26. Fourteen

" This is the Stillbringer's room, and this one is yours. Guardian Jack told me it would be better to keep you two close, so?—"

Fourteen nodded curtly and carried Cym through the door Samantha indicated was his and kicked it shut behind him. He ignored the surprised laugh on the other side of the door and placed Cym on the massive, luxurious bed in the center of the room.

The thing looked ridiculous, but it was better than the floor. When he set Cym down, his small body nearly vanished as he sank into the plush duvet.

Fourteen was worried that if he sat down beside Cym, he'd vanish too, so he scooped Cym back up and stripped the stupid thing off the bed before placing him back down. Fourteen's body temperature ran hot, so he was more than enough to keep them both warm using only the sheet under the duvet.

It had taken forever to leave the Blaike compound. Fourteen had tried to fade away with Cym in his arms dozens of times before finally resigning himself to the fact that being attached to the new head of a prominent witch family meant that sneaking away from the clusterfuck wasn't an option.

Cym was dead asleep in Fourteen's arms before Marshall came to rescue them. It hadn't taken much convincing to get Fourteen to agree to follow him back to their chapter house. Fourteen was dead on his feet and had blown through all of his easily accessible resources. He needed a safe place to rest and regroup before deciding with Cym what their next move should be.

Fourteen wasn't concerned his new allies would hurt Cym while they rested, because it was clear to him that they considered Cym a priceless treasure. Fourteen was more concerned about how they'd feel about the two of them leaving.

He would bomb that bridge when he got to it.

For now, he needed to fucking sleep.

He kicked off his boots and shucked his armor before joining Cym on the bed.

Instead of instantly falling asleep like he was used to, he found himself tracing Cym's cheek with the back of his hand. Slowly, reverently.

Even after holding him for hours this evening, the surge of pleasure and comfort from touching Cym was heady. It had felt wonderful to hold him, but he hadn't been touching Cym's skin directly.

How could anyone feel this good?

Fourteen's mind provided him with a query of what sliding into Cym's tight little body would feel like, and he told it to fuck off.

Later. He would find out said information later. For now, they both needed sleep.

Fourteen pressed a kiss into Cym's hair, but before settling in next to him, he remembered to attach a cuff to Cym's wrist and put the other on his own. There was no way Fourteen would be able to sleep without making sure his flight risk was properly secured.

Finally satisfied, Fourteen slung an arm over Cym's chest, a leg over his hip, and curled around Cym like a dragon protecting his precious hoard. Only then did he allow himself to sleep.

He woke up to discover that Cym had not only not tried to run during the night, but had instead managed to burrow his way inside Fourteen's shirt. Since they were cuffed together, it had left them in a tangled mess.

Cym had also managed to get rid of most of his own shirt, so the amount of Cym's skin touching his own had Fourteen's dick wide awake and his soul singing. He doubted he'd ever felt this good in his life.

Fuck. It was almost like Fourteen was a person.

Fourteen pressed his nose into baby-blond hair and breathed in the smell of smoke, magic, and Cym. Overall the effect was very… pink. Fourteen huffed into Cym's hair and smiled. Everything about Cym was so fucking cute, from his silly little cat backpack to his soft, fluffy hair and huge, blue eyes.

He reached down to find the cuff on Cym's wrist and stroked it thoughtfully. He could take it off now before Cym woke up, but he wasn't going to. It was better to get Cym used to who Fourteen truly was from the start. Cym hadn't met Fourteen at his best. Or at his worst, depending on how one looked at it.

Even Fourteen didn't know who or what he was anymore, but he didn't think he was a good person. He was a little concerned that Cym thought he was.

Regardless of the magic Cym had pumped into Fourteen to give him access to some of the emotions and memories the Colonel had stolen from him, he was still a mess of programming and chemicals that had irrevocably changed who he was on a foundational level.

The starry-eyed kid who idolized his dad was nothing more than a wisp of a memory. His dad was dead, and the man who'd killed him had turned Fourteen into a monster.

