FicWad

Ok before you read, you have to know how this came in to being. Well, I decided that you know, it could be fun to write a short little sequel to Just A Shell. I had all these ideas flying around my head that I couldn't wait to get down, so I started writing. And then I did some more. And some more. And some more after that. And next thing I know, I've got the longest thing I've ever written in one go down, and it's still not done. So, I carried on. It's now over nine-thousand words. How this happened is beyond me, but fuck know I've worked my arse off on this!

But what can you do?

Fair warning - this contains millions of spoilers for The Host, in case you ever intend on reading it.

And it has non-con sex in it. Sorry bout that.

Also, I'd really appreciate it if you took the time to review, because there are some bits with Fire/Gerard that I'm really not sure how well I pulled off. And writing this in the present tense was a bitch as well. So yeah - please, please, please on the feedback!

Anyway, it's set one year after the last bit, and is three times longer.

Enjoy!

Sx




Things have certainly changed since the three of them had first found the cabin. The first, most obvious one is the addition to their troop - Alicia had given birth to a baby girl, and it had simultaneously broken and melted her heart. Broken; well, the infant's father is dead, by her own mother's hand. Melted; the severely depressed mother now has something to cling on to - a reason to carry on fighting, living.

The other noticeable difference is how the two adult humans act towards the alien they are still keeping.

They don't dare to let him go, in case he finds his way back to civilisation and reports their where abouts. At the same time, neither have the heart to kill him.

Despite doing their very best to wipe out an entire race, the beings are pathetic. They're overly kind, scared by anything even slightly threatening and hurt by the tiniest insult. Fire conforms to all of these traits and it's close to impossible to harm anything quite so pathetic.

It's this that eventually warmed Alicia to his presence. As far as she's concerned, the creature is no threat to her, her child or her friend, so there's no point in harming him. There's no doubt that if he ever did, she'd strangle him with her bare hands though. Even if Fire could bring himself to commit an act of violence, his fear of the woman would stop him. Despite everything, most of the time, she's almost kind to him.

Sometimes, when it's late at night, and Frank's out on a raid, she'll ask questions about his kind, and the planets he's lived on. The alien assures her that Earth is by far the most astounding, and the most terrifying.

However, Alicia's attitude is polar to that of the man's. Although it was initially Frank protecting the alien - unable to kill the shell of his lover - he's become bitter where his friend has become sweet. Fire can understand why; he's lost a loved one, whilst she's gained one.

The alien only knew part of it though. It was killing the once kind, loveable man on the inside, living like this. Having Gerard there - his body but a stranger filling it, is a torment beyond anything else he could imagine.

Despite his name, Fire has none of Gerard's spark. He doesn't yell back when Frank shout at him, just cowers away. He doesn't look at something and immediately start dissecting to make it more artistic, more beautiful. And yet, he has Gerard's laugh, his smile. He tilts his head to side in the same way when confused, and sometimes, just sometimes, Frank thinks that maybe his lover is back, that he was never really gone. Then the alien will do something that the man Iero longs for would never do, or says something, or remains quiet when Gerard never would have. And then Frank's heart breaks all over again.

Of course, Fire doesn't know any of this, but he can understand why the human hated him. He has enough idea what is going on in the man's head, and it scares him more than Alicia's threats ever could. What is even more terrifying is how he feels himself.

Whenever Frank walks past, the alien feels a tugging in his human gut. Apparently, although the consciousness controlling is has changed, Gerard's body still yearns for the younger man. And in turn, Fire has come to love Iero despite the man openly detesting him.

So now, whenever Frank shouts at him, the alien cries on the inside, knowing his feelings are unreturned. When the man's upset, Fire yearns to crawl over and comfort him. When the human's out on a raid, the being misses him. And it's not just his body anymore - it's Fire who wants the man so hard his human heart breaks. The worst part; he knows that every bit of Frank's pain is caused by him. He's the reason that the human never smiles he way he did in Gerard's memory.

There's something even more petrifying than his strange feelings though. Whenever Fire finds himself yearning for Iero, something stirs in the back of his mind. That something is fiercely possessive, and the alien can feel anger radiating from it whenever his eyes linger on Frank for too long.

It isn't part of him, or his sub-consciousness, that much is certain. He's also fairly sure it isn't his body either, although that does seem to have a mind of its own at times.

At first it was so faint; the tiniest flicker of emotion, sometimes one that completely opposed whatever he was feeling. It had grown over the months though, and is now far more tangible. And Fire knows what it was - that's why it scares him so much. The small thoughts and feelings are... Gerard. The previous owner of the body he's in.

Fire can't understand this. It was his tenth life, and he's never had this problem before. Once he was in a being, it was just him - it was his body. Before coming to Earth, he'd never even thought about what was in one before, just took living in one for granted. Now though, he's terrified.

What if Gerard somehow managed to become fully conscious? Would he take over the body? Would Fire be wiped out, forgotten, like some bad dream? Would he die in this body, along with its other inhabitant? It's like something from a nightmare.

All he the alien can do is hope it goes, and yet everyday, it gets stronger. Oh well, if Gerard does break through, at least Frank will be happy. Fire is so far wrapped in his irrational feelings, he almost sees this as a good thing. At the same time though, it makes him want to cry, knowing that he'll never be the one to make the man happy.

