Archive of Our Own

20. 

Lewis didn’t even think about it until later, much later, years even, when he was dead and gone and yet somehow alive at the same time. The memory was unbidden, at the most inopportune time, when blood stained his hands and the almost lack of breath reached his ears. When he would think about this moment later, surrounded by too white halls and the beeping of a heart monitor, he would almost find it funny how it all began.

Almost

It was his last year of college, and he and Arthur were sharing an apartment, as one dropout with no money to his name and the other crippled by mountains of debt were to do. It was a few months Before Vivi, a time when bad jokes and junk food ran rampant through these hallowed walls.

Lewis had stumbled from his room, rubbing his face as his bleary eyes attempted to pick out the ratty couch that sat in the middle of the living room.

He made it to the kitchen without bumping into anything, which he considered a huge victory considering out hung over he was. Perhaps he would rethink his vow to never drink again, as his pounding head thrummed with a million little men jackhammering away at his skull. 

He stood in front of the fridge, staring at it and wondering if he had the strength to lift an arm to open it. Maybe, if he concentrated and the construction workers would take their ten minute break, he could simply will the door open.

A loud crash made him wince and he slowly turned around. Arthur staggered away from a fallen kitchen chair, nearly falling as he tripped over his feet. Lewis watched in an almost still drunken stupor as the blond lazily wind milled his arms, eyes wide.

It seemed to happen in slow motion, and his boxer-clad buttocks hit the floor with all the grace of a newborn foal. His torso followed suit, and when he was a pile of arms and legs on the cool tiled floor, Lewis stared as he just sort of… accepted his demise and lay still.

After a long moment, where Lewis watched his roommate and Arthur seemed intensely fascinated by the patterns on the ceiling, Lewis felt the urge to say something, anything.

So he let out a soft grunt in greeting and returned to his stare down with the refrigerator.

It was a good thing Arthur was his roommate, his best friend, because the blond didn’t even hesitate before returning with an extremely articulate groan. 

The fridge seemed to be winning this battle, and so Lewis merely admitted defeat, vowing to win the war at a later date and shuffled slowly over to a chair. He pulled it out, the feet squeaking loudly on the floor and he flinched.

He sat down immediately, his head throbbing something fierce when a wadded up paper towel flew by his head a few feet off target. He looked over at Arthur to see the blond hadn’t moved. 

“Really?” Lewis croaked softly, trying so hard not to upset the little miners in his head.

Arthur smirked lightly, blinking owlishly. “You made a loud noise.”

“You’re a loud noise,” Lewis muttered, slumping in his seat. He stared at his hands, wondering idly if there was something wrong with the way they seemed to be moving. His vision looked like static on a TV.

“Just stop talking,” Arthur sighed.

“Do you remember what happened last night?” Lewis asked. 

“Mmmm, nope,” Arthur whispered. “Just the keg.”

“Why did we think that was a good idea again?” 

“Dunno.” 

“It was your idea.” 

“I take it back.”

“I think it’s too late for that.”

Arthur rolled his head on the floor to look up at him, and immediately sat up, his eyes wide and scared.

“Hey, do you think we managed to enter into the television?” Lewis asked him.

He saw Arthur’s panicked face and his muddled brain frizzled that something was wrong, something was very wrong. He just simply lacked any reason at the moment to wonder what it could be. 

So he simply blinked at his friend, who continued to stare with growing horror.

Arthur gulped and raised a hand, pointing with a trembling arm at Lewis’ head.

Like a dream in a heavy fog, Lewis put his own hand to the top of his head. He felt something stiff and sticky, and when he pulled it away and looked at it, it was covered in red flakes.

He stared at it, blinking, and something in the back of his brain shouted warning sirens, but the constructor workers ignored it and continued on their work day. 

“Huh,” he said. “I don’t remember dying my hair.”

“Oh my God,” Arthur exclaimed softly. He scrambled to get up and hurried to Lewis, who watched him blearily.

Arthur grabbed his head and tugged, and Lewis winced as pain flared in his temple.

“Lewis, we need to go to the hospital.”

The kitchen swam around him, and Lewis vaguely recalled something about head injuries. But it was lost as Arthur’s hands trembled on his head and his neck suddenly felt like rubber. Cotton was shoved in his ears and Arthur’s terrified voice washed over him, his panicked face the last thing he saw before the static fully took over and the TV turned off.

To be honest, not his proudest moment. They never did find out what happened that night, but Arthur was rightfully scared. The doctors had given him painkillers and a bunch of other medications, and Arthur had to wake him every hour for two days to make sure he didn’t slip into a coma, but Lewis didn’t remember any of that.

It was the first time he had ever seen Arthur truly scared.

It wouldn’t be the last.

Looking back, with the song of a million life-saving machines echoing around him, the stillness a loud, overbearing weight on his shoulders, he wondered if it were ironic that it came to this.

As it began with blood, so did it end.

19.

Lewis awoke to black and purple. 

He stared up the wooden plank above him, wondering, exactly, what happened. He didn’t remember much, mostly colors and emotions. Green and fear. Blue and calm. Red and curiosity. Orange and betrayal. 

The last one really hit home, sent a fire flowing through him. He remembered orange being fun, orange being joy, orange being friendship. He wondered, briefly, where the deception came from, why green and orange swirled and became an ugly color that meant only ugly things.

He raised a hand to push at the wood in front of him, pausing when stark white stood out against the darkness. He stared, twisting his wrist, flexing his fingers. Something tugged at him to remember, something sharp and painful and right in the middle of his chest, but he couldn’t focus, the darkness was too much. 

Maybe if he saw light, he’d be able to think.

So he pushed at the plank and rose, somewhat unsurprised as he found himself in a black coffin. He stared, purple floating around him and a hum in the air. He felt a cold beat near his chest and he glanced down, an orange heart beating with the tune.

He stared at it, confused as to why the color of all his negativity would be so close to him. 

“It is because you are not finished,” a breathy voice whispered. 

Lewis looked up, catching a purple specter watching him before disappearing.

“With what?” he asked, only slightly surprised at how his voice echoed.

A whirl of air surrounded him, warmth enveloping him and he felt comforted in a way he didn’t know how. His heart briefly turned a nice blue, and he felt a flicker of love surround him before it was gone.

Outside, an orange van rolled over a hill, and his heart thrummed loudly, his eyes narrowed, and purple heat filled him. He was bombarded with anger, confusion, despair, treachery all at once.

His fury flew about, and the van came to a slow stop in front of the house that he didn’t even know existed.

The feelings only intensified when the scrawny orange man was dumped in front of him.

Purple misted around him, whispering.

“It’s his fault.”

“This is the cause of your demise.”

“You are here because of him.”

“His fault.”

“You can finish him.”

“His fault.”

“Take your revenge.”

“His fault.”

“You can kill him now.”

“His fault.”

“He took away everything from you.” 

“His fault.”

“Kill him.”

“His fault.”

“KILL HIM.”

“HIS FAULT.”

He was bombarded with memories. Green mist. A cliff. Surprise, fear, pain, hurt, deceit, pain, falling, pain, betrayal, shock, so much pain and betrayal and he remembered.

The man he thought was his friend, pushing him over the edge and watching with a sinister half smile as he plummeted towards the spikes below.

That orange and green swirled again, and all the feelings emerged in the end of his finger as he pointed at Arthur.

The man terrifyingly pointed at himself, as if he wasn’t sure that’s where Lewis was indicating. In response, Lewis let his flames emerge, and Arthur paled, scuttled to his feet and turned and ran, like the coward that he was.

“HIS FAULT.”

“KILL HIM.”

Lewis took off after him.

“HIS FAULT!” 

“KILL HIM!”

He had him now, chased the man into a dead end corner. He approached slowly, fully intending to extract his revenge upon the man who had killed him, when the warmest shade of blue stepped in front of him.

His heart matched the color, the beat of love, as he stared into her eyes, and he remembered everything. His heart pulsed with anticipation as he let it drift into Vivi’s loving hands.

It was shattered as she pulled away, Arthur dragging her down the hall. 

“HIS FAULT!” 

“KILL HIM!" 

He let out a roar and set off, but they managed to escape in that cursed van, Arthur’s terrified expression only sending Lewis into more of a rage.

He had had him, right there, frozen with horror.

He vowed to make sure Arthur never forgot that fear, right then and there.

18.

After Lewis met Vivi, and she officially moved in with them, a lot of things changed. 

The first was that their apartment, which had been previously cluttered with empty beer cans, Arthur’s cigarette butts, newspapers, and dirty dishes, ceased to exist. Instead, it was filled with stacks of books, research strewn everywhere about all kinds of supernatural.

Lewis chuckled as Arthur kicked at a pile on the coffee table, beer in one hand and cigarette in the other. The blond scowled.

“Vivi!” he called. “Where’s my ashtray?”

“I put it away,” Vivi called from the kitchen table, face illuminated in the dark by the light of her laptop. 

Arthur groaned. “Why?” 

“You said you were quitting!”

“No,” Arthur replied, frowning. “Lewis told you I was quitting. Which is completely wrong, by the way.”

“It’s bad for your health,” Lewis defended. He reached over and plucked the beer from his friend’s hand, taking a swig. 

Arthur made a face at him and stuck the smoke stick between his lips. “That was mine.”

“Technically, it’s Vivi’s,” Lewis corrected.

“True,” Vivi affirmed from the other room.

Arthur shoved another pile of books off the table in response. Vivi looked up from her computer and glared at him.

He shrugged and Lewis smirked as he took another sip, handing it back to Arthur. The blond removed his cigarette and downed the beer easily, Vivi watching in disapproval.

“You’re going to send yourself to early grave,” she tutted. 

“Better than living in this dump.”

“You love this dump,” Lewis admonished. He frowned when Arthur paled. “What?”

“I would love it a whole lot more if they didn’t show up all the time.” Arthur pointed behind Lewis, hand trembling. Ash fell from his cigarette and landed on the floor.

Turning, Lewis was met with a floating specter watching them. Vivi gasped excitedly and the ghost, an old, wizardly man with a beard, turned to look at her.

That was the other thing that came with Vivi. Spirits tended to follow her home from work occasionally. Most of the time, they were harmless, lost wandering souls, completely innocuous. Vivi usually helped them cross over and everything went back to normal without a hitch. 

Other times, the spirits were not so nice. Demons happened more times than Lewis would like to admit, and poltergeists took up residence in their home a lot more than necessary most times.

Vivi didn’t mind; it was part of her job as a paranormal investigator, after all. She took it all in with stride, used to these things. Lewis adapted pretty quickly, though he had to admit that he had a mild fascination with the things. 

Arthur, on the other hand, hated it with a fiery burning passion of a thousand suns. Lewis had seem him startle more times than not nowadays. The blond had always hated scary things, preferring action and adventure sci-fi movies and books as opposed to the horror genre that Lewis and Vivi ate up like candy. 

With the ghosts came a nervous Arthur, twitching in ways Lewis hadn’t seen since their childhood days.

Arthur despised the things, but he put up with it like a trooper. He knew how much the stuff meant to Vivi, and how much Vivi meant to Lewis, and so he held his tongue, keeping his more inner thoughts quiet.

(Besides, Arthur mostly detested them because he claimed they didn’t make sense.

“They’re dead and yet still able to somehow live at the same time!”

“It’s okay, Art.”

“No, Lewis. It’s really not. They don’t follow the rules of logic.” 

“Let it go, Arthur.” 

“I can’t! Explain to me how something nonliving can be living at the same time!”)

The ghost that was currently in their apartment, however, was innocent. Within seconds, Vivi was up and mumbling something. The spirit turned into a shimmering white orb and floated through the roof. 

“Will you keep those things away from this place?” Arthur scowled, still paler than usual. 

“Oh, stop,” Vivi replied, coming around the front of the couch and standing before the boys. “That one wasn’t that bad.”

“I don’t want them here, though!” Arthur exclaimed, raising his hand to his lips and taking a drag on his cigarette.

In a flash, Vivi snatched the thing out of his grip, threw it on the floor, and snuffed it out with her heel. Lewis stifled a grin at the look on Arthur’s face. Vivi smirked triumphantly down at him.

“Vivi!” Arthur whined, looking up at her. “That was my last one!”

“Good,” she said. “Now maybe you’ll take this quitting thing seriously.”

With a huff, the blond sat back in his seat, beer splashing out over the neck of his bottle and landing on the couch cushion. He muttered under his breath.

Vivi grinned and leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “I’m doing it for your own good. Those things will kill you.”

“You’re going to kill me,” Arthur mumbled as Vivi turned to peck Lewis’ lips.

“Please, Arthur,” Lewis said, reaching over and grabbing the beer from his hand again. “None of us are going to kill the others, stop being over dramatic.”

17.

