Sins of the Father

by LetItRain25

Ronan is living on the farm when he gets an unexpected visitor in the form of Niall Lynch. When his father starts appearing in his dreams, Ronan is forced to face the reality that there may have been more to the man than what he remembers. Ronan will need his real family just as much as his chosen one to save him. Featuring: Hurt Ronan, Comforting Declan, Supportive Gansey & Co.

NOTES: This takes place about 1 year after The Raven King. Adam is away at school and still dating Ronan (not heavily featured in this story). Gansey, Blue, and Cheng are all still traveling. There's a lot of swearing, because all of the Lynch men are featured in speaking roles….

SUMMARY: Ronan is living on the farm when he gets an unexpected visitor in the form of Niall Lynch. When his father starts appearing in his dreams, Ronan is forced to face the reality that there may have been more to his father than what he remembers. Ronan will need his real family just as much as his chosen one to save him. Featuring: Hurt Ronan, Comforting Declan, Supportive Adam/Gansey/Blue/Cheng, Random Opal, and kind of OOC Matthew.

Sins of the Father

"Dad?" Ronan asks, equal parts hopeful and skeptical.

"Ronan," Niall Lynch greets with a wide smile.

Ronan has had this dream before, but this feels somehow different. He looks around the forest waiting for whatever monster is lurking there to come out and play.

Niall chuckles, "There's nothing out there…Well, not right now anyway. It's me, Ronan. It's just me."

"That's not…It's not possible," Ronan says, shaking his head. "It's…You're…." he continues, unable to finish the sentence even after all this time.

Niall laughs outright then. "I know, I know. But here I am – I don't know if it was Cabeswater, or you….I think maybe it just takes time in the dream world. But it's me Ronan," he shrugs, bemused by Ronan's skepticism.

Ronan wants to tell him he's a liar. He wants to tell this apparition to fuck right off. He wants to do a lot of things but this feels so different. Like it's not his dream. Like he's wandered into Niall's dreamscape instead of the other way around.

Ronan hugs him.

"How the fuck…What the – how is this…How are you here?" Ronan demands as he takes a step back to glare.

Niall smiles, seeing the way anger and optimism are at war in his son. War is something he is proud to have associated with any Lynch son. Niall smiles like he knows something Ronan doesn't. Ronan finds it reassuring, as if all is right with the world because Niall is back and he knows more things than Ronan could possibly fathom.

"I've always been here, Ronan. It just took a while for me to let you know," Niall responds.

Ronan is about to say something when Niall raises a hand to interrupt him.

"We don't have much time, Ronan. I'll be seeing you, though," Niall replies, smile wide. Ronan leaps to grab onto the man, desperate to take him with him back to the land of the living, but either because he isn't fast enough or this really is Niall's dream and not his Ronan finds himself waking up alone in his bed as usual.

He sucks in air but is unable to do much else as the paralysis wears off. Usually this would only happen if he'd pulled something from a dream, but Ronan knows without doubt that he didn't pull anything from that dream, and that there was certainly nothing usual about it.

RCRCRCRCRC

"Will you be at church this weekend?" Matthew asks.

"You call every weekend and ask the same question and the answer is always yes," Ronan snarks, smiling as he pours a cup of coffee.

There's a pause before Matthew responds cautiously, "Are you ok?"

Matthew nearly regrets asking when he sees Declan whip his head up, tuned in fully to the conversation. Matt figures he has roughly 3 seconds before Declan comes over to take the phone away.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Ronan responds, taking a sip of the coffee and hissing as he burns his mouth.

"You just…You sound happy?" Matthew says, holding up a hand to stop Declan as he sees the eldest Lynch stand up.

Declan pauses, continuing on to the couch but at a more sedate pace. Matthew knows that this is just Declan being nearby in case anything comes up, but appreciates that he's also trusting the youngest brother to make the decision.

"I say again, what the fuck are you going on about?" Ronan responds, setting the cup down and pulling out some food for Opal. As near as he can tell, she has the pallet of a goat, which means that aluminum is one of her favorite things. He's out of cans, though, so he settles for an empty cereal box.

"Nothing, just, you're ok right?" Matthew repeats.

"No I'm not ok – Do you know how much shit I have to do at the farm today? And where the fuck is – oh there you are! Finally decide to join us?" Ronan greets as Chainsaw flies into the kitchen.

Matthew can tell that it's Chainsaw by the deafening caw that responds.

Matthew smiles then, the gesture growing wider as Declan finally relaxes. "Ok, we'll see you Sunday," Matthew responds, shaking his head as Ronan and Chainsaw argue over whatever it is a man and a raven can argue over.

"Sorry – Ronan was being domestic and it just takes some getting used to," Matthew shrugs with a grin.

"Ronan? Being domestic?" Declan asks, fighting a smirk himself.

"Apparently it's a busy day on the farm," Matthew responds.

"Unfuckingbelievable," Declan chuckles, going back to his office.

RCRCRCRCRC

"Ronan," Niall says sternly but not unkindly. Ronan startles, turning away from the dream-Barns.

"This is incredible," Ronan says with awe. The scenery is nearly an exact replica of his home. He supposes that it's more likely that his home is an exact replica of this dream, but seeing the amount of detail given to each item is inspiring nonetheless.

Niall waves him off, continuing, "Ronan I told you before we don't have a lot of time. Now, I need you to listen to me."

Ronan turns his full attention to his father, vaguely appearing as a bedraggled soldier reporting for duty.

"Declan…Well he was the right choice to run the business wasn't he? I mean it's not as if you were going to do it, and Matthew is many things but business-owner couldn't be one of them," Niall speaks and Ronan is reminded of what it's like to be surrounded by brutal honesty. He missed it – not being the only one who was honest. Everyone else is polite or political, but not Niall Lynch and Ronan relishes it.

"Declan was the only choice, but it seems….He knew about the business, Ronan. He, well I thought that he understood, but instead he's just. He's undoing it! He's undoing everything!" Niall rambles as he paces, a hand at his chin as he thinks.

"What are you talking about?" Ronan asks, genuinely unsure.

"I made business deals with some rather….unsavory individuals, Ronan. But do you think I did that for fun? For no reason?" Niall answers.

When said like that Ronan can safely say that 1) Most people would not have done it for fun and 2) Niall Lynch has never been most people. Ronan shrugs in response.

"Now Declan is going through and undoing all of these deals and replacing them with corporate contracts. Which is fine, I left him in charge and if he wants to do things the hard way, it's…." Niall trails off, waving his hand flippantly as if to dismiss the train of thought.

"But now, he's working to undo my biggest deal, Ronan. He's working with a man named Mr. Steel. This man is dangerous Ronan. He knows about this. About me," Niall says, indicating the dreamscape. "He could actually be the one that had me killed."

"Dad, what are you saying?" Ronan asks, a frown marring his features. Niall interprets this as Ronan being upset about Niall's death. Ronan is frowning because they already know who killed Niall, and it wasn't Mr. Steel which if this was Ronan's dream Niall would know, or at the very least Niall would know that Ronan knows. Now Ronan has a headache.

Niall looks at his son and sighs before walking to his son and placing his hands on Ronan's shoulders and Ronan has to physically stop himself from collapsing into the touch. He missed it. Not just being able to hug his father, but….Well, human contact is a rarity for Ronan at the moment. When Adam and Gansey come back from school and traveling the world it'll be different – Gansey's a hugger – but now, in the moment, even the slightest touch allows Ronan to relax in a way that he didn't know he needed.

"Mr. Steel asked for something impossible and then said there was no way I could get it for him. If I were able to obtain it, I would be given control of his research lab which he was using to research me. Us. Dreamers. The only way I could stop him was to get control of that and he knew it. So, he asked for an impossible thing with, and when I provided it….Well I was killed not two weeks after."

"What is Declan trying to do?" Ronan asks with a maturity not typically displayed by a Lynch. Of course Niall doesn't understand that his son's calmness is because he knows exactly who killed Niall, and it wasn't Mr. Steel.

"What is – Are you listening to me Ronan?!" Niall demands, stepping away in frustration. "I think Mr. Steel's men killed me!"

"Yes, but….How does Declan fit in?" Ronan continues, uncharacteristically focused.

Niall is caught off guard, turning to glare at his son in a way that has Ronan fidgeting.

"Declan is going to buy the lab and I don't know what he intends to do with it," Niall replies coolly. "I'm worried for you, Ronan. Declan doesn't understand us, what we can do. Do you really want him to use you as some sort of lab rat?" Niall finishes, his glare from before replaced with a look that resembles pity more than it does concern.

"And you want me to talk to Declan?" Ronan guesses more than states.

"Yes," Niall states, taking a breath to continue but whatever he was going to say next is lost as Ronan surges awake from the dream.

"Fuck," Ronan thinks as he waits for control of his limbs to return.

RCRCRCRCRC

"What do you know about Declan's work?" Ronan asks as soon as Gansey answers the phone.

"What? Jesus Ronan you nearly gave me a heart attack when you called. Declan you say?" Gansey asks, trying to relax and breath normally again.

"Yeah…Like, what does he do? What is he working on?" Ronan attempts to clarify.

Gansey's sigh indicates that this did not actually clarify anything.

"May I ask why the sudden interest?" Gansey asks, trying to get to the real question that Ronan wants answered.

Ronan frowns, trying to decide what his real question is. "What do you know about Mr. Steel?" Ronan replies.

"Ah yes, that," Gansey says, as if the name alone cleared up his concerns. "Well…." Gansey begins, realizing abruptly that this is going to be an uncomfortable discussion.

"Don't…I know he worked with my father Gansey, I just want to know what Declan is doing with him now," Ronan assures, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible.

"Your father…..You're a man of honesty Ronan so I'm just going to say it. Your father was not always a great business man. He made some….unethical deals with disagreeable individuals. Declan has been working to undo those in order to legitimize some of the work he did. Instead of magical-item procurement he's switching to rare artifact selling, which doesn't sound like much but the latter is much less likely to result in-"

"Death and dismemberment - I get it. What does this have to do with anything?" Ronan interrupts.

