Who: Luke, Wren and Cassidy What: Diner conversation, which will likely have unfortunate consequences. Where: A diner. When: Directly after this. Warnings: None.
Cass was sitting in the booth, as he had been for the past half hour or so, with a mug of coffee in front of him and nothing else. He’d barely touched the coffee, ordering it only so the waitress would otherwise leave him alone.
No one would say that Cass looked well. He clearly hadn’t been sleeping very much, and continually looked up and across the restaurant as if someone might attack from that angle. If it wasn’t for this meeting with Wren, he wouldn’t have left his apartment today, and it was up for debate when he had last left at all. Whatever confidence he had picked up before returning to Seattle had obviously been obliterated.
When he spotted Wren outside the diner, Cass’ gaze hovered on her for a long moment before shifting to the hooded figure with her. He couldn’t see the man’s face, but he wasn’t a fool. Wren had gone to a party - of course she had gone with the Brandon boy she cared so much about who didn’t care about her, the one who had dragged her into danger not once, but twice. As they walked toward him, he only wondered why she had brought him along, and he did nothing to hide his suspicion with the fact that his costume partially covered his face. When they sat down, there was a long moment before he cleared his throat and spoke.
“Wren,” Cass said, as measured as he could manage. Her state - in a tawdry dress, with cheaply dyed hair, frame gone far too thin - only served to reinforce his feeling that not only was she not safe, she wasn’t being cared for. Clearly he’d been wrong to let her stay on her own for so long. “Do you want something to eat?” His gaze went to her friend. “Or you,” he said, voice a little more flat. Cass looked young, only a few short years older than them, but his eyes betrayed his age, somewhere closer to forty than twenty.
It occurred to Wren, as she walked inside, that they probably looked like college students, meeting up after a night of partying in silly costumes. She knew, even as she neared the table, that she looked very different than either of them. They had money, she didn’t, and she imagined everyone looking toward them and thinking that she was precisely what she was. Had she seen Luke lower the hood, she would have stopped and begged him to put it back up, but she didn’t see it, and she was taking a seat at the table before she noticed he’d pushed it off.
“Cass, this is Luke,” she said. “My friend,” she added, carefully choosing the word. And it wasn’t a lie, really. “We ran into each other at the party,” she clarified. Ran into each other, which was very different than going together. She folded her hands in her lap as she took the inside seat in the booth, her nervousness evident. “Coffee, please,” she said. “Light, with sugar.” It was deferential, the way she said it, and she was careful not to look anywhere too long. She noticed the flat tone of Cassidy’s voice, because it was impossible not to, and she thought maybe it wasn’t a very good start.
Luke was careful to keep his expression neutral and unreadable, hiding the dislike he’d developed even without having met the man in person until now. “Hello,” he said, all politeness, as he slid into the booth next to Wren. The flat tone in Cassidy’s voice didn’t go unnoticed, but he hadn’t expected to be greeted with any real warmth anyway. He gave the man a quick once-over, taking in his demeanor and appearance without making it obvious that he was doing so, and he didn’t like what he saw. Cassidy didn’t have the look of a man who was perfectly stable, physically or mentally.
Luke hesitated over whether or not to order anything, but ultimately declined with a shake of his head. There was no need, really; he hadn’t had much to drink the night before and felt clear-headed enough to decide he didn’t need coffee. He wasn’t sure where the conversation was going to go, or what Wren and Cassidy had planned to talk about, but he assumed he’d be taking on the role of a bystander rather than an active participant-- for now, at least.
Her friend. Of course he was. Suddenly the whole conversation was awkward and difficult to navigate. Why had she brought him along? Protection? No, she had to know he wouldn’t harm her, that it was the furthest thing from his mind. So maybe they had simply run into each other - or maybe he had insisted on being brought along. Regardless, it would likely be best simply not to engage him, even if it was impossible to ignore the effect his presence would likely have on how honest she could be. “I think I was wrong,” Casssidy said. “I think you should still come stay with me. At least until the trial is over.” At least hung heavy there. He wasn’t sure if Wren would ever be safe enough to merit sending her out on her own, not after everything that had happened, but right now she was particularly in danger. To send her to live somewhere that might be safe, or to let her stay with her ‘friend’ beside her - neither were secure enough. And while he felt secure in nothing after the Bat broke into his apartment (despite heavily reinforcing it in his wake) it was still the safest place he could think of, not to mention a place he could force her to accept his charity until she looked closer to well than far too thin.
