Chapter 12

"You know," Una said as she sat on the couch, Gus' hoodie tumbling over her body and a cushion resting on her legs which she was hugging, "telling me everything usually means actually talking."

Gus stopped pacing to glare at her, watching the amused smile fall onto her lips to which he couldn't help his own smile tugging at his own. She shifted in her space, her head leaning on Flynn who sat beside her and her legs sprawled over Elysia Ari to the other side who was tapping a rhythm on her legs with her fingertips.

"You are taking a bloody long time," Ferris said on the other side of Flynn. His head was resting on Flynn's other shoulder whilst Flynn played with his hair.

"I'm just trying to figure out where to start," he snapped, glaring at Ferris who looked nothing but amused. River was lying on the empty couch with a book in his hand, clearly uninterested in whatever Gus had to say, and he wasn't.

He had been there when everything happened with Gus' father, had witnessed the man he used to tolerate strip himself of that position.

"Last summer," Gus finally spoke, "just after my mum and dad divorced...he tried to kill her."

"What?!" Una squeaked, wide-eyed. She was shocked, of course, she knew of how vile his father was but she didn't think he was a murderer.

"Raymond is a very powerful sorcerer...that's what he goes by instead of maker," Gus took a deep breath, "it's sort of frowned upon amongst many families to love someone with different types of powers and when my father found out that his ex-wife who he had a son with had fallen in love with a Maker, he was blinded by fury...he wanted to kill her.

I stepped in then, my powers, they were strong. Both of my parents are two of the most powerful healers in the world and so creating me was like creating a ticking time bomb of power, someone so powerful they knew my powers were getting stronger than both of them combined by the age of thirteen.

Healers aren't saviours, we are called that because of our egotistical ancestors-"

"Healers are tended to be confident," Flynn whispered to Una, nudging to Gus, "and...egotistical."

"Thanks for that, Flynn," Gus glared, "the magical world that is hidden in towns and cities and villages all had a war. The hidden countries filled with magic tried to rid out any humans but the powerful ones who knew of magic wiped out towns and villages with wars and weaponry.

We are called Healers because our field of power essentially healed the magical world."

"Of course, it's all complete bullshit," Elysia smirked, "considering Makers are more powerful in our field regardless of Healers trying to take it away from us. During the war, Makers were the ones to hide the magical world after it was completely broken."

"Excuse me!" Delilah squeaked, "but had it not been for Givers then there wouldn't have been any crops, and some of the most powerful Givers were able to resurrect animals and beings!"

"I'm sorry, but had it not been for Deceivers then who would have looked into the minds of the humans to see what they were up to?!" Ferris piped in.

"Oh yes because I'm sure a giver, maker, deceiver, or healer could shift into something and slaughter them all!" Flynn exclaimed.

Una couldn't help but roll her eyes, shaking her head at them all and soon speaking, "I'm sure all of your ancestors played a great part in this war, but I still have no idea what you really are and what you can do!"

"I can do everything."

"You're right, he is egotistical," Una nudged Flynn, earning a snort from Elysia Ari and a quiet laugh from the boy beside her.

"Our field is a weapon, but we can practice everything. The only thing we can't do is shift or control water or fire because of the different ways our bodies are made up, but I can perform magic if I liked to, I can read minds, or grow vines. There are other powers you don't know of, Una, but we can do essentially all of them," he clasped his hands together.

"Then do it," she said, gesturing to him whilst he frowned.

"I can't," his shoulders slumped, "I couldn't let him hurt my mother, I just couldn't so I stepped up - I told him if he let her go then he could kill me but he said he was going to do something more torturous, and he did.

He stripped me of all of my power, I can't do anything now."

Her eyes were wide as she looked around the room, any signs of bickering had gone and in place was just a sad silence. They were all very clearly hurt to think of what their best friend had gone through and she was too, she could hardly bear to think of it must have felt like to feel so powerful and then have it stripped away without so much as a goodbye.

He risked himself for his mother.

He was ready to die for her.

She stood from her seat. He was standing right in the middle of the room looking over at them all and she moved forward until she was right in front of him and he rested his forehead on hers, looking down at her and seeing the look she was giving him.

"You are so fucking brave," she whispered, cupping his cheek and he clung to her, scrunching up his hoodie that fell over her as he gripped her waist.

"I had given up," he whispered just to her, looking her right in the eyes whilst his lips almost brushed hers, "until I met you."

"What?!" she gasped. She didn't care that her friends were quietly groaning, or rolling their eyes at them or whining about them because all she cared about in that moment was Gus, on his story and his braveness and on how incredible he was.

