Deja Vu

[Ryland Ren]

Spells were turning out to be even more complicated than Ryland ever thought. In all his years, he'd never actually come up against a witch. Ryland wasn't the type to make a lot of enemies. Even now, he wished that the witch hadn't gone and proven their fears right. Wouldn't it have been better if the witch just loved Alva and they had a healthy relationship? Why did Alva keep attracting these people that were so awful for him?

(But then Ryland heard the same thing about Aldon all the time and look at him.) That was partly why he was so lenient with his cousin and his choice of lover when it came to Rae. He gave him the benefit of the doubt. He tried to do the same with the witch, too, but he was proving far worse than Rae had ever been.

"Do you think he made Alva forget about us?" Ryland asked. "Because if he doesn't remember us and we go in kidnapping him..."

[Min Yoojin]

"To be honest, most witches are a little... off. It's the unlimited power thing, gets to their heads, you know," Yoojin said as she watched Aldon playing up the confused angle, laying his head on Ryland's shoulder and snuggling in close. She narrowed her eyes at him. If she didn't know him--and she did, she totally knew the type--she might have thought that he really was the poor confounded puppy that he tried to pass himself off as. Maybe that act worked on Ryland, but it didn't work in the least on her!

"From what you've told me, this witch sounds like a major head case." Hunting hunters for one thing. Sounded like he had some inflated sense of justice. And probably an equally inflated ego to match, though he might have been "nice" to Alva. Most people couldn't help but be nice to Alva, however, so that didn't say much.

She swirled the water around a little to displace the salt that had settled to the bottom as she thought in silence. "There's still the curse, though. The first one the witch put on him, that... death curse. If we can't find a way to lift it, Alva won't last long with us, Ry."

[Ryland Ren]

It was pretty much muscle memory that led Ryland to lightly stroke Aldon's head. It had nothing to do with memory itself. No way. (It did.) He wasn't especially fond of sitting in the warm water with his pants on and clinging to his legs like a second skin but he didn't really mind being close to Aldon. While they sat there and the silence fell, Ryland watched Yoojin thinking. The curse. He swallowed hard at the thought of it, then dropped his gaze to the water. Yeah... Yoojin didn't have to tell him that the curse would kill Alva if they couldn't lift that curse.

He glanced over at Aldon, who seemed preoccupied with his phone for the time being. Although he wanted to, he didn't peek over his shoulder at what he was texting. He looked back over at Yoojin.

"I know."

That was why he was acting so desperately. This wasn't normally Ryland's way of acting. The fear clawed at him and he acted without thinking. Kidnapping Alva might make things worse. But the longer he stayed in that witch's care, the more Ryland feared he wouldn't make it out alive. The only person that could lift that curse was the witch, though. Why would he keep Alva cursed if he wanted him? Even if he wanted him all to himself, why kill him in the process? What kind of person hunted those who killed supernaturals like themselves and then went out of his way to curse one, keep him like a pet, and then watch him die?

Ryland let his head fall back against the wall.

"What are we supposed to do?"

[Aldon Huang]

"WE DO THIS!"

Aldon shoved his phone at Evil Eyes—Yoojin—with a triumphant shout that made her jump. The water splashed around, as did Aldon, who sat up suddenly. He waved his phone at Yoojin for a few more seconds, before she got her hands on it. And also after she glared at him again, sending him back to Ryland.

"...this could work..." Yoojin muttered to herself while Aldon tried to recover his phone, since he'd been... ahem... saying things about her to Rae. "But this person's right, we need to know the exact curse that witch used. And it still doesn't solve the problem of Alva's death curse."

Grabbing his phone from her, Aldon let out a snort. "At least we're getting somewhere! Gregg might even know how to fight that other curse!" Sheesh. Gregg. He was sorta brilliant! Never mind that this kind of knowledge was used to hunt witches once—Aldon wasn't feeling all that fond of witches at the moment either, truth be told. (But he didn't want to kill them...)

"At this point, the witch knows all of us, right? We need somebody he doesn't know to get the information from him." Yoojin crossed her arms. "Somebody he trusts who's willing to help us out."

