The ocean seemed to exhale as the wind blew over it, the ripples too small and numerous to see up high. Edison stared down at the water. He shivered, his fingers tightening around the cold glass of a bottle as if they could strangle out the frost. It was all he had to hold onto: the wind only found purchase on him, a stolen beer, and the vast expanse of blue underneath.
Heâd discovered the abandoned lot by the cliffside a few weeks ago, when heâd been fighting (again) and didnât want to come back to Bethâs with bruised knuckles. Heâd only hit a wall, but that wouldnât make the impending lecture any shorter. He turned and walked, as far down as the roads could take him, until they were overgrown with weeds and he could hear the seabirds calling.
The ocean seemed to exhale just like he did, and he felt his heart clench at the thought that something so massive, so eternal, could share the same lungs as a good for nothing bastard runaway. It exhaled, and as its breath fell on his cheeks, he felt tears marking capillaries on the skin.
He didnât notice that he wasnât alone until it was too late to hide the fact that heâd been crying.
Human - The Killers, Youâre Gonna Go Far, Kid - The Offspring, Summertime Sadness - Lana Del Rey, Donât Mess With Me - Temposhark, Little Lion Man Mumford & Sons, In the End - LINKIN PARK, Monster (DotEXE Remix) Nightcore,Getting Away With Murder - Papa Roach, S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W - My Chemical Romance, Going To Hell (Acoustic) - The Pretty Reckless, Make It Stop (Septemberâs Children) Rise Against,Iâm a Ruin - Marina and The Diamonds, Just Like You - Three Days Grace, Donât Stop - Innerpartysystem, No Oneâs Here To Sleep (feat. Bastille) - Naughty Boy, Get Out Alive - Three Days Grace, Just One Yesterday (feat. Foxes) - Fall Out Boy, Bartholomew - The Silent Comedy, Family Portrait P!nk
Summary: Eddie finds Adam at long last, but it isnât how he expected to.
Song: Doubt by Twenty One Pilots
Word Count: 520
Edisonâs first night on Tartarus was the second time he changed.
He felt it as he took shelter under a bus stop, dripping rainwater onto the bench. He could recognize it this time, the feeling, but he still couldnât control it, and he knew that the brightly lit streets meant danger. Someone could see him. He needed to run.
Leaving his bags at the stop, he tore through alleyways, desperately trying to get away from any signs of people. The alley ended with a fence, and he came to a stop, panting as the change fully happened. With a snarl he leapt over the wall, running through the back of a home and straight into the forest. He didnât see a light go on in the window.
He ran as fast as he could, pushing through the brambles that caught on his fur. He desperately tried to concentrate on changing back - he didnât know the area, he didnât know what creatures were out here. Only a few weeks ago heâd figured out that werewolves were real - the hard way.
A snapping branch stopped him in his tracks and he turned, frantically looking for the source of the sound. It was getting louder. Edison panicked, diving into a hollow under the roots of a tree, and prayed that he could turn back before whatever it was ate him alive.
âCatch up, pretty boy, or youâre not going to get anything.â It was a womanâs voice, dangerously close to where Edison hid, and he breathed out a sigh of relief as he felt himself regaining control over his body. When he heard the next voice, he stopped breathing entirely.
âIâll give you the head start.â
Adam. Adam, his older cousin, basically his brother, his only brother now, Adam who disappeared after the incident and he had to track down after fairy tale creatures started attacking him. Adam was right there above him.
Before he could stop himself, a cry of wait! fell from Eddieâs lips, and he stood up to find his cousin standing on top of the tree root. Adamâs eyes widened, but he stayed perfectly still on the tree. His hand fiddled with the trigger on his gun. Why the fuck was Adam carrying a gun? Why the fuck wasnât he reacting more to seeing the only surviving brother in his family?
âWhat the hell are you doing here?â Adam demanded, not even sparing a glance in his direction as he started to follow the woman into the woods. âYou shouldnât be here.â
âAdam, í, wait, you canât just-â Eddie sputtered, grabbing his arm.
âI canât what?â His eyes were so cold. Theyâd never looked like that before, even when things were really bad at home. Eddie felt a knot growing in the pit of his stomach, something like dread and confusion over what happened. âWe would have shot you, Edison. Go home.â
With that Adam shook off his grip and ran, leaving Edison with the loneliness of losing his last member of his family. He crumpled in on himself under the tree root and cried until he fell asleep.
