A/N: It's a hell of a ride, again, I'm sorry. Elvanse has my ass and I am rolling with whatever it's giving me.
CW: Blood, angst, magic, panic, more angst, guilt, accusations.
Jordan was sitting in his house with his wife, Emma. Their kids, Eliot and Eden had just gone off to sleep - a rare thing for both of them to be asleep on time - so they planned to make the most of the quiet. They were just about to settle and watch a film. It was Emma's turn to choose so she flicked through Netflix, looking for something they couldn't lose themselves in too much, just in case one of the kids woke up.
Jordan's phone lit up on the coffee table, vibrating against it harshly and he leaned over to peer at the caller ID.
What does Oli want at this time of the evening? Jordan mumbled to himself as he wandered to the other side of the room to take the call.
"Hey Oli mate, you alright?" Jordan asked, trying to mask the fact that Oli was interrupting his quiet evening with his wife.
Emma looked over her shoulder and rolled her eyes, gesturing to Jordan to ignore Oli, but she stopped as his face dropped after a few seconds.
"Oli? Oli, can you hear me? Are you still there? FUCK!"
"Jordan! The kids!" Emma hissed.
Jordan dropped his voice, but began pacing and panicking.
"Shit, sorry love. I think Oli's hurt, or in trouble, or something. I'm sorry, I've got to sort this out."
Emma offered her husband a warm smile and wrapped her arms around him before kissing him sweetly on the cheek.
"Shit! I knew there'd be trouble without the bond, but no, Oli always knows best!" Jordan was angry at Oli's apparent stupidity, but scared for him too. "I'd better call Vegan in too. I'm so sorry, love. I promise I'll make it up to you."
"It's ok love. There'll be other movie nights."
Jordan kissed Emma quickly on the top of her head before racing around the room grabbing his jacket and keys. He headed out to the garage, his phone on speaker as he dialled Vegan's number.
"Yeah?" Vegan answered simply.
"Vegan, it's Oli. Something's wrong." Jordan explained hastily, grabbing a few more vials of synthetic blood from the fridge in the garage. He rummaged through the back, grabbing whatever other vials he could find and shoving them into a cool bag. They'd have to figure out what was wrong at a later point but he wanted to cover as many bases as possible.
"Oli? What's happened to him?" Vegan replied, his attention now fully focussed on Jordan.
"I don't know, just something's wrong." Jordan tossed the cool bag into the back seat of the car and climbed into the front, wedging his phone into the holder on the dashboard. "He rang me just now but he sounded really awful, like he was really struggling to speak or breathe. He only got a few words out and then it went quiet."
Jordan shifted the car into gear and headed out of the garage, speeding towards Vegan's place.
"Shit. I'll get my shit together. See you in a bit?"
"Yep, I'm on my way. Be ten minutes tops."
Vegan ended the call with a simple yep and raced around his own house gathering his equipment. He had a go bag that he took on tour for occasions like this. If it wasn't Oli, it was Mat. Both of them could be so volatile, so it paid to be prepared. He ransacked his fridge for anything he could think of that might potentially help, but he and Jordan were going into this blind. Thankfully, Lee had dropped off some new ingredients and supplies earlier in the day, so he had some fresh stock to work with.
As far as he had worked out, Oli should have been fine. Jordan had said that Oli had drunk a vial of synth and topped up with a real feed later on, so that should have kept him going. He grabbed his spell book and slung it in his rucksack, desperately hoping he and Jordan would be able to find something between them to help Oli. He heard the squeal of tyres outside so he raced out to the car, slinging his equipment into the backseat next to the cool bag and clambering into the passenger seat. Jordan raced off as Vegan had barely closed the door, but they were across the other side of the country to where Oli was staying with Mia.
The two of them travelled in relative silence, occasionally bringing up what they thought might be wrong with Oli, but both coming up empty. Jordan pulled into a hazy clearing in some woods just outside of their town. They grabbed their bags from the back and Vegan muttered an incantation under his breath, hiding the car from sight.
Jordan looked pointedly at Vegan and nodded, turning to face forwards once more as a circular haze appeared in front of them, almost like a mirror filled with water. They peered into the haze as it cleared, revealing a clear image of what they assumed must have been Mia's house and they stepped through it.
Vegan turned briefly motioning his hand towards the haze and it disintegrated without a trace. The two of them glanced around quickly, the dark streets only illuminated by a few streetlights, but they saw no people around.
