#Kro wouldn't lay a hand on her

[softquietsteadylove]

ahhh can we see protective gil in circus au? there’s no way he’s letting her stay locked up forever!

Eyes followed as Thena finally emerged from the sleeper car. She wasn't dressed for rehearsal, she was wearing a regular old dress. Everyone stared but no one dared say a word.

She walked confidently enough, even though she had a beast of a man trailing behind her. He met every pair of eyes with a glare, practically growling at them all like a dog. Although no one would have described him as the guard dog type. He was the one who had locked her up, after all.

Gil almost cried when he saw her.

Thena looked well, but also terrible. She was dressed in her soft, cream coloured dress, and her hair was free and flying around her shoulders. But she looked exhausted, like she hadn't seen the sun in a week and barely eaten.

Gil had been waiting for her to rejoin them for what certainly felt like a week but he knew was less. He had tried to exchange words with her, whisper through the slats of the car window, anything. But since the kiss they had shared, Kro had hardly left her side.

But Kro didn't cut a protective picture. He looked like the spectre of death, hunched over and looming behind her. Like a gargoyle on an old building watching over something possessively.

"Miss," some of the guys from the crew dared to nod their heads to her as she passed them to reach the stew pots with today's lunch.

Kro stared them down for it.

She nodded back to them, a faint smile on her lips. Gil didn't have to hear her say a word to know she was tired. The way she moved said everything. He set down the supplies he had been helping move and walked over.

"Vet."

"Boss," he greeted with a harsh tone but the right word. He didn't let his eyes drift to Thena at all, but he wasn't about to stand by and let Kro bully her with silence either. "Think we'll be ready for the next show?"

If Kro knew his real intentions, he said nothing. He kept his eyes on him as well. "Replacement wire won't be easy to get. But I don't want to miss any more shows than we already have."

The greatest shock to all of them had been when Kro had not let Thena out of her cage and instead actually cancelled their last show. It was possible to perform without the high wire, technically. And of course any normal show would cancel due to the safety concern.

But Kro wasn't normal, and everyone had speculated even more at the missed opportunity to naturally see if Thena was alive and well with their own eyes.

"You could always let us go into town to find some."

The train always stopped outside of town, for obvious reasons. But if they needed supplies, Kro would go himself, in the past. He didn't let them go into town to meander and mingle. He said it was to prevent them from getting drunk or hungover or god forbid arrested. In reality, it was for the sake of control over them.

"I'll go tomorrow."

Thena set down her bowl. Was just that too tiring for her? "We can do the show without it."

Gil was shocked that the suggestion had come from her. Shouldn't she have been the one most eager to do away with the damned routine risking her life? But he still didn't give Kro the window of opportunity. "Should probably get a net too, right?"

Breaths were held. He was poking the bear, and he knew it. Kro always said he felt strongly about not using a net. A net would imply he didn't have faith in his wife, in his own words. It had nothing to do with the extra expense and set up time.

Kro stepped closer to him. Thena hovered between them distance wise, her back still turned. "I still have faith in my wife, despite the unfortunate incident."

Gil bit his tongue on the subject of faith in his wife. But he couldn't help letting his eyes say a little more as he spoke, "I have faith in Thena. But maybe your faith isn't enough."

Kro leaned right into his vision, baring his teeth at him like a dog. "Are you questioning my wife?"

"Thena is safe," Gil met his eye without fear. He could press their heads together so hard they bled, he didn't care. "That's all that matters."

Thena turned, putting her hand on Kro's arm. "Let's go."

But Kro didn't budge. He kept his eyes on Gil but he moved his hand to grasp the arm she was using. "Don't interrupt, dearest."

Gil gripped Kro's shirt in his fists. "Why did she wince?"

"What?"

But Gil didn't let up. He dragged Kro forward and up and away from Thena. His vision blurred of everything except the monster in his grasp. "You grabbed her arm, she winced. Is she hurt?"

