Posted: Sun Aug 11, 2024 12:37 am Post subject: Rom and Remy AU
The hardest day of Romulus's life was the day Remedy turned him away.
He remembered that day all too clearly, it had stuck with him for the last five years. He could remember her face, how instantly wounded her expression became as he told her the truth of their relationships origin. No matter how hard he tried to assure her that despite his deception, insisting that what he had come to feel for her was love, her mouth remained still twisted into a bitter frown and her eyes glossy with angry tears. She hadn't struck him, but he had wished she would have in that moment. He would rather her have hit him, scratch him, hurt him than see that pained expression on her face, especially knowing that he'd put it there in the first place.
He wasn't resentful when she turned her back on him, in fact, while it broke his heart, he knew and understood that he had betrayed her trust and hurt her. Even if he had been coming clean then, it didn't change the fact that the very basis of their initial relationship had been build from malintent and Remedy had never deserved to be in that position.
Just like Romulus didn't deserve her easy forgiveness, let alone forgiveness at all.
But if that was one of the hardest days...this one was the most agonizing.
He couldn't remember how he had ended up in his father's arms, the last thing he could remember was him being used in some ritual by a group of men, something he was often forced to do by both his mother and father. He must have done something they didn't approve of because one moment he was on his knees in front of a makeshift altar while the men chanted in some ancient tongue, and the next he was on the ground being brutalized in a flurry of cloaks and fists until he lost consciousness.
His father was not a refined magic user, not in the same way that his mother or even younger brother were, but he could still use the simple blood sigils Natas had shown him. There was a smell that accompanied the use of this magic, something acrid and a little sour. Maybe it was the smell or maybe it was the unstable nature of the magic that made everything crackle like a livewire was what had initially roused Romulus from his unconsciousness.
Romulus was quick to realize once he awoke that he was not only in his father's arms, but they were no longer inside the decrepit old church he had been brought to earlier that night. It took a moment to realize that the reason he had smelled his father's "magic" was because he had used a sigil to transport them elsewhere. It hurt to move, even the slightest movement of his head caused him pain, so he was unable to look at his surroundings. He thought perhaps he could ask his father where they were, but found that no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make any sound beyond a small, raspy croak and even that caused white hot pain.
Once the stink of the magic cleared, Romulus thought he could smell cigarette smoke and alcohol as well as the salty tang of sweat and bodies. He felt it in his bones before he heard it, but there was a booming bass coming from somewhere nearby accompanied by the sound of laughter and crowd chatter. Wherever they were, it was certainly not the decaying remains of a building of worship. _________________ Butts n' butts n' butts n' butts.
It had been four years since Remedy had last seen Romulus, since she had banished him away. On that day her heart had been twisted with hurt. Remedy had never loved anyone like that before Romulus, never experienced a heartbreak or a betrayal. This felt like the ultimate betrayal, not only was their relationship founded on a lie, it was at the behest of her beloved father's mortal enemy. At the time, Remedy felt like she would never know if Romulus really loved her, what part of their time together was real or fabricated. Remedy felt like she didn't know him at all, he was a stranger to her. She had heard the stories Armand and Natas and the crimes they committed. It was scary to think about what Armand could do to them if Remedy hadn't found out sooner. She was grateful that no one was hurt or worse.
But when Romulus went, a part of him stayed.
Remedy was pregnant.
She found out not long after Romulus departed to wherever he went. She even made an attempt to find him and inform him of the pregnancy. But after having learned where he went, multiple parties agreed it was for the best not to pursue finding or communicating with him. He was with Armand and Natas again, which was dangerous for Romulus, but almost more dangerous for his loved ones if they didn't stay away. Everyone knew it, it went without saying aloud, if Natas knew there was another tool at her disposal to hurt Romulus, she would use it just because she could. For Natas, there was always time to establish dominance and exercise her strength, her terror. Natas was an evil that was a plague on humanity, and her own flesh and blood were not excluded from this, in fact they were more often victims of it.
