HAPPY BIRTHDAY TORI!
This piece is a small gift for my wonderful friend, resident_of_storybrooke! It's fully written and just going through the editing phase right now (which is taking a little longer due to the size of the parts!) I hope you guys will enjoy it.
"Where to first, Lads?" Will asked, as the small group of men made their way out of the airport to look for a cab.
"The hotel," David reminded him firmly. "I'm not dragging a suitcase around with me all day while you drink yourself stupid."
Will shrugged his shoulders to concede that his friend had a point, but he didn't look terribly happy about it. "It's a bachelor party, Dave. Your bachelor party. Lighten up."
"How many times do I have to ask you not to call me Dave?" the other man snapped back, as he hailed a cab for the four of them and then took charge of stacking their bags into the trunk of the vehicle.
"Told ya we should have gotten him drunk on the plane," Will mumbled, sliding down into the front seat, leaving Robin, Killian, and David to squash themselves into the back.
The ride to their hotel was mercifully short, and after checking in, the guys all agreed to meet at the hotel bar in an hour's time, to give them the chance to call their significant others back home and freshen up after their flight.
Killian was the first to make it down to the bar, but he wasn't overly surprised by that. As David's best man, he'd planned the entire trip. He'd wanted to do something for his friend that would be more memorable than 'getting drunk and hiring strippers in Vegas,' as Will had helpfully suggested. So after a few hours spent on the Internet and the purchase of a dubious home DNA testing kit, Killian had managed to trace his best friend's origins back to Ireland, or County Carlow if he was being precise. David had never known much about where he'd come from. His grandparents had passed before he'd been born and both his mother and father had died before he'd graduated college. Armed with the new information he held, Killian had made plans to fly everyone out to Europe as part of his gift for his best friend. He only hoped that by the end of their trip, David would finally have some of the answers he'd been looking for when it came to his ancestry.
Will hadn't been terribly thrilled at the idea of spending his friend's bachelor party researching long-dead relatives, but the trip to Ireland had been too good for him to pass up. Especially when Killian had promised tours of the Guinness factory and Jameson distillery would form part of their itinerary.
"What's first on the agenda?" Will asked, as he slid into a seat next to Killian and called the bartender over.
"You do know that you don't have to drink all day just because we're in Ireland, right?"
"I've been good these last six months," Will protested. "Belle said that even drinking in moderation could damage our chances of conceiving, so I stopped completely. Now that she's pregnant and we're in the country responsible for so many great whiskeys, I'm gonna celebrate that fact."
"Belle's pregnant?" Killian asked. His head snapped around so quickly that Will snorted with laughter at the rather comical sight.
The other man had a somewhat bashful smile on his face as he accepted the glass of whiskey that had been poured for him, and slid a couple of Euros down onto the bar. "Don't tell Belle I told you that," he mumbled. "She's paranoid that something will go wrong, given how long it took us to conceive."
"I'm so happy for you, Mate. And don't worry, your secret's safe with me," Killian assured him, as he pulled his friend in for an awkward side hug.
"Thanks. Now… what about you? Have you been seeing anyone recently?"
"Nope."
"Killian, Man… I don't mean to be rude here but how long's it gonna take?"
"I dunno, Will. I've never had to bury a girlfriend before. I'm not sure how long the standard waiting time for moving on is in that situation," he snapped back.
Will raised both of his hands in a placating gesture of surrender before he turned his attention down to the amber liquid in his glass.
It had been three years since Killian had lost Milah in a freak accident. And by all accounts, it had been over three years since the guy had even looked at a woman with anything more than a friendly smile. His friends had known how much Milah's loss had hurt Killian. They'd been by his side as he grieved and made funeral arrangements for the only woman he'd ever loved. But as the months turned to years without any sign of their friend moving on, they'd begun to worry. Milah wouldn't have wanted him to put his life on hold because he'd lost her, but it looked more and more like that was exactly how Killian had decided to handle his grief.
Thankfully, the two men were saved any further awkwardness when David and Robin made their way through to the bar.
"So, what's happening today?" Will asked, throwing back the last of his drink as he turned to face the rest of the room.
"Lunch and a few more drinks," Killian suggested. "We are celebrating, after all."
