Archive of Our Own ^beta

Killer.

Lust was honestly surprised that Nightmare of all cats came to him for help.

It was warm that day. The sun shining through the forest's leaves and casting rays of light that dappled onto the grass below. As always, the forest was full of life, bird chirping in the branches as they hopped from one tree to another. But Lust wasn't interested in prey right now.

His casual walk had been so rudely interrupted by Nightmare of all cats. Usually one of the goopy cat's gang members was who found Lust in their territory. This was the first time that he had seen Nightmare out and about. Any flirty comment or phrase Lust was going to say fell short as he saw the expression on Nightmare's face.

Something was wrong.

Nightmare seemed a little surprised (and annoyed) to see Lust so far in the forest. But he didn't say anything about it.

"Woollybreeze!" He came over, stopping just in front of him, Lust's tail swishing in the grass, "I... need a favor."

"oh?~" Lust tilted his head, a smirk forming. "What kind of favor hmm?~" He took a step towards Nightmare.

"Don't," Nightmare snarled, "Not now." He glared at Lust for a long moment, sighing heavily. "There have been rumors that you know about healing. Is this true?" He demanded.

Lust blinked, hesitating for a moment. "Yes. They are true." His eyebrows furrowed, unease at the sudden and honestly out of pocket question. "Why? Is something wrong?"

Nightmare stood up straighter, trying and failing to intimidate Lust. "Come with me." Was all he said, turning around and walking back the way he came. Lust watched him for a few moments, frowning. This was the first time Nightmare had ever needed him for something. That in itself was worrying.

Lust quickly followed after Nightmare, noting how fast he was moving, causing the worry to grow.

So here they were, walking at a quick pace through the forest. Lust was beginning to recognize the terrain, having been this way countless times by now. They were going back to The Gang's camp. The ground below them became more rocky and uneven, the steady incline upwards became more steep. Lust climbed after Nightmare, the larger cat not slowing down at all. By the time they got to the top, where their camp resides, Lust was panting.

"I gotta ask," Lust said between breaths, looking at Nightmare with a lowered head. "What's so important that we had to get all the way here so quickly?" 

Nightmare didn't respond, ears flicked back in annoyance. He waited for Lust to stand up normally, tail and tentacles twitching. Finally, Lust caught his breath enough to continue following Nightmare. He still hadn't told Lust why he was here, Lust did kind of need to know what was going on in order to-

oh.

Lust stopped in his tracks, eyes widening at the sight that greeted him in Nightmare's camp.

The four gang members were in the clearing, all wounded. Though, three out of the four already had their wounds taken care of. It was Killer, laying half on his side, face scrunched up in pain. From where Lust was standing, he could see claw marks along his shoulders and spine. A deep, still bleeding bite mark on was his thigh and there were patches of fur missing. Who knows what other injuries couldn't be seen?

Lust quickly padded over, circling Killer for a moment with a worried but searching gaze. "What on earth happened?" He asked, eyes wide.

"What do you think happened?" The injured cat snapped back, shifting where he laid, "just do somethin' about it."

Lust frowned, deciding not to say anything about his attitude. Lust figured he'd be the same way if he was injured like this. But no, Lust didn't, in fact, know what happened.

Nightmare sighed, tentacles swaying "My dear brother and his friends again." He explained, "And we can't exactly go anywhere to get help." He rumbled, eye narrowing "Are you going to help or not?"

Lust looked up at Nightmare, maintaining eye contact and tilting his head down, "I need supplies. Are your other members fit for a bit of traveling?"

Nightmare looked around at the other three, who all nodded, and then looked back at Lust. "They are."

"Good~" Lust turned his head to Cross "Shardhawk." Cross stared at him for a moment, shifting a few times "I need you to look for marigold or goldenrod. Though... marigold grows more in the forests, down by the water. goldenrod grows in the moor area. Both are yellow, goldenrod is tall with small flowers, and marigold flowers are flat with a lot of petals." His head tilted to the side, "I need marigold flowers or goldenrod stalks. Either works." Cross nodded firmly, Lust's gaze traveled to Horror.

"I need you to look for cobwebs, grab as many as you can carry." When Horror nodded, he turned and looked at Dust.

