cascade | kotlc

31. So What Happens Next?

random shit, of course

tw: bl/od

--- Faye POV ---

The gunshot hurt more than she was willing to admit.

Actually, it was three gunshots. Some human guard had driven three bullets into her back before she could take him out, and it hurt, a lot. She was trying to stay conscious the entire time June rushed her back to Havenfield, and she doubted she had the energy to leap at all without fading.

Miraculously, she made it through.

"Sophie, what happened again?" Elwin called from the massive wooden doors as June set her down on the couch. Her vision was dimming, and she could barely keep her eyes open.

"It's not Sophie this time. It's Faye. Please hurry," June begged, crouching beside her and refusing to take her eyes off her wound.

"Who's Faye? Wait, Fae- oh my fucking god."

Elwin scrambled over, already flashing orbs of color over her wound and commanding June to fish vials from his satchel. Faye grunted, her chest heaving heavily as she subconsciously reached for her wound and found blood staining her hand.

"I tried to apply as much pressure as I could," June fretted, her hands tearing franctically through her hair. "But I don't know if it was enough. And it was still bleeding, so I'm not sure if-"

"It's not fatal," Elwin promised, throwing on his goggles and switching to yellow shades of light. "Does anyone have Panakes petals?"

"I do," Edaline responded, descending the stairwell. "Did Sophie get hurt again? Why-"

She covered her mouth with her hand when she caught sight of Faye lying on the couch, the white silk turning red with her blood. June screamed something at her and she nodded faintly, snapping her fingers and conjuring Panakes petals into Elwin's hand.

"Here," he whispered, pressing the soft blooms to her back.

Faye let out a small breath at the sudden flow of sweetness as she indulged herself in the flood of delicious aroma. It reminded her of Calla in all ways, and though she never had the gnome's starkflower stew, she was certain this was how it tasted.

"Will she be okay?" June panicked. "Will it scar? Does she need additional supplements? Should I get anything for her? Do-"

Faye yawned, exhausted from the night's work, leaning against the armrest of the couch and instinctively starting to braid her hair. When June stared at her she offered her a smile, reassuring her everything was all right.

Well, it wasn't. They'd lost the activator. Which meant the Neverseen had all means necessary to distribute distitopiknian, assuming they had the ingredients to craft the serum.

But hey, at least she wasn't dead.

Elwin's imparter started to buzz and he excused himself. Faye caught sight of the name Sophie Foster holographically glittering above the silver square.

The doors of Havenfield swung open again and Fitz stepped in, a proud look on his face and a soft melody on his lips. He was holding the finals present June had commissioned for Tam, wrapped in delicate gold-embroidered ribbon and encased in a light obsidian box.

"That took a while," he commented, whistling brighter when he spotted June. "Who knew the jewelry shop in Atlantis had such a long line? But, guess who got Tam's present?" His doofy grin faded when none of them applauded. "What happened?"

June wearily threw off her sunglasses, the clatter of the rims against the marble floor much too loud for their silence.

"I failed," Faye murmured, her hand sliding down her waist and nervously fiddling with her belt, expecting Fitz to admonish her, probably with June chiming in from the side.