"I'm good with that," Robin declared, rubbing his hands together in excitement. "It's been a while since Regina let me loose on a dance floor."
Killian finished the last of his own drink before reaching for his jacket and leading the way out of the hotel.
"That's because you can't dance," Will was busy reminding their friend.
"Oh, please, and you can?"
After finding what Killian deemed an appropriate restaurant in the city center to eat at, and consuming a few more beers along the way, the four friends made their way back out onto the street to explore their new surroundings.
Robin had suggested finding a strip club for the night, given that it was David's bachelor party and half-naked women were expected. Killian wasn't sure he'd consumed enough alcohol for that yet, and David looked downright terrified at the idea of half-naked women grinding in his lap.
It was while they were walking that they came across a small group of people who all appeared to be crowded around something in the middle of the street.
"What do you think's going on?" Robin asked, as they made their way towards the commotion.
"Fuck if I know, but maybe we shouldn't be getting involved in whatever it is?"
Will and Robin didn't seem to care about Killian's concerns as they pushed their way through the group of people to see what had caught their attention. When they turned back to face their more cautious friends, Robin had the biggest smirk on his face.
"It's a statue," he declared. "Come and see."
David and Killian shared a brief look that said they clearly didn't understand why a statue would have drawn so much attention, before they followed their friend over to where Will was standing. When they finally got a good look at the figure itself, Killian gasped a little with his surprise.
"What is it?" he found himself asking, because he'd never seen anything quite like it before.
"It's a woman," Robin deadpanned.
Killian rolled his eyes at the comment - because that was obvious. He'd just never seen a bronze statue of a woman look so lifelike. Whoever she was, she was beautiful. He could barely pull his eyes away from her form.
"It says here that her name has been lost through time, but she was believed to have been a farmer's daughter."
"What's so special about her?" Killian wondered, as he pushed a little closer to the statue.
That was when he realized why it was causing such a fuss. She had one arm outstretched, her palm facing forward as if to ward off an attack, and the small crowd around them would take it in turns to bring their hand up to meet hers, pose for a picture, and then move on.
"What are they doing?"
"I think they're testing themselves to see if they're her soulmate," Will replied gleefully. "At least, that's what the girl over there said." He held out his phone to Robin and asked, "Take one for me, will ya?"
"You have a wife," the other man snorted, but he didn't hesitate to snap his friend's picture as Will slid his hand up to meet the much daintier bronze one the statue had. To absolutely nobody's surprise, nothing happened. But Killian was still confused.
"It's a local legend," a woman standing to his left, explained. "She's believed to be the daughter of a barley farmer. She came to town one day to trade on his behalf, as her father had fallen sick. One of the local sailors fell instantly in love with her, and would return every day hoping to see just a glimpse of the woman he believed to be his soulmate. But he'd been promised to another, and when his betrothed found out, she was said to be mad with rage. He claimed that he'd done nothing but watch the girl. That he couldn't stop himself from returning to her every day, because she was the other half of his heart. His fiancée thought the girl had cast some kind of spell over the sailor. She could think of no other reason why he'd stray. So she cast one of her own. The girl was cursed to spend eternity as a bronze statue, where the sailor could come and watch her every single day. It's believed that only the touch of her true soulmate will set her free. But of course, the witch never told him that. It's a good tourist attraction," the woman added, as she watched a few more people make their way over to the crowd around the statue. "But so far, nobody's managed to free the girl."
Killian snorted out a laugh at her tone before offering his thanks. As their small group reformed once more to head for one of the bars down the street, Killian wondered if the internet would be more helpful in telling him who the farmer's daughter really was.
When the guys stumbled out of a club almost six hours later, most of them didn't give the bronze statue in the middle of the city center a second glance.
But Killian did.
In his slightly intoxicated haze, he couldn't help but think that the frozen woman might just be the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.
The following morning was a complete loss. Nobody surfaced from their rooms until close to lunchtime and when they did, it was with groans and complaints that the sun was far too bright for them. Killian hadn't drunk that much since he was in college, and by the sounds of things, neither had the rest of their small group.
"I really hope the plan for today is to do fuck all," Will moaned, as he slumped down in his seat with a mug of coffee cradled between his hands.
"I had plans," Killian mumbled back, his voice much rougher from all the whiskey he'd consumed the night before and the lack of use that morning. "But I think they can wait."
