I am so sorry I forgot to update. I've been flooded with work from school and overwhelmed with homework that takes five times as long as usual because I'm also looking after my puppy at the same time.

I have to also work on a new part that Amalspach recommended I add in. Though everything is pre-written, there is never enough editing to be done and extra parts to add.

But I swear I'm going to get to the actual plot that I have planned soon. Eventually. I have it planned and have started. It's just that getting there is where I kinda…overdo it. I will try to have it done.

Veon let his green scales flash. The little blue warlock in his arms cooed in surprise, laughing and clapping happily. "Fashy!"

Veon chuckled. "Yup. I'm flashy, little blueberry."

"Thanks for doing this, Veon."

Veon looked up, still playing with Max's hands and flashing his scales. "No problem, Magnus. After all, you tolerated me when I was his age. Besides, why would I pass up the opportunity to hang out with my cool baby brother?"

Magnus chuckled. "Well, I suppose you'd be more of an uncle, considering you're 300 years older."

"Well, once he reaches 20 or so, he'll be my official brother one way or another. After that, age barely matters, does it, Max?"

He played with Max's little hands and the baby giggled in response.

Magnus's phone beeped and he glanced at it for a moment before shoving it in his pocket. "Gotta go. Don't let him hurt himself. And don't ruin the loft please. And don't forget to feed him. And change him. And remember to burp him afterwards. And all his toys are in the chest in his room. And the TV channels for him are on a sticky note in the living room. And-"

"I've got this Magnus, I promise. 300 years and you think I haven't ever dealt with a baby before? We're gonna be good friends, right Max?"

The baby laughed and ran his little hands along Veon's arm. He let his scales flicker again, making Max cry out in joy.

"I'll be back in a couple hours," Magnus said. "Thanks again."

It took another round of nervous goodbyes and reminders of how to take care of Max before Magnus finally opened a portal and left.

"Okay little one, what do you wanna do?" Veon asked.

He had been given all of Max's toys and joined him on the floor. Max liked playing with the trucks and cars, rolling them around with vrooming noises and making the little toy people walk around. He made little cooing noises and Veon assumed that Max was imagining them talking in his little baby language. Veon loved babysitting for Magnus when he and Alec had their work - not that the rest of Alec's family wasn't happy to volunteer as well.

Veon sighed as he remembered growing up with Magnus. He knew that the cat-eyed warlock was a good parent. Watching Max play, Veon began talking without even thinking about it. To fill the silence.

"You wanna hear how Magnus found me? It wasn't as pretty as it was with you, little blueberry. I was a little bit older. You're lucky. You were dropped off at the Shadowhunter Academy, you were found by the most amazing parents you could've possible found. Me? My mother didn't react to realizing she had a warlock baby so graciously. At least your parent - whoever they were - tried to raise you for just a little while. My father dumped me in the sewers, horrified at the child the demon he'd met had given to him. In turn, I grew up there, like a wild animal until Magnus finally found me one day."

-TFOT-

Veon - though he hadn't been called Zytaveon at the time - crawled through the tunnels. While others got lost within the endless winding of the tunnels, he knew the paths by heart after all these years. There was another guest at the entrance. Should he scare them away or lead them to be food?

Veon moved to the entrance of the tunnels, where he saw his next target.

Veon had never encountered anything he couldn't fight or outrun so that his enemies got lost within the endless winding tunnels. He'd fought mundanes, werewolves, and vampires alike, and it wasn't as though he hadn't met warlocks before, just none that dared to do what this one did.

Veon remembered seeing cat eyes. He remember the moment he realized this man was like him, unable to fit in and seen as nothing but a monster to the rest of the world. Veon wondered if he should ask the man to join him, but he fled instead. Veon didn't regret letting him go, but he was genuinely surprised when the cat-eyed warlock returned.

He brought food. Veon remembered the times that he brought things Veon didn't like, the struggle to understand each other when Veon had never learned any language in the first place to be translated through any spell. But Veon learned.

Veon made a friend.

"You wanna go out there?"