"you need to grab a ball of moss and run down to the lake, soak it in water, and bring it back." Dust stared at Lust for a long moment, before he simply turned and walked towards the cliff, disappearing down the rocks. The other two were quick to follow.

Lust looked down at Killer, "Where else hurts?" When Killer didn't respond, Lust sighed and leaned down. He ran a paw down Killer's legs one at a time, noting how he hisses as Lust touches his wrist joint. Lust frowns, moving around Killer's body to feel at his leg better.

Lust lowered his head as he ran his paws carefully over Killer's wrist. Killer hissed again, growling instinctively at Lust, who didn't even flinch at his noises. He sat back, "Your wrist is sprained. A few days off of it will help it heal." Lust smirked a little at Killer's groan.

"For now, give those wounds a good lick, I'll clean them again with the moss but it'll give you something to do." When Killer didn't move, Lust's head tilted, "What, do I have to do it for you?" That got Killer to lean over and lap quickly at his wounds, causing a small laugh to escape Lust.

He turned his head to look over at Dust as he returned, who barely seemed out of breath despite the fact he probably ran all the way to and from the lake. At least he got some of his almost never ending energy out. Dust came over and dropped the dripping moss ball at Lust's paws. 

"Thank you," Lust hummed, leaning down and grabbing the ball of moss, beginning to dab it on Killer's wounds, the water washing away the dried blood that clung to his grey fur. Lust's ear twitched when Horror and Cross returned together. Lust looked up to see Cross carrying short stalks with large, flat flowers on them, marigold. Horror was covered in cobwebs, Lust laughed softly.

"Good job, both of you. Shardhawk, set those down over here, Dewblood... well- you're gonna have to sit next to me so I can peel those off of you-" Lust giggled a little more. Horror quietly shuffled over, Cross following behind and setting the plants down. Lust leaned down and plucked one of the flowers off the stalk, taking a few of the petals off of the flower and chewing them up.

Lust leaned into Killer's spine, spitting the poultice onto one of the cuts and carefully spreading it across the wound. He then turned to Horror and carefully peeled off one of the cobwebs stuck to his fur. Lust covered the area neatly with said cobweb, making sure it stays in place.

As Lust worked, he began to speak to Killer, "Now, like your wrist, you need to take it easy for a few days, or these will open back up again." Lust paused, looking Killer in the eyes, despite his lack of pupils "Am I understood?"

They stared at one another for a few moments, before Killer sighed loudly "Fineeee," he grumbled. Lust seemed satisfied, finishing up with Killer's wounds.

Lust smiled, "There we go! If that's all I should be on my way." He got up, tail swishing, "I'll be back in a few days to redress those." Lust looked at the other three for any sign of disagreement, before turning his head to look at Nightmare.

Lust tipped his head down slightly, "Nightstar." Before he walked past the goopy cat and hopped down the cliff, disappearing.

Cross.

Admittedly, Lust was in Nightmare's territory to spite him.

He laid contently on a flat stone, basking in the sunlight that shined through the trees. A small smile was on his face, he knew that one of the Gang members would come by soon, he knew that by now.

But instead of someone appearing, the forest was eerily silent. Lust sat up slightly, frowning. Something felt wrong but he couldn't exactly place what.

He sighed heavily, standing up and shaking his coat out. He was slightly annoyed, but worried all the same. Someone would have seen him by now. They tended to have a pretty tight schedule, so the fact that none of the members appeared out of the bushes was concerning. 

Lust padded through the forest, alert but quiet. He strained his ears to listen for any sounds, tasting the air for any scents. He stopped as the sudden smell of all four gang members hit his nose. 

He turned in the direction of the scent, ears still flicked up. He slowed to a stop when he could hear their voices, crouching down to listen.

"What are we going to do?" Killer's voice sounded angry and... afraid?

"I don't know!" Dust's voice replied back, sounding equally as nervous.

"The bone... is out of place..." Horror's deep voice rumbled, causing Lust to frown. He crept closer until he was able to see the scene before him.

Cross was on his side, gasping for air. His shoulder looked weird and he was trembling. The other three were standing around him, fur standing on end.

