KotLC Oneshots

Tam angst

I'mma assume the votes mean you all want angst, soooo, here you go. Enjoy.

"Ah-", Dex gasped as Gethen stabbed him. "D-Dex? DEX?!", Sophie rushed to his side as he sank to his knees. "I- I got V-Vespera," Dex smiled shakily, "B-before I... Uhm- will you t-tell Rex he's my f-fav-orite? A-and tell my p-arents I love them." "No Dex! Y-you can't leave us! We need you!", Sophie cried, "there has to be something I can do! Please!". "You can forgive yourself...", he grinned cheekily, though his eyebrows were smashed together, forming a crease between them. He reached down to put pressure on his wound and took a shaky breath. "G-go, call someone, I- I don't want you to w-watch. Remember to f-forgive yours-self Soph."

"Forgive yourself...."

-Minutes later at Keefe and Tam's house-

Keefe and Tam were arguing as usual, but this time was different, this time, Tam was yelling at him for forgetting to take out the trash. "I asked you to do it this morning!", he yelled at Keefe. "Well, I forgot!" Keefe yelled back. They were a really loving couple but if you didn't know them, you'd think they hated each other. Suddenly, Tam's Imparter rang, and Sophie's frantic voice rang out, saying things that were too hard, too unbelievable, to comprehend. "They got Dex," she sobbed, "we were in Atlantis, and- and I was t-too slow, they got- they got Dex!". Of course, Keefe immediately knew what she meant, but he still didn't believe it. "Sophie, are you still in danger?", Tam asked softly, obviously he's good at act now, think later. "Y-yes, but I cou-couldn't press my panic switch because-", the end of her sentence morphed into a choked sob.
And that's how they got here. Keefe and Tam had gone to help Sophie but now....
Keefe, bleeding out, laying in a cot. Elwin, having too many patients, sweating and crying. The Dizznees, sobbing and hugging. Tam, on his knees next to a red-stained cot, begging for Keefe to be okay. Begging, pleading, hoping, wishing, praying that he could just be okay.

His begs, pleads, hopes, wishes, and prayers only broke his heart further.

"You jerk," Tam sobbed, "you promised! You promised you'd be careful! You promised we'd be okay! You promised we'd get to have pointy ears together and be all old and corny! You promised I'd get to wake up next to you for the rest of my life! We were supposed to get married and watch the others figure out we're all gay for each other, we were supposed to exchange vows and cry together... Not this." He held- no, clung to Keefe as the blonde man he loved bled out, staining the usually white cot with red. His knees ached from kneeling on the hard floor, but it was nothing compared to the pain he felt in his heart when his boyfriend shoved him out of the way and took the hit for him, the pain he felt when Keefe's smirk trembled, the pain he felt as Keefe said his next and last words. "I'm sorry Tammy, I gotta leave you now, but I'll always love you," Keefe exhaled shakily. He closed his eyes and smiled while the tears fell. Just like his tears, his chest fell with his very last breath. Tam buried his face in his hands. "No, no, NO! You- you can't leave, I can't be here without you, it was supposed to be us forever. The Shade and the Empath. The Bangs and the Hair! We were supposed to be forever," he sobbed quietly. Elwin put a hand on Tam's shoulder, causing him to jump. He hugged Tam and promised it would be okay. But Tam knew it wouldn't.

It wouldn't be okay as long as he was here and Keefe was gone.

-Sophie POV-
Sophie walked into the Wanderling Woods, her face was swollen and she was a mess, but she knew she wasn't as bad as Tam. Or Fitz. Or Marella. They'd all lost so much in the last battle, she didn't even know how they were still standing. At the moment, she was in line, waiting to give her condolences to Tam, the Dizznees, Marella, and Fitz. Once she finally reached them all, she got a closer look at everyone. Marella and Fitz were leaning on each other as though they might not actually be able to stand any longer. Bex and Lex were crying with their parents, and she didn't even see Rex. The worse one yet was Tam. He'd lost his boyfriend, sister, and one of his best friends in one battle. The worst part was, Sophie knew something no one else did... Keefe was going to propose. He was going to ask Tam to marry him. "I'm so sorry," Sophie whispered as she hugged the sobbing Marella and Fitz. Next, she got to the Dizznees. She choked out another "I'm so sorry for your loss," before she was brave enough to face Tam. He was paler, skinnier, and barely visible due to the shadows shrouding his small frame. "Hey, Tam...", Sophie cried softly, "I know there's nothing I can say to make this better for you, but I want you to know I'm here for you... And I need to give you something." He nodded weakly, and she pulled him in for a tight hug. She went to join the suffocatingly silent crowd, save for a few sniffles, and some small sobs. Sophie was suddenly angry as she spotted Cassius Sencen and Quan and Mai Song. She decided to be the bigger person and join her friends that weren't on the stage. She stared at the three trees, side by side. Pale, tall, and covered in small ice blue flowers, there was Keefe's. To the right, pale bark, black leaves lined with silver, and silver-blue vines and berries, it was Linh's. To the right of hers was one that had already been there. Last time, it was a mistake but this time, it definitely wasn't. It was Dex's tree.

Sophie had lost three of her best friends.

-After the planting-

"What did you need to give me Sophie?", Tam whispered hoarsely, his voice barely worked after days of only crying, not speaking at all. "I- I don't know how to tell you this...", Sophie started, pulling out the black box in her pocket, it was black velvet and lined with the same silver-blue shade as Tam's eyes. She knew Keefe had spent hours picking out the ring inside the box, which made her even sadder to have to be the one to give it to Tam. "I... Keefe wanted you to have this...", she mumbled awkwardly and held out the box. Tam's red-rimmed eyes widened and he gasped. He reached his shaky hands out to grab the box and opened it, tears falling. The ring was perfect for Tam, which made it more upsetting. It was silver, and it had a small inscription. "Bangs Boy + Lord Hunkyhair for life" written in his small loopy writing, she knew he had it custom made, but she had no idea he'd gotten it in his own writing. Tam choked out a sob and fell to his knees, so she decided to get Linh- then swore at herself internally. Sophie hesitantly excused herself and ran off to find Elwin, the only other person she knew was close to him. Elwin wrapped Tam in a hug only a dad could do while mourning the loss of his son, and Sophie walked away, crying softly.

-Tam POV again-

Tam woke up, the day after Linh, Dex, and Keefe's planting, and rolled over, expecting to see his boyfriend's bright grin, the first thing he usually saw in the mornings... But he didn't. Instead, he saw an empty half of their bed. His bottom lip trembled, but he willed himself not to cry. He'd cried too much these days. Instead of staying in that empty bed where it was far too cold without Keefe's bright eyes and wide smile, he went to their- his bathroom. He felt like he couldn't breathe, like the walls were closing in, he needed to get out of this house. It reminded him too much of everyone he lost. He decided to go to Rimeshire and visit Dex, but... Dex is gone. Instead, he used the Leapmaster to leap to Havenfield. He knocked quietly on the door, answered by Grady Ruewen. "Good morning Lord Ruewen," he said formally. Tam really didn't know how to act anymore around other people. "Tam...", Grady started with a concerned look, "it's the middle of the afternoon...". "Is it? I hadn't noticed... Is Sophie home?", he asked quietly. "Uh, yeah, go on up to her room, I'm sure she'll be glad to see you." On his way up, he was met by a somber-looking Edaline. She hugged him tightly, and promised it would all be okay.

All he could think was, no it won't be...