Disclaimer: I do not own Hellboy

A/N: Hey there! Here's another one shot only this time on another couple. Nuada and Nuala! I know its a bit dodgy since they're brother and sister and everything but from the scene in the library in the movie there did seem to be a hint of slightly incestuous feelings on Nuada's part.

Counting the Violets

For metal-firetamer91

Nuala and Nuada had always been close. That was what made her betray all the more painful and to hear her say his name like the say that she said it...She used to call his name in the same voice. That sweet tone as if she was calling to an old lover who would always have a special place in her heart. It was as if she was calling out to him from her own generous heart. They were closer than any two being could ever be. Now they were more further apart than ever. He had to admit though, he was partly to blame for all of that. They were closer than human husband and wives. They didn't truly know what it was to be twin souls with another person no matter what they said in the marriage ceremonies. The same went for fairy husband and wives. They came out of their mother's womb in each others arms which soon became the death of her. Since they had never known their mother they never knew or understood the magnitude of losing her as their father did. However something else also eased the pain which they would've felt at losing at mother.

The intimacy between brother and sister made the pain more bearable. They would always be walking together, hand in hand. It was to be expected of fairy twins. When Nuala should die Nuada would also. They were twin souls with their destinies entwined within one another. This soon became something more for Nuada as he grew up. He soon began to realise that there was the possibilities that they would not only share their end but also the journey that came before it.

He would gaze at his sister from across the room and admire her tall, willowy figure. The long, silvery hair which would fall down her back like a waterfall. Whenever she would wear blue his heart would stop. She always looked so beautiful in blue. His contrasted, clashed, collided with her snow white skin so dramatically it made her look like a wood nymph. No, she looked more beautiful than a wood nymph.

However as the years passed on their father noticed this close bond between the two and set out to stop it on some occasions. Once siblings reached a certain age they ceased to be as close as they once were in their childhood. Especially if they were brother and sister. However he knew the reason why his two children remained so close after all these years. He was afraid that one day, due to Nuada's obsessive and aggressive nature that this relationship would turn to something more...Something horribly destructive and may even be the end of them all. He had heard the myths and rumours of the strong bond between twins, especially between a brother and sister but he never paid them any mind until now. The moment it was actually occurring before his very eyes he knew it had to be stopped. Now it was happening before his very eyes. He would separate them on several occasions, do anything that he could in order to stop the bond between them both from becoming any stronger than it already was.

Nuala would no longer dance with her brother at balls as much as she used to any more. She knew that there would be more than disapproving eyes watching them if they allowed themselves this little indulgence in these public displays of sibling affection. She would spend more time with her hand maidens and fairy women of her own age rather than with her brother. She would attend lessons with a separate tutor to her brother, despite his protests. At first he believe his father thought Nuala, as a women, was not intelligent enough for the studies Nuada would be taught. She was better than any fairy woman and most fairy men. If anything happened to Nuada, he knew his sister would be more than a sufficient substitute for an heir. But he soon discovered that would never be able to be an option since their destinies and their souls were more tied to one another than anyone could have imagined. She was indisputably above all humans. Why was their father treated her this way? Then he realised. It wasn't because of her gender, but because of him.

He wanted to keep them separated. In case the bond became too intense and strong. Their father was protecting Nuala from her own twin brother. He could see the possessive love he had for his sister in his eyes. It made him sick. It made him want to kill his own father over his sister. He couldn't let that happen. However deep down there was something holding him back from doing so. He loved his father too much to commit such a crime. He tried not to hate his father for it, but he couldn't stop the hurt which he felt for him doing so from flooding into his heart...Nuada still found ways, however, to spend time with his sister. He wasn't going to give up on his sister that easily, if he wasn't going to kill his father. He would charm her hand maidens into letting him into her chamber without their father knowing. They would talk for hours about nothing and everything under while the hand maidens were in the other room. They would still be able to dance at the balls.

When their father had to leave the room for diplomatic reasons he would politely cut in and hold his sister in a passionate embrace as they danced. The one thing they were still permitted to do and what Nuada cherished more than anything was their walks through the garden. He would always made bracelets, headbands out of flowers or would just find a single flower which could match her beauty and would tuck it behind her ear. She would return with a veil of flowers in her hair as if she were a woodland fairy walking down the aisle on her wedding. There was only one flower which Nuada thought could match her beauty. Even though deep down he believed she was more beautiful than all the flowers in the world, but there was one flower which came close. Violets. He loved the colour against his sisters white skin or her creamy hair. The colour, like blue, was so dramatic it made her look elegant, wild, sophisticated and exotic all at once. As they walked through the woods near the castle grounds one door, Nuada sneakily snaked his fingers through his sisters. He leaned his mouth close to his sisters ear and pointed into the distance.

"Look." He whispered as if not wishing to startle a deer. "The violets are in bloom."

Nuala's eyes widened when she saw that what he said was true and turned to her brother quickly with a look of delight in her eyes. She loved violets as much as he did but for different reasons. In fact she probably loved them more than her brother. She loved violets because she thought they were beautiful and also because of what they symbolised. In some translations or interpretations of flower symbolism violets represented faithfulness. This was an attribute she held above any other in another person. If someone was unparalleled in their loyalty in comparison to many others she held you in the greatest was something she tested her ladies in before taking them on as her personal staff. He loved violets only because she loved them really. He wasn't exactly someone who was interested in flowers. Also because they were as beautiful as she was. They didn't make her look more beautiful but the other way round. She made them look more beautiful. She ran forwards and knelt down by where they were growing and looked over them.

