something's made your eyes go cold (6)
TEEN!gojo x FEM!reader but mostly TEEN!geto x FEM!reader (platonic) - soulmate AU
TW⚠️: geto suguru defects soooo be warned, reader is not a sorcerer, geto is beyond mean, angst/hurt, gojo does not show up at the end, friends to enemies, mentions of sex, and loss of virginity off screen (from gojoxreader)
a/n: special chapter for my fav criminal💜 this is not proofread!!!!!
something's gone terribly wrong
Geto Suguru appreciated Satoru's soulmate, besides him, his best friend would have another constant in his life. Someone else who would care for him unconditionally, and just like Suguru vowed to protect Satoru - he vowed to protect her. He was strong after all, and the strong must protect the weak.
When Satoru wasn't there, it was Suguru who would keep her safe from curses; curses that reared their ugly heads when Satoru wasn't around. They were far more daring when she was alone, even if Suguru was with her. He was nowhere near as fearsome as his best friend, but he handled the curses just fine without him.
Let the curses underestimate him, it made them easier to deal with, easier to keep her safe from harm.
If Gojo Satoru was on a mission and Suguru was still in the city, then he would routinely check up on her - Satoru couldn't warp at long distances yet, so if anything happened to her, he would not make it in time, so Suguru took it upon himself to be her protector. She needed it and Satoru needed her, and Suguru cared for them both deeply.
Sept. 19, 2006
' ' it's getting dark and it's all so quiet ' '
A curse tried to latch itself onto her when Satoru was cities away on mission, Suguru exorcised it expertly, with her back turned to him without even realizing she was ever in danger.
A soft smile graced his lips, "Everything alright?"
She jumped at his gentle voice, not realizing he was behind her, "Ah, Geto," she returned his gentle smile, "I didn't see you there. I'm alright, you?"
"I'm doing fine," Suguru looked up at the cloudy sky, "Come on, it looks like it's gonna rain. I'll walk you home."
The walk was full of light and awkward chit chat, despite Suguru's best efforts to be friendly. He supposed he shouldn't be too surprised, they had only met a couple of times; he supposed it would take time for her to warm up to him, at least she wasn't given him the cold shoulder like had been to Satoru. Suguru never put in a good word in for his best friend, he had said awful things about her - Satoru deserved her silent treatment.
Suguru wasn't too worried about it though. They were soulmates and while he didn't understand it, he had always admired it. He was even proud of Satoru for discarding his old and stupid opinions of her and actually putting in work to try and win her over.
"Thank you, Geto," She awkwardly waved goodbye to him when they arrived outside her family's bakery.
Suguru only smiled, "No problem."
He turned to leave and scrunched his nose up the gray sky. He was going to get caught in the rain for sure.
Oh well, "See ya."
Suguru's phone buzzed in his pockets:
Gojo.S: thank you :)
The shops bell chimed, and then, chimes again, and she yelled for him.
Suguru tilted his towards her, half-shocked, she had never called out to him before, but there she was with her hands outstretched towards him - a clear plastic umbrella and a styrofoam to go box.
Suguru gingerly took them from her hands, "Thank you."
Her cheeks were slightly pink when their hands brushed, "It's the least I could do. Thank you again for walking me home."
With that, he left with the protection of the umbrella from the rain and hot pastry warming up his hand.
His phone buzzed again:
Gojo.S: no way, she likes you more than me, right???
Gojo.S: I'll fight you >:( don't think that I won't
Suguru chuckled and rolled his eyes.
Geto.S: guess that means she has better taste than I thought
A flurry of rushed texts blew up his phone - worth it.
Nov. 28, 2006
' ' i thought i had you figured out ' '
A text had woken him up in the morning. Suguru was expecting it to be Satoru, sending him photos of his lastest mission away from Tokyo, but no, it was ______.
____._: sorry to bother you so early in the morning, but do you know what sweets are satoru's favorites and his favorite flavored cake???
____._: he never says he just eats anything sweet
That certainly sounded like Satoru.