Magnus had pointed out to the entrance.

Veon understood what Magnus was asking, and shook his head in the gesture that he'd learned meant 'No.' Magnus understood and didn't ask until a month has passed. Veon had said no again, but admittedly his curiosity was growing. By the third month, he said yes.

Magnus taught him how to glamour himself, and Veon had never been so scared yet relieved when people didn't run from him screaming. Magnus tried to explain everything to Veon, but there was so much that he didn't know, that he wanted to learn.

Magnus was Veon's savior; Veon looked up to him for everything. He learned about human clothes, how mundanes spoke, how they worked jobs, how they had wants and needs that rare ones came to warlocks for help, and how Magnus used this fact to make a profit. Being a warlock had never been so fun, so amazing.

And so began the transformation from an abandoned child monster in the sewers to a civilized, glitter-bombed, eccentric, and kind warlock that had taken many under his wing as Magnus once did.

This warlock then met a Shadowhunter who confused him beyond measure, who he wanted desperately to help. But he failed. Veon failed and he never forgot.

So when Fae brought another Shadowhunter that reminded him so much of the one he'd lost decades before, he was determined to make sure he never let this boy go again.

-TFOT-

"So, what do you think? Did I turn out okay?"

Max went "Vroom!" and shoved his toy truck into the building block homes that Veon had made. Veon doubted that the blue boy had heard a word that he'd said, nor cared to process any of it either.

"I'll take that as a yes."

Veon's watched beeped and he tapped the small screen (modern human technology was wonderful).

"Time for food, blueberry."

Veon wasn't unfamiliar with feeding babies - he'd saved his own fair share of warlocks as a sort of personal mission to do for others what Magnus did for him. As such, he was an expert with feeding Max as the baby hummed contently in his arms.

"I bet you're gonna grow horns. A friend of mine was green and he grew horns. I also knew a red one who had horns too. People always called him the devil. He wasn't a devil though, he was nice considering I raised him to be good and not listen to mean people. If mean people give you a hard time for being blue, you just come to uncle Veon and I'll rough them up."

Max blinked in confusion.

"Nevermind. You better not tell your Papa I said that, or he'll be mad. Your Daddy? Well…Alec's pretty nice. He's gonna be the nice parent and your Papa will probably be a little stricter since he knows how warlocks work and how to raise them. But he has a serious sweet spot for your Daddy and he won't hold out long. You just gotta master the innocent puppy-dog eyes. Can you do that? I'll teach you how to do that one day."

It was then, rambling on to Max, that Lock suddenly heard Fae's voice, coming from the meeting grounds.

"Lock, it's Fae. Please come. Bring it."

Veon looked at the calendar and cursed under his breath, hoping Max didn't hear it. "It's not scheduled for today. This has gotta be serious. We've gotta go on an errand, little blueberry. Wanna come with me?"

"Fashy," Max declared.

Veon took that as a yes and opened a portal back to his own place, sifting through his shelf of potions with one hand and Max in his other.

"Fashy."

Max reached out a grabbed one of the potions that was sparkling, but Veon quickly snatched it up. "No, Max. This stuff drains demonic power. Not good for a little warlock."

"Fashy?" Max begged.

Veon sighed, putting the potion back on the shelf and grabbing what he needed, before taking Max to his room and opening a chest. He dug around with one hand before giving Max a little dinosaur plushie that had scales matching Veon's - with the ability to flash just like his if the owner had magic to feed into it.

"See? Flashy. Your papa gave this to me when I was your age. I didn't like being flashy, so he gave me a friend so that I wasn't alone."

Max stared at the glowing dinosaur, taking it with enthusiasm, but when Veon released it, the toy stopped glowing. Max frowned and shook it before it started glowing from the angry baby warlock's magic coming out. Max giggled and started to get the hang of turning his magic on and off. If Magnus had told him anything close to the truth, that's how Veon was too when he'd gotten the dinosaur as a baby.

Veon opened a portal to the meeting grounds, where he found Fae leaning against the wall. He noticed that Fae was barely staying upright, his breaths heavy and his skin pale.