“Gwen doesn’t mind me staying with her,” Wren insisted, forgetting to thank the waitress when she brought her coffee. She dragged her fingers along the rim of the mug, and she watched her fingertips like they were something important. She knew this conversation would be different with Luke present, but she was still determined to get a promise out of Cassidy in whatever way she could.
"It's not an issue of what she minds or doesn't. There us no guarantee that her home is safe. I can protect you." Or Cass thought he could, hoped he could. There was always the risk of the Bat or the nameless 'it' that had conspired together to steal anything resembling a feeling of security from him breaking in again, but even with that in mind, it seemed safer to keep her close to him, not with someone whose ability to keep her safe he couldn't guarantee.
Wren glanced at Luke, without even realizing she was doing it. She didn’t like where this was going, this need to protect her had brought rain and snow on the city, and she couldn’t be responsible for more people dying. “Just until the trial? And you won’t make it rain or snow if I go?” she asked, biting her lip and turning attention back to Cassidy. “I have to go the trial, or Thomas won’t get his money back,” she clarified, because taking money from Thomas was something she wouldn’t ever do. She hadn’t really thought through the lawyers yet, assuming they were on some kind of retainer and didn’t cost Thomas anything extra. “And if I go to jail, you can’t make it snow again,” she said.
“You are not going to jail,” Cass said, immediately, sitting up a little straighter at the very suggestion of it. “If I need to replace Brandon’s lawyers to guarantee that, I will.” He only then seemed to remember Luke was sitting there, and glanced over at him for a moment before looking back to her. “Until the trial,” he said. He added no ‘just.’ Who knew if she would be safe after the trial? He’d read the paper, the father of one of the boys involved in the attack clearly had some power. He might try to threaten her or hurt her, and Cass wasn’t going to allow that to happen. “If someone hurts you, I can’t promise what I’ll do,” he said. It was the most honest answer he could give her. “Until then, no.”
Luke was actually proud of himself for managing to stay quiet up until now, but there wasn’t even the slightest chance of him simply sitting by and allowing Wren to be forced into something she didn’t want. It would have been different had she genuinely wanted to stay with Cassidy, without any sense of obligation or necessity, but he knew with certainty that wasn’t the case. Having a dangerous ability was not a sort of bargaining tool to be utilized selfishly, which was--intentionally or not--exactly what the man was doing. One way or another it needed to stop.
“I think the real issue here is what Wren wants.” Luke spoke with a careful, measured sort of calm in an actual effort to remain rational rather than giving in to the cold anger he could feel just beneath the surface. “I know the woman she’s currently staying with, Mr. Moran, and she is more than capable of keeping Wren safe. You’re not the only one who cares about her.” Calm, calm, calm. He couldn’t come off as overtly threatening. “Have you asked her where she wants to stay? I understand that you want to protect her, but once again, you’re not the only one. Your ability shouldn’t play into this at all.”
When Luke spoke up, Cass visibly tensed. As far as he was concerned, this was a matter meant to be discussed between himself and Wren. Thomas Brandon's spoiled son had no business being here, let alone telling him what he should or shouldn't do, or what Wren did or didn't want, and he wasn't simply going to sit there and calmly allow him to pull Wren away to stay with people who had failed her before. "Yes. Since, clearly the people who care about her and whom she has stayed with have done an excellent job making sure she wasn't hurt or put into dangerous situations in the past." That said, laced through with ire only heightened by Luke's insinuation that he was coercing Wren into something, he turned to Wren. "This is about keeping you safe. I know it's not ideal, but it's for your good." There was no questioning the fact that Cass, to his bones, believed every word of that. She might not like it, but there was no other option available that would suitably protect her from harm.
As soon as Luke started talking, Wren’s fingers on the coffee cup began shaking, and then Cassidy tensed and she pushed the cup away entirely as he spoke. She knew he believed what he was saying, that he wanted to keep her safe, and she’d seen him the night of the rain; he was powerful, and he wouldn’t refrain from using that power if he felt it was for the best. And now he was getting angry, and his anger was directed somewhere she couldn’t control. “It’s okay, Luke,” she said, trying to keep her voice as soothing as she could. “I got myself into trouble, Cass. It’s not Luke’s fault or anybody else’s either,” she said, because that was important, for him to understand that. She didn’t understand that he saw her current state as their failure. Luke’s suggestion that this be decided by what she wanted was so foreign a concept that she didn’t even know what to do with it. There were no tree houses to run away to.
