Deity Boyfriend: Peregrine (complete)

Ages ago, when I was young, I was given as an offering to the lord of the local lands. He had favored me at a glance, so the rest of the village made a decision to give me to him in hopes that they would be blessed. I spent much of my life in his walls, being pampered and tended to by his staff of small dark clouds that took the shape of rats. 

The only blessing he bestowed upon my village was that, once in a while, he allowed me to go and visit my family, and I could take anything I carried with me. The poor people of the village were battling a strange illness, one that seemed to get worse and worse as new babies were born. I did what I could, bringing them food, money and things from the mansion that could be sold or traded in other towns. But it seemed like there was no cure to the strange disease.

The disease affected the blood. Some victims couldn’t produce enough of it and became extremely anemic. Others produced too much blood, which resulted in extreme pain, bloating, and port wine marks all over the body. These people had to suffer through bloodlettings and, over time, they became blamed for the affliction. They were called vampires, and were often killed or harvested for their blood. 

Strangely enough, the disease affected women the most, and people eventually stopped having children out of fear. People either left the village or had to bring in women from elsewhere to marry if they wanted children so badly. Children became a commodity.

Each time I went home for a visit, someone else was sick or gone. As the years went by it became apparent to me that everyone around me changed, and yet I did not. My family aged, or at least showed their years before they passed away. I remained youthful, bright, and beautiful, all because Lord Peregrine loved me so.

I had a fight with Peregrine over the state of my village. He had the wealth, the connections, and the power to do something about their illness, but he seemed disinterested in anything to do with it. The more I asked him, the more irritated he became. He withdrew from me, choosing to hide himself away rather than answer my demands.

Despite my love for Peregrine, I decided I had a choice to make - the village or him. I left him, taking with me what I could carry like always. I made the choice to save my people and try to protect them from any further harm this illness might cause. So I hid, disguising myself as a plague doctor and keeping my face hidden behind a mask.

I took on a healer who helped train me and further my education in medicine. Together we discovered that not only was Peregrine keeping me immortal, but this gift had also placed magic in my own blood. The healer found it could be made into medicine, and when administered to the ill, could help in saving them. When he passed, I raised his young son, Theo, as my own, keeping him as an assistant.

It has been years since I last saw Peregrine. He has not left his mansion since I left. If he has, then it has been under the cover of darkness. I often miss him, dreaming of his touch under the sheets, and how we made love in the moonlight. Aside from Theo, Peregrine is the only living thing who has seen my face since I left the mansion. All those who knew me before are gone now. Due to my perpetually-youthful face and beauty, I keep myself hidden, lest I become victim to the prejudice of the village.

Theo is a young man now, and despite a deformity of his leg, he is quite handsome. He stays with me most of the time, but I know he sneaks away at night. He’s young and full of vigor, and he wishes to plant that vigor in any young admirer who makes him smile. I know, too, that sometimes he trades extra medicine to the pretty ones, male and female alike. The poor thing is weak to a pretty face. 

“I am surprised you have the energy for all these lovers,” I tell him one day. He’s letting my blood into the vials, which will be turned and spun until it begins to thicken. Then we begin the process of creating the medicine.

“All I am is energy,” Theo laughs. “Surely you understand, Father Amsden. Do you not have those certain energies from time to time?”

I chuckle, arching a dark brow. “When I was your age, I was with Lord Peregrine and I put all my special energy into him. I may appear as young as you, but I am much older. I am not the same as I once was.”

Theo furrows his brow for a moment, then breaks into a smile again. “I’m sure if you showed your face, you could have anyone you wanted.”

“I do not want anyone, Theo.” I take my arm back and wrap a bandage around it. “You have never been in love. You would not understand.”

Theo’s expression fades, becoming quite disheartened. He takes the vials, placing them into the spinning mechanism. I turn my back to him and catch a glance of myself in the mirror. I am still beautiful, with long black hair, full lips, and a dangerous smile. I scoff and put my mask back on.

“I’m going to go into the village.” I tell Theo as I put on my coat. I gather my things and place my bag over my shoulder. “You keep working on the medicine. Is there anything you need while I am out?”

