Warning: This chapter could be triggering
Pips went home smiling. He really enjoyed being in Crysta's home with her family. He missed being a part of a family. For a moment, he allowed himself to think about his parents. He had been seven when they died, and their faces were becoming blurry in his mind, which scared him. He didn't want to forget them ever. Anger swelled in his chest briefly just thinking about the illness that took them away from him. It was a fluke that they even got sick, and sometimes he wished he had gotten sick and died with them too. He wouldn't feel so alone at times. Lost in his thoughts, he never saw it coming.
...
Crysta was trying to fall asleep, but it was proving difficult. Instead, she thought back to when she first saw Pips. They had been quite young, probably four or five. He and his parents were new to Ferngully, and her parents had taken the liberty of taking them in and getting them started. She remembered being shy and unsure of what to make of this boy. He already had the attitude of a rebel, and it made her feel afraid. She spent most of her time avoiding him despite her Mother trying to push them together. She recalled being upset that her parents couldn't see the bad influence he was. Then one day, he saved her. She was being bullied by two boys who were calling her names and making her cry. Pips always was a good shot, and when he was done with them, they were the ones crying and covered in fruit splatter. Since then, they were tight, until his parents died.
"You have to come out sometime," she called.
"No!" he shouted back.
"I'll wait here until you do," she promised. And she did. It took hours before he finally let her in. He looked terrible, and she wished there was something she could do.
"Why did they have to die?" he asked, choking up. She didn't have an answer for him. He finally broke down and cried while she sat beside him holding his hand.
Crysta remembered how she rarely left his side for fear he'd do something crazy. They were like that until they turned 12, and suddenly he wouldn't wait for her anymore and spent most of his time with Sandy and Wil than her. At first she was okay with that. Every boy needed male friends. Then it got to the point he wouldn't even acknowledge her, and that's when it started to hurt. The first time she was aware of him dating was when her best friend Jane bragged about kissing him to her. It had cut like a knife, and she realized that he was officially never going to be her friend again. Crysta stopped being friends with her because it was too hard to hear Jane going on about him when Crysta missed him so much. From 13 to now, he dated a lot of girls, and she kept her distance. They were almost 16. It was four years of pretending he didn't exist and pretending he hadn't hurt her the way he did. She sighed. Now she was beginning to think their friendship had never ended, that it had merely been on pause. The other feelings she was experiencing were new to her. She rolled over. She was fairly certain it was nothing. It had to be nothing because if they tried and failed, then she would lose his friendship all over again, and that was something she couldn't let happen.
...
There were two of them. One had his arms pulled behind his back while the other set about punching him in the face and stomach, repeatedly. There was a lot of rage in those punches. Pips started to feel like he was going to black out. When the first guy released him, he thought it was over, but then he discovered they were just trading places. After what felt like hours, they finally stopped. He was let go, and he collapsed onto the floor. They had ambushed him and dragged him inside to do this.
"You don't ever touch my sister again, you hear me?" the first guy said, leaning and talking into his ear.
"That's what you get for being rough," the second said, giving Pips a kick in the ribs. They left him then, and he stayed where he was feeling like he was dying. Honey's brothers were known to be brutal, but he never dreamed he'd be on the receiving end of it. All for something that never even happened. He closed his eyes. Darkness came quickly.
...
When afternoon came around and she hadn't seen him, she wondered where he could be. After last night, she kind of had the feeling he'd have found her eventually if not to just spend time with her. She thought about going to his home and looking for him there, but Wil distracted her.
"Hey," he said.
"Hi," she replied.
"So, I have a question for you," Wil continued.
"Okay," she nodded.
"How do you feel about my boy?" he asked.
"Who?" she asked, confused.
"You know who. Don't play dumb," Wil laughed. She blushed. Was it that easy to notice?
"Pips is a dear friend," she answered.
"Oh come on," he snorted. "You really are a bad liar."
"I'm serious!" she told him loudly. "We are just friends."
"So if I asked you out, what would you say? Since you currently don't like anyone," Wil added.
"I'd say no because I'm not interested in you that way," she replied.
"Because you're interested in someone else?" he prodded.
