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fallingin-like · 6 years ago

Text

november 16

l’amour parle en fleus by @scribbleb-red [requested by @fuzzballsheltiepants]

see which other fics i’m reviewing this month! / my review request post!

this is a wonderful and heartbreaking fic that deals with grief and the beauty of life. it is soft and sweet, while dealing with hard topics and loss. this fic is incomplete.

disclaimer: i reviewed this fic when it had 7 chapters, so no comments on chapter 8. sorry!

this fic was stunning and i was blown away by your amazing descriptions and imagery. everything is so vivid and feels real. i was so interested in the little pieces of andrew and neil’s stories and how they pieced together to bring them to this story.

parts that stood out to me:

”he had cut himself free of the roots of his past and planted new ones, blooming in a country that should never have belonged to him, yet matched the varying shades of his soul” wow, this is such a beautiful beginning to the story, the wording you used makes it read like poetry, especially the last part of the sentence

”not on that sun-drenched afternoon” oh this is wonderful

”bruises had stiffened his face into a mask” i love the way that you wrote this

it breaks my heart to see how affected andrew is by aaron’s death. although he tries his best to show it outwardly, andrew gave up so much of himself to protect aaron

ooh the house/property you’ve described sounds so nice. do you have something specific (like an existing house) that you’re referencing?

”maybe he’d make it a challenge to sleep in all of them” whatamood andrew

”the air was clean and full of grass, as if it had only ever been breathed by wild things” oh, this is so nice

cats! sounds like a dream, to be in a bnb and find out they have cats

it sounds like fun to read a book that someone has annotated. so much that you can learn about them through how they react to the events in the novel in comparison to what you feel or think

”liked how steady and quiet king was, how sir vocalised every time they wanted something” love that you had andrew highlight these characteristics, it seems very in character

”the sound of footsteps approaching an unlockable door” EXCUSE ME DID YOU THINK YOU COULD JUST SLIDE THIS IN AFTER “a number plate, a smile, a mist rising over a river” AND THINK I WOULD NOT NOTICE. LIKE IT’S NOT A DEVASTATING SENTENCE.

”his was a skull full of a thousand momento mori. aaron was just the latest” woah what a powerful two sentences

how cute that andrew keeps all of neil’s notes! sounds like something i would do haha

ohmygoodness neil singing is bringing me back to my french classes from a long long time ago (i can remember enough to kind of work out the english translations loool)

”because worst of all, nathaniel never seemed to notice him back. it rankled… didn’t the idiot care that he was killing the world over with that voice?” yeah okay andrew, you keep thinking that’s the reason you hate that neil doesn’t notice you.

woah you descriptions of the outside is absolutely gorgeous. the colours, descriptions, and imagery are so wonderful and overwhelming and beautiful. i get so lost in the sheer volume of it all, i forget about andrew’s anger (as i’m sure he also does, a little)

andrew picking up his cigarette butt is so lovely and fitting for this section of the story

AH IT’S NEIL

”and, as the folds of material were plucked at by the wind’s childish fingers, andrew followed the sharp lines of his collarbones, the smattering of freckles, strangely warped and wefted flesh” I LOVE THIS. the wording you used is absolutely amazing

NEIL HAS PIERCINGS AND HE KEEPS LAVENDER IN THEM THIS IS THE BEST

oh, the story of aaron giving andrew his hat is so soft, such a wonderful thing shared between the two of them. it’s so small, but for us who know how much of a struggle everything is with them, a constant push and pull, it’s everything.

neil’s loft sounds so nice, how did you come up with this idea?

also prickly neil is great, i love that you have this shortly after andrew goes to touch a plant and gets pricked because of it

”a stab of hatred lanced through andrew’s stomach, white-hot, easy. sweat rolled down the centre of his back, a sour coating filled the back of his throat” ahh your descriptions are so so good

”andrew replied, popping the ‘p’ like an eyeball under a thumb.” exCUSE ME LIKE WHAT??

also i am very much a fan of neil being super strong

uhhHHHH neil has a tongue piercing?? i think andrew actually vapourized in that moment

orange! tractor! adorable!

”apathy, his brain supplied, the opposite of anger, the inverse of hate” oh this is interesting. i guess i always automatically thought of love, but when i think of this, it seems so right. hate, anger are such strong emotions, overtaking everything, making it hard to think, feeling so so much, but the absence of that feeling? oh

”and neil was leaning forward, plucking the cigarette from andrew’s fingers and taking a drag, smoke spilling between his teeth when he grinned a grin like a knife blade. andrew felt it in his gut” !!! this!!!

”addiction left people brittle. left them dry as kindling and just as easy to burn” woah

i really cannot handle these boys

NEIL IS MISSING PART OF HIS FINGER, OH MY GOODNESS I AM LOSING IT HERE.

amazing bit about the garden, never thought about it that way. it’s so true

honestly, there is just so so much to unpack. love your description of the buzzing andrew is feeling, i really like hearing andrew’s thought process, how everything turns back to aaron, love the way that, even now, he can read neil so well

THE TWINYARD EMBRACE. THE WAY THEY HOLD EACH OTHER. “‘you killed him,’ andrew said. ‘you killed her,’ replied aaron.” THIS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT THAT THEY HAVE PROTECTED EACH OTHER. THE BEGINNING OF JOINT THERAPY. THEY WAY THAT THEY SLOWLY LEARN TO LOVE EACH OTHER IN A WAY THAT’S MORE HEALTHY.

ahhhhh andrew talking to neil? this is so so good to see his progress, to see how he’s working through his grieving

oh boy, loving the little rivalry that eduard brings, the kind of tension heh

this town/market sounds amazing, so beautiful

IN THE GAME. OH DANG EDUARD YOU ARE NOT THE FARMER BOY WHO HAS THE HOTS FOR NEIL THAT I THOUGHT YOU WERE

”’well… like an american,’ said neil, like it explained everything. and it did, like a fire hissing out in the rain, andrew felt his shoulders relax, his ire cool” ahh so nice.

”because neil was so much give, when andrew needed to take” oh this is so interesting!

”neil shouldn’t be allowed to just vanish” AHH

”andrew shouldn’t have lashed out, sneered at neil’s story and spot on his honesty” NOOO ANDREW WHY

”his scars were the noughts to andrew’s crosses” oh this is so nice (like, not nice, but you know)

woah it’s really interesting hearing neil’s story while also having andrew’s commentary available with his knowledge from school. to see the personal side of it and also what was portrayed to the public

as much as i love neil with long curly hair, him with a buzzed look has me interested. paired with his cheekbones and his eyes, woahhhhh

”it looked like he’d been bled of life, colours fading until he became a negative of himself or an older version of the hollow-eyed teenager from the newspapers all those years ago.” i think this is my favourite sentence of this fic so far. makes me hurt.

AARON USED TO CALL ANDREW A TURNIP THAT IS SO ADORABLE I WANT PEOPLE TO CALL ME TURNIP (wait i just looked up what it means and although it is true i have no brains i was thinking in an affectionate way. turnips look really cute and are tiny lol)

ahhh neil in his bed in the barn during the storm ;-;

i love how you incorporated consent into andrew anchoring neil from his panic with the hand on his neck

ohmygoodness i cannot believe that neil has a PALMETTO HOODIE WITH A NAME AND NUMBER ON IT AH

”they took long walks through the fields and along the mountain paths, navigating the rocky terrain of andrew’s grief and neil’s jagged history that came so painfully close to intertwining with andrew’s own” oh this is such a beautiful sentence

NEIL HAS WATCHED ANDREW’S INTERVIEWS EXCUSE ME WHAT THAT IS SO CUTE

”he caught his reflection in the mirror and saw only himself” THIS IS AMAZING. what a transition that we get to see andrew experience

”for months andrew’s mind was a jagged thing, not knowing what he wanted or what he needed” !!

ooh love the acknowledgement that younger andrew would have denied his feelings but he’s more mature now and is more in tune with his emotions and wants!! amazing

”dinner with neil was an abundant thing. odd choice of word, but it was the only way andrew could describe it” it is an odd choice, but at the same time i think i understand it?

oh. andrew’s dream of aaron in the field. it’s so sad and soft and makes me feel blurry around the edges. what a contrast to the evening with neil. i like it though. you don’t just get over grieving. it gets better and it gets worse. it comes back again and again, even when you think it will not return. “wait for me. wait for me” i love what this adds, it feels so right

”andrew pressed every lane and shady square between the pages of his memory” so wonderful

PARLE EN FLEURS. EVERYTHING MAKES SENSE NOW.

woah aaron’s story was intense and well-told. things make a lot more sense now.

love that andrew sends nicky pictures to show everything, to share without words. they have such a unique relationship, they both care so much but are so different in the way that they show it sometimes it clashes

”it’s not the kind of pain that can be quantified. and it will still hurt in a year, in five, in ten”

i mostly skimmed the last chapter because i know that i easily internalize the thoughts and feelings that come when people write depression.

i love the way that you structured this fic. the chapter titles are perfect because throughout the fic we see andrew’s healing and grieving. it’s subtle, but he clearly shifts through the different stages that you include and i’m really impressed by how seamlessly you incorporated that into the fic. the fic’s focus slowly transfers from aaron to neil so naturally that you almost don’t notice it until you take a step away for a moment.

you do such a marvelous job with the descriptions of this fic, i liked so so many sentences that i could not possibly mention them all. the town and the fields and the surroundings sound so beautiful and stunning, you made everything so vibrant and alive. all the colours and textures and words that you used really established an amazing backdrop to the story you wrote.

and the story, i loved your approach to this, it’s very realistic. the interactions between andrew and neil are pure and natural and don’t seem forced. you created complicated, intricate relationships between all the characters, brought up the difficulty of expressing emotions and feelings with people, and trust that was built. i liked the way that you wrote the characters, and i adore neil with his flower piercings. thank you so much for writing this fic! i can’t wait to see what comes next!

