I regain consciousness slowly, taking a shallow breath and trying to open my eyes before deciding it's too bright to bother. My heart aches, like how I imagine it would feel if Lance decided he didn't love me anymore. I release my breath, realizing I was holding it in because breathing hurts. Everything hurts. But, I suppose that's to be expected after you're murdered.
A tremor passes through me, and it takes a moment to realize it wasn't me that caused it. I force my eyes open despite the discomfort, both surprised and mildly horrified by what I find.
Lance is cradling me against him, his head bowed as he sobs raggedly, tears creating tracks through the ash covering his cheeks. His tears evaporate as they drip from his cheeks, only a few falling far enough to dampen my bloody shirt. Feeling disoriented, I peek out from my comfy spot against his chest.
The field is blackened in a huge circle around us, ash covered bodies littering the charred grass, though most don't seem to be dead. There's a crowd wandering around, checking the bodies for life and generally looking a bit dazed. I see a few people waving their hands in front of their faces like they're having trouble seeing anything.
I look back to Lance, wondering why he's still heaving in ragged breaths and sobbing, his eyes squeezed shut. Doesn't he know I'm okay, that I healed?
I weakly nudge my nose against his shoulder, then reach up and prop my arm over his shoulder as I attempt to pet his hair. "Lance?" I croak, and his eyes snap open, blazing blue eyes gazing into mine.
He lets out a choked sound, reaching to cup my cheek before he hesitates and looks at his hand, equally as ash covered as his face. I try to smile, but my dry lips crack and it turns into a wince. Ignoring it, I move to muzzle his hand before looking back to his eyes, which are still brimming with tears.
"I don't understand..." he whispers, his voice hoarse and crackly.
I sigh contentedly as I lean against his chest again, shifting to wrap my free arm around his waist in a crooked hug. "I'm your Kitten," I murmur, burying my face in his shirt then sneezing from the smoky, ashy smell.
He lets out a watery chuckle, then shakily gets to his feet and starts toward the crowd. "But how are you alive, my Love?" He asks, adjusting his grip slightly so he can kiss my forehead, where I can feel his lips trembling. "You are alive, aren't you?" He sounds suddenly vulnerable, prompting me to look into his anguished, hopeful gaze.
I just nod, tilting my head back and pouting at him until he kisses me. I can tell he's being gentle, like he's worried I'll break. I definitely appreciate it, because I feel like I might.
"Don't you know?" I mumble through my soft purr. "Your Kitten has n-nine lives. Well, s-six now..."
His grip tightens slightly in shock, and h pulls away from his quest of littering kisses on every inch of my face. "Six?" His eyes are wide and shocked. "You... three times..." he trails off, looking horrified.
I relax further into his hold, still purring. "Only once t-today."
He stops at the edge of the crowd, scanning the Heroes and Villains, like he's looking for someone in particular. Gently, he adjust my position until I'm upright and able to lay my cheek on his shoulder, held up by one of his arms under my thighs and one holding my lower back gently.
I'm surprised to see a smattering of Hunters milling about in the crowd, but I suppose it makes sense. The ones like Lance who never wanted to be recruited must have turned on their fellow Hunters, eager to change the order of things.
Everyone knew it was unjust, how the Hunters handled things, but nobody ever bothered to get together a big enough group of supers to make a difference. Lance seems to find who he's looking for, because he starts forward with a purposeful walk.
We get a few curious looks, and I can't help but wonder if it's because they know I died, or if it has something to do with the giant circle of blackened ground surrounding us. I can only assume Lance caused it, though it must have been after I died because I certainly don't remember it.
When Lance stops I twist around a little to look curiously at the woman dressed in a suit of light blue material. She somehow stayed clean, but as I look I see that her hair is hanging damply around her shoulders, indicating she has water powers.
Her and Lance stare at each other suspiciously for a while, Lance eventually being the first to speak. "Thank you," he mumbles, his voice still scratchy and painful sounding. "I didn't mean to lose control, I..." he clears his throat, wincing a little. "Just, thank you for dowsing everyone before I caused any more damage."
