Generated word of the day: Feather

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It was dark inside the Order Hall. All the curtains were drawn, blocking out the moonlight. Not that there was much to block out, large grey clouds hiding the moon and stars. A storm was obviously approaching.

Most of the Order hall was empty, everybody having gathered in the living room. The fireplace had a few burning coals in, slowly loosing their glow as the night drifted on. The room was filled with the sound of rhythmical breathing, everybody asleep.

On one of the couches was Axel, his head supported by the arm rest. His mouth was open, releasing the occasional snore every now and then.

Olivia was asleep on one of the squishy chairs, horizontally draped over it. Her legs were dangling off the edge, her feet swaying slightly.

Lukas was asleep on one of the other couches, sitting upright with his head drooped so his chin was resting on his chest. The was a slight dent in the couch beside him, like another person's weight had been lying there for quite a while.

The clock on the wall showed that it was merely a few minutes past midnight. As the minutes slowly ticked on, Lukas was one of the first ones to move.

He lifted his head, blinking a few times, before stretching out; his body sore from sleeping in a sitting position. Lukas looked around the room, seeing everybody asleep around him. Memories of the previous evening, when they all gathered there together in the first place, came rushing back to Lukas like a river.

It's been hands down one of the worst days of his life – one of the worst weeks in fact. Just thinking about it made a lump settle in Lukas's throat.

He got up from the couch, no longer really feeling like going back to sleep. He wanted some fresh air. Lukas reached over, picking up his jacket that was draped over the coffee table, before leaving the living room.

He slowly pushed open the back door, praying it wouldn't creak too loudly and wake somebody up, before walking out onto the porch. He leaned down with his elbows on the porch railing, staring into the night. It was cold and ever so slightly windy outside, weather that perfectly reflected Lukas's mood at that moment. He closed his eyes, trying not to let the memories replay themselves in his head.

The sound of laughter filling the air, the familiar 'click' noises from Axel's camera as he captured the moments.

The sun, the breeze. A perfect day, that so suddenly, went so wrong.

"Lukas?"

Lukas's head jerked up at the sound of the voice. He turned around, only then noticing that there was in fact somebody already on the porch, sitting with their back against the wall.

"Petra? What are you doing out here?" Lukas asked in surprise.

"I could ask you the same thing." Petra replied, pushing herself up from the ground. She walked over to stand beside Lukas, copying his position by leaning on the railing with her elbows.

She wasn't wearing a jacket, and Lukas could see visible goosebumps on her arms. He gently put his hand on hers, feeling her cold skin against his.

"How long have you been out here?" He asked softly. "You're freezing."

"I lost track of time." Petra replied bluntly.

They were quiet after that again. Lukas suspected Petra to be out there for the same reason as him. All of them were pretty heavily affected by the actions that took place five days ago.

The calm forest atmosphere, gentle sun rays shining through the leaves, the only sound being the hoofbeats from their horses. The darkness slowly closing in as the forest grew denser, nobody thinking to turn back.

The skeleton, hiding in the shadows from the daylight, that nobody saw.

"Here." Lukas said, taking his jacket off and wrapping it around Petra's shoulders.

"You'll get cold." She said softly.

"You've been out here longer than me." Lukas replied, leaning back onto the railing. "You need it more than I do."

Petra leaned back down onto her elbows as well, mumbling a "thanks" under her breath. She seemed to appreciate the warmth more than she was letting on however, nestling herself into the jacket.

Quiet set over the two again, both of them just standing there in silence. Neither spoke, but their thoughts were similar.

The sudden snap of a bow-string. The arrow grazing her horse's knee.

The gelding rearing up, neighing in distress before bolting forward in a blind panic.

Nothing they could do but watch as he bucked violently, dislodging his rider, her scream echoing through the forest. That small action, that changed so much.

"I miss her."

Lukas looked over at Petra, her eyes welled up in tears. It was the first time one of them had actually spoken those words out loud.

"I miss her too." Lukas replied, putting one arm around Petra's shoulders.

It's been five days since the accident, five days since... Jesse's death.

"It all happened so fast." Petra went on, her voice small. "One moment she was smiling and laughing, the next..."

She didn't finish her sentence, sniffing and wiping her eyes on her hand. Lukas didn't say anything, feeling the familiar burning sensation of tears in his own eyes.