He looked forward to showing the Colonel exactly what he'd created.

The body in his arms shifted and began to wiggle.

When Cym began to make tiny happy noises, Fourteen pulled him even closer to his chest, remembering at the last moment to hold back his strength enough to keep from crushing Cym's delicate frame. Fourteen's enhanced strength had been an asset in the field, but he'd never had something so fragile to protect.

He was going to need to work to keep from hurting Cym by accident.

"Mmmmph," Cym murmured into Fourteen's bare chest. Half of his face was obscured by Fourteen's shirt. If it hadn't been warped and stretched out by its second occupant, Fourteen doubted he'd be able to see any of Cym's face at all.

"Good morning."

Cym's body froze. Then he jerked his head back, and it disappeared into Fourteen's T-shirt entirely. There was some wiggling inside the shirt and the jingle and small tug of Fourteen's wrist told him Cym had noticed the cuffs.

Fourteen waited patiently for Cym's reaction. He didn't fully know Cym yet, so Fourteen couldn't guess what his new person's response would be to the discovery, but he looked forward to the day he would be able to know him well enough to anticipate such things.

Cym gave a little snort. "I suppose I deserved this, but I think shoving me inside your shirt was a bit excessive."

"I'm responsible for the cuffs, but you climbed inside my shirt all on your own." When Cym attempted to escape the shirt, Fourteen held him in place. "I like it."

Cym stopped trying to crawl out and then flopped back down. Fourteen gave a small sigh when their bare chests pressed against each other once more and his dick pulsed against Cym's thigh.

"Oh!" Cym shifted awkwardly, and Fourteen noticed the young man's own cock hardening against Fourteen.

Cym scooted until his head popped out of Fourteen's shirt. His face was a deep scarlet. Fourteen hipped into him cautiously, testing.

Cym's body responded beautifully. He made a soft little uhhh and he bucked his hips against Fourteen's stomach.

"I don't think…"

Fourteen didn't get a chance to find out what Cym thought because a tiny, velvet-soft tongue began lapping at his chest like it was made of ice cream. If he'd thought skin contact felt good… fuck.

Fourteen wanted to swallow the little man whole. He wanted to chain him to himself.

…More.

He wanted to chain Cym to him with thick, unbreakable bonds that could never be removed.

The physical and emotional sensations rolling through Fourteen made it nearly impossible to do what he knew he had to do next.

Fourteen unwrapped his unchained arm from Cym's waist and placed his hand under Cym's chin. "Baby, stop."

Cym's eyes were hazy and unfocused and his little pink tongue darted out to wet his lips.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have started something just now. We need to talk first."

Cym's eyes became clear in an instant. "Oh my god. I'm sorry. I shouldn't…" His eyes began to shimmer with tears, and his horrified expression cut through Fourteen like a knife.

"No, it's okay. It's okay. Don't cry, baby. We're okay." Distantly, Fourteen was impressed with his ability to articulate his thoughts so well. Cym's magic was a gift that Fourteen hoped he never took for granted. The T-shirt had slipped down to obscure part of Cym's face, and Fourteen ripped the fabric in half, exposing a sad face and the slim, enticing body pressed against his.

Cym sat up and straddled Fourteen's stomach, looking just to the left of his face. "What do we need to talk about?"

"I can think of a few things. I believe you can come up with some yourself if you try."

Cym gave an awkward laugh. "Yeah. Maybe one or two." He held up the hand with the cuff on it. "Maybe we should start with this?"

"You run away a lot," Fourteen said bluntly. "I don't trust you not to do it again."

"So you decided to cuff me?"

"Yes."

"Do I get a say in this?"

"No."

"Oh." Cym's tiny mouth turned down in a pout. "I don't know how I feel about that. I'm not a huge fan of being locked up."

Fourteen sighed. "I know. It's only when I'm asleep, and…" Fourteen took a deep breath and confronted the elephant in the room. "You can always order me to release you."

Cym's eyes darted to meet Fourteen's in alarm. "No. I'm not doing that again. No one ever gets to force you to do anything against your will again." Cym's tears were gone and his eyes were frigid. "I'll make sure of it."

