Riz didn’t like keeping secrets from his friends. He did, but only when it was necessary. This time it was absolutely necessary. Because this time Fabian was possessed and Riz knew he needed to keep a tight lid on the fact that he knew until he had a plan of what to do about it and their friends had never been known for their subtlety.
Still, he needed help which was why he was hiding outside of Adaine’s rune class waiting for it to let out. He’d have a few minutes to talk to her before she had to be anywhere else since it was the last class of the day. Bonus: Fabian’s class was on the other side of the building.
The bell rang and the hall started to flood while Riz kept his eyes on the door, falling into step next to her as soon as she came out. He grabbed her arm gently, nothing more than a light touch since he had no intention of her totally killing him in the hall.
“Hey, why are you here? I don’t mean that in a rude way,” she said looking down at him confused.
“Yeah, I need to talk to you,” he said, starting to lead her to a quieter part of the hall. “Fabian’s possessed.”
Immediately she stood up straighter and her eyes went fierce. “Where is he?”
“No, we can’t stop it yet! We have to find out why they’re pretending to be him!” Riz said in a panicked whisper.
Adaine stopped, watching him closely for a minute. “So it didn't just happen?”
“No. I think it happened this summer while he was in Fallinel.” Fabian had spent the summer with his grandfather and had been even weirder than Riz had expected when he got back.
“That was months ago. He seems fine to me.”
“He’s been weird. Here I took a picture of my board,” Riz said, taking out his crystal.
“You made a conspiracy board?” Adaine sighed and checked her watch. “I have to go meet everyone in the parking lot. It’s family dinner night and I already missed the last one. Why don’t you come and you can show me the board after dinner?”
Riz nodded. He could work with that. Plus he liked family dinner night. It was always a little chaotic but in a nice way. He pocketed his crystal and followed Adaine out. “What’s for dinner?”
“Pasta of some sort. Last I knew Fig and Kristen were still arguing over what kind of sauce so there might be multiple to choose from,” Adaine said with a shrug.
“Is that what they were talking about at lunch?” He hadn’t been able to decipher what they were arguing about and he’d been too busy worrying about the way that Fabian was shooting him looks every few minutes and smiling at him.
“They’ve been talking about it for two weeks!”
Riz laughed. Family dinner nights were every two weeks so they must have started early. Or maybe during the last dinner. Out in the parking lot Jawbone was already waiting at the van and Fig and Kristen were climbing in.
“Can Riz come to dinner?” Adaine asked even though there was a standing invitation to all the Bad Kids for family dinner night.
“Of course! Get on in, kiddos,” he said with a big smile.
“Thank you!” Riz said, squeezing himself between Kristen and Adaine since Fig had taken shotgun.
“Riz, should we have red or yellow sauce,” Fig asked.
“Yellow?” Riz asked, suddenly very worried about what they were having for dinner.
“You can’t ask that without explaining the flavors to him,” Kristen said.
“Actually, we’re having red meat sauce for the pasta because the store was out of corn when Sandra Lynn went shopping this afternoon on her way home,” Jawbone said.
“Fine. But next family dinner night we’re having corn sauce,” Kristen said firmly.
“Lookin’ forward to it,” Jawbone said.
Can I come to your house for dinner in two weeks? Adaine asked in a message to Riz.
Of course. Peanut butter cracker sandwiches out of the vending machine.
Has to be better than corn sauce
“I can see you two messaging!” Kristen said, making Riz and Adaine laugh harder.
The rest of the ride was lost in everyone talking about their day and what homework they had. And then it continued when they got to the house, already smelling of good food from the kitchen. Family dinner night had strict rules. No fighting. Everyone helps cook. Everyone helps clean. No one knew what the punishment was for breaking the rules but the thought of Jawbone even giving them a disappointed look was enough to get everyone in line.
