Despite his feelings towards the finger-numbing, cold rain that had drenched South Kerilia throughout the night, Lucius had to admit the air was unusually nice to breathe as he walked through the north-eastern streets of town.

"So I think we can agree that the well back there is in much greater need of repair than the fountain we saw earlier," he said to Bahman as they continued to inspect the various structures around them, and the latter nodded.

"We will move it up on the list, but I do think we should focus on the Carp road houses first. The roofs are frighteningly damaged."

Lucius nodded, relieved that his plan had worked so well. There would have been no way for him to write with his hands in such poor condition, so he'd proposed that he and Bahman look around town to find where renovations were most urgent.

If only The Entrails would count.

"You seem different today," Bahman said, and Lucius laughed sheepishly, thinking back to the awkward preparations that morning. To his surprise it had turned out that Richard, though merciless with a brush, wasn't too shabby at hair management, and while Tom had stabbed Lucius' eye with a pencil a couple of times he'd proven worthy of a pass in the end.

"Is it that bad? I tried experimenting with cosmetics this morning, but perhaps I was too eager about it.

"No no, not that." Bahman hurriedly shook his head. "It's just that you seem unusually chipper. Your appearance is impeccable, as always."

Lucius wasn't sure if he was lying, or if Tom and Richard somehow really knew what they were doing in beauty emergencies. He smiled at the comment though.

"Yes, I... I suppose I am." His heart warmed as he remembered the night before. "I've had a good night's sleep. It doesn't happen so often nowadays."

Bahman gave him a sympathetic look.

"You haven't found servants yet, have you? Since you're getting prepared on your own in the morning."

"No, still haven't." Lucius' smile was awkward again. "Anthony keeps reminding me, but much like with sleep, I haven't found the time to look for any."

"There has been a lot to do," Bahman agreed. "And you've had bad luck with the whole sanctuary falling, and some illness. Perhaps it would be better in the long run to take a day off to bounce back. Rest, eat properly, and do some searching for servants."

Lucius pursed his lips.

"I don't think rest is a luxury I can afford at the moment. There's already so much that needs to be done."

"I'd be happy to assist, if there's anything I can do."

"You already do more than the other council members." Lucius smiled gratefully. "But if you can gather up the others and whip them into shape, I'd appreciate it."

Bahman snorted.

"I'm not the whipping type of person. You know that."

"But with my permission?" Lucius suggested, waggling his eyebrows. "My order?"

Another laugh.

"I can't say no to that now, can I?"

"Well, alright then. I'll see to it that you all have the proper equipment, and then I suppose I could take a day to rest. Dyris knows I need it." Lucius nodded, quietly letting out a sigh of relief.

"Oh, there's Lord Hargreaves," Bahman then said, and Lucius' mind swayed between dread and hope.

"Which—" he asked, but stopped as his eyes followed Bahman's gaze and landed on Anthony. "Oh, good."

"Good morning, Anthony." He beamed. "Out for a morning walk?"

"More like a noon walk, don't you think?" Bahman suggested and looked up at the sky, but Lucius had meant what he'd meant. Noon seemed to be morning by Anthony-standards.

He couldn't help but sigh wistfully. It had taken all of his discipline not to crawl back into Anthony's warm embrace after getting ready that morning. It was the best sleep he'd gotten in ages, and probably the best physical interaction in his entire life. Without that scary poison though, it was unlikely Anthony would have woken up to spend time with him anyway.

"Mr. Featherstone." Anthony nodded, and turned to Lucius. "Lucia."

Bahman folded his arms with a playful smile.

"I'm rather certain you were supposed to drop the formalities regarding me."

Anthony blinked, actually taking a moment of confusion to ponder this.

"Right, I'm sorry, Bahman."

"Is everything alright?" Lucius raised an eyebrow as he noticed the worry-wrinkle on Anthony's forehead.

"Yes, well..." Anthony gave Bahman a discreet glance before looking at Lucius again.. "... I feel like we should talk in private, actually."

"While I'd like to, I'm unfortunately in the middle of something." Lucius turned his chin up, though he wanted nothing more than being alone with Anthony again. "I'm sure you, as a former town chief, understand."

"It's just... It's about Damien," Anthony said, nose scrunching as Lucius rolled his eyes.

"If the older Lord Hargreaves wants something, he can come see me at the town hall."

"It's not that," Anthony said, voice lowering. "He hasn't asked to see you. I just wanted to talk to you about... Him."

Lucius and Bahman exchanged a look.

