Daniel smothered a groan. He’d be curious. Of course he would be. Hell, this whole situation was just a mess of barely-ordered confusion, and right smack dab in the middle of it was the fact that here he was, Owl, standing right in front of him. In the flesh.
Every last bit of his training screamed for him to hunch his shoulders higher, hiding his face. But...he was here. Leon already had his phone number and his name.
He deserved this much.
Leaning back, Daniel made a face. And then, trying to make the movement look casual, he reached up.
The rustling of fabric tumbling down set his skin to prickling. He was naked, his thoughts shrieked. Exposed. Out in the open for the world to see.
But the only person here was Leon. And so Daniel licked his lips, forcing himself to sit still, and let his hood settle to his shoulders.
From the corner of his eye, he saw Leon freeze. Not so subtle anymore, he chuckled silently. As if remembering himself, Leon glanced away—and then back.
Pay attention to what you’re doing. Daniel eased onto the brakes, turning them down a side road, then another. The city was fading around them, little by little. But Leon hadn’t steered them toward the freeway, so they couldn’t be going that far. If people were following them, he didn’t have long to give them the slip. “Where to?” he said tonelessly.
“O-Oh,” Leon mumbled, tearing his eyes off Daniel. “Um. Up ahead. Right, then right again. Still a few miles out.”
“Okay.”
The silence pressed in around them again. This time, it was all Daniel could do to keep from squirming. Here it was—his big moment. He’d finally crossed the boundary from Alexandria into the outside world. And here he was, ruining it all. In the span of a single night, he’d let himself fall from esteemed Librarian to that mussed up, creepy asshole climbing through your window at night. He licked his lips, taking a breath.
“Look, I’m-”
“So you’re-”
Both of them stopped just as quickly as they started. Daniel glanced over, finding Leon staring right back. Against all odds, he found himself smiling.
Leon broke the moment first, rolling his eyes. “I knew you weren’t old,” he muttered.
“That’s it?” Daniel burst out. “Really?”
“What?” Leon said. “It’s true.”
“We’re running from people trying to kill us. People with guns. People with magic. And that’s what you’re worried about?”
Leon snorted. “Hey, look. I’ve just got to take the wins where I can get them.”
“Jesus Christ,” Daniel mumbled.
“So…” Leon began. “Those were, uh. Those were mages, were they?”
The little bit of a good mood Daniel had found vanished instantly. “Yeah,” he said. “I’m...I don’t know for sure. But-”
“The ground was shaking,” Leon said. “And that...the ground. The sand. We don’t get earthquakes here.”
Daniel hesitated, then nodded. “Right.”
“Holy shit.”
“Yeah.”
“So, like…” Leon shook his head. “Magic? Like...actual magic? Not a dream?”
“You’re the one who pointed out the ground shaking,” Daniel muttered. “You tell me.”
“Oh,” Leon sank back into his seat. Where just a few moments before he’d been bursting from the seams, now, he seemed to deflate right before Daniel’s eyes. “I guess...that’s probably not good. Is it.”
On Leon’s lips, it wasn’t a question, and Daniel only made a face. “It’s definitely not perfect, no.”
“Shit.”
Daniel took a hand off the wheel, rubbing at his forehead. “It’s...It’ll work out,” he said. “I’ll make it work out.”
“But...they’re mages, aren’t they? And if they’re mages, aren’t they dangerous?”
“Look,” Daniel said. The road flashed by, unending. “It’s a problem. I know it, you know it. This is...This is going to be a big deal.”
“...Yeah.”
“So right now, I’m just worrying about what comes next.” He smiled grimly. “I just...I need to make sure everyone gets out safely. I need to know that you’re all safe. I can’t…” A lump had appeared in his throat, somewhere along the line. “I won’t be the reason you or the others got hurt. And...we’re in it now, anyway. We can’t go back.”
Leon didn’t say anything. Finally, when he couldn’t take the quiet anymore, Daniel glanced over—and found Leon staring at his hands, folded in his lap. “Yeah,” Leon mumbled. “Thanks. I didn’t...I didn’t want to cause trouble for you. Sorry.”
Daniel chuckled sourly. “It’s not your fault.”
“Only, if I’d been more careful, maybe-”
“Hey,” Daniel said, shooting a look his way. “I just said it’s not your fault. I’m the Librarian here.” It was his job—and he’d been the one who’d failed to keep Leon and the rest out of the Library. If he’d been a stronger influence, if he’d taken a firmer hand, he could have told Alexandria no. It was his responsibility.
He hadn’t done that. He’d let her run wild. And now they were all in trouble.
“I’m the one who should be sorry,” was all he could say.
Leon didn’t respond, but his shoulders relaxed. He leaned forward in the next moment, pointing towards the next cross street. “Oh- Take a right at-”
“Got it,” Daniel said.
More silence. And then...“Um,” Leon said.
Daniel sighed. “What?”
“Now that...Now that I’ve seen your face. Um. Are you...what’s going to happen to…” He trailed off, looking away.
A vein in Daniel’s temple was starting to throb. “I don’t know,” he said quietly. “We’ll figure it out.”
“But, if any of those mages see you...if they figure out who you are-”
“It’s a work in progress, okay?” Daniel said, flashing a weary smile his way. “Hand me my phone.”
“O-Oh.” Leon fumbled in the console, finally thrusting the burner phone toward him. “Going to try again? Ah- Left at the light.”
Daniel grabbed the phone, dutifully turning them around the corner. “Yeah. I just want to check.”
The quiet part, he left unsaid. The part that screamed in his mind that it’d been too long. That he should have checked in the instant he got Leon out—and that they should have checked in, too.
It was reasonable, he told himself. There’d been a fair bit of distance
