Chapter 553: Kingdom Fall
Sunday, February 26th, Morning
(Song lyrics in italics)
She sat in the window seat of her room. She looked out the window onto the garden and parking area beyond. She sat cross-legged in a pair of heather gray yoga pants and a battered blue UCONN basketball hoodie; her curly light blonde hair was a tangled mess, her eyes red-rimmed and puffy as she looked out the window, but without seeing.
Sawyer turned away from the window, unseeing, and her cold green eyes looked down at a picture in her trembling left hand. Her breaths were short and shallow as she stared at the picture. Sawyer took in every shading and color of the image.
It was taken the previous October, it showed herself, Keni, and Gareth dressed up in Renaissance garb. Chase took the picture; she took Sawyer, Keni, Gareth, and her horde up to the Carolina Renaissance Festival. Sawyer spent months designing the costumes for her, Keni, and Gareth.
They looked the part of Tudor Courtiers. Gareth cut a dashing figure as a young man in the court. Sawyer modeled her costume after the Hasting Portrait of Catherine Parr. Gareth's was based on the portrait of the First Baron Seymour of Sudeley by Nicolas Denisot. Keni, being Keni, wanted her costume based on Hans Holbein the Younger's miniature of Katerine Howard. The memories of that day and the pain it was to exist in that garb came flooding back.
Sawyer, with her free hand, dried her eyes. There would be no more memories, no more dressing up with Gareth. No talking Gareth into being Friar Tuck to her Little Joan and Keni's Robyn Hood. This couldn't be the end, but the War Doctor's words echoed in her head…. "No More."
Survived, that's what they say about Catherine Parr. She survived Henry the Eighth; she watched his Kingdom Fall and a new one rise under her stepson, Edward the Sixth, a boy king. That fell apart again, and Catherine died in childbirth or soon after the birth of her first child, a daughter named Mary. "No More."
Maybe, it would be simpler to be Jane Seymour, die giving the king what he wants, and always be well remembered. Anything is better than pain, and it's unbearable hurt. Like a dull knife cut into her and gutted her. "No More."
Sawyer looked out the window at the cold overcast winter sky. It's too cliche, the sky reflecting her mood; only rain would be more cliche. Sawyer dried her eyes with her free hand again and pinched the bridge of her nose. "No More."
Leaning back against the window frame, she banged her head against the frame. Her arms dropped down to her side, and she let go of the picture. Sawyer closed her eyes and didn't see the picture hit the floor face down. "No More."
Say it like you mean it
Bones become dust
Gold turns to rust
Say it like you mean it, mm
He stood on the court in his backyard. Three of his grandkids were out on the court. Two of them, both the boys, were playing with basketballs while his granddaughter was doing something to entertain herself.
Nathan stood there and felt the biting wind that would pick up every so often. He watched his grandkids and smiled. He enjoyed being a dad to his three kids, and Nathan enjoyed spending time with his grandkids. He had to; he was raising three of the eight; he corrected himself nine grandkids, now.
With a sigh, he looked back at the house and saw his wife watching in the window. Haley stood there drinking her coffee. Nathan knew there was a conversation about what was coming up in the family.
That's when his smartphone rang. Nathan looked one last glance at Haley, gave her The Nod, and turned away. He looked at his three grandchildren and sighed. Finally, Nathan dug into his pocket and pulled out his smartphone.
"Nathan here," Nathan said.
"Hello, Mister Scott," an accented voice said.
"Yes," Nathan said.
"It is, Miléna, Miléna Venczel, your grandson Kristofer's mother," the voice said.
"Yes, yes, hello, Miléna," Nathan said, "How may I help you?"
"I have overlooked your forms," Miléna said.
"Yes," Nathan said.
"I would like to meet and discuss a few things," Miléna said.
"That can be arranged. Do you have an attorney?" Nathan asked.
"Why must lawyers be involved?" Miléna asked.
"It's to protect all parties involved," Nathan said.
"How does this protect Kristofer?" Miléna asked.
"It's to ensure that he is treated the same as his brothers and sisters," Nathan said.
"I will contact my lawyer and have them contact your lawyer to set up a meeting," Miléna said.
"Thank you," Nathan said.
