Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Finney Blake just couldn’t catch the break. He couldn’t get a break from the noise, from the pain, from the annoyances of life. What did he do to deserve this? That thought ran through his mind as he sprinted down the street, the jackasses that had been bothering him for a few years quickly closing the gap with the use of their wings. Finney loathed them. He hated that they took pleasure in reminding him that he can’t fly, reminding him that his mother was dead, reminding him that he was smaller and weaker than them, reminding him that he was less than human to them.

He had been bored one holiday and decided to look into birds. Everyone knew that your wings were dependent on personality rather than genetics so Finney was interested in the topic. He has to say, he isn’t surprised by the information he found, especially when relating them to the bullies. Matt had the wings of a duck. While they aren’t the most imposing birds and are often hunted, they can be extremely violent, especially when mating, with instances of drowned or killed females during mating season, though that only happened when there were more males than females, often in captivity, though it does happen in the wild. Matty had pelican wings. Pelicans are monstrous creatures and Finney would be happy if he never encountered them in person, ever. They’re omnivorous birds that enjoy eating smaller birds and have such confidence they will go into a massive collection of bird’s nests and walk right up to a chick and eat it, in front of the parents. Additionally, since their throats are so elastic they just eat the birds, or other animals, whole while they’re still alive. Buzz had the wings of a Goose. Well, technically a Gander, seeing as that is the name of male geese. Geese are notoriously aggressive and violent so it’s not exactly a surprise to know that Buzz is the one that always initiates the beatdowns. If Finney met an actual goose, he would probably smack it with a broom. It won’t deter the bird but it would probably be satisfying.

Unfortunately, Finney was distracted by his thoughts of wings and ended up tripping on a stone. Fuck. Yep, he’s screwed. The bullies descended on him, pelting him with kicks, and punches, tugging at the wings, the feathers, his hair. Anything they could do to hurt him, they did. Finney felt his hand brush against a stone and his grip tightened around it. He could hit them, he could make them stop, if he picked up the stone and hit them, they would stop hurting him.

The familiar memory of lashes against his skin burned through his mind, almost more painful than the strikes he was getting in the present. He remembered the angry, putrid words that were shouted at him as he cried in silence. He couldn’t do that, he couldn’t hurt them. He didn't want to be like him.

Finney’s grip on the stone disappeared and he eventually managed to curl himself up into a ball. Protecting his stomach and head, though the wings were unprotected he felt safe. After all, the wings caused him the most pain.

Crows are often equated to death. They are believed to be a warning, a sign that death is near. They are used as a horror trope, a cheap scare, a friend of death itself and a symbol of the reaper. They are used as a prop in Halloween shops, a symbol to show the darkness in the world, after all, an all-black bird can only mean bad right? Why else would a group of them be called a Murder?

It wasn’t fair. Crows aren’t bad, they aren’t evil. They don’t work with death, they don’t even warn people of their demise. It's just stupid superstition. Crows are intelligent creatures, they make bonds, they befriend, they learn, they adapt, and they grow.

Why did Finney have to be punished because of the thoughts of other people? He isn’t evil. He isn't a sign of death. He isn’t a servant of the devil. He isn’t the embodiment of evil. He isn’t any of those things. He is Finney Blake. 13 years old, an older brother, a son, a student, a friend, and a kid. He just wanted to be a kid. Why couldn’t he just be a kid?

Finney couldn’t fly, the wings wouldn’t let him. No one really knew why. They hadn’t been bothered to ask either. When rumours started going around that the wings formed deformed they were taken as fact. He was ridiculed more, isolated more. No one bothered to help him when they saw him getting bullied, they would simply walk past as he was beaten black and blue, they never questioned the ever-growing number of bruises covering his body. Finney felt alone. He only had one friend, he only had two people that cared about him, that tolerated him, that thought of him at all really. One of those people was his sister. Finney didn’t try to make friends. He did try once, but that ended poorly. Befriending Robin was an accident. Robin asked for help with Maths after a test and Robin seemed to hang around Finney more after that, he didn’t really understand why. He was grateful though, since Robin had been hanging out with him most people left him alone. Of course, there were some people that kept bullying Finney, though it was always somewhere, some time when Robin wasn’t around.

Robin found Finney. He was leaning against a wall, bleeding from who knows where and in pain. Finney wasn’t really sure how he ended up against the wall, or even if he was awake when Robin was there, he just realised Robin was there at some point. That was the same time that he realised that he wasn’t getting hit anymore. Finney recognised the look that Robin was giving him, it was one that Robin had given him several times before, this wasn’t the first time Robin had found him like this. Even though Finney could perfectly recreate that expression in his mind he didn’t know what it was. It wasn’t pity, he knew there was anger in there but he knew it wasn’t at him, but who else could Robin be mad at? Was that expression sadness? Hidden elation? Excitement at seeing the school freak getting what he deserved?

Robin helped Finney up and practically carried him home. Not to the Blake home but to the Arellano home. The house was empty and Robin brought Finney straight to the bathroom and started to clean the wound before bandaging them. Robin said Finney should probably carry around a first aid kit, seeing how often he gets into fights.

Fights were a nice way of putting it. It wasn’t fights, it was attacks. Fights are when both parties throw a punch, when both parties have some chance to win, or even the belief that they can win. Finney doesn’t fight, Finney doesn’t think he can win, and he probably never will. Finney didn’t feel like correcting Robin.

Finney was grateful to his circle. Even if it was only Robin and Gwen. He was grateful he had at least someone.

He wishes he could have been like that for his mother.

Chapter Text

Finney was looking forward to the game. It was the first game that Robin was going to come to watch. He wasn’t the absolute best player, he wasn’t the best at batting, but he was one hell of a runner. He got plenty of practice running from bullies. Finney was sitting on the bench, he was enjoying the quick break as he had run like hell and managed to score a point for his team and now they were on the field. It was the last round and the coach was trying to come up with a plan. They couldn’t let the other team score any more points and their best batter was going to come out soon. Finney looked over to the other team and spied their best player. Bruce Yamada. Finney knew Bruce, not personally but he was popular enough that he was well-known in both schools. He had Brown-eared bulbul wings. Their grey colour compliments the brown baseball team clothes well. It seemed to give Bruce a softer edge, somehow making him seem more approachable. Brown-eared bulbuls are passive birds that mostly eat insects, seeds and fruits but they can be protective and territorial when it comes to food.