âIt was close enough, I just estimated⊠wait, rounded,â he said, drawing to a halt.  Then he was grinning at Eddie.  Zaapiel had discovered the small grove adorned with fairy lights on his wanderings and just knew he had to bring the other here.
âYup. Â I found it. Â So you do like?â the angel quizzed. Â âI knew you would!â
âYeah, that one!â Zaapiel answered with a nod, quickly holding his head still as Eddie moved towards him. Â He grinned at the other with the thoughtful gesture, running his hand over it, before blinking. Â âAre you sure you donât want one?â
With a small nod, he held out his hand for the other to take before setting off through the halls and out the house. Â âI promise it wonât take anymore than twenty minutes to get there. Â Youâll love it. Â At least, I hope you will.â
âOkay, this was definitely longer than twenty minutes, are we-â he felt Zaapiel stop beside him, and he looked up from his feet. His jaw hung open.
Beth looked at the kid for a second and back up the road that was slowly flooding. It was going to be hard to take all the kids even in the van. Especially with how scared they would be.Â
âThereâs no room. Get in the house, and tell Cain where Iâm going. If Iâm not back in thirty minutes close the doors and put towels around everything. I probably got to the school and chose to stay there with the kids. Okay?âÂ
âBut-â Eddie paced in the driveway, running a hand through his hair. âI can drive too. Iâll take Adamâs car; I borrowed it for today. That way if something happens weâre not necessarily all stuck in the same place.â
âGet into the house. And stay there. All go get the kids from the school.â Beth after all was the guardian to them. If anyone was going to go get them it was going to be her.
âBut I can help! You shouldnât go out there alone.â Edison knew that when Beth was serious, she wouldnât take no for an answer, but he couldnât just sit there useless.
âEddie!â the angel cried exasperatedly. Â âIf I told you where we were going it wouldnât be a surprise. Â I promise I will keep you warm, Iâm sure thereâs plenty of ways.â Â
Picking up a beanie from a nearby desk, Zaapiel walked over to the other and tugged it on his head. Â âThere, now youâre ready. Â Wait! Â Do you want a scarf too?â
âYou mean this one?â He held out the scarf in front of him, tilting his head in thought. âIt looks better on you,â he decided, and gingerly wrapped it around the angelâs shoulders.
âOut of character?â Lilith had not been keeping her voice down and she could hear a shush come from someone behind her. âSorry maâam.â Lilith said looking over her shoulder at the woman.Â
âWhy donât we get out of here before you become an tome.â She chuckled slightly at her own joke. â Come on. And you get to tell me what heâs been slipping.â
âAnywhereâs good as long as âCalculus for Enjoyment and Challengeâ doesnât join us.â He eyed the textbook with disdain as he stood up, still groggy.
Eddie had to weigh his options here. Being on Lilithâs good side meant he was on Adamâs as well, but he risked spilling something embarrassing and whatever was bound to happen when his brother found out.
Was telling her worth it? Absolutely.
âHe sounds a bit like a lovesick schoolgirl. He wonât shut up about how âsheâs incredible, she changes everything, she makes me want to be betterâ - this is only what Iâve heard, by the way - not to mention how beautiful she is.â
âI know itâs snowing, but I promise youâll be warm Eddie.  Iâll make sure you stay that way, and itâs really nice when we actually get there⊠itâs just the travel part thatâs cold.  Please?â
Eddie crossed his arms, having every intention to stay inside, where it was warm and dry. But then Zaapiel pulled out the goddamn puppy eyes, and just like that he was mush.
â...Okay, okay, Iâm coming.â He made a point to put on the largest parka he owned. âCan you at least tell me where youâre taking me?â
â I donât usually have that problem. Then again I donât know where my phone is most of the time, or itâs off. Drives my brother insane. â To be fair sheâd been keeping it on more lately.Â
Lilith raised her eyebrow not exactly knowing what to make of it. After all most people didnât smile when learning her name. That and the fact he looked more amused then anything.  âExplains what?âÂ
Eddie chuckled, one hand rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. âNothing important. Just that big brotherâs been acting pretty out of character lately. He lets things slip. That never happens.â He kept his answers cryptic, mostly for deniability if this came back to bite him in the ass later.
Lilith raised her eyebrow slightly looking at the boy. She was supposed to introduce herself, or at least make sure he wasnât dead. Still her curiosity over took her. âWhy would you wait here when they hadnât come yet?âÂ
She realized after a second that she probably should introduce herself. After all she hadnât been in a library since - maybe senior year? It was hard to keep track.Â
âIâm Lilith. I am pretty sure youâre phoneâs dead.â
Eddie groaned, checking his phone to see that it was actually on and working fine. âI wish. Min never ever checks his phone. I feel like Iâm babysitting him sometimes.â
He perked up at her name, a smile poking at his lips. âAh, so youâre Lilith. That explains a lot.â He didnât elaborate further (he liked his head without the chance of Adam sticking it on a pike), but the look on his face said enough.
