I would give you the world

The waters rise above my eyes
I will breathe it in and go out with the tide

The hunter was a whirlwind on this day. He moved quickly and his words were as rushed as his breathing. ”The more it rains, the harder it gets to find any game.” Noah said as he entered through the front door. He shook off his wet coat, his wet boots, and his wet socks and pants. His shirt was dry, but he would need to replace everything else. He hung the string of grouse on the nail by the window so that he could come back and pluck the feathers when he was finished getting dressed.

”Have the twins had a good morning?” Noah asked as Margot squealed at him from the chair she was strapped in to, and as Marcus cooed from his place on the floor. ”I was hoping to get a better deal from my traps, but these will have to do.” The Forsaken regarded the two grouse hanging from the string on the nail as he slipped in to the bedroom. He pulled out and on a pair of pants before starting to dig around for a pair of dry socks.

Noah

And when you think this is the end
You will find me there where I have always been

If I hold up hell, will you take the blame?
Put the devil’s tongue on my middle name

Delia was sitting at the kitchen table when he came in, spooning some mashed vegetables into Margot's awaiting mouth while Marcus enjoyed his place on the floor, tiny fists gripping the furs beneath him. The house was cold. Colder than Noah had likely ever felt it. Minus the time in which she was out of the house completely. Her side of the bond was cut off from him. A wall built up and sequestering her emotions from him. Cordelia couldn't remember the last time she had done this, but it felt necessary now as a storm raged inside of her.

Her lips pressed into a thin line, giving a noncommittal hum in response to his words, "The twins have been fine. Perfect, actually. Not showing any signs of magic yet." She said coolly, spooning another bit of mash into Margot's mouth. "Suppose that's to be expected, though. Given their age. Most don't start showing magic until they're at least five. I imagine we still have a way to go. Even if their father is a demigod." Cordelia dabbed at Margot's mouth, cleaning away a smear of orange from the corner of her lips.

"Isn't that right, Margot? Even if your daddy is a big, bad demigod..." Her amber eyes cut over to Noah as he stepped out of the room, betrayal flashing there as she met his gaze. "... who thinks keeping things from his wife is a good idea."

Cordelia

The waters rise above my eyes
I will breathe it in and go out with the tide

He was searching in a drawer for socks when her words finally hit him. While her volume was not elevated, he heard them each as if she were screaming. He felt the hair along the back of his neck stand up and his blood run cold in his veins. Grabbing a pair of socks, he held them tight in his hand and turned around. Remaining in the doorway, he looked at her across the table.

It was a face she would know, remember, and understand. It was the face she would have seen only when they were on the tundra, hunting, and whatever game they were after skillfully and efficiently escaped them. His glacier eyes searched hers, even though they weren’t cast at him. He swallowed, his tongue thick in his throat. How had she found out? Who had told her? He reached out mental to find a wall in the way, and his bare feet began to feel the coldness in the house.

”Delia..” he said, stupidly.

Noah

And when you think this is the end
You will find me there where I have always been

If I hold up hell, will you take the blame?
Put the devil’s tongue on my middle name

He just looks at her. Stands and stares. Her own throat is thick and her belly hot with anger. The breath she took to steady her did nothing but fan the flames higher. She set the spoon in her hand down, turning now to face him squarely, jaw flexing as she tried to keep her shifts in check. "Did you think I wouldn't find out? That you could just keep this to yourself?" Except he hadn't kept it to himself. No, he had told Sah and Deimos, at least. Probably others. The thought was a knife twisting into her guts.

Studying his face, she let out a laugh of disbelief, no real amusement behind the sound. "You did, didn't you? Gods, Noah... What were you thinking?" She finally snapped, the careful control she had on her mental walls beginning to slip as she looked up at him, confusion and hurt contorting her features. "That you were keeping me safe? Them safe?" It was the biggest drive for him, she knew. His family. Their wellbeing. He did everything for them.

"I didn't know until Sah told me. Mentioned being able to make the twins weapons to protect themselves once they were older since they were Abandoned." She seethed, that wall she had so carefully crafted collapsing into a pile of rubble, emotions slamming into him violently. Her anger, hurt, betrayal... All of it a tsunami of sensation, burning hot and bright along the bond, no hint of her usual adoration to be found.

Cordelia

The waters rise above my eyes
I will breathe it in and go out with the tide

He wanted to say that he had no choice. He wanted to say that she had forced him to make this decision because of how she was. How the war had destroyed her and Noah had done that. Took her and tarnished what she was. Noah wanted to say she wasn’t strong enough for the information, wasn’t strong enough for the insinuation that their children had been punished because of their — her — his — actions.