"I never thought there was any point in finding a way to get my powers back, I didn't think there was any point to leave the village once we arrived. We chose there because it was secluded...safe, a place we wouldn't easily be found and I was fine staying there and getting into fights and feeling sorry for myself.

And then you were hurt that day and I helped you and you just had this sarcastic mouth and bright smile and anger and it was refreshing, it was good. I told myself I wanted to help you see something other than the village because I saw you every day in the tea shop and I knew you would love it here.

But I figured that if I was going to come here again I could at least try and restore the part of me I lost, and it's all because of you. You're the reason I'm here, you're the reason I have hope that I can get my powers back because had it not been for you I would have still been stuck in the village wishing for a way out."

She stared at him for a very long time, her hands resting on each of his cheeks and her nose brushing his. They were so close and she was flush against him as he held her close, and it was just a tiny flicker to his lips, her eyes had wavered from his for just one second.

But he saw that one second and his lips met hers forcefully. She almost stumbled back had it not been for his arm around her and she eagerly kissed him with as much force as him and the loud groans of protest in the background was merely a faint whisper as the multiple thoughts of him flashed in her mind and in his too.

"Oh, bloody hell make it stop!" Ferris groaned his head in his hands as every thought of what they wished to do to each other entered his mind and he couldn't at all help it.

Una smiled as she pulled away, stroking his lips with her thumb and turning to her friends with a glare, to which Flynn said, "please get a room!"

"You know what Flynn," Una smirked, her hand trailing down Gus' arm until it reached his hand, tugging him along, "we will."

"That is my cue to leave this house," Ferris announced, standing up quickly whilst Una closed the door of her room behind her.

Gus' hoodie was already on the floor of Una's bedroom when the front door slammed and her head buried into Gus' neck as he whispered all he wished to do to her in her ear.

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

"Have fun last night?" asked Flynn when Una entered the kitchen with a lazy smile and Gus' jumper back over her body.

"I did," she nodded, giving him a pointed look and wandering to the cupboard to get a tea bag and the mug she had classed as her own.

"Oh, I bet," Flynn was smirking though she hadn't yet turned from the tea she was preparing and the kettle boiling, "I definitely didn't need to be a deceiver in order to hear you."

"Flynn!" she shrieked, watching the howl of laughter escape his lips and she picked up the first thing she saw - which was an orange - and launched it at him. Of course, he had ducked just in time for it to move past him but an unfortunate boy with the name of River wasn't so lucky as it hit him square on the head.

"Oh my - River, I'm so sorry!" she squeaked out, and Flynn couldn't help but fall off of his stool as he burst into more convulsions of laughter. The dark - almost navy like - haired boy turned into the kitchen, seeing the glass of water on the table which belonged to Flynn, he merely flicked his finger and the water splashed all over her.

"River!" she exclaimed, seeing the hint of amusement shining through his scowl, "that was not the same!"

"Tell me, Una, has Gus ever gotten you that wet before?" He asked, peeling the orange she had thrown at him which he had caught just after it hit him, and popping a piece into his mouth.

She glared at him as he turned around and Flynn had finally calmed himself down enough to retake his seat back on the stool.

"Asshole," she grumbled, flipping River off as he walked around the corner and the sound of the kettle going off almost made her jump.

"So, I was thinking," Flynn said, realising it was his water that River used and frowning when he got up to refill it, "I want a dog."

"Flynn you can't just go out and get a dog," Una said, turning with her now made tea to stare at him whilst he filled his water.

"Unfortunately," he huffed, "that is true. But I can look at dogs, and it's a very good hobby of mine and I wondered if you would like to join me?"

"Oh! Are we going to the park again?!" she asked, a grin spread over her lips at the thought but he shook his head.

"No!" he tutted, "but I do volunteer at the dog shelter. It's not far from here and it's mostly just keeping the dog's company if you wanna join?"

"Flynn, if it doesn't work out between Gus and me," she whispers, "then I would like to ask for your hand in marriage."

"As much as that makes me a very happy boy," he said, reaching for her hand and kissing it, "I'd say that Gus has a better chance asking me than you do."

"Yes, unfortunately so," she tutted, both of them letting out short laughs, "when do we leave?"

"As soon as we're dressed. The shelter opens at eleven for visitors but they know me well," he said with a grin, "if we dress soon then we can have time with the dogs before visitors arrive."

"Does being in love really matter when it comes to marriage?" she asked.

"Well usually..." he trailed off, "but I think regardless of being in love with you, Una, we'd have a very happy life married together."

"I think so too!" she beamed, pressing a kiss to his cheek as she passed by him, "I'll see you in ten minutes!"

