very loose inspiration taken from of monsters and men's king and lionheart.
Day 01.
The first thing you see is that they cut off his hair.
It isn't a grand reunion. Nothing suddenly goes back to normal. To be honest, it's kind of terrifying- the door swings open and there he is: blood around his throat, weak-kneed and shivering from whatever he's been given. Omen looks at him like it's Christmas and her birthday, all put together, but your heart has dropped to about the level of your kidneys.
You recognize the look in his eye. You've been there, and you're scared, because it isn't a place anyone should ever have to be.
It's a conversation you'll have later, once he's asleep, but you can see that Omen is beginning to understand that this isn't an interesting, okay thing; Max being taken by the Butchers is not something they'll joke about later (Remember that time he went missing for three days? What a laugh!). This is going to be a bitch to fix. That voice starts up again, in the back of your head, whispering that this is your fault. You should have been more careful.
Max grabs your hand when he slides gracelessly onto the sofa, exhausted and still twitching a little. "Can you—if I start to… can you wake me up? Please." There are circles beneath his eyes, and if you look closely enough you can see the mountains of fear stacked within them.
It's nothing he hasn't promised you before, and you stay true to your word when he starts screaming three hours later.
Day 06.
The first thing you usually tell people is that you sleep on a sofa, and there are never less than two people on that sofa at any given moment.
The second thing, which is probably the more important thing, is that Max came home last week.
His hair is starting to grow back. For now it's still patchy brown stubble, but you tell him you'll help him dye it red when it's long enough. This is the first time you've seen him smile since he came home.
You and Omen are trying to learn how you fit around this new, fragile version of Max. You know that he sleeps better wrapped against the two of you than he does on his own, although he always wakes up early and mutters something about tea, rubbing his arms like he can wipe memories off his own skin. You know that he avoids Butcher territory like it's cursed, when he goes outside at all.
You're learning his new tells. When he's dreaming and about to cry out, his whole body tenses up. If you can shake him awake when that happens, it won't be as bad (for either of you). The third time you do this, Omen gives you a sleep-heavy smile and whispers, "You're really good with this, you know."
Day 17.
Max is bent over the sink, clumping dye into his hair. It's exactly the same color as before, but part of you wonders whether or not it'll ever really feel like the same color again.
"Should've done this over the bathtub. You're going to be the one to explain to Omen why everything's pink."
"It's not pin- ow, fucker, you got it in my eye!" And he's laughing, eyes tearing up, but at some point it turns into something more worthy of those stupid chick-flicks your sister used to watch. Max gets quiet, and you run a hand down his back.
"I'm sorry."
What? "No, Max, don't be like that."
"It's just—everything was finally so good, and then this happens and I can't even feel like a normal person anymore."
You laugh a little, not unkindly, and press a kiss to the side of his face. "Shut up. You're still Mad Max, magician extraordinaire. You're brave enough for all of us."