They dropped their bags and joined Zayn, Aelwyn, Tracker, Lydia, and Sandra Lynn in the kitchen. Ragh would be there once he got off of work in about an hour. And Gorthalax after practice was over. It was already packed and Riz stood between Zayn and Aelwyn against the wall as they tried to stay out of the way of the people who were cooking. When everything was almost done they were put on garlic bread duty.
Dinner was nice and delicious and exactly as chaotic as Riz had been expecting. It let him forget about his possessed best friend for just a little bit. Everyone was shouting over each other and laughing and casting cantrips at each other.
After the dishes were done everyone broke up. Riz and Adaine went up to her room citing the history test they had on Friday so that Aelwyn would have no interest in being in the room.
In her room, Adaine sat down at her desk and turned the chair to him where he was pacing. “So what is going on?”
Riz took out his crystal and sent her the picture of the board so she could look at it. “He keeps giving me gifts and acting weird.”
“He brought us all things back from Fallinel,” she argued as she pulled out her crystal to look at the picture.
“Did he give you something yesterday?”
Adaine frowned.
“He’s giving me these things as clues! Acting oddly to draw attention without letting whatever’s possessing him know.”
Adaine looked at the board on her phone and shook her head. She grabbed a piece of paper. “Tell me what order they happened in. I can’t read the board.”
Riz walked her through everything that had happened; from the initial true crime books and letter opener he’d brought back from Fallinel, to him using prestidigitation to make it rain red and white flower petals when he dropped Riz off at home after school, to the most recent which was a small steel dagger that Riz could fit in the pocket of his vest. All in all, there were eleven things over the last two months.
When Adaine was done she looked up down at the list frowning. “It is odd. I feel like there’s a pattern but I just can’t see it.”
“I know! It’s right there! I know all the pieces we need are here I just can’t-” there was sound on the stairs outside the room and Riz cut himself off.
Then the door opened and Adaine and Riz both turned to see Aelwyn walk in. She took one look at Riz and Adaine and then dove for the paper that Adaine had written the timeline out on. She managed to dodge both of them and cast a shield on herself so they couldn’t get at her while she read it. “Oh, how sweet. Who are we courting?” she asked Adaine.
“Of course!” Adaine said, jumping up and going to her bookcase. “They’re courting gifts!”
“What?” Riz asked, suddenly lost.
Aelwyn laughed. “Did you not know?”
“They haven’t been coming to me,” Adaine sneered at her sister.
Aelwyn turned to Riz. “To you? Who is courting you, The Ball?”
“No one is courting anyone,” Riz said, his face going hot. “And you don’t get to call me that.”
She looked back down at the list. “I’ll admit that some of them are...odd but you’re an odd one. It’s to be expected.” She kept looking and then started to frown. “Do you have that book mother and father made us read? Some of these seem to be from the friendship oath and not a courtship.”
Adaine sighed. “No. I must not have gotten another while I was building back up my books. I wonder if Ayda has a copy. Did Fig already leave to go to Leviathan?”
Aelwyn nodded. “Half an hour ago or so. You two have been up here a while.”
“Shit.” They all knew that it was better not to try to use the door while Fig was there. Someone had tried once, interrupting the kisses and Fig had shot fire at them. “Will you teleport us to Leviathan so I can check the Compass Points?”
“Why should I?”
“Because I’m your sister and you love me?”
Aelwyn made a show of thinking about it. “Not good enough.”
“I’ll go drinking with you at the Gold Gardens.”
Aelwyn grinned. “I would love to see you get drunk around a bunch of pirates.”
“What are either of you talking about?!” Riz yelled, lost in the back and forth. There were times when watching them – when they weren’t fighting – made Riz wish he had a sibling. But right now he just wished he was in on whatever they were talking about.
“They’re high elven courting gifts. Kind of. I can’t remember it exactly it’s been so long. Ayda probably has a copy of an etiquette book that our parents made us read as children, or something similar,” Adaine explained. She turned back to her sister. “You’ll take us?”
“Tell me who sent the gifts and I will.”
“No,” Riz and Adaine said at the same time.
