darker_london | Uncle (Danny, Greg, Rachel, Cai, Zoe, Dylan, Deirdre)

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Uncle (Danny, Greg, Rachel, Cai, Zoe, Dylan, Deirdre)

It was Danny's first time out since he'd been at Priory and before then he wasn't exactly hitting the town every night. The trip to Robert MacGavillary Memorial Hospital felt strange and by the time they arrived, Danny was just glad to be inside again.

Having arrived early, Danny sat in the waiting room, willing his friends to show up soon. He couldn't get his mind off what he was about to do. He hadn't told any of his friends his plan because he knew they would stop him. It involved getting closer to Greg than he ever hoped to be again, and just the thought of it was weighing on him. He hoped it would work out and he could get the information he needed. Without it, this was all going to be for nothing.

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Zoe got there first, hoping to be the first one there. She didn't want Danny waiting by himself, and it felt like a failure on her part when she entered the waiting room and saw him there. Dammit. "Fuck," she said, sitting down next to him. "Sorry, Danny, I meant to be here earlier."

The moment Zoe arrived, Danny turned to hug her. "No, it's okay," he assured her, murmuring into her shoulder. "I think I'm so in a rush to get this over with I got here way too early."

There was a part of him that was a little nervous to see Cai as well, since he hadn't seen his brother in over a week.

For a brief moment Zoe flinched before hugging him back, and had to actually remind herself that he wasn't Cai, that no one else was Cai, and she wouldn't be plunged into a horrible vision if she hugged him. She hadn't touched Cai for the rest of the night, though she'd hadn't wanted to be very far from him either, and they'd stayed out very late. They found an all-night Chinese place and ate dim sum, drinking green tea and not talking very much, till Cai said if he didn't get to a bed soon he was going to fall asleep behind the wheel and that was the last thing either of them needed.

"I can sort of drive," Zoe said. "Not legally, but Liz has been teaching me."

"Um, Dom would kill me if I let you and something happened, i think," Cai apologised. "Not that I don't trust you - I trust you epically, but, just in case. I am awake enough right now, maybe we grab a coffee on the way to your house."

Zoe nodded, but she wanted to say I don't want to go to my house. She wanted to stay. Not sleep in his bed... or maybe she did? She wasn't sure. No, she probably didn't want that.

She didn't say anything, and he'd driven her home, and they'd sat in front of her house for a long time, just looking at it, till she said "Well..." and he said "Yeah..."

She hadn't slept very well in her own bed. Maybe it would have been better if she'd stayed at his house. On the couch. Just watching TV all night, like they night they'd spend together at Zoe's, up late, making rescue plans.

So she flinched when Danny hugged her, but only for a moment, and after that she hugged him back just as tightly. "No kidding. This isn't going to be awesome."

Danny noticed that she flinched, but he wasn't going to bring it up if she wasn't going to. He supposed it was probably having to see Greg again, though next time he would ask if he could hug her like he usually did. "Sorry," he said, giving her a small, self-deprecating smile.

"I've been going over and over it in my head and- god." Danny pulled up his sleeve to show off the dozens and dozens of red, inked lines he had drawn on with pen in order to keep from hurting himself. Not that he could get away with that in the hospital even if he wanted to. "But I guess I'm coping. I'm just glad I have time after this to just...unwind."

She shook her head as he apologised, letting him know that he didn't need to, her reaction wasn't about him. She swore when he showed her his lines, though. "Yeah, after... after will be good."

No it wouldn't. After would be shit. But if Danny had something to look forward to, then good.

When the lines on his skin made Zoe swear, Danny pulled his sleeve down again, just in case anyone else saw it. He hadn't realised she might take it differently than he saw it.

"Abby said we should message her when everyone's here and she'll get Greg set up in the interview room." Danny pulled out his phone just in case anyone messaged him to pull out. He wouldn't blame them in the slightest. "Do- Do you think they'll still come?"

"Fuck yes they'll come," Zoe said. "Cai's picking up Rachel, they were on their way before I arrived, they won't be long." They better not be long. She'd throttle them if they didn't.

Her exhaustion and her worry about Danny's arm was steadily turning into anger. It wasn't really Cai and Rachel she wanted to throttle. Greg did that, she reminded herself. Don't yell at your friends if they are late.

Zoe reminded herself to breathe. "The interview room - we're going to be in the same room as him?"

Danny chewed on his lip for a moment before nodding. The original plan had been to stay separated from him, but that wasn't going to work if Danny was going to succeed with his plans. "Yeah," he said a moment later, giving her a worried look. "Zo...you don't have to come in, it's okay."

