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rhys alexander greyback
HOGWARTS ALUM WEREWOLF CURSEBREAKER ECHO
1,172 posts
played by vanessa
the air around me still feels like a cage
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last online May 2, 2024 2:55:32 GMT -7
WIZARDING ADULT
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Jan 26, 2021 22:51:39 GMT -7
Post by rhys alexander greyback on Jan 26, 2021 22:51:39 GMT -7
Just the one, two of us who's counting on That never happens, I guess I'm dreaming again Vas' slightly surprised expression didn't bother him. He had long grown accustomed to a range of reactions when he spoke about himself or his family. Typically surprise shock, perhaps some horrified look at some of the gritty details. But, he had spoken so easily just now--he never felt awkward sharing details with Vas though he didn't tend to bring them up often either. Rhys had been looking at a random spot on the old table as he had spoken, and when his eyes looked up at her, he saw the usual softness in her eyes plus other emotions--except pity. The one expressed emotion he hated to see, but she never pitied him for which he was grateful. Rhys gave a half-hearted smile at her response. He was glad to have found them as well. Though he often felt their existences were a mix between a blessing and a curse, the cost of Rhys being here this day had been incredibly high. Each of them had a different story, a different way they all came to be, and some more dreadful than the others. "Honestly, I just...I feel lucky--in a way." He'd been alone for so long, a feeling he still remembered quite vividly, and then all of a sudden, he had sisters. He supposed Ilija acting the way he was bothered him, and that was a stronger feeling than trying to empathize as an older brother himself. Rhys could be a bit hard on his sisters sometimes, expressing his opinions or giving suggestions. But they also had their own opinions and suggestions as well for him, so he was learning when to back off--slowly. If there was one that was the most like him, it was Dahlia. Rhys didn't push Vas on the issue at hand, even if he was having trouble letting go of it in his own mind as worry built behind the thought. Just because he had trouble expressing what he may be thinking, or feeling didn't mean those thoughts and feelings weren't there. In Rhys' mind, one didn't need to smile all the time to care. In his experience (mainly his own), he always pushed back the more someone tried to pry. So he was worried about her, pushing yourself to the brink of total exhaustion--he'd been there. And it also bothered him how much Ilija seemed to be taking for granted siblings that had been there almost his entire life and would do anything for him--something Rhys could have only dreamed of having. Rhys would never claim he was the most observant person and often was in his own thoughts more often than not. But, her expression and everything shifted when it came to the mention of her father. The pain was evident to Rhys, and while his own loss had been at a very young age, he still felt that void. Loss wasn't something that really ever went away, you just adjusted to it, and while it had been two decades since his mother had died, he felt he'd started over when Elias had been killed the previous year. The last thing he wanted anyone to ever feel was the same pain he had, especially not someone who was always so kind. "Were you close to him?" He hadn't been sure if he should ask or if she wanted to talk about it. It only added to his changing feelings toward Ilija. He had stayed away when his father wasn't well, and while Rhys knew why Ilija had stayed away and didn't blame him, it still didn't sit right with him. Her soft response was only an acknowledgment of the great burden she carried. Carrying so much weight on one's own was an exhausting effort, and a friend had once told him that family would want to be there to help carry your burdens and because they loved you. Rhys was a hypocrite in that way. He knew that there was much he kept from his sisters when they would be happy to help, but he couldn't find it in himself to give them any of that weight. It wasn't their problem--he didn't want the pity. It seemed Vas didn't either. Vas looked at him from where she rested her head on the table, and Rhys sat back in his seat, contemplating it all. Their family dynamics could not have been more different, and perhaps had it been anyone else, he might have left it alone for them to figure out. But it worried him to see the normally bright and happy girl that he'd become good friends with seem to lose that. Like a light that was not as bright. He also was struggling because he knew more about her brother's situation than his whole family did. Rhys didn't want to make excuses for Ilija. Had Rhys been in his shoes, he wouldn't have waited to tell them what had occurred regarding Hannah, but Rhys knew that he would have tried to process it by himself as per his usual habit of handling things. "I hope he does too." Rhys paused. It wasn't his place to share what he knew. "I understand trying to deal with things alone...I was like that when my brother died." Rhys' face was mostly serious, and he looked down into his almost empty glass. It wasn't quite the same, though he had run away instead of coming home and trying to be there more for Max and Jamie, and he did regret that. But they hadn't had to take up such a burden as he assumed Vas had. But even now, she was thinking of her brother over herself. "I know he will, eventually." Rhys assured her with his usual half-smile. "He's lucky to have you in his corner."
