Chapter 1: Somewhere in these eyes, I'm on your side
Chapter Text
When the time came to decide who took Xara's place, Jesse didn't want to put their friends through that. After everything that happened, they didn't want to be responsible for other's misery.
"I want to stay here. Take them with you."
"Ridiculous. It's just a llama and a villager. I've got a better chance with you."
So Jesse simply waited until she got the message.
Eventually, she left. Leaving Jesse to sustain the traps. Jesse was sure their friends could defeat the admin. Or, as they was recently told, Romeo. Not a very fitting name.
They were used to sitting in one place. Not only because of the vast amount of paper they have to... Had to do. But they also didn't get out as much. Adventure sounds unappealing when it's just you yourself.
Jesse thought back to what had led them here. Stuck sitting in uncomfortable, torn up, scratchy clothes. Right! The sea temple. They'd just been so desperate to spend time with Petra. They could feel their friendship slipping away. So when an elaborate adventure presented itself, who were they to deny its call?
They always caught Vos looking at them. They were always on edge, perk of being a hero, they supposed. At first, they assumed it was because Jesse had saved him. But that never explained the glares at Stella. And Radar. Especially Jack, his supposed old friend. Anyone who wasn't Jesse really. Now that they knew Vos was the Admin, they felt even worse.
The look of anger Romeo had when Jesse sent Jack to get the clock. The look of betrayal. Especially since Jesse had cheated to get him in that position. Jesse nearly felt guilty for it.
Jesse was angry too. But they were willing to let everyone think it was them that was cruel if it meant every one of their friends was safe. Hopefully, anyway.
Jesse ended up just rolling on the floor like an idiot. Not like there was anyone to see anyway.
Eventually, even that got tiring. Then their gaze landed on the window. The glass window. They wondered how exhilarating it would feel to punch through it. Feel strong again. Feel less helpless than they actually were. It wasn't even a conscious decision anymore.
The shatter of the glass was painful, but definitely got their adrenaline pumping. The blood on their knuckles wasn't a good sign.
They picked up one of the shards and began snapping pieces off.
It may have been the injury getting to they, or the lack of a sense of time in there, but Jesse was exhausted. Looks like this is really happening.
Chapter 2: Romeo's Distress -1
Summary:
Did Jesse really think that the first people to discover them would be their friends?
Notes:
Chapter title is the name of a very peak song 😋
Chapter Text
Romeo was, needless to say, bored of Beacon Town. All they did was scream and yell about how 'this isn't you.' Romeo was just tempted to change into his true form to get a new reaction. Especially since he looked like the goat guy from some religious story. Eventually everyone fell into place, saying about how great he is.
He landed on an idea that always made him feel better. More powerful. The Sunshine Institute. Especially since Jesse and their little friends were there. He wondered how they were faring. Not that he cared, considering they cheated, he was simply curious.
Yes, he'd do that. Especially now that everyone thought he was gone. Give them a nice little shock.
When he arrived at the entrance, he didn't expect to see the institution in a mess. No guards or anything. Something was definitely amiss.
Going further in was uncanny. There were no prisoners, no guards, no warden.
No Jesse.
It suddenly struck him about Xara. Since the place wasn't completely gone, that could be a good sign. He didn't know what he'd do if she was gone.
He teleported to the room, if necessary he'd investigate the rest later to find out what happened. There lay Jesse, looking utterly disheveled. He couldn't tell if they were sleeping or not. He quite frankly, didn't care.
"Jesse!"
Did he need to yell it that loud? No. Was he going to anyway? Yes. From the way they physically tensed, it seemed he got the answer to if they were sleeping or not. He waited until they stood up. He wasn't going to speak with them when they looked so... vulnerable.
When he was clear they weren't getting the hint, he simply demanded it.
"Get up."
They slowly got up. He looked into their sad eyes, they looked on the brink of tears. He then sighed.
