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Agatha Harkness loved nothing more than her wife, Rio Vidal. She still smiled, whenever she saw her and her heart was beating faster whenever she glanced at her wife only to find out that Rio had already been staring at her.
Rio was a woman, who’s profession lay in protecting Agatha. They had met roughly seventeen years ago, when Agatha was thirty four and the other woman was twenty eight. They got married four years later.
She had by then already published some of her greatest hits, been an accomplished singer and songwriter, a household name.
Rio was the bodyguard for another celebrity, Alice Wu Gulliver, when they first met at an event. They had talked about so many things whenever they got the chance and now here they were. In the comforts of their own cottage in Salem, Massachusetts.
Perhaps, it was scandalous to date and later on marry your own bodyguard, or hell, hire your girlfriend to protect you at all possible times.
If it was, neither of them cared. Agatha loved Rio fiercely, with every pore of her very own body. There was nothing that could ever cut the invisible, but palpable bond that the two women connected.
Every day Agatha Harkness thanked whatever deity or higher power was responsible that she had met that beautiful human being that she called her wife. She was even more grateful that Rio loved her so much for all her causes.
They had met during work, if you could call some kind of Gala that. Agatha was never more grateful to have become a successful singer.
She loved the writing, the singing, filling each song with its deliberate meaning and emotion, shredding her guitar on stage, being a safe space, singing in front of thousands of people. She loved it all.
A thing Agatha hated about being a successful singer was the bombardment of questions people had asked about bee wife and their deceased son.
The rumors, theories and fan-talk and gossip she didn’t mind, much. What she did mind, however, was people asking her to reveal her wife’s identity, when she deliberately decided not to share who she was. She was careful to not let her fall victim to Agatha’s haters and become victim to all the hate that came with being a public figure. She had refused every attempt to get her to talk about her wife’s identity. Another thing, that was even worse, were the tactless questions she got about their deceased son.
As she checked the calendar on her phone and saw that she had an interview scheduled for later this morning, Agatha groaned in annoyance.
She had woken up alone, the king sized bed feeling too empty without her wife in it. She had already wandered off, perhaps to get herself a coffee, or to take a call from her boss.
„Good morning to you too.“ Rio said, jokingly as she walked into the room with a mug of coffee in one hand and a mug of Agatha’s favorite tea in the other one.
„Good morning, my love.“ Agatha replied, taking the mug Rio held out for her.
Rio soon joined her on their bed, sitting in silence.
Rio was deep in her thoughts since last night a certain thought had been stuck her in her mind. One she didn’t want to entertain and yet found herself yearning for answers.
Are you ashamed of me? Do I embarrass you? Does our relationship embarrass you?
She had over the years found herself thinking about this particular question more than once and never mentioned it to her darling wife.
She stared down at her own mug, the smell of coffee filling her nostrils. She started biting the inside of her lower lip, her nails scratching on the skin on her fingers.
What if Agatha was actually embarrassed about her? She knew that her wife loved her, there was no doubt, but she could still be ashamed of her. What if Agatha was ashamed of being in a relationship with a nobody like her and not with another celebrity?
„What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?“ Agatha asked her wife, having seen the way she started to pick at her own skin, the way she bit onto her lip. Telltale signs for her nervousness she had recognized early on in their relationship.
She took Rio’s mug into her hand, setting both her tea and the coffee onto the bedside table next to her. She took Rio's hands in hers to stop her fidgeting.
„Are you ashamed of me? Of our marriage?“ Rio asked bluntly, her voice trembling. She was refusing to meet Agatha’s eyes. She usually was so confident, always open about what she was saying, never hiding it.
At this Agatha’s eyes widened as she looked at her wife in pure horror. The woman who probably saved her life in one way or another. Rio’s existence had taken a turn for the better when she met her.
She tilted Rio's chin, forcing her to look up, forcing her to meet her eyes.
„No, of course not. Why would you think that, my love?“ Agatha responded, her voice sincere, laced with a hint of honest confusion.
„So many things about you are known by the world, but nobody knows what I mean to you. Nobody knows that I’m your wife, Agatha. Is it because you’re ashamed of our relationship?“ Rio asked, her voice pained.
Agatha was able to hear the hurt through it all, she knew her wife better than anyone else.
„Ri, if there is one thing in the world that I take no shame in then it’s marrying you.“ Agatha said, her voice steady. She needed Rio to believe her.
Rio’s eyes stared at hers, trying to find any telltale signs that she was lying. She found none.
„Are you sure?“ Rio asked just to be sure, just to erase the insecurity in herself.
„Of course, my love. I never wanted you to doubt our marriage. If you want we can reveal your identity in the interview.“ Agatha said. She wasn’t a fan of the idea but if it would give her wife some peace of mind then she’ll do it in a heartbeat.
This was all Rio needed. Agatha was ready to reveal her identity just to give her some peace and happiness. She realized she didn’t have to do it, hearing her wife being ready to do so was what mattered.
She shook her head in response before giving Agatha a chaste kiss.
„Are you sure?“ the older woman asked, ready to reveal the biggest secret in her career.
„You have your reasons and knowing that you’re ready to tell the world that I’m your wife is enough.“ Rio responded.
„Good, because we have to get ready for an interview.“ her wife replied before kissing her cheek and pulling her up by her hand to walk over to their closet.
It wasn’t long after that they were dressed, Agatha in dark purple slacks and a matching vest and her make up already done while Rio wore a very similar outfit, but hers was green, her dagger completing the outfit.
Oh, how they loved to secretly wear matching outfits. Not that they would admit that to anyone else.
„Let me do your makeup, okay?“ Agatha said to Rio who had sat down on their bed, waiting for Agatha to apply her makeup.
Rio had been staring at her, admiring her. She had always thought her wife was beautiful with and without makeup.
Rio nodded at her, not expecting Agatha to sit down on her lap, straddling her thighs.
