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Character of the Season
From Attuned to Ascended to Ancient, Kiada Njovu-Reyes has been reborn several times throughout her short life, but her fighting spirit has never once been diminished. With beauty, grace and a quick wit, Kiada is the whole package wrapped in an infectious smile. Recent endeavours have found her in the heart of the Hollowed Grounds, aiding the region and bettering it for her new Ancient kin, and whatever she does next, we know it's sure to pack a punch.
Congratulations, Kiada!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
Skinning and hosting by the epically talented Kaons, and functionality fanciness by the coding magic of Neowulf. If you ever see either of them around, make sure to show them some love!
Jude knows the bird will outfly him by a few days at least, so he heads out as soon as the letter leaves his hands. He isn’t sure he speaks to a single person the entire journey from Torchline to the Grounds. The words he wants to say, the thoughts that buzz in his head, feel like hornets slowly stinging him to death.
Those hornets usher him off the boat and into the Inner Quarter, only stopping to verify his directions. The only time he visits the Grounds is to see their mother, and this is his first time seeing where his brother has moved since changing citizenship.
He arrives like a stormcloud, expression dark and sleepless as he stands outside the front door, knocking sharply and listening - desperately - for any sound of life and movement within.
started getting what I want, but all of it feels brand new
Edmund hears the knock and swiftly gets on his feet. He knows that knock, and he's missed his brother dearly. He opens the door and takes in his little brother's expression, instantly picking up on the tangled emotions present. He opens the door wider and ushers Jude in and away from prying eyes.
The moment that the door is closed, Edmund turns and holds his arms out with a questioning look. If Jude wants a hug, he's happy to provide, but the Ancient doesn't want to push his little brother if Jude doesn't want the contact right now. "Hi, little brother. I've missed you." The words are soft and quiet so as not to grate on jagged emotions.
Jude knows he walks through the open door, but it feels like a stumble with how numb his legs feel. A peculiar sensation because he moves as if unimpeded but he is certain he's piloting his body from above at this moment in time. The closing of the door is a distant sound, but Edmund is here, present and real.
The open arms are all he needs, because even the cold and jagged pieces in Jude hold no anger toward his brother. He falls into him, arms winding around and gripping tightly to the back of Edmund's shirt like a lifeline. Edmund smells different ever since he became Ancient; more brimstone and ember in the undertones, but above that he still smells the same way he always did, when Jude was barely big enough to shoulder his backpack and his knees were perpetually skinned. Edmund is family and sunlit days and safety, and Jude's eyes swim so hot and fast that between one blink and the next he is dirtying Edmund's shirt with his tears.
"Missed you too," he murmurs, because the sobs don't come even when the tears do. "Dad finally came to see me," he reveals immediately, because it's the only explanation he needs for his current state after the man had disappeared and abandoned his crown and station to boot. "Couldn't - didn't know what to do. I'm so angry," he chokes like the anger itself is smoke and it's brewing in his lungs, scalding up his throat and forcing more bitter tears from his eyes.
started getting what I want, but all of it feels brand new
"I missed you too." Edmund tightens his hold on his brother, one hand around his shoulders and the other cupping the back of his neck. As he feels tears soak his shirt, he wishes he was still taller than Jude so that he could fully tuck his little brother into his hold. He settles for resting his cheek against Jude's temple as he listens, his heart aching over his brother's pain.
The Ancient's brow furrows, taking a moment to consider his words. "I know. I'm sorry that he hurt you." Because that's exactly what Harper has done. Even if Edmund understands his pseudo-father's actions and his desire to leave Torchline and Safrin behind, he still hates that Jude had to suffer for it. "Harper made the best choice for him, but it's a horrible situation."
Edmund gives Jude an extra squeeze, "Tell me what you need, little brother. How can I help?" If he needs to hunt down Harper and have a long conversation, he will. If Jude wants to hide away from the world under his brother's watchful eye and do nothing but relax, it'll be done. Whatever he needs or wants, the Ancient will do all that is in his power to help.
With the Hollowed Grounds’ alterations in landscape, some of the animals have grown a bit wilder. A bit bolder.
So while it may surprise some, and others not at all, a crow swoops down, snatching at clothing and bags with sharp, irritating, and annoying talons. Maybe you just lost a piece of bread, or a valuable keepsake!
