Nic watched the two men talk among themselves some distance away from him. They were doing their best to keep their voices quiet and their faces free of emotion. They weren’t good enough at keeping their feelings hidden however, and he could read most of what flashed across their faces before it was suppressed. They didn’t know that he could read lips either, which would have ruined even a successful attempt at concealing their emotions.

They were arguing about him, or more specifically, what they should feel and do about him. Now that the cat was out of the bag, or the fox rather, they were having this argument again. Nic thought that it probably wasn’t the first time they had this argument since returning from the swamp. Actually, if he were a betting man, he was sure he would make money off that wager. Ironically, despite how much he relied on his intuition and a bit of luck, he wasn’t much of a gambling man. These two seemed destined to fight though, and he didn’t think this would be the last time they fought over this, either.

It wasn’t so much that Shaun really wanted to kill him, despite how much it pissed him off. Nic thought it was really just a case of wounded pride and principle. The larger hunter had never let prey get away from him before and it drove him crazy that he felt obligated to this time. He wasn’t sure if Lucas realized that or not, but he was touched that the guy was so adamantly trying to defend him. Not that he needed defending, but he appreciated the gesture all the same. Sometimes, it’s important to be reminded of the few good things you had left in your life when other areas were falling apart.

A sister. He’d had a sister. Sure, it had been a half-sister, but a sister was a sister, right? His father had been such an absent figure in his life that he had barely given a thought to having killed him after he had found out. Kitsune policed their own and his father had been a mad dog for far too long. There had been no love lost in the act. To think that Ana had held onto that for all these years, trying to slowly bring him down along with the people she thought he represented. He really hoped that the insanity that had passed from father to daughter didn’t also one day come to his doorstep.

He didn’t mind being crazy like he was but...“Who the fuck wants to be nuts?”

Shaun looked up from their spot several feet away. “What’d ya say?”

Nic shook his head. “Asking myself a question out loud.”

“They say that’s a sign of goin’ crazy.”

“Only if you answer yourself,” he shot back, laughing as the irony of their conversation hit him.

The sound of his laugh always had the effect of disturbing people, or infecting them with his laughter. This was probably the first time that the two hunters had ever been unnerved by it. Even to his own ears it sounded a little off, maybe a little crazed. Ah well, he had just discovered his long-lost half-sister had been trying for years to manipulate him into killing the same people he had been trying to help. The fact that she was also trying to kill him in the process after making him do her dirty work, was the icing on the cake.

The important thing was that he was alive. Yes, it meant having to face all the mistakes he had made, being played by her for so long. Who knew how many hunters and creatures he had killed over the years that hadn’t deserved to die. It would be a question that would haunt him for some time. Yet, he knew he had helped many people along the way as well. That was life though; you took the shitty with the breathtaking. You didn’t really get to choose one over the other very often, so you took what you could and dealt with the rest accordingly.

By the time they had finally ended their little discussion, he was feeling more relaxed than he had in ages. His whole world had been turned upside down, but that, too, was life. Not only was he alive and free of his puppet master, but now he had two more people in his life he felt he could really count on. Definitely Lucas, for the man had a mind like a steel trap, and a far more forgiving outlook on all things that weren’t human. Shaun was stubborn, but his heart was in the right place, and his moral compass tended to point in the right direction. They would separate, them going one way, and he another, but he knew that it wouldn’t be forever.

“Has my fate been decided yet?” he asked, unable to help himself from being a little cheeky.

“We weren’t planning on doing anything but saying goodbye,” Lucas told him, eyeing Shaun as if daring him to say anything to the contrary.

“What’re ya gonna do now that ya ain’t got that bitch screwin’ with ya?” the larger man asked, accent thicker than usual.

“Me? I’m going to take a vacation,” he answered, sitting up from his prone position along the hood of his car.

“And where do your type go on vacation?” Shaun asked.

“Wherever the hell we please. Maybe you two should do the same. You look pretty worn out.”

Lucas sighed, “I could certainly use the rest, that’s for sure. I plan on going to our room and sleeping for about three days or so. And how are you?”

Nic shrugged. “Hopefully I don’t look as tired as you two.”

Shaun glanced between him and Lucas. “We don’t look that bad.”

“You two look like someone threw you in a blender and held down the pulse button. Maybe you need me to stick around and administer some tender loving care for you. You know, again.”

Shaun jabbed a finger in his direction. “Don’t push it. Ain’t gonna do nothin’ to ya, but don’t tempt me.”

Nic couldn’t help but laugh. “I think you’re a little too beat up to try and take me on there, Shaun.”

“Ya think so, huh?”

“Hey, if you want to give it a whirl, get yourself rested up and give me a call. Would be interesting to see what happens, wouldn’t it? Don’t worry, if it comes to that, I’ll just maim you, not kill you.”