"I would never lay a hand on her!" Kro roared at him. He wasn't exactly lifted off the ground, being taller than Gil even. He grabbed Gil's shirt as well, the two of them pulling nowhere.

"I've seen you do it before," Gil growled. He could remember clear as day when Kro grabbed Thena by the arm - the first night she had kissed him - and dragged her away under the moonlight.

He tossed Kro back, immediately turning to Thena. His hands hovered around the sleeves of her dress, coming just low enough. His fingertips brushed her soft skin. She felt cold. "Are you okay?"

She didn't deny anything, just looked at him. "He didn't hurt me Gil, just grabs sometimes."

His face darkened.

"Don't, Gil," she whispered, trying to talk him down from the precipice. "I know he's a bastard but don't--you don't want this fight."

He just barely pushed her sleeve up, seeing the faint bruising appear from where Kro had taken her entire, delicate arm in his beastly paw of a hand. He snarled.

"Gil," she repeated louder, but it felt like he was hearing her through water. His vision blurred even more. He'd never understood 'seeing red' before. "He will kill you."

As if he could abide something like this.

[softquietsteadylove]

During the show the tightrope breaks and Thena falls. Luckily Gil catches her but gets injured. The whole crew protects both of them when kro is very angry that Gil touches Thena. Some drama for the circus one

"Thena!"

It felt as if it happened in slow motion. Thena was in the middle of the routine as usual, and things were going well. She and Angus were both strong and ready for the show.

But something wasn't right. Gil had watched as Thena froze on the tightrope, her whole body locking up on the spot. He had looked to where her eyes were anchored, running out from behind the scenes. Something was wrong with the joint where the line was attached.

Then it snapped.

"Thena!" He ran as fast as he could. There were no nets, as per a certain ringleader's demand (because it didn't instill the right excitement in the crowds). There was no protecting Thena from a bone shattering fall.

He plowed into her, just barely managing to catch her as they both rolled and skidded from his momentum. He somehow managed to keep a hold of her within his arms. His shoulder was most certainly jostled from where it was supposed to be, and he wouldn't be surprised if he had a number of bruises along his ribs and arms.

The crowd was up on its feet, women and children screaming. Kro was already trying to assure them and tell them there was no need to panic (no need to ask for their money back).

"Gil?"

He opened his eyes, scared to look at what happened. But he grunted as Thena leaned over him, her hair pooling on his chest as he lay on his back. Her hand trailed over his cheek. "Are you okay?"

"Oh Gil," she whispered, her hand sliding down his cheek and neck and over his chest.

Gil looked around them. It was chaos, and this was definitely a worst case scenario. At least Thena wasn't hurt, but the repercussions would ripple through the whole crew. They had to check the equipment, they would have a meeting with everyone from every department. And Kro would be furious.

"Hey!"

Gil saw from somewhat upside down as Kro caught sight of them. He didn't know why the guy was anywhere but by his wife's side, but he was too tired to think about that now. He watched as Kro began the process of storming over to them.

"Get your filthy hands off of her!"

Oh, he was talking to him. Gil blinked, feeling as if he were hearing everything underwater, and his head hurt something fierce. But Thena was unharmed, that was all that mattered to him.

"Gil," Thena whispered to him. There was a flurry of motion around them, the crew rushing to talk to Kro about what to do about the broken highwire. They would serve as a barricade for them. "Can you see me?"

He could only ever see her. He nodded, groaning as he tried to sit up.

"It's okay, easy," she cooed to him as she helped pull him up. "We're going to get you some help."

Gil tried to hold himself up, but damn it felt hard. He didn't think he was really this heavy, but he couldn't keep his feet straight. He was like a newborn colt trying to walk for the first time.

"Come on, big fella," some of his friends from the crew got on either side of him. Of course Thena couldn't be the one to help try to walk him to the medical tent. But she smelled nicer than these guys.

"Gil," she called to him again, dragging his eyes up to hers. "Just look at me. You can't fall asleep."

Why not? He was dead tired and he felt like he'd been wrestling with the elephants.

