lost and found | part 1
pairing: xavier plympton x reader
warnings: swearing, angst
summary: in which a savior of heaven is sent down to camp redwood to put an end to the bloodbath and help the lost souls that reside there.
tag list: @vixi3303
part one: the awakening
THE GIRL DIDN’T DARE let any of her doubts bleed to the surface while she took one step after another, entering the premises of the unholy ground that was camp redwood. she had done her research of course, learning the truth and the lies and how every drop of blood was spilt in between in all. the place itself was an undoubtable tragedy, and if her facts were right, so were the souls stuck here.
satan had been behind some of the most cruelest acts placed upon humanity, but she was was sure this was one of the worst. he had cursed the area; so whoever died (gruesomely in almost all cases) here, were trapped. this was a purgatory for them, a hell without the infamous flames and bloodstained sky. unfortunately, that kind of thing results in these ghosts giving up any sort of humanity they had left.
so not only did the living leave its twisted mark, the dead did too. some were plainly lost, forgotten that they had even perished. some were aware, but have been here for so long they were merely zombies, their hope and motivation to do much of anything gone. and then finally, there were the ones who decided that they would make the most of this opportunity, abandoning all sense of right and wrong and spreading their curse.
those were the people heaven were most concerned about. they were turning this campground into even more of a bloodbath than it already was. held back with no morals of any kind, they proved to be devious and heartless, willing to end of the life of any tourist that happened to wander into the area.
so heaven, the land of light and peace, had sent her. having been human once, they had thought she’d be able to get through to a few of them. and with her flawless ability to follow the rules and show compassion, she had seemed like the perfect choice to her superiors. she only hoped to live up to their high expectations, especially elijah’s.
branches snapped beneath her sneaker-covered feet as she followed a trail through the surrounding woods. her eyes shifted around, looking for any sign of another’s presence, and ultimately coming up empty. her eyebrows knitted together, not knowing what to think of the quiet hum of the forest and the blue jays that had just fluttered by. she had expected utter chaos and to be overwhelmed with the unresolved problems the camp harbored immediately. and yet, she dared to think that this place was almost... calming.
the pain that erupted from her shoulder blade pulled her out of her enchantment, a small cry of surprise escaping her while she stumbled forward, almost falling onto the ground where the autumn leaves would have barely cushioned her fall. she instinctively turned around, finding the sight of a smirking blonde standing merely a foot away from her, the bloody knife in her hand gaining y/n’s attention for a moment.
“sorry to be rude and not introduce myself, but i’m not in an introductory mood. quite frankly, i’m sick of talking in general. it can ruin the moment, you know?” the blonde said to her, twisting her wrist and making sure the blade was pointed directly at her.
the newcomer took a step back, standing up on her own and removing the hand she had placed on a tree trunk for balance. the irritation from her stab wound had almost completely gone away; she knew her ability to heal fast would probably come in handy down here.
“you call killing an innocent person a moment, montana?” y/n questioned, recognizing the doe-eyed woman instantly. she watched as montana’s red-stained lips turned into a flat line, her playful demeanor dropping.
“how do you know my name?”
“because i’m supposed to. it’s my job to.”
“that isn’t clearing anything up.” montana growled, gripping her knife tighter. she debated on whether she should let her explain or just kill her like she had originally planned.
“put the knife down and we’ll talk.” y/n replied with raised hands, indicating she wanted to do the ghost no harm.
“yeah, no thanks.”
montana lunged at her, the blade of her knife slicing the air and not her skin as y/n easily dodged the attack, more prepared than before. the soon-to-be angel studied the way she only grew more frustrated, huffing in displeasure before she went after her target again.
this time y/n didn’t just avoid the blonde, she grabbed ahold of her wrist, stopping the knife from being thrusted into her chest. montana tried with all of her strength to push against her grasp and allow the blade to burrow deep within the stranger, but y/n’s grasp didn’t falter. in fact, she twisted montana’s wrist just enough so that she would drop the weapon, and then pushed her away from her.
montana stumbled back, shocked and embarrassed at how easily she was overpowered. especially since she had been a feared predator ever since she had died and been stuck in this place. she loved the power she possessed and every plea of mercy she had gotten from her victims. and now, the blonde felt how she felt when she was alive, helpless.