"I believe Mr. Steel was the last major hurdle Declan faced," Gansey pauses, waiting to see how Ronan handles the statements thus far. When all he hears is silence he continues, "Apparently there was quite the rivalry between the two men. Each were in the field of procurement, and Mr. Steel suspected your father of obtaining things in a less than traditional manner."

"Dad was dreaming shit and this guy figured it out," Ronan surmises.

"I believe so, yes," Gansey agrees.

"So what the fuck is Declan doing with him now?" Ronan asks with a frown.

Gansey huffs a sigh. He had originally hoped not to have to have this discussion with Ronan but it seemed fate wouldn't allow that. "Declan called me some weeks ago," Gansey begins.

"What the fuck did you just say?" Ronan predictably interjects.

Gansey continues as if he hadn't been interrupted, "Mr. Steel has been studying dream objects in a lab. He knows that the objects shouldn't exist, but he doesn't know that it's a dreamer creating them, not a thing."

"That doesn't tell me why the fuck Declan is working with him or what the hell he called you for," Ronan snarls.

Gansey rolls his eyes, smiling in spite of himself. He'd missed Ronan after all, and this kind of discussion is so reminiscent of their Monmouth days that he can't help but be glad for the conversation. "Declan isn't working with him, per se. He's trying to buy him out, and since Mr. Steel is older now it looks like that's a likely possibility. Declan was playing a waiting game with him, making sure that Steel didn't find out anything too important. He'd called me to see if I would be willing to review some notes he'd acquired on Mr. Steel's lab, and to see if I would be interested in utilizing the equipment in my studies," Gansey explains.

"Huh," Ronan responds.

"Indeed," Gansey agrees, giving Ronan time to process. It turns out the moment also allows him time to come up with questions of his own, "How did you hear about Mr. Steel? It's my understanding he's older now, well past retirement age and his company hasn't exactly been doing well. He basically abandoned all of his work in the field to study the dream objects and he has essentially managed to run the business to the ground in doing so. That's why Declan called – he's finally able to purchase the company."

Declan really was the better choice for running the business, Ronan decides internally.

"I uh…." Ronan fumbles uncharacteristically. The problem is he doesn't know exactly what the truth is. "It was a thing from a dream," he offers.

"A dream? About Mr. Steel? Are you sure everything's alright?" Gansey asks, concern evident in his tone.

"Everything's fine grandpa," Ronan says with a huff. "I was just trying to avoid having a fucking conversation with fucking Declan."

"Oh!" Gansey continues cheerfully, "I thought you two were doing better?"

"I haven't punched him in months," Ronan says by way of agreement.

"Your self-restraint remains renowned," Gansey replies sarcastically in a way that is so clearly Blue that Ronan chuckles.

"I do what I can," Ronan shrugs. "Thanks for the info," he says, bringing the conversation to a close.

"Oh yes, of course. Any time Ronan, you know that. Are we still on for the call on Sunday then?" Gansey asks brightly.

"I'll call you after church," Ronan confirms before hanging up the call.

"Well fuck," he groans, collapsing on the sofa.

He stares at his phone for a moment deciding what to do. It's futile since he knows what he's going to do, but he's hoping a magic answer will appear that will save him. It doesn't and he finds himself scrolling through his phone.

He considers sending a text instead of calling, but given the nature of the discussion he'd rather talk about this in person, and not on a Sunday when Matthew would be around to see the damage. Niall Lynch is a sensitive subject for Ronan in general, and casually throwing texts around about him just feels wrong to the boy.

"Fan-fucking-tastic," he groans, slouching further into the couch with the hopes that it will swallow him whole.

RCRCRCRCRC

Declan is not having a great day. Half the staff is out with the flu, so the meeting he just led about how the preparations for a fundraiser are going was a hodge-podge disaster. Not to mention that it's nearly the end of the semester so he has an absurd amount of studying to do, and he spilled coffee on himself on his way to work this morning.

He turns the corner and is greeted by the department's overly cheerful assistant. On most days he finds her tireless optimism encouraging – today he wants to send her on errands that would take her out of the office and therefore out of his space. Unfortunately, he's only an intern which means that technically she should be sending him on errands and out of her space.

He smiles tightly as she offers him a new coffee. He supposes he can stay for the afternoon.

"Ronan," he greets as he barrels into the conference room like a hurricane. The conference room is the shared office space that all the interns use, but the benefit of having everyone out with the flu is that today it's basically just his office.

He throws his stack of papers onto a pile before grabbing the next set of folders that he'll need. He has them open and ready to review as he realizes that Ronan hasn't responded.

"Are you just here to annoy me, or did you actually have a question?" Declan asks harshly.

He tenses then, aware that he may be able to speak with some people at work like that, but Ronan was not one of those people. Ronan has punched him for less and Declan takes a moment to regain his composure before continuing, "Sorry. That was rude."

It's not his best apology, but it's all he has at the moment.

He looks up to see Ronan staring at him. Ronan looks like a deer caught in the headlights trying to figure out a rubik's cube. He looks exhausted, face pale and bags heavy under his eyes. Declan frowns.

"Ronan?" he prompts.

Ronan huffs and looks down. He's bouncing both legs and snapping the bands on his wrist.

"Who's….What's the plan for….." Ronan starts, and Declan leans back in his chair equal parts concerned and amused by Ronan's obvious discomfort. "How are you handling Mr. Steel?" Ronan finally manages.

Declan frowns, "How do you know about Mr. Steel? Did someone threaten you? Are you ok? Is Matthew ok?"

Ronan holds up his hands to shield himself from Declan's rapid-fire questions. "No, no, it's….I know that they had a division that did research on –" Ronan begins.

"I'm going to stop you there, Ronan," Declan interrupts. "Yes. There was a lab and it was doing research. They were still looking for some magic item that creates dream things, and when that didn't work they started working on things to fix all the shit that broke when dad….. I'm working on acquiring it," he replies succinctly.

Ronan continues staring at him, and Declan feels every anger welling up. Anger that University is insane this time of year and he has papers to write and exams to take while trying to plan a fundraiser for a politician while going to some play that Matthew's school is putting on while trying to fend off more buyers looking for nonexistent objects while planning a four-hour drive on Sunday to go to a church that he didn't like in the first place. And now anger that his younger brother didn't want to make a phone call and instead decided to drive to D.C. and interrupt Declan's day for no apparent reason.

"Are you seriously telling me, that you came all the way out here because you heard from God knows where that someone was running a science project and you were worried I wouldn't handle it? That you thought I would leave Matthew exposed like that? I appreciate that you have shown zero interest in what I actually do with Niall's bullshit contacts until it suits you, but yes, Ronan. As usual this is a mess made by our father that I am working to clean up so that you can live happily ever after," Declan clarifies, voice hard.

Declan takes a moment to be happy that Matthew is not here to see this interaction. Usually Declan is better at reigning in his control, but today was already a bad day. He'll have to apologize to Ronan later, which is unfortunate because if there's one thing Ronan hates more than lies, it's apologies.

"What did dad give to Steel?" Ronan responds, startling Declan.

"What?"

"Dad gave something to Mr. Steel – what was it?" Ronan asks.

"How do you-" Declan begins before being cut off.

"Just answer the fucking question Declan so I can leave," Ronan all but growls.

Declan sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose, "His wife had died of cancer. Niall got him her."

At Ronan's blank look Declan continues, "Steel got his wife back, a version of her anyway. Steel had just acquired something and stolen a client from dad. As usual, dad decided to be petty."

Declan takes a steadying breath before continuing. "Steel was….He didn't think anyone should have that kind of power, but he also wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Until dad died, of course," Declan finishes, determined not to look away and not at all satisfied when Ronan does.

"So what are you working on with Steel now?" Ronan prompts.

"Nothing. Steel spent the rest of his life trying to wake his wife up. He's old now, dying. He knows what kind of business I do – we've been in touch with the same contacts – he wants me to keep the lab open for his wife to have somewhere to be. He knows that I know about the dream things, and he knows that I'll make sure she gets the same care that mom got. That's all he wants," Declan explains, voice both cold and tired.

He takes a moment to observe Ronan before shaking his head and standing up.

"What if…." Declan begins, staring out the window of his corner office.

Ronan whips his head up, noting his brother's tense stance, "What if what?"

Declan lets his head drop before turning around. He leans against the window with his arms folded in front of him, and Ronan thinks he looks like he just walked out of watch catalog. "Steel thinks there's a way to untangle the dreamer from the dream…thing. Separate the dreamer from the dream person so that –" Declan begins but is cut off abruptly.

"No," Ronan says, the hardness of his voice surprising Declan.

"What do you mean, no? Do you know what this could mean?!" Declan demands, angry at Ronan's response.

"Do you?!" Ronan replies, voice rising. Declan glances out the window and tells Ronan to quiet down. "It's a fail-safe you idiot," Ronan explains after taking a few deep breaths.

"Explain," Declan demands.

"So that if I pull something out that isn't supposed to be here, you can still get rid of it one way or another," Ronan clarifies, eyes hard and unyielding.

Declan's entire face softens as he realizes what his brother is saying. "Ronan," he starts.

"No. Declan, I get that you don't understand, but I need you to trust me on this, ok? I know what monsters I can create, and if they get out, you need a way to get rid of them. Plus, this way those dream things are less inclined to kill me since it means that they'd die too. Not to mention if one of those assholes does actually manage to figure out what I can do –" Ronan snarls, glaring when Declan starts to interject that he would never let that happen.

"If they do, then hopefully they won't kill me because it would render everything you've ever sold useless," Ronan rales.

He closes his eyes, running a hand through his scruff before he continues.

"It's…..Please don't," Ronan pleads.

At Declan's continued silence Ronan sighs, sinking further into the chair as he buries his face into his hands. When he looks up his eyes are red, "You don't think I want to? You don't think I've fucking tried? You don't think I begged the fucking witches for some sort of solution? They're dream-things Declan. They have to be tied to something. What the fuck would you prefer they be linked to?"

