who: Fray & Eliot Waugh when: Fray's Arrival where: Medbay What: Fray is here and Eliot comes to see her warnings: Spoilers! status: COMPLETE.
Fray was nervous. It was something she could identify inside of herself. She hadn’t expected for Eliot to reply to her on the strange device she was given. She remembered something like it when they were in the city with many lights that never slept. But she had never had to use it herself. She sighed as she sat on the side of the bed, eyeing the time. Eliot had mentioned that he was injured and had someone to discuss something with, but she had not figured that he would take quite so long to arrive.
Her understanding of these robots was that they didn’t really listen or taken anything but what they wanted to do into consideration. Which was why trying to fight them had ended with her still being stuck with the small, sharp metal. She’d been told that it was a needle and she was being given an injection to keep her from getting sick. Then she was meant to stay in the medbay for four hours. It took her a good amount of time just to figure out the device she was given. Then she’d spoken to Eliot and others. Now she was waiting for what felt like a very long time for Eliot to show up.
Part of her worried whether or not he was just coming to tell her everything he’d never gotten the chance to say once they found out she wasn’t theirs. The rest of her was trying to figure out how she was meant to fit in here with mostly humans. The animal bar was one of her favorite places now and to be taken from it after she’d finally found her place felt cruel and unfair. She sighed before standing once more. She hated boats. She hated waiting. She hated the feeling of sadness and uncertainty that was lingering while she waited.
It had taken Eliot time to get to the medbay. It wasn't as though it was a horribly long walk. After all, he just needed to walk to the end of his deck and take a portal to the school, and then take another one to the deck with the medbay, like a transfer station. But there'd been the difficulty of getting onto his feet. He was still reliant on Kylo helping to lift him into a sitting up position and to stand. His abdomen still ached and was so tender that he winced whenever he had to shift from laying down to sitting up. He had taken to leaning against walls when he was standing just to avoid having to sit back down. He didn't hurt as bad when laying down or standing, just when he'd move and apply pressure against his abdomen.
So he had needed assistance in sitting up. And there'd been a quick discussion with his lover before he had made way for the door. There was no question in regard to him going to meet Fray. Who else would go to her? Who else would be willing to accept responsibility for her? Perhaps one of the others from home would have, if he hadn't been in this realm, too. Someone would have made sure she was safe. But he was in this realm and there would have been push back if he tried to pawn Fray off on someone else. Not that he would have actually considered that.
He was trailing his fingers along the wall as he advanced to the medbay, walking at a very slowed down pace, and seeming fairly exhausted. This was a much further distance than He had walked thus far in the past week. Even attending Emmeline's service the other day had required less walking on his part. Still, he approached the medbay and pulled on the door. The 4 hour timeframe must have been up because it opened without a snag.
His eyes landed instantly on her as he shut the door behind him, immediately using it to lean on. "Fray."
The moment she noticed the door open, she pushed herself off the bed and stood. Her expression showed nothing because she didn’t want it to. Not when she didn’t know how she was supposed to react. She looked at him quietly for a moment, trying to ignore the pang of something in her stomach that made her drop her gaze only a few moment after. She didn’t know how to address him. She couldn’t call him Father anymore because he knew. There was a slight furrowing of her brow and she forced herself to look up again. Her arms crossed her chest. “Hello.”
She focused her attention on the way he was standing, on the slight lean back. He’d been injured. She frowned for a moment before she considered her expression and brought it back to something more neutral. She’d given up her right to be concerned and part of her was still frustrated with Eliot for things she knew weren’t his fault. Being with him and Fen had proved to her that she had no place with the fairies. The Fairy Queen herself had proven that to her after she’d exposed her plan for what it was, after admitting that she wasn’t actually their grown daughter. Being in Fillory had proven that she didn’t belong with the humans there. If she’d never been involved with Eliot and Fen, she could have continued to live without knowing that she fit in nowhere. Except the place that she’d just found. And even there, it was only a fitting in because of something she hadn’t expected to find.
“You’re hurt.” She knew that he’d told her, but she hadn’t known what else to say. She wanted to move closer, but she didn’t really know if she should.
His gaze didn't move away from her. Just as she was studying him, he was studying her. She didn't give him a hint of a cold shoulder upon his entering. He'd grown used to that when they'd spent time together on the Muntjac and in the Neitherlands. Those were his strongest memories of her. Where she gave off the feeling as though she'd rather be anywhere else than around him, when it seemed as though watching him was an obligation she had to fulfill per her Queen's request. But she'd stood upon his entering and was quiet.
He caught the frown and his head turned subtly to the side as he continued to watch her, his brows coming together in minor confusion. And then she stated the obvious, something he'd already informed her of, and he responded by sucking in a breath. "Yeaaaah," he replied, drawing the word out long, as his fingers splayed out against the wood against them.
