Kerosene & Matches

[Lupus Jameshill]

Lou wasn't expecting anyone that day--or any day, really, for the foreseeable future--and Daniel was out and shouldn't have been back yet, which made the rustle of someone approaching the cabin rather worrying. It was easy to hear even the slightest sound in the silence that had descended over the cottage like a shroud since he'd come back at the beginning of September, a metaphorical dog with his tail between his legs. Depending on your interpretation, maybe a literal one, too.

Even Gabriel seemed affected by the pervading melancholy, and Daniel had been spending more and more time away these days--whether to give Lou space to deal with his tumultuous bouts of depression or just because it wasn't very pleasant to sit around and spend time with him at the moment, Lou didn't know. Anyway, hardly anything moved in the cabin these days except him, and whatever was outside the door hadn't been his doing.

The most likely option was that it was his mother. Charles Jameshill had said he didn't intend to tell her about the Vow, and she was overdue for one of her periodic visits. It could have been someone else, though--maybe a stranger, or maybe one of the creatures that dwelt in the Forbidden Forest, though they'd never bothered him before. And although it was hardly very likely that she would arrive without notice, there was always the possibility, now that she knew where he lived, that it could have been Xena. From here on out, it would probably be impossible for Lou to hear anyone approaching the cabin without thinking that thought, however fleetingly--it could be Xena.

It wasn't Xena, that much was clear as soon as he opened the door. He hadn't really been expecting it to be her, anyway, but he was disappointed all the same--though that didn't have a chance to show on his face as he immediately scowled at the young man who had arrived outside his door.

"Sod off," he said unceremoniously, and shut the door of the cottage right in the face of the man who had, at one point in time, been his younger brother.

@'Theodoric Jameshill' @'Ursula Black'

  

[Theodoric Jameshill]

Theo blinked hard as a 'whoosh' of air washed over him from the slamming of the door. He hadn't seen his brother since his father had insisted on an Unbreakable Vow and hadn't really thought anything of this lack of communication from Lou with work distracting him and not even the slightest inclination that his brother might be at odds with him. The the splinching debacle was a perfectly good reason for a person to resent their brother but Theo was under the impression that he was beating himself up over that more than Lou or anyone else. While the Vow itself had been something he fiercely disagreed with to the point that he still resented his father over it, he hadn't really had much choice in the matter and he assumed Lou understood that his involvement was minimal and unwilling. So why would he be met with such hostility?

The last time he'd had his brother tell him to go away punctuated by a slammed door was early childhood as far as Theo could recall. When he'd been at that obnoxious age where he not only dogged Lou like a shadow, but imitated him incessantly, among other obnoxious behaviors that he'd eventually grow out of, mostly anyway. Perhaps this would have been a more common occurrence had Lou's 'death' not interfered.

At first he couldn't do anything but stare in shock at the grain of the wood that formed the shack's front door. "Lou?" he called through the door, bewildered by the reception he'd received. He knocked gently on the door, not sure what to expect next.

OCTOBER 20TH, 1887 | @'Lupus Jameshill'

  

[Lupus Jameshill]

Lou hesitated at the door, his hand still on the handle as it shut. The cabin didn't have a lock, and he wasn't sure whether Theo would be tenacious enough to try and just walk straight inside, so he stayed poised to prevent him. After a beat of silence, he relaxed just slightly, wondering if Theo had gotten the message and left.

What was he doing here? He could either have been here with a missive from their father Charles Jameshill, or he could have come for his own reasons. The former seemed unlikely, unless the healer had become suddenly paranoid about the security of sending letters via owl. Charles would never come to the cabin himself, Lou suspected, but if he had a message he couldn't send via his wife as a proxy, Lou doubted that Theo--notoriously willful and unreliable Theo--would be his first choice of delivery method. That meant that the young auror was here of his own accord, but Lou still couldn't imagine why. What business did Theo think that the two of them had together?

Clearly there was something, because he hadn't gone away. Lou bristled as he heard his name, but wasn't sure how to react. Would Theo try the door if Lou just ignored him? Would responding to him constitute encouragement? He moved one hand to run his fingers over the butt of his wand, but he couldn't think of any way to expedite Theo's departure, really, even with the use of magic.

The knock was what finally forced speech from him. "Go away," he called, scowling at the door between them. "You can't have any business here."

  

[Theodoric Jameshill]

The hostility once again took him by surprise. What could he possibly have done to deserve such treatment from his brother? "What, are you having so many visitors to your cabin in the woods these days you have to turn people away now, is that it? I'd hope as your brother I'd at least be on the exceptions list." He was trying to make light of it to keep his optimism going. It wasn't personal, Lou was probably just having a bad day and taking it out on him or something. It wasn't that he'd done anything to deserve this treatment.

"Stop being an idiot and let me in!" he called through the door, sounding exasperated but not upset. He wasn't quite there yet but he was heading that way.

OCTOBER 20TH, 1887 | @'Lupus Jameshill'

  

[Lupus Jameshill]

Theo could be a real blockhead sometimes. Was it possible that he really thought things were all sunshine and roses between the two of them, after what he'd done? The Unbreakable Vow might not have been his idea, but it never would have happened at all if Theo hadn't derailed Lou's plans to make it in to the Werewolf Capture Unit. He couldn't fault the younger man for being opposed to the idea of seeing him in prison, but he could certainly resent him for the splinching, and for everything that had followed. Getting Charles Jameshill involved had spelled the end of Lou's autonomy, and it wasn't a loss he was taking lightly.

"I don't have a brother," he growled irritably through the door. "Go find someone else's life to ruin."

