Work Text:
The air felt different here then back in Glasgow, far more fresh and for a strange part magical. Niall watched as the growing pine made way to the Rocky Mountains of Inverness covered in the lushest of green. It was beautiful and a far cry from the war that had managed to rifle it’s way through the heart of London and beyond.
The war still felt apart of Niall as he watched the trees knock against each other. The place seemed so untouched like it had only known peaceful spring days and cool chilly winter nights. Niall sat back against the head rest as his eyes traced his partners hands pressed against the steering wheel, his tanned arms that were exposed by his rolled up sleeves.
No one knew they were together, for good reasons: one being his partner was a man and second the fact that his partner was middle eastern. But despite all those things Niall truely loved Albert Safadi or as he insisted on being called Alby. It was a love that didn’t quite fit Niall’s endless literature definition but it was safe and warm. A feeling that distracted him from the horror of war, a true solace.
“Smell that fresh countryside, I can tell we are nearly there” Alby says as he looks over to Niall, a smile plastered to his handsome face. His curls had grown longer since the first time they met.
Niall had been stationed at one of the many schools turned hospitals as he worked on nursing the soldiers that came in and out. At first when the war broke out Niall was torn between going to a war he knew he wouldn’t come back from or being labeled a coward for not mindlessly following orders. Over time he managed to get a position at his old university that helped him get out of being enlisted but also meant he needed to learn first aid, which at first had scared him til he kept repeating the actions so much he could do it in his sleep.
It was just another normal day as he bandaged and fed the injured patients when he saw him. He stood tall even as he held on to a wooden crutch for dear life, one side of his face bandaged as he made conversation with one of the nurses, Fiona if Niall could remember that far back. As Niall continued to work on patients, he kept looking back to see the man limping around, helping others. For the first time Niall had seen an unshakeable kindness that knew no boundaries, not even when injured.
After his shift was done he walked over to the desk, handing in his reports of all the patients when some of them fell out of his hands. He cursed himself that day for his clumsiness until he looked up and saw kind dark eyes looking at him.
“You alright?” Alby asks, snapping Niall out of his thoughts as he looks at the man he was just thinking about. A smile escapes his lips as he nods, not being able to find the words to describe how he felt. The drive continued in silence as the countryside stretched out further, allowing for Great Lakes and rolling hills to come into view.
This place felt like the exact place for his stories, for him to write away the war into poetic lines that he had spent months trying to come up with. As they got to the cottage, grabbing their bags and heading inside. Niall felt a chill run up his spine as he turned around, hearing a song being played far into the wind. He stares out into the vast countryside, the sun going down and the trees rustling, something felt odd like the wind was calling to him.
He received a gentle nudge as he came back into the house, walking up the stairs to find their sleeping quarters. When they first decided on this holiday, Alby had wanted for them to go to a nice inn located in the town square but as Niall reminded him, people would talk and they wouldn’t be as welcomed so they both scrounge up money to find a more hidden spot, a place they could just be themselves.
As they placed their bags down, the room seemed cozy and with thankfully no signs of mould, Niall let himself breathe a sigh of relief. Maybe this would be a magical getaway after all, he felt tight arms wrap around him as he swayed gently, savouring this moment. Alby nuzzled Niall’s neck as he pulled him in impossibly close, his hands roaming along his waist as he kissed little pecks into the hollow space of Niall’s neck.
They usually weren’t this affectionate with one another as many with eyes would start to wonder the nature of their relationship especially in the city where buildings were stacked upon another. This however did not stop them but definitely hindered any sort of intimacy.
As they lay down in bed that night, Niall couldn’t help but stay awake. The place was beautiful but for all the beauty he couldn’t seem to sleep. He watched as Alby’s chest rose up and fell down, a lulling sensation that often would get him to sleep but tonight in a new bed felt impossible. He decided to get up and make himself a tea as he often would when his thoughts of the war corrupted his mind. As he walked down the stairs he felt an eery presence, something that made his breathing stop still. He had always been raised on ghost stories from his mother especially when he wasn’t doing what she had asked but this felt far more terrifying.
