Criminal

Chapter 14

The student who had terrorized Lance in the library left the school. Something about "extreme mental trauma" and from what Lance had seen of him, he was a gibbering wreck. Keith refused to tell him anything.

Lance nudged Keith as Mr. Shiro taught about centripetal velocity at the front of the room. "I knowyou did something! This isn't a coincidence!"

Keith kept his eyes focused on the board, unusual for him. "Remember what killed the cat?"

Lance realized with a start of horror, that he'd been curious! No. Bad, bad, bad. Keith was right, for once. He couldn't be curious. A small part of him wondered if Keith had figured out that he was reporting to Allura. Maybe Keith just didn't want to get in trouble. Lance wondered if Keith should be punished for fighting if it was to save him.

Fighting is fighting, he told himself firmly, and that was that. He didn't have any proof, so Keith was safe, but if he didhave proof, then he'd have to turn Keith in.

School passed in a blur, as it always did, the only bumps occurring in English, when Mr. Coran assigned them to draw or write about their idea of a monster before they started on The Scarlet Letter. Lance had drawn a vague, lumpy shape with lots of horns and claws and teeth. Coran had clucked his tongue and told Lance to be more imaginative. Hunk and Katie had fared similarly. Lance wondered, vaguely grumpily, if Keith had aced this project.

When the final bell rang, thankfully ending the English torture, and Lance wandered back to his dorm room, shaking off the effects. Mr. Sendak and a crew of his security guards were at the door.

"Um... sir? What's going on?"

Mr. Sendak spared a glance at him. "Kogane has locked himself inside," he growled.

"Can I try?"

Sendak gave him a long look, then nodded, stepping back. Lance knocked on the door.

"Keith? It's me."

There was a heavy pause, and then the door opened just a crack. Keith pushed it open, grabbed Lance by the collar, dragged him in and quickly slammed it shut again before Sendak could react.

"Whoa!"

Keith was breathing heavily, his face pale with fear. "They're coming for me," he whispered, "They're going to take me away."

Lance's mind struggled to comprehend this. "Take you away? Like... graduate?" That didn't seem quite fair. Lance had been working hard to be a model student, and Keithwas going to graduate first? The guy made origami out of his homework, for stars' sake!

Keith laughed hysterically, running his fingers through his bangs. "You don't get it, Lance. Where they're taking me? I'm not ever coming back."

Lance shook his head slightly. "You're overreacting. They're not going to kill you."

Keith gave another hysterical laugh. "No, you're right, they're not. It would be a lot simpler if they were."

"Keith?"

Keith shook him by the shoulders. "Please. Just tryto remember! Just try! Do you remember the L wing?"

Lance's head started to hurt, and the fuzziness started to come. There shouldbe something to remember. Allura said they'd been roommates. The origami crane from months ago. He shouldhave some memory of Keith, even just a little one. What was wrongwith him?! Why couldn't he remember?! The L wing—it sounded so familiar!

The fuzzy feeling blanketed him, pressing firmly against these thoughts. No. He didn't know Keith before.

As if in a trance, Lance reached for the door handle.

"Lance—no, Lance, don't—you don't understand, Lance, I can'tlet them take me away, I—"

With a click, Lance unlocked the door and opened it.

Mr. Sendak shoved the door open all of the way before Keith could get to it, and he grabbed for Keith's arm. Keith shot away, grabbing Lance in a headlock and backing towards the window, which was locked.

A single jab with Keith's knife broke through the window, making a hole big enough for a human to fit through.

"Not any closer!" Keith yelled, "One step closer, and I'll go out the window! And I'll take Lance with me! You might be fine letting medie, but are you willing to let bothof us die?!"

Lance's heart started to beat faster in his chest. Was Keithinsane?!

Sendak laughed. "You won't. The fall might not kill you. It's only a second story window: there's a good chance you'll just break a bunch of bones."

Keith dragged Lance even closer to the window, Keith's back pressed against the glass. "I'll do it!"

"No, you won't. You haven't been spending all of this time trying to snap McClain out of the brainwashing just to throw him out of a window now."

Keith wavered. Lance frowned. Brainwashing?

"Oh, did you think we didn't know what all of those doors on his fingers and books on his feet were an attempt to do? Or did you think that we wouldn't say it in front of him? It doesn't matter if we do. We can just reprogram him, if he even remembers this afterwards anyway." Sendak leveled something at them. "Let him go and step away from the window."

Keith started to press even harder out the window, ready to fall, and to take Lance down with him.

Sendak leapt forward, brandishing his Taser. Keith yelped, instinctively ducking behind Lance. Lance got the full force of the electricity, jolting him, hard. Everything went numb as he dropped to the floor.

What...?

Why...?

The last thing he heard was a shout of triumph from Sendak.