Lewis was a patient man. Ghost. Spirit. All of the above. He was a regular saint when it came to patience, years of practice under his belt and then some.

So he waited. He waited and he waited, and then sure enough, not but a few hours later, that all too familiar van pulled back up in front of his mansion. He stood at the window, watching as Vivi, his beautiful blue Vivi, climbed down from the drivers seat. Mystery hopped down after her, and Lewis was surprised that he had even forgotten the little dog to begin with.

But that all changed when Arthur, still clad in that stupid orange vest, rounded the front of the van.

The emotions were back as soon as Lewis saw him, and flames began to spread. They only grew as the trio approached the door.

When they opened it, they were greeted by the sight of Lewis surrounded by purple fire, specters of the same color on either side of him.

“You’ve returned,” he said menacingly, taking pride in the way Arthur moved to hide behind Vivi. Mystery didn’t growl at him, a curious thing, but rather he sniffed cautiously, coming to stop before him a few feet away. 

He glanced down at the dog, who had his ears back, but not pinned. They flickered to Lewis every once in a while.

“Lewis,” Vivi whispered.

Lewis’ head whipped up at her soft-spoken word. She was staring at him, all traces of recognition clear on her face. 

“You remember me,” Lewis said.

Vivi nodded and took a step forward. Arthur grabbed her hand, stopping her.

“Vivi, no,” he breathed.

The flames licked closer to the two humans and Arthur jumped, letting go of Vivi’s hand. She took another step forward, a wall of purple separating her from the blond. Mystery let out a warning growl, but made no other movements.

“You remember me,” Lewis repeated.

“Yes,” Vivi said. She took another step forward. “I… I forgot. For a while I didn’t remember.”

“I know,” Lewis said. “So did I, for a while.”

“But I remember now,” Vivi went on. “I remember you. I remember what happened. I remember you… you dying.”

“I wish you didn’t remember that part.”

A tear slipped out of Vivi’s eye and Lewis reached forward to brush it away. His skeleton hands, too thin and not at all comforting anymore, touched her skin softly. The salty water evaporated when it met his finger, and Vivi raised her own hands, keeping his there.

Lewis cradled her cheek, brushing his thumb over it lightly. His flames dwindled in his calm, his ghostly companions took a step back, their whispers dying in the calm.

After a moment, he floated back, letting his hand fall from her face. She let it go as he reached up and guided his heart, beating a soft blue, into her hands. She cupped her hands around it before gripping it.

Kind warmth, like that of the first spring day after the long, cold winter, enveloped him. He felt the coldness leave him, leached from the tips of his fingers. His heart was safe in her hands, and it beat happily.

The smile she gave him was beautiful even through her tears. 

He returned it softly and reached up, easily creating a chain out of thin air and purple flames and fastened it around her neck. It hung low, right in the middle of her chest, directly next to her own heart. Lewis felt it sync up with the beat of hers like it had been waiting all its life.

Who knows, maybe it had. 

“Keep good care of it,” Lewis whispered.

“I’ll guard it with my life,” Vivi answered, just as soft.

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.” 

Vivi smiled at him. “I just… I don’t understand,” she said.

“Understand what?”

“How are you still here?” Vivi asked.

“Unfinished business,” Lewis growled, eyes flicking over to where Arthur stood watching with terror and awe on his face.

Vivi followed his gaze and frowned. “Arthur? What’s he got to do with this?”

That familiar feeling of rage began to seep back into Lewis and his heart began to hammer erratically.

“Of course he didn’t tell you,” he hissed. Flames began to circle again, curling closer and closer to Arthur, who tried to make himself as small as possible with a yelp. Mystery barked and bared his teeth, growling something fierce as he backed towards the blond.

“Tell me what?” Vivi wondered, eyes wide as she watched. “Lewis, stop.”

Lewis ignored her, allowing his flames to circle closer and closer. Arthur stumbled backwards and tripped. He clenched his eyes shut, holding his arms above his head. Mystery snarled.

“Lewis!”

At Vivi’s cry, Lewis let his flames pause in their advancement. Arthur trembled in his circle, and Lewis reveled at his fear, his ghostly companions singing their praises. 

He turned to his love, who was watching with acute horror.

“What are you doing?" 

“He has to pay,” Lewis told her. “It’s his fault, he has to suffer as I did.”

“What are you talking about?” Vivi asked, eyes wide. “This is Arthur, your best friend! Don’t tell me you forgot him, too!”

“He is no friend of mine!” Lewis shouted, and the purple specters scattered about, whizzing by at impossible speeds.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Vivi cried. “It’s Arthur.”

“You don’t know what he did,” Lewis seethed. “Vivi, he’s dangerous. He’s a menace, and he has to be destroyed!”

“Whoa, whoa, okay,” Vivi exclaimed. “Calm down. Before we make any rash decisions, why don’t you explain.” 

There was a pause, and then Lewis swept out his arm. The ghosts vanished, his flames dwindled, and Arthur peeked out between his arms. Mystery ran to him and stood protectively in front of him, ears still not pinned back but baring his teeth in warning.

Lewis turned to Vivi and pointed at Arthur. “Why don’t you ask the traitor what exactly happened. I’m sure he’d be more than happy to tell you the events that transpired.” 

Vivi turned to her friend. Arthur was still on the ground, trembling arms barely holding him up as his legs refused to work. Lewis glared at him.

“Arthur?”

The blond gulped.

“Tell her!” Lewis commanded angrily.

As heat crept toward the man and he yelped. He sat up, still too afraid to stand. Mystery shuffled closer to him.

“Art, it’s okay,” Vivi said, side-eying Lewis. “Just explain and we’ll talk things out.”

Arthur swallowed again, and Lewis glared at him. Mystery growled.

“Vivi, it’s… it’s complicated…” Arthur whispered. 

“His fault,” ghostly voices echoed around them. Arthur winced.

“Arthur?” Vivi asked, eyes wide.

“I… I…” he stammered. Lewis snapped his fingers and a small flame erupted in his palm. He juggled it up and down, watching as Arthur eyed him with trepidation. “Vivi, I…" 

“Just tell her!” Lewis yelled. 

Mystery barked in warning as Arthur flinched. Vivi placed a hand on Lewis’ shoulder and his anger calmed somewhat.

“I…" 

“His fault,” the ghosts called. 

“That night… in the cave…”

“Say it!”

“I pushed Lewis off the cliff!” Arthur exclaimed, voice too high. 

Beside Lewis, Vivi gasped.

16.

“He’s never gonna agree to it,” Lewis told her as they approached Kingsmen Mechanics, where Arthur worked during the week.

“You just have to present it to him in a manner that’ll make him want it too,” Vivi responded. Mystery bounded ahead of them as they saw Arthur walk around a small car.

The pup barked and Arthur glanced up, his blue mechanic’s outfit stripped to the waist. He had tied the arms around his hips to hold up the pants, his white undershirt stained with grease and car fluids. 

He smiled at them, a huge engine part in his hands that he placed on the ground when he knelt to pet Mystery on the head. The dog’s fur was quickly covered in oil as he rolled over on his back, presenting his stomach, tongue lolling from his mouth.

“Gross, wipe your hands first,” Vivi sniffed as they got closer. “I just gave him a bath and now I’m gonna have to give him another one.”

Lewis bumped her shoulder gently and murmured out of the corner of his mouth. “That’s not the way to go about asking for his help.” 

Vivi scowled and crossed her arms over her chest. Arthur shifted to sit on the ground cross-legged and Mystery crawled into his lap, still demanding belly rubs. Arthur obliged easily as he looked up at them.

“’Sup, guys?” he asked.

“You know, I’m pretty sure that they gave you the jumpsuit so you wouldn’t get grease all over your own clothes,” Lewis grinned.

Arthur looked down at himself before shrugging. “It’s too constricting,” he replied with a small smile. He nodded at the brown paper bag that Lewis was carrying. “What’s that?”

Lewis presented it to him with a flourish. “Lunch a la Mama Castillo.”

The smile on Arthur’s face grew and he opened his mouth to respond when someone called his name from within the shop.

The trio looked towards the source, Arthur craning his neck around to get a good look.

A man dressed in the same jumpsuit as Arthur (though worn correctly, Lewis noticed), stepped outside. He was tall, muscular, also blond and with the scruff of a beard forming. He looked both similar and nothing like Arthur at the same time.

“Arthur, I’m not paying you to sit around and talk with your friends,” he grumbled, shooting a look at Lewis and Vivi. Vivi giggled softly and grinned.

“Hey, Mr. Kingsmen,” Lewis waved with his free hand. He gestured to Arthur on the ground, who was idly playing with Mystery. “My mom made lunch and thought Arthur might like some.”

“Lewis, I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times,” the man said. “Call me Lance.”

Lewis nodded with a grin, and Arthur frowned. “How come I can’t call you Lance?”

“Because,” Lance rolled his eyes. He gently nudged Arthur with his boot. “At home, you’re my nephew, and at work, I’m your boss.”

Arthur pouted. “No fair. Everyone else gets to call you Lance.”

“Yes, because they’re not you.” Lance poked the blonde’s forehead and Arthur yelped. Mystery responded with a bark of his own and Vivi snickered besides Lewis.

“Can I take an early lunch?” Arthur asked, neck bent to gaze up at Lance.

But the older man shook his head. “Sorry, kiddo, we’re swamped today.”

They were losing their window fast, Lewis thought. This would only work if Arthur was preoccupied with his food. 

“Come on, Mr. Kingsmen,” Vivi pleaded, obviously thinking the same thing. “Please?”

“Please, Uncle Lance?” Arthur added. “I’m pretty much caught up already, and I can stay later if need be, no overtime pay.”

Lance scowled. Lewis knew that the man was running a business, but Arthur was also his nephew, his favorite nephew. The blond had been living with him for years before he and Lewis got their apartment together a about a year ago ago. After his parents had kicked him out, Lance had sort of taken him in, and he could barely deny Arthur anything.

He’d fully deny it if ever called out on it, of course.

“Did you fix the coolant link in the Johnson van?” Lance asked.

Arthur nodded.

“What about the alignment in the Kale car?”

Another nod.

“The oil change and tire rotation on Heath’s Mercedes?”

“Yeah.”

“Air conditioner belt in O’Conner’s truck?” 

“Yup.”

“What about the carburetor in Letterman’s pick-up?”

Arthur’s face fell and he glanced at the car part on the ground next to him. His shoulders slumped and he looked away. “No…” he said slowly. “I was… never mind…”

Lewis watched with fascination as Lance’s face fell at the tone Arthur had. The younger man hefted himself up, Mystery whining at his feet when he picked up the part, sighing heavily. Arthur gave Lewis a sad smile.

“Sorry, man,” he said. “Maybe next time.”

He began to walk back into the garage and Mystery let out a small howl, ears drooping as he sat down sadly in the drive.

“Wait.”

Arthur paused, turning to look at his uncle. Lance ran a hand over his face, looking to the sky after a moment before letting his arm drop. 

“Alright, fine, just take your freaking lunch break now,” Lance sighed.

Lewis smiled at the look of pure joy on Arthur’s face as he hurried back to the group. Mystery barked happily, jumping to stand, tail wagging a million times a minute.

Lance held out his hand, gesturing for the part in Arthur’s arms. The blond handed it over and with his free hand, the older man gripped his nephew’s wrist gingerly.

“You get your half hour,” he said, voice leaving no room for argument. “And then, if we’re not finished by the end of the day, you only get paid time-and-a-half, and you come in an hour early tomorrow. Got it?”

Arthur’s head nodded quickly, a huge smile on his face. Lance let go of his arm with a gentle shove.

“Shoo,” he said. “I don’t want to see you back here for thirty minutes, you hear?”

“Thanks, Uncle Lance!” Arthur smiled, waving as he, Lewis, and Vivi headed to the park across the street to eat at the picnic table. Lance grumbled as he headed back into the shop. Mystery trotted happily besides his favorite human.

Arthur chattered happily as they walked, Lewis handing him the lunch bag. The blond took it, pulling out a cigarette as he went.

“Arthur,” Vivi scowled.

“Hey, it’s only my third one for today!” Arthur defended as he lit it easily. “You said I could have five!” 

As Arthur and Vivi squabbled, Lewis smiled. He was sure that Arthur had no idea that he had so much influence over the people who cared about him.

15. 

Lewis listened with unimpressive boredom as Arthur told Vivi everything that had happened, from the moment they entered the cave up until he pushed Lewis off the cliff.

“And I couldn’t feel my arm, couldn’t control it, and there was a voice in my head and then suddenly I… I pushed Lewis off and Mystery… he bit off my arm and… and then I was in the hospital…”

“Liar,” ghostly echoes said around them.

Arthur winced. Vivi remained silent, her face blank. 

