Silence becomes us (Razvan, Serenity)

[your-razvan.livejournal.com]

By the time Razvan arrived back from the hospital that had once been his home, Serenity had been calmed and appropriately anesthetised by Leon. Razvan found her in his room, sitting on his bed, her knees drawn up to her chest with her arms wrapped around her legs. "Are you okay?" he asked before he had even shut his door. Which he did then, and he propped his hat over the doorknob before running his fingers through his hair to smooth it. She was watching him, a strange and almost accusing look on her face. "Heh. You didn't know your ex-lover was a demon, did you?"

Serenity shook her head firmly. She didn't seem to be able to find her tongue, but that was okay. Razvan was willing to continue talking. He started to pace the room, walking in a large curve around the bed. She stayed seated in the middle, watching his every move, trusting the length of bed between them to keep her safe. "You don't know about demons at all, do you?"

Serenity shook her head, and he licked his lips as some of her hair fell into her eye from the movement. She didn't reach up to push it away. She was probably too scared to notice. "So you're wondering what I am?" Finally, something more than the shaking of a head. She nodded.

"Ah. It's alright, Serenity. I won't hurt you. I like you." And he did, as much as Razvan liked anyone who wasn't Nova. She didn't take shite, and he found that sexy. And even though she had been abused in the past, she hadn't let it break her. She had a sort of strange vulnerability bourne of strength and it intrigued him. Had he not worked so hard to redeem himself, he would have loved to break her down. To watch the determination flow out of her eyes, replaced by a hollow glaze. But now that he wasn't allowed to do such a thing, no one was. He would see to it that Serenity stayed Serenity just as long as he was able to. And as long as whatever it was that threatened her wasn't a threat to him... "I do," he assured her again. "I felt him there. We can do that. I am what he is, but not who he is, does that make sense?"

Serenity didn't move. She didn't shake her head or nod. Razvan took a deep breath and he continued his wide and arching pace. "Serenity, I know this is shocking. It's always confronting when he learn about something when we thought, in our arrogance, we knew everything. What I can promise you, is that no harm will come to when when I am near."

She spoke then, and the sound of her voice nearly made him jump he was so shocked. "Where were you," she demanded. "When you were gone, where did you go?"

"To Russia," Razvan replied easily. It was the truth. "I went with some people I know. There was a place there, manufacturing a virus that can hurt people like me and we had to stop it."

Serenity was clearly trying to decide whether she believed him or not. He had to admit it did feel strange just saying it, let alone hearing it with no knowledge of the supernatural. "My dear Serenity. We are all around you. Demons and angels. Werewolves. Vampires. Ghost, mediums, psychics. Why do you think there are so many stories about us? Because people get a glimpse and, without knowing the truth, they make up their own. I am called a demon, but I am not a bad person." Not completely, anyway. "Your pink-haired girl...she lives with an angel. Her adopted son is one too. And despite their title, not all angels are good." He scowled, thinking of Antanasia. The whore.

"Stop," Serenity pleaded with him. "You were just my weird friend from Romania, why...why did you have to have wings!?"

"It comes with the package," Razvan shrugged. "And it's a good thing, too, because if I didn't today would have gone a lot differently. Can I ask you...was he always horrible to you?" Razvan couldn't believe Serenity would actually be stupid enough to get with someone like him if he was terrible to begin with.

"No," Serenity shook her head, still looking scared and out-of-place. "He...his mother died. He changed. He was okay sometimes, but he got mean. He would get so angry when I even spoke to Godric or Noah. Godric's gay and Noah is like my brother. I had no interest in either of them, but he was jealous anyway. He would..." Serenity turned a little green, and Razvan didn't want to see her floundering and upset. Nor did he want her vomit on his bed.

"It's okay, I understand," Razvan moved forward then, stopping his uniform pacing around the bed. "I don't think he was born this way like I was. I think...I think something happened to him when his mother died and that made him what he is now. He wasn't a bad person to start off, but he let anger carry him away. I'm sorry."

Serenity looked up at him and she shook her head yet again. "I'm sorry too. I don't understand. You...you won't hurt me?"

"No," Razvan reassured her. "If I had a mind to hurt you, I wouldn't have stopped Jason from doing so. Getting involved is not my style unless I have to. I felt him and I heard you call for help, so I helped. I assumed you knew about us because you know Spectre."

Serenity snapped her head around, her eyes narrowed. "Spectre?"

"An angel," Razvan said simply. He didn't care that it probably wasn't his business to tell. "And Deirdre? A demon. One of the good ones, obviously."

"Deirdre is a demon."

Razvan chuckled. "I know. Strange. But she is."

"Jesus. Flynn? Timothy?" Was she in a band with a bunch of Biblical creatures?!

"Humans," Razvan said as he took a seat on his bed, several feet away from her. "Good ones. A demon can sometimes feel if a person is good, or just pretending to be. It's one of my strengths. They'll take care of you. They know about Spectre and Deirdre. If you wanted to talk to them, they would. I understand talking to me about it is a little...confronting..."

"Show me," Serenity demanded then. "Show me your wings." And those four words made Razvan respect Serenity all the more. He quickly complied, his wings stretching out from his back and up towards the ceiling of his room. Her eyes widened and he smiled at her to keep the tone light. "It's alright," he reassured her again. He moved one of his wings closer to her and she shied away before approaching it with trepidation.

"Can...I touch it?"

"Of course," Razvan replied cordially. He chuckled again when she reached out an brushed her fingers along his wing. "They're quite sensitive because they're not always there. Very painful when they're injured, but touch feels nice."

"This is weird," Serenity whispered, pulling her hand away.

"Yes," Razvan nodded. "So is the world. So are you moving out then?"

Serenity looked up at him and for a moment, all that existed were their locked gazes. He felt, for all the world, like she would say yes, and leave him. He would have been okay, but he did like her. His new housemates were humanising him and he needed that, and he felt drawn to her in particular. Not in a romantic way. He simply wanted to know her, and he didn't quite understand yet what it meant to want someone for a friend. But maybe that was it. He simply wanted her in his life and while he would have survived if she had left, he didn't want her to. He cared.

"No," she finally said, and Razvan cocked his head to one side.

"No?"

"No." Serenity reached out and she pulled him towards her. He let his wings disappear and suddenly he found himself embracing her as they leaned back against the pillows. He was reassuring her. Cuddling her. Razvan found it strange. He was not a cuddler.

"Thank you," she whispered to him.

"You're welcome," he said back. And there they stayed with Razvan awake long after she fell asleep in his arms. How she felt safe enough to do that, even after everything, he never knew.

He never forgot, either.