Hey guys, I'm back with a new oneshot on Carlyle! I know it's been a while, but I thought it was time for something new. Hope you guys like it! ~youseenothing
It was later in the year, nearly Christmas, when Carlyle got the call. He'd been hanging out with Neil, "being all coupley" as Cam called it, and his cellphone rang. Ever since Leo Valdez had made a chip to make cellphones undetectable by monsters, Carlyle had kept his phone charged up just in case.
The call came from an unknown number, making him a little nervous, but he answered anyway- he had a feeling it would be important.
"H-Hello?" he answered nervously.
"Carlyle? That you?" He recognized the voice instantly, even though it had matured.
"Dakota! Oh my gods, what happened?" Dakota laughed and his breath shook a little.
"Well, dad's drinking again. Think you can come get me?" Carlyle shuddered and closed his eyes.
"Did he touch you?" he asked softly. Dakota sighed.
"Yea, he hit me." His voice was worn, almost tired, and it cracked with emotion. "Come and get me, please."
"I will," Carlyle promised. "Be ready by tomorrow, okay?"
"I'll be ready. I'm still at the house. I love you," he added, almost as a second thought.
"Love you too Kody." He hung up quickly and glanced around to Neil. "We have to get my brother."
"So where's home?" Neil asked, throwing his clothes into a backpack. Carlyle sighed and rubbed his knuckles over his nose, hands shaking a little more prominently than usual. "Around El Paso, down in Texas. Very conservative, you can imagine. And boy, when my preacher caught me with his son-" he shuddered, closing his eyes tight. Neil surged towards him, putting his hands on Carlyle's arms lightly.
"Hey, you're not there, they can't hurt you," he promised, raising his hand to his boyfriend's cheek gently. "I'm right here, I won't let anyone hurt you." Carlyle opened his eyes and tears were brimming at the edges.
"But Kody said dad wasn't doing so good," he whispered, his lip quivering, "What if he hurts him again? Or- oh my god, what if he goes after me? It's gonna be just like last time, Neil, I don't wanna go back to the church ever again-" Neil cut him off with a soft kiss, his hands grasping Carlyle's hard, to stop the shaking and give him a good pressure to rely on.
"You are never going back to that church, and your father is never gonna hurt anyone ever again." Carlyle nodded shakily and leaned his head down onto Neil's shoulder, his breath soft and quick.
"I am never letting you go," he warned. Neil chuckled and kissed the side of his head.
"I know." Carlyle pinched his arm lightly and leaned back up, sniffling and wiping his eyes awkwardly. "Ready?"
"Yea, let's go," he replied. Neil finished packing up his clothes and grabbed his gauntlet, shoving it in the bag, along with some ambrosia just in case. Carlyle took his hand and allowed his to lead them to the stables, where they hopped on two pegasi. An older camper on duty told the winged horses where El Paso was, and told Carlyle they needed to walk from there- it was already a long way to Texas. Carlyle promised it was in walking distance, and they headed off.
They arrived in Texas around nightfall, allowing the pegasi to sleep more, and they headed into town for a map. They stopped at a small local coffee shop, where they got a couple burgers to go, but not before being stopped by an older man, whose worn face was kind, but showed a certain kind of intensity. He wore a black suit, like he'd just come from a funeral, but it suited him, oddly enough. Carlyle gave a chocked gasp, his hand seizing up in Neil's, and he stumbled back, catching the man's attention.
"Carlyle Taiburne, is that you?" he asked, his voice seeming sweet, but in a fake sort of way. "My, I thought I'd never get to see you again." Carlyle shuddered and took another step back.
"P-p-preacher," he stuttered. "W-what a-are you doing he-here?" The preacher smiled and held his cup of coffee up in explanation, stepping closer to the pair.
"Well, son, it would be great if you could stop by the church later- maybe we could talk again. Like we used to." He moved closer threateningly, making Carlyle yelp, but Neil stepped in front of him, his eyes fiery with fury.
"You take one more step closer and I'll beat the shit out of you- I don't even care if you're a priest." The preacher gave him a warm smile that sent shivers through Neil's body, and raised his cup to him lightly.