#l'amour parle en fleurs #aftg fic review #raelle writes

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aftgficlibrary · 8 years ago

Text

Raven!Neil

Updated 20 November 2018

Black As Is The Raven, He’ll Get A Partner by nekojita (E | Incomplete | 31/?)

When Wymack, Kevin and Andrew came to recruit Neil Josten in Millport, Neil decided to say 'no' instead of 'yes' to joining the Foxes and does what he does best, which is runs. Unfortunately, that brings him to the attention of the Moriyamas, who return him to to his 'rightful' place.

Now Neil has to learn how to survive at the Nest with his only ally another 'asset' long kept under Riko's heel.

/Graphic Depictions Of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

Raven to Fox by Andrw_Jstn for AsfaHan (Not Rated | 268,134 | 46/46)

AU: Neil's mom ran without him, he was sold off to the Moriyamas soon after, growing up with Kevin and Riko. It'll all be explained in the prologue.

/Graphic Depictions Of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

This Is What Hollows by constellationqueen (E | Incomplete | 21/?)

A month after Kevin runs from the Ravens, Nathaniel Wesninski is sent to the Foxes as a message from Riko.

/Graphic Depictions Of Violence /Rape/Non-Con /Underage

Plus Ca Change, Plus C'est La Même Chose by nekojita (T | 18,069 | 1/1)

Nathaniel has spent the last eight years at Evermore, eight years rebelling against Riko and the idea of the Perfect Court, eight years standing between the Moriyamas and Jean Moreau. Now Nathaniel and Jean are following in Kevin Day's footsteps and leaving Edgar Allan/Evermore behind to join the Palmetto State Foxes. Kevin is eager to welcome two talented Exy players and former teammates onto a team which badly needs them, but Andrew? Andrew suspects that there's more to their arrival than the two are willing to reveal - and he takes his promises seriously.

Another contribution to the amazing ExyorDeath zine (and then some...).

dangerous and disquieting by fuechsli (Not Rated | Incomplete | 17/?)

The kid looks up to him abruptly, pupils blown wide like those of a startled rabbit. “Well, if that isn’t a surprise,” Andrew muses, his eyes locked onto the stark black four etched onto Nathaniel Wesninski’s cheekbone, creating a brutal contrast with the rest of his bruised face. Nathaniel Wesninski smiles a crooked smile, revealing that even his teeth are painted bloody. “Hi,” he says, as if he wasn’t currently leaving permanent stains on Andrew’s favourite bean bag with his fucking vital body fluid. “I’d shake your hand, but...” Nathaniel Wesninski lifts a hand, bloody and bruised, some fingers looking grotesquely out of shape. He clenches them anyway and winces when the pain seems to hit him, but his expression gives nothing away.

He’s a p r o b l e m.

***

In which Mary's first attempt at stealing her son away has failed and she only succeeds five years later. But the damage is done and the lack of running-experience leads to Nathan catching up with them. What we see here is the aftermath of that and the hell that is Nathaniel Wesninski's life—at least up to the point when he meets the Foxes and slowly becomes another person under the name of Neil Josten.

/Graphic Depictions Of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

a switchblade is my preferred weapon by badacts (M | 150,134 | 48/48)

The Foxes take on an injured Kevin Day, and get a Raven-trained backliner with a point to prove into the bargain.

/Graphic Depictions Of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

The Unkindness of Ravens by crazy_like_a (M | Incomplete | 45/?)

After Kevin publicly announces his intention to play for the Foxes, Riko sends Nathaniel Wesninski to convince him to return to the Nest. Unfortunately for Riko, Nathaniel has other plans.

/Graphic Depictions Of Violence

three strikes (and you're out) by palmettto (T | 5,123 | 1/1)

She held her body and her racket like a weapon; the only way she knew how.

BloodSport by bloodydamnit (M | Incomplete | 5/?)

Don’t even think about it Nathaniel. Do you want to know what we did to the other boy who ran?

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

Brothers by Nikotheamazingspoonklepto (Not Rated | Incomplete | 9/?)

Childhood for a Moriyama is brutal. Exacting. There is no room for mistakes, no room for love. Yet when Ichirou's mother breaks the rules and introduces him to newborn Riko, he finds that sometimes, love is involuntary.

Ichirou breaks the cycle of shunning his younger brother and does everything he can to be there for his baby brother... Where his father failed to defy the Moriyama traditions and be a brother to Tetsuji, Ichirou will succeed.

This is that story.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Major Character Death /Underage

Bruises and Broken Feathers by Yourwritersblock (T | Incomplete | 1/3)

The pool of blood he was lying in was already cold, but the agonizing pain in his side kept Nathaniel on the ground. The cracked rib was probably the worst of his injuries, but the knife slashes across his stomach and chest still stung with the freezing metal they had been torn open with.

The locker room door swung open and Nathaniel lifted his pounding head as it clicked closed again. Andrew sauntered towards him and leaned his weight against the black tiles on the wall. “That took longer than expected.”

A Raven AU in which Neil pines and Andrew can't keep his eyes away from the stubborn backliner.

only ravens can fly (but come winter, they will die) by hiraethia (M | Incomplete | 2/?)

"what is your real name, little fledgling?" andrew asked.

he glanced at andrew, a ghostly smile crossing his face. something in andrew shifted when he saw that beneath the blood-crimson eye shadow, a pair of haunting blue eyes stared through him.

"neil," he said, his voice a chime and a roar all in one.

(in which neil is the ravens' newest performer and riko's second partner, and andrew has a reputation as the heartless critic with the trojan herald).

inspired by the greatest showman.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

Blood and Smoke by andreil (M | Incomplete | 10/?)

After being blinded in one eye by Riko, Neil and his twin brother Nathaniel strive to find a place where they belong.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

birds of prey by illinois_e (T | 9,385 | 1/1)

nathaniel hides in the closet whenever his father is mentioned, drinks a bottle of gatorade per day and finds comfort in the walls that protect him as much as they keep him confined to the darkest rooms of his captors' nest.

[or the one where nathaniel is a raven, always have been, always will be—even if he is still, somewhere inside, a fox too.]

the truth about falling by alaseux (T | Incomplete | 5/?)

Nathaniel Wesninski has grown up as a Raven; as the best backliner in the country, he has dedicated his life to the Perfect Court and to Exy. And then he recruits Andrew Minyard, who couldn't care less about the game.

Just learning how to know your mind by Elyant (T | Incomplete | 2/?)

What if Nathaniel Wesninski had been raised a Raven, and his mother only ran away with him when he was fifteen ? What if his father caught them five years later, and Stuart Hatford had rescued him too late to save his right leg ?

What if Kevin Day had held his end of the deal, and Andrew Minyard kept playing Exy after graduation ? What if Andrew had met Abram Hatford in a pub during his second year as a professional Exy player ?

This is a vague attempt to answer at least the last question.

Series: Part 1 of The Devil makes three

flash fires by viridae (M | Incomplete | 3/?)

When Nathaniel runs from Evermore at fifteen with his mother, he doesn't expect his life to last much longer- until Kevin Day, a renowned gunman-turned-rebel, and Andrew Minyard, an orphan-turned-assassin, show up in Millport, Arizona, to recruit him for the Palmetto Foxes' rebellion.

Suddenly confronted with defying and rebelling against the Moriyamas and his father, Neil Josten is forced to barter and trade away his truths one by one in order to stay alive.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

Tears Dry On Their Own (The Happily Ever After Remix) by ToastMaloneIII (E | 4,706 | 1/1)

Not many people get excited to hear that their flight has been cancelled. Then again, most people don’t live with an exy obsessed, sadistic asshole who controls their every move. This cancelled flight? It’s a miracle. A goddamn gift from the universe.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

False Perception by archieknight (Not Rated | Incomplete | 25/?)

False perceptions and altered reflections, in a house made of shattered glass. Secrets are only safe with dead men and the truth-seekers who so easily converse with them. playlist

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Major Character Death

Burn, Baby, Burn by wesninskids (M | Incomplete | 3/?)

Nathaniel Wesninski is Riko’s precious #2, his best backliner, weapon of choice, and only mercenary—the first piece of his Perfect Court: in exchange of everything, thirteen year old Nathaniel gets his number tattooed on his cheekbone and becomes Riko’s partner for better or for worse. Soon Kevin Day and Jean Moreau join the envied line of Ravens and become partners in their turn, and the four of them chase after glory and find the missing pieces of their Perfect Court one player after the other, drunk on power and victory, caring for one another no matter what.

But then Nathaniel strikes a deal with Lola Malcolm to protect himself, and it’s all downhill from here.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

Gucci Gang by wesninskids (M | Incomplete | 5/?)

Perfection is everywhere. It’s hidden, it’s safe and sound where curious eyes don’t think to linger, it’s where the night stops and starts, in the little things we do not hear. It lies where the right people can spot it—and sometimes, sometimes it lets itself be taken and used, be loved, destroyed even.

Nathaniel Wesninski had never been after perfection. He thought it reserved to the weak-minded, at first, those who’d never have anything else to search after than beauty, those who would never understand it and never quite do it justice. But when you’re nineteen, anything can be beautiful: from a timid sunset to gentle hands running along your spine, a kiss, a lie, a pitch black night with nothing but mystery and unknown and secrets. Chaos, too. Chaos above all things.

