Stuck Together

"Master Cassian, a few letters arrived for you today."

Sebastian, Cassian's head butler, greeted him as soon as he stepped inside the grand entrance of his manor. The ride home had been unsettlingly quiet—unusual, considering Lucian had followed him all the way from the Purple House.

Cassian wasn't about to complain. The silence gave him time to think, to piece together a plan before addressing the ghost tethered to him.

"From whom?" Cassian asked, his tone sharp but weary.

"The king, Princess Elara, and... your father," Sebastian replied, his voice measured, though the hesitation at the last name did not go unnoticed.

"Put the letters from the king and Elara in my office. You know what to do with the third one," Cassian instructed, his expression blank, the dismissal in his voice unmistakable. Sebastian inclined his head in acknowledgment.

"And send a message to Reynolds," Cassian added as he began walking past the butler. "Tell him to gather the knights and head to the Purple House. They've requested the royal knights' assistance."

Sebastian hesitated for the briefest moment. "Pardon, sir? Assistance for what?"

Cassian sighed, his steps faltering as he glanced back. 'Right. It's not widely known yet.'

"Lucian Faelith's body was stolen," he said matter-of-factly, his voice devoid of emotion. "The Purple House is in chaos. Have the knights go immediately—I'll manage things while they're busy."

Without waiting for a response, Cassian strode toward his room, his boots echoing faintly against the polished floors. He offered curt nods to the maids and servants he passed, their bows and curtsies as precise as ever.

Occasionally, his gaze flicked to the side, confirming that Lucian's spectral form still trailed after him. As much as Cassian despised Lucian's incessant chatter, the ghost's silence was far more unsettling.

The moment they entered his room, Cassian turned and locked the door behind them, his movements swift and deliberate.

Before he could speak, Lucian broke the silence.

"Adrian never even came to my funeral."

The words were quiet, almost whispered, but they carried a weight that made Cassian pause. Lucian's head was bowed, his translucent form trembling slightly. Cassian couldn't see his expression, but he didn't need to. The despair in his voice was enough.

'His body is missing, and his focus is still on Adrian.'

Cassian sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "What did you expect, really? Like I said... he never loved you and never will."

His tone was sharp, dismissive, and he braced himself for the inevitable tantrum, insult, or some other display of Lucian's typical bratty behavior.

'Three... two...'

Cassian waited, but the outburst never came. Instead, Lucian's shoulders shook, and slowly, he lifted his head.

The sight made Cassian falter. Lucian's translucent form shimmered faintly under the bright lights of the room, but the tears streaming down his face were startlingly visible, glinting like crystals. For a brief, horrifying moment, Cassian saw another face—his mother's—superimposed over Lucian's. The way his shoulders shook, the tears falling silently... it was all too familiar.

"But... we were still friends," Lucian murmured, his voice breaking with raw vulnerability.

The words struck Cassian like a physical blow, leaving him momentarily speechless. The bitterness in his chest warred with something he couldn't quite name. He wanted to snap at Lucian, to remind him that he had no time for this. Yet, for the first time, he hesitated.

Cassian swallowed hard, shifting uncomfortably. He didn't know how to comfort anyone—he never had. Friends were a foreign concept to him. His cousin Elara, perhaps, and the knights under his command, but that was different. The only person he had ever tried to console was his mother, and even those attempts had always fallen short.

Now, faced with Lucian, Cassian felt the same sense of helplessness. And worse, embarrassment. 'What could I even say that wouldn't sound ridiculous?'

He stared at Lucian, who continued to tremble, his tears falling silently onto the floor. Cassian clenched his fists, his frustration mounting—not at Lucian, but at himself.

'Damn it. Why do you have to look like that?'

Cassian couldn't believe it, but he almost wished Lucian would throw a tantrum. At least those were predictable—easier to deal with than... whatever this was. The vulnerability radiating from Lucian was unnerving, and Cassian hated how it made him feel. Conflicted. Uneasy. Guilty, even.

'Damn it. This isn't my problem.'

He scrambled for something—anything—to say, desperate to end the awkwardness. They were losing time, and the longer this dragged on, the more unsettled he became.

Finally, he decided to wing it.

"Look, Faelith," Cassian began, his voice firm but lacking its usual bite. "In this kingdom—and at your age—friendship is fleeting. Adrian is a duke. He doesn't have time to dwell on friendship. He has the Blue House to manage, the Magic Tower under his jurisdiction, and now his engagement to the Crown Princess—"

Cassian stopped mid-sentence, realizing his mistake a second too late. The mention of Adrian's engagement had hit a nerve, and Lucian's quiet sobs escalated into something heart-wrenching.

'Fuck.'

Cassian closed his eyes and exhaled sharply, pinching the bridge of his nose as frustration bubbled to the surface. He wasn't cut out for this. Give him a battlefield, monsters to slay, injuries to endure—anything but this.

He opened his eyes, staring at Lucian, who now looked utterly broken. Tears streamed down the ghost's translucent face, shimmering faintly in the dim light of the room. Cassian clenched his fists at his sides, the sight triggering an unwelcomed pang of guilt.

'Why does he have to cry like that? Like... her.'

For a moment, his mind betrayed him, conjuring a memory he'd buried long ago—his mother's face, tear-streaked and trembling, pleading for comfort he could never quite give. The resemblance was too much, and it rattled him more than he cared to admit.

"Listen," Cassian said, his tone sharper than intended, as though scolding Lucian would somehow make the moment easier to bear. "Crying about it won't change anything. Killing yourself to gain some twisted form of sympathy from him, or even using dark magic to force him to love you—it wouldn't have worked. It never would."

