Honor Among Thieves (and Those Falsely Accused)
(4,633 words)
Rating: T
Ships: Gen, Rendog & Welsknight, Falsesymmetry & Welsknight
Characters: Welsknight, Falsesymmetry, Rendog, Joe Hills, Keralis, Xisuma
Tags: 1800s fantasy AU, Hybrid Hermitcraft Ensemble, Found family
Warnings: Implied fantasy racism/anti-hybrid rhetoric
Summary:
Wels and Ren go home to the Hermit Estate. Wels doesn't feel jealous of their safety at all. (Admitting it would mean unpacking it, and he's not ready for that.)
A direct continuation of Run, Boy, Run in my Underground Railroad esque AU.
~~~~~
Wels woke at the first hint of light in the room. The last 24 hours caught up to him as he looked around the dim space. If his timing was right, he must've slept for around 16 hours. He sat up and stretched with sudden urgency. He'd wasted so much time.
The urgency slipped away quickly; a second glance made Wels realize he was the only one awake. He wouldn't go anywhere without Ren. Large brown wings stretched high off the far bed. Maybe he wasn't the only one awake after all.
Wels found himself unable to pull his eyes away as False stretched her wings. He'd always associated wings with a sort of cushioned safety, something he couldn't afford, but here False was breaking all those preconceptions. She wielded weapons and was clearly effective with them (she had impaired the hunters without injury to herself). It made a nasty pang of jealousy settle in his chest.
False's head turned sharply as though she could feel him staring, and her gaze narrowed. Wels panicked when she opened her mouth to speak. He raised a hand in a shushing motion and pointedly glanced at Ren, who was still asleep. False followed his gaze and nodded. She quietly got out of bed and moved to sit just out of Wels' arm's reach.
“Are we going to have a problem?” she whispered harshly.
Wels quickly shook his head. “Sorry. I'm not trying to be weird. I just... I've never met another avian before.”
False's face went through nearly a dozen expressions in only a few seconds before landing on something cautious. “‘Another?’”
Oh, he said too much. “I could show you?” he offered, surprising them both. False seemed as caught off guard as Wels felt, but she nodded nonetheless. Okay. So he was doing this, then.
Wels scooted away from the wall — he didn't feel safe putting his back to the room. He carefully took off his upper plate armor as quietly as he could (his helmet had already been removed to sleep) and pulled off the gambeson and light shirt underneath. He could see False grimace in his periphery. He tried not to think about it as he unwound the cloth wrapped tightly around his chest.
The small wings on his back protested as soon as the cloth restraining them came loose. Wels couldn't contain a groan as he became more aware of the ever-present ache. However, that didn't stop him from hearing the wince slip from False's mouth. She moved closer to see his back better but stayed where he could see her. “Can you spread them?” she asked gently.
Wels put conscious effort into moving his wings for the first time in at least a month. “Not without pain,” he answered as he stretched the wings as far to either side as they would go.
“I wonder why,” False muttered. Then, more level and calculated, “So saving Ren wasn't entirely selfless.”
“It started that way,” Wels defended. “Helping him safely escape town was for him, but running away with him after was for me. It was the less dangerous option.”
False hummed a flat note, emotion unreadable. She sat in silence for a moment before gently continuing, “Don't bind them so tight. Even if you don't care about your wings, that pressure's not good for your ribs. Your armor is heavy enough to hold the wings down.”
“Okay,” Wels conceded. “Okay.”
False glanced toward the shuttered window, and Wels followed her gaze. The sun was well above the horizon now from what little they could see. “Here.” False moved to sit in front of him and spread her wings wide, blocking him from seeing the rest of the room. “The others will be up soon, but don't rush.” Oh. She was blocking them from seeing him.
“Thanks,” Wels mumbled, already looping the cloth back around his wings. His shirt didn't do much, but False seemed to have a point; the thick pads of his gambeson limited almost all movement of his wings and hid what little movement there was, even without his plate armor.