Declan turns to look out the window. He knows what Ronan's saying is true. Understands exactly how quickly a forest can disappear, and a mother can be lost. At least if Matthew is tied to Ronan then he knows Ronan will do everything to keep him safe. He pinches the bridge of his nose before turning back to Ronan.

The boy looks pitiful. He's chewing on the bands on his wrist, refusing to meet Declan's eyes. Ronan is clearly exhausted, red-rimmed eyes undercut by dark circles.

Declan has to stop himself from pulling the younger boy into a hug and offer the reassurance that he clearly needs. While Matthew would relish the comfort, Ronan would definitely punch him.

"Ok, ok, we won't do it, alright?" Declan offers, tone more soothing than he was prepared for.

"You can't," Ronan reiterates finally facing his brother.

"We won't," Declan promises.

When Ronan continues staring him down, Declan continues softly, "Ronan, I know we don't get along, but I will do everything I can to protect you and Matthew. Steel is using the remaining capital to set up a trust for his wife. I'm going to manage it and make sure she receives care for however long is necessary. I'm putting Gansey in charge of all of the research. He's thrilled," Declan offers with a small smile. Gansey had been nothing short of ecstatic at the prospect.

Ronan listens to Declan, taking in the information. "Ok," he responds before walking out of the office.

RCRCRCRCRC

"Where are we?" Ronan asks, twirling around in what looks like a lake.

Niall is standing on the dock and the primal part of Ronan is aware that this gives Niall an advantage. Ronan nearly chuckles because Niall has always had the advantage when it comes to Ronan. This is just an apt visual representation.

Niall shrugs in response. "France maybe? You talked to Declan" he responds. The way he says it makes Ronan think of a cat playing with a mouse, letting the mouse get just far enough away before it pounces again. Like catch and release. Ronan just doesn't know if he's been caught or released.

"I did," Ronan hedges.

Niall smiles coldly and shakes his head, crouching down on the dock, "You heard what he could do with the lab. How he could keep Matthew safe."

Ronan treads water. He takes a moment to look around them, barely noticing the forest around them even as he stares at it.

"Matthew will be safe," Ronan finally responds.

"Just like your mother was?!" Niall yells, splashing his hand down into the water.

Ronan opens his mouth to respond but decides against it. As far as he's concerned, that's the perfect example of why Matthew should remain linked to him.

He can feel the tension in the air, though, and he knows this conversation has nothing to do with Matthew. He briefly wishes Gansey was here. Or even Declan. They probably would've had this figured out by now. He considers, once again, the fact that he should tell them about these dreams.

For the first time Ronan feels like he's seeing the part of their father that Declan grew up with. The part that did whatever he wanted whenever he wanted. The part that cared about himself first, no matter the collateral damage.

"I've had time, now," Niall begins voice as calm as the lake Ronan's treading water in. Ronan cocks his head in confusion.

"I know about Mr. Gray, which explains why you weren't as concerned about Mr. Steel," Niall continues.

Ronan freezes, chest tight with the knowledge that he has tea with his father's killer on Saturdays.

"And even if I could forgive you for that, which I don't by the way," Niall explains nonchalantly, "I couldn't forgive you for throwing away the chance to save your brother. You could save Matthew, but you just decide to throw that opportunity away just like you do everything else in your life!" Niall shouts.

Ronan feels like he's playing a game that he doesn't know the rules to. He feels like Niall is holding all the cards and all the pieces and is just trying to keep Ronan distracted, but he doesn't know why and that makes him angry. If there's one thing Ronan knows what to do with, it's anger.

"What do you want me to say? If you cared about Matthew so fucking much then maybe you should've fucking thought about that before you got yourself fucking killed!" Ronan retorts.

Ronan wishes the look his father gave him was one of disappointment, but that would be too kind a word. The look betrayed nothing – no feeling whatsoever for the boy in front of him. It was the same look you'd give the bedpost after you'd stubbed a toe into it.

"We'll talk again soon son," Niall says, shaking his head as he walks down the dock.

Ronan takes that as his sign to leave, but as he starts to swim he realizes that he can't move. He wants to flail and splash and kick his feet and swing his arms but nothing is happening.

"Dad?" he asks in confusion as he starts to feel heavier and heavier. "Dad?!" he cries, seeing the man stop and cock his head. Niall just watches as Ronan starts to sink. Niall doesn't move an inch as Ronan falls below the water line. Niall doesn't seem bothered as Ronan desperately tries to suck in air only to realize that he can't because all that's left is water and it's crashing around him, sending him tossing and turning as he's swirled away.

He wants to scream but his lungs are too full of water and just when he thinks he's about to pass out he crashes onto his mattress, a deluge of water pouring in with him and soaking his bed.

He can't move yet, not completely. He tries coughing, his back arching involuntarily as he tries to find a position that will allow him to expel the water. He manages to flop his way onto the floor, coughing up murky brown water before he's able to suck in deep breaths of air.

"Kerah?" Opal asks from her spot at the door.

"'m 'kay," Ronan answers, finally able to move his arms enough to push him away from some of the water.

Opal looks at him skeptically, but takes his word for it. She's no stranger to his nightmares after all.

"What the fuck?!" Ronan yells after she leaves. "Fuck," he sighs again, collapsing back onto the ground in an exhausted heap.

He'd like to say that the exhaustion was just the standard kind that came with pulling things through a dream. Hell, he'd like to say these were his dreams. He knows, though. He knows that these are not his dreams, and part of why he keeps waking up tired is because he's not actually getting sleep – he's just living in someone else's reality before he goes back to his own. He just doesn't know exactly how long he can keep that up for.

RCRCRCRCRC

"I need to talk to you," Ronan greets when Adam finally answers the phone.

Adam looks at his phone, double-checking that it is actually Ronan calling him. "Hello to you too," he responds. Even though their dating, Ronan usually only calls (or answers) during their scheduled times. He texts more often, but a random phone call is still virtually unheard of.

"Fuck you," Ronan responds with a small smile even as his brow remains furrowed.

"Maybe later," Adam replies playfully. "What's up?"

"I…." Ronan begins, trailing off uncomfortably.

"Hey, I'm done with class – can we skip to video chat?" Adam asks after a moment. He clicks the button on his phone, waiting until Ronan accepts.

Adam is at the desk in his dorm, his roommate still in class. When the phone switches to video, the first thing he sees is the sky, apparently because Ronan had the phone on his chest. He waits quietly while Ronan fidgets until finally the boy's face comes into view.

"Hey, are you ok? Have you not been sleeping? Do you want me to come down?" Adam immediately blurts before he can stop himself. Ronan's eyes are sunken in, his features muted in spite of the Virginia sun beating down on him. He looks tired, defeated.

"No it's….I've been having weird dreams," Ronan says by way of explanation.

"Okaaay," Adam replies, clearly waiting for the rest of the story.

"Fuck. This is stupid –" Ronan begins.

"Hey, no, it's not stupid or whatever. Just….What's going on?" Adam convinces, his tone soothing.

"I wouldn't have called with this shit but you're the best person at figuring this fucking shit out, and…"

"Ok, ok whatever it is, we'll figure it out together, alright?" Adam assures.

There's a pause but Adam waits while Ronan gazes out at the field. Ronan, despite a proficiency for languages, has never preferred words as a form of communication. Adam is well aware of this by now, and has no problems waiting for Ronan to choose the best way to explain. Really, Adam is just glad that Ronan called in the first place.

"I've been dreaming about…something…." Ronan begins, the pause before the 'something' telling Adam that he's not getting the full story just yet.

"It…I think it wants me to figure out a way to separate it…the fucking dream things or whatever…to separate them from me," Ronan finishes.

Adam pauses, head turned so that his good ear is pointed just slightly towards the phone. When Ronan doesn't say anything else he asks, "And?"

"And? That's it, what the fuck else is there?" Ronan responds irritated.

Adam rolls his eyes. "I'm just saying that you and I have talked about this quite a bit. You decided not to pursue that particular research endeavor and I support you in that decision. As does Gansey, by the way. So I guess I don't see what the problem is?" Adam explains.

"I think that it wants me to be separate for a fucking reason," Ronan clarifies grumpily, his hands waving in emphasis.

"Well, then I guess I don't know what to tell you. It wants out, don't take it out," Adam replies.

"I'm not fucking explaining this right," Ronan huffs.

Adam smiles, leaning back in his chair and deliberately allowing his shirt to ride up so that Ronan gets a peek-a-boo view of his abs, "Well, maybe not, but now that we're on the phone and I have the room to myself, is there anything else you'd like to talk about?"

When phrased like that, Ronan decides that he does, in fact, have other things he'd like to talk about.

RCRCRCRCRC

"Brat!" Ronan calls, waiting for Opal to trod into the barn.

"What?" she demands through a mouth full of grass.

"When I was dreaming with Kavinsky – that was a shared dream, right? Like we were in the same space?" Ronan asks.

Opal suspiciously squints at him before cautiously nodding.

"But like, was that a shared thing? Or was I in his dream or was he in my dream?" Ronan tries to elucidate.

Opal cocks her head at him. "It was a dream," she says slowly as if talking to a toddler.

"Of course it was a fucking dream," Ronan responds, "I just want to know who's."

Opal shrugs. Ronan sighs.

RCRCRCRCRC

"You look like shit," Declan says, getting out of his car. He shrugs when Matthew glares at him.

"Fuck you," Ronan grumbles, scrubbing a hand over his face.

He's been afraid to sleep, but he supposes drowning will do that to someone. That was nearly three days ago, though, and he's quickly running out of options.

"I think what Declan is trying to say is that you look tired and he wanted to make sure everything was alright," Matthew explains with forced cheerfulness.

"'m fine," Ronan mutters.

"Of course you are, that's why you look like shit," Declan snarks. "We're late," Declan continues, ushering them into the church.

The service is quick, or at least it feels that way to Ronan.

"We're going to get food," Declan states as they walk out of the church.

"Have fun," Ronan responds.

Declan rolls his eyes in response, "You're coming too."

"We're getting waffles!" Matthew exclaims.

"I'll meet you there," Ronan grumbles, pulling out his keys.

