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Feitan wasn't necessarily thrilled to be tagging along. Sure, he wanted to look after you, but he was sort of upset. You'd left, told him off after a while of seemingly not existing, and then shown back up with a spider tattoo.
The trip back to Lyda was quiet. You didn't say much, and neither did Feitan. Your thoughts were all over the place. You were a part of the troupe now, whether you liked it or not. It wasn't exactly something you were proud of.
Feitan had to stay with you at all times, this rule was put in place by Phinks who didn't want you running off again. He wasn't going to keep chasing you, and he'd instructed Feitan to 'deal with you' if you tried anything funny.
Unlocking your apartment, you looked around cautiously before stepping inside. Asu didn't know that you knew he was double-crossing. You should've known from the start that someone wouldn't just agree to help you out. You should've just stayed with Roky for a bit.
"He's not here." You spoke quietly, setting your belongings down on the dining room table. You'd managed to find your things, or what Chrollo had left you with. Feitan admired your new apartment. Your old apartment was a bit cleaner, but he was happy to see that the Asu guy wasn't around.
"Is he...your boyfriend?" Feitan asked, the question catching you off guard.
"No. We're not even friends. Why do you care?" You ask, heading toward your bedroom, Feitan following behind you.
"Why...does he live with you...then?" Feitan asked, watching as you grabbed a large black duffel bag, placing it on your bed. Next, you stepped toward your closet.
"He was supposed to be my bodyguard. To protect me from the troupe, it wasn't really my decision. But look where I am." You looked away from Feitan and stepped into your closet, closing the doors just enough so Feitan couldn't see you.
Stepping closer to make sure you weren't going to try anything, his eyes followed a few pieces of clothing that dropped to the ground. You were changing.
Stepping back, Feitan looked away his heart beginning to race. You were done faster than he expected, but when you exited the closet, his eyes couldn't leave you.
In something similar to what you'd worn when you first met them, a black bodysuit and some gear which Feitan assumed you used for bounty-hunting, you looked good.
"But he's not..." Feitan continued the conversation, his eyes dropping to look at the curve of your hips. You looked away and sighed.
"He's-"
From your room down the hall, you could see the front door open. Moving quickly, you shoved Feitan into your closet, shutting the door quickly.
"Oh, you're home!" Asu smiled, walking down the hall to your room. Examining your clothes, Asu knew you were going out for some sort of work, bounty hunting he assumed.
"New bounty?" Asu stood in the doorway. In his pocket laid a heavy sedative in a syringe, one he intended to use on you.
"Yup, I'm heading out soon. Are you going to the bar too?" You asked, hoping he wasn't staying for long. Feitan was standing silently in your closet still, listening in on everything.
"You're heading out? I was at the bar all day, I didn't see you stop in." Asu approached you, his eyes narrow.
"I was going to stop by the bar on the way out, is what I meant." You took a step back, but Feitan had heard enough. Darting out of your closet, the doors swinging open, Feitan landed a nice blow on Asu.
"What the fuck!?" Asu shouted, trying to pry the spider off of him. As a last resort, Asu jabbed the syringe into Feitan's arm, administering the sedative. You fired two shots at Asu with a gun you'd pulled out of your duffel bag. The shots echoed as Asu let out a choked cry of pain.
"You shot me?!" Asu yelled, blood seeping from the wounds in his chest.
"You're working for Bryce Lazarus. What does he want with me-"
Feitan's body fell off of Asu, tumbling to the ground. He looked dead.
"What did you do to him!?" You yelled, rushing over to him. Asu didn't want to tell you the truth.
"It's poison. He's going to die. In your place." Asu was bleeding out. You were stuck on saving Feitan or getting more information.
Fuck. Think think, come on! Ugh!
You groaned in frustration, leaving Asu to die, you lifted Feitan in your arms, tossing him over your shoulder. You grabbed your duffel bag and rushed toward the door. You didn't have many options.
The once clear skies had turned dark and grey, another storm was rolling in. As you rushed to the bar, running as fast as you could, not caring about the stares or concerned glances you were getting, you had one goal in mind.
Save Feitan.
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Kicking the doors open, you headed right upstairs, Roky already following behind you. You tossed Feitan down on the old mattress and began examining him.
"Kid! Hey, what-"
"Asu's poisoned him. He was working with Bryce, we need to find an antidote and fast." You examined the spot where Asu had injected the 'poison' into Feitan. You pulled the broken needled out of his arm and winced.
"What? Slow down-"
"I can't let him die! I'm one of them now!" You were upset, overwhelmed, frustrated, and worried. Showing Roky the tattoo you'd been cursed with, you needed to save his life.
