The Love of a Crow - Wesper/Crows Fanfiction/AU

22. Matthias

  "Did no one ever teach you manners in Ravka?" Matthias grumbled as he looked up at the girls from the bottom of the stairs. They were both whispering and leaning forward as far as they could to try and catch anything being spoken by Jesper and Wylan. Kaz had disappeared.

"It's not eavesdropping if they're speaking loud enough for us to hear!" Nina argued as she strained towards the door.

"And technically eavesdropping on people is my job, so I have an excuse." Inej said.

"Come on, Matthias, aren't you just a little curious about what they're saying? It's really sweet!"

Matthias hated to admit it, but he was a bit curious; the two boys were clearly head over heels for each other, something that Matthias would have struggled to understand had he not already met the love of his life. And besides, if it meant both were happy then that was a good thing, right? Either way, it was better then one of them crouched over Makker's Wheel. It was much better then one of them lying almost de-

The gunshot pierced the air like it was merely fine silk. It sounded so loud in the soft murmurings of the Club that the windows seemed to rattle. For a moment nobody moved; it wasn't like a gunshot was an uncommon thing in the Barrel (quite the opposite, in fact!), but it was just the suddenness of it all...

That was when the screaming began.

It too shattered the hot, stuffy air of the bar, and sent sobers running outside and drunks to their knees in the crush. Matthias didn't know which way to turn, where to run to, or whether to run at all. He had never had to deal with any problems so close to the Club, and he had liked to consider the place a safe spot for them to rest before returning to fire. But it was just a different part of the Barrel, and Matthias couldn't help but wonder if any part of Ketterdam was safe, because it seemed all sides, rich and poor, had their problems.

"Matthias, come on!" He heard Nina's voice, though it sounded like she was underwater. He could barely hear her over the deafening roar of his own heart.

Suddenly he felt a hand on his chest, and a shockwave pulse through him like a waterfall flowing through his veins. His eyes became clear, his head became less crowded, and, once again, he was staring into her emerald gaze.

"Come on! Kaz needs us!"

Matthias's trance broke immediately when he pictured Kaz in his head; there was no way he would let that demjin wander around in his thoughts. The Crow Club was still in chaos riled up from the fear of the Scales Gang that could be amongst them right now, or could have fired the shot.

He winced as he heard Wylan and Jesper stumbling down the stairs, Wylan hastily pulling down his shirt with a blush whilst Jesper looked completely normal, save that he was standing close to Wylan. What was that about?

"What happened?" Wylan asked, wincing as someone shoved past him. "We heard a gunshot and-"

A shriek. Coming from outside. Matthias's eyes met Nina's. They needed to move.

The group surged forward, through the pushy crowd until they finally made it outside, where there was a circle of tourists and Dregs alike, with none other then the demjin himself at the middle. Typical, Matthias tutted to himself, but it wasn't that that made him freeze. That wasn't what made Jesper clutch his gun, Wylan to retch, Nina to gasp and Inej to slip from her hiding spot on the opposite roof.

It was the mangled body. 

A/N: To be continued... just kidding, that really would be cruel! It's been a while since we had 2 POVs in one chapter, but you're welcome! Enjoy! 

Wylan: 

Death seemed to follow Wylan like a magpie searching for a lost treasure. And he certainly did not want to be the prize. So he had seen blood and guts and gore before, though it was all such a contrast to the soft, warm feeling he had been experiencing as he was cradled in Jesper's arm. He had forgotten about the real world then. Just for a moment. He had let his weak walls down and relished in the feeling of being cared for. But now it all came crashing down on his head like a pie in a comedy sketch. Except nobody was laughing.

The body was like looking at a lump of rotten flesh that could have been from anything, if it weren't for the careful preservation of a human face screaming in frozen, silent agony from its final moments. His sleeve was rolled up to reveal the hulk of skin that contained the Crow Club tattoo.

Bodies did not seem like the type of thing that was uncommon in Ketterdam. Even living in the rich side of the city Wylan still remembered seeing a dark shape floating down the Geldcanal, having strayed too far away from where they were keeping the bodies of the plague victims. But seeing it out in the open, and perfectly placed in front of the Crow Club well... it all seemed too well planned.

That wasn't what was worrying everyone, though. What was worrying was the glint of black and green specks covering what used to be the man. Snake scales. Scales.

"Clear out the street!" Barked Kaz, but all the Dregs were in a daze. This was one of their own that had been stolen, one of their own that had been mercilessly tortured at the hands of an invisible enemy. The tension could have exploded with a single match.

"Kaz look, there's a note." Nina said shakily. One of the Dregs went to pick up the pristine letter on top of the man, but Kaz shoved him out the way and snatched it up in his gloved hands.

The Crows huddled around to see it like eager children, anything to distract from the corpse laid out in front of them. Even Wylan felt himself leaning forward in an attempt to find some resemblance with letters he could depict. He wished he hadn't.

The letter was written very neatly with light, long strokes flowing across the page. And there, underneath, was the one handwriting he could always recognise other than his own.

If Wylan could read he would have seen:

The poison is spreading. Watch as the Crow loses his wings. And with it, his bombs.

Scales had written the letter, no mistake. But Van Eck had signed it.

Wylan felt sick. Sick in his mind, his fear, sick to his core. The letters were piling in, through the window of his cheap apartment, from the vats of the tannery, from the doors of the Crow Club, the ink bleeding onto his skin, his father's name repeated again and again.

Jesper's voice was so far away when he grabbed Wylan's shoulders as Wylan's breathing wouldn't slow down. "Wylan, I need you to calm down, ok? This is just a threat, he can't reach you here, he can't-"

But he could. Suddenly the world tilted again as Inej began yelling, running towards a covered shape on the opposite roof. Wylan could dimly make out the shape of a gun... a gun aimed directly at his head.

Wylan couldn't move. Not as someone yelled as a gunshot was fired. Not as he heard the swoosh of a bullet piercing the night. Not as tourists began to scream once more. And not as Jesper jumped in front of Wylan, and caught the bullet.

For a moment the world was still. Jesper had turned to Wylan again, eyes full of an emotion Wylan didn't recognise, and suddenly he was taken back to the room where Jesper had proven he didn't care about Wylan's scars, then even further to the dream of Jesper rubbing his hair. Jesper had just taken a bullet for him. And he was still alive.

Time stayed still for no longer than a second before Jesper fell backwards, the impact of the shock knocking him down. Wylan did scream then, but Jesper was on his feet in seconds. All eyes were on him as, almost guiltily, he held out his calloused palm, where a perfect bullet lay. A bullet that was supposed to hit Wylan.

"You... you're a..." Wylan stuttered. He didn't have time to finish. The street erupted in a wave of bullets and screams as Scales shooters lined up on the roofs, all aiming at Wylan. His heart seemed to stop.

Kaz and Jesper's eyes met. For once, they were both full of fear. Kaz drew his gun, and, without daring to cast a glance at Wylan, whispered:

"Run." 

A/N: Nope, still leaving you on a cliffhanger! How cruel of me! Have a good day/night everyone, I hope you enjoyed the confusion that is this story so far! :)