Ava Montgomery

Waking up, on and off, he'd been holed up in the supernatural injuries ward for a hot minute. Long enough for the mustache to make a comeback and definitely long enough to feel kinda gross. He was in the middle of layering on ten tons of body spray when he heard the door open behind him- "Oh! You've caught in a moment of absolute indecency. I hope you like the smell of sandalwood."

Every time she had sneaked out of her room to visit him, he had dared to be sound asleep, but not today. The scent of him hit her before she saw him–a shifter trait or from his overuse of body spray, she couldn't say–and she was already grinning as she stepped into the room. "You know those are my favourite moments." Without further hesitation, Ava was bounding towards him and pulled him into a tight embrace.

Benjy had tried to stay away from everything in town. For most of his life, he had been the town's golden boy. Always helping anyone who needed it, ever since Founder's Festival, his family had been driven out of their home. He had been changed; he still was there for his sisters, his parents, and the McArthurs. But he had been avoiding the rest of the town, mostly out of fear of what might happen to him.

He had planned to stay like this, wait until things were better, easier to deal with. Things changed when his sister was hurt along with Ian; he needed to go see her and to make sure Ava was okay. Things had been a lot lately; she had been distant, so he decided he needed to go see her.

"Knock knock, it's your favorite brother and the best sibling." He called out to her open door.

Avoidance had always been second nature to Ava, so when everything had come out about Andy being her birth mom, she sort of shut down. She never spoke about it, never asked Andy any questions, and didn't dare try to figure out how her siblings felt about not actually being her siblings, never mind how they felt about her not being human. In the moments before her almost demise, too many questions had come screaming to the surface, and now she couldn't ignore them.

Ava almost jumped when Benjy appeared in the doorway, a bright smile appearing on her lips before it faltered slightly. His greeting hit her harder than he had probably meant it to, but it had her eyes burning with the threat of tears. "Hey, Benjy." She sat upright in the bed, only flinching a little before attempting a joke. "I really did come too close to death if you're braving the outside world."

The warmth he felt in his chest was starting to fade, and he was content to close his eyes, his forehead still resting against hers. His arms were suddenly so heavy, his finger twitching as they hovered over both of their wounds. He needed to stay awake. He needed to save her. When Ava spoke again, he shook himself back into the present moment, meeting the fire in her eyes. Ian could feel her getting stronger, her words demanding he believe them, and he did. They couldn't die here, they wouldn't. A badass witch and a wily shifter - nothing could stop 'em now. Ian nodded, barely catching his breath before she was kissing him like there was no tomorrow. His heart could have exploded out his chest then, while he kissed her right back.

Ian could feel her shift, her feet pressing against the wall behind them. He knew what she was going to do, and he'd be damned if he didn't help her. He steeled himself, pulling back enough to say - "Give 'em hell, babe." - before he thrust both his hands towards her, helping to propel her backwards and off the rebar. He threw all the magic he could at her wound, then, hoping it was enough to get her by. He shot his hands back up, blasting a hole through the rubble and sending up another bright light. A wild grin was on his face as he looked over to her, hands moving sluggishly back to his own wound, before he felt his vision blur and his head spin. And then it all went dark.

Ava's eyes lifted to the hole that he had blasted in the rubble above them and she knew what she had to do. She could only hope that someone had seen the light he had sent up, but just in case, she needed to be up there too–she had to find someone to help Ian. Shifting still wasn't something that came easy to her, and she had never shifted into an animal that could fly before, but she closed her eyes and tried to visualise herself having wings.

It only took her a few attempts, but before she knew it, Ava was flapping against the ceiling attempting to navigate to the exit–something that might have been easier if the form her subconscious had chosen had been anything other than a fucking bat. As soon as she reached the surface she was screeching, back in human form and begging anyone who could hear for help. She wasn't sure how long she was waiting–covered in both her own blood and Ian's–but when Andy came into view and she could finally tell someone where Ian was, everything went black for her too.

With her forehead pressed against his and her iron-clad grip on his other hand, Ian was frozen in place. He didn't want to hurt her. He couldn't stand to lose her. He could hardly stand another second knowing that she was trapped, in pain, when he could do something about it. Ian's plans for saving her were halted as she spoke, her hand moving to hold the side of his face. His eyes were lost in hers, following every word as if they could save his life. Maybe they could. His brow furrowed as she admitted every terrible thing she'd felt because of him.

'I thought I wasn't enough'. Ian had taken her for granted, that much he knew. He hadn't realised... He should have known. When Ian left, it hadn't been because of her. Of course, it hadn't. But he knew better than anyone how it must have looked when he came back to town with Olivia, pretending to be someone he wasn't. Looking to fix someone else, to make a home in someone else's bones who could never let him. To punish him, to remind him of all the ways he fell short. Ian was sorry to them both for how he'd handled everything. He should have been better, he was trying to be.

