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Your husband had brought many things home before- whether it was knives he had won in dangerous fights, people he had stumbled home drunk with, experimental vials of liquid shimmer you were tasked with administering to his corrupted eye with that awful needle. The stray cats and kittens were shamelessly your favourites, and to your delight, many of them graced the lanes, therefore many of them graced your home. They were useful- primarily the reason he let them stay- they kept the mice away from your food and were pleasant company.: not too needy or demanding. You grew to love the colder months, yearning for when Silco would relent and allow the numerous felines to curl up around your intertwined forms, radiating heat in the otherwise icy home.
Tonight, you heard the jingling of keys, followed by the door of your small home as it audibly creaked, then gentle footsteps. Two sets of them, specifically, though they weren't Sevika's heavy ones, they weren't stumbling around, indicating he was sober. Who was this strange newcomer? Slowly, you emerged from your room, cautiously peeking out down the stairs to see, anxiously recalling the time he had been bought here at knife-point by some thug intending to rob him, unaware of your presence. You had swiftly helped and brought him down with minimal injury, but enough to scare him off.
The child was a first.
They were sad- crying and clinging on to Silco as he stared in your small mirror on your wall and removed his tie, murmuring something only they could hear. Their blue hair drew your attention, standing out harshly against your dim home. They looked harmless, perhaps afraid too.
Descending the stairs caused four pairs of eyes- one blue, one red and black, two grey- to land on you as you approached them. You didn't miss how the child shrunk back, and you couldn't help but notice the red around their grey eyes and how they kept whipping them on the backs of their hands. You looked at Silco quizzically, puzzled at this strange newcomer. Now you were closer, you could see he was fatigued by the night's events, but they glittered with pride and affection,
"She's... Alone," He said softly, and you watched how his scarred hand moved to touch her head, gently smoothing through her blue, unruly hair, "She lost her family tonight," He stated, his eyes finding yours once more. With a sigh, you nodded your head to the unspoken question,
"I wouldn't let you let her leave just like that, Silco," You said, swayed by his words to let her stay for as long as she needed to. Eyeing the girl's small frame, you moved past them towards the kitchen to make them food- or rather reheat the lunch Silco had missed. Before leaving this morning, dressing in his nicest clothing, he had pressed a firm kiss to your lips and brushed your hair out of your face, informing you his 'grand plans' were 'set in motion tonight', with an almost sinister smile. The last thing you had expected him to return with was a child, yet here you were, giving them two plates of what you were able to gather, "It's not the best, but it'll do," You said, giving a warm smile to the younger girl. Cautiously, she took the plate from you and ate the food quickly. How long had it been since she had last eaten?
To tell the truth, you had never imagined having a child in your life like this. It was always an unspoken rule to care for any child you found in the Lanes as long as they were in your sight, but most knew how to fend for themselves. Silco had been indifferent, the topic of hanging your own was never brought up or discussed between you. He never struck you as the type to be or become a father. And yet here he stood, watching as the girl ate with a foreign look in his eye that made your heart swell in your chest.
The girl's name was Powder. She had a sister. Now she had Silco. You noticed she hadn't stopped clinging on to him- his hand, his shirt. Anything she could hold, afraid to let go even for a moment. You had introduced yourself to her, and she nodded her head, acknowledging you. You weren't expecting anything, considering she had lost her family tonight- you could only guess what she had meant by that. Did Silco have anything to do with this 'loss'? Or had he simply found her while he was returning?
Hours later, you settled her in the spare room down the hall, finding her some crayons you had laying around and sitting with her while she drew on scraps of paper. She had taken them like a moth to flame, and by your encouragement, drawing the things that made her happy. She hesitated at first, and when you had momentarily left for Silco to ask her a few questions, you returned to see a crumpled sheet of paper. Opening it revealed a pink-haired stick figure frowning at a blue-haired stick figure... The sister?
She wouldn't fall asleep until she knew she was safe, which took a while of reassurance from both you and Silco until eventually the two of you were sat beside her on the floor whispering.