It was true, it all happened so suddenly. The accident itself was unexpected, Jesse's passing even more.

For some unexplained reason, her riding helmet's strap had broken on the fall, causing Jesse to hit her head badly when she fell. However, after a few anxious minutes, Jesse regained her consciousness. They all decided to head home, get Jesse checked out as soon as possible, even though she appeared fine for the time being.

After a short time of riding, things slowly started to head downwards however. Jesse asked for a short break, mentioning that she was feeling sick.

After what barely felt like five minutes, that sick feeling had changed to a splitting headache, enough to the point where Jesse was clearly biting back tears.

They tried getting Jesse back on her horse, wanting to get home desperately. She was completely unsteady on her feet, her face worrying pale. Her sentences were muddled up, her words sluggish. It didn't take long to come to the conclusion that Jesse wasn't at all in a state to walk, much less ride her horse.

Lukas had been the one to ride to town at full gallop, desperate to get help, while the rest of Jesse's friends stayed with her.

By the time help arrived, everybody's faces were streaked with tears. Jesse's eyes were closed, her skin a pale grey colour. She had died in a matter of minutes.

"Do you know what the last thing was Jesse told us?" Petra asked softly. Lukas looked over at her with interest, not having been present for Jesse's final moments.

"She said that she didn't want to go so soon, that she wished she could've stayed longer... but she was glad to spend her final moments with her friends." Petra's voice cracked on her last sentence. She took a few deep breaths in attempt to fight the tears, before speaking again.

"We thought she was just confused, she said that because she was in so much pain. She wasn't thinking straight, we thought it was just disorientation... but I guess Jesse knew she wasn't going to make it home."

Petra's voice trailed off, a fresh tear-drop rolling don her cheek. She lay her head down on her arms, forcing back a sob.

Lukas wiped his own eyes on the back of his hand, tears threatening to break through. A part of him still didn't want to believe that Jesse was actually gone. He pulled Petra slightly closer to him.

Neither of them said anything, yet their minds were both busy. Petra kept her head rested on her arms, hiding her expression. Lukas kept rubbing her back in a reassuring way, finding that it helped calm himself down. Petra didn't seem to mind.

Thunder rumbled softly above their heads. Lukas felt a drop of water on his arm, soon followed by another on his shoulder. Petra slowly lifted her head as well, probably also feeling the droplets.

"Jesse used to love rain." She said softly. "She'd be overjoyed if she was here right now."

"We should go inside." Lukas said softly, trying not to let Petra's word sink in. He gently took her by the arm, signalling for her to follow him back in. Petra hesitated, but then broke away from the railing she was leaning on. As she did, Lukas noticed that she was actually holding something in one of her clenched fists.

"What's that?" He asked.

Petra opened her hand, revealing what appeared to be a feather from an arrow.

"I found this among Jesse's things." She said softly. "It's from the first arrow she ever shot."

"Really?" Lukas asked, amazed that Jesse had something like that.

Petra smiled faintly, looking down at the feather with nostalgia in her eyes.

"I taught Jesse how to use a bow, not long after we met. Back then I tended to use a bow more than a sword, unlike now. She was also so intrigued by it... then she asked me how to teach her."

Petra sniffed, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. Her voice came out noticeably smaller.

"I remembered her saying she wanted to keep the first arrow she shot. It actually broke, but she still insisted on keeping some part of it... she was such a sap back then. I didn't expect her to still have it."

Lukas smiled weakly. It did sound like something Jesse would do.

Petra chuckled softly, gently rolling it between her fingers.

"Guess I'm going to be the sap now... Because I'll always keep this feather."

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Why is this my second one shot in a row that focuses on death?

I got this idea from a TV series I used to watch, Once Upon a Time. A character died and they kept a feather from one of his arrows. 
Even though I haven't watched it in quite some time, when I got the prompt "feather" it was the first thing I thought of.

I at first wanted to write this out of somebody else's point of view, maybe Olivia's? Because I swear it's always either Jesse, Lukas or Petra. 
But I don't knooow, I still used Lukas instead XD Honestly, emotions just flow better them. Or at least for me. 

I hope you guys enjoyed! I'll see you tomorrow with another - hopefully not "death" based - one shot about whatever the word generator spits out next!