Until that day though, when Gerard does over-power him, he'll hide this mental grapple from the humans. Goodness only knows what will happen if they find out that the man they love is alive, only trapped inside his own mind.

There are some things that Fire can't hide from them, however. Things that play out to his kind's disadvantage. So far, he hadn't revealed anything too damaging, but when it was late at night, Alicia would play mind games with him to make him accidentally spit out secrets. Most were about his race's society, and about over planets and experiences he'd had.

The alien didn't find out why until around three months after they'd arrived at the cabin. The humans had quickly noticed that the only physical differences between themselves and the kind invading their planet was the unnatural sparkle in the eyes of possessed humans, and the small scars on the backs of their necks, from where the alien had gained access to the body.

In conjunction with the new race's unsuspicious nature it would make a couple of humans very easy to blend in, if they didn't call too much attention to themselves, and wore a pair of sunglasses.

When the food ran out, this is precisely what Frank and Alicia planned to do. The woman had found out enough information to help them remain inconspicuous, and with any luck it shouldn't be too difficult.

It wasn't. Iero went on the first few 'raids', as they were called, a gun hidden under his jacket just in case. If they aliens captured him, he'd die before letting himself become a host to the parasitic race. Fire had proved that he could access Gerard's memories, and if Frank was caught, he'd reveal their hiding place.

The first time that he'd gone Alicia had spent the day shredding her nails and jumping at the tiniest noise. Fire hadn't been much better off, although it would have probably played in his favour if Frank was caught. This nervous behaviour only stopped when the man arrived home.

Then, Alicia had become besides herself with joy. It seemed the whole thing had been far easier than expected, and Iero had taken full advantage of this. He had delicacies they hadn't tasted in months - fresh fruit; packets of crisps; bread; cake; yogurts. The car was full of things with a short expiration date, as well as enough canned stuff to keep them going for at least another month. As it turned out, the aliens had found a way to operate a society not based around money, so it was simply a case of picking things up off of the shelves and checking them out, before going to the next store and getting provisions from there.

They'd had a feast that night, even allowing Fire to reap the benefits of Frank's outing, though the man had been reluctant to do so.

Soon the raids became a regular event, although the humans tried to limit them to once a month. Then they started picking up not only food, but paints for the cabin and furniture for the baby that Alicia was on the verge of giving birth to.

Life became substantially easier - at least, until the new addition to the trio. Fire wasn't present for the birth, something that he'd forever be thankful for. Hearing the agonised screams coming from the room in which it was taking place was enough for him. He saw Alicia later though, and despite the pain she'd obviously been going through earlier, the woman appeared completely at peace.

She was staring at the infant in her arms, a look of content on her face which Fire had never seen before on a human face. Even in Gerard's memory, such simple, easy peace was not a commodity he'd witnessed before.

A month or so after Michaela's birth, Alicia started going out for supplies. Frank would stay home during these in order to look after the baby, and keep an eye on the alien.

Soon enough, they had a system set up for going to surrounding towns for food and the like. The humans would go out alternatively, trying to avoid visiting the same towns too often, and pretending to be a travelling artist, or something similar. With their unsuspecting nature, the aliens swallowed the stories, and if they covered their tattoos up, their faces weren't so conspicuous as to draw any unwanted attention. It was a good system, and one they grew comfortable with very fast.

Despite the lack of danger the humans felt when collecting the provisions, the other would always worry about their safety, and remain visibly tense until their friend arrived home. All the same, neither has come to any harm yet.

It's during one of these raids that Frank finally snaps. Alicia's out this time, leaving Fire and her daughter - Michaela - in the man's care. This is nothing out of the ordinary, infact, it's something that occurs every month or so.

But this time, Iero's wound up tighter than a rubber band stretched a mile. He's pacing back and forth across the floor in front of where Fire sits, looking furious at something. The alien isn't sure he wants to know what.

True fully though, the human's furious with himself more than anything else. He'd dreamed about Gerard last night - his Gerard, not the shy, helpless creature that had been left in his place. Somehow though, he'd carried the dream through to reality and had woken up that morning wrapped in that creature's arms.

Up until Alicia had left, Frank had spent the day crying. Now, he's torturing himself with the echo of the man he used to- still loves. He should have put a bullet in the thing's head months ago.

Eventually, Fire gets fed up of the strained silence. He can't bear to see Frank in such agony, and only wants to try and ease the strain the human was feeling. So, he does the stupidest thing he's done in his life on this planet - possibly, in any life, on any planet - and speaks.

It's nothing huge, just a small, shy, quiet "Frank?" That's enough to tear the strained nerves of the man though.

"What do you want?" He shouts, temper breaking the barely calm facade he's been holding on to.

"N-nothing." Fire stutters in return, but it's too late for that.

"Oh yeah?" The human's voice is now nothing more than a hiss, but it's laced with such venom, it's even worse than the shouting. The alien cowers away, wishing he had held his tongue. "You have no idea how much I fucking hate you - do you?" Iero continues, now standing in front of the pathetic creature snivelling on the ground. "You took him away from me! And now, every fucking day I have to stare at his face, knowing it's not he's not in there!"

Frank turns away, rage and heartbreak over taking him. He breathes in and out, once, twice before spinning around again, and grabbing Fire by each shoulder and shaking him.

