"Bite down on this." Alya commanded, handing him a rolled up cloth.

He bit down on it, Alya grabbing the piece of metal.

"Okay, on three! One-"

She ripped it out of his arm, Nino screaming into the cloth. She took out a needle and thread beginning to stitch the wound close.

They sat in silence for a moment, before she suddenly asked Nino "What exactly were you doing in an alleyway with a metal spike in your shoulder?"

He shrugged, saying "I was on my way back from work."

Alya looked at him skeptically, asking "So you work where exactly...?"

"Ah," he said, realising she didn't know. "I work in a bar down near the outskirts of Paris. My friend Gin is the owner, so he offered me a position." He explained.

"Interesting. And you got stabbed because?"

"Oh, well Alya, as it so turns out, falling into an alleyway to try and soften a missed jump isn't a good idea. Who would've thought?"  Nino responded sarcastically.

.

"You're late." Gin said, cleaning a glass.

"I got stabbed by a piece of metal, sue me." Nino shot back.

Gin simply nodded, before processing his words.

"You got stabbed?!" Tracey yelled from the back.

"Yeah! It happened on the way over, fell into an alleyway thinking that it'd be safer to end up there rather than the street.... Lucky me." Nino responded, sorting a few glasses.

"Tch, you're giving me gray hairs already. You're on clean up duty tonight, make sure to close up shop.... Tracey's heading out of town for a couple days, so you'll have to cover her shifts, is that alright?"

"I can handle it. Besides, you can't always watch my back." Nino said, getting to work.

Tracey came out of the back, saying "Alright boys, I best be off! Gin, don't be too hard on the kid. Nino, no fucking in the bar after hours, but if ya do, make sure to do the deed over the bar!"

Gin simply nodded, Nino blushing while saying "Will you both cut it out with that! Besides, I'd never fuck in your bar, you'd kill me!"

"Damn straight."

*The next day*

Nino sat in class, their assignment being to analyze a news report.

'This is so boring-'

He couldn't finish his thought as Hawk Moth interrupted the broadcast, showing him on screen.

"Hello, Paris.... This broadcast is meant for the vigilante known as Furor. Listen well peacock, I grow tired of waiting for you to return what is mine! I've given you too much time to obey.... So I believe it's time to teach you a little humility, Furor."

His face cut out, showing a string of apartment buildings. Nino froze.... One of those his family lived in.

"You will show yourself. Because now, I'm not giving you a choice."

Nino ran out of the room, ignoring the shouts of his classmates.

"In thirty seconds, a bomb will detonate one of these buildings.... Good luck, peacock."

The transmission ended, Nino running faster.

"No, he can't, he wouldn't!" He said, moving quicker.

He turned the corner, seeing his home in the distance. He could see a black box with red beeping numbers on it attached to the side, people rushing to escape the building.

*Elsewhere*

Gin was busy driving as fast as he could, Tracey in the backseat.

"Pedal to the metal old man!" She urged, Gin speeding up.

"We'll get to him, don't worry! We just have to-"

*BOOM*

The shockwave from the explosion had him turning his car to drift to a stop. Flames rose from the explosion site, Gin stepping on the gas.

*Where Nino is*

Nino couldn't direct his eyes away from the explosion, sadness, fear, and anger filling him as he fell to his knees.

"Duusu.... Spread my grief."

Instead of his usual colors, they were a more mopey and depressing shade of blue, droopy looking wings and black tear-like markings on his face present.

He flew, off every beat of his wings sending cyan Amoks drifting to the ground. He landed on the Eifle Tower, sitting there as grief filled those who came in contact with the feathers.

.

"There you are.... Nino."

Gin approached Nino, seeing him curled up in a ball, hugging himself as he stared off into the distance.

"Lahiffe, look at me.... You need to pick yourself back up-" Gin began to say, before Nino suddenly stood up and glared at him.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO GIN?! WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO FUCKING DO?!" Nino snapped at him. "I FUCKING LOST! HE BEAT ME! WHY DON'T I JUST TURN IN AND GIVE UP?!" He ranted.

