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Chapter Text

“Sometimes good things happen to bad people.”

Nita flashed a wicked smile and Kovit returned the toothy and twisted grin. What he would keep to himself however was the consequential turn of his stomach when he did so.

The premise of having to lay low and be on one’s best behavior wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. In fact, this is essentially what he needed in order to explore the full scope of himself. He knew through his caustic friendship with Nita, that he would simply keep roaming down the same path he had been set on since he was ten years old. He was tired of being a monster. He was tired of being nonchalant to the pain he caused, and after becoming closer to Fabricio, he was essentially tired of everything he had done up to his recovery.

The apology was probably the first time he had genuinely felt terrible about his actions. He had made new rules based on that, but he was genuinely happy Nita wasn’t exactly curious for him to tell her what they were.

‘Monster…’

His sister’s voice echoed into the back of his head, bouncing around his surprisingly empty dome full of unidentifiable emotions. Usually, he was able to push it back, maybe even revel in being terrifying... But he knew everything his sister said was right. He didn’t feel bad about the tortures and murders he’d committed. He only felt sorry she was there to see who he truly was in its full ugly form. But part of him explored the memories more, and he concluded during his stay at the hospital…

For him to have any meaningful relationships that didn’t lead him to the same feeling or didn’t urge him to the brink of death, he would need someone outside of Nita.

He could still care for her, appreciate her; but as it stood, he latched onto somebody he thought understood him. She was still terrified of him, still didn’t quite understand, but she made the effort to. His online friends had since kicked him and Gold from their group, and that was another wound he held.

While at the facility, on top of the physical therapy and monitoring he was going through, they also offered psychological counseling. Fabricio and his team of lawyers indicated it would look good for his defense, not to mention in general was probably for the best. He had never explored more than he had to of his mind, and though he thought he had himself figured out, he really didn’t know who he was outside of Henry and his operations or Nita and her vivacious urge for power in the guise of vengeance.

Speaking of therapy, he moved away from having his forehead on Nita’s and looked down at her phone screen that was still unlocked. It was almost time for the said therapy session.

She wheeled him back to his room, and moments later he was wheeled into a room at the other end of the hospital where they monitored his visitation, the guard never too far away. He shuddered and groaned just before making it past the doorframe, someone had been stabbed and a part of Kovit wished he could see what their face looked like as they writhed in complete agon- “Good morning, Kovit!”

The thought was interrupted, and he ruefully glanced over. A thick Argentinian accent sung around the corner. She had a dashing smile and oddly rosy cheeks on her olive-complected skin. Her red hair blazed with a ferocity of the sun, and her cheery disposition furthered that perhaps she was an ethereal being herself. Kovit grimaced a little, always a little taken aback by how bright someone could be without being luminescent.

Perhaps she was an aur, but only on the inside.

She sat in her chair, putting on a pair of gradient and stylish purple reading glasses, taking out a writing tablet and stylo. Her office was tidy, yet well-lit and covered in happily growing fauna that almost seemed like the leaves reached out to her from the center of the room where her chair was designated. He slumped with his shoulders curved up in his wheelchair. The last time they were here, she tried to coax him into talking which he was not having much of (and given the circumstances, she didn’t blame him).

“Aren’t you afraid?” He had asked suddenly, and she brightly opened her shining green eyes and simply said, “No, I’m not scared of you.” He figured it was an act, so he would divulge a little at a time to get her to budge, but other than writing down a few key details and empathizing with him, she really didn’t budge.

There were no looks of shock, there was no judgment, there was no stupid misguided speech about how it was all okay because it was simply a product of his upbringing… She just listened. Kovit didn’t realize that aside from Nita, nobody had truly listened to that capacity. Maybe nobody at all period.

“That must have been really terrible, being only ten.” She uttered softly, breaking Kovit’s stilled face… Had he been talking? “What?” His eyes widened, and she smiled sweetly. “You were so lost in thought, yet you told me what happened between you and your mother.” Shock apprehended his features, it felt as if his body was being wielded by a ghost. “It’s not too common with disassociation, but it can happen. I’m very proud of you for opening up to me Kovit. It’s very courageous and your heart was in the right place. You can’t harbor that guilt forever.” His jaw dropped, and he wanted nothing more than to run the hell away in the other direction. And yet, a seed was gently sown within him that wanted nothing more than to plant his feet where he was for a long, long time. He had truly never felt safer than within Mrs. Álvarez’s office within her canopy of plants.

“T-Thanks.” He looked away, bangs hanging and creating shadows on his face. “But there’s nothing wrong with me, other than- “His sister appeared at the forefront of his mind, and he wished he could have kept the memory of them parting, then the memory of how she almost shot him and still couldn’t –

“I’m evil.”

“Evil?”

“Evil.”

He was decisive, or at least he thought he was. “I don’t think you are Kovit. Sure, your choices are based on who you are,” she watched him with hooded eyes, but a sweet and soft smile still curving her lips. “But you haven’t made many of your own choices, so how can you know what you would have done?”

He opened his mouth to protest, but when he really thought about it, she was right. As much as he protested and deliberated on the fact, it was true. His mom slowly began to integrate murder into normalcy when she began to teeter down her own pit of failure and insanity, Henry made it a job and addiction passion, and Nita weaponized his loyalty by siccing him on anybody who crossed her path and he had permission to be the awful thing he was. But he liked it, right? Or did he just like the elation their pain caused.

“Maybe?”

An involuntary question, almost a yes, not quite a no. A zone of ambiguity he had yet to completely explore and rationalize. It made so much sense when he was trying to convince Nita to accept his monster, his evil… But when he wasn’t trying to convince someone how awful he was, he really couldn’t say he loved everything he did. Maybe if he really had been any other kid, he wouldn’t have been so bad. If people who were family and friends didn’t count on his cruelty and bolster him up with genuine compliments and acceptance through their fear, maybe he wouldn’t be so ingrained in the habit.

“People that try to rationalize me for what I’m not are just as annoying as people condemning me for what I am.” Kovit rolled his eyes and granted her a freezing look, accompanied by an off-putting smile.  It’s a speech he had given Nita and she accepted it.

Mrs. Álvarez was not Nita.

She lowered her reading glasses and gave him a skeptical look before leaning forward on her knee and setting her tablet on the arm of the chair. “Have you ever wondered why it’s annoying to you?” Why? Because it wasn’t true! “Have you ever wondered why you believe you’re beyond saving? Why don’t you deserve a life worth being proud of?” She tilted her gaze forward, looking up at him through her bangs, “A decent support group, friends who care about you…”

Stop. Stop. Stop…

He could feel himself beginning to crack, beginning to gain clarity and he wasn’t sure what to make of it. He opened his mouth to protest… But she suddenly sat up straight and pushed her reading glasses up into her hair.

