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A familiar sound cracked through the air. Reacting without thinking, prompted by instinct alone, Hal threw himself at Sinestro and shoved him to the ground.
Hal was just in time. The bullet, which had moments before been headed directly for Sinestro, tore instead through Hal's force field like wet paper and buried into Hal's side. The sharp pain of impact was felt only as relief for it meant Hal had been hit in the place of Sinestro.
That relief was soon overtaken. In Hal's side, the pain increased exponentially until his knees buckled and he sank to the ground. Searching for some ease to the splitting pain he was trying to bite back, Hal's fingers scrabbled through warm blood around the bullet wound but nothing was helping.
Through his pain filled haze, Hal could only hope, desperately, that Sinestro was fine. He cursed the aliens for shooting, even if they had only been trying to defend themselves.
With Sinestro, Hal had been on one of those really boring diplomatic missions he usually ended up sleeping through. For a change, he'd been amusing himself watching while Sinestro half threatened, half sweet talked the aliens into cooperating with the Guardians. It was both intimidating and appealing.
The aliens had apparently not been as impressed by Sinestro as Hal had been. Hence that was why Hal was lying on the ground in agony.
Since he couldn't lie on the ground forever, Hal gritted his teeth and tried to heave himself up. He needed to find Sinestro. That was the motivation he used to bandage up his side with willpower and finally drag himself to his feet.
Hands gripped Hal's shoulder and bicep, and yanked him away from another bullet whizzing past. Without looking, Hal knew it was Sinestro. It was always Sinestro there to save him.
"We need to leave," Sinestro ordered. Those hands guided Hal in the direction of the door and Hal hurried to obey.
Asking no questions, though he had a few, Hal stumbled his way to the exit. Somehow, he made it without being shot again. When he heaved open the door, he glanced back, wondering why he couldn't feel Sinestro behind him and worrying that his partner had been hurt.
Hal's concerns were unnecessary. Though outnumbered, Sinestro held his ground admirably. With one construct, he knocked back three aliens who were trying to approach.
It was clear Sinestro would win the fight and Hal felt a little silly for ever thinking anything else. He'd seen Sinestro fight many times in the past. For training, he'd been Sinestro's opponent, and on missions, Sinestro had been required to fight before. It was needless of Hal to worry.
Nevertheless, Hal was worrying. His brain didn't care if his feelings were logical. Despite his knowledge of Sinestro's incredible skill, Hal couldn't desert his worried feeling although the awe Sinestro inspired also made its impact.
Standing there motionless, Hal was entranced by the scene. Sinestro wielded his power ring with a passion and determination unique only to him. Usually, Sinestro didn't unleash such intensity, preferring to be reserved and standoffish, but he was absolutely amazing when he did.
The control Sinestro had over his constructs was perfect. Every flex of his muscles, every spark of energy were calculated exactly to have maximum efficiency in achieving what he wanted. Hal could watch him forever.
If Hal ended up as half the Lantern Sinestro was, he'd probably be better than the rest of the Corps. Sinestro really was that good.
A gap appeared between Sinestro's enemies and he took advantage of it to flee. By the door, Hal was quick to step aside and allow Sinestro through.
When both Hal and Sinestro were on the opposite side of the door from the aliens, Hal slammed the door shut. Then he reinforced it with his ring for good measure.
The effort proved too much for Hal and dizziness overcame him, sending him close to toppling to the ground. As ever, Sinestro was there to catch him. Hands were firm on Hal's ribs, holding him steady. It was all Hal could do not to collapse into that hold and let Sinestro just take care of everything.
"Will you survive the return to Oa?" Sinestro questioned Hal. "Or would you prefer I remove the bullet now? I am no doctor and the bullet is yellow but I will try my best for you." It was all stated quite calmly. Sinestro seemed to have no preference either way.
Mind working sluggishly, Hal didn't immediately understand the question. When he did, and while he considered his answer, his arm was tugged up to rest across Sinestro's shoulders. It provided a stable support. Most of Hal's weight was held up by Sinestro now and it took a lot of pressure off him. The pain eased somewhat.