"God, I wish I had the guts to kill you! But you're wearing the best shield in the world, aren't you? Fuck knows, I couldn't do that whilst you're wearing his face."

There's a short, quiet, tense moment, where Frank's just staring into Fire's eyes. The former has anger written all over his face, whilst the latter is quivering from terror. Then something sets into the human's face, and he straightens up.

"Get up." He commands in a soft, dangerous voice. The alien scrambles to does as he's told. They don't keep him tied up anymore - even if he got out the cabin, there was no more intelligent life for a good hundred miles.

From there, Frank leads the man through to the room that has become his bedroom. When Michaela was born, the man had moved out of the room the two humans had been sharing as of then.

"Get on the bed." Iero points at the small single pushed up against the corner. Again, Fire does as he's told immediately, in fear of what the other may do to him if he refuses. For some reason though, the last instruction sets warning bells ringing in his head, though he is unsure why.

The back of his mind, the part that isn't him is screaming, but with what intention, the alien can't.

"Stay there." Frank orders, before leaving the room.

For a few moments, Fire remains frozen, shocked by the sudden departure. He is still unsure as to what the human wants from him, but now he has a moment to himself, memories and thoughts come flooding in. His human face flushes as most, and he sits there disbelievingly. Surely Frank wouldn't want that from him.

But now he sits alone, he can identify the emotions radiating from where Gerard's buried in the back of his brain. Betrayal, anger, jealousy. It's only then that Fire realises that he's correct, and Frank is going to do exactly what he thought he was going to. The alien doesn't know whether to be excited, or terrified.

The human comes back before he can make his mind up, but that makes it for him. Or rather - the length of rope that Frank has makes it up for him. He's terrified.

"Hands." Iero instructs shortly. Fire flails for a moment, trying to understand, then holds his arms out in front of him. The human grabs his forearms and squeezes them together, before wrapping the rope around the alien's wrists and binding them together. If he wanted to, Fire could probably get out of it, but he's too scared of the consequences.

When satisfied with the knots around the other's arms, Frank gives a tug only the cord and pulls the alien back across the bed. Then, he lashes him to the head board. Fire's too petrified to react. Gerard's screaming mentally. Screaming for the man he loves to stop what he's doing and crying internally.

No, please, no!

Fire jumps in shock at that. It's the first time he's heard the person who's body he stole, form a sentence. Or anything close to words at all. So far, it's just been feelings. He guesses the situation they were in now made Gerard panic and gave him more mental strength.

Frank doesn't seem to notice Fire's sudden alarm, although he's staring at the man intently. Without warning, he lunges forward and rips at the shirt the alien's wearing. After a few seconds, it comes clean off his back, torn to pieces.

"Open your mouth."

Frank, please I'm here. Don't do this! Gerard's screaming in Fire's head, the raw emotion he's giving off contrasting directly with to cold collected voice of the human in front of them.

Fire does as he was told. Unceremoniously, Frank bundles up the top he'd just removed from the alien and stuffs it between the latter's lips. The man gags a little as the material hits his throat and sucks the moisture out of his mouth, but doesn't protest. He's too scared.

"Fuck," Iero murmurs as he runs his hands through the messy brown locks that sit atop his head. He's torn. Part of him wants this so much, to be passionate and hot and loving, how he used to be with Gerard, but he can't do that, because Gerard isn't here. At the same time, part of him wants nothing more than to ravage the fuck out of the alien, make him pay for erasing the man Frank loved - and still loves - and make him feel all the pain that the human does on a daily basis.

Then there's his common sense. That's screaming at him to stop now, to leave Fire alone. Nothing good will come of this.

The man swallows down this notion, and his conscience with it. His body's wants outweigh his mind's reasoning, and his pain of the past year has welled up to breaking point. He can't deal with this shit any more.

"Lie down." He orders, hating how cold and emotionless his voice is.

The alien obeys, looking over his shoulder at Frank with huge eyes. He's trembling with fright. It doesn't illicit any pity in the human though - he's too far gone for that.

Instead, Iero sharply slaps Fire's thigh, not watching the face of his lover, but instead hearing the sharp intake of breathe, and seeing his red hand print stain the pale skin.

The alien's still shaking, terrified out of his wits. He's mentally begging the human to stop, knowing that expressing this verbally will do no good.

Gerard's pleading along with him. Please, leave him alone! I'm in here - you love me. Don't hurt me.

Somehow, the trapped being's begging hurts the alien nearly as much as the human looming above him. He knows that Frank doesn't feel anything for him, but hearing Gerard claim Iero's love cut him. The human doesn't seem to notice that the person whose body he is sharing's pain, just carries on struggling. Fire vaguely realises he's trying to win control back with his newfound strength, but at that point, he wouldn't have minded relinquishing the body to Gerard.

Frank knows none of this though; he's too focused on his own wants and needs. Currently, he's pulling at his own clothes, disposing of them in quick practised motions.

Once he's naked, he begins to tug at the sweat pants Fire had on. Unsurprisingly, they come off extremely easily, and then the alien's sprawled out, naked. This jolts Frank far too much - reminds him far too much of Gerard.

"Roll over." He barks, trying to dispel the unpleasant feelings twisting his gut. "On your stomach."

As with every other command so far, Fire obeys, and the human's breathing evens. This is easier; he can't see Gerard's face.