Theo shakes his head. “No, Father Amsden.”

I sigh as I see the look on his face. “You are young. Do not curse that fate. If you want many partners, then take many partners. If you want none, then have none. There is no right way to love, Theo. Take your time to find your way.”

Theo chuckles softly. “Yeah,” he murmurs. “I suppose so.”

I pat his shoulder. “I will return shortly.” I step outside to see a thick fog rolling in off the river. There must be a storm coming. As I walk through the thick fog, it rises from my ankles to my knees. It grows thicker as I come into town, and I soon can’t even see my hand before my face.

“How odd,” I murmur. I turn to look around, seeing the faint glow of torches and lanterns around me. I follow one light to the tavern, and step inside to find others have crowded there. They could not find their way in the fog.

“Doctor, thank the gods you’ve arrived!” One of the young women runs up to me. “Something peculiar has been found by the Darcy boys while fishing.”

“Are they hurt?” I ask, a little confused.

She shakes her head. “Please, come look. You’re smart, maybe you will know what to think of it!”

She pulls me along, moving me through the crowd of people and to a table where the elders of the village are congregated. One of the elders stands and greets me. She shakes my hand and brings me closer to the table. “Doctor Amsden, you’re a man of medical knowledge.”

“I like to think so,” I murmur. “Lady Agatha, what is going on?”

She shakes her head. “We’re not sure.” She motions to the table, where an old rusted box sits. “We do not know what to make of this discovery, but we know it must be an ill omen.”

She opens the box and shows me the contents. Inside is a severed head. The white hair growing from its scalp fills most of the box, and has even begun to spill out. The white locks wrap tightly around the eyes and mouth. The rest of the face looks almost insectile, like a cricket’s.

“How can a head live separated from the body?” one of the elders asks. “It is not decayed! In fact, we found it even breathes.”

“It breathes?” I ask in alarm.

“The hair, too.” Agatha speaks low. “It moves and grows ever since we opened the box.” She closes the box, shearing the hair off around the sharp edges of the lid. The locks dissolve and turn to dust, which looks like a fine white powder.

“And where did the Darcy boys find this?” I ask. “In the river?”

“They were pulling in their nets and found them snagged,” Agatha replies. “They found rusted chains under the water, and they broke when the net dragged against them. Once the box was freed, it floated to the surface in front of the boys.”

“And then the fog came,” another elder croaks.

Agatha nods to me. “What do you make of this, Doctor Amsden?”

“I think it is very strange indeed,” I answer. “A head that lives and breathes on its own, detached from its body, is impossible.” I feel my nerves pricking uncomfortably inside me. 

“Perhaps Lord Peregrine would know of its origin,” an elder murmurs.

“No!” I quickly cry out. Then I clear my throat as everyone stares at me in shock. “I mean… Lord Peregrine hasn’t been seen in years. Do we even know if he is still alive?”

There is a murmur around the room and I take the time to steady myself. It feels as though I have been punched in the stomach, and I am fighting back the urge to dry heave. 

“What if it’s the Lord’s head?” someone in the crowd says, which causes a mild case of laughs. 

I swallow the lump in my throat and step forward. “Let me take the head,” I say. “Perhaps I can study it and discover its origin. If anything, I will know who to contact to dispose of it.”

“You would be safest to leave it with, Doctor,” Agatha sighs. “But I would like to be informed of your progress with it.”

I nod. “Of course. I was going to suggest the same thing.”

I go home with the box and set it down on my desk. I know what it is. Better yet, I know who it is. I have never seen this face before, but I know exactly who it belongs to. The person in the tavern made a joke of it, but it’s the truth. Lord Peregrine, for as long as I have known him, has had no head. He usually keeps that fact hidden by wearing an armored helmet. He showed me the truth, though, long ago. Wisps of black smoke came from the stump of his neck. He seemed to be pleased to finally of what he claimed was a ‘useless appendage.’ I still loved him, headless or not. 

“Father Amsden.” Theo comes into my office as I stare long and hard at the horrible box. “Is everything all right?”

I quickly cover the box with my coat so he cannot see it. “Yes, Theo. It’s just that fog.” I stand up from my chair and go to the window. “I can’t go anywhere in it. I barely found my way home as it was.”