The gods should have considered it when they gave Nathaniel Wesninski all the tools he needed to obtain it: money, power, beauty and depth, eyes that never stared for too long and never gave away everything. They should have known it’d take a monster to destroy one. They should have known monsters and perfection never did too well.

If they had known, then perhaps no one would have died.

Perhaps

The Paradox of Perfection by Sundaye (M | Incomplete | 1/?)

Nathaniel Wesninski has been his father's property since birth. Another tool in the Butcher's criminal empire, alive as long as he's useful. Or so he thought. As it turns out, Nathaniel's life belongs to someone else entirely--the Moriyama family, a group of criminals even more powerful than the Butcher's. After proving his worth to the Moriyamas through exy, Nathaniel is handed over to the Edgar Allen Ravens to train under them so he can one day contribute to the Moriyama's wealth and influence.

A terrible accident forces Nathaniel to question what his survival under the Moriyamas is worth. And whether he's willing to keep paying that price.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

what it takes to survive by hundreddollarlarry (E | Incomplete | 32/?)

Everyone seems shocked that Neil managed to flee the Nest, not long after Kevin escapes with a broken hand, and broken heart. But Neil will do whatever it takes to make sure that his little family is safe. And as someone who's grown up in the nest being tinged by the Moriyama's world, he knows a couple of tricks to make sure that happens. The last thing he needs is an interesting blond boy getting in his way.

Raven!Neil fic, where he escapes not long after Kevin and brings himself and Jean to play for the foxes while having to live with the consequences of the deal that he made to keep them all safe.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

give your tears (to the tide) by alaseux (T | Incomplete | 9/?)

They are nothing if not survivors, and so many have tried to carve the hearts from their chests that sometimes even breathing feels like a gift.

(or, Nathaniel and Jean are rescued from the Nest. They heal as Foxes.)

Let me tell you a story about war by wesninskids (M | Incomplete | 8/?)

Nathaniel Wesninski is the third dangerous piece of machinery to Riko's Perfect Court. He's a Raven before the hour, and it's a somber wagon Jean Moreau is the latest addition to.

Taller, older, fuming with pride and anger, dangerously charismatic and with a certain talent for causing trouble, he's the kind of threat Nathaniel should eradicate for his own sake. But Ravens operate on a pair-based system to enhance synchrony, and he's stuck with Jean whether he wants it or not.

There can only be so long before one of them breaks, and Nathaniel is determined not to be the first.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Underage

hawk in the raven nest by prouveyrac (T | 89,618 | 31/31)

Nathaniel Wesninski always knew that his life could have been much different, and perhaps much easier, if he had been anyone but Nathaniel Wesninski. With the three on his face and a state of always being surrounded by his fellow Perfect Court, he was forced into accepting his life as a number before he was a person. Though, when the cracks in the Ravens and in their corrupt Captain and Coach began to show, Nathaniel realized that he couldn't just sit back and let things be. Dreaming of dismantling the amazing yet corrupt Edgar Allan Ravens was one thing; actually going through with it, with two unexpected allies at his side, was a different story entirely.

(updated every monday and friday)

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

A Raven's Chance by abernathy (M | Incomplete | 17/?)

[PREVIOUS TITLE: SELLER OF SOULS] Raven!Neil; Nathaniel Wesninski has lived his entire life in the shadows at Castle Evermore, but now that star-player Kevin Day has deserted, he's the newest replacement for the Edgar Allan Ravens. Stuck in a city he hates and suffering through a lifetime of abuse from Riko, Nathaniel finds his only way out is through a promise with the most unlikely of allies.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

Ignition by evil_diabolical_oops (T | 5,036 | 1/1)

Riko has banned all things PSU after Andrew Minyard snubbed the Ravens and signed with the Foxes, but Kevin wants to see a special interview with his father. Kevin and Thea sneak out of the Nest to watch it with a little help from a matchmaking Nathaniel.

My contribution to the Exy or Death Charity Zine 2k17

Fly Low Carrion Crow by nekojita (M | 5,381 | 1/1)

Kevin has fled Edgar Allan, leaving Nathaniel and Jean behind to bear the brunt of Riko's unstable temper. Long used to having little power and control, to using what little advantages he has, Nathaniel refuses to allow the abuses to continue - especially to allow his lover to pay the price for Kevin's cowardice or Riko's growing madness. He'll do whatever he has to do to keep the one person he cares about safe.

Another contribution to the amazing ExyorDeath zine!

/Rape/Non-Con

There for You by nekojita (T | 5,890 | 1/1)

Andrew only has a few more months left in juvie, a few more months of mandatory therapy and - just as bad in his opinion - playing Exy. All he cares about is finally being free to live on his own terms, in not answering to anyone, in being left alone (and alone), and refuses to harbor any thoughts of pursuing Exy scholarships.

So he's not amused when the Ravens show up one day interested in him. That is, until one of their Perfect Court happens to pique his interest in return.

One of my fics for the Exy of Death 2017 charity zine

Given It All by glittermerm (E | Incomplete | 14/?)

Raised to be a Raven, Nathaniel knows his place as #3 in Riko's perfect court. But when #2 Kevin leaves, Riko doesn't forgive him, and neither does Nathaniel.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

Dare You To by goldveines (M | Incomplete | 5/?)

Nathaniel's place is at Riko's side, the hidden and elusive number three to Riko's perfect court. His identity is kept secret due to his father's history, but the three on his cheek tells the truth: some things can't be hidden - such as Nathaniel's inclination to his father's personality. Nathaniel isn't interested in being loyal to Riko, he's interested in playing Exy; and his methods aren't always to Riko or his partner, Jean's, benefit. He'll push both his own limits and those around him to play.

!!HIATUS UNTIL JULY!! Send any comments/questions about this to @goldveines.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

the fine line by HeavenlyDusk (T | Incomplete | 9/?)

Nathaniel would prefer to lay low while in the rivaling kingdom. He has three weeks until he can go back to living a relatively peaceful life as a servant, but those plans change when he's dragged to a ball he has no right being at.

Prince Andrew isn't about to just let him leave after one dance, but it's hard to find someone who doesn't technically exist.

appendages by autisticandrewminyard (transtwinyards) (M | 37,946 | 11/11)

noun ap·pend·age \ə-ˈpen-dij\ 1: an adjunct to something larger or more important : appurtenance 2: a usually projecting part of an animal or plant body that is typically smaller and of less functional importance than the main part to which it is attached; especially : a limb or analogous part (such as a seta) 3 [appendant]: a dependent or subordinate person

Nathaniel Wesninski grapples with his life as the heir to a criminal empire, as the vice captain to the Edgar Allan Ravens, and as the person he wants to be seen as.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

The Emperor's Pardon by orphan_account (E | Incomplete | 8/?)

In the months after Kevin Day fled from Riko’s shadow and sought the aegis of the Palmetto Foxes, Riko had thrown a large enough tantrum that Nathaniel was sent to moderate the affair.

prompt: what if neil ended up inheriting his father’s position as the moriyama family's assassin?

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

Better Than a Grave or a Hearse by iaquilam (Not Rated | 41,794 | 6/6)

“What do you think of the Ravens’ new player?” “He is nothing to me,” Andrew says, staring up at the ceiling, and then amends, “he can’t keep his mouth shut.” Renee hums in agreement. “He doesn’t seem bad for a Raven.” “Guns don’t seem bad until you shoot them.” “Do you think he’s going to end up shooting someone?” "I think that anyone who can’t keep their mouth shut is a liability and a danger.”

Or, Riko is hellbent on bringing Kevin back to the Nest, Andrew is hellbent on stopping him, and Neil Josten is hellbent on making problems for everyone involved.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

Sinners will be Saints by Yuu_chi (M | Incomplete | 5/?)

Nathaniel Wesninski was raised to be a Raven - and yet in all universes his path leads him to the Foxes.

Even Salt Looks Like Sugar by bestmistake (T | Incomplete | 1/?)

Nathaniel was going to destroy the Ravens and he was going to do it from the inside.

Nathaniel was going to destroy Riko and he was going to do it alone.

(That was of course, until Andrew showed up)

The Darkness of the Soul by GinnyRose (T | Incomplete | 31/?)

Nathaniel Wesninski has lived a life of pain. Sold by his father and treated as a pet by his adoptive brother, he has never known kindness. Abandoned by one of the only people he trusted and beaten by his owners, he is left scarred and broken outside a stranger's door. Will he find kindness with the foxes or will he return to the only life he knows?

Something About Runaways by chillbill3 (M | Incomplete | 2/?)

Neil Josten comes to the foxes as a runaway in disguise knowing it won't be long before he is found. Only, this time he runs from Castle Evermore, not Baltimore. A trans boy, given to the Master as Natalia Wesninski, he is forced to run. He's a Raven to the end, but he'll do whatever it takes to survive.

this should have been title Castle NEvermore (quick joke before you lodge into pain and suffering)

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

Neil, huh? by Frenchie (Fauks) (M | Incomplete | 13/?)

Andrew meets Raven!Neil

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

communion by Saul (M | 9,870 | 3/3)

Jean was his home and his jailer. Neil was the breath in his lungs and the chain on his ankle.

Series: Part 2 of groundhog day au

Stitch Yourself Back Together by story_telling_sage (M | Incomplete | 9/?)

David Wymack did not get paid enough for this. He got paid to coach a Class I Exy team. He got paid not make sure Andrew didn’t actually murder anyone. He got paid to get his kids to the court and whip their asses into shape. He probably didn’t get paid enough to deal with traumatized, violent teenagers on a daily basis but he walked right into that one on his own and refused to regret it.

He did not get paid to come to his office only to have the door blocked by a vaguely human shaped bleeding mess.

