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“One, but you’re not allowed to worry about the dogs. Relax and let Mad and Red heal you.”
“He had a few broken ribs, punctured lung—” Mad listed.
Red picked up, speaking as if they were of one mind. “Fractured skull and a nearly crushed kidney.”
“This is an important lesson for you, Nolan,” Moon chimed in, his voice sounding both shaky and relieved. “Don’t play with demon dogs as big as horses. We need to start you off with smaller ones. Like demon corgis.”
Nolan huffed, but it dissolved into a groan. “Don’t make me laugh.”
“Stop it, Moon!” Mad snapped. “We’re still working.”
It was another ten minutes before Mad and Red had Nolan patched up enough that he could sit up. The two earth witches slumped on trees nearby, leaning on each other and looking utterly exhausted.
Sky remained next to Nolan, a hand on his shoulder, while Moon plopped on the ground between the two groups. He watched as Nolan poked at his ribs and rubbed his head. His expression scrunched up when he encountered sticky blood and crusty hair.
“My bones aren’t broken anymore?” Disbelief filled his words.
“All healed.” Red sighed.
“But take it slow. It’ll be a few more days until you’re one hundred percent. If you push too hard, you could re-break what we fixed,” Mad admonished.
“How do you feel?” Sky asked.
“Tender. Sore. Like I fell down a flight of stairs.” Nolan flashed him a weak smile. “What about you? Are you okay? What were all those shadows clinging to you?”
Sky gazed at his hands. “I’m fine. I was worried about you. When you went flying and hit the tree…”
Red continued when Sky couldn’t keep talking past the lump that had filled his throat. “He lost control of his powers. All that death magic he has flowing through him was leaking out or getting pulled straight from the underworld.”
Probably a little of column A and a bit of column B on that one. It wasn’t often that he lost control of his magic. At least, not since Grammy died, but her ghost had been right there to talk him through it.
He wouldn’t have been satisfied with Nolan’s ghost if something had happened to him. He wanted the flesh and blood man.
If Mad and Red hadn’t been with them…
If the dogs had hit him differently or even harder…
If…
“Sky?” Nolan reached up and wiped away a tear from his cheek he hadn’t even realized had fallen.
“Nolan,” Sky choked out. He pulled away from his lover’s touch and scrubbed at both of his eyes with the heels of his palms. “I…I don’t think this is going to work. You could have died today. My life…it’s too fucking chaotic and dangerous. And-and you’re only human. If something were to happen to you—”
Sky choked on the words that didn’t have the chance to come out, because Nolan smacked him in the center of the forehead.
“Fuck you!”
“Wha—”
“Fuck you for being prejudiced against humans! I’m not some fragile thing that needs to be protected by some big strong witch or even a vampire!” Nolan bellowed at him. He stopped and winced, pressing one hand to his tender ribs.
“I’m not prejudiced! You could have fucking died!”
“What if the dogs had hit Moon instead of me? Would you be having a talk with him right now about how you couldn’t be friends any longer?”
“No! But—”
“Fuck your buts!”