"Funnily enough? Pirates," he told her, with the smallest flash of a smile, harking back to the time they'd been boarded upon the Muntjac. "Your --- " He began, but caught himself with a stumble to stop the word 'Mother' from escaping his lips, " --- Fen wasn't here to threaten those who came at me with weapons drawn."
Of course, he had his magic, and he could protect himself. That was a major difference from the previous encounter with pirates he'd had. And he didn't need his wife, nor his lover, actually to protect him. But he figured the call back to the way Fen had leaped in front of them both, with knives drawn and eyes threatening, would perhaps be welcoming. Maybe.
She stared back at him when he mentioned the pirates. She didn’t smile because she remembered the pirates. She remembered Fen rushing in front of them as well. She remembered being left on Earth with Todd after that as well. Then again, she supposed she wasn’t really someone he really felt any sort of concern for. Except for the fact that he was here. It was the thing that confused her the most. It was the thing that she wanted the answer to the most. Mostly because she remembered his face and the sound of Fen’s sobs after they found out. She pushed the guilt she felt down so she could ignore it.
“I am sure she would have if given the chance.” She looked off to the side, not sure she could look at him directly at the moment. She’d noted the beginning of the sentence, where he’d almost gone. She supposed parents that actually wanted her would be nice, but all she knew was that she’d been an unwanted child her entire life and she didn’t imagine it would change. She hadn’t figured on Eliot and Fen and she hadn’t ever assumed they’d grow to care for her. She was even less prepared for growing to care for them. And she hated the both of them for making her lose her place and the Queen for putting her in a situation that had changed everything and for hurting her. For never accepting her.
There was a long pause before she looked back at him. “Why are you here?” What did he want? There always seemed to be a catch. The Queen had not promised anything to her, but she’d gone on an assumed idea that she would gain the Queen’s approval and acceptance. Eliot and Fen had their own wants, expectations. Now that she was nothing to them, she couldn’t imagine what the catch was. Or perhaps she could think of a few things, but she couldn’t imagine anything good. “What do you want?”
He was still watching her intently. There was no reaction to the statement. And though his words had been conversational, he knew that it wasn't the most pleasant of memories. But he didn't have much in the way of pleasant memories with Fray. They'd been at odds for most of their time together and then he'd been pulled from her and Fen. And all those years, with Quentin and Arielle and Rupert, had led Eliot to want to try harder with Fray if he ever returned to Earth. When he'd grown too old to hold out that hope, his desire shifted to hoping Margo would somehow find a way to Fen's side and the three would be a family of sorts in his absence.
But he knew that wasn't going to be what occurred. He knew what Fray had confessed to, after realizing what her truth worth was to the Queen. Even if he hadn't lived those moments yet, he knew. He drew in a breath. "She would, but I would no have wanted her to," he agreed to the statement of his wife. He didn't like Fen doing so back home, even if he was largely defenseless without his magic. He certainly wouldn't want it here with his abilities at reach.
He narrowed his brows. "I assumed you'd want to see someone you knew instead of a stranger. Was I wrong?" Then he pushed himself partially away from the wall and crossed his arms over his chest. "What makes you think I want something?"
Fray didn’t look away from him, but she felt a bubbling sort of uncertainty in her chest that just seemed to get worse the longer they stood in the room together without a blunt and direct question. So she’d asked. Someone she knew instead of a stranger. She wasn’t sure if that was a kindness or if it suggested a weakness in her character. Not that she could leave without a guardian. Apparently. So even if he’d not come and some stranger had instead, she wasn’t sure how long she’d be waiting. She wasn’t even sure this wouldn’t end with her waiting again. For someone to decide to accept her as a charge. Someone with expectations or motives all of their own.
“Everyone wants something,” she said quietly. “So I’ve learned.” She crossed her arms over her chest and let out a breath. She decided not to consider the fact that she’d just copied Eliot’s stance. She was waiting for him to tell her off or to do anything. But he was different. Something seemed different. She wasn’t sure what it was exactly, but she tried anyway. “I’m just trying to figure out what that is. Especially now that I’ve been forced back into a situation where I don’t fit in with anyone and I am at a disadvantage because I cannot leave unless someone accepts me as their responsibility. I have no leverage, no reason to expect anything. I have no choice but to accept whatever charity is thrown at me despite the possible motivations for it or the expectations that come with it. I would rather go into a situation knowing what to expect.”
It was perhaps a bit too brusque of a response, but it was honest. “And you have only said so far that you thought I would prefer to see someone I knew. Not that you had any intentions otherwise. Therefore, I have no particular expectations regarding that. You could just be coming to see me in this situation to make yourself feel better after everything that’s happened. It’s not like I could stop you and I couldn’t do anything to make you just look at me and leave. I cannot leave without a guardian. It’s a ridiculous rule. I don’t need a guardian in Fillory.”
"That's not usually untrue," he agreed with a shrug of his shoulders, "But in this instance, not the case." He cocked his head further to the side as she began to spew on and on. Of course, her reasoning was valid. She wanted to know what was being expected of an arrangement. Fair enough.