“what the hell are you?”
“technically,” she began, picking up the knife that still had her blood coated on the blade, “i’m an angel. well, almost one. point is — i’m from heaven.”
montana was about to laugh at the outrageousness before her eyes happen to catch sight of y/n’s back, seeing only dry blood instead of a leaking flesh wound. she had stabbed her, she was sure of it. she had saw the blade puncture her skin and cut through her.
“no fucking way.”
“way.” y/n said with humor in her voice, letting herself be amused despite the fact she had someone who wanted to kill her right in front of her.
“what’s going on here?” a voice gained both of the girls’ attention, belonging to the one and only xavier plympton, who was clad in a pair of white shorts and a purple muscle tank.
his blue eyes find montana first but then they drift to the new girl, examining her pretty face, framed by stray strands of hair that escaped her pony tail. they lower down to where her white tank top clings to her chest and eventually past her matching shorts where her long legs were offered up to his view. he decided she definitely wasn’t hard to look at.
“who are you and why hasn’t montana killed you yet?” he asks, automatically becoming curious and taking a few steps towards both of them.
“i’m y/n. and believe me, she’s tried.” y/n gestured to the knife in her raised hand, wagging it back and forth for clarification.
“if you keep talking about me like i’m not here then i will kill both of you!” montana kicked off the tree she was leaning against, sending them both a glare that certainly didn’t intimidate either of them in the slightest. she took her place beside xavier, grabbing ahold of his shirt and yanking him down so his lips crashed messily against hers. her eyes closed in the satisfaction that she was still in control when it comes to things like this, wordlessly claiming he was hers to have and play with as she pleased.
xavier’s eyes stayed open for once, staring directly at the stranger and how uncomfortable she looked with the spontaneous action. he noticed her parted lips, averted gaze, and the blush that began to rise to the surface of her cheeks. she was innocent — and that sparked something within him.
finally montana pulled away with a pleased sigh, returning her focus back to the girl who had many surprises to offer. her eyes narrowed when she spotted her knife still in her hand, knowing she would get it back even if she had to break each and every one of her fingers.
“guess what, xav? she’s a fucking angel.”
“almost angel.” y/n corrected immediately.
“seriously? like an angel with wings and halos and shit?” xavier asked, tilting his head and believing it easier than montana did.
“they don’t actually have those. but... yes, i’m from heaven.”
“fine. what are you doing here then? because it can’t just be to ruin my day.” montana scoffed, crossing her arms.
“i’m here to help you.” y/n spoke with sincerity, eyes unwavering as they locked on both xavier and montana.
xavier felt the impact of her words, hearing the promise in her soft-spoken voice, and was unexpectedly affected. that itself confused him. he hadn’t allowed himself to care about anything since he died and got stuck here. there was no point. no rewards or consequences to any action. he had accepted years ago that this was his afterlife for the rest of eternity, and now he what? was supposed to believe this girl and have the hope she so clearly had? he didn’t. but a little part of him wanted to, and that’s what left him speechless for the moment.
“bullshit. get me back my knife and maybe i won’t cut your eyeballs out of your sockets.” montana rolled her eyes and held out her hand, already over this whole situation.
“really? after all of this that’s what you’re most concerned about?”
montana nods her head, lips pulled into a frown, and y/n shrugs nonchalantly as an idea pops into her head. “alright. fine. if you want it, go get it.”
before the blonde can say another word, y/n flings the knife with quite a force in a random direction, and montana can only watch as the weapon flies through the air and disappears into the trees. that was it. it was personal now.
“you little bitch!” montana hissed, ready to pounce on her again and give her murder another go, but she’s stopped by xavier’s grip on her arm.
“babe, stop. it’s just a knife. there’s other weapons in the sea.” xavier jokes, smirking at her enraged form, and he pretends that he wasn’t stopping her just to mock her.
