Jude
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.
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