“You lie,” Lewis growled. He threw up a fireball and caught it easily. “Tell the truth.”

“That is the truth!” Arthur exclaimed. “Look, I even have the metal arm to prove it!” He held out his left arm, which Lewis noticed for the first time was made completely of metal. The fire in his hands dwindled slightly. 

“You told me you lost your arm in a shop accident,” Vivi accused, eyes narrowing.

Arthur nodded. “Well, yeah… but you… you didn’t remember the cave and I… I didn’t want to bring up bad memories if you had… you, know… blocked out the whole thing.”

He was standing now, several feet away from Lewis and Vivi. Mystery was still next to the other man, standing close, guarding, eyeing Lewis continuously. Arthur nervously gripped at his metal wrist with his other hand, drawing the artificial limb close to his chest. 

“You’re telling me that you were possessed?” Lewis asked, unbelieving.

“Lies,” the ghosts repeated. 

“Finish him,” they said.

Mystery growled at the voices and Arthur startled, eyes wide.

“No, it’s true,” he tried. “Really! Do you really think I’d hurt you otherwise?” 

“Yes,” Lewis hissed. Flames began to lick around him once more. “Yes, I do.”

“Lewis, you can’t mean that…” Arthur whispered, backing away the closer the ghost got. 

“Oh, I do,” Lewis continued. “You were jealous. Of me and Vivi.” 

The blond was shaking his head rapidly. “No, no, I-”

“You were always jealous of me,” Lewis went on, ignoring Mystery as the dog barked out in warning, moving with the other man. “Always. I had the family, the parents who loved me. I had the girl, I had everything! And you took it from me! If you couldn’t have it, then no one could!”

The look that crossed Arthur’s face was pained. Some part of Lewis, the part that still cared for the man, told him to stop, that he had gone too far. But that part was snuffed out as the anger overtook him.

“No, Lewis, I-”

“Enough!” Lewis shouted, and a burst of heat and flame erupted behind him. Arthur’s pale, terrified face was the only thing he saw. It took up his entire vision, nothing but orange and green and ugly and jealousy and rage and fury. Mystery’s vicious snarls echoed in his head, but he pushed them away. 

And then suddenly, there was blue.

He stopped, pulling up short and calming as Vivi stood before him, a furious glare on her face.

“Stop,” she commanded.

Lewis stared at her, glancing back to a surprised Arthur. The blond looked relieved for a moment.

The moment ended the second Vivi turned around and slapped him across the face. 

His head whipped with the force of the blow and he stood there, frozen for a moment, head to the side where his cheek was already turning pink. Mystery ducked his head, looking confused and as small as possible.

Lewis saw Arthur blink. He himself was surprised, unsure of what to do. One half of him wanted to hurt Arthur himself, cause him pain by his own hand. The other half was more than content to let Vivi handle this; she was a menace when angry.

The fact that Arthur was on the receiving end of her ire was satisfying.

It took a moment, but Arthur raised his flesh hand to gingerly touch his cheek. He turned back to Vivi, who continued to glower at him. He opened his mouth, as if to speak, but quickly closed it, an accepting look crossing his face.

A pang hit Lewis, a remnant of his old feelings and his blue heart around Vivi’s neck pulsed orange for a single beat. He shook his head, clearing that from his mind.

This was the man who killed him. There was no way he got away with this just because Lewis was feeling sentimental. 

“You’re ridiculous,” Vivi spat, and Arthur flinched. Mystery let out a soft whine. “I can’t believe you would do something like this! I thought we were friends, Arthur! I thought you were better than this!”

The blond glanced away, but in the direction of Lewis. His eyes widened when they met, and Lewis nearly growled before Arthur looked the other way. 

“That was for not telling me,” Vivi snarled. “For making me think that I had done something wrong.”

Arthur’s lip downturned in a sorrowful frown. He focused his gaze on the ground.

“I could hit you again,” Vivi said. “I want to hit you again.”

Arthur stiffened and Mystery looked even more confused. Lewis felt a smugness take hold, floating a few inches off the ground; this was better than taking care of things himself. Vivi was a force to be reckoned with.

Vivi lowered her hand. “But I’m not going to do that.”

Lewis stared as the love of his life (afterlife?), took a few steps forward and wrapped her arms around Arthur’s torso.

Arthur seemed just as shocked, cringing away before freezing in her hold. His arms were pinned to his sides, his eyes wide. Mystery’s ears went up and he cocked his head, curiously.

“This is for everything else,” Lewis heard her whisper.

The blond looked awkward, unable to do anything with his arms. He gulped, looked down at Vivi, then raised his eyes to locked on an annoyed Lewis. The other man opened his mouth to speak, but when Lewis turned his glare on him, he snapped it shut with a click. 

After a long moment, Vivi let Arthur go. She stepped back and stuck her hand in his own, and Lewis zoned in on the action. He gave the blond a dirty look, but Vivi frowned. 

“Lewis,” she said harshly.

“It’s a trick,” the ghostly voices whispered. 

“It’s a trap." 

“He’s lying.”

“Vivi,” Lewis said instead, ignoring the others for now. “You can’t honestly believe him.” 

Vivi gave Arthur a quick look, then turned back Lewis determinately. She nodded once. “I do.”

The words rang out like a beacon and Arthur sagged a bit. Lewis narrowed his eyes, staring, a different meaning of the phrase echoing in his head. Words that should be said to him, and now they never would.

Because of the man before him.

His vision began to turn pink and purple, disregarding everything else except for the orange before him. It was like tunnel vision, Arthur the light at the end of the tracks.

He just needed to snuff out the light. 

He started forward, flames licking everywhere. Vivi called out to him, Mystery growled, and Arthur looked terrified, as he right well should.

But he also looked resigned, as if he were expecting this. And that, the little voice in the back of his head screaming agreed, made him stop.

Fire was inches away from Arthur’s face, his ghosts were screeching at him to go on, burn him to a crisp, kill him, finish him, do it-

-when he saw the acceptance in Arthur’s eyes.

He looked sad, miserable almost. He didn’t scream or cry or run, like he normally did. He trembled, yes, because Arthur could never hide his fear, but it was the look in the other man’s eyes that gave Lewis pause. 

The tunnel vision faded and he was aware of his surroundings. Vivi looking like she might cry, Mystery’s eyes glinting dangerously as a growl ripped from his throat. And Arthur, watching him with an acquiescent expression, his knees shaking but locked with a stubborn determination.

Lewis let his flames fade, and took a step back.

14.

Once, a few months after Vivi moved in, Arthur came back to the apartment with a haunted look on his face.

Lewis and Vivi were curled up on the couch under a blanket, Mystery stretched out over their laps. There was a horror film on, the sound muted, not an uncommon occurrence.

What was uncommon was the way Arthur had taken one look at the screen, blanched, and rushed to his room, shutting the door behind him. Lewis heard the lock click and he turned to glance at the door, frowning.

“What’s his problem?” Vivi had asked.

Lewis had shrugged, turning back to the TV and finishing the movie.

They didn’t see Arthur for two days before Lewis’ worry levels rose to infinite status that he didn’t think possible. He sighed, holding a box of pizza in his one hand while he knocked on the door with the other.

“Arthur?”

“It’s open,” came the croaked response.

Frowning, Lewis turned the knob and opened the door, entering quietly.

All the lights were off in the room and Arthur was sitting on his bed cross-legged, gazing out the window. He didn’t have much of a view; whereas Lewis’ room overlooked the park across the street, Arthur’s had a direct line to the parking lot.

He glanced at Lewis as the man entered. 

“I brought your favorite,” Lewis told him, lifting the box a little to show Arthur.

Arthur hummed in response, going back to staring at the cars in the parking lot. It was late, the only source of light coming from the lamp in the middle of a sea of cars. It made his pale face seem almost translucent, and Lewis sighed.

“Everything alright?”

“Not really,” Arthur responded with a shrug.

Lewis set the pizza box on the nightstand, shoving off the empty anxiety pill bottles and old comics and cigarette packs before sitting next to Arthur on the bed.

“Wanna talk about it?” he asked. 

“Nope,” he said, popping the “p”. 

“Come on, man,” Lewis tried. “You’re sort of freaking me out with this.”

His only response was a shrug.

Lewis sighed. “You sure?”

“Yup.”

Lewis remained silent, a comforting presence next to his best friend. He knew Arthur carried a lot of baggage and he didn’t like to share on the best of days. But something had happened, and it had obviously shaken him up bad enough to warrant full disclosure from the outside world for a bit.

“Well, I’m here if you ever want to,” Lewis assured.

There was a small pause before Arthur spoke. “Promise?”

Lewis nodded. “I never go back on a promise.”

Arthur sighed, slumping. “Yeah, me neither…” he muttered so softly that Lewis almost didn’t hear him.

In the end, Lewis never found out what had happened.

At least, not from Arthur. 

He heard from Lance a few weeks later. Apparently, Arthur had been on his way to work when the brakes went out on the van. He had swerved in the middle of the road, trying to stop the hunk of rust.

There was a kid on his bicycle on the sidewalk that zipped out just as Arthur turned the wheel. 

The kid never made it.

Arthur had been pretty shaken up. It wasn’t his fault, of course, he couldn’t have predicted the accident would happen. The child’s parents were upset, of course, but they understood what happened and didn’t blame Arthur.

But that didn’t mean that Arthur didn’t blame himself. 

It took him weeks before he would work on the van again, and during that time, Vivi and Lewis had agreed to not mention the Mystery Skulls, for fear of pushing the blond beyond his limits.

It was at least another three months before he sat behind the wheel of any vehicle.

After all, Arthur could never really let things go.

13. 

The van was quiet, Arthur behind the wheel, eyes staring pointedly ahead; he never even looked in the rearview mirror, Lewis noted, where he and Vivi sat. Mystery was asleep besides Arthur, but Lewis could see the dog’s ears twitch every now and then and he knew that the pup was only dozing.

Still, that didn’t mean that Lewis couldn’t continue his silent brooding in the back.

Vivi was pouring over a huge, ancient book. She looked pensive, a thoughtful frown on her face as her eyes danced over the pages in a language that Lewis knew nothing about.

“Okay,” she said. “Looks like you should be okay to stay, so long as you’re anchored to something.”

“How does that explain the mansion then?” Lewis asked. 

“You weren’t bound to the mansion, only the location,” Vivi explained, squinting at the book. “At least, that’s what I think it says. Something about a… a… vase? No, that can’t be right…”

She glanced up at him, and Lewis merely shrugged. He was useless when it came to translating anything other Spanish and the occasional Italian.

“Arthur, what does a ‘vas’ mean?”

“’Vessel’,” was the immediate response. For the first time, he flicked his eyes to the mirror to look back at them. “You need a strong vessel to remain stable in this world.”

“Why wasn’t the mansion a strong enough vessel?” Lewis glared. “It manifested at the place where I died, after all. There can’t be anything stronger than that.”

“Your heart,” Arthur told him with a pained expression. “It’s your love for Vivi. So long as she’s alive and has your heart, you’re not going anywhere unless someone specifically… exorcises you, for lack of a better term.”

Lewis narrowed his eyes and Arthur quickly looked back at the road. Vivi nodded.

“That makes sense,” she said, snapping the book shut and grinning at Lewis. “Don’t worry, babe, I got your heart.” She leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to his skeleton cheek.

He somehow managed to smile at her and she grinned back before turning to the front of the car. She draped her front half over the seat, hands dangling to lightly pet Mystery. He opened an eye at her, stared for a moment, before closing it and settling back down. She turned to the blond.

“Where’re we headed now?” she asked. “We still on board for that haunting in Ohio?”

Arthur ducked his head slightly as Lewis came up besides Vivi. “Actually… I was thinking we might go home?” 

“What?” Vivi screeched. Mystery snapped his eyes open at the sound and Arthur accidently jerked the wheel.

Lewis was just thankful that it was the middle of the night and no one else was around. 

Something tapped at the edge of his mind, trying to remind him of something important, but he couldn’t figure out why it was relevant to the situation.

So Lewis ignored it. 

Quickly, Arthur corrected the van and Vivi gently smacked his shoulder.

“Sorry, sorry!” Arthur yelped. 

“What do you mean you want to go home?” Vivi cried. “We agreed on the asylum in Ohio! We can’t back out now, I took off a week for this!” 

Arthur’s eyes slid over to her briefly before flicking back to the road. “I know…” he said slowly. He took his real hand from the wheel and gently massaged his other shoulder. Lewis tracked the movement with narrowed eyes.

“Then what’s the problem?” Vivi asked. Lewis gently grabbed her waist to keep her from tumbling over the seats. “Lance gave you time off, right?”

“Well, yeah,” Arthur responded, letting his hand return to the wheel. 

