#progress imagine

The quiet hoot of an owl was the only sound as Adrien Pike shoved the last of his belongings into the faded knapsack he carried. He didn't want to do this. Leaving so late at night could be dangerous out in the Wasteland. It was easier for the worst of the worst to get a hold of you at this time of night. But with the sun up, that meant that the two men snoring on the other side of the dimming fire would also be up.

And Adrien didn't have it in his heart to look Chuck Mambo in the eyes as he left.

It wouldn't be the first time that Adrien had left his sleeping partner. When the doubt crept it, when Adrien was unsure of where they were headed, it drove him away. Things had been fine enough lately. The little nomadic duo had been comfortable enough living off scraps of left over encampments. It felt good and right, as right as the end of the world could be. It wasn't until they had reunited that Adrien had felt that doubt in the corners of his mind.

TK Cooper was unsuspecting like that.

TK and Chuck had been as thick as thieves in the world before. It was their personalities, kind and soft, that made them so similar. There was an edge to TK, however. Chuck could be too soft when it came to a fight. TK, however? TK did what needed to be done, no questions asked. It was the one thing Adrien admired for him. TK covered any spot that Adrien could possibly fill.

Adrien shouldered his pack, about to leave, when he heard the voice from behind him, "What do I tell Mams when he asks why you left?"

He stopped, turning his head to look over his shoulder. The outline of TK Cooper sat up, using a stick to poke the dying embers of the fire. "Teeks...I..."

"You what, Adrien?" TK questioned again, "You'd do this to him? Just up and leave in the middle of the night?"

"I'm doing this because I c-"

"You care?" TK scoffed, "Ya have a funny way of showing it! Do ya know how badly you almost broke him last time? Hm?"

Adrien turned to face TK, "What would he need me for, hm? He's got you, mate!"

TK stood, his height towering over Adrien's, crossing over to the shorter man. Adrien bristled, ready for the fight he was sure was coming. Instead, TK wrapped his gangly arms around Adrien, "You dolt! He's not the only one who needs you! It's me and you and him against the world! Not or!"

Adrien seemed to melt into the other man's chest, letting his shoulders sag, "You mean..."

“Uh..Please do.”

I said, as I rubbed my eyes.

“You’re dreaming! None of this is real!” He smiled.

I rolled my eyes, and shook my head. “Nice try Will. But, I know how my dreams go, and this isn’t it.” I replied, a bit on edge. I mean, who wouldn’t be, if they’d just saw their best friend change from a cat back to a human.

He chuckled. “Oh, come on, you’ve never ‘ad a dream, about me naked? I know that’s a lie Luxe..” He teased.

My face hardened, and I crossed my arms. “Will. Don’t change the subject. What’s going on here? What did I just see?!” I asked, becoming a bit frantic. “And come on! Cover yourself up!” I exclaimed.

He grabbed a cover, and wrapped it around his waist, before sighing. “Okay Luxe, listen to me..” He trailed off, before taking a deep breath. “I’m a familiar.”

My eyes widened. I don’t know why, but I believed him. Should I? I mean, it’s crazy. But, Will rarely lied to me. And even when he did, it was easy to tell. He was dead serious about this.

I tilted my head, and furrowed my brows. “A familiar? Like a witch’s pet?” I asked.

His face dropped, and he exhaled sharply. “Companion. A witch’s companion.” He corrected, seeming  a bit offended.

“Oh..my..gosh...wait!” I exclaimed, before my face started to scrunch up. “We’ve had sex. D-Did I have sex, with a cat?! That’s disgusting!”

He seemed to get more offended, and I felt bad.

“No, wait..I’m sorry..you’re not disgusting Will. It’s just..it’s weird.” I said, thinking over.

“Look, ‘m not a cat. I’m a man, a human man, that ‘as the ability, to turn into a cat.” He explained. “And maybe a few personality traits are ‘va same..” He mumbled.

“So then..you’re Zazzles, aren’t you?” I asked, suddenly understanding why the cat was never around when Will was.

“Yes. And I freaking hate ‘vat name. Also, you can’t just pick me up whenever you want! And, the food you’ve been leaving out, is really bad. I’d prefer somefing that tastes like..food maybe?!” He ranted, taking me by surprise. Then he sighed. “Sorry, I just..needed to say ‘vat.”

I breathed a laugh, before clearing my throat.

“Will..who’s your witch..?” I asked, already suspecting the answer.