Suguru yawned as he typed out:
Geto.S: He's a glutton
Geto.S: I'm sure anything will be fine but he does prefer kikufuku as for the cake - angel cake seems to be the best option
He rubbed his eyes and slid his phone closed, he needed to change into his uniform - wait... no, he needed to shower first.
His phone buzzed in his night stand. He gave it a quick look over, before he ridded himself of his clothes and hopped in the shower:
____._: thank you!!!! I owe you big time :D
____._: you like soba right?? My treat!
Suguru was glad, she felt like she could rely on him. He wanted to be relied on, if she relied on him, the easier it was to keep her safe from anything that tried to grab her in the darkness.
There had been too many close calls and it all reminded him of - No, she was not Riko. Suguru would not make the same mistakes.
When he got out of the shower and changed, he texted her back.
Geto.S: We can go shopping together
Geto.S: Are you free at 4:15?
Thirty minutes later she texted back:
____._: yep, where do you wanna meet?
Geto.S: I'll meet you at your school
Geto.S: We'll leave from there
____._: See you then :D
Suguru was right on time waiting outside of her school gates. He kept his eyes trained on curses energy residuals, and the curse dwelling on at the school - none of them were powerful, none of them posed a real threat to anyone.
Good, he could rest easy for now.
A bag slung around her shoulder, she enthusiastically waved at him as she ran up to him with a bright smile quirking her lips up, "Geto!"
Suguru's smile was as it always was soft, but this time he wasn't tip-toeing around her, afraid he would scare her away.
They were friends.
Of course, he kept things from her like the curses that tried to hurt her, but so did Satoru, but he supposed, Satoru didn't need to - nothing dared to touch her while he was around her. She couldn't even see them, so Suguru didn't feel the need to worry her about it, especially when he would protect her from it. She was already worried about Satoru as it was, no point in adding something else on to the list.
She chewed on her lip, "His mission isn't too dangerous is it?"
Suguru placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "No, he will be back in two days tops."
Still, she closed her eyes to check on him. He didn't blame her if he had felt Satoru die, he would check on him all the time.
She quickly blushed in embarrassment when she realized Suguru was watching, "I'm not a stalker -"
Suguru laughed.
Her cheeks burned into darker and brighter shade of red, "Don't laugh at me! I'm just -"
"Worried?" He chuckled out, "Come on, worry wart. If I remember correctly you owe me a soba."
Today, a curse user tried to sneak up behind her. To take her or kill her, Suguru didn't know. Not that it mattered, he pummeled him into a bloody pulp and called a window to take him back to jujutsu tech where he would wait trial by the higher ups.
Execution, no doubt. Suguru didn't care that's what the curse user gets for trying to pick on the weak, and on his best friend's soulmate no less. If anything, Suguru considered him lucky - it would've gone worse for him if Satoru had been the one to catch him. Forget about being beatened to a bloody pulp, imagine getting erased with a shot of hollow purple? Very lucky.
"Geto," she called out to him as she showed him a shirt, "what about this one?"
Suguru pocketed his bruised knuckles, "Yeah, he'll like that one."
She cheerfully skipped to the cash register and waited for the man to ring her up.
Suguru's eyes narrowed at the man, he seemed normal, but something was bothering him. Suguru was behind her in a few quick steps, his face seemingly expressionless when he took the bag from the clerks hand, before she could even raise her hand to grab it for herself.
The clerk waved them off as both teenagers said thank you, but Suguru lagged slightly behind her with his hand on the small of her back, keeping his senses trained on the clerk until they were at a safe distance, but then he saw a woman standing ominously a little ways away from them. A glance behind him and he saw the store clerk - shit. This was fine, nothing he couldn't handle, but his friend would no longer be blissfully ignorant about the dangers that were lurking around her.
"Yo!"
Suguru's shoulders visibly relaxed. The grip on her waist loosened as he waved at Gojo Satoru. The girl's smile widened into something more joyful as she wrapped her arms around Satoru's torso, pulling him into a warm hug.
Satoru rested his head on top of hers as he always did now and only kept one arm around her, but still hugged her close to his chest.
"You're back early," Suguru raised his fist and Satoru fist bumped him in greeting.
Satoru grinned, "It was easy peasy."