“It looks like our time is up! If you’d like, we can hash that out in our next session. Call me or text me if you need anything, okay Kovit?”

He felt so vulnerable. He hated it… But also, why did he feel kind of relieved? He simply nodded and a nurse came and escorted him by his wheelchair to his room… He saw Nita brighten up and begin to speak, he heard her but couldn’t concentrate on anything she said. He stared at her face long and hard as she continued speaking.

Did he truly deserve better than her?

Chapter Text

Kovit…

Kovit…

What’s wrong?

Hello? Earth to Kovit?

He blinked the film that developed over his glossy eyes while he catatonically stared in her direction, looking straight through her thinking about the things Mrs. Álvarez had spoken about. For some reason, it had hit a little harder today than usual. How long had she been talking? When did she realize he was quietly stuck in his head?

“Why wouldn’t I be?” He snorted and gave her an amused grin, playing it off. She put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed, he instinctually leaned into it and reached up, lacing his fingers between hers and carding his fingers through his hair with his other hand. “I don’t know… You just haven’t really been yourself lately.”

Ah, there it was, she was worried.

He scoffed, “Strange, after being shot by literal air out of nowhere, a few life-saving surgeries, a few days long coma that a week in the hospital would have made me good as new.” He playfully looked up at her and tilted his head, only to find Nita staring back at him with her mouth open. As soon as his eyes hit hers, they looked away. He raised an eyebrow and looked at her strangely, had he said something wrong?

It didn’t help that Nita had left, which surprisingly she never came back until he was already dying. She risked calling the hospital, not knowing his DUL was suspended for the time being pending investigation. Had his loyalty not run so deep, he had every reason in the world to think Nita saw him as a loose end before everything faded to black. When he woke up to see her there, he had to admit he was more terrified than relieved.

Imagine, a ‘Zannie’ terrified. He really could dish out some cruelty, but he wasn’t made to take it in the slightest.

The thoughts had died down, but he still felt pensive and disconnected. Nita gave everything she could to make sure Kovit was safe. She had done deals, overcome her overwhelming need for vengeance, and risked life and limb to make sure he was alright, so the thought that maybe she had tried to kill him wavered but still existed somewhere in his mind. He didn’t flinch from her extended hand, but he wanted to. He didn’t recoil from her putting her head on his chest when she slept in the hospital bed beside him, but it took longer to fall asleep. He knew he’d go insane if he didn’t address it, and maybe his playful jabbing really did hold some weight.

She looked like she felt so utterly terrible. What did happen that day? Why did she bite her lip and look away as if she felt so guilty?

They hadn’t talked about the incident, or why she never came back to the hotel room after she left to go pick up the pizza down the street while he was lying low. They didn’t talk about his sister passionately hunting him down in a vendetta for her partner, the gun she brandished, and how his life flashed before his eyes. They didn’t speculate how or why she knew where he was, or even why his name ended up on the list faster than expected. She had since talked about her overwhelming freedom, enrolling in school, and becoming Adair’s apprentice, but not how any of this came to be. He hardly brought up anything he wanted out of life if his legal team really did get him off the hook. He didn't even talk much about how worried he was that his sister resigned and was just missing from the world. Again. 

Part of him didn’t want to know because he didn’t want to lose the only person in the world that was seemingly on his side. Even Fabricio he knew was probably using the legal team as barter to get Nita off his back, he wasn't naïve enough to think they were actually friends, but they did see each other as people. 

Bells were ringing in his head as she unlaced her fingers from hers and retracted her hand, her palms pressed together, and her glance pivoted to the side with a dark look. Maybe life for him was just supposed to end up in everybody he knew being a nightmare after all, despite his incessant need to connect. To not feel so completely alone.

He tensed up, shifting his glance to get a better look at her face, “Nita? Did I say something wrong?”

She dropped her hands to her side and made fists as if summoning up the courage or the willpower. Here it came. He internally winced, but on the outside held perfectly still. With his years in the mafia, hopefully, his poker face was as strong as he prided himself it was. “Nita?” He nervously prompted her again, his voice still and quiet. She looked up at him, from guilt to some sort of resolve. “You don’t know what happened?” She quietly mused, shaking her head and sitting down beside him. “Of course you don’t know. You couldn’t have.”

Yup, she was gonna kill him. She was going to shove that scalpel she carries around like some fucked up surgeon and gut him. He’d be ‘swimming with the fishes,’ as they would say. He imagined her slowly carving a Y into his chest like she had described she had done to countless other zanies, his organs in neat packaging besides the table as she sterilely ripped through him with a quiet and neat elation on her face.

“My mother did this to you, but she’ll never hurt you again.”

The twisted and dark expression on her face as her mouth morphed into an almost inhuman smile. “I… took care of that while you were still recovering.” She mused, rubbing her hands together in some effort to self-soothe. He knew that they had their problems, but she never truly went into detail about her mother. All he knew was that she worked as a hunter and a little like Henry had some sort of God complex when it came to controlling. He began to feel a little guilty for his fear. He unclenched his jaw he hadn’t even noticed tightened, and his shoulders relaxed as he leaned back into his wheelchair.

Nita leaned in and began whispering, he guessed you can’t be too careful when there were guards right outside your door. “I want to know what happened, Nita. You don’t need to protect me or keep things from me... We’re partners.” His tone was so soft and small, that he almost felt just as small. Nita described everything to him. How she was lured away from the Pizzeria, how she saw everything through a camera in the next room, …she saw everything that happened with his sister, and then through the wall, her mom took him out. Or at least tried to. He stayed quiet for a while, trying to piece everything together for his own sake. “So she was hunting me because I was on the list? But according to everyone I talked to, it would have been suspended by then.” He looked up at the ceiling as if trying to envision the whole web of intricacies. Nita sighed, “She… wasn’t doing it because she felt like you were an actual threat. She’s not the type to really care about others.” She closed her eyes, brows knitting. “I made a mistake when I got my passport… She mostly guessed everything about us, but I… Didn’t think it would end up how it did. She just wanted to get rid of you to scrub away my choice to not crawl back to her.”

“How what did?”

She bit her lip and began to spew everything inside of her, occasionally looking towards the door and keeping her story to whisper. So, her mom was some old broad who was a cop but hated cops? Her parents were responsible for making his life a living hell with the Dangerous Unnaturals List, but then literally responsible for him almost being worm chow. Her mom moved the list up in spite to control Nita, and his sister was some plot on her mom’s part for some fucked up childhood revenge so his sister could also live with the burden and maybe stop trying to take down the DUL.

He winced.