„Be a good girl and look at me, darling. I want to see your pretty face.“ Agatha cooed, her voice soft, passionate.
Using words she knew deeply affected her wife.
Rio looked up at Agatha, who was now taller than her, sitting on her lap. She was never one to disobey an order and looking up at Agatha gave her wife the chance to see her widened eyes and her flushed cheeks.
She had always loved being praised by her wife, always needed the confirmation that she was good to her, good for her.
„Well, you don’t need any blush with how red you just got over some words.“ Agatha teased her, letting her thumb trace the redness on her wife’s cheek.
„You always had that effect on me.“ Rio reminded her wife who let out a low laugh, that warmed Rio from the inside out.
„Close your eyes.“ Agatha stayed there as she applied some makeup on her wife’s face. She used a small fluffy brush to apply some dark brown eyeshadow to the outer corner of Rio’s eyelid, while holding her face steady in her other hand.
She moved Rio’s face gently, so she was able to apply the same eyeshadow there, before adding a dark green glittery color on Rio’s eyelids.
„Look up at me, my love.“ Agatha said, putting her fingers under Rio’s chin to force her to look at her.
She took the eyeliner pen and started to draw a perfect line on both of Rio’s eyes. When she was happy with the results she placed the pen on the bed next to her leg and put her hand behind Rio’s head.
Agatha leaned down, pulling Rio to herself, closer before pressing her lips against her wife’s in a short kiss. Agatha’s lipstick stained Rio’s lips in the same dark reddish color.
„Perfect.“ Agatha said, smirking at her wife who didn’t realize why she had been kissed until right then.
Rio groaned in frustration, realizing she wasn’t going to get another kiss out of her wife.
Agatha stood up, holding her hand out for her wife to take. Rio took Agatha’s hand in hers, heat radiating off of her and into her own cold hand.
They left their house and got to the black car that already waited to pick them up.
💜💚💜
Agatha and Rio walked onto the stage of the talk show they had been invited to. Okay, truth be told, Agatha had been invited, but where Agatha goes Rio follows, which by now is public knowledge. The two of them are practically inseparable.
The crowd immediately broke into cheers and applause for the duo, yelling, chanting her name as if it was sacred.
Some fans of Agatha Harkness had thought the two of them were best friends even with Rio being Agatha’s bodyguard, others thought it had more to do with the safety of Agatha and that they had become friends over time, while others believed that Rio was Agatha’s secret wife.
Which was right, of course, but no one, besides close friends and their personal driver and help knew since it had never been publicly confirmed.
Agatha went over and greeted the blonde man sitting at the table. Before making her way to the couch, while Rio followed her example.
They had been to many shows, many interviews and even more public events together that this was well rehearsed for Rio.
After the two of them exchanged pleasantries, with Rio throwing in a word or two, more than any bodyguard usually would, the man started asking his parole of questions.
„So Agatha, you recently were seen at a charity gala to support helplines for queer kids and teens. What made you decide to donate to such an organization, besides your own sexuality?“ The man asked, looking at Agatha.
„While a lot of queer kids have the privilege of being born into accepting families nowadays, not all of us, including me, have that privilege and for those children we need more safe spaces for those who aren’t fortunate enough. Money is mandatory for building these spaces, because bigotry isn’t worth lives.“ Agatha responded, clearly having thought about this a lot.
After all, she had been donating to charities for queer children, as well as for children suffering in violent homes ever since she had enough money to make a change. After Nicholas had died, she had also started donating for medical research to help sick children. Maybe it would have saved her own son.
She thought about her own childhood, the times she had hated herself for her sexuality, the times she prayed to a god she no longer believed in to fix her just so her mother would love her.
She had suffered so much in her childhood, her mother hated her for many different reasons, but once she found out that Agatha was a lesbian? It was game over for her. She had run away that night into the comfort of her best friend's house before her mother could hurt her worse than she already had.
„You were born evil. I should have expected this from you. I should have killed you the moment you left my body, but I didn’t and now you bring shame to my name.“
Agatha shook her head slightly, forcing the memories of her mothers last words to her away.
Rio was watching Agatha, the way her body moved, the way her voice sounded, if it was smooth and warm or shaky from memories she had tried to bury.
She was watching her wife like a hawk, checking every little movement made by her. Not just because she couldn’t stop looking at her wife, but to step in to protect Agatha from emotional distress in case a question became too insensitive.
It had happened before after all, and Rio wants Agatha to be happy.
„'Bigotry isn’t worth lives' is definitely a sentiment I can agree with.“ The man said, and not only that, but the audience clapped as well. „I do have a lighthearted question though.“
„Hit me.“ Agatha responded, gesturing for him to continue on with his questioning.
„You and your wife have been married before gay marriage was even legal in the US. Would you tell us the story behind that?“ he asked, looking from Agatha to Rio, a nervous glance in his eyes. It was common knowledge how protective Rio was of the singer.
Agatha couldn’t count the amount of times Rio scared of people because they asked the wrong questions. She scared off men who were double her size and at least a head taller than her on more than one occasion.
Agatha couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her, before she glanced over to her wife. Telling her with nothing but her eyes to play nice. Before looking back at the man.
„Well, she proposed to me in the spring of 2011 and after waiting for two years to get married, we both became super frustrated,“ Agatha started to dramatically tell the story, gesturing around with her arms.
„Very understandable.“ The man, whose name Agatha didn’t recall, agreed.
„My wife said „If they don’t make it legal soon I will fly you to another country and marry you right then and there.“ and we both realized that it was a great idea.“ Agatha explained, perfectly mimicking Rio’s frustrated voice.
The guy, Brady(?), nodded at her in encouragement, going to get more out of her.
Agatha wasn’t sure if she wanted to share more about her wedding or not. She was reluctant to share things at all, opening up to even Rio about her childhood had taken ages.