Finney was pulled from his thoughts when his coach grabbed his shoulder. The coach was telling him that he was going to be the pitcher. He remembered that the coach mentioned that he wanted Finney to be one of the school team’s pitchers, meaning that he wouldn’t have to bat, which he was grateful for. Finney couldn’t really understand why, but he trusted his coach. Soon, both teams were stepping out of their dugouts and getting in place. Finney walked up to the centre of the pitch and faced forward, seeing another kid there. Finney threw the ball and the kid hit it, one of the others in the field caught it and passed it to first base, trapping the boy there. Well, it wasn’t off to the best start but it wasn’t the end. Finney managed to get a strike from the second boy but he hit the second ball. Thankfully someone managed to catch it before it hit the ground and threw it to the second straight away, getting the first kid out as well. Up next was Bruce.

He walked up to the base and got ready. Finney threw the ball. Strike. Finney threw the second and Bruce hit it, fortunately, it went to the side and out of bounds. Finney threw another, Strike. He could see that Bruce was getting nervous. He wasn’t smiling like he was before and had a look of concern as he looked between the ground and somewhere ahead of him. Finney took a deep breath before throwing the ball again.

Strike.

There was an eruption of cheers, which drowned out the groans from the other school’s members. Finney found himself enveloped by bodies and he was starting to feel overwhelmed. Thankfully they soon released him and he soon found Gwen and Robin, happily letting them pull him into a hug. After all the noise was significantly reduced the teams lined up and shook hands with each other. After that was done Finney moved to leave but he was stopped by Bruce.

“Hey man, you’ve got one hell of an arm,” Bruce smiled at Finney.

“Thanks,” Finney muttered though his tone made it sound like a question. Bruce laughed slightly, it wasn’t a malicious laugh, he seemed to be entertained, for some reason.

“Maybe we could train together?” Bruce offered. Finney stared at the taller for a few moments. “Or not,” Bruce’s smile faltered slightly.

“Oh, no, that would be really cool, yeah. Training together sounds good!” Finney rushed and Bruce smiled once more. Finney could see Gwen and Robin watching from a distance, they were watching Finney and Bruce talk. They were probably waiting for Finney so they could cycle back together.

“Sweet, I’ll give you my number,” Bruce smiled. Finney found himself nodding and followed Bruce as he gestured for him to do so. After they got to Bruce’s bag he pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Finney. Finney nodded and pocketed the piece of paper. 

“I’ll text you when I get the chance,” Finney smiled.

“Before you go, can you help me out?” Bruce asked as he gestured to his back, “the brace is pretty uncomfortable.”

Braces were a series of belts and buckles that restricted the wings, keeping them closed and tight to the body. Most sports require players to wear them to avoid unfair advantages like increased speed with their wings or cases where eye-lines were blocked by wings.

“Oh, sure,” Finney muttered, moving forward and helping Bruce out of the brace.

“You want a hand as well?” Bruce asked as he stretched his wings. The two had started heading towards the exit.

“I’m ok,” Finney shrugged.

“Are you sure?” Bruce questioned.

“Yep, I wear a brace normally anyways so it’s ok,” Finney shrugged but he soon found himself walking alone. He looked over to where Bruce was standing and was confused by the shocked expression, “what?”

“You normally keep your wings braced?”

“Yeah?”

“Why? For how long?”

“It’s better for me to keep them braced, I basically always have them braced.”

“What about preening your wings?”

“Oh, yeah, my sister helps.”

“What about flying?” Bruce asked and Finney froze. How could he tell Bruce that he’s never flown? Well, he did once when the wings first formed but never again after.

“Is everything ok here?” Robin asked, his wings puffing up and making him an intimidating figure.

Robin had falcon wings. Finney thought it fit, Robin had one hell of a punch, according to the people he fought. Falcons, unlike hawks and eagles, had smaller and weaker talons meaning that they can’t snatch up their prey as those birds do. Instead, falcons dive down from a high altitude, their claws clenched in fists, and they, essentially, punch their prey. The punch is strong enough to break their prey’s back, making them easy pickings.

“Yeah, it’s good,” Finney smiled at Robin before turning to Bruce, “I’ll talk to you soon Bruce.” Bruce nodded, withering slightly under Robin’s glare.

“You ok Finney?” Gwen asked as the two boys approached her on the bikes.

“I’m ok,” Finney smiled. She nodded and they were soon on their way home.

There were lots of things Finney regretted, too many to count really. There were only a few things he didn’t regret and one of those things was befriending Robin. However, watching his best friend walk towards him, with the scariest guy in school following, Finney was starting to question his choice.

“Hey Finn,” Robin smiled as he plopped down next to Finney and pulled out his lunch, “I’m sure you know Vance.”

“Yes,” Finney confirmed as he poked at his own lunch.

“Great, well, he needs help with history and I know that you are good at history,” Robin started.

“Wait, how do you know I’m good at history? We don’t have History together,” Finney interrupted.

“I’ve listened to you talk about the mess that is the history of the English monarchy for over an hour before. You’re good at history,” Robin simply stated, “anyway, as I was saying, Vance here needs some help. Like me, another F and he’s suspended. Again.”

“I mean,” Finney started.

“Listen pipsqueak, can you help or not?” Vance questioned as he turned to look at Finney some more. Finney studied Vance in return and saw the look of recognition in the blonde’s eyes. Shit. “Aren’t you that fucker that held the door open for the police when they dragged me out of the store?” Finney chewed at his bottom lip, his eyes flicking between Robin, Vance and the table.

“Yes,” Finney answered. Vance stared at Finney for a few more moments before Robin interrupted.

“Finney, you’re really smart, we could use your help. If it makes you feel better we can have our study sessions at the same time,” Robin offered.

“You’ll make sure he doesn’t kill me, right?” Finney questioned, causing Robin to laugh.

“Of course, I will, buddy,” Robin grinned before throwing his arm over Finney’s shoulder. Vance stared at the two of them before huffing slightly then storming off.

Finney picked at his food while Robin sat in silence beside him. Finney had been helping Vance for a few weeks, working with him and Robin in the park, often before or after his practice with Bruce.

A tray was slammed down in front of Finney making him jump. Finney looked up and made eye contact with Vance, though he quickly looked away. Even if he had been tutoring Vance for a bit, the blonde was still terrifying. Vance gave a gruff greeting before starting to eat. Finney didn’t know what was happening, Vance had never sat with them before. Finney wasn’t going to question it though. He wasn’t really brave enough to try. Finney just hoped this lunch would be quick.

Finney studied Vance’s wings. He always knew that they were vulture wings but he never really knew much else. He knew that vultures are scavengers but that they can also hunt extremely well. He also knew that vultures are extremely durable, especially concerning what they eat. Vultures sometimes eat food that is already decaying which would have deadly bacteria in the meat and while eating it would kill any other animal, vultures are practically immune to them.

“Jackass, you left me behind,” a voice joined them, Finney was shocked to see the boy, looking slightly younger than them, slip down into the seat next to Vance, not before giving him a light slap to his arm.