"What happened to you?" Veon asked.

"Little of import at present," Fae insisted, his voice strained. "I consumed more magic than I had intended. My apologies for this sudden incursion of your time. It seems you have a child with you."

"Oh, this is Magnus's son, Max. I'm babysitting while the two of them do their thing."

Fae's brow creased in confusion. "You sit…as a baby would? Or do you have the baby sit while you supervise?"

"Close. It's just a term that means looking after the child while the parents attend to other matters. You don't just sit there, you have to entertain them. But I think Max likes you."

The little blue boy was squirming in Veon's arms, reaching out for Fae. He made little cooing noises, as though trying to come up with the words but begging to get to Fae in any way possible. Fae sighed, but his face softened and he reached out for Max.

When Veon gave a cautious look, Fae sighed. "I've raised my brother, do you not recall? His youth held my kindness and tender care. I would not risk his life, nor shall I risk this one's."

Veon looked to the side in consideration, but Fae did have a point. And the faerie couldn't lie, so if he said he had no intentions of allowing Max to come to harm, Veon had little reason to doubt his old friend. He carefully set Max in Fae's arms and Fae smiled at the boy's blue skin and poked his tiny horns.

"Hello little nixie-like warlock. I'm am a faerie."

Max stuck his hand into Fae's colored hair and pulled.

Fae simply chuckled. "That's right, it changes colors."

His hair shifted from an dark merlot to a light amber. Max giggled and held out his dinosaur, making it glow green.

"It looks like Lock, doesn't it?"

"Yock," Max repeated.

Fae chuckled in a light way that even Lock had seldom seen before. "You are young and innocent. You must enjoy such a feeling while it remains. One's ignorance can be a blessing of childhood."

Max became engrossed with his toy, and Fae relinquished him back to Lock in return for the potion Lock had made for him. Fae pulled off the cork and drank the entire thing in one go, feeling his strength return to him and his magic strengthening. He stood up straighter now on steady feet, his complexion improving to its normal state, but he was still stiff from injuries that he refused to heal himself. Lock noticed he had cuts all along his body, some big, some small, but a good deal of them were sealed thank to Fae's enhanced healing. Still, Lock wondered what Fae went through to get cut up so much and have to use up his magic. Power rippled across Fae's body, almost making it seem like he was growing taller.

"Thank you, Lock. I must take my leave now. I have risked much to even come here for the few moments that I have."

"No problem, Fae. You get into trouble or something?"

"Ask our Hunter for semantics. I fear I will face more for my actions should I be found coming here. Farewell."

He took off on his horse and Lock teleported back to Magnus's loft. He continued to play with Max, building a little city out of blocks that Max destroyed with his dinosaur. Veon laughed and helped wave the block city back into place with his green magic so that Max could continue. Just because Alec didn't like Magnus using magic to spoil Max didn't mean that Veon couldn't be the cool brother that could. Veon spent the rest of the afternoon babysitting Max, having the little warlock fall asleep in his arms, drooling on his dinosaur (which he had now named Yock, apparently) after he was fed and watching kids' TV.

Little did he know that once he'd returned the blue boy to his fathers and headed to the meeting grounds, he'd hear Hunter's story and figure out what Fae had gone through. He'd taken on at least half of the Wild Hunt along with Mark. Even though Lock had confidence that Fae would be able to handle himself even against such odds, he would be punished for letting Hunter, Isabelle, and Simon go free - for being so bold as to fight the Hunt to let them escape.

Then Fae didn't return, day after day.

Fae had the week off. And he. Was. BORED.

Gwyn had him and Mark each receive 30 whip-lashes for their crimes. They had not only conspired with Shadowhunters, allowed their escape, but they had injured and disgraced many of the other members of the Hunt in the battle that had ensued.

Fionn had taken all 60.

