FicWad

This was the first time Mark had brought Zach with him, and he couldn't help but watch the boy-- skin turned from that softly sallow shade of olive to rosy in the light of the fire, dark hair drifting in the heat and smoke around them, eyes watering from the beautiful brightness.

Zach turned and caught Mark's fond look, offering a tentative smile of his own. "Fire really is pretty, isn't it?"

"Yeah." Mark turned back towards the fluttering flames-- it was too windy on the roof, but his room had smoke alarms-- "But this isn't anything, really." (He didn't mention the little lock of green-dyed hair burning beneath the wood; that was from before Zach's time, and the kid wouldn't understand.) "If you want to see something really cool, though-- I sometimes do firework shows. Not the safest of things, but you'd love them. After all, you're one of us, right?"

"Of course! I couldn't not be," Zach said, his smile fading into anxiousness. Mark could read those thoughts-- he'd seen them before, on other recruits' faces. I want to be part of this. Please, let me be part of this. "I love, ahh, oh. Yeah, fireworks. They're great."

But there weren't many who caught on to the fireworks that quickly.

Well, Mark thought, this kid is sharp. He might be good for things beyond just being who he is. He reached over and ruffled the kid's dark hair. "Hey, be good and I might let you help set up a show or two. I could use a brain like yours."

Zach glanced away, and the moment of shifting veiwpoint was so clear on the kid's face. After a moment, he looked back up-- not an Eos, but a companion to stand by Mark.

"Yeah. I'd like that."