As he finally reached the kitchen he went to the stove, pulling out a match from the counter an striking it. The amber glow of the match made Niall feel more relaxed as he set about making his tea, pouring water into the kettle and setting the kettle onto the stove, something he had done many times before.
“Can’t sleep?” He jumps at his partners voice, watching as the other man walks down the stairs.
“Yeah, would you like some tea?” Niall asks as Alby made his way closer, his body heat making Niall move closer. He looked so handsome in the dim light as his chest gleamed and his face scarred from war slightly illuminated. When he had first met him the side of his face had been covered but many of the nurses had said he was quite handsome, Niall tried to not listen to the idle gossip of the other until one day when he was tasked with looking after Alby himself. It felt strange but oddly titillating as he gingerly removed the bandages to show his scars. They were fresh back then, but in those moments as Alby stared at him, holding one of his wrists and slightly cowering, Niall realised that the man in front of him was teuely beautiful.
During that time Alby would ask for Niall, making them closer to one another until he was released from medical care and was to go back home. Niall on that day dreaded the thought of Alby leaving, but resided himself to fact that his interest was probably one sided until one day when he was working he stepped out after a particularly hard case where the solider had died and when he stepped out onto the street, he ran right into Alby, getting blood all over his tailored coat and in that moment Niall let out a sob as he collapsed into Alby’s arms.
That moment was when he knew Alby was the one, he was his Prince Charming. After that they would meet up again and again until Alby had asked what they were wanting to make sure that what they were doing wasn’t casual. That same day they shared a bed together, Niall had never known such pleasure as he melted into Alby’s skilled hands, coming undone.
Those felt like simpler times yet they even after the war, they continued to be the same. Both scorned by memories to bloody to recall.
“You know I heard that there is going to be a ritual near these circle of stones” Alby says as he takes the tea from Niall’s hands, sipping it as he smiles up at him.
“What on earth are you talking about?”
“Well when i was asking for directions to this place, this older woman told me there was circle of ancient stones. It’s called Craigh na Dun, a few of the local still hold rituals there. I thought you might enjoy it”
“What will they dance around and chant in Galiec?” Niall snorts as he holds his cup up his mouth. Another thing that Alby would succeed in is making him laugh even when he felt he was on the brink of collapse.
“Maybe they will, maybe they won’t. I say we go, what about you?” Alby laughs putting the cup on the counter as he moved to embrace Niall, holding him tight just as he liked it.
“I don’t see why not.” Niall says as he turns to place the cup down, moving his hands to frame Alby face. His finger dancing along his cheeks and jawline. They both walked up the stairs giggling like children as they got dressed. The prospect of watching witches or as Alby reminded him druids dancing around giant old stones was a funnier. Niall thought their holiday would be mostly spent lounging around in the cottage as they went about their almost martial bliss. But this was different somehow it felt like the right thing to do, so as they got into the car Alby’s hand holding his, he let himself be taken away to the ruins.
When they got there it was hard to see as the moon started to hide away through the clouds but Alby walked a steady path, holding onto Niall as the two journeyed deeper. After a bit it felt like maybe they were lost until the big stones blocked any further views. The two took cover behind bushes as they began to see light illuminating the dark stones. Women of all ages dressed in pale flowy dresses began to swarm the stones as they twirled and danced around, dancing to a sound neither Alby nor Niall could hear.
This unsettling feeling began to creep up on Niall as he continued to watch, his skin prickling as they weaved in and out of the stones. He wanted to look over to Alby but he couldn’t turn his head, it was as if he was frozen solid. An older women started to chant as the sun came up, the others continuing in their maddening dance, torches blazing bright as the sun rose. Niall felt a tear slip from his face as the ritual ended. The women had fully retreated before the two finally moved from the bushes. Alby had a big grin on his face as he walked up to the stones, looking around in pure wonder.
“That was amazing, wow Niall that was bloody amazing.” He uttered as he walked over to Niall, picking him up and spinning him around. He was like a child again.
