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Tweak says, "duck duck duck goose!"

Oliver Wood (die__trying) wrote in snark_n_bark,
@ 2009-02-16 20:40:00

Entry tags:

faelan, oliver

He ain't heavy
Characters: Oliver and Faelan
Summary: The Wood brothers have a chat

Oliver stopped just outside the nursery and pulled the oft-refolded notes from an inside pocket. The owl post with Harry from last week. He felt like a big girl about it, rereading the notes they'd sent back and forth, but that hadn't stopped him from doing it. In the absence of actually being able to see Harry, it was the next best thing.

It was going to be fine. He'd touch base with Faelan and see if there was anything he could do to help him through what had been, undeniably, an incredibly rough few months. Then he'd get his brother's opinion on carrying on with Harry, and if it was early enough, Disapparate straight to Haven's Loft to give Harry the news in person.

On a deeply inhaled breath, Oliver tucked the notes away and made his way inside, looking around for his brother.

"Fae? You here mate?"

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runaway_cub
2009-02-16 09:55 pm UTC (link)

Faelan did a double take so rapidly that tea spilled out of his lips, and he almost dropped his cup.

"You did?" he asked, wiping his mouth and trying to ignore the stab of sadness that came over him at that. He stared at Oliver for a moment. It wasn't his brother's fault that his love life was over. He shouldn't begrudge Oliver any happiness because of it. "That's great," he said with a smile. "What's his name?"

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die__trying
2009-02-16 09:58 pm UTC (link)

Faelan's reaction did not encourage him that the news would be well received, but he carried on anyway, more determined than anything else.

He took a deep breath and looked his brother square in the eye. "Yeah. It's not, I mean, nothing's decided yet. But the attraction's there, very, very there. I've known him for years, but we've only recently reconnected and...," his hand traveled through his hair again, "it's Harry, Faelan."

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	runaway_cub 2009-02-17 09:14 pm UTC (link)
	Faelan's heart may have literally stopped. At any rate, his entire body froze and it was a small miracle that his tea did not fall out of his hand. For a long moment, he could say nothing, only stared at his brother in disbelief. "Harry." His immediate feeling, after the shock, was panic. If Oliver and Harry had each other, where did that leave him? (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

die__trying
2009-02-17 09:18 pm UTC (link)

Any hope he had of a joyous 'that's brilliant, Oliver' went by the wayside as soon as he registered the utterly poleaxed look on his brother's face. He'd seen that look before. Just after a Bludger made contact with someone's midsection.

"Yeah, Harry. Surprised me, too, especially given the rocky way we found each other again, but," he waved his hand, "there you are."

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runaway_cub
2009-02-17 09:26 pm UTC (link)

Nodding, Faelan reached over to put his cup down on the nearest surface, and swallowed, trying desperately to think of something to say, but his brain felt empty.

"Well, yeah. I mean, that's great." He looked up, and forced a smile when he saw that his brother was barely breathing. "Really great."

Harry. Harry and Oliver. A painful lump rose in Faelan's chest, and he swallowed it, hard.

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die__trying
2009-02-17 09:31 pm UTC (link)

Oliver sighed. The way Faelan said 'really great' sounded something like his use of the same phrase in regards to being told practices would be starting at the crack of dawn rather than the more human hour of half ten.

Great. As in not really. Or not at all.

"It's not a done thing, not yet. We're sort of, well, Harry's not had the easiest time of it, yeah? So he's a bit gunshy about getting involved." And this certainly isn't going to help.

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runaway_cub
2009-02-17 09:35 pm UTC (link)

"Yeah, that's understandable," Faelan answered, his mouth feeling very dry. He picked up his cup again and took a long swallow.

He could sense the tension, the hesitant anticipation, radiating from his brother. For some reason the man seemed to care what he thought about this news, and somehow, without being able to put a finger on why, Faelan felt torn. He didn't want to upset Oliver. But he felt very, very lonely.

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die__trying
2009-02-17 09:47 pm UTC (link)

He could almost hear Harry's voice in his head as he watched his brother react and knew what he had to say, what he had to do. Even though he also knew Fae wasn't much on contact, he, Oliver, was. And this was one of those times.

Oliver leaned across the small space and laid a hand on his knee. "Fae. If this, if it bothers you at all...," he had to pause, the truth of it hitting him in that second. No matter what he'd thought before entering the nursery, about nothing keeping him from carrying forward with Harry, he was wrong. There was one thing that would.

"I like Harry a lot, I do. But I won't pursue anything at the expense of losing you again."

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runaway_cub
2009-02-17 09:52 pm UTC (link)

Faelan may not have known a lot about people or families or relationships, but he did know enough to know that it was not okay for Oliver to feel that way. Oliver's life was his own, just as Harry's was, and if they wanted to be together, it wasn't Faelan's right to stop it. But just the fact that Oliver said what he did made Faelan's breath come a little easier.

"Hey, if that's what you two want, I don't have any right to stop you." Looking up, Faelan met his brother's eyes and with rare frankness, smiled. "After all, one of us should be happy, right?"

If he ended up losing them in the end, all he would be was back at square one. He'd always suspected he'd end up back there someday. At least Oliver and Harry would be happy.

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die__trying
2009-02-17 10:01 pm UTC (link)

He had the oddest desire to laugh in spite of the horribly non-funny topic of conversation. He wondered what their combined reaction would be if he told Harry or Faelan how every alike they both were. But Oliver also knew that now was probably not the time for that revelation.

"I'd like to try for both of us being happy, if it's all the same," he said, returning the smile with the same truth in his eyes, "but we'll work on that, yeah?"

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	runaway_cub 2009-02-17 10:11 pm UTC (link)
	Where numbness had been only a moment ago, a slow warmth spread up from Faelan's toes. He really thought Oliver meant it. "Yeah," he said, nodding, and leaning in to bump his shoulder against Oliver's. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	die__trying 2009-02-19 07:33 pm UTC (link)
	He debated it for a moment, then went ahead with his instinct and wrapped his arm lightly around his brother's shoulder. It was a brief touch, and over quickly, but it did him a world of good. He only hoped it did as much for his brother. "I love you, Fae," he said quietly, because it had been too long since he had. (Reply to this) (Parent)

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