TUC Oneshots/Drabbles

i will wait for you with bated breath

She had been the queens assistant for many years now. Miri had listened to the whispers about how the queen was a queen in name only. How she had fallen from her refusal to take a king--though no one knew why. Though--Miri knew. Luxa, as she insisted she be called, had told her years ago. That she was waiting for someone special. Luxa told her of him as she brushed and braided her hair. Of a boy who had come from the sun, and brought light to all of them. Before Miri's time, Luxa had always said. He had been a warrior, and had saved them from destruction with the help of others. She always looked so sad, when she talked about him.

#

Once, Luxa had shown her a 'photograph' of them--Luxa was decades younger and smiling; and the boy next to her was grinning--all dark curls and dark skin. A stark contrast to Luxa. But she had loved him. She said that she was waiting for him to come back--that he would. Miri never mentioned that it had been too long, at this point. That maybe something had happened or he had forgotten. But Luxa believed, and that was more important. She believed that the boy from the sun would come back to her someday, and she waited. It was almost heartbreaking, sometimes--the way she would look at the picture of them, and her entire face would soften, brushing her thumb across their faces--the once glossy paper now faded and dull.

#

Luxa told Miri of their adventures when they flew on Aurora--how they traveled across the Underland and the Waterway and to places Miri could never imagine. She told Miri that even though it had been terrifying at times, it was okay because she had been surrounded by friends. Aurora would occasionally chirp in about a flier named Ares--who had been the boys bond. Had been, because he had died during the fight with the Bane. Miri hadn't asked about him after that--had only gathered what she could from the stories. Luxa told her of a gnawer named Twitchtip, and a crawler named Tick, and countless others that died in their quests. But there were those who had survived--Howard, who was a doctor in the medical wing; Mareth, who Miri regularly saw walking around the palace ("He is really missing a leg?" "Yes, he fought hard to keep himself here."), and two shiners ("I wanted to end them daily--they always ate more than their share, but...they brought him back to me. So perhaps I can forgive them in that regard."). The shiners brought back the boy, and Luxa told Miri how they had to stitch him back together--how he had been in shreds. She told him that he was always getting injured--that he had countless scars that told of different quests--from giant squids to gnawers, to the one time he accidentally burnt his finger on a torch. Luxa had laughed at that--it was basic to keep fingers away from torches. When Luxa smiled, the scar on her face seemed softer---it wasn't as harsh against her features, but she only really ever smiled when she talked about him. Miri knew she had been happier once--she knew that Hazard brought Luxa unimaginable joy, but she never shared her smile anymore. Age had gotten to Luxa, whether she had wanted it to or not.

#

Miri had been told once of when the boy had first arrived--how he had seemed to cause chaos wherever he went--and how he had brought along his odd Overlander logic like it was common. Miri knew that Luxa missed that. She knew that she missed that, because sometimes she would find Luxa perched on the edge of her balcony, legs swinging as she looked across the city. She was surrounded by friends and family, but Miri couldn't help but think that she was so lonely. Miri would look from the doorway, and couldn't help but think that Luxa held the weight of a ghost of someone who wasn't going to return on her shoulders. And maybe that was the loneliest thing of all.

#

There was a gnawer that came to visit, sometimes. He scared Miri, but he was never concerned with her. He only talked to Luxa about what sounded like nonsense. Words like 'Virginia' and 'New York' being thrown around. Luxa was never happy after these visits. She would sigh and ask Miri to brush her hair, or would say she was tired and go flying with Aurora. She loved to fly. Luxa had told her that she could do all sorts of tricks when she was younger, but now she was too old for all that. And Aurora was too old. Youth had given way to age and memory, and all that was left of it was dirt and dust found in the corners of Luxa's mind.

#

The day Miri found Luxa sitting on the balcony, the photograph tight in her hand, Miri had gone to sit next to her. Luxa hadn't pushed her away. She had instead asked Miri to talk about herself.

Miri told her of her sisters and the little brother they all coddled. How she had come to work in the palace, and had met Luxa. After talking for a little while, Miri had quietly asked for more stories about the boy. Luxa had smiled in that way that made her look young again, and had sighed.

"I have told you all there is. I only had him for a year, Miri. And not even a full one at that. I wish I had more time with him."
She had said that he was the one she would wait for, no matter what. Miri believed that Luxa loved him, and she believed that he loved her. But she knew in her soul that Luxa would wait until her own heart had stopped. And then, they would find each other again.