Agatha sighed, she looked over to Rio, who gave her an encouraging nod. Agatha ultimately decided to go on.
„So, we informed ourselves about gay marriage in different countries and two months later we got married in a forest in Belgium.“ Agatha continued. She threw her arms to the sides, as if it was the most obvious decision they had made.
It had been a cloudy day, promising of rain following and the brides had already been driven in separate cars to the Hallerbos forest.
A forest known for its flowering bluebells and large trees. They had thought it fitting for them.
Rio was the first to walk towards the wooden arch, accompanied by Lilia, a mother figure to her of sorts.
She hooked her arm around Lilia’s.
She was nervous, but somehow so very confident and assured in her decision. She knew she was making no mistake by taking Agatha as her wife.
Her dress was white with cut outs at her sides and a bare back. The hem of her skirt was covered in a green pattern resembling poison ivy. Her favorite plant. Around her neck she wore a dark green tie.
Her hair was decorated with real flowers that had been picked out by her beloved soon to be wife.
In her hand she held a bouquet of lilies of the valley. Her favorite flowers.
When she finally reached the wooden altar that had been decorated with purple flowers and poison ivy alike, Lilia stepped aside and gave her a small reassuring nod.
She looked over to the audience, closest friends and some of her family members sitting in the audience. Dressed impeccably.
The music started playing in a soft tune, calming her overactive brain that had been imagining every ‘what if’ possible. Starting with cold feet and ending with a heart attack from too much excitement and stress.
That’s when she saw her, and goddess, she was magnificent.
She wore a long white dress, looking as if the fabric was wrapped around her, with tight long sleeves. The sweetheart neckline was adorned with lace. Around her shoulders she had purple fabric draped around her that reminded Rio of a shawl.
Her long dark brown hair falling around her in waves and curls alike framing her face beautifully.
In her hands she held a bouquet with purple azaleas and purple roses.
Rio’s jaw dropped and she could feel her eyes stinging and her heart beating faster. A tear escaped her eyes as she looked at her wife.
Agatha finally reached Rio at the altar, looking radiant as she smiled at the love of her life.
„You look beautiful.“ Agatha told Rio softly, reaching out to stroke Rio’s cheek.
„And you look.. wow.“ Rio started just as soft, gazing into her brides eyes
The Officiant had asked if they were ready for the ceremony to start and they agreed, they had waited two years for this.
The officiant started speaking to the audience, how they had all come here to celebrate the joining of two unions through marriage.
„Now you will feel no storms, for each of you will be shelter to the other.“ The man had started the pagan reading.
He had talked for a long time, the brides trying their best to listen, but failing ultimately. They were too enraptured in their brides eyes. Their hands clasped in one another’s.
„Your adventure has just begun.“ The man had ended the reading and the guests had looked at the couple in awe.
Agatha took a deep breath as it was time for her to read her vows, as they had decided to make theirs personal.
„Loving you made me realize that love isn’t a sin, loving you is so beautiful, holding you, kissing you, being simply close to you that I think that maybe loving you is what life is truly about. You have shown me what love feels like and your love is the greatest gift I have ever received. You’re the rock that grounds me. I promise with this ring that I will love you just the same and only ever love you. With this cord I will bind myself to you in life and in death.“ Agatha vowed to her soon to be wife as she slid the silver band, that had a leaf pattern carved on the outside, on Rio’s finger.
She hadn’t needed long to know what she wanted to say, she was more hesitant showing this vulnerability in front of friends and her brides family.
She had only ever shared her vulnerable side with Rio, her fiancée, bodyguard and best friend.
Rio was starting to shed tears, but refused to let go of Agatha’s hands, that had been grounding her so far.
„I have always been reluctant to love until I met you, you have made loving so easy, that I couldn’t help but fall head first for you. You are my first and only love. When I met you my life turned for the better, not because of your status and wealth that you shared with me, but because of the person you are underneath all of that. You have so much love to give and you decided to give all that love to me. I am forever grateful for that. With this ring I promise to only ever love you. With this cord I will bind myself to you in life and in death.“ Rio vowed to Agatha, before sliding a golden band, that had the phases of the moon carved on the outside, on top of her engagement ring.
It had started to rain throughout the ceremony. Rain through the handfasting ritual signified a marriage that would last, as a wet knot is not easily untangled.
This is when the officiant gave them the cord that was made from purple and green cords braided into one another and into flowers in the middle of it.
They unclasped one pair of their connected hands and used them to wrap the cord around their hands that where still together.
They had gotten married again in the United States the second they legalized same sex marriage.
Agatha had bought a ring for Rio once she had gotten wind of the fact that the government was planning on legalizing gay marriage.
Agatha wanted to return the favor by being the one to ask the question this time, since Rio proposed the first time.
She knew Rio would love getting proposed to as well and she had completely taken her by surprise.
„So, since we are on the topic of your wife, I, and I assume a huge part of your fans have a question.“ The Man said.
Agatha tensed up ever so slightly, but Rio immediately noticed and grasped her index finger in her hand, stopping her from fidgeting.
Rio’s touch immediately calmed Agatha down, she took a breath and was about to shake her head when the interviewer interrupted her.
„Before you say 'no', I’m not asking you to reveal your wife’s identity. We simply want to know whose idea it was to keep it secret and why.“ The man had inquired.
Agatha decided she could work with that, she could reveal the reason behind the secrecy.
„It had been my idea, because my wife didn’t sign up to get hatred and threats from my haters. I signed up for this when I started my career. She didn’t.“ the singer explains carefully, before looking down at her hands in her lap. Rio’s hand was still holding her index finger. A reminder that she wasn’t alone in this.
Agatha let out a sigh, remembering her own coming out and the reactions that followed.
