THE LESS YOU'LL SEE
NOTES: Hey, guys! Clearly, I missed our boys. The ideas refuse to be contained, and I've been writing into the morning for the last two days – hence, Chapter 14. The flow of the story is quite clear in my mind for now, and I thought I better take it down and publish it before something else comes up again and I don't get to update for another 6 months (though I doubt I would get a second proposal anytime soon).
I'm going to try my best to blend in events from both movies as seamlessly as possible, not forgetting that this is after all, a college AU. While I realize that too much deux ex machina might be required to bring them back into the college setting (warning of what's to come, right there), I don't think I need too much help from the god of the machine to inject some good old-fashioned college drama, especially with all that Danny's going through now. But at the same time, let's have some fun now that Lula's in the picture. ;)
Lastly, as there are certain stories I would like to focus on, I would think that no additional side stories will be written from either Thaddeus Bradley's or Dylan Rhodes' point of view – unless I'm in the right mood to write them. Unfortunately, that means goodbye to any budding agent/student relationship between Dylan and Alma, and whatever big reveal (that you're already well aware of, anyway) for Bradley.
The usual drill: I cannot stress these points enough, so I will put these at the start of every chapter:
This is primarily a Lover's Death story.
I do not own anyone (i.e., characters, etc) or anything (i.e., lines, scenes, concepts, etc) from the Now You See Me series. Absolutely no copyright infringement intended.
Some events in this story are inspired by my own experiences, and should you see yourself in the story, then let me give you a high five, but that honestly was not my intention.
August 2008: Pieces
Shortly after they introduced Lula to their online following (which of course, made news once more), they were whisked off to God-knows-where to "continue their education" and go undercover for the next heist. It was a small community college on the outskirts of the city, with a population of about five hundred students. Not a lot happened in their part of town, so with a wig and thick pairs of glasses, they found it fairly easy to blend in with the community.
Daniel wondered if The Eye had a conscience, after all, what with giving them back whatever it was they stole from them. He swallowed bitterly as he thought of Jack – no, he backtracked, there were some things that they can never give back to him.
Over the last two months, The Eye had pulled together evidence that Owen Case, former Octa IT student, was indeed selling private information to shady technological names for a hefty profit. If Daniel had cared, he would have commended the work behind the information that The Eye shared with them: he knew at the back of his mind that it required an unhealthy amount of subterfuge, sneaking around, and basically a master sleight's hand.
He gulped, remembering the only sleight he would probably ever care about.
The mission gave him a sense of purpose, something to fight for every minute. It required a 150% of his attention and brainpower, and he was more than willing to hand over full control of his facilities to the mission. He refused to let anything else send him to the recesses of his mind – happier recesses that was inhabited by the world's greatest magician, the best sleight of hand he knew, his best friend, his… boyfriend? His ex-boyfriend?
Daniel no longer knew how to remember Jack in his futile attempts to forget him: he knew that a walk down that path will keep him there, to the point of no return. Nothing can send him spiraling downward.
"Daniel?" came a soft female's voice from the threshold. No one.
He looked up at the newcomer and nodded cordially. "Lula."
Not even the addition of Jack's best friend-slash-ex-girlfriend to the team managed to derail Daniel, something that he was quite proud of. He had taken it in stride and just carried on with the show as planned, introducing the Wheel of Fortune to the rest of the world, including her in all the plans, and bringing her up to speed.
Merritt and Henley were much warmer to the newcomer, and Daniel couldn't blame them: after weeks of pushing them out as much as he could, Lula's infectious energy and bright cheer must be a welcome change for them.
During an unguarded moment, when the three thought Daniel wasn't in the flat, he would hear them laughing as Lula did voice impersonations of random people they met on campus: the ridiculous psychology professor who Merritt was dying to give a taste of his medicine to, the big captain of the basketball team who never ceased to hit on Henley, and the botany major – a dorky little thing – who seemed to have eyes only for Lula. It was in that moment that he fully appreciated why Lula had been Jack's best friend when he… the similarities were uncanny, and yet, it didn't help Daniel, not at all.
He suspects that's why he maintained such a distance from Lula.