“Then you’ll have to wait to get your book,” she said already turning out of the room.
Adaine glared at her back. It really shouldn’t be a big deal. They could talk to Fig tomorrow and go with her to Compass Points through the door. Or maybe the school library had a copy. But so much time had already passed that Riz couldn’t stomach the thought of waiting for the next clue. “Fabian.”
Aelywn turned around with a wide smile. “Really? Oh, that makes so much sense.”
“No, it doesn’t,” Riz argued. His entire case was built on the fact that it didn’t make sense. And now that he knew they were courting gifts it made even less sense.
She gave him a look he couldn’t decipher. “Come now. Let’s go get your book so that we can go drinking. I think Jawbone and Sandra Lynn are starting to get serious about this whole ‘anyone in high school has a 1 am curfew on school nights’ thing.”
Adaine went to the landing and leaned over the railing. “We’re going to Leviathan!”
“Be safe! Have fun!” Jawbone yelled back.
“Send a Sending if you need us!” Sandra Lynn added.
“Will do!” Adaine yelled before turning back to her sister.
Aelwyn smiled and clapped her hands together and then they were in the lobby of the Compass Points.
Rawlins looked up at them and smiled. “Good evening Miss Abernanth,” he said with a smile.
“The librarian knows your name?” Aelwyn asked with a smirk.
Adaine ignored her. “Hi, Rawlins. Do you have a section on etiquette? Elven in particular?”
“Yes. I can show you. Follow me, please,” he said going further into the library.
Riz looked over at Aelwyn. “You can go to the Gold Gardens, we’ll find you when we’re done.”
“Oh no. You’re going to check out this book and we’re going to the Gold Gardens. If I leave you two nerds here you’ll never come,” Aelwyn said, rolling her eyes.
Having been caught out on his plan of avoiding drinking with her he resigned himself to a very uncomfortable night of trying to work out the problem while with Aelwyn.
“Here you are,” Rawlins said, gesturing at a bookcase and turning to leave them.
“Thank you,” Adaine said with a smile before immediately turning to the shelves. Aelwyn joined her, both their eyes scanning the shelves for a familiar book.
“Found it,” Aelwyn said, grabbing a white book with gold lettering and holding it over her head. “Let’s go.”
Aelwyn only surrendered the book long enough to let Rawlins log it out under Adaine’s card, reminding her to return the other books she had out. Adaine promised to send them back soon and then they were off to the Gold Gardens.
“Lovies,” Garthy greeted with a smile as the group walked by their table. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”
Adaine motioned at her sister. “She wanted to get a drink while we research some things.”
“Well, welcome. Will you be needing a room tonight?”
“No. School night,” Riz said.
Garthy laughed. “Of course. Down that hall will be a little quieter for your studying. Just ignore the people laying down, they’re fine.”
“Thanks,” Riz said with a little wave. At the bar, they each got a drink, though Riz picked the drink with the least amount of alcohol. The last time Riz had been out of control in Leviathan he’d gotten his body covered in tattoos and his best friend had nearly died.
“It’s always so odd the people you two know,” Aelwyn said as they made their way back to a room that was much quieter and did have more than a few people laying down on couches with blissed-out expressions on their faces.
“We’re adventurers,” Adaine said as they sat down.
“Yes, grand adventurers that involve reading about etiquette that hasn’t been common practice in a millennium,” she shot back.
“If you stop talking we can finish this faster,” Adaine said, opening up the book. Riz took out a pen and paper for her from his briefcase in case she needed to make notes.
“Fine.” They sat in silence drinking and waiting for Adaine to finish speed-reading the chapter. She got to a point where she started frowning.
“Give me the list,” she said putting her hand out to Aelwyn without looking up.
Aelwyn handed it over, watching her sister. “What?”
“Well,” she said comparing the list. “Fabian’s probably not possessed. I can do detect magic and detect poison and disease and ask Kristen to do a detect evil and good on him to be safe. But I think he’s just courting you. Incorrectly, but he’s trying.”
