(no subject)
Originally posted to akai_kitsune on March 5/07.
Title: In the Rain
Fandom: Tales of the Abyss
Word Count: 1346
Spoilers: Guy's past.
Summary: Luke explores the outdoors for the first time.
"Come on, Guy, hurry up!"
Watching his master was more exhausting than he could put into words. Guy followed him dutifully down the hall, speeding up when Luke trotted back to grab his hand and drag him along, hunting for the door that led to freedom.
Yesterday, Duke Fabre had said, Luke passed the first test - he was now fit enough to leave his room and go outside for the first time. To say Luke was excited was a severe understatement.
"Luke, do you even know where you're going?" he called out tiredly, resisting the urge to rub at his eyes. Luke had kept him awake for half the night with his bouncing enthusiasm, sneaking into his room when everyone else was asleep and dragging him off to stare out the window at what he would see up close come morning. Where the boy got all his energy was beyond him.
"I don't need to!" Luke chirped back, practically skipping down the hall, apparently unbothered by his servant's sleepy disposition - unless it slowed them down at all. "Sooner or later one of the doors will be the right one!"
Guy resisted the urge to roll his eyes, and suppressed another yawn. Luke was dragging them around in circles, and at this rate he'd never get his chores done before dinner. Squeezing Luke's hand just enough to get his attention, he spun them both around, heading down a corridor and through a door the boy had somehow missed three times in a row. "It's this way."
"... I knew that," Luke pouted, his voice carrying a level of hauteur that appeared once in a while, only recently developed, mostly due to a number of conversations with the duke. Apparently one of Luke's new goals was to talk Just Like Daddy.
The Jewel of Gardios was looking more and more tempting by the day.
"Of course you did," he responded predictably, his tone somewhat deadpan. He reached for the doorknob, but Luke beat him to it, yanking the door open and dashing outside, almost sending them both tumbling down the stairs.
His bare feet hit the pavement, and he froze, but only for a second or two; immediately after he jumped, laughing, and danced back to stand on the mat resting by the doorway. "Hot, it's hot!"
Another sigh. "That's why I told you to put your shoes on first." Guy lifted his free hand, a simple pair of sandals dangling from his fingers.
Luke pouted again, but took the sandals anyway, sitting down on the steps to tug them on. A scant second later he was moving again, pulling Guy further into the courtyard, eyes drinking in every sight to be found. "The sun's so warm! No wonder the ground was hot..."
"You're lucky it's not raining," Guy commented, squinting in the sunlight. What he'd give for a rainstorm - at least then he could be inside and entertaining Luke with some kind of game, and that meant sitting down instead of wandering around the estate.
Luke grinned at him, trotting towards the center area and stomping on the metal grates, delighting at the different sounds each part of the ground made beneath his feet. "I'd like to run around in the rain! It would be more fun than a bath, that's for sure."
"The rain is cold," Guy pointed out. He was trying desperately not to smile; Pere was tending to the flowers nearby, and despite appearances their loyalty still lay with House Gardios.
At least it had last time he checked...
His charge made a face, shuffling further into the garden area, letting go of Guy's hand to run his hands along the grass, enjoying the feel of it through his fingers. "But it's hot outside. Wouldn't it feel nice?"
Guy pursed his lips, pretending to follow the flight of some unseen bird in the sky so he could avoid looking at his young master. "Remember the thunderstorm last week? You had me close your window because you were so cold. The clouds usually hide the sun, and it makes the air chilly. You'd need a really humid day for the rain to feel good." Anticipating a complaint, he added, "But sometimes it does happen."
Luke seemed satisfied with that. He sat down in the grass, tugging off his sandals and curling his toes in it, smiling again. "At least it's nice and cool here." Guy nodded absently, missing the pointed look the boy shot him, requiring a more effective tactic. "Guuuuy!"
"What is it, Luke?"
"Come sit with me!"
"...." Guy had to try very hard not to look annoyed. The both of them were in light clothes - he was going to have a hell of a time cleaning out any stains later. But there was no denying the look he was getting, so after a moment, he sat down in the grass next to the boy.
There was a long silence as the two of them sat there, simply enjoying the sunlight. Guy had taken a moment to rest his eyes - a moment, just a moment, and oh, it felt wonderful - when suddenly a weight slammed into his back, and he was greeted with a face full of grass.
