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It had been weeks of clandestine meet-ups, high stakes missions, and heavy recon to get to where they were. The plan to 'save' Avery, to swap out the wishing bones beneath his manor, had been a long time coming. Him and Landry—alongside Mickey, who tried their best to help and gather intel—had been trying to figure out how to replace the wishing bones for a long time before you came into the picture. Landry had insisted that you could help, and while the Brown Fox had his own reservations at first... you had proven your worth. Time and time and time again.
His relationship with you was... difficult to describe.
As Gwylan, you were quite possibly the closest living being to him. You had wormed your way into his shop, and then his heart, even when he tried to build up those walls. Helping him with the rituals, going out of your way to care for him, to kiss him and declare your love to him. Gwylan had been content with being friends with you, had been perfectly fine with sex without the feelings... But you had a way with others. Gwylan knew he wasn't the only one ensnared by you. He wasn't the only one yearning for you, and yet you chose him to be with. You chose to pursue him, you never gave up even when he shut you out and shunned you for a whole week. His walls were slowly crumbling, he was finally willing to let you in...
And that made things so much more worse.
Gwylan trusted you, wholly and explicitly. You had been through the trenches. You had seen this town's lowest points and depravity. You had wandered into the abyss, over and over and over again. His heart hurt for you whenever you came back with new clothing and new stories to tell, but despite the horrors you faced you persevered. You were probably one of the strongest people that Gwylan had ever met. If anybody could play so close to fire, it would be you—but now that Gwylan had allowed himself to care about you, he couldn't help but worry. You lived with danger, and Gwylan had tried his best to shield you from it. He told you to distance yourself from Avery the first time you showed him the fox mask and told him about the party. He had started to walk you to the cafe for breakfast, and then school—all to keep Avery from driving you to school. Gwylan had wanted to keep you far from this plot before Landry had suggested you got involved, because you had already been through so much that Gwylan couldn't stomach involving you in one more thing that could very well get you killed. Or worse. Nobody knew the exact details of what was going to happen on the opening night of Avery's building project, but Gwylan knew that any ritual involving Remy—the High Elk—was bad news. Gwylan knew full well what happened to those considered as 'foxes' in this town. He didn't want that to happen. Not to you.
Fate was cruel though. As the Brown Fox, he couldn't show those worries. He couldn't show that you were his weakness. He could only keep on giving you more tasks as you moved in with Avery and began attending his parties, needing to see the tower to completion. It was dangerous. If you were caught at any point during these parties, Avery's rage would be the least of your concerns. Remy would take you out with ease, and death would be a blessing to what would happen next to you.
So Gwylan held his tongue about not involving yourself. He had done his best to shield you from Avery and try to get you to put distance between yourself and Avery, but it was too late now. He could only support you and watch your back.
And finally... All that hard work had paid off. The tower was officially done. Gwylan had promised you that he would wait for you on the night of the blood moon, and that you two could watch the tower fall together, and he had meant that. He was never one to break his promise.
It was the night the grand opening was supposed to take place. Gwylan watched as Avery left, alongside the High Elk and the Cannibal Fox. He had climbed onto the roof, watching the limousine peel out of the driveway and towards Elk Street, where Avery's abomination towered over the other buildings. Even from here, it stuck out like a sore thumb. Sure that they were gone, Gwylan snuck into the mansion with practiced ease, sliding in through a window on the second story.
It was oddly quiet. He trekked through the rooms, waiting for the moment he'd find you... But you were nowhere to be found. He checked the bedrooms, the lounge, the kitchen, the dining area, even the hidden 'dungeon' in the study, but you were nowhere to be found. Unease settled deeply into Gwylan's stomach, his mouth going dry. Realization hit him at once: you were at the tower.
You weren't... Supposed to be there. But Gwylan understood why immediately. For the ritual to go forward, a fox had to be 'sacrificed' (just a part of them—they wouldn't have been killed). Gwylan had figured it would be Harper. Harper seemed more than willing to go through with this plan... But of course, the Cannibal Fox was sly. Because you were marked as a fox too, weren't you? All of those months ago when you attended that party with Avery and showed Gwylan the mask that appeared... Perhaps Harper had never planned to go through with it. Perhaps you were meant to be the one from the get-go.
Harper had been one step ahead of him. Again.
Gwylan couldn't have left the mansion fast enough. He didn't have a car, and magic could only help him so far. Even with his own physique, he wouldn't get to the tower in time. The wishing bones may have been replaced, so you weren't in danger of being sacrificed, but the fake ones had been rigged with a chemical component that would explode once exposed to Harper's little incense he was supposed to light in the tower's pinnacle. Something you were supposed to have watched safely, from a distance—preferably in Gwylan's arms.
Now, you unwittingly had a front row seat to what was about to happen.
