Can't Let You Go

                The den was filled with frowning faces, trying to decide what they are going to do about Douglas, four chairs filled with six bodies.  After Bethany’s arrival, Douglas had started eating more than he had been, but that was the only success she had, even she couldn’t get him to talk.  Fellon was sitting in one of the comfortable recliners, Isabela draped across his lap resting her head against his broad muscled shoulder.  Her fingers were absently running over the fabric of his shirt, lightly toying with the ring through his left nipple hidden beneath.  Fellon placed his hand over hers and with a faint sigh, asked, “So what are our options?”

                Varric said from beneath Bianca, “Hard to know what to do when he won’t talk to anyone.  Even the big guns failed.” He turned to Bethany, “We thought for sure you were going to work, Sunshine. If he won’t utter anything to us and is refusing any other help, what can we do?”

                The room was silent again for a moment, Fellon’s fingers idly tapping against Isabela’s on his chest.  The couple shared a look, and Fellon’s scar twitched.  “…Has anyone else tried contacting the bimb…er… Anders?” he acted as if Isabela had pulled a gun on him to get him to ask it out loud.

                Bianca responded sadly, “I tried calling a few times, but he won’t answer or call back.”  The two became somewhat close as the two chattier members of the group, and Bianca was most likely to be left behind with Anders if something came up.

                “Fuck.”  Fellon roared like a caged tiger, his head falling back against the recliner cushions.  “Nobody knows shit, and the one that does, won’t say shit…  There’s no help for it then.  Dammit…”

                Bethany asked, “What do we know?  Something had to have started all this.”

                Bianca answered first, “Something happened at the Halloween party. Douglas disappeared for a long time, and Anders went to check on him, and came back through shortly after in tears, bolting for the door.  Fellon went to check on him a bit after that.”

                Fellon didn’t lift his head, closing his eyes as he felt the beginnings of a headache starting to form. “All I got out of Douglas was that he did something Anders didn’t like.” He slid his eyes open half-way and glanced at Isabela. “Iz and I have a guess as to what might have happened… but that’s it.  To get to the bottom of this mess, we either need to get Douglas to open his trap, which isn’t happening… or find out what happened through Anders.”

                Bethany half laughed in complete disbelief and half roared her own impressive growl in anger, “He’s been like this for almost a month, and no one told me?”

                “You’ve got a medical degree to worry about. You can’t be worrying or rushing off from school because your brother lost his new toy,” Fellon grumbled.  Then, he gave a heavy sigh. “I called you because nothing else was getting through to him. I thought you’d be able to… he likes you better.”

                Bethany’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Well, if it says anything about his new toy, the last time I saw Douglas like this it was over you, Fellon.”

                Fellon finally lifted his head, pinning Bethany with a curious look. “Over me?”

                “Of course, did you honestly think our parents could send you away, and he would be completely fine?  Father finally started to come around after all Douglas’ nightmares, begging to bring you back, and insisting the accident was all his fault.”

                Fellon gave a cold laugh. “We thinking of the same man? Father never visited me, and Douglas sure as hell wouldn’t take the blame for something I did.”

                Bethany seemed confused, “Father visited you several times, but Mother wouldn’t let Douglas go with him.  He always came home saying you didn’t want to see him, or you were off doing something where he couldn’t see you.  And Douglas said he fell on top of the knife after he cut you with it.”

                Fellon leveled an icy glare toward Bethany before standing up so abruptly Isabela nearly thudded to the floor, saving herself only with her quick reflexes. “Now isn’t the best time for joking, little sister,” Fellon growled, heading for the liquor cabinet and pulling out one of the few bottles of whiskey Douglas had left behind this past month, pouring himself a double and downing it without a blink.

                “Do I look like I am joking to you, big brother?  And why would I over something like that?  What else were we supposed to believe when you never answered any of our letters?”

                Fellon stood still for long moment before foregoing his glass and taking a long draw directly from the whiskey bottle. “I got exactly two letters from home. Both from you. I never heard how your first dance went, by the way. I wrote every other day like clockwork… until it was made clear that no one was writing back.”

                “Douglas wrote you every day the first year, and at least once a week throughout the rest of high school. Father when he had the chance. I wrote you about once a week myself.” She looked at him tilting her head, thinking a minute, “There were two letters where we didn’t have stamps in the house, and I went to the post office to mail them myself.”

                Fellon regarded the whiskey bottle in his hand. He knew Bethany was telling the truth; she simply didn’t have it in her to make up cruel lies. “…What’s past is past. No point dwelling on it now. We’re off-topic.”

                “You really didn’t get them, did you?”

                Fellon slammed the whiskey bottle down on the cabinet top, harshly enough to make liquid slosh out of it.  “No, I never got any fucking letters, and I spent four years thinking I’d killed my own brother! Four years thinking what a brilliant fucking ‘protector’ I turned out to be and how damned PROUD Dad must have been. No fucking wonder he decided to send me to THAT place…”

                “The reports that were sent home said you were doing well, and you liked it there.  It always broke Douglas’ heart to think you would rather be there without him. The only difference between now and then is that he wasn’t drunk, so let’s just pray like hell it doesn’t take him four years to snap out of it this time.”

                “…That I LIKED it there?” Fellon made a sound, something like a choked giggle with a bit of hysteria mixed in.  It was not a pleasant sound, especially coming from angry, untouchable Fellon. “Right…” He raked a hand through his gelled hair, sending his carefully arranged spikes into uncharacteristic disarray. “Like I said… off-topic…”

                Bethany stared at Fellon a moment, but shook her head.  Best to deal with one brother at a time, and she couldn’t handle Fellon on her own.   “He partially came around when he met Isabela, but the only thing that brought him back to himself was seeing you again.  If Anders left in tears and is refusing to talk, I am out of options.”

                “…Douglas needs to see Anders, then. Doesn’t seem to be any alternative.”