Now, to add insult to injury (as Lock would say) Fionn was forbidden to do anything except rest and recover - no hunts, no exercise, by the gods, he wasn't even allowed to stand up! To others, such a reprieve would be welcome, but for Fionn, he needed to be active, he needed to run free, he needed something to keep him from his thoughts. All his life he'd lived knowing his harsh situation, the pain and humiliation he endured day by day. The only way to prevent madness was to have a task to accomplish, a distraction that wiped away his insidious brain's thought process.

Now, he laid in his shelter staring at the cloak placed above him, listening to the storm raging outside. Mark Blackthorn had been surprised when Fionn volunteered to take his punishment, but despite Fionn's treatment of the boy, he did care enough to help him. Besides, Fionn had harmed more faeries than Mark had in the squabble. When Fionn got into a battle, he found great pleasure in laying his enemies low. An excuse to fight so many warriors of the Hunt was entertaining to Fionn, and he'd reveled in striking many down. He fully admitted this, provoking him to be allowed to take the recompense for his actions as well as Mark's. Now, each time Fionn saw Mark, he saw the boy's hesitant gaze. Perhaps the half-breed wished to find a way to show his thanks; perhaps he was still unsure of Fionn's reasoning for aiding him.

Fionn couldn't stop the flow of guilt flowing through him, despite the pain in his back that made most of his body numb. He had shown Hunter the side of him he never wished the boy to see. In Faerie, Fionn was a merciless member of the Wild Hunt. Even if he wished to help, he did so in a very forceful way and never showed his affections. He'd snapped at Hunter, he'd slapped him, choked, threatened him and his life, all in his desperation to make them flee this land and never come back. He didn't want Hunter to know the pain of Faerieland and the danger of the Wild Hunt's cruelty.

But now he couldn't shake the feeling that he had actually harmed Hunter, that he had scared him, that he had ruined everything between them. Hunter was fragile. Fionn only ever wanted to protect those he cared for, but he'd never been able to do that without force and cruelty. That's why he had taken Hunter to Lock in the first place. Who was he kidding? He couldn't love anyone, least of all someone as delicate as Hunter.

Fionn threw a rock as hard as he could, feeling his aching muscles at the movement, but it was nothing in comparison to the pain in his chest when he realized this truth. He couldn't dance around the fact that Hunter wasn't a faerie, he wasn't as strong as one, as resilient, and was far more prone to pain. Fionn could never be compatible with him. Not without snapping the boy like a twig the moment he slipped up.

Fionn wanted to cry, but he stared up at the cloth above him and held back the tears. He didn't cry anymore. He hadn't cried since the day he'd lost his mother, the final day he allowed himself to break down. The thought of losing Hunter squeezed him from the inside, nearly worse than losing his mom all those years ago - and that was saying a lot. But he would not cry now.

At least he wasn't killing Hunter, at least he wasn't forced to put a blade through his chest.

Still, when Fionn woke up the next day - unaware that he had fallen asleep at all - his lips tasted faintly of salt.

Hunter was juggling. Not a good sign.

"Is there a protocol for when Shadowhunters start juggling?" Wolf murmured.

"If there is, I have yet to encounter it," Lock said, raising an eyebrow.

"I think it's cool," Pyre said. "I say we just leave him."

Hunter was currently tossing five knives around, up and down and he wasn't even looking at them, staring at the wall beyond. Hunter seemed to find solace in keeping his hands busy, which apparently translated to juggling knives. Because if there's one thing a Shadowhunter has in abundance, it's knives.

"Anyone wanna talk to him?" Lock asked.

"I am not touching that kid with a 39 and a half foot pole," Wolf declared. "You know how Shadowhunters are when they get agitated. I'm pretty sure he'd shank me in a heartbeat if I startled him out of his daze."

"Well, at least you've got enough brain capacity to realize that," Pyre sneered. Wolf looked ready to make a retort, but Pyre continued. "I'm worried about the kid. He's kicking himself to the curb cuz he thinks what happened to Fae is all his fault."

"Well, think about it," Lock said. "Even if Isabelle and Simon held a little fault, Hunter thinks of everything he could've done to get them to leave before the Hunt had returned. If he had just been a little faster or a little more insistent."