"What happened??" Lust couldn't help but ask, startling the group. Killer hissed at him, but Horror's eye lit up

"you can... help!" Horror looked down at Cross, then back at Lust.

"I can sure try" Lust padded closer, Dust moving out of the way to give him space. Lust looked down at Cross, whose eyes were wide and tear-filled as he was gasping for breath. 

Lust's eyes widened, "He's in shock- what in the world did you guys make him do?" He turned to look at the group, but there was no time for them to explain just yet. "Dustrunner, you know where my den is right?" Dust nodded quickly, "Good. Grab thyme from my den, it's small and dainty, has a sharp scent. it should be on the smallest stone in the den." Dust nodded, quickly running in one direction. 

Lust sat next to Cross, curling around him and resting his head on Cross's neck carefully, beginning to purr. Even so, he looked up at Horror and Killer with an expectant look. He wanted answers. Now. 

The two of them were silent for a moment, Horror spoke first.

"Deathwhisper... dared him to climb... the tree" Killer glared at him, looking betrayed. 

"And he fell." Lust finished, frowning when Horror nodded. Lust used a paw to feel down the rest of Cross's legs, continuing to purr and keeping his head against Cross's neck, nothing was broken. Good. His breathing had slowed, but not enough for Lust to not be worried.

It felt like years had passed before Dust appeared again, carrying what Lust immediately recognized as thyme, much to his relief. He got up, taking the thyme from Dust and turning back to Cross. He sat down, taking the leaves and crouching down in front of Cross "Hey, Shardhawk." Glazed eyes looked at him silently, Cross's breathing hadn't slowed anymore. "I need you to eat these, can you do that?" Cross made a noise, it seemed affirming, so Lust nosed the leaves closer to his muzzle and watched as Cross grabbed them in his mouth, slowly starting to chew.

Lust sat up, turning to look back at Horror, "I need you to find a stick, one that Shardhawk can bite down on." The large cat nodded, turning to search the undergrowth around.

Slowly, as the herb kicked in, Cross's breathing began to slow down and his gaze became less glossy. Lust sighed heavily in relief. Horror had come back with a large stick, setting it down next to Lust and Cross.

Lust looked at the stick, then at Cross. "Shardhawk." Lust spoke again, he turned his head to look at him this time, "I need you to hold this stick in your mouth, and bite down when you feel pain."

Cross gave Lust a confused and scared look. The shock hadn't gone down enough for him to form words. Lust's tail ran along his flank reassuringly. "I need to pop your shoulder back in place, but it's going to hurt." He warned, "I need you to try and sit still for me, okay?"

Cross stared at him for a long moment, before he nodded firmly. Lust smiled, turning to Horror again, "I need you to hold his flank down for me." He looked at Killer "You need to hold his front paws down" Finally, he turned to Dust "And you need to hold down his head."

All three stared at Lust silently, not moving. Lust huffed, "Well? Do you want me to get Nightmare?"

That sure got them to move. It seems like they didn't want to explain to Nightmare how Cross dislocated his shoulder.

With Cross securely held down, Lust moved around to his back again, wrapping a paw around Cross's arm carefully, and placing a paw on his shoulder.

"Okay." Lust took a deep breath in, "One... two..." Lust quickly pushed down with one paw, using the paw wrapped around Cross's arm and pulling up. His shoulder made a popping sound. Cross screamed around the stick as it crunched in his teeth. Then his body went limp, chest heaving.

Lust carefully felt along his shoulder again, relaxing when everything seemed to be in place. Cross had fully relaxed and he didn't seem to be in any more pain. Lust sat up, looking at the other three. They were staring at Lust intently.

"He'll be alright. I'd just recommend he stay off of it for a day or so." Lust explained, standing up, "My work here is done." He turned and started to walk away, but stopped, turning to look back at the gang again.

"You know, I won't tell Nightmare about this if you don't tell him I was on your territory," Lust said, head tilting downwards and tail twitching before he turned back and disappeared into the bushes.

Horror.

The day went from great to horrible, and Lust didn't even get the chance to properly wake up.

