raith_rogue | [For Willy]

Thomas hadn't thought much of it when he hadn't been able to get ahold of Robin right away. The two of them spent a lot of time together, but it's not like they were an item or anything. They both had lives and did other things, too, now that no one was actively trying to kill Robin.

And then he had to go to the NeverNever and play faithful servant to Lea again, so it was probably best that Robin was busy elsewhere. He was gone for a day and a half, and when he returned, there was still no word from Robin, though. Not so much as a voicemail. That was when he started to worry a little. The little became a lot when he tried calling Robin at work and was told the puck hadn't been in for two days and no one had heard from him. Robin might blow off a dinner date if something better came up, might get distracted and not show up at Thomas' place for a couple of nights, but he wouldn't miss work with no explanation whatsoever. Robin loved two things: sex and money.

He went to Robin's place first, and let himself in after Robin didn't answer repeated pounding on the door. Nothing looked out of place, there was no sign of a struggle--but it also felt like no one had been here recently. He couldn't say why, it just felt like it hadn't been lived in for at least a few days. It didn't give Thomas any leads, though, so he left and started working his way through the places he knew Robin went with any kind of regularity to ask if anyone had seen him recently.

After his fifth or sixth dead end, and quickly running out of options that didn't involve going to Harry and begging for help yet again, he wandered the streets for a while, trying to think of what to do next. When he passed a coffee shop he hesitated and then slipped inside to get something hot to drink. He probably didn't need the caffeine, but he didn't care at that point.

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"Hey!" said the tiny little girl behind the counter sharply. "Not in the shop!"

Willy rocked to the side and doubled his fist up. He knew better than to shit where he ate, though. He simply grabbed Thomas's coat and dragged him toward the back door while the sounds of chairs scraping preceded the dinging of the front door bell.

"Outside," he snarled, magic fairly crackling in the air around them. He could hear the telltale tones of those three digits being pressed into the shop phone and the device in the girl's hand snapped and popped and died. He was sure she had a cell but that would buy them a moment before the authorities were alerted.

Thomas had no problem with taking it outside. He yanked away from Willy's grip and stalked out on his own, teeth clenched so hard it was making his jaw ache. He could feel the magic Willy was stirring up, but he was too furious to care. "What did you do with him this time?" he snapped once they were alone in the alley behind the shop, his eyes faintly glowing and silvery as he spun to face Willy again.

"What did I do with who?" he asked, strung tightly and ready to fight. "The puck? I have not seen him since I fulfilled my bargain."

"Fulfilled your bargain?? You nearly got him killed!" Thomas shouted, looking ready to take another swing.

Willy dodged but not quickly enough. He simply caught the blow at less than full force. He immediately returned the favor.

"I took him for drinks and brought him back. Whatever else happened has nothing to do with me," he said. The fae were culpable in many things, but in this case all he had done was hold up his end of a deal.

"You son of a bitch," Thomas hissed, lunging for him. "You delivered him into her hands!"

"Why do you care? If there is Unseelie interest in the puck then..." he said as he fought to keep his feet in the snowy alleyway.

"Because I love him!" Thomas yelled, using a burst of supernatural strength and speed to throw Willy toward the opposite wall. Then he stopped, pale and shaking slightly, and stared at Willy with wide eyes. He hadn't meant to say that, especially not to the fucking fae.

Willy's eyes narrowed.

"Love?" he question bitterly. "You are no mortal and you stink of the winter court. What could you possibly know of love?"

Thomas laughed humorlessly and ran his fingers through his hair. He turned away, staring at the wall again, then turned back to face Willy. "I pledged myself in service to the Leanansidhe," he said softly. "For a year and a day." He swallowed and finished, "If I hadn't...Robin would have died." He took a step back and shoved his hands into his pockets, his anger bleeding away. "So don't tell me I don't know about love. I may not be human, but I know all about it. I know how much it hurts." On so many levels.

"You're a fool," Willy said, heated but without real malice. Turning to the Unseelie to save a life, making that kind of a pledge...

"And now you think I have taken your love again? You are doubly a fool. What use do I have for a puck?"

"Yeah, you're not the first one to tell me that," Thomas muttered. He knew it had been stupid, but he hadn't had any choice.

"I don't know. What use did you have for him last time?" He took a deep breath. "All I know is he's gone. I don't know who has him or why. I just know...I have to find him."

"I made a deal," he said simply. He wasn't going to admit to the fact that he'd been caught in a deal rather than enter entirely willingly. That had no bearing on this. For someone who pledged a year and a dae with a fae, the man should know the gravity of his words.

"What would you give to find him now?" he asked slowly in the most tempting way.

Thomas narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "To you? Not a damn thing," he said quietly. He didn't want to know any details about the deal that Willy had made. It would just piss him off again, that Robin's life had nearly ended because of a deal. "If you haven't seen him since, we're through here."

"Hardly. There's still the matter of your bargain of servitude. It is my sworn duty to dispatch you," Willy said. He felt it was a generous offer, giving him such information and affording him the time to run.

"Dispatch me? You think you're going to kill me, when you're partly responsible for me working for that bitch? " Thomas shook his head and turned to walk down the alley. "Stay away from me, and stay away from Robin," he called over his shoulder.

[For Willy]

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