“Who’s this?” Robin asked lightheartedly.

“My step-brother Griffin. He’s a menace,” Vance answered, gaining another light slap from the smaller.

“At least I don’t get into fights every other day,” Griffin countered, “who are your friends?”

“I’m Robin,” Robin smiled before throwing an arm over Finney’s shoulders and pulling him close, ”and this is Finney.”

“I’m Griffin, as you know, my friend Billy is joining us soon,” Griffin smiled, ignoring Vance glowering at him.

Griffin had Sparrow wings. It made sense, even though Griffin was only a year younger than Finney he looked at least three considering his size. Sparrows are small birds and are often seen as prey but they are extremely tough. They are very adaptable and aggressive when they need to be, often pushing out other birds. They enjoy making their nests in small spaces, maybe because the smaller space makes them feel safer as most other birds wouldn’t be able to get into the nest. The wings suited Griffin in a way that Finney couldn’t explain, the brown wings with hints of other tones matched his curly brown hair.

Just like the youngest said, they were joined by another boy. The boy, Billy, was vaguely familiar to Finney, they probably shared a class then, Finney absentmindedly thought to himself.

Billy had the wings of a pigeon. Pigeons were the first birds that humans ever domesticated. They were also used as messenger birds during wars and a few even became decorated soldiers. Pigeons are extremely smart and durable, often living in cities, possibly because of the high buildings giving them plenty of places to land and hide. Pigeons are incredibly fast, as well as strong flyers and master navigators, that’s what made them such good messenger birds. It made sense to Finney, Billy was the town paperboy after all.

Finney found himself enjoying lunch. He wasn’t just sitting alone or just with Robin. He, surprisingly, never felt unsafe or uncomfortable with his company. At some point in the meal, all the boys shared their numbers, mainly for study groups and tutoring. When the lunch bell rang they kept talking as they walked off to class.

Finney found himself excited when there was a group project in English and Billy had chosen to work with him.

Chapter Text

Finney had just met up with Robin, Griffin, and Vance at the school gate when Billy came running at them with a newspaper in hand.

“Guys! Guys, guys, guys, guys!” He excitedly yelled at them before throwing the newspaper at them, hitting Griffin in the face.

“Griffin!” Finney gasped, rushing over to check on the youngest. Finney missed Vance picking up the newspaper but definitely saw him throwing it back at Billy, though it only hit his chest. “Vance!” The blonde only shrugged.

“That was my bad,” Billy shrugged, managing to catch the newspaper before it fell to the floor, “but guys look!” Billy opened the newspaper to show the boys something. There was a fair in town. The others immediately started making plans. The original plan was to just meet up at the fair then go home but it then became a sleepover. Finney listened to his friends excitedly planning but he stayed quiet.

“Finney?” Robin questioned, studying the brunette.

“I don’t know if I can go. My dad might not let me,” Finney explained.

“You can say you’re spending tomorrow night at mine,” Robin offered, “I know that Gwen spends some Friday nights at her friend Suzie’s.

“Yeah, and I go home to take care of dad,” Finney added but he stopped when he realised what he said, “I just mean, Friday is a long day for him, he just wants to relax when he gets home,” Finney rushed.

“I’m sure he’ll let you, just ask at least. You can tell us tomorrow,” Robin smiled. The boys soon scattered as the bell rang, announcing the start of their school day.

The next day, Friday, the boys stood in front of the school, waiting for Finney to arrive. He was running a little late compared to his usual arrival time. Robin saw Gwen first as she walked up to the school. She gave all of the boys a hard stare as she walked up to them. She stopped and seemed to glare at them for a moment, her blue jay wings puffing up, before continuing on, shoulder-checking Vance and Robin as she went. Robin followed her momentum to watch her for a moment before he turned back to face the road. When he did he caught sight of Finney and froze. Finney had a bruise on his face.

“Finney, are you ok?” Robin asked as he rushed towards Finney. Robin carefully grabbed Finney’s face and studied the bruise. It was on his cheek, right above the cheekbone, and it seemed to curl up around his eye. It was still pretty red showing that it was pretty new but Robin could see that it was quickly turning purple. Finney flinched at the movement but soon calmed himself.

“I’m ok, I just walked into a door this morning, it's nothing,” Finney tried to laugh, “good news though, I can spend the night at yours. The weekend too, my dad’s working overtime.” Finney lugged up a duffle bag he was carrying, probably full of clothes and other things.

“That bruise isn’t from this morning,” Vance stated from just behind Robin, “I’d guess it's from last night.”

“Late night, early morning,” Finney shrugged, “it was past 12 am and it was still dark out, I was getting some water and got turned around in the dark.” Robin and Vance both studied Finney, causing him to fidget slightly under the attention.

“Whatever,” Vance shrugged, though his voice was clearly still tense, “let's get going, we’ll be late.”

The fair was so full. It had been a while since Finney had been at a fair and he forgot just how much there was in a fair. All the people, the noise, the lights, the games, the rides, there was just so, so much. Even if Finney was feeling somewhat overwhelmed he could also feel the buzzing feeling of excitement under his skin. Finney felt a hand clasp his own and he looked over to Robin who smiled at him. Finney let himself get pulled further into the fair, laughing as he watched everyone else chase each other. Finney was soon handed a cotton candy cone, which he almost dropped as Robin dragged him off to another part of the fair.

“Hey, Pipsqueak,” Vance called out to them.

“Hey, Blondie,” Robin called back, knowing that the nickname was one that Vance wasn't overly fond of.

“Think your little twig arms can beat me?” Vance challenged, after rolling his eyes at Robin, as he gestured to the strength game before him. It was one of those games where you use a large mallet to hit a sensor, sending an indicator up. It was supposed to show how strong you are. Robin immediately lit up and dragged Finney over.

“Robin, you’re gonna have to let go of me if you want to play, you know?” Finney teased. Robin blushed slightly and somewhat reluctantly let go of Finney’s hand before stalking up to Vance. Finney took a step back, over to where Griffin and Billy were watching the two fighters bicker, and Finney went back to snacking away at his cotton candy. Finney’s gaze started to wander, looking at the other patrons of the fair when he spotted someone familiar. Finney handed his cotton candy to Griffin, ignoring Billy’s warning of Griffin’s insatiable sweet tooth, and started towards the person.

“Bruce!” Finney waved at the other, quickly gaining his attention.

“Finney! Hey!” Bruce greeted, also heading towards Finney. He saw Bruce falter slightly, likely because of the bruise marring his cheek. Bruce still pulled Finney into a hug, without hesitation before their attention was brought back to the people that were with Bruce.

