Chapter Text
Midnight comes and Taako finds himself to be the only one in the Starblaster still awake. Avi and Johann are asleep on the couch, which has been pulled out into a bed, and Angus is curled up in the driver’s seat with the Legato drooping from his lap. The air hums with the various snores of his friends, a noise that Taako enjoys most sleepless nights and yet right now all he wants is silence. He takes the Legato from Angus’ lap and and pushes the chair down so that the smaller boy can stretch out, putting the book on the dash so that he can find it when he wakes up.
Then, pulling on one of Magnus’ oversized hoodies, Taako hops out of the RV and quietly shuts the door, looking out into the trees surrounding this small clearing. The sky is a soft shade of blue that melts into black and specks of stars every now and then round and white as it shines down on Taako. He uses the light of the moon as he begins to follow a narrow dirt path through the trees, not really going anywhere. He just wants to get away.
It’s not that anything is inherently wrong. Sometimes Taako just needs to be alone, genuinely alone, long enough to take a breath. When he and Lup were going through the foster system, it was hard to find a moment alone sometimes, or it was too easy to be alone, because no one cared enough to fill the vacancies.
There would be long periods where no one cared enough to care about them, which is why Taako jumped at the chance to accompany Davenport and the others on this trip, but he is still Taako, and unlike Lup he needs to be alone on occasion.
Speaking of Lup… Taako’s mind wanders to the odd air between Barry and Lup now, the way Barry sometimes stares a bit too hard. Ever since Legato, it’s been like Barry is worried about the two of them, which doesn’t make sense because neither of them have done anything… Well, Taako can’t truthfully end that sentence because the two of them have collectively done a lot wrong, but at least nothing that affects Barry. Right?
Taako doesn’t realize how deep into his thoughts he is until a low chuckle rumbles through the forest and he almost falls onto his ass with the shock of it. He looks around for the source of the sound, and at first he sees nothing. The trees stretch on into infinity like skeletal shadows, but then a shape melts from the gnarled darkness and becomes a handsome face, a fitted suit, one gloved hand gripping the staff of a massive scythe.
“Kravitz,” Taako says quietly, and the other man chuckles, golden eyes flickering as he looks away. Those irises seem to glow, granting a small aura of light to the world around them. Taako has an inkling that staring too deeply into those eyes could be as blinding as staring into the sun. He watches as Kravitz leans his scythe against the tree, stepping forward to offer Taako a hand. He’s hesitant to accept it, but when he does he’s surprised by how cold those gloves are. It’s more than just the chill of leather: it’s a bone-deep cold, like beneath the gloves his hands are made of shards of ice.
As soon as he’s standing Taako pulls away with a short laugh. “You coulda told me that night we met that you were a bounty hunter, my dude.”
“You know?”
“Yeah, all the ladies in Goldcliff were chatting you up.”
“Well, I suppose that’s good to know.” Kravitz looks toward his scythe, toward the sky, before finally letting his eyes settle on Taako again. “Why’re you wandering around in the forest, Taako? Don’t people typically sleep at this hour?”
Taako snorts at that, leaning against the nearest tree and doing his best to ignore the rough feeling of the back against the backs of his arms. “ Boring people, yeah. Why are you out here, that’s a better question.”
At this the other man makes a small noise in the back of his throat, tugging on his gloves as he looks toward the ground. At first he doesn’t answer, so Taako lets the silence grow and elongate between the two of them like a very large, filmy spider’s web. That is to say, there’s no way in hell Taako is about to be the first one to break the silence, so he just studies the golden-hued silhouette of Kravitz’s face as the he flounders for some semblance of sense.
Then, he says, “Our first meeting had a very abrupt end and I-- Well, I wanted to see you again.”
“You wanted to… see me again?”
“I… I suppose that’s not a very good reason to be lurking outside of your RV, but… well, you--” Kravitz’s purses his lips and looks away. “I’m not going about this very well, am I?”
Taako tugs on the sleeves of Magnus’ hoodie, shrugging his shoulders. “I’d be able to answer that question if I knew what you were trying to accomplish, dude.”
“I’m… wondering if you’d be willing to get a drink. With me. At… any point?” Kravitz’s speech is broken and stuttering, but Taako doesn’t miss a word of it. His entire face begins to heat up, lips falling apart into an expression of awe that he quickly tries to temper.
“A drink?”
“Y’know. Wine, beer? Or literally anything, I’m not picky.”
They both look like idiots, now, Taako trying not to grin and Kravitz looking at anything except him, like they’re two dumb teenagers and a high school romance. But then Taako steps up, having to look up just to see into Kravitz’s eyes. “I think I’d like that.”
“Yeah?” Kravitz grins, golden eyes flickering a faint red for just a second as he leans closer to Taako. “Y’know, there’s something about you… it’s like I know you from somewhere.”
“Well, we have met before, so.”