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last online Oct 27, 2023 12:42:38 GMT -7
STUDYING ABROAD
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Feb 10, 2021 19:06:09 GMT -7
Post by vasilia abigail fortescue on Feb 10, 2021 19:06:09 GMT -7
Rhys's answer almost... well, it made Vasilia happy. That despite how hard it must have been his response was to feel lucky, not unlucky that it took so long. Maybe it was just the optimist in Vas that made her see it that way though. She smiled softly back at him, a warm fluttering in her chest. She ignored it, passing it off as simply empathizing. "Hey, just think. You missed the awkward sibling phase. God almighty, siblings are a nightmare when you're a kid or preteen." Yes, she loved her siblings. But that didn't mean they always got along. There had been a great many squabbles growing up. Thankfully those squabbles became less frequent the more mature you got. She was ashamed to admit that she'd also been very... resentful at that stage in her life. Because that's when they'd come to realize she was a squib. It was a very difficult thing to explain to a child that they were different from their siblings and couldnt' go to "magic school". No, Vasilia's acceptance of being a squib didn't come until years later. It still crept up on her sometimes, but by now she'd mostly embraced it. But hey, she was still young.
Vasilia purse her lips tightly. She tried not to dwell on her father's condition. They'd had a few months to come to terms with the diagnosis. It was terminal. He was going to die, no matter how they felt or waht they did. Nothing would change that fact. The only thing still up in the air was when. How much time did they have left? Sometimes it felt like he was already gone. Like every single day she saw him she had to say good bye all over again because maybe, just maybe, he'd die before the next day. It was a very difficult situation. Not knowing when, but knowing it was coming. It was why she'd taken on so much at the shop. Because she wanted her mother to have as much time with their father as there was left. It was why she'd taken on all the responsibilities. Because someone had to. To give their mother the final few months she had with her husband. It was why she was so accepting of her "fate". It was for good reason. But it still hurt. Not knowing, and knowing at the same time. "Yeah... He taught me everything I know about business." They were memories she'd never trade. Not for magic, nothing. It was time that she had with their father. So while she'd never been the first born, like Ilija, she'd been the "protegee". She'd been the one that their father passed on everything he knew to. There was a reason she knew more about running businesses then her siblings. They'd been off learning magic, and she'd been spending every free minute learning at their father's feet. "His health is getting bad though... So I'm glad Ilija came back now. At least Ilija can spend some time with him before..." She swallowed hard. Before he died.
If she was sober, Vasilia probably wouldn't have opened up so much to Rhys. She tried to hide her conflicts and problems. Pretend everything was fine and ignore her problems. But she wasn't sober. And surprisingly? She felt like she could trust Rhys. She.... She couldn't explain it. She felt like he wouldn't judge her. That he would listen to her problems and genuinely help support her. He wouldn't try to "fix it", or tell her that she was wrong in her beliefs. Her heart fluttered a little harder in her chest, but that must be the alcohol...
Then, Rhys mentioned his brother's death. She'd heard about it in the news. Remembered how sad she'd felt about all the students that had died. She hadn't considered before now, though she'd remembered the name "Greyback" t hat Rhys' brother had been one of the deceased. Her head remained on the table, but she moved her head a little so that her head rested on just one arm instead of both. She moved her not freed hand to rest on his own. She didn't even think about it. His hand was warm, she realized almost immediately. But instead of saying that, she just closed her eyes. She was sorry that he'd lost his brother, but she honestly didn't know how to approach that topic while drunk. But when words failed? Physical contact didn't. Humans were physical creatures. They took comfort in physical contact. So she hoped that even something as simple as placing her hand on his own would help convey how sad she felt that he'd lost a sibling.
