I said goodbye to Nightfall and made my way through the winding streets until I eventually came across The Postman’s Keg. I wasn’t sure how many wrong turns I’d taken, because as beautiful as the Citadel was, the layout made very little sense, but I arrived and that was what mattered.

The pub was busy with a mixture of elves and humans. I spotted Bastion slumped over by himself in the corner with a half-drunk ale in front of him. I slid into the seat next to him and he looked over his elbow at me with red eyes, clearly quite drunk.

“Where are Brick and Bruiser?” I asked.

“Out. Stupid secret missions. All running around after you. Everybody loves you. You always get what you want.” He buried his face back in his arms and I could only pick a few words out of his incoherent mumbling. “Won’t tell me what he’s up to and I’m his own brother. So bloody devoted to you and you don’t even see. You don’t even see it. Everyone loves you.”

“Not everyone. I’m pretty sure you still hate me,” I tried to provoke a smile out of him, but he just scowled at me angrily.

“How many drinks have you had tonight?” I asked. I was certain the one in front of him wasn’t his first, or even his fifth.

“Twelve,” he said. “Or thirteen. Pretty sure it was twelve.”

“Jeepers, Bast,” I muttered under my breath. “You’re gonna give yourself alcohol poisoning.”

Maybe alcohol poisoning didn’t exist here. I doubted my cinnamon rolls were going to give me cavities either. Everyone had pretty good teeth for a world that didn’t have toothbrushes or toothpaste.

“Come on, let’s get you up,” I said, getting him to put his arm around my shoulders. He was heavier than I expected and staggered on his feet towards the rooms at the back of the inn.

It took a few tries before I found the door that held the room they were staying in. These rooms were smaller than the ones at Kira’s place and held two beds to a room. I recognized Bastion’s bow and Brick’s axe though, so I shuffled in and laid Bastion down on the bed.

“Is it about Lily this time, or something else?” I asked. “Just being here?”

“It’s not about Lily,” he said, rolling away from me and staring at the wall.

“I had some awful classes,” I told him softly. “They said some awful things about orcs and dark elves. If that was why you left, I really don’t blame you for dropping out.”

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“I bet you like Nightfall, don’t you?” Bastion said bitterly. “Cold-hearted pretty boy.”

“He’s not cold-hearted,” I said firmly. I wasn’t going to stand by and let him disparage him, drunk or not.

“Course not, with you,” Bastion sneered. “Everyone loves you. Bet he loves you too. Bet he writes you grindin’ poetry.”

I sighed, feeling worn out. I’d hoped to find some welcoming arms to fall into after so long not seeing my guys, not this.

“How about you catch some sleep and I’ll go wait in the tavern for Brick or Bruiser to come back.”

“Wait,” Bastion said, rolling back to look at me, looking almost embarrassed. “Can you stay?"

“Why do you even want me to, Bastion? You hate me.”

“I don’t hate you.”

“Then why… Why is it always like this with us?” I asked in frustration. “We were doing okay for a while there until I started seeing Bruiser. But Brick is happy, so I don’t see why it should matter to you. I really wish we could just get along.”

“So do I.” His words were encouraging but his tone was not. He sounded lost, more than anything. Lost in the woods without a map.

“Can you sing to me?” Bastion asked, after the silence had become painful.

“To relieve your hangover?” I quirked an eyebrow at him. “Or do you just want to laugh at my lyrics?”

“I won’t laugh. I promise."

He sat up, looking at his knees in embarrassment, then put his hands to this shirt and started to lift it up at the hem. I thought for one moment that he was so drunk he was coming on to me, but then I saw the dark bruising on his abdomen.

“Bastion!” I gasped. “You’ve been hurt all this time? Why didn’t you say something? What happened?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” he mumbled.

I shifted closer to him and helped him unbutton his shirt and got him to lie back and rest his head on my lap as I started to sing, watching the bruising fade.

“You know you really drive me mad,

I wish things between us weren’t so bad,

Some days I almost like you,

Then you drive me mad again.”

He snuggled into my lap, sighing in relief as the pain faded. When I stopped singing, he opened his eyes and stared up at me mournfully.

“I don’t know why I do it,” Bastion admitted to me quietly. “Getting drunk. Getting into fights. I always tell myself it will be the last time. I hate being like this. I hate seeing what it does to Brick… I just… I just always find myself at the bar again.”

I ran my hand through his hair, stroking and shushing him quietly until I managed to lull him to sleep. I could have used my sleep spell on him, I’d done it enough other times when he’d been annoying me too much, but it felt wrong to do it when he was being so vulnerable around me.

It felt like a sacred moment, and I hoped maybe it was a sign that things would change for us. If he could admit he didn’t hate me, maybe we’d be alright again. I just hoped his sentiments would last longer than the alcohol in his system.

I didn’t know what Bastion needed to help him, but I could hold him until he went to sleep.

A couple of hours later Brick came back in, his face lighting up with delight when he saw me. He wore his new light blue shirt, and some dark blue pants made of cotton so thick they looked almost like jeans. I put my finger to my lips to signal he should be quiet and together we transferred Bastion’s head to a pillow. Then I climbed into bed with him and fell asleep in his arms almost instantly, feeling safe and content.