disclaimer: these characters and their world belong to Rainbow Rowell, not me!

Baz- something happened

The text came in the afternoon, when Baz was in class, and it sent flames of fear into his stomach. Simon never texted- almost never. He called, or came right to the building and interrupted class.

He'd rather send smoke signals than text. He said it felt all wrong, and Baz had told him it was ridiculous (almost as ridiculous as those tawny untamed curls).

Baz stood up, carefully keeping the worry off his face, sliding his phone back into his pocket.

"Problem, Mr. Pitch?" asked the professor icily. He was a man with a thick beard just beginning to go gray and glasses that were too small for his face. Baz couldn't help smirking around him, and so the professor had never liked him much.

"Yes," Baz said coolly, clenching a fist. "Family issue. I'll have to leave."

He began walking quickly, heart pounding, and ignored the professor's beginning of a reprimand. He didn't have time for it. The magic was buzzing up in him, and the front doors of the building opened by themselves.

He pressed the car as fast as it could go, back to the house Simon shared with Bunce, and had to use magic to avert the Normals, but he didn't care. What if he was hurt?

Their house was wide and flat, all one floor. At this time of day it should be dark, with Penelope and Simon both at work, but it wasn't. Lights were on everywhere, and Baz's thoughts jumped to his boyfriend, who for the life of him would not turn off the lights when he left a room.

Nothing was wrong, necessarily. But things since the Mage had gone had been… different. Simon was different. His magic was missing, and although Baz knew he'd always been wary of it before, Simon missed his magic. Could he blame him? Magic was such a big part of everything.

Besides that, Simon couldn't stop blaming himself for everything. For the Mage and the Humdrum and Ebb… Sometimes Baz looked at Simon and found his mind wandering, his blue eyes empty and his mouth shut tight.

He was afraid of what all that might do to Simon.

With shaking hands, he wrenched open his car door and lept out into the driveway, running to the door. He forgot his dignity and opened it with both hands just to force it faster.

"Simon?" he called loudly. "Where are you? I'm here, Snow."

Without an immediate answer, Baz kicked the door closed and began to throw things on the couch- blankets, pillows, papers, an empty glass- looking for anything. Then… "Baz, in the bedroom."

It was Simon's voice, and Baz felt like yelling at him for making him worry this much.

The door was closed, and Baz opened it, almost choking on the smell of smoke. Was Simon on fire? Was the room? There was enough junk in there to kill them all.

No fire. Baz's eyes went wide. The carpet was covered in ice. The wardrobe was frosted over, the windows were thick with cold, and a layer of ice blanketed all of Simon's junk. And Simon was huddled in a corner, eyes wide and frightened.

"Snow," he choked. "What…"

"Something happened," Simon said sounding as though he couldn't believe it. He ran a shaking hand through an already raked path in his curls.

Deciding there was no immediate danger, Baz walked carefully over the ice and slid down next to Simon, settling his arms around his boyfriend. "Tell me," he said, trying to keep his voice from showing his alarm.

"I stayed home sick," Simon said. "and I'd just gotten up…. and I was so hot…"

He shivered now, but when Baz felt him, he realized Simon had a fever. "You should have called me," he breathed.

"I was going to," Simon answered, and his attention turned back to the ice, "but I was so hot… for a moment, I forgot about my magic- about my magic-"

"That it's gone," Baz supplied gently, his heart dipping sorrowfully.

"Yeah," Simon whispered. "I tried to cast ice, ice, baby...and suddenly the room was-everything was like this."

"You did this?" Baz yelped, leaping up. "Simon!"

"Crowley, Baz, you gave me a heart attack!" Simon gasped, nearlt falling over.

"Don't you know what this means, you moron?" Baz griped, gesturing to the room. "Your magic isn't-"

"Isn't gone, yeah," Simon said wearily, and Baz started to laugh.

"Aleister Almighty, it's a miracle, Snow!" he said loudly, grinning, and pulled Simon to his feet. His smile slipped when he saw his boyfriend's expression. "What?"

"I can't, Baz," Simon mumbled. "Something will happen again- you know I can't control it-"

"We also know what happened with the Humdrum, love," Baz reminded him before he could get too worked up. "It's not as much power as before, and this time, you're meant to have it. Your parents were magicians."

He reached up a long hand to brush away the sweat from Simon's forehead (his hair was all forced back, and Baz imagined him sitting on the floor with fists on his head). Simon jerked back with barely controlled anger.

"Learn to control it?" he cried, throwing his hands up. "Baz, there is no Watford for eighteen year olds!"

"I'll teach you," Baz countered, narrowing his eyes. "And I know Bunce won't keep her nose out of this."

"Baz," Simon whispered, hanging his head. "I'm- I'm just- what if I-"

"I know, love," Baz sighed, reaching out to pull Simon in to him. He breathed in Simon's familiar green smoke smell. "It'll be alright."