Work Text:
Layla always knew her life would be full of adventure. How could it not be with a soulmark that said “I’ll hold them off”? She was destined for an epic tragic romance. And that wasn’t her only mark, so she figured after all of the tragedy and adventures were done she would settle down with someone new. She would survive her loss and move on.
Layla had heard those words from Marc countless times already. But this time she got a sinking feeling in her stomach when she saw the men with guns emerging all around her husband, armed with only a ceremonial ax.
She didn’t feel like she was going to survive this. As she held Marc’s body she realized that the last thing Steven had said to her was a simple “What?” Double the loss. There was no moving on, no coming back from this. But she could take Harrow down with her.
……
Marc didn’t even register that Layla’s words matched his soulmark until he hit the water. Steven, however, had been feeling dread since the moment Layla had asked him, “Can he hear me?”
……
Marc didn’t catch a glimpse of his wrist until after he pulled Steven from the sarcophagus and held him tight. As he saw, his eyes went wide.
“What?” Steven asked.
“My soulmark is different.” Marc’s wrist now had his own name scrawled across it. “What about yours?”
Steven looked down at his wrist. “Yeah, it’s different.” Steven couldn’t make sense of the words. Under what circumstances would anyone say that to him ?
……
Marc couldn’t hear Steven’s words over his own screams after Steven fell overboard, but he knew what Steven had said. Knew it in his breaking heart as he suddenly found himself surrounded by golden reeds.
……
“You don’t need him anymore,” Taweret had said. As if that was a reason to just ignore Steven’s fate. To abandon him.
Marc knew he could be happy in the field of reeds, it was so tempting to just be at peace. But he’d only made it this far because of Steven. Like hell was he gonna leave him behind.
So he kept trudging through the sand until he found his soulmate frozen. He said everything he knew he should have said sooner. If these were going to be his last words he was going to make them good. He put his heart in Steven’s hand as his own limbs froze.
“ You are the only real superpower I ever had.”
As Marc spoke those words he saw them light up gold, scrawled across Steven’s arm. And his own soulmark glowed too, as did the heart in both of their hands.
And then he could breathe again. He could move. He could hold Steven in his arms.
……
They didn’t think about soulmarks again until after Harrow was defeated. Marc and Steven were holding Layla in a hotel bed, and she suddenly sat up.
“Uh…”
“What is it?” Marc asked.
“My soulmark is… different.”
He looked down at his arm. “Ours too!” Steven exclaimed. “And, I think it’s in—”
“Spanish.” Layla finished.
They looked at each other for a long moment.
“Let’s think about this later,” Layla said, laying back down.
“Right,” Marc agreed.