Warmth bloomed in Fourteen's chest, and for the first time in his memory, he knew what it felt like to be cared for. He'd chosen the right person to follow. The right person to protect with his life.

He just needed to make sure his person followed the rules.

Fourteen decided to start with rule one. "No more running. I can't keep us safe if I don't know where you are. And I will keep us safe." He used the word us because he had a sense that Cym would be more likely to comply if he knew Fourteen's own well-being was also at stake. "We're a team now."

Fourteen didn't bother to phrase it as a request. They were a unit, and Cym would get used to the idea eventually.

"You still want that?" Cym's voice was uncertain, and his gaze went back to hovering over Fourteen's shoulder.

Want it? For fuck's sake. It no longer mattered if Fourteen wanted it. He needed it. It was so much more than a mere want. It was a craving. A desperate shout deep in his soul. If Fourteen didn't get this, the entire world would burn.

Instead of voicing the brutal truth, he simply said, "Yes."

The relief on Cym's face was instant. "Thank the gods. I mean, yes. Yes, we're a team. All the way."

"Good."

"No more running, I promise. Unless you're running with me. Does that sound good?"

No, it didn't sound good, because Fourteen hated the idea of running away from anything. He'd rather kill the shit out of whatever was coming for him, but he wasn't a him anymore. Fourteen was a them now, and he needed to make concessions. "Affirmative."

"Hmm… You don't like that do you?" Cym wrinkled his nose in thought and shifted his weight back to inspect Fourteen's face. "You get more soldiery when you don't like something."

"I'll deal with it."

Cym gave him a brilliant smile and leaned down to give him a kiss on the nose. "I like this talk. You're good at give and take."

Fourteen snorted. No, he wasn't, but he'd learn to be. Cym's magic was a huge help in allowing his brain to access basic human concepts and emotions. All serious discussions between them would have to involve cuddling from now on. Otherwise, Fourteen was likely to fall back into soldier mode. The soldier—the Cold— wasn't good at compromise. His methods for solving problems mostly involved killing.

Cym's magic had helped him break free of the chains binding his mind, but he was still who he'd been raised to be. Twelve years of being the puppet of a monster had shaped Fourteen into what he was now. His own brand of monster.

Fourteen looked forward to finding out exactly what that meant for him.

Hopefully, Cym would too.

Fourteen stopped thinking when Cym leaned down and kissed him again. It started out as soft, sweet little kisses over the bridge of his nose and across his cheeks, but when Cym's lips found his, they were right back where they started.

Fourteen hard, panting, and aching to be inside Cym.

He had more to say. He was sure of it.

Too bad his brain wasn't in charge anymore.

There was a loud pounding on the door, and Cym jumped a foot into the air.

"Who the fuck is that? Did they find us?" Cym went from mild lust to terror in a split second.

"It's okay. We're safe."

"Safe? Umm… where are we, exactly? I forgot to ask." Cym tapped his index fingers together and looked down in embarrassment.

"We need to work on your situational awareness."

"Maybe."

The pounding on the door came again, and it was followed by Jack's voice calling out, "Stop doing dirty things to Cym. We have a situation."

"Shit! We're with the guardians?" Cym hissed.

"Yep!" Jack answered merrily. "You two have a nice safe place to get to know each other better. But you need to do it later. There's a meeting you two need to be a part of. You've got ten minutes to get downstairs before I come and fish you out myself."

"Um…" Cym sat frozen on top of Fourteen. It was possible he was broken.

"Copy that," Fourteen replied to Jack so he'd go the fuck away.

He tuned his senses toward the other side of the door, and when he heard Jack's footsteps fade into the distance, he said, "I think he's gone."

"Thank the gods. I'm okay with being with the guardians right now, but wow, some of them need to learn boundaries." Cym shrugged, gave a kittenish smile, and dipped his head to whisper against Fourteen's mouth. "There's a lot we can manage in ten minutes, or so I've read."