They walked silently up to the door of Mia's house, trying the door handle first, but it was locked. Vegan mumbled something quickly, before the door slid open with a creak.
The house was eerily quiet. Jordan and Vegan shot each other a confused look, flicking the lights on as they went.
"Oli?" Jordan called out. "Mia?"
More silence.
"Where the fuck are they?" Jordan mused.
"Oli has to be here at least. I've never had a simple location spell fail on me yet." Vegan offered.
Jordan swallowed thickly as the worst scenarios played out in his head.
The two of them checked the kitchen, diner, and living room, before heading upstairs. They called Oli and Mia's names as they carried on, spotting a light on in one of the upstairs rooms. They crept towards it, calling out again as a gasping, breathless noise came from the room with the light on, breaking through the silence.
Jordan shoved the door open to reveal a small bathroom with a broken mirror above the sink. The two men sank onto the floor as they both spotted Oli's dishevelled body curled around the toilet, the ceramic cracked up one side, pink-tinged water trickling slowly from it.
"Fuck, Oli! Can you hear me?" Jordan dragged his limp form out into the hallway so they could get better access to do whatever they needed to do.
"Shit, I've never seen him like this before. I've never seen anyone like this before!" Vegan stated, checking Oli's vital signs. He shone a beam of light into his eyes, shaking his head. "There's too much blood in his eyes. I can't see a thing!"
Oli sputtered briefly and Jordan tried to get him to talk.
"Oli? Mate? What happened? Where's Mia?"
"Mia... gone... I..." Oli rasped out before losing consciousness again.
"Fuck!" Jordan yelled, groaning in frustration. "Can you stabilise him?"
Vegan raised his eyes to meet Jordan's.
"I don't know, man. I'll try..." he trailed off.
"FUCK!" Jordan cried out again before taking a deep breath. "Okay, get as much full strength synth into him as you can. I'll try and figure out where Mia is and what she knows."
"Do you think this had anything to do with her?" Vegan asked hesitantly.
"I really hope not." Jordan replied, running a hand across his face as he stood. "But we can't rule anything out at this stage."
Vegan nodded, rummaging through the bags and flipping open his spell book next to Oli's body on the landing.
Jordan went to make his way to the stairs, hearing the front door click open with a creak.
"Oli?" Mia's voice called quietly through the house. "I'm sorry I left, I just- oh!"
Mia was cut off and surprised to see Jordan appear from upstairs.
"Jordan! Why are you here? Did Oli call you?" Mia looked Jordan up and down, suddenly noticing the fresh blood on his clothes and the fear on his face. Her stomach fell. "Jordan, where's Oli? Is he okay?"
Jordan grasped Mia by the shoulders as she began to head towards the stairs.
"Let's go and sit down, Mia." Jordan spoke gently to her, but there was an edge in his voice that scared her and she felt the panic rising in her chest. Still, she nodded and led Jordan to the living room.
They sat down on the sofa and Jordan hesitated, pulling out the stuffed llama from under him as he sat down and eyeing it curiously. Mia snatched it out of his hands, hugging it protectively. She held it to her face and inhaled, smelling Oli's scent on it and feeling her face start trembling.
"Mia, I need to know exactly what happened this evening." Jordan took her hands in his and encouraged her to look at him.
"I - I don't know. It was my fault. I got frustrated with him."
Jordan's face fell.
"Mia, did you hurt Oli?" Jordan asked as gently as he could.
"What?! No! I mean, not physically. I think I might have upset him. That's why I went out. I got in my own head about things as usual and I was overwhelmed with everything."
Jordan nodded, breathing a sigh of relief.
Mia looked up at him, hurt blazing in her eyes.
"Did you really think I would hurt him on purpose?"
Jordan glanced up towards the stairs as he heard shuffling.
"Mia, we didn't know what to think. Vegan's up there with him now, trying to stabilise him."
"Is it really bad? What's happened?" Mia's voice crumbled, her entire body aching to go and help in any way she could.
"We don't know. We found him in his true form, covered in blood in the bathroom. The mirror and toilet are broken, but neither of us has ever seen him like this. Not this bad."
"I covered the mirrors, he asked me to do that." Mia sniffed, choking back tears of pain and regret. She'd never have walked out if she had known she was going to come back to this. "Is he going to be ok?"
Jordan offered her a weak smile and opened his mouth to answer, but heard Vegan's voice from the stairs, followed by footsteps creaking on it.