“Bruce, who is this?” A woman asked. Finney looked at them, there was a man and a woman and a younger girl that Finney recognised as Bruce’s sister Amy.

“Mum, this is my friend, Finney,” Bruce smiled.

“Oh yes, the boy who beat you,” the man laughed, earning a light slap from the woman.

“Yeah,” Bruce chirped with a laugh, “we’ve actually been training together at the park.”

“Oh,” the woman smiled at Finney, “you’re Bruce’s new friend.” Finney felt himself blushing at the fact that Bruce considered him a friend.

“Can I go around the fair with Finney?” Bruce asked.

“Is that alright with you?” Bruce’s mum asked.

“Yeah, I’m kinda just walking around with my friends,” Finney shrugged.

“Ok then, you two go have fun,” Bruce’s dad smiled, “just be at the entrance at 11.”

“Hai,” Bruce nodded before his hair was ruffled by the man and the family left to look around the fair more, leaving Bruce with Finney. “So, any plans?” Bruce asked as he turned to Finney.

“Oh, let’s go meet back up with my friends,” Finney offered. “I have been thinking about introducing you guys so this works,” Finney added, mostly as an afterthought. He never really thought about introducing Bruce to the others, mainly because he felt like most of his recent friendships weren’t going to last, so why should he bother getting attached?

When Finney got back to the others he saw that Griffin had eaten the rest of his cotton candy, Billy looked somewhere between disbelief, mild annoyance and horrified, while Vance and Robin were still over by the strength test game.

“What happened?” Finney asked Billy.

“Griffin just ate all of your cotton candy in one bite. I… I have no idea what to say…” Billy managed to explain. Finney stared at Griffin for a moment, also confused, especially since the cotton candy was barely eaten when he handed it off.

“Who’s your friend?” Griffin asked, quickly changing the topic of conversation.

“This is my baseball friend Bruce,” Finney introduced, the mentioned boy waving at the two before them, “what’s happening with Vance and Robin?”

“They still haven’t gone yet, some older kids cut in front of them for no reason, Vance punched one of them, Robin joined the fight for a bit then the other boys ran off,” Griffin recounted.

“Really?” Bruce asked, sounding slightly astonished.

“No, there was a line, they just got to the front.” Finney snorted at Griffin’s sudden deadpanned tone.

“They’re having a go at the High Striker? Why?” Bruce asked.

“They challenged each other,” Finney shrugged, “you owe me a snack, Griffin.” Griffin playfully groaned before leaning against Finney, his forehead against Finney’s arm.

“Does the little baby need his nap?” Billy cooed as he approached Griffin.

“Fuck off, I’m only 10 months younger than Finney,” Griffin growled, though he was still pressed against Finney.

“Yeah, and both of you are the precious babies of the group,” Billy teased. Griffin groaned and Finney just laughed. Bruce watched them interact, mostly just studying their dynamic.

Bruce looked over at the strength tester to see a tall, strong, arguably pretty, blonde, swing the mallet down onto the target as he watched as the indicator shot upwards, making it 3/4 of the way to the top. Fuck that’s cool.

“Fuck,” Robin whined an air of defeat and annoyance in his voice. The two started heading over to where the others were gathered and Robin’s feathers puffed up slightly when he saw Bruce.

“Who’s this?” Vance asked once he was close.

“This is Bruce,” Finney introduced, “we practice baseball together sometimes.”

“Cool, nice to meet you,” Vance nodded to Bruce before he threw his arm around Finney to drag him along, almost causing Griffin to fall from the loss of his support. “I beat Robin, that means he has to buy me some food.”

“That was not part of the deal,” Robin immediately countered.

“Eh, it is now,” Vance shrugged.

“You owe Finney a snack,” Griffin added.

“What? Why?” Vance questioned as he turned to the youngest, letting Finney go.

“I ate his cotton candy and I don’t have any money on me,” Griffin tried to explain.

“And I have to bail you out, why?”

“Who bailed you out of jail last time?” Griffin countered, staring at Vance, who only watched him for a few moments.

“Fair enough,” Vance huffed before he kept walking once more. Finney was soon joined by Robin, who again took hold of his hand, and they walked as a group.

Finney got a candied apple, courtesy of Griffin and Vance, Vance won a bear plush from a game, quickly handing it off to Griffin. Bruce was also handed a gift by Vance after he won yet another game. Bruce won a game as well and gave his prize to Vance, confusing the tallest but he kept the gift, seeming awfully pleased. At around nine Griffin started complaining about being hungry so the group agreed to go get some food and then meet back up. About 10 minutes later everyone was at their agreed meeting point, everyone except Finney. Robin was immediately worried, he knew how much of a trouble magnet Finney tended to be and he had also seen Buzz, Matt and Matty around the fair. They waited for five minutes before they agreed to go look for Finney. It took them another 10 minutes of looking before someone spotted him. He was hidden away, sitting in a dark corner between some rides.

The boys approached Finney but they slowed when they noticed Finney wasn’t alone. In his lap were three kittens, another was batting at his shoes while an adult cat sat nearby, getting pets from Finney.

“Finney?” Robin quietly asked, getting Finney’s attention.

“Hey guys, check it out,” Finney smiled as he gestured to the cats on and around him, shaking his foot slightly, getting the kitten even more invigorated in attacking his shoes.

“Yes, cats,” Vance grunted.

“What happened to your food?” Bruce asked when he noticed that other than the cats he was empty-handed.

“I shared it with them,” Finney shrugged, “they were hungry.”

“Are you hungry?” Billy asked as Robin crouched down beside Finney and pet one of the kittens in his lap.

“No, I’m ok,” Finney smiled, the group stayed there for a few minutes, all but Vance sitting to pet the cats as well before they agreed to look for more games and rides. Soon they were walking through the fair once more, and Finney had been given another snack by Vance. Finney didn’t even realise how good of a time he was having until he noticed he was in the middle of a laugh attack, watching Billy and Griffin throw popcorn at each other. Finney noticed Robin staring at him and he took that opportunity to shove a handful of his popcorn into the latter's face. Robin simply laughed and started to loudly chew on the popcorn.

“Finney,” Bruce called out, “you have to try this game!” Finney walked over and saw it was a throwing game. The game where one was given three baseballs and three chances to knock over three towered pins.

“I don’t know,” Finney started but Bruce was already shaking his head.

“Come on Finney, just one try, I’ll pay,” Bruce offered. Finney felt panic course through him when Bruce suggested paying but before Finney could do anything Bruce had already gotten the clerk’s attention and before he knew it, Finney was standing in front of the counter with three rubber baseballs placed before him. Finney looked over to the others and saw their expectant expressions and just sighed. Oh well.