"Go away, Wil!" she cried, swatting him. He laughed and left, shaking his head. Boy those two were stubborn. She stared after him. Had Pips said something to him? No. They were just friends. That was established yesterday. She was fine with that. Then she remembered the way she wanted to kiss him. Perhaps Wil had a point.
"You did what?!" Honey's voice reached her. She paused, wondering what that was about. She crept over to where it had come from and peered through the leaves. She saw Honey with two guys. Her brothers. Crysta knew them and their reputation.
"He deserved it," the one said.
"Yea, he roughed you up. We don't appreciate that," the other added.
"I didn't ask you to do that," she hissed.
"It's already done," the first one shrugged. "Sorry."
"Is he still alive?" Honey asked.
"Who knows," the second one laughed. "He sure wasn't moving much when we were done with him." Crysta felt her heart stop. For some reason, she knew who they were talking about. She backed away and hurried to find him. When she reached his home and saw the door ajar, she knew.
"Pips?" she called, going in slowly. He was on the floor covered in blood and bruises. She gasped at the sight of him. "Pips!" She rushed over and crouched next to him. She rolled him from his stomach to his back. He gave a slight moan.
"Pips," she said again, putting her hands on his face. "Can you hear me?" He nodded ever so briefly, opening his eyes that were almost swollen shut. She felt like crying. He was a real wreck, and she didn't know if she could fix him up. His nose definitely looked broken.
"Can you talk?" she asked.
"Ah," he said, which she took to mean "yea."
"Who did this to you?"
"Burthers," he winced.
"That's what I was afraid of," she muttered. The brothers. "Can you stand?"
"Try," he said.
"Okay," she nodded. She gently sat him up, and he cried out in pain, clutching her arms tightly that she winced. She ran her hands over his chest, feeling for broken ribs. He gasped when she touched near his stomach.
"Bad," he grunted.
"I know. This is very bad," she agreed. "Pips, I gotta go get help."
"No," he said, grabbing her wrist. "Stay."
"I can't fix you," she said. "At least, I don't think I can."
"Can," he nodded.
"I might make it worse," she warned.
"Do it," he said.
"All right, but I'm going to get you comfortable first," she responded. She put his arm around her shoulders and carefully helped him to his feet. He directed her to his room, and once there, she gently got him settled. He kept groaning throughout the process. She examined him further.
"I think your jaw is dislocated too," she told him. He gave a nod. "Oh boy," she muttered to herself. This was going to be hard. Magi had never shown her how to heal another fairy.
"What?" he asked, seeing her hesitating.
"I really can't do this," she said. "I'm not trained."
"Get," he nodded. Crysta felt relief then.
"I'll be right back," she promised. Without really thinking, she kissed his forehead. After she left, she briefly wondered what possessed her to do that.
...
"What are you looking for?" Fern asked, noticing Crysta was in a dither.
"Where's Mother?"
"She's out. Why do you need her?"
"I need someone who can heal another fairy, but it has to stay a secret," Crysta explained.
"I can do it," Fern said suddenly. Crysta looked at her skeptically. "I can! Mother trained me." Fern was almost 14 and had been studying under their mother for a while now.
"Okay. Then you're on," Crysta said, grabbing her sister's hand. "You have to swear you won't say a thing to anyone."
"I swear," Fern promised. "What's going on?" Crysta didn't answer until they were back at Pips' home. Fern was aghast at the sight of him. She turned to Crysta for an answer.
"He was attacked," Crysta said quietly. "By Honey's brothers. Obviously they think he hurt her."
"And did he?" Fern asked.
"No," Crysta answered firmly. Fern didn't need reassurance. She took her sister's word for it.
"Okay, Pips," Fern said, standing over him. "This is gonna hurt."
"Promise?" he asked.
"That it's going to hurt?" Fern was confused.
"No, he wants you to promise not to say anything," Crysta said, getting it.
"For crying out loud! I already promised," Fern said crossly.
"She won't say anything," Crysta told him reassuringly. He just nodded.
"Okay," Fern said. "Here we go." She did her full assessment, noting all injuries. She decided to start with his face. Crysta watched in awe as her sister made him start to look like normal. Fern muttered her spells slowly. His bruises started to fade, and the swelling left his eyes. There were still faint marks to show something had been there though.
"This is gonna hurt," she warned. She aimed her hand at his jaw.