"Of course, it's the same for me. Of course, it is," he said softly, pressing his forehead against hers, eyes closing. How could he have let her think anything else? "You are everything I have ever wanted, Ava. Since I first saw you-- No, before that, even. I think before I even knew you, I knew you. I loved you. You and me, me and you... That's mythic." He could feel his own tears roll down his cheeks, the effort of staying conscious becoming greater and greater. "I'll never not love you, either, Ava Montgomery."

Another smile pulled at Ava's lips as she listened to him confess his feelings, doing her best to focus on his words and stay awake at the same time. She knew that she had to stay awake–it's what all the medical dramas say, it's what Andy would say. What her mom would say. God, was she going to die down here without ever really talking to Andy about... everything? With the state Elena was in, would Faye get through losing her? She wasn't sure Benjy would be able to handle it. Was she really never going to find out who her biological father was? No. No. She had to open her eyes. 'Open your eyes!'

Her eyes shot open and she lifted her head. "We're mythic." Ava agreed, looking around the rubble to see if there was something–anything–that could help them before returning her gaze to Ian, a refreshed determination in her eyes. "You're a badass witch. And I'm a wily shifter. We love each other. And we're mythic." In all honesty, she wasn't entirely sure the words coming out of her were coherent, but they couldn't just stay here like this. She would pull herself off of this damn rebar, if she had to. Anything so that Ian could focus on healing himself while she shifted her way out to find help. "We're not dying here." Her hand lifted from his to cup the other side of his face and she kissed him fiercely, with all the strength she had left, all the while preparing herself to kick off the wall behind him in an attempt to free herself.

If it was, he could give her that.

"No more jokes," he said softly, leaning against her hand gripping his shoulder. As her other hand pressed against his, he had to fight off a smile. Scolding him at a time like this was just... perfect. Ava wasn't going to let Ian do something stupid. But here's the thing, Ian wasn't going to leave her down here. No matter what it takes. He looked up at her, his eyes shining with unshed tears. God, he fucking hated himself for what he'd done to her. For how he'd handled everything after Mark had-... He hated it. She should leave him here to rot. "Yes you did," he countered, voice still gentle, "It's okay." He wanted to say he'd never leave her - that he'd never do that - but it wasn't true. Couldn't be true. He couldn't heal himself and move rubble, but that wasn't going to stop him.

"I'm sorry, baby," he started, as useless as it sounded, "I know it doesn't change anything, I know. Everything I did after Mark... Everything I did was wrong. I should have stayed, I should have told you everything. Should have let you in, let- let you take care of me. I didn't want to put that on you, all the shit that was going on with me, all the ways I wanted to drown and never come back up. I didn't want that for you, but that's not an excuse. I shouldn't have left. I shouldn't have... I should let you be happy, babe. I should let you move on," he said, stronger, nodding as he did. "You deserve so much-," he breathed, holding her gaze, before swiftly moving his hand from his abdomen again. He aimed it up, hitting through the rubble and sending up a bright light. He hit it one more time, determined not to scream. Fucking hell. He pressed his hand back again, fighting off a wave of dizziness as he started to heal himself again. "Better."

Her hand gripped tight to his shoulder as she closed her eyes, the pressure causing the tears to fall. "Don't." Her head shook as a choked sob escaped her. "Don't act like we're dying. We're not dying–you're not dying!" There was no other reason for him to say all of this; he thought that he wasn't going to have another chance–that one, or both, of them weren't making it out of here. Hearing that he had died last year, despite being brought back, had almost taken her out too. Ava wouldn't let him leave her again. "You're not allowed to die. You–... You're not allowed to leave me again. I won't-... I won't forgive you a second time." The tears were falling freely now, the combination of her sobs and the rebar to the gut making it hard to speak. If he died here, it wouldn't be for long. Ava was selfish; she would find someone to bring him back–consequences be damned. He didn't get to rest in peace without her.

"Goddammit, Ian!" Ava crumpled forward, grabbing at his hand again as her forehead pressed against his. "I wanted to be there for you... I didn't know how. I–... I didn't know everything then... with Meghan. I didn't know why–..." The hand on his shoulder moved to the side of his face, but the other refused to move from his for fear that he would stop healing himself again. "I thought I wasn't what you wanted anymore. I thought I wasn't... enough." In any other context, Ava would be mortified to be admitting this, for being so vulnerable, but she needed him to not be looking at her like he was a monster that had destroyed her. She didn't hate him for any of it; quite the opposite, in fact. "I never wanted to move on, baby. I don't care what you think I deserve..." She swallowed a lump in her throat, calming her breathing as best as she could while holding his gaze. "It's always been you, for me. It's always going to be you. Even if it's not the same for you... I'll never not love you, Ian Morrison."

It was important not to panic, he knew that. Ian flashed a grin at her words, trying not to laugh again. "You and me both, babe." Ian nodded at her, holding a smile for her. "I think we both know that I can go all night long." Not the best time to wince, but he couldn't help it. Ian looked around again, wondering what the chances were for them to get rescued sooner rather than later. On a full moon, after curfew, things weren't looking good.

