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paradoxicalrenegadewell, this one's been sitting in my prompt document for literal years. and i wasn't even going in looking for a prompt today, but i passed by it, remembered the conversation that sparked it, and went "huh. i know what to do here."
so this is an alternate twist on something that could have occurred prior to with all your heart, in bad ending luume. not calling this one canon at all. it's just a bonus thought.
It's hard to say that he wakes up when he's still not sure the dead can sleep, but Tseer opens his eyes when something tugs in the center of his chest.
There's been a gaping, snarling hole there since the moment they all came to in Elysium, choking on breaths they no longer needed to take, and Tseer realized there was one missing from their group. When he'd thrown himself against the gates, clawing at the edges to try and open them. When the soulbond in his chest snapped, against the distance between himself and Wyatt, leaving him hollowed out and alone for the first time since the Feywild.
That hole is still there, still empty; but the edges of it feel warm, and he can feel edges now, where they're beginning to scab over and heal.
It is a strange, metaphysical sensation. He follows the pull. Glances at Tessa, snoring next to him, and sneaks out of the room they share.
Elysium doesn't have a curfew. Tseer doesn't need to sneak. But he doesn't want to be waylaid by anyone, not right now, when it feels like if he doesn't go, right now, the pressure in his chest will vanish and leave him hollow once again.
It brings him to that fucking gate again. But this time, there's a figure on the other side of the iron.
He looks bad, is what Tseer thinks; hair limp against his face, washed out by both how pale his face is and the lack of color in his clothes. But Wyatt Vancroft looks at Tseer and smiles, tiredly, and he's the most beautiful person Tseer’s ever seen.
“What the fuck," is what he says instead. “What the fuck, Wyatt."
“Hi, honey," Wyatt says. “It's good to see you too."
Tseer throws himself forward, reaching through the gate; but his hand passes through Wyatt when it should make contact, and he jerks away again.
“I’m not really here,” Wyatt confirms. “I’m… far away. A different pocket.”
“Then how?”
Wyatt’s face twists into a wry smile. "A massive expulsion of power. Figured out all the steps before I signed the contract, implemented it after. Let's just say I destroyed a death god just to say goodbye."
The pressure in Tseer’s chest is getting worse. The broken half of the soulbond feels like it, itself, is trying to reach out to Wyatt but can't make any contact. “Goodbye?" he spits. “Why is it goodbye? What did you do?"
“Made a contract." Wyatt shrugs one shoulder. “I had to. Things were going to break very, very bad if I didn't. And you deserved it anyway. Elysium." He glances past Tseer, into the paradise Tseer can't stand to look at. “You deserved it."
“And you didn't?"
“It's not about what I did and didn't deserve, Tseer," Wyatt says quietly. “I don't want to waste this chance I have arguing about it. Please."
He reaches out, as though to touch Tseer’s cheek, but seems to remember he can't make contact and falters.
“How long do we have?” Tseer asks.
“Two minutes more."
“That's not enough time!" Tseer throws himself forward, clinging to the iron bars. “There's too much to say, Wyatt!" Too much he never said. All the life they never got to live, ripped away from the both of them. And now here they are, on opposite sides of a wall that can never be crossed again.
“It's enough for me to see you again," Wyatt says softly. “To know that you're alright. That everything I gave up wasn't in vain." He pauses. “Everyone's there, right?"
“Me, Tessa and Ai, Corra and Otto, and Seshmir, yes." Tseer hasn't gone looking to see if anyone else they know is here yet. It'll be worse and worse, and more and more selfish to feel so much worse, and he can't know yet.
“Good." Wyatt rolls his shoulders. “They kept their end of the deal. Now I have to keep mine."
“And I’ll never see you again," Tseer says, to confirm.
Wyatt shakes his head. “You can't," he says, and it breaks what remains of Tseer’s heart right in half. “I’m alright. This place is…" He hesitates. “It's like hell. But it's alright. They can't really hurt me.” He meets Tseer’s eyes squarely. "They don't have you, so they can't hurt me."
Tseer tries to reach for him again, knowing they can't touch but just wanting to hold his hand one more time. “I love you," he says, desperately, because they're almost out of time and he doesn't know what else to say to the knowledge that Wyatt is in hell, out of his reach and away from him, and Tseer can't protect him anymore—
“I know,” Wyatt says, sweeping his hair back behind one ear. "No one will ever take that away from me. Just like they can't take it from you. Right?” Tseer nods, emphatically, and Wyatt smiles. "I l—”
And that's when he vanishes, mid-sentence, leaving Tseer frozen and standing at the gates of what has become his own personal hell.
so this is an alternate twist on something that could have occurred prior to with all your heart, in bad ending luume. not calling this one canon at all. it's just a bonus thought.