Cym gave a happy wiggle and Fourteen was reminded of the intimate position they were in. He wanted nothing more than to flip Cym over, strip off his clothes, and bury himself as far inside the small man as he was allowed.

But they weren't done yet, and Cym's enticingly wiggly ass was tangential to the last thing they needed to discuss. Thank god for Jack's timely interruption. Without it, Fourteen doubted he'd have had the ability to focus past the irresistible man in his arms.

Fourteen gripped Cym's hips, planning to hold them still, but he couldn't stop himself from grinding into Cym's ass. Cym's eyes went glassy and he met the thrust with an enthusiastic moan.

Fuck, that had been a terrible idea. Was Fourteen really going to do this to himself?

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then opened them and inspected Cym, taking in the beautiful blush on his cheeks and those clear, innocent eyes. The mess of pale hair draped over his shoulder made Fourteen want to tug on it to see what would happen, but the open trust on Cym's face was enough to give Fourteen pause.

"We're not ready for this yet." Fourteen knew he probably could have said it in a gentler way, but he didn't know how to be a gentle person. The only thing he knew for certain was that he needed to be clear.

"Wha…?" Cym blinked in confusion, clearly not expecting to hear this. "Um, do you not want this? Because it feels like you want it from where I'm sitting."

Fourteen gave a small laugh. Cym may look innocent, but he certainly wasn't acting like it right now. But he was still young and inexperienced. And very obviously traumatized from a long, horrible ordeal.

And Fourteen likely was too.

He didn't know where the ability to think this way came from. Normally he was a fuck-and-leave sort of person. He didn't like touching people he didn't have to, and sex was an impersonal activity used to release tension. He didn't want that with Cym.

"I want more than just this," Fourteen said, finally. "You deserve more than a quick fuck right now. We both do."

"I don't know. I'm pretty certain I want to do this right now." Cym's eyes were fever-bright, and Fourteen was pretty sure he wasn't at optimal reasoning capacity.

"I want it too." So fucking much it hurt. "But, you haven't done this before, have you?" If Cym had been locked up since childhood with limited contact with other people, it wasn't a stretch for Fourteen to assume as much.

"Um… we did some stuff earlier."

"But that was all, right?'

Cym gave a defeated little sigh. "...Yes."

"You've known me for two days."

"It was an eventful two days!"

"I want more than a victory fuck from you. I want to… learn you." Fourteen had almost said study instead of learn but had decided it would have sounded creepy. "I want to find out how to take care of you properly. And I need to reset. I'm wound up from too much fighting and not enough downtime. There's a real chance I could hurt you badly. I don't want to lose control with you just because I'm too wound up not to."

That last bit didn't cool Cym down as much as Fourteen thought it would. No. He looked… excited.

Cym was practically panting when he asked, "You're stronger than a norm, aren't you?"

"I'm a lot of things more than a norm. If you look at my operating system specs, you'll see how I'm different."

Cym's mind seemed to stutter, and his body language shifted to something akin to alarm. "Oh shit. I put that thingy in my shoe. Where are my shoes?"

"They're on the floor." Fourteen gestured to where he'd lined them up neatly with his by the door. "But I put the flash drive on the nightstand next to you. I'm not allowed to carry it myself once it's with my new handler."

"That's disgusting. Can I destroy it?"

"Negative," Fourteen said automatically. It was a programmed response that he had no choice but to say. He hated programmed responses. "It's necessary."

Cym made a sad little face. "They made you say that, didn't they?"

Fourteen nodded sullenly.

"Okay then. We're going to get this programming out of you. I promise. But I'll keep the thingy safe. Maybe it'll help with that."

It was funny, but Fourteen actually believed him. Someone wanted to help him rather than use him, and it was a first for him.

"So to get this clear, you don't want to have sex right now, or any sexy times?'

"I want to pin you down and fuck you within an inch of your life right now, Cym."

Cym became painfully still and his small cock made itself known against Cym's pants. "That doesn't make this easy at all."