"With me?" Lucius raised an eyebrow. Even though Anthony and Lucia were supposedly friends, they'd never come off as close enough to talk about family problems.

"Yes, uh..." Anthony frowned. "... It involves you too."

"Is it about the engagement?" Bahman wondered, and while Anthony's expression suggested that was not the case, he nodded in a vague manner.

"Uh... Yes? Kind of."

Lucius' head was already spinning with theories. Perhaps Anthony had told Damien about the two of them, or Damien had given him news regarding being sent away or not.

"I... I suppose I shouldn't decline," he said, though unable to hide his disappointment. "But I'm still working, so... We will have to talk later when I'm not busy."

"It's just that it's... Urgent." Anthony grimaced. "I'd appreciate it if we could do it now."

"Anthony... I can't just leave Bahman to do my work for me." Lucius gestured at the poor council member. "Can't it wait?"

"It would be wise not to," Anthony still insisted, causing Lucius' mind to reel further.

"But—"

"If it's that urgent, I suppose I could finish up without you," Bahman said with another look of sympathy. Possibly an understanding that Hargreaveses had a tendency to demand immediate attention at their convenience.

Lucius tried to look apologetic, though he really wanted to hurry off with Anthony.

"I'm afraid you'll be the one in need of rest soon enough, Bahman."

"It's just a couple more stops, really," Bahman reasoned, though his eyes revealed slight annoyance in Anthony's direction. "I will compile the notes when I get back to the town hall and call it a day."

"I'll give this one a piece of my mind, I promise." Lucius pointed to Anthony with the same look of annoyance. "And you will of course be paid for the trouble."

"I will see you tomorrow, Lady Cromwell." Bahman nodded a goodbye, and Lucius returned the gesture.

"He didn't say goodbye to me," Anthony whispered as they walked away, and Lucius scoffed.

"You inconvenienced him. You shouldn't expect him to."

"Isn't it you who's inconveniencing him?"

"You are making me inconvenience him. It's on you." Lucius gave Anthony a look of disapproval before glancing over his shoulder. "Alright, what did you want?"

"Damien wants to see you."

"I thought you said he didn't want to." Lucius rolled his eyes. "We could have blamed it on him then."

"It's not Lucia he wants to see."

Lucius' eyes widened in realisation.

"Oh."

Anthony nodded.

"And he expects you to be there soon, so you need to hurry and get changed."

"Ugh." Lucius groaned. "But my hands still hurt, and it took so long to get ready."

"How did you manage this morning?" Anthony arched his eyebrows, and Lucius couldn't help but smile.

"I managed to crawl into my shirt, and then I had Tom and Richard help with the rest."

Anthony chuckled.

"I can't imagine them being good at that. Must have been chaos."

"Hey, they did good. I think I look decent," Lucius protested, but Anthony's laugh was infectious. "And yes, maybe there was a little chaos. But you were asleep and Ethan wasn't around."

"Guess they were your only option then," Anthony admitted. "And if I'm being honest, I'd probably not be much better at it. Ethan would be your safest bet."

"We'll just have to take a day where we all teach each other how to cook, get dressed, manage cosmetics and hair, and dance." Lucius counted on his fingers. "It could be useful, even when I have servants."

"Add crocheting to the list," Anthony said. "They say it passes the time, and I've wanted to try."

"Oh, and sewing," Lucius added.

"Richard knows how to sew, you can ask him."

"Really? Then I definitely will."

"Tom could use some practical skills as well." Anthony suddenly seemed very excited, and Lucius could imagine why. If immortality got so awfully boring, of course learning new things would help.

"I just... Have to ask," Lucius said. "Have you never really tried any of these things before?"

Anthony grimaced, but not so bad that Lucius regretted asking.

"It's just that we forget," he said. "Let years, maybe decades, go by without doing something, and it will disappear from memory. I know I used to know how to sew, so I might have an easier time learning again, but it's been so long. Probably more than a century."

"Damn," Lucius said, staring down at the road and once again reflecting on immortality.

"Anyway, we need to hurry," Anthony reminded him. "For some reason he doesn't think you're doing anything during the day, so he expects you to be ready at all times."

"He must think so highly of me." Lucius batted his eyes with a sugary, sarcastic voice.

"I know." Anthony pressed his lips together. "You both get along so well."

"Best friends in the making, I'm sure."

What followed was a hasty stop by Anthony's house to remove any trace of Lucia, to the dismay of Tom and Richard who had apparently been awfully proud of their hard work, and changing into some of Lucius' finer clothes before heading out again.

