A/N: You guys remember the poll I did some weeks ago? I didn't until yesterday. To keep things short, "2" won, which means there will be two main love interests in this fic.
That will be all. Enjoy the chapter.
-x-
Explaining everything to Lily over breakfast was a struggle.
Leon didn't even know where to begin. His mouth opened, but nothing would come out. Well, that was until he decided to start simple—introducing himself.
After easing into the process, moving towards the context behind his actions and the background of the people he had encountered became a natural move. From there, Leon shifted towards his conversation with Cecil, the differences he learned about, his worries, and the threats he expected to face in the near or far future.
Lily had remained silent throughout the majority of Leon's Ted Talk, only asking for clarifications from time to time.
When Leon finally stopped talking, the silence sat between them for a long moment. Lily's tail had gone still somewhere around the Viltrumite reveal and hadn't moved since.
"That is… considerably more than I anticipated," Lily said.
"Yeah..."
"An alien empire with fewer than fifty soldiers, each capable of destroying a planet. A mole from that same empire posing as a member of this world's strongest group of heroes. An underground criminal syndicate trafficking children for unknown biological experiments. And there's you, a seventeen-year-old from another world entirely, armed with a gambling system and a talking cat."
"When you put it like that, it sounds worse than it already is."
"It is worse than it already is." Lily crossed his arms and fixed Leon with a look that could peel paint. "You told me I was summoned as a partner. Partners are informed. You should have told me all of this the moment I materialized."
Leon opened his mouth, closed it, and nodded. "You're right. I should've. I just didn't know where to start, and things kept happening."
"Things will continue to happen. That is not a valid excuse."
Leon accepted the rebuke without argument. Lily had earned the right to be irritated. He'd spent an entire night babysitting twenty-three traumatized children with zero context, and his only briefing had been "there's an underground organization" and "watch the portal."
"It won't happen again," Leon said.
Lily studied him for a beat, then gave a single nod. The tension in his shoulders loosened by a fraction.
"So," Lily said, uncrossing his arms. "What is your short-term plan?"
Leon leaned back and ran a hand through his long hair.
"Short-term… Cecil's sending a team this morning to take the kids. Medical staff and case workers. People he's personally vetted, I'd guess. Once the kids are out of here, I need to start training seriously. The gacha's given me a lot of tools and I'll get even more after the kids leave, but I'm nowhere near ready for the threats that are coming. Omni-Man alone would kill me in a single hit."
Probably less than a hit. He could sneeze in my direction and I'd become a stain.
"And the children's experiment? This 'Project Genesis?'"
"Robot's looking into it. He's got the resources to track it down faster than I can. Once he finds something, I'll move on it. But until then, I can't do much except prepare."
"A reasonable assessment," Lily said. "Though I would argue your preparation should extend beyond physical conditioning."
"That's why I have you."
Lily's tail gave a single, decisive flick. "Indeed."
A door creaked open somewhere down the hall.
Leon turned. Soft footsteps padded against the Suite's polished floor, and a small figure appeared at the edge of the hallway. It was the smallest girl, the one who had looked Cecil dead in the eye and asked him to promise. Her hair was a mess from sleep, and she was rubbing one eye with the back of her hand, but she seemed to move with purpose, scanning the room until her gaze landed on Leon.
She stared at him for a few second before she walked to the couch and sat down without a word, pulling the same blanket from last night around her shoulders.
Was she checking if I'm still here?
"Good morning," Leon said, his smile reaching his eyes.
She looked at him, at Lily, then back at him.
"Morning," she whispered back.
More doors opened.
The oldest boy came next, the younger one trailing behind him. The older one's eyes swept the room the same way they had last night, cataloguing exits and threats before the rest of him caught up. His gaze lingered on Lily for a moment before settling on Leon.
"You're… still here," he said.
"Still here," Leon confirmed. "I slept in the next room over."
The boy's jaw worked for a second, like he wanted to say something else, but he just sat down on the other end of the couch.
Within the next twenty minutes, the Suite filled with noise. Children emerged in ones and twos, some rubbing their eyes and blinking at the nebula outside the window as if seeing it for the first time, others shuffling out cautiously and glancing at Lily before finding a spot to sit. A few of the younger ones clung to the older kids, not yet willing to be separated.
Leon watched them gather and realized something that should have been obvious but hadn't hit him until now.