"Yeah good luck with that," Aldon grumbled as he carefully tilted the phone away from her. He rested against Ryland; the side of his head lightly touched Ryland's. "What if we get somebody to hypnotize the witch? Like a—vampire!"

[Ryland Ren]

"Jeez!"

Ryland almost felt his heart leap out of his chest when Aldon suddenly shouted and thrust his phone into Yoojin's face. Since he couldn't see what was on the screen, he had to take Yoojin's reaction for an affirmative. It could work, whatever it was. Now Ryland was super curious; what did it say? Did that Gregg guy actually know what he was talking about? Oh right. Gregg. The guy that Aldon was seeing now. A queer stabbing sensation entered his heart and Ryland tried to act cool by shifting his body and reaching up oh-so-casually to rub the perceived wound.

"We don't know who he trusts, though," Ryland said, focusing in on Yoojin's practicality. Yes, yes. Keep his mind on the fact that they could do something about all this. They could save Alva. Alva. That was the important part of all of this. Poor Alva. Ryland couldn't help but imagine that he was drugged out of his mind on some kind of magic spell. Or that the curse was taking its toll on him. He reached up and swept a hand over his face, letting the warm water run over his nose and lips.

Yuck. Salt water really did taste gross.

Ryland turned his head slightly to look at Aldon. "A vampire? How do we know he even knows any vampires?" Ryland fell silent. Then, "I've seen some of the people he hangs out with but I don't know who they are or what they are. There are those people at the library... and he has some friends that I guess are also... hunter hunters like him. We could draw them out... with a hunter."

[Aldon Huang]

"Well no, it doesn't have to be someone he knows. Just like... a vampire." If a vampire didn't mind bewitching a witch to tell them what kind of curse he cast on Alva, then their problems might be solved. Maybe? Aldon wasn't the thinking-it-through type; more of the spazzy yell out the first thought that occurred to him type.

Who was not dumb, since his ideas had some real contribution to the conversation at hand! Even if he was partly distracted by Rae and by Gregg. The hunter...

Aldon swallowed. Yoojin perked up but he didn't like that look in her eyes, either.

"That could work! If we lure the witch out, we'd know who he hangs out with. Then... if one of us gets close to somebody close to the witch..."

"No." Aldon sat up again, indignant. "You can't—you shouldn't play with people's feelings like that!" As someone who'd had his own feelings yanked around, this way and that, Aldon was particularly sensitive on the subject. Also, he didn't think that he liked the idea of using someone in that way.

"We could save Alva!" Yoojin sat up too, jaw tense. "You'd rather spare someone's feelings over saving Alva's life? Ry, what do you think?!"

[Ryland Ren]

Just any old vampire, huh? Ryland didn't like the idea, mostly because of that whole business during Halloween, where the vampires decided to riot and try and take over a portion of the town. Yeah, that was real smart of them. It brought in a lot of hunters, though--something they could now use to their advantage.

"Yes!" Ryland said, sitting up after Yoojin perked up. "And once we know who he hangs out with, we can actually devise a smarter plan!"

Like getting close to one of those hunter hunters. And all they had to do was bring in a hunter. How hard was that? But Aldon seemed to object. He looked downright appalled at the plan, which Ryland didn't fully understand in the moment. So it took no hesitation at all on Ryland's part to agree with Yoojin.

"I think we should do it." He looked to Aldon. "What are you worried about? Sure, it's a little dishonest, but it's not like we're actually hurting anybody."

[Aldon Huang]

"But—"

"So it's settled then! We'll lure the witch out with a hunter, and go from there!"

Aldon's lips pressed together into a thin line of disapproval as Yoojin talked over him. But more so because Ryland was agreeing with her, and not seeing the possibility of somebody's real feelings getting hurt. Aldon wasn't normally the white knight type; he didn't even know why he was objecting to this plan, except that it just... didn't feel right. It wasn't right.