“I only noticed when I looked up from my work.” Theo approaches me with a frown on his face. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

I breathe out slowly and nod. “Neither have I.” I turn to him. “Safe to say I do not want you going anywhere until it clears up. I don’t want you getting hurt or lost out there. It’s starting to get cold as well. With that leg of yours, you’d be walking in circles in a matter of seconds from leaving the door!”

“You don’t need to worry about me, Father Amsden,” Theo says with a bright smile.

I turn aside and start taking off my gloves. “You’re all I have - so yes, of course I have to worry.” I lay the gloves aside. My hands are covered in scars from pricks and cuts to test and sample my blood. The scars go further up my arms as well. “Please promise me you won’t go out in it.”

Theo nods. “Of course.”

“‘Of course’ is not a promise, Theo,” I scold him. “Promise me in words that cannot be twisted to suit your dick.”

Theo grimaces. “Father Amsden, really, I-”

I take off my mask to glare at him. “Theo.”

He sighs. “I promise you I won’t go out.”

I set my mask on the bed. “Much better. Now, where are you at in the process of making the medicine?” 

“Almost done with the turning,” he replies. “And I have the poultice already boiled and cooled.”

“Wonderful. You take a break, I’ll finish all this up.” I go back to the lab while Theo goes to his own room.

I work late into the evening, although it is hard to tell with how thick the fog still is. Once the medicine is done and placed in the dark bottles, I go to see what Theo has made for supper. As I enter the kitchen, I see no sign of Theo. Nor do I see any evidence the stove has been touched since breakfast. 

“Theo, did you fall asleep again?” I go to his room, but find he is not there. I begin to get angry. Perhaps Theo has broken his promise to me. I return to my room to fetch my coat and mask, but as soon as I step inside, I see Theo standing there.

“Theo!” I snap. “What are you doing?”

He remains quiet, standing there, bending over my desk. I grab his arm and pull him back, and that is when the long white hair falls from his head. It cascades around him like the fog outside, and his usually bright brown eyes have become white as well. The box containing Peregrine’s head is open, and the hair has attached itself to Theo.

“No!” I cry out. “No! No!” I try to rip out the hair, but it is firmly attached to Theo’s scalp. “Let him go!” I scream and strike Peregrine’s head from the desk. It rolls under my bed and Theo kneels to pick it up.

“Don’t touch it!” I grab Theo’s hands and hold them tight. “Please,” I whisper. “Not him.” I squeeze his hands tighter. 

Theo tilts his head to the side as he looks at me. His fingers twitch in my grasp, then slowly bend to hold them in return. 

I try to cut off the long white locks, but they continue to grow. The hair cascades down his body to his feet. I am in a panic, and unsure what to do to save him. He seems lost in his own mind, trapped somehow by Peregrine’s awful head. I place the head in another box, one made of iron, in hopes of keeping it contained. 

I know there is only one thing I can do to save Theo. But I cannot bring myself to contemplate it, so I try every hopeless action I can think of. Eventually, I know I have no other choice in the world. I have to take Theo to Peregrine himself.

I braid up Theo’s hair so it is not in his way, then lay him down in the wagon and cover him. I place the box holding Peregrine’s head beside me on the seat, and hang lanterns around me in hopes of making it through the thick fog. 

There are torches all around the gates of Peregrine’s mansion, but the fog does not penetrate the bars. Once the gate doors open, the fog slithers away from them. I drive in, pulling up to the manor doors. I sit there in my seat, shivering. I do not know what waits for me inside. I left Peregrine so long ago, I do not know if his feelings for me have changed at all. Perhaps he hates me, which I would not blame. 

Before I walk up the steps to the doors, I check on Theo in the back of the wagon. His eyes are still open. In fact, he has not blinked since he came under this affliction. I sigh and stroke his cheek, praying for a miracle, hoping he will simply snap out of it. But there are no miracles for me here, and Theo remains in this strange catatonic state between worlds.

I gather up my courage and climb the stairs. I knock on the door, then stand in wait for whatever comes. I hold my breath, keeping my eyes lowered and my shoulders high. Nothing. I knock again, and the door knocker breaks off in my hand. 