Eddie was fast asleep, which wouldnât have been out of the ordinary for him had he not been in the middle of the library. He rested, slumped over in his chair - an impressive feat, given the thing was rigid and wooden. His legs were stretched out in front of him, obstructing the path on the other side of the desk. He was probably a fire hazard. Someone moved to stand in front of him, and he stirred.
âOkay, I know this looks weird,â he mumbled, his eyes still unopened. âThis isnât like a regula-â a long yawn cut his speech off, shaking him awake. He stretched out and blinked a few times, adjusting to the light until he could see who the visitor was.
âSorry. So sorry. Am I in the way? I was waiting for someone to come study with me, but I think they forgot... I didnât mean to fall asleep and block the aisle.â
âEddie!  Eddie come here and have a look at this!â  Zaapiel cried, grabbing the werewolfâs hand and pulling him over to a small square.  âItâs a camera, see?  We can take pictures and⊠well I donât know what happens then, but we can take pictures!â
âYeah, Zae,â Eddie chuckled, âwe can take pictures.â It was hard to keep up with the other boy at times - especially hopped up on all the sugar heâd eaten that day - but no matter what, Zaapiel still managed to be endearing. God, he was so whipped.
Just as the flash went off, he turned his face away from the camera and rested it against Zaapielâs cheek. âSay âbig fat russian weddingâ~â
âHeâs a lot taller, and older, butâŠyeah. Heâs a great dad.â
There was a smile on her face then, and Charlotta leaned forward, tapping their foreheads together. He wasnât the kind of company she was used to at all, but that was good, actually. The difference would be good for her though, compared to the people that she usually interacted with.
âWhy do I feel like thereâs no one looking out for you right now?â
Eddie scrunched up his nose at the contact, chuckling a bit good-naturedly. Lottie was easy to talk to - heâd often been scolded for being too friendly towards strangers, but it seemed heâd found a kindred spirit in her.
âI guess I just like the alone time. Iâm not used to having a lot of it.â
It wasnât a complete lie. He didnât want to be a burden to Beth or anyone at the home. He probably could have used the emotional support, but his pride wouldnât allow him to admit that he made himself lonely when he never asked for help.
Zaapiel paused in his rant to look at the boy, all curled up in bed with bleary eyes and hair in every direction. Â He paused for a moment just watching, before placing his hands on his hips. Â âEddie, itâs two oâclock in the afternoon, it is definitely not too early.â
A moment later he moved towards the bed, crawling into it and sitting down next to the werewolf. Â âI said it looks like theyâre almost finished with the bridge. Â What do you think itâll be like on the other side?â
âYouâre lying,â he grumbled, digging himself deeper into his pile of blankets. âItâs still too early. Iâm never this tired. â
When Zaapiel sat down on the bed, Eddie was still in his spot buried in the middle of the bed, and his head ended up closer to the otherâs side. He wiggled closer until it rested there, unconsciously leaning into his warmth. âHopefully not too different... Otherwise people would start to pick sides. Turn this place into some kind of... Lord of the Flies... Whatever.â
âWolf boy,â Fingers tapping out against his cheek, she nodded, eyes wide as she set her food down on the blanket beside them. Then, with her free hand, she thumped herself in the chest, nodding. âVampire. Boarding homes with panicked, bleeding humans isnât exactly a good idea right now.â
He was just being nice though, just trying to be a good person.
Carefully, Lottie loosened her grasp on him, and tried to smooth the chocolate away from his face. She frowned when it only spread though, and sighed quietly.
âSorry, Iâm just-Iâm really stressed right now, and Iâm not the nicest person evidently. But do youâŠyou think heâs okay?â
Eddie nodded as she spoke, sounds of agreement resonating in his throat. âIâm sure there are others on this side who are in the same boat as you.â
He couldnât help but chuckle a bit as she struggled to wipe the chocolate off, giving it his own attempt. It failed just as badly as hers. âDonât be sorry, please. Youâre in a tough spot right now. No oneâs expecting you to be nice.â His smile was shy, but toothy and full as it ever was.
âHeâs like you, right? Then yes, I really think heâll be just fine. â