It took both of them a lot longer than ten minutes to get dressed for the day, but Una had Gus as an excuse as he was awake when she entered back into her room. She was dressed in her usual attire when she entered back into the living room, but the rain had picked up in the last few days and on her head, she wore a knitted hat and over her outfit she had a heavy jacket.

"Where are you two off to?" asked Elysia as she entered the main room of the apartment. Flynn stood next to her with a similar hat and a thicker coat over himself and a grin resting on his lips at the sight of his friend.

"We're off to the shelter," Flynn said, slinging his arm around Una beside him, "Una definitely loves dogs more than anyone else - except me - so I thought it was the wisest idea to take her. Now we're getting married."

"Makes sense," Elysia nodded, "you should stop at that cupcake place!"

"Oh yes!" Flynn nodded excitedly, pulling on Una and both teenagers waving a goodbye to Elysia who called for them to bring her back a cupcake.

The walk to the shelter was longer than both of them had expected considering the rain poured down like buckets from the heavens. Traffic was lining up in the street and the locals of the city were a lot more frantic in the harsh weather than usual, of course, that didn't take away from the beauty of it all and a part of Una loved the look of the city as the rain poured down.

It was still refreshing and even airy and the city didn't lose any of the special touches it had because of the rain pour but both wished they had brought an umbrella to shield themselves from the harsh cold. Una wasn't as cold as Flynn was, she was huddled into him in order to keep him warm with her heavy coat and the outfit she wore that made her much warmer.

She really loved being warm and she always was, she loved her jumpers and the outfits she wore that would keep her warm even in warmer weather but she never really bothered in the cold because it didn't bother her.

"It's just up here," said Flynn, pointing down another street which they both turned down. Una loved every single thing in the city, the tall towering buildings and the streets lined with shops and cafés and restaurants and everything in between, and as they turned down the street she had never been down before, she loved the long row of townhouses that looked lovely in the heart of the city.

"Did you like growing up in the city?" asked Una and she could have sworn she saw the small smile on Flynn's lips waver. He shoved his hands in the pockets, lifting his eyes to the sky as the rain got lighter and lighter and merely shrugged, "we don't have to talk about."

"Oh, it's alright, I'm just being dramatic," he rolled his eyes, slowing down his steps and she did too, "I'm not from a wealthy family, Una. My kind...Shifters, we're known a lot more commonly as beasts regardless of the official name of us. A beast in a position of power like River's dad, or Delilah's parents, or Elysia's mother, or Gus' dad is just not something Somnium has yet to accept yet.

We're known as vicious monsters because we have the power to be anything we want, we have been feared for centuries and in the war, that we talked about was the only time the magical world wanted us when we actually helped them and we always have wanted to.

We used to be hunted, and when my parents and I arrived in Somnium when I was younger, they could hardly get jobs without being judged so I grew up in the part of Somnium that really is a nightmare.

When Delilah's parents bought the apartment for Del, she was the first person I asked and she even offered to take in my parents too. They said no, they couldn't - I'm not my parents only child and Del had enough room for us all but they just didn't want to go. They told me to go, they said I deserved to live in a place of luxury after everything I did for them, and I still do all that I can.

Going there...going to see them is so painful because I could help them, Del has offered more than once that there is always room but they just don't want to accept it."

Una reached for Flynn's hand, pulling him into the tightest hug she could muster whilst his head fell onto her shoulder and the tears fell from his eyes. He hated talking about his parents but Una was there for him, and she didn't judge him or give him pity, she was a friend and a shoulder to cry on.

"What do you say," she whispered, "that we go to the shelter another time and we can go to the café and you can tell me all the good things about your parents?"

"Really?" he asked, and she moved to wipe his tears with a small smile resting on her lips.

"We have plenty of time to see the dogs, hell, we can even go tomorrow, but I want to hear the good stuff, I want to hear all about you right now, Flynn."

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

Una and Flynn returned home from their day out nearing seven at night with a box filled with different types of cupcakes for their friends. They had gotten many in their favourite flavours but Una had picked out a specific cupcake for each of them that came in their respective colours.

She had gotten them all with their powers on them, she didn't know why she thought it necessary but it was cute to her and it was a way for her to show that she wasn't mad anymore, officially. She hadn't been mad at any of them for a while and they knew that but she wanted to surprise them.

Flynn's was yellow and he had been tempted to eat it on their walk back but she scolded him every time he so much as looked at the box, warning him that if he touched it then he wasn't going to get it, to which he snorted and replied, "okay mum."

The only one that was slightly different from the rest of them was Rivers, which instead of said controller - because he didn't tell her - it said merman just to piss him off even more. She was rather excited to give them all their cupcakes mostly just to see his reaction to it.

