LX - The Hawthorne Legacy

Michael let Ravenna down from his arms in their bedchamber, and he awkwardly backed toward the door. He put his hand on the doorframe, before looking back at Ravenna. "I'll... I'll let you get some sleep. It's late, I'm sure you're ready...," he trailed off, his words coming to a hush. 

"Well, you are coming back after you're changed, right? This is where we sleep."

"You actually want...? I thought you would have wanted - I guess I thought I would be banished back to the infirmary. I'll be back." As his thoughts tumbled from his lips, excitement and acceptance flooded his chest. She had told him she understood, but understanding and acceptance were different things. 

After taking his sleep trousers from the room and changing in the bathing chambers, he came back to find Ravenna waiting for him on the bed they shared. Her night dress, so fragile against her skin, brought back the overwhelming waves of the Sins again, Lust arching its way through his heart. –No, not again. Not ever again. I'm the one in control.– He shoved back against the powers, and made his way toward the bed. 

"Are you alright?" Ravenna's soft voice cut through the silence.

"I get to go back to sleep next to you. Of course I am." He freed the buttons from his shirt, pulling the garment from his body. 

"You just looked like... you were fighting something." 

"Lucifer taught me some ways to control the powers, I just had to push them back. Don't worry, everything is perfect." He took his place next to her in the bed, and laid on his back for the first time since he Fell. His scars were only a little tender, and he offered for Ravenna to come closer. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Michael woke first, careful not to disturb Ravenna as she slumbered on. Her eyelashes fluttered against her cheeks as she dreamed, and he wondered what she saw. –Hopefully, it is something happy she sees; her family, her friends, even me? I would hate for it to be some of the horrors she's lived through that come back to haunt her in the night.–

A knock at the door jolted Ravenna awake in his arms, and Michael tried to hide his disappointment that their tranquility, their peace was interrupted. She mumbled a quick morning greeting to him as she tossed her robe over her nightdress, her attention focused on which of the villagers needed her care.

 Ravenna missing from the bed, Michael stretched, tucking his arms under his head. He could still feel a small sting where his wings were, but his wounds had scarred over, his flesh whole again. He knew his scars weren't as mottled and jagged as Lucifer's, but he still wished the scars didn't exist at all.

"Michael! Come say hello!" Ravenna called from the kitchen, breaking his thoughts away from his stolen wings.

Rubbing his hands through his haphazard golden curls, Michael attempted to make his appearance tidier. He grabbed a white shirt that Ravenna had made for him, quickly putting the buttons in their places as he wriggled out of his night trousers. His foot got stuck in the trousers as he rushed, and he fell backward, landing roughly on the bed. He cursed quietly; –I am a recently Unleashed Fallen, and I can't even manage my pants?– Huffing, he grabbed the pants Ravenna had made, pulling them on, and lacing the front. He hoped he looked decent enough for company, and prepared for another attempt at fitting in with humanity.

Michael entered the kitchen to see a young man in the kitchen at the table, and Ravenna in tears. The young man seemed to be trying to console her, but not much he said was working.

"Ravenna? What is the matter?" 

Ravenna jumped at the sound of Michael's voice, and she turned to embrace him, sobbing quietly into his chest. "I'm okay, I'm okay…he just brought me…I'm okay."

Holding her closer and frowning at the other man in the house, Michael ran his hand over her hair, smoothing it. Distrust flared through him as she sniffled.

"It really is a gift, Elijah, thank you." Ravenna pushed away from the embrace, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand. "Michael, this is Elijah. He's the son of Robert, our blacksmith. Elijah, this is Michael."

Elijah stood to greet Michael, his hand outstretched. "Pleasure to meet you, sir. I wanted to come by to bring Ravenna this book, and to let you know that the town council is holding the celebration for Anne in three days. She may be gone, but her legacy still lives on."

"Elijah, how did you get the book? I thought everything burned when…when Grandmother died." 

A sad smile crossed the young man's face. "Well, when William Reed came to the town, he was shouting that your home was on fire, and about Samuel and Anne. Those of us who were able left the town and came here, we formed a fire line and fought the blaze. We're just lucky the river runs close to your home. We think Anne must have thrown the book through the window, hoping it would be saved. One of the merchants found the book outside of your home, and she put it next to Anne's body. It belonged to Anne, and everyone thought it should stay there, but I snuck back here after most had left and took the book. I've kept it safe in my room for you, hoping you would come back to Canden."

Michael listened closely to Elijah; the distrust he had held toward the blacksmith's son dissipated as he realized that the young man had truly given Ravenna a priceless gift.

"I'm not going to stay long. I just wanted to return what was yours, and to let you know about Anne's celebration. Have a good day Ravenna, Michael." Elijah rose from his chair at the kitchen table, flashed a wide grin, before letting himself out of the house.

With the blacksmith's son gone, Ravenna took the thick leatherbound book from the table, clutching it to her chest and taking it back to her bedchamber. Michael followed her, finding her sitting on the bed, the book splayed open as she read it with watery eyes. Sitting behind her, he looked over her shoulder, seeing hand-drawn diagrams and notes of Hawthorne women long passed. The ink had faded with age, but the knowledge remained steadfast. 

Her fingers trailed over a drawing, a teardrop smudging the carefully printed words. "This was Grandmother's last entry. It's the cure for the Sickness. It's the reason the village celebrates every year; that Anne saved the lives of so many of us. I wasn't sure they were going to do it this year…now that she's gone." Ravenna's voice quavered, and Michael could tell she was grieving. He placed his hand over hers on the page, covering it completely.

"The villagers rebuilt your home to carry on the Hawthorne legacy. They made sure you had a place to live and work, no matter when you came back. The Hawthorne name clearly means a lot to your people, and I think this celebration will continue for decades. I can tell from the way you speak, the way the villagers take care of you, that this is something they will not ever forget. And you shouldn't, either."

Ravenna leaned back against his chest, feeling the comfort in his words and embrace as his arms wrapped around her.