"Fuck off!" Zoe said, folding her arms decisively across her chest. "Of course I'm coming in. You're an idiot sometimes, Danny."

Danny's eyes widened and then he laughed, grinning widely at her. "Oh, Zoe," he said fondly, "you're my very favourite friend. Shhh, don't tell."

For the first time today, Zoe smiled. She offered her hand, pinkie extended. Her hands felt vulnerable, but she reminded herself firmly that it was all in her head, and her emotions had no reason to be getting so worked up about bare hands. "Pinkie swear I won't say a word," she said.

Cai and Rachel appeared as the lift doors opened, and Rachel bolted across the floor to hug him as Danny and Zoe finished their pact. "I'm here," she said. "I made it."

Danny grinned and hooked his pinkie around hers, shaking firmly.

When the lift opened, Danny jumped, but it was just Cai and Rachel. He embraced his girlfriend tightly, looking over her shoulder to smile a greeting at his brother. "Hey, Cai," he said, his smile a little nervous. "I'm really glad you both came."

He pulled back a little to plant a small, chaste kiss on Rachel's lips and then the lift opened again. Deirdre emerged from the lift, bright red hair swinging as she cheerfully pushed Dylan's wheelchair towards the small crowd. "Yo!" Deirdre greeted them, avoiding meeting Zoe's eyes.

"DYLAN!" Danny gave Rachel a little squeeze and then he darted over to his oldest friend, bending to hug the other boy tightly.

"Whoa, hello!" Dylan laughed, wrapping his arms around Danny. "This is the first time you've ever hugged me, you know?"

"I know," Danny mumbled, pulling back to plant a kiss on Dylan's forehead. "First time I kissed you too, you beautiful miracle. Thank you so much for like...not dying."

Dylan chuckled and he reached out to pat Danny's hand. "I'll try to stick to it." Then he waved at everyone else, "Hey, guys."

"Hey Danny," Cai smiled back, his own smile less nervous than Danny's. He had been nervous about seeing Danny again, earlier in the week, nervous that he'd do something wrong and mess something up, nervous that Danny would decide that his recovery would be easier with Cai around.

He still worried about those things, but there were bigger things to worry about now. Greg was the big one. But Zoe, too. He'd seen last night just how deeply she'd been affected by Greg, and he felt guilty that he hadn't realised it before, but she was good at hiding it. She was the toughest girl he knew, but he wanted her to stay that way. He didn't want Greg to anywhere near her.

Anywhere near any of them.

He was still amazed and a little bit terrified of Danny decision to see Greg again. But all of the other things he was feeling totally drowned out the I'm-going-to-upset-Danny nerves.

Rachel stepped aside as Danny dove toward Dylan, and she hooked her arm through Zoe's. Zoe looked at her friend (ignoring Deirdre). "Is that my shirt?"

"Yup," Rachel said, but she didn't take her eyes off Danny. "I'm borrowing your strength."

Zoe nodded. She kind of knew what Rachel meant. Zoe herself was wearing the purple boots Rachel had bought her. It was strange the things you could draw power from.

She looked over at Cai, who smiled at her. He looked tired. She smiled very slightly back.

"Hey Dylan," Rachel said. "Stop flirting with my boyfriend."

Dylan chuckled at Rachel and he shrugged. "It's my natural charm, I can't help it," he said with a wink. "Hey, Danny. Proud of you, man." Danny had just hugged him for the first time, without panicking, minutes before heading in to see Greg. That was pretty impressive.

"Shhhhh, stop, I'll blush," Danny hissed at Dylan, heading back to thread his fingers through Rachel's. He was about to say something else when Abby stepped into the room and he felt his stomach fill with ice.

"If you want more time, I can tell Katia to wait-" Abby said, but Danny shook his head hard.

"No-" he said quickly. "No, just- Let's do it, okay?"

Abby led them into a small room with a two-way mirror. Instead of talking to Greg through it though, when it was time to see him they would head into the room on the other side of the mirror where a huge table was set up. In the middle of the table there was a metal ring where Greg's shackles would be attached to so he couldn't reach for them. "We'll put him in the room in a few moments, Danny, but you can take all the time you need. He can't see or hear you in here," and then she slipped away again, probably to check on Katia.

Danny stared through the mirror at the room beyond it, suddenly feeling very small and frightened. "He's- He's going to be in there."

Rachel squeezed Danny's hand tighter, holding it in both of hers. It was a relief to be totally uninhabited by her cast, though her arms still didn't feel like her own. She was glad she didn't look broken any more. She needed to look whole and strong so she could sort of try to convince herself that's what she was.

Still, she looked into the empty room and she started to doubt herself, and when Danny spoke, sounding terrified, she doubted even more. "I love you," she whispered, staring at the metal ring on the table.

