From the time we are young, we are taught that there are enemies among us. We must always be vigilant, we must never trust anyone. Any friend can be a wolf in sheep's clothing. Any confidante can turn your words against you. Every day is a tactical mission, and the people who live to see tomorrow are the ones who see the most, hear the most, know the most, and neutralize any threats before they ever have a chance to gain the upper hand.
It's only later that we learn the truth. The monsters are real, but they are so much closer than we ever anticipated. As it turns out, they've been training us since the beginning, waiting until we grew into a weapon they could use.
You would think that once we realized their true nature, it would be easy to escape, but it doesn't quite work that way. By the time we've seen the monster for what it truly is, there is nowhere left to run. We are tied together, bound by sixteen years of shared secrets. And even though we both now know those secrets to be lies, the bond of that shared history is an even stronger connection than the blood that runs in both our veins.
So when the monster calls in the middle of the night, we answer, even though we know we shouldn't. When the monster asks for a favor, we agree to help it, because we know we don't really have any choice in the matter. If there's one thing we've learned, it's that the monster always gets its way.
And this time, the monster's way involves a botched kidnapping in Alaska, a new student, and a blood debt it's been waiting fifteen years to collect.
We feel the gears of the monster's plan turning, moving us forward without our consent or participation. But it's rage carries us onward, until we are simply cogs in the monster's violent machine.
And then the conversation is over. The line is dead. But the nightmare is only beginning.
AN: Hi! I'm back with a new story I've been working on for over a year. This Not If I Save You First x Gallagher Girls crossover practically wrote itself, I've just been really self-conscious to share it. No worries if you haven't read Not If I Save You First. I think I've filled in all the relevant details you'll need to follow along. Hope you enjoy the cameos from our old Gallagher favorites. If you've read my other Fics, this one would be chronologically set somewhere between "Absence Makes The Legend Stronger" and "Til Death Do Us Part." I'd say 6-7 years after our OG Gallagher girls graduated. But I will admit I did not pay the closest attention to making the timeline match up.