Aelwyn took the book and flipped through it. “He combined the friendship oath with the courting ritual? Like the big things are courting.”
“But all the details are friendship oath.”
“So he’s trying to court me into friendship?” Riz asked. Now that he said it out loud that actually did make a lot of sense. Fabian was weird and sometimes he had a hard time expressing himself, even if he did claim that toxic masculinity was dead because he danced now. Having a ritual to fall back on to express a friendship was probably easier than just admitting Riz was his best friend.
“Possibility. Or he’s trying to court you while acknowledging that you’re currently friends,” Aelwyn said with a shrug.
Riz shook his head. Fabian had no interest in him. He’d come home from his summer in Kei Lumennura and happily announced that he was bi which meant that officially there were no straight people in the Bad Kids. But there were lots of guys for Fabian to be interested in, lots of people who could give him the things he wanted, unlike Riz who thought of sex the same way that Fabian thought of yogurt.
“You could just ask him,” Adaine said.
“Oh, where’s the fun in that?”
“I can’t talk to Fabian about this,” Riz said, looking down into his drink so he didn't have to look at the sisters who he knew were picking him apart with their minds.
“You will at some point,” Adaine said.
“Or stab him,” Aelwyn said.
“Stab him?” Riz asked, eyes going wide.
“If your intended isn’t a caster you have to forge a knife,” Aelwyn rolled her eyes a bit at the wording. “so that if at any point in the process you can just stab them to make them stop. If they are a caster they just hit you with a cone of cold or the like to make you stop.”
“That’s a bit much?”
“That’s why people don’t do it anymore.” Aelwyn shrugged.
“I’m not a high elf, none of this applies to me,” Riz said.
“True. You could try to ignore it.”
Riz started nodding.
“Riz, you’re agreeing with Aelwyn. Don’t you see something wrong with that?” Adaine pleaded. “You can’t just ignore your best friend.”
Riz chugged his beer. “No. But I can ignore the weird behavior.”
For a while, nothing changed and everything was fine. Fabian continued to give him gifts that Riz continued to never mention. Adaine would shoot him dirty looks over lunch and Aelwyn laughed whenever he and Fabian were in the same room together but other than that nothing changed. And Riz was fine with that because Adaine and Kristen had both confirmed that Fabian wasn’t possessed and all Riz wanted was for Fabian to be safe.
He had no intention of letting himself be wooed by Fabian. Or anyone. But especially Fabian. Maybe because he a little bit wanted to be wooed by Fabian. It wasn’t his fault he’d fallen in love with his best friend but he could save them both some embarrassment about the whole thing. Because while the whole group knew that Riz was queer he’d been a little vague about it to everyone but Adaine. Fabian didn’t know that Riz was ace so he didn’t know what he was asking for, not really. And Riz didn’t want to have to explain because that was a level of heartbreak he didn’t think he could handle.
A few weeks after their trip to Leviathan they were at a party at one of the other OwlBear’s house after a bloodrush game and it was packed. Riz had spent the whole night talking to people he didn’t really know or like – people had started to take an interest in him after the live-streamed battle. When he escaped outside onto the front porch he saw Shellford sitting on a porch swing with a red cup. At least he knew Shellford.
“Mind if I uh-” he said motioning at the other half of the swing.
“Sure,” Shellford said.
Riz got up next to him and took a second to just sit in the silence of the moment. He could still hear the music and the chatter from the house but it was dull out here and he could live with it.
“Good party, right?” Shellford said with a smile.
“Yeah, I guess,” Riz shrugged. He’d been to worse but it was no Shrimp Party.
“Pretty weird being super popular now?” Shellford asked.
Riz shook his head. “I’m not. That’s everyone else. Still “The Ball” as far as everyone’s concerned.”
Shellford nodded slowly. “The Ball seems pretty cool to me. I guess.”
“Thanks. I guess,” Riz laughed. Shellford was so weird. One day maybe he’d learn that he could say something nice without it being a weird backhanded thing.