„When I came out publicly, I have received a lot of hate from across all forms of media. I learned to handle that, but I don’t want her to have to go through that. When it became public that I was in a relationship with my now wife, I received death threats. Which is when I hired my bodyguard.“ she explained further, gesturing to Rio with her free hand at the last sentence.
Agatha had never explicitly told Rio that this was the reason for the secrecy. She had mentioned that it was to protect or and for privacy.
What she said had been true. Agatha had mentioned her relationship during an interview when she and Rio had been together for a little less than a year.
Agatha had immediately faced public backlash. Her face was on magazines calling her slurs, her newer fans that hadn’t known she was a lesbian turned on her. Friends of hers, like Alice, had gotten dragged into the mud, hell they even had emailed her freaking label.
Despite it all her fanbase had grown, the queer community had taken an ever greater interest in her. She became their safe haven and vice versa. They had stood up for her, had even fought with her haters online.
They looked up to her, young girls and women had a successful queer woman to idolize, someone who represented them. Someone who fought for their rights alongside them, who got to meet politicians and made speeches directly demanding them to give them the human rights they deserve.
She had done that.
She was vocal, loud, snarky and snippy, demanding and sarcastic and never afraid to speak up for what she believed in.
And she believed in human rights.
Even if she hated everyone equally, well everyone but her wife and her therapist.
„That’s very sweet and protective of you, Agatha and I think your fans would agree.“ The man answered when the fans had stopped applauding for Agatha’s reasoning.
He had asked a whole lot of questions after that one, the crowd cheered at her answers and Rio attentively watched her every move.
It was as though this all had become a ritual over the past sixteen years. Rio would sit beside her, or stand in the corners watching Agatha’s every move, looking for any signs of discomfort, ready to step in at any given time. While Agatha sat there talking with an interviewer whose name she never remembered. Calculating every word she was going to say.
She often stirred some sort of drama or controversy, because she would almost always speak her mind in public and yet she always thought about how she could say something without causing a PR disaster, while still getting her point across with her usual bite and wit.
That was one of the things Rio Vidal loved most about her wife.
Some of the questions weren’t just silly things her fans wanted to know, but some deeper questions were thrown into the mix.
Agatha was as relaxed as she could possibly be at this sort of thing, her shoulders were relaxed, occasionally brushing Rio’s in a matter that wouldn’t be seen as suspicious. Her laughter was even genuine at some of the jokes.
It didn’t take long before that changed.
The laughter of the last joke had died down, the crowd was quiet, anticipating the next question, but even more so the singer's answer and Agatha had a small, but genuine smile on her face.
„So, Agatha, would you share with us how your son, Nicholas, right, died?“ the man suddenly asked.
The couple seemed to have frozen in place, Agatha’s shoulders tensed, the smile on her face cracked, her hands gripped at Rio’s hand tightly and she tried her hardest not to tear up.
Nicholas.
Dead in both of his mothers arms.
After the three of them had fallen asleep in their marital bed because Nicholas felt safest in their embrace.
She woke up to her arms holding a corpse.
She had called an ambulance, thinking that there must be something they could do, they had to do something. They had to.
Agatha couldn’t accept his death, he couldn’t be dead. Not her little, loving boy.
They hadn’t been able to fall asleep in that bed ever again. They had sold it.
He is dead.
Nicholas is dead.
Nicholas is dead.
Nicholas is dead.
Nicholas is dead.
Agatha’s mind was flooded with images of that morning, her dead son in her and Rio’s arms.
Dead.
Dead.
Dead.
Her son is dead.
Agatha’s breath quickened and she could feel how her heart was beating uncharacteristically fast.
Rio caught herself in a matter of a moment, grabbed Agatha’s hand fully. She looked at her and she saw that Agatha was trembling, shaking. She drew soothing patterns on the back of Agatha’s hand, giving her a reassuring smile.
„It’s okay.“ She whispered, before she let her anger fill her and turned to the man.
She walked the handful of steps towards the man’s desk, straightening up and standing in front of him, she was almost as tall as him.
She towered over him and man, did she enjoy seeing him so fearful.
He shot up from his chair and tried to conceal the fear that had been so obvious just a handful seconds before.
Rio really, really wanted to give him a entire lecture about manners and fucking empathy, but when she looked at Agatha, so broken and vulnerable, she knew she had to cut this short.
„How insensitive and disgusting could you possibly be to ask a mother on a live talk show in front of a damn crowd, how her child died?“ Rio said, her voice dropping an octave but still loud enough for the guests to hear thanks to the microphones.
„People want to know-" The man gulped, clearly not thinking about how idiotic his excuse sounded.
Her son is dead.
The little boy who looked just like her is dead.
Dead. Dead. Dead.
He was dead.
„I don’t care. You don’t get to ask these questions just because she is famous. If she chooses for this to be private then it’s not any of your fucking business.“ Rio exclaimed, dangerously, basically hissing in his face.
She looked him up and down, her disgust clearly written all over her face.
He opened his mouth to interrupt her, but she wouldn’t let him.
„If you ever think about contacting Mrs. Harkness again, I want you to remember that I know how to handle a dagger.“ Rio warned.
It probably helped that she had medical training and knew her way around the human body better than the average person.
„Ri, please.“ Agatha whispered, her voice completely broken and that was enough for Rio to leave the man alone.
She carefully led Agatha off the stage, opening the door for her and soon found their way out of the building.
She walked them towards the limo they came with, but of course, they couldn’t get some peace and quiet.
The paparazzi outside the building had started pestering the couple, nagged and interrogated.
Rio walked through the paparazzi with Agatha, making sure they got as little pictures of her wife having a panic attack as possible.
As soon as they were in the car, Rio told their driver to drive them back home.
Agatha’s tears falling freely, were wiped away by the hands of her wife.
„It’s okay, my love. You aren’t there. You’re with me, you’re wife.“ Rio said, stroking down the length of Agatha’s back.
„He's dead.“ Agatha choked, the image of that morning in her head as clear as day.