"Got you!" Luke chimed, sitting on top of him, pinning him there and looking proud as anything. He bounced a few times, and Guy considered himself lucky he didn't have sensitive stomach. "Gotta be quick on your feet, Guy!"
"You weren't on your feet at all," Guy grumbled, trying to push himself upright. Luke was surprisingly heavy for a ten-year old. "Come on, you, up. I already ate breakfast today."
Luke giggled childishly, rolling off him to lie at his side, still grinning away. Guy glared back at him, shifting to rest on his hands and knees.
Another silence.
And then he surprised himself by pouncing Luke, the child shrieking in surprise, then laughter, the two of them rolling through the grass, attacking one another with bits of foliage and tickling fingers. For the first time in what was probably years, he threw protocol to the wolves and treated Luke exactly as he saw him - a little boy, a bit lost, a bit lonely, a bit stupid. No titles, no servitude, no mercy.
He laughed before he could realize it, and the sound made him freeze like he'd been stabbed in the heart.
Catching Luke's hands to stop the tickling, he sat bolt upright, eyes searching the outskirts of the garden.
Duke and Madam Fabre were watching at the gate of the main household entrance, shaded from the sun. Luke's mother looked amused. His father did not.
Luke finally noticed what had stopped his playtime, and his expression brightened. He tugged his hands free of Guy's and dashed over, arms outstretched for a hug. "Mother! I'm outside!"
"I can see that, Luke!" she laughed, leaning down to hold him back. "You've done so well..."
Anything else she said was lost on Guy; he stared back at Duke Fabre, stared down the man who killed his father, the one who'd sired the child who found his laugh again. He waited for a reprimand - for ruining the boy's fine clothes, for attacking him in his own home, for not looking down in submission like a good servant should.
It never came. Duke Fabre turned away, and a moment later his wife sent their hyperactive son back to the baffled servant still panting in the dirt.
Why... didn't he get angry with me...?
That man is unforgiving. He's supposed to be cruel. He doesn't even give a damn about his own son. Why did he let me...?
Luke tackled him from the side without warning, then, and as he fell back in the grass, the wind knocked right out of him and a child laughing on his stomach, he caught sight of Pere still tending to the flowers - and was disturbed to find the old man was smiling, too.
It made him wonder what the world was coming to.
Title: In the Rain
Fandom: Tales of the Abyss
Word Count: 1346
Spoilers: Guy's past.
Summary: Luke explores the outdoors for the first time.
"Come on, Guy, hurry up!"
Watching his master was more exhausting than he could put into words. Guy followed him dutifully down the hall, speeding up when Luke trotted back to grab his hand and drag him along, hunting for the door that led to freedom.
Yesterday, Duke Fabre had said, Luke passed the first test - he was now fit enough to leave his room and go outside for the first time. To say Luke was excited was a severe understatement.
"Luke, do you even know where you're going?" he called out tiredly, resisting the urge to rub at his eyes. Luke had kept him awake for half the night with his bouncing enthusiasm, sneaking into his room when everyone else was asleep and dragging him off to stare out the window at what he would see up close come morning. Where the boy got all his energy was beyond him.
"I don't need to!" Luke chirped back, practically skipping down the hall, apparently unbothered by his servant's sleepy disposition - unless it slowed them down at all. "Sooner or later one of the doors will be the right one!"
Guy resisted the urge to roll his eyes, and suppressed another yawn. Luke was dragging them around in circles, and at this rate he'd never get his chores done before dinner. Squeezing Luke's hand just enough to get his attention, he spun them both around, heading down a corridor and through a door the boy had somehow missed three times in a row. "It's this way."
"... I knew that," Luke pouted, his voice carrying a level of hauteur that appeared once in a while, only recently developed, mostly due to a number of conversations with the duke. Apparently one of Luke's new goals was to talk Just Like Daddy.
The Jewel of Gardios was looking more and more tempting by the day.
"Of course you did," he responded predictably, his tone somewhat deadpan. He reached for the doorknob, but Luke beat him to it, yanking the door open and dashing outside, almost sending them both tumbling down the stairs.
His bare feet hit the pavement, and he froze, but only for a second or two; immediately after he jumped, laughing, and danced back to stand on the mat resting by the doorway. "Hot, it's hot!"
Another sigh. "That's why I told you to put your shoes on first." Guy lifted his free hand, a simple pair of sandals dangling from his fingers.
