Closed Always

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava had barely slept, too excited to rest. Brightstone was today. She quickly got dressed, having her dad drop her off immediately after breakfast. It was the second day of Brightstone and she couldn't WAIT to see her friends, yesterday with Vader had been so therapeutic. She knew she couldn't keep Elio as long, and Vader was supposed to meet her again today at some point after lunch. But right now, right now was for Zephyr, and she couldn't help but be hyperactive, she had missed him so much, she just really wanted to see him so badly. She knew she was early but that was alright, she stood there, practically vibrating with excitement as she waited.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Elio felt like he'd been on autopilot for the last month, going through the motions at school as to what was expected of him. The only time he really felt like himself was during the incredibly rare conversations he had with Rowan about.. really well nothing at all.. but it was their connection that he missed and even just hearing her talk to him made him heal a little more. He'd agreed to meet up with Ava too in Brightstone, although he warned her that he wouldn't be able to stay for too long. Any time he was away from Rowan he just felt so guilty, and even if he had missed his best friend and wanted to hear about how she was getting on with her dad, he knew Rowan was going to be in the back of his mind. His heart jumped when he spotted the Ravenclaw up ahead, a small smile appearing on his face, "Ava?" he said, walking up behind her.​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

-godmod approved-

Ava spun as soon as she heard the voice, darting forward and knocking into him, hugging him tightly. "Zephyr!" She giggled, pulling back just as quickly and grabbing at his shirt, starting to lift it. "Where are they, you said- ooh," She dropped his shirt and grabbed his arms, twisting them and moving his sleeves to see his tattoos, beaming as she ran her fingers over them. She giggled again, pulling him down and hugging him tightly, tangling one hand in his hair. "Zephyr," She breathed, snuggling against him.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Ava running and leaping into him wasn't new, although he was much more prepared for it these days then when they'd been first years and they'd ended up on the floor. He had hugged her back but the moment he did, Ava had already pulled away and was beginning to man handle him, trying to presumably get a look at the tattoo's he'd spoken to her about. He'd not had a chance to show her when they'd last met, although several letter later he'd told her all about them, and clearly she now wanted to see them in person. He had to relax, letting her move his arms as she wanted to otherwise he could have sworn one of them (likely he) was going to get hurt, She managed to find three of them, including the one he'd gotten for the twins, and a large camera on his forearm. Despite his mood, Ava's enthusiastic approach had him smiling, He'd grown a few inches since last year too, which was even more noticeable now as she pulled him down to her level, but instead of remaining like that, Elio had lifted her up to a more comfortable height, arms around her waist and kissing her cheek. He didn't need to tell her how much he'd missed having her around. "Hey you," he smiled, looking up at her. "Here, let me show you properly." he said, knowing that as an artist she would have appreciated it. He lowered her back to the floor, moving them out of the way and over to sit on a grassy bank, before slipping his shirt off over his shoulders. He wasn't exactly shy, although there were quite a few people around them. He tried not to think about that though, instead pointing to the parts that his shirt had been covering, including the compass on his shoulder. "Told you," he stuck his tongue out at her.​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava giggled, happily settling in behind him and running her hands over his tattooed skin. It looked good on him. "They're beautiful, I love them," She sighed happily, leaning forward and wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "How are you, Zephyr?" She asked softly, stopping him before he could respond. "No, not Rowan. How are you, Zephyr?" She laid her head on his shoulder, looking up at him with big blue eyes.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Elio was glad to get the approval of someone that knew her way around art. It wasn't that it had been a hard choice to get them, and they all had a meaning to him, but it would have made things harder if she didn't think they were very good. Elio swallowed when Ava asked how he was doing though, for a second looking back into her eyes, before glancing away, shuffling himself out of her grasp to throw his shirt back on. "I'm fine." he said, partly just trying to convince himself. It wasn't about him at the moment. "I'm, tired I guess. There's a lot going on you know, school is busy as ever." he added, moving closer to pull her back into a hug. He didn't really want to open that door, the one that would lead to more complicated emotions than just being preoccupied with school. "What about you? Did you find any more colleges?" he asked, trying to change the subject to what she was interested in.​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava moved so she was sitting in Elio's lap, running her fingers through his hair. "Elio," She tried to catch his eye. "I'm right here this time," She brushed her thumb over his jaw. "You don't have to talk if you don't wanna," She studied his face. "You've been ignoring yourself to take care of Rowan, haven't you?" She asked, not really expecting an answer so she didn't wait for one. "Just for right now, let me take care of you." She pleaded softly.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Elio made very little movements as he watched Ava, letting her more or less do whatever she wanted to with him. He was one of the people he trusted most in the world and it was obvious that she could see straight through him when she ignored his declaration. Truth be told, he knew right now he wasn't the priority, that was all. He didn't want to open up about how he was feeling, not when he had Rowan to look after. "I.. do what I have to Ava." he said honestly and quietly, not sure how he was meant to take the idea that she would look after him. They only really had what little time they did in Brightstone and then he'd be back to his usual self. Besides, he knew that if Rowan was able to help him then she would have, but right now he had to be there for her. "Please don't try to fix me." he found himself saying, still looking into her eyes. "Things are hard but, it's okay." he was sure that in time he'd be able to heal himself, and that gradually everything will fall into place. He pulled her closer, leaning his head against hers with a sigh. He'd lost himself months ago, but if history was anything to go by, they'd all pop out of this.. whenever eventually was.