I try the handle. When I open the door, the hinges come away from the rotten wood and collapse into the house. I stand there, holding the handle in my hand. Looking inside, I see the once-beautiful and gilded hallway is now dusty, dark, and covered with spiderwebs. 

I step inside and smell something like body odor and mildew. Lord Peregrine was always particular about how his home was kept. I find the parlor, where a fire is going. Before the fire is a bed, stacked high with pillows and blankets. All around it are bottles of liquor and wine, empty and covered in dust.

I step further inside and realize there is a body buried beneath the pillows and blankets, curled up, stirring slightly the closer I get. The body is large and familiar. The skin is powdery and translucent, revealing dark veins under the surface. The arms are longer than they should be, and the hands are likewise long and thin, capped with black fingernails. More empty bottles fall out of the decrepit little nest, and the body turns itself towards the fire. What once was lean and muscled, is now sagging, weak, with a paunch at its middle. 

“Peregrine?” I whisper in shock.

“You came back, did you?” His once sensuous voice is now slurred and raspy. “Or am I drinking the absinthe again?” He raises a bottle as he looks at me, then jams the mouth of it into his throat so that the bottle sticks straight up from his neck. 

“My gods, Peregrine!” I gasp in disgust. “What has become of you?”

“Are you real?” Peregrine reaches out and slaps the nose of my mask. 

I take off my mask, and Peregrine’s posture instantly changes. The bottle falls from his exposed esophagus, crashing to the floor to join the others. “It really is you,” he breathes.

I look around at the mess. Everything has fallen into disrepair and filth, even Peregrine himself. “What happened?”

“I gave up,” he laughs, extending his arms with a shrug. “Just… didn’t care anymore.” He searches among the bottles for a full one. “After you left, I didn’t think there was a point to anything.”

“That doesn’t sound like you,” I whisper. “Peregrine, you were…”

“In love with you,” he burps. “So much so that without you, life wasn’t worth living.” He continues to shuffle through the bottles. “And being immortal, all I have is life, so…” He picks up a bottle and opens it. “Here I am, barely.”

I take the bottle from him. “I need your help.”

Peregrine claps his hands. “That’s funny! Tell me another.” He reaches out to grab the bottle back, but I yank it away.

“I am serious!” I snap at him. “Your head was found, and because of it something has happened to my son!”

Peregrine goes siff and quiet. “You have a…” He hiccups and burps. “You have a… You have a son?”

“Yes,” I snarl. “And because of your head…”

“My head?” Peregrine blurts. “I don’t have a head. See?” He waves his hand back and forth over his neck. 

“It is your head!” I snap at him. “And it has done something to my son!”

Peregrine sniffs. “A son.” He pops his shoulders and sways to the side. “If that was what you wanted, I could have gotten you some kid.”

“No! Peregrine…” I try to argue but he flops back over into his nest. “Peregrine, get up! Listen to me!”

Peregrine starts snoring, and I sink to the floor. I hold my head in my hands and sit there with my misery for a moment. After a while, I get up and start to clean. I get rid of all the bottles, throwing away all the liquor. I sweep the floors and knock away the cobwebs. Then I go upstairs to see what has become of it. To my surprise, it looks untouched. This is where I bring Theo. I take him to my room, which had been locked, and tuck him into my old bed. 

I go back downstairs, and find the kitchen in such a disgusting state that I put all my plague gear back on. I scrub away years of dirt, grime, and unholy sludge. I clean and clean until morning. By then, I have begun preparing breakfast despite my exhaustion. There is not much remaining, just enough to make a pot of coffee and fried potatoes. A wonderful potato garden has flourished from the filth. 

Footsteps come up the hall, and Peregrine ducks to enter the kitchen door. “I wasn’t dreaming, then,” he whispers in awe. “It was you.”

“Good morning,” I murmur.

“My gods, Amsden.” He slouches in the doorway. “You’ve come back.”

I look up at him and sigh. “I have,” I murmur. “This place is rotting and falling apart, Peregrine. You should be ashamed of yourself.”