“Why do think ’m always here? Why we’re so close? Luxe..you’re a witch.” He explained. “You’re my witch..”

There was so much going through my mind right now. Do my dreams have something to do with this? I felt like I was gonna pass out. I hoped this was a dream like he’d suggested earlier. But I knew better than that.

“Do I have powers?” I asked.

He nodded. “Yes, you do. But you have to learn them first. Typically, in cases like yours, we wait until you find out for yourself, and then if you want to be taught, we teach. Or you can ignore it, and move on.”

“Cases like mine..?”  I questioned.

“Well, you never knew your parents. They were both witches. But, you didn’t grow up being one, so you never ‘ad training from a young age. In cases like mine, I’m..what you would call half-magic I guess..” He explained.

I only grew more confused. “What? How are you not a witch too..?”

“Well, you see..whenever only one of your parents, or neither of you parents, are magic, but you are, they make you test to see if you’re a witch, or somefing else. I’m somefing else. The animal, a familiar becomes, depends on the human’s personality. Well, I act like a cat I guess.” He replied.

“Are there more like you?”

I wasn’t trying to ask him all these things, that I’m almost sure he didn’t wanna answer. But I had to find these things out somehow.

He nodded. “Yes, there are more like me. It’s a shame they weren’t the ones I befriended when I did my magic training. In fact, everyone I was friends ‘wif, turned into coven leaders..and stopped talking to me.” He frowned.

“Oh..Will, I’m sorry. I-I didn’t know.” I said, feeling horrible for making him talk about it.

“No, it’s fine. I’m very okay with how ‘fings turned out for me. I probably would’ve made a horrible witch anyway.” He smiled.

“So..covens? Do I have to join one?”

He shook his head. “No. Even if you decide to pursue magic, you don’t ‘ave to join a coven. You can be a freelance witch. Make your own decisions, and choices. ‘Va only problem with that is, your enemies are your own. You don’t have anyone else backing you up. Except ‘fer me that is.”

I rubbed the temples of my forehead. “T-This is a lot..Does this have anything to do with the guy across the street..?” I asked.

Expression fell from his face, and he nodded. “Yeah. He’s one ‘ov the friends I mentioned earlier. His coven deals in dark magic. ‘Ya don’t wanna join him. Trust me.” He stated.

I nodded. “Okay, okay, if you say so..” I sighed. “I-I’m gonna get some sleep, and call in sick to work tomorrow. I need to process this.” I said before walking towards my room.

He followed behind me. “Am I still allowed to sleep next ‘ta you..? I know it may take some getting used to..so I understand..” He frowned.

I sighed. “It will take some getting used to..” He looked at the ground, about to walk away, but I grabbed his arm. “But, you can sleep next to me. If, you put some clothes on.” I smiled.

He breathed a laugh. “Understandable.”

He followed me into my room, before dropping the blanket, and putting on a pair of boxers, and some sweats.

I laid in bed, and he climbed on top of me, and nuzzled his face into the crook of my neck.

“Will, your cat is showing.” I chuckled, as I ran my hand through his hair.

He smiled softly. “Well..there isn’t much point in hiding it now.” He whispered, before drifting off to sleep.

I was used to Will’s affection, but, this was new. He was being incredibly sweet. Maybe he knew I was going through a lot with all this, and this was his way of consoling me without having to say much.

Or maybe he needed the comfort, just as much as I did. If not more. I don’t quite know why, but he was on edge about something. I’m guessing it has something to do with why he ran in through the cat door.

I wonder if something happened with that old friend of his..

My mind was flooded with thoughts, and questions I’ll most likely never get the answer to.

I finally managed to fall asleep, and then the dreams began, but this time, it was different.

There were no voices calling my name this time.

Just the guy from earlier, he wasn’t saying anything though. He just smirked, and held out his hand.

I couldn’t explain my attraction to him. There was something different about him that, I couldn’t understand. I knew he wasn’t a good guy by any means. But he was definitely intriguing.

I took his hand, it was a dream after all, I didn’t have any control over it, he pulled me to his body, and grabbed my other hand, lacing his fingers with mine. He put his mouth next to my ear.

“Nobilitatem potestatem..”

He whispered. I had no idea what that meant, but it didn’t sound good. He let go of my hands, and put his hand on my chin, and made me look up at him. He winked, before leaving in a cloud of black smoke.

I woke up, as the sun started to shine. Will, was still on top of me. Asleep, and humming, which I now see was like purring for him, but in his human body. I ran my hand down the back of his head, before gently moving him off me, so that I could sit up.

