A/N: We're a little over halfway through, so I'm thinking 18 chapters is a definite possibility. More likely to be 19-20 though.
It was raining heavily. Yuri padded along, hands in his pockets and his head bowed, uncaring. He wanted to turn around and hurry back to Flynn, frightened of what could happen to him while he wasn't there, but Sodia was right.
He only ruined Flynn's life.
The rain was heavy enough that pretty much nobody was around. Anyone who was hurried through the rain, not stopping to glance at him or ask questions. Which suited him, really.
He didn't notice that there was a car following him until it pulled up infront of him, a man stepping out from the passenger side and blocking his way. He glanced up, frowning.
"Would you move please?"
"Mr Macindaw would like to speak to you," the man said. Yuri blinked, about to say that he didn't want to see him, then realised he really didn't have much of a reason not to. It's not like he had anything to lose, after all. Shrugging, he followed the man to the car and got into the back.
Another suited man sat there, and passed him a mobile phone. Yuri lifted it to his ear, waiting a moment.
"Ah, Mr Lowell. A pleasure to finally speak to you."
"What do you want?" he asked bluntly.
"Not interested in formalities then...Very well. Withdraw the complaint."
"Sure. I'll have to talk to Flynn though, only the person who made the complaint can withdraw it, right?"
"...This Mr Scifo...You are very attached to him, are you not?"
"Not really. I'm never even going to see him again."
"Really? Well, I guess it's alright if I let my men attack him then."
Yuri stiffened, then sat bolt upright. "What?! Why?!"
"Because he's scratched our reputation. Even a scratch is a hindrance in my profession."
"No! I can talk to him, and get him to withdraw it! Please, don't hurt him!"
"It's a little too late for that, Mr Lowell. I invite you to help, but I believe it will probably be a tad late."
Yuri continued to stare for a moment, then slammed the phone down and leapt out of the car, running down the street. The men watched him go, then the one in the back picked the phone up.
"What do you want us to do, sir?"
"Leave him to it. I daresay there isn't much he can do anyway. Report back here."
"Yessir."
Flynn stepped up to his block, lifting his key and scanning it through to open it. Sodia pulled it open, saving Flynn the effort.
"Thank you for your help, Sodia. You can head home now."
"Lowell asked me to help you. Just dropping you off at your doorstep isn't really helping," Sodia pointed out.
Flynn hesitated then shrugged, inviting her to step inside. She rolled her eyes then did so, holding the door open for Flynn.
As he started forward to join her, someone suddenly pushed him away. He stumbled slightly, glancing up at Sodia's startled cry then the slamming of the door being shut. Raising his head, he eyed the three men standing infront of them, one easily keeping the door Sodia was behind shut.
"May I assume you are some of Macindaw's men?" he asked.
The men didn't reply, two of them stepping forward. Flynn backed out of reach, glancing between them.
As one man rushed forward to punch him, he easily dodged, before the other man punched him in the chest. He gave a pained yell as his rib properly broke, and clutched at his side, panting. The other man suddenly came forward, elbowing his head. He staggered back, dizzy, then the first swiped his legs from under him. He went falling, hitting the ground hard and whimpering, trying to curl in on himself.
The second man stepped over him, lifting his foot to break more of Flynn's ribs. Flynn glanced up, fear rushing through him and causing adrenaline to kick in. As the man brought his foot down, he leapt away. He managed to flip onto all fours, skidding across the ground slightly and causing his side to jostle as well.
As he came to a halt, he heard an angry roar then a figure leapt over him, raven hair streaming behind them. His punch connected with the second man, all his power, momentum and rage behind it. The man's face seemed to almost buckle under the strength, becoming distorted into an unrecognisable shape before he went flying back, rolling on the ground before coming to a halt, unconcious.
Flynn pushed himself up, clutching his side, and gazed at the figure infront of him in surprise.
"Yuri?" he mumbled.
Yuri glanced back at him, worried eyes checking him over and seeing him favouring his side. Worry turned to anger and he looked back, snarling.
"I thought Boss said we wouldn't need to concern ourselves with this kid?" muttered one of the remaining two men.
