
He did laugh softly this time, glancing up at Lily with a crooked smile. "Read my mind," he murmured, then squeezed her hand before slipping away off of the bed. "I'll be back to you in a bit," he whispered softly, eyes sparkling, then went over to his dresser to grab a pair of cozy fleece pants before disappearing into his closet to change. He didn't bother with picking out a shirt because he knew they'd be falling asleep soon, so there was no point in putting one on only to take it off.
While Rhydar changed, Lily made herself comfortable, somewhat wary when it came to messing up the bedding. It was irrational, but she didn't want to. She didn't want to mess anything up and upset him. Once she had settled, she wrapped her arms around herself, humming softly. A lullaby her mother had sung when she or her sisters had bad dreams, one she used to sing to her sisters as well. Soothing the remaining fear and unease from the panic. The sound wafted about the room, soft and light, bringing that sense of peace it always did. Maybe it was her magic, or maybe it was the song itself. Sung to generations of her people, straight from magic itself. Maybe it was both.
As he pulled off his shirt, Rhydar thought about what just happened. Lily had a mental breakdown because of his mother. He looked into her head and found unspeakable horrors. His brother had a vision with Lily around. Not just any vision, but about his wings. His wings were in a tomb somewhere, and Lily knew where to find them. He stared at the shirt in his hands for a few seconds, dazed by recent events. His head perked up, however, when he heard humming coming from the bedroom. He smiled, then tossed his shirt off to the side and exchanged his pants for the fleece ones. Once changed, he knocked on the door to let Lily know he was done, then opened the door and slipped into the bedroom, shutting the door behind him.
The humming really did do it's job, helping stave away the darkness in her mind and soothing the pain in her chest. It was one of the last things she had of her childhood, and maybe the only thing that didn't cause her pain to remember. Her photo had it's downsides, reminding her of when her life was simple, when she was still worth something. Even her appearance dredged up feelings of self hate.
When Rhydar knocked, she softened her humming to a barely-there sound, eyes finding him. She couldn't help her smile. It was small, but obvious, the smile that only he ever really got to see. Just the sight of him makes you smile. You're whipped. "Hey."
Rhydar smiled softly and strode over to the bed. When he reached her, he stopped at the edge and reached out to hook two fingers around her wrist. "Hey." He waited for her, waited to make sure she was okay, waited to join her just in case. He'd always wait for her, no matter what it was. The fingers around her wrist started to slowly swipe back and forth over the soft skin of the inside of her wrist.
He'd never push her past her comfort zone, never force her to do something she didn't want to do. He'd always love and cherish her, always be grateful for whatever she can give him. He'd never judge her for her past, never think less of her.
He always seemed to be waiting. Whether it was for her or with her, it sometimes seemed like that was all he could really do when it came to her. He deserved so much better, and the idea that she was his 'better' was somewhat astounding. But while he was here, she would try. At the very least, to be worth that.
Lily tugged on his arm slightly, hand shifting to grab his arm. She wasn't telling him to stop, just holding onto him. One of her favorite things to do. "It's your bed, Rhydar. You're more than allowed to sit as well."
His lips twitched up into a smile, and he crawled onto the bed and sat next to her, careful to not dislodge her grip on his arm. "I know," he said simply with a shrug, then looked down at one of her hands. His own reached out to lightly grasp hers, then delicately ran his fingers over her knuckles, palm, fingers, anything—just to touch her, to show her that she was okay, to be just that much closer to her. "I don't know what I want to do," he whispered, still looking down at her hand, "About my… wings. It's like I want to go get them back, but a part of me is scared. What if I can't be fixed? What if I've been without for so long that I can't have them back in the way I want them back?"
Her smile was soft, hand lifting his to press a kiss to the back of it. If she couldn’t kiss him, yet, she could make do comforting him other ways. “Whatever happens, I will be right next to you. I can’t promise the best outcome, but I can say that something tells me it’ll end well. You’ll get what you need, Rhydar. We will find your wings, and do whatever we can to give you back what you lost.”