In which Nathaniel Wesninski never became Neil Josten. When he and his mother ran they were caught and Nathan's transaction went through with the Moriyamas. In this world Nathaniel wears the #3 on his cheek until Riko takes things too far and decides to send a message.

just like his father by modernpatroclus (M | 1,482 | 1/1)

prompt: Andreil moment when Neil gets so into being Nathaniel that Andrew is having a tough time reminding Neil of who he really is

Or: Nathaniel knew he could only pretend to be Neil Josten for so long.

Series: Part 2 of raven!neil

tell the devil i said hey by modernpatroclus (M | 2,456 | 1/1)

Andreil + grenade by Bruno Mars? But instead of the other not feeling the same they actually do (BC lets be honest it andreil and they'd die for each other without another thought)

Or: AU where Nathaniel was caught and sold to the Ravens after his mother's death. He escapes and joins the Foxes as Neil Josten, but when Andrew is sent to Easthaven, Riko threatens him with Proust if Nathaniel doesn't return.

Series: Part 1 of raven!neil

/Graphic Depictions of Violence /Rape/Non-Con

Go. by minyard03 (T | 5,558 | 1/1)

Months passed, games went, the Foxes got over Neils random disappearance. At least, until they saw him practicing with their rivals a day before they were due to go head to head. Andrew knew one thing for sure, though;

Black and red didn't suit Neil.

unexpected. by thomintnewt (Not Rated | Incomplete | 1/?)

When Kengo dies, Renee goes into the Nest to get one Raven and comes out with two.

[Raven!Neil AU]

The Hand Sings Weapon. by orphan_account (M | Incomplete | 3/?)

The Perfect Court Lineup; #1 Riko Moriyama. #2 Kevin Day. #3 Nathaniel Wesninski. #4 Jean Moreau.

Kevin recruits potential Ravens with Riko's supervision. He chooses Andrew Minyard, a midget with an anger problem, who signs with the Ravens to get out of the care system. When Kevin's hand gets broken, Jean Moreau replaces Kevin as Riko's partner. Riko places Nathaniel with the new recruit to test the pair of them, and their pain tolerances.

/Graphic Depictions of Violence

Want by constellate (T | 1,214 | 1/1)

"It is enough, you think, to have wanted and moved on. You content yourself with what you have. And then Riko smashes Kevin's hand, and Kevin runs to the Foxes of all people and everything basically goes to shit."

Nathaniel Wesninski has spent the last eight years raised as a raven in the nest. He wants out.

#raven!neil #aftg #aftg fanfic #aftg fanfiction #the foxhole court #andrewminyard #neiljosten #andreil #andriel fanfic #andriel fanfiction #andreil fanfic #andreil fanfiction #theme:raven!neil #theme:raven!character

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allforthecourtt · 8 years ago

Note

writing prompt (if u want) : andrew and neil met before while neil was someone else and broke andrew's heart by leaving/vanishing/faking death/idfk and then neil just shows up like no ?? u are like chris or some name and u r dead what is going on and how dare u

so we’re going to pretend im not the shittiest person ever and didn’t take like a week to write this 2000 word thing but anyways hope u like it :)

(PART TWO)

—————————————————————————————–

The shock of the exy racquet crashing into Neil’s stomach was secondary to the shock that came from seeing Andrew Spear again. While his lungs screamed for air, his brain screamed for an escape. To run. And never stop running again.

The edges of his vision turned as black as the shirt Andrew wore the first time they’d met those few years ago. It had been a startlingly warm day, aided by the fact that Nathaniel and his mother had just migrated south again from Montreal. California was everything and nothing that Nathaniel, no, Chris, had expected. It was hot, and there was the smell of salt in the air from the Pacific Ocean – that Chris had known would be there. He hadn’t counted on people being so open. Maybe that’s why he was so drawn to Andrew, a spot of darkness against the ever sunny sky. Andrew had never been an easy read.

The first time Andrew spoke to him, it was because he had gotten into a fight with a teacher. Neil had left the classroom at the end of the day with his head down, hugging his books close to his body. He didn’t know how long he’d stay here, but the fact that his mother had let him attend school was a good sign that they’d be in California for a while. Still it wasn’t a good idea to make friends or have ties here. Nobody should remember his face.

“You know,” Neil had heard him say as he passed a tree on the edge of the school’s property, “For someone who’s trying to keep a low profile you sure do love to get in a fight.”

He turned and came face to face with the blonde. Andrew hadn’t mastered the look of complete apathy yet and his eyes revealed the tiny spark of interest Neil had put there.

“For someone who’s barely four feet tall you sure do love antagonizing people,” Neil responded.

“A talent.” Andrew narrowed his eyes. “Who are you?”

“Christopher Bassett,” Neil lied.

Andrew’s hand rubbed absent mindedly at his inner forearm, covered by long sleeves. “No. That’s not it.”

“That’s all there is,” Neil lied again.

“You’re a bad liar.” Neil scoffed, but Andrew ignored him and continued, “but I mean, California is supposed to be full of actors, so what’s one more, right?”

“Why do you care so much?” Neil finally snapped at him.

Andrew sighed. “Because I don’t trust you.”

“And that matters to me?” Neil asked.

“It should.”

Neil laughed under his breath. “Okay, well, let me know when you have a real reason and maybe I’ll talk to you.” Neil turned and started to walk away from Andrew when he felt the other boy grab his arm and stop him from leaving.

“I recognize the look on your face, okay? I’m…” Andrew took a deep breath, steadying himself, “I’m a foster kid too. I just want to…. You’re safe right?”

Neil paused, “What?”

“You’re safe, aren’t you? You… The place is safe, right?” Andrew asked quietly.

Neil’s brow furrowed as he searched Andrew’s stoic face for a reason that he’d be asking that question, but there was nothing present in his emotion. No matter how hard Neil tried he couldn’t get a read on him.

“Yeah,” Neil finally answered, “I’m safe.”

Andrew nodded once and then released Neil’s arm from his grip before leaning back against the tree. “I’ll see you here tomorrow,” he said. Not quite a question, but not quite a statement either. Neil just nodded and then started on the path towards the house he and Mary were squatting in.

He met with Andrew every day for the next month and somehow in that time the two of them had formed, if not a friendship, then a mutual understanding. Andrew lived in theoreticals, as Neil discovered, and he spent the majority of his time with Andrew hypothesising about what they would do in the case of different situations. Like a zombie apocalypse or something as equally stupid. Neil didn’t actually care about the hypotheticals as much as he just enjoyed taking a break. It was nice to think about surviving something other than his father.

One day, Neil got particularly into detail about how he would survive an attack on the school by Al Capone-like mobsters when Andrew interrupted him.

“Who are you really running from?” Andrew asked.

Neil paused, forming a lie in his head that he didn’t quite finish before blurting out the truth. “My father,” he confessed.

Andrew didn’t say anything. He just nodded and then encouraged Neil to continue his daring attempt to save the 9th grade math teacher. That was what Neil liked most about Andrew. He knew when to stop pushing for answers.

About a week later Neil approached Andrew with his own theoretical when Andrew stopped him from talking with a hand over his mouth.

“Chris, I need you to just shut up and listen. Don’t respond, because I don’t need to deal with your shit right now too. Understand?” Neil nodded and Andrew took his hand off of his mouth. Neil noticed how warm his skin felt under where Andrew’s contact had been, but he ignored it.

Andrew continued, “I have a brother. An identical twin apparently. And I don’t know what to do. He wants to meet me but I can’t let him anywhere near this town. He found about him. About Aaron. And he’s going to hurt him. I want to see him, but… but I can’t let subject him to this. I… I couldn’t subject anybody to this. To him. I need to tell him to stay the hell away from me, don’t I? Don’t I?”

Neil blinked, taking in what Andrew was saying. What his words were implying, and everything suddenly clicked.

“Andrew,” Neil said calmly, “You need to get out of that house.”

Andrew stared at Neil. “What? No. I can’t. I can’t leave Cass. She’s worth it.”

Neil swallowed, trying to figure out how to get Andrew through this break down. He watched Andrew methodically fiddle with the long sleeves on his shirt and wondered silently how Andrew had been dealing with this alone. Andrew made eye contact with Neil again and seemed to calm slightly as he took in Neil’s startled face.

“What will make this better?” Neil asked, “What do you need from me, Andrew? Take it.”

Andrew’s hand found the back of Neil’s neck and he surged forward, pulling Neil down to meet him and clashing their lips together in the middle. This wasn’t Neil’s first kiss, but it was the first one he ever felt like participating in. He kept his hands at his side, unwilling to touch Andrew more than he knew was okay. When Andrew broke away from the kiss he just glared at him before turning quickly and starting to walk away.

“Andrew,” Neil called after him, “Andrew, please.”

“I hate you,” Andrew replied without ever turning around.

Neil got back to the house late after taking time to run and clear his head. He was confused about the kiss, and especially confused about the fact that he wanted to kiss Andrew again. While he had expected to be chastised by Mary about being tardy, what he hadn’t expected was to have his duffle bag thrown at his face the moment he stepped the through the door and to hear Mary’s panicked, “We have to go. Now.”

Neil froze in place. “What?”

“Abram.” Mary stepped forward and squeezed Neil’s shoulder hard enough to hurt. “We have to leave. I saw one of his men today. It’s only a matter of time. We have to get out.”

“But…” Neil started to object before Mary’s grip tightened enough to quiet him.

Neil’s face must have given something away because Mary sighed and loosened her hand. “No but’s. We can’t stay any longer,” she said, “I know you made friends and everything but we have to go.”

“Yes mom, I… I understand,” Neil said quietly, “Just let me use the bathroom first, okay?”