Wels was just reaching for his chestplate when he heard a yawn. The panic must have shown on his face, as False immediately whispered, “Breathe.” She turned her head briefly to look between her wings, then spoke at a normal volume, “Morning, K. Is Joe up yet?”
A mumble came from the other side of the room. “He is now,” Keralis said, sounding half awake at best. “What're you doing?”
“Can a girl not stretch? Is that a crime?” False laughed. She didn't look near worried enough for the panic filling Wels' lungs.
“Good, I'm good,” he whispered as he scrambled to finish securing his left pauldron.
False stood, folding her wings as she did. She offered out a hand, and Wels took the help to stand, grabbing his helmet in the other hand. “Good?” she confirmed in a whisper. Wels put on his helmet then nodded, and she let him go.
Fortunately, Wels didn't have time to worry about Keralis or Joe, as Ren bolted upright in bed. Wels rushed to his side. “Hey, hey. Hey,” he soothed quickly. “You're okay. We're okay. Just breathe. Breathe.”
Ren's eyes darted around the room before eventually landing on Wels' face. “Right,” he muttered. “Right.”
Wels backed off enough to sit at the foot of the bed, and False returned to the bed she'd slept in. The others paid them no mind, Joe rubbing his eyes and Keralis cracking his neck. Then they turned toward the rest of the room and seemed to sober up as soon as they remembered his and Ren's presence. Keralis gestured to Joe in a “go ahead” motion.
“We were talking,” Joe said. “If you're up for it, we'd like to offer you a place back home with us. It's kind of isolated, since it's not exactly wise to be sending ‘wanted’ people into public spaces, but it's safe.”
“How many of you are there?” Wels asked. “You said we weren't the first.”
“We're currently at 14 in total,” Joe answered.
“And, including the two of us–” Keralis gestured between himself and Joe. “–only four are human. In case that's going to be a problem.”
Wels could feel everyone looking at him. “That's not a problem,” he assured. He looked to Ren. Would he want to stay with them? Wels certainly didn't mind the idea, but–
“I would be honored,” Ren said. “Thank you.” Wels nodded in agreement.
“Alright, then,” Joe said, pushing to stand from his chair. “I'll go ready the horses, if you could tell the innkeeper we're leaving?”
Keralis nodded slightly. “Park the wagon below the window,” he told Joe. “Then I can escort Ren out, and False can take Wels the way they came in.”
“Can do.”
The pair left the room, leaving Wels and Ren with False. She began collecting her things without hesitation, so Wels got up to remake the bed.
“Dude, are you still half asleep, or are you just that out of it?” Ren asked.
Wels pushed down the instinctive panic. “What do you mean?” Ren gestured toward him, and Wels followed his gaze to where his scabbard hung loosely to the point of nearly falling off. Good job, self! Forgot to readjust it after getting up.
Wels laughed, feeling more at ease now that he realized it wasn't related to his quick dressing that morning. “That's why it's attached to me! I'd forget it otherwise.”
A single knock rang from the door, and Keralis poked his head in a moment later. “You all set?”
“I'm ready,” False answered, “but I don't dare to touch your papers.” She gestured to the desk, and Keralis entered the room fully to collect his things.
“You two should head out so I can close the window behind you,” Keralis said.
False came over to the window and opened the shutters. Wels looked down at the sound of clopping hooves. A pair of horses pulling a covered wagon turned so the wagon's rear was below the window. False climbed onto the windowsill. “Ready?”
Wels nodded without a word. She'd already carried him once. He trusted her not to drop him; he just needed to trust himself to stay composed. She stepped out with seemingly no hesitation and hovered with surprisingly quiet wingbeats. Wels tried (mostly in vain) to quiet his mind as he climbed to sit backwards in the window. False's arms wrapped under his, and he pulled his knees to his chest. Don't look down, don't look down–!