He handed his popcorn over to Robin, with strict instructions to not let Griffin get any when he picked up the first ball. He took a step back from the counter and his body just moved on its own. His hours of practice with Bruce made throwing the ball second nature. He threw the ball and flinched at the sound of the pins falling.

“Wooooo,” Bruce cheered, “I knew you could do it!”

“Nicely done,” Vance smiled as he threw his arm over Finney, who couldn’t help the smile that formed on his face. The clerk handed a plush over to Finney, it was over half his size. Finney suddenly heard Vance cackling and he looked over in confusion. “It’s bigger than Griffin!” Vance managed to gasp after a few moments. Soon everyone, barring Griffin, was laughing.

The group kept walking through the fair, everyone taking turns carrying the oversized plush, before Finney excused himself.

“Where are you going?” Robin questioned, he’d gotten a lot more concerned about Finney after a particularly bad day with bullies.

“The bathroom,” Finney shrugged before he lifted the hand that was still intertwined with Robin’s, ”you’re going to have to let me go.” Robin blushed slightly before loudly waving Finney to go.

After Finney had finished with his business, even managing to find and pet another cat, he started to head back to the others. He knew where they were going next so he headed there.

“Well, well,” the voice made Finney falter, “look who we have here.” Finney was soon faced to face with Matt, Marty and Buzz.

“It’s Finney the fag,” Buzz laughed, “I’m pretty sure we already taught you a lesson about going places you shouldn’t.”

“Looks like someone else wanted to teach him that lesson as well,” Matty laughed, pointing out his bruised face.

“What are you doing here?” Matt questioned, a biting annoyance in his tone.

“Walked around,” Finney dismissed.

“Alone?” Matty laughed, “makes sense, who would want to hang out with the freak?”

“Can’t you guys just leave me alone?” Finney huffed, he was getting tired and he honestly just wanted his snacks back before Griffin got to them.

“What’s the fun in that?” Buzz sneered as he started towards Finney.

“What the fuck is going on here?” A voice questioned. A voice that had become very family and much more welcomed over the past few weeks. Finney didn’t really know how to think about the fact that he was much more comfortable around Vance than he ever thought possible.

“Hey Vance,” Matty greeted, trying to sound more confident than he felt, though it easily failed because of how his voice wavered. Finney could practically feel the eye roll that he knew Vance pulled before the sound of footsteps approached. The footsteps stopped as Finney felt a weight placed on his shoulders and he realised that Vance had placed an arm around him.

“So, what’s happening here?” Vance asked again.

“We’re just teaching little Finney here a lesson,” Matt quickly explained.

“Really? What lesson is that?” Vance asked as he leaned against Finney.

“Just that he really shouldn’t be places he doesn’t belong,” Matt laughed, “unless he wants to get a pounding.”

“Ok,” Vance hummed, seemingly in thought, “why doesn’t he belong here?”

“What?” Matty asked.

“I’m asking you a question, pay attention. Why doesn’t he belong here?” Vance asked again harshly.

“Well, you know,” Matt tried to deflect.

“I don’t know, you should tell me,” Vance smiled sharply, even Finney was starting to get tense and afraid. The only thing that kept him from running was the fact that Vance had his arm and wing around him. Finney also noticed that Matt, Matty and Buzz’s wings were puffed in annoyance.

“It’s ‘cuz he’s a flightless faggot freak,” Buzz spat out, his wings shifting to appear bigger and more intimidating. Vance laughed a little. It was a cold laugh that put all of them on edge.

“Love the alliteration,” Vance sighed, “just not when it’s about or targeted at my friend.” The three bullies gulped.

“Bullshit,” Matt tried to laugh, “why would you be friends with the freak?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Vance asked instead, “he actually had a brain and knows how to use it.”

“He’s a bird of death,” Matty added with a snarl.

“So am I,” Vance laughed, his wings spreading larger. “You seem to forget that. I’d rather hang out with another bird of death than a gaggle of brain-dead, feather-stuffed birds of prey.” Vance walked passed Finney at this point and was sneering in the bullies' faces. “If I ever see, if I even hear that you were close to Finney for whatever reason, I’ll fuck you up so badly your mothers won’t even be able to look at you.” Vance’s wings suddenly snapped shut and he walked back to Finney. “Come on, Billy can only stop Griffin for so long.” He smiled. It was a friendly one that Finney didn’t know how to react to. He just nodded and followed along.

Robin let out a sigh of relief when he saw Vance walking back with Finney. Gridding hadn’t managed to eat another one of Finney’s snacks through the joint effort of Robin, Billy, and Bruce. Vance stopped the last struggle for freedom by wrapping the youngest in a big, tight bear hug. Griffin went slack after a few seconds.

“I hate you,” Griffin grumbled.

“I hate you too,” Vance smiled. The group walked around the fair for a while longer. Playing games; winning some, losing more, buying gifts, sharing snacks, and enjoying the fun. Finney noticed the worried glances he got and the questions about the bruise on his face but he chose to ignore or redirect, something he did with ease.

Bruce ended up being late to meet up with his parents but he didn’t end up getting into much trouble. The rest of the group ended up rushing back into the fair to try watch some of the shows before it got too late. They even got pulled into a couple of the shows, never Griffin though, apparently he was too small, something that Vance got a huge kick out of. By the end of the night, their feet hurt and exhaustion was weighing them down so they started the walk to Robin’s house. Vance took the massive plush from Finney, Griffin holding it while Vance gave him a piggie-back ride.

When they finally trudged into Robin’s house they gave his mum a quick greeting, stumbled their way to Robin’s room and collapsed to sleep before they could even think about saying goodnight.

Chapter Text

The first thing Finney noticed when he woke up was a weight laying across his waist and someone sleeping against his back. He froze. Did he forget to lock the door? He always remembered to lock the door. Why would he forget? He hadn’t forgotten in a year, not since the last time. His father’s banging and shouting through the door was better than what happened.

“Vance, your feet stink! Fuck off!” A voice yelled, snapping Finney from his thoughts. He blinked a few times and saw Billy on the floor, laughing. Looking downwards he saw Griffin struggling to get away from Vance while the older kept sticking his feet in the other’s face. Finney could only stare in surprise as he watched them playfully fight.

“Don’t be such a bitch,” Vance joked.

“I’m telling mum you’re bullying me!” Griffin yelled. Finney felt the person, probably Robin, shift behind him.

“Guys, be quiet. Finney and Robin are still asleep,” Billy scolded quietly. Finney snapped his eyes shut, he wasn’t entirely sure why but he did.

“Too late,” Robin grumbled into Finney’s ear, making him shiver at the closeness. Robin didn’t get up though, he shoved his face into Finney’s hair and pulled him closer.