"We should have gotten you one," Flynn said as he fumbled to swipe his card on the elevator and then lifting it up to her, "you also need one of these."

"Unfortunately, I don't live here Flynn," she sighed, "Elysia lets me use hers when I go out."

"I know but even when you go...home, you're still one of us by bond, Una," Flynn frowned, "this is an apartment for the heart squad and you're a part of that. Which brings me to the cupcakes, you need a colour."

"Well you took my colour," she glared. She watched the wide smile tug at his lips until he beamed.

"You like yellow?!"

"I love yellow!" she exclaimed, soon stopping, "you know, Flynn, we're pretty similar."

"I think we are too," he agreed, "we both love yellow, and dogs, taking pictures of dogs, tea-"

"How much do you like tea though?" she asked curiously.

"Not as much as you but enough for it to be classed as an...enjoyment," he grinned and she laughed with a small nod.

"What colour do you see me as, Flynn?" she asked. She wasn't sure herself, of course, she would've loved to have yellow as it was her favourite colour but Flynn very much suited yellow.

"Why don't we talk about it with the rest of them?" he asked, "we'll all have a say and then you can pick?"

"That sounds good, I like that," Una grinned, shuffling out of the elevator with the box of cupcakes almost falling everywhere and Flynn fumbled with the card to get into the apartment.

"Una!" Delilah beamed when she turned from the couch to see the girl had returned.

"Yes hi, I would like to report a betrayal!" Flynn gasped, looking at Delilah with hurt in his eyes whilst she smiled at him.

"Hi Flynn," she grinned, pushing herself up from the couch and to the two who had wandered to the kitchen. Una sat down the box she had brought and taken off her jacket that had been soaked in the rain.

"Did you go to the dog shelter?" asked Elysia, and Flynn and Una spared a small glance at each other before shaking their heads.

"We decided that it was too wet to walk all the way," Una lied, "so we decided just to go to a small café and talk for a while, and then we got cupcakes!"

"It's just a bit of water," River snorted from beside her and she grabbed her soaking jacket and shoved it into him.

He went to protest, his eyes narrowed to a glare when she turned to him smiling sweetly and said innocently, "it's just a bit of water!"

"You had that one coming," Ferris snorted, patting River's shoulder.

Una had wandered over to Gus at the other end of the island, reaching for his hand and soon leaning on his chest whilst he leaned down to kiss the side of her head. He didn't exactly care that her hair was wet as he wrapped his arms around her tightly, whispering questions into her ear that she would answer with a nod or a small hum.

"Are you two just magnets that pull towards each other?" asked Elysia Ari, smirking with amusement as Gus lifted his hand and flipped her off.

"I haven't seen her all day," he muttered, swaying with her in his arms and she laughed as she got a lot more comfortable, her hands clasping over his and a smile dancing on her lips.

"Did you get us cupcakes?" asked Delilah, spotting the swirl of green on top of one of them and Una nodded excitedly, ducking under Gus' arms to get free whilst he protested and she opened the box.

"I got one for each of you, and a few others that Flynn said were your favourites but I got them all in your respective colours. Gus told me before we even came here that these were your colours and Flynn and I was just talking about what colour...I would be, but we didn't really think about it much."

"I say pink," Gus said, leaning over the table with a smile, "you like pink, right?"

"Oh yeah, I love the colour pink," she did love pink, it was nice and she had a lot of jumpers in pink that she liked to wear but she wasn't quite sure on it fully if that really was the colour for her.

"I say orange," her eyes lifted to River who was eying the cupcakes and then her, and then Gus, and it was as though he didn't say a thing but the colour processed through her mind as though it just clicked.

"Orange," she repeated, absentmindedly twirling the strands of her ginger hair as though she had felt the colour of them. She liked the colour orange, it was close to yellow and it was a warm colour - it reminded her of autumn and she loved autumn.

"I like it," she said, a grin on her lips and her head nodding whilst she thought of it again, "it suits me."

"It does," Flynn agreed with his own nodded, sitting the cupcakes down on a plate in the middle of the island.

"Orange, it is, then," Gus spoke, and Una could have sworn there was a tone of bitterness in his words. She looked over at him, seeing his gaze hard on River and she moved to take his hand, smiling brightly at him when he turned to look at her.

"I love the colour pink, Gus, and if I didn't have any other choice then that's what I would have gone with but I think orange suits me a bit more," she cupped his cheek, turning him to look at her.

"I should be the one able to tell what suits you," he mumbled quietly, his forehead resting against hers, "not River who doesn't even like you."