He took a deliberate step closer, his boots clicking against the polished floor, his voice hard but tinged with an edge of exasperation. "Right now, your family—the people who actually love you—are mourning. They're in chaos because your body is missing. And yet here you are, still thinking about him."

Cassian's words cut through the air like a blade, sharp and unyielding. He could see the flicker of hurt in Lucian's ethereal eyes, the faint quiver in his translucent form. But he didn't stop. He couldn't.

"Don't you think it's unfair? Unfair to the people who cared about you, the ones who are suffering now? You've forgotten about them—all of them—because you're so fixated on the one person who doesn't give a damn."

Cassian's voice dropped lower, almost a growl, as he stepped back and crossed his arms, his piercing gaze locked on Lucian. His expression was stern, unrelenting, but deep in the pit of his chest, there was an ache he refused to acknowledge.

'Why does this even bother me? It's not my problem. Faelith's mess is his own.'

Lucian's shoulders trembled, his form shimmering faintly like a candle's wavering flame. His mouth opened, but no sound came out. The silence stretched between them, heavy and suffocating, punctuated only by the faint crackle of the fire in the hearth.

Cassian clenched his jaw, his fingers twitching at his sides. He wasn't used to this—couldn't be used to this. Confronting grief, pain, and vulnerability wasn't his strength.

'Damn it, Faelith, stop making this harder than it already is.'

Finally, Lucian spoke, his voice barely a whisper, fragile and broken. "I didn't mean to forget them... I didn't. I just..." His gaze dropped to the floor, and his words trailed off into the suffocating quiet.

Cassian exhaled sharply, dragging a hand through his hair. He wanted to be angry, to shout at Lucian for his selfishness. But seeing him like this—raw, utterly lost, and so human—made it impossible.

"Then stop wallowing," Cassian muttered, his tone softening just enough to lose its earlier bite. "If you really cared about them, do something about it. Focus on what matters—on the people who matter."

Lucian lifted his gaze, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears. For the first time, there was a spark of something in his expression. Hope? Resolve? Cassian couldn't quite place it, but it was enough to make him feel like he hadn't completely failed.

'Finally. Maybe this idiot will actually start thinking straight.'

Without another word, Cassian turned on his heel and strode toward the door. He paused briefly, his hand resting on the brass handle as he glanced over his shoulder. "I'm not saying it's easy, Faelith. But it's the only way forward. Figure it out."

He pushed the door open but stopped halfway, his voice carrying one last remark as he stepped into the corridor. "For now, we're stuck together. As much as we both hate this situation, we'll suffer a hell of a lot more if we don't find your body in time to reverse the spell. So, get your shit together."

✧༺ ⏱︎ ༻✧

"For now, we're stuck together. As much as we both hate this situation, we'll suffer a lot more if we don't find your body in time to reverse the spell. So, get your shit together."

Lucian stared past Cassian's head, trailing behind the taller knight's confident stride.

As much as he hated to admit it, Cassian was right. In their current predicament, there was no room to dwell on Adrian. But how could he just stop? Earlier today, Lucian had felt the full weight of his actions—the deep sorrow of realizing how much he had hurt his father and brother.

He had shattered them by taking his own life.

All of that, for what?

Adrian.

Adrian, who hadn't even visited him. Adrian, who might have hated him all along.

The realization hit like a dagger to the chest. Lucian had sacrificed his family's love, his own life, and his future—for nothing. It hurt more than any physical wound ever could. He wondered now if all the moments he clung to—Adrian's rare soft smiles, their inside jokes, the times Adrian pulled him from the darkness after his mother's death—had been nothing but illusions.

'I... have to move on... for now at least,' he thought, the words like a bitter pill he forced himself to swallow. Because he had no choice. Right now, he was stuck with Cassian Valenor, and if they didn't work together, he would never regain his body or his life.

He couldn't afford to keep crying.

"As much as I hate to admit it, you're right, Valenor," Lucian muttered quietly, his voice carrying just enough for Cassian to hear.

He expected a scoff or some snide remark, but to his surprise, Cassian said nothing. He simply kept walking, his back straight, his pace unbroken.

Lucian felt a small wave of relief. For once, Cassian wasn't biting back. Perhaps he was just as tired of their constant bickering as Lucian was.

Cassian's voice broke the silence as they reached the end of the hallway. "We're going to my office. Once you've pulled yourself together, we'll figure out our next steps."

Lucian nodded in agreement, silently steeling himself. He focused on calming the storm inside him.

As they walked, the sound of approaching footsteps drew their attention. Sebastian appeared from around the corner, his calm and composed demeanor unchanged. But he wasn't alone.

Trailing behind the butler was a figure that immediately drew Lucian's attention.

"Ah, young master," Sebastian said with a slight bow. "You have a guest. He says there's something urgent he needs to discuss with you."

Cassian's posture stiffened. Though Lucian couldn't see his face, he noticed Cassian's hands clench into tight fists at his sides.

Curious and uneasy, Lucian's gaze shifted to the figure behind Sebastian. As the person stepped forward, Lucian's eyes widened in shock.

The pale blonde hair caught the light, glinting like spun gold. His heart began to pound loudly in his chest, echoing in his ears like a drumbeat.

The figure moved with an easy grace, stepping from behind Sebastian and stopping just in front of him.

Cassian's voice was low and controlled, but there was a dangerous edge to it. "What a surprise."

Lucian's breath caught as he stared at the man before them.

"Duke Averin,"

It was Adrian.