“We’ve done everything we could. I won’t say it was always enough but she’s a human being, not something to be locked up and kept away from the world.” Luke’s tone remained even, but there was a definite cold edge that came through despite his best attempts to keep it at bay. “Who are you to decide that keeping her safe at the cost of what she wants is a fair trade?” He would never stop blaming himself for the kidnapping; that was on his shoulders and he knew it, but his intention on the roof that night had been to protect Wren from those boys and he had, at least, managed that. At least he hadn’t brought hell down on a city without even a thought for how it might effect everyone outside his own singular sphere. He glanced at Wren when she spoke, his look clearly stating that it was not okay. Treating Cassidy like a child who needed to be placated in order to avoid a temper tantrum was something he refused to do. “It’s your choice,” he continued, turning back to Wren with a silent plea in his eyes. He didn’t want her to feel like she had to lie simply out of fear for the repercussions Cassidy might cause. Enabling him like that would, in his mind, only make things worse in the long term.
Cass' stare was cold. Luke continued to involve himself in business that didn't concern him, and whether he thought he was acting on Wren's behalf or not, he was obviously blind to his own failings. "You are the reason she was kidnapped. You are the reason she went to jail. I see no reason, therefor, to take anything you say about safety as a guarantee." His voice was as icy as the blizzards he'd brought down, anger zinging all the way out to his fingertips. The fire in his eyes was feverish, but lucid enough to make him startlingly coherent. When not crippled by fear, when anger managed to override it, there was no doubting whatsoever that Cass' mind was sharp. Fear, however, remained a low buzz in the background. Always.
Cass looked back to Wren. He would not actually drag her to Aubade. He would not force her to stay with him. But he would tear the city apart if anything happened to her, and that was a guarantee. He saw no selfishness in this, no coercion, only an attempt to keep her safe and punish anyone who dared to hurt her. "How safe do you feel with this woman?" he asked, chin lifting slightly. He couldn't be more skeptical. It wouldn't matter how safe she said she felt, really - this was the same bunch of people who had let her go off to jail for defending the boy next to her while he walked away without so much as a charge.
Asking Wren to make any choices based on her own desires was so foreign to her that she just stared at Luke when he said the choice was hers. Of course the choice wasn’t hers, not really. Keeping Seattle safe was more important. Keeping the people she cared about safe was more important. Keeping Luke safe was more important. Even making sure that Cassidy was okay was, to her, more important. She had no measurable sense of self-esteem, and she had never chosen anything for herself beyond what was necessary to survive.
She didn’t have a chance to dwell on that, though, because Cassidy started talking, and she was panicking before he was done with the first sentence. Across the booth, she could do very little to calm Cassidy physically, but she knew that anger, she knew where it was pointed, and she knew it was very, very bad. She reached across the booth, and she grabbed for Cassidy’s arm frenetically. “No, it’s okay. It’s not his fault. He didn’t do anything. I know you just want me safe. I know that. He didn’t do anything.” The mounting panic was evident in her voice and the shaking tug of fingers on Cassidy’s sleeve over the table.
There was no attempt at denial. Of course it was his fault; Luke had failed to protect her on both counts, and the words struck deep because he believed them. It didn’t, however, make Cassidy Moran a saint in comparison. “I did everything I could to keep her safe,” he said sharply, somehow managing to stay in his seat instead of leaning across the table and quite possibly taking a swing at the man. “Do you think I wanted her to be involved in any of that? If I could have taken the fall for that boy’s death, I would have. She’s not in jail right now, though, and she won’t be going back.” There was no doubt in his mind where that was concerned. Thomas’ lawyers were more than capable, whatever Cassidy might think. “That snowstorm you caused, it didn’t help. It just made things worse-- can’t you see that?” To Luke it was obvious, the way Wren was clearly panicking just at the slightest hint of Cassidy’s anger. “Don’t you see what you’re doing to her?” That was more urgent, almost--but not quite--a plea for him to somehow open his eyes enough to realize that he was actually accomplishing the opposite of what he wanted.
In that moment, even Cass had to recognize Wren seemed panicked. The way she tugged at his sleeve, the look in her eye - he saw fear there, real fear, and he disliked it enough that he actually looked to Luke as an alternative, which involved paying attention at least some of what he was saying, none of it good.