"God I love you too," he said, running his fingers over the skin of her arm where her cast had so recently been. He'd gotten so used to seeing it there- "It's going to be okay. I'm okay-"

The door inside the other room opened and Greg was pushed through it by a harassed-looking Katia. "For fuck's sake," she hissed at him for something he must have said before they came through the door.

"Don't pretend you aren't interested," Greg nearly purred at her as she pushed him over to the chair.

"Uh huh. Arms." When he offered them up, she locked them to the table and then bent down to shackle his legs to the chair as well. When she stood, Greg was grinning at her.

"Didn't know you were into bondage." When she rolled her eyes and turned towards the door, he called over his shoulder, "I can smell your pussy!"

"You wish!" Katia called back before closing the door behind her.

Danny's jaw had dropped at the exchange and then he hid his face in his hands. "Oh my god, he's the worst," as if that weren't the most obvious thing in the world.

Zoe was watching Danny, trying to predict how badly he was going to deal with seeing Greg. "At least he'd chained to the table though," she pointed out, so obvious, but it felt like saying it out loud might give the chains more power. "All he can do is say crap like that."

As if that wasn't bad enough.

He'd be weak, though. All out of energy. He couldn't do his pull, at least, Zoe hoped so. She didn't like how little they knew about incubi, compared with demons. She hoped they locked up Greg and studied him like an animal and put him down like a miserable dog when they were done.

Danny groaned and rubbed his eyes before heading slowly towards the door. "Yeah. Well. He's gonna say a lot worse," he sighed. "Uhm. Okay, so- I didn't tell you guys, but I kind of need to go in to see him by myself first." He knew that statement wasn't going to go over well so he rushed to follow it up, "it's important. Deirdre. Guard the door okay, don't let anyone in until I call for you. I mean it. Don't take my choice away from me." Which was a cheap shot, but he used it anyway.

"Uh-" Deirdre glanced at Zoe and then back to Danny. "Don't think that's going to make me very popular."

Danny shrugged, "please? And uhm. Hey, if he gets out of those cuffs, can you do that thing where you make him fall asleep?"

Deirdre bit her lip before nodding slowly. They don't know how much that kind of soul costs her, "only for you, Danny."

Zoe shot a look at Deirdre as Danny asked her to soul suck Greg if he tried anything. Deidre fucking better, the moment he looked like he could escape. Deirdre fucking better the moment Greg tried anything.

She took a couple of steps closer to Danny so she could speak to him quietly, though the room was small enough they couldn't have a private conversation anyway. "Why did you tell me you were going to do this?" she asked him. "What are you going to do?"

This reeked of self-destruction.

Danny moved away from her, unable to keep from suddenly looking skittish. "You just...have to trust me," he whispered to her, before glancing at the door. "Just trust that I know what I'm doing, no matter what I do in there, okay? No matter what happens, don't come in."

He moved through the door before anyone could stop him, Deirdre moving into place as soon as he was on the other side.

When Greg looked up at caught sight of his nephew, his mouth fell open in shock and...something else...wonder.

"D...Daniel?"

In spite of the horror and revulsion he was feeling (and got it was so much worse than he had expected it to be), Danny smiled at Greg. "Greg, thank god," he said as he rushed over into the chair and sat down. "I've been so worried about you."

With shock written all over his features, Greg stared at Danny in silence for nearly a minute before he finally said something. "You...you were?"

"Of course," Danny lied. "They wouldn't let me come see you until now, even though I've been trying so hard."

In the other room, Dylan shifted uncomfortably in his wheelchair. His best friend was sitting across from his rapist, talking to him like nothing terrible had ever passed between them. "What the hell is he doing?" he asked both everyone and no one.

"No!" Zoe snapped, storming up to Deirdre as she stepped into the way. Rachel grabbed at Zoe's arm but couldn't hold her back. "Get out of the way, Deirdre."

"Zoe," Rachel said, as Cai shoved both handfuls of fingers into his mouth, biting his gloves and staring at Danny in horror. "Zoe, he said trust him."

"He's sick," Zoe hissed at Rachel. "Look at him. Listen to him. He's not right."

Deirdre wasn't going to move, but she didn't like it any more than Zoe did. "Zoe, stop!" Deirdre hissed at the younger girl. "He told me not to let you though, okay!" She wasn't past sprouting her wings and letting them just block the door entirely.

Dylan glanced at his sister, chewing on his lower lip so hard it hurt. "Deirdre, he's- Maybe-? I think we should-"

"I'm not moving," Deirdre glared, her eyes swirling to black.

