Necromancer - Shklance
Dudessss. If yaâll are still here for stories, youâre literally the best humans. I think itâs been months, what with mental health issues followed by the corona (because of course I would be âessential personnelâ and of course they increased our weekly hours to over 50) followed by the start of the semester, but Iâve been working on this off and on for a few weeks now, as well as some original stuff. So if you guys are interested in my original works, lemme know and Iâll post some of it. Who knows maybe itâll motivate me to actually finish one of my books.
Also, this is super rough, so be nice to me. Iâm playing around with some ideas here, so feedback is appreciated, and let me know if you want more of this au cause I havenât decided anything with it yet.
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      Hereâs the thing. The gods are real. Or at least someoneâs gods. Or maybe theyâre just god-like? Anyway, some clarification. Everyone agrees that these arenât like any of the gods we recognize. They donât quite match any of our religions (and boy did that infuriate Lanceâs grandmother), and they werenât like Zeus, or Anubis, or Odin, or any others we know of from legends. In fact, theyâre more like the monsters of myths.
       And even further, theyâre absolute dicks.
       With all their incredible power, they thought it would be prudent to impart some of their stupid gifts to us mere mortals, and in the process, they ruined Lanceâs life.
       See, only a small percentage of humans were given a gift. Most of them were young adults, some teenagers. Supposedly some children will manifest as they mature, but the short of it was, Lance was the only one in his family to get one. Most of his family tried to be understanding and sympathetic about it, but some were jealous, others wary, and all of them were making Lance feel more alone than ever before.
       At least his best friend kinda understood. Heâd been blessed by the shifter-god (as in god-who-can-shift, not god-that-shifters-worship). A fairly common gift by now, but still a useful one. Not to mention how cool it was. But, Hunkâs girlfriend Shay had been blessed, too, and was currently in attendance at the new Supernatural school with Hunk and Lance. Since the first day, the perfect couple had easily been able to make friends with the other students in their sections, even their dorms. Most still startled around Lance, but he was becoming used to that. One of these exceptions was a girl named Pidge. Well, her name was actually Katie, but she preferred to go by Pidge. She and her brother were geniuses, so they were great with Hunk and Shay, and tolerant of Lance, but heâd take what he could get.
       Besides, Pidge and her brother Matt â technopaths â were almost impossible to mock, because they were actually childhood â best â friends with Lanceâs roommates, the hotshot vampire powerhouse couple of the school. Usually, students were grouped by their gift; in the dorm, they were for their comfort and safety. So far, the three of them were the exception. Of course, because the gods apparently hated Lance, he was one of those, because he was one of the only non-vamps in the dorms. Due to the nature of their existence, people naturally sough to avoid vampires, and they responded by forming their own nests, once again, carefully excluding Lance. Because even at a school of freaks, weirdos, and the powerful, Lance was of the worst.
       Lance was a necromancer.
       A surprise to his family and to Hunk, because they always referred to him as a sunshine boy, always commented on his happy, goofy nature and attitude. Even with the dark nature of the gift, Lance remained his cheerful self â for the most part â for the first few months, but the constant abuse and isolation was starting to wear on him, and Lance knew it. He just couldnât tell if he cared. No one else did, right? His old friends were having the time of their lives. Even Hunk had yet to see past the mask Lance had taken on. All the other students were content to ignore or mock him, and even Lotor, the only other necromancer at the school, was enjoying the process of crushing Lance, both in the classroom and out. Lance was barely surviving.
       And honestly, he probably wouldnât be if it werenât for his roommates. As fuckinâ weird as they were, even for vampires they had been kinder and more aware of Lance and his challenges than anyone else lately. When Lance was too drained physically and emotionally to go down for dinner, Keith brough t tray of food up to him, full of only human food and none of the blood the vampires included in their meals. And Lance hadnât missed how Shiro sometimes was there to help Lance to and from classes, cheerfully carrying on a very one-sided conversation and effectively ensuring that Lance didnât feel alone all the time. And even when they were alone in their dorm room studying, both of them did their level best to keep Lance included in their discussions. They refused to let him hide in his bedroom, which he had all to himself, as the previously assigned roommate refused to live with a necromancer. Instead, they dragged him out to the common room to study and then watch movies with them. Literally, Keith dragged him kicking and screaming that first time.
       Sometimes, Lance wished that they werenât so determined to draw him out and be his friend. Like now, for example.
Sometimes, Shiro will announce a mandatory movie night and sleepover â seriously, having primarily nocturnal roommates was weird â and Lance always tried to duck into his room. Or sneak back out once they were wholly engaged in whatever movie they chose.
âLance,â Shiro spoke with utter calm, but Lance froze as if heâd been threatened. While Shiro didnât look up from his movie, Keith did, making direct contact with Lance, who bit his lip and glanced at the den and then looked back at Keith. Keith raised an eyebrow. âBat got your tongue, Lance?â
       It took him a minute, but Lance found his voice. Not that it was gonna do him any good. âUmmm⌠I just⌠have some homework to finish, soâŚâ
       âThat would mean that when you said you were done at dinner, you lied,â Keith observed. Shiro reached for the remote. âPull it out here, then, I have some reading I could do, too.â
       Lance looked horrified at the thought of ruining their plans. He floundered, âNo! Uh, you donât have to do that! I can study on my own, itâs fine!â But Shiro was grabbing their books now, Keith watching Lance carefully. âOkay! Fine! I donât have any homework!â
       Shiro brightened immediately. âGood! Then câmere so we can finish the movie; I wanna see how it ends!â How the hell could this giant, terrifying creature of the night be such a pup???
       Lance managed a weak smile at the sight, âWell, Iâve already seen it, so Iâll probably just go to bed, but you guys should definitely stay and watch!â He shot a wary look at Keith, who was shaking his head.
       âLance, youâre just as nocturnal as we are. Nearly all your classes are at night. And youâre a night owl, anyway. So whatâs the big deal?â
       âDonât you guys ever get sick of it?â Lance finally burst out.
       Shiro and Keith looked at him cautiously. âWhat are you talking about, Lance?â
       âCome on, Shiro, look at me! The Reaper and all that bull, thereâs no way you guys actually want to spend time with me! And even if you did, donât you ever want just some time with Keith? Well, Iâm trying to give that to you, except you guys wonât let me just leave so that I can leave you to it, and oh my God you probably hate me so much for taking up so much of your time, and I canât believe I did this to you Iâm so sorry, I-I just, I canât, ugh, just let meââ But before Lance could dart for the door, Keith caught hold of his wrist, his own abilities coming in handy to keep ahold of Lance, even as the pictures on the walls and lamps rattled dangerously as Lanceâs own powers spiked, black fog seeping out from beneath him. Lanceâs eyes were tightly squeezed shut, and Shiro was careful as he approached and put a hand on Lanceâs arm.
       âLance. We like spending time with you, promise.â
       But Lance just shook his head, sobs now wracking his whole body. Keith let out a soft noise, drawing Lance close enough that he could wrap him up in a hug. Shiro enveloped them both, wrapping his arms around Keithâs back, and protecting Lanceâs back as he did so. This close, Shiro didnât need heightened senses to hear Keith whispering reassurances in Lanceâs ear, and Shiro let himself join, knowing from past experience that the way his chest ârumbledâ would help to soothe Lance further, and soon enough, Lance was swaying as his exhaustion hit him. Keith and Shiro worked together to maneuver Lance down the hall and into their own bed. They knew that this wasnât going to solve all of their problems, but at least they could be there for their brilliant, bright boy tonight.