"Give me a sec," Declan murmurs to Matthew before heading towards Ronan's car.

"Are you ok?" Declan asks Ronan as he approaches the car.

"Fantastic," Ronan retorts.

Declan takes a moment to examine his brother and what he sees makes him grimace. He sighs, looking away as he works up to his next question which is sure to start an argument. "Are you good to drive?" he asks, holding his hands up in surrender even as he continues, "If you tell me you are then I won't stop you – I just want to make sure. You really do look like shit."

Ronan scoffs, taking the olive branch for what it is, "I'm just fucking tired, but I'm fine." He says it with a scowl to keep up appearances – he has a reputation to maintain after all.

Declan nods, stepping aside, "We'll meet you at the diner."

Ronan nods, climbing into the BMW. The drive to the diner gives him enough time to decide that he's irritated with himself for being forgiving of Declan. He's also had plenty of time to process the last dream that he had and to feel guilty. His father literally came back from the dead to ask his favorite son to find out a way to save his own brother and he turned him down because he's scared. Scared is not a sensation Ronan likes to be familiar with.

The problem is that there really is a reason Ronan can't separate himself from Matthew. Ronan has stayed up for literal days trying to think of a way around this, but it's a familiar problem. One he's spent years considering, and knowing that there isn't an answer doesn't make it any less frustrating.

By the time Ronan arrives at the diner, he's in a less than stellar mood.

"Coffee," he says to a passing waitress as he walks into the diner and takes a seat at their usual booth.

"You know what you want to eat?" she asks, pulling out her notebook. He orders the usual breakfast for the three brothers as well as a mimosa for himself. He chugs the first one before the other two Lynch brothers arrive.

Declan and Matthew enter the diner, Declan in front. He pauses just briefly as he sees the glass placed in front of Ronan, sighing internally.

"Ronan," Declan greets, sliding into the booth. Matthew slides in next to him, frowning at the glass Ronan is fiddling with.

"I thought you were doing better," Matthew pouts, nodding at the glass.

"Sorry to disappoint," Ronan shrugs.

"Couldn't you at least wait until after breakfast?" Declan tries in response to Matthew's discomfort.

Ronan glares. "Sure," he responds, going to stand up.

"No, no, no, wait," Matthew pleads, grabbing onto Ronan's wrist to keep him in place. "Just…..No more, ok? Not here," Matthew suggests. "And we'll change the subject, ok?" he continues at Ronan's continued tension.

Ronan adds the fact that he's made Matthew upset to the list of things to feel guilty about before nodding.

"How's school?" Ronan asks Matthew, doing his best to lighten the mood for his younger brother.

Matthew responds with less excitement than usual, but eventually the flow of conversation continues.

"Be safe, ok?" Matthew mumbles into Ronan's shoulder as he hugs the boy goodbye. The youngest brother notes the way Ronan melts at the contact, as if that alone was all that it took to remind Ronan that he's safe. Declan and Ronan glare at each other as a goodbye and Matthew is hit with a fresh wave of sadness at the realization that Ronan never gets to have this with his older brother. Matthew can call either Lynch at any time and they would both be there in an instant for anything – help, cuddling, it wouldn't matter. If Declan hugged Ronan at the end of the meal it would be fight-inducing. Hell, if Ronan hugged Declan it would probably be fight-inducing. Of course, that's because Declan would smother Ronan with concern, but Ronan would no doubt interpret the smothering differently.

Matthew frowns. Living with Declan has let him see exactly how difficult it is for Declan to be so hard on Ronan. He knows that Declan misses being able to be there for Ronan, and he makes up for it by being overly present for Matthew. He knows that Declan just wants his brother back. He's always assumed that Ronan wanted the same thing, but he thinks Ronan may finally be ready to accept it. If only the two would actually speak to each other.

Declan and Matthew have a quiet trip home, but Declan makes an effort once they reach the apartment. He asks Matthew about the upcoming week and his plans, but eventually Matthew can't take the small talk anymore, "Do you think he's ok?"

Declan freezes mid movement and Matt appreciates the fact that the man takes time to think about his response before answering, "He seemed tired. I'm assuming it's dream-related, but he has the bird and the satyr to help him."

"Do you think…Would it help if he stayed here?" Matthew asks tentatively.

Declan huffs at the familiar argument, "I wish it would."

Matthew nods and the two continue their nightly routine.

At the Barns, Ronan feels guilty about his dad, and he feels guilty about Matthew, and he feels angry about Declan. Ronan is historically not very good at handling that many feelings, so he does what he knows how to do – he drinks until he's numb. Then he passes out, hoping that he'll be too drunk to dream.

RCRCRCRCRC

"You think Declan actually cares about you, don't you?" Niall says, his words completely at odds with the serenity he exudes.

"What?" Ronan asks as a way to stall. They're in a rainforest this time. It's warm but not hot, and with the cooling breeze and the scent of water it feels like they're at some sort of spa resort. Ronan wishes he could make his dreams like this – calm and relaxing.

"Think about it, Ronan," Niall replies kindly, as if helping a child understand a new concept. "He's known what you can do since you were three. Do you remember what happened when you were five?" Niall clarifies, looking directly at his son. This time the look settles something in Ronan. This is the look of the father that he grew up with.

Ronan frowns, cocking his head as he cautiously takes a seat just out of arms reach from his father. "What, you mean when I got sick?"

"You were in the hospital, yes," Niall replies turning back to face the lake. "You were very sick and just for a brief moment you…your fever spiked and we weren't sure what would happen. Declan was at home with Matty and your mother and when Matthew collapsed only to spring right back up again like nothing had happened? We had to tell him," Niall explains, looking at Ronan with a mixture of apology and pity.

"What are you saying? That he's known since then that we were linked?" Ronan clarifies.

Niall sighs, his entire body seeming to collapse in on himself as he entreats, "Ronan, your brother has known your entire life that if he wanted Matthew to stick around he had to keep you safe. Why do you think he let you stay with Gansey? Because you seemed better with him. Why do you think he's always the first to know when you're hurt? It's because he was always watching Matty."

"What are you saying?" Ronan asks, tears prickling in his eyes even before he understands why they should be there.

Niall looks genuinely apologetic as he continues, "When you were younger you thought it was just because he was a protective older brother. We had told him to watch over you and Matthew, and we had told you that's what older brothers did so you just assumed he was worried about you. Later….After I was gone I guess there was no one left to tell you. I thought maybe you'd figured it out after the thing with the nightmare, or maybe when the demon attacked, but…Ronan, Declan was being a good older brother and he was watching out for his younger brother. It's just that was never you. He was always looking out for Matthew."

Ronan's muscles are tight, his jaw clenched as he fights back tears. He shakes his head, looking away, ashamed at his reaction not because he's embarrassed but because he feels like he's crying about something he already knew to be true. Hearing someone else say it out loud, though, is like having the wound re-opened just for the sake of pouring salt into it.

Ronan flinches as he feels Niall's hand on his arm. "Come on, Ronan. You already knew," Niall chides gently.

"You knew every time he called to tell you to stop whatever you were doing because it was hurting Matthew. When you were being unmade? And he called to tell you Matthew was in trouble even though he had to have known that meant you were really the one in trouble? When you were at the hospital and he told you to do better because Matthew had been hurt? It's why you get so mad when he's telling you to be careful. Because you know he's telling you to be careful for someone else. Not because he cares about you," Niall explains, running a soothing hand up and down Ronan's back as he explains.

"Do you want me to show you?" Niall asks softly.

Ronan whips his head towards his father, pushing himself off the ground and away from the man as he does so, instinct telling him to run. To put distance between them. This is the cat and mouse game, but this time Ronan is most assuredly caught.

"What? No – stay away-" Ronan tries to say around his tears. He's holding an arm out, trying to keep Niall at least that distance away.

This isn't Ronan's dream though. Niall is in control so it's no surprise when the older Lynch moves faster than Ronan can see, gripping Ronan tightly and knocking him down. Niall pins Ronan to the ground, placing his full weight on the boy as he pulls a knife from his pocket.

"What are you doing? No! Dad, No! Stop!" Ronan yells, his legs kicking as his whole body tries to squirm its way out of Niall's hold.

"Just hold still for one second," Niall replies, voice disconcertingly gentle. "There," he murmurs as he slices straight down the middle of Ronan's arm nearly from wrist to elbow.

"Dad, please," Ronan pleads, turning away as he sees the blood pour from his arm and seep into the tree roots around him. He squeezes his eyes closed, tears flowing against his will regardless.

"Ronan, shh, this'll just take a minute. This is for us, ok? You'll see who your brother really is and then you can tell him to do the research, ok?" Niall soothes, running a hand through Ronan's hair. He continues whispering words of comfort even as he holds Ronan's arm out, letting the blood flow freely.

Ronan wishes it were that easy. The thing is that he may believe Niall is right, that Declan only cares about Matthew, but if there's one thing the two eldest Lynch brothers can agree on, it's the need to protect Matthew.

"Why?" Ronan asks.

"I would've liked to have done this differently, Ronan. I would've liked to have done this together. You and me. A team," Niall says, smiling softly. "But, now I know," he huffs, gently removing a fallen leaf from Ronan's face.

"Kno'what?" he asks.

"That you don't care," Niall says with a sigh. "That you don't care about working with that Gray man, or about me, or about your mother. So, now I'm leaving it up to Declan. Everything important should be left to Declan," Niall states calmly.

Niall sighs, leaning back to take in the forest as if he and Ronan were there on a picnic.

"Even now Declan is probably noticing that something's wrong. That Matthew looks a little off. When he sees that, he'll come to you. And, because he's smart, he'll figure out that it was odd that you came with questions about Steel, and that you talked to Gansey – because you know those two talk about you in their weekly progress checks – and he'll know, Ronan, that if he doesn't work on separating us, then I'll take you away from him forever. And that would mean you were gone, and your mother was gone, and I was gone, and your precious Matthew was gone. Everything, Ronan. All of it. He'd be all alone. Unless, of course, he helps me – us – with one little problem," Niall explains.