Just his ass. And at the moment, that's the important part.

Frank crawls forward and pushed the alien's legs apart, so he can kneel in between them. He's unsure where to proceed from here. If it was Gerard, there would be prepping, foreplay. But this wasn't his lover, and Iero refused to forget that. The alien in front of him didn't deserve pleasure from the act.

Instead of doing what he normally would have, the human runs his hands over Fire's back, occasionally digging his nails into the soft flesh, and leaving angry red marks in his wake. Frank doesn't care though - he doesn't give a shit about the thing that took over Gerard's body, or any pain he, no it feels.

With this in mind, he pushes its legs forward, so that the alien is folded over its knees, arms stretched in front of him. From there, Frank grasps each of the cheeks of Fire's arse and pulls them apart, revealing the hole that Iero was about to invade. He pushes both of his thumbs in without warning and stretches the small entry, watching it open up around his digits.

Fire gasps and shudders at the intrusion. He's still shaking with nerves, dreading what is going to come, and horrified that this is happening. What Frank just did, didn't exactly hurt - Gerard's body was more than used to this sort of treatment, but the thought of the action is mortifying.

Earth is the only planet Fire knew of where the sexual act is so pleasurable, so intimate, so all of this was completely new to him. Gerard's memories are preparing him for pain, but of course, the human flesh couldn't remember wounds, so the alien has no idea to what degree this pain will be. Something tells him it will be bad though.

All the while Gerard hasn't shut up. He's still struggling with the bonds that prevent him from taking control of his body, and still screaming. Fire can tell that part of the human feels betrayed that his lover is about to have sex with another man. The alien can't understand why - surely Gerard realises that the act will be nothing but painful for him? The man's not thinking straight though.

Fire jolts out of his thoughts when something warm and wet lands just inside the hole that's currently being abused. It takes him a moment to realise that it's Frank's spit, and despite himself, shudders at that. It shouldn't be hot, but God is it.

The human seems to realise this, as his tongue quickly follows the saliva down, rubbing against the soft walls of Fire's ass. The alien moans, whilst Gerard screams inside: He can feel this too apparently. The scream's more one of rage than desire though - the human's mad at his boyfriend for doing this to someone who isn't him, even if the body is the same.

Strangely enough, Frank chooses this moment to pull back. It's with the alien's moan that he remembers that this isn't supposed to be pleasurable for the other party - it's supposed to be revenge on him. The human sits back on his knees and just stares at the man sprawled out in front of him. It's been a good year since he's last had sex, and in spite of everything, is aching for it now.

He removes his thumbs from the creature's butt, and rolls off the bed, making quick work of his clothes. The moment the last item has touched the floor he's back on the mattress, and leaning over Gera- Fire.

From there, he tugs on the alien's arse again, so it's positioned high in the air, open and oh-so-enticing. Instead of pushing in like he longs to, the man leans down and bits at the soft, pale mound next to the crack. Fire winces at this, and Frank smiles wickedly, before repeating his actions. He sucks hard on the spot too, ensuring that a bruise will form there, before moving on to another spit and giving that the same treatment. As though it won't be difficult enough for the thing to sit down after his.

In front of him, Fire's biting the pillow. What the human's doing is without doubt pleasurable, but it's painful too, and he certainly isn't a masochist. However, he doesn't want Frank to stop - if he does, that would only mean that the impending rape is coming sooner. And he's sure that will hurt a lot more.

Frank, don't do this! You bastard, leave him alone!

Please, please, I love you. Don't do this to me - I'm here and this'll hurt me too. Don't do this. It isn't you!

Just don't touch him! You're not allowed to do that, you're mine. Please, Frankie, please, please?

Gerard's practically non-sensical and his babbling and mental wresting is giving Fire a pounding headache. The human doesn't even seem to be aware of the alien's presence in his head - he's too busy trying to gain access to the body. To be able to turn around, and yell at Frank, and to kiss him, and everything that he's been unable to do for the past year.

Fire moans at the sensation of the man behind him biting down particularly hard (Stop it! Leave him alone!), but whether the sound is one of pleasure or pain, even he doesn't know.

Frank hears it though, despite the t-shirt acting as a gag stuffed down the other's throat, and the sound runs through him like ice. He's still fighting himself to inflict any pain - as he said earlier, the alien has the ultimate shield. He could never hurt Gerard like that.

Of course though, this isn't Gerard.

Iero shakes his head, trying to clear it. The whole situation is a complete mind fuck, but he knows how to deal with that. He settles back on to his knees again, and pulls Fire towards him. The man spits on his palm and rubs the make-shift lubricant over his erect dick. Then, he thrusts into the other with one fast movement. He doesn't exactly enjoy the agonised, if muffled, scream that is released with the action, but it does give him a certain satisfaction to know Fire is hurting, whilst this feels nothing but good for him.

The alien writhes around him, trying to escape the burning pain that shot through him at the intrusion. It feels as though he is being ripped open and set alight at the same time. Gerard's beyond coherent thought as well - he can feel the agony and is past begging to someone who can't hear him. Like Fire, he has no choice but to sit back and just take it.

The pain only worsens as Frank begins to rock in and out. The actions are slow and steady, but it still feels as though Fire's insides are being torn out with every movement.