"No. But I think we both need it anyway. Let me take it slow with you, Cym. Let me treat you the way you deserve."

"Until when?'

Fourteen smiled. "Probably sooner than we should." He sat up and kissed Cym squarely on the mouth. "I don't think I'll last very long."

"Haaaaa… Okay. We'll get to know each other, and in the meantime, we can work to get this stuff out of your head. It'll probably be a good idea for us to be on equal footing before getting in too deep, anyway."

Fourteen could have told Cym they were already well past the point of no return, but he thought it was better for Cym to come to that realization on his own.

To make sure Cym knew Fourteen meant what he'd said and wasn't rejecting him, Fourteen cuddled the shit out of him until Jack knocked on the door again.

"Time's up, lovebirds! Your services are needed downstairs." Jack's voice was a touch more urgent this time.

Cym called out, "Will there be tacos? Because I'm not going anywhere unless tacos are involved." His face was mutinous, and he muttered to Fourteen, "I deserve some fucking tacos after last night."

"Yes, you do, baby." Fourteen had no clue how to make anything that didn't involve a microwave or heating an M.R.E., but he could make someone else do it.

"I'll tell Clayton that the Stillbringer requires tacos, but only if you two stop doing naked things and get your asses downstairs."

"We're not naked!" Cym scrambled off of Fourteen but didn't make it far because they were still chained together. "Can you take this off now? I'm not going anywhere."

Fourteen gave an inward frown. He liked the comfort of having Cym attached to him, but it wasn't part of their deal. He had to let Cym go free until that evening. He unlocked the cuffs reluctantly, and as soon as they parted, Fourteen felt his conditioning begin to surround him once more. It was subtle because Cym was still close and he wasn't wearing his armor, but he could still feel it.

It sucked, but it was what it was.

They got dressed, and Fourteen shrugged on his jacket because it was what he was used to. Besides, he'd feel like an idiot for leaving it behind if he ended up needing it. This place seemed secure, but since Fourteen hadn't personally inspected it, he wasn't going to chance it.

Once his armor was on, Fourteen was walled off from Cym's magic, and he felt his face become impassive and his emotions go still. The Cold was nothing like it was before Cym's magic had freed him from his conditioning's complete control, but it was still a strong presence in his mind.

Without thinking, he reached out to touch Cym's hand to remind himself that he was a real person and not a mindless machine.

The relief was instantaneous. Cym squeezed his hand in understanding.

They held hands until they reached the lobby of the sprawling mansion of the Guard chapter house. When they reached the lobby, they both let go in a silent understanding, and Cym greeted the guardians with a hesitant wave.

Their intimacy was personal and not something Fourteen wanted to share. For the moment, in front of strangers, it would stay personal. Fourteen didn't feel like Jack's team were strangers anymore, but the boy standing in the lobby next to the dead body wasn't to be trusted.

"Sterling!" Cym ran toward his brother but skidded to a halt when he noticed the body on the floor of the lobby. "Whoa. Who's that?"

Fourteen snapped into full soldier mode. He knew exactly who it was.

The navy blue peacoat was unmistakable.

Fourteen moved Cym away from the body and kneeled down to inspect it. Harper. The man who had been sent to capture Fourteen and drag him back to the fold had the tale-tell signs of strangulation.

"What are you doing here?" Cym asked Sterling. "Did you do this?"

Fourteen highly doubted it. With Fourteen's spare armor and Harper's skill, Sterling would be dead in a fight before he knew what hit him.

"I came to talk with you about family business, and this guy was on the steps."

"Someone got through our shields like they were nothing," Marshall said. He was perfectly coiffed and looked nothing like he did the night before. His face, however, was the picture of irritation. "We wouldn't have known if Sterling hadn't told us."

"Harper had a set of my armor. The person who killed him probably took it and used it to slip past any magical security you have."

"That would probably do it. Samantha, you need to look into that. Talk to your companion and see if there's anything she can do about it." Marshall's expression had evened out and he was all business.

Jack stepped forward and held out a piece of paper to Fourteen. "There was a note."

