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“...will you take me there?”
—
It had been a simple question with a far too complex answer.I mean it wasn’t like she hadn’t been there before. Right after she had learned - both times - she had made her way straight to her brother’s encampment, usually just in time. It had been heart shattering then but now, as she lead her siblings towards the family grave sight.. It just felt surreal.
She held her breath as she walked through the graves, 4 in total, laid out beside each other. She glanced briefly at the first graves, their intricate carvings and delicate letters still kept pristine after all these years - she wondered briefly who Caius, Sally? Had appointed to the task.
Their graves were laid across from each other as well, bearing marks that ‘represented’ them. Though she was sure they would both protest to that now. Caius’ grave was littered with dragon images. The most prominent being a large dragon carved to look like it was resting atop the grave, its tail underlining his title - The Prince of Dragons. She marvelled at it for a few moments. She had never been there to see her brother summon the Light Dragon that day. Maybe it was for the best.
Turning to see the opposite grave, the differences were sudden and stark.The grave was covered in chipped markings, like whoever had carved it had been hurried and fearful. Honestly she was surprised it was here, surely after her betrayal.. Caius had probably ordered it placed here. The carving of an amorphous creature curled menacingly around the base stone, as if trying to sink into the very rock it was made of itself. It almost covered the title engraved into the stone - The Corrupted Prince.
She spared a glance behind her, wanting to check on her siblings, something she did instinctively when she didn’t know how she herself was going to react. Tanith had stopped by their parent’s graves, staring at the stones with an unreadable expression. It didn’t look like she was praying, but why would she be? They probably weren’t there to pray to anymore. Caius was standing at the start of the row still, unwilling or maybe unable to come any further. He had warned them that he might not be able to - it wasn’t hard to imagine why.
She turned back to the grave of her sister, wondering idly what it meant now that this was still here. Was there still ash buried here beneath the earth? Or had they used it when they resurrected them? She supposed she would never get an answer to that, no matter how much she desperately wanted one.
She turned to face her brother’s grave again, stepping forwards to run a hand across the dragon’s back. Would he get a new stone? When he went again? The title was outdated now. Would Tanith get another? It felt unfair to keep them like this.. As they were before. She sighed softly, wondering if - when the time came - if that was something she could organise. Though maybe Caius’ family would have that covered. She was sure Mc’Quire would be on board.
She stepped back and moved back over to their parent’s grave, standing with her back to her sister so that she could read her mother’s grave. There was a poem carved into the rock, it was long, making the letters so small it was almost hard to read in the dimming light. She didn’t bother trying, it was one she knew very well. Her mother used to read it to her every night after all, even up until she left, though she was far too old for it by that point. Remembering the words made her smile softly.
She felt Tanith move off, and was a little surprised when she realised that her sister was moving towards her own grave. She watched her for a moment, a little worried about how her sister would react to such a sight. But as she watched, she saw Tanith smile. She wondered what the voice in her head was saying, surely it couldn’t be pleased.
With the spot behind her vacant she turned and looked at her father’s grave. Underneath his name and title there was an intricate carving of some kind of bouquet. Knowing her father, it meant something meaningful, he had always liked to use plants to express himself. She remembered lavender and peace lilies lining the halls of The Keep when she was younger. And some of the brightest tulips and orchids she could ever remember seeing during the times when the Drakharin would come together and celebrate. She wondered if the gardens still had all those flowers within. They surely would if Caius or Sally hadn’t changed it.
She felt a flicker of guilt. She hadn’t brought anything to offer to the gravestones. Honestly if she had thought about it more she would have brought something back from her encampment. Maybe a native flower for her father, and a carved blade for her mother. She wondered if they would have liked what she made of her encampment. She did it to their instruction after all. She huffed softly, almost amused. At least their training hadn’t gone to waste.
She looked up, Tanith had moved back to Caius now, a gentle hand resting on their brother’s shoulder. She sighed softly. She had seen what she wanted to, it was best they go home. She didn’t want to upset either of her siblings any more. She stepped over to them, gaining their attention for just a moment. She didn’t speak, not entirely sure that she could trust her voice at the moment. They understood anyway.