Will reached over to clap his friend loudly on the shoulder and then sank back into the shadows when he realized even that was too much noise for his ringing head.
Killian wasn't sure how long they spent nursing coffee together in the bar, but as the day began to wear on and the noise level inside the building started to increase, an urge to get out of the hotel began building inside of him. "We haven't eaten all day," he pointed out, after finishing the last of his drink. "Maybe we should head back into the city and find somewhere quiet to get some food?"
"Or we could just stay here," Robin argued. He looked how Killian's head felt, sprawled out over his side of the booth with his head turned up to the ceiling and his eyes partially shut.
"The hotel charges like three times the price of some of the places in town. And they have a smaller menu," Killian argued. He wasn't sure why he was pushing so hard to leave. Normally, he'd have ordered himself room service and called it a night. But something about staying in all day didn't feel right to him. "This is supposed to be a celebration, remember?"
"Ugh. Fine. Let's go," Will sighed, grabbing his jacket off the back of his seat and standing up to thrust his arms into it. "It's getting stuffy in here anyway."
A short taxi ride later found them wandering back through the city center once more, searching for a place to eat that they could all agree on.
"Pizza?" Robin suggested. "You can't go wrong with pizza."
"Nah. I had pizza a couple of days ago. I don't really fancy it again," David protested, but he didn't bother to offer up his own suggestion for an alternative.
"How about the Italian place down that street?" Killian proposed, pointing towards the small restaurant they'd wandered past the day before. "That way, you can have pizza and the rest of us can order something else."
When nobody objected to the idea, Killian took charge and led his friends across the busy road and towards the middle of the square, where another group of tourists had gathered around the bronzed statue placed there.
"Looks like she hasn't found her soulmate yet," Will chuckled, as he watched a few people take her metal hand into their own to pose for pictures.
"I wonder just how many people's hands she's held," Killian mused, a lot louder than he'd intended when the thought had first crossed his mind.
"Why, are you jealous?" the other man teased.
Killian reached out to deliver a solid punch to his friend's shoulder. He might not have been fully aware of what that feeling inside of him was, but the thought of all those people attempting to wake the bronzed woman from her curse, over all of those years, definitely left him feeling something.
The following day, Killian made sure to wake everyone early so that they would make their train across County Carlow on time. While Robin and Will didn't look terribly excited about the idea of a day spent meeting with a local historian, David was practically vibrating with the excitement that was rolling through his body. He'd spent so long knowing absolutely nothing about who he really was and where he came from, and now, it looked like he might finally get some answers.
Their first stop for the morning was a trip to Carlow Cathedral, where the historian that Killian had found online was already waiting for them.
"Mr. Jones, it's so nice to finally meet you," he greeted, extending a hand in Killian's direction.
"You too, Mr. Gold. Thank you so much for your help."
"It's been an absolute pleasure," Gold assured him, as he turned his attention to the other members of Killian's party. After a brief series of introductions, Mr. Gold nodded his head at the large double doors behind him and led the way inside.
"The cathedral here was built in 1828 and consecrated in 1833, which makes it the second oldest Roman Catholic cathedral in the country - so there are plenty of records for us to browse through."
Mr. Gold seemed to know where he was going as he guided the men through the impressive building and towards a small back room, where there already seemed to be a large amount of information waiting for them.
"I began my search when Mr. Jones first contacted me," Gold continued, as he gestured to a table covered in sheets of old parchment and much newer paper printouts. "This is everything I've found so far for you on the Nolans of County Carlow."
Although Will And Robin hadn't been keen on the idea of a day spent researching their friend's ancestry, even they had to admit that some of the papers Mr. Gold had managed to dig up were actually quite fascinating. David had gotten as far as finding his Irish roots when he and Mary-Margaret had begun their search. But once he'd traced a great, great, great, great, great grandfather back to the country, he'd hit far too many roadblocks to continue. While they browsed through the records tied to David's past, Will and Robin read about servicemen and petty thieves that all had ties to one of their best friend's ancestors.
By the time their tummies began growling over their missed lunches that day, David had added four more generations to his family tree, and had even found some old drawings and pictures that definitely showed a Nolan family resemblance.
