the flicker of a candle blown

God, thy will is hard

But you hold every card

Both of them wore similar tight-lipped expressions as he mentioned the war; Gideon was in too much pain to lecture them on it, but he felt he really shouldn't be coming as a surprise - had they not know this was what the crusade against the Ascended would end in? When dealing with evil, resolving peacefully was not an option.

His feet began to move over the stone with the sisters' help. "Thank you. Tomorrow you will not know anything was wrong." He promised, though it was a lie very dependant on how much they were willing to politely ignore. He'd certainly have a limp for a while and the temple would need a deep clean and reorganise. That, and he'd have to make sure every single drop of Ascended fluid was scrubbed out of the floor and walls; the altar he would just have to replace.

As for what Lena and Sera could do...he looked over his shoulder at his beloved Temple in disarray and shook his head. "No. I'll have to do this. It's my punishment. Perhaps...you could tell people not to expect a service tomorrow morning. I will be ready by the afternoon, though." The hard certainty in his voice allowed no room for questioning that.

I will drink your cup of poison

Nail me to your cross and break me

GIDEON

Base Code by Sky!

Lena

and sweetest in the gale is heard
and sore must be the storm

Lena compiled her ignorance into a little bubble and pretended it wouldn’t burst. Content with her animals, with her Celestine duties, content to ramble on through with her head down. Dutiful and compassionate, tender and gentle, remaining in her steadfast resolution for as long as she possibly could. So she said nothing; because that might’ve been better than all the other things swarming and searing inside her head.

They maneuvered Gideon into his apartments, and the youth could only nod at the indication of nothing being the matter. Tomorrow. As if it had never happened.

Except it had, and it’d be burned in her brain for a long time.

“We can do that,” she presided, curling her hands back together, folding them along one another as if that was holding her together. “Take care, and feel better.” With a nod to her sister, they could wander back out of the confines, lock up the temple, and try to put the strange moments behind them.

Try.

{FIN}

that could abash the little bird
that kept so many warm