Inside the room, Danny was still smiling at Greg. "How are you? Have you been okay? God, Greg...I had no idea- When they told me what you are, suddenly everything made sense."

Greg looked like he was trying with everything inside him not to look hopeful, and failing miserably. "Dan-" he whispered, "are you-?"

"I understand now. I understand everything. Well...I guess I still don't understand why you chose me, but I get why you did what you did. I know you couldn't help it. And now I know there's someone who loves me so completely he would risk prison for me. Greg-" Danny swallowed down the feeling that he was going to puke, and he reached out for Greg's hands to take them in his own. "Sir," he added with a playful little smile.

"Fucking hell," Dylan hissed, covering his mouth with his hand. "Fucking hell, fucking hell, Deirdre do something, fucking hell."

Deirdre, however, remained impassive.

I hate you, Zoe thought at Deirdre. I hate you I hate you I hate you. "Have you even heard of Stockholm syndrome?" She asked, quietly but no less angrily for that. "Have you ever heard how traumatised people keep going back to their abusers? And you're just letting him, you are fucking enabling his rapist, Deirdre, or do you know something we don't?"

"I only know what he said!" Deirdre insisted, wishing Zoe would stop. "And yes, I've fucking heard of Stockholm syndrome, I'm a goddamn psychology student. I...I don't know what- I'm sorry, but he said to trust him."

Dylan squeezed his eyes shut and then, in a moment of panic, he reached for Rachel's hand to steady her. If she was as fucked up as he was right now, she would probably need it.

Danny hoped it was enough. He hoped that batting his eyelashes and calling his uncle sir was enough because he was pretty sure he couldn't take much more of this. Every part of him was telling him he needed to run, and ignoring all his instincts was so hard. He wished he had told Rachel he loved her more times. He wished his mother was here to hug him and tell him everything was okay. But god, it wasn't because he was holding Greg's hand and pandering to every sick and twisted fantasy Greg had about him.

He had to keep going. "Greg, look- I'm an adult now, I can drop the charges against you even if my mum tries to force me not to. It's- I'm worried though."

"About what, sweet boy?" Greg said, his thumb tracing small patterns on Danny's hand so gently Danny wants to hit Greg over the head with a chair for it.

"About- Uncle Max has his whole firm working on the case against you and they've put out information about- Greg, they want people to come forward if-" Danny shook his head, squeezing Greg's hands. "They don't understand about you," he said quietly. "They don't understand but I do. I know it had to be hard to be away from me for so long and I- I promise I won't be upset or jealous, Sir. But I need you to tell me if you were with anyone else before you found me again. Max is on the warpath and he's looking for more people to testify against you, especially after I told him I won't. If I can't find the people first maybe...maybe I could uhm- I could take care of the problem?"

Dylan's eyes widened at that, his eyebrow raising into his hairline. "Wh- what the f-"

Zoe knew plenty about Deirdre's strength, and Deirdre idiotic stubborn streak, and she knew she couldn't get past her. She could attack her - and right now Zoe wanted nothing more than to attack her - but she wouldn't win. "Yeah he said to trust him," she said. "And anorexics says 'trust me I've eaten' and suicidal kids say 'trust me I won't' - you can't trust sick people, Deirdre, you can't. You are letting him ruin himself, you fucking goddamn psychology student don't know fuck about people." She wanted to strike her, then, she wanted to really really badly but used the pent up violent energy in her to spin herself away, instead, and stormed over to the wall opposite the mirror, her forehead pressed against it and her eyes pressed shut.

She couldn't watch Danny destroy himself and she couldn't listen to Deirdre trust and she couldn't deal with how goddamn powerless she felt right now.

"Zoe?" Rachel turned from the mirror to look over her shoulder. Zoe had her back to them all, her head down between her shoulders. She slammed one fist into the wall, and Rachel - gripping Dylan's hand - shot an alarmed look at Cai.

She didn't know how to protect Zoe too. Zoe wasn't supposed to need it. Zoe was unshakeable. But right now Zoe was shaking. She couldn't deal with listening to Deirdre's stupid blindness so she was trying to block everything out - because how could any of it be good? So she wasn't listening to Danny.

Cai leaned against the wall near Zoe - but not too near. He wanted to take her hand and stop her punching the wall again - it sounded painful - but he didn't dare touch her, for both their sakes. "I think he knows what he's doing, Zoe," Cai whispered, trying to keep it private. "Listen, listen, he's trying to find others."

Zoe pressed her forehead hard up against the wall. The pressure hurt. "I hate everything," she whispered.

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Uncle (Danny, Greg, Rachel, Cai, Zoe, Dylan, Deirdre)

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