"I'll see what I can do. While I'm gone, monitor his vitals with this." Pulling out some old heart monitor from the supply closet, you could only wonder where he'd gotten it from.
"Right. Please hurry." Roky could see the hurt on your face. You were stressed. You needed him alive, and while Roky didn't understand everything, he knew you needed his help, and he was going to give it to you.
While you paced the small room, you could only think of what Asu had said to you.
He's going to die in your place.
What does that mean?
No matter how hard you thought, nothing made sense. Feitan's vitals remained stable, but you could only worry more. Nothing had changed, you were begging to wonder if it was just slowly killing him. You wondered if he could feel any pain, or if he could still hear you or not.
This was agonizing. A few hours ago, you were dreading bringing him along, and now you're begging for him to hold on.
You found yourself sitting on the floor, resting your head in your arms on the mattress. You were tired. Closing your eyes you decided to take a nap. Just long enough for whenever Roky returned.
Feitan's vitals hadn't dropped, he was doing alright. You just hoped he'd be alright while you slept.
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Feitan's eyes opened and he wasn't at all familiar with his location. Sitting up, he glanced to his side and saw you sound asleep, resting half on the floor and half on the mattress.
He was hooked up to a heart monitor. Carefully taking the pads off of himself, he set them aside and patted your head.
"Roky?" You spoke softly, mumbling as you opened your eyes. You stared up at Feitan shocked.
"Lay back down! Hey-"
"I'm...okay." Feitan grabbed your hands that were desperately trying to check up on him and held them gently. His thumbs rubbed over your fingers and knuckles, examining the various scars on your hands.
"He poisoned you, we have to-"
"It was...a sedative." Feitan reassured you, letting your hands go. You let out a sigh and let your face fall into the mattress.
"That was probably meant for me." You explain, lifting your head, your eyes gazing up at Feitan. He wasn't wearing his usual trench coat, you'd taken it off searching for the injection site.
He was just wearing a plain black undershirt and shorts, he looked almost too casual. His raven locks framed his face as you looked at him.
"Which...is why it was a sedative." Feitan motioned for you to sit next to him on the bed instead of on the floor. You graciously joined him. Reaching for his arm, you examined the injection sight and notice a bruise had formed.
"The needle broke inside your arm, I was able to get it out. It's a little bruised." Your fingers carefully trace his skin, sending shivers down his spine. Your touch was so soft, like you didn't want to hurt him, even holding his arm up, you were treating him like a glass figurine, scared of dropping and breaking him.
"What did...Asu tell you?" Feitan asked, remembering only bits and pieces before he passed out. You were thrown off by his question.
"He lied, about it being a poison, but he said that you were going to die in my place. It's not sitting right with me, I was too worried about saving you that I let him bleed out." You blurted out. Quickly realizing you'd just admitted to being worried about him, as if your actions somehow proved otherwise.
"You let...him die?" Feitan confirmed, staring at you, his grey eyes piercing into your e/c ones.
"Yeah." You reply, looking away.
Roky returned, bursting through the door with some sort of kit, but froze when he saw Feitan sitting up, perfectly fine.
"It was just a sedative." You rub the back of your neck nervously. The tension in the room was high, even before Feitan was awake. But Roky knew to ask questions later.
"How are you feeling?" Roky asked, the question directed to Feitan. Feitan remained silent, thinking it was for you.
"Feitan." Roky used his name this time, earning his attention.
"How are you feeling? Do you feel funny or...?" Roky asked again, this time adding a bit of emphasis on his question. Feitan glanced at you once more before answering.
"I feel...fine." Feitan responded, feeling a bit awkward. He'd half expected to be gutted alive by the big man who reminded him oddly of Uvogin, both in stature and in looks.
"Alright, kid, where's Asu at now?" Roky placed the poison kit down on a table and sighed, thinking of the next move.
"Dead on my bedroom floor." You replied, rising off the mattress to stand on the floor.
"You killed him?" Roky was surprised.
"He was going to bring me in to Bryce, it just so happened that Feitan took the sedative for me. He said something about him dying in my place, the way he said it was, odd." You explained.
"Like how your father died for your uncle?" Roky just said what was on his mind. Your eyes widened as you looked at him.
"Is that what he meant?" You pondered, every discovery you'd made so far replaying, even when you'd broken in and witnessed your uncle getting killed. It was all making a bit more sense.
"That still doesn't make any sense. In that moment, he knew he was lying, why would he say something like that? What does Bryce even need me for?" You were lost entirely. What Roky had said made sense, but if it was just a sedative, what did he mean by 'he's going to die in your place?'
Who was dying?
Who is going to die?
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