CONTINUED SPOILERS FOR EPISODE 85 AND ON. Percy is in this one
(pt1)(pt2)(pt3)(pt4)(pt5)(pt6)(pt7)
AO3
It’s a blissful few days that Vox Machina spend in hell. Kynan spends most of it with Cassandra, and not just because she was working with the former queen of Eamon to get her family back home. In the guise of 'monitoring the progression of commerce in Whitestone', he took Cassandra to a book café near the old arcane shop. They spoke of children's stories and happier days as they held hands and sipped tea.
Jarrett teased him, saying not to smile so much, his face might crack. Kynan took a page from Vax's book and replied only by flipping the double birds. Fuck it. The dragons were dead and Kynan was ready to let himself be happy. If he still woke up two nights out of ten in a cold sweat, well that was something he could deal with if the other eight nights were filled with thoughts of Cassandra.
And then Vox Machina came back, covered in blood and screaming. They immediately got day drunk and didn’t bother anyone for a while. Cassandra was staying up late, as usual, and Kynan went to get her a tea refill. She was playing with cakes when he left, when he came back she was banking the fire.
"Kynan!" she exclaimed cheerfully when she saw him. She looked better than she had when he'd left her. In fact, she looked better than she had all week. "Percy came by, he's going to help run the city."
"Finally," Kynan scoffed before he could stop himself. Cassandra laughed, really laughed! It surprised him and made him smile. With the fire out, the only illumination was the dim lamp on the desk. He fumbled to put down the saucer of tea he had brought her, just as she stumbled into him, still giggling.
Cassandra grinned up at him. She looked accurately as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Kynan was reminded that she was his age. He was overcome by emotion and the dim light and maybe the late hour, because he said the very first thing that came into his head.
"I'd like to kiss you," he blurted out. Both of them froze. Kynan desperately babbled in an attempt to remedy the situation. "I'd um... I'd really like to kiss you... If that's okay?"
Kynan could only pray that the light was dim enough that Cassandra couldn’t see the redness in his cheeks. Then again, she was close enough that she might just be able to feel the heat from them. For her part, Cassandra's eyes got wide, and her mouth opened a tiny bit in surprise. Kynan might have been staring at her lips, but he hoped the darkness would cover that too. Cassandra cleared her throat.
"Yeah, let's do that," Cassandra said.
"Yeah?" Kynan asked excitedly. He circled his arms around her hesitantly, not wanting her to feel trapped.
"Yeah-- yes," she nodded. "I've never had much… yes please." She placed her hands on his shoulders. She had a determined look on her face, like she had made up her mind. She tilted her face towards his and closed her eyes, expectantly. Kynan took a steadying breath. She was so very beautiful, and a part of him was still not sure he wasn’t dreaming.
But he leaned down and very carefully brushed his lips against hers. Cassandra's reaction was instantaneous; her hands went to his hair as she angled his head to deepen the kiss. On instinct, Kynan hugged her closer and Cassandra leaned into him.
Time ceased to matter, the kiss could have lasted a minute, or a year. Kynan was happy either way. Cassandra eventually leaned back, breaking the kiss. Keeping his arms around her so she wouldn’t go far, Kynan chased her with several more quick kisses. Cassandra's laugh broke like water over his soul.
"I should get some rest," she said a little mournfully. Even so, Kynan couldn't stop smiling. Cassandra smiled back but gently extracted herself from his arms. She moved to the connecting door to her room, glancing back at him intermittently.
When she had gone, Kynan very nearly skipped back to the barracks, high fiving the night guard on his way out.
There would be no nightmares tonight.
--
"We aren't calling them the musketeers, Percy," Cassandra told her brother flat out. They were sitting in the library, having tea.
"It’s what they are," Percy insisted, shit-eating grin firmly in place.
"We're calling them the riflemen corps," Cassandra said, rubbing her forehead.
"Fine," Percy threw his hands up in admission of defeat. He surreptitiously checked the big clock on the wall to his left.
"The Grey Hunt has never been a quick endeavor, brother," Cassandra said, guessing where his mind was.
"It’s been eight hours," Percy replied, staring at the clock with a worried expression.
"She can handle this." Cassandra reached across the table to pat his hand. "You picked her because she could handle this."
Percy made a non-committal noise, then shook his snowy head. He looked back at Cassandra with a sly look that quite frankly worried her.
"Are you sure about the Captain of the Musketeers?" He asked. Cassandra blushed.
"You suggested him," she cleared her throat. "And we are still not calling them that."
"He's the only man alive that’s got experience... Besides me," Percy said. "But I would have thought you would put up a little fight for your... Your beaux," He teased.
Cassandra refused to give him the satisfaction of her discomfort.
"With the duties of lordship distributed between us," Cassandra picked up her tea, casually. "I'll have plenty of time to watch the riflemen practice." She took a sip of tea just as casually.
"Such a voyeur," Percy said in a low, teasing voice. Cassandra spat out her tea. "What would mother think?"
"Percival!" Cassandra sputtered, grabbing at her handkerchief to dab at the tea she's just spat everywhere. Percy just smirked in that infuriating way of his.
"Cass- my lady?" Kynan said from the door. He had started off casual, but when he saw Percy sitting with her, he straightened up and addressed her by her title.
"Yes, Kynan, come in please," Percy said, smiling and gesturing to a seat at the tea table. Kynan didn’t look comfortable, but he took a seat an appropriate distance between Cassandra and Percy.
"As I'm sure you know, I will be taking a more active role in the rulership of this city," Percy started. "And we have decided that we are woefully underprepared for another crisis, dragons or otherwise."
Kynan glanced at Cassandra, as if to say 'does he always talk this much?' Cassandra nodded, but refrained from rolling her eyes.
"So, we decided to create the Musketeers," Percy continued but Cassandra cut him off.
"If you call them that again I will set Trinket loose in your workshop," Cassandra glared at her brother. She wasn't sure she could get Trinket to put in his workshop, but she wanted Percy to see the menace in her eyes.
"Fine, the Riflemen, and since you have the training, you'll stop being Cassandra's bodyguard and be the captain," Percy was in full douche bag mode, and Kynan froze. He stared at Percy, not even looking at Cassandra when she put a hand on his knee.
"Did…" Kynan started, voice breaking a little. "Did I do something wrong?"
Cassandra's heart broke a little bit and she opened her mouth to reassure him, but Percy beat her to it. He put a hand on Kynan's shoulder.
"No, my good man," He put a hand on Kynan's shoulder. "You've done something right."
Kynan looked at Cassandra, trying not to cry. She couldn't help it, she leaned forward and kissed him lightly. He blinked rapidly, but finally smiled. Cassandra ignored Percy's raised eyebrows and smug grin.
Kynan and Cassandra were learning and growing as people. They were going to be alright.
So I’d be willing to bet Wisely was probably the first one that Nea killed.
Because when you’re going to wipe out the entire Clan, you don’t want them finding out who’s killing them right from the get-go, and Wisely might’ve been able to raise the alarm as soon as Nea started striking down family members.
So.... it was probably Wisely who was killed first, and the reason it took so long for the memory to find a new host was probably because of how traumatic it was to be killed by your own family.
And Joyd was probably the last, or at least one of the last. The reason Joyd found a new host so much more quickly was because they had become.... numb to the trauma by the time they died, so when Nea came for them, it wasn’t as surprising anymore.
And then, of course, Nea failed with Adam/Mana and Road.