"I hope to see you at service," he said sharply, as if it wasn't a wish, but an order. Neil just flipped him of as they left the café, food in hand. As soon as they got outside, Neil wrapped Carlyle in a big hug, squeezing him tightly.
"Good gods, I'm gonna kill that man," he muttered. Carlyle just cried on his shoulder. They stood there for a few moments before Neil spoke again, this time in a softer tone. "What did he do to you?" Carlyle sighed and shook his head, backing up a little, but still constrained by Neil's grip.
"It was a long time ago," he tried. Neil gave him a harsh look and he nodded, wiping his eyes. "He took me into his private room. Made me kneel is salt for hours, praying for my homosexuality to go away so I could be saved, and to see if it worked he-" he stuttered a little, his voice cracking, and Neil kissed his head.
"It's okay, you don't have to say. I get it. I love you, okay? No matter what they did to you." Carlyle laughed a watery giggled, like his heart wasn't really into it.
"We've never said that," he reminded Neil, "But, for the record, I love you too." Neil laughed, a real one, and kissed Carlyle's head again.
"Let's just get your brother and get out of this hick town, Barnaby." They walked a few miles on the highway, before turning off onto a smaller road, then a dirt road, leading to a run down trailer park, with only three trailers left. Carlyle swore under his breath and headed to the one near what seemed like the back of the park, the one that seemed uninhabited.
"He didn't move," Carlyle told Neil, his voice a whisper. "It's like I'm coming home from home all over again- I don't know if he's not home or if his car got taken to impound again for violating his DWI." He walked up the front steps, his footfalls silent, and opened the door without a sound- like he'd had practice doing it before. "Kody?" he called out softly, closing the door behind Neil. "Dakota, you here?" He went down a hallway while Neil entered the living room, which consisted of a beat up corduroy chair, an old antenna television set, and empty beer bottles. "Holy shit, they didn't even change my room." Neil turned towards Carlyle, who had opened the last door in the hallway, and was peering inside.
"This was your room?" Neil asked, looking in next to him. It was small, not surprising, with a bed covered in heavy comforters and weighted blankets. The walls were plastered in old video game posters and pinups, with a book case against one wall and a cassette tape collection against the other, next to a small brown dresser. "I dig this seventies vibe you have going on," Neil added. Carlyle snorted and pushed him back, closing the door quietly.
"I was going for 'normal straight kid'," he said seriously. "It convinced my father for quite a while." He walked around Neil and through the kitchen to a shorter hallway, containing a slightly larger bedroom with a figure asleep on the bed inside. "Kody, let's go," he called. The figure sat up and the blanket fell down, exposing the slightly shorter brother. His hair had grown, the dirty blonde mo-hawk now over grown and falling down the side of his face. He had the same eyes as Carlyle, one purple one gray, the skin around the gray one slightly dark and purpled- a bruise, from their father.
"Carlyle!" He yelped. He rushed forward and engulfed his brother in a hug, squeezing tight. Carlyle laughed and hugged him back, rocking him in his arms.
"Gods, I missed you Kody," Carlyle whispered. "I'm sorry I couldn't save you faster." Dakota shook his head and pulled away gently.
"You saved me, Carlyle, that's all that matters," he promised. Carlyle nodded and took him by the arm, dragging him out to the living room.
"Alright, pack a bag- a big one, you aren't coming back- and I'll get the money together. Neil, you go into my room and take everything out of the dresser and out from under the bed, got it?" The two nodded and went down the hallway, Dakota stopping about halfway down and entering his room, and Neil going down to Carlyle's. There was spare clothes and loose cash in the dresser, and several pictures of a young, happy family under the bed. Neil took a minute to look at one in particular. It was Carlyle, Dakota, their father, and a woman- Dakota's mother presumably. Peter Taiburne looked about 30, the kids about 9 or 10, and he looked happy. His salt and pepper hair was ruffled, his gray eyes filled with a love that all parents had. His smile was genuine, and his arms were wrapped around his boys. The woman was smiling too, her sweet blue eyes soft and kind. Her hair was a nice caramel color, and it was all around her face in neat waves. The boys looked nearly identical, same mismatched eyes and short dirty blonde hair, and the same toothy grins. They looked adorable, and too innocent for their future. The family looked happy, like they would be the perfect family for all time. It got sad when you knew the truth.
