Archive of Our Own ^beta

There is a reason the prophecy of the Seven Birds called them “The Twins”. Placed them together instead of giving them two titles. They were weaved together in life, death and undeath. They were one in the same.

They didn’t need an individual title. They were never independent of another.  They were outcast, but never alone . They protected each other, saved each other. They were two people, but one soul, one heart.

Before the mission, they never really needed an individual identity.  For all their childhoods, it didn't matter if they were boy or girl, light or dark, right or left, fire or ice. They were one. Two sides of the same coin. A balance .  

She was warm. Like a fire that raged through her veins. She was easy to anger and attacked without thinking. She held her heart for everyone to see, but kept it guarded. She was loud and caused people to look her way.

He was cold. Like an ice storm, shielding him. He was light fingered and drawn to shiny things. He kept his heart hidden, protected behind thick insults and barbed cuts. He was calculating and drew the attention when he walked in a room.

She warmed his ice, reminding him to care. He kept her level headed, reminding her to think of her actions.

They were one.

It was always them. Not him or her, just them. The twins. They were summoned as a unit, traveled as a pair and bounced around from family to family as a pack. Between each uncle, or grandparent or distant cousin, they were a lump sum. Not one. Two. Them. The twins.

They weren't even meant to be born. Twins were almost a curse on the family, usually causing the death of the mother. Twins were too much stress for an Elven body to handle.  They never even knew their parents. Elf twins were an affront against nature and a blemish on Elfkind, a burden.  Elves were meant to be perfect, not half of someone. They were meant to be one child, not a split soul. They had one of each eye. One blue like ice, the other warm hazel, like fire. They were one child, broken into two. They were left on a doorstep, abandoned by those who were meant to protect them. They were supposed to die in the cold, alone, because who would love freaks like them? They didn't remember this, of course, but they were told it often enough, so it must be true.

She was born first, or so it was said. She was born screaming,  crying for the loss of the one she loved.  He was born second, only minutes after, quiet as death. It wasn’t until they were reunited, that she began to settle down and he began  to whimper. They clung to each other, different, but together   They couldnt - wouldnt - shouldn't -  be apart. As infants, they would always be in reach of each other. He could always feel her beside him. She could always hear his shuffles. When they were apart, she would scream until he was returned to her. When they were apart, he would stare into the soul of whoever was caring for them, until he cried and she was brought back.  Even as they grew up, picked their names and magic affinities, they felt better, stronger , together.

Their entire world consisted of two people. It was them, and their other. Most days it seemed like they stood against the world. When someone is born with you, for you, it creates a bond stronger than any science can understand. When someone will protect you, love you , unconditionally, you would do the same for them. Lup and Taako were one in the same. She protected him. He loves her. He protects her. She loved him. Always.

Those bonds leave lasting impressions. They cannot be broken, or taken away. Not completely. It wound between them, binding them together in ways they never knew. It seemed they could share a soul. It was a bond made from love, pure and unequivocal. For the longest time, everything he knew, everything he was, was wrapped up in her. For the longest time, everything she did, everything she learnt, he was by her side. She was his everything. He was the only thing that mattered.

As long as they were together, they could face anything.

-

Their aunt understood. She was a twin too. Shehad  lost her other half. They clung to each other, tight, unable to even think about losing the other. Their Aunt was their favourite. They loved living with her. They felt safe. Safe enough to venture apart. She could be learning her letters, while he was learning to sow. She could be cleaning one room, while he cleaned another.

Their aunt was forgiving when they moved the furniture in their room, allowing two small elves to sleep on one bed. She was understanding when they split their food, everything was given in equal halves. She didn’t care when  Lup told the truth about who she was. She didn’t care when they shared clothes.

No one knew them better than their other half.

The twins could go for days without speaking, relying on touch, or gesture, but most of the time they knew what the other wanted.  They didn't need to speak. Linking pinkies usually meant I dont want to let you go, or a tap on the shoulder meant Its time to rest. They did everything  as a single unit.  She knew exactly what her brother needed. And he knew how to make it happen.

Their aunt taught them how to be useful, how to cook and clean, how to work together to stay together. She taught them the basics of magic, teaching them cantrips to save their life. She taught them how to hide, and how to use the forest to provide. A Sun Elf could use the forest, and the beaches. A Sun Elf was versatile, and could learn and use all skills.

They loved their aunt. And their aunt loved them. But she was so very old.

And then it happened.

Their cousin, from far north, said that their Aunt  was too old to look after two young elves, and he would take one of her hands. He came at night and forced Taako out. Their aunt couldn't do anything to stop it. Their cousin was a higher level, and flaunted his magics. He cast Sleep , pulling Taako from Lup’s grip, riding off into the forest.

When Taako woke, their cousin lied, saying that their aunt wanted to get rid of Taako, raise Lup alone. Taako didn't get the chance to ask if this was true, he had no choice but to believe it. He didn't even get a chance to say goodbye.

Two had became one.

But not for long. He was nothing without her and he would fight the world to get back to her. Their cousin set up camp that night, in the middle of the forest. He used the water from their tea on the campfire, scalding their cousin. Something was calling to him, a fate leading him And he ran. In the dark, the forest was harder to navigate, but he  followed the call.

His sister collided with him, sending them both tumbling to the ground. They laughed, and held each other tight. She ran away, she said, took everything she could and went to find him. He ran away, heading to a warmth only he could feel.

They would fight for each other.

They wouldn’t go back. They knew this. They looked at each other, silently agreeing. As much as they loved their Aunt, their cousin was right. Two young elves were too much for her. But they  refused to be separated either.