“Who knew Robin was a hugger?” Billy hummed, he couldn’t say much else because Vance swung a pillow, smacking Billy in the side of his head. “You piece of shit!” Billy practically threw himself at the vulture. Griffin cackled while Vance just hit Billy against the head again. They started to fight more aggressively until Robin couldn’t ignore them anymore and joined the fray. Finney stayed laying down and watched them fight. The room ended up full of different feathers, pillows and blankets scattered around the room.

Finney couldn’t tell who ended up as the winner because Vance and Robin just kept going. Finney ended up getting annoyed and bored so he threw a pillow from the bed, nailing Vance in the face. Vance dramatically fell into Finney’s plush, which had been stashed in the corner of the room. Robin started to celebrate as the winner until Finney threw another pillow, getting his back. Robin still fell forwards, barely missing Billy’s feet and lay like a downed soldier.

“All hail Finney, the victor of war!” Griffin called out. Finney threw another pillow.

As the group ate a late breakfast, Finney noticed that Robin kept shifting his wings and his face was pinched in discomfort. He waited until after they finished eating and their plates were put away before he went up to Robin.

“Are your wings ok? You look uncomfortable,” Finney started.

“Yeah, I think it got all mixed up during the pillow fight,” Robin winced.

“Want some help?” Finney offered.

“Thanks,” Robin smiled. They started towards Robin’s room but they were stopped by Griffin calling out to them.

“Where are you guys going?” The youngest asked.

“I’m going to preen Robin’s wings,” Finney said. Griffin nodded. The other boys ended up following them back into Robin’s room but spread about to do their own things. Robin grabbed a pillow and hugged it to his chest as he sat down, his back to Finney.

“Which side do you want me to start with?” Finney asked. Robin offered his left. Finney got to work, carefully carding his fingers through the feathers on Robin’s wing. Robin’s right wing shifted forward as the boy started to preen the feathers on the inside of his wing. Finney carefully slipped out old feathers, straightened misaligned ones and carefully got rid of the rare broken ones. They then swapped wings, Finney working on the outside of the right wing while Robin worked on the inside of the left. When both of them finished brushing through the feathers Robin relaxed his wings behind him. Finney pressed lightly on the base of Robin’s wings where the oil glands were and gathered what was offered before carefully massaging it into the feathers, making the colours more vibrant and the feathers waterproof. By the time Finney was finished Robin was half asleep and humming in appreciation.

“Do you preen Robin often?” Billy asked, having watched the whole thing.

“Yeah, I find it soothing and Robin doesn’t seem to complain,” Finney explained.

“Definitely not, he’s basically boneless right now,” Vance laughed.

“Dude,” Robin murmured, “it’s like getting a massage from an angel.”

“I think that’s a bit much,” Finney tried to deflect.

“I’ll see for myself,” Vance said, walking over to them, jokingly shoving Robin aside.

“Wait, what? Are you sure?” Finney frantically asked. Preening was often done by family, partners or close friends and Finney was pretty sure he was none of those things.

“Yeah, come on Blackbird,” Vance smiled. Finney blinked at the nickname but was soon sat behind the blonde, carefully carding through the feathers. He found a lot more old, misaligned and broken feathers than he normally found on Robin’s wings, as well as some dirt and rocks. Finney ended up humming and singing as he worked, the Beatles song now on a loop in his mind.

“Finney, you should sing more!” Griffin said excitedly.

“What? No, I’m not,” Finney started.

“Finney, just take the compliment,” Robin sighed. Finney nodded and concentrated on Vance’s wings again. He started to spread the oil over the wings. 

“All done Vance,” Finney smiled, wiping his hands on the spare rag that he had, “try not to get rocks in your wings again.”

“Holy fucking shit,” Vance sighed, “I think I saw god.” Finney sighed and shoved Vance.

“What about you Finn? Want me to preen your wings?” Robin offered. Finney felt panic clawing at his stomach.

“It’s ok, Gwen preened them yesterday,” Finney waved off. They both knew it was a lie but Robin didn’t mention it.

“Ok,” Robin quietly nodded. Finney started to fiddle with the feathers that had gathered on his lap.

It was late afternoon when the others started heading home. They ended up agreeing that they should have sleepovers as a group more often, even inviting Bruce along. Bruce’s parents only agreed if it was not on a school night. 

Finney let himself feel excited about their future hangouts, he let himself get lost in the happiness of a future. 

He was going to miss it when he gets forgotten.

Chapter Text

 The boys had tests coming up so they ended up forming a study group, Bruce often joining as well. If they studied at the park Gwen would join them but if they went to someone’s house she went to one of her friend’s places. Finney was thankful that Bruce was there because he helped Finney answering questions or giving help.

Finney noticed a few things during their study sessions. Vance would drum his fingers a lot when studying, never a melody, just a stiff, strong sound that wasn’t too distracting. If Vance was really focused on something it would stop, Vance almost becoming completely still. Griffin would somewhat hide his head when he was reading or writing, his forearm over the back of his head with his hand hanging by his ear, crouched down so his face was less than an inch from the book. Whenever Billy wasn’t using his pen he was fiddling with it, he never chewed on it though. Robin would pull his leg up, his foot on the chair and he would hug the leg, resting his body against it and propping his chin on his knee as he worked.

Bruce ended up having his tests a week before the rest of them did, thankfully he kept coming and helped tutor the boys. They had offered to stop bothering Finney with questions but he told them not to worry, explaining that he found that teaching helped him remember the topics as well.

They were at Billy’s house for their weekly sleepover, now study sessions. Everyone was working on workbooks or questions and no one seemed to need any help so Bruce was stuck with nothing to do. Finney watched as he took a scrap piece of paper and cut it smaller and smaller until he was left with small squares, not even an inch across. He started to fold the squares into smaller and smaller shapes. Finney watched, captivated and confused until Bruce presented him a tiny paper crane. It was so small he could only show it off by balancing it on the tip of his finger. They were probably half the size of his nail. Finney noticed that Bruce would make them whenever he was bored, somehow always having some paper on him.

“I’m going to fail maths,” Robin groaned as he threw himself backwards, thankfully he moved his wings flat to not cause too much discomfort.

“You’ll be fine,” Finney insisted, “we went over these things.”

“And I still don’t get it,” Robin huffed.

“So we’ll go over them again,” Finney offered a smile.

Finney sat behind Griffin, preening his Sparrow wings when Bruce spoke up.

“Do you want one of us to preen your wings?” Bruce asked.

“No, it’s ok,” Finney dismissed.

“Are you sure? I’m pretty sure none of us will mind,” Bruce offered again.

“I’m sure,” Finney nodded.