Lust was still asleep with TK when Dust and Killer burst into the den frantically, almost scaring the life out of poor TK. Lust had glared at the two of them, going to snap at them but falling short when he saw the looks on their faces.

They'd only come to Lust directly if something was wrong. 

So here he was, moving quickly through Nightmare's forest with Dust and Killer in the lead, TK right on Lust's heels. Lust and TK both carried leaf wraps of herbs that Lust suspected they'd need.

The trees thinned out as they walked into grass that brushed at Lust's belly. The forest had a small break of treeless grassland, the area still surrounded by thick plant growth. Ahead of them, Killer and Dust picked up their pace, Lust guessed it was because they were getting closer to the patient.

The scent of blood and fear hit Lust's senses, TK whimpered behind him as he smelled it too. Lust took a deep breath to calm himself, and he kept his head up as he followed Dust and Killer to the scene.

Lust's breath hitched, stopping in place when he saw what the issue was.

Horror was laying in a cleared out area of land, Nightmare sitting beside him with a tense body. Lust could guess that Nightmare had cleared the grass to allow for more visibility. There was blood practically everywhere and there was a pool under Horror's leg, blood coming from just below his wrist.

Lust came closer, "What happened?" He looked up at Nightmare.

Nightmare nodded to the side, Lust looked over to see a bear trap, something twolegs sometimes put in the forests. Why? Who really knows. Lust's ears flattened, "He got caught in it?"

"What does it look like?" Killer snapped back, tail lashing. Lust leveled him with a look, but didn't reply.

Lust then looked at TK, motioning him closer with his tail. TK hesitantly came closer, looking at Horror with an anxious expression. Lust smiled reassuringly at him.

"Quantumkit, do you remember what horsetail looks like?" He asked, crouching at Horror's leg to examine it.

"Uhm... it's the soft, pine needle looking ones right?" TK asked while glancing down at the herb wraps they brought.

"Yes, good," Lust praised calmly, "Horsetail is used to stop bleeding. Bring one of the stalks over." 

TK grabbed the stalk that had long, thin leaves and brought it over to Lust. Lust took a mouthful of the plant and started chewing. Lust then placed the poultice over Horror's wound.

"Now, bring my leaf wrap over." Lust instructed. TK did as he was asked, gently setting down the wrap.

Lust opened it, inside were a bunch of rolled up, long, flat leaves. Lust grabbed a few and began to gently wrap up Horror's injured limb.

Lust worked in silence, the others around him barely making a sound. Finally, Lust sat up, addressing the group.

"Well, nothing is broken. I've done what I can for now though, with luck this will heal completely and he won't have a limp, or the leg won't have to be amputated." The realization that Horror could very much lose this leg hung thickly in the air. Lust's tail just twitched, "Obviously I'm not the cat for that job." Though everyone already knew that.

"For now, you should get him back home to rest. I'll come by tomorrow to replace the wrapping." Lust stepped back, allowing Nightmare to gently pick Horror up with his tentacles. 

Lust closed the leap wraps and picked one up, TK grabbing the other. Lust glanced over at Nightmare again and they made eye contact.

Nightmare nodded slightly, Lust dipped his head back in response. Then, the two turned away and started on their walk back home.

Dust.

Racing through the forest, Lust felt his lungs burn with effort as he ran. He hadn't been running for long, but the anxiety of smelling a badger so close to his den, so close to everyone Lust cared about made his blood run cold. Maybe he could lead it away from the territory.

Lust skidded to a halt when a familiar scent hit him. 

Dust.

Lust frowned, it was just Dust. None of the other gang members. His scent was just as strong as the badgers. Realization hit him like a freezing cold splash of water, fear blossoming from the cold. Lust broke into another run without much thought.

Badgers were dangerous, able to be taken on as long as there were multiple cats, but alone?

Dust could be hurt.

Or worse.

Lust caught sight of Dust and the badger, the brief feeling of relief fizzled away when he saw Dust's condition.

He was heavily injured but still fighting. There was a large gash in his shoulder and he was pressed into tree, hissing at the angry badger looming over him.