Of course there was. Even though Fourteen got the message loud and clear, the Colonel would still have left a note. It was his style to be as much of a bastard as humanly possible.

Even though he knew it was going to piss him off, Fourteen opened it and read the brief contents.

Thanks for the gift. See you soon.

~ The Colonel

Fourteen's face was impassive, but inside he was boiling.

Yes. Fourteen would definitely be seeing that fucker soon.

"Who's your dead friend?" Jack asked.

"I don't have friends. He was a coworker."

"Elaborate," Marshall said. Fourteen still didn't like the man, but at least he knew how to get to the point.

"My old boss killed this guy for helping me, and now he has a set of armor like mine. He probably wants me back."

"Wonderful. I've been wanting to meet the charming people you used to work for." Jack had a bloodthirsty smile.

Cym moved over to Fourteen and wrapped himself around Fourteen's arm, twining their fingers together so their skin was touching. "He can't fucking have you."

Emotion flooded Fourteen, but it wasn't what he wanted, so he gave Cym's hand a squeeze and moved away enough to become what he needed to be.

Marshall's voice was cold as ice when he said, "I'd like to meet him too."

"Uhh…would someone like to tell me what the hell is going on here?" Sterling's voice cut in.

"No," Fourteen said automatically and held out an arm to bar Cym from going to his brother in case he tried.

Sterling didn't give off bad guy vibes, but Fourteen still didn't like him. Fourteen didn't give a shit whether he'd been a child or not while Cym had been locked up. He was still an accomplice and not to be trusted.

Plus, he seemed basically useless, so there was no point in keeping him around to distract Cym from paying attention to Fourteen.

"What Fourteen means is that it's overly complicated, and I'll explain it to you later." Cym put a hand on Fourteen's arm and pushed down, trying to get him to lower it. The pressure was nothing to Fourteen, and he could have held out against it for hours without any strain. When his arm didn't budge, Cym made a noise of exasperation. "I don't need you to protect me from my brother."

Fourteen kept his arm where it was.

Cym glared at him and said, "Fine. What are you doing here, Sterling?" He went on his toes so he could see over Fourteen's arm.

"I came to bring you home. Without that asshole, if possible. You don't need him anymore."

"Yeah, no. That won't be happening." Cym clamped himself onto Fourteen's side, and their unspoken no-intimacy in front of strangers plan went right out the window.

It was a stupid idea, looking back. Fourteen was pretty certain that it was an important part of self-actualization to be able to recognize bad ideas when they happened and discard them at will. Now that he thought about it, if Cym wanted to cling to him, it was okay by him. In fact, if Cym wanted to climb inside Fourteen's clothes, as long as he could keep his hands free to fight, he would comply.

Cym hung on tightly as he continued to speak, and Fourteen dropped his arm to wrap it around him. "I can't go back with you. That's not my home anymore."

"You're damn right it's not," Fourteen growled.

"Don't be an idiot, Cym. The Stillbringer can't run around with a norm. If you come back to the Blaike estate, we have the resources to help you. The family wants you to come back, and they sent me here to bring you home. Don't you see? It's all over. The family is safe again. You can come back and forget this bullshit with Hester ever happened."

"Forget?" Cym pulled away from Fourteen, and Fourteen reeled him back in for safekeeping. "You want me to forget being abandoned to rot by my family? So that they can use me and trot me around as their fancy new showpiece? I don't even know what the Stillbringer is supposed to do, and you think I can trust the family not to take advantage of that? After what they let happen to me?"

"Cym…" Sterling went from being righteously indignant to being a lost kid in an instant. "I just want things to be like they were. I want to make things better."

"You can't. Even if it were possible to give me back my childhood, it's not your job to fix this. If you really want to help, don't let a bunch of old, crusty assholes put words into your mouth to try and trick me into coming back. Learn to think for yourself, and don't let them use you."

Sterling was left gaping at Cym like the dumbass Fourteen had taken him for.