"Nino-"

"HE WON! I CAN'T FIX THIS! 23 PEOPLE DIED TODAY AND I COULD DO NOTHING TO STOP IT! WHAT'S EVEN THE POINT ANYMORE IF I COULDN'T EVEN-"

Gin hugged him, stopping the boy from he spiral. Tracey came over, wrapping him in a hug from behind.

"It wasn't your fault, you did everything that you could...." Tracey comforted him.

"I couldn't even!... I couldn't...." He sobbed, pulling the two closer.

"It'll be alright kid.... You can always lean on us if you need to, you know that." Gin said, rubbing circles on his back.

"The hardest part of the job is.... You can't save everyone." Tracey said, holding him.

They stayed like that for a moment, before they broke apart, Gin saying "Come on, you can stay at the bar for tonight."

Nino nodded in agreement, the three beginning to descend from the tower. The drive back to the bar was silent, no one being able to speak at the time.

Gin sighed, opening the bar to cut on the lights, saying "Wait here."

Nino nodded, Tracey sitting next to him.

".... I hated my parents growing up." Tracey said, causing Nino to look over to her.

"You never talk about before you were at the bar." Nino said, going silent once more.

"There wasn't really anything to talk about.... My dad was a cop, and my mom worked as a lawyer. All they ever talked about was their jobs, how important and large of an impact they made.... I wasn't exactly a planned child." Tracey confessed.

"I was always meant to be the perfect child growing up,  the perfect grades on every test, the perfect clothes, the perfect-...."

She hesitated, before taking a deep breath.

"The perfect.... Lover."

Nino felt a new emotion surface.... Rage.

"I.... Had a girlfriend. Five years ago, I ran away from my parents. Four years ago, I lost contact with her. Three years ago, I came to the Golden Crash for the first time. And in the last few months, I've seen you get attacked by heroes, manhandled by a Russian rhino, hunted by a bounty hunter, and now, you think you've lost everything.... You've been through more than any child ever should, and you've came out on top."

Nino looked down putting his arm over his eyes blocking her from seeing his tears.

"Don't apologize for being alive. You still have friends to lean on who will support you through everything.... Plus, you've got me in your corner! Just tell me who wants to mess with you and I'll break their legs!" Tracey said, putting her arm around his shoulder.

Gin came back with three glasses and a bottle of whiskey, setting them all down and pouring some in each glass.

"Um, I'm not old enough to drink...." Nino began, getting cut off by Gin.

"Tracey's only 19, you deserve a little rule breaking after all the good you've done.... Besides, since we're getting all sappy, I might as well tell you my backstory." Gin said, looking away with embarrassment.

They all grabbed a glass, Gin taking a sip of his before letting out a sigh.

"So.... I didn't always live in Paris. Before, I lived.... Well, I'm not too sure. I practically grew up in a life of crime, living off of black market deals and shady businesses. I had to earn the right to my miraculous." He began.

"Oh right, as if you look like a totally harmless guy." Nino said sarcastically.

"Shut the fuck up and let me finish." Gin retorted. "Anyways, my mother basically took care of me since my bastard of of father left to get the milk the moment I was conceived. I'll admit, growing up without dear old dad was.... Hard. Nothing could compare it to fighting with my mother for the miraculous though.

One day, we were ambushed on one of her deals. I managed to take cover.... My mom wasn't so lucky. I promised my mother that I'd never let anything stop me, not even death. If there's one things that you can count on, it's my vicious amount of resilience."

He let out a sigh, finger brushing over the completely black ring on his finger.

".... Tell you what, let's take an oath." Gin suddenly said. "We'll all add our part to it as members of our group."

Tracey lifted her glass, saying "I, Tracey Parker, pledge to never let other tell me how my life is supposed to work."

Gin lifted his, saying "I, Gin Jacobs, pledge to never give up or surrender."

The two looked at Nino, said boy sighing before raising his glass.

"I, Nino Lahiffe.... Pledge to save everyone that I can." He said, the three of them grinning.

"Cheers!" All three of them said, downing their drinks.