They travelled in caravans, pretending to be older. It was easier for elves to lie. They looked grown, but they were still a baby, for an elf. They went on for years, lying, learning, pretending. They developed a language of glances and gestures, a way to message the other without drawing unwanted attention.

They cooked to earn their keep, making feasts fit for kings out of the simple rations provided. They meditated in shifts. One was watching while the other rested. If one said it was time to go, it was time to go. They protected each other. They taught each other.

Lup preferred the fire. Evocation allowed her to protect her brother.  Taako preferred transmutation. To change one thing to another allowed for him to kept his sister alive.

They grew sneaky, learning skills from the rogues they travelled with. They learnt sweet flips from the acrobats and the circus. They learnt magics anywhere they could. They practised instruments, and Thieves Cant. They learnt every type of magic, from Divination to Illusion. They spoke the word of the Gods, and learnt to fight without magic. They knew enough to multiclass, if they wanted, but decided to dedicate their learnings to Evocation and Transmutation magic.

They travelled with every race, and learnt every language they could. They picked up languages faster than they did magic.  They spoke very little Elvish, preferring to use the Common Tongue between each other, and the language of the worlds when being formal.

-

She was warm fire, inviting people in. She hard to trust and quick to judge.  He was ice cold, keeping everyone but her at a distance.

Lup had hope. Hope for a new day, for a better tomorrow, hope that one day, they would be better than this, and the family that dismissed them so easily would regret their decisions. She had hope that things would get better. In the quiet nights on the road, or hiding in burrows from hunters, she would tell him of her hopes, letting them wrap around him like a childs’ story.

He didn’t share that hope. He often thought there was no hope, and it would be a miracle if they survived till morning.  But he listened to her, he loved listening to her, almost falling into her hopeful fantasies.

Her hope kept him hoping too. Without her, it would be so easy for him to fall into doubt, and lose all hope.  He started to share his own hopes and dreams.  He hoped that one day he would be able to cook for himself, for a crowd, cook whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, not just for the greedy caravan drivers.

It was because of her hope, that they applied to the Institute of Planar Research and Exploration.

It was her idea. She had been the one to suggest it. Her hope was stability, and magics that could protect the one she loved.  And she knew the IPRE could give that to her.

They had been on their own for years, scamming, travelling. It was a hard life. They fought, they stole. But they kept each other at their side and they made it out every time.

They caught the tail end of an IPRE rally drive. Arcana and science of every kind. It called to her. He didn't care for it, too many rules and authorities. But she was so excited. How could he say no?

They had saved enough GP to enroll at the best institute. They showed up to the test in their most outrageous outfit. They left pink and gold glitter everywhere they walked. They made a statement and made sure to be noticed. They tested high and aced the physical. But they made it clear they were a package. Both of them, or none of them.

They were accepted.

Natch .

She took classes on evocation. He took classes on transmutation. She joined study groups, and sports groups. He got a part time job at a diner, earning enough GP's to keep them stable.  She had people she would call friends, and he did not. His cold demeanor kept anyone at bay.  She was warm, inviting. He was not.

For the first time, they had a safe place to rest. It wasn’t home. Home was anywhere they were together. But it was safe. They didn’t need to stand back to back, they didn’t need to protect each other at every moment.

They started to move independently, becoming their own person.  They became Taako and Lup. Twins, one in the same but not. Twins, but their own person with their own group of friends and interests.  Their eyes were warm and cold, fire and ice, warm hazel and ice blue. He grew his hair long, and loved the swish of a skirt. She kept her hair short, and loved the clack clack of high heels.  They were their own people. But they still knew their other better than they knew themselves.  

-

On the mission, they started out next to each other, linked pinkies, saying I don’t want to let you go. When the mission went wrong, it didn’t matter to them. Their entire world was on that ship. There was nothing and no one on their planet that mattered.

On the hard cycles, they would sit in silence, shoulder to shoulder, reminding each other that they were here, alive. On the impossible cycles, where one of them died, it felt like their heart was being ripped from their chest. Once they reform in their recorded positions the next year, they pressed their foreheads together, feeling each other breathe, remembering how the other felt, how it felt to be two, instead of one.

Resyncing . The others liked to joke.

Their world became three. With Barry.   Lup gained a partner, a boyfriend . And then four with Magnus. They gained a brother. And another sister. 5. Their captain and cleric became a part of their world too, but they didn’t know how to allocate them. They were more than parents. Parents could leave, abandon,  they knew this. This was a family they found, all on their own. They were family, a proper family, and one they fought to keep.  

Lup grew protective of them all , fighting for all 6, rather than just for her brother.

Taako grew more open, talking about things with meaning, rather than to fill the silence. He spoke about Love to Barry on the beach. He let Barry into their world. He spoke about the truth of his world and everyone but the 6 of them was Dust. Talking Dust. All that mattered was Lup. And Magnus. And Barry and Lucretia and Merle and Davenport. But that was it! They were consistent. They were important. They were family.

They loved each other. 

-

And then it was gone.

With a simple inconspicuous note, their whole world was shattered. She would never be Back Soon . He never got the chance to really look for her.

She was in the dark, trapped, unable to see and feel. She screamed, unstable and unsteady. She was a thought, a whisper, a something, trapped. Unsure of her name, of who she could be. She is nothing.

He had a hole where his heart should be. Probably didnt have one then. He was cold, calculating but nothing to soften to blow of his scathing words. There was no warmth, no fire to chip away at his ice. He was cold, jagged and brittle. Everything he learnt, everything he was, was with her. And she was gone. It was just him.

Seven became two.

Two became none.