"Well fucking said, Cym!" Jack held up a massive hand for a high-five. Cym gave Fourteen a glance before holding up his hand and smacking it gently. "We're gonna need to work on that upper body strength of yours, though. You won't be able to fight for shit the way you are now."

Fourteen stared Jack down as he said, "He's fine the way he is." Cym didn't need to be able to fight. He had Fourteen for that now.

Cym didn't seem to have an opinion on the matter, because he turned to Marshall and asked, "What is the Stillbringer supposed to do, anyway? I get that I'm a conduit to infinite power, but what does that mean?"

Marshall, who'd been leaning quietly against a wall and watching the drama unfold, perked up. It was a bit like seeing a teacher who'd been watching his students exercise the rudimentary skills he'd taught them realize it was time for him to step in.

"You don't have to do anything, Cym. Your life is yours to live. The only obligation you have to the Other is to learn control. Otherwise, how you use your power is up to you."

"That makes no sense at all, Marshall. What if I decided to rule the world?"

Marshall laughed. "The Source wouldn't have chosen you if you were that kind of person. A person doesn't get chosen to be Stillbringer to become a ruler or a saint. They're chosen because they are the right person to help keep the balance. No one can tell you what to do because no one can know what you need to do but you. If you're needed in a situation, you go there instinctively and help in whatever way necessary. It's just who you are."

"Nope. Nuh-uh. I reject this. I don't know how to instinctively do anything, Marshall. Zero skills going on in here." Cym gestured toward his head with the hand not currently wrapped around Fourteen's hip. "Seriously, I am almost completely useless."

"Bullshit," Fourteen said without hesitation.

"You're right, Fourteen. Strength training can wait until Cym gets in some serious hug therapy. I'm really good at that if you need instructions." Jack draped an arm around Marshall's shoulders as if to give an example. Then he reached out to Adelle to drag her in as well. He squeezed the siblings against his massive chest and ignored their protests until he seemed satisfied he'd gotten the point across.

"Pass." Fourteen was pretty sure if Jack hugged Cym like that he'd crush him to death. "I'll take care of any hugging that's necessary."

"Fine. I've got my hands full with Marshall anyway." Jack released Adelle but gave Marshall another spine-popping hug before releasing him.

Adelle moved out of hugging distance and brushed off her clothes and hair, acting like a cat who'd been mortally offended.

Marshall went back to his lecture like he was used to being manhandled on a regular basis. "No one is useless, Cym. Some people just haven't found their passion yet. And the Source wouldn't have chosen you if you weren't right for the mantle of the Stillbringer. You've already proven you've got what it takes. You found me when I needed you most. I would have died if you hadn't shown up when you did."

"And me," Fourteen said. "If you hadn't found me right after my handlers died, I would have gone back to The Company, been debriefed, and probably wiped again."

In hindsight, the timing had been uncanny. If Cym had run down that alley while Fourteen had been mid-mission and his handlers were still alive, Cym would likely have become a casualty, and Fourteen would never have known how close he'd come to his own salvation. It was possible that Steve or Frank would have ordered Fourteen to gun Cym down himself.

Fourteen tossed the emotions inspired by the thought to The Cold to let it deal with them. He wanted no part of that thought experiment.

Fourteen gave Cym an extra squeeze and it was returned two-fold.

"They can't ever have you back."

Cym's words hit Fourteen like an order, and for once, it was one he was happy to comply with. "No. They can't."

"You're a natural at hug therapy, Fourteen. A plus." Jack gave him a thumbs-up.

Cym turned to Marshall. "So you're saying all I have to do is be myself?"

"Exactly."

"That makes no sense at all. You realize that, right?"

Adelle gave Jack a wide berth and came up to Cym. She also kept a healthy distance, which Fourteen appreciated. "You don't need to understand it for it to work. Just trust Marshall. I promise you he won't steer you wrong. My baby brother is an excellent teacher."

Sterling finally came to his senses to butt in, saying, "I mean no disrespect to Guardian Adelle, but do you really trust strangers more than you do your family?"

"After being inside Marshall, I think I know him pretty well," Cym said hotly.