"Go to bed, love," He told you, his eyes transfixed by the child before him, "I'll join you in a few moments," His voice was like silk as it moved through the small space between you. Reluctantly, you pressed a gentle kiss to his scarred cheek and left the two alone, retiring back to your bedroom and lighting a few candles by the bedside to not use up the electricity bill. You got ready for bed yourself, then sat on the side and reached for your bedside table, pulling a pack of cigarettes from your drawer and pulling one out. Grabbing the matches you had set down when you lit the candles, you lit it and ignited the cigarette, inhaling the smoke and moving to sit under the covers.
A while later, he came in and joined you in your room, removing the vest he was wearing as he also got ready to get in bed with you. Watching him silently as you smoked the cigarette, mulling over the words and few pieces of information he had told you, you finally began to speak hearing him unbutton his pants,
"Would you like to explain yourself, Silco?" You asked, his eyes looking towards you as he moved to lay in the bed next to you. Glancing over at him, you watched him sigh and roll his eyes, "You left giddy and happy, telling me you had something planned for tonight and you came home with a child," You said
"I found her," he simply said, to which you rolled your eyes,
"You've never been one overflowing with compassion," You said with a slight smirk, and watched him sigh, bending down to the bedside drawer and retrieving the needle he used to inject his medication,
"Vander is dead," You straightened your back, almost forgetting to tip the ash into the ashtray on the bedside table, eyes widening in shock as you let the smoke float out of your mouth, "I killed him. She caused the explosion at the lab,"
"That was your grand plan?" you asked, watching as he moved to sit next to you,
"Yes," he stated, "Ending Vander's hold on the Lanes was the plan... She was his daughter- she was outside the building... The pink-haired one made it inside, she was a remarkable fighter," He complimented, fingertips clinking against the metal of the needle, "And yet she still lost," He mused, bringing the contraption to his corrupted eye and injecting the liquid easily into his pupil, "Powder... Caused the explosion, somehow," He said, sighing as he handed you the needle to place back to where it stayed and taking the cigarette from you, "I found her outside... Next to Vander,"
"She caused the explosion?" you asked, he nodded, "She just knew how to do that??" He nodded again,
"She lost her family to that explosion. The few children who came were buried, their bodies found," He explained, smoke rising from his thin lips, "Her sister betrayed her," His voice was full of spite, "Marcus found her body, luckily. The girl was alone. No one left for her to turn to, no one to save her... No one to pull her above the water,"
"And so you did" He nodded, "And brought her home,"
"Where else would she go?" He said, glancing at you, watching as you took the cigarette back and inhaled some of the smoke, "This was the safest place I could think of," He admitted. For a moment you watched him, and at your lack of response, he curiously turned to watch you, "What is it, love?" He asked, shifting to reach a hand up and touch your cheek, brushing some of your hair back,
"Was that your first instinct?" You asked, watching as he blinked his one eye in rapid motions, and looked away from you, dropping his hand. With a small sigh, you tilted your head to stub your cigarette out so it wouldn't catch anything on fire,
"It wasn't," His voice was low,
"But you saw yourself in her?" He was nodding when you turned back to look at him, a distant look in his eyes, "And you couldn't do it, could you?" You asked,
"Hesitating always meant you would be the one to die first," He said, voice barely above a whisper, "I have never hesitated when it came to taking a life, until her... Until today," He said softly. You watched him for a few moments in silence, his head downcast and lost in thought. To treasure him, you took his hand in yours, giving it a gentle squeeze,
"She melted through your icy exterior faster than I ever could," You said, leaning your chin on his shoulder and smiling playfully, watching the corners of his lips lift up in a small smile. He let out a small hum when he sighed, and you pressed your lips to his cheek when you felt his shoulders drop,
"Tonight was long and exhausting..." He said, shutting his eyes,
"Then you'd better sleep early... We have a child to raise in the morning," You teased. And with that, sleep came pleasantly. Waking up to someone eager to try your pancakes was pleasant, and the following days that came by were filled with happiness- you found being a parent was more pleasant than you expected it to be. It was clear she needed a family- you only realised then it's all you ever wanted from Silco.