Ronan's eyes are getting heavy, and he finds it harder and harder to keep them open, but he knows that when he wakes up, he won't be telling Declan about this. Not if it means keeping Matthew safe. Or Declan for that matter.

Ronan has always wanted to choose Niall, but now Niall is trying to hurt his brothers. Ronan wants to be angry. He can feel pissed off just within reach, but he can't quite manage to feel anything. He thinks maybe it's because all of those things come from within him, and that's also what's pouring out over the forest floor.

RCRCRCRCRC

Ronan blinks awake, the world covered in a fog he struggles to pierce through.

"Kerah?" Opal asks, gently shaking him awake.

Ronan turns sharply towards his arm, regretting the movement instantly as a headache slams into him with the force of a Mack truck.

"Shhhh," Opal soothes, already pulling out first aid supplies. They had both become experts at wound care over the years, a fact which Ronan appreciates now more than ever.

"Stitches," he croaks, earning a nod from Opal.

Belatedly Ronan recognizes a sound in the background as his phone buzzing somewhere on the counter. "Phone?" he asks, turning back to Opal just in time to watch her pour alcohol on his arm.

He screams, curling in on himself as much as possible as she fetches the device. She answers the call and places it near his ear as she settles in to begin stitching.

"Ronan!" Declan shouts over the phone. "What are you doing? Matthew says there's something wrong and he feels tired. What's going on?"

Ronan chokes back a sob, hoping that it sounds more like a cough through the phone. "I'm fine, thanks for asking," he sneers, groaning as Opal pushes the needle through his skin.

Declan sighs on the other end. "I'm sorry. I just…What's wrong?" Declan asks. He hadn't meant to come across insensitive, but Matthew is directly in front of him so he knows when the boy is sick, and the fact that he has no real control over his youngest brother's well-being is a point of anxiety for Declan.

"I'w's a dream thi'g," Ronan slurs, the blood loss and the alcohol and the pain all fighting against him.

"Are you ok? Do you need me to come get you? Do you need a hospital?" Declan asks, trying to gain some sense of control over the situation.

"Nah, Op'l's g't it," Ronan responds.

"Are you sure you don't need real medical care?" Declan prods, aware that if it was bad enough for Matthew to be affected that Ronan is probably seriously injured.

"Don' worry – Matty'll b' back t'normal inamin," Ronan retorts.

"Ronan, I'm sorry, ok? I just…Ronan?" Declan asks, glaring at the phone as the line goes dead.

"Shit," Declan mutters, running a hand through his hair before he goes to check on the youngest sibling.

"You ok?" he asks, taking a seat on the bed. He cards a hand through Matthew's hair, happy to be able to help at least one of his brothers, even if only just.

Matthew hums in response. "How's Ro?" he asks.

"He said it was a dream thing and that Opal's taking care of him so you should start to feel better soon," Declan assures.

"Does he need a hospital?" Matthew asks sleepily as he curls up around Declan.

"Opal is there," Declan gives by way of answer. He wants to say that yes of course Ronan needs a doctor, and they'll be over to take him to one in a moment, but he also knows exactly how upset that would make Ronan. Just like he knows how hard it is to explain dream injuries to hospitals.

Declan settles for leaning back and letting the weight of Matthew on top of him soothe him, letting the rise and fall of Matthew's chest assure him that both of his brothers are safe.

RCRCRCRCRC

"Done," Opal proclaims, setting the needle down and putting the kit away.

"Thanks brat," Ronan says, tousling her hair in an effort to assure her that everything is ok. The gesture probably loses something when he pulls over the trash can to hurl into it for about the 5th time. Opal stands, returning with a banana for him to eat and a mason jar for her to chew on. Chainsaw manages to look disgusted from her perch on the windowsill.

"Sleep now?" she asks, chewing on the rim of the glass.

"You sleep now," Ronan replies, collapsing back onto the floor.

He's exhausted and he wants nothing more than to pass out, but he's also terrified of what would happen. Would Niall be there? Would he taunt Ronan? Tell Ronan that he was right and that Declan only called because of Matthew?

Ronan groans, rubbing his tired eyes as he decides what it is he needs. He stumbles up, grabbing his phone off the counter and scrolling through the contacts before dialing.

"Ronan, it's been a while," Jason answers fondly. The man worked with K when K was still alive. Ronan shakes his head trying to keep himself in the present.

"What would you like to feel tonight?" Jason continues. Ronan can tell that he's shouting to be heard over the music in the club.

"Numb," Ronan responds honestly.

Jason laughs, "Oh that we can do. That we can definitely do. Come down to the club, yeah?"

"On my way," Ronan replies.

He wakes up Opal, telling him that he's going out before picking her up to put her on the couch. Chainsaw sweeps in, landing on Ronan's shoulder. He pets her wings briefly before letting her fly back to her cage, leaving the door open so she can fly out whenever she wants.

Ronan climbs into the BMW, driving as fast as he can towards oblivion. He stumbles back into the apartment the next day and passes out on the couch. When he wakes up, the room is full of dream-things. None of them are his though – it's all inventions that Niall created.

RCRCRCRCRC

Declan pulls up the drive to the house, cautiously exiting the vehicle as he looks around. He'd gotten a hotel in town for the night so that he and Matthew would have time to check in on the middle Lynch. Matthew was still worried about what had happened, and the last three days of radio silence hadn't exactly been confidence-inspiring for Declan either.

"Stay in the car, ok?" Declan asks, earning an eye roll from Matthew along with reluctant compliance.

He detours from the house when he sees smoke at the fire pit by the barn.

Ronan has the barn doors open and is sitting on one of the tables, staring at the fire in the yard. It's been burning long enough that Declan can't tell what it was, but it's not uncommon for them to have to burn trash.

Ronan looks worse than he was expecting. He's nearly translucently pale, his eyes fogged over and hung by black bags and he looks even thinner than usual. He's holding the table in a white-knuckle grip, not moving even when Declan intentionally makes noise on his approach.

"You weren't at church," Declan states, leaning against the table next to his brother. Their shoulders nearly touching and this close Declan can smell the stale sweat and beer on Ronan.

Ronan grunts in response. Opal hops up on the table next to him.

"What are we burning?"

"Dream trash," Opal supplies. This seems to finally catch Ronan's attention, and he turns to face her before sliding off the table.

"That reminds me – I got you something," he says to her as he walks back into the barn and comes out with a large trash bag.

She screeches with glee as she flies off the table towards the bag. Ronan unties it for her and Declan can see that it's full of cans.

"They're her favorite," Ronan explains as he climbs back on the table and Opal busies herself with sorting her cache.

"Are you ok?" Declan asks somewhat perfunctorily since it's glaringly obvious that Ronan is not ok.

"Matthew's still alive, isn't he?" Ronan responds.

"Is that what this is about? I didn't act appropriately when I realized my brothers were dying?" Declan demands. "Sorry I didn't have a rule-book for that conversation," he scoffs.

"How long have you known?" Ronan finds himself asking. He doesn't want to hear the answer, but it's a week for punishment.

"Known what?" Declan asks.

"About me and Matthew. That we're linked. How long?" Ronan asks.

Declan stares at Ronan, trying to gauge his mood before replying. "A while," he settles on.

"Bullshit. You've known since I was fucking five and in the fucking hospital, haven't you?" Ronan spits.

Declan opens his mouth to answer but instead finds himself cautiously asking a question, "Ronan, what have you been dreaming about?"

"What the fuck do you care? It's not like you ever want to talk about dream things anyway," Ronan growls.

"You asked about Steel and now you're asking about something that happened when you were 5 and you're clearly not sleeping well and then there was whatever happened earlier this week," Declan talks, pulling in all of the abstract data into one sentence.

"What are you dreaming about?" he asks again, this time his voice is hard and he stares at Ronan the way Chainsaw stares at something she's deciding whether or not to eat.

"What. The fuck. Do you. Care," Ronan reiterates.

"Don't be an asshole," Matthew says as he approaches.

"Language," Declan corrects automatically before he even realizes the real problem, "And I thought I told you to stay in the car."

"You were gone a long time," Matthew shrugs. Declan raises an eyebrow, indicating that 2 minutes isn't actually a 'long time'.

Matthew looks between the two brothers who seem so unwilling to get along, and anger that all Lynch brothers are familiar with hits him full force.

"So what is it Ronan? Are you mad because he cared about the fact that I was dying or are you mad because he doesn't care about dream things? Because you can't have it both ways. You created me, but Declan is the one that takes care of me, that's raised me, so I think it's pretty clear that he cares about dream things. But that's not really why you're mad," Matthew demands, stepping closer to the boy.

"Matty, come on," Declan says, stepping in to separate the two.

"You're mad because you think Declan doesn't care about you which is such bullshit!" Matthew exclaims, unable to contain his annoyance any longer. "You don't see the long hours he works, or how hard he tries at school or how he still manages to make it to every school function. How many jobs do you work? How much homework do you have? But even with that he was the one at my play, not you!"

Cognitively, Matthew knows that this is not going to solve anything. He also knows that he doesn't usually get to be angry. Ronan didn't make him to have feelings like anger.

"You don't know all the things he's hidden so no one would know what we are. He calls you and you never answer. He texts and you never respond. He asks if you're ok and you tell him to fuck off. He wants to be your brother! So you don't get to be mad that he doesn't act like your brother when you won't let him be your brother, and you don't get to be mad at him for being more of a brother to me than you are," Matthew finishes with a glare.

Ronan looks like he's been punched in the face and then gutted. Ronan wishes he had been punched in the face because then at least he would know what to do. Instead he sits there fighting back tears, hurt by the words themselves but more by the fact that Matthew was the one that spoke them.

"Ok, that's enough, back to the car," Declan says firmly, gently shoving the youngest brother away. Matthew stomps off towards the car.

Ronan is back to staring at the fire, every muscle pulled taught, when Declan returns his attention. Declan sighs, knowing that any conversation is effectively over.

"We were just coming to tell you that we'll be at the hotel if you need anything," he says lamely before heading towards the car.