She stroked them with maternal care and he knew she wanted to pick them but she didn't want to ruin them. She had more respect and love for nature than anyone he knew. It was something he loved about his sister. If the humans weren't going to respect and care for it at least she would be here to enforce it. Not in a violent manner as he would do but in a gentle, quiet way. She was the cooler, gentler, kinder counterpart of the union as he was the passionate, violent, brutal twin. The two were polar opposites but they still loved one another for their qualities which were so different to their own. Nuada walked slowly towards her and knelt beside her as if he was being announced in the presence of a Queen. Nuala would make a wonderful Queen. She would kind, gracious, merciful...Everything a Queen should be. He reached out for a single violet and tucked it behind her ear. As he placed it there he could feel her pulse quicken a little as he did so and gave her an affectionate smile.

"Beautiful."

She giggled nervously. "Do you mean the flower or me, brother?" She joked.

He tilted her head. He held her chin and stroked her cheek. "You're always beautiful, Nuala. It is the flower which is now beautiful now it is where it is."

She stared at him for a moment. The world seemed to fade away and went silent. They were only people in the wood. The only people in a world. No humans. No fairies. Just them. She leaned forward slightly and he mirrored this action. They were still so far away from one another but Nuada felt more closer than he ever had done with his sister. Nuala had been courted by many men over the years since she had reached the point of adolescence but there was no one who would be able to replace the love she had for her brother. Although there was always also something else stirring within her. Anxiety. This was what her father warned her about, becoming too close. She knew that after her brothers words that this was all she wanted from him. He had reached the line and he was threatening to cross it. She hoped, she wished that he would never do such a thing. He would never commit such a heinous crime. One which went against the very laws of nature. However the snap of a twig interrupted them and Nuada swiftly turned round angrily to see who interrupted them and found the person responsible standing before them. Father.

Nuada got to his feet and bowed respectfully. "Father. What is it?"

"There has been a battle. The humans attacked a forest in the East and all the fairy creatures where slaughtered. I think it is time to consider...finally if we should go to war with them."

"Father!" Nuala cried. "You cannot!"

"Nuala." Her father reasoned gently. "Do not protest against a war with a warrior king."

He stepped forward and took his daughters beautiful face in his hands. Her tendency for mercy was something which she inherited from her mother. She was even beginning to remind her of their mother, as painful as it was to be forced to recall the wife which he loved and lost he was grateful for the fact that at least one of his children was gentle as the other was brutal. Her skin was smoother than any silk which could be woven. Clearer than any part of the ocean. Her beauty surpassed that of any princess whom had ever lived or would live. A single tear rolled down her cheek which he wiped away with his thumb and held her in an embrace. She calmed down a little and stepped back after their father released her.

She bowed slightly and murmured. "You will always do what is best for us father."

He nodded curtly and waved his son to follow him. "Come, Nuada. I need your help with the council it is time that you were involved in such things."

Nuada bowed quickly and obeyed. "Of course father."

His father nodded and clapped him on the back as they walked away leaving Nuala behind amongst the violets. Nuada glanced over his shoulder and watched her slowly kneel down as if she was bowing to the forest. She was showing that even though she was happy to say that she supported her father but deep down she would silently bow her allegiance to nature who chose no side. She brushed her hand delicate against their heads as if she was stroking someone's hair in those moments when they needed comfort. She looked down at them forlornly with a single tear rolling down her cheek. They were all she had now. As content as any free, kind heart could be with a single violet the present burden on her heart made it difficult for her to be so content. She looked out after her brother knowing that in his heart he was more happy in this moment than he ever had been. Even with her...

This was something Nuada had always been waiting for. He wanted this more than anything. He watched his father ride from the palace to a battle with a look of envy as a child. He wanted to ride with him into battle and was proud that his father wasn't a pacifist like many other fairy kings. A war and against the humans as well. He never really understood why the fairies tolerated their existence in the first place. They were nothing but vermin. Useless vermin who were a waste of space. However for a moment, just a moment he felt something in his heart. Something so overwhelming that at first he didn't know what it was. He was so unfamiliar with this emotion and so confused that he was even feeling this at this exact moment that it took him far longer than it should have done to recognise this feeling of despair. He didn't understand why he would be experiencing these emotions. He wanted a war with the humans more than anything. He couldn't understand what would possess him to feel thing way about something such as this. As he walked beside his father he was filled with such conflict and confusion until he glanced over his shoulder at his sister.

There was only one person he knew who would not want this. He would always know since her spirit would forever haunt him for as long as he would live. Her thoughts would be his thoughts and vice versa. Her emotions would flow into him and would experience and even suffer from the same afflictions she was feeling. It was one of the reasons why he loved her so much. It was her. She was experiencing these feelings. As he was relishing in the thought of war she was distraught at the idea of bloodshed and the fact that he thirsted for it. He was immediately ashamed of his feelings but knew he could do nothing else but obey their father, the king. Nuala could only be stranded. Left behind and do nothing but mourn for the lives which would soon be lost. She could only count the violets. Count the lives which would be lost. Count the days which they would draw further and further apart...