"Will we work out a meeting with Krisztofer?" Miléna asked.
"We'll discuss it when we meet," Nathan said.
"Why?" Miléna asked.
"You have one of Brian's sons to worry about," Nathan said.
"Yes, I do," Miléna said.
"I have three of his children," Nathan said.
Underneath a spotlight
And all the splintered wood
Nothing here is shining
Shining like it should, mm
He walked into his room and closed the door behind him. After closing the door, he locked it, walked over to the window, and looked out to the neighboring house. He snorted and turned away.
Gareth walked away from the window towards the wall. He reached out and straightened the painting on the wall. It was primitive as if a young child did it. When he was three years old, he painted it the first day he met Sawyer.
He ran his finger over the stretched canvas that it was painted on. The paint on the canvas had a unique texture, which he would often fun his fingers over. This was just the first of many paintings he did over at Leighton; over the years, it only stopped a few years ago.
Gareth turned away from the painting and looked around his room. After another deep breath, he walked over to his desk and opened a drawer. Gareth pulled out a stack of old pictures. He flipped through the photographs, which showed him with his friends, ex-friends now. Gareth looked over them, including several of him and Sawyer. After a minute, he threw the pile of pictures down on the desk.
He walked over to the door and unlocked it. Gareth threw the door open and looked around the hallway. Slowly, he walked over to the painting on the wall, pulled it off the wall, and threw it down on the floor hard. The painting was smashed into many little pieces.
Gareth grabbed the picture and as many pieces as he could. He carried it all downstairs. He went out onto the patio and found an empty steel trash can. He dumped the scrap pieces of the painting into the trash can. Gareth put the pictures on a nearby table.
He walked to the nearby shed and returned with a gas can. He dumped a bunch of the gas into the trash can. Gareth put down the can and pulled out a book of matches. He struck one and lit the book on fire. Gareth looked at the flames and dropped them into the trash can.
The can lit up in a bright flash of flame. Gareth nodded as the whooshing sound of the flames rolled over him, and he felt the heat warm his face. He picked up the pictures and looked at each one as he dropped it into the flames.
Gareth stood there defiantly as he burned his memories.
I'd rather watch my kingdom fall
I want it all or not at all
I'd rather watch my kingdom fall
I want it all or not at all
The Newcomer walked out of the room he was staying in and into the kitchen. He looked to his sister-in-law, who sat at the table poking at her breakfast. Her attention was focused on her tablet.
"Morning, Jen," The Newcomer said.
Jen Parker jumped with a start. She looked up at The Newcomer. "Don't do that; you scared me," she said.
"Sorry, what are you doing?" The Newcomer asked.
"Reviewing some marketing stuff for some albums in the planning," Jen said.
"You put in a lot of effort for them," The Newcomer said.
"I have a single-digit employee number there; Peyton personally hired me, so, yeah, I want to do a good job for them and by them," Jen said.
"It did help your dad was close friends with Peyton," The Newcomer said.
"What are you getting at?" Jen asked.
"That it played a part in you being hired," The Newcomer said.
"They were high school friends, that's it," Jen said.
"Okay, is there breakfast left?" The Newcomer asked.
"Yeah, and you're on your own today," Jen said.
"Why?" The Newcomer asked.
"I have a tee time, which is also an important meeting," Jen said.
"I see," The Newcomer said.
"Look, Royce, just because you decided to return from your Canadian Exile doesn't mean everything revolves around you," Jen said.
"What does that mean, Jen?" The Newcomer, aka Royce, asked.
"Life wasn't static; we kept advancing in our own lives, in many cases without you," Jen said.
"So?" Royce asked.
Jen stood up and grabbed her tablet, "I mean, I have to start getting ready for my tee time," she said and walked away.
Royce Parker stood there momentarily, thought upon it, and went after the leftovers for breakfast.
Tell me that you mean it
Tell me that it's true
It's the last thing you do
Tell me that you mean it
Sunday, a quiet day, three of her now expanded household were away at services. The other three were off doing various things. On the other hand, she entered a quiet, out-of-way room. This was after her morning workout and knee exercises. She put down her smartphone, with her pop stand out.
The phone went off, and Ashlyn reached over to the phone and answered the video call. The image of James Scott filled the screen. Ashlyn smiled and looked at the face of her husband.