The man he tortured so brutally would have helped her, and had he tried to be a decent …person… maybe none of this would have happened to him. She'd still be an agent, he'd still know where she was...

She was looking away and rubbing her arm as if shame was washing over her with each new admission. “Why didn’t you tell me?” She almost flinched as she sat up, trying to create some distance. “Didn’t you think it’d be a little important for me to know some of this stuff?” He carded his fingers through his hair and grabbed onto the tuft of hair, his expression somewhere between annoyance and …relief. So Nita wasn’t the one. After all, she sacrificed a lot for him to be honest… But he wished she didn’t try keeping things from him.  He finally let go and let out the breath he was holding. When exactly had he stopped breathing?

She looked so vulnerable now and he sighed, reaching out to gently tuck some of her loose hair behind her ear, and almost like magic, she melted into his touch. “I… knew she was capable of awful things, but I didn’t think she’d be as much of a problem as she was until we…er… Met Zebra-stripes.” Her eyes flickered up to his and she leaned back down to his side, so close he could feel her small breaths on his face. “I didn’t start connecting anything until that night…But it was wrong of me not to tell you. I guess I figured you were already having an awful time, I didn’t want to add more to your plate. I didn’t think she would go as far as she did, but now she can’t hurt anybody ever again. Not me, not you.”

He grinned, playing idly with her hair, and let out a few hushed laughs. She looked at him quizzically, “You have a real penchant for that, maybe you should give up your dreams of being a scientist and go be a demolition expert. Clearly, it's your true calling.” Her face transitioned from calm, to completely amused and they quietly laughed together.

It all checked out, there really wasn’t a reason for him to feel so on guard around her. “But for real, if you want to talk about it… Please do. Henry wasn’t easy for me… I know it’s not easy to do that to a parent, or someone like a parent.” His tone was so soft, that she put her forehead to his and laced her fingers into his hair too. “I know. Thanks, Kovit.”

Like clockwork, her phone started to go off and she lightly sighed. “It’s Adair, I’m going to take this in the bathroom.” She shifted her gaze to the door that was vetted by the guard, and he nodded understandingly as she disappeared. How strange that even a Kelpie was capable of better resolution than the girl that looked so human.

He steadied himself by locking his wheelchair and using it as a crutch as he struggled to put himself into his hospital bed. He felt a stabbing pain and tug in his abdomen, and he doubled over onto the bed, clutching it. He really could dish it out, but this just simply was torture to be on the receiving end of pain. He took his phone off the bedside table and was a little shocked to see a message notification from someone other than Fabricio coordinating his legal team consultations.

A ball of nervousness settled in his stomach as he opened the message, but he couldn’t help the endearing smile that plastered over his features.

It was Anna…

Chapter Text

Kovit let out a hiss as he involuntarily straightened, trying to sit up against the pillow of his hospital bed. He scanned her message with a stupid grin plastered upon his face… He never thought any of his friends would want to hear from him again… He was quite sure he had lost May, Vince and Thao thought he was a complete psychopath, and he assumed Anna’s feelings were the same.

Anna: Hey Kovit… How have you been?

He could feel the awkwardness permeating from the screen as he sighed. Anna had always been an unusually sweet and selfless person, but he assumed she probably wanted to drive the point home that he was not welcomed.

Before he could respond, another message came in as if his mind was being read.

Anna: I saw the news and the articles… I hope you’re okay. I’m sorry for how Vince and Thao treated you… I should have spoken up more.

He was truly taken aback. He couldn’t help the completely sweet look that took over his face as he clutched the phone. There was going to be a ‘but,’ there was always a ‘but.’ Sighing and shoving down the compulsion to smile, he began typing back.

Kevin: I'm ok Anna… Thanks. It’s my own fault I got voted out.
Anna: That’s not what I saw… Kevin, I know we were young and wouldn’t have understood, but I know you’re a great person. I just feel it. It’s unfair to judge you because of what you are…
Anna: But I refuse to forget who you are.

Damn it...
Damn it.

He couldn’t help the wave of relief that crashed over him. That was the but? That she truly did still believe he was a person? He could barely read anything else she typed because his phone was shaking. He thought something was wrong with the screen, but then droplets of water fell onto the display, and he knew that he was suddenly… crying.

He was crying. For the first time since he found his mom torturing his grade school friend. He thought he lost the ability to cry so long ago. He wiped his eyes and looked over his shoulder, Nita quietly still on the phone with slight variances in volume. Adair must have an interesting proposal or say something to try to get under her skin. Sure, Diana wouldn’t let him kill her, but he could still get his vicious verbal knocks in however he could.

He took a shallow breath and looked down again, catching up on everything she had typed. So, she had gone out of her way to read all the articles, look at the videos they had published, and even the pending trials. She had concluded just like everybody else that he was simply the product of his environment, and he was robbed of all choices since his more formative years. He sighed in great annoyance but closed his eyes for a moment.

Why did he feel so annoyed?

It wasn’t a shift in responsibility, Mrz. Álvarez made it a point to say it’s okay to know what he did was inexcusable… He still did monstrous things which he sometimes refused to do to have some semblance of choice and control. To keep a shred of himself (whatever that was) intact. He even created his own moral compass because outside of Pat, he truly never got to develop one. He didn’t want to end up like his mother… Like Thilda… He wanted to live. He still wanted to hurt people, he still wanted to take in the sweet and slow release of agony, but maybe it was alright if he found other ways to eat his fill.

He was a monster who did monstrous things, he wasn’t even allowed to be alive according to INHUP. The only reason he was alive now was because there were people who doubted he even was one because of his outing with his sister. Other people protesting for the elimination of the list seemed to get on board when they realized Zannies were people with the possibility of having a full scope of emotions too. What proof did he have of actually being something of value other than just another malevolent enforcer? He couldn't even be anything else... 

Here we are, those 'choices' again... 

Apparently, Anna was the former. She knew she was talking to a Zannie, and yet what was most important to her is she was talking to Kovit. He didn’t want to say anything incriminating, so he had to gloss over some of her kind words.

Kevin: That means so much to me, thank you.
Anna: I’m so glad, Kevin. *hugs*

They began to chat about his timeline for recovery, a little bit about going to therapy and asked how she was. She said he was fine, but he shook at the memory of her pain when he saw her. How can someone go through something like that almost constantly and still be as amazing of a person, he didn’t know. But he hoped that he had enough time to learn.

He wouldn’t mind pretending to not be evil for a while.

