Halo nods as he watches the other leave, smiling at the quick peck. He places a hand on his cheek before quickly dodging into the cover of the trees, climbing into the thick branches. He sighs softly, brushing some hair from his face as he gazes down at the camp.
John was taken into a tent, where a man, not a nurse or doctor, gave a quick sweep of his injuries. Apparently they didn’t have enough medically trained people to spare, so they taught a few people how to notice festering wounds or injuries that really needed to be fixed. John checked out, and then one of his higher ups came in, “John, how are you doing?”
He nodded, doing a quick salute, “I’m doing better, ma’am. I wanted to talk to you about something important,” John unintentionally took a small pause, and the woman interrupted him.
“Now, Captain Ford, I’m sure you heard, or possibly saw, what the other side had?” The woman raised her eyebrows slightly as she questioned John, which didn’t sit well with him.
He hesitantly responded, “I’m not sure I understand what you’re talking about, ma’am.”
It looked as if that was what the woman expected, “The enemy weren’t fighting alone, John. They had a demonic creature, that now runs free. So we plan to hunt it down, I want you to be the lead of that mission.”
John paled, and stood from nervousness, “Are you sure that-“
“John, it’s an order.” A shiver went down his spine. Was this a test? Someone might have said how John had defended Halo in battle…
So many thoughts ran through his head, he simply forced out, “Okay, ma’am, I get right on it.” The he speed walked out the door, ignoring the woman’s last words to him. Once he got out, Brennan was waiting for him, but he ran past him, jogging towards the woods. Need to get out, need to get Halo, need to protect him…
Halo leans against the branches, staring at the sky. He was crippled, he couldn't fly. He sighs softly, and shakes his head, turning has gaze back towards the camp. John seemed to be taking a very long time. He glances up at footsteps and smiles when he sees John. He leaps down from the branches gracefully. "John!" He calls, smiling a little.
John turned to Halo, slightly panicked by his own thoughts, “Halo, we need to get you out, they’re going to send search parties, and hunt you down and-“ John grabbed Halo’s hand and already started pulling him deeper into the woods, “-And we really need to go.”
Halo starts when he sees the other panicked, "John-" His eyes widen with fear when he hears that people are coming after them. "J-John…" He stumbles after the others, his breathing harsh and quick.
John looked at Halo with a worried, hopeless look. Gosh, most times he had it under control, but he was only 24 and all of it was starting to crack when he didn’t have much control like this. He tried desperately to blink away the tears, to be strong for Halo, to keeping moving and get out. But John let out a small pained sentence, “I-I can’t protect you this time.” Because John would now be right with Halo, he couldn’t stop the search parties, he could control them. He could just kill people anymore to protect the ones he loved, because his friends would be coming after them now.
Halo's eyes widen fear on his eyes, his lips trembling. "J-John!" He couldn't keep up. He stumbles, trembling and falling. He grunts in pain, shutting his eyes. "I-It's okay." He whispers. He slowly tries to stand, but he couldn't. "I-it's okay. I-If we have to we can turn me in. I can show them I'm on their side." He whispers. He was so tired of running.
“Ohmygoshohmygosh,” John breathed in a panic, halting as soon as Halo fell and landing beside him on the dirt, scanning over Halo’s body for injury or pain. He wanted to do something, to comfort, but felt like he jut couldn’t help, “Halo, Halo, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”
"No, no. It's okay. It's okay." He whispers, leaning against John, wincing in pain. He leans against the other. "John, calm down. You need to be able to think." He whispers, squeezing his hand gently. "Easy."
John let his head drop, letting the tears fall as he wrapped his arms around Halo finally, more looking for comfort than being able to give it. He tried to speak but every word was interrupted with sniffles, “Halo- I- I can’t do- can’t do anything to- to stop it- I can’t protect you-“ John dug his head into Halo’s shoulder as his world fractured. He couldn’t be the big strong soldier anymore, he couldn’t pretend to be okay with killing people as a job. It was too much right now, too much to a point which made him finally break.
Halo starts when he sees John break down. "Oh, John…" He whispers, holding the other gently. He runs a soothing hand through the others hair and sighs softly holding the other. "John, I can just turn myself in. I can show that I'm on their side." He whispers, running a soothing hand through John's hair. "I can try and do something." He mumbles. "It's okay. Who's the guardian here?" He assures gently. He just holds the other. "It's okay. It's okay."
“You-You-You-“ John let out a large sob, clutching the other as his sholdiers shook and tears poured out of his eyes. You can’t go, they’ll hurt you, I won’t be able to stop them- Another larger sob cake out of him as he tried to say, “Pl-pl-please don’t g-go.”
"Shhh. John, calm down." He whispers gently, holding him. "It's okay, it's okay." He whispers softly, holding the other gently. "I've got you." He whispers. He didn't know what to do. "Shhh. Calm down."
John slowly, so slowly, stopped the outright sobs as he leaned into Halo’s warmth. He felt so… so broken. He slowly stopped himself to small sniffles, “I’m sorry, I’m- I’m scared.” The words -words that John had always been desperate to admit- finally came out as he tried to steady his breathing.
