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It felt like no matter where they went, no matter how careful they were, no matter how well hidden their secret rendezvous with their allies were, a pair of eyes were always on them. Always watching, always waiting.
Waiting for what exactly? For a heretic to break any of the thousand rules prohibited in their holy city of course.
Richard knew all too well how far the guards would go to punish someone for their wrongdoings. Be it over singing a beautiful heretical song or even painting the holy deities likeness in a way that displeased the general public, punishment was issued with no mercy. Depending on how big the offense was also depended on how great the punishment was. It didn’t matter how sorry the heretic was. All it took was one misstep for a world of agony to unfold. While newcomers found the rules a bit jarring to deal with, they were always reassured by the head cleric that it was to maintain peace within the holy city, and to ensure offending heretics learn a valuable lesson; to never make the same mistake twice.
Hiding amongst the shadows did little to alleviate the ever-present scrutinized feeling and tucking oneself into a blocked-off, narrow corner provided even less than desirable results but Richard would take what he could get.
Every hushed moment spent with his comrades guiding them one step closer to freedom.
If the rules weren’t so tight knit, Richard may have even found himself inviting his allies into his home as those surveying eyes dropped almost completely within one’s chambers. But alas, having more than one person in ones home at time, who were not immediate family, warranted punishment to everyone within the owners abode.
Trying to invite one person in immediately after the previous had left also fell under the same rule, making it much more challenging to relay information to his comrades, leaving their only option for meetings to be done in hidden spaces. Most usually with at least two of them pressed close together with little space to move while the other three had at least some wiggle room to move about freely.
With Richard’s dwindling vision and lack of voice he most often found himself being the one at the very end of the group with Edgar pressed against him in those tight spaces. Not that he minded in the slightest. They already shared a home, with the painter having moved in several days after hearing of Richard’s punishment, to help him navigate through his newfound disabilities. While it took some time getting used to the others constant presence, Richard would be lying if he said he didn’t find it reassuring.
Should the need to evacuate their little corners ever arised, Edgar would guide him and their group to safety each and every time. One could even call him an escapologist with how good he was at evading the holy guards.
Still, Richard never wanted to leave anything to chance, which is why he took extra precautions in getting Edgar home safely today.
Their group had been early to disband after their latest meeting, leaving some words left unsaid and some prickling with fatigue. Finding time to meet was becoming harder than it already was thanks to the annual grand parade fastly approaching date. Holy guards were stationed around every corner. At least two or three guards stood post down every path one could even think of taking. But by some miracle, four of the five group members had managed to rendezvous.
Meeting with the head cleric, Evelyn, was nearly impossible. Her holy duties took precedence over anything outside the church. Had her status been lower she may have had more lenience on where she could go but alas such thoughts were fruitless.
While Evelyn remained in the dark on her comrades meeting, Florian proposed a plan on how they could still relay information to the cleric. It would require drawing attention to him and Alice but in doing so it would allow Richard and Edgar to slip away undetected so long as they left that instant.
As much as Richard wanted to argue about the recklessness of the caged fire’s plan he knew this was their best bet in getting past the newly formed guards that had formed nearby. It was easy to see how the painters thoughts aligned with his own given the incredulous look on his face but as his eyes gazed upon the blue crystal on Alice’s hand a strange sense of calm washed over him. All it took was a hand on the small of the painters back to for the two of them to turn and run in the direction of their home.
Behind them the sound of metal against crystal echoed loudly against the walls of the city. And not long after the sound of rushing footsteps and the vaguely robotic voice of the holy guards scrambling to locate the source of the noise rumbled in the distance.
“Did he seriously break her amulet? What happened to lightly damaging it? I knew we should’ve thought of trying something else!” Edgar whisper shouted as they rounded a now empty corner, heading in the direction of the street their house was on. He huffed as rock made him stumble in his steps but with the knight running at the same pace, he was quick to catch the painter by the sleeve of his shirt, righting him as if his steps had never faltered.