Mary nodded and returned to checking to make sure all of their guns were loaded. She was so focused she didn’t even notice Neil slipping through the bathroom window and running off towards Andrew’s house.

It took a few minutes for Andrew to open his window after Neil insistently tapped on it several times.

Andrew rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he took in Neil’s state. “What the fuck?”

“Andrew, I have to leave.” Neil’s tone was urgent. “My past found me. So I can’t stay anymore.”

“You can’t run forever,” Andrew said softly.

“No,” Neil agreed, “I can’t.”

“So stop running.” Andrew said.

“I can’t.” Neil answered.

Andrew closed his eyes for a moment, taking time to center his thoughts. “Who are you?” He finally asked.

“The only name I can give you is Abram,” Neil told him. “I’m sorry, Andrew. I really am,” he said. And then he turned and did what he always did best. Neil ran.

——–

Neil’s thoughts returned to the modern day with the oxygen in his lungs. He had liked being Neil Josten. Why did this asshole have to ruin everything? Why did Andrew turn up every time? Like sobriety after months of wallowing in the intoxication of a normal life. Of an identity. He was a somber reminder that Neil Josten didn’t exist, and could never. A reminder that Neil could never have anything in his life.

“Fuck you,” Neil choked out between gasps.

“So where have you been for the past five years?” Andrew asked, “Running?”

Neil glared up at him. “Surviving.”

“Dammit Minyard,” Wymack said storming into the room, “This is why we can’t have nice things.”

“Oh, Coach, if he was nice, he wouldn’t be any use to us, would he?” Andrew said mockingly.

Neil zoned out of the rest of the conversation. Taking the time to studying Andrew’s reaction to him. He’d heard that Andrew had been put on medication, but seeing it was different than just knowing about it. And it hurt to look at Andrew like that. He looked so broken with a forced smile that could never quite reach his eyes.

“Do you know him?” Neil overhead Kevin whisper to Andrew.

Andrew scoffed. “I’ve never met Neil Josten in my life.”

Neil walked away before the promise of the Palmetto contract could tantalize him any further. He planned to keep walking until he left this town and the identity of Neil Josten all together but Andrew caught him in the parking lot, tossing the unsigned contract at his feet.

“I thought I told you once that eventually you’d have to stop running.” The smile had vanished from his face, as though Andrew’s system was blocking out the effects of the pills momentarily.

Neil shook his head. “I can’t, Andrew. It’s not that simple.”

Andrew laughed, a bitter and teasing sound. “Then make it that simple. Do you want to play exy?”

Neil took a deep breath but like he always did he told Andrew the truth that mattered, “Yes.”

“Then sign the fucking contract.” Neil stared openly at Andrew, drinking in the sight of his face after so many years. Thinking briefly of the only kiss his mother had never beaten him for.

“Stop that,” Andrew said suddenly.

“Stop what?” Neil asked.

“Stop looking at me like I’m your fucking answer.”

“Maybe you are.”

“Just sign the contract, Abram,” Andrew said walking away, back to the foxes. Back towards the promise of a future that was just within Neil’s grasp. And he wanted to badly to reach out and take it.

Maybe Andrew was right. Maybe it was time to finally stop running. Neil took a deep breath and sat down in the parking lot outside his school, knowing full well that he’d already made the decision about what to do with the contract. And all he needed was a pen.

#aftg #all for the game #tfc #the foxhole court #Anonymous #writing

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ohsweetflips · 8 years ago

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hawk in the raven nest, chapter fourteen

chapter summary: exy rules and regulations state that a team must have nine players to be considered eligible for games

A/N: hey guys!!! hoped you enjoyed the chapter, as always, kudos and feedback are appreciated :) and, if you guys don't mind, it would mean the world to me if you reblogged this fic on tumblr or perhaps shared it with your friends :)

read on ao3

previous chapter

chapter list

Exy Rules and Regulations stated that an Exy team must have a minimum of nine athletes. Failure to provide at least nine athletes could result in disqualification of said Exy team. The Palmetto State Foxes, however, were a unique case, because the Palmetto State Foxes were always a unique case. Last year, after the Foxes’ seniors graduated and a new recruitment didn’t work out, the Foxes were left with eight players. Fortunately for them, Kevin Day joined as an assistant coach before the season started and saved all of their asses by claiming that he had a ninth player for them, and that they would be available by November.

This was met with mixed feelings from many different people. Some believed that this new player was just a scapegoat to keep the Foxes from getting disqualified. Others said that Kevin Day, despite who he once was, should not have the power to bring in a new player, thus saving the Foxes from elimination. Others were excited to see what Exy prodigy Kevin Day could offer to the Foxes, and if it could save them.

A rumor, most likely formed by a sports gossip columnist, said the new player was a fellow Raven at one point. This was disputed by Tetsuji himself along with other teammates, them all having shown that only one athlete was taken off the Raven roster, and he was now coaching the Foxes.

(Reporters still asked for multiple copies of Tetsuji’s roster, however.)

There were also mixed opinions throughout the Ravens regarding Kevin’s new recruit. Nathaniel and Andrew trusted Kevin in what he was doing, and Jean trusted Nathaniel’s belief, but none of the three vocalized that. Then there were those like Engle and Jenkins (among others) who never got along with Kevin in the first place, and believed that no recruit could save his career, which they assumed was over. Then there were those like Reacher and Johnson who believed that Kevin should have used all of this to help the Ravens, and still feel betrayed by Kevin’s departure. And then finally, in his usual fashion, Riko Moriyama was cocky and amused. He was entertained by the idea that Kevin thought he could save the Foxes.

The Ravens were all crammed into the lounge of the Nest. The giant TV on the wall was on the channel that the Foxes game would be on. Andrew, Nathaniel, and Jean had taken over the couch off to the side with Andrew and Jean at the arms and Nathaniel in the middle. Riko was in a recliner, talking amicably with his fellow teammates and making quips about the Foxes. Nathaniel thought that he looked too friendly, and was now not only waiting for Kevin’s new recruit’s debut, but also when Riko’s facade of friendliness and camaraderie would fade.

Riko was like that, in that he acted friendly and amiable around reporters or people who agreed with him, but the moment things didn’t go his way he devolved into a violent temper tantrum, to say the least.

Nathaniel dragged his attention back to the television. The pre-game panel of reporters had come to the end of its session, so he assumed that the Foxes and their opponents had completed their warm-ups. The Foxes weren’t home for this game, so the opposing team was called out first. If Nathaniel was being honest, he didn’t care for that team. He was more concerned with the Foxes’ subs walking to the bench: Aaron Minyard and Janie Smalls.

“So it’s a striker,” Riko said, stating what was on everyone else’s mind. “Smalls was useless on that team anyway, and that’s saying something.”

Since Riko wouldn’t see him, Nathaniel rolled his eyes.

Danielle Wilds was called out first for the Foxes, followed by Boyd, Reynolds, Walker, Gordon, and then Hemmick. All that was left was the new recruit.

Then, it was like all air was sucked out of the Ravens’ lounge. Riko’s quips stopped and the soft chatter died down so fast that the silence of the team became deafening. Out of the corners of his eyes, Nathaniel first saw Jean go still, and then saw Andrew’s hand tighten on the arm of the couch.

For the Foxes’ newest member was not just any athlete.

Nathaniel didn’t hear the name announced, but he didn’t need it to be. Anyone would recognize Kevin Day walking across the court. Except this time he was not in a black and red jersey with his racket catered to his left hand, but a white an orange one with a racket in his right. Even through the television, the screams from the crowd were overwhelming.

Well, Nathaniel thought. The rumor was right about them being a former Raven.

Once Kevin arrived at his spot on the Foxes’ side of the court, Nathaniel tore his eyes away from the TV to get a look at his fellow Ravens. Most wore the same expression he did: a jaw dropped so low that it could have been unhinged, eyes that saw nothing except for a number two jersey with DAY written across it. Riko Moriyama, however, did not look like that.

Nathaniel had seen Riko look ready to murder someone, the deepest parts of hell locked in his eyes. He had seen his face cracked open in a smile that the Devil could wear. He had even seen Riko at a low point that most of them had once been at, beaten, bloody, bruised, and wondering what put them there at that exact moment. Nathaniel had seen the shock on Riko’s face when he realized that Tetsuji had kept from him his knowledge of Kevin transferring to the Foxes.

But the shock on Riko’s face now surpassed that by miles. That was a Riko sitting with his mouth pressed into a thin line. His left hand was tightened on the arm of the chair while hit right was clenched around his knee. The one tattooed on his face looked suddenly very stark against his complexion, but Nathaniel thought that Riko had actually went pale at seeing his former left-hand man making an appearance for a different team. His dark eyes stared up at the TV, flickering back and forth as if what he was seeing had to be some type of mistake.

Nathaniel knew that Riko’s shock would soon turn to anger, he expected it at this point, but for now Riko was resigned to staring dumbstruck at the TV. Nathaniel wondered if Riko was shocked because it was Kevin Day, the man he destroyed, returning to the court, or if it was because he saw the threat Kevin was posing onto him; Kevin returned, and could therefore still surpass Riko.

After all the times Nathaniel had spoken to Kevin on the phone, or talked with Andrew about their next step, Nathaniel had never considered Kevin being his own recruit. Seeing what Riko had done to him back in April, he had assumed that Kevin was done for. He thought that no athlete, no matter how strong, could come back after having his left, and dominant, hand shattered by the man he was supposed to succeed with. But Kevin Day, a man more stubborn and determined than anyone else Nathaniel knew, would be the one to make a comeback to Exy right-handed.