She peered her head up from his chest with the warmest smile, "So you're not hurt?"
"Nah," Satoru placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, "nothing can touch me."
But Suguru was the flicker in his best friend's eyes, not much concern for himself, but for her, and Suguru knew why Satoru had come back early and why he had no doubt finished his mission as quickly as possible; Satoru had seen the store clerk for what he truly was through her eyes.
Suguru remembered the time, he had asked Satoru, if closing his eyes would leave him vulnerable. Satoru had smirked and smugly said:
"Nope, my six eyes work just fine. It just takes a little more focus."
Satoru's smugness was all Suguru needed to know that it took no effort at all to do what he does when he looks through her eyes, especially when he does it constantly.
Suguru casted his gaze back in front of him, the woman was gone and he could no longer sense the store clerk.
Of course, they were gone. One thing was fighting Geto Suguru, it was another fighting Gojo Satoru.
She tip-toed and kissed Satoru's cheek.
Suguru smirked, "I thought you two weren't dating?"
She turned pink, "We're not."
"Yet," Satoru added with a smug smile.
After they dropped her off home and Satoru begrudgingly let her go, (Suguru didn't know why he was pouting so much seeing as he was most likely going to see her tonight) Satoru pout widened into a grin.
"I have a plan."
Suguru let out a hearty laugh when he explained what his plan was - Operation: Love Quest.
Oh, he couldn't wait to tell Shoko.
Feb. 12, 2007
' ' i have known it all this time ' '
Valentine's Day was approaching and Suguru was now a victim of Satoru's incessant shopping sprees. Nothing was too much for his soulmate, he needed to get her everything.
Flowers (she liked pink peonies the most, Suguru learned recently), chocolates, sweets, dresses, jewelry, more sweets, and god knew what else.
"You've gotten her enough," Suguru yawned sleepily, "don't you think?"
Satoru was looking at a simple princess cut diamond ring, scratching his head.
Suguru playfully shoved him, "And it's a little too soon for an engagement ring."
Satoru tilted his head toward him with a frown and was slightly offended, "I would never get her a 0.10 carat diamond for an engagement ring," he grumbled, "It's far too small."
Suguru leaned against the glass counter, "I get this is your Valentine's with her, but you're over doing it just get her something you know she'll like."
"What type of girl doesn't like diamonds?"
"The type that'll feel bad when you get her a mountain of presents, when she only got you like three." Suguru said, "Not everyone has generational wealth to sustain them."
Satoru's pointed look softened as he smiled widely, "She got me three?"
Shit, Suguru wasn't supposed to tell him, "Yes, and I'm not telling you more."
"That must mean she really likes me, huh," Satoru's eyes glittered brighter than any precious stone in the store, "as the best boyfriend ever I have to at least get her twice as that."
"You already have." Suguru sighed, "Triple, I'd say."
Satoru ignored him, "Yo, sir! Sir! Sir!" He tapped the glass annoyingly, "That one!"
The jeweler smiled, "What size?"
"Shit, I don't know her ring size."
Satoru turned Suguru and before he could say anything, Suguru had slid his phone open and called her.
She answered at the second ring, "What's up?"
"You free right now?"
"Yeah."
Satoru started whispering, "Don't tell her to meet you here."
Suguru pushed his face away from his and gave her a meeting time.
The jeweler gave him a ring size measurer and with that Suguru left to meet her.
When she wasn't looking he would look at her fingers and take out the measure trying to gauge which size it was after careful deliberation, be concluded a size 5.
After an hour or so, she had to leave - something about an essay and homework she had to work on before Valentine's Day.
Suguru sent one of his curses with her to make sure she got home safe.
Satoru berated him when he got back, "What size?"
"Five," Suguru handed the measure back to the jeweler.
"That one," Satoru grinned out and then dragged Suguru to another shop.
It was going to be a long day of shopping again.
Apr. 4, 2007
' ' oh, holding my breath ' '
Shoko had stolen ______ for the day, claiming she needed a break from Satoru.
"You're beyond clingy," Shoko said, "Don't want her breaking up with you because you never gave her space right?"
Satoru's eyes widened, "Did she tell you that?"