I called my boss, and faked being sick to get out of work. Then, I decided to look up the phrase from my dream, I was still curious as to what it meant.

I cocked my head at the result.

Power over nobility.

I found out it was a Latin phrase. Before I had another second to think about it, I heard the doorbell.

I cleared my throat, before getting out of bed to answer it. I half expected it to be the guy again, but when I opened the door, I saw a face I didn’t recognize.

The man was handsome. He had beautiful brown eyes, and longish brown hair, that looked soft. He smiled.

“Luxe Lockhart, I presume?” He asked, I cocked my brow, a bit confused, as I nodded.

“Yeah..that would be me..” I replied.

“Can I come in?” He questioned.

I shook my head, unsure of him, and why he was here. “I’d rather you didn’t. Considering I don’t know you.” I smiled, earning a slight chuckle from him.

“Right! Where are my manors? I’m Dalton Castle. An old friend of Will’s. And, to answer your next question, yes. One of his witch friends, though, I may not be as close to him as you, I’m sure.” He smirked and then brought it upon himself to walk inside.

“Um..excuse me? How did you know I even knew about witches?”

He put his hands on his hips. “Well, you have that ‘I just found out my whole life is a lie’ look on your face. Plus, even if you didn’t know, it’s about time you did Luxe. You’re someone the covens have been waiting on for a while.”

“And, are you apart of some coven that wants to recruit me or something?” I asked.

He smiled. “No. I’m a coven of one. I don’t do the whole answering to a leader thing. Ugh. Who would want that?” He explained.

“Then, do you wanna talk to Will?” I asked, still not sure why there was a stranger in my house.

He shook his head. “Oh, no. Not even a little bit. I’m here for you Luxe. I’m here to give you this.” He explained, handing me an invitation. “Marty, you know, the guy across the street, is throwing this stupid party for magical beings. I’m gonna guess it’s to try and talk you into coming to the darkside, and letting him be the one to teach you. I’d say skip it, but you really shouldn’t, there’ll be other options there. Maybe you could give them a chance?”

I sighed as I looked it over.

“Or, there’s always the best option, staying out of coven business, and being in charge of yourself.” He added.

“Well..Will says that’s dangerous, because you won’t have anyone by your side against your enemies..” I replied.

He cocked his head.

“Are you planning on making enemies Luxe..?” He asked.

I shook my head. “Well no, but-”

“That’s what I thought. You know, I don’t have any enemies. Sure, I may not have many friends either, but that’s the price you pay. And it’s worth it.” He interrupted.

“But..isn’t it lonely?” I questioned, knowing it had to be. He let out a sigh, and stared at the ground for a few seconds in complete silence, before glancing back up at me.

“I really don’t know you well enough to explain my entire lifestyle to you right now. But, I look forward to seeing you later tonight. Black tie is mandatory, just so you know.” He explained, before winking and heading towards the door, just as Will came out of my room.

“Dalton?” He asked, as his eyes widened. Dalton smiled.

“Ah, William! I’m afraid I’ll have to catch up with you later. You and Luxe, have some things to discuss.” He replied before walking out, shutting the door behind him.

Will turned his attention to me.

With a jolt and a labored gasp, Mark Haskins woke with a start. It was the nightmare again. For the last week, for every week since Flash had ended up turning his back on him, the nightmares had been gradually reoccurring. It wasn't that he remembered much of that day. One moment he had been standing in the bar, laughing with Vicks and a few other friends. The next, he was coming to on the floor of the bar, paramedics asking questions and the look on his wife's face.

It was that look on her faced that had caused Mark to wake up in a cold sweat. he had never forgotten that look of absolute fear on his wife's face, had never forgotten the absolute terror in those tear-soaked emerald eyes.

Mark slowly peeled back the sweat stained covers as he sat up in bed, attempting to get up without waking up his sleeping wife. He had just swung a leg over the side of the bed when he heard the soft, "Where are you going, love?"

Mark looked over to see Vicky facing his side of the bed, her red hair haloed around her head. She was soft in the early light of the morning, a far cry from the woman who accompanied him to the ring night after night. He swung himself back into bed, pressing a kiss to her forehead, "Was going to stretch my legs, Vicks. Go back to sleep, love."

"You're having them again, aren't you?"

Mark took a slow, measured breath, "Vicks...I..."

Vicky moved a strand of his sweat soaked hair out of his face with red-painted nails. She cupped his bearded cheek, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead, "You don't have to lie to me, pup. A man doesn't wake up barely able to breathe for no reason."