For their own safety, Remedy's baby would stay secret from their father, but still grow under the watchful eye of Remus. Who as displeased as he was about the turn of events, was a doting uncle who made himself available to Remedy should she need anything. One baby was quickly revealed to be two, twin boys, so Remedy was thankful to have so many hands on deck even if Romulus was absent. She wanted to move out on her own right away so not be a burden to her family, but both Jer and Roxanne were insistent that she stay. As a new single mother to twin boys, she was going to need help and time to save. Roxanne reminded her that if she wanted to pay her own way, it would take awhile on a mechanics salary. Even if she picked up a part time job at the grocery store again, babies are expensive and another job would just be more time apart from their mother. Whether or not she wanted to hear it, Remedy knew her mother was right and so she remained for a few years.
Almost a year ago, Remedy bought a house. Which was a generous statement considering the house in question. It was a fixer upper, but the truth of it was it was in a state of disrepair. The entire upstairs bedroom was unfinished, same as the downstairs. Remedy and the boys sleep in the living room, but Remedy likes it that way. They twin boys, named Romano and Venturo, named as a nod to their father's heritage, loved sleeping in the common area. Sometimes they would push the couches together and make a big forth, sometimes they would put all the cushions on the floor and make a giant bed, and they would fall asleep in front of the television. Remedy loved her boys and their life, but there was something missing. No matter the passage of time, Remedy missed Romulus. She missed that great love, and having a person she could be so completely herself. When Romulus left, there was a part missing from Remedy that never reformed again. Watching her boys grow up and see the traces of Romulus in their face only increased her fondness, her yearning. They looked more like Remedy, they had her fair hair and her square face. They did have mysterious hazel eyes that Remedy was unsure which side they came from, both her and Romulus had brown eyes. But the way they laughed, the way they smiled, it was pure Romulus. Sometimes it made it feel like he was still around, and others it made him being gone that much more apparent.
Once the anger of the betrayal washed away, and enough time passed that the threat of Armand and Natas felt less imminent, Remedy could see things clearer. Raising and loving the twins created a path back to Romulus, to forgiving him and wanting for him again. That felt impossible now though, Remedy wished there was an easier and safer way to reunite with him again.
---
Remus had been living a relatively normal life, a good life even. Considering where he came from and what he thought his life would be like, he felt like the luckiest guy in the world. He had a wife that he cherished and a baby daughter that was the light of his life, he didn't know he could love someone so much until Lucita was born. Remus had a schedule that was difficult but predictable at least, they had a routine that worked for their family. Remus worked as security at a club, so he wasn't normally getting off until just as the sun was coming up. But he would come up, he'd feed and change Lucita and stay up for a few hours. They'd have breakfast and Remus would try to help with chores or just spend time with Lucita before he went to bed. He'd sleep until the late afternoon and rejoin his family until it was time to go back. The good thing about the club, was Remus didn't clock in until eleven, so he could do Lucita's bedtime routine which was his favorite to do. He would give her a bath and swaddle her, he would feed her a bedtime bottle. Remus couldn't read, so instead of reading a story to Lucita they would watch and episode of Max and Ruby together.
Even though it was twilight and Remus was just getting off work, he was already looking forward to watching Max and Ruby with his best girl again. It was cool and overcast, the sky was still a pale and dusty blue and the sun was yet to be seen. Remus didn't smoke, but a lot of his coworkers did and he got along really well with the people he worked with. So in the morning when everyone was getting off, they would smoke and debrief about the night, and Remus would linger to just be apart of it.
He was doing that now, sitting crouched against the building while his peers smoked. The music was still playing inside and some stragglers were still filing out in their drunken stupors. This was all very normal and routine for everyone, club goers included. What was not normal or routine, was the familiar plume of smoke and ash that came with satanic transport. Remus had never forgot the sour stench, not even after all this time. The appearance of his father with a bloodied figure in his arms was also a not so distant memory that continued to haunt him. Astrid would wake him from night terrors, crying and shaking about they things his parents had done to him, to his brother, and the things they haven't done yet. Now Armand was at his feet, cradling someone crumpled in his arms. After the scent of sulfur blew away in the wind, and the smoke cleared, Remus could see that the figure in Armand's arms was his twin brother Romulus.