Little of what Luke said penetrated with Cass, but the assurance that he would have taken the fall for her did register on some level as seeming sincere. Of course, that was easy for Luke to say in retrospect when there was no option for him to do so, so the promise didn't carry the weight it might have otherwise. Cass didn't see himself as a saint, but he did see the people around Wren as, at best, incompetent. The mention of the snowstorm did nothing to abate his anger. "It got her back," he snapped, the words clipped. It was true, after all. The snowstorm had led to him finding out where Wren was when she had fallen off the face of the earth. It had worked.
Cass was almost too angry to notice when Luke's tone changed, but not quite. He looked back to Wren, reluctantly. She looked so awful, thin and tired as she was, and now clearly panicking on top of that...this wasn't what he wanted. He wanted Wren to feel safe, not afraid, and when that didn't seem to be abating, he turned his attention back to her as if Luke wasn't there at all. "Are you alright?" he asked. He clearly wasn't completely making the connection that his anger was making her panic, because he didn't want to, because he didn't like thinking that, though he could tell something he'd done had upset her. "It will be fine," he said. The anger disappeared, at least for the moment, like it had never been, his changes in mood almost as mercurial as the shifting winds within his control. "There isn't anything to be scared of."
When Luke told Cassidy he was only making things worse, Wren let go of Cassidy’s sleeve and sat back. She covered her ears with her fists (though it did little good), and she looked down at the table and didn't make eye contact with anyone. She shouldn’t have let Luke come, and she didn’t know how to fix it now. She rocked a little, and then Cassidy was going from anger to kindness, and she didn’t know how to deal with it. She just wanted it to stop, and she looked up from the table when he said there was nothing to be scared of. The switch from ire and danger was so quick, so without warning that she just stared a moment before sobbing in relief and turning her cheek to look out the window as she got her breathing back under control.
“I’m fine,” she said, forcing the calm she’d learned to fake after her mother died, more blankness than actual calm, something that just made everything go away, whatever was happening to her. “I’m okay. I promise.” Cassidy’s statement that the snowstorm had gotten her back made her take a shaking breath. “I know the snowstorm was to get me back,” she said, acknowledging that, voice going flat in a way that would have been familiar to Cassidy, but foreign to Luke. She knew Cassidy would do anything to make sure she was safe, and he decided what safe was. In her mind, staying meant he would realize she would be safe always, and there wouldn’t be anyone hurt anymore.
Luke abandoned an angry retort in favor of turning his attention to Wren, realizing too late that he might not be helping in the way he’d intended to. Cassidy either couldn’t or wouldn’t acknowledge the fact that his anger had a negative effect on her, never mind the always-present threat of what he could do with his ability that had her scared, and the blunt approach didn’t seem to be working. He didn’t know what else to do, though. Wren’s flat tone was nothing she’d ever used with him before and he didn’t like it, as though she’d just given up fighting and was willing to do whatever necessary to keep Cassidy calm. Surely that wasn’t the right way to keep his ability under control; part of him realized it was slightly hypocritical since he often put the needs of everyone else ahead of his own, but he still didn’t think it was right for Wren to made this kind of sacrifice.
She clearly wasn’t fine, but he’d come too far to just sit back and resign himself to doing nothing. Luke nudged her foot beneath the table, a hidden attempt at reassurance, before returning to his previous forced calm. “What you can do is dangerous. It is something to be scared of. I can understand that you don’t intend it to be this way, but when you use it to the extremes that you have in the past, even to protect Wren, people will get hurt and she’ll feel responsible.”
Despite everything, Cass could tell something was wrong with Wren. She had sobbed and clapped her hands over her ears, and then she was suddenly calm, and he didn't know what to make of that. He still didn't like Luke speaking for her, nor did he want to listen too closely to the things he was saying, but there was no denying that Wren seemed all wrong somehow.
"Is that true?" Cass asked her, watching her more closely this time. He didn't want Wren to be frightened, not for any reason, and certainly not of him. It had come up when they spoke before, but he hadn’t wanted to believe it. Now those doubts were circling back again.
When Luke nudged her foot, Wren looked over at him, and she gave him a ghost of a smile. He tried to be so strong, even when she knew he had so many things of his own going on. Her gaze fell to the blade wound on his arm, then to the blood that dotted his throat. When Cassidy asked his question, she looked back with a little bit of renewed strength, because she needed to get Luke out the door and away from this mess she’d dragged him into.
