Wild Raven

Memories Leave In Ashes

Information:

"Siriusly?" - talking

'Raven' - thinking

'you are an idiot!' - telepathy

"Wolf in sheep's clothing" - parseltongue

-YOU!- - spell

Flashback

She watched him as he closed his eyes. After a moment, it snapped open, eyes gleaming like the depths of the killing curse. Harry's head tilted to the right unnaturally, a small grin on his face. Tia knelt swiftly, her wrinkly right arm taking place in front of her chest and her head bowed, "Ο βασιλιάς μου".

The Present

"Ο βασιλιάς μου?" He laughed, "Well, it's certainly been a long time since I've heard someone call me that."

Tia stayed quiet, still kneeling before her liege. He sighed and leaned down to help her up. Tia stood up shakily, her legs creaking with the effort. She didn't look at him, instead staring at his feet. "My king," she whispered again, her voice raspy.

"Go sit down," he ordered, pinching the bridge of his nose, "It's unsightly to see someone I consider a family to be so weak."

"Family, sire?" She whispered, following his order, "After everything?"

He looked at her for a long time before nodding, "Yes."

"But why?" she asked, her voice confused and desperate, trying to find out why her liege still considered her family. 

Raven sat down, looking up at the decorated ceiling. "They still use the styles from the past," he avoided the question.

Tia started shaking, her wrinkly arms wrapping around her. "But why, my king?" She repeated, her tone harsh, yet soft and pleading. 

He acted as if he didn't hear her, instead looking at the sculpted history on the walls. There were pictures of kings on chariots, of women guarding the barrier, of common men and royalty sharing a drink as if they were all the same. 

It wasn't a nice feeling, Raven decided, looking at the forgotten history of them-him. He was sure the goblins were the only ones to remember who he once was. They had a long history together for sure, he thought as he glanced at Tia. A very long one.

Tia was still staring at his feet, curled into herself, her gold bracelets clinking together. The same bracelets he remembers forcing on her, as she knelt on the floor of his throne room. It had been one of the worst days of his life, finding out someone he cherished had refused to be his pillar of support, to help him when he was stuck.

Raven chuckles randomly, startling Tia. She looked up at him for a moment before quickly ducking her head down. As he looks at her small form, he thinks that it's bittersweet. That was cruel to be reminded of the past even when he thinks he's finally escaped it. 

He stands up and walks around the room, hand tracing the images on the walls one by one. He stops on a particular one. "I remember this," he says, and Tia looks up at what he's showing, "It was-when? My twelfth birthday?"

"Eleventh, my king," Tia whispers.

"Ah, right, yes." He corrects himself, "My eleventh birthday. We were outside, trying to catch some Fwoopers for Mother. I remember I read about it in a book and wanted to get some back to Mother so she could see its beauty." He chuckles sadly, his memories consuming him. "I never did get to show her one."

He takes a moment. It has already been so many millennia, yet it still hurts to think back. He continues, softer than before, "I don't quite remember her anymore. I know she was kind and courageous, strong yet weak. I know she was bedridden since she gave birth to me, yet she didn't let it stop her from taking care of me. But I don't remember the color of her hair or how she arranged her bed sheets, I don't remember the voice she'd call me back from the library or the hurt when she'd pinch my ear for getting injured after training with the knights." 

He got lost in his memories, his voice starting to quiver. "She was pushed aside by father after he remarried the duchess, but she still didn't let me think bad of him." His voice grew softer and hoarser, as he forced the memories forward. "She always told me that I should do what my heart desired and not what I was expected to do. To always be true to my beliefs and my family."

"If only she could know," Tia said. Raven placed his forehead on the wall and closed his eyes, his closed palms trembling. It didn't feel good to let it out again, he thinks, trying to compose himself. 

"If only she could know," he repeated. He stayed there for a few seconds, hearing Tia's footsteps getting closer.

He pulled away from the wall, letting her get a clearer vision of the image. It was of a boy, and two men and women running after him while he runs after a bird. She let her eyes fill with unshed tears, thinking of the child she vowed to serve yet betrayed. 

"You were always running," she whispered. 

"I remember." Raven turns away from her and walks back to the stone. He sits on it, crossing his right leg over his left. He looked like every bit of a king he used to be and Tia thought of the boy hiding behind the facade.

She hears her kin coming back. "I should go now," Tia says, coming up in front of him and kneeling once more.

Raven glances at her. His hand came up to rub the area underneath his eyes. "You should." She stays in the position, and he stays silent, both waiting for a sign.

He sighs, "I am not able to forget what once was, but I am able to look forward so pay no mind now for misfortunes and leave. We will meet each other again, I'm sure." 

Tia looks up into his eyes, now an eerie green, haunted with the echo of the past. She snapped her finger and Raven watched as her figure turned to ash in front of him. 

His first thought:

I'm not cleaning that. 

His second thought:

She left.

Raven hears footsteps and knows Afwerki is coming back with Eurig. He cages himself and he feels himself mold into Harry. He feels his body fall and his eyes roll back and hears Afwerki and Eurig finding his body on the floor. 

He settles into the back of the cage he created and curls around himself. The room is plain and dark and every bit of the cell he thinks-knows he deserves.

He sees and feels and hears everything Harry does, and he is glad that it is not the same case for Harry.

---

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Love you all...

-Eden