With a yowl, Lust threw himself at the badger, claws sinking into its shoulders as the beast let out a surprised bark. Lust sank his teeth into the badger's ear, clawing at its eyes. The badger recovered from the shock and twisted, snapping at Lust's leg and barely missing by a few hairs. Lust leapt away, hissing loudly at the badger, back arching.

The badger growled deeply at him, forgetting about Dust for a moment, but only for a moment. Dust leapt at the badger again, snapping at its back legs.

As the beast turned on Dust, Lust lunged forwards and latched onto its shoulder, hissing and growling.

Eventually, the badger had enough and shook the two cats off, running into the forest. Thankfully in the opposite direction of the territory.

Panting, Lust looked over to Dust, "What were you thinking!?" he suddenly hissed out, Dust staring back at him with wide eyes.

"I-I thought I could take it-"

"by yourself??" Lust interrupted, baffled.

Dust glared at Lust for a moment, then turned his gaze to the ground, ears flat.

Lust just sighed, shoulders slumping, "Come on, let's just get you back to Night's camp so I can patch you up."

Lust turned and started walking back in the direction of said camp, when he noticed Dust wasn't following. He stopped and turned his head around just in time to see Dust falling over. His eyes widened and he quickly turned and ran back over, giving Dust a quick looking over.

Now that they were closer, Lust could see the wounds on Dust's belly, already red around the edges.

Reckless. He sighed, but the panic quickly set in when he saw Dust's breathing was shallow.

Lust, filled with adrenaline, nosed his head under Dust's body and lifted him off the ground. The two cats were similar in size, and Lust's legs shook with effort when he stood up completely, nosing Dust's body so he wouldn't fall with Lust's walking.

Once he was secure, Lust turned and broke into a brisk walk, trying his best to hurry back to the camp.

It felt like forever until Lust got to the top, gently letting Dust fall to the ground as he hurried to the cliff face. Inside a small cleft, was some marigold that Lust convinced Nightmare to keep. Lust was so thankful for his past self for thinking that far ahead.

He grabbed the marigold, turning around to see Nightmare standing by Dust. He barely ever left the camp unless it was for something important, or a mission. So while the camp was otherwise empty, Nightmare was always watching from somewhere in the shadows.

His icy cyan eye turned to look at Lust, his eyes narrowed. Lust barely paid attention to him at the moment, in what TK called his "doctor-mode". Lust needed to make sure Dust wasn't going to die before he would talk to Nightmare.

Lust tore off a few leaves of the marigold stalk and chewed it into a poultice, gently smearing it on Dust's shoulder and belly. Thankfully, there weren't any other major injuries, just some torn fur. 

Suddenly, a presence was at his shoulder. "How can I help." Nightmare's voice sounded right next to his ear. He turned to nod to the cleft again, "Grab cobwebs from inside there, careful of the spiders." He spoke without moving his eyes off Dust's body, chewing more leaves to continue patching Dust's injuries.

Nightmare returned with a tentacle full of cobwebs, Lust carefully putting them into place on Dust's wounds.

"Are you hurt?" Nightmare asked Lust, who shook his head.

"No, just tired," Lust sat back, looking at Nightmare, "Dustrunner thought it would be a good idea to fight a badger. Alone." Based on Nightmare's reaction, he didn't know Dust had done this.

"Did he say why?"

Lust shook his head, "He just said he thought he could take it," he sighed, "you've got a reckless bunch of cats on your paws."

Nightmare's eye rolled, "I'm very aware." He sounded exasperated and annoyed, but Lust had been around him long enough to notice the fondness that was hidden under the surface. Lust just laughed softly.

Dust's breathing got less shallow, Lust figured he'd stay here until the others came back from... whatever they were doing. Lust hummed softly.

After that scare, he was due for a nice, long nap.

Nightmare.

Helping the gang became a naturally occurring thing. Whether it was little cuts that they needed Lust's help with or full blown injuries after a fight with The Stars, Lust was always helping them somehow. It had even gotten to the point where Lust traveled to Sci to get some more knowledge on healing for The Gang.

But the one cat Lust had never had to heal was Nightmare. He was never too hurt when The Gang fought The Stars or he would insist he could take care of himself.

This time though, this time was different.