“I don’t want anyone to get hurt,” she told Cassidy, though she’d said it before. “Not because of me.” She didn’t think he could control it, though, and that was clear on her face, and she took a deep breath, unsure of which way his emotions would turn if presented with honesty.”I don’t feel like Gwen’s place is home. She likes me, but I think I’m a responsibility, and a replacement for someone who isn’t there anymore. I can’t go back to the club, but I don’t want to be locked up and not be able to see my friends, either.” She kept her gaze ahead, and she tripped over the word want when she said it. And that was the crux of it. With no job, she was dependant on someone’s charity. The least she could do was keep people safe.
Cass hadn't really taken any notice of the wound or the blood - they had just come from a costume party, after all, he assumed it was part of the get up, and the rest of Luke's costume was convincing enough that he didn't question the assumption. "I don't want to lock you up," he said. It was, maybe, a touch begrudging - he would prefer she avoid leaving unless absolutely necessary, but he wouldn't keep her against her will. "I just want to make sure you're safe. If you left, at least I would know you had gone and when you ought to be back, so if you went missing, someone would know right away. I would know. It wouldn't be like before, where you were in jail and I didn't know where you were for days. Do you understand?" He sounded, suddenly, a little pleading, apparently unaware that he held all the chips in this particular debate. Because really, he had no intention of strong-arming Wren into staying with him, no wish or thought to play the destructive nature of his ability to win. He wasn’t setting out to make her unhappy. What he wanted was to keep her close enough to him that he could be sure nothing happened to her, and he could quickly respond if anything did, and he saw nothing wrong with that, particularly not when she looked in such a bad way. He wondered if she was even working anymore, after her arrest. Doubtful. Wasn’t this what was best? Wren being cared for and looked after? Luke’s repeated insinuations that she might come just to keep him from wreaking havoc didn’t sit well with him at all.
Wren knew Cassidy’s good intentions - his promises to let her leave, to only require her to let him know when she left and where she was going - would only last as long as his certainty that she was safe did. When he said it like that, blunt and plain, she could imagine how it would be very clearly, an overprotective parent who was afraid to let their child leave the house, mixed with a lover who held all the power in the world over the one they loved. She knew, too, that walking out of this diner was going to be beyond impossible when it came down to it, especially if she didn’t want Cassidy blaming Luke for her exit. Had she come alone, she would have already capitulated. Now, she feared that capitulation meant Luke would do something beautifully brave and get himself hurt for her, and that couldn’t happen.
“Let him walk out of here, and promise you won’t do anything to him, no matter what, and I’ll go with you,” she said to Cassidy, not needing to look at Luke to indicate that he was who she meant. She tapped the side of Luke’s foot, echoing his reassuring tap from earlier.
Though Luke could admit (albeit reluctantly) that Cassidy’s intentions might be good, despite his initial dislike of the man, good intentions didn’t necessarily lead to an equally good outcome. He understood the desire to keep Wren safe, to ensure that nothing bad ever happened to her again, but the simple truth was that he didn’t trust Cassidy enough to believe that he wouldn’t attempt to keep her locked up at some point in the future. Nothing he’d seen or heard so far suggested that he was a particularly rational person which only convinced him that her staying with the man wasn’t a good idea. Luke would have simply asked her to stay with him instead, but it was Thomas’ apartment rather than his and he unfortunately didn’t have the right to make that kind of choice. Still, there was no doubt that she’d be taken care of; Cassidy was not her only option.
Luke was attempting to piece together a way to say this without making it seem as though he was making decisions for Wren when she spoke, and the tap against his foot was certainly not reassuring. Luke turned towards her in alarm, recognizing the fact that Wren was essentially making a deal for his safety--which he hadn’t even been concerned about--and not liking it in the least. “No, Wren,” he said, shaking his head for emphasis. “No deals. Please. He won’t do anything to me.” He glanced towards Cassidy, honestly not believing that the other man would try to hurt him, but even if he did it wouldn’t change anything. Luke meant every word of his refusal to fear Cassidy or his ability. ‘ Cass weighed Wren's proposed promise. He didn't like the idea of promising never to ever hurt Luke - he had no desire to hurt him, of course, but what if he did something in future that merited it? Anyone could turn on you, even family and the people you trusted most. But he had to admit, that was only a theoretical, and asking for his safety wasn't really asking much when he knew that it would only hurt her if he did so, much as he begrudged that fact. "I didn't intend to," he said. “I do promise, however."