Shoko being Shoko, said, "Maybe."
So there Satoru was fighting the urge to call or text his soulmate.
"Shoko was lying, right?" He asked Suguru, "Ain't no way, she wants to break up with me, right?"
Suguru drank his hot tea, "I'm sure she was just joking."
Or maybe she wasn't, but Suguru didn't want to tell Satoru what ______ had told him in private.
It wasn't that she didn't like him anymore, it was the incessant thoughts in her mind. Thoughts she couldn't push away any longer and as much as she cared for Satoru, he would never understand. Suguru would do though, he always understood.
She had been nervous at first, texting him to meet with him privately at a cafe without Satoru knowing, he was out on a mission anyway, he was focusing his six eyes on finding the curse, instead of closing his eyes to see where she was, but in the end, she faced up, after Suguru coaxed it out of her with soft smiles and a promise not to laugh.
"You have to promise again, not to laugh," She said.
He wanted to laugh now, but he knew she would shut down if he did, "I promised already."
"Again."
"Alright," pressed his lips together to keep himself from chuckling, "I promise, will you tell me now?"
She wondered a lot about how she should phrase it. Worthy? Good enough? Holding him back? Which word encapsulated what she felt when she saw a curse through Satoru's eyes, but could never see them on her own.
Worthless was the word she was looking for, she realized that a few weeks ago.
She bit the inside of her cheek, Suguru would for sure tell Satoru, if she started the conversation like this, so instead, she said, "It's not a problem, is it that I'm not a sorcerer," she played with the straw in her drink, "or that I can't see curses - I mean -"
Suguru stopped her before she could get in any farther, "Satoru was an idiot when he said that." Suguru smiled in the way that made everyone feel accepted, "He never meant any of that."
Yes, he did. At the time they both knew that he did, but she didn't say anything.
"Things are different now," Suguru scooted his chair closer to hers, "Satoru cares about you a lot, I know he does." He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and rubbed soothing circles on her, "He'd throttle even me if it meant to keep you safe."
And Suguru was proud of him. His best friend was finally turning into the person he knew he could become - he was still annoying and arrogant, but he was no longer cruel and dismissive of others.
She let out a laugh, "I don't think he would go that far."
"I do," Suguru said firmly. "A lot of people can't see curses or jujutsu, it's not something to be ashamed of and Satoru has enough cursed energy and strength for the both of you."
She shook her head, "And when he's not here?" She looked at Suguru, "What then? I'm not stupid, you know, I may not be able to see curses, but I know whenever Satoru shows up randomly or when you show up to walk me all the way home - It's for a reason." She crossed her arms, "Shoko does it too, but she has a better poker face."
Suguru should've known that she knew. It had been months, it would've been odd if she hadn't noticed their overprotectiveness from even Shoko.
"You're our friend, ______," Suguru said, "we just want to make sure you're safe."
"I know. It's just -" She let out a long breath.
"Frustrating?"
She nodded, and then a bashful look, "Promise, you won't tell Satoru?"
Suguru smiled again, "I promise, but I do think you should talk about it with him." He drank some of his tea, "I'm sure he'll listen if it's coming from you."
But until then, Suguru was there to listen. Sometimes all someone needed was a friend.
Satoru's voice brought him back to the present, "She hasn't said anything to you right?"
Suguru rolled his eyes at him, "She's not going to break up with you."
"Did she tell you that?"
"Satoru," Suguru warned, "she's probably just stressed. Exams are coming up, aren't they?"
Satoru nodded, "Yeah..." He pulled out his phone from pocket and flipped it open as a smile graced his lips, "I'll help her study after she's done hanging out with that traitor that should relieve some of her stress."
Suguru doubted that would help since exams weren't what was plaguing her mind, but other more complicated things. If it got too far, he would tell Satoru. He might get punched in the face or a reversal Red shot at him, but it would be for the best.
Jul. 24, 2007
' ' something keeps me holding on to nothing ' '
Satoru had punched him in the face when Suguru told him. All this time Suguru knew why she was acting weird, he had known for months and he hadn't told him. It would've been different if she had told Shoko and Shoko didn't tell him, but Suguru? Suguru who was always supposed to have his back - it was betrayal.