The Gang were off doing one of their "bonding" journeys things Nightmare made them do without him every now and then.

Lust hopped up the final bit of cliff, shaking his pelt out now that he didn't have any more rocks to climb up. He glanced around the camp, noticing it was empty.

Completely empty.

Nightmare barely left the camp, and when he was at least two of the boys were with him. Yet all four members were gone, so where was Nightmare?

Lust shrugged, figured he'd gone on a walk and would return soon. Lust focused on the task he came here to complete.

He walked over to the cleft they kept herbs in. The pile of marigold now had piles of horsetail, goldenrod, and a pile of moss with it. Lust set down the marigold and dock leaves he was holding into the pile with the rest. He also had a new herb, comfrey. He then took the shriveled leaves and brought them out of the cleft, disposing of them.

He then turned to leave... but paused, glancing back at the empty camp.

He had a bad feeling. A horrible one even. Something about how eerie it felt made his stomach cramp with anxiety. Maybe he should stick around until Nightmare came back.

After all. Ignoring those feelings cost him everything.

Lust shook his head to clear his thoughts, sitting down and sighing. He glanced at his fur, shrugging before he began to groom himself. He might be here awhile, might as well straighten himself up while he waited.

Lust picked his head up at the noise of someone climbing the rocks. Weirdly enough, that feeling of anxiety got stronger. He dug his claws into the stone, preparing for someone who wasn't supposed to be here.

He was still neutral. He didn't like picking sides. But this was The Gang's home. He wasn't going to let someone snoop around their camp.

He relaxed a little when he saw it was just Nightmare, but something was still off. His eyes narrowed as he looked closer at the goopy cat. 

His head was lowered, tentacles dragging across the stone. Lust realized that the dripping of corruption wasn't corruption.

it was blood.

Nightmare hadn't even noticed him yet. Lust stood up quickly and padded over, "Nightstar!"

Nightmare's head turned towards him, eye widening, "W-Woollybreeze. What are you doing here?" He stuttered.

He stuttered.

Lust frowned, looking him over. Closer to him now, Lust realized that he only had two tentacles. The other two were completely cut off, they were dripping as well.

"What happened??" He asked, completely baffled on how Nightmare of all cats got this hurt.

Nightmare sighed, sitting down with a pained huff. "My brother and his friends attacked me."

Lust blinked, "They were in the territory?"

"No. I left the territory."

"Why?"

Nightmare turned to glare at him, "That's none of your concern." He snarled, showing his teeth.

Lust's eyes just rolled, Nightmare's attempt at being threatening fell short again. Lust wasn't sure why, but Nightmare never seemed very dangerous to him.

He shook his head, standing up. "It's a good thing I replenished the herb stores today." He turned to the cleft when Nightmare spoke

"No! I'm fine." Nightmare insisted, causing Lust to roll his eyes.

"Says the one dripping goop on the ground." He looked back at him, nodding to the puddle of black pooling around Nightmare's paws. Nightmare glared down at it, then at Lust.

"It won't hurt for me to at least patch you up," Lust insisted, "just this once?"

They stared at one another for what felt like years, before his head lowered in defeat, "Fine."

Lust smiled, "good!" He turned and continued back to the cleft, leaning inside and grabbing some marigold. He set it outside and then grabbed the comfrey. Funny that it was needed the day he brought them over. Then he quickly grabbed some cobwebs.

He carried the herbs over to Nightmare and got to work. It was the same procedure as the other four- bite of some leaves, chew, place poultice on the wound, cover with cobweb.

Lust hesitated at his tentacles though, he wasn't entirely sure how he'd put a poultice on them. He frowned, concerned.

"Can't you unsummon these?" He asked, remembering how Nightmare sometimes didn't even have the tentacles during rare times Lust had seen him at ease.

"No," Nightmare sighed, "since they were cut off, I can't unsummon them until they're healed."

"That sucks." Lust replied back.

"Oh really? Thanks for noticing." Nightmare snapped in response, glaring at him again.

"Hm..." Lust ignored the glare, "I think I'm going to go with my original plan. For now, I'll wrap them in comfrey so you're not dripping everywhere."

