Over the River and Through the Woods (Adventures!AU Book 2)

Ch 47 Facing the Music and the Road to High Hrothgar

Hi all. Been a minute, huh? ^^;
Wish I could say we're getting back on track, but my mental health has turned... well dangerous for lack of a better word. College isn't helping either so I can't recharge, leading to some not so good breakdown episodes.
All that depressing-ness to say this will be the last chapter for quite a while. Probably until December.
I originally wanted to post Trust Shattered for Halloween but... that's clearly not gonna happen. I COULD do it, since there are only two more chapters after this one until that big scene, but the writing (and namely myself) would suffer.
So... yeah I know that's not good news but it's a necessary announcement. As such, I wouldn't check back for updates until after the first week in December. I'll be somewhat active on my discord server, and maybe tumblr, but for official posting this is gonna be the last chapter for a while.
Thanks to the fans still reading <3

Content Warnings: Angst, mental turmoil, language

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He hadn't been there.

He hadn't been there when his team members needed him.

Now Shadow and Crosshair were both on the defensive, their shields raising again.

So much progress... lost.

All because... "This is all Trevor's fault."

Shadow had her face buried in his neck with her arms tight around his shoulders, but she pulled back at his snarl. "What?"

Arms now partially wrapped around her waist, his hands above the small of her back, Hunter held her gaze as white hot anger burned through him. "We tried to reach you both earlier, but Trevor blocked the way. Said we couldn't stop what was happening because it would 'make or break the team'." He shook his head with a growl. "I can't believe he let this happen to you."

Shadow's ears twitched. "Well... technically I guess we did grow closer before that confession."

Shock and hope chased away his anger. "You did?"

If they got closer before that rift happened... then there was a better chance of recovery!

"Both of us spilled our guts and bared our souls a little bit."

His hope soared. "Crosshair confided in you?"

Hunter knew his brother. Crosshair didn't open up to hardly anyone. If he let Shadow see that vulnerable cadet that hid inside...

"And me in him." Shadow sighed, flicking her tail as she stepped forward again and rested her chin on his shoulder. "Trevor is, by extension, a part of me. On the chaotic neutral spectrum, I'm more towards chaotic good but he's really far on chaotic neutral," she mumbled into his neck.

What? Arms tight around her again, Hunter gently ran his hand through her hair, mindful of the knots. Carefully detangling them, he prompted, "Meaning?"

"He knows the way I write," Shadow said, leaning into his touch. She always got more cuddly when in pain, Hunter noticed. "Especially when it comes to character relationships."

Even if he understood Shadow on most things... writer-ly stuff was not among that list. "I'm not following."

"That's alright. It's a bit of a mindfuck anyway," she said dryly. "Basically, he's right."

Hunter stepped back to look Shadow in the eyes. "How?" he asked incredulously. While Shadow seemed to bounce back fairly quickly, she was still clearly in pain. How could she be ok with Trevor's actions? "It's thanks to him you're hurtin'."

Unease flickered across her face. "Don't get me wrong, I still want to flay the bastard. But Cross and I are too connected now to turn our backs on each other, at least forever. Doesn't mean whatever happens won't be extremely painful, but it's not enough to permanently drive us apart. There's no true betrayal, emotions are just a bit high and the wound is still raw."