"Hey, Ash," James said.
"Hey, James," Ashlyn said.
"So, how are things going?" James asked.
"Okay, so far, it's quiet today; Buck has Joplin and AB at service," Ashlyn said.
"Speaking of the new residences, how are things going?" James asked.
"It has been sort of rough," Ashlyn said, "Buck is well, I don't know."
"Buck is used to being steamrolled and probably enjoys not having the chain around his neck anymore," James said.
"Yeah, the kids want to be normal, especially Joplin; she wants to go to school with Maeghan," Ashlyn said.
"It's up to Buck," James said.
"Yeah, and nothing would happen until next school year," Ashlyn said.
"How have the kids been getting along?" James asked.
"Maeghan and Joplin seem to be coming to a common ground. AB is learning to play basketball with the boys," Ashlyn said.
"That's good," James said.
Ashlyn nodded, "I don't know what's happening there with the boys, but the girls; I have the feeling Maeghan will be the dominate one," she said.
"That's interesting; Joplin is older if I'm not mistaken," James said.
"Yes, she is by a year," Ashlyn said.
James nodded, "How have you been handling it?" he asked.
"It's been rough, but I think we're settling in okay," Ashlyn said.
"You're slowly taking control of the family," James said.
"He moved into my house," Ashlyn said.
"Just tread lightly," James said.
"Of course, I will," Ashlyn said and smiled, "I'm always careful."
James just smiled and nodded.
I'd rather watch my kingdom fall
I want it all or not at all
I'd rather watch my kingdom fall
I want it all or not at all
I want it all or not at all
The ginger, red-haired walked into Roaster's Coffee Shop and got online. Once she got to the counter, she looked at the barista and ordered her coffee. After she got her coffee, she walked through the shop to find the table the person she was meeting had taken. The ginger, red-haired woman looked at the auburn-haired woman.
Bobbi-Lee sat down across from her sister Kelly. The older sister looked at, the younger. Kelly, the family's baby, was the family's head in a quirk of how her family was organized. The younger auburn-haired woman sipped at her coffee.
"So, how was your week with our niece?" Kelly asked.
"Fun, I like spending time with Brett," Bobbi-Lee said.
"She's heading to Huck's for the week," Kelly said.
"I believe; I don't know how they'll balance out their weeks, though," Bobbi-Lee said.
Kelly waved her hand dismissively, "Lions don't concern themselves with thoughts of lambs," she said.
"What does that mean?" Bobbi-Lee said.
"So, do you believe children need stability?" Kelly asked.
"Yes, that's why dad did some things he did, but what is this about?" Bobbi-Lee asked.
"Would you agree that Brett didn't have stability with the moving between her parent's houses?" Kelly asked.
"It's more stable than some, I guess, at least they lived in the same school district, and her friends didn't change from week to week, but still, I'm not getting a sense of your intent here, Kell," Bobbi-Lee said.
"Maybe, just maybe, as an outside thought, Brett stays at one house until the end of the school year," Kelly said.
Bobbi-Lee chuckled, "As that would happen, neither parent would agree to that," she said.
"What if she stayed at a neutral third party?" Kelly asked.
"What? Want a fuller house? Considering you live within walking distance to Tree Hill Hall, Ashlyn won't let that happen," Bobbi-Lee said.
"Who said it would be me?" Kelly asked.
"Don't think Kayla would do it, and anyone else I don't think Ashlyn would go for," Bobbi-Lee said.
"You didn't mention yourself in that statement, did you," Kelly said.
"What? Me? No, and I'm too busy to watch a teenager," Bobbi-Lee said.
"She's practically an adult," Kelly said.
"I was a terror at Brett's age; I wouldn't be a good role model," Bobbi-Lee said.
"Just think about it, but not too long," Kelly said.
"What? Why? How long?" Bobbi-Lee asked.
"I'm going to talk to Huck and Ashlyn about it next week," Kelly said.
"What?" Bobbi-Lee asked.
"Just think about it," Kelly said.
I can see it happening, happening
I can see it happening, happening
I can see it happening, happening
I can see it happening, happening
I can see it happening, happening
I can see it happening, happening
I can see it happening, happening
She bent down and scratched the cat lying on the bed. After about a few scratches, the cat went to attack her but gave up after a minute. She smiled at him and patted him again, then stood up.