"Are you blaming him?" Wolf growled.

It was times likes these that Wolf and Pyre's protectiveness over Hunter showed. Both of them were as thick-skulled as Shadowhunters, but they knew where their loyalties laid when push came to shove, no matter what they said otherwise.

"I'm just seeing things from his perspective," Lock said. "Only once we see where he's coming from, do we have the right to try and help him. We should probably consider Fae's side of the story too. According to Hunter, Fae threatened him to try and get him to leave. Fae may not be coming back because he's afraid of facing Hunter after showing the faerie side of himself."

"Well, he may be timid, but Hunter's still a Shadowhunter," Pyre pointed out. "He sucks up blame like a vacuum and takes the guilt for everything. I bet he doesn't even know Fae's scared to face him."

"Fae's never one to run from an encounter, though. He'll suck up his pride and fears to face Hunter no matter how hard it is for him. The only question is if he's injured and how long it'll take him to get back on his feet with enough freedom to meet us. The Hunt is probably keeping a close eye on him after what he did. Until then, we can't really do anything about Hunter."

"The only person who can reassure him is Fae," Wolf agreed. "Lock, can you get an update on his status?"

"No. Fae has always come to me ever since we met - his horse teleports so no need for a portal. Besides, the Wild Hunt is always moving, Faerieland is everywhere and nowhere. Even warlock magic can be dodgy when trying to get anything, even just information, in or out."

He sighed. "So all we can do is wait."

"And keep the kid from killing himself," Pyre added. "Seems easy enough. We can just let Lock do most of the work."

"Thanks, you're such a great friend," Lock muttered sarcastically.

"You are very welcome."

Hunter was terrified.

He wasn't able to think properly, he didn't want to hear what anyone had to say, and he didn't want to explain to any bone heads that didn't understand. He couldn't focus properly on his missions, nearly taking out the wrong guy once and nearly letting the guilty party walk past him another.

He tried playing his music, but he couldn't focus on the chords, he couldn't relax into the rhythm or get lost in the beat. His hands were shaking from his nerves, and so he did what he always did when his emotions started getting the best of him - he started juggling knives. His hands became distracted and his concentration only slightly so.

It had been 23 days. 561 hours, 47 minutes, since he had last seen Fae. Finn had calculated - anything to get his mind off of his guilt. Finn's parabatai ceremony would be soon. He should be preparing, but he just couldn't.

He'd already chosen Merida as his witness for the ceremony and Selina was tasked with choosing a second. Selina had drilled him on the paragraph of lines for the oath they had to read to each other, standing in circles of flame. His sister and Selina had noticed his depressed state and have watched him like a hawk - afraid another incident might happen where he'd toss himself off a building.

He had chuckled at Merida. "I'm not sad like that, Mer."

"Did something happen with your DW friends?"

"I just made a mistake. I think I got one of them in trouble, punished because of my negligence. They haven't been able to make it to the meeting grounds in weeks, Merida. None of us know what happened, and it's all my fault!"

"Come on, Finn. Maybe nothing happened. Maybe they're only being watched closely and can't risk seeing you."

"But what if that's not the only punishment? I fucked up, Mer! I should've been on guard, I should've listened to what he told me to do, I should've insisted we get out of there before he got in trouble and had to cover for us. I could've avoided all of this, but now he could be…what if he's dead, Merida?!"

"Okay, look, I don't know who this is, but blaming yourself isn't gonna help this guy, right? You need to calm down and cheer up, all right?"

"What will cheering up do?"

"It'll put you in a better state of mind. If you can start picturing a brighter future, you can come up with better ideas. Maybe you can find a way to help. If you have time to feel sorry for yourself, then you have time to fix your mistakes. If you feel so bad, find a way to make amends. No matter how complicated it is, there's always a way, brother. Go and talk to your friends. I'm sure the rest of you can muster your combined 17 brain cells and come up with a plan."

Hunter tried to calm, he really did, but that involved juggling knives. He knew the others were talking about him, but he didn't really care.

