(BL) Hunting The Field Guide - Chapter 395

Chapter 395: A day full of contemplation
Kellen and Rhys didn’t end up going back to sleep. Which meant that Kellen was awake, dressed, and had his own tea in his hand as he sent off the first half of his second group without a hitch. He wasn’t expecting the second half of his first group’s arrival until later, so he went off to his classes. Thankful for the jacket he was wearing.

He’d left some pretty serious teeth marks on his wrist and the meaty part of his hand. No one was really looking at his hands right now, besides Rhys, so he was free from criticism from everyone but Taylor.

Who made a comment about him needing healing as soon as she saw him in the small waiting room in the afternoon.

Rhys was busy laughing to himself as Taylor frowned. She at least looked better then the last pick up they had done, and he had a feeling that was intentional. She didn’t want to be hounded by the recently returned Guides like last time.

Kellen could understand. They had just come from a rather intense experience. Their boundaries were a little skewed because they were different on the front lines. You had to be pushy, you had to be forceful on the front lines when it came to Espers. It was the opposite when in the cities. The Espers were the forceful ones when it came to the cities.

So when Guides, particularly Field Guides came back from the front lines, there was usually a period of time where they were forceful with Espers. It got them…attention, that was for sure. It faded over time, but Kellen found it a little bit funny that it only took a week for them to change their habits.

Thankfully, Kellen hadn’t heard that there had been any altercations or issues with the second group. In fact, much like the first group, Kellen had only heard praises. So many, in fact, that some of his former trainers had reached out through proper channels to congratulate him on what he was doing, and offer their services if he needed any help. It was strange.

He was just doing what he was asked to do, and yet he was getting a lot of recognition for it. It was funny that now he was doing something that he didn’t think was a big deal, everyone was giving him the attention that he had originally wanted when he first went to the front lines. All he could do was laugh now that that was the case.

It was even funnier to him that he didn’t really need it anymore.

~

When the Guides began to arrive with the same Esper as an escort, they looked around, tired, but excited. Their eyes lit up in a similar fashion as the first group when their eyes landed on Kellen. He was surrounded in only a few short minutes, all of them talking a mile a minute.

Bree was the worst for it. Her eyes were sparkling, her face flushed as she tried to recount everything that had happened on the front lines in two minutes. Kellen was impressed that she could talk that quickly, and was pleased to see that her worries hadn’t translated into an all encompassing fear of the front lines.

They weren’t as easy to pass off to Taylor because she was well taken care of. That was a small problem, changed when Rhys stepped in with a smile. He easily maneuvered the Guides into their checkups, and a few of them were in trouble.

That might also be why they weren’t as willing to go to Taylor. Both Taylor and Kellen chastised them, publicly, but respectfully for ignoring any injuries they sustained. Kellen also warned that Brent was going to hear about this, and that made them even more upset.

Kellen was learning that they had a fun teacher and a strict teacher dynamic. Kellen wasn’t upset that he was the strict teacher, and it worked in his favour if he could use the disappointment of Brent as a threat for them to report their injuries. Kellen wanted them to start with safe practises, and then hopefully, remain doing said safe practises.

He wanted to set them up for success.

Unlike the previous group, Kellen did feel that a few of the Guides might drop from the class. It wasn’t something he could exactly say out loud with confidence, but it was a knowing that washed over him. They were excited, yes, but he couldn’t tell with some of them that it was excitement that they had gone to the front lines and done something that others hadn’t, or if it was because they were back home.

He was sure his debrief session with them after work would be eye opening and shed some light on what side they were falling.

Kellen’s little chat with the Esper who guided everyone to and from the front lines was nice. It was clear that Rhys trusted them, and when Kellen asked how long they had been with the Guild, Kellen was surprised to find out that they were one of the first few Espers to join after Rhys started his Guild.

The two of them reminisced on the original outfits, and how Rhys had really begged and pleaded to get the colours that he wanted from the previous, other Guild who had held them.

It was actually very interesting for Kellen to hear about the time before he was here. The times at the beginning, and how hard it had been when they had first started out. All the little things that Kellen wouldn’t consider, like outfit colours, or how long it took them to negotiate to get this plot of land to build the tower. How most of it had come from Rhys’ own pockets from his work that he had done for the D.E.C.

Kellen had assumed that Rhys had done quite well for himself, but he didn’t realise it had been that good. Rhys had been all smiles when Kellen had looked at him, all proud and puffed up. It was clear that he was happy to show off his wealth, and it wasn’t until later, when they were alone and holding hands that Rhys confided that he was happy. Happy that he could show Kellen how much he could provide for the other man.

If Kellen ever wanted to stop working, and wanted Rhys to retire, they wouldn’t have to work another day. Rhys had enough money to fund a smaller country, and he had worked hard to get it. Kellen knew he was bragging, but at the same time, he could tell that there was more to it.

There were some parts of Rhys that Kellen still didn’t know. He hadn’t prodded more about why Rhys was prone to sucking the power away from other Guides before he met Kellen. In fact, Rhys hadn’t done it since, so it kind of felt like a dream that that was the way that this all happened.

Whatever it had been, or still was, Taylor knew and was sworn to secrecy over it, and Rhys hadn’t spoken to Kellen about it since. With all that said, Kellen didn’t mind not knowing more. Rhys’ past was important, Kellen wouldn’t say that, but there was a small, maybe jealous part of himself that didn’t want to know about the Guides who he had done the same thing with.

Kellen was sure that didn’t make him a good person and he was okay with that. If Rhys wanted to talk about his past with him, Kellen was open to talking about it. He just didn’t want to force the other man to talk about it, now that he was talking to a therapist. Kellen wasn’t one. He knew that.

So he just wanted Rhys to feel happy, and safe, and content.

He wanted to make sure that all of the dreams that Rhys had came true, since Kellen’s had. He was still doing the job that he had grown to love, he was with the partner he had always dreamed for himself, ever since he found out that he was a Guide. He had given up on that dream when he found out that his compatibility scores were so low, and yet, here he was.

Not only with the man that he had fantasized about when he was a teenager, but also with a man who had liked him back, they just had terrible communication. Rhys was sweet to him, and was far more ambitious than Kellen. He knew that if Kellen said he wanted to retire tomorrow, Rhys would, but the man had so much passion for protecting the world.

For trying to save it. For trying to find out all the reasons as to why this was happening, not just how to stop it. It was one of the things that Kellen didn’t even know he admired about the other man, but it became more clear to him as time moved on.

There was a reason beyond marketability that Rhys made sure that the whole world knew his name, and the name of his Guild. He wanted the world to know that he was moving forward, he was making sure that he knew as much as he could. He was using his powers to find out everything and anything that would help them.

Kellen wondered how he kept track of everything, how he was able to not lose his mind to insanity outside of resetting himself. To keep this passion inside of him, like a second heartbeat that kept him moving along even after all the tragedy that had come his way. He wondered if it was an S Class thing, the strength inside of him, and the others that he had met, and then brushed that thought off. It was a disservice to those who had fought so hard to just label it an S Class trait.

Even if it might be true.

So, even if Kellen didn’t want to be bound to him in the way an Esper and Guide normally would be, so that both of them could continue to pursue their dreams without worry, Kellen would remain by his side. Maybe he would get that damn collar the man wanted, and maybe something else as well.

Everyone had expected them to get married, and it wasn’t as if same sex marriage was frowned upon anymore. What was the fucking point of being against same sex attraction when a monster could kill you and your family? Let others live a little. So, maybe…just maybe…Kellen would be the one to help Rhys move forward with his plans.

He just…needed to find a way to talk about Kellen’s plans without hurting the man in the process.