a/n: sorry this chapter isn't as good, there's a spicy chapter up next and I'm just speeding through to get to it 😁
You grabbed the window frame before a thought could cross your mind, and winced as glass embedded itself in your palms. Instead of leaning over the window sill, you instead climbed a crate and looked over from a height, to see Steven, picking himself off the ground in what you assumed was his version of the suit Layla had told you about; the one Marc was wearing you'd first encountered jackals.
"Oy, Steven, what the hell are we wearing?" you heard Marc say.
"I don't know. She said I needed a suit."
"Yeah, the ceremonial armour from Khonshu's temple, not psycho Colonel Sanders."
Marc's sense of humour was still intact. Good.
"Well, I think I do look sharp."
Steven's was too.
"y/n." Layla called your name and you looked down to see her holding out a bandage to you. "For your hand."
You took it and wound it around your palm. "Steven's fine, but we should..." you kicked your head towards the door and she nodded, and the two of you rushed out the door. Harrow's men had disappeared. With a jackal on their side, man power wasn't so necessary.
When you got into the cold London air, the two of you shivered as you searched for Steven. Then you heard a bang and a yell, and you sprinted round the corner to see the jackal throwing Steven to the ground.
"Oi, leave him alone!" you yelled, picking up a glass bottle and throwing it at the jackals face. It hissed, and you and Layla yelled out as it barrelled into the two of you, sending you flying. You grimaced as you hit the pavement, not noticing the scarab bouncing away across the tile. You scrambled towards Layla, helping her to her feet as Steven shouted.
"Get away from them, you. Yeah, I see you, you plug-ugly coyote. You're in the wrong ends, mate. You're in my yard now." Steven rolled up his sleeves. You'd never seen him in a suit and damn, it did things to you. The jackal pawed the ground like a charging bull and started forward. "Yeah. Come on. Come on. That's right. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, my name is Steven with a V!" As he finished his rhyme, he punched the jackal round the face and it went flying backwards into the wall, landing with a thud. You stared at him, jaw on the floor, and he stared at his hands like he wasn't quite sure what he did. Then it hit him.
"I did it! You got planted! y/n! y/n! Did you see that?"
You nodded and then yelled out as the jackal ran at him, throwing him to the floor. You ran over as he staggered, using a stationary bus to haul himself up. The bandages came away from around his face as he stared into the reflection.
"Steven," you muttered and he glanced at you, eyes still glowing.
"That was a hell of a punch back there," Marc said. "Look around. Someone's gonna get hurt if you don't let me help."
"I can handle it," Steven said, but even you shook your head.
"Steven, it's ok," you said gently and he nodded. "Marc's been doing this a while. I think he's got it covered."
You glanced between the two of them as they both looked at you, and then Steven sighed.
"All right. Do it. Take control. For now," he decided and you took a step back as the suit changed, his eyes flickering in the moonlight, and then suddenly it wasn't Steven.
"Your hand," Marc said, catching it in his. You winced slightly as his thumb ran over the cut.
"It's fine," you said. "We've got bigger problems." He nodded and went to take a step, but you caught his arm. "Be careful. Don't hurt him," you told him. "Or you. Look out for yourself." You let go and he nodded, unfamiliar with the kindness you showed, like he'd never been shown any. Then the Jackal rushed forwards and he side stepped it, grabbing the hair on the back of its neck and using the force of its run to swing it back around and into a wall. The monster howled and your eyes widened as it got up again.
"Marc?" Layla called and he whipped his head in her direction. "Get it out of here!" she yelled. Marc nodded.
"See you soon baby," he said to you and you watched, too stunned to speak as he jumped to the top of a London bus in one leap and the jackal followed. He led it up the side of a building and suddenly they were gone. You patted your back pocket and felt your blood run cold. The scarab was gone.
"Layla, go find the scarab," you cried and she gave you a quick hug before rushing back to Harrow's community. You followed the general direction that Marc had ran, using the sounds of the howling jackal to guide you. So when the sounds died down, you were both relieved and terrified. You came to a stop when you heard one final yell, and rounded the corner to see the Jackal, impaled on a spire on a stage-esque area, and Marc on the pillar, watching as the jackal turned to dust.