Her breath came short, her hands were shaking and a sheen of sweat was visible on her forehead.
„Agatha, baby, you’re okay.“ Rio said, pulling Agatha as close to her as the belt let her.
She pulled Agatha’s legs over her lap, eliminating the space between them.
„Okay, baby, tell me three things you can see.“ Rio demanded gently, oh ever so gently.
It was quiet for a minute, the only sound being the occasional sobs.
Agatha tried to focus on what Rio was saying, she nodded and exhaled.
„You, the car seat, shoes“ Agatha said, her sobs slowly stopping as she pointed to each thing she named.
Rio next to her, the car seat in front of her and the flat pair of shoes on the car floor that her wife brought knowing Agatha would start to get uncomfortable in her high heels.
„You’re doing so great, my love.“ Rio replied, praising Agatha. Rio always knew how to comfort Agatha during her panic attacks, she was the one who got called if she had one. „What are three things you can hear?“
Agatha closed her eyes, focusing on the sounds instead of the things she could see.
She was able to hear Rio’s voice as she calmed her down, she could hear the wind bristle through the leaves and if she listened closely, she could hear quiet music on the radio even with the divider between the front seats and the back seats.
„Your voice, wind and music.“ Agatha said, her trembling had stopped, her heart started to beat at a normal rate and the images of her dead son stopped pestering her.
The panic started to fade away, as she followed Rio’s careful instructions.
„See, you’re so good. I believe in you. Now, love, move three body parts.“ Rio demanded softly, wiping away the drying tear trails on her cheeks.
Agatha shook her hand carefully, before wriggling her foot and then stretching out her arm before moving her head to rest on Rio’s shoulder.
„Thank you.“ Agatha told Rio, before she dozed off on her wife’s shoulder.
Rio knew that the drive to their home would take long, since they lived in Salem and the talk show was in Boston and besides that, the traffic was absolutely terrible.
Their home was a beautiful cottage that had originally been built in the early 18th century. It was made from dark brick with flowers and ivy growing on the outside walls.
Rio took out her phone, seeing a picture of herself and Agatha kissing. It was one of her favorite pictures of them, it was around a year old, but it still managed to bring out a smile whenever she saw it.
She opened the camera and snapped a picture of herself with Agatha resting on her shoulder.
She looked at her phone, knowing that with their audience and the show being live, that there would be articles about her little stunt, perhaps social media platforms would be flooded with the news as well.
She sighed before opening her browser, looking up her wife’s name and seeing that she was in fact right.
Headlines such as:
„Agatha Harkness' bodyguard Rio Vidal threatens interviewer on live television after asking inappropriate questions.“
„Does Bodyguard Rio Vidal take it too far when it comes to protecting world famous singer Agatha Harkness?“
„Threatening a man, is it wife or bodyguard behavior?“
Rio chuckled softly, maybe she had gone too far with the whole threatening, but the guy just asked about their dead son, causing her wife to have a panic attack.
Rio didn’t regret it one bit.
She didn’t mind being in the public eye for a bit. Sure, she didn’t want to be Agatha Harkness kind of famous, but occasionally being talked about was okay for her.
Exactly why she didn’t want to be famous. When you were famous you always had to please everyone in order to not get backlash from all over the world.
So yeah, Rio thought that fucking sucks.
She thought back to the headlines, surely there were more to come, they always wrote articles about Agatha not to forget the rumors about her nameless wife.
The public ate it up every time and Rio just hoped that Agatha wouldn’t be mad at Rio for how she reacted.
Of course, most of the time Agatha found it very sweet and admittedly attractive when Rio became protective, but threatening someone with a dagger on national live television wasn’t something that happened often.
Rio sighed, hoping for the best before she logged into her Twitter Account. She had tons of new notifications, she was tagged in endless tweets and, of course, Agatha was trending once again.
She started scrolling through the tweets.
Agathalover51: I’m so glad Agatha Harkness has a wife/bodyguard who also takes care of her mental well being. I hope Ralph gets fired for that question.
Oh, so that’s his name. She definitely agreed with the tweet. She hated that man.
She liked that tweet.
Harknessfan1693: All I can say about this: find yourself someone who stands up for you and cares for you like Rio Vidal does for Agatha Harkness.
On the tweet was a video attached of Rio threatening Ralph.
GayForAgatha1750: And people out there still deny that Rio is Agatha’s secret wife.
At this, Rio chuckled, careful to not wake up her resting wife.
AgathaHarknessWife: Rio this, Rio that. It was sweet, of course, but can we talk about Agatha not wanting to share her wife’s identity because she wants to protect her? Now that’s love.
Rio liked this tweet as well, it was true. Agatha was always extremely protective of Rio.
Rio remembered that one time they went out for dinner on vacation and a man started flirting with Rio. She had been so uncomfortable that Agatha ended up kneeing him in the balls.
HarknessFan1031: The interview had such amazing potential. Agatha shared so much about herself, which I’m grateful for and this guy had to ruin it by asking her how her son died. Fucking sicko. I definitely agree with Rio, it’s inappropriate to ask this question and it doesn’t matter how long he’s been dead now, because grief doesn’t have a timeframe. Thank you, Rio, for protecting her.
Rio liked that tweet as well, but then she opened the comment section and started typing.
Thank you for your kind words <3
As she continued to scroll, she had found some tweets that had been posted before shit hit the fan.
Agathaslover666: they got married in Belgium??? in a freaking forest??? Cottage core Lesbians rise
Girl_Kisser19: okay but let’s talk about Agatha held Rio’s hand for comfort!!! THEY ARE WIFES😩
💜💚💜
It’s been a few hours since the Interview and they had finally gotten home, after being stuck in traffic for two hours. Agatha had woken up as well, snuggling closer to Rio.