“I mean I thought you were cool before the livestream. Even if that was cool.” Shellford’s hand was suddenly on Riz’s that was resting on the bench between them. But before Riz could properly freak out that he was being flirted with, he was pretty sure anyway, there was a blade resting on top of Shellford’s hand.
He looked up to see Fabian standing with Fandrangor out and glaring at Shellford. “I challenge you to a dual,” Fabian said in his most serious voice.
“What?!” Riz shouted.
“What?” Shellford asked.
“You heard me!”
“ADAINE!” Riz screamed. He couldn’t stop Fabian. Sure he could shoot him but Riz didn’t want to cause real damage. He needed backup. “KRISTEN!”
“I don’t need their help,” Fabian said, looking confused and a little hurt.
“I do!” Riz said as Adaine came out followed closely by the rest of the Bad Kids. And her sister. And Zelda. And Tracker. And the rest of the people attending the party. “He’s trying to fight Shellford.”
Adaine threw up her hands and cast hold person on Fabian. The look of betrayal and confusion on Fabian’s face broke Riz’s heart.
Aelwyn snapped her fingers and a moment later six elementals made to look like cheerleaders turned the corner to walk up the front yard. “We heard there was a party.”
“Yeah,” the guy whose house it was said. “Come on in.” Everyone except the Bad Kids, Shellford, and Zelda started to trail inside after the cheerleaders.
“I guess we should take him home?” Riz said with a shrug.
Gorgug nodded then picked up Fabian with a whispered “Come on, buddy,” and started to carry him to the hangvan. Adaine followed them so she could keep concentration on the spell. They didn’t have a lot of time. Zelda and Kristen went with them too for backup.
“We can take the Hangman. He likes me,” Fig said with a nod.
“Yeah.”
“I’ll be waiting for you,” she said as they saw the Hangvan peal out down the street.
Finally, Riz turned back to Shellford. “I’m sorry. And Fabian is too.”
“You could have just told me you have a boyfriend.”
“Fabian isn’t my boyfriend. It was probably a prank spell or something. Or he’s really drunk. Either way, he’s sorry.” Riz shrugged. “I gotta go.”
“See ya.”
Riz rushed down the stairs as fast as he could without fully running and jumped on the back of the Hangman and took off with Fig.
They beat the rest of the crew to the house but not by much. Fig had barely been able to ask what happened when the van pulled out and Fabian got out of the back looking furious and making a beeline for the house. Adaine came out next looking tired.
She pulled Riz aside even knowing that the rest of the group was still staring at them and not very subtly.
“So the bad news is that Fabian isn’t going to want to stop dueling Shellford any time soon,” she said with an apologetic shrug.
“Fuck,” Riz sighed, taking his hat off and running his hand through his hair. “Is there good news?”
“It depends. The reason he’s not going to stop trying to dual Shellford is that he was trying to do a romantic courtship that acknowledged your current friendship.”
Riz’s heart stopped. “You can’t be serious.”
“I don’t know why this is a big deal? You like him. You’ve told me that,” Adaine said.
“Yes, but he doesn’t like me.”
“Are you not listening to me?”
“He doesn’t know what he’s asking for. He doesn’t even know I’m ace,” Riz said.
“So tell him,” Adaine snapped at him before turning around and going back to the van. He could tell she was telling them to just leave, that Riz and Fabian had some shit to work out. Everyone who had been in the van nodded and reassured Fig. So they all knew. Fuck.
There was no avoiding it then. Riz headed up to the house and let himself in. Cathilda came around a corner with a sad smile. “He’s in his room.”
“Thank you,” Riz said, heading upstairs to the room.
He knocked lightly, a part of him hoping that Fabian wouldn’t hear and then he could just leave saying he tried. No such luck though, because Fabian quickly opened the door. “Oh. The Ball.”
“Hey,” Riz said. “Adaine said we should talk.”
Fabian walked back into his room and flopped on his bed. “She told you then?”