"I think you could have phrased that one better, sweetheart," Jack said with a laugh.

Fourteen gave Marshall the stink-eye for existing, but otherwise he kept his thoughts to himself. If he didn't like the reminder of how quickly Cym had become close with Marshall, that was his business.

"I don't need to do much. After teaching you to control your power, all I have to do is point you toward the library, Cym. I have a feeling you'll be able to take it from there." Marshall tapped the side of his head as if to remind everyone that he'd been inside Cym's mind just as much as Cym had been in his.

Fourteen gave him another dose of stink-eye in case Marshall had missed the first one.

"You have a library?!" Cym wiggled and tried to slip free to race toward a library he didn't know the location of, and Fourteen was tempted to let him go to see how far he got on his own before realizing he was lost in the maze-like corridors of the mansion.

"Hold on, tiger. Let's deal with the body in the lobby first, shall we?" Jack kneeled down next to Harper's body but didn't touch it. "What do you want us to do with him? Did he have family we can send his body to?"

"No family." None of the agents had families. It was a requirement. One that Fourteen hadn't complied with voluntarily.

"Hmm, that makes this tricky. What would you like us to do with him?"

"Whatever you normally do with bodies in this situation."

Everyone turned to Marshall.

"Hey, this is a first for me. We don't see a lot of dead norms in this line of work."

"I've got this, Guardian Marshall. It's my chapter house, after all. Eir, my love," Samatha called softly. "Can you take this poor man back to the earth?"

Harper's body shimmered before fading away. Fourteen noticed the vague outline of a humanoid figure in the air above the body before it faded away as well.

"Eir?" Cym asked.

"She's introverted," Samantha said, like it explained everything.

Cym nodded slowly, but it was clear to Fourteen that he didn't understand any more than Fourteen did. "Where were we? Let me think… dead body… library… lessons… Oh yes. Sterling." Cym turned his attention to his brother. "You should probably go for now. I'm not coming home with you, and this isn't your problem to deal with."

Sterling's eyes went red and it looked like he was trying not to cry. "Are you ever coming back?"

Cym frowned. "I don't know. All I do know is that I don't belong there right now. But I think I do belong here…" Cym's words trailed off and his eyes held a hint of uncertainty. "Right?"

"Of course you do, sweetheart." That came from Adelle. Her smile was soft and comforting. Fourteen could feel it even though it wasn't aimed at him.

"Obviously. Things are more fun with you around." That was Jack, eyes sparkling like they held the best secret known to mankind in their depths.

"You belong where you say you belong," said Marshall the asshole.

Yes, he was useful. And yes, Fourteen still thought he was an asshole.

"You already know how I feel," Fourteen said simply.

"Okay then. I'll go, but I'll come back to get you for Hester's trial." Sterling moved toward Cym like he wanted to hug him. Fourteen gave him his best try it and see what happens look, and Sterling skittered backward, turned, and all but ran out the front door.

"So now what?" Cym asked. "This Colonel guy is coming for us?"

Us.

It was such a tiny word for it to mean so much.

Fourteen nodded, but then stopped himself. "No. He's not coming for us."

He met eyes with Jack who caught on instantly.

The smile that lit Jack's face was incandescent, and he said, "This is going to be so much fun."

"He's not? His note makes it seem like he is," Cym said, confusion written on his face. Fourteen watched as his smart little man put it together. "No.. he's not coming for us, is he? We're coming for him ."

"Exactly."

Marshall nodded his assent, and his sister followed suit.

Fourteen would need to be careful with how he proceeded. Somehow, in the past two days, Fourteen had gone from having nothing worth living for to having someone worth dying for, and even with the support of the guardians, The Company wasn't to be fucked with lightly.

Fourteen wasn't an idiot. The power of friendship wasn't going to save the day.

Being soft wouldn't get him the win he needed.

Fourteen needed the monster.

Cym poked Fourteen in the side. "Hey, so about those tacos…"

The monster could wait for now. His person needed tacos.

The End