"Ahh, shit." The human pants. As previously noted, it's been far too long since he's had any sort of sexual relief, and somehow, it's all pent up until now. However, at this moment, buried balls-deep in his lover - or the body of him at least - Frank's lost all desire to make this painful. He still hates Fire, with every atom in his body, but doesn't have the heart to torture him. The rough, uncaring entry probably hurt enough, and right now, all the man wants is to pretend the person he's fucking, is indeed the one he loves, not just their shell filled with another.

So he goes slow, rocking back and forth and angling his thrusts differently each time to try and find the other's prostate. If it was a year ago, this would have taken seconds; he was so familiar with Gerard's body. Now, it takes a little longer, but Frank isn't going to speed up until he finds it, wanting to save himself so he can drive his lover wild.

Eventually he hears Fire's (although in Iero's head, it's Gerard, and the past twelve months have been nothing more than a prolonged nightmare) breath hitch. The other man had been breathing heavily in and out his nose, his nose being blocked, trying to control the pain, or at least, his screams. When Frank hears the slight alteration though, he angles himself to thrust into the same place, guessing that he's found what he's looking for.

The next breathe is strangled, and Iero mimics that movement again and again and again, until he's got the man in front of him crying out again, only this time, from pleasure. There's enough spit, and enough blood to make his movements slick and he rocks back and forth against Fire's prostate, revelling in the desperate, half-formed noises being emitted. They aren't exactly the same as Gerard's but they are close - close enough to pretend.

The human's moving slower now, almost teasing as he clutches the other's hips to keep his movements constant. The heat around him is making it hard to think, but that doesn't matter, it feels so damn good. He knows he isn't going to last long - not after being celibate for a year. Even going slow like this, he's not going to be able to drag this out. And as good as it feels physically, it isn't something that he wants to repeat. Because inside, it's tearing him apart. The knowledge that this isn't Gerard is still buried inside, and no matter how deep it is, he still can't rid himself of it completely.

He carried on though, driving himself still deeper into that tight, blissful heat and panting at the friction he was feeling. As his orgasm approached, he sped up, still aiming for Fire's prostate.

By this point the alien was going insane. Never, in any of his lives, in any of his bodies had he felt pleasure like this. It was driving him up the wall, and over whelming him. In the pit of his stomach, he could feel something building up - a heat that was begging to be released as Frank rocked in and out of him. If he could think coherently, he'd still be terrified and wishing for this to stop. But he can't and he never wants it to end.

Gerard's having a similar problem, but he wants this to stop. He can't believe that his lover is doing this. When he was making it hurt, at least the man knew that Frank hadn't moved on. That he doesn't care about the alien. Now, he's purposely trying to get Fire off, and it's killing Way. He knows he's being unreasonable, but he'd been through hell and back as much as Frank had this last year, and the emotions now are threatening to overcome him. He's boiling over with fury and hate.

The two beings trapped inside Gerard's body's feelings suddenly stutter and stop in shock at a burning in their butt. Fire can't figure out what's happening, he just knows that it stings an impossible amount. The human knows though - it's a feeling he's felt a thousand times before, even if it was never quite this painful. Frank just came. His anger only heightens at this new knowledge.

Iero's not done yet however. He doesn't release, Fire, instead stays buried inside him, and begins to stroke the erect cock underneath his body. The alien yelps in surprise, and then reverts back to the moans of earlier. This feels impossibly good. After only six strokes, that warm feeling in the pit of his belly reaches an unbearable amount and he finds himself spurting it out through his cock across the sheets in front of him.

Overcome with pleasure, the alien blacks out.

Frank just stays there for a few seconds. He's panting and at the moment, his thoughts are as erratic as his breathe. Then it hits him what he's just done. Raped someone. Had sex with someone who isn't Gerard. In this situation, he's not sure what's the greater of two evils.

And then the hurt hits him. That wasn't Gerard, and he shouldn't have kidded himself for a moment that it was. Because now, that truth was hitting him like a ton of brick and killing him.

Disgusted with himself, Iero pulls out and grabs his jeans before walking out the room. He can't bear to be around the alien at the moment, who is lying on the bed trying to catch his breathe. He pulls his jeans on, the mechanical movement keeping him sane for another precious second. Then, he collapsed on to the floor, curling up as the tears come.

In the bedroom, the person blinks, unable to believe what just happened, and not sure what to think now it has. Fire may have passed out, momentarily shocked out of existence by the physical pleasure and mental agony that flooded through him, but the body wasn't overwhelmed. The one controlling it just switched.

Gerard lies on the bed where he collapsed, panting slightly. Part of him is rejoicing - singing with happiness at being in control of his body again - the other rest of him is a swarm of anger directed at Frank. The other man still isn't back, so it's up to Way to get himself out of the bonds that secure him to the headboard. Thankfully, as Fire noted, they aren't particularly tight, so after a few minutes of struggling, he's free of them. Then, he pulls the shirt out from between his lips.

His mouth is dry from the material absorbing all of the moisture produced by his salivary glands, and it tastes horrible. Gerard smacks his lips a few times, and swallows, trying to displace the dryness.

Then he sits up.

"Argh." The man gives a strangled moan at the movement, the torn muscles and aching muscles burning. Frank clearly didn't hold back.

Again, anger rises inside of him. He's furious - mad that his lover would do this. Have sex with someone other than him, never mind rape someone. He can't believe that Iero would hurt someone like this, no matter what the younger man may have been going through.