Satoru put up two fingers and almost chanted: Curse Technique Reversal: Red, but stopped himself.
"Is she still talking to you about it?" He gritted out.
"No," Suguru rubbed his swollen cheek, "she wanted to tell you herself, but I think she's scared to bring it up."
Scared? Why would she be scared of bringing something like this up to Satoru? He was her boyfriend, her soulmate - she shouldn't have, had to feel scared to tell him anything. He would have listened, he promised to himself that night when he was all bloody that he would.
"I promised I wouldn't say anything," Suguru said, "but you two do need to talk about it."
Satoru ran his hand through his soft white hair and closed his eyes. He frowned when he saw her writing an essay down on a piece of paper - she was home.
Suguru spoke up again, "Do you want to hit me again?"
Satoru sighed and opened his eyes to look at his best friend, "No," he fixed his glasses, "just don't keep something that important from me again."
Satoru warped away, no doubt to talk to his soulmate. Suguru only hoped he had told him in time, before more damage could be done for his friends.
It was night when Yaga had knocked on Suguru's door.
"Where's Satoru?" Yaga gruffed out, "He hasn't been here all day."
Suguru always covered for him and he wasn't going to stop now, "He went for some sweets, you know how he gets."
Yaga shook his head, not believing a word that came out of Suguru's mouth, but he left anyway.
Suguru looked at his phone and thought about calling Satoru, but shook his head. He probably wasn't coming back til later, so Suguru fell asleep instead.
He woke up at noon with a grinning Satoru at the foot of his bed instead.
Suguru blinked as he assessed him, at least he didn't look heartbroken, instead overjoyed and a little smug. Satoru's snowy white hair was a mess as if someone had raked their hands through it roughly, his glasses were askew, and his lips were swollen and smudged with pink lip gloss smearing across cheek to his neck as his neck had deep red and purple marks that shaped into a heart, and his clothes looked a mess.
Suguru chuckled, "I take it things went well?"
"She said she loves me," Satoru squeaked out in glee.
Suguru pulled his long black hair back, "And?"
Satoru's grin had softened, yet it stayed plastered on his face, "I said I love her too."
Suguru pointed at hickeys that shaped into a heart, "That's all?"
"We had sex," then, Satoru playfully shook his head and sang lowly, "No, we made love."
Suguru almost vomited at that, "Go take a shower lover boy."
Satoru walked backwards as he skipped happily into his dorm room and yelled, "I am a lover boy!"
Sept. 2007
' ' come on, don't leave me like this ' '
She had just finished mopping the bakery's floor when Suguru came in, his long hair was down with only a small bun tying some of the more unruly parts of his hair.
She waved at him, "What's up, Geto?"
His smile wavered when he saw her like this was the first time he had seen her.
"Is something wrong, Geto?"
"Yes actually," Suguru frowned, "I want to talk to you."
She dropped the mop in the bucket and wiped her hands on her apron, "What is it? What happened?"
Maybe, she should text Satoru - No, he was there for her a couple of months ago, she should be here for him now.
"I think you were right before," Suguru pocketed his hands, "about it being a problem - you not being a sorcerer."
"What are you saying?"
Suguru ignored her, "I think you weren't saying the right words before," his eyes told and black, "instead of a problem, I think you meant a pest, a worthless one."
Her eyes widened, "Geto -"
Suguru's eyes hardened into a glare, "Don't interrupt me," he paused for a second like he was about to add something else, but stopped himself, before continuing, "all this time you were worrying that you were holding Satoru back, you were right."
Tears welled in her eyes, "I told you all of that in confidence." She flinched back when Suguru took a step toward her, "You're my friend."
"I was never really your friend," Suguru spat out, "I realized that I only ever really tolerated you for Satoru."
"Stop," she whispered putting her hands up as if she could stop his words from reaching her, "just stop it. Satoru and I talked about this already - he loves me."
She blinked her tears away. If this is how Suguru truly felt, then he wasn't allowed to see her vulnerable, only Satoru and people she trusted were allowed to.