Rhydar slowly brought his gaze up to meet hers, hand twisting in her grasp to lightly and playfully brush over her chin—staying clear of her lips. "I love you, Lily darling," he murmured, eyes never leaving hers as they sparkled with an emotion that was quite clear—pride and joy. "You always know what to say, even if I never do." Right after he said that, his head perked up and an idea came into his mind. He barely gave her enough warning before he was slipping off the bed and lightly tugging on her hands to try and show that he wanted her to follow him. Shimmering emerald gleamed with the hope he had for this idea.
Lily, who had been focused entirely on his eyes, blinked as he stood suddenly. The 'I love you too' cut off slightly as she let him pull her up, head tilted curiously and eyes swirling their colors, still latched onto him. "What is it?" She asked, taking step after step to follow him. A year ago, she would have never. She'd have wanted to know exactly where they were going, and if they would be alone. Then again, a year ago, she wouldn't have been alone in a man's bedroom except to kill him while he slept. Leaps and bounds, it seemed.
He grinned goofily but didn't say a word. Instead, he took her to the door that was slightly ajar. His back pushed it open even more, as he was facing Lily as he walked backwards, and brought her to the lone grand piano. Once his back hit the magnificent instrument, he let go of her hands and slid onto the bench without a word. It's been forever since he's sat here, but his thief's fingers knew exactly where to go as he laid them over the glossy keys and tested them out. All still in tune. Perfect. With one last look cast over to Lily, Rhydar sucked in a breath, closed his eyes, and began to play a simple melody from memory—the song she had been humming from earlier.
Lily's eyes widened at the sight of the piano, and his playing just increased her awe. He was playing her lullaby. Perfectly. He didn't know the whole thing, but the notes were simple and tended to repeat once done running their course, to keep the focus on the soft words one would sing along with it. It felt off, because there was no singing. Every time she'd heard the lullaby, it had been sung, except for once through the door of a cafe, where she'd heard it accompanied by a lute. Regardless of words, she was shocked and warm all at once.
Leaning against the piano and watching Rhydar, a sense of calm wrapped around her like a blanket. Peace. She had only really felt that around him, at least regularly. It was always startling, but now, she was just grateful. Grateful he was there, that she had found him. Grateful for him.
In the comforting embrace of the notes wafting from the piano, Lily started singing softly. Her voice was barely noticeable at first, slowly growing in volume just a bit, until her singing intermingled with the music. The language wasn't one anyone ever knew, at least that she'd met. But it was beautiful, the language itself one that sounded musical just spoken.
Rhydar's eyes were slow to open when he looked up at her, startled by her voice. But, startled as he was, he was slow to react, as if in a trance as he played. His fingers never faltered in their dance over the keys, even as he focused on the love of his life singing in a tongue he wasn't familiar with. Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. And her voice was equally as amazing. A smile played at his lips.
After a minute, he sunk back into the music, swaying back and forth with his eyes closed once more and his hands flying over the piano. In a burst of spontaneity, Rhydar added a little something else during the bridge of the song. It wasn't a lullaby, but it had a similar melody as Lily's, so the slightly faster tempo blended perfectly as he played both songs together, working even faster to keep up the skilled playing. His own song, composed by himself to comfort himself when he had lost his wings. It was meant to mimic the rush and thrill of the wings, but with a slight longing hidden within the notes, dampening the upbeat temp.
The new song winding itself into the original one may have surprised most people, but Lily's voice never faltered. Her eyes followed the trails of shimmering light in the air, magical energy drawn in by the notes leaving her lips. It was a sight not seen often, one only her people could cause.
The lights took shapes, forming wings, then buildings, then all sorts of different things, all loose but surely something else, and Lily's eyes widened with glee. They had never done that before. Something about being with Rhydar brought her magic to a new level, allowed her a certain comfort. It was incredible. Her eyes finally met his, alight with the magic swirling around and inside her, and with something else. With love.
"The ocean whispers, her waves embrace. But I'll love you twice as much, as the sea who gave my name. I'll love you for as long as she stays the same." She sang, switching languages to sing to him in a language he could understand. It had always been her favorite line. And now it was even more meaningful, if a different meaning.
