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

Ch. 55 Trust Restored Part 3: Acceptance

THE FINALE. And a big one at that, nearly 6400 words! But a lovely 6400 words! Lots of nice fluff amid some scattered reflection, with a very wholesome ending.

Enjoy!

Also, after this chapter I'm switching gears to Commander, Meet the Cat for two reasons.
A) School has begun once more and I already foresee a heavy course load so I need to be very careful with burnout.
B) I just want to lol

Onto the fluff!

CW: Reflection of past events, minor angst, mild injury description, dream/traumatic event residual anxiety

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Were they alright?

Did something happen again?

Should he have followed Crosshair?

What if things only got worse?

At this point, Hunter wasn't really sure how things could degrade any more. They'd all just fought for their lives against someone they deeply cared for. Then again, he never imagined having to duel Shadow with one of their own sabers as they tried to kill him. So... what couldn't go wrong?

Another snap from Shadow or Crosshair? A permanent schism opening between the guide and the sniper, destroying any future hopes of reconciliation? A wrong word from Crosshair sending Shadow back into that nightmare?

The possibilities were, unfortunately, endless.

"Think they're alright?" Wrecker fretted, anxiously fiddling with his knife.

"I would assume so. We have not heard any screaming," Tech said, still staring at his broken arm.

That could be a good or bad thing. On one hand, perhaps things had gone well and the pair had mended their relationship to a functional level. On the other... Shadow may have run so far away or hidden themselves so well that Crosshair was still searching.

He just...

He couldn't take it any longer.

Hunter stood. "I'm going to look for 'em."

Both men looked up at him. "I advise against it," Tech said, brows furrowed. "If they are making progress, any interruption-"

"Tech, the last time they were alone things fell apart and led to this mess!" Hunter said, tugging at his hair. He still blamed himself for that. "What if it happens again?"

Sure, he'd told Crosshair to go find Shadow, but...

Damn it, he was the one who was supposed to keep everyone together!

Tech sighed. "I... I don't know, alright? I've never seen Shadow like..." He seemed at a loss for words. "That."

"It was scary," Wrecker agreed, shivering. "I didn't know Shadow could get that vicious. They're usually so laidback and friendly!"

"I must object, because we saw quite clearly what happened when something Shadow cared about was threatened. I suspect they would have done far worse to James had Trevor not stepped in and had ambush at the mine entrance not started so dismally, they also would have continued to fight the commando droids until none were left. We just have never been the target of that wrath before."

"You done analyzin' Shadow?" Wrecker growled.

"I do not think I will be done for quite some time, but my analysis stands," Tech retorted. "Shadow, like any of us, has a dark side that comes out when things they value are threatened."