I don't know any of their names.
He'd rescued them, healed them, branded some of them, fought across half of Chicago for them, and he didn't know a single one of their names. They were "the oldest boy" and "the smallest girl" and "the children" in his head, abstractions shaped by urgency and adrenaline.
That wouldn't do.
He pushed off the counter and walked to the center of the room, crouching so he was at eye level with the kids on the couch.
"Hey. I never got the chance to introduce myself properly," he said. "My name's Leon. I know last night was scary and confusing, and I know a lot of you don't know why you're here or what's going to happen next. So, I'm going to tell you."
Twenty-three pairs of eyes were on him now. Some were wary and some were blank. A few lit up with the faintest spark of attention.
"Later today, some good people are coming to help you. People whose job it is to find your families and make sure you're safe. They work for the man who visited last night, the one a few of you met."
"The scary one," the smallest girl added.
"Yeah, him. But he's not as scary as he looks. I promise." Leon paused, recalling that Cecil could be far scarier than he looked. "But before any of that happens, I want to know your names. Every single one of you. I know I should've asked sooner, but we didn't really have the time."
He looked at the oldest boy first. The one who had carried the smallest girl to bed last night. This boy was also the one who had been the first to grab his waistcoat in the compound and beg him not to leave.
"What's your name?"
The boy's expression didn't change, but something shifted in his eyes. A flicker of surprise, maybe. As if he hadn't expected the question.
"…Caleb," he said.
"Caleb," Leon repeated. He reached out and placed his hand on the boy's head. "Good to meet you, Caleb."
Caleb blinked. His shoulders, which had been hiked up near his ears since the moment Leon first saw him, dropped half an inch.
Leon turned to the younger boy beside him. "And you?"
"Miles," the boy said, quicker than Caleb had. His arms were still crossed, but his posture had loosened watching Caleb.
"Miles." Leon patted his head. The boy flinched at the contact before going still. His crossed arms unraveled slowly, his hands settling on his knees instead. "Nice to meet you, Miles."
He looked at the smallest girl last. She was already watching him with that same direct, uncomfortably perceptive gaze she had turned on Cecil.
"I'm Mia," she said before he could ask.
Leon smiled. "Mia."
He placed his hand gently on her head, and she leaned into it without hesitation, the way she had leaned into sleep last night. It was like she was giving herself over to the feeling completely.
"Nice to meet you, Mia."
Her eyes softened and her lips curved.
Leon stood and turned to the rest of the room. Children sat on the floor, on armchairs, and on the edges of side tables. Some had watched the exchange with quiet interest. Others were still staring at the nebula or at their own hands.
"Alright," he said, keeping his voice light. "Who's next?"
It took time.
Some of the children answered quickly. A girl named Priya with dark circles under her eyes. A boy named Tyler who spoke so quietly Leon had to lean in to hear him. Twins, Jonas and Ellie, who looked about seven and refused to let go of each other's hands even when Leon patted their heads one at a time.
Others took longer.
A boy who stared at Leon for a full ten seconds before whispering "Derek." A girl named Sophie who started crying the moment he said her name back to her.
Leon almost panicked, but he didn't rush her. He kept his hand on her head until the tears slowed before moving on.
A few didn't answer at first. One boy, rail-thin with faded bruises along his forearms, shook his head and looked away. Leon didn't push.
He just said, "That's okay. Whenever you're ready," and moved to the next child.
By the time he circled back, the boy had watched eleven other kids receive the same treatment. He looked up at Leon with red-rimmed eyes and said, "Aiden."
"Aiden." Leon placed his hand on his head, and the boy's lip trembled before he pressed it flat. "Good to meet you, Aiden."
Twenty-three names. Leon committed each one to memory as he went, locking the name to the face, the hair or the eyes, to whatever small detail would keep it from slipping.
Caleb. Miles. Mia. Priya. Tyler. Jonas. Ellie. Derek. Sophie. Aiden. Hana. Jaylen. Ricky. Nina. Sam. Lucia. Kevin. Amara. Deshawn. Olivia. Marcus. Bea. Tomas.
By the end, the atmosphere in the room had shifted. Kids who hadn't made eye contact with anyone all morning were glancing at each other. Mia had migrated to Caleb's side and was leaning against his arm. Two of the younger ones were whispering to each other near the window.
Twenty-three names. I'm going to remember every single one.