Neil took all the pictures and carefully wrapped them up in the clothes, laying them in his backpack neatly. He headed out into the living room to see Carlyle digging through the kitchen cabinets, going through cereal boxes and empty soup cans. He pulled out a box of lucky charms so old it looked fake, but he simply turned it over onto the counter, and watched as dozens of rolls of money spilled out.
"Hasn't changed since I ran off," he muttered. He scooped up the rolls and ran over to Neil and dropped them into his bag, zipping it up quickly. The sound of a car suddenly broke through the comfortable silence, and Carlyle's head snapped up, eyes wide. "Kody! Time to jet!" Dakota came out of his room, holding two duffel bags, and glanced out the window in the door, shrieking when he saw the car that was approaching the driveway.
"Back door, now!" he yelped, dragging Carlyle to the other hallway, opening a door inside the other bedroom's closet. They rushed out of the back door just as the car pulled into the drive way, a disheveled looking man stepping out. His once salt and pepper hair was now a fully gray, bags under his formerly bright gray eyes. He looked angry and violent, even from afar. Carlyle froze for a moment, starring at him, but Dakota dragged him off, running them to the road. They could faintly hear Peter yelling for Dakota, but they ran off to fast to hear much else. They sprinted to the town and ducked into a run down motel, Carlyle slamming down several hundred dollar bills when the employee started to yell at them.
"Look, you let us stay here for a night and don't tell anyone we're here, got it?" The employee nodded, shoving the bills back into Carlyle's grasp, and handed him a room key.
"You're Peter's boy, right? The older one, the one that left," she asked. He nodded and pointed down up a nearby staircase. "Up the stairs, to the hall on the left, second room on the right. I'll keep your daddy and that preacher out." He nodded gratefully and ran up the stairs, followed by Neil and Dakota, and jammed the door open, slamming it shut and locking it behind them. Neil sighed and fell onto a bed- there were two- throwing his bag onto the floor.
"Finally," he moaned. Carlyle sat down next him and curled into his boyfriend's side.
"Dibs on the bath tub!" Dakota called, throwing a duffle into the tub. He threw the other on the floor next to Neil's.
"You know there's two beds, right?" he reminded the boy. "Me and Carlyle can share." Dakota just smirked and went into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
"It's a thing for us- whenever we ran from mom, or the cops, or- like, whenever we stayed in a hotel, dad would tell us to hunker down under the bed or in the bathtub. We would argue over who got the tub- even though under the bed was more comfortable. It's kinda tradition now, I guess," Carlyle explained softly. Neil nodded and kissed Carlyle's shoulder, laying down so they could be more comfortable. They ended up falling asleep quickly, but Carlyle woke up about an hour later from nightmares. He crawled out of Neil's arms and went into the bathroom, laying down on top of his brother quietly. Though Dakota didn't say anything, he moved to provide more space and wrapped his arms around Carlyle. They fell asleep like that, much too big for a bath tub, but no more nightmares.
Neil woke them up the next morning, telling them that they had to wake up so they could leave town. They got up and organized all their belongings, getting breakfast in the lobby. The same employee as last night was working, and she told them no one had come looking for them. They left pretty quick, and headed back to where they had left the pegasi. Dakota gasped when he saw them, stumbling backwards.
"Is that what I think it is?" he asked.
"Depends," Carlyle answered, "What do you think it is?"
"A freaking pegasus- two of them, in fact!" Carlyle's eyebrows furrowed and he took Dakota by the shoulder.
"Was mom your mom?" he asked. Dakota shook his head and put his hands on his hips.
"Yea, what the hell, Carry?" Carlyle blushed and Neil laughed.
"Carry? That's adorable." Carlyle groaned and smacked Neil on the back of the head. "Fine, not adorable. But very funny."
"Kody, the night I left, did you see anything outside of the house?"