Shaun opened his mouth to retort, but Lucas beat him to it. “Nic, please don’t antagonize him. I want us to walk away as friends, not as people who might one day have to face one another down in a fight.”

Shaun went quiet, looking disgruntled, and Nic went silent as well. He didn’t quite have it in him to apologize for behaving like an ass, though he did feel a momentary flash of guilt. If what he guessed was even remotely true, Shaun letting this pass with only a surly attitude was a good step in an even better direction. Nic had always been a big believer in broadening horizons, and it looked like Shaun was beginning to tread that very path. If him running his mouth off somehow stalled that or outright veered him away from it, he would deserve whatever came his way.

However, he was spared from having to voice that by Lucas smiling softly. “Thank you.”

It was the weary smile more than the bruises and partially healed cuts that made Lucas look as tired as Nic thought he must be. He hadn’t been the only one to lose something that day, and Lucas looked stretched thin. The guy didn’t give his trust easily, and he had given it to Ana. That trust had been twisted around and used against him in her twisted game, and now he was going to have to face that reality, one way or another. Nic may have lost a sister he never truly had and discovered what he thought was a reliable source was really a manipulating bitch, but Lucas had lost what he thought was his best friend.

Nic didn’t envy him that.

Shaun shifted, the gesture just shy of uneasy. “Do ya have anyone else?”

“Anyone else for what?” Nic asked.

“Ya know, anyone else. I got my family and Lucas, Lucas at least has me. Who else do ya have?”

Nic shrugged, “It’s really only ever been just me. I wasn’t that close to Ana, since she never really let me get close. That was probably on purpose, either because she didn’t want me figuring something out, or because maybe some part of her was afraid of what would happen if she actually got to know me. It’s hard to use and kill someone that you care about.”

Lucas stared at him, and Nic knew he was looking at his new facial scar. “Yes, yes it is.”

Nic waved a hand at him. “Don’t worry about it. I don’t hold it against you.”

“Well, I hold it against me.”

“C’mon Lucas,” Shaun muttered, reaching out to lay a large hand on his partner’s elbow. “Ain’t nobody gonna blame ya. Even if she was…what she was, ya cared. It’s normal.”

The corner of Lucas’ mouth twitched. “Are you telling me it’s okay that I didn’t want to kill a supernatural creature?”

Shaun rolled his eyes, apparently less bothered by Lucas being cheeky than he had with Nic. “If we’re lettin’ one go, you’re allowed to feel bad about the other one. I promise ya, you can get nice and drunk and tell me about it. Or whatever.”

Nic raised his brow at Lucas. “Or you know, whatever.”

“That ain’t what I meant!”

“Yes it is,” both Nic and Lucas said in unison.

Shaun threw up his hands. “Lord, don’t do that. Ya ain’t done it before, don’t start now or I’m gonna get creeped out.”

Lucas ignored him, digging in his pocket to bring out a sheath with a blade in it that looked familiar. “Here, you should have this.”

Nic reached out to take the knife, not saying anything at first as he twisted it around in his grip. He looked up at Lucas, remaining silent as he tried to think of something witty to say. Nic didn’t know when Lucas had retrieved the knife from Ana’s belongings, but he had clearly taken it with him. It was the only thing left of her, save for their memories, and those probably were enough for Lucas.

“You sure?” Nic finally asked, holding up the knife.

“I don’t want it, nor do I need it. Gold knives might not be the most common thing, but they’re not so rare that I need to hold onto this one.”

Nic nodded, eyeing the old family seal on the sheath. “You know, I had always wondered what happened to the family knife. After my father…well, I always wondered where the knife turned up. I guess now I know.”

“Nothin’ worth hangin’ onto at her place?” Shaun asked, more curious than judgmental.

Nic only shook his head, not really wanting to expand on that too much. They were already past Lucas’ limit, and the kitsune didn’t want to push the poor guy any further. They knew Nic had taken care of the clean-up for them, since he was the least beat up, and the quickest at healing. He thought that Lucas might want to be there when Nic dealt with her body, but no, Lucas stayed out of all of it. Like the house, Nic had burned the body, leaving no trace of it behind, letting the wind take the ashes wherever it pleased.

Restlessness, a familiar feeling for him, began to settle in as he shifted impatiently on his feet. All the talk that spoke of separating and the dark thoughts of death had him ready to leave. This wasn’t going to be a goodbye forever, but only a goodbye for now. He had been dealing with this for long enough and it was time to get himself out onto the road again. Maybe he would take that vacation like he told them he would, or maybe he would throw himself into another hunt.

Lucas nodded, as if his little gift allowed him to read Nic’s mind. “Ready?”

“Yeah, it’s about that time for us all to move on again.”