“At least take the brace off, I’m pretty sure you sleep with it on,” Robin joined. His voice has a joking tone but they all knew he was telling the truth. Finney didn’t take the brace off to sleep, at least when he was at a sleepover.

“It’s ok,” Finney shrugged off, “I prefer it on.”

“Dude, you’re going to get chronic pains,” Billy added. Finney was tempted to say that he already had them but didn’t.

“It’s one night a week, plus, it saves space. We wouldn’t be able to fit in one room if all of our wings were spread out,” Finney reasoned. The boys huffed.

“Finney,” Griffin started, “you know that none of us care that you have crow wings right?”

“I know,” Finney nodded, though his face stayed hidden, suddenly much more interested in his task of preening. The boys shared a look.

The boys were crowded together on Bruce’s living room floor. They were watching a movie. They had voted on what to watch, Finney and Billy voted for a mystery film, Bruce voted for an action film while Vance, Robin and Griffin voted on Horror. So there they sat, gearing up to watch The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Griffin, Billy and Vance were on the couch, legs gathered in the middle across Griffin’s lap, while Bruce sat on the floor with the bowl of popcorn, passing it between the three on the couch and Finney and Robin. Finney and Robin were curled up on the beanbag, falcon wings wrapped around both of them and the seat. Finney shifted a few times trying to get his wings to settle in a comfortable position. Robin gave him a look.

“You can take them out of the brace if it’ll help. There’s plenty of room,” Robin smiled, his arm thrown over Finney’s shoulder.

“It’s fine,” Finney offered. He unbuckled the lower strap that held the brace to his chest, loosened the shoulder straps and carefully pulled them off. Silently groaning he painfully moved the wings so they lay off the end of the beanbag. The wings protested the strange position with pain but Finney breathed through it and sank into Robin’s hug. He felt Robin tense for a moment before relaxing again. 

Finney both hated and loved the film. He never fully understood the appeal of Horror movies and tended to avoid them but he had enjoyed the film. He would never tell Robin but it got him a bit more interested in watching other horror movies, just to see what they’re like.

The boys were at Vance and Griffin’s house, the radio playing in the background as the boys talked and messed around. They were taking a break from studying and letting loose for a bit. Feathers were flying around the room as most of the boys ran around, wings flapping and making a general mess as they chased each other around. Finney and Billy stayed sat down, watching everyone else cause a mess. Vance and Robin seemed to be in the middle of an intense sight, Griffin and Bruce giving their own assistance to whoever they wanted to win, Griffin helping Robin while Bruce helped Vance.

“Can you preen my wings?” Billy carefully asked Finney. So far only Robin, Griffin and Vance had gotten their wings preened by Finney and Billy and Bruce were trying to see when they would get a turn as well, especially seeing how the other boys reacted.

“Sure,” Finney smiled.

Finney was soon in a familiar position, sitting at Billy’s back, preening his wings. He didn’t notice when the noise stopped and the boys settled down again, too concentrated on cleaning Billy’s wings.

“You’re too nice, preening everyone else’s wings for them,” Griffin said.

“I don’t think so, I’m just helping someone,” Finney shrugged.

“Can we help you?”

“With Billy’s wings? They’re not that bad.”

“With your wings,” Robin corrected.

“They’re ok.”

“They’re really not,” Vance pushed, “I can see how dull your feathers are.”

“I don’t produce a lot of oil, that's all.”

“Finn, you barely take it out of the brace.” Robin tried

“So? They’re my wings.”

“Finn,”

“Just drop it okay?” Finney huffed, he’d stopped preening Billy’s wings, not wanting to accidentally hurt the pigeon wings in front of him.

“No, we’re not going to drop it,” Vance countered, “let us help you with your wings.” Robin plopped himself behind Finney, reaching to unbuckle the brace but he wasn’t able to as Finney suddenly stood, startling all of the boys. Vance was a little surprised to see Finney’s feathers puff up slightly, though it didn’t stop him from seeing the grimace that overtook Finney’s face. He was even more surprised when Finney suddenly stood and started to walk out of the room.

“Wait, Finney, where are you going?” Bruce asked.

“Home.”

“What? Why? It's not even close to your curfew,” Robin argued.

“I said I didn’t want you to preen the wings and you tried anyways, I asked you to drop the topic of the wings and you didn’t. I don’t like them. I take care of them because I need to and I don’t like thinking about them so just stop.”

“Why are you calling them ‘the’ wings? They’re your wings,” Griffin questioned.

“Why would I want them?! They’ve just caused me to get hurt! I hate them. Just… leave me alone.” Finney stormed out of the room and then the house. It took the boys a moment to gather themselves enough to scramble after him but they eventually managed to get outside. Somehow, Finney was already out of sight and none of them knew where he loved, not even Robin. 

Why did Finney hate his wings so much? Why was he so angry about it? Did he really not care about them?

How badly did they screw up?

Chapter Text

Finney was avoiding them, the boys could tell that much. They’d barely been able to speak with him that week, always being brushed off, ignored or completely avoided. They knew they had messed up almost as soon as the whole situation happened but they were confused. Not about how they messed up, Finney had stated it very clearly, they were confused about the why. Everyone they knew loved and was proud of their wings, why wasn't Finney?

“He’s been bullied for them for as long as I can remember,” Robin offered, keeping the cool damp cloth on his face. Gwen had hunted them down first thing in the morning and made her thoughts about them very known, slapping Robin across the face for upsetting Finney. The girl was small but she could hit hard.  

“Why though? I've heard the bullies call him Finney the fag and flightless Finney but I don't get why,” Griffin muttered.

“I don't know either,” Robin admitted. “Before I became his friend he always had his wings in a brace.”

“Seriously?” Bruce sputtered, his voice peaked on the phone.

“Yeah.”

“He wears a brace every day at school, and on the weekend, even to sleep… is there something wrong with his wings?” Bruce questioned.

“I don't know,” Robin shrugged, “he never mentioned anything.”

“There are rumours that they formed deformed and wrong,” Griffin offered.

“Can that happen?” Billy questioned.

“It’s never happened before,” Bruce denied

“So something happened to them?” Vance asked.

“I guess… why would he end up hating them though?” Billy muttered.

“Are you idiots done gossiping about my brother?” Another voice cut into their conversation. The boys whipped around to look at Gwen who was staring down at them in disappointment.

“Hey Gwen,” Robin started.

“Save it,” she seethed, glaring at them, making many of them feel very small. “If Finn didn’t tell you, I’m not going to. You dipshits should just drop it and figure out a way to get back into his good graces. As much as I want to kick your faces in right now, you fuckers are good for him. Fix it.”

“How?” Vance asked, his voice twinged with desperation.

