Rest Less
Lucian instantly feels lighter after he finishes debriefing the Priestess on this latest mission. It hadn’t been an easy task for either him or Aaron, but it had taken many a sleepless evening for Lucian. He’d pushed his magic on more than one occasion, and the resulting effect was exhaustion dragging on his body like a fish caught in a net. He desperately wanted to crawl into his bed and not come out again for the next five years.
The Priestess looks at him critically, her sharp eyes missing nothing despite her age.
“You did well, Lucian. Take the day, you’ve earned it.”
Lucian blinks in surprise.
“I still need to clean our equipment-”
“Let Aaron handle that,” the Priestess says with a dismissive wave of her hand, “I don’t need one of our Blades falling asleep in the sanctuary.”
She pauses before adding: “...Looks bad to the parishioners if it seems like one of Luna’s servants is slacking off.”
Lucian huffs out a breath, something between a sigh and a laugh.
“Right.”
Lucian throws open the door to his and Aaron’s room and immediately starts drifting toward his bed. Finally, it had been too long-
His rifle in the corner catches his eye. He didn’t typically leave it with the rest of the weapons, so it wouldn’t be on Aaron’s list of things to take care of. Not that he wants Aaron to come anywhere near his baby.
A quick cleaning couldn’t hurt…
That decided, Lucian spreads a cloth on the floor and takes his customary position cross-legged before his bed, gently laying his rifle across his legs to begin disassembly.
“LUCIAN SUMMERS!”
Lucian almost jumps out of his skin at the voice. There’s a certain tone that only a mother can project, and even if he didn’t do anything wrong, he still feels like he’s the problem. Lucian looks up at Helen in the doorway with wide eyes.
Helen scowls at him.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“Cleaning my rifle?” he replies slowly.
“Put that away right now.”
“But-”
Helen doesn’t wait for his excuse, snatching the rifle away from his outstretched hands.
“You’re supposed to be taking the day off.”
“I am!” he protests.
Helen glares at him, shaking the rifle.
“This isn’t a break, Lucian. Take a gods-damned nap, you look like you need it.”
Lucian scowls.
“I always look like I need a nap, Helen. Anyway, I doubt I’d be able to sleep properly, not when I know I have things I need to do.”
“Like what?!”
“Like cleaning my rifle.”
Helen looks at him dryly for a moment.
“I’m giving this to Aaron, then you can sleep soundly knowing it was cleaned,” she says, carrying his most precious instrument out the door to its untimely doom.
Lucian pops to his feet, chasing after her.
“Wait, Helen- Please don’t give that to Aaron, I’m begging you.”
“Why not?”
“... He does it wrong.”
Helen scoffs, deftly pulling the rifle out of his reach as he grabs for it again.
“Aaron knows what he’s doing, Lucian. There are only so many ways to clean a gun.”
“And yet, he finds the one way to do it wrong-”
Helen rolls her eyes.
“No, you’re just too particular. Now get back in that room and rest. I promise, we won’t let anything bad happen to the love of your life.”
“Look, okay… If I agree to get some sleep, will you at least promise not to give my rifle to Aaron? I’ll clean it when I wake up.”
Helen narrows her eyes at Lucian’s hopeful face. Then she sighs.
“Fine. But I’m not giving it back to you for another two hours at least.”
“Fine.”
Lucian doesn’t move, still hovering in the doorway. Helen laughs and shakes her head.
“Get going, Blade.”
Lucian glances back in his room at his bed. It does look comfortable…
“Right…” he mutters, slipping away.
He doesn’t even have a chance to form another coherent thought once his head hits the pillow. Helen gently rests the rifle back in its position in the corner of his room, glancing at her son with a chuckle. There’s no way he’d be waking up in the next two hours anyway.