"You mean other than Tommy Carshaw and the preacher? No, not really." Dakota answered. Carlyle bit his lip and turned Neil around, digging through the bag on his back. He pulled out the gauntlet and showed it to him. "Is that a freaking bronze fist?" Carlyle shoved it back in the bag and leaned over to Neil's ear.
"I think he can see through the mist," he whispered. Neil nodded slowly.
"We'll ask Rachel and Chiron when we get to camp." Carlyle kissed the top of his head in agreement. He helped Dakota onto his pegasus and climbed on behind him, waiting for Neil to take off before them. They got to camp faster then they got to Texas, probably because the pegasi knew where they were going this time, and they rushed to the big house. "Chiron!" Carlyle called. Chiron came out in his wheelchair-ridden form, a worried look on his face.
"What is it Mr. Taiburne?"
"This is my brother Dakota, Chiron, and he can see through the mist- but we don't know if he's a demigod or not." Chiron nodded and took Dakota into the house. Neil took Carlyle by the arm and guided him into a chair on the porch, squeezing his boyfriend's hand reassuringly.
"He'll be fine, Carlyle- he might just be able to see through the mist." Carlyle nodded and slumped back into the chair, only to be startled again by his phone ringing. He pulled it from his pocket curiously and glanced at the screen, dropping it when he saw the ID. "What? What is it?" Instead of waiting for an answer Neil just picked up the phone and looked at the screen, seeing 'Dad' on the screen. In a spout of anger and rebellion, Neil picked up.
"Hello," he said curtly. There was a sigh and a cracking sound on the other end, like shattering glass, and a an angered huff.
"Who the hell is this? Where the hell is my son?" Neil scoffed.
"He's not here," he snapped. "What do you want?"
"I want to talk to my son!" Peter yelled. "Where is Carlyle?! Huh? And where's Dakota?!" Neil sighed and rubbed his forehead.
"Look, neither of them want to talk to you- you're an abusive, drunk, homophobic asshole, so I suggest you lose this number, alright?" There was another crashing sound, and the line went dead.
"Y-you di-didn't have to d-do that, Ne-Neil," Carlyle said softly. Neil leaned over and kissed his shoulder softly, laying his head down on his boyfriend.
"Yea, I did."
-/\-/\-/\-
The next month went by without any visits from any gods or goddesses, and no calls from Peter Taiburne to either of his sons. Dakota turned out to just be able to see through the mist, but he stayed with Carlyle, to afraid to go home anymore. No one seemed to want to send him home either. It was another month before they heard from Peter again, and this time when he called, Carlyle wasn't terrified to pick up.
"Hey dad," he said quietly, so as to not wake up Neil in the other room.
"Hey Carry," said Peter. His voice wasn't gruff or stern, his words weren't slurred or jumbled. He sounded almost sober. "I, uh, been cleaning myself up for a bit here, and thought I should call to check in."
"Oh, well, everyone's okay- Kody's fine, but he's asleep right now." He paused and gave a small sigh. "I probably wouldn't let you talk to him anyway."
"Carry, c'mon, I always been good to the kid- didn't have a reason to hit him-"
"Yea, well it happened," Carlyle hissed, cutting him off, "You probably don't remember you were so damn drunk. You're always drunk- probably been sober for about a week now. Congrats, take your AA chips and go, dad."
"Carlyle Elias Taiburne, you respect your father, or so help me-"
"What? You gonna hit me? Well guess what, I'm time zones away. You can't hurt me anymore, dad." Peter paused, his breath heavy, and Carlyle thought for a moment, just a moment, that his father would appear somehow and beat him, or send him to the preacher's house, or kick him to the neighbor's for the night. It was only a second, but his heart was pounding.
"Carry, I don't want you or Kody to hate me for the rest of your lives," he said softly. "Just- tell him I said that okay, and tell him I'm getting better."
"Yea, sure." He hung up abruptly and slammed the phone down, breathing raggedly and his heart beating out of his chest.
"Babe, I'm cold, c'mere," Neil mumbled from the other room. Carlyle sighed, forcing deeper breaths, and went back to the room. "Everything good?" Neil asked.
"Yea, everything's fine," Carlyle assured him. And for the first time in a while, it wasn't a lie.