And he'd done the same thing, trying to get close to Gregg to advance his own agenda—only to fall in love with him. If he had to hurt Gregg like this, he didn't think that he could now. Plus, Gregg was a hunter and the hunter they lured out to be killed might be a friend of his. Everything about this plan screamed BAD, in all capitals.

Aldon stood up from the tub, his expression stormy. "I'm not gonna be a part of this! It's... dangerous! Hunters and hunter hunters and... If it goes wrong, everybody could be hurt! Not just Alva! PLUS. Hurting someone's feelings is still hurting them Ry!" Not physically, but those weren't the only wounds that cut deep.

[Ryland Ren]

Ryland reached out to try and pull Aldon back into the tub but he looked like he wasn't having any part of their new plan. On the one hand, Ryland understood the worry but if they did this right, nobody would actually be hurt in the process. The hunter or the hunter hunter, they were just part of the plan but they would be there to stop anything from happening. Still, Ryland caught hold of Aldon's hand.

"Come on, Ald. We're not going to let anybody get hurt. And you get this person is a friend of Susumu's right? There's a high chance they're not very nice, either. And if they are..."

Well, he didn't have a brilliant plan for that but hurt feelings could be soothed. At least, Ryland sure hoped so because his feelings were hurt every time he heard the name Gregg now. A part of him almost wished he'd been left ignorant to himself and Aldon's relationship.

"Then we won't be hurting them."

[Aldon Huang]

Despite his feelings on the subject, Aldon's fingers curled around Ryland's. He wasn't angry at Ryland. He was a little annoyed at Evil Eyes, though, for her part in all this. Aldon wanted to save Alva too but he truly did believe that there was a better way to do this. Gregg already helped them by telling them how to lift the memory curse. They just had to get a name and—well they could just scour the library until they found one that applied to their symptoms!

"What if that witch's friend is a nice guy? I mean—I'm friends with Josh, and I'm not a bad person! If somebody used me like this, would you like it?"

The water in the tub splashed violently as Yoojin got to her feet too, hands on her hips and evil eyes blazing. "Alva is going to DIE, Aldon! We don't have time! Between hurting somebody's precious feelings and making sure that one of my best friends doesn't DIE, I'm willing to take that risk! And if you're too scared to do it, then we'll do it without you!"

Aldon's hand tightened around Ryland's as he struggled to formulate a response that didn't involve calling her a crazy bat. The thing was, she wasn't wrong. Alva might die if they didn't get to him in time. After a long moment, he tried to step out of the tub, over Ryland.

[Ryland Ren]

Ryland clung onto that hand for as long as he could but eventually, it seemed like Aldon had made up his mind. He was no longer going to be a part of the Plan. Ryland let out a sigh, dropping his hand into the water, not sure what else to do with it. After a moment, it was on on his knee, picking at the fashionable hole artfully ripped there.

Hurting feelings was pretty mean, he agreed on that point. But Aldon didn't seem to realize that Yoojin was right. Between hurting a stranger's feelings and letting Alva die, the choice was moot. He was going to save his cousin. Alva hadn't survived all those years ago when he became a cripple just to die here, like this.

After a moment, Ryland also got out of the bath, grasping towels. He threw one in Aldon's direction and held one out to Yoojin.

"We're doing this," he agreed aloud with Yoojin. "With or without you. I wish you'd help, though."

[Aldon Huang]

Things were spiraling out of hand. Oh, boy, were they spiraling.

Aldon's head was spinning. He had sat down on the toilet—Ryland's former seat—as the messages came in thick and fast. Rae's problems with Josh. Gregg's problems with... everything! It made that lurid affair between his best friends seem tame, in comparison to the bombshells that Gregg dropped.

The pack would never forgive Gregg if they knew that he'd been a hunter. Aldon could barely stop himself from thrashing around in a panic as the details were revealed. While he knew that Gregg was a hunter in the past, he never suspected that Gregg had come into the pack with the intention of betraying them all! Really, it was a touchy subject and one of the ones that Aldon knew not to probe too much into. Now he regretted it, because knowing what he did, it was impossible to stay in Hazleton. Not only would the pack be out for blood but the hunters might follow Gregg, too, as Rae so smartly pointed out.

