The Veil Between

Chapter Six | To Be Tethered Together

Chapter Six | To Be Tethered Together

Edward Anson was not what one would call a happy or emotionally fulfilled spirit.

He knew, of course, that he could be worse, what with all those stories of violent ghosts being what had scared him into retaining his human emotions, and kindness in the first place still present in his mind to this day. But, still, there were some things in his undead life that made him absolutely furious, and being stuck inside a manor without access to even the garden of his home, was one of those said things.

It made him incredibly jealous to look out the window and see his unlikely roommate, the strange magician known as Tobias, out in the garden pulling away at weeds and tending to the flowers, which he had somehow gotten to bloom again.

Part of him was jealous of Tobias, for being able to go outside, and the other part was jealous of the flowers, for seemingly having Tobias' endless attention.

The ghost ended up spending most of the morning, glaring out the window with his arms crossed as he watched Tobias work, and he was so deep in thoughts of his own anger and jealousy, that he didn't notice that Tobias had seen him, and come inside to check up on the seemingly upset owner of the house.

Once he snapped out of it, and saw that Tobias was no longer outside, he huffed and floated up off the window seat and turned to leave, stopping when he saw Tobias in the doorframe of the bedroom he was in.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude upon your room," Tobias smiled sweetly in an attempt to diffuse Edward when the ghost bristled in unhappiness, and it seemed to work, and Edward sighed and calmed slightly. "I just saw you from the garden, you seemed so unhappy, so I came up to check and see if there was anything I could do to cheer you up, or at least make your day a tiny bit less irritating, as it seems to be?"

Edward was a little bit stunned, having not even realized that Tobias had noticed him, nor that he apparently looked so angry. He had been so sure that he hid his emotions better than that, being a true gentleman, after all, he had learned to be stoic.

"I am perfectly fine," Edward huffed slightly, puffing up with his pride once more and crossing his arms, turning up his nose in an attempt to seem unbothered.

"Oh, well, that's good then, it must have been my mistake," Tobias smiled softly, more for taking other's at their word rather than listening to his own intuition. "Why don't you join me outside in the garden, then? The weather is truly lovely today."

That made Edward falter a bit, losing the bratty air about him and curling in a bit on himself with a heavy sigh. "I cannot go outside. I died in this house, so I must stay in this house. I cannot cross through the threshold, not even to visit my own grave in the back or my parents... so if you're going to enjoy the sunshine, don't flaunt it so much, alright?"

Tobias raised an eyebrow, clearly debating the other's words, before he crossed the room in only a few strides, holding out his hand for the other, green magic swirling around his fingertips, tantalizing and somehow inviting.

"How about you come with me, Edward, I'll show you something nice," He offered with a smile, and Edward stiffened a bit, his face flushing at the gentle smile the other wore.

"What is it? Where are you taking me? You're not going to hurt me, are you?"

"No, of course not," Tobias frowned, shaking his head but keeping his hand out, waiting for the other to take it and join him. "Just come with me, I promise you will enjoy what I have to show you, alright?"

The spirit hesitated for a long moment, looking away from the other, a scowl on his face, mostly not in the mood for silly games or attempts to make him cheery. He didn't understand why the other felt so personally invested in making him feel better, or making sure he wasn't too lonely or depressed with his situation, despite the fact that he had dealt with it perfectly fine for the last two hundred years on his own, and didn't need any help, especially from a man who didn't know what it was like to be alone.