Remus went pale, all the blood and color draining from his face as he immediately went clammy. His eyes rolled back in his head before he rolled onto his hands and knees and threw up. His friends piped up, startled by the plume of smoke and gas and took queue from Remus. If he was upset and freaking out, there was a good reason to be. One man, a linecook with a shaven head and big nose, leaned down and put his arms around Remus.
"Are you okay, hermano?"
Remus could only see blinding white and hear ringing in his ears, and the smell of blood filled his nose.
"We don't want any trouble, alright?" Another man, a bouncer who had a long pony tail, stood up off the brick wall to put himself between the men who appeared in smoke, and Remus.
Armand had been disappointed in his sons since the day his mate, Natas, returned from the woods, thighs still bloody from child birth and two wriggling, pink faced babes squalling in her arms. When he and Natas had first coupled, it was with the intention that they would be creating a child bestowed with Armand's own beastly blood and otherworldliness as well as Natas' magic and own cursed lineage, creating a being unholy and powerful. Their first sons were hardly any of those things and Natas told him as such as she thrust them into his arms and went to tend to herself. They were born with his werewolf curse, but beyond that, they were not remarkable.
Still, Armand had insisted they keep them around, after all, even without magic abilities or any other uncanny talents, they could still be of use in other ways. This proved to be of use throughout the years as the couple had been able to use their sons in a variety of ways, including enforcers and bodies in rituals and backroom deals. But it was only good until it wasn't, until Armand had told Romulus to sway Remedy Laughlin in hopes of getting confidential Society information as she was the daughter of none other than his previous cohort and now ranking Society officer, Jeraud Laughlin. His plan to get Romulus into Remedy's bed worked perhaps a little too well as once he bedded the girl, Romulus got it into his head that he loved the girl and ultimately he decided to try and take his twin and run away from Armand and Natas.
This endeavor ended up being meaningless however as less than a week after they'd fled, Romulus returned to the witch hut without his brother, head bowed to his parents and seemingly even more broken than he'd been before he left in the first place.
Natas made sure to punish Romulus, inflicting the same amount of damage that would have been split between he and his brother. Without even giving him reprieve to heal his wounds after the punishment, he was thrown right back into his work for his parents and had been a dutiful, albeit quiet and dull, creature.
Until tonight, apparently.
Armand had taken Romulus to an old dilapidated church to loan his body to some cult branch, one that wasn't directly related to his and Natas's own work, but could be a fruitful connection if anything else. He had left Romulus there with the men and had returned some time later to retrieve him, but upon entering the church, he found the men pummeling the boy within an inch of his life.
Armand hadn't ever been paternal with his eldest children, so it was a shock even to himself that he intervened in the way that he had. The moment he saw Romulus's broken and bloodied figure on the floor with the group of men atop him, he swooped in with zero hesitation and began dispatching them to their graves one by one. If the ritual they had intended to do that night had required blood, surely theirs would suffice. When he returned to Romulus on the ground, a strange feeling came over him, much like the feeling he'd had the day his sons were born.
Romulus was not remarkable, he never had been and never would be, but it would be a great and terrible waste, he thought, to let him die there.
He was sure if he brought Romulus back to the witch hut, Natas would simply tell him to take him out to the woods and dig a grave, after all, she had said to do as such when the twins had been born in the first place. He knew his mate would not do anything to prevent Romulus's death, even if Armand, though he couldnt' understand why, did not wish for that to be his fate just yet.
So he ripped the ritual tapestry that had been laid out over the alter and wrapped up Romulus's battered body before hefting him into his arms before casting a blood sigil and stepping into it, commanding it take him to the one person who he knew cared for Romulus and would ensure he would live.
Remus.
