Deal Breaker
By Snare-chan
Pairings: Implied Klarion the Witch Boy/Kid Flash
Ratings: T
Category(ies): Supernatural
Warning(s): None
Status: One-shot, complete
Summary: Klarion gives Wally something to think about.
Notes: This story was long in the making, which is sad to say considering how short and rough it is. Surprise, surprise, this was for an anon over at the YJ livejournal meme that prompted:
Klarion: One day you will die. One day you will grow old and your luck will run out and you will be gone forever. But that doesn't have to happen. I can make you immortal. I can grant you all the powers of a god of chaos. You can rule by my side for all eternity, just as you are now.
Wally: No thanks.
I'm not sure I was able to capture the depth portrayed in the snippet for Klarion, but it was sure fun trying! Beta read by Keppiehed, who continues to edit for truth, justice and the American way.
Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice; wish I did like everybody else. They should put YJ in stock, then I'd buy it all!
Wally didn't know how Klarion had found him that night.
The moon was half-full and the streets quiet; the entire world was too quiet for it to be almost ending. It felt wrong that calm existed after the things he'd seen or done recently, and he felt terrible for thinking that. He'd fought for this, and the fact that it prevailed should have filled him with relief.
It didn't. There was a ringing in his ears that filled the silence. Peace was nothing but a cold comfort, especially now.
As Kid Flash, he'd fought for his life and the lives of his friends who were recovering the same way he was. They wouldn't be sore the next day because they were sore now. Wally was suffering from a swollen kneecap on top of the bruises and cuts he'd garnered from fighting to survive.
For him, the wounds would heal in a couple hours, but Miss Martian – Megan – might not wake up for the next couple of days. He had also witnessed Robin's arm being broken in two places. There was worse; everyone on the team had suffered in different ways that would probably scar them after the physical marks had healed.
And yet, right then he was only feeling stupid for standing there in front of the witch-kid. His uniform was ruined and his body was barely holding itself together, whereas Klarion appeared as if he'd stepped off a theater stage.
"Can we like, not do this right now?" Wally asked. His voice cracked as the rawness of his throat made each word burn. He ended up coughing from the effort and felt something wet mar the crook of his elbow when he pulled his mouth away.
"You know, I was thinking about rescheduling, seeing as you're a travesty of travesties at the moment, but that won't do."
Klarion was lying on his front, across a crumbling outcropping of a building. Realistically, it should have given under his additional weight, but it appeared undisturbed by the other boy's presence. Despite his laidback position, Wally remained alert at Klarion's words.
"Really? What can't wait until tomorrow? Or better yet, never."
"How rude! Teekl, isn't he just being a spoilsport?" he asked his familiar, the orange tabby sitting at his hip. The creature mewed, as if in agreement or maybe to prompt him to get on with his purpose for being here. The latter might have just been Wally's own hopes projecting themselves, though. "The reason is because there may be no tomorrow for you, silly mortal!"
Wally felt the sweat coating his body go cold, causing his skin to crawl and break out in goosebumps. Klarion must have noticed his increased discomfort, since he broke out in a grin made entirely of teeth. In the gleam of the streetlights, Wally could pick out each pointed incisor in his mouth that resembled a fang.
"What?" Wally started, hating himself for pausing to lick his dry, chapped lips in nervousness. "A deck of tarot cards or something equally mundane tells you when I'm going to die? Well?"
"Hah hah! As if I need such weak methods to assist me. You're merely human – it's inevitable that someday you'll perish, through either misfortune or time. Flesh gone and bones brittle in the earth are the sole remains to signify your presence on this currently dull plane of existence."
"So…?"
Wally blinked, and in that span Klarion went from resting across the alley to standing in front of him. The urge to jump in surprise was strong, but he resisted by a small margin and stood his ground, meeting the other boy's eyes. They were dark, as if they absorbed the light around them rather than reflected it back. Every part of the witch-boy was greedy to the last. Wally was disturbed that he couldn't even see himself in them.
"So…it doesn't have to be that way."
Klarion leaned in close and rested one hand against the brick, his black claws scraping against the hard surface next to Wally's head.
"Ruling this pitiful rock would be boring without people like you," the witch-kid continued. "Just imagine, you and I in control of it? You made a surprisingly good show of being a Lord of Order for a nerd, but science is too good for you."
"Whatever it is you're selling, I'm not interested," Wally rebuked, but Klarion wasn't finished.
"Join me."
Wally distantly counted the seconds he found himself unable to breathe. He finished the half-breath he'd taken, the action shakier than he'd hoped it would be. At their feet, Teekl made figure-eights as the cat rubbed against the both of them.
"If there's a single point that I can take away from tonight, it's that I'm capable of accomplishing anything. Saving the world, protecting my friends, stopping the likes of you… Your parlor tricks and fake assurances don't impress me."
"Capability and superiority are entirely two different circumstances, Wallace Rudolph West-"
At the sound of his full name leaving those lips – how did he know? – it was as if he'd been struck by red lightning, the shock causing him to shudder uncontrollably. The way Klarion said it was perfect mimicry of how Wally pronounced it, and though he tried to explain it, he felt as if he'd lost a part of himself already.
This must be what the devil sounded like when he offered to purchase a person's soul.
"Besides, I didn't say you had to decide now – it'd just be in your best interests to do so before you kicked the bucket. I can wait for your answer," Klarion said, backing off at last and scooping Teekl up in his arms. A whirling, red portal opened at his back, and he started to walk towards it without ever taking his eyes off Wally in the process.
"After all, I don't have to rush."
Wally managed to keep on his feet a minute after the witch-kid had vanished and was quick enough to catch himself before he fell flat on his face. He collapsed against the wall and slid down it, his wounded back protesting at the harsh treatment.
Without his meaning to, he stared at his hands. They were bare of the cloth of his uniform, the material having been rubbed, torn or burned off earlier. The pale appendages were speckled with his many freckles, which stood out in greater contrast than normal due to the blood loss and stress of the past several hours.
He thought about many things as he stared at them, but mostly he thought about temptation.
-Fin-