"I'm going to miss you, Custis," Brett said.
"Meow," Custis said.
"Yes, I have to leave, going to my dad's palace," Brett said.
"Meow," Custis said.
"Since I was six, eleven years, I've done it, Custis," Brett said as she went about the room collecting her stuff.
"Meow," Custis said.
"Well, it's good and bad," Brett said.
"Meow," Custis said.
"How you ask? God because things don't become stale, bad because you have two sets of everything, and you spend about half the week getting back in touch with your family," Brett said.
"Meow," Custis said.
Brett put some stuff in one of her bags. "Yeah, it could be as bad as you think," she said and closed the bag.
"Meow," Custis said.
"Yeah, you are lucky, Custis; you have the same people every week, Aunt Bobbi, Rooney, and Rob," Brett said.
"Meow," Custis said.
"Okay, maybe not Rob, since he hides all the time," Brett said.
"Meow," Custis said.
"Yes, I do have to go," Brett said.
"Meow," Custis said.
"I'll miss you too, Custis," Brett said, walking over to where the cat was lying, picking him up, and hugging him.
"Purr," Custis said.
"I have to go," Brett said and put Custis down.
She collected her three bags, slung two over her shoulders, and carried the third in her hand. Brett walked through the house and paused at the front door. She took one last hard look around the great room before stepping out the front door. She closed it and locked it behind her.
Brett loaded up her car and got behind the wheel. She started the car and drove off towards Tree Hill Hall.
I'd rather watch my kingdom fall
I want it all or not at all
I'd rather watch my kingdom fall
I want it all or not at all
I'd rather watch my kingdom fall
I want it all or not at all
I'd rather watch my kingdom fall
I want it all or not at all
It was said, "When Alexander saw the breadth of his domain, he wept for there were no more worlds to conquer." I just found out this week my aunt just got another laurel in her cap, as they say. I wonder will she be like Alexander and wept when there are no more worlds to conquer. The funny thing is that is a misquote. Pultarch supposedly wrote "Alexander wept when he heard Anaxarchus discourse about an infinite number of worlds, and when his friends inquired what ailed him, 'Is it not worthy tears,' he said, 'that, when the number of worlds is infinite, we have not yet become lords of a single one?'" It kind of changes the context doesn't it? They're both about unchecked ambition, one before you do something and one after. What do you thing? Comment, share your story, or a story you heard below.
RavenHussar
T3 Collective
Author's Notes
How do you come back from the absolute horror show that was Episode 13? You just move on. As the characters have to. So, Ashlyn is adjusting to having three more people under her roof. Bobbi-Lee is getting a vacation with Bobbi-Lee. There are three new characters introduced, Damian Gannon, Jordan Gannon, and Shay O'Brien. No Shay O'Brien is not the Shay from Bless the Broken Road. She was a creative collaboration with my beta reader to create a new character. As for Damian and Jordan, they will reappear.
Chapter 521 and Chapter 529 were created very early on and pre-date Episode 14 as currently is. The dates that they take place on, put them into Episode 14 as the timeline was made more and more concrete. These are the oldest two chapters in this Episode.
Chapter 524 and Chapter 545 were based on short vignettes written by my collaborator to establish the character of Shay O'Brien. They were re-worked to fit into the story and bring in line narration styles and story format. But the core essence of the chapters was the collaborator's.
The Annus Horribilis Secrets
1) Carson Murphy has passed away. (Episode 2)
2) Spencer Churchill "Church" Grady was killed in action as a US Navy Seal and buried in Arlington National Cemetery (aka The Garden). He is also Jessica Ashlyn Scott's Dad. (Episode 4)
3) Constance "Connie" Garland is in a permanent vegetative state. (Episode 6)
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Playlist
Chapter 526 - Limp Bizkit - Break Stuff
Chapter 534 – Icon for Hire – Ready for Combat
Chapter 538 – Icon for Hire – Ready for Combat
Chapter 544 - Nessa Barrett - La di Dia
Chapter 553 – Claire Wyndham – Kingdom Fall
Poems
Quotes
Translation Guide