Armand's lip curled in distaste as he watched Remus sink to his knees vomit, instantly turning into a simpering mess at the mere sight of him. He also was not impressed by his company as they all rushed to him as if they could stop Armand from doing anything if he had wanted to do so. He paid them no mind and stepped forward before dropping Romulus onto the hard ground before them.
"I'm bringing him back to you. Make sure he gets the help he needs and also that he never returns to the hut. I am doing this courtesy, but your mother will not be as kind." He said simply. _________________ Butts n' butts n' butts n' butts.
Remus looked up at Armand and then down at Romulus whom he dropped on the ground before them. Several of Remus's company jumped to his aid, but Remus sprung forward to life then, a frantic and primal urgency to protect his brother. He pushed past his friends and flung himself over Romulus then, and only then did he hear it, the fluttering of his heart. It was weak and thready, but there all the same. It had been a rule for Remus, to never take his eyes off his parents if he was in their presence. Nothing he could do would prevent them from causing him any harm, but he still needed to watch their movements, brace himself mentally and physically with each second he could get. But he only gave Armand one final side long glance before he refocused wholly on his brother.
"Someone, please call for help." Remus said to his friends without tearing his gaze away from Romulus. Remus cupped his face and collected him into his lap, holding him close to his chest and rocked him. He could hear his friend the line cook on the phone with first responders, followed by the sound of a distant ambulance siren. Remus continued to clutch onto his brother as tears pricked his dark eyes as he looked over Romulus mournfully. He was in such a state, Remus was filled with immediate regret about allowing his twin to return to their parents. He should've fought harder for his freedom, his happiness, his life. Romulus was alive for now but for how long? If he were to die, he'd be leaving behind Remus and two sons he didn't even know about. Then there was Remedy, resentment rose up in Remus's chest with the instinct to place blame. He never liked Remedy especially and he held her partly responsible that Romulus was dying in his arms. But he knew she would mourn him, that losing him without having ever meeting their boys would break her.
"Please don't leave me." Remus rasped quietly as he wept, pressing his forehead to Romulus's as though he could disperse his own life into him.
In all the time Astrid and Remus had been together, he had never called once called her from the club, so when she heard her phone vibrating to life on the nightstand next to the bed, she was startled awake. She still wasn't fully conscious when she answered, so when Remus told her he was headed to the hospital she had thought he meant he had been hurt. It was only after a panicked exchange that she understood that he wasn't hurt and that it was in fact his twin, who she had yet to meet in the nearly three years of her and Remus's relationship.
Remus had told her early on about the circumstances he and his brother escaped from and how his twin had returned despite everything. She was horrified to hear how they had been treated growing up, not sure how any parent could do such horrible things to their children, but also relieved that at the very least Remus was free of that situation and would never have to go back.
Even though his twin apparently did.
Astrid couldn't say she understood, she wasn't even sure that Remus could either, why Romulus went back. They had escaped from their parents' cruelty after all those years, surely it would be better to deal with some heartache than go back. But it didn't matter what Astrid thought or understood, the fact of the matter was that Romulus did and had, from the sound of it, suffered the consequences.
Astrid had come rushing into the hospital, baby Lucita bobbing against her chest as she ran through the emergency room entrance. Her cheeks were flushed and she was clearly out of breath from running as she frantically looked around the area until she found the seating area and her gaze locked on a familiar figure.
"Remus!" She called, hurrying over. She shifted Lucita onto her hip and reached out with her free hand to grab at her husband's face, palm to his cheek to turn him to look at her. "Remus, are you okay? My love, are you alright?" She asked. She knew that Remus was physically okay, he had made sure to say as much on the phone when he'd called her, but she wanted to know if he was alright in the other ways that mattered. _________________ Butts n' butts n' butts n' butts.