"I'll deal with you later. Come on. You're going to show me where your little friends are."
Romeo grabbed Jesse by the arm with far more force than necessary, though Jesse didn't seem to mind. Probably touch starved from the months of isolation, poor thing. He teleported them both back to Beacon Town.
---
Jesse looked distant the entire time. He didn't know how long they'd been down there, but it had been months since he last checked the institute. Assuming the chaos immediately broke out once he was gone, the past couple of months couldn't have been pleasant. He snapped his fingers in front of them.
"I know they're your friends, but I might spare them if you tell me where they are. Call it a negotiation."
He'd been trying to ask them for the past 10 minutes. It might not have been a lot of time but this had been getting incredibly frustrating. He finally got an answer for the first time since he'd last saw them.
"I don't know where they are."
...
Romeo slammed his fists on the table.
"This is ridiculous! I've tried being patient with you, I had pity. But seriously. 'i DoN't KnOw' Well figure it out! You can't have stayed in there for months for the sake of it!"
They looked entirely unamused. But it must've been the fact they saw how angry he was, maybe out of fear, because they eventually spoke up.
"You'll not hurt them if I tell you?"
"Well, I'll consider not on your behalf."
Jesse didn't say anything, simply holding their head down. The silence was suffocating. After a pause, Romeo spoke up again.
"You have my word, no harm will come to them from my hand."
Romeo hoped Jesse didn't think about it too much. He didn't say he'd constantly monitor their friends. If anything happens to them, he won't know. He won't care.
"We were coming up with a plan to take away your powers. Xara said she knew a way. That's all I know."
Romeo immediately knew where she brought them. Where else? It's not like just anywhere had the secret to taking down the equivalent to a god. Looks like he was taking a trip down memory lane.
---
"That'll be you for now. Stay here. I have something to deal with."
Jesse tried not to show it, but a brief flicker of panic at the thought of being left behind again showed on their face. Romeo caught it.
"I'll be back."
And with that Romeo was gone. They were worried what he'd do to their friends. To them. They replayed what he'd said to them. 'I'll deal with you later.' Was he going to send them into a place like the sunshine institute? Would he simply kill them? It's not like they weren't starving. You don't survive off of zombie flesh and have the athletic body type you used to. It was honestly lucky Romeo came when he did. There might have simply been a corpse holding down the pressure plates if he didn't. Not that they'd object with how they were feeling at the moment.
Jesse didn't know how long they were waiting, but suddenly, someone was knocking on the door. They weren't sure if they should get up, considering Romeo was using their appearance to be a dictator. It seemed they didn't have to decide, however, because whoever it was was already inside, somehow. They didn't know how they didn't hear the person come in, but they didn't care at the moment.
"Sir. I haven't found the rebels yet."
Sir? Ah. Right, of course. It's not like the way Jesse prefers to be addressed matters when they're supposedly gone. The person addressing them was a ninja of sorts. They weren't even going to try unpacking the second half of that sentence. At first, Jesse thought the person was awaiting a response, to which they weren't going to provide. But, they person seemed to be taking in their appearance. Romeo copied the version of them that wasn't severely injured at the wrist and still had food. Of course the person would be confused. The person decided it was a good idea to take off their mask, to reveal..
"Ivor!"
They got up to immediately hug him. If Ivor was unsure if it was the real Jesse before, he definitely knew now.
"Jesse! What happened to you? Are you alright?"
"Well uh. That's a long story--"
---
Romeo looked everywhere in Fred's Keep. He practically dismantled the place while searching. He didn't bother double checking. Even just being here was painful. He regretted killing him, now that he knew there was a way to take his powers without him dying. At least he didn't have to kill Xara. As much as the hate was mutual, she was still alive to despise him.
If Jesse's 'friends' weren't in Fred's Keep, it meant they were probably on their way to Beacon Town.
Whatever.
He'll deal with them when the time comes. It's not like he'll be there to greet them anyway.