“Here,” False murmured with a tone of urgency. He felt her hit the ground, so he extended his legs to do the same. She pulled back a cloth that covered the wagon's rear entrance, and Wels scrambled in.
Wels looked around the inside of the wagon as False hopped in behind him. There was a bench lined with green cushions to either side. The floor of the wagon was mostly empty except for a dark brown bag laced shut with a deep blue rope. Wels noticed, in the emptiness, that the central floor of the wagon wasn't wooden like the rest, but looked instead like greenish-black stone that appeared to gleam purple when he looked at it from certain angles.
Fast footsteps approached, and Wels sat straight on instinct, his hand reaching for his sword as his eyes tracked the noise on the other side of the wagon's cover. He let out a breath when Ren's face appeared, but remained tense from the fear in his expression.
“What's wrong?” Wels whispered as Ren scrambled to put the knight between himself and the entrance.
“They're here,” Ren hissed.
Wels watched as Keralis tossed two bags and a rectangular case toward False. She stacked the case and one bag at the front of the wagon, then set the other bag on top of the rear entrance cover to hold it down. Ren curled in on himself, putting his hands over the wolf ears on his head.
Silence fell inside the wagon as it began to move. The horses trotted along at a polite speed for travel within town, which allowed someone to run after them.
“Sir! Sir!”
Wels recognized the voice — one of the hunters that had been pursuing them. He could feel his adrenaline rising as the wagon slowed. Ren shook like a leaf, so Wels wrapped an arm around him. The other stayed tight on the grip of his sword.
“Can I help you?” Joe asked, his voice smooth, steady, and above all polite.
“A member of my party was injured, and we got separated from the rest of our crew. Have you seen any Embercliff soldiers pass through in the last day or so?”
A pause. “Armor like yours?” Joe questioned.
“Yes,” the hunter answered.
“I can't say I've seen anyone dressed like that,” Joe said.
“Have you asked the innkeeper?” Keralis asked. “If they didn't stop at the tavern, then they probably continued north to Golltide.”
“Ah, you're probably right,” the hunter sighed. “Thanks anyway.”
“Of course,” Joe said brightly. “I hope you find them, and I hope your injured crew member heals quickly.”
“Thanks. Have safe travels.”
The wagon began to move again, but Wels hardly dared to breathe. It wasn't until Ren settled that he finally allowed himself to relax.
“Better?” False asked, shattering their silence.
“Can't hear town anymore,” Ren explained. He shrugged off Wels' arm, but he didn't pull away.
“Tell me we're not going north,” Wels all but pleaded, remembering Keralis' words.
“No. No,” False assured. “We live west of here, over two days from Golltide.”
Wels forced himself to take steady breaths. “Could you tell us about it? Your home, the people who live there?” he asked, hating how meek his voice was. He couldn't protest when Ren grabbed ahold of his hand.
“Publicly, it's known as the Star Hills Estate, but we just call it ‘Hermit Hills’ or the ‘Hermit Hollow’,” False began calmly, not calling out Wels' anxiety. “Like Joe said, there's 14 of us that stay there permanently, although some are out on ventures right now. Xisuma is the head of the house. He's a voidwalker and is responsible for most of the protections that keep the manor safe. Then, of course, you have Joe and Keralis, who helped found the manor. Although Bdubs and Hypno were a major part of its construction, from what I know. Hypno's one of the resident humans, and I suppose Bdubs is human passing, but you won't see him for a while.”
False shifted, her eyes looking up to the wagon's cover. “Architects...” she mused. “There's me and Cleo — they're a zombie–” Her voice rose as if unsure how to classify them. “–and a great carpenter, although we enlist her more often for her tailoring skills. We've got Tango and Impulse as engineers — both Infernal, but not the same kind I don't think, and– oh!” Her face lit up. “I have to ask Tango to make more of that mechanized spike trap. It made great work of slowing that hunter, but I'll need a replacement since I couldn't retrieve it afterward.”
“Mechanized spike trap,” Wels mentally filed, but he didn't dare interrupt.
