I'll Protect You (Re-Edit #2, 2016)

You can't haunt me if I'm dying with you

a/n: forgive the typos, i'll fix them the moment i get off work, but i was just dying to post this chapter and read your reactions before work

dedicated to CupcakesAreMyFave123 for the lovely drawing banner she made!!

also this is where the "i solemnly swear that i will NOT TELL SPOILERS IN THE COMMENTS SECTION" comes into play--seriously guys, don't spoil anything. not even a hint. rereaders i am looking at you. 

* * *

"You do know that Archer might commit murder for this, right?" Jasper yawned as I altered the final camera on the shoulder of the suit of armor. 

"It's worth it," I assured him. "He's been gone for eight years, Jazz--that's eight years this prank is overdue."

Jasper grinned, the thought perking him out of his morning exhaustion. We were both tired from last night since we hadn't gone home until two. Vincent's parents had driven themselves into the city to pick him up around twelve. After that, we had hopped into a car and drove out into the forests where we hosted quite the snowball desolation. 

Even after we arrived back at the palace, everyone had crowded in the library to drink a few more mugs of hot chocolate and exchange scary stories before we crawling back to our rooms to crash. 

It was nearing eleven, and Jasper and I resembled zombies at the moment. His brown strands were sticking up in every possible direction and his glasses hung askew on his nose, forcing him to squint at everything. My curls had been pulled back into a bun and I had changed into a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt so that when Archer came for my life, at least I would be prepared to head out into the snow. 

As soon as I was sure that the camera wouldn't fall, Jasper and I retreated to the floor above all of the rooms that belonged to Archer and Logan. Jasper gave me a nod and I pulled out three phones--Jasper's, Logan's (which I had stolen this morning), and mine. They were hooked up to speakers placed by Archer and Logan's door, where we had also laid out tarps to catch the mess that would appear after we pressed play.

"How long do you think it'll take them to wake up?" I wondered as I prepared a different song on each phone. 

"You know Archer," Jasper stated, rubbing his eyes. "A mosquito sneezes and that guy flies out of his bed. And Logan's an agent, he's bound to be a light-sleeper. Honestly, though, I think if you just whispered, 'Park's in danger,' he'd charge into the hall."

I rolled my eyes, ignoring his comment. "Now, your shoes are laced?" 

"Double-knotted."

"You've memorized the escape route?"

"I'm not dying this young," Jasper grinned. "One, two..."

When he mouthed 'three,' we pressed our fingers down on the 'PLAY' buttons. Instantly, music filled the halls--loud, pop-rock covers of Christmas songs that had excessive drumming and violent guitar wailing.  All three songs mashed inharmoniously, the majors and minors at constant odds as the seconds ticked on.

Jasper and I peeked over the banister, listening as the distinctive sounds of doors slamming open filled the halls. Following that was the outraged screams of boys being drenched in snow from buckets that had been stationed above their doors. Jasper and I cackled with laughter, high-fiving each other. 

Our glee was short-lived, for we heard our brother shout, "Get them!" 

That was our cue to run. 

Jasper and I booked it down the halls, drifting around corners as we took a route that would take us to a balcony window stationed right above a few hedges that would break our fall.