Lula shuffled by the threshold self-consciously. "Look, I want to cut the crap. I want to talk about Jack."
Daniel's heart raced at the mention of his name, and he felt himself tense all over. He opened his mouth to say something, but Lula had closed the door behind her and taken a stool to sit right in front of it, leaving him no room to escape.
For once, he was at a complete loss for words.
"I said, I wanted to talk. You don't need to talk. But you do have to listen," she said as she ran her fingers through her long brown hair. "Look, I can't imagine how much it sucks for you. I mean, I'm the ex-girlfriend-turned-best-friend, and I was a wreck when I saw it on the news. I can't imagine how it would have been like if I had been the best-friend-turned-boyfriend. And for that, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for your loss."
The showman looked at her wordlessly, tilting his head as he tried to process his thoughts. He could smell something like acid burning in his nose, and there was a sharp stinging sensation in his eyes, but otherwise, he wasn't sure how to respond to her. She was looking at him with sad blue eyes, shining with unshed tears.
"I tried to rally for him. I know you know that," Lula whispered, hastily wiping her eyes and smudging the little make-up she had on. "It wasn't until I realized that it's always been you that I finally accepted that he and I could have nothing more than this. I had my chance, and I won't deny that I regret wasting it more than anything."
She sounded very bitter indeed as she said the last words, but she plowed on. "But it happened, and he found you, and suddenly, he's never been so happy. Then I realized that maybe I could live with the regret, because no way could I have ever made Jack Wilder as happy as you made him."
She stopped and looked away, and Daniel realized that he had been holding his breath. He exhaled, and a deluge seemed to have escaped with his breath. Lula stood up, still not looking at him. "Look, I… I know I'm new. And I'm probably the last person you want to talk to. That's fine. But… Merritt and Henley have always been there for you. I don't know you much, but I knew Jack pretty well. And he wouldn't have liked you to push them away, Daniel."
She sniffed, setting the stool aside and putting her hand on the doorknob. "We're all each other's got, Daniel. That's all I've got to say."
Lula closed the door gently behind her, leaving Daniel in his place with unseeing eyes.
God damn it, she had forced herself into his room, and opened a festering wound, and it hurt like a bitch.
For the first time in almost two months, Daniel clutched his middle in pain, curled up in his mind, and cried in earnest. He found himself missing Jack, wishing he were still here, hating that he no longer had the honor of being by his side. He didn't ever want to feel this pain: he wanted to finish the mission perfectly before dropping everything, and just finding peace somewhere that wasn't in fucking New York.
Jack!
Jack!
Jack!
In a world of the impossible, Daniel wanted to tear the world apart, if it meant finding Jack again. He wanted to stop the revolution of the earth around the sun and create a thousand lunar eclipses if it meant Jack would find his way back to him. He wanted to create melodies that would make Bach and Beethoven sound like nursery rhymes, if it only meant that he and Jack would be together.
He would do the impossible in exchange for the impossible.
Hours later, there was a tentative knock on Henley Reeves' bedroom door. She opened it, and found a lost-looking J. Daniel Atlas standing in front of her, unsure on what he ought to do.
"I… may I—" he stammered.
She shushed him and wrapped her arms around him, feeling him shake violently under her touch. "It's okay, Danny."
He gasped and clung to her for dear life. "I want him back, Hen," he sobbed into her.
In that moment, Henley was grateful for whatever it was that finally broke the walls of the mighty J. Daniel Atlas. She promised she wouldn't ever let him go now, if not for the racking guilt of knowledge weighing down on her.
She knew that one day, the fall would come, and she would feel the full wrath of J. Daniel Atlas upon her, for looking on even as he suffered in silence. He would spit out words of hate and betrayal, and perhaps might not ever forgive her for allowing him to suffer as much as he did.
But until then, Henley knew she needed him now. And she would be what he needed at whatever given point, and she could only pray that his pain would eventually go away.
"I know you do, Danny, I know you do," she said gently, holding him tightly and listening to his long-delayed sobs. "You'll be okay at the end of it all, I promise you."
It wasn't perfect. But bit by bit, things started to get better.