"We can pick this up again in a couple of days," Mr. Gold promised, as he began tidying away all of his resources. "I'm waiting on a few more deliveries that I think will help us get all the way back to the first Nolan here in County Carlow. And I'm sure you boys have plenty of exploring left to do."
Robin and Will shared a look that told Killian their idea of exploring would involve plenty of hangovers before they left the country, but he nodded his agreement to the older man's statement anyway. "Thanks for all of your help, Mr. Gold."
"Yes. Thank you so much for this," David chimed in, as he gestured to the information in his hand. "I can't wait to show my fiancée everything we've found."
"The pleasure is all mine. Enjoy your travels and I'll be in touch before you leave," Gold promised, extending his hand to shake first David's and then Killian's.
The four men took that as their cue to leave and then turned to head for the cathedral's open doors.
For their third night in Ireland, Killian suggested eating in the city center once again.
This time, when they passed the bronzed statue of the woman she was surrounded by a crowd of young teenagers that appeared to be filming something as they jeered and cheered.
Killian couldn't see what was happening, thanks to the large crowd that had formed around her. All he knew was that he didn't trust what they were doing. So he may have casually slipped his observations into a conversation with the local bartender that evening. And he may have smiled triumphantly into his pint of beer when the flashing blue and red lights of the police car caught his attention outside the pub's large windows.
"Now this is more like it," Will declared excitedly, as he rubbed his palms together.
While Gold was busy gathering some more information to help David complete his family tree, Killian and his friends had traveled to Dublin to tour the Guinness Storehouse.
"I really hope we get to do some tasting on this tour," Will added, as they made their way over to where a group of around seven other people was already gathered, waiting for the doors to open.
"It's ten am," David pointed out.
"I know. That's why I said tasting and not drinking."
The three guys rolled their eyes at their friend but said nothing else. If they were all being completely honest with themselves, the idea of a Guinness brewery tour ending without them getting to taste the finished product just didn't seem right to anyone.
When the doors were finally opened, the group of men hung back to allow the others that had been gathered for longer to enter the building ahead of them, before stepping into the space themselves. Someone was standing by the doors handing out small brochures to everyone that entered, and while Robin and Will folded theirs in half to stuff into their back pockets, Killian opened his up to flick through it.
"Who's this guy?" Robin asked, as he pointed at what appeared to be an oil painting hanging on the wall.
"It says here that his name's Arthur Guinness. He's the guy who founded the brewery in 1759."
"Then I shall raise a toast to him when we get to the tasting," Robin chuckled, before making his way slowly around the room, taking in all of the facts and figures that gave a brief overview of the life of Arthur Guinness. When he was finished, he made his way back through to the atrium which was shaped like the world's largest beer glass, and estimated to hold fourteen million pints.
"I think a pint of this size would defeat me," Will mused, as his brain tried and failed to calculate just how many of those estimated pints he could get through without killing himself.
"I think it would defeat everyone," David chuckled, making his way over to the next part of the tour that examined the ingredients used in brewing the stout.
Killian took his time reading through the small brochure and the pieces of information dotted around the room, while Will and Robin seemed to give each of them no more than a cursory glance. That was, of course, until Will stopped suddenly in front of one and cocked his head to the left as he carefully read over the text - twice.
"Hey, did you guys see this?" he asked, jerking a thumb over his shoulder at the plaque he'd been reading.
Killian and David made their way towards their friend but Robin seemed less interested in whatever it was that had caught Will's attention.
"It says here that a farm in Carlow used to supply barley to the brewery, but stopped suddenly when a tragedy struck. It doesn't go into any specifics about the tragedy, but it does say that legend states the farm belonged to a father whose daughter suffered a terrible curse at the hands of a jealous witch. Sounds a lot like that bronze statue in the city, don't cha think?"
"It's probably just a way to help build tourism," David answered dismissively, as he moved over to finish exploring the rest of the exhibit with Robin. Will stood for a moment longer contemplating the information he'd just read before he moved to follow his friends.
But Killian couldn't seem to pull himself away from the plaque on the wall. After reading through the text himself a couple of times, and then turning to the pages in his brochure that detailed more of the history of the barley used to make Guinness, he found himself convinced that the bronze statue in Carlow was definitely connected to the legend on the walls of the Guinness Storehouse.