Nita came back, giving a frustrated sigh and Kovit was idly playing Genshin Impact on his phone. She threw her phone on his bed and sat down hard beside him. All he could do was a smirk, “Done chatting with your best friend?” Nita rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. “He has a new client that he’s excited about,” Nita seemed exasperated, how Diana dealt with him and his antics, even Kovit didn’t know. With Nita’s short temper and inhumanly analytical perceptions, it was clearly going to be an entertaining time once he got back to Toronto. “He… Wants me to come there as soon as I can so I can learn the ropes.” Kovit was looking down still playing his mobile game, but a dark shadow cast upon the top of his face as his posture lowered a little, almost vulnerable. The last time they were separated, well…

Anxiety was a very mild way to put how he felt.

He still tried to feign a smile, “If Adair is reaching out to you, it’s got to be a fairly good opportunity … Or he’s going to actually show you his basement while Diana isn’t looking.” They both chuckled, Nita stretching her arms above her head. She had lost some of her muscle and began to resemble the girl he first saw at the death market. Come to think of it, this was the first time they had stayed in one place for longer than a couple of days.

The doctor told him that usually in cases like this, patients took a couple of weeks post-surgery to recover and an additional three to six months to completely heal. Because of his ‘affinity for healing rather swiftly,’ as the doctor called it, he could be cleared from discharge by next week and probably be fully recovered in a month or two. That was great news, considering he was real tired at how raw and sore he felt from his fleshy parts being perforated by a hot pinch and constantly being reminded of growing cold in a puddle of his own blood.

“Part of me doesn’t want to miss the opportunity, though.” Nita suddenly piped back up as Kovit relaxed and looked at her through a lidded gaze, turning his phone display off. He was already feeling exhausted, his gaze lacing with fatigue. He let out a sigh, “It’s okay if you go, Nita. I can take care of myself.” He opened his eyes and reached out for her hand, cupping it and pulling her forward into a hug. He winced, damning himself for the pulling in his abdomen from the sudden motion. She nuzzled into his chest, “I’m leaving tomorrow, but I can arrange for someone to be here with you.” He raised an eyebrow, “Who would possibly want to babysit a zannie?” He said with a cocked grin and a dismissive roll of his eyes.

She pressed her lips together in a tight smile, it was almost scary.

“Well, Fabricio knows if you die, there’s no reason for me not to kill him.” He spat, beginning to laugh heartily. Man, she was fucked up. Poor kid really messed with the wrong crazy chick, that’s for sure. “I’m sure he has better things to do, plus I have my own personal bodyguard. It makes me feel important.” He was smug and condescending, making Nita chuckle softly as she relaxed beside him on the bed. “I guess if he doesn’t mind keeping me company, I wouldn’t say no.” He yawned and whatever she said next he couldn’t tell, because the soft wave of slumber washed over him, and Nita probably realized she was talking to the walls when his soft snores began to escape.

Chapter Text

The air permeated a thick veil of smoke, yet Kovit’s eyes didn’t sting, and he didn’t cough. He still instinctually covered his mouth with his arm and tread forward against the brazen heat and winds. He squinted past the Giant Swing of Bangkok and his eyes widened. The podium was replaced with bloody remains of people he vaguely remembered.

Arms unearthed themselves as they grabbed at his clothes, he tried to lift his leg against them, moving forward towards the religious structure. His eyes widened and he stiffened “Dolphin girl?” Her decapitated pink head with organs trailing under her neck floated absently yet had a cocky and determined smile. He looked down and saw the man he mugged, the driver, his mother, and countless others. He recognized every single one and was dragged to his knees by the arms jetting up from the solid ground.

The ambient head turned and began to fly right at him. He couldn’t move… Her mouth unhinged to reveal her head splitting in half to reveal nothing but an empty void to suck him into. “I-I’m sorry!” He croaked, and she laughed; her pitched laughter echoing throughout the dream, “You’re not sorry yet. Not even fucking close.”

Suddenly everything began to fade as he was drawn into darkness, the faint sound of rustling and suddenly words being formed,

‘H-Hey! Ow, Kovit! AAUGH!! Stop!! What the hell?!’

Kovit woke with a start and groaned with absolute ecstasy, lurching his head back into the pillow as his body shook. What in the fuck was going on? His eyes snapped open, his fuzzy surroundings slowly hashing out as his consciousness lagged. He saw a hand next to him… But it was oddly…Large? Did Nita do her weird bio thing and make her hands larger? They were also bandaged. And… Pale. And… Not. Her. Hand. Kovit followed the arm up and immediately snatched his arm away from being laced with the other’s fingers.

Blue eyes stared at him gasping and wincing, the hand retracted from vision and Kovit sat up, wiping the haze from his eyes as he tried to focus. “Well, that was a heck of a hello,” the voice that was definitely not Nita’s said with a tone dripping with infuriation, “I wish I had some warning before you crushed my bad hand though.”

Fabricio? Had Kovit laced fingers with him while he was having the nightmare?

Kovit snickered after recovering, way too tickled for his own good. “Well maybe don’t sit so close next time?” Fabricio looked completely exasperated with him already, sighing and reaching over by the table to remove the tea bag he was steeping. “My arm was right here until you manhandled me.” He protested calmly, taking a sip through the thin haze of steam, and sitting it back down on the tiny plate it came with. Kovit snorted and felt better than he did yesterday, guess the morning snack wasn’t something he was going to be too upset about.

“Where’s Nita?” Fabricio’s eyebrow shot up and a small angelic smile played across his face, “Oh, going back home. She said she told you?” He trailed off. Kovit smacked his forehead, the conversation from the evening before playing back in his head. “How long was I out for?” Fabricio looked down at his fancy watch, took another sip of tea, and crossed his legs, showing off his freshly polished pointed boots. “At least thirteen hours.”

No wonder he was absolutely starving. He wearily gazed up at Fabricio, “Can you help me?” He asked, pointing at the wheelchair. Sure, he could walk around, and often in physical therapy they had him walk two or three times a day… But it was so uncomfortable and contrary to popular belief he hated experiencing pain as much as he loved inflicting it. Fabricio had an amused expression, but politely got up out of his seat and pushed the mobility device towards him, holding it still as Kovit lazily plopped into it. He winced as he hit the seat, hissing at the pain in his side.

Life would sure be less complicated if his own pain was edible.

Fabricio smiled just a slight bit more than before and gently bowed his head as he raised his arms into a shrug, “You know, I’d be lying if I didn’t say doing that was oddly satisfying.” Kovit threw on a broad grin and looked up at him, “I don’t blame you.”

Kovit had a busy morning. First was a consultation with the doctor that went well. He was on track to leave the facility five days from today. Today was also the last day of physical therapy, which Kovit loved. Afterward, Fabricio took Kovit to the cafeteria for a breakfast that would satiate both his appetites, since near to the cafeteria was the cancer ward. Between bites, he was practically seizing and Fabricio tried to ignore it but would look up every so often and scoot away slightly when he groaned.