It was only when he heard the booming of thunder and the clopping of hooves that Finn's concentration broke and his knives clanged to the ground. A familiar red-haired faerie carefully dismounted his steed, the horse pacing beside him protectively. Fae's hair flickered to a blood-red as he climbed off, but lightened to a warm honey color once he was on the ground.

"Fae!" everyone exclaimed.

"It appears I am the cause of great perturbation among you, my friends," Fae said in his high and mighty faerie tone that Hunter found annoying and relieving at the same time. Same old Fae. "I have not an excuse for prolonging my return barring my concern for-"

"Fae!"

Hunter tackled Fae in a bone-crushing hug. Fae's hair flashed bright red in shock and then darkened to maroon as Fae grunted in pain. "My…my Hunter, r…release me…" he wheezed/choked.

Hunter let go instantly and pulled back as though he was afraid touching Fae would kill him. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, Fae…!"

Hunter broke out into sobs as he fell to the tunnel floor. Fae's hair slowly lightened again, but stopped at orange as he tilted his head in concern. "Hunter, why do you apologize?"

"I'm sorry I was…I was careless," he managed "I'm sorry you had to…to…I'm so sorry…"

Fae sighed and kneeled, careful to keep his torso from slouching or moving in any way. He carefully began to remove his shirt, grunting as he used his arm to pull it up and over his head, causing his upper back to shift. His hair reflected the spikes of pain he went through, flaring to a darker color before slowly fading to a warmer once the agony subsided.

Fae snaked one hand around to his back before coming back with bloodied fingers. He sighed. "It would seem I require more medical aid. You have broken my stitches."

Hunter gasped like he'd been slapped. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-!"

"You must stop your incessant pleas for reparations I cannot comprehend. Slow your speech, ponder your words, elucidate this matter, and Lock, might I request your aid while Hunter deliberates?"

"Right, yes!" Lock jumped.

He waved his hand and a first-aid kit appeared in his hand. He moved over to Fae, helping removed bandages wrapped around his entire torso while Fae stayed as still as possible, occasionally hissing in pain. Fae kept his reactions to a minimum, hiding them as best he could.

Hunter tried not to stare, directing his gaze over at the tunnel wall while he tried to figure out what he was supposed to say. Of course, he still knew that Fae was shirtless and the bandages had been removed, so it was impossible to focus.

"By my father, what happened to you, Fae?!" Lock exclaimed.

"Yeesh, you look like you were put through a meat-grinder," Pyre agreed.

"Someone did a number on you," Wolf muttered.

"I am well aware of my current state," Fae said.

"How are you even moving?" Lock scolded. "You shouldn't be active, let alone mounting a horse and riding here."

"I delayed this encounter for more than I initially desired. These wounds are healed greatly from their previous state."

Hunter's curiosity got the best of him and he looked over, walking around to see the damage on Fae. His skin was torn up, slashes blanketing his back. They weren't organized by any means, many intersecting at various points to form deeper cuts revealing muscle and sinew beneath. Some were in the process of healing, others were reopened and leaking blood - probably thanks to Hunter's embrace from before.

"Oh my…Fae…"

Fae's posture seemed to drop just slightly, his body slumping in defeat. But because he was stiff from the pain, he kept the movement only just visible. The energy seemed to drain out of him, as though he was ashamed.

"Bottle the blood, Lock," he ordered, the energy having left his voice. "You may take it. You can utilize it, rather than allow such a prize to be wasted. My faerie blood is powerful."

Lock sighed, waving his hand as Fae's blood disappeared, now placed inside of a flask in Lock's hand. The bottle then disappeared, probably put back at Lock's home. "Thanks, Fae, but are you sure-?"

"You know the rules, warlock. My scars are mine to bear."

Lock's face fell, but he reached over to his first-aid kit and pulled out some supplies, moving to dab medicine onto Fae's back. The faerie flinched at first contact, clenching his fists, but relaxed as Lock continued.

"So, what happened?" Pyre asked, taking a seat against the wall.