He wanted to remind her that she had closed herself off from the world for hte better part of two years. He wanted to remind her that she had chosen to remain in isolation and mental anguish. He wanted to — he wanted to shift the blame. To make her the reason.

But he wouldn’t. He had learned in his time here in the Hollowed Grounds that there was no excuse, no true deep reasoning for the things he did other than himself.

That he wasn’t good enough in what he tried to do.

”I was trying to protect you.” His voice was even, quiet. Calm. White, low clouds over the tundra. The whistle of the wind through the Fangs. ”I did not want you to carry the burden of this until you were strong enough.” He did not drop his eyes from her, nor did he move. He simply stood in the doorway with his socks still in his hands.

He took a breath. ”There are a million ways I could justify it. But I wont.” He swallowed. Then, setting his socks on the back of the closest chair, he pulled the ring off the middle finger of his right hand. He crossed the room and placed the ring down on the table, across from her. Close enough for her to reach, if she wanted. He felt Marcus reach out for him, and he reached down for the boy. ”This is how I knew. From when I was in the Order.”

Noah

And when you think this is the end
You will find me there where I have always been

If I hold up hell, will you take the blame?
Put the devil’s tongue on my middle name

He's silent. Her husband doesn't say anything for what seemed like hours. His expression almost pained as he looked at him, standing in the doorway with an abyss between them, clenching the socks in his hand. When he does finally speak, it isn't with any anger, his voice smooth and quiet as he expressed his reasoning.

She knew what he was trying to do, but it didn't change the fact that he had kept things from her. Cordelia felt her eyes begin to sting and she blinked back the tears. Until you were strong enough. Did he think he that weak? That she would crumble at the slightest bit of pressure. "That wasn't for you to decide." Cordelia said softly, her voice trembling with barely restrained tears. "I would have been fine. I could have handled it because we would have handled it."

Cordelia's eyes flicked back up to him as he began to move forward, moving to take off the ring on his hand and her stomach dropped, thinking for a moment he was removing his wedding band. Her heart squeezed when instead she saw the Order ring placed carefully on the table, the ring rocking slightly on the table's surface.

Margot began to fuss, banging her hands on the small table before her and pulling Cordelia's attention from Noah as she reached out for her child, bringing her into her lap. "You've been wearing that ring since they were born... You knew from the very beginning." She murmured, dropping her head against Margot's, breathing in her scent deeply in an attempt to calm herself.

Cordelia

The waters rise above my eyes
I will breathe it in and go out with the tide

”I have always decided that I know the best thing to do, the best way to help.” Noah said, stroking his hand down Marcus’ back. This trait had come back to bite him more than once. Korbin’s face appeared behind his eyes and the color that Noah’s mind associated with him saturated the bond. ”I am sorry, Cordelia.” Just as sorry as he was when he forced Korbin to face things he didn’t want to, and drove him to a life in raven form on the tundra, and then captured him and brought him home. Tangled him in the ascended invasion. Tangled him in politics. Sent him to his death in Torchline.

When was Noah going to learn?

He swallowed again, as Marcus laid his head down on his shoulder. He nodded his head just barely, his eyes dipping in more of an agreement than anything else. He had known since they were born — the moment they were free from the womb and resting skin to skin on their mother’s chest. He knew. He knew their nature and the curse. He knew the difficulty they had been handed. Noah felt his own sting of tears in his eyes, but in the cold of their home and the emptiness of the bond it was as if his body couldn’t even truly produce such a thing as true tears. Nothing fell, nothing even dared to try and escape his eyelashes. But his eyes warmed and stung as if they were there. ”I continuously do this. Choose the wrong thing in the idea that its the right thing. It’s why we are stuck here. It’s how I —“ broke you ”—we hurt so much after the war.”

I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry he screamed over the bond, fists banging on the icy wall she built between them.

Noah

And when you think this is the end
You will find me there where I have always been

If I hold up hell, will you take the blame?
Put the devil’s tongue on my middle name

Margot bangs her hands against the tray, refusing to be ignored any longer and Cordelia's composure falters. She flinches at the sudden sound, drawing a shaky breath before gently picking her daughter up, a hand braced against her as she holds her in her lap. The slip on her control is enough for the bond to open up, finally letting him back in, his words shouted in her mind as she swallows thickly.