Admittedly, Gerard himself detests Fire - for stealing his body, for lusting over Frank, for being able to talk, and touch and everything else that he couldn't do in his shadow of an existence - but he doesn't agree that the alien deserved this.

Hissing at the pain that came with every movement, Way clambers off the bed, and pulls his jeans on, not bothering with underwear. Then, he leaves the small bedroom, in search of Frank.

He finds the other man curled up on the floor in the main room, hugging his knees and sobbing desperately. Right now though, Gerard has no pity.

"You cunt."

The crying man looks up at that, his face stained with tears and eyes bitter and desolate. "W- What?"

"You fucking arsehole!" Gerard half shouts, directing all of his rage out through heart-felt insults launched at the man he loves. "How the fuck could you do that to me?"

Frank's head is reeling. Fire has never, ever spoken like that, not to him, or Alicia. He doesn't think the creature has the balls to do it. The aliens are too kind and loving for a race willing to commit genocide for a new home. This isn't Fire... It can't be.

The only other possibility leaves him speechless though.

"You sick, twisted, bastard, how could you do that to someone? To anyone, fucking alien or not! You shitbag, I thought you fucking loved me!"

Despite the harsh words aimed at him, Iero's heart soars. Because it is. It's him. It's Gerard.

All sadness forgotten, Frank gets up off the floor and launches himself at the other man. Gerard stumbles back from the force of the hug, and despite his anger, wraps his arms around the younger man, because he can now. He can move. He can feel the warm body in his arms, still shaking with sobs, but once of relief now.

More than that though. He can smell the sweat coming off Iero, and the wooziness of the cabin's walls. He can see, with his own eyes, the way the light filtered through the room, highlighting the dancing dust motes that swirls through the air. He can hear the small snuffles coming from Frank, and the wind in the trees outside. And it's not just an impression, thoughts filtered down in the mind he was buried in. It's all around him, and part of him, and fuck, he never wants to go back.

But in his mind, he can feel Fire hovering there. The thoughts aren't lucid - the alien's still asleep, but he doesn't know how long that will last for. He isn't going to waste his time being angry at Frank though.

Gerard pulls back from the embrace to tangle his lips with the younger mans, tasting salty tears in the other's mouth. Iero responds happily, his tongue lapping at the other's lips and pushing in. He reaches up to hold the taller man's head in a loose grasp, just so he can reach his tongue in further, try and take every sensation that he'd long for so much over the past twelve months.

"I missed you." He says wetly. "So much. Don't you dare ever fucking leave me again."

"I may not have a choice." Gerard replies truthfully, hating the way Iero's face falls at that. "He's still there, Fire, but buried, like I was. I think he's sleeping now, so I'm here, but I don't know what will happen when he wakes up."

"Fuck, that's weird." Frank breathes.

"Yeah." The older man agrees. "Look, don't do that again, ok? Have sex with him. I hated it - it might be my body, but it's not me, you know? It's like you're cheating on me."

"I'm sorry." Iero squeezes his arms a little tighter. "Never, ever, ever again."

"Thank you."

"I'll never give up on you either. I'm gonna find a way to get rid of that little fuck-tard. Get you your body back."

Gerard smiles softly. "I'll try as well, try and break through. Who knows? Now I've done it once, I may be able to again."

"With any luck."

It's at that moment that Michaela decides to start wailing throatily from her room. Frank curses her timing, but then, at least it wasn't half an hour ago.

On the other hand, Gerard's face lights up at the sound.

"Can we go and see her?"

"Well, we kinda have to. Leesh would kill me if I just left her crying like that." Iero grumbles, leading the way to the infant's bedroom. He keeps his fingers hooked around the other man's, not daring to let go now that he's just got him back.

The baby's room is a light purple colour, and she's lying in a wooden crib with green covers. It clashed horribly, but Gerard rather likes it.

Frank scoops the girl up, and bounces her up and down slightly, trying to hush her. She quietens fast enough, apparently just wanting some attentions. Iero smiles and kisses the kid's head affectionately. She burbles happily.

"Can I hold her?" The older man asks.

Frank is slightly taken aback by the request, but complies, handing the infant over with a warning to support her head. Gerard manages easily enough, holding the small girl with a look of adoration on his face.

"Hello, darling." He coos. Tears prick Iero's eyes as he watches. Why can't it just be like this all the time? Why does Fire have to exist - why did the whole motherfucking race have to come down and turn everything to shit?

The tattooed man shakes his head and sits down next to Gerard, who had curled up on the sofa in the corner of the room, still talking to the baby.

"I'm your uncle, I guess." Way grins happily. "What's her name?"

"Michaela." Frank responds, shifting closer so there is no gap between his and the other man's bodies.

"Oh." Gerard's face had suddenly dropped. "After Mikey." Frank doesn't know what to say, but Way answers the question going through his head. "He's dead."

"Yeah."

"Alicia shot him."

Iero's left speechless. It's true, but that evening had been so confusing, so awful, he could hardly hold it against her. There are times that he wished that he'd shot Fire, so he wouldn't have to cope being around the alien everyday. Right now, he's relieved he didn't... But the past year was beyond hell.