Suguru stalked up to her, until she was backed up against a wall. She quickly flinched to the side when Suguru's hand shot up to the empty space behind her and for a second, she heard something squirming and writhing in his hand.
Suguru gave her one last cold look before purple blood splattered on the walls, "This is the last time I save you, ______."
' ' i can't turn back now, i'm haunted ' '
Gojo: You really hurt her feelings and she's been crying non-stop -
Geto: Womp-Womp
Gojo: Did you just FUCKING say womp-womp?!
@phoenix666stuff @96jnie @mr-underhills-things @whatamidoing @wbad-world @ancientimes @whippedbyikemen @sammyiguess (can't find you sorry) @pumpkindudeishere @witchofthecoffee @arminswifee (another one that cannot be tagged sorry) @weebotaku21 (another one I do not understand why) @nevermoresworld @jjk97091 (cannot tag you sorry) @toshirolovebot @marblesphere @sabo-has-my-heart @laurenzitaa
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Lucid Dreamer (1/2)
part 2
Gepard notices that it's been. Quiet lately. Like weirdly quiet. TOO quiet. He hasn't seen Sampo Koski in almost a week, which is about the longest he's ever been absent. And he is NOT worried. He's not! So what if they've been getting along more lately! So what if Gepard sometimes looks for him in his favorite hiding places! So what if he's been dreaming about blue hair and green eyes! It's nothing!!
But they're….strange, these dreams. Gepard doesn't usually remember what he's dreamt. It's out of his mind seconds within waking up. But these stick with him, they won't leave him be, they feel different somehow.
He dreams of Sampo bringing food to the frontlines and eating breakfast in his tent with him. Sampo always sneaks him extras. He dreams of chasing Sampo through the alleyways, Sampo sometimes letting himself be caught, Gepard sometimes catching him, and trying to ignore how it feels more like a game now more than anything else. He even dreams that Sampo tags along with him on one of his few civilian days. Sampo runs errands with him, prattles about inane bullshit while Gepard picks out groceries for the week, drags Gepard into some bakery he's never been to but he thinks Serval mentioned once.
And sometimes, it feels so close to reality, that Gepard half expects to see Sampo, shamelessly swaggering into the frontlines with all the guards' breakfast like his wanted poster wasn't only recently taken off the walls of Belobog. He's disappointed when it's always someone else instead. He tells himself his disappointment is ridiculous and if Sampo wants to go prowl around the Snow Plains or wherever he is, then fine. It's not any of his business.
…But it IS his job to investigate any unusual criminal activity relating to the frontlines. And the frontlines are Sampo's usual haunting grounds, and this is unusual activity, and Sampo IS technically a criminal, so it is absolutely part of his duty to look into this - is what Gepard tells himself the entire tram ride down into the Underground.
Natasha tells him he's gone, and Gepard has to steel himself. He knew Sampo made enemies wherever he went, there are a lot of people who would love his head on a platter, but he didn't think-
Natasha corrects him that she means literally gone. As in off-planet. Sampo always leaves her a note before he goes anywhere, so she knows not to expect any supply runs from him. He should be back in exactly two weeks. Thank the Preservation.
Gepard goes back home. He waits.
The uneasiness doesn't leave him.
"Where did you go?" Sampo stops dead in the middle of some story about Seele, and how you'd think someone with as blunt a mouth as her wouldn't have so much trouble asking a woman out, even if that woman IS the Supreme Guardian, and stares at him. He nearly fumbles his cigarette.
"Ahaha, what do you mean, I'm right here?" Sampo smiles at him the same way he always does. Gepard has no idea why he asked. It just popped out. He can never tell when Sampo is lying, anyway.
"I don't know. I feel like I haven't seen you in a long time." Gepard idly mouths at his own cigarette. He almost never smokes, but he wants to ration their stocks of Blizzard Immunity, and it helps with the cold. It's seemed colder lately, for some reason.
Gepard flicks his lighter once, twice, sighs at the third time because a metal prosthetic and thick gloves make the damn things so difficult. Sampo reaches over and wordlessly kisses the end of his cigarette to Gepard's, lighting it. "Thank you."