"Nothing of great import," Fae responded. "Following the events of my encounter with Hunter, I found myself facing trial for my actions in defying the Hunt, as well as laying many of the warriors low in the conflict that occurred. The Blackthorn boy - Miach - faced charges similar to mine, however, through simple provokation, I claimed his punishment as my own as well."

"And what was your punishment?" Hunter asked meekly, his voice coming out as only a whisper.

"30 whip-lashes."

"This is far more than 30-" Lock began.

"-for each of us."

There was a pregnant pause as everyone took in the statement.

"That…that means…you took 60?" Hunter exclaimed. "All at once?!"

"Fae, man, that's pushing even you," Wolf agreed. "Look, faeries are tough, I get it, but I've gotten into a squabble with some faeries before and got 5 whip-lashes. I nearly passed out from just the first!"

"I have built a tolerance to-"

"There's no amount of tolerance that you can build for 60 whip-lashes!" Pyre exclaimed. "How the hell are you even still alive?!"

"I've faced 100 before and have persisted. My true punishment lies in the time I must take to recover, unable to hunt, unable to fight, unable to mount my steed and ride. I was bedridden for twenty and two days before my sanity faced its breaking point and I made my escape."

Lock shrugged. "I suppose that makes sense."

"I'm so sorry," Hunter repeated, wiping his eyes as he sniffled. "This is all my fault…"

"The fault lies not in you, my Hunter."

"But it does! I should've taken things more seriously, gotten us out of there the moment Simon escaped from his cage. I let the two of them dawdle and we talked and we should've been on alert and making our escape faster, and now you…you had to face the…the consequences."

Fae sighed. "That was a mistake you shall learn from, and I hold no rancor towards you. All that concerned me was your escape. My reprisal holds little meaning if you were to properly flee the harm of my associates. Were you and your companions taken hostage, there would be no hope for your escape. Even I hold not the power to aid you against the Hunt's careful eye. Were I able to free Hunter, your friends would not have been capable of joining you. My injuries are a more desirable payment to have avoided the alternative."

Hunter's head fell. "Yeah, but…"

"I hold my own fault for my treatment of you. While within my land, I was naught but a faerie." Fae's gaze fell to stare blankly at the concrete below. "I harmed you, raised my tainted hands against you in ways I regret deeply. I had hoped never to show you this side of me, the part of me hardened to survival. Within Faerie I am harshest upon those I hold dear. I expect nothing less than for you to abhor my presence."

Hunter blinked. "Fae, I don't…I could never hate you for something like this. You were trying to help me…"

There was a deafening silent between them, before Lock cleared his throat and stood. "I think these two need some time alone. Pyre, Wolf?"

Lock snapped a portal open. He walked through, Pyre and Wolf reluctantly following with a few nervous glances back. Once the portal closed, the quiet returned between the two of them. The two of them shared quick glances, before averting their gazes again. Finally, their eyes met, and neither could bring themselves to look away.

Then, Hunter was kissing Fae, one arm wrapped around his neck to avoid his injuries with his other hand tangled in the faerie's hair. Fae instantly had his arms around Hunter's body, free to embrace him tightly and pull their bodies flush against each other, relieved to finally feel Hunter's lips again. He'd missed Hunter more than he wanted to admit aloud in the past three weeks.

"I was so worried about you," Hunter sobbed between kisses.

"I presumed you would hate me."

"I was surprised," he admitted. "But you wanted to help us, wanted us to escape. It was me who stalled. I was happy to see you, I was, but I knew that seeing you outside of the meeting grounds was dangerous. I wouldn't be stupid enough too try and seek you out while in Faerie of all places. If it weren't you and Mark Blackthorn that had found us, I know we would've been in a lot more trouble."

"My Hunter…" Fae sighed, pulling back, his eyes closed as his head fell. His grip on Hunter weakened, though he didn't remove his hands entirely. "I cannot bear the guilt of harming you, but it is my nature to be cruel. I…I do not believe I can be compatible as your lover."

"What do you mean?"

"I cannot be someone you desire."

"How about you let me make that judgement?"