Then something occurs to the younger man - what will Alicia do when she finds out Gerard is back? It will kill her, knowing that she not only killed her husband's body and the thing inhabiting it, but also all possibility of him coming back. Obviously, the woman didn't enjoy her friend's pain, but it kept her sane, knowing that Mikey was gone anyway, and she was avoiding going through what Frank was. Now... She'd lose her mind.

Iero shakes this off for the moment though - it isn't Alicia who he needs to comfort at the moment; it's Gerard.

"I'm sorry." He says, pressing even closer and wrapping his arms around the other man. "It wasn't deliberate, everyone was attacking us and he just... got in the way." Frank sighs heavily. "It was madness, that night - probably the worst of my life. Neither of us knew what was going on; it was a case of survival, you know?"

"I don't!' Gerard mutters, his voice angry. "I don't remember any of it, so I have no idea what you're on about." There are tears running down his face, thick and heavy. "All I know is that my baby brother's dead. He was murdered."

"Not by Alicia though - these aliens have killed the entire human race, Mikey included."

"I came back." Way points out. "His situation was no different to mine."

Frank sighs. After all, it's true. "I think you're the exception though. I've heard Alicia talking to that thing, and he's said that once he's in a host, the old inhabitant is nothing more than a memory."

"So why am I different?" The older man tilts his head back.

"I have no idea. I'm glad you are though." Iero replies truefully.

"Yeah... What about everyone else? My parents? Yours? Our friends?" Frank doesn't reply, which is more than enough of an answer for Gerard. "Oh shit."

The tattooed man feels his guts coil as the other begins to sob heavily. Him and Alicia have never really mourned their losses, not properly. It was easier to try and forget that everyone you used to know is now dead, and instead focus on keeping yourselves alive.

The full weight of the alien invasion hits Frank now, along with all its repercussions. For a while, him and Gerard just cry for everyone they've lost. Their friends, their parents, their cousins, siblings, those they grew up with - the people who made life worth living. The fact that they are all gone, erased, was over-whelming.

Eventually, the tears peter out. Michaela has fallen back asleep by then, and Gerard wants nothing more than to join her in slumber, and for a few hours forget this mess. At the same time though, he knows his time in possession of his body is limited. Fire's still lurking at the back of his head, waiting to regain control.

"Frank?" He whispers, voice husky.

"Yeah?" The younger man looks up, face still drenched in tears.

"Kiss me?"

Frank frowns. "Are you sure? I mean, after everything..."

"I'm not gonna be around for much longer." Gerard frowns, thinking that when it's worded like that, it sounds as though he's going to die. "In control of my body I mean. I don't wanna waste my time."

Iero just nods, understanding. As upset as he is, he's not going to spend his limited time with the man he loves crying. "Put Michaela back in her crib."

Way does so, as is immediately faced by the younger man, who presses their mouths together desperately. Gerard latches on, and grabs Frank around his waist. The latter fists his hands in Way's hair and drags him back through the room, and to the couch in the living room. It's a little risky that Alicia will find them like this, but there is no way in Hell that they're getting off with a baby watching.

Soon enough, they’re lying down, kissing roughly and passionately, hand dragging over skin and removing clothes. It takes little more than a minute for Iero’s hand to have found the older man’s cock again, and this time, he’s jacking the guy off for all he is worth – quick, steady strokes, interspaced with his thumb flicking over the head, and pulling the skin there down to get at the most sensitive part. It doesn’t take long for Gerard to come undone completely, moaning and wriggling around in ecstasy.

“Shit, Frank – gonna cum.” He pants after only a quick ten minutes. If it wasn’t for a fact that he hadn’t got off for over a year (the rape earlier doesn't count), it would be embarrassing.

The younger man doesn’t care either. He’s just happy to finally have his lover back, to be able to do this to him, and fucking know that it was actually Gerard, not some imitation. He speeds up slightly with the warning, speeding up the end and stroking Way through it.

The man lies back for a few seconds, just to get his breath back, and then he’s leaning up again to kiss Frank’s mouth fiercely. Everything he’s been feeling for the past few months – the anger, the jealousy, the want, the tearing sadness – are conveyed in that kiss. It’s mind-numbingly intense.

Iero gasps into the other man’s mouth when he feels a hand on his own cock, which he had been rutting animalisticly against Gerard’s hip. Way doesn’t bother with anything complicated; he just begins to jerk off his lover with the sole purpose of getting the younger man off. He lasts only slightly longer.

The kissing carries on though. They're desperate; not wanting to lose a second of their precious time together. Gerard wants to indulge in every physical pleasure possible, before he's cut off from his senses again. So far, he's been doing pretty well. He can feel Frank pressed against him - the weight almost crushing him, and his body warmth seeping in. He can taste the younger man as well, and smell him. He tastes a little different; cut off from cigarettes and without the privilege of coffee at every turn, he would do. Way vaguely wonders if he's managed to keep up his vegetarianism.

Frank's happy too. Unlike Gerard though, he wants to talk. His body is there the entire time - Iero can touch it any time he wants. Right now, he wants to reconnect with the older man, just hold him as they whisper stories and secrets to each other. Watch him speak with all of his ridiculous hand gestures, and intensity, and sometimes go off at a random tangent, and that stupid little giggle he'd give off when he realised that he'd strayed from the point.

