Old servant passages wound throughout the White House which gave Connor something to do while he waited to be brought into battle. He knew that Evie was mad at him, but he had to do it for Lielle. Though his feelings were uncertain, he was certain that they were good ones, and she, as so few did, had a way of comforting him in his most difficult times. After all, she was the one who had gotten him through Jean's loss.
Connor was wondering around the lower levels that only staff ever had the need to go into when it happened. He was removing a water bottle from the fridge when he heard it, and then everything went down at once.
"Evacuate the building," he ordered hastily, loud enough for anyone in that wing to hear him. Connor began to run toward the Oval Office, for he had no fear for the twins whom were already safe outside. He only cared that his parents were evacuated, but as he neared the Oval Office, the beeping got louder, and the smell of smoke reached his nostrils. At the last minute, he turned to the wife's wing, deciding that his father would teleport to safety, but as he entered his mother's empty bedroom, a loud explosion deafened his ears and he was blasted onto his face.
Bruised and bleeding, the young boy crawled forward, focusing all his energy into escaping. Fires blazed around him as he painfully shifted to his cheetah form, silently apologizing to all those people that he had promised he would not shapeshift until fully recovered. Bones rattling, he sped through the nearest window, no faster than sixty miles per hour, and shifted into a puma partway, bracing the sure to be painful landing ahead.
Upon impact with the ground, his arm gave away and he collapsed, retracting all the hair he had grown in the past two minutes. Groaning and rolling on the ground, he opened his eyes, face to face with one of the normal secret service agents. Well, he thought, I'm the one who gave away the secret of all of the Thrillers. They're going to kill me when this is all over for sure, but at least Lielle and Evie will live.
He clenched his teeth as the man hesitantly lifted him in his arms and jogged away from the crumbling building. Sirens blared nearby and Connor could only lay in the ambulance and watch the firemen fight for American history. Of course they had informed him that his family was safe and there was nothing to worry about, but he had developed some serious trust issues over the past month. Besides, he had promised to fight for the Thrillers, how could he back out now?
He stumbled across the vehicle and onto the packed pavement, and when the doctors came to stop him, he figured that they already knew about him so why hide it any longer. Letting loose a low growl and barring forming fangs, he pushed his way to the fence and performed a flying leap as a puma once more. Once on a rooftop with his group, he morphed back, quickly explaining his situation. They nodded their approval before turning around to almost get shot in the head with a bullet from below.
Snipers shot blindly into the fading day while groups from every position moved in to confront the threat. Soldiers marched toward the forming shadow while Soarers hefted guns or knives, preparing for the order to kill. A small head of frizzy hair threw Connor off track as he bolted after the little rascal.
After running into Goners and Forcer's protection bubbles, he finally made it out of the slowing line and to the spot where the one person who he had known to be safe stood only moments before. Her one mistake of the night was the lilac scent that she so loved, but Connor could smell it anywhere. He fell onto all fours and launched into a run at breakneck speed, creating shortcuts for him and obstacles before her, but she just ran right through them. Without a second thought, his body formed an eagle and took off.
At his screech of pain only seconds later, she halted, causing Connor to soar right into her and send them tumbling over the gravel. With minimal grunting, the two untangled their limbs and pulled themselves behind some nearby trash cans.
"What was that for?" she whispered, obviously trying to give of the impression of yelling.
"I could ask you the same thing. It almost gave me a heart attack seeing you here."
"I- Lei sneaked me out." Her voice cracked. "I'm so sorry. You told me not to hang around him but I didn't listen and now look where it got us."
"It's okay," he reassured her, gently stroking her hair. "He's an idiot for hanging onto you. Where is that disgrace of a man? I'll deal with him later."
A tear ran down her cheek as she replied, "Oh, Connor. He's dead. He killed himself. Some are probably relieved, but what do I tell the others?"
"Let's-" he began, but was cut off by a sudden cry of pain followed by screams of protest and horror, all caused by a pillar of fire that only one could manage.
Lielle was back in DC.
* * * * *
Getting to the front line of the Thriller side was a task of its own, but once there, a whole new one awaited. A few soldiers from both sides lay roasted on the ground in the six feet between, but what caught Connor's eye is what lay between a few soldiers in black and gold was a pair of brilliant green eyes, now clouded and dulled by whatever she had faced.
Thoughts of torture caused a wave of nausea to roll over him and he remembered her brief message. "They will start a war. World War Three." At that moment he knew it was true. They would not stop until they got precisely what they wanted and they would take dangerous measures to get there. They would gladly start World War Three. No regrets.
It was only once she stood three feet away did he realize that she had moved. Lielle's face looked the same, only paler, everything seemed dulled. But he had never seen her hair up before, though he thought this look suited her. It made her features sharper and she looked older in a good way. The problem was that young love never lasted, especially when the girl was hijacked into doing the bidding of the enemy side.
Then the young woman began to speak with a hurt, "You-" and before anyone could register, he was already on top of her with his hands on her waist and lips on hers, unmoving until they both closed their eyes and really felt the moment, their moment.
So, fully aware that hundreds of people were watching, he sighed, "I never want to lose you again," then his lips found his way back to their spot on her mouth fully trusting that even mind control and hallucinations could not get her then.
After a few seconds she pulled away. "Connor, I-"
"Save it," he ordered. "We've got a battle to fight." So trusting that she would follow, he turned, keeping his gaze away from Evie, afraid of what he might see. "Are we just going to stand here?"
* * * * *
Orders had it that Lielle was to be evacuated from the war sight but in no way was there any chance that would be what happened, so the trio did the next best thing and watched the action from the roof of the US Court of Appeals. Lafayette Square was overcrowded with a mix of tourists trying to clear out, and groups of soldiers trying to get in, creating a mess in which many Thrillers on both sides busted out their abilities sending the whole normal population into panic. The havoc of the battle began to make its way toward the White House and the President's Park near which several newsgroups still mulled around alongside many citizens watching the action.
"We should go evacuate the people," Lielle suggested. "Lets-"
"We should not do anything," Connor countered, spinning his finger around. "Evie or I can go."
"Or we can all go-"
"They need you alive, Lielle," he argued
"Don't act like my protector, Connor," she spat.
"Well if I don't, who knows what you'll do. You're reckless sometimes."
"I'll go and leave you two to discuss," Evie compromised.
After she left, the pair fell silent. "I am sorry I did that. I was being impulsive and I have always looked up to you. I just was not thinking and I was crushing on you since you saved my life the first time. I guess I just admire you and we got close. I should have asked in private if you felt the same."
After a minute, Lielle asked, "Is that it?" After a brief nod, she sighed. "There's just so many things that are wrong with this. For starters, how does Evie feel? You've been her best friend for who knows how long and I'm sure she expected something between you two."
"We both knew that we would never be more than best friends. She's almost four years younger than me anyway."
"There's another thing; the age difference. You're thirteen and I'm almost fifteen."
"Actually," he checked his watch and waited a second. "I'm fourteen as of... now."
She raised her chin to the sky. "Midnight," she muttered. "August nineteenth. Happy birthday Connor. And just so you know, you are kind of cute, but what happens when you lose all of that baby fat?"
"Oh, shut up!"
"Well that's nothing to say on your birthday," she teased. He laughed right up until she fingered his scar and pulled him back into a dream with her soft mouth that he never even dreamed of touching before that night. This was his new reality.