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rhys alexander greyback
HOGWARTS ALUM WEREWOLF CURSEBREAKER ECHO
1,172 posts
played by vanessa
the air around me still feels like a cage
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last online May 2, 2024 2:55:32 GMT -7
WIZARDING ADULT
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Feb 11, 2021 15:15:24 GMT -7
Post by rhys alexander greyback on Feb 11, 2021 15:15:24 GMT -7
that never happens i guess i'm dreaming again For a long time, Rhys held on to an attitude fueled by so much anger, and it he’d been lucky he hadn’t gotten into worse trouble when he’d been at school. The universe had dealt him an unlucky hand—his father was an infamous monster, and his mother had been killed by him. The name he carried that he couldn’t get rid of, he had only wished for a break. He learned later one by people who had taken some pity on the angry little boy that the universe did not owe you anything. You had to go and earn your place in the world and whatever reputation that brought with it. It had factored into his personal decision to keep the Greyback name instead of using his mother’s. Now that he was older, he knew he should feel lucky to have the opportunity and have people who genuinely cared about his well-being. They weren’t doing it because they had to keep him fed and alive long enough for him to venture out into the world on his own. He had a family now, and he had friends that he considered family as well.
Rhys looked up and saw Vas’ usual friendly and warm smile. There had always been something comforting about it—maybe because she meant it, and Rhys had never questioned it. He chuckled slightly. She had a point. ”I suppose that might be a blessing for my sisters. I wasn’t all that friendly in school.” He admitted. His temperament and anger issues had been troublesome, though he didn’t mention the bullying he had gone through. He’d been small and scrawny until about the summer before his fifth year, and of course, his name had attracted negative attention. Her expression changed when Rhys inquired about her father. He wondered what it might be like to have a parent for the entirety of one’s life and then lose them to a terrible illness of some sort. Was it worse to watch them die instantly or watch them suffer and die slowly? He wasn’t’ sure if he knew the answer to that, but only that it was a horrible feeling either way. Obviously, it was a difficult topic, and Rhys looked on sympathetically—if there was one thing he didn’t have to lie about understanding, it was this. ”Well, I’m sure he’s happy to spend what time he can with you all.” Rhys spoke softly, he got that sense about parents—they did what they could in the time they could. Or he imagined it was what his mother would have done. ”I’m sure he’s proud of you too.”
Rhys had seen her drink quite a bit in front of him, and he was under the assumption that she had nowhere near his tolerance when it came to this. Plus, who knew how much she had consumed before he’d arrived. They were just talking—just like they always did when Rhys stopped by the Violet Hound. There wasn’t a lot about himself he had revealed, so he mentioned his siblings today had been new in terms of Vas’s knew they existed but not how. He realized that most people were under the assumption that they had all known each other forever, but that just simply wasn’t the case. They had their own families in Jamie and Max’s case while he and Dahlia’s experiences had been a bit similar, unfortunately. Rhys noticed that she never pushed him, not like some of his other friends did when he felt stuck or had one of those days. It was refreshing, he didn’t like to be told what to do on a good day—let alone when he was feeling off.
She didn’t speak when he mentioned Elias, and it wasn’t something Rhys talked about often. He still sometimes couldn’t’ wrap his mind around how he’d felt so hurt by losing someone that he’d known for so little. Maybe the idea of more siblings had helped him open up so entirely in only a way he did for his family, and that made it all the more painful? He wasn’t sure but only knew that it lingered. He was reminded of Ilija and his pain at losing Hannah, and having grown up with them in school, he’d seen them together and their real connection. He’d opened himself up entirely to a single person and then she’d been taken from him, and Rhys wondered how one survived and lived with that kind of pain. For a moment, he had retreated back into his mind—the usual routine he went through when certain dark thoughts came up. But, this time, he was brought back. Rhys felt something touch his hand, and he looked down and realized it was a hand—Vas’s hand. It was warm, but he also knew that he ran warm (probably a werewolf thing), but he hadn’t expected that.