Caius was the first to leave, leading them out of the graveyard and into the forest again. She saw the tension drop visibly from his shoulders as he did so. He was always the one who took things the hardest.. She motioned for Tanith to walk in front of her, but for a moment her sister didn’t move.
“Verif.. Are you alright?” There was mostly concern in her tone, though it was hard to hide the inkling of suspicion she regarded her sister with.
Verif gave her a soft smile. “I’m fine Tanith.This isn’t anything I haven’t seen before, remember? Surely I’m the one that should be asking if you are okay.”
Tanith scoffed. “We are fine. It was kind of cathartic for us we suppose, to see we were treated.. right. In our death. It would have been upsetting to know we had gotten more than we deserved.”
Verif tilted her head slightly. “You don’t think you deserved honour? I know things got messy towards the end, but surely you should be honoured for all of your life, not just the last of it.” She knew her sister had some hang-ups still, about all that she had done. But it had only been one part of her legacy.
“We didn’t deserve anything, by the time that we were slain. In fact we know this is only here because Caius ordered it. If not for him…maybe the better option would have been to try and let the Drakharin forget me.” Tanith held Verif’s gaze as she spoke, though her eyes glazed over slightly, as if remembering things. Verif was always surprised how she didn’t shy away from those memories anymore, despite knowing how much her sister hated having made them.
“Caius would never had let that happen, no matter what you had done.” She shook her head slightly. “No. He would have given you a grave here no matter how much havoc you wrought. You know that.” If there was one thing you could say about Caius it was that he was unbelievably loyal to his family. Above everything else. It was why he was here now, after all.
Tanith sighed. “We know, Verif. And we are grateful. We suppose we are just, impressed, at the effort put forth for their ‘Corrupted Prince’. We hurt so many.. we cannot begin to imagine the backlash that Caius encountered giving us a grave here.” Her eyes were still distant, as if she was looking through Verif instead of at her.
“That’s never been something to stop him.” Her eyes flicked to where her brother had disappeared through the trees. There was no doubt that he was still there, lingering, while they finished their conversation. “In fact, at that time, it may have spurred him on more.”
That drew a laugh from Tanith. “That is probably true.” She didn’t say anything more and turned on her heel, heading across the same path Caius had walked to leave.
Verif stayed for a moment more, turning back to the graves and bowing her head. She muttered a short prayer under her breath, even though she knew there would be no one there to hear it anymore. It still felt, right. Like she was paying the proper respect to the fallen. She supposed she might be. Neither of the people engraved into her sibling’s graves were here anymore.
She turned and began to move down the path, joining her siblings that were waiting just beyond the trees. Caius still seemed a little distant. But again, that was to be expected. A sight like that could not have been easy for him to witness. He had always been the most feeling of them all. Verif blinked kindly at him, giving him a little nod to check if he was okay. He returned it quick enough that Verif decided he was okay. She took the lead along the path that lead back to the stables. She would stop there, let Caius check on his horses before they went back to The Castle. She wondered if she would have to pass it off as a rest, to make Caius take the chance. If she did she knew Tanith would see it immediately and join in the charade, she had always been like that, in on anything she could be.
She felt that same flicker of guilt, as she walked away from the graves. She really wished she had remembered to bring something. Maybe she would come back another time, when she could find time away from her own encampment, and make a solo trip out here to place something. She would have to do it in secret of course. She wanted to cause as little of a stir as possible if she wasn’t staying for long. Maybe she would grow the flowers herself, for her father. She knew enough how to do that, and surely the gardeners would be able to help her. She could carve the blade too, that would be given to her mother. She could already envision the patterns she would put into the metal. It didn’t have to be a usable blade, after all.
Yes. That was what she would do. She would go back home eventually, and she would start immediately. The flowers would have to wait until they were in season, but the blade would fill that gap readily enough. She would buy the steel needed and start shaping the blade in any spare time she could find. It would take a while between her duties but maybe that just meant it would mean more. She thought her parents would appreciate it even more, knowing she created the gifts while juggling her other responsibilities. Yes. She decided. That was what she would do. As the stables came into view she felt resolve settle in her chest now that she had thought of a way to honour her parents. She hoped they would be proud of her.