“Ashamed is all I am,” he groans as he comes further into the kitchen. “What did you do with all my drinks?”

“I tossed them out,” I growl. 

“No!” he snaps. “How dare you?”

I slam a mug of coffee down before him. “You’ve become a festering old drunk, Peregrine. You used to be handsome, virile, and sexy. Now look at you!”

Peregrine rubs his hand down his chest then scoffs. “So I’ve let go a little.”

“You’ve completely given up!” I bark at him. “You aren’t holding on to anything - you’ve completely let go, and aren’t even trying to hold on to anything.” I sigh and rub my hands over my face. “It could not have all been because of me.”

“You wounded me, and I refused to heal,” Peregrine growls. 

I sigh as I look up at him. “I need your help now. My son is sick.”

“Oh, so I didn’t dream that either,” Peregrine murmurs. “Does his mother know you’ve come to your ex-lover for help?”

“His mother is dead,” I scoff. “And what does that matter?”

Peregrine pours the coffee down his throat. “So you come to me a widower. That explains it.”

“I am not a widower. I never married.” I shake my head. “I adopted Theo when his father, my teacher, passed away.”

“Good. I’m glad you didn’t date either,” he snipes.

“Peregrine!” I snap angrily at him.

Peregrine brings his fist down on the counter and shatters it. “Do not take that tone of voice with me!” he booms. “I could still snap your neck like a twig if I wanted!”

I take a shuddering breath and wipe at my eyes. “I beg of you, Peregrine. Help me save my son, and I will do anything for you.”

Peregrine’s shoulders go stiff and he stands a bit more erect. “Anything?”

I frown and nod my head. “Yes. Anything.”

Peregrine chuckles and he cracks his knuckles. “What a wonderful thought.” Then he cracks his neck. “Show me the boy.”

I take him upstairs, and he seems apprehensive when we enter my old room. Theo’s long hair has come from the braid, and now it covers his body and pours from the bed. Peregrine stands at a distance, looking down at him. He sees the iron box containing his head and kicks it under the bed.

“He got this way after coming into contact with your head,” I snap up at him. 

“So it’s my fault?” Peregrine demands.

I shake my head. “I am not saying that, Peregrine, not at all! Please, just find it in your heart to save him! I promised you anything in return.”

Peregrine closes Theo’s eyes, and they remain shut. “He’s lost.”

I take in a deep breath.

“It will take time for him to find his way back.” Peregrine turns towards me. “He gave me a kiss. Not good.”

“A kiss?” I look up towards Peregrine. “What can we do?”

Peregrine chuckles. “Nothing we can do. The only thing to bring him out is another kiss.” He walks away from the bed and towards my desk. “But it will be a hard kiss to find.”

“What do you mean?” I whisper.

Peregrine searches my desk, opening the drawers as he tries to find something. “Don’t act stupid, Amsden. It never suited you.”

I grab him and stop his search. “There is no liquor in there! I never partook except with you.” I yank him back. “Now explain yourself this instant.”

Peregrine sneers. “True love’s kiss, you idiot. You have to find his in order to wake him.” He stands up. “Until then, the curse has him, neither alive nor dead.”

“This can’t be…” I whimper. “Peregrine, there must be some other way, some…” I start to shudder as I break down into sobs. 

Peregrine scoffs and comes to my side. “Give up like I did. It will be easier for you.”

I slap his hand away and glare up at him. “I will do no such thing!” I shove him in the chest and out the door. “I will save my son, with or without you!”

“Without me, then!” he roars. “Like always!”

I shove him again, and Peregrine grabs my wrists. I try to push him away, but he holds me fast. We struggle, fighting until we’re both panting and breathing hard. Peregrine’s fingers brush roughly against my lips, and his sharp nails drag down my scalp.

“I fucking hate how beautiful you are,” he snarls. “Damn you!”

“You’re hard,” I growl back, and pull away from him.

Peregrine laughs. “So are you, my beauty.” He points at me. “Does your body remember better than you do?”

Perhaps it does, I think. “Leave me alone. Continue to wallow in your own filth. I’ll find a way to save my son.”

“Good luck,” Peregrine scoffs. “You’ll need it.”