She smiles rather regally. "No problem," her gaze flicks to me, expression knowing. "It's easy to lose control when those we love are hurt."
She looks like she might say more, but a slightly shorter figure sidles up to her, grumbling about feeling muddy. She giggles and waves a hand, water seeming to appear out of nowhere to splash over the feminine figure. They gasp, sounding offended.
"Alice! That is not what I meant!" The dark girl looks up, glaring halfheartedly at the water Hero, who only giggles again, then grabs the girl and tugs her to her side.
I smile slightly, realizing they're like Lance and I. A Hero and a Villain,together despite the odds. Lance nods in reply when the woman looks at him again, then he turns away and after a few steps lifts into the air, floating us toward Quill City.
I don't question it, because as much as I want to see my city again it would take a while and I don't want to wait that long to get clean. Not to mention my chest is still aching, and I feel like I need to sleep for days. A hot bath sounds heavenly.
I'm sure I would be feeling even worse if Lance wasn't currently about five times warmer than a normal human.
I fall asleep at some point, waking again to find Lance paying for a hotel room. I choose not to ask where he got the money, instead whispering about how much I love him while he walks us to the elevator. I feel bad about how long he's been carrying me, and ask him to put me down once the elevator doors have slid shut.
"Why?" He asks, almost a whine. "I don't mind, and I can tell you don't feel good."
I pout slightly, but to be honest I'm not sure I could walk, so I don't argue. "Okay. I'm sorry I-I can't walk m-myself."
He just smiles and kisses my cheek, shaking his head. We're silent as the elevator stops on our floor and he walks us to our room, quickly opening it and slipping inside. He eyes the beds, then our ash covered clothes.
I peek into the open bathroom, smiling when I see there's a bathtub. "Fire?" I whisper, and he looks at me, a bit surprised at the name. "I want a bath."
He nods, looks around the room again, then carries me into the bathroom and sets me on the edge of the bathtub. "Why don't you rinse off first so the bath stays clean and you can soak for a while?" He asks distractedly, looking in the sink cabinet for shampoo and conditioner.
I don't answer, but he probably knows I'll agree. I reach up to pull off my shirt, then gasp and clutch at my chest when pain slices through it. Lance is hovering over me in an instant, gently peeling my hands away before helping me get my shirt off. We both look at the skin over my heart, and I'm surprised to see a small scar there. He leans to look at my back, and when he brushes a hand over it I can feel the matching scar there.
He lets out a breath, then I feel him press a kiss to the scar. "I'm taking you to a doctor once we're cleaned up," he says, tone worried.
"Okay. Are... are you hu-hurt at all?" I ask hesitantly. He doesn't seem hurt, but he used a lot of power.
He seems to sense my train of thought, quickly reassuring me. "No Baby, I didn't get hurt, I'm just a little drained. I'll feel better once we're cleaned up and I know you're completely okay."
He helps me stand, and when he starts to leave to give me privacy I latch onto his shirt and don't let go. "Don't leave me p-please, I can't stand on m-my own," I plead, shrinking as I wonder if I'm being too demanding.
He just smiles and holds me up while I shove my pants off, then helps me into the shower while I sit down on the tiled floor. I briefly wonder just how much he paid for this room, because it seems expensive, but before I can get lost in my thoughts Lance starts scrubbing my hair with shampoo, his forearms distracting bare.
After he's cleaned my hair and I've scrubbed my whole body free of ash, he fills the tub with steaming hot water and helps me into it, smiling at my contented sigh.
"Before I get all clean I want to go buy us some new clothes, will you be okay here?" He asks, sounding like if I say no he'll actually stay. But... clean clothes sound very nice, compared to the thought getting back into my filthy suit after getting clean.
"I'll be fine," I tell him, trying to smile despite how worried the thought of him leaving makes me. He smiles reassuringly kisses me, promising to be back very soon with something comfy to wear.
My smile is more genuine this time, and I sink lower into the tub after he's gone. I lean my head back against the rim, the hot water soothing the sting I still feel from my scarred wound.