"Just keep looking at me," she whispered, leading him with the sweet lyricism of her voice. Like a damn angel, that woman.

Gil sighed as they finally got him to the medical tent and seated on a bale of hay. He really was ready to lie down, but he let Thena drag his head upright again. Although he did whine a little as she shined some kinda light in his eyes.

"You can't sleep like this," she sighed, and then put something cold on the top of his head. His eyes naturally rolled upward, not that he could see whatever it was. She smiled, "it's just from the icebox. We have to keep the swelling down."

Oh, it was his head. That made sense why his ears were ringing, at least. "Are you okay?"

Thena looked at him in a way that made his heart melt. She sat beside him, even letting her knees in her sparkly stockings brush against his in his regular, ratty old trousers. "Thanks to you."

Gil looked at her, now that the chaos from the main tent was behind them. She did look fine, which was a relief. "Couldn't just let you fall."

It was almost not within his control, that was to say. But Thena took his hand in hers. "I know you couldn't. But I owe my life to you, all the same."

His mind was a few steps behind his mouth as he blurted out, "where's your husband?"

Normally he wouldn't bring him up, even just so as to not upset the lady.

But Thena didn't even blink, rubbing her thumb against his, "don't worry about him, for now."

"I wish you didn't have to worry about him," Gil mumbled out. He really was saying whatever was on his mind, huh?

Thena sighed, though, looking at him with those stunning green eyes. "I know. I wish so, too."

Gil closed his eyes as she adjusted the cloth bundle of ice on top of his head. It did feel nice, but it also gave him the chills. "He's gonna blow his top if we can't get the highwire restrung."

"That man would blow his top at the sky if it were the only thing around."

Gil chuckled, although it made his head hurt something awful. He groaned.

"Sorry." Thena brushed the backs of her knuckles over his temple, soothing the ache from the outside in.

Gil looked at the cloth walls of the tent. It was just some canvas, and it was far from impenetrable. But he looked at Thena, feeling like he really did have this moment to keep just to themselves. "Thena...if he ever hurts you, I swear-"

His eyes slid closed as she leaned forward to kiss him. Her lips were as soft as the light of first dawn. If he never believed in heaven before, maybe he did now.

Thena leaned back, her thumbs on his cheeks, "don't worry about me, Gil."

But he did. Every second of every day, he thought of her.

He was painfully in love with someone else's wife. "But-"

She kissed him again, more softly, and more chastely too, leaning back even quicker. "No buts, just try to rest. I can handle Kro."

Gil tried to protest again but Thena stood, leaving him alone on his little hay bale island. He blinked as she exited the tent, the warm glow inside contrasting the cold, blue light outside.

"Is he in there?"

"He's resting. Leave him be, Kro."

"Like hell I will. Bastard thinks he can put his hands on my wife?!"

Gil tried to get to his feet, stumbling to his knees at first. He tried again as the crack of a palm against a cheek sliced through the air. "Th-Thena?"

"He saved my life! More than you've ever done, and if I see you bothering him, I'll give the crowd something that will really scare them away and right out of your greedy hands."

He had never heard Thena raise her voice. He had seen her stand her ground with Kro, and he had no doubt she was as tough as a lady got, even with that brute of a husband. Maybe because of that brute of a husband.

"Ungrateful little whore."

"Call me whatever you want. Gilgamesh is not to leave his own sleeper car until he's healed."

She only ever called him Gil when they were alone.

"Fine, but the show goes on, even if the vet starts bleeding from the eyes."

Gil tried to stand again. He had to say that he would be fine. He couldn't let Thena be left alone with that devil. He groaned, managing to stand and take a few steps.

He only made it out of the tent in time to see Kro all but dragging Thena away, probably to berate her for talking back to him in front of the crew like that. But she turned and waved to him, assuring him of her well being.

Gil stood there, watching the woman he loved get dragged away by her husband. He couldn't make out any of the words his fellow crewmen and friends were chattering at him. All he was thinking about was how Thena had kissed him, and in such a way that could only mean that she loved him too.