Rhys looked up, and her eyes were closed for the moment. But it was reassuring, and he was curious. Nobody had ever really done that for him before, such a simple gesture. Most people in his life thought that comfort only came in words, and that simply just wasn’t the case. Not that Rhys had an air of approachability that even suggested a hug, either. He realized he felt calm. Her hand sat on top of his own. It was small compared to his, but he was still able to move his thumb and touch her hand if only to acknowledge it, and she seemed to need the comfort as well.
template by vee
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last online Oct 27, 2023 12:42:38 GMT -7
STUDYING ABROAD
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Mar 2, 2021 21:17:37 GMT -7
Post by vasilia abigail fortescue on Mar 2, 2021 21:17:37 GMT -7
Though news of Rhys' "unfriendliness" in school shouldn't have surprised Vasilia, it did. She knew he wasn't an overly friendly person. Knew he was quite prickly. But she'd personally never seen it in him. He never acted that way with her, just others. It was why her staff at the Hound always let her serve him, cause he got on their nerves. It was sad that even Rhys seemed to see himself that way though. Her expression softened. "I don't think you're unfriendly," she muttered softly. It wasn't necessarily meant to be shared, but she didn't have the will to stop the comment with all the alcohol in her system. Rhys was just... misunderstood by most people in her mind.
Vasilia wondered. Was her father proud of her? Considering her collapse maybe not. Why else would her parents have called in Ilija? To help dig his younger sister out of the hole she'd made. To fix the mess. She pursed her lips tightly, at least managing to keep those comments to herself. Because, she did love Ilija. She didn't like complaining about him. Especially not to one of his school friends.
Vasilia knew that her life had been pretty good in terms of loss. No one close to her had died before now. Rhys though? He'd lost a brother so recently. She couldn't fully understand that pain. Her father wasn't dead yet, even if it was inevitable. She wished she could understand the pain though. To help Rhys. Because it was a heavy burden. But at the very least, he didn't pull his hand away from hers when she put her hand on his. She didn't move her hand, or say anything. Just let that small bit of contact remain. Hopefully to convey how she wished she could comfort him in that, even if she didn't know exactly what he was going through. That she was there for him.
Finally, there was a touch of movement. HE didn't move his hand though, instead she felt the slightest touch. She opened her eyes to look at him, and offer a small smile. "Want a round of shots? I've got room for one more drink before I call it quits." Well, before she was too drunk to function. Thankfully she was good at knowing when she as close to her limit.
(you wanna end it with your post?)
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rhys alexander greyback
HOGWARTS ALUM WEREWOLF CURSEBREAKER ECHO
1,172 posts
played by vanessa
the air around me still feels like a cage
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last online May 2, 2024 2:55:32 GMT -7
WIZARDING ADULT
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Mar 3, 2021 1:12:33 GMT -7
Post by rhys alexander greyback on Mar 3, 2021 1:12:33 GMT -7
that never happens i guess i'm dreaming again Rhys was aware of what people thought of him and his personality, and while it had bothered him when he was younger, it bothered him less a lot now. It was a form of acceptance, this was how he was, and he’d improved as much as he probably could at the moment. Plus, he just needed to be friendly enough to get along with his coworkers and locals, but his anger came out to unfortunate trainees who made stupid mistakes. In Rhys’ mind, people didn’t understand the anxiety he would feel at times, and he didn’t quite know how to process it either as it usually just shifted into anger. Aside from some mentorship in his trainee years, nobody had really bothered to guide him in any way, and he’d learned to be independent in that way and not ask for help either. His close-knit circle consisted of those that somehow had the patience to deal with him, though Rhys was much less abrasive with them than with others.
Rhys looked up when she mumbled, but he caught the words. He could only half-grin in response. Rhys had just figured that he’d been friendlier to Vas because of his friendship with Ilija, though she’d never given him any reason to behave differently. At least he’d never noticed he behaved differently with her than he might anyone else. It was never a habit to overthink his friendships, not like putting all his brainpower towards whatever he had with Deva anymore, nothing like that. Obviously, Rhys wasn’t entirely unfriendly. He had friends, after all. Still, he felt sympathetic toward her situation. The losses in his life only made him wish he could spare that pain for anyone—but he knew he couldn’t. Vas brought up a round of shots, and Rhys figured it would have been rude to refuse. ”Sounds good to me.”
[ end ] template by vee
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