Ronan looks back at Opal and sees her happily crunching on a can with Chainsaw sitting watch.

"Hey brat," Ronan calls to get the satyr's attention. "You good? I'm going out."

She nods enthusiastically as he jumps down from the table and heads for the BMW. He leaves his phone at the barn on purpose.

"Well if it isn't Ronan, two times in one week. Looking to be knocked out again?" Jason asks happily.

"You know of any races?" Ronan responds.

RCRCRCRCRC

"You want to tell me what that was about?" Declan asks when they're about half a mile away.

Matthew has tears streaming down his face, but he's trying (ineffectively) to hide this fact from Declan.

"I'm sorry," Matthew quietly sobs.

"I don't think I'm the one that you should be apologizing to," Declan states.

"I know," Matthew wails, now facing Declan directly. "That was awful!" he exclaims.

Declan nods once.

"It's just…I miss him, ya know?" Matthew says loudly, earning a raised eyebrow in response.

"I do know, but that's not exactly the sentiment you were exuding," Declan explains.

"I don't know what that means," Matthew huffs, "But I miss him, and I know you miss him, and I know he misses us and I don't understand why he won't just come with us!"

"I understand, but again, that's not exactly what you were saying," Declan prods.

"I just…I'm angry, ok?" Matthew finally says sadly. "I….I mean Ronan made me! What am I supposed to do with that?! And….and he looked awful! And he won't even tell us what's wrong! And then he just gets mad and that's ok, but when I get mad everyone freaks out?! Why won't he just tell us what's wrong so we can fix it?!" Matthew finishes, tears streaming down his face.

It strikes Declan as appropriate somehow that Matthew angry looks exactly like Matthew sad and distraught. He pulls the car over, turning off the vehicle before turning to face his youngest brother.

"Look at me," he says gently, waiting until Matthew meets his eyes. "I love you. Ronan loves you so much that he pulled you out of thin air – he loved you even before there was all of you to love," Declan assures. "And I know we haven't really talked about this, but you're allowed to be upset and you're allowed to be angry, but – and I know I'm the worst person to say this, but that's different – you're not allowed to do it at Ronan's expense. Brothers take care of each other," Declan explains.

"I know that it's hard that Ronan isn't in D.C. and you can miss him. But he won't be able to come to every school play now, ok?"

"I know! And I know it's stupid, but he came to everything before and now we just see him on Sundays!" Matthew exclaims.

"Ok, we'll talk to him about it. I'll go over your schedule with him for next semester so that we can plan which events he can come to," Declan offers.

"It's only a four-hour drive," Matthew sniffles, earning a small chuckle from Declan.

"One way. It's an eight-hour drive total. And he has a goat-girl to take care of," Declan counters.

"Opal. We've talked about this: Her name is Opal," Matthew says with an eye-roll at the familiar discussion.

"And I appreciate you stepping up for me, but….Look, I handle the business aspects, but Ronan still has to handle the ley lines, yeah? He still has to fix issues on the magical side and those issues are just as important," Declan tries to explain.

"Can I call him? And tell him I'm sorry?" Matthew asks, eyes huge.

Declan sighs, knowing without a doubt that Ronan won't answer. "You may have to leave a voicemail," Declan says instead, hoping that Ronan at least listens to the voicemail before he does anything too stupid.

Matthew-crisis averted, Declan has time to focus on the Ronan-crisis. He never got an answer from the middle Lynch regarding what his dreams have been about. Declan is positive that he won't like the answer, whatever it is.

RCRCRCRCRC

Ronan stumbles back into the house and takes a shower. He's more sober this time which is something both he and Opal are pleased with.

When he climbs out of the shower he spots Opal sitting on the counter.

"Sleep?" she asks knowingly and Ronan nods in response.

"Look, if anything happens or if things go wrong, call Declan, ok?" he says.

"Where's Phone?" she asks as if the phone were a person and not a thing. Ronan rubs his eyes as he tries to remember.

"The barn?" he asks more than answers. She nods in response, hopping down and heading outside.

Ronan glares at his bed and decides to sleep on his couch out of spite. And also because his bed still smells like lake water.

RCRCRCRCRC

Ronan hits the ground running as he falls into the dreamscape, body already afraid of what's coming.

He runs, heart pounding and palms sweaty, knowing that the effort is useless. He can feel Niall's presence. Knows that once again Niall is in control. He runs, though, because he doesn't know what else to do as the darkness and the fear start to press in against him.

"I get it, Ronan, I really do," Niall says, suddenly directly in front of Ronan, forcing the boy to screech to a halt.

"You love your brothers, Lord only knows why, but you do. You don't want to hurt them. Maybe you think you can just hide from me forever," Niall shrugs, a terrifying sense of happiness radiating off of him.

"You think you're impressive because you rebuilt Cabeswater?" he continues taunting. "Boy, there are things I can do that you can't even dream of," Niall scoffs. "I built your mother, I built your home, I built your life and I can take it all back! All of it!" he shouts, getting in Ronan's face.

Ronan turns his head in submission before he can stop himself, but he manages to hold his ground nonetheless.

"You think the worse that can happen is that you're tired? That you're nervous?" Niall sneers, voice a whisper. "Let me show you what I can do," Niall smiles, taking a step back.

Ronan has a brief moment to be concerned before the entire dreamscape around him shifts and he's physically slammed into a new dream. He can tell this is a dream because it's Declan running into the kitchen at the Barns to check on him.

"Are you ok?!" Declan asks, concern clear as he checks Ronan over for injuries.

"We both know that's not what would happen, don't we?" Niall mocks and just like that Ronan is slammed into another dream.

Over and over and over – Adam hurt, Adam sick, Adam dying, Gansey giving up on Ronan, Gansey dying, Matthew leaving him, Matthew dying, Declan dying, bodies everywhere, his body when Declan kills him – each dream is worse than the last. The speed and variation of each dream makes it harder and harder for Ronan to tell what's real and what's fake. Are they in the hospital? Or Declan's apartment? Or Monmouth?

He screams, repeatedly, the pain of being pushed and pulled worse than being unmade. Each cell of his body is on fire as he's tossed around the dream universe like one of the rag dolls that's designed to be beaten against a wall in frustration.

He hurts to his soul. Agony tearing through him as he tries to figure out which way is up. He claws his way towards a sound, towards anything that seems like it might be real.

He can feel blood on his hands as he pushes away a corpse, Noah's corpse, but he can also feel pressure on his torso like someone is pounding on his chest. He claws his way towards the pressure, relishing the pain as a means of escape.

"Kerah!" he hears as he blinks bleary eyes open. "Kerah!" Opal is yelling, doing everything in her power to wake the boy up.

"Phone, need," Ronan manages to groan, voice rough like sandpaper as he fights to stay present. He can feel the talons of the dream still stuck in him like hooks.

Opal apparently already had the device in her hand and she shoves it into his without ceremony. He holds down the 3, waiting for the phone to auto-dial Declan, and more grateful than he has words for that someone thought to set that up on his phone. He can barely see, not sure if what he's seeing is real or not, not sure if this is a dream or not, and he doesn't think he'd be able to pick out Declan's name from the contact list if he had to.

"What's wrong?" Declan answers, voice hardened, prepared.

"Help, need…Barns, help" is all Ronan is able to mutter before he's plunged back into the darkness.

"Kerah!" he hears but can't respond. He hopes Declan is close because otherwise he doesn't know what will be left of him to find. He can't even tell if Niall is pulling him back into the dream, or if his body just can't handle consciousness anymore.

In either case, he hits the kitchen tiles of the dream so hard that he thinks his ribs break. Maybe. He can't tell. Chainsaw is there and she's meticulously reopening the cut on his arm and blood is starting to seep out again. Not in full force, yet. Just enough to give her something to scoop up into her beak. He feels his eyes close in the dream, feels his body being ripped apart as the dream-world folds in around him, feels himself tumbling through the ether right before he's slammed into his own body again.

RCRCRCRCRC

"Ronan! Ronan!" Declan shouts, barreling into the house at the Barns and grateful that he'd decided to stay at the hotel in town for the rest of the week.

"Kerah!" Opal yells and Declan follows the sound. He sees Ronan on the floor, blood seeping through a bandage and Opal pounding on his chest.

Ronan is screaming, back arching and limbs contorting in pain but Declan can tell he's still asleep.

Declan glances around the kitchen, eyes landing on the box that they keep for Gansey. Declan doesn't take the time to think, just opens the box and stabbing Ronan in the thigh with the Epi-Pen.

Ronan shoots upright, pulling in a deep lungful of air as he shoots backwards.

"Ronan?" Declan demands, pushing forwards.

"Please be real, please be real," Ronan is muttering as he keeps pushing himself away from the pair.

Opal exclaims something before standing up and running to the other room.

"It's me, Ro, it's just me. You're awake ok? This is real," Declan assures, stopping his movements in an effort to encourage Ronan to do the same.

Ronan looks awful but Declan doesn't get time to focus on why before Opal is back, tossing a book at the floor near Ronan.

At Declan's quizzical look she explains, "You can't read English in dreams."

"Oh Jesus fuck. Thank you fuck, fucking fuck what the fuck was that," Ronan rambles before tossing the book aside.

He's on fire, or at least that's what it feels like, which is the only reason he thinks it's acceptable that the next thing he does is throw himself at Declan, gripping him in a tight hug.

"Please be real, please, please, please be real," Ronan is repeating, tucking his head under Declan's chin and gripping the back of Declan's shirt.

For a moment Declan has no idea what to do, stunned by the situation around him.

As Ronan's words start to filter in Declan is finally snapped back into action.

"Hey, it's me, I'm real ok? I'm not going anywhere. You're ok, you're awake. This is real," Declan continues muttering, rearranging them so they're leaning against the couch. He runs a hand up and down Ronan's back.

Ronan sobs, pain flowing through his body like lightning.

"Hey what's wrong? What do you need?" Declan asks as he feels Ronan start to shiver. Ronan's skin is overheated and coated in a layer of cold sweat like his body can't quite figure out how to respond. His muscles are contracting in pain and he's gripping onto Declan like a lifeline.

