Love Can Save {An Aphmau Fanfiction}

Laurance

Winter was beginning to fade away. Snow melted and dripped from branches, at night freezing over the roads. Underneath covers of white, new shoots began to peek through, bringing color into the white-washed world. The wind that blew off the water brought the promise of warmth and sun, no longer blowing in new storms and clouds.

Thalia and I sat on the docks, legs hanging over the side and dangling a foot above the freezing water. There was no longer ice atop the waves, but it would certainly be dangerous if someone were to fall in. We sat wrapped in blankets and cloaks, chilled by the late winter air but not wanting to miss the sunset on the horizon.

Thalia and I had spent a lot of time together in the past two months, ever since Tu'la had brought war to our shores and Thalia and Aphmau had opened the portal together. I know there was something that was bothering her about that day, something that was constantly on her mind, and yet she kept quiet. Part of me wanted to push and see what it was, but my heart held me back. After all, I still woke up gasping and sweating in the night because of that day. It only made sense that I wasn't the only one traumatized.

"The sun should be setting soon." Her voice carried to me from the left, and I turned my head to look at her. Her brown hair fluttered behind her, some strands trailing loose while some flapped helplessly in the wind, caught by the cloak she pulled tight around her shoulders. "Tonight should be beautiful. There's supposed to be a full moon." I nodded, resting my head against a piling and moving my gaze from the woman next to me and to the ocean stretching as far as the eye could see.

"Thalia?" I ventured, tongue growing heavy as I tried to find the right words to say. Her face turned towards mine, her forest green eyes wide in question. I dragged my eyes away, staring instead at the piling behind her head. "Umm... well I was wondering. Do you, do you possibly have any mixtures or medicines that could help with sleep? Like, knock me out for a night?"

Thalia frowned, shifting her entire body to face me. "What are you saying Laurance? Have you been having trouble sleeping?"

I sighed, realizing that I was facing a lost cause in trying to be vague. "Well... ever since Tu'la I just..." I scrubbed at my eyes with my hands, breath coming in shaking bursts. "Garroth almost died. I sat there by his side as he bled out and there was nothing I could do and every time I sleep I feel his blood on my hands and then he's gone and Aphmau didn't save him and it's all my fault and-"

I pulled my legs up and pressed my head against my knees, shuddering as the memories flooded back. Gentle arms wrapped around my shoulders and pulled me tight, holding me close as the panic began to increase. "I just came so close to losing him," I whispered, turning my head to press it against her shoulder. She squeezed me tight, grounding me in the present. "I've only been back for two years and I thought- I thought that was it. That he was going to die in my arms and I would never see my brother again. I thought I was going to have to live the rest of my life in guilt, thinking that there must have been something I could have done and..." I shuddered again, Thalia's hands beginning to rub circles on my back. We sat like that for a long time.

Finally I felt strong enough to return to myself. I pulled away from Thalia, rubbing my face and letting my legs swing back over the edge of the dock. She kept a hand on my arm and didn't say a word, simply comforting me with her presence. "Th-thank you. I really just needed to get that off my chest."

"Have you told anyone else about this? Maybe if you talked to Garroth...?" The suggestion hung in the air, and I nodded my head, flashing her a weak smile.

"Yeah, that's a great idea." She smiled back at me, the fading sunlight causing her face to glow. The wind shifted, blowing her hair across her face. Without thinking about it, I reached forward and tucked her hair behind her ear, watching a blush spread as she looked down. "Is there anything I can help you with? What's been bothering you?"