The Will
A drabble resulting from a Tumblr Ask - 'my muse has died and your muse is included in their will'.
“Ioh….?” The woman asked, worn, grayed ears drooping low. The elder Seeker leaned heavily against the door frame, an unopened letter loosely held in fragile hands. It took her several moments, but she shook her head.
“Even though it is a will that you bring me, it still does not come close to the haunt of the name in which you present it,” She’d murmur, raising dull, tarnished gold eyes to the courier before her. With great hesitation she handed the envelope back, bidding the woman a good-day and turning into her dwelling, shutting the door behind her with a small click.
Her hand fell upon a frame not far from her door, worn fingertips pressing against the cheeky smile of a small Seeker kit…
The Seeker proved more than difficult to find. If it not for the adamant instructions within, the courier would have likely given up long ago… each lead to the kit’s whereabouts falling just short, ending in whispers and hollow corridors.
It wasn’t until she settled down in a tavern with a mug in hand that she received a tap on her shoulder… her gaze finding a well-kempt Seeker with a faded arrow-scar on his cheek. Her heart stopped, for a moment; when she was told she’d know him, she didn’t think his look alone would resemble so closely the visage of the fallen.
C'ioh gave a small nod and a twitch of his fingers, beckoning for her to follow. It was only when they stepped into an inn room within the seafarer’s tavern did his composure drop, shoulders and tail slumping in unison. A small, lithe creature skittered from it’s perch on the balcony, edging its way up to the woman before snatching the letter from her hand completely, and bringing it to the Seeker.
It was with an apologetic nod to the woman that he bent down and gently plucked the folded parchment from the opo opo’s hands, holding it within his own for a heartbeat before nodding.
“I guess this is it, then…?” He’d mutter, unsure of who the words that came from him were addressed to. The Seeker stayed like that for some time, unaware even as his companion had relieved him of a significant amount of coin to send the woman on her way without so much as a word.
C'ioh collapsed into the desk chair, head supported only by his palm; his fingers dug in around the bridge of his nose as a sob was choked down, filling the room with an awkward silence afterwards. “Ye knew I never wanted yer gil, you bastard…” He managed to seethe, his chest tight with so many years of words unspoken. “All I ever wanted was to stay by ye, to keep ye smilin’ if'n even when yer back was turned to me. To us.”
He dropped the letter onto the desk, paying little mind to the carefully flowing ink that betrayed of his brother’s then-impending fate. His head fell back as he slumped further into the chair, fingers curling slightly. His mouth was dry, and even as they parted, he couldn’t force any words from them.
In a silent, tear stained vigil, the last words for his brother were never spoken aloud.
“Ye say hi to momma, fer me.”