"Earth to Killian," someone called out loudly, eventually dragging his attention away from the map on the wall showing the location of the farm, and over to where his friends were loitering in front of the escalator. "Are you ready to keep exploring?" Robin asked, jerking his head in the direction of the moving staircase that was transporting other visitors up to the next floor.
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm coming," Killian assured his friends, before taking one final look at the barley exhibit and then turning on his heels to head back to where they were waiting for him.
The men spent most of their day at the Guinness Storehouse, learning about the history of the brand, tasting the world-famous stout, and even learning how to pour the perfect pint. Will was particularly amused by the personalized certificates that were given for mastering the six-step process involved in that. He promised the guy handing them out that he would hang his own on the wall of his office as he snapped a picture of it to send to his wife.
The guys ate dinner at one of the restaurants on the fifth floor, dining on dishes like Guinness Irish Stew, before they headed up to the seventh floor to watch the sun set over Dublin, with another couple of glasses of Guinness to make the moment more memorable.
Killian felt a little strange about being away from Carlow all day, and he couldn't really explain why. So when the men slid into the back of their taxi later that evening, he found himself suggesting that instead of returning to the hotel, they head out to one of the clubs they'd found earlier that week.
"I dunno, Killian," David sighed, as he dropped his head back against the leather headrest. "I'm not as young as I used to be so I only feel a little shame in admitting to you right now that I am exhausted. I don't think I have enough energy in me to stay awake much longer, let alone drink and dance."
"It's your bachelor party," Killian found himself arguing. "Surely we should be partying every night to celebrate the occasion?"
David wasn't the only one who turned a strange look his way after he'd finished speaking. "Did you hook up with someone we don't know about?" Will asked suspiciously. Because as far as he was concerned, that was the only legitimate reason for his friend to be pushing this issue so hard.
"Don't be ridiculous," Killian scoffed. "I just want to make sure that David enjoys his time here."
Killian let the subject drop after that. Instead, he joined his friends in the hotel bar for a few more drinks before heading up to his room in the hopes of getting an early night.
But that evening, Killian struggled to sleep. He couldn't seem to stop his mind from racing and the thoughts it was circling around were just out of his reach, leaving his frustration to grow and fester until he finally fell into a fitful slumber.
Once he did, his dreams were full of blonde hair and green eyes.
The next morning, the decision was made to head back into the city for a late breakfast before the guys would be hopping on another train to Carlow Cathedral to see what else Mr. Gold had been able to dig up for them.
Killian took a moment to appreciate the beauty of the bronze statue as the early morning sunlight caught it, highlighting the woman's features a little more clearly, even from a distance. Whoever had sculpted the piece clearly had a muse in mind for it, given just how detailed she was. And Killian couldn't help but feel the bite of irrational jealousy that someone had once known a woman that beautiful - and he hadn't.
"I still think the Guinness-barley-farmer legend and this one are connected," Will offered, as he followed his friend's line of sight. "I mean, what are the odds that two similar legends would have originated in the same area?"
"You don't actually believe in them though, right?" Robin chuckled.
"What? No. Of course not," he scoffed. "I don't believe anyone has ever had the power to turn women into bronze statues. I just think they're both connected somehow, and there's probably a really sad story behind them that's been forgotten in favor of that legend."
Killian wasn't sure he'd ever heard Will voice such a sensible opinion on anything before, but it was one that stayed with him all morning. What if that statue had been built as a tribute to a woman who had done something great with her life, only to have her achievements forgotten due to the more exciting prospects of magic being involved?
By the time they left the restaurant after breakfast, Killian found himself kind of hoping that the legends were true. At least that way, the mystery woman hadn't been completely forgotten over the years.
When they met with Gold later that afternoon, the local historian was once again armed with papers to share with the group.
"Good afternoon, gentlemen," he greeted, extending his hand for shaking. "How are you enjoying your visit to our country?"
"It's been wonderful," Killian assured him. He was normally the type of person who enjoyed having a steady and constant rhythm to his life - especially after the death of his beloved Milah. But even Killian had to admit that the trip had proven to be a wonderful break from the norm. "How's your week been?"
"Very enjoyable," Mr. Gold answered. "I do so love having a new project to work on."
