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"What exactly is the problem?"

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"YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED to be here," Lucas lowly grunted, not bothering to turn back as his gaze traveled down at the outline of the vast ocean on the other side of Kingsland.

He took a breath in, ignoring the scent of ash and salt in the air.

Andrew stood a few feet behind him, staying a respectable distance away in the brown grass that preceded the burnt ones behind him.

He nodded mostly to himself, "I know, but you need it, Dude," he grumbled, turning slightly and whistling lowly at the burnt tree behind him, the broken down branches, and soot-covered stem.

"It was really bad, wasn't it?" he huffed, shaking his head.

Lucas's jaw clenched turning back to face him.

"I'm serious, Myers, I need you to leave," he grunted, eyes on his friend.

Andrew froze for a second, watching him before taking a step closer, folding his arms, "Really Bowne?"

Lucas scoffed at that word, seemingly having heard enough of it for the whole day- turning back to face the ocean, a tight clench in his jaw-

"Because if you desired to be alone, you could have used your Alpha tone," Andrew grunted.

Lucas shook his head at this but didn't turn back, still facing the unruly waves that rattled up against the banks, spreading out for miles beneath him, He took a deep breath in.

"You know I don't use it unless I have to," he grunted, breathing out slowly.

He rolled his sore shoulders back as he took in the salty air that drifted in from the ocean, squinting slightly in the invading sunlight.

"So you admit you don't want to," Andrew replied, but before Lucas could react he rephrased his words, "Fine- I want to stay-" he shrugged, tucking a hand in his pants pocket, gaze set on Lucas' back curiously.

"And although I know you always want to go through it without me, I was fine with it because Daya was always around, but now.." he trailed off with a slight huff, " it isn't the case," he finished pursing his lips.

Lucas' jaw clenched at the sound of the name.

"Is that why you're here?" he calmly stated still not looking back, the wind blowing in his face.

"I'm here because I'm your closest friend, Lucas, and I care," he finished with a soft sigh, gaze trailing out to the vast ocean for a second before looking back at Lucas.

"You shouldn't be so hard about it, you know," he hummed.

Lucas paused at this, turning slightly to look at Andrew,

"It's the blood moon, there's nothing exactly gentle about it," he scoffed, eyes narrowing on his companion.

"True, " Andrew replied taking a step forward as he dragged the word, "but I wasn't talking about that," he huffed taking a stand beside him, glancing at the ocean and then back at him.

"I was talking about Daya-" he replied with a hard grunt, "it was always going to be difficult, heck the whole process is difficult," he grunted out, a frown now placed on his face, eyebrows furrowed as if thinking about something else.

Lucas studied him for a second and then chuckled shaking his head, causing Andrew to look at him confused,

"Still thinking about Raskei huh?" he asked, watching as Andrew pursed his lips in reply, "I thought I told you to let that one go," he chuckled again unable to believe that he was still caught up in that.

Andrew didn't seem all too impressed by this, even though he was glad it had taken him out of his mood for a few seconds, something he hadn't thought he would achieve,

"You mean the same way I told you to let it go?" he asked.

"I mean the way I said it before you asked her out, after you asked her after she refused, before you tried it again after she cursed you after you grew scales on your arms before you had to wait for Miss Almulese to get back from Jamaica... and right now," Lucas grunted with a grin on his face, " let it go-" he hummed slowly,

"After all, the blue tech girl seems more up your alley," he replied causing Andrew to freeze.

His eyes shifted away from him, guilty gaze trailing over the sea.

"What tech girl?" he mumbled.

"The same one you sneak illegal stuff to after tracking season, THAT tech girl," Lucas replied gaze narrowing at the side of his face.

Andrew pressed his lips sighing in a low defeat, " you know about that?" he huffed.

Lucas scoffed at this, "You insult my intelligence and misjudge your stealth skills," he grunted with a low grin.

Andrew glanced at him momentarily before chuckling, taking in a deep breath of ocean air.

"Lira, that's her name," he grunted slowly-

"I know," Lucas replied with a low grin, "she used to be Daya's former roommate that one term," he replied glancing down at Andrew whose eyebrows drew together, "yeah-" he trailed off as if just realizing- "oh dang it-" he grunted out, putting things together.

Lucas chuckled at this, " yeah," he replied thinking back to the incident.

He shook his head, "that one is more of your type, and anyone can see she likes you-" he hinted.

Andrew shook his head at this looking right at him, "Lira's a lot of things but she doesn't like me, " he grinned chuckling at the mere thought of it, "we are always at each other's necks, throat to throat and she's fucking always winning," he grumbled.

"Fuck and I hate it when she rubs my hair like a puppy," he spat, narrowed eyes snapping to Lucas, " a puppy!" he rephrased, "A goddam puppy the size of a fist," he gritted out, teeth clenching.

"I would like to see her try to pet my wolf- she's gonna faint when she sees him," he growled out as Lucas' watched his expression in amusement-

"Then we will see who gets the last laugh," he huffed, meeting Luca's eyes who couldn't hold his amusement in any longer laughing for a second as Andrews's eyes glazed over.