Height is no matter; the power of making Jude feel safe is entirely in Edmund's arms, and he isn't intent on leaving them any time soon. It's the first time anyone has ever apologized for Jude's suffering instead of on Harper's behalf, and he slumps further into Edmund's hold like some invisible string has finally been cut now that he's heard it from someone else's lips. He knows Edmund and Harper aren't as close given his father had come into the Ansel's lives after Edmund was older, but for a moment he envies Edmund that distance, and for making it out of the worst of the drama unscathed. They may stand at the same height and age these days, but Edmund still feels so far ahead of him. More mature, more composed, more untouchable. But it shouldn't surprise him. Edmund is eternally his big brother and a figure to idolize and strive to emulate. Falling short of the bar his brother sets is just part of the equation.
Envy bleeds away into a pitiful mush when faced with what he needs. Lifting his head, Jude turns redrimmed eyes onto his elder, appearing far younger with how lost his expression is. "I don't know," he admits, as if marveling at it. "I don't - I don't know if I should forgive him? I don't know if I should stay, or move, or what I'm doing." He's just been surviving one day after another. And if his lip wobbles, it's with shame as his eyes drop away from Edmund's. "I've been so angry. At everyone. And drinking and fighting and crying isn't helping." The only thing that had was the Dreamless that Paige had given him, but Jude is too scared of growing addicted to dabble too heavily in the darker side of what Torchline has to offer. "I feel like an idiot trying to play at being an adult," he confesses, tone whisper-quiet like the walls themselves could possibly hear and judge him for his inadequacies.
started getting what I want, but all of it feels brand new
Edmund resists the growl that climbs up his throat as he takes in Jude's red eyes. His little brother should never look so sad, so broken. The Ancient's fury on his behalf burns the back of his throat and he pulls back just enough to knock foreheads with Jude. His steel-blue eyes sharpen, "You are not an idiot, or a failure, or whatever horrible and foolish words have been circling in your head lately."
His tail lashes and Edmund's eyes soften along with his voice, "You're just hurt and lost. The people around you have failed you and you did the best that you could." He was one of those people and Edmund will never forgive himself for it. He'd vanished, been lost too but as the eldest, he should have shielded Jude from it better.
"I love you and I am so proud of you for surviving this far. You don't need to forgive Harper unless it feels right to you but you do need to let it go just enough that doesn't consume you. Feel your pain and then let it go. For yourself, not for him." Letting go was something that the Ancient was also working on in forgiving himself. He and Jude can try together.
Edmund tilts his head up and stands on his toes so that he can kiss the top of his little brother's head, "I'll be here. For every moment of it. You can stay with me whenever, and for however long, that you need or want."
Jude winces a touch as Edmund knocks their foreheads together, but it jolts him out of his self-pity enough for his brother's guttural tone to force its way through the cracks of his armor and into the heart of his sorrow. He stands meek and half-curled forward like a wilted flower that has forgotten how to reach for the sun as his brother pries open the leverage he's found and pours truth into Jude's veins.
The kiss that is pressed to the top of his curls makes that dark, wriggling thing inside his chest finally fall silent for a moment. He stares at their socked feet for a moment before lifting his gaze to Edmund's. It's clearer now, if still lined and darkened with exhaustion.
"I love you," he murmurs, because it's all he can think to say in the wake of that. If Edmund needs some sort of forgiveness or absolution for leaving, Jude gives it without a moment's hesitation. One hand comes up to cup at the back of Edmund's neck to cling to him, drawing their foreheads back together. "I just want it to be us for a little while. Please?" His voice is younger than his years as he pleads openly for Edmund to leave the world at the doorstep for a few days more. "I don't remember how to...to let go. Will you help me?" Edmund's hand has been the one guiding him forward from the moment he took his first steps. Why should now be any different?
started getting what I want, but all of it feels brand new
Edmund lets Jude move him as he needs, gently resting his forehead against the younger's when prompted. "Of course, little brother." It made the darker, possessive part of the Ancient purr to know that he was so needed and wanted by his little brother. The feeling was mutual, and he cups the back of Jude's neck in turn. He'll easily throw away his plans for the foreseeable future if that's what Jude needs.
Jude's voice makes Edmund's heart ache. His brother is in so much pain, and it makes the Ancient want to tuck him away in the softest of blankets before setting the culprits on fire. Still, he shoves the bloodlust down to focus on the here and now. He nuzzles Jude gently, "Always."
The Ancient's fingers twitched where he grasped his brother, tone growing somber. "It's something that I'm working on, too. I can teach you what's worked for me so far, and we can figure out the rest together." Edmund may have been guiding his little brother for years, but they were still a team. Jude had long since proven that he had his brother's back. From games to terrifying tragedies, they were a united front. They could learn to heal and let go side by side.