Remus allowed Astrid to fawn over his face a moment before he wrapped his arms around her waist and tucking his face into Lucita's shirt. The whole thing had been so awful, so terrifying. Remus hoped to never see either of his parents again and just a brief glimpse made him sick. It wasn't enough for him to show up either, he had to show up with his bloodied twin. Romulus was half of Remus's soul, bound by blood and something else even more profound. It was devastating having to live apart and now to see him this way, Remus felt overcome with pain and fear, his greatest nightmares come to life. His eyes were wet and left little damp dots on Lucita's shirt as he wept. After Romulus was taken back into surgery, Remus had sequestered himself to the men's room to wash his twin's blood off his hands, though he couldn't do much about the stain on his shirt.
"It was so awful, Astrid." Remus said with a shudder. He was quiet, kept his tone even. He didn't want to scare Lucita, and did his best to control his voice. The tears he couldn't do anything about.
"I'm so sorry, Remus. I'm sorry." Astrid cooed, placing her hand at the back of Remus's head to pet at his hair in an effort to soothe him the best she could. She couldn't even begin to imagine her husband's fear, the idea that his brother, his twin, might die. If it had been her and either of her brothers, she didn't think she would be able to stand it.
Lucita babbled and stretched over to pat at the crown of Remus's head, mirroring her mother's movements. _________________ Butts n' butts n' butts n' butts.
"I don't know if he will come back, I don't know if Romulus will make it." Remus sputtered hopelessly. Of course the he Remus referred to was Armand, who had likely decided that Remus was still his least favorite child. He had considered that in another universe in which it was Remus who went back instead of Romulus, and his parents kill him right away. Natas would strike with some kind of unholy magik, maybe they would lock him in the cage and let rats eat him alive. But the reality was that they didn't think about him at all, he was unimportant. Something that was damning in the life he had been born into, but the same thing that kept him safe today.
Remus sniveled and reached up to hold Luctia's hand, allowing her chubby fingers to curl around his one index finger. He was still a bundle of nerves and very much fearful, but he had a new sweeping concern.
The Society.
Even if word didn't get back that there was a sighting of Armand in the city, they would want to know about Romulus and the details of his arrival and his condition. Remus wouldn't want to inform them for several reasons, the bureaucracy of it all, there would be paperwork and interviews. They would take Romulus into their custody before he was even out of surgery, they might take Remus too. If that happens, Remus won't even get to speak with Romulus before he does. If The Society comes and they deem Remus didn't report it to them quickly enough, he could get in trouble for that too. But Remus also felt like it was the best way to protect this family if Armand did come back. Whether or not it was likely, Remus was worried about it.
"It's okay, Remus. It'll be okay. Romulus will be okay, the doctors here are good at what they do." Astrid assured, though, in truth, she didn't have any idea about the hospital or the doctors there. It just felt like something Remus needed to hear to keep his head above water. "I'll call my dad later when we know more about your brother, okay? We'll do one thing at a time." She said before craning down to softly nose at Remus's cheek. "It will be alright." _________________ Butts n' butts n' butts n' butts.
"I'm not so sure, before your dad, we should probably call Remedy?" Remus said but posed it as a question, unsure if that was next right move. Remus was a responsible person within reason, he could look after Lucita with ease and work a full time job. But Remus had never been in charge of anyone, especially not his older twin. Romulus was born first, even if Remus was born a couple seconds later, it gave Romulus some kind of edge being first. He was in charge, Remus had always been a follower versus a leader, and he needed Romulus to tell him the right thing to do or at least what he would want.
If he was dying, would Romulus want Remedy at his side? Would he want his boys there, even if they didn't know him, or would it be better if they didn't see him this way. Long enough to say goodbye?
Astrid was famously not able to lie, much like her brothers. If you asked her a question, she could probably keep how she truly felt to herself if it weren’t for the unconscious souring of her expression. Despite the dire nature of the situation, she couldn’t keep her face from twisting as she forced a little nod and a “mhm”.
Like her husband, Astrid was not necessarily the biggest fan of Remedy Laughlin. Unlike her husband, it was a more long standing issue as she had known Renedy since she was a little girl. They were both the daughters of high ranking Society officers and both from werewolf families to boot. Their families often crossed paths in one way or another and she couldn’t recall a single time Remedy had been pleasant to be around. She was rowdy and blunt, which Astrid maybe wouldn’t have minded so much if she wasn’t a child and it didn’t come off as overtly mean. That perception of Remedy paired with the muddied feelings of bitterness Remus had made Astrid decidedly NOT a fan.