„I’ll make you some tea and draw us a bath, darling. Sit down and relax.“ Rio told Agatha, who tossed off her shoes and sat down on the couch, nodding.
Rio turned on the electric kettle, got some green tea bags out of the cupboard as well as their favorite mugs.
She sat everything down, before leaving the kitchen behind to grab their pajamas from their bedroom. She put both of them in the bathroom, hanging them over the heater so they would be warm once they got out of the bath. Rio put the lavender bubble bath into their bathtub and turned on the warm water, before lighting up all of the candles that decorated their bathroom in purple and green.
She returned to the kitchen, just in time as the water was done boiling. She prepared their tea, grabbing both mugs before walking over to Agatha.
She gave her the mug, taking Agatha’s hand in hers before leading her to the en suite bathroom.
Once they reached the bathroom, Rio set the mugs down on the wooden side table that stood next to the bathtub.
Rio reached for the hem of Agatha’s vest, tugging on it.
„May I undress you, my lady?“ Rio asked softly, a smile gracing her face.
„You may.“ Agatha chuckled at her wife’s antics.
Rio slowly pulled the buttons of the vest through the holes, pulling it down Agatha’s arms before discarding it entirely.
Rio brushed her hand over the newly freed skin of Agatha’s stomach.
Her hand trailed on her body, moving towards the small of Agatha’s back and unclasping the purple bra.
Her wife was beautiful. The stretch marks looming on her belly were impeccable, the wrinkles around her eyes and on her forehead were gorgeous and don’t even get her started on that damn smile.
They got undressed in silence, stealing a glance at each other every now and then.
„You’re beautiful.“ Rio said, her voice nothing more than a breath.
„So are you.“ Agatha replied, before stepping into the now full bathtub and taking Rio with her, to sit between her legs.
They sat there, the warm light of the candles reflecting on their glistening skin.
Agatha kissed Rio’s shoulder, moved her arms to lay on her wifes toned belly.
They had been sitting in the bathtub for a while, exchanging a few words here and there in the silence of their bathroom.
Rio’s hands brushed against Agatha’s body, caressing her every curve.
„I’m so glad I met you.“ Agatha whispered into the silence of the room, for no one but Rio to hear.
Agatha’s hand found its way to Rio’s, holding her hand in place, drawing little circles across the skin with her thumb.
„Me too, mi amor, me too.“ Rio sighed, the touch unbearably soft, so full of love.
💜💚💜
Agatha was sitting in the comfortable blue (faux) leather armchair at her therapist’s office across from her therapist, an older woman with grayish hair that was writing down notes.
The room had dark brown wooden walls that had framed positivity and motivational quotes decorating it. Agatha despised how it actually helped her.
They had half an hour left before her session ended.
She had been in therapy for years now, started months after their son's death.
Rio and Agatha had gone to couples grief counseling. They had intense sessions, trying to navigate through the loss of Nicholas and neither would never admit it, but they both broke down in the office during their first session.
Later on, she had started with two private sessions per week and after the first two years, her therapists agreed that it would be enough to come once every week.
They had already discussed her panic attack in the first minutes of their session and were ready to move on to the next topic.
Her therapist must have noticed that someone was on her mind, that she was overthinking something.
„What’s bothering you, Agatha?“ Dr. Bentley asked, gently having seen right through the other woman.
„I’ve been thinking about performing a song that I made with Nicky.“ Agatha explained quietly.
Her therapist nodded, waiting patiently for Agatha to continue.
„We used to wander around a lot, in the woods and he started singing and later on we would sing together. I sang his song at his funeral.“ Agatha swallowed, her throat dry.
„Do you feel safe performing that song? Safe to show such emotion in front of your fans?“ Dr. Bentley asked.
Her therapist often did this when it came to important decisions.
Asked if she had a support system, asked if she would feel safe emotionally doing it and if she was comfortable.
„I want to do this for him, he said he wanted to sing for fans like I do. I know this is going to be very hard, emotionally, but I wanted to ask Rio to join me on stage.“ Agatha explained, her therapist knew that Rio was an anchor.
Rio had been there for her every stop of the way, she was Agatha’s rock, that she could always lean on.
There were a handful of times in the past years were she had asked if Rio could join her on a session, because she needed the emotional support only her wife could offer.
So, her therapist knew exactly how much of a support Rio was to Agatha.
Rather sooner than later, the time was up and Agatha left after saying her goodbye.
Agatha walked back to the waiting room where Rio had been waiting for her. She stood up from the chair she had been occupying, put the magazine, that surely was full of gossip about Agatha, away.
Rio gave her a proud smile, before they walked out of the building together.
Rio was so happy Agatha decided to give therapy a go, Rio was happy she finally got the help she needed.
Rio herself had been in therapy in the first few years of their relationship and had thought that maybe it could help Agatha the way it had helped herself.
💜💚💜
Rio had agreed to Agatha’s plan.
Agatha’s entrance had been announced by an insane looking light show, which consisted of purple and green lights.
She was wearing a purple satin dress that reached her mid thighs. Her waist was accentuated by a thick blue belt, which had runes stitched onto it in a darker blue. Golden chains fell from the belt in all sorts of lengths with the longest in the middle, which held a crescent moon pendant at the end. On top of the dress she wore a simple black leather jacket that she may or may not have stolen from her wife. Sue her.
The purple strap of her black guitar, a gift from Rio, was slung around her neck, as well as her brooch that carried her son's hair in it.
Rio stood in front of the stage, analyzing the crowd, making sure there was not a single dangerous looking person and taking note of everyone that seemed suspicious in her eyesight.
The place may have security guards at the entrance, but she didn’t trust them as much as she trusted herself.
She had a personal reason for protecting Agatha, they didn’t.
After two and a half hours, Agatha had played every song on the setlist. Which were a lot. She had played her most recent album and her latest EP. So yeah
Agatha took a deep breath, steadying herself. She had envisioned this day, this particular moment, ever since she planned this. However, actually living it was scarier than she had expected.
