"Hey, you remember what I said last year, right? We're Zombie Boy and Ghost Boy. I'm not ever gonna leave you."
"Promise?"
"One hundred percent."
***
In which Alistair fights the monster that possessed his friend alongside his friends, while trying...
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Chapter Seventy-Seven: Best Friend Heart-To-Heart
(Papa, Pt. 4)
***
After the initial chaos of the daring RV escape, everything had settled down.
With the Party now very much on the way to the War Zone, it was all much calmer and somewhat quiet—helped by the lethal glares Rowan had delivered at the beginning of the drive, which probably would have silenced a volcano. But now, aside from the country music that apparently couldn't be changed and the occasional conversation, it was calm and quiet.
Alistair was still sitting on the window seat along with Max—Dustin, Lucas and Cami having left a minute or so after the escape—headphones on and music playing. Neither Alistair or Max talked about Max being the bait and Alistair offering himself instead, both deciding that if the worst came to the worst, then these might be their last moments, and they didn't want to be angry at or arguing with each other.
So, they sat in silence, watching the road and the trees blurring past on either side of the road, comfortable in the silence and the music playing. Trying not to think about this could really be their last day alive if things went wrong.
The floor creaked and Alistair looked over to see Lucas standing there, a wordless question in his eyes. Alistair nodded, getting up so that Lucas and Max could have some illusion of privacy to talk, squeezing Max's shoulder before he did—to let her know he loved her so much, that she was his sister in all but blood, that even though he knew he couldn't change her mind, he'd still take that metaphorical bullet for her as much as this was her taking that bullet for him—before he walked away.
As he did, he saw Cami leaning against the wall, a pensive look on her face, Hugin on her shoulder.
Alistair stood there. They needed to talk.
"Hey, Cami," he greeted as he sat next to her.
Cami turned to him, an attempt at her usual smile on her face, but it wasn't quite her smile—it didn't have the spark Cami Martinéz had. "Oh. Hey, Al."
Alistair bit his lip, before he lowered his headphones and turned his Walkman off. "Could we, uh... maybe talk?"
"Oh, yeah. Sure," Cami answered as she twisted to face him, Hugin flying off to stand on the floor, Cami already stroking him.
Alistair bit his lip, before he started, "I... I saw how you reacted when I offered myself up as the distraction for Vecna."
Cami froze, before she looked away, still petting Hugin. "Yeah. I assumed you did."
"Cami, I wanted to let you know, in any other case, I would never do that. After the Mind Flayer, and almost being killed by Vecna, I... I never want the bastard to touch me, but Max can't come back, not like I can, and—" Alistair explained, before Cami cut in, "I know. But Al, you always throw yourself in danger to protect us. You did it with the Mind Flayer when you froze it, you... you put yourself in front of El and took that blow for her, and you didn't say anything about your curse because we had to focus on Max more. And then you volunteered yourself to be bait for Vecna. You're always sacrificing yourself to protect us, and it killed you. And when you volunteered it...it felt like I might have to lose you again, that it would get you killed again."