"I don't…fuck!" Ronan tries to respond, cutting off on a pained cry.

"Ok, ok, shhh. I'll take care of it ok? Do you need to go to a hospital?" Declan asks because he does need to know.

"No! No, no," Ronan replies. "Don't wanna shrink," he continues, holding up his arm.

"Ronan what the fuck?" Declan mutters, unwrapping the bandage and frowning at the partially stitched injury.

Opal carefully inspects the offending limb before grabbing scissors out of a first aid kit that Declan hadn't even seen her grab. She cuts three of the stitches, slowly pulling them out before reapplying antibiotic cream and wrapping the wound.

She sits next to Declan, staring at him expectantly then.

"Are you hurt anywhere else?" Declan asks gently, placing a hand at the back of Ronan's neck as he feels the boy start to relax against him.

"Ngh," Ronan responds, eyes heavy as the adrenaline leaves his body. He can feel one hand running up his back and the other placed firmly at the back of his neck and he melts into the embrace, leaning heavily against his brother.

"Don'want'sl'p," he mutters, trying desperately to keep is eyes open.

Declan tightens his grip protectively, wrapping Ronan up completely. "Can you tell me what you were dreaming about?" He doesn't think Ronan will be able to stay awake much longer regardless, but he's inclined to agree that sleep may do more harm than good.

"Dad, w's dreamin' 'bout dad," Ronan whimpers, pressing his face further into the crook of Declan's shoulder.

Declan goes stiff at the words, his muscles tight. "What do you mean you were dreaming about dad?" he asks carefully, finally making sense of what's been happening.

"It's dad, Dec," Ronan sobs, drawing Declan's attention back to him.

"Hey, shhh, it's ok. We'll figure this out, ok?" Declan soothes.

They sit like that until it seems like the pain has subsided, and then Declan softly asks if Ronan's still awake.

"Mhm" Ronan confirms.

"Can you stand?" Declan asks, regretting the question immediately when he feels Ronan pull away.

It takes a moment but finally the pair is standing with Ronan leaning heavily against the eldest Lynch. Declan guides them into the bedroom, carefully depositing Ronan on the bed. He helps pull Ronan's shirt off, taking time to examine each bruise and scratch. He thinks one of Ronan's ribs is cracked but not broken and there's bruising covering the entire right side of Ronan's back but otherwise there's very little visible damage.

Declan gets Ronan into sleep clothes and then steps away from the bed to find himself something to wear. He's stopped by Ronan grabbing his wrist, and Declan automatically crouches down to see what's wrong.

"Don' leave," Ronan begs, eyes wet with tears.

"I'm just going to find some clothes – I'll be right there," Declan answers, pointing to the dresser. Ronan reluctantly lets go, eyes tiredly following Declan around the room.

When he's changed, Declan climbs into the bed, amused when Ronan clings to him like a limpet. He tugs Ronan closer though, gently brushing a hand through Ronan's buzzed hair, when he realizes that sleep is the logical next step in their night.

"'m scared," Ronan whispers, more asleep than awake.

"I'm right here," Declan says, holding Ronan tightly. "We're right here," he amends as Opal climbs into the bed with them.

"You're safe," Declan assures, "We'll keep you safe."

Ronan finally sleeps believing for the first time in a long time that he might actually be safe. Declan holds him close, hoping that this is actually true.

RCRCRCRCRC

Ronan has no idea how long he's been out when he finally wakes. He can see the sun peeking through the blinds, but that doesn't tell him what day it is.

He groans as he rolls over, nearly jumping when Opal appears directly above him.

"Kerah?" she asks, poking him in the face.

"Brat?" he responds groggily.

He rubs his eyes as he tries to figure out what happened that led to him feeling this awful.

"Shit. Fuck," he mutters when everything starts to come back to him.

"Good morning to you too," Declan chuckles from the door. "Or good afternoon, I guess."

"Fuck," Ronan repeats.

"There's food in the kitchen," Declan responds, checking Ronan over.

"I smell like ass," Ronan replies. "I'm gonna shower. Then coffee."

Declan nods, giving his brother a minute to collect himself.

When Ronan finally stumbles in to the kitchen, he finds Declan already at the table drinking a cup of coffee. There's a plate of food and a large cup of coffee for Ronan, and Ronan is weirdly pleased to see that there's also a small pile of miscellaneous non-food items for Opal. The orphan girl beams at this.

Declan manages to let Ronan drink exactly half of his coffee before he breaks. He suspects Ronan knew that he was waiting and was trying to drag the process out as long as possible.

"So, dad?" he asks casually.

Ronan puts his fork down, leaning back in the chair. He absolutely doesn't want to have this conversation, but Declan's here and he just saved Ronan's life, and Ronan doesn't know what else to do.

Declan watches as Ronan frowns and he startles when Ronan actually starts to explain. His voice is soft and Declan has to strain to listen, but he's beyond happy that Ronan is actually just telling him the story. He'd planned on this being a louder, more difficult endeavor.

"Jesus fuck," Declan summarizes when Ronan is done.

"Where's Matthew?" Ronan asks. He has no further comments to add to his story.

"I have him staying with friends. I didn't want him here just in case," Declan replies offhand as he continues processing everything Ronan had told him. He comes back to the present as he remembers the last time Ronan and Matthew had spoken. "And he's sorry," he offers, "in case you didn't get his voicemail."

Ronan grunts. He opens his mouth to speak but seems to think better of it, laying his head down on the table instead.

"He was….It turns out he handles change just as well as the rest of us. He was just upset that he can't see you all the time," Declan explains softly. "He loves you," he says when Ronan doesn't reply.

At Ronan's continued silence he considers bringing up the idea of discussing a schedule, but he realizes it's a moot point in light of what he's about to say next.

"I think you should come to D.C."

That finally gets a response out of the boy. Ronan rears up, faster than was wise if the way he immediately squeezes his eyes shut is any indicator. Declan is prepared to argue. Matthew was made by Ronan, after all, so responding poorly to change is to be expected.

Even Ronan knows the urge to protest is more instinctual than anything. The truth is that he's terrified. He doesn't know what to do. He can't just never sleep again, but he doesn't understand what his father wants. What his plan is. And he's exhausted. And he's lonely. And he's a million other pathetic things that he doesn't want to dwell on.

Ronan looks to Opal. She continues eating the lid off the salt shaker.

"Can she come?" Ronan finally asks.

Now it's Declan's turn to twist around too quickly. He takes a moment to ponder the girl before looking to Ronan, "Can't the bird watch her?"

RCRCRCRCRC

"You say he's focused on untying Matthew from you?" Gansey asks, managing to cut straight to the heart of the matter as always.

Declan and Ronan are on the phone with Gansey & Co. on their drive back to D.C.

"How is this even possible, though? I mean…I'm sorry that this is going to sound awful, but he's dead," Blue states.

"No shit," Ronan growls.

Given the circumstances no one gives him a hard time about this.

"In the rainforest, was it somewhere you'd seen before?" Adam asks.

Ronan tilts his head, thinking. "It's definitely a real forest. Sort of. Like it's in the world but it was created by someone," he answers.

"What are you thinking?" Gansey asks Adam.

"Blood spilled on a ley line," Adam says simply.

"You think he needed the blood? For what?" Cheng asks, his voice alone managing to irritate Ronan.

"Wait – you said it's like you were in his dream right?" Blue jumps in.

Ronan grunts.

"Maybe….Maybe he needed it to be strong enough? Like maybe he's trying to come out of the dream?"

Ronan had considered this, but there's just one problem, "Yeah, but why? The first time I would've just pulled him out if I could've."

He shrugs as Declan glares incredulously at him.

"I don't know. But it seems like he was going to an awful lot of trouble to piss you off, you know? Like he wanted to hurt you, he spilled blood in a forest. All that negativity…..Maybe it's like the demon and he needed that. Maybe he's going to try to pull himself out of the dream in reverse?" Blue answers, thinking out loud.

Before Ronan can ask what the fuck she's talking about Adam jumps in, "No. He's going to try to pull Ronan out."

"What?" Declan asks, voice cold.

"Think about it," Adam says, picking up speed as he puts it together. "He needed the blood and the anger to be strong enough or connected enough to a ley line. But if he wanted Ronan to pull him out that would've been easy. He's trying to use his own dreams though. He is trying to pull Ronan into his dream and then pull them both out."

"Would that mean that Ronan would be tied to Niall?" Cheng asks.

"I don't think so," Gansey interjects. "But it would mean that Niall wouldn't be linked to Ronan. It seems like that's what he was going for the whole time, doesn't it? He had planned on someone doing the research, but the lab was being shut down and Ronan, wisely might I add, refused to participate."

"So what, desperate times, desperate measures?" Blue asks.

"Exactly," Adam responds firmly. "And just because it won't link him to Niall doesn't mean that it won't do anything to Ronan."

"What do you mean?" Declan demands.

"Ronan isn't getting actual sleep because he's in someone else's dreamscape. Being transitioned around the other dreamscapes was painful –"

"Fucking understatement," Ronan supplies.

"So I can't imagine that being pulled into a dream and then out of another will be pleasant," Adam clarifies.

"Yes, but will it just hurt him, or will it hurt him?" Gansey asks.

"What the fuck kind of question is that?" Ronan demands indignantly.

"Oh shut up, you know what he means. I'll call the psychics and see if they have any suggestions," Blue says.

They can hear her stepping away, and pulling out her own phone.

"So what does Niall want to do? Like after he gets out?" Cheng asks the question no one really wants to address

Ronan turns away.

Adam remains silent.

Gansey responds, "One question at a time."

Declan sighs. In reality, there probably is no good reason for why this is happening. Niall found a way to do the impossible and he decided to do it, consequences be damned. Declan's smart enough to not say this to Ronan. Unfortunately, he suspects Ronan is smart enough to have already figured this out.

"Ok. Mom says that it probably won't kill you," Blue says, returning to the conversation.

"Reassuring," Ronan mutters.

"But it'll definitely hurt like a bitch. And…."