“You promised, Arthur,” Vivi accused. “You’re not gonna break that, are you?”

Lewis’ eyes narrowed as Arthur stiffened in his seat and he watched as amber eyes glanced briefly towards him. Arthur snapped back to the road faster than Vivi could catch the motion, but Lewis’ glare returned quickly.

“No, I… I didn’t say that…” Arthur said softly, twisting his hands on the steering wheel. 

“Good, then let’s go!” Vivi grinned and Mystery let out a soft growl at her volume. She giggled and pet his head gently. “Sorry, boy.” 

The dog shifted so that he was lying on his side, head touching Arthur’s thigh and giving Vivi full access to his stomach. She obliged and began to scratch at it, still hanging over the seats. Lewis let go of his hold on her.

The van was silent as the miles flew by, Lewis watching the numbers increase and Vivi slowly slumping over as each one passed. When her eyes began to droop, he smiled softly and carefully gathered her in his arms, settling against the wall of the van.

He caught Arthur watching them in the mirror and, now that Vivi was asleep, resumed his glaring.

Arthur turned his attention back to driving and snapped the radio on. He kept it low, a soft background noise that Lewis almost couldn’t hear. He didn’t recognize the song, but he knew that it wasn’t the hard rock or rap that the blond usually listened to. It was soft, slow, almost like a lullaby and if Lewis could still sleep, he knew that he’d already be dozing off.

As it was, ghosts had no need for sleep. He could, however, drift between consciousness and the barriers of the Other Side. It was as close to dreaming as he’d ever get.

Lewis let his mind wander, strolling along the lines of crossing over while simultaneously sifting through the cracked memories in his own mind.

He remembered almost everything, unlike Vivi, but that didn’t mean that he had remained unscathed. Certain parts of his subconscious were fractured; blurry, vague shapes and colors, like he was behind frosted glass. The sounds were muffled, like he was wearing headphones.

He wondered, idly, how much of it was important.

The memories of Vivi were much clearer, a bright blue tint to them that helped him focus.

For this particular journey, his drifting had decided to take him to the first time he met Vivi.

Arthur was there, of course, shrouded in a menacing green tinge that splintered every time he moved. His form flickered slightly, like a glitch in a game, and Lewis frowned.

The first time he met Vivi, she had, quite literally, fallen into his arms.

Arthur had known her through school, sharing a few of the same college courses. He had mentioned her in passing a few times, but Lewis had never actually met her.

As it happened, the meeting was purely coincidental.

He and Arthur, a duo that many people never questioned, were walking through the graveyard on the way to Lance’s house. They didn’t normally cut through the cemetery, but it was in the middle of the night and snowing, and the path was a shortcut between their houses.

Arthur was not a huge fan of the route, of course. 

So, when Lewis began to wander off, trying to take pictures with his phone of the way the full moon and snow and trees and graves looked, the blond hadn’t been overly enthusiastic.

Lewis was walking along, leaving a shivering and annoyed Arthur leaning against a tree with his arms crossed over his chest, when he came to the bottom of the hill. A set of deer tracks were in the snow and he was intent on finding the animal to grab a quick photo. 

Imagine his surprise when a startle scream reached his ears.

He looked up just in time to be nearly bowled over as a small figure in blue came crashing down the hill and landed on top of him. 

They had both let out surprised yells and backpedaled away from each other in the snow. Arthur came running a few minutes later, looked shocked to see them, and then nearly doubled over laughing from their expressions.

He introduced the two while helping them up, Vivi instantly took a shine to Lewis, and Lewis could feel himself falling faster than Vivi had when she had fallen into his arms.

Which, of course, led to their duo becoming a trio.

Lewis shook himself, focusing back on the present as he felt the van slow, bright lights leaking through the front windshield. He glanced at Vivi, who was still sound asleep, before sitting up more to look out the window.

A gas station sat in front of them and he turned to Arthur with narrowed eyes, suspicious; they’d had almost a full tank at the mansion, there was no need for a fill up so soon. Lewis hadn’t been drifting that long.

Arthur saw the look and frowned, parking in front of the shop. He put the car in park and jerked a thumb at the door.

“Bathroom…” he muttered, squirming a bit in the seat.

“Hold it,” Lewis growled.

The look Arthur gave him was pained. “You’re not serious…”

“Do I look like I’m joking?” Lewis asked. 

“Lewis, come on, man,” Arthur whined. “I’m not gonna do anything, swear. I just gotta go take a piss and grab an energy drink, that’s it.”

“What the energy drink for?”

“Uh, energy?”

“Don’t be a smart ass.”

“Don’t ask stupid questions.”

Lewis felt both angered and at home with the banter they shared. He was sort of thankful that he didn’t have a face any more that could betray his thoughts. Instead, he merely glared at the blond. 

“I’ll be ten minutes, max,” Arthur said. “I’ll leave Mystery here, to make you feel better.”

The ghost remained silent.

“Dude, please,” Arthur begged. “I’m gonna pee my pants.”

“Go,” Lewis commanded. 

The speed at which Arthur lurched from the van was impressive. 

“No funny business!” Lewis whispered harshly before Arthur shut the door.

Arthur nodded and hurried inside. Lewis heard the bell above the door ding as he entered and watched as the other man disappeared to the back where the restrooms were.

Left alone with his thoughts again, Lewis let himself go back to drifting, albeit lightly. He let memories of Vivi, some of Mystery and his family, wash over him. A few of a shadowed Arthur trailing behind him silently; it wasn’t enough to break his concentration on keeping an eye on Arthur, however. 

Which was when the unbidden thought of if you and Vivi became a couple, then what happened to the other third of your trio?

It stopped him cold.

Lewis wondered, for the first time, what it must have been like to have two of his closest friends begin to date, leaving him in the dust.

Arthur climbed back into the van then, a huge can of some brightly colored energy drink already opened in his hand and a packet of cigarettes in the other.

He cast Lewis a quick glance before starting the van back up and pulling back onto the road, not saying a word as he carefully rolled down the window a bit. He snagged a cigarette from the pack and stuck it between his lips, lighting it easily.

The last time he had seen Arthur smoke was a month before the cave.

Lewis shook his head, filing the thought and the previous one away for later as Vivi shifted in his arms. He turned his attention back to her as Arthur turned his own back to the road and their destination. 

Neither spoke.

12.

They pulled up in front of the huge asylum just outside of the college campus and stared at it for a long while, not saying a word.

It was Arthur, as it often was, who voiced his concerns first.

“Maybe this is a bad idea…”

Vivi rolled her eyes. “You think everything is a bad idea.”

Arthur held up a finger. “Not true,” he said. “Oysters on pizza is a great idea. Going to amusement parks is also a great idea. Going home is the best idea ever. Heading into this creepy place? Not so great.”

“Okay, one,” Vivi replied, poking the blond in the chest, “oysters on pizza is a sin and disgusting. Two, you throw up on the spinney rides. Three, going home is not an option and we’re going in; you promised, Lewis can help now, and Mystery’s got our back.” She fondly rubbed the dog’s head.

“Vivi…” Arthur whined, shuffling awkwardly away from her.

“Nope,” Vivi told him. “Come on, Lew.” Without waiting for a reply, she opened the door and jumped down from the van, slamming it closed behind her.

Helplessly, Arthur looked to Lewis and winced when he seemed to remember the other was a ghost.

As predicted, Lewis did not offer any help and merely phased through the wall of the van, staring at Arthur until the blond faded from his sight. He hurried over to Vivi and Mystery, who was looking at the asylum with narrowed eyes and ears pinned back.

Perhaps that should have been the first indicator.

As it was, no one commented on the behavior and Lewis heard the driver’s side door of the van squeak open and then close. There was a moment of nothing before Arthur’s shuffling gait padded to join them.

They all gazed up at the huge building, the red bricks and white accents surprisingly in good condition. 

It looked merely like the college buildings they had passed on their way there, barely a difference between the two.

At least, on the outside.

“Guys, I’m not sure we should do this…” Arthur whispered from beside Lewis.

The ghost had noticed that he’d been doing that a lot, avoiding almost any and all close contact with Vivi since Lewis had returned.

Not that Lewis was complaining. He’d rather Arthur stick close to him so that if he tried any funny business, Lewis could catch it quickly.

“Of course we should,” Vivi said. “This is one of the most haunted places in the state!”

“And what is that, exactly?” Lewis asked, looking down at the blue-haired girl. 

Her eyes shined excitedly back up at him and Lewis knew that if he still head breath, it would have caught in his throat at her expression.

“Oh, I keep forgetting that you don’t know,” she said. “Welcome to The Ridges! It’s supposed to be one of the most haunted places in the lovely state of Ohio!”

“Wouldn’t call it lovely,” Arthur muttered, pulling his vest tighter around his frame. Lewis ignored him. 

“It closed in 1993 and is said to be haunted by the spirits of the ill-treated patients that were victims during their stay,” Vivi continued. 

“What happened?” Lewis ventured.

“All sorts of stuff,” Vivi explained. “Crazy people, driven to the brink of insanity.”

“Lobotomies,” Arthur added quietly, and Lewis turned to look at him. The blond was staring at the building with a curious frown. “Electroshock therapies, ice water baths, experimentations.” 

Vivi nodded. “There’s a cemetery for the people, but most of the graves are unmarked because no one would claim the patients as their family members. Since there were no funeral arrangements, the asylum just sort of dumped them in there.”

“That’s horrible…” Lewis murmured, and his eyes narrowed to Arthur, who took a half-step away.

“I know. There’s even a specific place that’s said to be a witches’ meeting point!” Vivi said with a gleam in her eyes. “But that’s not even the best part!”

“Here we go…” Arthur sighed, hunching his shoulders and jamming his hands into his vest pockets.

“There was a woman named Margaret Schilling who disappeared while she was a patient here. They say that she had been playing hide and seek with the nurses, who never found her.  At least, not until over a month later when her naked body was discovered in a separate part of the building.

“Sounds sort of… atrocious…” Lewis said.

“Sounds awful,” Arthur agreed quietly.

“Sounds awesome!” Vivi exclaimed. She stepped forward and turned back to them, hands on her hips and a triumphant look on her face. “Alright, guys, let’s get this show on the road!”

With a groan, Arthur reluctantly followed her, Mystery a silent shadow at his side that Lewis wondered about as he floated behind them; the dog had always favored Arthur over Lewis, sometimes even Vivi, but ever since Lewis’ return, Mystery seemed more defensive and protective of the blond than usual.

It made him curious, and as Vivi made quick work of the locked door, Lewis was almost reminded of how things used to be, before the… before.

That is, until the door swung open and Lewis was assaulted with the sight of dozens of spirits wandering aimlessly, dead eyes and grey, unbeating hearts pinned to their fronts.

11. 

The first time Lewis had seen a ghost, a real, proper ghost, he was twenty years old and living in the shared apartment with Arthur (and, by extension now, Vivi).

It was nothing too bad, just a wandering spirit that had followed Vivi home after she went scouting in the graveyard. She quickly took care of the lost soul and all was normal in the end.

Lewis was fascinated, and a little endeared, by Vivi’s enthusiasm with them. After that, he had asked all sorts of questions, eagerly reading everything that Vivi gave him on the subjects. He began to tag along with her on her ghost hunts, quickly learning everything he could about the specters and demons and all the other things that existed.

Arthur had not been so thrilled at the prospect, nor was he happy about the occasional spook that came home with them.

The look he had on his face at the current moment was identical to the one when he had first seen the ghost in their apartment.

Only increased tenfold.

Mystery sidestepped closer to him and Arthur nearly jumped out of his skin when the dog’s tail brushed against his leg.

“Whoa, relax, Arthur,” Vivi said, setting a hand on his shoulder. “Everything’s gonna be fine.”

“Yeah, sure,” the blond stammered. He gestured to the ghosts floating lazily in front of them, acting like the newcomers didn’t exist. “You just tell that to the twenty-seven ghosts in the room.”

“Please, there’s at least thirty,” Vivi scoffed. She took a quick step into the hall, easily dodging the specters as they coasted by. Lewis reached out to stop her, snapping his hand back when one came too close.

“This is so cool!” she cried quietly. Her eyes traveled everywhere, trying to take everything in as she wandered around the room. “Guys, look!”

“Yeah, we see, Vi,” Arthur whispered. “We came, we saw, can we go now?”

As much as Lewis hated to admit it, he had to agree with Arthur on this. He nodded once. “Vivi, maybe we should go…” He was getting some seriously malignant vibes coming from further in the asylum.

“You’re both party poopers,” Vivi stuck her tongue out at them. “Look, they don’t even know we’re here.”

It was true. The ghosts still didn’t acknowledge them, barely sparing them a glance as they floated amongst each other. 

That didn’t make Lewis feel any better. 