Fae's eyes snapped up. "I wounded you, my Hunter. I will do so again in the future, it is inevitable. I can offer you naught but pain."

"Is that really what you believe? Because I think you've offered me a lot more than just pain. You saved me, Fae. You showed me a part of life I never though I could have - freedom. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be here right now, and I would've stopped believing in myself long ago. You took me on your awesome horse-"

Said horse whinnied in protest.

"His name is Zoltan," Fae conceded. "He enjoys attention and slaughtering his enemies." He glanced back towards his mount. "Satisfied?"

His steed paced back and forth in consideration before giving what Hunter assumed was a horse scoff that said, 'Good enough.'

Hunter laughed, a warm chuckle that made Fae's heart clench. "I'll keep that in mind."

"Hunter…I was sincere when I spoke of my reprehensible behavior. I cannot love you if I know I shall harm you so. I am incapable of mansuetude, it is not my nature. You require one who will not instill fear within your heart."

"I'm not afraid of you, Fae. What happened shocked me, sure, but it doesn't change the fact that you care enough to dread my response. It doesn't change who you are."

"There are secrets I hold that you will abhor. Burdens I do not wish to impart upon your shoulders."

"I'm not as delicate as I was when we first met, Fae. I'm still a Shadowhunter. I'm not afraid of the skeletons in your closet."

Fae's face shifted in confusion.

"It means that I'm not afraid of your metaphorical inner demons. I fight demons for a living, after all. In my life, there's nothing that can possibly scare me more than you not trusting me to handle your burdens and help you through them. That's what I'm here for. That's what you do for someone you love."

Fae looked up, uncertainty filling his mismatched eyes. "I do not wish to do you harm," he whispered, as though he was afraid of the words themself.

"You won't," Hunter insisted.

"You've no guarantee."

"I don't have to. I have trust - trust in you. Nothing you do could possibly hurt me more than leaving me, taking the choice from my hands because you're afraid I can't handle you - because you believe you know me better than I know myself and take your own judgement over mine. Just because I let my guard down around you and the others doesn't mean I don't have walls of my own. When I'm out there as a Shadowhunter, I'm still a tough fighter, believe it or not."

Fae studied Hunter's face, before a small smile tugged at his lips, as though he'd just thought of something funny. "I…I trust you are indeed."

Hunter nodded. "Good. So don't start doubting me, and don't you dare think I'm gonna let you break up with me without a fight and a very, very good reason. You can't just give up because you're afraid, and I'll be sure to tell you when I think I'm being pushed in some way. Deal?"

Fae nodded. "I will hold you to that promise, as we fey do."

Hunter nodded. "I'll try to live up to your faerie expectations. I'm a Shadowhunter. I know a thing or two about oaths - and consequences."

Fae's eyes fell, but Hunter gave him a quick kiss to stop him from thinking too hard. And here Fae said that they were too different.

"Come on. Let me help finish patching you up. Luckily I also know a thing or two about first aid."

Fae chuckled. "I assumed you Shadowhunters would have no need for such knowledge. You have your healing runes, do you not?"

"Sure, but you have to be prepared for anything. Being caught without a stele happens more often than you'd think."

He laughed. "Rumors state Shadowhunter are nothing without their steles."

"We've gotta work to prove that statement wrong. Besides, what else are they supposed to teach us once we've learned all the runes in existence?"

Hunter moved behind Fae and continued Lock's work, spreading some salve across the lacerations. He had to resist the urge to flinch as he ran his hand across the uneven skin, knowing that some of the cuts were extremely deep - and knowing that he was the reason Fae had the injuries at all. Fae flinched and hissed in pain a couple of times, but Hunter managed to finish the job before then wrapping bandages around his entire torso. He put on a couple layers to help keep Fae's torso from moving too much and then helped Fae get his shirt back on.

"So…" Hunter began.

"May I request entertainment? The Hunt has been stagnant ever since the previous incident and I find myself in need of your melodies."

Hunter smiled. "I'd be happy to help."

Chapter title from 'Lost Boy' by Ruth B.