As Edgar mumbled a quick “thank you” he couldn’t help but catch the knights eye, noticing the small upwards turn at the corner of his lip. “Don’t give me that look.” He returned the smirk with a small smile. “Let’s just get make sure we make it home in one piece.”
Their steps quickly turned into a more leisurely stroll the closer they got to their home. It wouldn’t do to look so out of breath when they were last seen heading in the direction of a park.
As they approached the door, Richard rummaged for his keys, finding them easily enough in his pants pocket and opened the door at an almost lightning-fast speed. Edgar hummed a simple melody as he stepped past the threshold with Richard following close behind. As the two made their way through the home they quietly began shedding their outermost layers until they were comfortable again.
There really was no place like home.
From his place in their kitchen, Richard could hear Edgar’s humming rising a bit in pitch, signaling his whereabouts in their bedroom. A smile curved on his lips as he flicked the kettle on, readying some water for the new steep of jasmine tea they had bought earlier in the week. He took a quick glance towards the sky, admiring the orange and red hues as the sun took its time dipping lower into the sky. It would take until the sun had fully set for the water to be fully boiled, but Richard knew Edgar wouldn’t mind the wait.
Figuring it would be best to start prepping dinner then, Richard made his way to their bedroom, seeking Edgar’s preference on their meal for night only to realize with a start that the painters humming had noticeably dimmed moments before he entered the room.
As his eyes wandered in the direction of bedrooms connecting bathroom Richard took a seat on their shared bed. His eyelids dropped with his descent, sitting on the corner of the bed as Edgar's humming made its way past the closed door. The melody, though quieter now, was one he would never truly tire of. Being near Edgar never ceased to put his mind at ease.
It becomes apparent sometime later that he somehow managed to drift off while listening to Edgar’s quiet humming. He can’t pinpoint when it happened but if there’s one thing he’s sure of. It’s that when he comes to, it’s to the weight of a hand settling on his scalp. There's no need for panic as he trusts this hand more than anything else in the world. A broken, distorted attempt of a coo leaves his wrecked throat as those delicate thin fingers brush over a wing. Honestly, it's a wonder any noise is able to leave the confines of his body after the punishment the holy knights forced him to endure. A small part of him clings to idea of Edgar being the one to have bestowed this small miracle onto him but who knows really.
Being in the city for so long nearly warped his sense of reason and he’d be damned to believe there really were such things as miracles. But with every little thing falling into place around him, it’s hard not to hang onto the hope of some miracles being real and not just hand crafted by a divine deity.
The hand in his hair moves slowly, with careful precision as the owner, Edgar, continues his humming from earlier. Specks of debris slowly fall from the knights hair & wings, dropping to the floor, becoming even less significant than they already were.
Arms snake around the small of Edgar’s waist pulling him close. Above him, Richard can hear the small chortle in Edgar’s melody. It’s light and air and makes him feel light.
Like this, Richard can feel more than hear the gentle drum of Edgar’s heartbeat, his own heart swelling with a fondness he isn’t sure what to do with. But as the two remain in their embrace an idea crosses his mind. He’s had this idea several times before but had never acted on it in the fear of being too forward but with the annual parade fastly approaching and the future being left to the unknown, there’s only one thing Richard can be certain of, his complete and utter devotion towards the painter.
All it takes is the slight turn of his head for Richard to press his lips to the center of the Edgar’s chest. In an instant, Edgar’s breath hitches and the knights eyes snap open. The sudden pounding of the painters heartbeat makes Richard pull back but he’s unable to go far as the hands that had been previously tending to his hair and wings wrap around the entirety of his head, pulling him in close. Through the semi rapid beating against his ear, the sound of a chirp makes its way to his ears, easing away the agitation that had unconsciously wedged its way into his shoulders.
The right side of his cheek nuzzles ever so closer to the source Edgar’s heartbeat as his eyelids drop closed once more.
It doesn't take long for Richard to drift off into a peaceful slumber, leaning his wary body into Edgar's embrace, knowing fully well the other will wake him once he gets hungry enough to ask about dinner. As he drifts off, all he can care to think about is what awaits Edgar and their allies at the annual parade.