Fitz

Fitz's breath was caught, a heavy weight falling down on his chest. There was Biana, lying unconscious on the floor. Beneath a cloaked figure. Beneath... He squinted, and with what little light he could use, he saw it was Puppeteer-- the same villain who'd stolen Kenric's identity. The same villain who'd created a large shadow beast to attack Keefe and himself. 

And now, she'd gotten to Biana. First, he'd yelled curses and threats at the villain, pouring his rage and fear into every word-- hoping they'd affect her in some way, but knowing they would be no more helpful than someone using a strainer to eat soup. And soon, those threats and shouts had morphed into cries. Calling Biana's name, cursing Puppeteer, and shouting insults to no one in particular. Because he knew, no matter who he wanted to blame, it was all on him. 

Puppeteer, giving one last cruel smirk, stalking off down the hall and disappearing into the shadows. And once her heels' clacking had faded, Fitz made his way towards his sister. Her face was covered in dirt and grime, her breath short and fading. Her stomach rose and fell in sync with her breathing, and like her breathing, it was slowing. Tears stung Fitz's eyes as he pulled his sister onto his lap and cradled her like a young child. 

Behind him, he could hear Keefe and Dex inching closer, and he could feel their fear-- not of Puppeteer, but of him. They feared Fitz. Apparently, everyone did think he had anger issues. And Fitz couldn't blame them. He was a mess. He'd hated Keefe for hurting Sophie, when in reality, he'd been no better. His grip around his sister tightened as he bit back a scream, knowing it'd only be more proof of his problems. 

His fault. His fault. His fault. Now he understood why Biana had been so startled after the Neverseen had first taken their friends. It wasn't directly his fault, as it had been Biana's choice to stay. And yet, he couldn't help but feel it was his fault for not coming to her rescue right in time, like in the human movies he'd always hear Dex pestering Sophie about. Well, not anymore. Sophie was gone, and they were too far down in their own hellish lives to worry about simple things like movies, sleepovers, and Foxfire grades. 

A laugh escaped Fitz as his thoughts lingered on the idea. Not too long ago, he'd been worrying about such stupid things. Now, he couldn't even imagine getting angry over who Sophie liked, Winnowing Galas, match lists. That used to seem so important, but now? Fitz wasn't sure what he felt. Did he still care about Sophie being unmatchable? Did he care whether or not they were boyfriend and girlfriend? 

Fitz's mind continued to wander, diving deeper into his own memories. Until someone cleared their throat, and Fitz realized he was still sitting there. Holding Biana's limp body. And he was crying. Fitz wiped his tears, not willing to let his friends see Fitz Vacker-- the Golden Child-- crying. Though, he knew they'd already seen plenty. 

"Sorry," he muttered, and both boys winced. Fitz glared at them. "I don't have issues," he grumbled, holding Biana to his chest tightly. He forced past them, spreading his mind as far as it could go in search of the Puppeteer. He hoped, at the very least, she could be of some use and show them the way out, whether it was willingly or not. 

Keefe and Dex exchanged looks, before quickly hurrying after Fitz. 

"Fitz," Dex tried. "I'm sorry. I didn't know. I- I thought she'd--"

"It's fine," Fitz mumbled, though it was most certainly not fine. Nothing was fine. His sister was injured, they hadn't made any progress on Sophie nor the Neverseen's plans, and the entire mission had been a failure-- having only a handful of flowers to show for it. 

"Let's head the way we came," Keefe suggested, and Fitz gave a small nod. Lucky for them, Keefe had photographic memory, and though it had been dark almost the entire time, they'd also had Johnson's help for most of their journey, so it was easy enough to make it back out of the dark caves. 

"Light! Sweet, sweet, underrated sunlight!" Keefe cried once they'd made it through the back entrance they'd first used. Keefe's smile was beaming as he made snow angels in the snow. Dex seemed to waver, biting his lip as if wanting to speak. 

While Keefe continued to sing and throw snow into the air, Fitz collapsed to his knees, propping Biana in what he assumed would be a comfortable position. And as he watched Biana's breathing, Dex inched closer. 

"What?" Fitz asked when Dex just stood over his shoulder for minutes straight. Dex uttered a noise, but he didn't do more than that. No attempt to form words, no attempt at an explanation. 

"I can just read your mind, y'know," Fitz said, his tone stiff and bold. But he knew Dex still caught the way his lips quivered as he watched Biana, and the way his tone slipped up mid-sentence. Thankfully, the threat worked and Dex was now doing his best to find the best way to say whatever it was he wanted to say. Finally, he settled with, "I saw Sophie." 

Fitz's breath caught, and his eyes widened as he turned to meet Dex's gaze. His periwinkle eyes said it all, confirming Dex's claim. 

"You- You what?" Fitz was frozen, partially from sitting in snow, but mostly from the news that had just been dumped upon him. Dex nodded. 

"I saw Sophie," he repeated, and Fitz stayed silent, waiting for more of an explanation. But when Dex didn't move to give one, he had to urge him verbally. "Well?"

"Oh," Dex said, snapping his attention away from Biana, whom he'd been watching. "She was..." he cleared his throat, seeming to be caught on the words. "Gisela did something to her. She gave Sophie an injection, and then a...green liquid."

Keefe was still cheering in the background, but it was quieting as Keefe looked over to them with concern. And within seconds, he was sitting between them. 

"What's up?" he asked, and Fitz saw that Dex did his best not to stutter as he explained a second time what he'd seen. 

"You... You saw Foster? Is she okay?" 

Fitz internally cursed. That should've been his first question. Not what Dex was hiding, but what had happened to Sophie after the injection. Fitz's eyes narrowed on Keefe, who shifted uncomfortably under his eyes. Fitz turned away. Keefe. Keefe. He'd never put his own feelings above Sophie's. Not even when he'd ran away. He'd done it to protect her, alongside the rest of his friends. And that included Fitz. 

Fitz cursed under his breath, though neither of his friends seemed to notice. Fitz glanced back to Keefe once more, promising to be a better boyfriend the second he saw Sophie again. He'd try to be more like Keefe-- caring, considerate, and patient. And after everything, it suddenly no longer mattered that Sophie was unmatchable. Because he loved her. 

"Hey," Keefe said, and Fitz looked to see that both he and Dex were watching him with concerned expressions. "You good?" 

"I'm fine," Fitz said, shifting Biana's position in his arms. She inhaled a sharp breath, and Fitz froze. But nothing. She didn't wake, she didn't blink, she didn't move after that. She was wounded, Fitz remembered. He sighed. Being mindful was more difficult than Fitz had thought. 

"So," Fitz cleared his throat. "What about Sophie?" 

Dex and Keefe exchanged nervous glances, but didn't mention anything as Dex went right on explaining. 

He talked about watching as Sophie was treated with the injection and liquid. He'd seen Illusion, another mysterious member-- Puppeteer--, Fintan, Gisela-- and at her mention, Fitz noticed Keefe wince. There had been many more members, but they were all unidentified. Dex did have suspicions, however, that Trix might have been there in disguise. 

Still, despite the many details Dex had listed, Fitz couldn't erase the feeling that he was hiding something. Something important. Maybe more than just one thing, Fitz thought. Fitz didn't bring it up, however. They were on a tight schedule. Who knew what the Neverseen were planning. And from the sounds of it, Sophie didn't have much time, either. So, the three made their way as quickly as possible to Eternalia, flowers in hand. They had lost a good amount during the explosion of the boulder, but they had enough left to get some good information, hopefully.