"And what?" Gansey asks.

"Look theoretically if he can pull you out then you can pull him back in," Blue sighs.

"What are you saying?" Ronan growls.

"She's saying that he's going to view you as a threat," Adam supplies.

"Great," Ronan says, concerning Declan when he seems to visibly deflate in the passenger seat.

"Oh wait-" Blue says as she listens to the psychics on the other line. "Calla said that Adam is on to something with the blood spilled in the forest thing. Blood magic is super powerful, so blood spilled in a magic forest through a dream would theoretically be a power boost. You said before that he could only control the dream briefly, so maybe the blood helped with that. Also, mom says that making Ronan angry was to discourage him from pulling Niall out too soon. Niall needed to be strong enough, and-"

"And not tied to Ronan," Adam finishes.

"Exactly," Blue agrees.

"Anyone have any suggestions on how to stop this?" he asks.

Ronan tunes the rest of the conversation out, already aware that the answer is that no, no one has any ideas, but they'll all look into it right away. In the meantime, Ronan has no idea what he's supposed to do and neither does anyone else.

RCRCRCRCRC

The rest of the drive is quiet and it isn't until they walk into the apartment that Declan speaks.

"I told Matthew to stay with friends. It's Thursday, so he'll be there until Monday," he says, shrugging off his jacket.

Ronan is standing there, blankly taking in the space. "You hungry?" Declan tries, concerned when Ronan doesn't move an inch.

"Hey," he says, facing the boy. He has so many things he wants to say. If Declan were even half the politician Ronan thinks he is he'd already be making promises. Instead he clings to the one thing that he knows to be true. "We'll fix this. I'm not going to let anything happen to you," he says, gently tugging Ronan against him in a hug. It takes a moment before he feels Ronan's head fall to his shoulder.

RCRCRCRCRC

"I'm going to the store, don't do anything stupid," Declan states, grabbing his keys. He'd just decided to cook, only to realize that his fridge was nearly empty. He wishes he could blame this on Ronan, but he'd barely gotten Ronan to eat anything over the last two days.

Ronan grunts in response. He's clearly exhausted, and Declan wishes there was something he could do to fix it.

Overall, Ronan is pleased that he's managed to make it this long before he collapses. The minute Declan leaves, though, he falls to the couch. He'd been slowly coming to the realization that he was going to have to sleep. He was just trying to do it when Declan wasn't going to be there.

Ronan might not have a choice in what happens next, but under no circumstances was he going to put Declan in danger by sleeping when he was around.

RCRCRCRCRC

"Fuck," he mutters the second he hits the dream. He repeats it as he looks around and realizes where they're standing.

Niall doesn't say anything, stepping back as Mr. Gray pulls up in the car behind them.

They're in the driveway, Ronan in the driver's seat of the car as Niall sits calmly in the back. Mr. Gray is as calm as ever when he opens the door, pulling Ronan out and tossing him to the ground. It's only now that Ronan even gets a glimpse of the tire rod in his hand.

This is it. Ronan thinks, weirdly comforted at finally knowing exactly what happened to Niall Lynch. What it felt like in the final moments. Ronan feels like this is the kind of full-circle ending that seems fitting, but he tries to fight. Tries to hit back. Tries to keep Matthew and Opal and Cabeswater safe. He tries.

He takes a hard hit to the head, knocking him to the ground. He's still dazed as another blow strikes him directly in the face right under his eye. There's a hand holding him in place, and he weakly grabs it, pushing against it as he feels the black encroaching around him.

He sees Mr. Gray step back, tire rod in hand as he's ready to make the final hit. Ronan tries to move, to get away, to do anything. The man pulls back, ready to swing.

The sudden silence is deafening. Mr. Gray is gone and the driveway is silent.

Niall calmly exits the back of the vehicle, walking over and crouching down at Ronan's head.

"Your lack of imagination is appalling. Really, Ronan, you're the Greywaren – you should act like it," Niall states. He grabs Ronan by the throat and Ronan would scream if he could because now they're both being physically torn from the world and Ronan realizes what this is. Ronan was in Niall's nightmare, and now Niall is latched onto him. Feel it in the dream, carry it to the world. Have blood spilled on a magical dream ley line, and poof – transition complete.

Ronan tries to gasp as he comes to. Apparently he'd passed out in the middle of the living room floor, and that's where they are now, Niall's hand still clamped tightly around Ronan's throat.

"The things you could've done…We could've done…If only you'd put any work into learning," Niall growls. Ronan tries to shove him away, tries to use any of the defense moves that Niall himself had demanded that he learn. He can't, though. He's temporarily paralyzed and even if he weren't he doesn't think he could stop this. His body is running on empty. He wasn't even able to stay conscious before the dream. He has nothing left to fight with, no fuel left in the tank. His hand is loosely gripped around Niall's wrist and that's the most resistance Ronan has to offer.

Neither Niall nor Ronan hear the soft click of the door opening. Neither see the figure standing at the entryway. Which is why they're both startled by the voice that suddenly announces, "Get the fuck off of him."

Ronan can do nothing but gasp in air as Niall's hands loosen slightly. Ronan's own hands fall to the ground as exhaustion flows through his body like a tidal wave.

Ronan can't see the gun that Declan is holding, but Niall can tell by the way that the gun is held steady and calmly that Declan won't hesitate to use it.

"You kill me, I kill Ronan, Matthew dies," Ronan hears. He looks up to see Niall's eyes harden and without ceremony he grabs a knife from his pocket, stabbing it into Ronan's abdomen.

Declan appreciates the statement because it tells him what he needs to know: Killing Niall won't directly kill Ronan. He fires the gun without hesitation.

Fortunately, Niall doesn't get time to cut very deep. The bullet has left the gun well before Niall actually has time to swing the knife. Luckily for all of them the force of the bullet shoves Niall sideways, meaning he collapses nearer Ronan's legs and not on top of the knife.

Ronan will be thankful for all of those things later. Right now, Ronan is just thankful to have lungs full of oxygen.

He gasps, sucking in deep breathes. He can feel blood dripping out of his nose and realizes that he must still look like he was just beaten with a tire rod.

"Shit," Declan exclaims, slamming to the ground next to his brother. "Ronan? Ronan, stay with me," he mutters.

He considers calling 911, but the body of an already dead man lying in his apartment would require a fair amount of explanation.

As soon as Declan crouches next to him, Ronan latches onto him, pulling himself up as much as he can. Declan takes the hint, doing his best to support his brother as he pulls out his phone.

"Declan?" the man answers immediately.

"I need your help with body disposal," Declan responds, running a hand over Ronan's head, displeased to find more than one injury.

There's a pause, "Text me your address."

"Thank you," Declan replies, letting out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding.

One problem solved he turns back to Ronan.

Ronan's face is covered in blood and Declan is fairly certain it's due to a broken nose. Head wounds bleed profusely, and Ronan has more than one of them. His hands are destroyed, implying Ronan put up a fight. Declan pulls up Ronan's shirt to see the damage, rolling his eyes when Ronan tells him to buy him dinner first.

The stab wound isn't deep but it will probably require stitches. Several of his ribs are broken and Ronan is cradling his left arm, but Declan can't tell what's wrong with it.

"We're going to the hospital," he states.

It's a testament to how awful Ronan feels that he doesn't argue.

RCRCRCRCRC

"Help!" Declan exclaims, dragging his nearly unconscious into the ER.

"What happened to him?" a nurse asks as she grabs a gurney, helping Declan deposit the boy there.

"Mugging," Declan answers.

"Stay here," is all she says as they start reeling him away.

In the span of 30 seconds Declan has gone from literally having his hands full to having absolutely nothing to do.

"Sir!" a woman shouts when she sees him head towards a chair. "You're gonna need to fill these out," she states, handing him a clipboard.

Paperwork. Ronan would laugh at him if he knew how relieved Declan was to be doing something he was used to.

RCRCRCRCRC

"Is he ok?" Cheng asks, the first to respond to Declan's explanation.

"Of course he's not ok!" Blue exclaims. "Is he? Is he ok?" she then demands immediately.

Declan sees why Ronan likes her. "He has a dislocated shoulder, four broken ribs, a broken nose, and a few extra scars but yes. He'll live."

"And what about Niall?" Adam asks.

"Mr. Gray is taking care of that," Declan responds.

"Where are you?" he asks next when he hears an overhead page coming from Gansey's phone.

"We're almost there!" Blue answers as Cheng offers more helpfully, "Gansey was freaking out so we decided to at least let him freak out at Ronan instead."

"You're coming back?" Declan clarifies, relieved beyond words that his brother has these kinds of friends.

"Of course we're coming back!" Gansey declares, offended at the idea that they wouldn't.

"My flight got delayed by the snow, but I should be there later today," Adam offers.

Declan smiles then as he enters Ronan's room. Ronan eyes him suspiciously when Declan walks in smiling. Declan just shakes his head, putting the phone on speaker and taking a seat next to Ronan's bed.

The room has a couch which he's grateful for as he spreads out on it, letting the sound of Ronan and Blue's playful banter lull him to sleep. He distantly hears Matthew barge into the room, always impressed with the amount of noise the boy manages to make everywhere he goes. Declan relaxes, then, surrounded by sounds of safety and the knowledge that Ronan is ok and Matthew is ok and the fact that all crises have been once again averted.

Ronan semi-wrestles with Matthew when he enters. The two continue their playful fight as Ronan listens to his friends on the phone. He's tired, though, and soon he hands the phone to Matthew and sends him out for food just to have a moment of peace.

Declan's already asleep on the couch. Ronan briefly worries about waking up with a night horror in the middle of the hospital but decides he'll have to get over it. He's finally able to sleep, and Matthew is ok and his friends are finally coming home and he and Declan survived multiple days together without killing each other.

Matthew reenters the room to find both of his brothers asleep. He doesn't even think about it before he crawls up into the bed with Ronan, doing his best not to fidget as he finds a comfortable spot.

Blue takes all the blackmail pictures she can of the three Lynch brothers passed out in varying stages of disarray when they arrive.