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Denial had been the name of their game for weeks now, a truth perpetuated by a dozen distractions. They had purchased more beer and video games in the past month than in the six months prior, and not only because they had technically been dead for a majority of that time. The pair had sought out everything from chick flicks to bar brawls, social band-aids to cover a wound that would not close. It had worked for a while, but only just a while. It had worked until there were no more new movies to see, no new games to rent, not even a decent fight to be found. Slowly, it crept into their hivemind, until they woke at the same time every night in a cold sweat and knew that it was not going to go away.

Not until they found him.

Not until they killed him.

Andeon had been waiting for that moment the entire night, mashing buttons in just the right order to ease her down. He'd let her win a couple, then she would actually win a couple despite his best efforts, then she'd lose some, then he'd pretend to be outraged and she would give him that smile that said: You're a ******** liar, Andeon Boskovic. It was a complex pattern of victory and defeat, a careful managing of their shared emotions, meant to bring them both to the point where they stood now.

A point of acceptance? No. They would never accept it. Acknowledgement was a better word.

“He was kind of a p***k,” Andeon said, pausing for a swig of beer, “And I swear to ******** God I thought I might vomit every time I saw him with Hero.”

There had never been any love lost between Andeon and Jude, nor between Gemini Alpha and Sagittarius. They were never enemies, certainly never nemeses, but they had never gotten on. Not in the Surrounding, not in their initial resurrection, and definitely not in Barren Pines. Still, Mackenzie had spoken the truth. She was the captain of the Mutables, which by virtue of their relationship meant that they were captain of the Mutables, and that meant that he had been theirs.

He had been theirs, and they had let him die. If Hero Barrett had ever heard them say it, she would have angrily demanded that Andeon and Mackenzie get the hell off of her cross.

Everyone managed pain differently. Andeon had done his crying. He had broken the bathroom mirror twice now, cursed while Mackenzie pulled the bits of glass out of his fist and told him what a ******** idiot he was, smiled when she kissed his bandaged knuckles and laid down with him on the couch. He had grieved in public, grieved on his own, grieved aloud and silently, both with calm acceptance and fierce outrage, and nothing had helped. Nothing had eased their pain or their guilt, and no matter how many times the pair drank themselves nearly into a coma, it came back again with full force.

So Andeon had taken a step backwards, sliding comfortably into firm denial that he missed Jude at all. This mostly meant insulting him as much as possible.

“He had stupid hair.”

Andeon had gotten roughly halfway through the Backpack song, halfheartedly mumbled below his breath, when Mackenzie caught his attention. It wasn't even her words that caused him to suddenly stop and look at her. Mackenzie had never needed to speak to catch Andeon's attention. It required only a glance, a smile, the familiar scent of her hair, and Andeon was caught up mid-sentence, falling silent and staring at her as though she was the only thing in the world.

She might as well be the only thing in the world, sometimes.

“Yeah,” he said, reaching forward to hook his hands around the back of Mackie's knees and pull her forward. He wouldn't stop until she was in his lap, his arms wrapped snugly around her as though letting her go would have been the worst possible mistake, “You know Hero. She blames herself and thinks we all blame her too. She's stupid. I shouldn't have gone without you, but the more of us are there, the more she feels the need to be,” he cleared his throat, furrowed his brow, and used his best announcer voice. It was surprisingly similar to something one might hear in a movie trailer, “Captain Aries.”

He didn't seem to be joking, but for a long while after he fell silent. Thoughtful, if one were to guess from the way his eyes seemed to lose focus. The inside of his lower lip was at great risk of being chewed off.

“We should go to Hawaii,” he leaned his head forward, taking in a breath the smelled strongly of Mackenzie's hair. It was a familiar, comforting smell. “We could build a boat out of Hero's cross and sail there. Of course, that would require her getting off of it,” He shrugged, as though resigned that such a thing would never happen.

Andeon could not imagine Hero hitting Mackenzie without the train of thought ultimately derailing into something that involved wet t-shirts and a kiddie pool filled with banana pudding. Thus, he was content to close his eyes and let his head fall back against the couch as Mackenzie ran her fingers through his hair. It was a comfort, however much of a facade he knew it to be.

No secrets. Not between them. He could feel Mackenzie's pain as though it were part of his memory, a nagging reminder that there were wounds that had been left unhealed. Unfortunately, with the Zodiac guard, this was more often the case than not. By the time Mackenzie started talking, Andeon was glad for the distraction.

“It's not a break in if nothing gets broken,” Andeon protested, opening one eye to stare at her, “What's the fun of a 'Turn-The-Key-And-Casually-Walk In'? No, I'm coming in through the- ow!” Andeon yelped as she tugged his hair, “No. I am not going to- ow! Woman, would you- ow! Stop being a b***h that hur- ow! No! OW! VIVA LA MOTHER ******** OW YOU'RE GOING TO MAKE ME OW BALD YOU CRAZY WHO- OW.” Andeon threw himself forward, pitching the both of them to the carpet. He wrapped his long, skinny legs around her torso, holding her tightly.

“Boskovic with the sleeper hold! How will the wee lass escape the Jaws Of Death- Hey. Mackie no biting! No biting! SNUZZLES SAVE ME.”

“I will no go gently into that good ni- what the ********! Why are your teeth so sharp you ******** cannibal!”

Andeon screeched girlishly as Mackenzie dug her teeth into his shoulder and used his Transformers boxers as butt floss. He rolled over as she threw her weight to the side, sending them into a tumble across the living room floor. It was about that time that the familiar click, click, click came from the bedroom, Snuzzles roused from his shoebox bed settled comfortably in the middle of Andeon's sock drawer. It was the only thing in the sock drawer, actually, as Andeon's socks were scattered around the apartment, the car, and various public parks in Destiny City.

“Screeeee!” came the little youma's battle cry as he lunged into the fray, climbing over their tumbling bodies and wrapping himself around Andeon's face, effectively blinding him.

“No! No you dumb crab get her!” Andeon shouted, his words muffled by Snuzzles body. The little monster clicked in a way that sounded like laughter, and the drummed him front legs against Andeon's temples. It was always a toss up as to which Gemini the little youma would help, but it seemed Mackenzie had won his favor.

“Traitor! Benedict Snuzzles! Et tu Snuzzles! Remember, remember the fifth of OW MACKENZIE OW. OKAY. OKAY. UNCLE YOU STUPID COOZE. UNCLE.”