“Why should I tell you? You dumbasses fucked up, I’m not going to bail you out,” Gwen huffed. “Finney needs you guys, whether he knows that or not, but you still hurt him and I’m pissed at you for that. I’m not going to hold your hand to fix things with him only for you to fuck it up again.”

“Then help us understand,” Bruce pleaded through the phone. Bruce was lucky not to be there with the glare she gave him.

“I already told you fuckers,” Gwen hissed, “if he hasn’t told you I’m not going to. Drop the topic of his wings and just try to fix your friendship.”

“How can we fix it if we don’t know what we did wrong?” Billy argued.

“You made him uncomfortable and ignored his boundaries,” Gwen said after glaring at them for a while, “If you couldn’t pick that up then you fuckers really are the dumbest people I’ve met.”

“Well, we knew that,” Billy started.

“Then what was this go around about? Apologise for being dickheads, promise to be better and prove it. Stop fucking around about why he is uncomfortable with his wings and just be there for him,” Gwen pushed, “fucking idiots.”

“How are we supposed to apologise if he keeps avoiding us?” Griffin pushed.

“Figure it out yourselves dipstick,” Gwen snapped, “I’m not your friend. I’m Finney’s sister and I already don’t like you shit stains. You’ve already got two strikes.”

“Wait, two?” Bruce asked.

“Yes. Two. Don’t make it three.” Gwen then walked away, leaving the boys both more confused and less lost.

Robin was the first one to try to approach Finney. The others had argued that Robin had known him the longest and was the closest to him so it should be fine.

Robin plopped down next to him at lunch, giving an awkward smile to the girl who was sitting with Finney. “Hey Finn, how was class?” Robin tried but Finney just ignored him. Robin could feel the girl watching him, making him feel kind of uneasy.

“Look, me and the guys were talking and,” Robin started but he stopped when Finney stood up cutting him off.

“Donna, do you mind if we move somewhere else?” Finney asked the girl. She looked between Robin and Finney, who was purposefully not looking at Robin.

“I don’t mind. If you’re sure you don’t want to stay,” the girl, Donna, answered somewhat quietly.

“Want to eat outside?” Finney offered, stepping out of the seat.

“Sure, I’d never say no to that,” Donna smiled and followed Finney out, throwing Robin an apologetic look.

Robin tried again in class. He sat next to Finney but was once again met with a cold shoulder. “Finn, can you please talk to me?” Robin tried, pushing Finney a little to get the boy’s attention, only getting an annoyed huff in response. “Look, me and the others feel bad ok? Will you please talk to us? Like, after school or something? Finn, please.” Robin felt optimistic when Finney moved but was confused when Finney raised his hand.

“Sir, can I please move seats? I’m having trouble reading the board,” Finney asked. Robin felt his stomach drop. It fell even further when the teacher nodded and Finney practically scrambled to grab all of his things and move to another table. He knew that the only reason Finney didn’t say he wanted to move because of Robin was because he was already on his last chance with this teacher and Finney didn’t want to get Robin into trouble.

Message received, Finney doesn’t want to talk to him.

Billy tried next. He sat with Finney but he couldn’t get a conversation going between them. They didn’t have the group project anymore and the teacher didn’t like when students talked in class. He tried writing a note but it was just pushed back without being opened. When class ended he tried talking to Finney but he had left the room as soon as the bell rang and Billy couldn’t catch up. 

Billy tried again in the recess during lunch but he couldn’t find Finney at all. He was a little worried about what that meant but Buzz, Matt, and Matty were in the field doing their own thing. He ended up wandering through the school building and heard a few hushed voices coming from the library and stuck his head in, seeing Finney sat with a girl Billy didn’t recognise. She was a brunette, kind-looking face and was happily talking with Finney. That was probably the ‘Donna’ Robin said Finney had sat with at lunch. Billy wanted to push his way in, tell the girl to leave and get Finney to talk to them, to him at least, but he knew it would just make it worse so he just left the library and looked for the others again.

Griffin stood by Finney’s locker. He didn’t really want to be there, he felt like he was trapping Finney but the others insisted he should try to talk to Finney as well. Finney did tend to look after him quite a lot. Probably because he’s the youngest. 

Griffin straightened when he saw Finney approaching, alone this time. Finney was hunched as he walked, staring at the ground and he weaved through the hallway. Finney looked small, smaller than Griffin had ever seen him. Almost like he was invisible, or like he was trying to be. Griffin hadn’t seen Finney like that before. Griffin could only watch as Matt purposely flared his wing, smacking Finney, almost making him trip.

“Damn, sorry flightless fag, maybe you should watch where you’re going,” Matt laughed, getting laughs from Buzz and Matty. Griffin seethed and stormed over.

“You’re really pathetic, you know,” Griffin spat at the three boys, seeing the started reaction from Finney in the corner of his eye.

“You’re talking to the wrong person midget,” Buzz laughed.

“No. You see, a pathetic person is someone who picks on, belittles and attacks someone to try to feel a little bigger than the tiny, insignificant speck that they are. You seem the fit the bill pretty well,” Griffin hissed, remembering the scathing lecture his mother had given his piece of shit bio-dad. Buzz looked pissed at what Griffin was saying.

Matty started to laugh.

“Really? Flightless Finney needs some kid to come to his defence,” Matty gasped out, setting off the other two, though Buzz only laughed a little while still glaring at Griffin.

“No, I don’t,” Finney huffed, Griffin turned to look at Finney in surprise but barely caught a glance of him before he was being dragged after the teen.

“Come on Finney, I can handle them, they’re not the worst thing I’ve dealt with,” Griffin argued, pulling at Finney’s grip.

“Griffin. Just stop,” Finney said, pulling Griffin ahead, putting them in a private area and making them talk face-to-face.

“Aren’t you angry-” Griffin started.

“Yes. I am angry. With you. With the others,” Finney interrupted, his words sharp and final.

“What? Why?” 

“I want this to stop. Whatever fucking game this is, I want it to stop. I want you to leave me alone.”

“Game? What game?” Griffin questioned. “Finney, we aren’t going to leave you alone, you’re our friend.”

“I don’t have friends. I don’t get to make friends,” Finney burst out, tears, tears , staining down his cheeks. Griffin felt his breath catch as he watched his friend, his friend , break. “I really started to think maybe, maybe, this was something. That I was finally getting some friends. God, I’m so stupid.” Finney let out a shaky breath as he took a step away from Griffin, a movement the smaller boy followed.

“Finney, we are friends. We’re chasing you down to keep being your friends,” Griffin explained, his hands reaching up to hold onto Finney’s arms.

“Stop lying!” Finney shouted, flinching away from Griffin’s touch. “Please, stop lying.”

“Finney,”

“Just leave me alone.”