It's a day off for the people of the garden. The kids kick a ball around, all of them fighting to be the one who gets to send it through the makeshift goal posts on the far side of the clearing. Among them is a younger boy on the quieter side. His parents have passed for reasons far beyond anyone's control and far beyond the abilities of even Druig or Isis to prevent. So, Druig keeps an eye on him, even now as the boy trails the group of kids fighting over the ball. The boy is nice and particularly respectful for his age, so Druig thinks to himself that the least the boy deserves today is a chance at scoring a goal. Druig's eyes begin to glow and suddenly all the kids start running just a little bit slower, except the boy and the ball who now break away from the pack. The boy doesn't seem to notice what's happening around him; he's too excited by the fact that he's got the ball right in front of him and his sights on the goal. As soon as the ball tumbles through the goal posts, the boy spins around until he spots Druig who is discreetly applauding on the sidelines. The boy smiles real big, and he looks a lot like someone else Druig had helped a long, long time ago.
The boy makes a beeline to the spot where Druig stands, nearly tripping over himself out of excitement along the way.
"Did you see that? Did you see that?" The boy can barely say with the little amount of breath he has left.
"I did, little lad. You did great," Druig smiles. He hands the boy a drink of water.
With two hands, the boy takes the cup and gulps all the water down in one go before handing it back to Druig. He takes a moment to catch his breath and when he finally does, he tugs at Druig's sleeve.
"Will you take me to see my mother and father now?" the boy asks of Druig. It's what they usually do at this time on this day of the week.
"Of course," Druig answers, setting down the empty cup. He takes the boy's hand and escorts him down the path which leads out of the garden. They pass by Isis on the way, and the boy asks her if she'd like to join them.
"Of course," she answers the same.
The graveyard is a bit of a ways away, but the path is well-established. Isis trails the two boys as they walk — she looks down to observe the two sets of footprints they leave behind: one pair very evenly spaced, and another pair that wanders and skips all over the path.
Eventually, the trio approaches the valley where the graveyard resides. "Go on," Druig says to the boy, letting his hand free.
The boy carefully picks a handful of white flowers planted at the top of the cliff before making the descent. Druig and Isis do the same, holding each other's hands as they, too, make the descent into the valley. Like clockwork, they make their way to a pair of graves resting in the outskirts of the yard. They lay their flowers between the headstones before taking a seat on the earth.
They sit in silence like they usually do. Some days, the silence is okay — peaceful, even. Other days, the silence is cruel, and today is more like the latter. Isis glances at Druig as this is the only place where he ever looks sad. As lovely as life is in the garden, the Eternals tend to forget how much it hurts to outlive everyone besides each other.
He doesn't look at her, but his hand reaches out to take a hold of hers. It makes him feel a little better.
YOU ARE READING
somewhere in time {Druig}
Fanfiction'It's beautiful, isn't it?' she says. 'It is,' he answers. She's looking at the sky, but he's thinking about her. OC x Druig (Marvel's Eternals)