“Besides,” Vivi said, walking backwards down a hall. “We haven’t even found the thing yet!” And with that, she turned and ran into the dark corridor.

“Vivi!” Lewis cried as the black swallowed her up. A panic seized his chest where his heart would be and a faint blue light pulsed where Vivi had been previous. Without thinking, he rushed after it, narrowly avoiding the ghosts as they traveled back and forth.

“Hey, wait-Lewis!” Arthur’s shout echoed and Lewis could hear footsteps after him. 

He reached Vivi in record time, the girl lazily walking down the hall like she knew exactly where she was going.

“Vivi!” Lewis said, coming around in front of her to stop her progress. “Don’t do that!” 

She grinned at him. “Why?”

“I just got you back,” Lewis told her. “You can’t go running off like that again.”

“Aw, Lew, that’s sweet,” Vivi responded, patting his chest. She then tapped the heart around her neck. “You’ve got me forever now, buddy boy. You’re stuck with me, whether you like it or not.”

The heart pulsed once and Lewis felt relieved. It was true, so long as Vivi had the heart, everything would be fine. He’d be able to find her no matter what. 

“Yeah, that’s great, have a heart to heart while your friend nearly sprains an ankle trying to catch up,” Arthur’s voice echoed and Lewis lit a small purple fire in his hands, lighting up the hall.

Arthur hurried to the pair, Mystery trailing quietly. His eyes gleamed in the low light and Lewis wondered, not for the first time, what, exactly, that meant.

“Oh, you’re fine, you big puffy cheeto,” Vivi smiled. “But! Since we’re already this far in, better finish what we came here to do, right?”

Lewis groaned. “This was your plan all along wasn’t it.”

“I assure you, I have no idea what you’re talking about.” 

“Uh huh.” 

“I hate you,” Arthur whimpered. “I hate you so much.”

“Not as much as I hate you, I can promise you that.”

Lewis ignored the pained expression on Arthur’s face and the heavy sigh that escaped him. Mystery growled slightly, ears back as he glared at Lewis.

“Boys,” Vivi scolded lightly. She reached over and grabbed Arthur’s hand, pulling him forward.

Lewis watched with narrow eyes, but Vivi paid no mind. She turned to Lewis.

“Keep that light up, it makes everything creepier.”

“Yeah, because that’s just what we want,” Arthur grumbled, and Vivi gave him a sharp tug that had him yelping and stumbling after her. 

“Come on, I want to go to the top floor,” she said, leading them down another hall.

“Why?” Lewis asked.

“Because,” Vivi explained, “That’s where the real story of Margaret Schilling is. Apparently, when they found her body, she had neatly folded her clothes nearby. And there’s a stain on the ground that outlines where her body was that keeps reappearing no matter how many times people paint over it.”

“Wonderful,” Arthur muttered. Lewis glared at him and the blond frowned. “Uh, Vivi, you can let me go now…”

The girl did so without question, not stopping in her path as she peered through a window and pushed a rusty door open.

Lewis and Arthur, Mystery bringing up the rear, followed obediently.

That was when the first scream happened. 

Arthur stopped in his tracks, hand coming to grip his metal wrist that Lewis realized was a nervous tick. Lewis, feeling a slight pang, increased the light that he allowed and the room they had just entered brightened a little more. 

“I think it came from the basement…” Vivi whispered.

“Great,” Arthur said, just as quietly. “Let’s not go down there.”

In response, as Lewis knew she would, Vivi made a complete one-eighty degree turn and strode back the way they came, heading down a different hall that Lewis could only assume led to the basement.

“You’re trying to kill me, Vivi,” Arthur whimpered as he followed.

“No, that’d be me,” Lewis said so that the girl couldn’t hear.

10.

For Arthur’s eighteenth birthday, Lewis threw him a surprise party. 

He kept his friend busy all day while his family prepped and decorated their house for the occasion. They had been more than happy to share in the celebration, and since Arthur was basically family to them anyways, they pulled out all the stops.

So Lewis picked Arthur up in the morning from his house (see: Lance’s house), and they drove into town. Lance gave Arthur a strict order to not return home for the day, giving the boy the full day off. Arthur had resisted, of course, but Lewis promised lunch and a movie and a trip to the hardware shop that Arthur loved so much. 

The blond couldn’t really say no after that.

So they went and Lewis stalled, checking his phone every few hours to make sure they were on schedule with his family. Arthur, for once, didn’t notice; he was having too much of a good time. 

Besides, Arthur was a simpler person than people gave him credit for. Give him a present, and he’d stutter and stammer and insist on giving it back. But take him out or offer to spend some time with him? He’d be there in a heartbeat, no questions asked.

It was sort of sad, Lewis used to think. But it was the perfect way to throw him this party, and Lewis was never one to look a gift alpaca in the mouth.

So when they finally returned to Lewis’ house later that night, Arthur talking excitedly about the new set of tools he bought, Lewis smiled to himself. 

“Dude, where’s your family?” Arthur asked as they got out of the beat up old car that Lewis had bought.

The taller boy looked up at the dark house that was usually bustling with activity; his family, large as it was, was never one to sit still for so long and he hoped that they had everything set up perfectly.

“Probably went down to the restaurant,” he said, slamming the car door behind him. 

“All of them?”

“Looks like.”

“That’s weird,” Arthur replied, as they climbed the many steps to the front door. “Hey, think they’ll be back soon? I wanna give your parents that thing I got.”

Leave it to Arthur to get someone else something on his birthday.

“Maybe,” Lewis said. They reached the front door and he jingled his keys loudly. He heard some hushed whispered coming from the other side and the small sound of people moving, but Arthur was oblivious. 

“Awesome,” he grinned. Lewis put the key in the lock and turned, holding the door open for his friend. Arthur brushed past him easily. “So what do you wan-” 

Lewis reached around and flicked the lights on. The second the they illuminated the room, Lewis family and Arthur’s friends (the workers from the shop and Lance, of course), all jumped up and cut him off with a huge cry of “Surprise!”

The scream that Arthur let out was inhuman and Lewis honestly thought that his friend was being murdered.

Arthur had dropped the bag in his hands and promptly ran back the way he had come faster than Lewis had ever seen a human being move. 

Lewis blinked as a crowd of people stared at him.

“Uh…”

Lance snapped his fingers and everyone turned to look at him. “Surprises,” the older man nodded. “It was surprises, not snakes, that the kid hates. My bad." 

Lewis groaned and turned, letting the screen door slam behind him as he went to find his friend. 

Found him, he did, sitting on the steps a few yards down, face white and breathing hard.

“Sorry,” the smaller boy muttered when Lewis took a seat beside him. “I don’t-”

“Like surprises,” Lewis finished. Arthur looked at him out of the corner of his eye. “Yeah, your uncle just mentioned it about ten seconds ago.”

“He never really could remember if it was that or snakes,” Arthur agreed, and Lewis was happy to see some color return to his face.

He clapped a hand on Arthur’s shoulder. “Wanna go back up there if I promise no one will jump out at you?”

Arthur nodded. “Yeah, sure.”

Lewis smiled and stood. “Cool.”

As they headed back up the steps, and his family apologized profusely over the whole thing, Lewis promised himself that he’d never let the expression of true terror cross his best friend’s face ever again.

Four years later, he’d break that promise.

Three days after that, it’d be one of the biggest things he’d ever regret.

9.

They were on the steps heading down into the basement when Lewis first got the idea. Vivi was in front, leading with a flashlight now, and Arthur in the middle. Lewis followed with his purple light and Mystery trotted behind him.

Lewis was pretty sure that he was keeping a careful watch on their backs and the feeling of relief over that calmed him somewhat. He couldn’t shake the feeling, however, that they were being watched, and not by something friendly.

He noticed that, once more, Arthur was gripping his metal wrist close to his chest. It seemed to ease his frazzled nerves and Lewis briefly wondered why.

It was then that inspiration struck.

Lewis recalled what Arthur had said back at the mansion, about being possessed, and watching him now, he figured the perfect way to get the other man back without Vivi getting too angry.

Softly, he allowed a bit of his aura to flow forward and watched as it seeped into the grooves of the metal, glowing a soft, dull purple. Arthur had yet to notice, looking around the hallway as Vivi shined her light over decrepit walls and broken windows and doors hanging off their handles.

The only sound was their footsteps. 

Well, Arthur and Vivi’s footsteps. Lewis didn’t really walk so much as float along, and Mystery’s paws were quiet as he trailed behind.

After a moment, Lewis quietly snapped his fingers.

The purple semblance in Arthur’s arm made the artificial limb jerk right out of Arthur’s grip.

The blond let out a startled gasp as his wrist was torn from his hand and dangled limply at his side. He froze mid-step and stared down at the arm for a moment.

Vivi whipped around and shone her light on her friend, eyes sparkling.

“What? Did you find something?” she asked excitedly.

Moving the arm up and flexing his elbow, then wriggling his fingers, Arthur examined the limb with wide eyes.

“No, I…” he trailed off, frown on his face when he seemed to find nothing wrong with his arm. He shook his head. “Sorry, guess I was just imagining things.” 

With a shrug, Vivi turned back and continued forward, Arthur following after a moment’s hesitation. Lewis waited until they had descended a flight of steps and were making their way towards the basement doors when he did it again.

Arthur had been cradling his arm this time, hand wrapped around the elbow. Lewis snapped his fingers again and the arm jerked, rising to smack the other man in the face.

He staggered to the side, reeling from the blow, and nearly crashed into the wall. Lewis grinned to himself even as he heard Mystery growl behind him. Vivi turned to look at him again, eyebrows raised.

“Really, Arthur?” she sighed. “If you don’t want to be here, then just go wait by the van.”

“Sorry, sorry!” Arthur yelped. He rotated his wrist worriedly. “I think something’s up with my arm…”

Vivi rolled her eyes. “Sure there is.”

“No, really,” Arthur insisted. “It keeps…” he glanced up at her and deflated. “Never mind, just keep going.”

Vivi frowned at him, but continued her path. Arthur clutched his arm to his side tightly, clenching and unclenching his fist as he went. He kept looking at it worriedly, face a bit pale in the purple light around them.

With a vindictive feeling, Lewis waited a few more minutes before doing it once more.

This time, the arm trembled before Arthur stopped walking. Once he was still, Lewis snapped one last time before the arm twisted awkwardly. Arthur screamed and leapt to the side, pressing himself up against the wall as he raised his metal hand to his face, looking at it with dread. Mystery snarled.

“Arthur!” Vivi cried, spinning around with an annoyed look. “Get a grip, or go back to the car!” 

“Vivi, I think we need to go…” Arthur whispered. He curled and uncurled his fingers. “My arm, it’s… something’s not right.”

Lewis barely held back a chuckle.

Served the guy right for what he did. Lewis figured he was due for some payback, even if Arthur didn’t fully realize what was happening.

Vivi held her ground. “We’re staying,” she said. “Get a hold of yourself, man.” She glared at him briefly before her eyes widened and she hurried forward, pushing Arthur out of the way. She threw her light on the wall, which Lewis only just noticed had writing on the wall in huge, red letters. 

Lewis added his light to hers, acutely aware of Arthur muttering to himself behind them. He read the words to himself as Vivi ran a steady hand over them.

“Leave before they harvest your corpse.”

“That’s creepy,” he said.

“So cool,” Vivi whispered.

Arthur’s mumbling continued and Mystery resumed growling, a low rumbling sound that Lewis vaguely thought of paying attention to. 

But Vivi was right here besides him, she was safe, and Lewis was here now to make sure of that. Arthur was an after thought-he made Vivi happy, but he could easily be replaced. So long as Vivi was with him, Lewis could care less about the others.

A part of his mind told him no, that wasn’t quite right, but as he was wont to nowadays, he ignored it in favor of focusing his attention on Vivi.

Mystery let out a loud bark that echoed through the hall and Vivi glanced behind her. “Mystery, come here.”

The dog barked again, growling and refusing to come.

“Mystery!” Vivi snapped. She snapped her fingers and pointed to the spot next to her. “Come!”

But the pup merely snarled at her and began to run in circles, barking madly and growling at every opportunity.

“Mystery!” Vivi scolded. “Stop that and get your furry butt over here!”

And that was when Lewis noticed that Arthur’s quiet voice had disappeared. He turned around fully and made his flame bigger, letting the purple fire light up the whole hall.

Arthur was gone.

The little voice in the back of his head was rejoicing, cheering at the thought that Arthur was gone, that he seemed to have gotten what was coming to him at last.

A different part, a part that was screaming at Lewis to wake up, to pay attention, was worried something fierce about the other man.

Lewis wasn’t sure which part he should pay more attention to as a hysterical giggle that was both Arthur’s and not at the same time bounced around them.