"I'm - I'm fine," Hal finally gasped out because he was still in pain. His teeth clacked tightly together. "I don't think I want you digging around inside me." It probably wouldn't be as pleasant as Hal's delirious mind fantasised it to be.
The tension broke in Sinestro's shoulders as he huffed out a breath of amusement. "We all must do things we would rather not," Sinestro advised, voice low.
"Very philosophical of you," Hal muttered, unimpressed. He was in pain, felt sick and just wanted it to be over. "I'm fine. Thanks."
Defensive and not wanting Sinestro to know of the pain he was in, Hal searched for a change of subject. Blood was decorating Sinestro's knuckles. Most of the time, Sinestro avoided fighting hand to hand. Constructs were his preferred weapons.
Intrigued, Hal nodded towards Sinestro's knuckles. "What happened there?" he asked, looking up at his partner.
A glance was spared from Sinestro to his hand. "I broke the jaw of the one who shot you," he supplied the answer coolly. "It... inspired further fighting. We may have lost the chance to resolve this peacefully."
Surprisingly, the loss of diplomatic relations didn't appear to have bothered Sinestro. His eyes were as hard as yellow diamonds and Hal swallowed. If he was to hazard a guess, Sinestro had lost all sense of reason the moment Hal had fallen to the ground. He'd sacrificed the success of the mission in order to avenge Hal.
What Sinestro had done for Hal was very sweet. It was the sweetest thing Hal could remember anyone ever doing for him.
The barricaded door shook as the aliens inside hammered upon it. Hal jumped and hissed in pain before clutching onto Sinestro so he wouldn't fall over.
Sinestro's gaze flicked towards the door. "We need to leave." He'd said it before but the conviction had grown.
Unable to stop himself, Hal prompted, "What about the Guardians?" It was unbelievable to Hal that Sinestro would really abandon the mission and risk annoying their masters just to give one Green Lantern a better chance at survival.
Again, the door shook and Hal peered around Sinestro to eye it warily. If it came down to it, he'd fight. Regardless of his injury, he'd try to buy Sinestro time to escape, even if he himself couldn't get away.
"The Guardians," Sinestro replied fiercely, "can take their orders and stuff them. As you would say."
Although Sinestro was perfectly serious, brow furrowed in concentration and everything, Hal had to snort out a laugh. Hearing human phrases come out of Sinestro's mouth was quite possibly the best thing ever, if a little disconcerting.
One eyebrow was quirked up at Hal. "You were injured protecting a fellow Green Lantern. If I allowed the effort to kill you, it would be poor repayment. Consider this my thanks."
Contradictory by nature, Hal was tempted to argue. It would have been pointless. Sinestro was as stubborn as he was. Besides, Hal didn't have the energy.
The two of them headed down the hallway with Sinestro helping Hal to limp along. It was slow going.
There was something Hal needed to clear up and he gripped his fingers tightly into Sinestro's shoulder. "You don't have to thank me," he impressed upon Sinestro, tripping and stumbling along. "That's not why I - Hey!"
Without breaking stride, Sinestro had scooped Hal into his arms, bridal style, and taken off. Admittedly, it was a whole lot faster than walking but Hal hadn't forgotten how to move himself.
"Is there an issue?" Sinestro asked, as though he couldn't understand why Hal was suddenly whacking him on the arm to try and make him let go.
"There is," Hal snapped. "I feel like a two-year-old. Put me down!" Again, he whacked Sinestro on the arm. Again, it had no effect.
It was probably a good thing that Sinestro hadn't let go. If Hal was dropped, he'd be in a lot more pain and he didn't really want to hurt Sinestro. He just hated being such a burden on his friend.
"Ah, yes." Sinestro wasn't impressed. "Naturally I should take your 'feelings' into account while trying to save both of our lives." An annoyed bite harshened Sinestro's tone in a way it hadn't before. "It was either this or dying."
With his words, Sinestro painted a vivid image, one that brought Hal up short. The last thing he wanted was to be the cause of Sinestro's death.
Lips pressed tightly together, Hal fell silent. Not a moment later, two aliens rushed into view. They had guns too, probably loaded with yellow bullets like the one still inside Hal, and they were blocking the hallway.
