HE WENT AWAY AND THEN I TOOK A DIFFERENT PATH | EVERETT

EVERETT   ALBERTA

Pierce knew there was someone he was forgetting. Someone he loved, but it went beyond that- he loved a lot of people. Lottie, Witchcraft, Eren, Clem, the list went on. He was in love with this person, the sensation that stirred in his chest around him the same as the one he sometimes felt around Riddler. The sensation that he shouldn't be feeling for both men, not at once, but one that he couldn't just shove aside, especially not when he was without both of them. He could remember this boy's floral, earthy smell, one that had become so familiar and comforting to Pierce, his tender touch, his sweet breath against his skin, but his name was but a whisper in the back of the serval's mind, his face a blurry image whenever he tried to dig it out of his memories. He was gone, back in the place Pierce and his family had once lived, the place that he couldn't quite name, either. The gaps in his memory were tearing him apart, sometimes returning to him in the least clear ways possible, like a feminine voice in his ear or the searing pain of red-hot metal being pressed into his skin awakening him at night. Almost the moment he jolted awake, it was all gone, no matter how hard he tried to grasp for the face, the voice, the feeling that had been so clear in his mind only moments before.

The former Blizzardclanner had been wandering his new home, the one that he was sure was just like, if not very similar to, his old one, when he tripped, likely over a thicker patch of snow or a rock. He wasn't able to regain his balance, though, instead tumbling down the little slope he'd been standing on top of. He landed in a heap at the bottom, getting a faceful of snow. As he felt the cold beginning to seep into his fur, Pierce pushed himself up, sniffing slightly as he wiped off his damp face. "Good job, Pierce," the tom mumbled to himself, shaking out his coat and raising his gaze from his paws, when a sudden movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. Almost instantly, Pierce was on his paws, an unexplainable paranoia, an instinct, still influencing him even when he couldn't remember why he was so anxious when he was all alone. He turned his head in the direction of the movement, his gaze settling on... a forest. Just a forest, in the middle of this flat little meadow. Not just any forest, though, for he knew this place- it was his forest. The place he'd grown up in. His old home. But, standing there, was something that tore his attention away from the anomaly, from the absolute absurdity of this other, old world in the middle of this new, strange place.

Beautiful, snow-white fur stood out against the green of the other serval's surroundings, striking blue-grey eyes warm and lovely enough to make Pierce melt. He was slight in build, perhaps a bit smaller than Pierce, and with a smudge of dirt on his chin, but he was perfect nonetheless, and it was in this moment that Pierce realized it was him. It was the boy, the boy he'd been looking for all this time. His boy, though his name was still lost to the dappled feline.

"It's you," Pierce uttered, voice soft and sweet as ever, though there was an uncertainty to it, perhaps a hint of fear of being let down again, just like all those dreams he had.

Pierce had dreamt of the day he would marry the man he loved since pretty much birth, but it wasn’t till he was with Everett that he’d really considered who’d it be with. He could remember, now, laying awake with the other’s sleeping form in his arms, the only night they had spent together before Ev disappeared. The sweet smell of grass and flowers had clung to the other serval’s fur that warmed Pierce’s chest as he buried his nose in it, content for the first - and last - time in months. The next morning, Everett had left, no issues at all, but Pierce hadn’t seen him again after that. He’d thought one of the raptors had finally done his boyfriend in, or that that same man who’d hurt them had gone back for the one he loved. Not knowing had almost been worse then having a straight up answer as to what tragedy had occurred.

And then he’d found out he was pregnant. Forgotten that that was possible in his female body, he supposed. He’d been alone, without Ev, without Riddler, or Lottie, or even a simple friend like Rid’s child whose name he couldn’t remember or that little wizard boy. No one had been there to tell him it was okay until he went to Hana, who was in the same position. It had been okay, then, scary, but okay. But even after that he’d run into issues:

Stillborns.

They’d been stillborn, three of the four babies whose lives he’d already planned out, who were supposed to grow up together, happy and strong. Their one surviving sister had been sick at birth, and even still she was, but she had lived. His little Clementine, his little miracle- his last piece of Everett. Pierce knew she was strong after what had happened, especially considering how much she resembled her other father. She was a fighter, and everything would be okay if he kept her at his side.

But everything wasn’t okay. His boyfriend was missing. His best friend, his sister, his children, they were all dead. He’d had only Hana and Clem, and they’d been his lifeline for months. His family was starting to come together, a bit unconventional but a family nonetheless. Then, Riddler came stumbling out of the forest half-frozen and hardly alive, and everything had spiralled out of control from there. Now, he was here, in a strange place surrounded by strange people. Hana, and Rid, and Clementine were supposed to be coming, but they hadn’t. Why hadn’t they come? Pierce’s worry for his family had almost pushed the thought of his forgotten lover out of his mind. Almost being the operative word, of course, for that worry was just the cherry on top of all the others.

"Pierce."

Hearing his name uttered from those lips was all he needed to confirm that this was real. That, though almost too good to be true, it was actually happening, that it wasn’t just another dream. And, just with that one word, it all came back to him. Everett. Everett. Tears welled in honey eyes, a shaking breath slipping past his soft lips as he watched the other tom running toward him, taking a few wobbly steps forward as well as he prepared for the force of his boyfriend - was he even still allowed to call him that? -‘s arms wrapping around his slender form, his warm embrace all he needed for this to all be alright. But it never came. Pierce raised his head, trying to hold back the tears that streaked down freckled cheeks at the sight of the other boy. Broken. He must look the same- or, maybe he didn’t. He’d gotten really good at hiding that these days. It was only the other’s cries, his nearly pleading voice that could give Pierce enough strength to wipe off his face and stop his crying, to walk toward the doorway to his old home, his bottom lip gripped tight between sharp teeth. The serval raised a paw to the... portal just to test it, but there was certainly a barrier. Feeling his lip begin to tremble, Pierce turned his head to Everett, leaning it against the invisible barrier. “Ev,” he murmured, the name escaping his lips for the first time in months. “H-hey, baby, look at me. I don’t- I don’t know what’s hap-happening either, but I’m here now, okay? I-I thought you were gone. My friend, she told me- told me it wasn't safe here, made me leave. I promise I won’t leave you again, my love.” And there he went, making promises he knew he could never keep. He wanted to hold him, to place a tender kiss upon his lips and tell him about his adventures while he was away, but that wasn’t possible now, was it? One week. One week later and he could be there with him instead of in this scary, new place. “I love you, Everett,” he whispered, blinking back tears. He shouldn’t be saying that. He felt the same for Riddlersgame, and there could only be one of them. He knew that, that what he was feeling was wrong. But he would be lying if he said otherwise, wouldn’t he? And it would hurt all too much to be dishonest with Everett now. A few moments would pass before Pierce would add, “How’s your garden?” The question had far more meaning than it should behind it, but he wanted there to be some sort of normalcy, some familiarity between them. Just like the life he’d planned out for the two of them, one that ended with them old, with children and grandchildren and smiles on their faces as they settled down one last time in their cozy little home. That would never happen, he knew, but by god, he’d sit out here until he froze to death if it meant he’d get to stay with Everett.