The other man lifted a hand to his ear, pausing a moment before nodding. "Boss says just beat him up anyway."
The first man nodded, lunging forward. Flynn blinked, surprised by how fast he was, and even Yuri seemed a bit unprepared. He dragged himself to the left, only just avoiding the blow, then spun and lashed out with a kick to his right side. Flynn could almost see the brief ripple of power as two opposing forces collided, and he knew that the kick should have at least fractured a few ribs.
The man didn't react, however. There was no grimace, no flinch, no sign of any type of pain. Yuri gazed at him in surprise for a moment before the man grabbed his leg, making him lose his balance and throwing him back.
Yuri landed awkwardly with his arm caught underneath him, coughing, then struggled to push himself up. A shadow appeared over him and he looked up, watching as the man brought his fist up to hit Yuri.
A foot suddenly connected with his face and he started to stumble back. Half a second later, the second foot also connected, putting more power behind the attack. The man went falling, a couple of teeth flying free as his nose began to bleed.
Yuri somehow managed to stop Flynn having an awkward landing, the two landing in a pile on top of each other. Flynn hissed in discomfort, pushing himself into a sitting position as Yuri stood up, turning to face the last man.
The man looked at them emotionlessly, simply keeping the door shut. There were more people behind it now, hammering on the glass and trying to force it open, but their attempts were unsuccessful.
"Why don't you come to us, big boy?" Yuri taunted, lifting his fists.
The man raised an eyebrow then nodded his head. The two boys blinked before turning, paling.
A single figure stood in the centre of the six men pointing guns at them. He wore a smirk, looking pleased with himself.
"I'm afraid you've lost, Mr Lowell. You could have survived tonight had you not gone running off to help Mr Scifo. As it is, you will die together." He lifted his hand, the men's grips on their triggers tightening.
"I'm so sorry Dad..." Flynn whispered behind him, and Yuri glanced back, confused, just as there was a bang. He turned to the front, wondering who had fired, then watched in surprise as the man in the centre suddenly fell back, blood gushing from the wound in his side.
The other men immediately leapt up, crowding round him. It was general chaos as the last man went from the door to the crowd, only adding to the confusion.
"What.."
"When a pack loses it's leader, they're in confusion. It takes a while for them to sort themselves out," Flynn murmured. Yuri looked back, eyes suddenly drawn to the gun in his hand that was smoking slightly from the barrel.
"Wait...Flynn, did you..?"
Flynn glanced at him, then looked away. "It's not the first time. I swore to my Dad that I'd never do it again, but I guess I broke that promise..."
Yuri looked back at the men, then shook his head. "They deserved it," he muttered.
"No one ever really deserves it, Yuri. It's never up to anyone else whether someone lives or dies. But sometimes...when we're protecting something precious, we end up having to hurt to protect."
"President!"
The two boys looked up as Sodia hurried over, kneeling beside Flynn. She quickly checked him over, eyeing his side worriedly.
"I've called the police. They should be here soon," she explained.
Yuri glanced at Flynn. "What's the likelihood they're on Macindaw's side?" he asked, ignoring Sodia's confused expression.
"50/50 really...There's no way to tell who Macindaw's got in his palm, and who will actually arrest him."
"No need to worry about that, kid," a voice said behind them. Yuri looked up in surprise while Flynn just gave a tired chuckle.
"You would be the first. Were you watching this whole time?"
"Only the end. I thought you said you wouldn't use a gun again."
Flynn bit his lip. "I know. But..." He hesitated, lowering his head.
Raven gazed at him a moment, then sighed. "I get it already. Anyway, the police and an ambulance are on their way. We should head off before they arrive. Yuri, you too. Miss, I'd appreciate it if you just played dumb."
"O-Of course," Sodia replied uncertainly, watching as Yuri helped Flynn up and the three of them padded off while no one was looking.
A/N: So...yep. Flynn backstory bit is mostly some guy attacked him, and he had a gun on him, so Flynn got the gun and shot him (and killed him). I don't think I actually mention that for some reason...
Review?