“Anyway,” False continued, “There's also Mumbo for engineering. He's human passing but mostly nocturnal, although I think that's just because he's never heard of a sleep schedule. Then there's Jevin and xB, who are the primary caretakers of the livestock on the grounds. Jev's a slime of some sort, and I think Suma called xB a ‘guardian?’ Whatever that's supposed to mean; he's a hybrid of some type of sea creature. And our two most recent additions are Doc and Etho. Etho's a jack of all trades and the last human of the bunch. Doc's... a mix of hybrid genetics, and he's scary with tech, but he's got a passion for gardening, so we try to encourage that instead.” False laughed a little at that.
“Oh, we didn't think that through, did we?” Wels heard Keralis say from up front.
“Think what through?” False questioned, looking toward the direction Keralis' voice had come from.
“Impulse and Tango were still wiring the heat and electric in the north east annex when we left,” Keralis said. “We won't have open rooms until the construction is done.”
“I don't mind sharing,” False said with a pointed glance in Wels' direction.
“Nor do I, if the others are opposed,” Wels heard Joe say. “Besides, it will only be temporary until they can get their own rooms.”
“We might want to ask around regardless,” False said. Then aimed at Wels and Ren, “We pride ourselves on each bedroom being specialized to its occupant. With time, we'll be able to get those customizations for you, too.”
Wels settled as he tried to imagine what a room specialized to his liking would look like. Something defensible, with space to properly store his sword and armor. Bookshelves, perhaps, if he could get the books to fill them with.
At some point during his musings, False tossed him a small bag of nuts and dried fruit, likewise passing dried cuts of some meat to Ren. “We usually snack while on the road,” she'd said. “Bringing full meals is difficult, and stopping anywhere invites trouble.” She'd apologized for not getting them dinner yesterday, saying that they didn't have the heart to wake them. They had certainly been exhausted, Wels thought, remembering how long he'd slept and how the days prior had gone. Truly, he was still tired, but he didn't feel safe enough to sleep on the road.
He must've dozed, however, because there was no longer light outside the wagon when he next snapped alert.
“Falsie,” a voice called. “We've reached the forest. You wanna go ahead of us and warn Sheshwham we're coming?”
“Can do,” False answered. Wels watched her move, slowly gaining focus as she moved the bag that held the rear entrance closed. She pinned the cloth entirely out of the way, then stood with her back to the opening. With a single beat of her wings, False caught the current of the moving wagon and began lifting into the sky. Wels moved to watch as she darted forward, quickly passing over the wagon and out of sight.
“We're almost there?” Ren questioned. “It's still quiet.”
“You'll be able to hear the manor soon,” Joe replied. “We should be only five or so minutes out.”
Sure enough, it was only a couple of minutes before the ears atop Ren's head started to move, and the wolf hybrid was quick to move bags from the front of the wagon so he could look out. Wels decided to follow after Ren made a quiet noise of awe.
The forest cleared ahead of them, and a large field stretched beyond it. (Wels noted the different types of fences that crossed the expanse and recalled False mentioning livestock.) An array of buildings stretched past the field, and at the center, well... he privately considered that ‘manor’ might've been an understatement.
Joe steered the wagon around to the barn nearest the manor; there were at least two others that Wels could make out in the dark. “I'll take these two inside,” Joe said to Keralis as the wagon came to a stop. “Can you just make sure the horses get in alright? We can save unloading the wagon until morning. X will have his hands full with the newcomers anyway, so I doubt we'll be debriefing for a while.”
Keralis cut Joe off with what sounded like shooing. “I've got the horses, sweetface. Get the new hermits inside.”
Joe laughed, though he sounded tired. “Going, I'm going.” Wels heard feet hit the ground, and a moment later Joe was standing outside the rear entrance and offering a hand to help them out. Wels let Ren go ahead of him and dropped out of the cart on his own.