"I think town chief life is making me dull," Lucius huffed as they hurried along the streets. "I wouldn't have been this out of breath just a year ago."

"I know I'm nagging, but I stand by that you need to eat and sleep better." Anthony raised his eyebrows. "Exhaustion comes from many directions."

"You're a very wise, old man, Lord Hargreaves."

"I know."

"He could have sent a carriage," Lucius complained further as they passed by the stables near the BBT's main building. "If he was in such a hurry."

"Well, it's you." Anthony looked sheepish. "To him, you're not worth a carriage."

Lucius rolled his eyes.

"Employer of the year."

"Please try to behave though, if just a little," Anthony asked before opening the door. "There's not much to lose from it."

"My dignity?" Lucius suggested, but surrendered to Anthony's stare. "Fine, alright. I'll be nice."

His instincts disagreed though, and it took an impressive amount of self control for Lucius not to scowl at Damien the moment their eyes met.

"Mr. Cromwell," the older Lord Hargreaves acknowledged after sending Anthony out of the room, to the latter's discontentment. "Not in a hurry today, I take it?"

"My apologies, Lord Hargreaves," Lucius obediently replied, determined to not let Anthony's absence intimidate him. "I'm afraid I was a tad busy."

Damien cocked an eyebrow.

"With what?"

"Private matters." Lucius shrugged it off. "Afraid it couldn't wait."

"I see." Damien's cold stare held on to Lucius' eyes for a while longer, but he didn't question it further. "Well, I have decided to move forward with further investigation concerning the garm, now that Derek is more available. I want you to assist him, seeing how you've met it before and knew where it was hiding."

Lucius looked over at Derek, who was standing next to the office's large window and had seemingly not paid attention until his name was brought up.

"What, now?" he asked, and the corner of Damien's mouth twitched.

"Mr. Cromwell will be assisting you with the search for the garm."

Derek nodded slowly.

"As bait?"

"Well, not on purpose." Damien scrunched up his nose, and Lucius was already tired of playing nice, but he also saw a chance to bring up his idea to let Anthony stay.

Guess I'll be playing nice for a little longer then.

"Coincidentally, I wanted to talk to you about a similar situation," he said, and folded his arms. "I'd be more than happy to look further into the garm-incident, but I will not be going anywhere near a potential werebeast in an enclosed space with that one."

He pointed at Derek, who tilted his head with a sympathetic shrug.

"Garms are one of the biggest threats when it comes to the supernatural." Damien shook his head. "I would not trust a mortal to take care of that alone."

"I wasn't about to either," Lucius said with a pleased smile. "I want Anthony to investigate it with me."

Damien had the nerve to barely stifle a laugh, making a poor attempt at pretending to clear his throat.

"While Anthony has the benefit of immortality, he's never been involved in the more hands-on part of the BBT." He was still smiling, and Lucius wanted to scowl again. "Derek is by far the safest and more efficient option."

"I wouldn't know about 'safest'," Lucius muttered, but was not about to back down. "There are other reasons too. More personal matters that I'd rather leave Mr. Kilgrave out of."

"Whatever emotional reasons you have, I assure you Derek will be more than enough. He's quite proficient when it comes to vengeance and torture."

"I'm certain he is," Lucius said through gritted teeth. "Still, I don't want him involved in what I'm investigating."

Damien's eyes narrowed.

"How so?"

Lucius sighed, reluctantly understanding that he'd have to give them some information, if just a little.

"The reason we ran into the garm in the first place was because I was looking for a friend of mine." He grimaced. "... Who's been dead for seven years."

"One would think they'd stay in about the same place." Damien arched an eyebrow accordingly.

"Yeah, but..." Lucius drew a silent breath. "... An empty grave would suggest otherwise."

Damien and Derek exchanged a look.

"And you suspect this would have something to do with werewolves?" Damien was not convinced. "Even when they torment humans, they rarely venture directly into towns, and even someone of their kin wouldn't challenge a grim."

"She wasn't buried in a cemetery." Lucius looked down at the floor. "I buried her in the forest."

"Oh he's a Wexian," Derek concluded, but Lucius shook his head.

"It was... That, or having to see her be thrown into the Siren's maw."

He should have expected Damien's reaction. Few were unlucky enough to be thrown into a huge rift instead of getting a proper burial, and those few usually had something in common.

"So your friend was executed," he said, signature cold voice ever so present. "I wish I could say I was surprised."