It was fairly easy to get the feel of Elkhorn Community College, and Daniel was pretty surprised at how much he missed when he finally rejoined the world. Almost everyone in campus was a scholar, but there was the mystery of the vanishing scholars: students who had complied perfectly with all academic requirements, had no misconduct whatsoever, and yet were no longer invited to return during the next semester.
From the intel gathered by The Eye, certain members of the Board of Directors had been using the scholarship funds for their own investments: stock certificates named to them, buildings in different colleges named to them, luxurious condominium units in Upper Manhattan… the list went on. They had the proof, all they needed now was an audience, and the perfect opportunity to expose the members of the Board of Directors.
The perfect opportunity was put up in the college board one day, and the date was set.
"September the 1st," Lula said loudly as she entered their flat, brandishing a yellow piece of paper.
"Sorry?" Merritt echoed absently, his eyes not leaving the thick psychology manuscript he read. Henley felt a surge of affection for her… best friend? Boyfriend? – more than any of them, he seemed to have missed studying the most.
"September the 1st, Monday!" Lula said excitedly, putting the yellow piece of paper in front of them. "It's the Annual Scholars General Assembly, and the Board of Directors will be there! This is it!"
Daniel jumped up from his seat, criminal law textbook forgotten, as he picked up Lula's flyer. He read over it once and nodded approvingly. "This seems like a good time," he acknowledged.
"Seems? Seems?" Lula echoed, rolling her eyes. "Atlas, just admit that I found the freaking perfect time for this!"
"Sure, good girl," he said absently, tapping her on the cheek as he passed by.
"Asswipe."
"Shut up, Merritt," Daniel called out.
"That wasn't Merritt!" Lula said angrily.
Jack Wilder's heart jumped when he saw the message on his phone.
Horsemen Elkhorn
Next show: September 1st, Monday
Provide distraction. Provide entrance.
He didn't reply – he never did, even if he could.
The Eye knew he got their message, anyway.
He had completed many intel missions in the last two months: he had built the case against Owen Case, stashed away the scholars' fund in a safe place only he knew, to be retrieved only when the right time came, and procured evidence of the irregular spending of Elkhorn's Board Members. Surprisingly, he found it was fairly easy to accomplish these tasks, although he missed the limelight, he missed his friends, and Danny.
Now that he was presented with a job that would bring him in such close quarters with his friends and his… boyfriend, Jack was beyond terrified. They weren't due to meet until a week before the final task, their swan song, in September, and he wondered if he could be as efficient with the job as he normally would be.
The temptation of seeing Danny again, to be so near him—
Jack shook his head. No, he told himself. You have a job to do, and they're counting on you. He's counting on you.
Jack looked at his phone's calendar, and he saw that he had barely a week to prepare behind-the-scenes. He squared his shoulders and shot a text to his parents and Lara, who had made him promise to update him every time he had a new mission to finish. It had been two weeks since he last visited them, and he was just relieved that The Eye had cut him some slack and allowed him to interface with his family as often as he did.
God only knows how he would gone off the edge if he didn't have the infrequent trips to Lara, to his mother and father… he shuddered just thinking about it.
The drive to Elkhorn was something that both filled him with excitement and dread. It also gave Jack some time to think about how ridiculously tired he was, and the reminder of what awaited him at the end of all his missions: Danny, always Danny. He missed the little smiles and smirks that the showman threw at him frequently; the big, beautiful smile that he knew was reserved only for him; the no-nonsense voice that transforms into something beautifully beastly when it was just the two of them; the opal eyes that made so much sense every time Jack gazed into them.
He missed being the person in the world who J. Daniel Atlas bares his beauty to completely, and every time he was on the verge of quitting, of just walking away like his family begs him to do, he holds on to that desire to be that person once more.
Danny's last words echoed in his mind: "I don't care how much more of me you can take, but I don't plan on ever letting you go, and nothing as petty as a criminal record, a failed show, and all the goddamned continents will keep me from wanting to be with you."
Jack laughed, realizing his greatest fear: that it wouldn't be the case, that it wouldn't be the same when they finally did meet again. But even if it meant waiting for Daniel Atlas to come back to honor that promise, so be it.