“We kinda figured it out together. A few weeks ago,” Riz explained.
“Then why were you so surprised? You knew I was courting you. Dueling is important! It’s the second to last step!”
Riz looked down at his hands, picking at his claws. “I was hoping that you were confused about the friendship oath,” he mumbled.
Fabian groaned and ran his hands through his hair. “I’m sorry. One would think I’d be able to read my best friend better.”
Riz shrugged. “It’s not like you were wrong.”
Fabian glared at him. “I’m wrong about being wrong?”
“I do like you...like that. It’s just complicated.”
Fabian just stared at him for a moment. “Baron?”
Riz finally looked up at him. “You know Baron is fake!”
“I know! But-”
“I’m ace! And not a super pro sex one,” Riz said, throwing his hands up. “And you...I know you want sex. I know that. You know that. It’s not a match.”
Fabian stared at him for a while, just watching him. Riz felt ready to crack, to break apart with every passing second because he loved Fabian and this was exactly what he’d been trying to avoid. “So you’re romantically attracted to me but not sexually.”
Riz sighed. “I guess.”
Fabian sat up and moved to the edge of the bed, resting his elbows on his knees. “Okay. So what if we just didn’t have sex?”
Riz rolled his eyes. “Fabian.”
“It’s fine! Sex is whatever. I can live without it.” Fabian was starting to smile like he knew he was going to win this argument. It made Riz want to smile too because he wanted Fabian to win.
“Pretty big sacrifice, don’t you think?”
“I will be asking for an equally large sacrifice,” Fabian said seriously.
“Really? And what's that?”
“You have to come to all my bloodrush games and wear my letterman jacket even though you hate that it’s too big for you and covers your hands,” Fabian said with a grin.
Riz laughed. “That is a sacrifice. What if I never kiss you?” Riz wasn’t sure about kissing. It didn’t make that same uncomfortable feeling in his gut that sex did, but he’d never had a real kiss and it made him nervous and honestly a little confused. Why would it be nice? It’s just lips touching each other. Maybe he’d love it. Maybe he’d hate it. But Fabian always wanted to get his kisses in.
“Can I kiss you on the cheek?” Fabian countered.
Riz thought about it. “Sometimes.”
“Can I hold your hand?”
Something fluttered in Riz’s stomach. “Sometimes.”
“Can I buy you presents and take you on dates?”
“I guess.”
Fabian shrugged. “Then as long as you go to my games I’m getting everything I need.”
Riz shook his head but couldn't suppress his smile. “I don’t want you to say that and start to resent me when it’s not enough. You’re my best friend and I don’t want to lose you because I can’t...whatever.”
Fabian nodded. “Fine. Two more questions. Can I hug you? And can I call you my boyfriend in public?”
Riz was about to keep arguing because Fabian clearly wasn’t taking this seriously but stopped himself. What exactly was he after that would make this better? What was happening was literally the ideal. It was something he’d dreamt about over and over again. He wanted to save them both the heartache and awkwardness that would surely follow if it didn’t work out. If he didn’t want to be with Fabian because of that he needed to own that. “If we break up will you still be my best friend?”
Fabian opened his mouth to immediately reassure Riz and then stopped to think for a moment. “You’ll always be my friend. But if we break up Gorgug’s going to have to be my best friend for like the first week. His shoulders are perfect for crying on.”
Riz laughed and took a careful step forward. It was at least an honest answer. “I guess I can cry on Adaine or Fig’s shoulders.”
Fabian sat up straight and offered Riz his hand. Riz took it and let himself be pulled into a hug. After a second Fabian seemed to melt into him, his face buried in the side of Riz’s neck, and then Riz melted into him, smiling so hard it hurt.
Holy shit! He had a boyfriend. Fabian was his boyfriend. Holy shit!
“You still have to apologize to Shellford,” Riz whispered.
Fabian laughed and turned his head just enough to kiss Riz on the cheek. “Absolutely not.”