"Fuck she likes me doesn't she?" he huffed with a low sigh, shutting his eyes.

Lucas didn't bother responding, shaking the laughter off as he looked toward the ocean.

"How did I not see that?" he asked himself, opening his eyes once again, eyebrows drawing together.

"Because for a person who usually does it," Lucas trailed off glancing at him, " you hate losing," he replied, having already analyzed him years ago.

Andrew watched him for a moment before pursing his lips and nodding,

"Yeah," he finally replied with a soft sigh, looking back out at the ocean, "if only it was that easy," he huffed his tone lower.

Lucas paused at this statement for a moment, a small smile grazing the edge of his lips.

"You know, I used to think that-" he finally huffed, staring at the ground for a few seconds, his smile growing wider as Andrew looked at him curiously-

"Used to think what?" he huffed.

"Well," Lucas replied turning to him, "you're right, it isn't easy- but it's certainly possible."

Andrew searched his eyes momentarily- eyebrows drawing together as he read his face.

"How?" he asked, genuinely surprised.

Lucas paused for a moment, thinking it through- "I guess it's as simple as finding someone to remind you how much you matter- genuinely," he grinned lowly thinking back.

A low chuckle at a random memory sprouted as he pictured a moment.

Of a girl who turned his tortured days into - bearable days.

Andrew studied the side of Lucas' face for a moment, having noticed a difference in Lucas's behavior for a while now.

"Who the hell is she?" he huffed, eyes narrowing down him.

Lucas glanced at him with a playful scoff,

"Who said anything about a she?" he grunted though he couldn't hide the smile that was playing at the corner of his lips.

"You mean to say it's a dude who's putting a smile like that on your face?" Andrew mocked, wiggling his eyebrows around.

Lucas rolled his eyes at the ridiculous statement, shaking his head.

"I'm saying," he began, " it could be a what- or even a place," he huffed folding his arms, "it doesn't technically have to be a she- "

"But it is," Andrew retorted, stubborn in his answer.

Lucas chuckled as his gaze stretched the length of the ocean,

"If you truly must know, yes, it is," he replied, turning slightly back at his companion.

"Who?" Andrew asked, genuinely confused but interest peaked.

Lucas shook his head, pursing his lips, arms folded but remained silent- causing Andrew to frown at the silence, taking his eyes off of the Gigan and back to the oceanic scene before him,

"Fine- stay quiet," he huffed, "but I know for a fact that you can't go worse than Daya," he finished, causing Lucas' eyes to snap back to him.

The feel of his gaze at the side of his face made him freeze for a moment but relaxed when he realized the burn from the stare wasn't as intense as usual, risking a glance at Lucas, who seemed to be in deep thought-

"I'm not sure," he replied slowly, eyebrows drawing together.

"W-What do you mean you're not sure?" Andrew asked, this time wheels turning in his mind. It was rare for a Gigan to say things like that- or to forget in general, "are you saying that you found someone worse than Daya?" he asked with a slight chuckle, " is that even possible?"

A sharp look from Lucas shut him up, his lips pursed in a straight line- quite likely unamused at the jab.

"I was kidding," Andrew replied, clearing his throat whilst Lucas only grunted knowing he wasn't.

"What I mean is," Lucas began, taking a deep breath in, his tired eyelids threatening to close, his bones aching as they hollowed out, gritting his teeth as he tried to focus off the pain and back to the conversation that they were having.

"I don't know if being around her would be less or more trouble. I just don't know what to do, or rather what choice to make- to act or let it be as it is, no matter how much I want it to change, I just don't know..." he trailed off, his face turning back to thoughtfully serious.

Andrew was listening attentively as this was one of the rare times Lucas laid his feelings in the bare open.

He figured the Crimson Blood moon had made him more vulnerable as it usually did this time of the year- to any shifter for the regular blood moons.

"What exactly is the problem?"

Lucas paused at this question, knowing there was just one problem.

ONE PAIN IN THE ASS problem that always seemed to be lurking around, the one thing that he couldn't get rid of.

He sighed, glancing back at Andrew, "She-" he dragged, "has Harvest."

Andrew froze at this, eyebrows furrowed, gaze narrowed not fully understanding what exactly that statement meant.

"What do you mean by, 'she has Harvest?"

"I mean for some reason, he's always around her and not only because he's her Alpha," he huffed turning fully to face Andrew, a hard frown on his face, "not that he doesn't find ways to flaunt it her face," he grumbled.

"And I don't understand why. I can't put my finger on it but there's something there, something I can't see," he trailed off eyes narrowing down on nothing in particular.

"Harvest?" Andrew chuckled, "Are you sure it's the same Harvest we know? I mean Harvest doesn't attach himself to anyone- "

Lucas raised an eyebrow at this statement and Andrew rolled his eyes,

"You know what I mean. There are only a handful of people Harvest associates with- and that is Raskei, the twins, and of course, Daya," he grunted glancing at Lucas when he said the name, "there's no one else he gives a shit about-"

"Exactly," Lucas scoffed, " so tell me why the hell he insists on 'claiming her?" he growled out in frustration-

"Claim?" Andrew echoed before shaking his head not wanting to get too carried away, "Who is this girl?"