Kovit between waves of ecstasy felt terrible for the bastards. His whole body tingled with no specific area of pain radiating from whoever he was picking up.

Fabricio left the facility to do some errands while Kovit wheeled himself into Mrs. Álvarez’s office. He noticed the plants just lazily hung from the ceiling until she walked in, their leafy tendrils reaching out for her. He curiously raised an eyebrow but decided to let it go. “Good morning, Kovit. How did you sleep?” He thought about it for a moment and sighed. “I slept for a long time.” She smiled at that, “But the nightmare was pretty weird.” She grabbed her tablet and slid her glasses onto her face.

He described the dream, how it made him feel, and everything he saw. However, he left the identity of the dolphin girl ambiguous. She had a serious face as she looked up from her note-making, “So you really do feel that bad.” It was a statement, leaving no room for argument as he mulled the words around to be more palatable to accept.

Maybe he did.

“It’s hard for me to feel as sympathetic as I should,” he admitted, staring down at the floor because he really didn’t dare to look up at what he assumed would be a face of horror and disgust. “I… I sort of wouldn’t allow myself to give them an identity, you know? To me, it was like craving a sandwich and then cleaning the whole plate.” He looked up and she was just nodding, engaged in what he was saying. “So, you require a face to a name… Humanizing your ‘food’ sort of speak?” He flinched at her blunt assessment a little but was relieved she wasn’t completely repulsed. At least not outwardly. “It makes sense. Do you think it would be cathartic in your recovery to know who they were?”

All his victims? He gulped. Could he handle that? Concluding that those were people not unlike his friends, with aspirations, hobbies, and dreams. He wanted to say no, but before he could stop himself, he quietly uttered “Yes.” She nodded and wrote down a note. For the duration of their visit, she wanted to implement ‘Cognitive Behavioral Therapy,’ to combat his thought distortions and fatalism that was leading him to seek out the hamster wheel of misfortune on which he was constantly stuck.

He was definitely tired after but left feeling like a huge cinderblock in his chest nudged out of the way and he could breathe.

As the five days wrapped up, Fabricio was in and out during the day. It seemed like he and Kovit were getting along better and could have some kind of friendship in the future. He internally grimaced at the idea of Nita finding out, but what could she really do if she did? The doctor cleared him for discharge with no complications. Kovit was a little nervous about leaving, asking the doctor about the bills.

The doctor humorously had the front desk print out an itemized receipt and unceremoniously gave it to Kovit. For a few minutes, he stared at it, dreading turning it over. He finally handed it to Fabricio so he could break the unwelcome news, but he knowingly smiled and turned it over quickly. “A wapping zero smack-a-roonies.” Kovit leaned over and snatched it. "However will you recover from this financial ruin?" Fabricio's voice dripped with sarcasm. Kovit laughed softly until it became an actual laugh and sighed deeply. “Jeez, socialized medicine really is the greatest.” Kovit ran his fingers through his hair.

The last to see before he left was Álvarez who had asked to see him before he left. She gave him her Watsapp and advised him that she’d provide free telehealth whenever he needed someone to talk to, but to at least talk to her once a week. She knew Canada had better medicine than the United States, but not the availability someone like Kovit may need. He stood awkwardly for a second, and almost reading his mind she gave him a tight hug. He swung his arms around her and hugged back, matching her tight embrace. “Please don’t hesitate to reach out. I promise I’ll be here for you.”

No, she wasn’t an aur. She was a literal angel on earth.

Chapter Text

Kovit had been extremely nervous when it came to travel. Fabricio was unable to attend with him, but one of the lawyers left over from the decimation of his father’s legacy accompanied. Just to be safe, Kovit checked the DUL list twice to make sure nothing had changed. For good measure, he wore a touristy bucket hat with abnormally large sunglasses. The hospital had disposed of his clothes as they were a biohazard, but they did have spare clothes they gave him from donations. The way he looked was almost comical. Although most of his face and hair were obscured, he was particularly darker than when he had arrived there from the long walks in the sun from physical therapy and talking with Nita in the hospital garden. The jeans they had given him were a faded blue and in exceptionally decent shape, not to mention the light grey long-sleeved-shirt with the Argentinian flag as big as life on the front. It was a far cry from his usual black and maroon ensemble.

Blood would definitely show up too obviously on these.

He was accustomed for his work to wearing clothes that obscured and camouflaged his horrendous nature. He had no idea what he’d wear if he were given the choice. He caught a glance of himself in the reflection of the window glass and felt like his reflection was completely foreign to him. He did like that it was different, but this definitely wasn’t something he’d see on himself when it came to choosing.

He lowered his yellow bucket hat further down his forehead and boarded his way onto the plane, heading for Toronto. He was glad he had a window seat, not only so he could stare out as they soared amongst the clouds, the tallest buildings small against the swelling sky; but his attorney, Max, or Mr. Gregory was at least a foot taller than himself and had a broad, muscular figure. He wore incredibly fine clothing not unlike Fabricio’s own wardrobe, with hair that was fashioned into a wave that rippled from the top of his head.

After several hours of flying, an annoyingly long layover flight, and avoiding paying for overly priced airport foods; they finally arrived in Toronto. A black car waited for them right outside with two other lawyers from his legal team. One was a tall blond woman with pale blue eyes, her hair fixed into a messy bun and her face enshrouded in a look of complete stoicism. The other was a shaggy-looking man with a broad chin, coppery messy hair, and a bushy yet manicured beard; most unique to him were his opal eyes that reflected their surroundings, and other than the black pupils Kovit couldn’t place an exact color for them. She was dressed in a sharp black skirt suit, while the man wore a mismatched and slightly wrinkled get-up with an out-of-place floral tie.

The abnormally large man put his suitcase in the trunk, the lady raising a thin eyebrow above her cat-eye sunglasses. She opened her mouth, but the large man began first in a deep baritone voice, “He doesn’t have anything. Kid’s got nothin’.” He slid into the front seat and the opal-eyed man in the front turned as Kovit got into the back seat with the woman. He stuck out a hand that was ghostly compared to his darkly tan skin. Kovit took it and shook, “I’m Alan Peter, they’re both first names so call me whichever.” He had a higher-pitched voice than one would expect but oozed an unusual friendliness that the other two seemed to lack.

“Rebecca Mes. But I go by Reb.” The woman unceremoniously informed in vocal fry, staring out the window with her chin in her hand. When did she get into the car? Kovit listened to them idly chatter as they drove, Alan at the wheel cracking dry jokes, Reb in the back immediately brow-beating his efforts at comedy, and Max chuckling at them as his main contribution.