8.

“Would you rather die without anyone knowing, or go missing and have everyone freak out about it?” Arthur asked from where he lazily lounged on the couch. A cigarette was between his lips and a beer was dangling from his fingertips where it hung over the edge.

Lewis, from where he lay on the floor, craned his head to look up at his friend.

“I dunno,” he replied, letting his head fall back to the ground. “Neither, I guess.”

“You have to pick one,” Arthur told him. “That’s how the game works.”

“The game is stupid.” 

“You’re stupid.”

“Your face is stupid." 

“Your hair is stupid.”

Lewis let out an exaggerated gasp. “You take that back.”

He could hear the smirk in Arthur’s voice when the blond spoke. “Answer the question and I’ll consider it.” 

Lewis huffed. “Fine.” He was silent, thinking. 

In all honesty, he’d really rather not pick either. Both options sounded horrible to him. On the one hand, he supposed he’d rather just die without anyone really knowing. He and his family were close, and he’d rather not cause them any pain if he could.

On the other hand, he didn’t really fancy dying in the first place. He was quite happy with his life, even if he did rent a crappy apartment with his best friend. But if it meant sparing the ones he cared about the grief, he supposed he’d go with the former.

“Any time, big guy,” Arthur interrupted his thoughts.

“I think if I really had to choose,” Lewis said slowly, “I’d probably go with the first one.”

“How come?” Arthur asked. 

“Don’t want to cause anyone any trouble,” Lewis replied. “Do things quietly, you know?”

Arthur hummed.

“What about you?” Lewis asked, staring at the ceiling. “Which would you pick?”

“The second one,” Arthur said without a moment’s hesitation.

Surprised, Lewis sat up, looking over at the blond. “What? Why?”

Arthur shrugged, lifting his hand and taking the smoke stick from his mouth before sipping at his beer. “Dude, there’s no one who care that much about me, and I rather like living, thank you very much.”

“Arthur, people would care,” Lewis argued softly. “I would care, Vivi and Lance would.” 

“Whoo, three whole people,” Arthur mocked, taking a drag on his cigarette. He blew out a puff of smoke. “Besides, I could always come back.”

“I’m pretty sure that’s not how it works,” Lewis frowned. “Arthur, I think your wrong about this.”

“Nah,” Arthur said, rolling his head to look over at Lewis. There was a twisted grin on his face. “You’re making it bigger than it has to be.” 

Lewis frowned harder. He worried about Arthur constantly. He knew that the man was self-deprecating at times, but this was on a whole new level. It seemed like Arthur just didn’t care what happened to himself; the drinking and excessive smoking he did only served the point.

And speaking of the smoking…

In a swift movement, Lewis leaned forward and reached out, plucking the cigarette from Arthur’s lips. The shorter man squawked and tried to sit up before Lewis quickly plopped the stick into the beer bottle in Arthur’s hand.

Arthur stared at it, mouth open agape. He flicked his eyes up to Lewis, narrowing them.

“Dude,” he said. “What the hell was that?”

“You’re allowed five a day,” was all he said. “And you already reached your limit.”

Arthur fell back onto the cushions with a groan. “You’re not seriously siding with Vivi on this, are you?”

“She’s right, though,” Lewis told him. “The things will kill you.”

“But did you have to go and ruin my perfectly good beer, too?”

“You drink too much.”

“Man, Vivi’s got you whipped.”

Lewis felt his face heat up. “She does not.”

Arthur smirked and raised his hand, making a snapping motion with his wrist. “Whoopah,” he sniggered at the same time.

“Arthur…” Lewis warned.

With a chuckle, the blond put his arms behind his head. “Okay, okay. Your turn.”

Sitting down with his back against the couch, crossing his legs under him, Lewis hummed in thought for a moment.

“Alright, how about this,” he said. “You either get possessed by a ghost that uses you to take over the world and you have no control of yourself, or a demon that takes over and makes you do the Macarena for the rest of your life…”

“Wow, and you thought my question was morbid,” Arthur muttered. “Can’t it at least be the Hokey Pokey? Put your left arm in, take your left arm out-”

Lewis tapped him on the chest with the back of his hand and Arthur let out a small “oof”. 

As Arthur thought, Lewis swirled the beer around in the can, watching as the cigarette ashes created a sandstorm under the liquid. He briefly thought about the question himself, and how he would never let anyone around him get hurt.

Unsurprisingly, Arthur’s answer was the same as his.

7. 

Vivi blew out a frustrated breath and Lewis was dimly aware that she was close to stomping her foot down on the ground.

“This is not how I wanted this to go,” she complained. “Arthur! Get your ass over here!”

That creepy giggle echoed around them in response and Mystery barked louder, coming to stand in front of Lewis and Vivi, hackles raised and teeth bared.

Lewis wondered, briefly, if Arthur was just messing with them, trying to freak them out, to separate them, so that he could leave Lewis behind or hurt Vivi.

Joke was on him, though, because Lewis wasn’t planning on leaving the girl’s side.

“Maybe he went back to the van…” Vivi muttered.

“Or maybe he thinks he’s being funny,” Lewis said, narrowing his eyes. He couldn’t see anything beyond the lights, but that feeling of malevolence just wasn’t going away. It had lessened somewhat, as if the spirit had made a decision, but it was still present, a thickness that washed over Lewis.

Vivi frowned. “No, he wouldn’t do that. Not here, at least. He was pretty freaked out, there’s no way he would just wander off to play a prank.”

“You don’t know that, Vivi,” Lewis growled. “He’s dangerous, cunning. He could be playing us even as we speak.”

Vivi whirled on him. “Alright, that’s enough,” she snapped, face furious. She poked him in the chest as he looked on bewildered. “I’ve had it with you and your suspicious looks and comments and actions. Lay off Arthur.” 

Lewis scowled. “Vivi, he killed me. I think I have every right to be angry and wary of him.”

“No,” Vivi said. “Arthur didn’t kill you. The demon possessing him did. There’s a big difference between the two.”

The ghost scoffed. “Vivi, there was a reason that a demon took him over in the first place. He was always jealous of the two of us. It was envy that allowed the demon in.” 

“No,” Vivi said angrily. “It was fear. He was afraid, is always afraid of the places we go. But you know why he still goes? It’s because he cares about us. Are you telling me that someone who puts his love for his friends above his own fears is really capable of killing someone?”

“Why are you defending him?” Lewis cried, flames beginning to take over his space. Mystery growled and snapped at them, moving to stand between the ghost and Vivi.

“You weren’t there after… after the accident,” Vivi snarled.

“Yeah, no shit!” Lewis exclaimed. “I was dead, remember?”

“You didn’t see him!” Vivi shouted, her voice echoing around them.

Lewis pulled up short at the expression on Vivi’s face. She deflated, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.

“He was a wreck. I didn’t remember anything, didn’t remember what happened. The only thing I knew was that my best friend was in the hospital because he had lost his arm in a horrible, traumatic accident.”

He stared at her, trying to imagine what she must have been going through, what other pains and horrors Arthur had inflicted on her. It only made him angrier at the thought.

Vivi continued. “He… he was in the hospital for weeks, even after the surgery. He wasn’t eating, wasn’t speaking. The nurses told me that he had night terrors so bad that they literally had to sedate him.”

She took a deep breath. “I went to see him every day, but he was… he was really bad, Lew. He lost a lot of weight and there was talk about transferring him to the psych ward if there was no improvement…”

His heart pulsed a few beats of worried orange and Lewis felt a pang of sadness from deep within as he tried to picture a silent, vacant Arthur sitting in a hospital bed.

Some of his anger melted as he recalled all the good times he’d had with his friend over the years. The man he had practically called his brother, had stayed up late at night talking and joking with…

“He had to deal with all that alone, Lewis…” Vivi’s whispered voice rang like a bell in the silence. “I think it nearly broke him.”

Despite the small spark of rage that remained, Lewis had to know. “How’d he break out of it?” 

Vivi shrugged. “Dunno. They gave him a prosthetic arm, and he learned to use it, but I walked in one day and he was bent over some blueprints for a new version. He absorbed himself in it and I… I think it helped him, keeping busy.”

Quiet enveloped them, thick and heavy.

“He was never quite the same,” Vivi murmured.

Lewis was silent. 

“So maybe… maybe give him a break? Please?” Vivi pleaded. “He’s trying. The least you could do is try too.”

Lewis felt his resolve come crumbling down as he looked into her eyes. He reached out and softly took her chin between his fingers.

He nodded.

She gave him a watery smile.

And that was when the singing began.

6. 

It was faint echo of a voice, traveling through the walls and the ceiling and everywhere so that Lewis couldn’t quite pinpoint where it was coming from.

Vivi stepped closer to him and Mystery growled viciously, head whipping around as he, too, tried to figure out the source.

“Whenever you see a hearse go by,” the voice sang, an eerie mix of a child’s voice, a woman’s, and Arthur’s meshing together in a harmonious yet creepy tune. “You know you’ll be the next to die.”

“What is that?” Vivi whispered, eyes wide. Lewis reached out and brought her closer to his side, arm protectively shielding her from anything that might cause harm. 

“I don’t know,” Lewis said softly. They both shined their lights down the hall, looking for the source of the noise as Mystery retreated to in between Vivi’s legs.

“They wrap you up in bloody sheets,” the voice sung, “and throw you down ten thousand feet.” 

At the end of the corridor there was movement and Mystery let out a snarl and took off after it. Vivi gasped as he ran towards the steps, a shadow disappearing into the darkness just beyond their lights.

“Mystery, wait!” Vivi called, wrenching away from Lewis.

“Vivi!”

He scrambled after them both, trying to make sure that they weren’t separated. His purple flames reached out, blocking any black from encompassing either of them as Lewis chased Vivi, Vivi chased Mystery, Mystery chased a shadow, and Arthur remained lost.

“They put you in a big black box, and covered you up with dirt and rocks." 

Mystery barked wildly and they clambered up the steps, past the first floor, past the second, and up , up, up.

“All goes well for about a week, until your coffin begins to leak…”

5.

They reached the top floor when Vivi stopped, Mystery continuing his path ahead of them, barking getting softer as he ran down the hall. Vivi’s flashlight caught his tail as he disappeared around the corner, and they were alone.

“Vivi?” Lewis asked. He was growing worried. 

She turned to face him, a horrified expression on her face.

“Lewis,” she said softly, “Remember what I said about Arthur being possessed?”

Lewis nodded at their recent conversation. 

“The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out, the worms play pinochle on your snout.”

“He was scared in the basement,” she whispered. Her eyes were wide. “What if something got him…” Her face fell and she gasped, bringing her hands up to cover her mouth. The flashlight dropped to the ground and spun wildly, casting light every which way.

“What?” Lewis cried, spinning to look around, worried that something had snuck up on them while they stalled.

“He was worried about his arm…” Vivi said softly. She looked distraught. “Lewis, there was something wrong with his arm and I just blew it off…”

Alarm bells rang in Lewis’ head, and the singing continued.

“They eat your eyes, they eat your nose, they eat the jelly between your toes.”

“Oh my God, this is all my fault…” Vivi gasped. Tears filled her eyes. “Arthur is lost and probably terrified and it’s all my fault!”

“Vivi, no!” Lewis cried. “No, it wasn’t a ghost! It was me who was messing with Arthur’s arm! I wanted payback. If anything, I made him more nervous!”

Regret filled him, as everything came washing over him in waves. Horrible images of where Arthur could be flashed before him, Vivi being worried about their friend, Vivi finding his dead body somewhere, cold and alone, having to go through yet another funeral because Lewis couldn’t let a misplaced grudge go…

“It was me…” he whispered to himself, realization smashing into him. “It was… me…”

“A big green worm with rolling eyes, crawls in your stomach and out your sides.”

Everything had been a misunderstanding. All the memories, coated in a dark green shadow, suddenly cleared in a burst of orange light. For the first time since he had awoken as a ghost, Lewis remembered everything, remembered the Arthur he used to know, remembered turning around to look as he fell-

-to see Arthur crying, that same green shadow enveloping him in a malicious haze.

Vivi looked at him with a confused frown before anger lit up her pretty features. She glared, tears spilling from her eyes.

“How dare you,” she snapped.

Lewis winced, his flames wrapping comfortingly around his torso for a moment.

“You’re horrible,” she sniffed. “How could you do that? He’s scared enough as it is, why would you make it worse?!”

“I wanted payback!” Lewis told her. “I just wanted him to pay! I didn’t know about… I didn’t know…”

Angrily wiping at her eyes, Vivi glowered at him. “So you thought the best way to get payback was to basically possess his arm-the same arm, mind you, that had already been possessed once before and had pushed you off a cliff?” 