Her eyes fall to the table top, unable to look at him as she processes his words, his emotions. Licking her lips before speaking, Cordelia says, "I just wish you wouldn't keep things from me, Noah... Whether I can handle them or not. We don't do secrets in this house. We promised." When things had been so unsure. When they had been exiled to the Wilds. They had vowed it. There would be no secrets. They couldn't survive if there were.

Yet, he kept secret after secret. He hid things from her in the name of protection. Look where that got them.

Cordelia

The waters rise above my eyes
I will breathe it in and go out with the tide

Noah stood in the dimly lit room, and his words hung heavily in the frigid air. The weight of his actions pressed on him, and the admission of his repeated mistakes stung. Noah's apology lingered in the quiet space, and the gravity of his remorse was palpable. He stroked his hand down Marcus' back as the yong toddler squirmed in his arms and kicked his feet, making cooing and spitting noises at his sister who was equally as restless.

After a moment of tense silence, Noah took a deep breath, the cold air stinging his lungs. He lifted glacier eyes to Cordelia with them reflecting the turmoil within. "Cordelia," he began, his voice laden with sincerity, "I can't undo the past, and I can't erase the pain I've caused you. I've been blinded by my own misguiding, thinking I knew what was best for us. But I see it now—I've hurt you, and I've hurt us. I'm truly sorry for the choices I've made, for the pain I've inflicted."

Noah reached out tentatively, his hand finding Cordelia's, the connection more fragile than before. "I want to learn from my mistakes, to break free from this cycle that has trapped us. I love you, and I don't want to lose you. Can we find a way to rebuild what's been broken, to forge a path forward together?" The room held its breath as Noah waited for Cordelia's response, hoping for a glimmer of forgiveness in her eyes.

Noah

And when you think this is the end
You will find me there where I have always been

If I hold up hell, will you take the blame?
Put the devil’s tongue on my middle name

Though it seemed like such a silly question. One so redundant that had it been any other time, Cordelia likely would have snorted at her husband, shaking her head at how ridiculous it sounded. Of course they would find a way to rebuild. To move forward. Cordelia took a breath, giving his fingers a gentle squeeze, letting the warmth of her own finally sink into his. The One Shot sighed heavily, eyes closing for the span of a breath before finally meeting his gaze once more, the anger seeping out of her as she saw the remorse coloring his eyes.

"Of course, Noah... I love you too." Her love for him couldn't be measured in any real capacity. It was more than all the snow in Halo. More than the depths of the Sea of Glass. He was her husband. Her other half. No matter what he did. She would forgive him given enough time. Just like she would this time.

Margot squirmed in her lap, but she tightened her grip slightly, leaning forward to press her forehead to his. "We'll move forward from this. Together. Just like we always do." Cordelia murmured, closing her eyes as she let out a breath, shoulders dropping in relief as the tension began to melt between them.

Cordelia

The waters rise above my eyes
I will breathe it in and go out with the tide

In the shadow of Cordelia's response, Noah's heart skipped a beat. The weight of her words, the grace in her forgiveness, lifted the burden that had pressed on him. A bittersweet smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he listened to her, absorbing the warmth of her touch. Cordelia's gentle squeeze echoed louder than any spoken assurance, a promise to rebuild what had crumbled.

He could feel the warmth rise in the room and spread across the attuned bond that they shared. His soul melted in response and he pressed his whole self in to her, the glacier blues mixing with her earthy greens. Her declaration of her love for him, unfathomable in its depth, resonated with the enduring strength of their connection.

Noah blinked back the tears in his eyes. He felt Marcus lay his head on his chest and he held the infant tighter against him. His eyes never elft Cordelia's even as he blinked, the heat in his cheeks burning them red. "I promise I will never leave anything from you again. I swear it by Vi."

Noah

And when you think this is the end
You will find me there where I have always been

If I hold up hell, will you take the blame?
Put the devil’s tongue on my middle name

His words wrap around her like a warm blanket, weighing gently over her entire being with reassurance as he makes his vow anew. The One Shot doesn't respond, merely standing from her spot on the other side of the table and shifting around to him, Margot still held on her hip with one practiced arm. She bent down, pressing a gentle kiss to his lips, letting her breath mingle with his. There was nothing that went unsaid in that caress of lips and with one more quiet look, his wife took his hand, leading him to the twins' room to lay them down for the evening.

While there were very little words that night aside from whispered promises against skin and soft sighs of names, the Olsons once more found their way back to each other in a dance that only they could preform.

~FIN <3~

Cordelia