The younger men in the room shared small smiles at the way Gold was geeking out over David's family tree, before Will stepped in to ask, "So, Mr. Gold… have you found any other unsavory characters in our good friend's past?"
"Oh, plenty," Gold replied, as he began spreading out the research he'd conducted over the large table. "There are a few prostitutes and a few more convicted criminals in Mr. Nolan's past."
"Excellent news," Will declared, as he began searching through the records that Gold had brought copies of, trying to find those individuals that the older man had been speaking about.
With Mr. Gold's help, David was able to fill in the gaps in his family tree back to the late fifteenth century. It wasn't quite as far as he'd wanted to go, now that he knew his family probably had origins in the country dating back to the twelfth century. But Gold had emphasized that coming up with records that old would take more time, and he'd be happy to email David any and everything he found after the guys left the country.
David wanted to add Mary-Margaret to the Nolan family tree and present it to his wife on the day of their wedding, so he couldn't thank the older man enough for all of the help he'd provided so far.
"Before you leave, I found some more details that I thought you might like to see. It'll help us flesh out some of the more vague generations in your ancestry." Gold gathered up his research to set down another file in its place. "I know we spoke last time about how there was a chance you might have been related to Captain Louis Nolan, who led the failed Charge of the Light-Brigade." Gold pulled out a few sheets of paper that he turned around to show to the men sitting on the other side of the table, as he pointed out the connections he'd made. "Nolan's cousins, the Neylans, were the ones to carry on the family name. And if you look here, we can see that, by what appears to be a happy coincidence, one of the descendants of those cousins married a former Nolan himself a few generations later."
David looked genuinely impressed by that piece of information as he asked if he could keep the copies of the records that Gold had found. The older man nodded his head emphatically, pushing the sheets of paper across the desk as he did.
"And finally, I found a connection that I also thought you may find interesting," he began carefully. "We tracked down James Nolan here, as part of the family tree, but it seems that James had a twin brother who was separated from him at birth. The records appear to indicate that their parents couldn't afford to support both babies, so they gave one up to help them raise the other. James's brother, David, seems to have been raised in an orphanage. He was put to work at an early age and was eventually taken in by an older widow who needed help running her farm after her husband's death."
David frowned as he took in the records of the birth of two babies to George Nolan, and then the subsequent paperwork Gold had found that indicated David Nolan of 1717 had been given over to an orphanage by his parents. Present-Day-David couldn't imagine someone choosing to give up one of their children, but he also couldn't imagine himself being in a situation where he was desperate enough to consider it.
"The twin that ended up being taken in by the older widow was believed to have been the man who began supplying Arthur Guinness with the barley he required to make his special stout," Gold continued.
Will's gaze slid over to meet Killian's. He had a spark of triumph blazing behind his eyes that Killian had learned long ago meant trouble.
"I can find records of a David Nolan registering a marriage to a woman named Margaret in 1740, and then the birth of a baby girl and the death of his wife in 1744. But I can't seem to find any other records about the child, I'm afraid. As far as history's concerned, she appears to have simply vanished from the records."
"Or maybe she was turned into a statue by a jealous witch," Will mumbled, throwing another look in Killian's direction.
Gold's face creased with confusion for a moment before understanding suddenly dawned over it and he released a small chuckle. "Yes. I suppose she does rather fit the legend," he eventually conceded.
"Does uh… do local historians have any theories behind the statue?" Killian asked, his curiosity getting the better of him once again.
"There are a few. Some say she's the wife of a local businessman who attributed all of his success to her, instead of himself. Some say she's a successful novelist. But there doesn't seem to be anything concrete to support those theories, I'm afraid. All we know for sure is that the statue begins to appear in accounts of the town from around 1770 onwards."
Killian wasn't sure why, but his mind immediately began running through the math. If the other David Nolan had registered the birth of a child in 1744 and the statue had first appeared in 1770, then that would make the child around twenty-six at the time it was created. That would certainly fit with the appearance of the bronze woman in the city center.
(Not that he believed in curses and witches and soulmates.)
Will finally got his wish that evening, when David, Robin, and Killian found themselves being dragged to the nearest strip club in the city.
Inside, it was every bit as clichéd as Killian thought it would be. The bar area was dimly lit with blue and purple neon lights, and mostly full of middle-aged men. Although, he was pleasantly surprised to find a few women inside the establishment that didn't look like they worked at the place.