Now, he had work to do.
Elkhorn, he found very quickly, was a relatively small community. Hiding in plain sight had always been one of his specialties, and he did that quite easily with an unassuming security guard's uniform and a scruffy beard. No one gave him much of a second glance, and Jack preferred it that way: he was looking for a certain someone, in addition to familiarizing himself with the campus, and it wouldn't do for him to be visible.
Three days before the show, as he emerged from rigging the auditorium's media room, Jack Wilder found what he was looking for.
"We'll be coming from here—" came a quiet female whisper.
"Shh," shushed another female voice. "There's a compartment here—"
"Ladies, please," chimed in a drawling, familiar voice. "Let's call Captain Obvious now, shall we?"
Jack could almost envision long fingers rubbing the bridge of his nose as he heard an exasperated reply. "Would you just like me to phone the authorities and tell them the whole plan to save them the trouble?" came the no-nonsense voice he had so desperately wanted to hear for the last two months.
The urge to show up, to reveal himself to them, was overpowering. Instead, Jack forced himself back into the room, though still peeking out into the hallway. He didn't have to wait long: four figures that were initially unrecognizable to Jack stepped out into the light, and for a minute, he thought he heard wrong.
Then the tallest figure spoke again: "See? No one's here, you paranoid asswipe."
"Well, excuse me for wanting to be careful," Danny replied curtly, though without venom in his voice.
The wigs they all wore, coupled with the thick glasses they sported, made them almost unrecognizable. He gave an appreciative glance at Merritt and Henley, who somehow still managed to hold hands even during their little reconnaissance mission; he took a long look at his ex-girlfriend-turned-best-friend, taking in how beautiful she had become; but nothing was more important than the sight of Danny.
He was grateful that Danny looked well, far better than the sporadic videos he posted as the leader of the Four Horsemen. His cheeks filled out slightly again, well on their way to being back to the cheeks Jack remembered, and his eyes, even obscured by the thick hipster glasses, weren't so haunted anymore – just a touch sad, if he wasn't mistaken. Gone were the beautiful locks he had the last time he saw Danny, the short bristles from their second meeting resurfacing. The slight hunch in the way he walked was more pronounced now, but to Jack, there was never a more beautiful sight than Daniel Atlas right now.
Danny was looking around, and Jack's heart stopped when he seemed to find the media room. "There's the media room. I'm going to go check it." He started walking purposefully to the said room.
Panic seized Jack, and he did the first thing that came to his mind: he grabbed his phone, putting it on his ear, and started talking to an imaginary friend in a loud drawl that wasn't his own. "Marissa, you gotta listen to me, I ain't taking no crap from you! I work like a horse all day and if I come home and catch you in the act with Bruce, there'll be hell to pay!" he said angrily, quickly striding out of the room, channeling the angry bull he had in his mind.
"You're my wife and I deserve some respect!" he roared, seeing the four freeze from the corner of his eye as he walked away, hoping and praying to God that it worked. "I'm coming home right now!"
He kept up the pretense of muttering loudly to himself, but he heard even from the distance, Danny's long exhale. "Jeez, that was close. Thank God for cheating wives."
Later, in his car, Jack Wilder laughed himself silly, the tension and the nervousness seeping through him. That was far too close, but he remembered how badly he wanted to be caught. He shook his head, tossing aside the scruffy beard and wig. Time for a new disguise.
Back in their flat, Daniel Atlas frowned. He couldn't shake the feeling that he missed something deadly important in the auditorium. He shook his head slightly – he was being ridiculous, just fatigue overpowering him. He could probably do with some sleep.
That night, for the first time in almost two months, The Lovers dreamt of Death again.
The young man smiled at the report he had been given.
The Four Horsemen were going to expose the unfortunate Board Members who had pilfered the poor scholars' fund: led by The Lovers, with The Hermit, The High Priestess, and The Wheel of Fortune completing the show.
Death, it seemed, would be watching from the shadows – as he had the last two months, operating in secret, in stealth, with such dangerous efficiency.
He clapped his hands together. This was a show he wanted to make sure the Horsemen and the rest of the country would never forget.
"Showtime," he said with a big grin.