As the clock began its countdown to the start of the game, Nathaniel suddenly grasped what this could do for the Palmetto State Foxes, and what this could do for the rest of what he, Kevin, and Andrew had planned. Having Kevin back in the game changed everything. The game was only seconds away from starting, but Nathaniel knew now that there were no if’s, and’s, or but’s; the Foxes were going to be getting to Spring Championships. Kevin Day had to switch hands, and maybe that set him back a few paces from where he left off, but he was still miles ahead of most Exy players, considering that most Exy players weren’t coming off of the brutal yet productive training for the Edgar Allan Ravens.

The clock rang for the start of the game. Within the first two minutes, the Foxes had their first goal.

Nathaniel could never forget what it was like to play with Kevin on his line. Together, the Top Five made the Perfect Court, and they were a force to be reckoned with. To play together, and to play with Kevin, meant getting somewhere in life. But playing with Kevin and watching Kevin play from the sidelines were two different things entirely. To play with Kevin meant already knowing what he was going to do. Nathaniel knew every play and step they had planned out, because he was included in it all. To watch Kevin meant hoping that he had everything under control, and that his new team would cooperate.

And, if Nathaniel was seeing things right, the Foxes were cooperating. Perhaps it was the new addition to their line, or maybe it was the crowd’s energy, but the Foxes were working better together than Nathaniel had seen or expected. Kevin had described them as a team of infighting; a group of people who couldn’t work together long enough to have a decent game. But the team that was playing right now looked like a true NCAA Exy team.

Seth Gordon scored. Two to zero, Foxes.

Watching Kevin play, Nathaniel realized that this wasn’t a man suddenly just walking back into the game after taking seven months off. Kevin was playing right handed, and he was playing well right handed. Very well, actually. In fact, Nathaniel assumed that Kevin had been training for quite some time now. Kevin was told he needed six months to regain full movement of his left hand, and Nathaniel had a feeling he used October to his full advantage in gaining ability in his right.

Of course Kevin Day, ever the stubborn yet determined man Nathaniel knew him to be, would work his ass off to get himself a fraction closer to where he used to be, except this time playing a different hand.

The Foxes finished the first half leading with five to four. No Raven had yet to speak.

The second half was usually the time when tensions were at their highest. It was the point at which the athletes’ stamina would begin to break, and people would see who would dominate and who would be dominated. The Foxes, once again surprising everyone, came back and dominated the second half. Renee Walker would be going into her next half as goalkeeper with no switch outs, but Nathaniel had a feeling Coach Wymack prepared for this by sitting Aaron Minyard out the first half and sending in Nicky Hemmick, despite Minyard being the stronger backliner, and then sending Minyard out second half with Boyd. Walker would be defended by the two strongest backliners on the team, while the two strongest strikers continued to destroy the opponent’s goal.

Kevin was the one to make the final goal, finishing the game with a score of seven to five, Palmetto State Foxes.

It wasn’t much, but it was enough.

Nathaniel would have smiled if he wasn’t surrounded by angry and appalled teammates. Instead, he first chose to direct his attention to Jean next to him, sitting with a slack jaw and wide eyes. Then Andrew, who would have looked completely apathetic if it wasn’t for his pointer finger tapping an erratic beat on the arm of the couch. And finally, his eyes swept over to Riko, who was staring up at the TV with his jaw clenched. He held the remote in his hand, his finger hovering over the power button; he pressed it when the camera panned to a close-up of Kevin.

And then, the room was silent. Riko put the remote on the side table, and Nathaniel could see him trying to keep his cool, keyword being “trying”. His opposite hand was trembling. Riko wasn’t attempting to be calm because he didn’t want his anger getting to him; he was doing it because he had a reputation to upkeep. When Kevin was out of Exy, he was supposed to surpass him. With Kevin back in it, Riko was supposed to act like it hadn’t gotten under his skin and boiled his blood, because then it showed Kevin had won.

In Nathaniel’s opinion, Kevin already had won. Riko was livid from the moment he stepped on the court; he just hadn’t flipped any tables yet because he liked to believe that he was the bigger, better person. Also, if he had, Tetsuji would have beat him for causing harm to anyone that wasn’t his property.

Nathaniel thought it would be a good idea to start mentally preparing himself to be beat later. Riko wouldn’t let this go until he took everything out on someone he was allowed to. Ravens were already starting to disperse from the room, sensing the ever growing tension from their captain, and Nathaniel was ready to sneak out, too, when a voice finally spoke up.

“So Kevin’s doing well,” Andrew said from next to him, expressionless as always, with his eyes looking straight ahead. Everyone could feel the pressure in the room double; Andrew’s words were not just said to disappear into the air, or to break silence. They were an unwanted gift to Riko. “Seems like he’s really flourishing outside of here.”

If looks could kill, Nathaniel thought Riko would have murdered Andrew a long time ago. Riko’s shoulders were tensed, and his fists clenched on his thighs. The Ravens who were not in Riko’s circle all scurried out, and if Riko noticed he made no sign of it. He just had his eyes on Andrew, and Andrew had his eyes on the wall. Nathaniel and Jean shared a look, both debating whether or not they should try to leave, too. Things were about to get explosive, and Nathaniel didn’t want to be involved, but he couldn’t leave Andrew alone, he wouldn’t.

However, he didn’t have to worry about leaving Andrew behind to escape Riko, because Riko came to him. Because of course Riko would come to him.

Nathaniel was too focused on Andrew to initially notice what was about to happen. First his mind was on Andrew, and then the table separating Riko from the three of them was knocked over. Nathaniel had a fist pulling him up by his collar and he was brought face-to-face with Riko, who had pulled his other fist back in preparation to beat the shit out of Nathaniel.

Nathaniel braced himself for the hit that never came, due to the fact that another fist, one that was not Nathaniel’s, connected with Riko’s jaw. As a reflex Riko released Nathaniel and turned to face Andrew. Andrew shoved Nathaniel back onto the couch with Jean, who was extremely shocked, to say the least.

Before Riko could ever begin to retaliate, Andrew decked him again, this time hard enough to send him sprawling.

Nathaniel should have been horrified that this was happening, but he couldn’t help but be amazed by the force that was Andrew Minyard. Andrew had jumped to his defense before Riko could even do anything to him, and now he was willing to fight Riko so that he couldn’t get to Nathaniel.

“Get out of here,” Nathaniel said to Jean as Riko readied to push himself back up. Jean gave him a look of disapproval and Nathaniel shook his head. “Jean, I’m serious, get the fuck out of here.” After only a moment of hesitation, Jean went over the back of the couch and got himself out of the lounge.

Nathaniel then stood as Riko bounded over to Andrew, and was about to assist in beating the shit out of him, when Andrew pushed him back. “Don’t,” Andrew said in a voice that Nathaniel thought was too calm for this moment. However, when Riko stopped in front of Andrew and, instead of hitting him, clenched the collar of his shirt in his fists, Nathaniel wondered who that Don’t was really meant for.

Riko had blood trickling out of the corner of his mouth, and his jaw was already red and inflamed from the punches. Despite Nathaniel being just behind Andrew, Riko ignored him to bring Andrew close.

“You’re going to fucking regret ever stepping foot in here,” Riko growled. “I told you to know who you belong to here and to watch your fucking attitude.”

“If I’m correct, I’m your coach’s athlete,” Andrew cocked his head to the side. “Not yours.”

Riko’s jaw tightened. Nathaniel was ready for him to take a swing at Andrew, but instead he just shoved him back. Andrew slammed into Nathaniel as Riko stormed out. Andrew turned to face Nathaniel, his eyes scanning his face. “Did he do anything to you?”

Nathaniel shook his head. “No, you stepped in.”

“If he does anything to you, I’ll kill him myself,” Andrew said, his voice low. Nathaniel sucked in a breath. It was the closest thing Andrew could say to admitting that not only would he fight with Nathaniel, but fight for him. He could feel his pulse racing under his skin at the thought of having Andrew at his side. He was close enough to kiss him, but he knew he couldn’t risk it there.

“Thank you,” Nathaniel whispered, unable to make his voice anything more than quiet. Whether Nathaniel was thanking him for the protection or for being at his side, he didn’t even know. Both, perhaps.

“Ninety-four percent,” Andrew said, his voice the same volume as Nathaniel’s. “Get out of my sight.”

Nathaniel didn’t believe the cruelty laced in Andrew’s words, but he found himself listening anyway. Every door in the hall was closed, and Nathaniel assumed that some were probably locked. In their room, Jean was sitting on his own bed and stared wide-eyed at Nathaniel when he walked in.

“Holy shit,” Jean said once Nathaniel closed the door behind him.

Nathaniel thought about Kevin walking onto the court as a Fox, about the Foxes dominating the court, about Riko’s shock and anger, about Andrew jumping to protect him, and about Andrew Minyard. Nathaniel nodded. “Yeah,” he murmured. “Holy shit.”

#tfc #aftg #neil josten #andrew minyard #kevin day #hawk in the raven nest #stuff i write

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ohsweetflips · 8 years ago

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chapter five, hawk in the raven nest

chapter summary: predators of the raven: great horned owls, northern goshawks, bald eagles, golden eagles, and hawks

A/N: thanks for reading, feedback is appreciated!!! honestly, i looked forward to posting this chapter so much omg

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Nathaniel’s phone buzzing next to his pillow was what woke him up. He smacked his hand around trying to find it, wondering how the morning came so fast. However, it was not his alarm waking him up, it was an unknown number calling him at four in the morning.

With only a slight hesitation, he answered it and placed his phone to his ear. “Hello?” he whispered, keeping wary eyes on his sleeping roommate.

“Nathaniel, it’s me.”

