𝕝𝕖𝕘𝕒𝕔𝕪 ⟡ ᴊᴀᴍᴇs ᴘᴏᴛᴛᴇʀ¹

sixty nine: newcomer

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

MASON PUSHED LYRA'S hair back, making sure to get it all away from her face. She was sleeping now. She had had one of her 'sad' days, keeping to herself and silently crying, which wasn't as silent as she thought.

"You don't have to take care of me, Mase" Lyra mumbled, shifting slightly. Okay, so she wasn't asleep. "But I want to" he hummed, pulling her blanket up so that it covered her body. She opened her eyes, gazing up at him with a challenging expression. The room was incredibly dark but he could still see her. "I can take care of myself"

Mason released a soft chuckle at her words. "Believe me. I know that" His thumb was now softly stroking her chin. "But you take care of all of us. It's only fair I return the favor" She sighed, scooting over and tiredly lifting her blanket, inviting him inside. He paused for a moment, unsure of what to do. It seemed like as of lately, every time they slept in the same bed, nothing good ever came out of it.

"Lie down. My arm's getting tired" she whined. Mason rolled his eyes playfully. "Whatever you want, little baby" he teased, getting comfortable as he settled in the space next to her. Lyra happily dropped her arm back to its original position, but this time because Mason was next to her, it was actually draped across his chest. Moments like this confused him.

He understood that to Lyra, she was just acting like the normal, loving, and caring person that she was. She was big on physical touch. But for him, due to his unresolved feelings about the girl, he could only see it as an act to do with a significant other or anything of the sort.

Mason took a deep breath, turning slightly so that he would face her. She blinked her tired eyes up at him, giving him a soft smile. His heart warmed. "I know you don't want to speak about it" he whispered, moving his hand up so that it held onto her arm, almost like an act of support. "But is marrying Rosier what you really want?"

Lyra pursed her lips. Did she? "In true honesty, I think we both know that it isn't" she murmured. "But it's what The Dark Lord wants. And with what has been happening lately, I think it's best we follow his orders until all of us have the power to do differently" He nodded his head slowly. "Then I'll learn to respect him. Respect your-" He cleared his throat mid-sentence, clearly uncomfortable about the idea. "your relationship" he finished.

The young witch felt her body relax for once. Mason always seemed to have this affect on her. No matter what was going on or the type of crazy shit that seemed to always infiltrate her life, his presence never failed to provide a sense of security, much like the blanket they were currently under. Just like Regulus, he felt like home.

Lyra reached up, cupping his face with one hand softly. "I don't think I will ever understand what I did to deserve you being in my life, Mase" Her tone was so sincere and what he distinguished as safe. She was his home, too.

"When I first really understood that Walburga and Orion weren't my parents, I didn't know how to feel" She's never shared this with anyone before. Not even her 'twin'. "I mean, I should've been relieved, right?" A slight chuckle escaped her throat. "But when you're a kid just wanting your parents to love you-" Tears began to prick her eyes. "The truth didn't even matter because they had done damage that only a mother and father could do"

Mason intertwined their fingers and squeezed her hand. "But I had so much hope that my real parents were out there, maybe even looking for me" Her voice cracked as the first tear fell. "And then I found out that they were both dead" There was a humorless laugh just forcing its way out. How else was she supposed to cope with the situation? "I thought that that was the worst type of pain I had ever felt before"