  

[Theodoric Jameshill]

Theo didn't immediately respond, rather he stared at the door like a kicked puppy. As soon as he regathered his wits, his hurt turned immediately to indignation. "What's your problem, Lou?" He thumped the door irritably with the palm of his hand. "How did I ruin your life?" He was now almost certain that his brother was bitter about the Unbreakable Vow, but surely he could see how it wasn't Theo's doing or even something he'd advocated for?

OCTOBER 20TH, 1887 | @'Lupus Jameshill'

  

[Lupus Jameshill]

Lou wasn't even sure how to answer that. The answer, he felt, should have been obvious. Even if Theo had some misguided notion that he'd been acting heroically when he 'saved' Lou from going through with his plan at the Ministry, he had to know that Lou didn't think so. And then there was the splinching him nearly to death, turning him over to the mercy of Charles Jameshill, and finally turning him loose in the countryside just moments before a full moon. If Theo didn't already realize how seriously Lou took all of those things--but particularly the last--then he doubted he'd be able to explain it to him. And to be honest, he didn't fancy the idea of even attempting it through a door.

Letting go of the knob, Lou sat on the floor just on the other side of the door and leaned his back up against it. The younger man didn't seem much inclined to force his way inside, at least so far, and if he did try it at this point he'd have to contend with Lou's body weight before getting it open. Lou took his wand out and twirled it across his palm. He didn't intend to use it - not unless Theo used his, first - but it couldn't hurt to be ready. His plan at the moment was just to wait the younger man out and hope that, with no encouragement from Lou's end, Theo would eventually leave - but knowing how stubborn he was, that might take a while.

  

[Theodoric Jameshill]

There came no response. Theo was sure he could hear his brother on the other side of the door and so the silence was particularly aggravating. "This isn't fair, just let me in!" Even as he protested, he didn't see it working. What was he supposed to do? He didn't know what exactly had created this apparent rift between himself and Lou and so he didn't know what he could do or say to remedy it. He was also having difficulty believing Lou would really cut him off so abruptly which was keeping much of the desperation away that he might have exhibited otherwise.

If Lou was going to play it quiet, then he'd just have to guess and monologue through the door. And he was supposed to be the younger brother! "Is this about the Vow? You know I didn't have a choice, there was nothing I could say to talk him out of it! You think I want you dead? If you want to blame anyone for that it's our father you should be blaming, not me!"

OCTOBER 20TH, 1887 | @'Lupus Jameshill'

  

[Lupus Jameshill]

Why on earth did Theo want to come in? Lou had thought he was just being obnoxious and trying to 'check in,' or something inane like that, but if he actually expected to be invited in to the humble little shack Lou shared with Daniel, maybe he was underestimating the strength of Theo's resolve. Maybe there was something he wanted to talk about, and he had come with specific intent – though if that was the case, he was certainly taking his time getting to the point. Of course, Lou had not been exactly welcoming. Maybe whatever Theo wanted to say wasn't the sort of thing you could shout through a door.

Maybe something was the matter with their parents Theo's parents. Maybe something had happened to Amity. Although he had resolved not to think of the Jameshills as family anymore, Lou couldn't help the twinge he felt at the possibility that one of them could have been ill or injured. Or maybe Theo had been sent as some kind of ambassador from his father – maybe the old man was repenting the Vow he'd forced Lou to take and wanted to discuss some mitigating terms.

Or maybe it was just Theo being a stubborn ass and refusing to leave Lou alone to mope in peace.

Still sitting on the floor inside the door, Lou yelled hesitantly, "What do you want, Theo?"

  

[Theodoric Jameshill]

What did he want? Theo blinked. He hadn't really come with any particular desire but to see his brother, he hadn't expected such a hostile reception and it had completely derailed him. "I want my brother!"

As soon as the words left his mouth he regretted them. How pathetic did he sound? Lou was probably laughing at him. How like a child he sounded! He was a grown man, an auror, and yet he'd just whined for his brother like he was five years old again. "You know what? Never mind. I did just fine without you all those years, be an idiot if you like." Theo folded his arms against his chest tightly. "I'm leaving now." He turned and leaned his back against the door and slumped to the floor to stew in his embarrassment.

OCTOBER 20TH, 1887 | @'Lupus Jameshill'

  

[Lupus Jameshill]

Lou glared at his hands as Theo spoke, but didn't reply. He wasn't interested in being friends, and he certainly didn't have a brother anymore (as he kept reminding himself). If Theo wanted a pat on the back and some reassuring words after he'd derailed Lou's life and then nearly killed him, he'd come to the wrong place.

(The worst part of it, of course, had nothing to do with Theo at all, but Lou was miserable and he'd spent a lot of time feeling sorry for himself; blaming everything on Theo was an easy trap to fall into at the moment, even if to the best of Lou's knowledge he'd probably never even met Zelda Fisk).

Theo was leaving, though, which was a relief. Lou listened at the door for a moment, but didn't hear anything. He'd walked, then, not disapparated. Maybe he'd been angry and wanted to burn off some steam before he left. It occurred to Lou that he really ought to make the cabin magically inaccessible - or at least slightly harder to stumble upon. That should have happened on day one, if Charles Jameshill had really wanted him to stay isolated here forever, but particularly since he'd had first Lukeson and now Theo walk right up to the place unsolicited. There was no telling who else might be able to just stumble across the cabin and get suspicious.

Lou couldn't make it entirely unplottable given his current resources, but he could throw up some illusions to make it less obvious - and it might benefit him to do that now, before Theo came back with renewed vigor and started pounding at his door again. With a heavy sigh, Lou pulled himself to his feet and turned to open the door - only to have his brother fall backwards onto the floor at his feet.

"Oh, Merlin, Theo," he said, utterly exasperated.