Guilt slammed into Lewis with enough force that he almost staggered backwards. “I… I didn’t… Vivi, I didn’t…”

Vivi scowled, eyes still blazing. “Well, maybe if you had just believed in your best friend, then things would be different! Maybe he wouldn’t be lost!”

“Your stomach turns a slimy green, and pus pours out like whipping cream.”

There was no way to apologize to Vivi, Lewis decided. The only thing that would make things better was to find Arthur, get Mystery, and get the hell out of there. He waited as Vivi collected herself, swiping at her face to rid it of tears.

Without another glance at him, she bent to pick up her flashlight.

And promptly dropped it again with a startled cry.

“Vivi, what is it?” Lewis was instantly on alert, letting his flames spread out to make more light.

Fumbling , hands shaking, Vivi snatched the light up and pointed the beam towards a corner.

Lewis felt a chill as the song ended abruptly.

“You spread it on a slice of bread, and that’s what you eat when you are dead.”

Lying on the floor abandoned was Arthur’s metal arm.

4.

Quickly, Vivi ran up to it and grabbed it. Lewis floated behind her, peering closely at it. 

Wires stuck out from the one end, a few sparking when Vivi turned the arm in her hands.

“It’s still warm…” she muttered. She turned to Lewis. “Arthur has to be around here somewhere.”

Lewis nodded and let a small flame drift down the hall. “Let’s go that way,” he said. “That’s where Mystery went.”

Vivi stood from where she was kneeling and, metal arm tucked under one of her own, set off. Lewis stayed close to her side, letting his flames spread out as much as he could, trying to shed light into every tiny crevice that he could find.

They needed to find Arthur, fast.

They followed the hall as it turned, rooms on every side. There was nothing in them but old chairs and a few abandoned mattresses. Vivi checked each one, shaking her head sadly when nothing came up.

Lewis felt immense worry begin to creep around him. He still couldn’t shake the feeling that something was watching, but every time he turned behind him, there was nothing that his flames illuminated.

It only made him more cautious.

For a few minutes, nothing changed. More empty rooms and empty halls and empty corners.

Until Vivi paused. 

“Wait a second,” she said slowly. She studied the rooms on either side of her. “Wait, I… I think I might know where he’s at…”

Lewis stared at her and she looked at him.

“I know where Arthur is.”

Hurriedly, she pushed forward.

“What?” Lewis asked. “How do you know?”

“It’s Margaret Schilling,” Vivi told him. “It’s her.”

“Wait, Vivi, what?”

“When they found her body, she was on the top floor in a separate ward. I just realized that that means that the ward is just up ahead.”

“What ward?” 

“Twenty.”

“Which one are we in now?”

“Sixteen.”

Following, Lewis remained silent. Vivi walked with a purpose, her sure steps the only sound.

They quickly crossed into Ward 17, then Ward 18. There was a sign at the end of one hall that pointed the way to Ward 19, and Vivi followed it without hesitation.

The closer they got to Ward 20, the more the sense of being watched intensified. Lewis let his fire burn a bit brighter, hoping to dislodge the unsettling feeling.

It was when they came to another cross in the halls that a sound reached their ears.

Stopping, Vivi listened, and Lewis watched the shadows with narrowed, suspicious eyes.

“That’s Mystery!” Vivi exclaimed softly, and broke into a run.

As Lewis had in life, and so he did in his death, he followed the girl without questions as she sprinted down the halls, ignoring the signs in favor of following Mystery’s barking.

Neither noticed when they passed into Ward 20. 

Both were so concentrated on finding Mystery (and by extension, Arthur, because if anyone could find him, the old dog could), that the sudden drop in temperature and the way the darkness turned a grey and got deeper at the same time did not register.

That would come later. 

For the moment, the two rushed along, Mystery’s barking growing louder and louder until they came around a corner and, at the end of the hall ahead, where an old room with the door swung open wide. Inside, a faint glowing light resonated and they looked at each other before Vivi took a cautious step forward.

And another.

And another.

The closer they got, they both realized that the haunting tone they’d heard earlier was being hummed right through the doors.

It was still that awful enticing mesh of a woman voice, a child’s, and Arthur’s smooth singing timbre, beautiful and terrible at the same time. 

Lewis looked over Vivi’s head when they entered past the doorway, and stopped.

Mystery was barking like mad up at something in the rafters above them. When Lewis looked, he couldn’t see anything, but that didn’t mean something wasn’t there; the feeling of something else in the room intensified.

That’s wasn’t the most worrisome thing, though.

Arthur’s vest, shoes, pants, and t-shirt lay in a neat pile in the middle of the room, sitting right next to a pale white outline of a body.

The sight made Lewis feel cold, a shivering sensation coursing through him, which he didn’t even know that he could do. Vivi gave a small little gasp and the metal arm clattered to the ground. Mystery barked once more and turned around to look at them, promptly dropping his front paws to the floor and growled at them fiercely.

No, not at them, Lewis surmised.

Behind them.

Slowly, he turned, already half-stepping in front of Vivi as she realized it too.

It was then that Lewis noticed the pale, shapely figure in the corner. 

Lewis and Vivi stared at it-at her-and she stared back. Nothing happened and Mystery’s growling was a constant background noise.

She was a pretty little thing, slender and with dark hair piled upon her head. She wore a long white nightgown and was barefoot.

She certainly did not look like a mental patient.

Except for the eyes, Lewis thought. The eyes were what gave it away. Black and hollow, not unlike his own, sunken into a gaunt face. The irises were the worst part, pale and too round and too small that made the rest of her eyes stand out in a terrifying manner.

“You found me,” she said, taking a small step forward. Mystery barked in warning, hackles raised and Lewis swore his eyes flashes a golden color.

That was ridiculous, though, and it must have been her shimmering light that had bounced off the dog’s glasses.

“Margaret Schilling…” Vivi whispered, and Lewis nodded in agreement.

It couldn’t be anyone else.

The ghost cocked her head and turned her eyes to Vivi. She watched the blue-clad girl curiously. 

“You don’t look like a nurse,” she said.

Gulping, Vivi put a foot forward carefully. Lewis snaked his arm out and grabbed her by the shoulder, holding her close.

“No,” Vivi replied. “No, I’m… I’m not a nurse.”

Margaret tilted her head the other way. “Then who are you?”

“We’re looking for our friend,” Lewis joined in. It seemed like the specter wasn’t harmful, more curious and lost than anything else; Lewis could relate.

“Oh,” Margaret said. “That’s too bad.”

“It is,” Lewis agreed.

“Do you think you could help us find him?” Vivi asked. She pointed to the clothes on the ground. “He was wearing these clothes, do you know where he is?”

Margaret stared at them for a long minute, eyes seemingly to bore into them. Mystery padded around Vivi to glare at her, back arched and teeth bared.

“I don’t feel like playing Hide N’ Seek anymore,” she declared after a moment. “You found me already, and I don’t like being the seeker.”

Lewis looked over at Vivi, suddenly worried. She glanced up at him, biting her lower lip.

“Okay,” he said slowly.

Vivi grabbed his hand and stepped away from him for a moment. “If we play a game with you, will you help us find him?” she asked. Lewis felt her hand tighten in his grip.

“I want to play Simon Says,” the woman replied, giving no indication that she had heard Vivi. 

“Okay, alright,” Lewis said. “We’ll play Simon Says, and then you have to help us, okay?”

“Simon Says,” Margaret whispered, using a finger to point to the ceiling, “to look up.”

Lewis followed Vivi and craned his head to look up into the rafters of the room. Vivi gasped in shock and Lewis felt like a part of his world was about to come crashing down.

Standing on the highest wooden beam, clad in only boxers, was Arthur, hand pale as his fingers clung to the column beside him for dear life. His eyes were wide and fearful when they caught Lewis’ own gaze.

“Simon Says,” Margaret muttered, and when Lewis turned to look at her, she was merely inches from his face. She grinned manically at him before flying up to the blond and fusing with him.

Arthur shuddered on the beam, eyes clenching shut.

“Arthur!” Vivi cried.

When the man’s eyes flew open, they were a pale white, mirrors to Margaret’s, and he smiled creepily at them.

“Jump.”

Horrified, Lewis watched as Arthur-no, Margaret-took a step off the wooden beam. 

And began to fall.

3. 

Arthur keeled over to the side, head resting on Lewis’ shoulder. Another beer was already in his hands and Lewis wondered if he had a secret stash in the lining of his vest pockets; it certainly wouldn’t have been the most ridiculous thing Lewis had seen the man do. 

“Okay, okay,” the blond slurred. “Best and worst way to die.”

Lewis hummed in the dim light, tilting his head back to let it rest on the cushion. He wriggled his sock-clad feet where they rested on the coffee table in front of him.

“In general or my personal preference?” he asked.

“You,” Arthur clarified.

“Best way would be to die in my sleep,” Lewis instantly said.

But Arthur shook his head against his shoulder. “Nah, man. Too easy. Be specific.”

“How much more specific do you want? I just want to lay down to bed and go to sleep, and then I just never wake up.”

“Lame,” Arthur accused, taking a long drink from his bottle. When he was finished, he shifted a bit on the couch. “Worst?”

“I dunno,” Lewis said softly. “In pain, probably.”

“Duh, that’s a given,” Arthur sighed. He twisted his neck to gaze up the taller man. “I think you’re missing the whole point of this, dude.”

“Well, maybe you need to give me examples.”

“Fine. Worst way to die? Definitely by drowning.”

“Drowning, huh?" 

“Yeah. Or just lack of oxygen in general.”

“How come?”

“Dude. You can’t breathe, so your body panics. And the more it panics, the more oxygen it needs. So basically, your body is essentially killing itself.”

“That is… quite distressing.”

“No shit, Sherlock.”

“Okay, okay. I think the worst way to die, then, would be… falling. Oh, not, wait-being impaled.”

“Wow, you’re morbid.”

“You asked.”

“That I did.”

“Okay, then mister smarty pants. What do you think the best way to die would be?”

“Lewis, don’t be ridiculous. There is no best way to die…”

2.

Vivi screamed.

Lewis screamed. 

Mystery barked and his glowed and he seemed to get bigger, bigger, bigger-

Arthur met Lewis’ eyes and the ghost saw Margaret all but disappear from the amber orbs.

The calm yet terrified acceptance that Lewis saw made his heart around Vivi’s neck pulse rapidly with orange light.

Margaret materialized next to Vivi and she jumped back, closer to Lewis. She was shaking and Mystery was still growing, growing, impossibly large for a dog and with one, two, three, four, five, extra tails-

“Simon Says is boring,” she said. She looked up at Arthur, still falling limply. “Let’s play a different game.”

“No!” Lewis shouted. His flames erupted around him, turning everything purple and magenta, the bottoms a solid blue and the tips a flickering orange. The windows in the room exploded, any and all darkness completely swallowed up by light.

Vivi looked horrified, eyes wide and reflecting Lewis as he lost control, Arthur still falling, falling, Mystery still growing, growing-

All his memories, the good, the bad, the ones with Arthur, the ones with Vivi, the ones with all of them.

Late nights in the van laughing at some inside joke-waiting tables while Arthur snuck in bits of food-sleepovers with giant bowls of candy demolished by their sides-singing loudly and off-key in the car on their way to a new mission-Christmases and Thanksgivings and birthdays and family dinners and the shop and an old worn couch in the middle of a crappy apartment decorated with beer cans and cigarette packs and old takeout menus and dirty coffee mugs-

“Your fault,” a voice in the back of his head whispered.

Margaret looked at him, a sinister smile curling at the edges of her mouth.

“How about a song instead?” she asked, and began to sway, her gown pin wheeling out around her. “London bridge is falling down-”

Mystery was seven feet tall from floor to head and he lunged. Vivi let out a shout as he crashed against the wall, rolling in the impossibly tight space-

“Your fault.”

“-falling down, falling down-” 

-The flames swirled around Lewis, his skull consumed by them-

“-London Bridge is falling down-”

“Your fault.”

-Slowly, Margaret turned to Vivi, who only had eyes for Mystery. He got up on his legs, dwarfing the room immensely. Blood dripped from his mouth-

“-My fair lady!” Margaret surged forward towards an unsuspecting Vivi.

“NO!” Lewis screamed, and his heart alternated between orange and blue so fast it was hard to tell what the actual color was. The faster it blinked, the brighter the light became-

“Your fault!”

-Vivi turned, eyes wide, at Lewis’ shout. She saw Margaret coming at her and she opened her mouth to cry out-

-Light poured out of the room, and Margaret screamed as it consumed her-

-Game nights, sledding, snowball fights, going to the pond in the middle of the scorching summer-

“Your fault!”

