Chapter Text
Pain.
There was a tightness in his chest, around his throat-
"String him up."
They wouldn't stop. He screamed and cried and bit his tongue until his mouth filled with blood.
They wouldn't stop.
Ice-cold pain spread through his ribes like wildfire, turning white-hot in moments.
Crack.
Crack.
Crack.
Legs shot up from where he was previously laying, immediately regretting his descision as pain shot up his side. Spots danced in his vision as he breathed heavily, lungs heaving and throat screaming with pain.
Where was he? Where was his knife—he had his kni-
He was back at the Academy.
He was in his room, at the Academy. Gadget was asleep at the foot of the bed, and Lukey was-
Wait.
…Why was Lukey next to him.
The other man—who was asleep next to him—remained somehow undisturbed by his… outburst. He had taken his jacket off, leaving him in his…. hooded tunic?
Legs wasn't actually sure what it was called, if he was being honest.
He tucked his knees up to his chest, wincing lightly at the movement. Everything still hurt, and even the parts that didn't hurt were stiff.
Lukey shifted beside him, one of his eyes cracking open to look at him. "You okay?"
So he was awake.
He nodded. "Yeah, I'm… I'm fine."
Legs didn't ask Lukey why he was there. If he asked, he might leave.
He wasn't sure he could be alone. The quiet felt wrong, almost anticipatory.
Everything was fine.
He was back at the Academy. They couldn't get in.
It didn't make him feel better.
Lukey pushed himself up, looking at Legs fully. "…Are you sure?"
"…Will you ask if I say no?"
"You don't have to answer if I do."
He hesitated, glancing at him before answering. "Not really."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
Legs shook his head.
Lukey paused before asking another question. "Do you want me to leave?"
"Please don't."
Lukey sat up fully next to him, holding his arm up slightly and hesitating before resting it on Legs' uninjured shoulder, the touch light.
Legs looked at him, really looked at him. The white streak in his hair was only a few shades lighter than the rest of his sleep-mussed hair, almost blending in if you weren't looking close enough.
His eyes were puzzling. In most situations, they were a dark grey, sometimes even looking brown in the torchlight that filled most of the Academy. Now, however, they grey took on a subtle teal hue, closer to the color of carbon, rather than charcoal.
"Are you still tired?" Lukey asked him.
Legs nodded. "Yeah, but I've never been good at falling back asleep anyways."
He didn't want to sleep again.
They would find him again.
A crease formed between Lukey's eyebrows, but he didn't question his answer. The two of them stayed there, and this time, the silence wasn't as heavy as it was before.