Lust leaned over and grabbed a few of the long comfrey leaves, carefully wrapping Nightmare's tentacle nubs with the leaves. He made sure to secure them in place, remembering how Sci showed him, and sat back once he was done.

"Alright, you're all good," Lust looked down at Nightmare, frowning. "Can you stand?"

Nightmare growled, "Of course I can stand." He got his paws underneath him and stood. He swayed a little but glared at Lust when he tried to get close. Lust just gave up and shrugged, turning to walk towards Night's den.

"Come on you grumpy badger, let's get you to your nest." He lead the way slowly up the rocks to Nightmare's sleeping area, keeping a subtle eye on the goopy cat as he heaved himself up the rocks. Lust didn't mind the slow pace, he just wanted to make sure Nightmare got up safely.

The last thing they needed was for him to fall.

Finally, Nightmare made it to the top, laying down heavily in his nest. He then looked expectantly at Lust for a few moments, before speaking.

"What, are you going to watch me sleep?"

Lust blinked, "Well I didn't exactly know if you needed me for anything else."

Nightmare rolled his eyes, "You're not apart of my gang, I don't need to dismiss you."

Lust shrugged, "Just making sure." With that, he turned and leapt down the rocks one by one, pausing at the base.

He couldn't just leave now. The Stars could have followed him back to the camp. Lust sat down, TK was with Rose for a few days. Lust could stay for awhile, until it was safe for him to leave or the other four came back.

Lust hummed, laying down against the warm stone. He was willing to wait awhile.

Lust.

Nothing can ever be okay. Can it.

Lust walked with TK through the forest. They no longer needed to worry about The Gang attacking them or threatening them. They were beginning to warm up to the two of them. Lust was glad for that. TK would be safer that way.

They were herb collecting, they had gotten low on marigold (they used it a lot) and Lust was pretty insistent on getting more since he knew they would need it.

They always needed it.

Lust paused his plucking of leaves, sitting up quickly and looking around with pricked ears.

TK glanced at him, frowning, "What is it?"

Lust's eyes narrowed, "I'm not sure... Do you notice how the forest is really quiet?" He asked, looking down at TK.

The kit sat up too, looking around. "Yeah... it is."

Lust glanced around for a few more moments, leaning down and picking up his pile of leaves. "Come on, let's get back to the den." His voice was a little strained.

Lust turned and began to walk briskly back to the den, forcing himself to slow down as TK began to fall behind. He wasn't sure why he was so anxious all of a sudden, but he suddenly felt full of energy. Like he could run for miles.

He just wanted to get away from the area.

Dog barking caused him to freeze. It was close, to close. They couldn't smell the dog, meaning the dog smelled them.

He looked down at TK, then in the direction of the dog. TK wouldn't be able to outrun the dog, nor could Lust carry him. He felt panic bubble up inside him and he suddenly was at a loss for what to do.

Then, like his brain was on auto pilot, he turned to TK and spoke quickly.

"Quantumkit, you know where The Gang's camp is right?" The kit nodded, eyes wide with fear. "Good. Run in that direction and tell them where I am, I'm going to hold off the dog for a little while until you can go get them okay?"

TK looked like he was about to protest, but the dog barking got louder.

They were closer.

"Now!" Lust hissed, nudging TK in the direction of the camp. He stumbled for a moment, before he broke into a run in the direction of the camp.

Lust turned to face where the dog's barking was coming from, planting his feet.

He would not let this dog catch up to TK. He couldn't risk losing him.

He couldn't risk losing anyone.

He arched his back, hissing loudly as the dog pushed its way through the bushes with a low growl. The dog hesitated for a moment, before charging at Lust.

Lust reacted quickly, diving under the dog. It was large, Lust easily slipping in between it's legs and running behind it. He skidded to a halt and turned, yowling angrily at it.

The dog turned and snapped at Lust, barely missing by a few hairs. Lust turned and got the dog to take chase, turning to run in a circle.

He would run off with it, but if he wanted the dog to stay off the territory for good, he needed at least two of the others.

Was it a good idea? No. But it was the only one Lust's panicked mind could think of.