"I've got you." He whispers softly, hugging the other gently. He didn't want to see John like this. It hurt him. "Shh…" He whispers, running his hand through John's hair, humming softly. He places a gentle kiss on John's forehead.
“I don’t want you to get hurt, Halo,” John whispered, but leaning in more to press his face into Halo’s neck. He just wished he could freeze time for them, that they would both be safe. That they could just go back to the cabin and live happily ever after. But that only happened on Disney Channel, and this was real life.
John murmured sadly into Halo’s neck, “I don’t know how to function if I can’t protect you.” Because John’s life was centered around that one word- protect. He always protected his comrades, his people. And now he found something he couldn’t give up. Halo. And when he couldn’t protect the other… It ripped away John’s basis.
Halo gently holds the ther, his eyes filled with concern. He loved John so much. He wanted to be there for the other and he wanted to be a source of comfort. He holds John with a protective grasp, fear grasping at his chest, He wanted to keep John safe. That was his job. He wanted to take John away, take them somewhere safe, to just hide him and heal him. He didn't want this pain. it was to much. "B-but… John… they'll see you as a traitor if you withhold information." he says quietly, holding John. "A-and that's punishable by death." He whispers. "Y-you're a hero… I-I'm a demon… at least in their eyes." He whispers, holding the other gently, sighing softly. "It's inevitable, J-john… I'll end up hurting you if I…" He breaks down, "I can't lose you, John… they can't kill me… but they can kill you if you withhold information." He whispers.
“I don’t care, Halo. I want to withhold information if it means you won’t get hurt. If you can’t ever die… It doesn’t mean you can’t feel pain,” John held on tightly to Halo, newfound sense coming in since he calmed down. He wrapped his arms around the other and whispered softly, “Let’s go. Let’s get out. We’ll both be safer that way.”
Halo looks up, his eyes widening. "You mean… Run away?" He whispers, his eyes going wide. He smiles softly and nods. He hugs onto John, sniffing softly. "Yes." He whispered.
John closed his eyes as gave a gentle comforting squeeze as he hugged Halo back. They would be together, John would protect him that way. He made a small laugh, “Yes, yes, yes, Halo, I love you. I’m not letting you go alone.” John pulled back with a smile, trailed his hands to Halo’s handsome face.
Halo holds onto John, hugging him back and smiling as he laughing softly. "Yes. Definitely. Yes." He whispers, his voice trembling. He would be with John. They would be safe and he wouldn't have anything to fear anymore. "I love you too." He whispered, smiling up at John, leaning into his touch. He was so happy.
John kissed Halo on his forehead. He could be strong, as long as he was with Halo. That breakdown was a one time thing, John promised himself. He slowly stood, helping Halo up as well, “Let’s go find somewhere safe.”
Halo smiles as his forehead is kisses, his eyes fluttering shut for a few seconds. Halo loved John, and he would do anything to keep John from getting hurt. Halo stands, testing his ankle. He was fine. "Yes." He hugs the other, letting out a soft sigh before kissing him gently.
He adored the hug, leaning into it before forcing And John wrapped his hand around Halo’s, walking at a noticeably slower and more careful pace than before. He glanced at Halo, “You lived in these woods your whole life, right? Do you know anywhere safe we can go?”
Halo thinks for a moment then snaps his fingers, "Yes. There's a hidden crystal cave not far from here. I found it by total accident. It's a very safe places, in fact I could use some crystals to hide us from view." He says, smiling at the other. He takes a tentative step on his foot before starting to walk slowly, weaving his way through the trees.
“Crystal cave?” Wow… “Alright, you lead the way.” John glanced at Halo’s foot at they walked on, “Do you think it’ll be okay until we get out of view?” John wrapped an arm around the other’s waist with a small smile. Safe.
Halo nods, smiling a little bit. He beams up at the other. "It's breathtakingly beautiful. It's got a spring, so we'll have fresh water, and the area around it has a lot of wildlife and herbs." He looks down at his ankle. "I'll be okay for now." He shrugs and smiles when John wraps an arm around his waist.
John and Halo walked through the woods, John letting the latter take the lead. It wasn’t long before they got into a denser part of the woods. John looked at Halo hesitantly, a silent question if this was the place. We’ll be safe here, Halo will be safe here, John reminded himself again. There wouldn’t be anymore war or bloodshed.
Halo smiles at the thickening forest. He knew they were almost there. He gently takes John's hand. "We're almost there." He mutters looking up at John excitedly. He looks around and smiles. "There." He whispers, walking towards a wall of vines. It looked like rock was behind the vines but he pushed them away, revealing a mouth to a cave.
John made a small gasp, walking forward as if in a trance. It was beautiful. Before he knew it, he was inside looking around at their new safe place, if at least for a few days. Once the awe had finally finished washing I’ve him, his eyes went straight to Halo’s ankle and said quietly- shamefully -“Let me look at that.”