"Ahhh!" he shouted as it cracked, moving back into place.
"Your nose is next," she told him. He gripped Crysta's hand hard. The crunching sound made her want to throw up. His scream didn't help either. Fern stopped for a moment, examining her work.
"Feel better?" she asked. He touched his face gingerly. Everything felt like it was back to normal.
"I suppose," he agreed.
"Okay. Ribs are next," Fern said. He actually whimpered at this.
"It's almost over," Crysta soothed.
"I really hope...ahhhhhh!" he shouted as Fern fixed the first broken rib. He bit his fist for pain transfer.
"Last one," Fern promised. He clenched his eyes shut, waiting. The pain was almost unbearable, but then it was over. He looked up at the two of them, grateful for them both.
"Thank you," he said.
"No problem. Now, don't be getting yourself into any more trouble. You may be fixed up, but you're a bit fragile right now," Fern warned.
"I understand," he nodded.
"Thank you for this," Crysta said, following her sister out.
"Anytime," Fern said, hugging her. Then she was gone. Crysta went back to his room where he was now sitting up and wincing.
"You okay?" she asked, sitting down beside him.
"I am now," he smiled crookedly.
"Two for one," she said, smirking.
"Fine, fine," he agreed. He looked at her seriously then. "But thanks. Really."
"You're welcome," she replied. She felt unsure of what else to say.
"I really didn't do it," he said quietly. "I especially didn't 'rough her up.'"
"I know," she nodded.
"I don't know what to do about this," he sighed. "She's gone from lying about it happening to saying I hurt her. That doesn't sit well with me."
"You could talk to my Father," Crysta suggested. "He is an Elder."
"They won't believe it, Crys," he argued. "They just won't."
"Looking like that they might," she pointed out. Fern had done well, but he still had evidence of an attack on his face and torso.
"They would justify it that I had it coming," Pips dismissed her.
"We could at least try..." she started.
"No! Crys, just drop it," he ordered. She stared at him.
"So they just win then," she said.
"I will lose no matter what happens," he said. "Trust me."
"I have to go," she told him.
"Crys, come on," he called after her. She ignored him. She couldn't believe that he was trapped in this nonsense. She needed to come up with a plan.
...
"I need your help," Crysta said to Wil. He looked up from what he was doing.
"With what?" he asked.
"Finding the other guys Honey bragged about sleeping with," she answered.
"Ah, well, I can help you with that," he said, grinning. It was a few, but he knew who they were. He told her where to find them, and she went on her way. It didn't take her long to find the first one.
"Jake," she said, approaching him.
"Yea?" he asked, turning around.
"I know what Honey did to you," she said, getting to the chase. She watched his confusion turn to fear.
"W-what are you talking about?" he asked. His walls had gone up. She knew she was right.
"It happened to a friend of mine, and now he's paying a price for something he didn't do. I know how she does it. I need to know if she did it to you because I'm trying to stop it," she told him. Jake scratched his head nervously.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he said finally.
"Jake," she said, leaning closer. "I know. It's okay. She won't get away with it."
"Can you please leave?" Jake asked harshly.
"Okay," she nodded. "But please, if you change your mind, come find me." He didn't answer, so she left without another word. She repeated this three other times with Curt, Amos, and Dexter. All three reacted similarly, but only Dexter chased her down and admitted it was true. Crysta felt a bit of hope then. Perhaps the others would follow suit.
...
Pips was minding his own business when Honey approached him. He was avoiding people because they asked too many questions about his face and body.
"What do you want?" he snarled. She looked at him.
"I'm sorry for what my brothers did to you," she said. "I didn't tell them to do that."
"Well, I asked for it, right?" he snapped. "That's what you said."
"Look, it's not my fault. You should have just went with it instead of fighting it," she hurled at him.
"You should have taken no for an answer instead of trying to force me into something I didn't want to do," he shot back. They glared at each other.
"Well, I hope she knows how willing you are to take all this for her," she sneered.
"Get away from me!" he shouted at her. She obliged, but not without another gloating look in his direction.
...
"Father," Crysta said. He looked up to see her standing there with two boys. He gave her a confused look.
"What's this?" he asked.
"We have something to tell you," she answered.