"Alright, alright, hold on," he finally stated, once she had reached the point where it sounded like she was making partial accusations. "First off, we should establish something real quick. I need to know what is the last thing that's happened between you and me, even though I can take a wild guess. Margo's told me some of the events but I've not experienced them all," he informed her.
"And second, do you really think I'd just come to point and laugh?" That's kind of what it sounded like she was saying he might be here to do. "It's an Earth rule. You're on Earth now. You got to deal with Earth rules. Ridiculous or not."
She looked down at the ground. She thought it might have been obvious. “I told you that I was not yours. Or I tried to.” Because she wasn’t. She didn’t know who she belonged to, but it was the way that things were. Somewhere out there was a pair of people who had traded her away. She’d considered that perhaps they were dead or perhaps they were people who hadn’t wanted a baby. Maybe something happened. She didn’t know the circumstances. She just knew that whatever it was they wanted, they wanted it more than her. “I was silenced.”
After a moment, she looked back up. “I would not blame you. Especially if you know about…” Well, about not being her father. “It’s possible.” Her expression got pinched. “I am not from Earth. Will I be left with Todd again?” Was Todd even there? She didn’t know. He hadn’t replied to her, but she couldn’t say that that meant anything. “Or more humans in cat grease paint?” They were on a boat, but it was different from any boat she’d been on before. “And why are these robots or whatever they are called able to touch us and we can’t touch them?”
"Okay," he muttered his head tilting backwards, till he pressed the crown of his skull against the wall. His eyes were focused on the ceiling now and he tightened his arms. She was from around Margo's last memories then. There was a possibility she wasn't past that moment. Or she could be further along. Would she know if they'd survived the peasants revolt? She didn't seem alarmed by his being alive and in front of her, but without knowing what point she was from, it wasn't a definitive. And it wasn't important in relation to her and this present moment. Straightening up, and wincing as he did so, he looked back to her. "That's further than I'm from," he informed her, more so that they were on the same page.
"No. I'm not going to do that," he said, with affirmation in his tone. He didn't want that to be even a possibility in her mind. He wasn't going to taunt her misfortune. "I'm not going to make fun of you for needing help," he stated more clearly before he made a face.
"Todd? God, no. We'd not push you off on Todd," he muttered. "And no. I'm not sending you off to Broadway like some background extra." Good Lord, she had question after question. "I can't answer that one, we're all still trying to figure it out."
She was in a situation that was unfamiliar to her. She had a lot more questions. But she was at least satisfied that she would not be left alone or with Todd. Not that Todd was unattentive. Rather, he was uncomfortably attentive. He had been easy enough to manipulate, though, so she supposed there was that. “Okay,” she said after a moment of consideration. She took a few steps closer, before pausing again. “Am I going with you from here or do I have to wait for someone else?” She bit off the end of sentence, deciding against sounding like some sad child. Though, she did not view herself as a child. She was sixteen...or at least the Queen had told her that she had been with them for sixteen years. Time was harder to tell in the fairy realm.
“No one else familiar to me has made an offer.” And she couldn’t say she trusted their motives either way. “I know you have no reason to as I do not belong to you, but you are preferable to people I am unfamiliar with. But if you would prefer not to, then I will wait until someone else has agreed.”
"Fray," he began, his tone a bit more tender now, "I'd already made up my mind to come ask you to come with me the moment I saw you post." He unfolded his arms now, realizing that the stance was a guarded one and not what he really wanted to convey. He took in a breath and stepped forward, bridging the gap between them, and awkwardly reached out to place a hand on her shoulder.
"It doesn't matter if you belong to me or not," he said, quietly, giving her the smallest smile. "Do you want to come with me?" He knew she'd just said he was preferable but he wanted to make sure she understood that she had the choice.
The change in tone mixed with the words made her brow furrow. She felt once again the way she had when she’d decided to tell him that she wasn’t his. The feeling that had made her stomach and heart clench at the same time. She felt tears pricking at the back of her eyes, but she blinked them away. Being with Eliot and Fen had been the first time she’d felt wanted and she’d wanted to hate the feeling, but with time, she’d grown fond of it. And then she’d been mad at them for stealing fairy children because her loyalty to her Queen had made her and it seemed horrible to steal babies and threaten their lives. They knew nothing of the war and they could not be harmed for it. But even with her betrayal, Eliot had wanted to defend her and she felt sick with the lie she’d been telling. Family protected family. Only then she wasn’t theirs to protect. She wasn’t anyone’s.
After a moment, she dared to look up at Eliot before nodding. She didn’t know if her voice could be trusted in that moment. She didn’t know why emotions affected voices or why she felt both sad and happy at the same time. Only now she didn’t know what to do or say. She had been here before, but less related to emotions and more general confusion. “I…” She frowned then. “Thank you.”