It's hard to say that he wakes up when he's still not sure the dead can sleep, but Tseer opens his eyes when something tugs in the center of his chest.
There's been a gaping, snarling hole there since the moment they all came to in Elysium, choking on breaths they no longer needed to take, and Tseer realized there was one missing from their group. When he'd thrown himself against the gates, clawing at the edges to try and open them. When the soulbond in his chest snapped, against the distance between himself and Wyatt, leaving him hollowed out and alone for the first time since the Feywild.
That hole is still there, still empty; but the edges of it feel warm, and he can feel edges now, where they're beginning to scab over and heal.
It is a strange, metaphysical sensation. He follows the pull. Glances at Tessa, snoring next to him, and sneaks out of the room they share.
Elysium doesn't have a curfew. Tseer doesn't need to sneak. But he doesn't want to be waylaid by anyone, not right now, when it feels like if he doesn't go, right now, the pressure in his chest will vanish and leave him hollow once again.
It brings him to that fucking gate again. But this time, there's a figure on the other side of the iron.
He looks bad, is what Tseer thinks; hair limp against his face, washed out by both how pale his face is and the lack of color in his clothes. But Wyatt Vancroft looks at Tseer and smiles, tiredly, and he's the most beautiful person Tseer’s ever seen.
“What the fuck," is what he says instead. “What the fuck, Wyatt."
“Hi, honey," Wyatt says. “It's good to see you too."
Tseer throws himself forward, reaching through the gate; but his hand passes through Wyatt when it should make contact, and he jerks away again.
“I’m not really here,” Wyatt confirms. “I’m… far away. A different pocket.”
“Then how?”
Wyatt’s face twists into a wry smile. "A massive expulsion of power. Figured out all the steps before I signed the contract, implemented it after. Let's just say I destroyed a death god just to say goodbye."
The pressure in Tseer’s chest is getting worse. The broken half of the soulbond feels like it, itself, is trying to reach out to Wyatt but can't make any contact. “Goodbye?" he spits. “Why is it goodbye? What did you do?"
“Made a contract." Wyatt shrugs one shoulder. “I had to. Things were going to break very, very bad if I didn't. And you deserved it anyway. Elysium." He glances past Tseer, into the paradise Tseer can't stand to look at. “You deserved it."
“And you didn't?"
“It's not about what I did and didn't deserve, Tseer," Wyatt says quietly. “I don't want to waste this chance I have arguing about it. Please."
He reaches out, as though to touch Tseer’s cheek, but seems to remember he can't make contact and falters.
“How long do we have?” Tseer asks.
“Two minutes more."
“That's not enough time!" Tseer throws himself forward, clinging to the iron bars. “There's too much to say, Wyatt!" Too much he never said. All the life they never got to live, ripped away from the both of them. And now here they are, on opposite sides of a wall that can never be crossed again.
“It's enough for me to see you again," Wyatt says softly. “To know that you're alright. That everything I gave up wasn't in vain." He pauses. “Everyone's there, right?"
“Me, Tessa and Ai, Corra and Otto, and Seshmir, yes." Tseer hasn't gone looking to see if anyone else they know is here yet. It'll be worse and worse, and more and more selfish to feel so much worse, and he can't know yet.
“Good." Wyatt rolls his shoulders. “They kept their end of the deal. Now I have to keep mine."
“And I’ll never see you again," Tseer says, to confirm.
Wyatt shakes his head. “You can't," he says, and it breaks what remains of Tseer’s heart right in half. “I’m alright. This place is…" He hesitates. “It's like hell. But it's alright. They can't really hurt me.” He meets Tseer’s eyes squarely. "They don't have you, so they can't hurt me."
Tseer tries to reach for him again, knowing they can't touch but just wanting to hold his hand one more time. “I love you," he says, desperately, because they're almost out of time and he doesn't know what else to say to the knowledge that Wyatt is in hell, out of his reach and away from him, and Tseer can't protect him anymore—
“I know,” Wyatt says, sweeping his hair back behind one ear. "No one will ever take that away from me. Just like they can't take it from you. Right?” Tseer nods, emphatically, and Wyatt smiles. "I l—”
And that's when he vanishes, mid-sentence, leaving Tseer frozen and standing at the gates of what has become his own personal hell.