Barely did Hal have time to react before Sinestro sprang up into the air. A barrage of bullets were fired, splitting with sound and motion the air Sinestro had just vacated. Then Sinestro smashed through the ceiling and bits of debris crashed into the ground on top of it all.
Interested, Hal strained himself to look down at the ground rapidly falling away. There was a giant hole in the roof of the building within which was a glimpse of the two enemy aliens who were looking very unhappy. It could've been because they'd lost the two Green Lanterns, or because of the destroyed ceiling. Either way, they were promising retribution.
Not sure how he should be feeling, Hal blinked and focused on Sinestro again. "You broke their ceiling," he said. It was a little surprising.
"Yes," Sinestro agreed, very smug about it. "I did indeed." Not a trace of regret was found in him.
It had Hal laughing which was a big mistake. When his side flared with pain, the laugh transformed to a weak cough and even after the wheezing had stopped, the pain wouldn't die down. It hurt and all Hal wanted to do was release his control over it and cry out until it was gone.
All that escaped was a small sound. One syllable and that was it. Vague lightheadedness was fogging over Hal's mind and when he tried to shake it off, he only ended up shuddering and feeling more woozy than before. Everything was just awful and every breath was a challenge. He couldn't possibly go on.
Something was weighing on Hal's eyelids like they were made of lead but if he let them fall, he had the unnerving sensation he wouldn't be able to crawl back out of sleep. His head dropped onto Sinestro's shoulder as he fought to stay conscious.
Every few seconds, Hal was wrenching his eyes wider open and fighting with the blurriness that wanted to consume him. It was Sinestro he tried to focus on, the only thing to make him smile.
Stuck in that pained state, Hal's mind was being affected. Any inhibitions slipped away from him just as if he'd been drunk.
For Sinestro to fly faster, Hal had to get closer to him. It was to do with reducing air resistance, and physics and flight, none of which applied in the vacuum of space but Hal was prepared to use any excuse that let him wrap his arms around Sinestro's neck and snuggle closer.
One of Hal's fingers traced over the unusual pointed tip of Sinestro's ear and his nose brushed Sinestro's chin. "Have I ever told you how pretty you are?" he murmured, looking up.
After a long pause, Sinestro's answer was curt and professional. "Not that I recall." It did not invite Hal to pursue the subject further.
Dejectedly, Hal stuck out his lower lip and lowered his gaze. His hand dropped back onto Sinestro's shoulder where it rested without moving.
A few seconds passed and Hal's fingers were moving again because if he held still, he was just going to fall asleep. The angle of Sinestro's collarbone was sharp beneath his touch. Green energy glimmered under his fingertips, shifting and shining and hiding Sinestro's skin from view.
Though it wasn't the time, Hal was thinking about the bare touch of Sinestro's skin and what it would feel like on his. The smooth silk would have been fantastic if Sinestro had wanted it too.
Tired and hopeless, Hal let his hand fall. "Thaal..." His dry mouth was by Sinestro's ear and his heart was pounding in his ears. "You are very pretty."
Then Hal yawned. As much as he was able to in Sinestro's arms, he nuzzled into Sinestro's neck. Still, he couldn't allow himself to sleep. Despite knowing the folly of it, Hal reached out again and his fingers found the curve of Sinestro's lips. White gloves contrasted against coloured skin. Sinestro was an enchantment.
It was quiet and Sinestro was tense but didn't make any move to push Hal away. He might've been concentrating on flying, or he might not have been bothered by Hal touching him at all.
Instead of wondering himself in circles about it, Hal just asked, "Am I bothering you?"
If Sinestro did reject him, Hal would absolutely withdraw at once. For the moment though, he let his fingers continue to explore, trailing them over Sinestro's jawline so Hal could admire the strong bone structure.
"You... are not thinking clearly." Sinestro didn't mention whether he liked it or not. "Restrain yourself."
Without complaint, Hal did as he was told. Sinestro might've been right to question his mental state. Between his wound and his closeness to Sinestro, he wasn't thinking clearly. That didn't mean he wasn't completely sincere.