-Margaret was screaming, Vivi was screaming, Lewis was pretty sure he was even screaming-

-Tears when Lewis’ grandfather died, angry tantrums when Arthur’s parents disowned him, drunken nights where neither said a word-

-He couldn’t stop it, too many emotions, guilt and regret and confusion and want and need and love and friendship and anger and sadness and happiness all rolled into one giant burst of light and heat-

“THIS IS YOUR FAULT!”

-A tail flew out of nowhere and knocked Lewis backwards. He flew, smashing into a wall, and the light began to dim, the flames died out. His heart returned to it’s normal blue color, pulsing orange every few beats, the large crack that had been there previously now gone.

Lewis stared, wood splintering up around him and pieces falling to the floor. Vivi stared at him, then to Mystery, still much too big for a dog but just about the right size for a kitsune and back to Lewis.

Mystery’s tails swished behind him, fanning out elegantly. Blood covered his nose, his mouth, dripped, dripped from his teeth.

Clasped gently, lovingly, between his jaws was Arthur, arm limply hanging out and the precious, red, life-giving liquid splattering to the ground from his fingertips.

“Arthur!” Lewis cried, pulling himself free from his wooden prison and flying forward. 

Gently, Mystery set the man on the ground and took a step back.

Vivi seemed to snap out of her daze at Lewis’ exclamation and rushed forward, skidding to her knees besides the much too pale man. She ran a hand through his hair, down the side of his face and to a point on his neck.

“There’s no pulse…” she whispered. She turned a fearful look to Lewis. “Lewis, there’s no pulse.”

“He is alive,” a soft, booming voice said, and Lewis snapped his head up to look at Mystery. The kitsune’s mouth didn’t move, but it was no mystery that it was he who had spoken.

Vivi turned teary eyes to him.

“Alive,” the fox nodded his head. “But fading fast. The ghost manipulated him enough to possess him, and his soul is still recovering from the last possession.”

More guilt flooded Lewis. 

“He must be taken to a hospital,” Mystery said. He shimmered slightly and one of his tails disappeared. He shrunk slightly.

Vivi shook herself and Lewis looked at her. She reached out with shaking hands and tried to pick Arthur up, but even skinny as he was, the blond was too much for Vivi to carry.

Carefully, gently, Lewis took Arthur from her arms and hefted him close easily. Vivi sniffed and stood. Mystery lost another tail and got smaller. 

“Get his clothes,” he told her.

Vivi nodded and walked over, picking up the orange and white clothing. She grabbed the discarded metal arm and flashlight.

When Lewis looked over at Mystery, the fox was a hound once more, yellow glasses hiding too-wise eyes that Lewis had never noticed before.

“Come on.”

Mystery barked and ran ahead, and Lewis quickly followed, unconscious Arthur almost dead in his arms. He heard Vivi behind him, her quick steps and ragged breathing the only sign of the panic that Lewis knew she must be feeling.

They went down the steps, past halls that sang of haunting promises and through the ghosts still wandering the front. Out the door, across the lawn, and there was the van, right where Arthur had left it, as pristine as it would ever be.

“Put him on the back seat,” Vivi said, sliding the side door open quickly.

Gently, Lewis laid his friend down on the seats and Mystery hopped up beside him. 

“Think you can drive?” Vivi asked him, clutching the pile of clothes close to her chest, already climbing into the passenger seat.

“Sure,” Lewis nodded, slamming the door closed and rounding the front of the van to the driver’s side. He got in and went to turn the vehicle on, stopping when there was no key in the ignition. 

“Vivi?” he asked. She turned to him. “Key?”

“Oh,” was her response, and she dropped her pile to her lap, rummaging through the orange pockets. “Arthur stopped keeping them in the ignition. Said it made him feel better when we-” she stopped abruptly.

“Vi?”

When he looked over, Vivi didn’t have keys in her hand. Instead, she was holding the packet of cigarettes that Arthur had bought at the gas station the other night.

“He…” she gulped past a lump in her throat. Her voice shook. “He told me that he quit…”

They were quiet as Vivi stared at the pack and Lewis stared at the console. Mystery’s soft whine broke their revere, and Vivi snapped back to awareness. She dug through the clothes again, procuring the keys and throwing them to Lewis, who caught them easily.

As he started up the van and began to pull away, speeding down the road to the nearest hospital, Vivi continued to gaze sadly at the cigarettes.

Lewis didn’t have the heart to tell her that he was to blame.

For the cigarettes, the situation…

For everything.

1.

Lewis hated hospitals. 

He always had, even in life. The walls were too white, the floors too clean, the smell too powerful; bleach and sickness all rolled into one massive headache-inducing nauseas sensation.

He and Vivi waited besides a too white bed with too white sheets that wrapped around a too white Arthur.

The only splash of color on the damn thing was the man’s blond hair, a stark sun as it rested on the too white pillow. 

It reminded Lewis of snow.

He had always hated winter, more of a summer and heat kind of guy. The cold was too sharp, too crisp, and it felt like it could break while being overbearing at the same time. He hated how he could see his breath in the air.

Arthur had loved winter, though. He liked the snow, enjoyed the sledding and the snowmen and the whole season. Liked to go around and pretend that he was a dragon when they were little, playing both the creature and King Arthur while Lewis was the Knight that slew the beast.

Lewis hoped that he’d be able to see another soon.

The doctors had said that he was going to be fine; a large bump on his bed and quite a bit of blood loss, but they had him hooked up to a supply of blood and an IV. He should make a fine recovery, they said.

If he woke up.

That was the worrying part. Arthur might never wake up. Not from his injuries, but, according to Vivi, his soul.

He didn’t quite understand it, but apparently between what Mystery had said and what Vivi had found in a large book, she had worked it out.

Arthur’s soul, still so fragile from the initial possession, had nearly shattered when Margaret had taken him over, even if briefly.

Apparently, his fright and all-consuming guilt that he still felt over Lewis made him an easy target for ghosts and demons.

And Lewis had just added gas to the fire when they were in the asylum.

A heavy sigh escaped Vivi’s lips, tearing Lewis from his thoughts. He looked over at her, saw her holding the packet of cigarettes in her hands. On her lap was Arthur’s vest, a nest of his other belongings: dead cell phone (he never could remember to charge the damn thing), keys for the van, house keys, an address that neither of them recognized written in the blonde’s sloppy handwriting, his wallet, and a few dried hamster treats.

“I really thought he quit…” Vivi said quietly. She looked at him. “He was doing so well, wasn’t even using the patches or the gum anymore. Guess he snuck it past me somehow…”

Lewis was silent, unsure of what to say.

“He didn’t even start after you died,” Vivi went on. “I was so proud of him…”

The ghost, projecting a life-like version of what he looked like (save for the still deep purple, lifeless eyes) frowned, and reached across the arm of his chair, taking her hand.

Vivi gripped it tightly. “I just… He’s so…” she turned watery eyes to him. “Lewis, he can’t die. He can’t. I lost you once and I nearly lost him. I can’t go through that again. We’re finally a team again, I can’t-”

She broke off, tears falling from her eyes as she gasped a wet sob. Lewis pulled her forward, embracing her, still silent.

Her shoulders shook with silent cries and she clutched tightly at his back. Lewis could only rub soothing circles on her back; he felt that he didn’t deserve much more than that.

This was partly his fault to begin with.

“Your fault…”

He shook his head, dispelling the nagging voice echoing around his head, a twisted version of what he had originally thought when trying to kill Arthur.

It was almost poetic, he thought.

Vivi pulled away, wiping hastily at her eyes. Lewis watched her.

“I’m…” she said, breath shaky. She stood, setting Arthur’s things on her seat. “I’m gonna go get some air. Check on Mystery, see if I can get anything out of him.” The dog had been suspiciously quiet, but since animals weren’t allowed in the hospital, there had been little time to actually speak with him.

Lewis nodded. “Yeah, I’ll… I’ll stay here. He shouldn’t wake up alone…”

Vivi nodded. “You’re not gonna… You’re okay, right?” she asked, and Lewis could have winced at the catch.

He gave her a reassuring smile. “Cross my heart and hope to die,” he said. 

The girl gave him a small grin in return and pressed a quick kiss to his forehead on her way out. She left the door cracked open, a sliver of light from the hall falling across the dark room.

Lewis stared at Arthur, and Arthur stared at the inside of his eyelids.

He looked too close to death, and Lewis felt sick at the thought that this was what he had wanted for so long.

“Oh, Arthur,” he muttered. “Arthur, I’m so sorry…”

As he expected, there was no response.

“Even after you explained it, even after Vivi told me everything, I still didn’t believe it…” he said.

Arthur was silent. Lewis found that he couldn’t look, and instead rested his eyes on the heart monitor, watching the line move up and down steadily.

“I didn’t actually believe it until Margaret made you jump and Mystery revealed himself. I… I guess I’d always known? Somehow, I did, but I didn’t want to believe it. Pretending it was the other way was easier, somehow made more sense to me… "

He paused for a moment, barked out a sad laugh.

“That’s stupid, I know, considering what we see, what we deal with on a daily basis. I’m so stupid… Oh, Arthur, I’m so stupid and so, so sorry.” 

He dropped his head into his hands, clenching his eyes shut.

Everything was so messed up. He didn’t know where to go, what to do. He had come back as a ghost so that he could get his revenge, but if he didn’t actually need revenge, then what was he here for?

“To protect them,” a soft voice said gently. 

Lewis looked up, glanced around the room, but there was no one there. Arthur was still out on the bed, the machines still beeped and hummed and gave life but there was no one else in the room.

It was then that Lewis noticed it.

He looked down at his hands, coated in blood. Blood that was not his and had no right to be there.

He wondered if, maybe, it had been there the entire time and he just never noticed it.

“Protect them.”

Yes. Yes, he could do that. Lewis could protect them, could make sure that no harm ever came to Vivi or Arthur ever again. He couldn’t protect them in life, but maybe, since vengeance wasn’t on his agenda any longer, he could do something to help them while he was dead.

Without hesitating, he rose from his chair and approached Arthur. He came to stand at the side of his bed, looking down at his friend, his best friend. Somehow, without even knowing how, he knew what he had to do.

Lewis lifted his hand and a small, purple flame encompassed it. It glowed brightly in the room, making Arthur look paler than usual. 

Slowly, carefully, Lewis lowered his hand, pressing it against Arthur’s small chest. He flicked his eyes up to Arthur’s, watching closely, and when there was no reaction, he pressed harder.

Still nothing.

His soul.

The words resonated around Lewis and he frowned, looking at Arthur’s face again. He stared at it, how it wasn’t even peaceful, just completely devoid of any signs of life.

Lewis steeled himself, and pressed harder.

His hand, purple glow and all, phased through Arthur’s chest. 

Lewis stared, watching as purple flowed from that point and traveled throughout Arthur. It spread to his shoulders, then his arm, his waist, his legs, his feet. It went up his neck, flushed his face with color, all the way to the tips of his hair.

As he watched, the cracks that were clearly visible everywhere on Arthur were slowly filled with the calming purple that Lewis possessed.

Memories that were not his flashed before his eyes. He saw a tall dark-haired man and a blond woman, longing and sadness attached to it. There was Uncle Lance, coupled with happiness and relief. Galahad, Arthur’s beloved hamster, encompassed compassion and amusement. Mystery was there with his protection and a little hint of fear. Green mist that was terror, inky black surrounding it, grey with pain, anger, hurt, white with despair. There was rain, and sadness and guilt and regret.

But there was also blue, Vivi, that was joy and warmth. Lewis saw himself, a deep purple that was love and happiness.

He couldn’t understand how he ever wanted to kill Arthur when the other man felt this way. He’d been through more heartbreak in his life than Lewis could ever hope to be. He was ashamed that the thought of destroying what they had had ever even crossed his mind.

How could he hurt Arthur, who when he looked at Vivi and Lewis and Mystery and that damn van, who hated ghosts and spooks and supernatural beings with every inch of his fiber, still thought of family and home?

Lewis vowed, right then and there, that he would protect that feeling in Arthur. He would defend that feeling with every inch of whatever fiber still remained in him.

He felt his heart, that small, tiny crack, fill up with the same purple glow that flowed from his fingers.

While he healed Arthur’s soul, so he did his own.

The blood was washed from both of their hands.

The purple glow continued to spread, filling every crevice, every nick, every canyon and valley on Arthur’s poor, broken soul.

He felt all the pain, all the agony, all the frustration, sadness, guilt, terror that the man had been through in his short life, and Lewis felt his heart break a little, a shame because it had just been fixed.

Once everything seemed to be full, Lewis withdrew his hand, the purple still surrounding Arthur as it finished mending.

And Lewis watched, and waited, and hoped and dared and dreamed and prayed to a god that he wasn’t even sure existed any longer.

The purple faded, and Lewis held breath he didn’t even have.

And Arthur opened his eyes.

.

.

.

0.