i'll be there | cyan [c]

♕ || deal with the devil; the end

A/N: this chapter is in third person.
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     The forest felt like home.

     Having known that Chris would follow him, Ryan had spoken with Mags previously- when Chris had been unconscious.

     "Are you sure about this? Giving up- it isn't really something I'm in favour of," Mags muttered unhappily. Ashley was frowning. "If we do this, it's at their expense. Not our own. We can't save them all," She murmured.

     Ryan played with his fingers. "Humans die." He said in a small voice. "They'll all die eventually. We-.. don't."

     Mags folded his arms across his chest. "If I agree to this, you should understand that no physical harm will come to Chris, but you know you won't be able to be with him."

     "I can look after him," Ryan said optimistically. His ears were flattened, and he looked crushed. "He won't know I'm there. It'll be just like going to sleep," he said.

     Mags closed his eyes. "Yes," he said. "It'll be just like going to sleep."

     "A handful of us was never," Ashley said, "going to be the revolution. Damned if we do, damned if we don't. The humans will adapt. Mags, if there's anything you can do for them.." She murmured.

     Mags pursed his lips. "That's the thing about love. You do stupid, awful things for each other sometimes. Batsy will spare them if I plead enough. I could cry.. make it seem like I actually care more than I do.. It'll work."

     "We'll have to make the boys forget this.." Ashley said, "They'd never forgive us if they found out."

     "No. They wouldn't," Mags said.

     Chris was probably fast asleep, Ryan thought. That's good. It'll be just like going to sleep, he remembered.

     Ryan sniffled as he walked, holding the piece to the portal in his hands. Walking became jogging, and his jogging became a full on sprint.

     He was sniffling, bleary eyed. It was for the best. It's for the best, he thought as he ran all the way to where the portal was supposed to be. He looked up briefly, shouting. "Hey! I-I just wanted to give this back! I'll give it to you," he called, panting, "I-I'll give it to you on one condition! Just one. Please."

     The fox could hear the caw of a raven, and in a puff of black smoke, Barnabas was standing in front of him, a small smirk playing at his features. For a moment, Ryan remembered something. It wasn't a memory if his own, but rather one of Chris's.

"But all is well for the majority,  whether or not Oz and I succeed or fail."

This was a deal with the Devil, Ryan thought silently.

"And what is it, little fox, that you want? I expected my sweet Magsy to come crawling back to me before you would ever dream of it, but I can already sense he's thinking of me."

"The woods," Ryan said with a sad little smile. "These woods. I want them. I'll give this portal piece to you if you promise that when you overthrow the world or whatever, these woods go untouched by anyone other than myself and my friends. They'll be my woods," he declared.

Barnabas was taken aback by the request. It seemed silly- a simple enough request. So, naturally, he agreed.

He held a hand out. "You have my word, little fox. These woods are yours, and I give you my word that no one will come close to them. You can spend your forever here." He said casually.

Ryan set the final piece to the portal in Barnabas's hand, sniffling softly. "Mags misses you. I'm sure he'll be happy to see you again." He said, sitting himself down in the grass.

Barnabas peered downward at Ryan. "I look forward to seeing him again as well," he said, starting to walk off. It had been a simple exchange, but Ryan's heart was already hurting.

He leaned back, laying in the soft grass and wondering what Chris was dreaming about in his eternal slumber. Chris, Ryan knew, would die someday. He would be able to sleep it away, though. It would be like living in another world. A good world, Ryan hoped. Somewhere nice.

     And that didn't sound so bad.

     There's a place, somewhere in Pennsylvania. A nice place, in the forest, where the little fox watches over the body of the human he'd fallen in love with.

A place where Chris would lean back against the trunk of a large oak tree, turning the page of the leather bound journal in his hands. He wasn't usually the outdoorsy type, but he loved the fall season, and he do like to take walks on occasion at the beginning of it all, when the leaves start changing and the pine needles cover the forest ground.

     The air still smells vaguely of pine needles, but that's ever so understandable given how many are still scattered about. There are still a lot of things to hear about the forest; people in town still tend to take their myths quite seriously, and the older folk- the human ones,- constantly chatter on about fae folk and other creatures ranging from gentle beings who paint the flowers their proper colours to vicious cannibals who have driven themselves to insanity. That's truth, now. Quite common.

     Chris was never afraid, though, as he'd never experienced any of these things himself.

Until Ryan, anyway.

A/N: this is the ending! recognize that last bit? it's the beginning of the first chapter. i hope you guys enjoyed this story, and i hope it broke your hearts~