with his heightened senses, he could easily pick up when she woke up and decided to lay still anyway, just like he did. and despite their situation, it made it a bit better that rory wasn’t making any effort to end this any sooner than it had to as well. watching her open her eyes, leo couldn’t help the smile on his face grow a bit bigger, though the weight of the goodbye ahead made it slowly fade. hi was good for now, he decided, and kept the arm around her tight as fingers lightly traced up and down. “ morning. ” leonard spoke, accent thick. “ slept well ? ”

     the arm that tightens around her is just another reminder that their time is short. a careful hand lifts, thumb skimming his jaw. she nods slowly, fingers toying with the hair at the nape of his neck. “when ??” she murmurs, her voice just above a whisper. when is it time ?? when will he leave ?? when will this be the last time ??

@clawrclai !!

     leo woke up long ago, actually. it had been minutes since the shadowhunter was back to consciousness, yet he remained with his eyes closed and breathes slow as possible, movements restricted aside from holding her a bit closer. he knew that when he opened his eyes, when they gave into the day, this would be over.  but it wasn’t enough, he needed to see her, to watch her sleep. so slowly, he opened his eyes, peeking at her from under his lashes as the ghost of a smile appeared on his face.

     she can hear it, the pick up in his heartbeat as he stirs into consciousness. it’s enough to draw her from her own slumber but she remains with her eyes closed just that little bit longer. she’s not ready to shatter the illusion. not when lying beside him like this feels like the most normal she has in weeks. it’s only when she feels his gaze on her, she knows she can no longer pretend. lashes flutter as her eyes open, hazel hues meeting his awaiting ones. “hi.” she says softly, her voice still thick with sleep. 

CALIDA WORE A PINCHED expression as she looked at the remains of the hunter’s moon. so much chaos had recently, almost all of it to downworlder establishments. to downworlders themselves. she’d been busy with the pride, seeing to it that they were okay, but she knew the meaning of solidarity. ❝ are the wolves okay? ❞ she asked the one person she found in the wreckage.

   hazel eyes turn on the woman that joins her; familiar face a welcome sight. “not everyone’s accounted for yet.” rory admits, the reminder twisting her stomach in knots. “but we will be.” a heavy sigh escapes her lips, the taste of ash in the air lingering on her tongue. “the pride ??”

     “ yeah, i draw the line at the few post-transformation minutes after a run. ” she grinned, shaking her head. having rory was nothing less than a blessing and even though she was never that good with words, anna reminded herself again to make sure she’d have rory know how much she appreciated her. “ thank you. now it’s less scary. oh and – if i do decide to have max in there too, please don’t let me punch him or something. those pregnancy blogs make you find out a lot more than you intend to and apparently it happens a lot. ”

    “please, the last thing i’m doing when my bones are growing back together is checking you out.” the wolf shakes her head, rolling her eyes melodramatically. despite her jokes, the fact that anna has asked this of her is just another reminder of how important the other woman is to her. “i make no promises. especially if it makes great viral footage.” she teases with a mischievous grin. “besides, he’s got runes for a little black eye.”

     the moment he felt her lips brush over his own, he trembled. leonard wallace, the man who stood against the clave and rest of the shadow world without blinking, felt his whole body shudder at the touch. she had always had that on him, that was one thing, but now everything felt more intense and that was a lot to take for someone like him, who lived at the deep ends or highest peaks. after the initial shock, the shadowhunter was quick to kiss her back, at first slowly, letting their lips move in their usual harmony and sync as always. but then the need grew. one last time. this was the last time he could get to be with her, the last chance to feel her warmth, how she felt against his body. one last time. a growl emitting from his throat as they kissed, leo wrapped his arms around her body, pulling her impossibly close as he pulled her back with him. his eyes shone golden before the closed lids, a portal opening behind them. no, it didn’t open to the institute. when he picked her up and backed away into it, where they end up would be the place where they first became one. for one last time.

    for just a second, a flicker of insecurity creeps in - doubt - that he might push her away. that lines have already been drawn. but then he is kissing her back, as if she’ll breathe the air into his lungs, and automatically her fingers knot through his hair. it’s as easy as it always has been. they know how to do this; how to say so much more with their touch than they ever can with words. his arms tighten around her and she feels herself being pulled, drawn with him. the crackle of magic layers the air, the scent of somewhere else - somewhere beyond - clouding her senses. hazel eyes open for a moment, capturing sight of the portal glimmering behind them. her legs wrap around his waist, kiss hungrier than before with the urgency, as he backs them through and out of the clearing. where he’s taking her she doesn’t know; she just trusts. trusts that when this is done, when they have this moment between them, she’ll walk away and never look back.

“ yes, sherlock.” anna grinned, shaking her head. when she heard that rory would do that, though, the werewolf couldn’t help but throw her arms around the other. “ i knew i could count on you.” she sighed, pulling away. “ you know, you don’t have to actually watch it … please don’t.” she chuckled, shaking her head. “ i just … need you to be there. i don’t want some random nurse to be the first one to hold and bathe and clothe my kids when they are born. i trust you and cassie with that, if you’re still in.”

     the wolf can’t help the snort that escapes her, a mixture of alarm and hilarity at anna’s words. “i know we’re close but i don’t need to see that much of you.” rory shakes her head, choking on another laugh. squeezing her friend gently with the embrace, she draws away but leaves her hand clutching anna’s. “we’ll be with you and them every step of the way. promise.”