Kovit didn’t know what it took to be a lawyer, but they sure did remind him of his better memories in the mafia.  

“You hungry, kid?” Kovit looked up from his phone, texting Nita he’d made it into town and idly chatting with Anna about new game releases and what they could play together if he ever had access to a computer. The man’s bushy red eyebrows raised up as if he wanted to look as unimposing as possible. “Yeah, starving.” He leaned back as the man with the broad shoulders next to the driver piped up, “We should go to the usual place, more private.” The woman next to Kovit gently lowed her sunglasses and peered over them with a half-cocked smile, “Plus, an ah-mazing BLT.”

The restaurant was humming with business but sounded like a packed library with how quiet it was at the same time. The staff knew the gaggle of lawyers as they brought them to a table that also resembled an office cubical… Spacious, and yet closed off. The larger man sat nearest to the opening and occasionally would lean out and scan the room, Kovit was in the far corner, furthest from the opening and the public eye. This time the man with the unkempt hair sat by him and the more uncouth lady sat directly across from him.

Reb finally took some case files from her professional bag and laid it on the table, holding her thin fingers over it as if to stop anyone from grabbing the file. “First, some rules.” The cleared her throat and leaned closer. “Rule one, do. Not. Talk. To. The. Cops. Especially without us. Do not. I don’t care if they detain you, threaten you, threaten your mama-“She leaned back and sighed, “Your rights only last as long as you can stay quiet. Especially when dealing with INHUP.”

Kovit nodded idly, that one was easy.

“Rule two, don’t rope anybody in you don’t want to be involved. Anything we say in our briefing sessions stays between us. It’s all our little secret.” She gave an exaggerated wink to bring the point home, “Especially since everybody is buzzing around this case, which makes double for the media. We don’t want to give them anything more than they already spin; they’re already collaborating with us in a perfect storm- so we’re not going to fuck that up.” Kovit smirked internally but kept a very placid expression. Had she known the kind of irony in that statement and where the media even got their material from, they may have thought it was comical.

She passed the file over to Alan, who also took his time clearing his throat. Kovit couldn’t tell when he was or wasn’t about to speak because of the bushiness of his mustache.

“So Kovit, tell us a little about yourself, and your story.” Alan was gentle with his words, “We’re already somewhat familiarized, but we’d like to know more from your perspective so we can better know how to suit our expertise to your cause.” He walked a fine line between being amicable and professional, steadfast as he navigated the tightrope of conversation. As Kovit began to tell his story, Max took out a pen and began to write even the subtlest of details.

They might have been a merry band of personalities but proved the legacy of the now gone Tucanan empire.

Soon, Kovit disbanded from the merry team of lawyers after they dropped him off a few blocks from Adair’s small shop. He knew the Kelpie despised notoriety or attention being drawn to his store, so he made sure to keep his head down as he tracked forward down the bustling streets and was a little amazed it wasn’t too dark yet as the streetlamps hadn’t even flickered on in the din of twilight. Kovit came up to the door of the shop and pattered inside.

“Hey, sorry! We’re closing soon!” Kovit looked up to see Diana at the desk, polishing off what he guessed was new inventory for their store. It was an entire menagerie of small, crystalline animals that seemed to come in an intact set. He put his arm on the desk and leaned in, bucket hat still pulled down and glasses still covering everything but his signature creepy grin. Diana looked up at the lack of response, and froze as she tilted her head and squinted, “K-Kovit?” He grinned wider and shrugged, “Didn’t think I was so forgettable.”

“Well you’re… not very recognizable.” Diana gently put the small glass hippo down she had been cleaning up to put on the shelf and leaned towards him at the counter, looking him up and down; clearly amused by his change in attire, “I’m glad you’re okay! Are you… Still hurt?” She looked down at his abdomen and back up at him, the bright and surprised expression twisted into disquiet. “Nah, I’m fine. Nothing to worry about.” He was so tired of shedding details about himself, all he wanted to do was escape to a completely quiet corner of the world. He had gone from being ignored, used, and a second-hand citizen in all ways possible to people worrying whether he was free, lived, or died. He was grateful, but also utterly exhausted.

“How’s Adair?” The last thing he remembered Nita saying was she had made the poor guy into a burn victim, yet he still wanted to apprentice her. Diana looked away sheepishly, and to the door, Kovit knew led to the basement. “Nita… tried to kill him. I’m not happy about her being here, but Adair thinks of her as ‘the studious type.’” She had an upright posture and jammed a finger up into the air as she tried to imitate him. “He’s still healing, so it might take a bit for him to come up… The chilly water helps.” Kovit nodded knowingly and as if sensing his next question, Diana sighed begrudgingly, “Nita is upstairs. She said she’ll be able to move out soon, but needed a place to stay… We agreed not to turn her away, but Adair has been working her super hard whenever he can to earn it.”

He assumed nothing less of the kelpie.

Kovit made his way upstairs to the apartment and gradually opened the door. Nita was sitting at a small table in the corner of the room with an older-looking laptop, files obscuring the wood as she was leaning over and massaging her temples. As if on high alert hearing the door’s metal keening, Nita spun around with her hand in her pocket – on her scalpel – and immediately the look of fierce surprise turned into relief, and then absolute adoration.

He thought he’d be brimming with excitement, and adoration; overtaken with endearment. For a moment he stood perfectly still, and then gently closed the door behind him. He did feel a refreshing familiarity, but there was the semblance of something he just couldn’t place.

He pushed away the uneasiness, and simply smiled as she ran in for an embrace. His hands lightly shook as he went to hug her back but made an effort to ignore it instead.

Chapter Text

 The past month had gone by both terribly fast and excruciatingly slow.  

Kovit was focused on two primary objectives: one was to figure out a new way to procure a steady source of ‘food,' the other was to find himself and rekindle memories of his past.  

He had been to countless public services and funerals, soaking in the emotional pain but realized even though it was still a source of pain, it didn’t really offer as much sustenance. It was a good possibility though, there was always going to be funerals. He also hung out near the emergency visit of the hospital, waiting for emergency cases to come in. Some days, he could barely function with giddiness, other days he sat bored on the curb playing phone games and chatting with Anna.  

Now that he was back in North America, they had been calling more frequently and playing the same game in the background; sometimes they’d be able to trade stuff or play levels together. Anna didn’t like phone games as much as she enjoyed their PC game days, but she knew that Kovit didn’t have much.  

Nita had been so busy between trying to get into school and being under Adair’s thumb, she really didn’t have time to accompany him on his personal missions. Part of him liked the space so he could figure out his own identity outside of their partnership, but another part of him dearly missed the closeness they once had. It could be painful, passionate, complicated… but she was somebody who was there for him at a time when nobody was.  