“No, no, I know, just…” And then his nose scrunches up slightly, lips tilting in a shy smile. “I don’t want to risk sounding like an absolute tool, but… I feel completely drawn to you. Is that weird?”
“I’ve heard weirder, bounty hunter,” Taako teases, reaching out to smooth down one of the lapels of Kravitz’s suit. At least, he tells himself that’s what he’s doing, even though he knows fully well that he’s just looking for a reason to touch. “How will I find you for this… date?”
“Well, I could always find you, but…” Kravitz pulls back from the touch slightly, digging a sleek black phone out of his pants pocket. “Just because I’m from a different world doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the technology of this one.”
“Gnarly.” Taako takes the phone extended to him, quickly typing in his number before slowly handing it back. Kravitz is leaning close, so close that if Taako just leaned forward a few centimeters more, he might be able to snag a kiss. But just as he’s ready to throw dignity out the window Kravitz jumps to attention, gold eye flaring as he whips around. Taako immediately reaches out to touch his arm, worry beating rhythmically in his chest. “Kravitz, what--”
“There’s something… I need to go.” Kravitz pulls away, swiftly grabbing his scythe and swinging it into a dramatic arc so that it settles onto his shoulders when he turns to face Taako. His smile is apologetic, but he says nothing else as he gives him a two-fingered salute, the scythe coming down again in a circular swing.
By the time it comes full circle, Kravitz is gone, and the creak of the woods is overshadowed by a sudden, too-human laugh filling the air. Not just one laugh, but two, mingling together to create some sort of discordant noise that chills Taako to his bones. Tugging on Magnus’ hoodie, Taako quickly turns and rushes back toward the RV, heart thumping with exhilaration and fear in equal parts.
…
A couple hours later Taako is woken from his patchy sleep by a text message, one that allows a sleepy half smile to creep across his face.
I solemnly swear no monsters will come to eat you in your sleep. I’ll text you later with the when and where.
And then:
I am very excited.
“Dork,” Taako whispers to himself, before simply responding with a flurry of winking and grinning emojis, and whatever other emojis his tired fingers stumble across.
…
“Lucretia, can I ask you a question?”
Lucretia looks up from her laptop, fingers poised in the middle of writing the words venerable arrogance as she tilts her head in Barry’s direction. He’s reading a book Sloane had given to him, one detailing changelings and other fey creatures, and Lucretia is surprised to note he’s already left several pages bookmarked by a colorful array of sticky notes.
Saving her document and slowly shutting her laptop, Lucretia offers him a smile. “Of course. What is it?”
“If you knew a really bad secret about someone, would you tell them that you knew?”
“Well…” Lucretia pushes her laptop aside, leaning forward across the table. “I think it depends on how bad the secret is. If it’s something painful to them, it might be a touchy subject to bring up, unless you knew it was harmful to them. Then you might need to find the softest way to deliver the blow. If it’s criminal, then…” She reaches up and rubs at her cheek in thought. “I’m not sure.”
“What if it’s both? Or… I guess it could be both.” He takes off his glasses, chewing on one of the ends as he glares down at the cover of the book. Lucretia feels like she should know, on some level, what it is that he’s contemplating, but the answers are just outside of her reach.
He says no more, eventually going back to his book with a small smile and a sigh. Lucretia attempts returning to her story, but just as Barry is getting up to go outside Johann is coming in and sliding into his seat. He looks a lot better today, eyes still swamped by the shadows of exhaustion.
“Hey, Johann. How are you?”
He coughs and it’s a warped sort of noise, but then he offers a tired grin as he shakes his head. “Sorry. I feel much better than I did yesterday. A couch isn’t the most comfortable place to sleep, but I’ve slept on one often enough, so…”
“Did you have any odd dreams?”
He leans back, looking toward the ceiling of the RV. “It was all just white noise and fog, if I’m being honest. It was like I was nowhere that actually existed. Kinda nice, if I’m being honest.”
“I’m glad.” Lucretia taps the keys of her laptop without actually hitting them, just listening to the soft clicks of her fingers hitting each letter. When she looks up at Johann he’s already staring back at her, one brow raised as he just… stares. “Yes?”
“Do you remember what happened at the hospital?”
“What… What do you mean?” Lucretia frowns, briefly looking out of the window and into the expanse of trees that surround the Starblaster. “We got you checked out of the hospital, and then…” Her vision goes sideways, blurring at the edges. The trees sprout from the sky and birds look like they’re falling as they flutter past. Lucretia immediately closes her eyes and swivels back to face Johann. “And then we came here.”
“Yeah?” He shrugs, picking up a random book from the table and casually flipping through the pages. “I don’t think it’s that easy, Lucretia.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Neither do I. But if you guys are the birds…” He closes the books and leans forward, gesturing with one hand toward Lucretia’s laptop. When he speaks his words jump around like they’re a physical presence bouncing through the room, but she still hears him. “I think you know who you are.”