The three of them walked in silence up to the manor's front door. Joe opened the door without needing to unlock it, which felt odd until Wels remembered that False had preceded them. They entered into a foyer with what Wels presumed to be a dining room and living room on either side. He didn't get much time to look, however, as his focus was drawn to the figures that stood waiting for them: False, of course, and a figure in green plate armor with a dark gray helmet.
“Joe, welcome back,” the armored man greeted. He then turned to the two of them. “Ren and Wels, I presume?”
Wels exchanged a glance with False as Ren answered, “That's us.”
The man's eyes crinkled as though he was smiling. “I'm Xisuma,” he introduced. “Welcome to Star Hills Manor. I hope you enjoy your stay, however temporary or permanent it may be. I'm sorry that you'll have to share rooms for a while until our latest construction finishes.”
“It's no problem to us,” Wels assured. “We're sorry for imposing.”
“It's quite alright,” Xisuma replied. “Ren, you have a couple options. Doc has offered to let you stay with him since he has soundproofing measures in his room. Or, you can stay with Joe or Keralis if you would be more comfortable with that.”
Ren noticeably lit up in Wels' peripheral vision. “Soundproofing would be great,” he said eagerly, before quickly tacking on, “if that's alright.”
Xisuma nodded, then called in the direction of the living room, “Doc?”
Wels watched with wide eyes as a new figure walked into view. They stood nearly half a foot taller than Wels. Half of their face was metal, as was their right arm. What wasn't metal looked like skin made of some combination of moss and green fur. To top it all off, they had what looked like goat horns curling from the upper sides of their head. Wels had to fight the urge to reach for his sword. (The way they looked at him like he was somewhere between prey and a threat to handle didn't help.)
“Room's this way,” he said to Ren, the words gruff and heavily accented, “unless you'd rather have something to eat first.”
Ren laughed easily, though Wels chalked it up to exhaustion. “Honestly? Food can wait. I'm so ready to crash, man.” Doc nodded and waved for him to follow. “See you in the morning?” Ren whispered to Wels.
Wels gave him a reassuring nod. “See you then.”
Xisuma turned his attention to him as Ren hurried to catch up with Doc. “Wels, if you could come with me?”
Wels steeled himself as he followed Xisuma. He felt relieved that at least False was coming with them. Xisuma led them through a hall and up a few flights of stairs before stopping at a door.
“False, do you mind giving us a moment?” X asked.
False's lips pressed into a thin line. She hesitated for a moment, but then nodded and stepped back. Xisuma nodded in return and opened the door and ushered Wels inside. Wels glanced around the circular room as he entered: a large bed with dark green covers, a decently sized wardrobe, a desk with stool, and a window large enough to stand in. It mostly seemed standard until his gaze fell to the right. There sat a collection of pillows and blankets that seemed carefully woven. A nest.
Xisuma pulled the stool away from the desk and gestured to it. “Why don't you take a seat?” he offered.
Wels sat. It didn't feel like he had much choice. Xisuma stayed standing but didn't block the door. Was that for Wels' comfort or Xisuma's own?
Xisuma clasped his hands together in front of himself. He spoke without preamble: “False tells me you're avian.”
A weight sunk in his chest. He wasn't sure why he expected her to keep his secret.
“Don't blame her,” Xisuma quickly tacked on, likely seeing the pain of betrayal on Wels' face. “I would've found out eventually. I believe she only told me in the hope that I could help you.”
Wels forced himself to choke down his hurt. “What do you mean ‘help me’?”
“I don't know if the others told you, but I'm a voidwalker. And that means a lot of things, but relevant to you it means I can use void to hide things. Cloak them. Change how they're perceived,” Xisuma explained. “For one reason or another, you've chosen to hide your wings. I won't begrudge you that; few of the people here didn't have to hide before they got here. And if you're more comfortable with the people here not knowing about them, then I want to be able to give you that without you needing to risk injuring yourself.”
Wels could only sit in shock. It sounded like Xisuma was offering him the solution to one of his biggest worries on a silver platter. “But they would still be there.”
