Chapter Text
Jim was tired.
Weariness washed over his body, a bone-deep exhaustion that weighed him down like the rubble he had emerged from. While his emotions swirled like a turbulent storm within his mind. He still couldn’t fathom what had happened; couldn’t understand how he was still standing here with his friends. Perhaps it was the shock that clouded any coherent thoughts.
He remembered pushing the shard into his chest and fighting the Green Knight. He remembered the Green Knight taking control of his body and wresting the amulet of daylight from his armor. The last solid memory he had was of its destruction; Morgana was resurrected and with that all the sorrow, fear, and anger he felt started to consume him, blinding him.
Afterward, his memories were fractured. Now it felt like a distant nightmare he could barely recall. Although, Claire was an unwavering constant. He could hear her voice in his mind calling his name over and over. He had lashed out at the voice when it spoke to him, unable to deny the will of the King. When he started to come to again, haze lifting from his mind like fog over a bay, Claire’s body was clutched in his fist and a tower of Camelot was dropping out of the sky.
Instinctually, Jim had covered Claire with his own body to protect her. Suddenly able to think freely, he called out to Claire. He was so happy to see her unharmed. All of a sudden, a pain in his chest flared up like he had touched sunlight even though they were in the shade. His body was quickly consumed by stone.
It was silent and deafening all at once.
“Jim?” Claire asked, turning to him.
He startled, being pulled from his thoughts. Jim hadn’t realized she was calling him. His right hand was on his chest where the amulet used to sit. “Yeah?”
She smiled softly, “You’ve been really quiet.”
“I’m good.” He said quickly, yet everyone was watching him. He couldn’t really blame them. He was still trying to wrap his mind around everything that had happened.
Claire squeezed his hand. “We were talking about what to do next. I think the sword will be safe where it is for now, but we can move the boulder it’s stuck in later. Do you want to leave?”
He glanced around the clearing, taking in the wreckage. Douxie had just left with Nari but there were still mounds of rubble from the destroyed castle. That was not something they could handle right now. “Uh, y-yeah. We can leave.”
“Okay, do you want me to teleport us or you up for a walk?” She asked. He could still see she was worried about him.
“A walk home would be nice if… if everyone is okay?”
“Sure, Jim,” She said and the others started walking back towards the city.
He could recognize these woods from all his nights troll-hunting; they were maybe a twenty-minute walk from the outskirts of Arcadia. After all the chaos it seemed extremely quiet. But it was nice to finally be somewhere familiar.
The longer they walked, the heavier his body felt. His chest ached slightly and he couldn’t tell if it was just a resonating phantom pain, or maybe he was still slightly injured. He didn’t realize he was slowing down until he tripped over a tree root. He managed to right himself, but it happened again only a few minutes later. His vision fuzzed around the edges, and he swayed nearly dropping to his knees.
“Whoa, hey there Jimbo,” Toby was on his other side, holding onto his elbow. “You all right?”
He wanted to say yes, but he just felt so heavy. Words seemed to be weighted down on his tongue all of sudden. His legs were shaking. “Need… need to sit.”
“Come on, Jim,” Claire helped him move to sit on the ground. He wouldn’t be able to sit up again if he tried. He grimaced as his body ached with the movement of sitting down. “What’s wrong?” Claire asked. He could hear the worry in her voice.
He tried to smile to reassure her, but he wasn’t sure if he was able to pull it off. “S-sorry. Just tired.” He managed to say.
“Should we take him to your medics? The hospital?” Krel suggested.
“I don’t think that would be a good idea. His mom is working the night shift tonight, and with rubble falling out of the sky it might be busy.” Toby said. “Also, not sure that’s the best way to bring Jim back to her.”
“Mom? N-No, I don’t… n-not like this.” He wanted to go home, yes, but he wanted to see his mom when he didn’t feel like he was about to keel over. He didn’t want to scare her on top of everything.
He rested his head in his hand. God, he was so tired.
“Oh, Master Jim,” Blinky approached him and placed one of his hands on his shoulder. “We will reunite you with your mother. I am sure she can’t wait to see you, but we will let you do it on your terms. For now, I believe you just need some rest. You’ve been through a great deal.”
Jim nodded. “Thanks, Blink.”
Aaarrrgghh stepped forward and suddenly scooped Jim up in one of his arms. The sudden movement didn’t do him any favors. “Will carry Jim”
It was strange being held, but he didn’t object. He had been half-troll for a few months, and was accustomed to being much larger. Although Aaarrrgghh was still able to lift him even then, now he just felt so small.
He knew enough to realize this was likely an adrenaline crash. Magic messing with him, on top of his body undergoing… changes. He was ultimately spent.
“Let’s take the quick way home then. One sec and I’ll take Krel and Steve back first and then we can go home.” Jim heard Claire distantly explain.
Jim’s head was swimming from lightheadedness. The others were still discussing things, and he saw Claire open a portal, but sounds started to distort and wobble around him. The heaviness he was feeling started to pull him under, and he couldn’t be sure his eyes were even open anymore.
“Jim’s house should be empty tonight. I’ve got a key, so let’s head there,” he heard Toby say, like an echo in a cavern. Then the world dropped out from under him and he melted into the shadows.
Awareness came back to him slowly. It felt like he hadn’t been asleep for very long judging by the way his body still felt. He was laying down on something soft, and someone was carding their fingers through his hair. It was nice.