It was ironic really. Before this entire debacle had happened, it had been the other way around. Frank had been the one wanting sex, whilst Gerard had been happy to settle for talking. Now, as ever, they reach a middle ground.

"Gee, Gerard." Iero pulls away, breaking the twisting of their tongues. "Come on. I've missed you. I don't wanna waste this time just getting off with you."

"Oh." Way looks unexpectedly downcast. "I kinda wanted to..." The younger man laughs gently at that unexpected proclamation. "No I mean, I can't touch, feel, taste, or smell anything normally. I hate it." He spits, with a sudden venom in his voice. "I fucking can't stand it. Not being able to feel fucking anything not having any control over myself, not being able to talk to you, or touch you or fucking move. You can't imagine what it's like. Fucking stuck in your own body like that."

"I'm sorry." Iero whispers. "I wish I could fix you."

"The feeling's mutual." Gerard mutters back. "Let's face it though, it hasn't been easy for you either, has it?"

Frank shakes his head. "Fucking hell. That why I just wanna talk now. Because it's you, and you're here."

"Then let's talk."

The younger man smiles. "Shall we put some clothes on though? Alicia will have a fucking heart attack if she comes back and sees us like this."

Gerard nods and climbs off the couch to pull on his jeans. They're kinda gross from neglected washing, but they'll do. Right now, he's savouring every sensation against his skin, whether it be pleasant or not.

"Wait here." Frank smiles, before running quickly over to where the kitchen is. Gerard collapses back on to the couch, and closes his eyes. He's got the beginnings of a headache around his temples and massages them. He can feel Fire back there too, but the alien still seems to be unconscious. Way snorts at this - it hadn't been that amazing an orgasm.

The tattooed man is back in less than a minute, clutching a blanket and holding something behind his back. He dumps the fluffy material on the sofa, before climbing forward to straddle the other's lap.

"Close your eyes." He instructs.

Gerard obliges, and a second later feels Frank's lips against his in a soft touch. They're gone after a second, replaced by something substantially harder, and rectangular. Way opens his mouth and immediately tastes the creamy sweetness of chocolate melting on his tongue.

"Mm." He purrs in appreciation.

"Glad you like." Iero moves over so they're sitting - almost lying, actually - next to each other. Gerard shifts so their bodies are pressed together, and receives another soft kiss. "I have the whole bar if you want it."

"Why not?"

They spend the next two and a half hours talking softly. Not about anything important; it's all mindless stupid chatter that they'd once taken for granted and not remembered the next day. They don't talk about aliens, or dead brothers, or being trapped, or babies. It is all easy and shallow, but Frank holds every word in his heart.

He keeps on feeding the other man as well, and placing his mouth tenderly on his face; making sure that Gerard would enjoy having his body back for the short while it was possible.

They ended up falling asleep, holding each other - just as they'd used to.

And when Gerard wakes up, well, it isn't Gerard anymore.

Fire blinks blearily, trying to figure out what was going on. The human inside his mind was quieter than usual, is he notices, somehow more content. The second thing that comes to his attention is how much his body hurts, the lower half in particular. It's just a dull ache at the moment, but the alien guesses that moving will make it flare.

The he realises something else. He was being held as he slept.

The arms around him are familiar, and yet completely foreign, and the body against him warm and welcoming but scary at the same time. And his body knows instinctively who it is - Frank.

Fire's terrified.

He tries to squirm away without waking the human wrapped around him. Of course, it doesn't work.

"Gee?" Iero murmurs sleepily, tightening his grip slightly.

The alien lets out a terrified hiss as the events that had occurred before he passed out came back to him. What had happened whilst he was asleep? Had Frank... raped him again? Why was he holding him now? Had the human actually gone insane and convinced himself that his old lover was back?

For some reason, it's the last option that hurts Fire the most. Stupid human, with their stupid emotions - why did he feel like this about someone who hated him.

"Gerard, what is it?" Iero mutters again, opening his eyes.

The moment he meets the gaze of the other man, he knows that Gerard is gone, and the alien who'd crawled beneath his skin has taken his place again. He squeezed his eyes shut to stop the tears escaping then jumps off the sofa.

"Go back to your room." He orders.

Fire stays still, still looking terrified - apparently too scared to move.

"I said fucking go!" Frank shouts.

The alien springs up and dashes away, ignoring the pain that comes with it.

The moment that he's out the room, the human collapses. Sobs wrack his body, tears pushing through at having lost Gerard again. He doesn't know if it's worse or better knowing the other man is still there, just buried beneath the surface. Buried alive. It must be torture.

The tears don't stop even when Alicia comes home. She has the spoils of the day still in the car, and wants Frank's help unloading. She changes her mind the moment she sees her friend on the floor. Instead, the woman crouches down and wraps her arms around the other human, trying to comfort him from whatever is ripping him apart like this. It's not that she doesn't understand what he's going through - she's been through exactly the same. What she doesn't know is what triggered this sorrow that's killing one of the few things keeping her sane in this life. She feels desperately sorry for him, but can't help.

Right now the man's inconsolable; all he wants to do is die. He won't though - Gerard is still alive. Even death won't help. Won't reunite them. The idea of ending everything though is appealing though. But Frank isn't the sort to shy away from a bad situation. And if he's going down, the whole fucking world is coming down with him.



The End.


[*Dare I ask what you think?]