Luke pouted again, but took the sandals anyway, sitting down on the steps to tug them on. A scant second later he was moving again, pulling Guy further into the courtyard, eyes drinking in every sight to be found. "The sun's so warm! No wonder the ground was hot..."
"You're lucky it's not raining," Guy commented, squinting in the sunlight. What he'd give for a rainstorm - at least then he could be inside and entertaining Luke with some kind of game, and that meant sitting down instead of wandering around the estate.
Luke grinned at him, trotting towards the center area and stomping on the metal grates, delighting at the different sounds each part of the ground made beneath his feet. "I'd like to run around in the rain! It would be more fun than a bath, that's for sure."
"The rain is cold," Guy pointed out. He was trying desperately not to smile; Pere was tending to the flowers nearby, and despite appearances their loyalty still lay with House Gardios.
At least it had last time he checked...
His charge made a face, shuffling further into the garden area, letting go of Guy's hand to run his hands along the grass, enjoying the feel of it through his fingers. "But it's hot outside. Wouldn't it feel nice?"
Guy pursed his lips, pretending to follow the flight of some unseen bird in the sky so he could avoid looking at his young master. "Remember the thunderstorm last week? You had me close your window because you were so cold. The clouds usually hide the sun, and it makes the air chilly. You'd need a really humid day for the rain to feel good." Anticipating a complaint, he added, "But sometimes it does happen."
Luke seemed satisfied with that. He sat down in the grass, tugging off his sandals and curling his toes in it, smiling again. "At least it's nice and cool here." Guy nodded absently, missing the pointed look the boy shot him, requiring a more effective tactic. "Guuuuy!"
"What is it, Luke?"
"Come sit with me!"
"...." Guy had to try very hard not to look annoyed. The both of them were in light clothes - he was going to have a hell of a time cleaning out any stains later. But there was no denying the look he was getting, so after a moment, he sat down in the grass next to the boy.
There was a long silence as the two of them sat there, simply enjoying the sunlight. Guy had taken a moment to rest his eyes - a moment, just a moment, and oh, it felt wonderful - when suddenly a weight slammed into his back, and he was greeted with a face full of grass.
"Got you!" Luke chimed, sitting on top of him, pinning him there and looking proud as anything. He bounced a few times, and Guy considered himself lucky he didn't have sensitive stomach. "Gotta be quick on your feet, Guy!"
"You weren't on your feet at all," Guy grumbled, trying to push himself upright. Luke was surprisingly heavy for a ten-year old. "Come on, you, up. I already ate breakfast today."
Luke giggled childishly, rolling off him to lie at his side, still grinning away. Guy glared back at him, shifting to rest on his hands and knees.
Another silence.
And then he surprised himself by pouncing Luke, the child shrieking in surprise, then laughter, the two of them rolling through the grass, attacking one another with bits of foliage and tickling fingers. For the first time in what was probably years, he threw protocol to the wolves and treated Luke exactly as he saw him - a little boy, a bit lost, a bit lonely, a bit stupid. No titles, no servitude, no mercy.
He laughed before he could realize it, and the sound made him freeze like he'd been stabbed in the heart.
Catching Luke's hands to stop the tickling, he sat bolt upright, eyes searching the outskirts of the garden.
Duke and Madam Fabre were watching at the gate of the main household entrance, shaded from the sun. Luke's mother looked amused. His father did not.
Luke finally noticed what had stopped his playtime, and his expression brightened. He tugged his hands free of Guy's and dashed over, arms outstretched for a hug. "Mother! I'm outside!"
"I can see that, Luke!" she laughed, leaning down to hold him back. "You've done so well..."
Anything else she said was lost on Guy; he stared back at Duke Fabre, stared down the man who killed his father, the one who'd sired the child who found his laugh again. He waited for a reprimand - for ruining the boy's fine clothes, for attacking him in his own home, for not looking down in submission like a good servant should.
It never came. Duke Fabre turned away, and a moment later his wife sent their hyperactive son back to the baffled servant still panting in the dirt.
Why... didn't he get angry with me...?
That man is unforgiving. He's supposed to be cruel. He doesn't even give a damn about his own son. Why did he let me...?
Luke tackled him from the side without warning, then, and as he fell back in the grass, the wind knocked right out of him and a child laughing on his stomach, he caught sight of Pere still tending to the flowers - and was disturbed to find the old man was smiling, too.
It made him wonder what the world was coming to.