And then he’s getting up from the table, pushing his hair back from his face and slowly making his way out of the RV. Lucretia looks at the open document on her laptop, the one detailing the adventures of The Cryptid Zone.
“Oh,” she says, but it’s more of a sigh.
…
Lup stretches her arms out above her head before turning to Avi. “So you wanna know the layout of our crew?” Avi nods and Lup leans forward so that her elbows are on her knees. She throws her head in the direction of Magnus and Barry, who are chatting on the other side of the fire. “That’s Magnus Burnsides, your boyfriend --” Avi scrunches up his nose as she giggles. “--and Barry Bluejeans. Not his real last name, but you’d never guess it.”
“What is his last name?”
“Hallwinter.” She laughs, shaking her head. “Yeah, it’s some ostentatious family name, but some frat buddies of his gave him the Bluejeans nickname and he’s kept it. Anyway--” She throws one hand toward the RV. “Lucretia’s the mom friend. We’re like… only a couple months apart in age? But she’s definitely more mature than eighty percent of us idiots. Magnus has been a friend of hers since they were in high school-- he didn’t attend IPRE with us, but he’s smart enough to have gone there.”
“Why didn’t he?” Angus adjusts his glasses, looking up at the big man with the sunshine bright grin. He flings his hands out to emphasize his point, narrowly missing knocking Barry’s glasses clean off of his face.
“Eh, his father-in-law was getting sick so Magnus decided to forgo the IPRE admission to stay and help him. Steven, the father-in-law, he’s much better off now, which is why Magnus was okay with tagging along.” Lup smiles, and it’s the sort of affectionate smile she seems to only save for the members of the IPRE cryptid hunters. A smile that means family .
With a secret smile of his own, Avi points toward the two older men standing by the front of the RV and gesturing at each other over a map that they’re both holding. The one with the redder hair rolls his eyes, but there’s a small grin beneath his mustache, while the other man shakes his head and jabs one finger at a place on the map.
“Oh, those are the dads, Davenport and Merle Highchurch.”
“The… The dads?”
Lup nods. “Yep. The oldest of our crew, and also they’re basically married. You’ll never hear either of them admit to it, though. Dunno why.”
“Maybe it’s not true?”
“Oh, no, it totally is. They’ve got matching rings and everything.”
Avi laughs, then strains his eyes to try to make out the rings. It takes a second with all of their movement, but then he sees them: thick silver bands, engraved with deep spirals. “What’s on the rings?”
“Vines, leaves. I swiped Merle’s ring once when he was taking a shower and there’s some sappy shit written on the inside.”
“What did it say?”
Lup opens her mouth, but before she can say those secret, hidden words, Davenport and Merle are both standing beside her, and Avi has to hold back his laughter as Davenport lays a hand on Lup’s shoulder and she immediately presses her lips together.
“What were you talking about, Lup?”
With a bug-eyed glance in Avi’s direction, Lup immediately slips on a suave grin, leaning back in her lawn chair and giving the men her best look of innocence. “Just how fantastic the two of you are in keeping us in our place.”
“Hm.” Davenport lets go of her shoulder with an affectionate shove, turning to take the map that Merle holds out to him. “Now, can you please tell Merle that we’re too far from the beach?”
“Except we’re not ,” Merle counters, thrusting the map toward Lup and Avi. “It’s maybe two hours away.”
Before Lup can reply, Avi leans forward and points to where Rockport is on the map. “Actually, we’re less than an hour from the beach. If you make a shortcut through a bunch of back roads over here--” he draws a tiny circle with his index finger. “--then it wouldn’t take very long to get there.”
“Ha!” Merle hits Davenport’s shoulder with one hand, a roar of a laugh filling the air between the four of them. “Beach trip!”
“We’re dealing with serious issues right now, Merle,” Davenport says quietly, but even Avi can tell his resolve is melting. Especially when Merle drops his hand, face morphing into an elderly version of a puppy dog pout. Davenport scowls as he looks away, but then he’s nodding. “We can go for a day before visiting Legato. Avi, would you and Johann like to join us?”
“I-- I mean, sure! Yeah.”
Lup pats his shoulder, shaking her head. “You really dug Cap’n’port’s grave, kid.”
…
A discordant laugh, splintering glass echoing through caves, like veins, like the stuttering thump of a massive beasts heartbeat. A fracture spreads and grows, festers like a wound, until a mirror lays shattered across the floor of a deep and mystical cavern, and from the shards comes a hand. It grasps once at the air before finding purchase in the ground, and slowly a body is dragged from the glittering mess of glass and ink
A body that grins , eyes blinking to life. So many eyes, grotesquely magnificent, a face that is both handsome and eldritch.
The face of a man who was once named John, and now bears no name.
A face that is so, so very hungry.