Cass pulled out his wallet, and put down enough money to cover the coffees and a generous tip, standing up from the booth and glancing over his shoulder, unable to stop the compulsion to check and be sure no one was about to attack him. He paused be the edge of the table. "You don't have to come," he reiterated, watching Wren, ignoring Luke entirely. "But I wish you would."
Luke’s pleading was something Wren couldn’t ignore, couldn’t deny, but Cassidy began speaking before she had a chance to go back on her word. She knew Cassidy, and she could see in his eyes that he did not like giving the promise that was asked of him, and that did nothing but reassure Wren that the promise was necessary. She watched Cassidy linger at the end of the table, and she looked up at him a moment with pleading eyes. “Can I talk to Luke alone for a second? I’ll be right out,” she promised.’
Cassidy looked between them briefly, and then nodded. "Alright. I'll be outside," he said. He left the diner and stood just to the side of the door, back flat against the wall while he waited.
Wren waited until Cassidy was outside, and she found Luke’s fingers beneath the table and squeezed, warm and fast and desperate. “I know what you’re going to say,” she said quietly, keeping her voice down, as if she was having a perfectly meaningless conversation. She didn’t know the specifics, but she was fairly certain it would involve telling her she didn’t have to go with Cassidy. “But I’m not worth people getting hurt for. I’m not worth you getting hurt for. He didn’t want to promise. You saw.”
Luke watched Cassidy leave the diner with distrust that was still visible when he turned back to Wren, prepared to say exactly what she’d been expecting him to. Even though part of him felt like he was fighting a losing battle, he still couldn’t bring himself to back down. “I saw,” he agreed, because he had, and it did nothing to improve his opinion of Cassidy, “but you’re not responsible for him, Wren. If he hurts someone then that’s his fault, not yours, and he needs to accept the consequences. You staying with him is just a temporary solution to a bigger problem at best.” He paused. “What about Gwen? She doesn’t want you staying with him either.” It was a sort of last-ditch attempt to get through to her, because if Wren made up her mind then there was little he could do short of physically restraining her-- and he’d never do that.
“I know it isn’t my fault,” Wren said, because she did know that. “And I know it’s only temporary,” because she knew that, too. She knew it would be okay at first, and then it wouldn’t be enough, and they’d end up right back where they were. “If I sneak out of here, go out the back and don’t meet him, who do you think he’s going to blame?” she asked, turning just a little in the booth to better look at him, tugging on his fingers as she spoke. “Who is he going to convince himself made me leave? And if something happens? If I get convicted, or if I get hurt on patrol, or if anything happens at all, who do you think he’s going to blame?” she asked. “I want to stand up and tug you out through the kitchen, and run away and pretend none of this ever happened,” she admitted, sounding very much like the girl who wanted a big bed in a tree house. “But that means risking you getting hurt. Risking a lot of other people, too. What I want for myself isn’t worth all that.”
The tricky part was that Luke could see where she was coming from, and he understood her reasoning. It was the same he would use if he was in her situation, yet things were always different from the opposite side, and he hated to admit that she did have a point. For a moment he wondered if he really was putting Wren’s needs above countless others, and if he was, whether or not it was too selfish of him. “Things always happen,” he said, almost sadly. “He’d have to keep you locked up to make sure nothing does. Sooner or later he will, and then what?” He glanced over his shoulder towards the doors before looking back. “I don’t want you to go, Wren. I can’t tell you that it’s okay or even that I agree, but... I can’t stop you either,” he admitted reluctantly.
Luke wasn’t Thomas, and he didn’t push how Thomas had to make her agree to do the things he wanted her to do. She took Luke’s non-agreement to her suggestion about them running out the back as an indication it was a bad idea, which she knew it was. And even though he said he didn’t want her to go, it wasn’t forceful enough to counter her worry for what would happen to him if she didn’t. He was just a boy, and she was just making things harder for him. She’d gotten angry at Quinn for the very same thing, and here she was following suit. She squeezed his fingers again, and she slid from the booth reluctantly. “Just until we find a way to fix it?” she asked, and it was most definitely a question. If they could find a way to make him safe, to make Seattle safe, she would rather be free - of course she would. But if keeping him safe meant being locked away, she would do it without any complaint at all. She leaned down, and she hugged him so tightly that she knew it had to hurt. “Tell Gwen?” she whispered into his ear. And, with a quiet sob, “I’ll miss you so much.” She straightened, and she turned for the entrance to the diner, where Cassidy was waiting.