"Lord Hargreaves, we both know that we don't get along particularly well, and I've accepted that." Lucius' tone reluctantly fell into colder territory as well, and his shoulders tensed. "But you of all people don't get to talk to me about the executions in this town or what kind of people are sentenced to it, so I'd tread carefully."

"No one just accidentally ends up at the gallows."

"Oh, I'm well aware it wasn't an accident." The strain in Lucius' shoulders spread up to his jaws. He had to stay on topic. Had to somehow get along with the man, as impossible as it was. "But regardless of how it happened, my friend still disappeared from her grave, and it's been so many years since she was buried, so it couldn't have been an animal."

"Which rules out werewolves," Damien countered, and Lucius masked a glare. "While I agree it is a puzzling incident, nothing suggests they'd play a part in it."

"Except I know you've been searching for them around that specific area," Lucius insisted. "I found the map. You'd marked that spot, suggesting that werewolves might roam there, and we did find those scourgefucking Larkspur people as well. It can't be a coincidence."

Damien's lip curled.

"Well aren't I thrilled that you broke into my office to find that map and then went ahead to interfere with it all. Who knows how soon we could have hunted down the garm if you hadn't—"

"I don't give a fuck about your plans," Lucius blurted out, balling his fists as his temper failed him. "While you were sitting around and rolling your thumbs, I actually ran into the garm and subdued it, so stop whining about me 'interfering' and get off your asses instead, maybe you'd get some fucking results."

"That's why I wanted you to continue the search." Damien frowned. "While I don't appreciate your previous approach, you did find it, and you have a chance to redeem yourself. The difference this time is that you will bring Derek, who will handle what you can't."

"I'm not working with Mr. Kilgrave." Lucius was adamant. "It's Anthony or no one."

Damien's eye twitched again, and he sighed through his nose.

"Anthony is not experienced in these matters," he said slowly as if explaining it to a child. "There is no reason for him to take Derek's place."

"I'm certain Mr. Kilgrave has other things to do." Lucius threw his hands out at the man. "Like— Like make those new chairs he promised you, out of human skin or something."

Derek and Damien shared another look, and Lucius regretted his suggestion in fear that Derek would declare that he'd already made such furniture before.

"That's messed up," Derek then said, and Lucius gave him an offended look.

"I assure you, Mr. Kilgrave, that many things I've heard and seen you do are severely messed up, to say the least."

"I don't even know how to make furniture." Derek still looked disgusted, which frustrated Lucius even further. "And leather? Have you seen the style of this place? The colours? The decorations? You want to add leather?"

"And what makes you think I'd appreciate human chairs?" Damien looked just as judgemental as Derek. "I thought I'd made it clear that I value humans. It would just be a waste of Derek's time and effort."

Lucius wasn't sure whether to laugh or scream.

"I... Apologise, I guess," he muttered, done with the ridiculous topic. "So you won't be busy with carpentry."

"Being hands-on is my thing, after all." Derek smiled his lopsided smile. "Why risk failure when you could just let me do what I do?"

"Because you tried to get me killed." Lucius tilted his head back in exasperation. "I don't know why I need to remind you of that."

"I thought we'd already decided it was a misunderstanding." Derek turned his gaze to Damien, who rolled his eyes.

"Just let it go, Mr. Cromwell."

Lucius gritted his teeth.

"I shouldn't have to be in danger from more than one direction when I'm investigating."

"Then let's establish right now that Derek will not try to kill you." Damien shrugged. "Or get you killed by other means."

"It's—" Lucius sighed, trying to find words. "Alright, fine. It's not just about that... I— I want you to find something for Anthony to do here."

Damien frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"That if he's needed here, you can't send him away." Lucius fought not to turn his eyes away. "And I know you're a practical man, but even if it's vague, I think a lot of people need him here. Want him here, and he wants to be here too. He... He's got a life here, you know?"

"Mr. Cromwell." Damien closed his eyes with another sigh. "You must realise that Anthony's life is not the same as yours, or most others'. Him being away for a couple of years will be nothing to him."

"But it won't be nothing for others." Lucius finally relented and turned his head to look away. "Me included."

"Perhaps you should focus more on other people then," Damien suggested, voice void of sympathy. "Anthony is just one person."

"He's not just 'one person' to me," Lucius protested, feeling the heat rise in his cheeks. "And maybe my years won't matter much in a couple of centuries, but it will be everything for me, and I don't want my everything to be without him."

He swallowed, cursing himself for resorting to pleading.