Lucas' jaw clenched, "she's just a friend."

"You know that's not what am asking, besides the only females I've seen you willingly interact with since the damn year began is Daya and that new girl at the gathering that one time-" he paused, eyebrows furrowing when he remembered something, memories flashing back to the moment that he had first seen that face- in the middle of the King's Crown, trailing silently behind Daya then in Lira's room seated cross-legged on the bed, large soft brown eyes watching him, then when they had seen her coming out of Harvest's room that one morning- and that was the only clue he needed to piece things together.

"The girl with the wild hair??!" he huffed reading the defeated gaze of Lucas, who seemed to have already seen him piecing things together.

"Her name is Talanda," Lucas corrected with a low sigh.

"You mean the girl you made a scene with at Combat classes?" he huffed, his tone raising, " you mean Daya's roommate?!" he asked again, this time raising both eyebrows, as Lucas nodded with a tight clench in his jaw, "this can't end well," he huffed in reply shaking his head, before pausing.

" I mean it hasn't even begun well, of course, it's going to end badly," he rambled-

"Andrew-'

"You know, I did think that something was weird with how cold Harvest was when you offered an exchange. Daya's a good player, and trading her for an amateur red wasn't your smartest move," he continued, " however, Harvest refusing the exchange was what was even more strange-" he gritted out, at a loss for words after as he tried to put the bits and pieces together.

"Strange doesn't cut it- you should see the way he looks at her," he huffed looking back at Andrew, regretting saying the words immediately after.

Andrew was smart in his own right, but Lucas doubted he could see through Harvest the way he could.

This means he would end up having to explain it all something he wasn't exactly in the mood to do, with his body feeling tired 24/7.

"And how does he look at her?" Andrew asked, genuinely curious.

Lucas sighed, taking in a short breath, "he looks at her.." he trailed off as if searching for the right words, "the way I once looked at Daya," he replied.

"W-wait- back it up for a second," Andrew paused, "there's way too much baggage in that one sentence," he continued, blinking twice at the statement, "Are you trying to say you think THE Harvest could like someone? And what do you mean by ONCE?" he asked, feeling blown away at that one sentence.

"I'm not saying he likes her," Lucas grunted out feeling a little bit protective over the fact, as well as very much repelled at that thought though it had crossed his mind once or twice.

"I'm just saying there's something there- something odd, and by once, I mean once," he replied stressing out the point of looking back at Andrew coldly.

"So you and Daya?"

He shook his head slowly, "it's never easy to let go, it's painful and messy- and it hurts- more than you could imagine" he said lowly, trying to ease the slight ache inside him,

"But as I said, it's not impossible" he finished, a soft half-grin playing at his lips, to which Andrew nodded, feeling relieved to hear that.

However, he couldn't help but sympathize as he knew exactly what Daya ONCE meant to him.

Besides her beauty- and the first attraction he had to her from it, over the years he could see what she was doing to him, and that never did sit well with him.

Needless to say, it was about time.

"When?"

"We talked about it earlier this morning," Lucas replied with a soft sigh, "well, more like I talked- she wasn't too thrilled by it," he huffed remembering the conversation he had to have with her when Talanda left.

"Figured," Andrew replied, humming along, knowing Daya wasn't exactly the type that did well with that sort of thing, "so," he dragged, "crazy locks huh?" he huffed.

Lucas chuckled at the nickname he had come up with for her, noting he hadn't used it in a while, since they had become besties.

"Yeah," he huffed, before glancing at him, "I think I like her," he confessed, " but I don't want to jump into anything just yet- I don't, but sometimes.." he trailed off thinking back to the moment they shared.

A warm feeling grew within him, as all the moments they had spent together traveled through his mind, from the first day at the library to their night under the wilting tree, and the most recent one, when he had given into the feeling he hadn't felt in awhile.

"It's too late" Andrew grunted looking at him.

Lucas's eyes snapped to him, "what?"

"You've already jumped in, I know that look."

Lucas didn't say a word for a few seconds, as Andrew studied him before he chuckled.

"You're right- I don't think- I know I like her," he replied with a shrug, "trust me, it's just so easy to fall, but-"

"The blood moon- that you can't get away from," Andrew huffed, " but Harvest?" shaking his head at the name, " what would Harvest want with her above all people- it just seems strange. What would interest him about her?" he asked, glancing Lucas who raised an eyebrow, " you know what i mean," Andrew huffed.

Lucas scoffed but nodded, "I don't know-"

"Do you think he knows you have a thing for her? It could be a Daya situation?"

Lucas thought it over for a moment, "Harvest doesn't play the same cards twice- and he seemed genuinely angry to see us together for some reason. There's only one way to find out," he huffed glancing at Andrew for a moment before turning away.