Chapter Text
Lup was taking a rare day off from decoding the mongoose language with Taako and Barry. She enjoyed spending time with them but she was starting to get restless doing the same thing every day. She needed something new. Besides, it seemed like she would be stuck living with this crew for awhile now. It was about time she got to know them.
Since she isn’t doing field work today she allows herself to sleep in a little. By the time she’s dressed and ready for the day she finds Magnus sitting on the couch, lost in thought as he absently carves away at a chunk of wood in his hands.
“Magnus,” she says. Magnus startles and whips around to look at her, finally noticing her standing there.
“Oh, hey Lup,” he greets. “I thought you’d be out doing research by now.” Lup shrugs.
“Nah I’m taking a break today,” she says. “I was gonna go on a walk though. Do a little exploring. You should come. I feel like we don’t hang out enough.” Magnus considers this for a moment.
“Will Lucretia be ok on her own here though?” he asks.
“Taako and Barry aren’t that far away. They can help her if she needs it,” she says dismissively.
“Ok, then let’s go,” he says, setting carving aside.
The two of them head out to wander into the forest, waving goodbye to Taako and Barry as they pass them. It’s awkward at first. They hadn’t spent enough time together yet for conversation to come easily. Not only that, but Magnus seemed to be distracted today. His eyes look distant as they walk. But Lup could never stand the silence for long.
“So, what’s on your mind big guy?” she asks.
“Oh, it’s nothing really,” he deflects. His hand comes up to rub anxiously at the back of his neck. It’s obvious that she’s being lied to.
“Are you sure? Cause it kinda seems like it might be something,” she prompts. Magnus looks at her for a moment before sighing in defeat.
“I guess I’ve just been thinking about the day we left,” he admits.
“Oh,” Lup says quietly. She should have expected that. Magnus seemed like he had a big heart. Of course he was still having trouble dealing with what happened. She was still struggling with it herself.
“Yeah,” he says, matching her tone. He seems more closed off now. It was something she wasn’t used to from him. Of all of the crew, Magnus was the most easy going. Seeing him like this was unsettling.
“I just—I don’t know how we’re supposed to move on from this, you know? We saw our whole world be consumed in seconds. Everyone we’ve ever known is gone. How are we supposed to ever be ok again after that?”
Silence hangs heavily between them for a moment as Magnus takes a steadying breath.
“I think it’s different for me and Taako,” Lup confesses. “I mean, what happened was horrible don’t get me wrong, but...we never had anyone down there. It’s always just been the two of us bouncing from place to place. This is kind of business as usual for us. I hate that all those people died, but we didn’t lose anything because of it. I’m guessing that’s not true for you?”
Magnus shakes his head no.
“Did you have family down there?” she asks gently. He nods.
“I had my mom,” he confesses. “She did everything in her power to help me go on this mission, even though it scared her. She made me promise a hundred times that I’d come home safe to her. And now she’s gone and I never will.”
He pauses for a moment, trying to regain his composure.
“And I had friends too. From the institute and from home. They were some really good people, and in seconds they were all gone. We didn’t even do anything about it. We didn’t even try. Some of them had even signed up for this mission. They could have made it out. And instead I—“ Magnus’ voice broke off as he started crying in earnest. He presses the heels of his hands into his eyes, trying in vain to stem the tears.
Lup gently pulls them from his face and squeezes them in her own. Magnus squeezes hers back and gives her a small grateful smile.
“Listen, Magnus. You can’t blame yourself for what happened. It was horrible and tragic but it wasn’t your fault. There wasn’t anything we could have done,” she says.
Magnus’ crying still wouldn’t relent. At a loss for what to do, she dragged him down by his hands into a tight hug. He had to hunch over to make it work, but soon his face was buried in her shoulder as he wept.
“I know Mags, I know,” she murmured. “I wish we could have helped them too. But we’re still here and we’re gonna do our best to be ok. We’re gonna protect each other and build a new home and do everything in our power to keep this one safe.”
Magnus’ breathing begins to even out again as she speaks. When he finally pulls away from her his eyes are puffy and his face is soaked with tears. Still, he manages to give her a small smile.
“Thank you Lup. You’re right, I’m really grateful I still have you guys at least. And we’re gonna be ok, right?”
“Right,” Lup confirms with a decisive nod of her head. “Oh and Magnus? You gotta talk to one of us about this kind of stuff. Don’t just try to bottle it up and pretend your ok.”
“I’ll do my best,” he promises.
“Good. Now let’s head back to the Starblaster and do some training. You’re never gonna beat the Power Bear if you keep slacking off,” Lup teases.
Magnus laughs and allows himself to be dragged by the hand back towards the ship. And for the first time since they’ve left their home world, he starts to feel like things are going to be ok.