iwtv2007:

Chapter 2 of A Life Alight is up on AO3

Flinthamilton; peach verse

Did love, like life, continue where it left off? Or did it reinvent itself to fit new circumstances?

Thomas finds a runaway slave in the stable.

The young man ate ravenously. James figured it must have been days since his last meal and that his need to eat had overridden his fears. They waited patiently while he finished the offering of bread, bacon, leftover egg, a bowl of soup, and two glasses of water.

“Thank you,” said the man in a voice that was now less tense. He wiped his mouth and scooted back from the table, rising. “I am very grateful. Now I will be on my way.”

“Wait please,” said Thomas before he could cross the room. “Won’t you at least tell us your name?”

The man stopped in his tracks. The wariness had returned to his face, his muscles tensing.

“We have no intention of returning you to your master,” said James plainly. “Or of alerting anyone that you’re here.”