Chapter Text
Gus can’t think past the dull pain. Everything hurts. He watches as Luz opens and closes the door again and again. The details blur together with the rain, and then with his own tears as he falls forward. Everything is cold and wet. It doesn’t help with the stinging. His ears keep ringing, the drumming of the rain sounding too loud, yet impossibly quiet. Everything is still, but so mobile, for a while. Then, there’s a warm hand on his back. Someone says something, but he can’t make out the words—it’s a soft sound, though, reassuring. Then he’s being pulled to his feet carefully, steadily. Gus leans against the warmth, practically collapsing against it. He isn’t really sure who it is, can’t really see through the tears, the swimming pain.
“Can you hear me?” the voice asks. Timid. Uncertain. Hunter . Gus can only nod against his chest in response. “Okay. Uh…can…can you walk?” No . His legs feel numb. That’s probably bad, but Gus figures he’ll worry about it later.
He’s being pulled away from the warmth—pushed? He can’t tell which direction he’s going—and then gentle hands are wiping his tears away. Calloused and a little clammy, wet from the rain. Willow . She doesn’t say anything as she pulls him into a quick, careful hug. Then everything is moving around him, hushed voices speak just loud enough to be heard over the rain, the words undecipherable to him. The next thing Gus knows, he’s being carried down a dark street, lit by harsh lights that shine down onto them every minute or so.
Gus blinks slowly, the world around him clicking back into place piece by piece. He’s leaning against Hunter, specifically his back, his legs hoisted up and his arms hanging limply around Hunter’s neck. A piggyback ride . Normally, something like that would make him smile. He can’t find the energy to even try. Willow is walking next to them. He figures Luz and Amity must be ahead, leading the way to…wherever it is they’re going. It’s silent, save for the pitter of the rain. Everything is ice cold. Gus figures he must be shaking from it, but he can’t tell. It’s all so numb. He takes a deep breath.
Hunter falters for a second, then turns his head to look back at Gus. His eyes seem to glow in the dim shadows of the street, before they pass beneath another light. He looks like he’s made out of it, harsh and blinding, for a moment, before he’s back to himself as they walk on. Gus wants to tell him to watch where he’s going, but he can’t form the words.
There’s something in Hunter’s steady gaze that Gus can’t decipher. Some sort of emotion, something he wants to say, something something something . It’s reassuring, though, like a rock. Constant and heavy, but not so heavy as to be a burden. Then, Hunter turns away. The feeling lingers, though, so Gus closes his eyes and lets himself stay with it.
Then, he’s being shakily put down onto his feet. He immediately leans against Hunter’s side. He wraps an arm around Gus, gently pushing against him, urging him forward. Gus’ legs seem to move of their own accord from there, and they keep walking. Willow is ahead of them, now, by Luz and Amity. She’s gripping one of her arms, and it occurs to him that they’re all hurt. At the thought, his scrapes and bruises start to sting again, but no other feelings return. Everything else is still numb and cold and wet. Gus shudders. Hunter’s arm pulls him closer, grip getting just a little tighter.
He isn’t really sure what to think about… anything . For a while, he didn’t have to. Now that he’s sort of…back to himself, Gus can’t help but think. Is his dad okay? Are Eda and King? Willow’s dads, Alador and Edric and Emira? Viney, Skara, Mattholomule, Principal Bump— everyone ? That kid stopped the spell, they all saw it with their own eyes, but what if it was too late? A part of himself chimes in that, if that were the case, Hunter would be dead too. He inhales sharply.
That doesn’t mean that they’re okay , though. Sure, they’re alive, but how long will that last? The kid—the Collector, he remembers King calling them that, now—destroyed Belos with a single flick of their fingers. What’s stopping them from doing that to everyone else? And that game, Owl House, what was that about? A lie King came up with on the fly, that much was obvious, but now it would have to become real . Was everyone going to be some pawn in it?
The path seems to stretch on for miles and miles. Gus figures they couldn’t have been walking for that long, though. But then again, maybe they had been. Hunter had set him down, after all. His arms must’ve gotten tired. That could just be because they’re all exhausted, though. Plus, the draining spell…Gus glances at the hand holding onto his arm. Does it still hurt? He hopes not.
He also hopes that what he saw isn’t true. He knows it is, though.
Gus knows he’ll have to ask about it eventually. Hunter must know something. That man…there’s no way it’s just a coincidence.
His thoughts are interrupted by the group coming to a stop. He looks up at the door in front of them, watching as Luz knocks. The door swings open, revealing a woman that looks…a lot like Luz. Her mom. She has a hand over her mouth, staring at them all with wide eyes.
“Hi, Mom,” Luz says, the chipper tone to her voice sounding forced and strained. “I’m back!”