Nothing happens for almost a full 30 seconds. Something churns behind Gepard's ribcage. Because Sampo never leaves a "thank you" hanging. This is the part where he gives his spiel about how helpful and kind he is and Gepard either brings up how long his rap sheet was before Bronya helped clear his name, or just stares deadpan because seeing Sampo squirm is weirdly satisfying.
"…I'll be back in one more week."
Gepard jolts awake in his cot, mouth dry and eyes bleary.
The hell.
The next dream he has, Sampo looks tired. Sometimes he seems normal. Sometimes he says strange things, like how he wishes he'd gone to some restaurant in Belobog. Ate his favorite food more recently. Brought something with him. Gepard asks why he can't do that now. Where would he bring something? Sampo only shrugs. His rebuttals have less energy.
Gepard doesn't know if he wants to dream more, or less.
He ticks down the days on his calendar. Natasha hasn't told him any different. She promised she would if she got any kind of message. Sampo returns tomorrow, from whatever vacation or seedy business dealings he's been off having. He is not excited about it. He is not looking forward to it. He's not!!
Gepard falls asleep late that night, unable to settle. He dreams again.
He's alone. There are tons of people everywhere, the frontlines are always crowded. But he's alone. They all pass right by him as though he were a ghost. Gepard starts to walk before he realizes his feet are even moving.
He checks the trashcans in the dead end alley. He checks the supply crates that someone always stacks too high because they don't feel like finding more space for them. He pauses to check the soldiers that march past him, watching their footprints in the snow.
He finally finds Sampo on the rooftop along the northernmost wall, the one that looks out over the plains, towards Everwinter Hill, towards where the Stellaron had once been kept. With a full moon and an entire land of white snow, Gepard can almost see clear out to the horizon.
"Found you." Sampo stiffens, and Gepard is almost prepared for him to sprint off the roof. He doesn't. But he doesn't relax either. Gepard sits down next to him and stares out at the wastelands.
"…I fucked up." It wasn't what Gepard had been expecting. Sampo never 'fucks up,' Sampo just gets into incidents that are entirely, supposedly, not his fault and that he just happens to always be within the vicinity of.
"What did you do now?" It must be really bad if Sampo is coming to the Silvermanes for protection.
Instead, Sampo ignores his question completely. "See out over there? Right on the other side of that mountain. There's a safe house that way. It's hidden under a lot of snow and dead trees, but it's there. And in that safe house is a box full of letters. I need you to deliver those letters for me."
Gepard's brow furrows. It's a weird favor to ask. Sampo would never tell anyone where his hidden safehouses were. It defeated the whole purpose of a hidden safe house.
Something is wrong, something is really really wrong.
Gepard turns back to look at him again and startles, all of his questions dying in his throat, because the entire left side of Sampo's head is suddenly matted down, dark and sticky, his skin is dyed red red red-
"In three more months, there's gonna be something big happening." Gepard grabs Sampo's hand and it feels slick and warm against his palm. "I won't be here. So I need you to do my end of things for me." Gepard tries to keep hold, but something is fading, something is slowing, the sun is coming up but the colors are all wrong, everything feels like encroaching fog, Sampo's hand slides right through his. "I was gonna come back with my mask to finish setting the stage, but…" Gepard makes a frantic grab for Sampo's wrist, the air twists, he comes back empty-handed. "They have you. And you're the Iron Wall of Belobog. So it'll be ok."
Gepard finally manages to find his grip, snatches the front of Sampo's dark wet jacket and yanks him forward to hold onto him, and this close up, he can see it better, his colors are bleaching out, leaking outside the lines as if Sampo will become part of the background, as if he's fading into the strange fog that's been closing in on them. His fingers are already starting to feel empty again.
"Wake up."
Gepard jolts awake, uncurls his hands from where they're fisted in the blanket, scrubs the dampness off his face. Breathes. Breathes. Breathes. Today is supposed to be the day.
He throws on his civilian clothes, and he goes down to the shipyard the IPC had built. He finds a spot where he can see every person that returns to Belobog, and he waits.
And he waits and he waits and he waits.
No one he recognizes appears.
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