He was doing good, great even, the dog was a safe distance from him and he didn't feel tired yet. He might be able to hold the dog off until others get here!

Until he stepped into a hole.

Lust fell over with a yelp, rolling onto his back in time to see the dog looming over him. Before any thought could go through his mind, the dog sank its teeth into his thigh. He let out a loud scream, unable to help himself. He kicked at the dog's face with his other leg, managing to get the dog to let go. Lust rolled and leapt away, hissing and stumbling when pain shot through his entire body. He looked down at his blood gushed onto the grass.

Lust looked up as the dog rushed him, knocking him back into the tree aggressively. He tried to stand up, but his legs gave out. His vision became blurry as the shape of the dog loomed over him.

Despite everything, he smiled. TK was safe. Everyone else was safe. That's all that matters to him.

As his vision went, and everything turned back, he couldn't help but think.

Red and green was such a pretty color combination, isn't it?

When Lust was conscious again, Reaper stood over him.

He sat up quickly, suddenly feeling cold. His eyes were wide, "Crowhunter??"

The large, fluffy cat looked solemn, he dipped his head in greeting.

"A-am I dead?" Lust couldn't help but ask, looking around. He let out a soft gasp as he realized he was in Nightmare's camp. 

His body lay under him, not moving.

His body was covered in poultices, blood already seeping through the cobwebs.

The others tried to help him.

But it wasn't enough.

It never was.

"You are," Reaper agreed, his voice held a slight echo, like it was far away "but I'm not taking you." 

Lust frowned, "what do you mean?"

Reaper glanced over at the empty cliff, where Lust guessed The Gang was. "I think, if I took you to the afterlife, bad things would happen."

"Bad things?"

Reaper nodded, looking back down at Lust, "They agree with me."

"They? Who's They?"

"The Guardians."

"The- WHAT-" Lust tried to stand, put Reaper placed a paw on his shoulder

Wasn't he dead?? How was Reaper doing this??

Wait. If he was dead...

He looked around quickly, hope sparking in his chest.

"Wisteriakit isn't going to appear. If he did, I wouldn't be able to convince you not to go."

Lust let his disappointment show, looking at Reaper with a deep frown.

"Anyways. Nightstar's group has taken a huge liking to you. If I took you.. well that would just make my job a lot more difficult, to say the least."

Lust's eyes widened at the implication, looking back at the cliff. Did they really care that much?

But he frowned again, "How are you going to bring me back then??"

But Reaper was no longer looking at him, looking up a little with a sudden far away gaze.

Lust sat in a tense silence for a few moments, before Reaper blinked and looked down at Lust.

"They've granted me permission to do this." He looked relieved, "Lay back in your body, and concentrate."

Lust hesitated for awhile, he didn't feel hurt, in fact he felt blissful.

He could see Wisteria again.

But... TK would be alone.

He has Rose.

But it wouldn't be the same.

Besides, Wisteria would want him to continue.

He always said that.

Finally, Lust laid his head down, closing his eyes and began to breath slowly, focusing on getting the feeling in his body again. Each paw, his ears, his tail, everything. He felt Reaper place a paw on his shoulder, but paid no mind to it.

Focus.

Lust woke with a gasp, pain suddenly washing over him like a large wave. His thigh burned and his head ached.

But he was alive.

He heard Reaper speak again, his voice clearer, "Oh thank the Guardians, I thought that wouldn't work." Lust heard him breath a sigh of relief

Lust turned his head slightly, "What do you mean you thought that wouldn't work?" He asked in a small voice, exasperated. 

Reaper hummed, "Not important, it worked!" He turned his head over to the cliff. "You guys can come back now!" He yelled out, causing Lust to wince a little.

Suddenly, a bunch of cats were around him, TK standing in front of him. His eyes were wide and tear-filled.

"You're okay!" His little voice cracked, causing Lust to feel a tightness in his soul. He shifted slightly, pulling TK in with his paws and hugged him tightly.

"Yeah... m'okay." He reassured the small kit.

He glanced up, seeing Nightmare staring at him, gaze unreadable.

Lust sighed softly, and closed his eyes.

Maybe things will get better.

Maybe they'll finally start to be okay.