“Alby, put me down!” Niall shrieked as he clawed at Alby’s arms getting him to gently put him down as a huff of laughter escaped his mouth.
“You are no fun” Alby pouts as he walks around the stones some more. Niall catches sight of a blue flower peaking from under one of the stones, as he creeps forward he feels that same sense of mystery and intrigue that had followed him since yesterday. The same kind of song that howled through the wind.
“Wait I forgot something!”
“Well don’t be too long”
Niall’s head shoots up as he walks over to Alby who hides them behind one of the stones, placing a finger to his lips as the two fight the giggles threatening to escape. Alby pushes Niall a bit so that he can see what is going on and when he looks he sees one of the ladies searching for something, she keeps looking until she finds it where she then sits onto one of the logs that are scattered across the ground.
“I think we should go” Alby whispers into Niall’s ear as he gently guides them to the car. The sun helping them get to it quicker as they got in. Those flowers are all that Niall can think about as he gets back home. Alby ends up making the pair breakfast as Niall reads, through the years he had grown a fondness for botany. So as Alby whisked away at making their breakfast, Niall found himself engrossed in one the books he bought before leaving. The book was a detailed look into each of the medicinal properties of different plants and what to spot when looking for them.
“What you looking for?” Alby comes up to the table with two plates filled with what Alby had reassured Niall was shakshuka, an amalgamation of poached eggs drenched in tomato with a few herbs added. A far cry from baked beans and haggis but Niall liked it just the same.
“I was thinking about that flower I saw at the stones, I think they were forget me nots but I’m not quite sure.” Niall answers absentmindedly as he puts the book down to start eating.
“Maybe you should check it out if it interest you that much.” Alby smiles, also tucking into the food.
“Mmm I think I shall. Would you like to come with me?” Niall asks, wanting to make sure he had someone with him as the place spooked him out.
“Actually I have received news that one my friends is in the town square so I was thinking to visit them. Would you want to go with me or…?”
“No that’s ok I’ll go” Niall laughs awkwardly. “You enjoy your time with your friend.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive”
“Well great! Ok um I’ll see you later and I love you” Alby says getting up, already having finished his food. He walks across to Niall making sure to kiss him on the forehead, a quick peck.
“Hey don’t skimp out on me now” Niall pouts pulling Alby tie down so he could get a kiss on the lips. Alby smiles as he ducks down to kiss Niall make. A soft and gentle kiss that made their separation bearable.
As Niall watched Alby leave the house, he felt that chill start to rise. A sense of dread filled him as he decided to go see the flowers even though the place creeped him out. As he got there the wind seemed to pick up, causing him to wrap his shawl tighter around himself. He knew it was quite girlish to bring a shawl everywhere instead of a jacket but his mother had caused the habit that like everything weaseled it ways into his daily life.
The stones seemed different then they did the last time he saw them. They looked for a lack of better words, younger and more full of life. But the stones weren’t what he came for so as I walked into the circle, he stumbled upon the same flowers and sure enough they were forget me nots. Niall bent down to take a closer look, grabbing his handkerchief as he went to pick one up .
The book stated that they were very useful in healing cuts and wounds,or even to stop nosebleeds. It truely was crazy what plants could do for medicine, Niall thought as he studied the small flower. As he studied the flower a noise started to whirl in the wind, at first he thought it was his imagination but soon he started to hear distant chatter and the sound of singing just like the day before.
He turned around to see one of the stones looked almost brand new as he started to walk forward. Everything in his brain was screaming for him to go back, he had retrieved the forget me nots and now could go home to make it into a mixture.
As he kept walking forward his feet started to feel heavy. His hands reached out before he could even stop himself, feeling the grooves of the intricate stone. He felt faint as the world around him turned to darkness.
Once, travelling at night, I fell asleep in the passenger seat of a moving car.
Lulled by the noise and the motion into an illusion of serene weightlessness.
Then the driver took a bridge too fast. And I woke to see the world spinning outside the car windows, and the sickening sensation of falling at high speed.
That is a close as I can come to describing what I experienced.
But it falls woefully short.