At the end of the room was a large stage with a pole in the middle of it, and a scantily-clad redhead was currently halfway up it as men threw Euro notes in her direction.
"Isn't this great?" Will enthused, clapping his hands together before he leaned against the bar to wait for their turn to be served.
Killian cringed a little at the thought of what might be on that bar.
"This is how you say a proper goodbye to your life as a bachelor, Dave. We'll take good care of you tonight, won't we lads?"
Robin nodded his head as he called out a "Hell yeah," and Killian found himself doing the same, even though he could think of a dozen other places he'd rather be at that moment.
Thankfully, the arrival of the bartender had Will's focus shifting for just a second as he took charge of ordering their drinks. When everyone had taken their first shot of tequila for the night and had a bottle of beer in hand, Will ushered them into a small booth close to the front of the stage, so that they could enjoy the show.
The guys mostly watched in silence as the redhead finished off her set, twisting this way and that around the pole while she gyrated in time to the music. She wasn't really Killian's type, and the lingerie she was wearing looked more cheap than classy. But he could at least appreciate the athletic ability she displayed with her moves. And he was somewhat impressed by the strength of the woman's legs, even if he wasn't aroused by her.
When she finally left the stage to a small round of applause, Will turned to the rest of the group with a devious smile on his face. "I think the groom-to-be should at least get his own private dance tonight. What do ya think, Guys?"
David shook his head forcefully as he took a couple of large pulls from his beer, but Robin was already cheering his appreciation for the idea. And if Killian was being brutally honest, he knew he'd throw his friend under the bus in that instant if it meant getting himself off Will's radar for the night.
"Go for it, David," he encouraged. "You only live once."
David threw Killian a look that was the definition of a killer glare before knocking back the rest of his beer and declaring, "I'm gonna need something stronger than this if you want me to do that."
Will smiled triumphantly while he made his way back to the bar to place their next order.
Killian was struggling to sleep again. He wasn't sure how long he'd spent tossing and turning, but when the small clock in the room showed the time was four am, he gave up trying and slipped out from underneath the sheets.
He was likely the only one awake at that time of the morning. The others had consumed their weight in tequila the night before as they threw money at whatever stripper was close enough to them - all in the name of giving David's bachelor lifestyle the send-off it deserved. So he knew they'd be sleeping off the mother of all hangovers well into the day.
While Killian had enjoyed watching his friends get drunk and have some fun, he hadn't found their idea of a wonderful night out as appealing as they had. He couldn't really explain it, but a part of himself didn't feel like it was in that club with the rest of the guys, and it had been urging him to leave from the moment he'd stepped into the building. To go and find whatever it was that he was missing. It was only Killian's sense of loyalty and his desire not to see one of his friends end up hurt, or in jail, that kept him by their side all evening.
After throwing on some clothes, his leather jacket, and a pair of boots, Killian grabbed his wallet and keycard before heading out of the room and for the bank of elevators at the end of the corridor. He was hoping that one of the hotel's restaurants would be open. He was hungry and in desperate need of coffee, but when he got downstairs he was disappointed to see the restaurants just as dark as the sky outside the windows. Killian hesitated for a moment, pacing around the corridors before he decided to call himself a taxi. It wasn't too early to be that unusual, so he hoped that somewhere in the city center, something would be open and serving breakfast.
The cool breeze was wonderfully refreshing as he took a seat on one of the benches outside the main entrance to wait for his ride. Killian was sure he could pick out the smell of freshly cut grass when the wind blew a certain way. For a hotel that was packed full of summer vacationers, it was oddly quiet and calming so early in the morning.
Killian's driver gave him a slightly odd look when he asked to be taken to the city center but he didn't say much else on the ride. It seemed like both men would rather lose themselves in their own thoughts than make some kind of forced conversation. But he did hand over his card as Killian was climbing from the vehicle, after rolling it to a stop just down from the bus station. He was one of only a handful of drivers working that morning, and he made it clear that he'd be happy to return whenever Killian was ready to head back. Killian sent the man on his way with a hefty tip and a promise to call when he was ready to return to the hotel.
It didn't take him long to find a place open at such an ungodly hour of the morning. Killian had instinctually gravitated in the direction of the beautiful statue in the city center, and one of the bakeries that were located directly across from it had been well lit-up and inviting.