“We could…after we get an update maybe?” She suggested, face tight with an expression that could only be described as a bulldog grimace. _________________ Butts n' butts n' butts n' butts.
Remus knew Astrid didn’t like Remedy, for how things happened with Romulus and how it affected Remus, as well as her own reasons. Remus wasn’t a fan for the same reasons but he knew his brother loved her once, even if he didn’t anymore, that was the mother of his children now. Remus gave Astrid a curt nod of agreement.
“Let’s wait to tell your dad about Romulus. He should know that Armand was in the city. But I want to give the boys a chance to see him, I don’t know how long the Society will hold him or if they’ll let him go. I don’t want them to miss each other.” Remus explained. “We’ll make those calls after the update.” He reaffirmed.
Astrid's face softened a bit in understanding at that sentiment. She had her feelings about Remedy, but she did love their nephews fiercely. Since Romulus wasn't able to be in the picture, Remus had stepped up where he could and served as a positive figure in the boys' life. Astrid often hosted playdates and watched the boys for Remedy while she worked and they had even had the occasional slumber party now that the boys were getting older and often fussed about leaving while they were having a good time. They deserved to see their dad, even if it was just once and even if it might be fleeting, though Astrid hoped that it wasn't that brief.
She nodded and reached out to brush some of Remus's hair from his face, eyes drifting to his bloodied shirt.
"Let me go see if the hospital shop is open yet. I'll see if I can get you a clean shirt while we wait, hmm?" She suggested, however, before she could step away, a familiar face appeared around the corner.
"Hello Astrid, Remus." Peter Malkovich greeted.
He hadn't even been at the hospital when Remus arrived with Romulus, however, a nurse on staff had recognized Remus as one of Peter's "usual clientele" and gave him a call. He was a skittish man by nature, but was well liked by colleagues so when he arrived shortly therein after, he was able to ask the on staff nurses about the case and when he came out of surgery he even spoke with the attending doctor, convincing him to even be the one to give the update as he had a rapport with Remus and Astrid. _________________ Butts n' butts n' butts n' butts.
Remus had a semi neutral opinion of Peter, although he did more often than not, put him in the same boat with The Society. So he was leery of him for those reasons, and also just because Remus didn’t really understand medicine. Some of the things Peter has had to do as a doctor, Remus found questionable or horrifying (Astrid’s C section). But everyone seemed to trust him and he was the primary doctor for supernaturals. So Remus did his best to believe in Peter’s abilities and his intentions, he was Romulus’s only hope.
“Peter, how is my brother?” He asked straight away, brows furrowed and pensive.
"A colleague was the doctor who took care of him, he's very good at his job. He said that he looked much worse than he actually was, so he will be just fine after some time to rest and heal." Peter nodded, his usual tightlipped smile curving his mouth. He looked between both Astrid and Remus, knowing that they were both young and not particularly versed in medical terminology, and tried to think of how to phrase Romulus's prognosis. "Doctor Francis told me that he suffered multiple broken bones and had some trauma to his head, but luckily no internal bleeding or brain swelling. It looks like he has some trauma to his neck as well - laryngeal trauma - so he might have some trouble breathing and may find it hard to speak, but the severity wasn't so bad it won't heal." Peter explained, unconsciously touching his own neck. "They've reset the bones in his arm and nose, ah, expect some swelling and bruising on his face from that and the everything else. He had multiple fractured ribs, so he needs to avoid stressful physical activity for a few weeks. He's got several suture sites that will need minding for awhile, but they should heal up just fine." He concluded.
"But he's going to be fine, right?" Astrid asked, knowing that the specificity and clarification was what Remus needed to hear most.
"Oh, yes. We will keep him here for a few days for observation, but after that, he should be just fine given some rest." Peter nodded. _________________ Butts n' butts n' butts n' butts.
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