She took the microphone out of its stand, while collecting her thoughts.
„Before we all leave, I have one last song I want to sing. Nicholas and I made this song before he died. But before I sing this, I would like to welcome Rio Vidal to the stage.“
The crowd started to applaud as Rio walked onto stage, giving a little wave at the audience.
Rio was much more shy than she was used to, usually her confidence was noticeable in her every action. Standing in front of a sold out stadium had made her aware of all the ways she could mess this up, even though they had practiced this until it was ingrained into her brain.
„This song is called 'The ballad of the witches road. Nicky this is for you.“ Agatha said into the microphone, before putting it back onto the microphone stand and adjusting it, so it would still pick up her voice when she would sit on the stage.
They both sat down opposite of one another, their legs criss crossed between them.
Rio smiled at Agatha, took her and gave it a gentle squeeze before letting go again.
Agatha took the guitar into her hand, her fingers touching the strings.
„Walk, walk, walk the road, we walk the windy road, walk, walk, walk the road we walk the windy road.“ Agatha sang, her voice much quieter, softer than it usually was.
Rio’s voice was even quieter, as she didn’t sing for the crowd, she sang for Agatha. It was as if she was leading Agatha on this, grounding her.
„Wherever it may bend, I’ll be there at the end“ Agatha‘s voice became a little bit louder, but the tears started to set in her eyes.
„It’s okay, you’re doing great.“ Her wife whispered, her voice only being barely picked up by the microphone.
The crowd was entirely silent, not a single sound could be heard from them. The only sign that there was a crowd to begin with, was the flashlights that swayed along.
„There’s a road that’s wild and wicked, winding through the wood. Where all that’s wrong is right and all that’s bad is good.“ Agatha sung, her voice raspy.
Silent tears fell from her eyes and trailed down her cheeks. Rio's hand moved to Agatha’s face, wiping the tears away gently with her thumb.
„It’s okay, my love.“ Rio whispered, not caring that the microphone caused everyone to hear her.
Agatha’s fans where shocked at the sudden nicknames, quiet whispers had been made between them.
She nodded at her beloved wife, letting the tears simply fall as she continued to sing.
„Through many miles of tricks and trials, we wander high and low. Tame your fears, the door appears. The time has come to go.“
Rio smiled at her, but there were tears in her brown eyes as well, waiting to be let free like a bird in a cage.
The crowd started to sing quietly along with her. If some of them had tears in their eyes Agatha wasn’t close enough to see them.
One of the screens showed Agatha and Rio sitting on the stage, while the other one showed the fans that hummed or sang along as they swayed to the music.
„Down, down, down the road, down the windy road.“
„Follow me my friend, to glory at the end. Down, down, down the road, down the witches road.“
„Down, down, down the road, down the witches road.“ Agatha’s voice became frail, but somehow clearer as she continued to sing their song.
Rio savored the way her raspy, sweet voice sounded. It was its own perfect melody, as if it was sung purely for her ears.
„Down, down, down the road, down the witches road.“ The two of them sang, Rio's hands cradling Agatha’s face, catching every tear that fell.
„You’re doing great, mi amor.“ Rio whispered, before joining her singing.
Rio’s hand moved into Agatha’s hair and then down to her legs, squeezing them, oh so very gently.
„Down, down, down the road, down the witches road.“ They sang and somehow they could clearly hear the voice of their little boy.
It was as if he had been singing with them all over again, just like when he lived.
But he wasn’t alive and the voice wasn’t truly there.
It was just a figment of their imagination.
„Marching ever forward 'neath the wooded shrine, I stray not from the path,“ Agatha sang, pulling the strings of her guitar.
„Hold your hand in mine.“ She let go of the body of her guitar to hold Rio’s hand.
Nicholas was half of them, half of Rio, half of her.
She removed her hand from Rio’s, steadying the guitar in her lap.
„What’s gone is gone, we carry on.“ They both continued, their vocals completing one another.
„Always, forever by your side.“
He became sick and they had decided to tell him that he wouldn’t survive. Nicholas had told them he would always be at their sid and now he was dead. They still hoped that whatever he was now, he would still be by their side.
They both repeated the chorus, with Rio always touching Agatha in some way, shape or form. The crowd had joined in and somehow it sounded like a sacred chant.
„My blood, my tears, my bone.“
Just like he was, he was her blood, her tears and her very bones.
He was from scratch, with Rio’s bone marrow.
„Maiden, mother, crone.“ she performed, her tears mixed with the mascara she wore, leaving wet, black trails on her cheeks.
They had just finished the song the night he died.
„I have always known this road is cruel and wild.
„I bury my own heart, here with you my child. if one be gone we carry on, but every mile I go, with every step beyond the end, your mother loves you so.“ Agatha finished the song. A sob left her body and once it started she couldn’t stop.
Rio pulled her into a hug and Agatha was all to glad to throw her arms around her wife.
She remembered so perfectly how she sang this very song at his funeral, if one could even call it that. It had been just her and Rio burying him in the small part they owned of the forest nearby.
They used to camp there, before they buried him, stone for stone, a weeping angel as a gravestone. Fresh lavender each week.
„Shh, it’s okay, my love, you did so well, mi vida.“ Rio soothed as Agatha sobbed into her arms.
Agatha’s long brown hair fell around them, covering their faces from the tens of thousands of people standing in the crowd.
The hug wasn’t comfortable, the wood of Agatha’s guitar pressed onto both of them, they were still sitting with their legs criss crossed opposite. None of that mattered to Agatha as she was being held by the love of her life.
„I love you.“ Agatha mumbled into Rio’s shoulder.
„I love you.“ Rio responded while she played with Agatha’s hair.
The raw tenderness of the moment was abruptly broken by the applauding fans.