"Is it gone?" you breathed. He jumped from the pillar and landed in front of you. His cloak and mask disappeared and you found more confidence when you could see his face, but still took a step back.
"I know you're scared."
"A bit yeah."
"I went through the same with Steven, in the storage locker. I know you're confused," he said, "you weren't supposed to see any of this. I don't know how you saw me when I wasn't fronting. That's never happened before."
"I don't know," you said, pulling up one of the seats that surrounded you. "So, what? Are you, like, some mad secret agent or something?"
"It's a little more complicated than that."
"More complicated? What, are you possessing Steven or something?" And then you stuttered as the moonlight caught his eyes. "Are you, like, a demon? Or..."
"You're in danger y/n. Being around us, but I can save us, just like I did last night. But I can't have you or Steven interfering with what I have left to do. So, both of you, this is what's gonna happen -"
"- Both of us?" you turned, and your heart hurt as you saw Steven in the reflection, looking alone and terrified. "Oh my God, Steven," you whimpered, kneeling by the glass, and putting your hand on it.
"So, this is what it's like? Being on the inside," Steven said, his voice alive with fright.
"Yeah," Marc said.
"It's horrible."
"It's alright. You're all right."
"I feel like I can scarcely move."
"It's all right. Just breathe through it. It gets easier."
"How long have you been doing this?" you asked Marc and he shrugged.
"I don't know. It's... A long time."
"I don't like it," Steven said. "I don't want it. Can I have my body back?"
"I can't do that right now Steven."
"Please, give it back to him," you asked Marc and he shook his head.
"I'm taking it back," Steven said, and then he made a constipated looking face and grunted softly. Marc bowed his head.
"Sorry. We've always managed to keep a wall between us, but something's changed. The one who controls the body has become stronger. The reflections help, but most of the time it'll take all your willpower just to be a fly on the wall." You stroked the reflection of Steven's cheek as a tear rolled down.
"You can't do this, keeping me trapped in here. You have no right!" he yelled. "My whole life... I can't go on a bloody date. I can barely keep a goldfish alive. I lost my job. It's been you. It's always been you, eating away at parts of my life like a parasite."
You looked at Marc who took the verbal abuse, rubbing his tired eyes.
"Look, when I am done, when I have repaid my debt, I swear to you, you will never see me or here from me again."
"Wait, what?" you asked, and your concern for him made Steven angrier.
"I promise you," Marc said. "We wouldn't be alive if it weren't for Khonshu, and my... servitude is the price I pay."
"Khonshu." you repeated, and Steven and Marc exchanged a glance.
"The Egyptian God of the moon."
"I know who... Layla said, but -- Oh my God, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard," you exclaimed.
"Bottom line, I made a deal with Khonshu, and that deal is contingent on neither of you interfering.
"What kind of servitude?" Steven asked.
"The kind that leaves me covered in blood."
"Yeah, well, that blood is on my hands. You ruin people's lives. Everything you touch, you ruin. You hurt people, you abandoned y/n. You left her stranded," Steven said, coming to your defence over Harrow.
"I did not," Marc argued, showing anger for the first time when you were brought into it. "I'm protecting her. You. I'm protecting you y/n."
"You don't know what you're talking about."
"Yes, you did. I saw," Steven said.
"Khonshu has his eyes on her!" Marc shouted and you stared at him.
"You... what?" you stuttered, pushing Marc away as he tried to comfort you.
"He wants you as my replacement and I'm never gonna let that happen."
"You're a liar," Steven said. "I don't believe you. I don't trust you. You hurt people and I'm never letting you near y/n again!" he yelled, defending you.
"Just shut up!"
"I won't let you hurt anyone again."
"Shut up."
"I will never give you a moment of peace, I promise!" He screamed. You covered your ears as the bells began to toll and Steven and Marc yelled at each other, and you scrambled out of the way as Marc punched the reflection, shattering it to pieces.