He gave her a sheepish look, "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Only a little," Vicky gave a soft smile, scratching his beard with her long nails. They laid like that for a moment, the silence between them a comfortable one. His heart rate had started going down, Vicky's presence always seemed to calm him like that. "You're alright. See, pup?"

"You know I still don't remember that day?" he softly informed, resting his forehead with hers, "I...I'd never ask you to talk about it...but..."

It was Vicky's turn for silence. Her brow furrowed in worry as she recalled exactly what had happened that day. "We were talking. Was me, you, and-"

"You don't have to say their names," Mark comforted, one of his calloused palms resting itself inside of hers. The event was hard enough to recall without thinking of the friend who had betrayed them so badly.

"Well, we were talking," Vicky began slowly, swallowing thickly, "and then you just stopped and collapsed. We...we called the paramedics and they said that...that your heart just...stopped."

"My heart couldn't have stopped," Mark shook his head in protest.

"Mark it's what they-"

Four hours.

Adrien Pike had stood on the dock behind the small Bardsey home he shared with his husband Chuck Mambo for four hours now. Not that Adrien was aware of that. The winter weather always seemed to change something deep within Adrien that Chuck couldn't explain to this day. Deep down, he knew it had something to do with the night that the House of Black had taken him from this world, had given Adrien the gift of control of the waters.

A gift that Chuck swore was a curse in moments like this.

The morning air was chilled and Chuck couldn't help his own shiver as he padded out to the dock, standing just behind his beloved. "How ya feeling there, Adri?"

"I'mfine," Adrien mumbled, voice low and slow as he gazed out to the skyline. He didn't look back at Chuck, made no acknowledgement of Chuck's arrival other than his mumbled answer.

"It's cold, Cap'n. How 'bouts we go in and I make us a nice breakfast?" Chuck moved to stand by his partner's side. He slowly, carefully, slid Adrien's hand into his own. He only wanted his partner to feel safe, to feel warm.

𝐓𝐨 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠.

"Want to stand here," even Adrien's voice sounded stilted, frozen. Gone was the warmth and mirth that Chuck had fallen in love with. Adrien was normally so soft, so friendly. This version of him was wrong. "Want to watch the waves."

Chuck gave a small nod, pressing in closer to Adrien's side, his brow furrowed in worry. Adrien was cold to the touch and for the life of him, Chuck couldn't figure out if the cold was just the Bardsey weather or if it was his beloved's nature temperature now. In the long run, Chuck supposed it didn't matter.

A loud snarl tore through Alarick Bane's throat as he attempted to pull himself free of the grasp of the man who called himself Bullit. This wasn't fair, none of this was fair. He had been so close to being able to help Maddox finally take on the threat that was Spike Trivet and Dominatus Regnum, so close to evening the odds that had been stacked against The Lykos Gym.

All it had taken to stop him was a shot with the elegantly crafted silver head of the cane Spike Trivet had started to carry.

Since Harlow had managed to win Super Strong Style 16, Spike Trivet had made it his goal in life to ruin the shitwolves chances at ever taking the title. There had been plenty of back and forth between the two men. He remembered, sadly, the end of the first match between Spike and Maddox, the pain of seeing someone he considered a little brother having something so precious stolen. Maddox's wife had done her best to hide his face that day, as had their little shitwolf brother Harlow. All four had sworn to make a game plan the next time Harlow decided to take what he deserved from Spike Trivet.

Today was supposed to be that second chance.

Both men had put something important on the line. For Spike Trivet, who months ago had lost the Progress World Championship to Will Ospreay, it was his place in the world. If Spike lost, he would allow himself to be tossed into a hospital ward for his ever faltering mental health. For Maddox it was his mask, his identity as the man known as Kid Lykos. Both Harlow and Maddox had executed their part of the plan with little issues.

Alarick hadn't been so lucky.

The affliction to silver had been his downfall. Since Super Strong Style 16, Spike had been carrying his new cane as a signifier of his wealth. The head of it was carved out of silver to resemble a howling wolf in order to mock the Lykos Gym. Alarick had been mid-fight with Charlie Sterling on the outside when he had been spun to face the larger Bullit and cracked in the skull with the weapon.

Now here Alarick knelt, forced to watch the action in the ring. He snarled as he tried to struggle, but the strike had left him weak. Now all he could do was try his best to get free as the referee's hand landed for the three count.

For Spike's win.