​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava sighed softly. "I'm not trying to fix you, Zephyr. You're perfect the way you are." She leaned her head on his, holding him close. "I'm just worried for you." She spoke softly. She relaxed against him for a bit, just running her fingers through his hair. "I love you, Zephyr." She told him quietly. "I hope you're right, because I don't feel okay at all," She admitted quietly, shutting her eyes. She still found herself crying in the middle of the night, missing Elsie and all of her friends.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Elio gave out a short chuckle, he knew that was far from the case but it was still sweet of her to say. He was making the most of being hugged, having someone play with his hair. It had been a while and really he hadn't realised how much he missed affection until now. He sighed as she said she didn't feel okay. He knew how she felt, really he did. "It's hard to laugh when things go wrong, it's easy to lose heart. But if you can keep on smiling, it's certainly a start." Elio swallowed, trying to remember the words to a poem he'd grown up with, "Happiness seems far away when days are long and sad. But just as good times pass away, so do all the bad. Trouble always fades away if you can grin and bear it, but call me if it gets too much and I'll be there to share it."​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava paused her fingers as Elio spoke, realizing after a moment that it was a poem. She pulled back a little bit, looking into his eyes. Her eyes misted over, and she couldn't help but smile shakily, brushing his hair out of his eyes. She just felt happy, relieved, more accepted and cared for than she had in such a long time. She had always been looking after Vader, her siblings, even her father. For the first time in a long time, Ava didn't feel so lonely. Without stopping to think, she leaned forward and pressed her lips softly against his.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Elio's eyes had been following Ava, until she was looking straight back at him and brushing his hair. He was surprised he'd still recalled the poem, it had been years since he'd laid eyes on it. The world around them seemed to freeze for a few second though as Ava lent forward and kissed him. Elio had no energy to pull away, and instead closed his eyes with a small frown, kissing her back for a couple of seconds. It wasn't even that this would complicate things because really, Ava was just as clear about where he stood as he was. There were no secrets or misunderstandings with who he was, and for Elio it was just another aspect of affection that he'd missed. He pulled back after a moment though, still holding her tightly. If he were feeling himself he probably would have made some sort of joke about fulfilling some sort of bucket list from their younger years, but instead the Gryffindor just stayed silent. "We will be okay," he said eventually, kissing her shoulder.​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava sighed softly, curling back up against him. "Tell me about your tattoos," She asked softly, running her fingers through his hair. "I've been thinking a lot and I have some ideas for what I would want but I don't know which ones I want for sure yet," She chattered softly. "How bad did it hurt? Did you cry?" She asked, feeling comfortable.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Elio was more or less just content the way he was, nestling into Ava's hair as she got more comfortable. "They hurt yeah but I didn't cry," he said, thinking back, "I sort of knew what I wanted ahead of time, so I got them all in pretty quick succession." Where he lived, the age to get them anyway was younger so it had been easy to find someone to do them for him. "My arm hurt the most, the one with the bird and the branches. Probably a bit more of a sensitive spot I guess," he smiled. "What do you want?" He hadn't been shocked to hear Ava wanted some too, she was a walking artboard as she was, the amount of times she could be found with paint smeared all over her.​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava listened intently, nodding and enjoying her position in his lap. She had missed cuddling so much. She pulled back a little bit, reaching into her bag for her sketchpad, showing him several pages and giving a brief explanation of each one as she flipped through them. "This one is for my family, since my dad is Avarian we're all birds, coming out up here," She flipped the page, this one and this one are both for Vader, we spent a lot of time growing up building legos and we met because I was curious about the spider-man comic he was reading," She flipped the page, chattering happily. "This one is for you and Vader," She told him, "This one is more for Philip, I know you don't like him, but we are slowly becoming friends again, did I tell you I'm seeing someone now?" She chattered, still flipping through pages. "This one is for Alice," She flipped a page, "This one is for my siblings and me," she started to turn the page again but stopped, blushing and shutting the book quickly. "And that's all! No more yet, nope," She hedged quickly.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Elio watched as she grabbed her sketchbook, flicking through all the different designs and wondering how long she'd actually been thinking about this, and how he'd managed not to realise it sooner. As she stopped at one for Phillip, he glanced at her in shock, "No.. no you didn't tell me that. You're killing me.." Honestly it was up to Ava who she kissed especially when she was already seeing someone, but knowing what had happened between Chrys and Onyx after not realising they'd been a couple, Elio could help but wonder if he'd just managed to get between another couple. He wanted to ask who, but she went on to talk about other designs and he nodded along, thinking they looked like good ideas although there was still confusion in his head. ​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava shrugged at his comment. "Well, kinda. I think so? We don't really talk much." She shrugged, slipping her notebook in her shoulder. "How long can you stay?" She asked, running her fingers through his hair still. "Are you thinking of getting any other tattoos?" She asked.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Elio had to shake the thought out of his head and remind himself that it hadn't actually been his fault that Chrys and Onyx broke up. "Who?" he asked her, hoping to Merlin that it wasn't Phillip. He did not trust that Slytherin in the slightest. "I guess I need to go back for lunch. Rowan won't eat unless I take food up," he admitted. Rowan barely left her dorms at all, and really it was just another thing that he had to do these days. "Not really, nothing set in stone." He'd just knocked off a load that he'd been planning, that it was hard to know what would come next. ​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava looked at him, a slight smile on her face. "It isn't Philip, don't worry. It's Christian Cade." She informed him. She tried not to pout when he said he'd be leaving for lunch, though she had expected as much. She curled up closer to him, focusing on his warmth. "I've really missed you, Elio." She spoke softly. "I know I needed to do this for my dad, but it... Its hard. I'm alone a lot, and I thought I could handle it..." She bit her lip, clutching at his shirt a little. "I'm really scared." She admitted softly.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

