Only fools would ever deign to consider that one could outrun the cost of a bargain. For Victor Rookwood, his deeds and dealings have become his daughter, Caroline's, to bear. For Ominis Gaunt? A centuries-old myth and whispers of a curse among the...
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EDIT: 9/2/23-- a most special thank you to ChorlyMorly on AO3 for gifting this beautiful art of Sebastian and Caroline. I am honored, flattered, and shall treasure this whole heartedly!!!! <3
Sebastian
**
Caroline had always been the one.
There was a moment when Sebastian loved deeply—a moment he would have stood between the girl he loved to fend off danger—a moment he would have happily died for her. To kill for her. To destroy anyone or anything that would have harmed her. He said he could be led to his ruin, and he allowed it.
Sebastian would have liked to say that he had always loved Caroline... but that would have been a half truth. There were many ways he loved her in their history together—and he would admit, regrettably, that there was a time he resented and scorned her. He had been prejudiced, young, and too stubborn. But time left marks—little pieces in his memories guiding him back to Caroline despite his previous attempts to forget their time together. He could not lie and say she had always been the love of his life. But he knew he was truthful when he said she had always been the future he wanted, even if the truth wasn't as clear years ago.
But one thing remained unchanged about the woman he dreamed of—she, left him breathless.
Caroline left him breathless, literally, in their first meeting as she stumbled into him on her way to the kitchens. She left him breathless with her patience and brilliance when she guided his hand to trace new spells. She left him breathless at the utter audacity and fiery wit of her words when they argued. And she left him breathless with her sounds—the soft peels of laughter, the snorting giggles, the shift in her tone under her admonishment, the softness in her voice as she calmed him, the huskiness in her pleas when she gave herself to him, and the loving sound of her hums and singing.
He stood, in the middle of the ruins of a courtyard, under a clear moonlit sky and the crisp night air, breathlessly watching as Caroline bound down the stairs to him. She was perfection against the overgrown weeds and plants. And despite the disheveled state of her long, wavy hair and wrinkled dress, she shone brightly against the dirt stained, cracked stones. He was rooted within the ruins, his eyes locked with hers—and he remained still until he captured the breath of her kiss.
"Here you are," she whispered.
Her kisses always lingered just a touch away, the flutter of her eyes opening to look into his as she pulled back.
"Here, I am," he sighed, pulling her close to rest his forehead against hers. He would have liked to bask in the silence between them, the unspoken words of longing understood by the simplicity of their touches, but he needed her to know.
"Will you walk with me?" he asked softly.
"Yes, of course," she pulled back with a smile.
Sebastian shrugged off his cloak, wrapping it tightly around her much to her amusement before they set off slowly past the ruins of the castle. His hands were wrapped around the warmth of her own as he led her down the dirt path.