"I... Don't think I can have my everything without him."

Finally daring to glance back at the two men, he first noticed Derek's smile was fading. He would have expected mockery, or perhaps a judging sneer, but aside from a slight wrinkle between his eyebrows, he showed no discernible emotion.

Damien did, however.

"Are you that delusional, Mr. Cromwell?" His devastating stare almost made Lucius waver. "I thought even you could comprehend that your presence in Anthony's life is parasitic at best."

The contempt in his voice drained the air from Lucius, replacing the emptiness with doubt.

"And... Why is that?" His voice was slow after recovering his breath.

Damien leaned back in his chair with a scornful frown.

"I'm certain you kno—"

"No." Lucius' eyes were dead. "Please, enlighten me."

A sigh, and Damien looked up at the ceiling as if in thought.

"Well then, why don't you ask yourself where you would be without Anthony? Even with the convenience of your last name, the most you've ever accomplished is running a subpar group of criminals from which you were thrown out, and have hidden behind Anthony ever since then. Do you think you'd be anywhere near the quality of life you currently have if he wasn't taking care of you? I think you know very well you would not be working here."

"I would have found another way," Lucius began, and Damien actually nodded in agreement.

"It's possible. You could have leeched off your cousin instead."

"I don't need others to survive," Lucius hissed with a gesture at himself. "I am fully capable of building a life on my own."

"And you'll have to." Damien's lip curled. "This only confirms that Anthony shouldn't stay."

"Wha—" Lucius gawked, and a burning pain spread through his chest where the black veins grew. "Why the Waste not? Because I live with him? I can move to another place if you're so concerned about my presence!"

Damien remained unimpressed. In fact, his cold glare turned even graver.

"That wouldn't help, would it? You have no intention to stop being around him. I fear this misguided affection of yours won't go away just like that."

"And why is that so bad?" Lucius threw his hands out. "Why can't we be together? Isn't Anthony's happiness what's most imp—"

"You cannot make Anthony happy." Damien interrupted him. "Your wretched existence can never end in anything but misery, and you should know that by now."

Lucius grew colder than what Damien may have even intended. Thoughts regarding the pact with the Scourge and tragic events of his past spun around in his head, but Damien couldn't even know half of it.

"My life has taken some... Unfortunate turns here and there," he admitted. "But it's in the past. There's no cause for concern."

"Really?" Damien raised his eyebrows. "So I shouldn't be concerned that my son is living with a murderer?"

Lucius blinked, opening and closing his mouth a couple of times before being able to speak.

"Ca— Carner tried to kill me! He was a murderer as well, and you even praised me for getting rid of him!"

"Yes, the world being rid of someone like Dr. Carner can, in my opinion at least, excuse murder," Damien agreed, eyes narrowing. "But you've killed more than once, Mr. Cromwell."

"I—" Lucius paled, frantically scouring his brain to figure out what Damien knew. He'd been unaware of Lucius' connection to the Hydrina execution, so it wasn't the executioner. As far as Lucius knew, no one had seen him and Mabel when they stole the crowbar and Lucius pushed the man to his death, or they would have been caught.

Ravi, then? Though Damien claimed to not be involved with lower class gangs, it was possible he'd looked into it because of Lucius' background, but he found it hard to believe Telmo or Lorenzo would rat him out.

"I may have been involved with some shady people in the past, but I don't just go around and murder people," he said through a nervous laugh. "If I had wanted someone dead back then, I wouldn't have risked doing it myself."

Three years of conditioning a dog for just one death should vouch for that.

Damien still looked unimpressed, and he raised an eyebrow.

"So you're saying Carner is the only one to die by your hands?"

Lucius dared to laugh again, a little more confidently.

"I think I'd remember if there were others."

"So would I." Damien tilted his head with an uncannily amused smile. "It does seem strange to me that you've forgotten about your parents."

An invisible punch hit Lucius' stomach, and he reluctantly let out the breath he'd used to look composed.

"My—" His vision blurred and darkened as he struggled to stand firm. "What— What about them? Why would you bring—"

"Well they were murdered, weren't they?" Damien's content smile remained. "They never found the killer, but I'm more than certain that everyone knew. Who else could it have been, after all?"

"My brother was—"

"Your brother had been with other people that day," Damien said calmly. "Several could attest to that."

"I— I was a child when it happened," Lucius tried with a faked, amused smile. "They were adults. Even if I had somehow wanted to, I wouldn't have stood a chance."

"It is impressive," Derek agreed, which Lucius did not appreciate.