Now that he was slowly procuring a small collection of support, he wondered if they needed each other as much as they thought in the beginning of everything. He pushed the thought aside, of course they still did.  

One day when Kovit was speaking with Nita when she was researching downstairs in the shop alongside Adair, the kelpie couldn’t resist sticking his nose in. “You sit on the curb?” Nita asked, turning around in her chair and pushing the hair out of her face. “Well… Yeah, what else am I supposed to do?” Kovit asked with a tone of resignation. Adair grinned, his glimmer glitching slightly as large teeth formed over his lips for a split second. This tended to happen more after the incident. “Why not volunteer?” He asked with a pondering expression, leaning into the counter with an elbow as he gestured with his other hand, as if trying to snatch the words he needed from the air. “Surely, you’ll have meals that fit your… particular dietary needs… And an act of charity has never gone wrong to lead the public into thinking even a zannie is capable of ‘redemption.’”  

Nita snorted, “Yeah Kovit, you can have your own redemption arch,” she rolled her eyes in gest, Kovit thought for a moment, mulling the conversation over. “Yeah…” He trailed off indignantly, “Bad people, good stuff, all that.” She lost her playful expression, and Kovit was already heading upstairs to relax. When she probed him about it, he just said he was tired. What he didn’t want to admit to her was that it did seem like an attractive deal, given the circumstances. He was tired sitting around brooding, feeling like he was taking up space. He briefly looked for a job, but found with the controversy surrounding his case that it was virtually impossible. The second problem was that he never actually had a job… And he was uneducated, at least as far as any government documentation was concerned.  

Volunteering would at least get his foot in some type of door, and found he didn’t mind it.  

And now here he was, helping people find appointments, picking up trash in the halls, wearing a goofy green vest and a “HERE TO HELP :)” pin. Volunteering also allowed him to excuse himself when a particularly bad case came to the hospital and he had to run to the restroom or the stairway to shiver and moan. Some days he was simply satiated, other days he was filled to the brim and left the hospital with a model appearance; contrasting his hungrier appearance of dry skin, frayed hair, and bags upon bags under his eyes.  

One problem checked off his list, thanks to the clever Adair.  

Kovit honored his promise to Álvarez and called her every Thursday, knowing that was her least busy day. As they spoke of his past, he remembered playing with friends, drawing pictures, skipping rocks, exploring the woods near his home, finding bugs, feeding and playing with the street animals. He vaguely remembered playing soccer and flying kites, even enjoying math as one of his favorite subjects.  

He remembered his sister helping him with homework, teaching him simple recipes to cook, taking him to see the elderly to give them sweets since their family didn’t visit them much. 

It took several weeks for Kovit to have several memories at his fingertips, but the good was worth all of the bad. He found he did enjoy working out the Sudoku puzzles in some of the workbooks while volunteering. He tried to draw but found his abilities stopped at stick figures, kites weren’t incredibly easy to find anymore, but he did still have a penchant for soccer. He found himself mindlessly kicking it to see how long he could keep it from touching the ground, but much to Adair’s chagrin didn’t always respect the ‘outside only’ rule.  

Problem two? Ah… Almost there. Getting there. 

Finally, today in particular was the day of INHUP vs. Kovit; his legal team and himself had hashed out many details of the events that transpired while Kovit was under Henry’s and Reyes supervision. Since it was a special case involving a minor at the time, Kovit was given a choice to have his court public or not. With the advice of his legal team, he decided to let the whole world see.  

They showed the worst of him; some of the jury members had to remove themselves from time to time as they looked over exhibits. Even the videos INHUP hadn’t originally shared with the public had to be relinquished to the court for review. Kovit squeezed his hands together under the table as his arms shook, staring down in front of him. Normally, he wouldn’t mind observing his own handiwork, but being reminded of it all left him feeling so indescribably sick.

“You okay Kid?” Alan asked as he sat next to him, Max behind him and nudging him with a bottle of water. Kovit took it and could barely open it with how much his hands were shaking. “Y-Yeah.” His team all exchanged looks. Surely, they thought, this nervous kid was not the same monster in each and every video? Max tried not to be noticed as he gained a little distance from Kovit, but Alan stayed firmly next to him, not moving. Once the prosecution was done supplying evidence, Alan nodded at Reb and she took the stand. “The horrific scenes we’d witnessed here today were the product of the evil and tyrannical Pullman establishment.” Her heels clicked confidently across the floor as she moved to the podium, but would turn her whole body to engage the audience.  

“INHUP has no other evidence to believe that Kovit is, in fact, an unnatural,” she clacked her bright red nails along the edge of the podium, “Let alone that he’d commit these acts without coercion, torture, and abduction of a minor.” She snapped her fingers and one video after another played of Kovit being asked to torture someone, and him standing against Henry. The rest of the tapes being the merciless beating of the small Thai child who could barely speak English.

It was hours of footage that made the jury almost more uncomfortable than the ones before it.  

He looked up at the screen, a young and bloody, broken face staring back at him as it sobbed. “D-dad, no. Hen-reh! H̄yud. Kruṇā h̄yud! Pord!!” (<Stop. Please Stop! Please!!>) 

He felt his heart drop out of his chest and onto the floor, the warm and salty sensation of tears on his face as he squeezed his hands together so tight his shaking was not concealable. The lights turned on, it seemed like everyone faced him to see his reaction and all they saw was the shadow of the confident man who stepped in that was now a scared and damaged boy quaking in his seat.  

Reb ignored it as she pressed on. “I also have some witnesses I’d also like to call.” The judge motioned her on, and she faced the rest of the courtroom, “Fabricio Tácunan,” which Kovit knew they were going to bring to discredit the death of the driver,  

“And Marigold Pullman.”  

Chapter Text

Marigold held an unreadable expression with a slight sneer as she took the stand, her hands deep in the pockets of her black suit as she made her way to the podium for questions, clarification, and cross-examination. Her eyes flickered to Kovit every so often and her novel pokerface faltered ever so slightly before regaining its look of emptiness and slight annoyance.

Did she feel guilty? Bad? Maybe resentful?

Her entire family being wrapped up in the nonsense with Kovit and after the death of Henry was in shambles. Kovit didn’t know to the extent her family was operating, as they went underground for most of their dealings and kept a low profile since everything came to a head in Toronto. Kovit assumed the main reason she was here probably wasn’t anything to do with himself, but more so Fabricio probably paid her off or her Tacunan-empire lawyers set up a very pretty plea bargain if she was complicit with the case.

There’s no way she would protect an unnatural out of the goodness of her heart, let alone him.