"For now, yes." Vegan said, hobbling down the stairs with Oli's arm slung over his shoulder, helping his friend get down the stairs.
"Oh my god!" Mia and Jordan both cried out in relief.
They both raced over to help Vegan down the last few steps and get Oli safely into an armchair. His face had all but returned to its mortal form, his face still streaked with blood, but he managed a weak smile as he laid his eyes on Mia. She crouched down on the chair in front of him and took his hands in her own, kissing them softly.
"I'm so fucking sorry!" she cried out. "I swear I didn't mean to do this to you."
Oli gazed at her, blinking slowly as if he was drunk and pressing a bloodied kiss to her hands.
"It wasn't your fault, Mia." Vegan confirmed. "It's the bond. Even with the synth and your blood consumed today, he's too weak."
Mia swallowed thickly.
"How long can you keep him stable for?" Mia asked.
"I'm not sure," Vegan responded flatly. "But we have to take him back home where we have the equipment and ingredients to take care of him properly."
Mia began to shake again, but felt Oli's hand on her cheek, turning her head to meet his.
"Hey, love?" His accent shone out, despite his difficulty in getting his words out. "I'll be back before you know it."
Mia smiled and nuzzled her face into his hand, desperate for any contact she could get from him. She placed her hand over his and gazed up at him.
"I love you so much."
"I love you too, Mia."
Oli's head began to droop, beginning to lose consciousness again, but Vegan and Jordan were immediately at his sides.
"I think that's our cue to get him back." Jordan said, taking Oli's hand from Mia and hoisting his arm over his shoulder while Vegan did the same from the other side and they lifted him from the chair.
Jordan slid himself out from under Oli as he made sure Vegan had a good grip on him. He was still conscious, but barely. Whatever Vegan had managed to do to stabilise him was wearing off fast.
Mia watched helplessly as Vegan hoisted Oli out of the door and seemed to disappear soon after.
"I'll help you get a few things packed up," Jordan offered. "Your toilet is broken, you can't stay here right now. Do you have anyone you could stay with for a few days while this all gets sorted?"
Mia shook her head as the gravity of the evening's events hit her, washing over her in a huge wave.
"I... I have an interview in a couple of days. In London." Mia stammered out.
"That works perfectly then, a close friend of ours has an apartment in London that he lets us use when we play there. You remember Ed?"
Mia nodded solemnly, but a small smile crept across her lips knowing that she had a friend in Ed.
"Cool, I'll give him a call and let him know. Go grab whatever you need for a few days and I'll make the arrangements for you." Jordan waved her off as he pulled his phone out of his pocket, already dialling Ed's number.
Mia obediently set about the house, grabbing a few bits she'd need. Her laptop was where she had left it on the table and the chair she'd knocked over was still in the same place too. She felt a pang of guilt as she picked it up, tucking it neatly back under the dining table and folding her laptop and charger away into her rucksack. Her camera was still on the table too, so she grabbed it, shoving it into its case with the rest of her equipment before hurrying towards the stairs to pack some clothes.
The bannister rail had faint bloody handprints running down it and Mia braced herself for what scene she might find upstairs. Jordan had taken care of most of it. The bathroom door was busted where Jordan had broken it open to get to Oli, but it was pulled closed and he'd found an old blanket to cover up the blood stains in the hallway. Mia silently thanked him for that and hurried into her room, grabbing a mixture of smart and casual clothes for a few days and shoving them into a holdall and slinging it over her shoulder.
Within ten minutes, she had appeared downstairs again and Jordan had finished his call.
"Ok, your room is all set for you. Where in London are you interviewing?" Jordan asked.
"Um, it's on Wednesday. At Metal Focus HQ." Mia blushed, remembering how all her frustration came to a head over that phone call.
Jordan let out a low whistle.
"Well, they'd certainly be lucky to have you on their team, Mia. They're great people to work with! And luckily for you, Ed's apartment is only a ten minute walk from Metal Focus HQ!"
Mia chuckled airily, following Jordan out of the house as she locked the door behind them. Jordan carried her bags for her and they headed down the street to the train station. Mia's town was only a thirty minute train ride to London and Jordan assured her that Ed would meet her when she got off at the other side.
Jordan wrapped Mia in a hug as she boarded the train, reassuring her that they'd take care of Oli and let her know if anything changed. He wished her good luck with her interview - not that you'll need it, he quipped and waved her off as the train pulled away.