"You were there, after all," Damien continued. "When they were murdered. Doctors from the hospital you ran to could confirm what had happened, and even your brother wouldn't deny it."

Lucius' heartbeat drowned out most of the conversation, but he heard enough for his blood to boil. He'd had enough. Enough of pretending to be nice. Enough of being berated. Of being denied every trace of happiness he could find.

"How could you possibly blame me, then?" His eyes flashed with rage as the last shred of calm left him. "If you know what happened— What they did to me— How can you sit there and claim they didn't deserve it?"

"While I certainly find what they did quite despicable, they were flawed humans like many." Damien looked bored now, and Lucius dug his nails into the palms of his hands.

"So just because they were human?" he growled. "I can assure you they deserved to die more than any unholy creature you've ever hunted."

"Regardless, the fact that you killed them remains." Damien stared Lucius down again. "Mr. Cromwell, you're a wretched, deranged murderer whose miserable, worthless life has nothing left to offer. If you care about Anthony so deeply, then why insist on tormenting him with your presence?"

The searing pain in Lucius' chest worsened, but he barely felt it.

"I'm tormenting him?" he asked, with a fury he hadn't quite expected filling every inch of him. "You're his father, and he doesn't even want to see you! You scare him, you try to make changes in his life without his permission, and you really should thank the Archons for your immortality because I have no doubt you would have met the same fate as my father did a long time ago."

"I've known him for centuries," Damien said coldly, though it was clear from his expression that a nerve had been struck. "I know what's best for him, and it certainly isn't a worthless—"

"I'm not worthless!" Lucius yelled, voice breaking under the pulsating agony spreading further through his body. "I'm worth more than any of you! Than anyone in this Archon forsaken town! And if you try to get in the way of the life I want again, I will fucking defy immortality and kill you anyway!"

Through his rather uncanny, startling rage, Lucius was surprised to see Damien's eyes widening in confusion rather than anger, and he turned his head to look at Derek.

"Don't you fucking dare!" Lucius tried to back away as Derek went forward to grab him. Unfortunately the locked door proved to be a successful disadvantage, and he couldn't do much but fall as Derek kicked his legs and kneeled down to grab his face.

Dyris be damned if he'd just go down like that though, and with a prompt spit in Derek's face Lucius managed to elbow him in the stomach.

To his further misfortune it didn't make a lot of difference, and with a sigh Derek grabbed Lucius' hair and dunked his head against the floor.

Lucius squeezed his eyes together as the world spun around, but to his horror Derek forced one of them open again. He hummed, and repeated the procedure with Lucius' other eye before turning to Damien.

"Nothing."

"Strange," Damien remarked. If Lucius' screaming had unnerved him, he'd already recovered enough to shake it off.

"What—" Lucius began, but jumped as there was a sudden, loud banging on the door.

"Damien! What's going on!?"

Damien sighed at the appearance of Anthony's voice, and he gave Lucius a last scornful look.

"Guess I'll need to relay everything to him as well, then." He looked over at Derek and nodded towards the door. "If you will."

"Just the corridor or outside?" Derek asked as he grabbed Lucius' collar to pull him up from the floor.

"Outside, without a doubt. Basement if he tries to get back in."

"Lu—" Anthony began as soon as the door opened, but paused as Derek was already in the process of pulling the person in question out of the room. "Derek!"

"He's not going to hurt him," Damien said, sounding a bit disappointed. "I just want to speak to you alone."

Then Derek kicked the door shut and let Lucius regain his balance on the floor.

"You know the way out."

"Oh, and here I thought you'd be courteous enough to throw me there yourself," Lucius snarked, pain in his body finally fading, and Derek raised his eyebrows.

"Want me to?"

"Of course not, you idiot," Lucius hissed and retracted his arm as Derek offered to grab him again. "I'm going back in again."

"And I'm the idiot," Derek said dryly before lifting a flailing Lucius away from the door.

"He can't keep us apart," Lucius growled as Derek carried him downstairs. "There's no way he's sending Anthony away. I won't let him. I won't let anyone try to—"

"Sure," Derek said and unceremoniously dropped him outside the building's entrance. "No harm in making immortal enemies, I guess."

"Because we were such good friends before." Lucius rolled his eyes. "Nothing's changed. I was just a little more open about my feelings."

Derek's crooked smile returned, and he let out a pitying sigh.

"Oh, Cromwell," he said as he turned to walk inside again. "You have no idea how much you've fucked up today."