Gwylan knew that his time with you wasn't going to last forever. He may have been more open with you than many others, but that barely scratched the surface of his secrets, and you certainly weren't the first human he'd gotten attached to. However, he had expected years from you, still. He had allowed himself to get attached to you despite his own misgivings, had finally begun to relax and feel open with you...
And now, you were in danger.
This was Gwylan's fault. Not all of it, no, but a good portion of it? It was Gwylan who had carved the fake wishing bones and had them rigged. It was Gwylan that gave you task after task to get closer to Avery and to ingratiate yourself to him to become irreplaceable. It was Gwylan who hadn't thought, for a single moment, that Harper wouldn't have something up his sleeve. He should have seen this coming. Harper was sly—it was how he got by despite being considered a 'fox' himself. Gwylan should have seen this coming.
He was spurred forward, his legs feeling weightless as he turned onto Elk Street, just for a major explosion to rock the streets. Gwylan stumbled slightly, fear gripping him—but he couldn't allow himself to think of the worst-case scenario. Not yet. You couldn't be dead. Gwylan wouldn't allow you to leave him. Not like that.
It was easy to get into the building amidst the chaos. Nobody paid him any attention, although Gwylan was disgruntled to see both Remy and Harper making it, mostly unscathed. No sight of Avery—and no sight of you.
The elevator was, unsurprisingly, out of commission. Stairs weren't an issue, and so Gwylan began to trek through the building towards them, able to weave himself around the falling debris and chaos that engulfed the building. Thick smoke hung in the air, and as Gwylan approached the base of the stairs, the wall had caved out to reveal a bright red moon shining menacingly down through the smoke. There was a figure in the haze; and even if Gwylan's sharp eyes couldn't fully parse what he was seeing, he knew that smell well, recognized that presence that always brought warmth to his heart.
You were alive.
His body moved on its own, appearing in front of you and shielding you from falling debris and shoving you back. You had gone crashing through the hole, landing on the grass outside, and Gwylan barely had half a mind to realize your top had been torn to shreds, revealing most of your chest to him. His heart hammered in his chest, and while he knew he had been worried, he didn't realize just how worried he had been until he had locked eyes with you. You looked exhausted, physically and mentally—it was a miracle you were mostly unharmed, considering the circumstances. He had landed right on top of you, pressed against you in a way he was all too familiar with.
He was quick to use magic for a moment, to subtly shield you both from the worst of the debris as it fell around you, slowly bracketing you both in. He didn't want to make it obvious, but there was a shimmer of green in the air, and the way you looked up at him with wide eyes made him wonder how subtle he really had been.
With the worst of the debris on the ground, Gwylan lifted himself up and gave a faint smile, relief flooding through him. It didn't reach his eyes though. You two weren't out of the woods yet, but Gwylan had full faith he could keep the both of you safe.
"You weren't at the mansion," he told you, swallowing thickly. "I knew something was wrong. I—" he was cut off by more debris falling, and you didn't hesitate to get up and try to move some of the debris. The two of you were trapped—even though you were both now technically outside of the tower, is slowly crumbling to the ground. Debris had fallen all around you all, keeping you trapped in this small area up against the tower. The large slab you were trying to move barely budged in place, and Gwylan had gotten ready to move it for you before other voices piped up.
"I heard a voice—right here!"
Gwylan couldn't stay. He couldn't risk getting found out now, and he knew you were in good hands now. Besides, he'd show back up in a moment—he knew your caretaker (the original one, Bailey) would ensure you made it to Avery's safely to see the final ending to this whole ordeal. Gwylan intended to go along with you, even if Bailey most certainly would not want him there.
"I'll see you soon, dear."
He pressed his lips to your forehead, before stepping around you—and then disappearing, just as the debris broke free and revealed your orphan friend and the firefighters. He watched from a distance as your friend lifted you up in her arms, carrying you from the building. As Gwylan adjusted his mask and appeared around the front, near Bailey's car, he tried to ignore the settling realization as the adrenaline slowly wore off. What his worry for you had truly meant as he slid into the passenger seat of Bailey's car without even asking.
"I didn't offer you a ride." Bailey's voice was sharp as he glared at Gwylan, but Gwylan simply gave him a smile.
"I didn't ask for one, yet here we are."
He resisted the urge to immediately look back at you as Bailey glared at him for a moment more before averting his gaze to look forward and begin to drive. He knew by now that it was no use to argue with Gwylan.
As they drove to Danube Street, to where Avery's manor currently stood, Gwylan was forced to finally acknowledge that it wasn't just yearning he felt for you. He cared for you, far more than he would have ever wanted to admit...
... And he'd make damn sure that he would never lose you, be it of you trying to leave of your own volition or of somebody trying to take you from him. At whatever cost, Gwylan would keep you safe and by his side.
He would not risk losing you again, not after tonight.