“They would still be there,” Xisuma confirmed. “You would still be able to feel them. You'd still see them, and if they ever grow to not fit under your shirt, then you might have to compensate for that, but no one else will see them.”
“I–” The wings still being there was fine. To erase them altogether without complications would be asking too much. And after watching False, he wasn't so certain about losing them anymore. “I would appreciate that. Please.”
“Okay.” Xisuma took a slow step toward him. “Can I see?”
Right. He should've figured that would be part of it. Wels took off his helmet and set it at his feet. He methodically went through taking off the layers from his chestplate to the cloth wrapped against his skin just as he had done that morning. He glanced up when he was finished and saw Xisuma waiting with his head bowed. Wels hummed in acknowledgement, and Xisuma looked back up at him. The voidwalker walked to stand behind him, keeping as far from False's nest as he could as he crossed the room.
Xisuma made what sounded like a disapproving hum. “That bad?” Wels tried to joke as his wings twitched without his input.
“Some of the hermits arrived here barely breathing,” Xisuma stated matter-of-factly. “This is nothing.” Then, far more gently, “Can I touch?”
“Yeah.” Wels closed his eyes, only to jump when something cold as ice pressed against his back.
“Sorry! I should've warned you.”
“I'm fine,” Wels gritted out, settling back against the cold touch. “Just startled me is all.”
“Am I alright to continue?” Xisuma asked. Wels nodded. He was making it really difficult not to think about this. “This shouldn't hurt,” he continued, “but as forewarning, I've been told it's not entirely pleasant.”
The feeling of ice shifted over the length of his wings. Realistically, it should have hurt, but the cold numbed whatever pain there was. But then came something different, like bugs crawling under his skin. He barely had time to flinch, though, before the feeling settled and the cold receded into something easier to handle — a cool autumn rain instead of laying in a snowbank.
Xisuma hesitated outside of Wels' vision. “Do you want False to be able to see them?” he asked. “Since she knows anyway and would probably be the best help.”
“Oh.” He hadn't considered that. “Yeah, that would probably be a good idea.”
Xisuma hummed in acknowledgement. “Can I invite her in then? I think we're done here for now.” His voice sounded rough. Winded. Was he okay? Wels nodded his confirmation and mindlessly reached for his wrap of cloth. Xisuma walked slowly to the door somewhere in the corner of his eye. “I'll leave you to settle in,” the man said quietly, presumably to False, “and I'll see you tomorrow.”
Wels glanced up when he heard the door close. False stood in front of it and was regarding Wels with concern. “How're you holding up?”
He looked back down at the cloth in his hands. Would he still be needing it? “Ask me tomorrow?” he laughed hollowly. “I still feel like I could sleep for a week. ... Which should probably be more worrisome, but I don't have it in me to care right now.”
“You've had quite an experience these past few days,” False reasoned. “I'd say a crash is fair.” She looked around as if reassessing her room with him in it. “You're welcome to the bed — I don't really use it. I'm sorry I don't have a stand or something for your armor. I'm assuming you'd want one? Mine's all just hardened leather, so it's not the end of the world if I drop it in a pile, but yours... I should be able to sort that in the morning, though?”
Wels was struggling to keep up with the fast rambling, and it must have shown on his face because False fell silent for a moment.
“Right.” She clapped her hands together. “Bedtime. Apparently we both need the sleep. I'll leave you be, and you just let me know if you need anything.”
It was only as he moved to stand that Wels realized his state of dress. He hurried to pull on his shirt, foregoing binding his wings. He then moved to the bed and stripped down to his lowest layers. (The thin trousers below his chausses stayed on. He had more decency than to sleep in his underwear with a woman in the room.) Wels spread the padded layers on the floor at the bedside and carefully laid his plates and helmet out on top of them.
Collapsing into the bed felt like landing on a cloud after the last several nights. He could barely tuck under the blankets before he was out cold.