He didn’t need confirmation to know who was on the other line. He would have recognized it anywhere. It was the voice that had screamed at him in practice, begged him to leave him unharmed; it was the voice he grew up hearing.

“Holy shit-” Hearing Kevin Day’s voice on the other line a week after he disappeared made Nathaniel’s concept of volume control go out the window.

Kevin shushed him so loudly and so forcefully that Nathaniel was compelled to press a hand to his mouth. He stared at Jean as his roommate shifted at the noise and mumbled something incomprehensible. Nathaniel was finally able to breathe again when Jean stopped moving.

“Don’t say anything until I tell you to,” Kevin was whispering even though he wasn’t in the same room. It gave Nathaniel the frightful idea that Kevin was, yet again, not in the safest place.

“Where did you-”

“What did I just fucking say?” Nathaniel covered his mouth again and let Kevin go on. He heard him sigh on the other end. “Let me explain everything, and then I’ll answer any questions you have,” Kevin’s voice was so low that Nathaniel had to strain his ears to hear him, “I couldn’t stay there. With the Ravens. Living with Riko was never easy, and it just got worse after… what he did to my hand. When you left, we went to the Master and I watched as they made that bullshit story about a hit and run. They threatened to kill me if I said anything else, so that’s the story I have to tell anyone who asks. But, it was torture seeing him after that night. I wouldn’t be able to fight back if he came after me, I was terrified, and… and he knew that. He would use that to his advantage, telling me that if I stepped out of line again, if I continued to let Andrew be or even thought about stepping onto the court of Castle Evermore again, he would break my other hand. Or my legs. Or just get my left hand removed entirely, since he knew people that would do it for free.

“But that wasn’t all of it. Him threatening me, or lashing out like that, wasn’t a first time thing.” Kevin paused and Nathaniel’s blood ran cold at realizing that his guess as to what happened between their leading strikers was about to be proven true. “You and Jean weren’t the only ones who Riko went after. He went after you two when he needed to release his anger, or make a statement to the team. But… I’m sure you two already know that.” Nathaniel wanted to tell him that Riko had just beaten the shit out of both of them, but he didn’t know how to say that without telling Kevin it was because of him. “But he went after me when he felt threatened. That’s how it always was, ever since we were kids. People were always comparing us, and one was bound to be better than the other. Riko was always jealous, and that jealousy turned into blind rage and violence. When he found out that I was really the better striker, breaking my hand was only a warning. That’s why I left. I couldn’t handle it anymore, I couldn’t take any more abuse if it was to only get worse.” Neither of them said anything for a moment. “Now, any questions?”

“Where did you go?” Nathaniel whispered. He wanted to know how Kevin even knew a place to go to after being holed up with the Ravens for over ten years.

“Palmetto State. I’m in David Wymack’s apartment.”

Nathaniel didn’t respond for a moment. Palmetto State, home of the Foxes. The Foxes were a team of societal rejects; Coach David Wymack only took in athletes from troubled pasts. They were objectively the worst Class I team, and yet they somehow maintained their rank. And now Kevin Day, the Exy prodigy, had stepped into their territory.

Kevin definitely had a troubled past, but that wasn’t the reason he went to Palmetto. If Nathaniel didn’t know the truth, he would have immediately launched into how Kevin put himself in the worst possible place for an Exy career, but he knew what was actually important.

“Wymack is-”

“My father, yes,” Kevin said. “He doesn’t know that, though.”

“Then why did he let you in?” Nathaniel asked. He decided to turn his back to Jean, that that would be a better way of masking his voice from his roommate. “How long have you even been there for?”

“I’ve been here for five days now,” Kevin answered. “And… he knows what happened with my hand. The truth. It was hard not to explain what really happened when I, Kevin Day, showed up to his apartment, which is a ways away from Evermore, with a broken hand. He knew I wouldn’t just go there if the hit and run story was true.” On any other day, Nathaniel would have called him out on using his name to show privilege. But he was right; who would turn away Kevin Day?

Nathaniel was surprised when Kevin let out a short laugh, but there was no good-will behind it. “He said he always felt something was off with the Ravens. There’s something off with the Foxes, too, but that’s more in regards to their talent than anything else.”

“Andrew’s brother and cousin are on the Foxes,” Nathaniel said, suddenly reminded. “Do they know? Does Andrew?”

“No, and no,” Kevin said rather quickly. “It’s Aaron and Nicky, and no they do not know and will not know unless they absolutely need to. And no, Andrew doesn’t know about this. He thinks that the hit and run is what happened, and he thinks that I just disappeared. I’ll have to be the one to talk to him about all of this.”

Nathaniel found that part odd. Despite all being in the inner circle, and Andrew not being stupid enough to blindly reject the truth, why would Kevin have to be the one to tell him? He then thought back to what Kevin said about wanting Andrew on the team for his potential. Nathaniel took his word then, but now he had a feeling there was something more.

“What’s with you and Andrew?” he asked. “I want the truth this time.”

Kevin sighed when he realized that Nathaniel caught the hole in his story. “The potential part wasn’t a lie,” Kevin started. “We did want to recruit him for his talent. But, as everyone knows, he rejected us at first.” Nathaniel nodded even though no one could see him. “But I kept contacting him to recruit him because he really does have the talent that the Ravens need. Riko wasn’t too happy that I was doing that. When he found out that I got permission to fly out to speak to Andrew again, alone, as long as I came back once the deal was made, he reacted as well as you can imagine. When I got out to Andrew’s high school again, the bruising around my eye wasn’t hard for him to miss, but he took notice of… the bruises on my neck.

“Andrew’s actually a lot smarter than he lets on. It didn’t take him long to put the pieces together. He told me that he would come to the Ravens if I could make a good enough deal for it. He was on his drugs at that time, and I told him I would make something of his life if he came to the Ravens. I don’t think he believed me, but he came anyway.” A pause. “He never said it, but I always had a feeling that he came to keep Riko off my back. Riko’s abuse couldn’t stop inside the dorm room, no one but us was allowed in if they didn’t have permission. But Andrew was always nearby, especially when Riko was around, and Riko would never touch me in public if there was an audience. Especially if that audience was Andrew.”

“Don’t tell me Riko’s afraid of Andrew,” Nathaniel said in disbelief.

“Riko fears no one,” Kevin said. “But Andrew has nothing to lose. If Riko ever attacked him, Andrew would have probably killed him. So, Andrew and I stuck together as much as possible outside of the dorm, and since I was barely in the dorm then, Riko’s abuse was minimized.”

“Except for that time in the locker room.”

“You really have the tendency to be in the wrong place in the wrong time,” The fact that Kevin knew exactly when he was talking about made Nathaniel realize that Andrew barely ever left Kevin’s side, even in the locker room. “I think you’re smart enough to know not to inform Riko that you were there.

“But remember what I said about not telling Andrew about this. I have to be the one to tell him. We have to work some things out. I have to make sure that he doesn’t kill Riko. Our deal is off, I’m not with the Ravens anymore so he doesn’t need to protect me, but Andrew doesn’t like Riko touching anything of his.”

“Anything of his?” Nathaniel repeated. “What do you mean?”

“When our deal was formed, so was an alliance. It was unspoken, but agreed on. Andrew’s a surprisingly loyal person, and he never reacted well in the first place to not being able to defend me the entire time with the Ravens. When he finds out that this happened right upstairs in the locker room, and he wasn’t there to stop it, he might murder Riko. I have to stop that.”

Andrew Minyard, Andrew who claimed not to care about anything, who appeared to hate everyone and everything Raven, gave his loyalty to Kevin Day, who was basically the exact opposite of him. Of all the things Nathaniel thought Andrew was, he didn’t expect “loyal” to be one of them.

“I have another question,” Nathaniel said when another thing concerning their goalkeeper came into his mind.

“You’re asking a lot of questions, Nathaniel.”

“I want a lot of answers, Kevin.”

“Fine,” Kevin said, huffing out a breath. “What?”

“Andrew’s brother and cousin are there. Are they asking you about him?” If Andrew was so keen on keeping Kevin safe, how was he in regards to his actual family?

“Nicky, his cousin, asks about Andrew a lot. Turns out, after his and Aaron’s mother’s death, he had to come back from living in Germany to be their legal guardian until they were of age. He ended up staying because he was offered a scholarship with Aaron. Aaron barely acts like Andrew exists, but I’m not surprised. Andrew barely acknowledged Aaron, too.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah,” Kevin said. “They’re not your picture-perfect family, but I doubt you expected that.”

“You’re with the Foxes now, but you can’t play. What are you going to do there?”

“I’m filling in as an assistant coach,” Kevin said. “I obviously can’t play, and the team needs it, they’re a trainwreck. I don’t know how many people on the Ravens know, but Tetsuji does.” Nathaniel wanted to interject but Kevin wouldn’t let him. “Wymack changed the circumstances, I don’t know if Tetsuji actually believed him or just didn’t care, but he let me go to the Foxes freely. As I said, I don’t know if anyone else knows. It’s useless to try to keep it a secret forever. It’s impossible to lay low here, reporters love this team for some reason. Maybe because they’re all fucked. I digress, but soon enough everyone is going to find out that I’m here. I don’t think I have to tell you to not go around saying shit, right?” When Nathaniel offered a noise of confirmation, Kevin finished with, “Now, do you have any final things you want to ask? Wymack gets up around this time.”

Nathaniel still had so many things he wanted to ask. He wanted to ask what he would do with the rest of his life if he couldn’t play Exy. He wanted to ask if Thea Muldani already knew, and if she did, if their relationship could finally be public. He wanted to know if David Wymack was the only reason he went to Palmetto, or if it was because the Foxes was the last team anyone would associate Kevin Day, Exy Prodigy, with. He could have talked to Kevin for hours, just trading questions and answers back and forth. However, the only thing that came out of his mouth was, “Will you keep in touch?”