He had calmed down after the evidence dump earlier in the session and was listening to testimonial while Alan quietly showed him how to make simple origami animals. Kovit was thankful for Alan and his ability to pull him out of the moment, since a disassociating client in a case was not what they needed for this to stick against INHUP.

“How long have you known Kovit?” The prosecutor jeered, crossing his arms over his broad chest. “What’s your earliest video?” She was unamused and her tone thickly laced with boredom. He cleared his throat, adjusting his tie. “Have you ever seen Kovit murder?” She appeared to be thinking for a moment, tapping her cheek with her finger before knocking him over with a deadpan expression “At this point, who hasn’t? Of course, I knew he was doing violent things… That’s what they groomed him to do.” Her response was technical and cold, with the tiniest bit of vitriol. It’s as if they told her exactly what to say and she only bought some of it but had to sell what she could to the court. “Is he a Zannie?”

There was some shuffling and uncomfortable throat clearing echoing throughout the room. Kovit became hyper-aware of everything as his hands shook, trying to bend a delicate piece of paper to create a wing. “No,” She stated flatly, one of her hands coming out of her pocket and gesturing in thin air, “How long do I have to be up here answering stupid and redundant questions?”

“Contempt!” The prosecutor yelled in irritation, the judge rolled their eyes, “Denied, please continue Ms. Pullman, if Mr. Nuñez has any further questions?” At this, he furrowed his brow.

The back-and-forth continued for a while before Gold took her seat towards the back of the court. She confirmed Henry’s cruelty, she even claimed that Kovit was good as a kid but without the opportunity to exercise it, though she didn’t elaborate. After the court was adjourned, it looked great for him.

Fabricio even hired some pretty fancy editors and paid off analysts to tamper with the footage from the airport where Fabricio’s one of many assassination attempts carried out. Like a charm, the tampered video taking Kovit out of frame was verified as perfect while INHUP’s version didn’t pass analyst checks, saying it was “a shaky copy at best, but obviously messed with.”

The jury deliberated for five or six hours, just due to the sheer volume of evidence, but eventually concluded that Kovit was innocent. He was not a zannie to be executed, he was just a poor victim of circumstance.

He sincerely owed his devotion and loyalty to Fabricio and Nita. This was the biggest hook he’d ever been on and to be off was nothing short of a miracle.

In the parking lot, Kovit spotted Gold sparking up a cigarette, walking towards a shiny black Cadillac. He jogged towards her but stopped a bit away from her cautiously. “Hey, Gold.” He cooly smirked, “Thanks back there.” She didn’t even look up at him as she sat in her car and shut the door. She rolled her window down, leaning her elbow against the inside as she took a long drag and blew it in Kovit’s direction. “Stop.” It was firm, and it shouldn’t have surprised Kovit the way that it did. He looked down at his shoes against the dark gray concrete below.

“I did it ‘cause I had to. I didn’t do it for you.” She bit out, spite still deeply laced in her voice. “You know what it’s like to come from nothing, you can’t even begin to know what it’s like to have everything and lose it, so just stop. I don’t care.” The words struck Kovit like a small wrecking ball. He had fully expected Marigold to not necessarily like him, but the way she was glancing at him and defended him in court, he thought maybe there was some chance at friendship.

It was naïve. Childish. Henry’s voice rang in his ear, an almost constant vocalization of criticism and caustic language.

He held his hands up and backed away from the car, and she drove off, not even sparing a glance through the rearview mirror. She was definitely colder than the fiery display she put on earlier, but she made a great point. Kovit, other than his family, never had much to lose. She was hanging by a thread as her empire crumbled. He couldn’t imagine how she felt, and just wished he could comfort her.

‘Once a friend, always a friend, right?’ He hung his head at the thought, digging his arms into his pockets as he returned to his lawyers. They were talking amongst themselves by the silver van they had carpooled to get here.

“-and we’re getting cocktails right? You guys don’t have a choice. On me cause Mama got paid!” Alan gave a hearty laugh and Max chuckled, quirking a single eyebrow over the rim of his glasses, “We all got paid, in case you forgot.” Alan opened his opal eyes and smiled seeing Kovit approach, he reached out an arm to put on his shoulder but oddly enough once he touched Kovit all warmness from his face dissipated. Instead, he stared straight into his translucent, opal eyes that seemed to reflect him, but it was different. This Kovit was doubled over and crying, holding the hand of someone below him, but he couldn’t see who. A feeling of dread washed over his entire body, and he stepped away. With the connection severed, Alan blinked away the blank stare and rubbed his eyes, keeping his fingers there for a second.

Rev tilted her head and slid off the hood of their company car, “Hey, al, you good?” Her normal languid drawl had a hint of concern, but Max looked down at the ground knowingly, “Kid’s got a rough future ahead. Alan only gets this way when it’s real bad.” Kovit’s eyes shot wide, and searched Alan’s face for reassurance, but once he somewhat recovered he was met with the same expression of doom that riddled his body. “This court case was cake, compared to your destiny.” His voice was faint and mechanical, unlike the warm and bubbly high pitched voice you’ve grown accustomed to. “Beware, your journey ahead is tainted with betrayal and blood… So… much… blood… But, it does not all have to be spilled. That’s in your hands.” Kovit cocked his entire head, “Huh? What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Alan unleashed a grin that split across his entire face, ear to ear as his eyes turned dark. His crystalline eyes now entirely black, including the whites. “In time, you will know. You will know everything.”

And just like the sound of snapping fingers, Alan was back to himself. He looked exhausted, but his Cheshire grin was replaced with his usual soft smile. He looked towards Rev and slapped his hands on their shoulders, “I will never turn down a free drink, and especially not today!”

Everyone went about normal as usual, while Kovit stood still. He felt the world around him was a blur and he was moving in slow motion. “Wait? Can’t you tell me more than that?” Kovit looked desperate, his nerves were totally shot the last few weeks and he’d had enough. He grabbed onto Alan and spun him back around towards him. “What the hell do you mean?”

Alan carded his fingers through his hair, his face in a bit of intrigue as he looked back at his friends for answers, Max was the one to pipe up as Rev looked away somberly. “You had another one, man. This one must’ve been real bad, you did the whole,” he took his huge hand and circled it around his face frantically, “Weird face thing.” Alan squeezed his eyes shut, uttering a soft ‘Shit. . .’ keeping Kovit in suspense. He locked eyes with him.

“I’m sorry kid, but… I don’t remember. Whatever I just told you, is very important so you have to remember for the both of us.”

He patted his back a few times reassuringly, and everyone started getting into the car.

Kovit scrambled in, stewing in a torrent of emotions he wasn’t sure how to shift through. Confusion, fear, …excitement. He played the warning over and over in his head, trying to figure it out as they left the parking lot.

He was never truly off the hook, was he?