"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" he yelled, and Steven was gone.
"Steven?" You mumbled, and then you felt a shadow loom over you.
"You swore he would not interfere Marc, and now they're both in the way," the shadow said. "She lost the scarab." You looked up, and for the first time since the night you fainted, saw Khonshu. Your jaw dropped and Marc stepped behind you, catching your arm as you stumbled.
"You're... You're..." No more words came out and Khonshu chose to ignore you as he stared at Marc.
"I'll handle it," Marc answered.
"You have proven you cannot."
"I will."
"Ungrateful, Marc, altering the terms of our agreement. You think you own this body? It belongs to me."
"We'll find the scarab," Marc said, with no hint in his voice that he was blaming you.
"Too late. Harrow has it."
"Then we'll find another way. We'll get to Ammit's tomb first."
"Ammit's tomb?" you asked.
"The scarab is a compass to Ammit's ushabti," Marc told you, "and we will get there first."
"You know I'll protect you with everything I have. You are worth protecting," Konshu said.
"And y/n," Marc said and you stared at him quizzically.
"Don't anger the pigeon," you whispered and Khonshu scoffed.
"Don't call me pigeon, worm," he growled.
"We have a deal," Marc said. "Protect her and I'll do whatever it takes. Then you let me go."
"I know you enjoy the work I have for you Marc. We need each other."
"We have a deal Khonshu," Marc hissed, and as the bird stayed quiet, he sighed. "Where are we going?"
"Where the hell do you think?"
***
Back in Steven's apartment, you winced as Marc pulled the last shard of glass from your hand, dropping it and the tweezers into a bowl of water.
"All done," he said, standing up, and then casually said, "I'll be back in a few weeks," like it was nothing. You scoffed.
"I'm coming with you," you told him. He was planning on going to Cairo, but you were hell bent on stopping him from going alone.
"Nope. You're staying here where it's safe," he said. "I don't need you."
"I don't care how dangerous it is," you said. "You may not need me but Steven does. He's alone and afraid right now, and I know that he can hear me... Can he hear me?"
Marc nodded. "Yeah, he can see you too," and then busied himself grabbing the bag where the scarab once was from the hiding place. When he jumped down, you turned him to face you.
"I'm here for you Steven," you said defiantly, staring into Marc's eyes, and then you sort of glitched as you sat. "Does that mean you could hear us? See me?" Marc nodded again. "So why did you never... say hi, before?" Despite rushing about the room in quite a frenzy, Marc paused to talk to you.
"I wanted to," he said. "But I didn't want to scare you away."
"So you decided to wait until a God came along?" you asked sarcastically and he tried to ignore the comment.
"I had a plan," he said. "I was waiting until I was out of Khonshu's servitude, then reveal myself to Steven... then you when he understood."
"Oh," you said, and then you found yourself running out of things to say. "So, when's our flight?"
He looked at you. "Our what?"
"Y'know, our flight? To Cairo. You said we're going to Cairo."
"I'm going to Cairo."
"We're going to Cairo." Marc sighed, clenching his fists, but you stared him down and eventually he caved in.
"Pack a bag, couple days clothes," he said. "You've got 10 minutes." And with that, he slung the bag he'd packed over his shoulder and left the room.
It did cross your mind several times in those 10 minutes as you hastily packed that Marc had left without you, and you'd be alone, fearing for his and Steven's life. But as you threw your things messily into a bag, he reappeared, and your worries were quelled.
Typically, when flying to other countries, you'd taken a plane. Actually, scratch typically, you'd always used a plane. So when at around midnight, Marc had opened wide the window to Steven's apartment and helped you onto the roof, you weren't quite sure what was going on. Then, when he'd put on the suit, a useful differentiation between him and Steven, and lifted you into his arms, you were even less sure what was going on.
"Hold tight," was the only warning he gave you, and then suddenly the two of you were soaring towards the night sky.
When you landed 5 hours later, you were in Cairo.