“I’ll try.”

Him and Kevin exchanged goodbyes, and the line went out.

Nathaniel felt a tap on his shoulder as he walked through the lounge of the Nest. Andrew then passed him, not even sparing him a glance over his shoulder, but Nathaniel was smart enough to put two and two together. He watched as Andrew headed into his dorm room before stalling in the lounge. Ravens were scattered about on couches and floors, all hovering over books or the sports stations on TV and no one spoke. He pretended like he was interested in whatever the newscaster was saying about a team that he didn’t catch the number of. He waited until he finished counting to one-hundred before heading to Andrew’s room.

He didn’t knock but, when he entered, Andrew was standing in the middle of the room, facing the door. Andrew had a roommate, Bryan Engle, but the two barely stayed together. Perhaps it was because Engle was too busy with his on-and-off girlfriend Jenkins, or perhaps it was because Andrew was too unbearable to live with.

Either way, the two had as much privacy as they needed in Andrew’s room.

“You’re very surprising, Nathaniel,” Andrew said once the door was closed. His voice was monotone and he looked like he completely did not give a shit about him.

“Am I?” Nathaniel replied, approaching Andrew. He kept about a foot in between them.

“I hate surprises.”

“Do you?” He feigned surprise.

“Do you only answer in stupid questions?” Andrew asked. Despite the words that had some bite to them, his tone didn’t shift.

“What do you want, Andrew?”

“Once again, a stupid question.” Andrew cocked his head slightly to the right. “You know exactly what this is about.”

It was two days since Nathaniel talked to Kevin on the phone. He knew it wasn’t going to take long for him to contact Andrew. “You talked to Kevin.”

Andrew’s reply was enough for confirmation. “You have thirty seconds to tell me why I shouldn’t bash Riko’s skull in with my racket at practice.”

“Because you’re not a fucking idiot?”

“Wrong answer, with my self-destructive tendencies and all,” Andrew said, “Twenty-five, twenty-four…”

“You would probably be killed, too.”

“Twenty-two, twenty-one…”

If Nathaniel wasn’t positive that Andrew would actually kill Riko, he wouldn’t have thought so hard about what to say. But this was Andrew they were talking about, and after finding out about his and Kevin’s deal, Nathaniel knew that Andrew was only moments away from murder.

“Sixteen, fifteen…”

“If you kill Riko, that only solves one major problem, not all of them,” Nathaniel said. “Tetsuji still dominates all of us. The Ravens are still fucked to the very core. Killing Riko won’t be enough, we have to stop the Ravens all together.”

Hearing those words leave his mouth shocked Nathaniel so much that he fell silent. He had spoken off the cuff, not giving thought to what he was saying. And yet, he managed to finally put into words what he knew he had to do. All this pent up fear and anger and hatred were all pointing to the same answer. And that answer wasn’t just Riko, or Tetsuji, or the Nest. It was all three combined. Everything Nathaniel had felt recently had led him to this point, to this conclusion that to truly be rid of this torture, they had to kill every single part of the Ravens. And he had to do it with Andrew, for Andrew, too, knew what the Ravens could do. He was one of the only ones smart enough to not blindly trust their leaders.

He assumed he caught Andrew’s attention with his words, too, since he stopped counting down.

“So that’s why you shouldn’t kill Riko,” Nathaniel said. His thoughts in his mind were tumbling one over another at how quickly everything was finally piecing together. He couldn’t stop the Ravens alone, and the person he needed was only a few inches from him. “Because that won’t do anything. Cutting off a limb won’t kill something, you have to go for the jugular, the heart, every artery and vein.”

“Interesting,” Andrew said, staring blankly up at him. “I thought we came to the conclusion that I was the self-destructive one.”

“I am a very surprising person.”

“I thought we also came to the conclusion that I hated surprises. Or do I need to say it slower?”

“You want to get revenge? You need to work with me,” Nathaniel said. “You and I are a part of the inner circle, so we have a way in. And you and I know what the Ravens really are, and what Riko is really capable of doing.”

Andrew didn’t say anything. Nathaniel watched him, hoping with everything that he had that Andrew would agree, and fearing that he would tell Nathaniel to fuck off.

What Nathaniel didn’t expect Andrew to say was, “Give me your back.”

“What?”

Andrew shook his head. “You can’t be that stupid,” he said. “You can’t go in to destroying this shit show and not have a plan. Give me your back, because I doubt you can fight Riko on your own. To say I would keep Riko from you would be a lie, and I’m not a liar, but I can fight him with you. But you can’t be stupid about it, how Kevin was. To give me your back, you give me your time. You can’t just disappear. If Riko decides to smash your hand, too, and I’m not there to stop it, then you’re fucked. From here on out, you stick with me.”

“So it’s an alliance?” Nathaniel asked, unable to keep the shock out of his voice at the loyalty being offered to him.

“An alliance implies that I need you as much as you need me,” Andrew shook his head. “I do not need you.”

“Fine,” Nathaniel said with an eye roll. “So it’s not an alliance, just you making sure Riko doesn’t kill me, and me making sure Riko doesn’t kill you, but not an alliance.”

“Don’t make me kill-”

“What about Jean?” Nathaniel cut him off.

“What about Jean?” Andrew asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

“He’ll get involved in this, too,” Nathaniel said. “Whatever happens to me, happens to him.” It was inevitable that Jean would get dragged into this mess. Jean Moreau had the unfortunate habit of always being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“Well he isn’t involved in it now, and when he does, he’s your responsibility,” Andrew answered. “You gave me your back, so you’re mine.”

Nathaniel considered that for a moment. It made sense. Jean was Nathaniel’s ally in all of this, his actual ally. It was never Andrew’s job to make sure that he survived; it was always Nathaniel’s responsibility to make sure Jean wasn’t killed, and it was Jean’s to do the same for him.

“Where does Kevin fall into place in all of this?” Nathaniel asked.

“He won’t be opposed to watching this team crash and burn,” Andrew said. “He’ll know what he’ll have to do.”

Nathaniel knew that that meant another conversation was going to happen between Kevin and Andrew. He almost questioned how Andrew just knew that Kevin would listen to him, but then he remembered the loyalty Kevin said Andrew had, and how Kevin seemed to reciprocate it. He was doubtful, though, that Kevin would take to their plan so easily. Kevin worked together with Riko for practically his entire life, but it was also very evident that Kevin feared Riko. Nathaniel didn’t know if Kevin would be so accepting of this plan of theirs when their target was Riko. Especially when anything involving Riko could lead to mass destruction.

But Nathaniel found himself trusting Andrew’s words.

Something then occurred to Nathaniel. Kevin was coerced into making a deal with Andrew to get him to come to the Ravens. He expected that this deal wasn’t going to be done for free, either.

“What do you want in return? You have my back, what do you from me?”

“I want nothing,” Andrew said, and Nathaniel raised an eyebrow.

“Nothing at all,” he repeated. “You don’t even want a life after all of this shit is over? You don’t want to be something after the Ravens?”

Nathaniel found no amusement on Andrew’s face after hearing Kevin’s own words thrown back at him. “Surprising and hilarious,” he said. “A fucking comedian.”

“You forgot interesting.” Nathaniel gave him a smirk.

He then saw something flash across Andrew’s eyes at hearing his petty statement. It looked like anger, like something dark was burning inside of Andrew. Nathaniel would be lying if he said he wasn’t taken back; in the time Nathaniel had known Andrew, he hadn’t seen any real expression of emotion. The flash of anger across his eyes was the closest he had seen to Andrew actually feeling anything.

“I never said you would keep my interest and I suddenly remember why I barely talked to you before this,” Andrew said, that look disappearing from his eyes. “It’s because I hate you and your attitude problem and your hard-on for Exy and everything else.”

Nathaniel ignored the insult. “So it’s a deal. I give you my back, I get you somewhere after this. If you change your mind, let me know.”

Andrew didn’t agree to it, but he didn’t deny it, either. “Get out of my room before I change my mind and let Riko kill you.”

Andrew Minyard, no matter how much he denied the label, had formed an alliance with him. Andrew Minyard, the outsider of the Top Five, had joined forces to destroy the very system they were meant to thrive in. No longer was it Riko and Kevin, Nathaniel and Jean, and then just Andrew (with Kevin tacked on loosely). No, it was now Nathaniel and Jean, Andrew and Nathaniel, and then just Riko. And if Kevin was back in, he didn’t even belong with Riko anymore. It was soon going to be Nathaniel, Andrew, and Kevin all against Riko. Nathaniel found satisfaction in knowing that Riko was never going to know what hit him when they all started their attack on the Ravens.

Nathaniel told Jean that he would survive with him. But surviving wasn’t enough anymore. Surviving meant settling for the way they lived. Surviving meant looking ahead and hoping for a future that might never come. Surviving was the way of the weak. Nathaniel couldn’t just survive with Jean anymore. He had to fight with Andrew, because Andrew and him were the ones who could destroy the Ravens from the inside. Nathaniel wouldn’t be able to stand himself if he just survived the Ravens and then let them be, allowing them to destroy all newcomers. No, Nathaniel Wesninski had to destroy the Ravens, and he had to do it with Andrew Minyard at his side. Andrew had Nathaniel’s back, had called him his, and he was going to be the one to fight side-by-side with.

Nathaniel mocked Andrew’s two-fingered salute back to the goalkeeper before turning on his heel and walking out the door.

#neil josten #nathaniel wesninski #andrew minyard #aftg #tfc #stuff i write #hawk in the raven nest

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