“i don’t care. i just want her dead. let go of me before i kick you in the balls. dead or not i know it still hurts!”
“you can’t kill me.” y/n interjects, seeing montana cease her struggle in xavier’s hold. “i already died. that’s how i got to heaven in the first place. you can try, but i’d just come back.”
“fine. i can’t kill you. but i can hurt you. so i would leave while you still can, because i will make it my mission to torture you the entire time you’re here.”
“i’m not going anywhere.”
“then, i would start looking over your shoulder. you’ve seen what happens when you don’t,” montana grins wickedly as she nods her head to the dry blood still sticking to her skin, and without another word, she turns around and starts in the direction where her knife was thrown.
“she truly is lovely. i get what you see in her. so dedicated.” y/n mutters sarcastically, placing her hands on her waist while she wonders to herself how she will ever turn someone like montana around.
“montana sure is something,” she hears xavier respond from beside her, hearing the leaves crunch with each step he aimlessly takes towards her. she doesn’t notice until his hot breath fans her ear that he had gotten that close to her. “but she’s no angel.”
her neck pivots when she turns her head to face him, their noses almost bumping from their proximity from each other. his oceanic eyes held mischief and playfulness, staring directly into her guarded pair. it was clear he didn’t give much thought into having boundaries.
“i’m surprised you’re not trying to kill me too.” y/n states, managing to keep her voice steady and her face neutral even though the lack of space between them was unnerving to say the least. it was the most intimate situation she had been in since she was alive.
“little ol’ me? now what would make you think that?” he smiles charmingly but the dark humor in his tone is evident, his breaths from his words tickling her lips.
“i’ve read your file, xavier.” she breaks their little staring contest, taking a step back away from him. “you’re just as murderous and manipulative as montana.”
“and yet you’re not running for the hills.”
“because whether any of you see it or not, you’re redeemable.”
xavier can’t help but laugh, finding her words nothing short of unbelievable. “listen, angel. it’s cute and all that you think you’re gonna flap your nonexistent wings and fix our poor little broken souls, but most of us don’t even want saving. like me. i’m perfectly happy here. i have never been more free.”
“and your life alive was so horrible?”
“compared to this, yeah. i tried to save people, to do the right thing, and i just ended up dying — painfully by the way. morals blind you. they hold you back. it’s much more freeing to just let go. you should try it.” he explained, watching her let his response sink in. her face morphed into a frown, and he could have been imagining it, but her eyes seem to glaze with sadness.
“you’re... so wrong and you don’t even know it.”
“i’m not, angel. that’s just how it is.”
“then, bertie protecting you, saving you, that meant nothing?” y/n asked, watching his face harden for the briefest of seconds before he returned to smirking and raising his eyebrows at her.
“that was just pointless. i died anyway.” he shrugged, burying his hands in his pockets.
“still,” she argued, gravitating back towards him, “it was worth something before that. you were grateful and relieved and... sad when you saw the condition she was in.”
“maybe. but none of that matters now.” xavier dismisses, feeling something build up inside of him with the point she was making. his throat was tight and he clenched his jaw in an attempt to contain whatever it was.
“things could matter again, xavier.” she whispered, letting her eyes properly roam his face and all of its flawless alignments. he was beautiful, there was no denying that.
he allows himself to gaze shamelessly right back at her, studying the upturn of her adorable nose, soft, pink lips, and finally returning to her eyes that possessed so much depth it just about consumed him. it was no wonder she was an angel, every part of her was angelic and undeniably mesmerizing. his heart swelled with admiration, catching him off guard more than anything that had happened during their encounter. her influence on him terrified him.
“i don’t think so,” he declares coldly, newfound anger at her rising to the surface, masking any other emotion he was feeling.
“xavier.” she murmurs, surprised at his sudden change of mood. it seemed as if they were getting somewhere, and he did a total 180 on her.
“just do us all a favor and leave. because montana’s right, if you stay, we won’t take it easy on you.” he scoffs, glancing at her perplexed face one more time before he leaves her there on the trail, alone and questioning just about everything.