The bakery itself was empty of customers, so after ordering some coffee and a full English breakfast, Killian took a seat at the table by the window. While he waited for his breakfast to arrive, he amused himself watching the handful of people that passed by on their way home from a wild night out, or on their way to work.
As he ate, Killian's eyes kept drifting back to the statue opposite the shop. He found himself wondering what her last meal had been. Had she known the taste of coffee in her lifetime? When would she have woken up to start her day? What would she think about meeting American tourists in her city? Had she ever met an American before?
When he'd finally finished everything on his plate and consumed two cups of coffee, Killian called out a small thanks to the women behind the counter before making his way out of the shop. The sun was starting to rise in County Carlow, and he stuck his hand into his pocket to feel for the business card that his taxi driver had given to him. Those first few rays were beginning to warm the streets, bathing the bronze statue in a warm glow, which made her look more beautiful than ever before. Killian suddenly realized that this was the first time he'd seen her without a crowd of people around her, taking selfies.
He abandoned his search for the business card and instead made his way over to the woman in bronze. A quick circle around her base showed there was no more information about who she was or where she'd come from, and Killian's heart ached a little for her. While she was clearly popular with the locals and tourists in the city, the fact that nobody seemed to know this woman's name felt wrong.
"I wish the people here knew who you were. Who you really were," he found himself whispering. "Clearly you're important or you wouldn't be here. And yet… nobody even knows your name. Unless, of course, you have been cursed," he chuckled bitterly, before quickly adding, "I really hope you haven't been. Living your life like that, frozen in time while everyone you know and love ages and dies… that's just cruel."
Killian stood in silence for a moment, studying the statue intently. It was his penultimate day in the country, and he wanted to commit every detail of the bronzed woman to his memory. Someone should remember her, he decided, even if it wasn't for the right reasons.
When he was finally ready to head back to the hotel the sun had fully risen. While the city center still wasn't busy, a few more people were milling around it than there had been before.
"Goodbye," Killian whispered, taking a small step back and away from the statue.
But fate seemed to have other ideas.
The heel of his boot caught on a loose paving stone and Killian pitched forward as he lost his balance. He threw his hands out to try and stop himself from hitting the floor, and was relieved to find something solid and unyielding to grasp onto.
It took him a moment to regain his balance and when he did, Killian looked up to find himself holding the bronzed woman's hand.
"Thanks," he chuckled awkwardly. "I guess I'm not your soulmate either."
He was just about to withdraw his hand from hers when the metal under his palm began to warm. Killian frowned a little in confusion as it grew hotter under his grasp, until he was forced to pull away from the heat before it burned him.
His eyes widened with shock as a warm orange glow started spreading up the statue's arm, making its way across her upper chest before radiating towards the crown of her head and then down towards her toes.
The heat coming from the statue was unbearable, and Killian found himself taking a few steps back to try and escape it. The warm orange glow brightened into a fiery red inferno before morphing into an impossibly white light. Killian brought his hand up to cover his eyes when it became physically impossible to watch the statue any longer.
Without his vision, he couldn't see what was happening around him, but the mighty crack that rang out around the city center had him tripping backward a few more steps. There were gasps of surprise from people close by and whispers from others a little further away.
And then, just as suddenly as it had started, everything went dark and quiet.
Killian counted to ten in his mind, using the time to try and calm his racing heart before he finally removed his arm from where it had been shielding his vision. He allowed his eyes to remain shut for just a second longer, and then carefully peeled them open again.
It took him a moment to blink away the bright spots in his vision enough to see clearly, but when he did, his eyes turned straight towards the bronzed statue.
Only, there wasn't a statue in the city center anymore.
Instead, in its place stood a beautiful young woman. Her blonde hair spilled down her back and over her shoulders in soft, inviting waves. She was wearing some kind of white dress with a matching cloak wrapped around her shoulders, and her wide green eyes were frantically scanning the world around her.
She was even more stunning as a woman than she had been as a statue.
When her eyes eventually landed on Killian's form, they widened impossibly further before drifting up and down his body to take him in. She tilted her head to one side, confusion etched into every line of her being as she spoke.
"Killian?"
Thanks for reading.