Agatha knew that by the next morning the news would be full of her and Rio, about the song, about their relationship. However, she couldn’t bring herself to care after having shared a piece of Nicholas with the world, immortalizing him.
💜💚💜
The next day, after having slept in until 11am and hadn’t used their phone since the concert started, they had finally decided to check their social medias and the news.
They wanted to see how things had gone, see how extremely Agatha’s fans had escalated.
She reached for her phone, sighing, before opening twitter. Immediately she saw her name and her wife’s, trending on the platform. Though neither of their names was trending directly, it was a combination of theirs. Agathario.
As she clicked on the name and closed her eyes for a second, hoping, praying, that there weren’t any weird, rude or off putting tweets posted about the two of them.
She opened her eyes and began to scroll through the tweets posted about them since the prior night.
Rio sat next to her wife, looking over her shoulder to read the tweets with her. She had always been noisy, interested in what others had to say about her. Mostly, she made fun of it.
Girl_Kisser19: „My love,“, the „I love you“s??? I fucking called it. They are wives. I’m gonna win so much money on that bet
„Why does it surprise me that people are betting on our relationship?“ Rio asked, looking into Agatha’s blue eyes.
„Does it?“ she asked back at her, she knew her fans well enough to know that that is right up their alley.
Agatha remembered the night she and Rio had spend on their couch, with Rio’s head on Agatha’s lap, as they reading the many theories her, their(?), fans had about Agatha and her secret wife.
Rio, as well as Agatha, had both laughed at more than one occasion about the whole thing, but in some forums the two of them spread ridiculous rumors about their marriage.
One of the many rumors was that Agatha had made up their marriage, some included Agatha being a centuries old witch and her wife being the personification of death itself.
Crazier was how many likes those silly threads had gotten and the amount of people who had been betting on their marriage.
„Maybe, it shouldn’t have.“ Rio reconsidered after a few seconds.
Agatha chuckled in response, pulling Rio closer to herself.
„Thank you for being there yesterday.“ Agatha said after a few seconds of silence.
It had started as a foreign feeling, to be so utterly, unconditionally supported by someone. Her mother didn’t care enough to support her, her fans didn’t know her well enough and thousands of them dropped her after her coming out, so really the only one who ever supported her without expectations nor conditions, was her wife.
It was unfamiliar, scary even. She hadn’t known what it was like to be loved, hadn’t felt it before meeting Rio, who gave her love to her so freely.
Her wife was full of love and somehow, she had thought Agatha worthy of receiving even the tiniest bits that she had to offer.
And Agatha, well she had given Rio everything she had to offer. When she felt like her love wasn’t enough, when she felt guilty about being so damaged, when she felt like she wasn’t enough to receive Rio’s love, she had gotten her expensive gifts.
An expensive bracelet there, a concert ticket here, a dress and dinner reservations.
It happened a lot in the first few years of their relationship until Rio understood what Agatha was doing.
„You don’t need to earn my love, mi vida, you don’t need gifts to make it up to me. I’d love you all the same without the expensive gifts. I love you.“
Agatha couldn’t fathom how lucky she was to have this beautiful creature as a wife.
„Always, my love.“ Rio replied curtly, looking at Agatha with those big, brown eyes that seemed to never leave her.
Agatha didn’t like to think about the shitstorm that the concert brought, she hated people seeing her so vulnerable and she hated that Rio was now even more exposed to the spotlight.
Sure, they had planned this and Agatha had given Rio multiple opportunities to disagree and she didn’t take them, but she still felt guilty about revealing her to the public eye.
Agathe knew, though, that with Rio by her side she could take whatever came.
They survived far worse and Rio had been with her every step of the way, helping her, making her live.
After Nicholas had died, Agatha and Rio’s relationship had become more distant, some days they wouldn’t talk to each other at all and on others all they could do was cry in another’s arms, searching for solace and comfort that only the other could bring them.
Agatha had spent hours, sometimes days, avoiding Rio when it came to non physical interaction unless she sought comfort and the kindness of her wife’s love. Physical intimacy became a coping strategy, a way to stop thinking about their dead child.
It had helped momentarily, but nothing helped ease the pain, stop the self hatred. Nothing was able to stop Agatha for blaming herself for not being able to protect her child.
Rio knew her well and decided that this couldn’t go on anymore. So, Rio had proposed to go to couples grief counseling.
„I feel like I’m losing you, Agatha, I hate seeing you in so much pain.“ Rio said.
She knew she shouldn’t tell Agatha that she was in so much more pain when she couldn’t seek her. It would have made Agatha feel worse. Guilty. That’s the last thing she wanted.
„Please, let’s give this at least a try and when you absolutely hate it after two sessions then we can stop.“ Rio plead with her, begging her and to her surprise it had worked well.
Agatha had agreed and they had been to counseling for around a year.
Rio was the reason Agatha was alive after all the trauma they had shared and she could never repay her for that.
Instead, she showered her wife in love and devotion once they had talked about Rio feeling like she couldn’t reach out to her wife in one of their sessions.
She had inquired about her feelings daily, requested to have one on one time where they would simply try to make it work.
Slowly, a routine had settled. They would prepare food together. Agatha cooked and Rio set the table, because Agatha forbade her from cooking after burning noodles.
Don’t ask how that happened.
Their counselor had proposed that the two of them have a regular 'grief debriefing‘ where they would talk about their feelings regarding Nicky’s death without running away.
Agatha hated it. Even more did the hate that it worked to talk about their feelings in the comfort of their home. They had talked about the anger they felt towards the universe, the envy that run through them when they saw a parent playing with their child on a playground.
Thanks to Rio, Agatha had started to use music to cope instead, writing songs to put her feelings into words to process them.
Now here they were, happy as one could be after suffering such a loss, still loving each other.
Agatha was forever grateful to have Rio in her life and Rio was forever thankful that Agatha let her love her.