There was absolutely no certainty in his decision to allow her to leave, and Luke regretted it as soon as she leaned down to hug him. He was torn between backing down and taking a stand, but it was the last thing Wren said--I’ll miss you so much--that managed to cut through all his doubt. In that moment, Luke knew what he had to do; consequences be damned. “Wait,” he called after her, moving to catch up with newfound determination. “Don’t do this. We’ll figure something else out. I just-- I can’t.” He didn’t care about Cassidy, didn’t care what he thought; he couldn’t let this happen even if he tried.
“You cant...?” Wren turned around just as soon as she heard his voice, and she looked toward the front of the restaurant, and then back at him. She was sure that, behind her, Cassidy had seen him move, had interpreted Luke’s movement to mean precisely what it meant. She looked at the boy in front of her, blood staining his throat and his arm, the garb of a killer on his shoulders, and all she could see was what she felt for him. It was like she’d always imagined girls at prom felt when the boy they liked asked them to dance, and she knew that was silly, but the butterflies were there all the same. She reminded herself that there were lives on the line, that Cassidy could very much become Henry VIII, the similarities not lost on her. “And if bad things happen?” she asked, letting the fear show through. Not fear for herself, but fear for everyone else. “If we do this because I want it, and bad things happen?” Then, quieter. “Where would I even go?”
“I can’t let you go with him,” Luke clarified, even though he’d said otherwise a moment ago. He knew that there would be repercussions, dangerous ones, and he knew that he’d be at least partly responsible for them. Some part of him faltered at the thought, but he pushed forward. “Then we’ll deal with them. Together. Not just you and me, but everyone else too,” he said, aware that she’d know who he was referring to even without specifics. “You don’t deserve to bear a responsibility that isn’t even yours in the first place.” He dropped his voice to match hers, moving closer without much thought for Cassidy. “Stay with Gwen for now. She wants you there, and she’ll keep you safe. Maybe later we can--” Luke stopped, catching himself just in time with a shake of his head. “Please. Don’t go.”
She wanted to touch him, and it was hard to remember all the reasons why she couldn’t. He didn’t want her the way she wanted him, he was in love with Quinn, Cassidy was just outside, they were in plain sight and Thomas would have both of their heads for being seen together like this. Still, when he moved closer, she touched the back of her hand to the tips of his fingers, the movement hidden in the folds of her skirt. It was selfish, this, and she knew it, but she couldn’t resist him pleading with her, not when she wanted it so badly herself. “Okay,” she said in a whisper, and she glanced toward the back door. He’d have to take the first step; she was too scared to. “But I want to call Gwen and let her know, so she can decide first,” she said. “And I want you to go right home once we get out that back door. I can hide, but I want you where Thomas can make sure you’re okay. Promise?”
Cassidy was bound to be furious and Thomas was likely to kill him as soon as he got home, but Luke still couldn’t help feeling a wave of relief when she agreed. This wouldn’t make things any easier for him, not with Wren’s charges and the impending trial, but he’d become almost accustomed to the fact that most things he seemed to do ended up making him feel guilty when it came to Thomas. “Gwen will agree, but okay. Call her. I’ll go right home afterward,” he promised, knowing that he’d already crossed the line a long time ago and probably shouldn’t push his luck any further. “You’ll let me know you’re alright, though?” He waited long enough for her reply before taking her hand in his and tugging her towards the back door, moving just shy of a full-out run.
“Make sure Thomas looks at your arm and your neck,” she added, and she thought they should both get him something fantastic for Father’s Day, like maybe they should get into less trouble in the next year, but it was a little too late for that now. She let Luke tug her, and as much as she wanted to look back, she didn’t. She hugged Luke outside the door, a tight hug, her arms around his shoulders and her breathing near his ear for as long as she was willing to risk. Then, she pulled back, and she nudged his uninjured arm. “Run. I’ll call you,” she promised, tugging up the hood on his costume.
Luke had completely forgotten about the cuts from the night before, but in comparison to an angry Creation with a dangerous weather ability they seemed trivial at best. “I will,” he said, just to appease her, even as he thought of ways to ensure Thomas didn’t notice. Once they were outside he almost didn’t want to leave her, hesitating a moment longer than it should have, but after giving her hand another quick squeeze Luke pulled the hood over his face and turned, taking off as fast as he could in the other direction.