It did not make Elio feel a whole lot better to find out that she was seeing one of the other Gryffindors. "Why did you kiss me then?" he asked with a frown, unable to stop himself. She knew the drama that had happened with Chrys and Onyx, why was she putting him in the middle of another situation? He sighed, "You are handling it." It may have been hard but that didn't mean she wasn't getting through it. "It's like I said in the letters, everyone will be there for you when you get back, you've gotta make the most of the time you have with your dad now."​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava blinked at his question. "I didn't think about it," She answered honestly. "It wasn't a romantic kiss, anyway." She tilted her head a little. "I'm sorry if it upset you, I wasn't thinking," She apologized, pouting a little. "Is it because of what happened last time? That was different, you know. I sat with Onyx a few times to try and cheer him up, and Chrys... well, you weren't the only one Chrys had been playing with. That whole mess was going to happen with or without you, Zephyr. Besides," She smiled softly. "There's a biiiiig difference between a brother kiss and snogging." She teased, bopping his nose. "Still, I am sorry if it upset you, I won't do it again," She chattered idly.

She smiled softly at his reassurance, twisting and untwisting his shirt idly between her fingers. "How can you do that?" She asked quietly. "Know the dark bits of me and still love me?" She looked up to him, curiosity in her blue eyes.

 

[Elio Zephyr]

No one knew more than Elio what she meant when she said it wasn't a romantic kiss, but that didn't make it any less.. weird. He didn't have a chance to say anything before Ava mentioned Chrys' name and the mess that was last year. It sounded like she was trying to tell him brand new information, "You're assuming I didn't already know that." Elio was frowning at her now, the last thing he needed was people he thought that understood him making assumptions about what was going on, making him think he was even more alone. "I'm not even saying that for my benefit," he added. Ava may as well give up apologising to him, it wasn't him that needed to hear a sorry but he thought she would have understood that. Elio couldn't help but think of Isla at her next words, which was not something that did him any favours either. "Is this all just some kind of joke to you?" he hadn't realised just how frustrated he was, but it was evident in his tone now. ​

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava paused when she saw Elio was upset. She hesitated, growing quiet. She swallowed nervously. "No," she said softly. She always hated when she messed up, especially if she didn't even really understand why. Had it been that bad? She slipped off his lap, sitting next to him instead. Fidgeting with her shirt, she let her hair cover her eyes. "Im sorry, I didnt mean to upset you."

 

[Elio Zephyr]

Elio pulled his knees up to his chest, resting his elbows on them as he continued to frown at her. She didn't say much asides from that she hadn't meant to upset him, which was again a bit of a joke considering he was the least of her worries. He didn't even have the energy to explain it to her, not right now. He was tired constantly and the last thing he wanted to do was have some blown out argument which she obviously couldn't even see what was wrong. "Forget it," he said simply, laying back and closing his eyes, making the most of the rare moment he had out in the sunshine.​

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

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