"I'm okay," he answered, looking back to her. With his hand still over her stomach, keeping her healing, he moved his other to reach behind Ava. The rebar was sticking out her back, which wasn't great, but it gave her the better chance. Ian pressed his lips together, but not enough to hold back the pained scream. "Fuck, sorry. That was dramatic," he said, his other hand moving back to his own wound to start healing again. "Talk about being stuck with me, huh?" he joked, his smile slowly faltering. Ian was already putting it together, how this would have to end, but not yet. "I think I can move some of the rubble, enough to send up sparks, at least. It's just gonna take some time, okay?"

She couldn't stop the laugh from erupting from her at his words, and she immediately regretted it. Even with Ian's magic, the pain that lanced through her was excruciating. "Maybe–..." Ava paused a moment, steadying her breathing. "Maybe we should keep the jokes to a minimum." She was smiling, but it was clear that she was struggling to keep calm. Panicking wouldn't help them now, but she was almost vibrating at the strain of keeping it together.

Ava watched as he reached a hand around her and was about to ask about the rebar, already sure it was straight through her, when he screamed–making her flinch, which then made her gasp. "Don't do that. Don't stop healing yourself." She scolded, moving her hand to cover the one over his stomach, while the other remained clinging to his shoulder. Ava's eyes fluttered shut at his next words as she tried to hold back tears; they were toeing the line for what her emotional range could handle. "I'm probably lucky you're against the wall–you can't... run off and leave me here." The words had left her lips before she had even had a chance to process them; she had not wanted to say that. Her face scrunched up a little and her head shook, "I didn't–..." Looking up at the debris surrounding them, Ava shook her head for a different reason. "Ian, you can't. You can't heal us both and move rubble. You–... Someone will find us. We just–... Someone will find us."

He coughed, squinting around them at the debris that was doing a grand job of closing them in. Ian could move it, eventually, but better to save his energy for keeping their blood in their respective bodies. "Fuck me," he muttered, pressing his hands over their wounds, slowing the bleeding with his magic. They needed help. They needed to get out of here before both their supernatural healing could kick in. The last thing he wanted to do was risk Ava. As she stirred, he let out a sigh of relief. "Hey, babe. How you doin'?" @a-vamontgomery

Looking down at the rebar imbedded in her gut was surreal, to say the least. Ava could feel it–god, could she feel it–but she also... couldn't? She was so sure that she could remember Andy telling her about conditions like this; was she going into shock, was it nerve damage? It took her too long to register that the other end of the rebar was protruding out of Ian's stomach, and a gasp escaped her. No, she wasn't going into shock; Ian was using magic to heal them faster than the metal could tear at them. This was bad. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm–... Oh, boy. This was not on the bingo card for things that I'd find inside me today." Ava's eyes lifted back to his, panic etched there behind the jokes. "Are you okay? How–... How long can you keep this up?"

"You know I think this might not be strong enough."

Sober enough to know better and drunk enough not to care, Ava found herself cutting through the crowd. As she reached Meghan, she faked a drunken stumble, knocking the drink from her hand and spilling it down the front of her outfit. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! I'm such a klutz!" Ava was well aware that Meghan could use magic to clean it in seconds, and that she wasn't exactly convincing, but it was still satisfying.

"See you in a minute," he whispered seductively. The theatrics were purely for fun and to at least pretend to Frank-and-Frank they weren't gonna do it. He swiped someone's hat off their table, turning it into a hard hat by the time it hit his head. When he closed the coat closet behind him, you could hear the click of the heels while he waited for Ava. Seductively. When the door opened at last, he settled against the back wall. "I didn't want to ass-ume anything, but I am currently wearing a big birthday bow." Where, he couldn't say.

Finishing her drink, Ava watched him disappear into the closet with a despicable grin on her lips. She glanced around the bar, making sure that the Franks were busy, before sauntering off after him. The door clicked shut behind her and her jaw dropped a little as she gazed down at the heels on Ian's feet. "You certainly don't do anything half-assed. Do you, Morrison?" Her eyes scanned the length of him, taking in every delicious inch and desperately wondering where she was going to find that bow. "You remembered my birthday." She overemphasised her swooning, but it didn't take much effort.

Ian grinned, watching that little smirk tug onto her perfect face. If anyone was gonna follow him into the filthy, sexy, gutter... it was his gal Ava. "Awesome news. You can tell, y'know. You've got that 'I haven't woken up with twigs in my hair in a hot sec' look about you. Glowing. The McArthurs will do you well." Ian leaned back in his seat, fighting off his own smirk. The coat closet in the back might just be calling their names. "You want me in my hard hat or heels? Either way, I'm willing to work."

Ava pressed a dramatic hand to her heart and pouted, "Thank you. Not that I mind getting a few twigs in my hair," she smirked suggestively, "But raccoon hair just isn't it." At those words, Ava almost bent the straw she was twirling over the edge of her glass and she didn't even try to hide her lip bite. "Por qué no los dos?" She cocked an eyebrow, glancing to their coat closet before returning her attention to Ian's lips.