“Well,” Shaun grunted, hurrying what he probably thought of as the worst part of the conversation along. “You uh, take care of yourself, alright?”

Nic looked down at Shaun’s extended hand with a broad grin. He reached out to accept it, before flinging himself at Shaun and hugging him tight. There was a brief moment when he was tempted to reach out and kiss the man’s cheek, but he wasn’t willing to push it that far. Shaun had gone as rigid as a stone from the hug as it was, Nic didn’t want to risk making the guy snap over a bit of affection.

“Thanks, Shaun. Take care of him, okay?” Nic muttered fondly in the big hunter’s ear before letting him go. The look of surprise on his face was hilarious, but Nic managed to restrain his laughter. He knew that it was hard enough for Shaun to let him go, let alone for him to suddenly find himself being hugged. Nic would have paid good money to get inside of Shaun’s head and know what he was thinking now that he knew what Nic was, plus the fact that they had slept together.

Lucas shook his head, patting Shaun’s shoulder as he stretched an arm out toward Nic, “If I don’t get a hug after that, I’m going to save him the trouble of deciding if he should kill you or not.”

Just as Shaun’s lack of anger toward his hug warmed him, the fact that Lucas was demanding a hug from him had him beaming with joy. He happily accepted the hug, enjoying the long arms curling around his shoulder. It seemed so strange to him that Ana had referred to Lucas as ‘cold’. Lucas had been nothing but warm to him from the start, as warm as he was now.

“Thank you,” Lucas whispered to him.

Nic said nothing, pulling slowly from the hug to glance between the two of them. There was some sort of silent communication between them, but he didn’t mind much. They didn’t realize how often they communicated to one another with an ease that many people would have envied. Then again, he was pretty sure that neither was aware of the other’s feelings either. He debated leaving them a parting shot, something to make them think and maybe help drive them over the line from close partners who occasionally slept together, into something else.

It would bring them happiness, in time, but probably not in the short-term. They both looked too worn out, physically and emotionally, to be dealing with any more revelations and upheavals. Perhaps he would say something down the road, if they hadn’t stopped being dense and figured it out by then. For now, it was enough that they had one another, and it made him happy to see. He could go out into the world with a smile on his face knowing that even if they were unknowingly avoiding the truth, they still had what was at the heart of the matter: their bond, to keep them company through the long nights.

Shaun squinted down at him. “Ya getting’ a weird look on your face.”

“Sorry, getting a little philosophical in my old age,” Nic told him.

“Wait, just how old are ya?”

Nic laughed as he moved around the driver’s side of the rental. “We age the same as humans, Shaun.”

“So, you takin’ off, or are ya gonna stick around for a bit?”

Startled, Nic looked up from where he had begun fiddling with the settings of the car. His thoughts shifted from how much he hated getting rentals because having to adjust the settings was always a pain, over to Shaun who was looking both nervous and a little shocked at himself. Lucas hadn’t even bothered to try to hide his surprise, or his curiosity, as he peered at Shaun, remaining silent.

Nic tapped his finger on the roof of the car idly, smiling a little. “Shouldn’t I be going?”

“Only if you’re in a rush. Ain’t like ya got important business, do ya?”

He slowly shook his head. “No, no business to deal with. Is there business here I should take care of?”

Shaun began to redden, looking now to Lucas who laughed before turning to Nic. “We’ve never been to New Orleans before. You have.”

Oh, he most definitely had, would that he could remember half the nights he spent here, having a little too much fun. “I have.”

“So, why don’t you stick around and play tour guide for us? Give all of us a little vacation, and you don’t have to go rushing off like your tail’s on fire. Come on, rest up a bit, take us to see the sights after we get a good night’s sleep, what do you say?”

He thought it was an interesting turn around for Shaun, though maybe it was less of a turn around than he thought. There was a lot more going on in that thick skull than Shaun probably got credit for. Perhaps most of his anger and disgruntlement at letting Nic go was either for show, or just a knee-jerk reaction in the face of his wounded pride. By whatever gods might still be floating around in the atmosphere, it was very possible that Shaun genuinely liked him and was just trying to find a way to come to terms with it.

Nic had thought to get in the car and get the hell out of this city. It held a bittersweet taste for him right now, and he had wanted to rid himself of the flavor as soon as possible. Yet, with the look of expectancy on Shaun’s face and something akin to hope on Lucas’, what could he say? Sure, the call of the road stretching out before him was tempting, as it usually was whenever he became stressed or anxious. But this was the first time in a long time that he had seen a display, two displays even, of someone genuinely wanting him to stick around. They didn’t say it, but he could sense it wasn’t because he had slept with them. If he dared to think it, it seemed they wanted him around because they actually liked him.

And didn’t that just beat any solo road trip?

He pocketed the keys to the rental and turned to grin at them. “So, what do you boys wanna see first tomorrow?”