She shrugged her shoulders, reaching over and grabbing Gus' cupcake decorated black, "I'd say he's pretty observant, and you do know what suits me because it's not like I don't love pink."

She scooped some icing onto her finger and when she went to lick it off, Gus grabbed her wrist and did it himself, "hey!"

"Excuse me, but it's my cupcake," he smirked, taking the cupcake from her hand and scooping some icing on to his own finger, to which she licked off.

"Is it just me," said Ferris, "or was that just oddly sexual."

"Definitely not just you," Elysia snorted, both of them earning a glare from the couple.

"Oh, you're funny, Una," she turned at the sound of the boy's name and saw River glaring at her with his cupcake in his hand to which she smiled widely.

"Well if you told me what you were when I asked then I wouldn't have," she smirked, leaning against Gus who was trying to hold her and eat the cake at the same time.

"You know what I am," he grumbled, glaring at her whilst her smirked widened to a smile.

"I've heard that merman isn't the correct term for it." She waved him off, "but I think it goes."

"Do you two ever wish for a break?" asked Delilah as she leaned on Elysia, "so much arguing, it's exhausting!"

"It's amusing." Una shrugged. She caught sight of Ferris, and moved from Gus' arms, beckoning him to follow her which he did.

"You alright I can hardly hear your mind?" he asked, of course, it was mostly because of the multiple others whose thoughts had entered his mind...though he was sure that there was more than one person thinking about the girl in front of him.

"Oh yeah," she nodded, "I got a phone call from that woman...well not her but her assistant. She's very popular and in high demand but she said someone put in a good word for us, I'm not sure how but she's willing to see you in a few weeks if you'd like to go?"

"Really?!" asked Ferris, nodding his head furiously and she could see the small hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. He threw his arms around her and she laughed as she mimicked his actions, her arms wrapped around his waist tightly, "thank you for doing all this, Una."

"Ferris, I don't care how long I've known you for, you're one of my best friends and I love you. I would do it for any of my friends and I don't want to know that you're silently suffering," she pulled away to smile at him, "are you going out tonight?"

He shook his head, "no I don't feel the need to," he turned to the island where his friends stood, "there's no reason to."

She smiled widely, reaching for his hand and squeezing it before they returned back to the island and Gus' arm quickly slid around her waist.

"What was that about?" he asked, nudging the side of her face with his nose and soon pressing his lips to her temple.

"Oh, I was just asking for Ferris' hand in marriage," she shrugged, earning a few laughs, "he said yes!"

"So, you're married to Ferris now?" asked Flynn, "alright, fine. I see how it is!"

"Well if I love you both with all of my heart can I marry you both?" she asked, "please don't make me choose."

"I suppose," Flynn tutted, "does that mean Ferris is my husband?"

"Of course," Una nodded. She pushed herself out of Gus' grip when he tightened his arms around her, she liked to have him near her but she felt entirely trapped as he pulled her closer and closer.

He stared at her for a long time before the frown erupted onto his lips, "I'm going to bed," he soon announced and Una's lips parted as though to speak whilst she watched him leave. She turned back to her friends who looked as though they were just as confused as she was.

"He's clearly jealous," said River though as usual, he didn't at all seem to care.

"Why?" Una frowned, "he has no reason to be."

"Well...you did just marry two boys," Ferris snorted.

"Well Flynn and I getting together is probably the most unlikely thing to happen considering he's gay," she said, "and us getting together is also highly unlikely considering I don't like you like that, and you don't like me like that!"

"Does he know that?"

"Well we are dating so I'd think so," Una huffed, running a hand through her hair, "I'll be out later."

She pushed her door open to see Gus lying on her bed, a pillow to his chest as he hugged it and the room in almost complete darkness. Her feet were soft against the ground, hardly making any noise and she soon climbed beside him, replacing the pillow on his chest with her head whilst his arm slid around her.

"If you want to be one of my many husbands too I'll accept," she mumbled after the silence felt painful and she felt his chest vibrating very softly, "I felt trapped, Gus, that's why I pulled away from you. You were practically squeezing me and it hurt, that's why I moved. You're my favourite person on this planet, you're the reason I'm here and the reason I met my many best friends and I'll forever be thankful to you for that but I'm not going to leave you, you are mine and I am yours and that's it.

I can get that you're jealous but you don't need to be," she turned on his chest to stare at him, her fingertips tracing over the features of his face and soon moving a strand of hair from his eye, "I don't know what I would do if I lost you, and I don't want you thinking you will ever lose me."

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, and she leaned up to kiss him for a moment, "just the thought of losing you-"

"You never will," she said, dipping her head to nuzzle into his neck and brushing the skin with her lips, "I promise."