Jim cracked an eye open. The room was dimly lit, but so very familiar. He was in his living room laying on the couch. His head was on a pillow in Claire’s lap.
“Hey,” he whispered. Her armor was gone and it looked like she might have been wearing one of his t-shirts. Her hair was also damp like she had recently taken a shower. She glanced down at him and smiled softly. It still made his heart flutter every time. “How long have we been here?”
“Not long. Toby went home for a bit with the others. Blinky went to speak to Dictatious. He said they’ll be back at sunrise. Your mom’s shift ends at 7, just so you know.” She explained. “It’s just a little after midnight now.”
He nodded. This all felt surreal. He knew one day he would come back home, of course, but not quite like this. It was overwhelming, and incredible really. He held up a hand in front of his face just to make sure it really hadn’t been some elaborate dream.
“Do you want to clean up? I can get you a snack or something from the kitchen and bring it upstairs,” She offered.
“You’re too good to me,” He smiled and sat up. He leaned in to kiss her temple, and slowly stood from the couch. Careful to make sure he didn’t feel faint upon standing.
Once he was sure he wasn’t going to fall, the impromptu nap helped a bit, he went upstairs to his bedroom. Surprisingly, or maybe not, it was exactly as he had left it. He went to the dresser and got a change of clean clothes, a simple white t-shirt, and some pajama bottoms.
Jim went to the bathroom next and turned on the shower. It was silly, but he hesitated to step into the tub. He knew there was no magic in this water, but things for him had been strange for a very long time. He never thought he would be human again, after all.
The warm water felt so good against his skin. Sensations, in general, were different now. Touch was vastly altered when he was in his troll form, and he had been virtually stuck in that armor for a long while. Now he was just… free.
Eventually, he got out from under the spray. As he was changing he looked at his reflection in the mirror. He truly was human again. He looked the same as before, like not a day had gone by. Except there was a scar on his eyebrow and his cheek.
That wasn’t the only scar though. Not sure how he didn’t see it earlier. He had left the lights dimmed in the bathroom while he showered, but now he could see it plain as day. On his chest over his heart was a burn scar in the shape of the amulet.
A knock at the door startled him and he knocked the soap dispenser off the counter. It clattered loudly against the floor.
“Jim, are you okay?” Claire called through the door.
He sighed, glanced down at his chest once more, and then opened the door. She would find out eventually.
“Y-yeah. You just surprised me.” He said. She eyed him up and down. Her eyes then stuck on the scar on his chest. “Not fully unscathed I guess.”
“Oh, Jim,” she reached out a hand but stopped herself from touching. “Does it hurt?”
“A little.” The scar was a perfect circle. There were some faint runes from where the incantation was on the amulet, and right in the center was a starburst where he assumed the shard had stabbed him. “Not sure what caused this.” He shrugged. He definitely had an idea it was because the amulet was forcefully taken from him, and then destroyed. Mixed with the corruption of the shard; there was just a lot of magic going all at once.
Jim pulled on his shirt after that and Claire quietly walked back to his bedroom. On his bedside table was a glass of water, and a cut-up apple.
“There wasn’t much in the fridge,” she said when he walked over to it.
“Thank you,” He took a bite of the apple. He almost moaned. It was so sweet, it tasted so good. He eagerly ate the rest in record time and Claire just looked amused. He had grown accustomed to the diet of a troll, but he couldn’t say he missed eating socks or baskets.
After drinking the water he sat back against the headboard and made room so Claire could slide up beside him. Jim wrapped his arm around her, and she leaned into him.
“I love you,” he said quietly, and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “I feel like you said it to me a lot when you were trying to save me. I don’t remember much, but your voice was always in my head. Thank you for saving me.”
She smiled softly. “Jim, I love you too. No matter what form you take, by the way. I’m just glad to have you here with me. I was so scared I lost you.”
“I’m sorry,” he said holding her a little tighter. “I’ll try and be more careful.”
“I suppose that’s all I can ask.” She snuggled a little closer to him.
The two of them rested back against the pillows and drifted into silence. Jim could feel himself drifting off slightly, but wouldn’t allow him to fall asleep completely. He was still so exhausted, yet there was something tugging at the back of his mind. Fear, perhaps. Was this too good to be true?
“What’s on your mind?” Claire asked with her eyes closed.
He let out a shaky breath “Are you ever afraid to wake up from a dream? So much has gone wrong in the past few days. But to be here now… to be home with you, it’s so much like a fantasy,” it came out as a whisper. “I’ve had this dream a number of times. What if it’s gone when--”
“Jim,” she cut him off, and propped herself up on one elbow to look at him. “I know what you mean, but I assure you this is real. You and me, we’re real. When you wake up, I’ll still be beside you and we’ll face the day together.” She leaned over and wiped a stray tear that had unknowingly fallen down his cheek, and then placed a kiss on his cheek.
She continued. “Whatever happens, I’m with you.”
“Okay,” he took a deep breath. “Right. As long as we’re together.”
“Always." She pulled the blankets up around them. "Now get some rest. You need it.”
It's quiet once more as they hold each other, simple and sweet. It still feels like a fantasy, and it takes a few minutes as Jim’s thoughts are still slightly chaotic, but slowly he manages to fall asleep.
He dreams of two purple ethereal birds, a dove and a raven, dancing around each other under a starry sky.