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It was a rainy day in the Gray Garden when their leaders fell. Lightening fell once their son had found out. The sole heir of the rulers.
Silhouette sat on his father's throne, hugging his knees and attempting not to cry again. It was so hard not to cry. He missed his parents so much. It had been a month of long rain in the garden. No one expected less. This was a mourning period for all. "You need to eat, Sil." The young ruler didn't even look up. He wanted to ignore the man in front of him. Not even acknowledge his presence. However.. he couldn't bring himself to do it.
"I-It's not fair, Wodahs.." He murmured. He'd said that so many times. It hurt to hear, maybe it hurt because of how honest it was. "...I know. But it's not fair to them that you refuse to take care of yourself." Of course tears flooded at those words. Silhouette hated being vulnerable around most people. Sometimes it felt odd around his stotic uncle but he couldn't handle being alone right now. Not when the two people who were supposed to always be here.. weren't anymore.
Silhouette cried so often in the early days. He was always in the throne room, taking turns on both Etihw and Kcalb's usual places. At some point he even resorted to his father's coffin for comfort.
The rain never truly stopped. Some days it was a drizzle, some was a downpour. That pattern lasted for about a year until.. one day the rain stopped for once. The clouds cleared momentarily.
Revealing the bright sun.
Shortly after, inhabitants of the garden spotted their young ruler with another young man. A demon who was quite shy but who it was didn't matter. Finally seeing Silhouette happy again made things ease.
One morning, the couple was talking, as usual.
"You are thinking again." Licorice said softly. He was making an observation more than accusing. Silhouette looked over and smiled softly. "Mhm. I am." He confirmed. Forcing the demon to lean closer to him. Silence filled them for a moment. That was the nice thing about Licorice.. he never really forced it out.
He waited patiently and listened no matter what. Even if it was merely their breathing, he didn't mind. After long moment, Silhouette did speak. "..Before.. I used to think I couldn't do it without them." He started. Still looking up at the sunrise. He loved watching it. That was his routine, waking up just as dawn hit to watch the sunrise. Sometimes Licorice joined but was never made to.
"I used to think they'd be disappointed how things turned out.. but now?" His hand trailed to his lover's stomach. "I can't help but think how happy and proud they'd be." Licorice kept his expression neutral. He had never met Etihw and Kcalb. He knew the war his mother started many years ago but he never exactly had an opinion on them. Not until meeting Silhouette.. learning about their sacrifices.
"I.. I'm sure they would be proud, Sil." He mumbled. Feeling.. a little awkward but he'd never admit that. He was too worried to say the wrong thing. Comforting absolutely anyone was hard, no matter how much be desired to do so. Especially for Silhouette. "They would be, wouldn't they. sweetheart?" Silhouette hummed.
He knew more than he let Licorice know.
Maybe ever know.
.
.
"Alright alright, princess-!! Enough!" Silhouette laughed, his daughter being an absolute menace as usual. Continuing to try and take his hair pins. "Give it to me, dad-!!" Sylvie demanded through her hiss. She was so spoiled. Always getting what she wanted. All thanks to her grandfather.. Satanick was a sucker for her. Worse than anyone else. "Absolutely not-!" Silhouette protested, still laughing as he tried to shove her away from his head. She was nine! Too old to be acting like this.. but then again. That made it far more amusing.
As their playful encounter continued, they both heard a loud "Ahem." from a familiar voice. They both turned their heads quickly. "Breaktime is over, Sylveira. Back to your studies." Wodahs stared at the two. Looking extremely unamused. "But Wodahssss.." Both Sylvie and Silhouette whined at the angel in sync. Clearly it did nothing, as he just blinked. Waiting for Sylvie to walk over to him. She huffed loudly. Getting off the couch and walking over to him only to get her forehead flicked.
"You are being too loud as well. Your mother needs to be resting." Sylvie sighed again, nodding in agreement. She was sick of having to behave just because her mother needed to rest. "Yeah Sylvieee, your mama needs to sleep." Silhouette chimed in, smirking. He was just trying to annoy his daughter even more. The young girl made another annoyed noise and stormed off. Turning her head to see if her (great) uncle was coming.
"Go. I'm coming." Wodahs sighed, in his own frustration. Turning to Silhouette. "You leave him alone too." The man had gone a little crazy this time. He'd been taking care of all medical needs with Licorice and helping Sylvie with extra studies this time around. They appreciated his help.. but he was quite overbearing at times. Licorice was even more frustrated by it, having to stay in bed constantly. He always hated being put on bed rest. "But Wodahsss.." Silhouette whined once more, acting like a child.. just because he could. Just to have fun with him. The angel turned away, going off to follow his niece.
"You are the ruler of the garden, Silhouette. Don't act like a petulant child." As Wodahs left, Silhouette gasped dramatically. How dare that evil angel say such a thing! He crossed his arms and leaned back on the couch. Huffing and pouting loudly. "Stupid Wodahs.. I can't even see my husband." He mumbled. Silhouette closed his eyes, thinking. He really did hate how sick Licorice had been. It only started about a week ago but it was still concerning and yet so familiar for some odd reason. Suddenly, he heard loud yelling from Sylvie in the other room. Clearly she was not happy about having to study. She always got mad about that. The ruler remained on the couch for a moment. He loved his little girl.. but her temper was impossible sometimes.
"Geez, that girl is something else." A voice snickered out. More amused than exasperated. Silhouette looked over who spoke. Not exactly surprised to see who was there. "..Yeah. I think she gets her temper from Lico's side." The person nodded in agreement. "Makes sense. Ivlis had quite the temper." "It's not that bad, mom." Etihw shrugged. "Well, before you or Licorice ever were thought of." Silhouette didn't answer. He was honestly happy, seeing his mom again. Ever since Etihw and Kcalb had passed away, they often visited him. Showing up at random times, honestly it scared him at times. But at least he knew they were still around in some sense. The first time it happened, he cried so hard. Grateful to see them again.. fearful he was losing his mind. It was nice to see them now.
"Where's dad?" Before Etihw answered, there was a loud crash. It sounded like a vase or something breaking. Followed by a loud growl. "Sylveira Dawn! What the hell did I just say!?" Silhouette got up now. Burying his head in his hands. Attempting to suppress a groan himself. "Go help Wodahs." Etihw coaxed. Deciding to follow along. It was always interesting to see their son's parenting skills.. mostly because he was such a sucker for the girl. They looked outside before following. The drizzle of rain outside was gone now.
The rain that fell the first day they both passed was gone now.
It still rained in the garden.. it still drizzled but it would be a long while before such heavy rain fell again.