Aldon barely caught the towel as it was thrown at him. As it was, it smacked him in the side of the head and he barely reacted, whereas before he would have made a big deal about his "injury." Absently he draped it over his shoulder, then looked up at Ryland. Aldon's mouth opened. He wanted to tell Ryland everything—it wasn't in him to lie and he was a self-confessed blabbermouth—but this time, discretion was the better part of valor.

"Ry." Aldon swallowed back the confession. This was beyond Alva now. Even if he wanted to help rescue Alva, at least Alva was safe (ish) with the witch at the moment. If even one hunter discovered where Gregg was, they could trace him to the pack and there were many more lives at stake.

"Ry." His mouth worked but no more words came out. Aldon threw himself on Ryland, hugging him fiercely and tightly. "I gotta go," he whispered into Ryland's ear, squeezing his eyes shut so tightly that it hurt. But it hurt far more in his heart, having to leave everyone behind. "I-I gotta go Ry."

[Ryland Ren]

"Hm?"

Aldon kept saying his name, which made Ryland feel a little weird. What was he having such trouble with? Oh no. Wait. Ryland had experienced this before. Aldon always had such a hard time with the really deep feelings. He must be trying to say--or not. Ryland blinked as Aldon embraced him only to say he had to go. With the way he was hemming and hawing, followed by that tight embrace, Ryland thought for sure Aldon was going to confess. Again, of course. He'd already said it before. Ryland's heart thumped harder the tighter that Aldon held onto him.

Something was wrong.

Something happened and Ryland didn't understand it. His head felt like it was left spinning as he turned his head toward Aldon. They were so close now, they really could have just kissed. No lie, Ryland thought about it. Instead, he lifted a hand up to Aldon's elbow.

"What do you mean?" He had to go because he wasn't going to be a part of this? Just like that, he was running off on him? Disappointment began to curl around his heart. Aldon didn't come to help. He didn't even want to stay to make sure they'd be all right? What was going on with him? He knew the guy who could help them the most--the hunter. And now he was running off? Ryland frowned slightly. His hand gripped Aldon a little tighter, like it could keep him there in that bathroom with him. He practically forgot about poor Yoojin as he leaned closer, lips brushing Aldon's.

"Stay..." His other hand moved around Aldon's waist. "Please..."

[Aldon Huang]

If only. If only this was a confession of love, instead of a bitter and sad parting of the ways.

Aldon's heart wrenched in his chest as Ryland pleaded with him to stay. He had come to help, and now he was adding to the pile of Ryland's problems instead of alleviating his concerns. But he didn't know... He didn't do this on purpose. He answered the advertisement because it seemed amusing, not because he knew that it would lead up to all this! If he'd known in advance, maybe he would have avoided it altogether and stayed happy and unaware in his ignorance.

Too late now, though.

His fingertips pressed in against Ryland's back briefly as he leaned in to kiss him again, this time desperately, until there was no breath left. Then Aldon jerked back and away. "I have to go!" he cried as he stumbled backwards, away from the tub, from Ryland's dawning comprehension that something wasn't right. Away from Yoojin's expressions that morphed from surprise to disappointment to anger.

"Ry," she said, as she laid a hand on Ryland's arm, as though she was afraid that he might follow Aldon. Her voice was soft but the eyes that stared Aldon down were hard. "We have to do this now, for Alva."

Aldon didn't hear what else she said, as he fled the bathroom--still dripping wet. He had the towel around his shoulders as he ran for the door, clutching his phone in one hand like a lifeline. They didn't know. They couldn't. There was no way to explain what happened with Gregg, and that the information he learned might doom them both. Aldon wanted to save Alva, but there were larger stakes too--like keeping the pack safe from Gregg's former hunter group. Like keeping Gregg safe from both the pack and the hunters. Like making sure that his friends remained ignorant of all this, so that no one else got dragged into the mess.

That was a lot more lives in danger than one person's, as important as Alva was to him.

It wasn't until he was on the bus home that his heart unclenched in his chest, and only because he was able to talk to Gregg again.