If she was important to Leo, then Kat heard her out, that was how it always had been between them, even if the end result wasn’t always great. “There were some…difficult things to sort out.” She didn’t really dare mention Enzo, was he her ex? Her now? Kat didn’t know so how did she expect another to, especially a wolf. “You want the truth?” She could see the other already raising her brow again in wait, “I wasn’t strong enough to fight by his side, I would have been a weak link, and I know that no matter how mad at him you are, you don’t want him dead any more than I do.”

        she lowers her gaze, eyes fixed upon the drink in her hand. “no.” she says quietly. “i want him to stop. before he gets himself killed. and before any more people get hurt.” she wishes she could hate him. want him dead. it would be easier than knowing whatever happened, she had lost him. “do you think he stands any chance of winning this thing ??”

     leo hated that a part of him knew she was right, even though the other ‘rational’ part demanded that she wasn’t. but whenever rory was around, it was so much easier to silence the voice, it almost came naturally. so he heaved a sigh, eyes locked on the werewolf. “ i don’t —- i can’t see it that way. i can’t allow myself to. ” because if he did, he might stop, and giving up now would be giving up not only his head but everyone he loved along with him and he simply couldn’t afford that. “ there is no peaceful route, little wolf, only the final destination must matter. ” he tried to explain, having never felt the need to justify his actions before and yet here he was, more honest than ever for her. seeing her face and how she sounds, the shadowhunter felt a huge pang of pain in his chest, making him run a hand through her hair gently – just like he always would. “ you matter too much to me to stain you in my mess, lorelai. ” he swallowed, a bittersweet smile on his face, one that could not hide his glassy blues. “ it’s not easy – i don’t think it’ll ever be. ” his smile fading, he looked away for a moment, gently pulling her face closer, forehead resting against hers. “ hell, i already miss you so much. ”

        there’s nothing left then. he has gone too far to turn back and she can’t...won’t..follow him into the dark. but in his touch all she can think about is the man that lies beside her at night; the man that holds her when she remembers the losses she has suffered. and how tonight, he won’t be there when the nightmares come. that he might be one of them. a shaking hand skims his cheek before she tilts her head upward, lips brushing against his. he tastes like the salt from her tears, like the falling leaves around them, like heartache. a thumb grazes his jaw before her hand settles at the base of his neck, the other pressed against his chest. she can’t say that she misses him. she can’t say how much this hurts. she can’t say goodbye. so she kisses him with everything she has; knowing that when they part, they will be strangers. 

      “ you know you should always be worried whenever i open my mouth. ” she grinned, straightening her posture as well. “ okay … so … ” she tried to find the right words, but since it was something she had never experienced before, she didn’t even know if it was a normal request or not. “ how do you feel about watching someone giving birth ? ”

    “how do i-” her mouth falls agape, closing and opening repeatedly as she processes what is anna is saying. “you want me to be there ?? when you have the twins ??” she’d never thought about it. but the question, albeit startling, ignites a growing warmth in her chest. a smile stretches across her lips, head nodding hurriedly. “i don’t know what you’re asking but yes !! whatever you want - i’m there.”

      “ thank you so much, how may i ever repay such generousity. ” she swooned slightly, a grin plastered on her face. at her next words, though, her smile grew softer, the hand on her baby bump caressing gently. “ that’s what i wish for the most … ” she sighed happily, resting her back comfortably against the pillows. “ that’s what kept me sane, you know. ” she grinned. “ knowing that i’ve got max and the pack by my side. oh – rory, ” she suddenly remembered, straightening her posture. “ i wanted to ask you something. ”

     a brow quirks curiously at the mention of anna wanting to ask her something. she sits up a little straighter, legs curled up underneath her. “oh yeah ??” the wolf gives her friend a crooked smile. “should i be worried ??”

     “ partially, yes. ” uncharacteristically honest, leo answered the werewolf’s question, a look of certainity in his eyes. he knew it wasn’t only for the greater good – he had always had that thirst for power, the voice in the back fo his mind whispering him to go for it … it all made him come to this point now with the help of everything else. lips quirking in a bitter smile, leo looked at rory, that abused little boy showing on his face for a split second. “ you wouldn’t even know how bad they could get, rory. ” he replied before shaking his head, hand reaching to cup her cheeks. “ look – i am not asking you to join me. i know you, and i know what i am doing. i do not wish it upon you. ” swallowing the lump in his throat, he knew the dreaded was upon him now. “ promise me you’ll be careful. ”

     her hand raises, curled against his own as it cups her cheek. ultimatum or not, what she knew now hadn’t changed things. “i don’t know how bad they can get. but i know you-” she urges, free hand clutching at the front of his shirt once more. “i know you know this is wrong. innocent lives getting caught in the middle of your grand design. they matter leo, people matter. if they don’t then what are you even fighting for ?? why bother standing up to the clave for what they did to you; if you have to become them to do it ??” her eyes sting, prickling with tears she wishes she could hide. “you’re better than this. you...you have to be better than this.” or everything that she feels for him is meaningless. she can’t follow him down this path. promise me you’ll be careful. so that was it then ?? he had made the decision for them. she wishes she could just walk away. turn her back on him and know that she is better off. but when he looks at her the way he is right now, she doesn’t have the strength. her voice quivers, barely a whisper. “don’t...please. i came to see you, i came to listen. please don’t say what i think you’re saying.”

          “   Now, it is not that bad, isn’t it ? People seem pretty trigger-happy here anyway, don’t see why few more murderous undead are such big deal.   “

     “not that bad ?? nah, no biggie. just the freaking zombie apocalypse.”