The Raven (Phan)

Title: The Raven
Author: Lureny (:
Genre: Fluffy in the beginning, sad at the end, sooo SadFluff? IDK
Pairing: Phan
Rating: PG
Warinng: M/M kissing d:
A/N: Features DanxPhil=boyxboy, so if you don't like it, click the 'x' at the top left/right corner of your screen, please! THANK YOU, DFTBA! I hope you like it.
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The raven sat, perched at the top of the building. He looked out at the gray morning sky and spread his wings wide, although not yet ready to take flight again. The cool fall air ruffled his feathers a bit, and he opened his beak wide, and stood on one foot for a moment, and he looked nearly ready to take flight, although, still, he wasn't ready just yet.

The raven rather liked England. It was nice here, although a bit too cold for his taste, but no matter. He was, at least, free here, and was able to fly as much as he pleased, without anyone stopping him.

The bird looked down, seeing the busy city streets and the bright lights of the shops that were beginning to open for business. Saturday mornings were always bust, but some shops still opened as late as 10 am.

The raven looked further down the street, and saw 2 boys, standing side by side at a bus stop. They were talking, and looked pink from the wind (or maybe it was something else), unaware that the black bird was watching them. The boy on the left had jet-black hair, and when he laughed he threw his head back, making his sea blue eyes stand out quite visibly against the gray clouds.

The boy on the right had brown hair and chocolate brown eyes to go with it. He had a small, but dazzling smile, and had large headphones marked with a 'b' on each side draped around his neck.

The bus came after about 5 minutes of the two boys talking. The blue-eyed one waved goodbye to the brown-haired boy, who in turn gave another dazzling smile before the two parted ways.

The raven flew off into the west.

---------

It was another 2 weeks before the raven saw the two boys again.

It was a sunnier day, but there was still a cold chill in the air, one that made the boys shiver.

The same two boys were here at the same bus stop. The raven noticed the two and his interest spiked again. For whatever reason, the raven was very interested in these boys.

Again, the two boys made conversation, laughing and talking as if they'd known each other their whole lives.

The bird swooped down low from the building he was perched on, trying to catch a bit of the conversation.

'By the way,' the blue-eyed boy said, 'I'm Phil.'

'I'm Dan,' said the chocolate-haired one in turn, giving a little smile.

The raven saw the two shake hands. A comfortable silence fell between the two, and the raven saw that they hadn't quite released their hands yet, just loosened and lowered them slightly.
The bus shuddered to a stop in front of the two, and once again, the blue-eyed boy (now, the raven knew, was called Phil) walked up to the busses' steps, watching the other boy--Dan--walk in the other direction.

'Dan?' the boy called, almost on the bus.

Dan turned around, and the raven saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes. 'Yes?'

Phil searched around for a pen in his bag. He wrote on a scrap of paper, and then threw it to the other boy, who in turn caught it.

'That's my number. Call me some time, we'll talk more about--' a sudden rush of wind made the words coming from the boy's mouth unable to be heard by the raven, who had sat himself on the bench.

Dan seemed to have heard, though, and he nodded, carefully pocketing the paper. He smiled and waved as, once again, the bus departed.

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2 months went by,.

The raven looked out for the 2 boys every day, although he hadn't seen them.

The harsh, late January wind blew threw the air, and children played outside in the thick sheets of snow that had fallen over the Christmas holiday.

The next time he saw them, they were walking together down the street, hand in hand. Phil leaned over and whispered in Dan's ear, making the other boy blush around his cheeks and nose. Smiling, the black-haired boy rested his head on the other boy's shoulder.

Dan stopped them at the bus stop, and pulled out a little wrapped box, and said, 'Happy birthday, Phil! I hope you like it.'

Phil looked at the box in awe, absolutely awestruck that Dan had remembered his birthday. 'Thank you so much, Dan! And of course, I'll love it!'

Dan kissed Phil lightly on the forehead, taking the older boy by surprise. 'Sorry,' Dan said quickly, pulling away. 'I just…'

Phil didn't wait for Dan to finish, just quickly grabbing the boy's face, and kissed him on the mouth.

Dan looked shocked when he pulled away, but nonetheless, he was rather pleased. He took Phil in to his arms and hugged him tightly.

The raven watched as the two walked passed the bus stop, and into a shop.

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The boys didn't come back for 6 months.

The raven was disappointed, as he'd grown rather attached to the 2, although they hardly known he existed.

The hot summer air was beating down on people's foreheads, forcing sweat spots through their shirts and palms.

The raven was sad, and was just about to fly away to some other town, when the sets of familiar brown eyes and black hair walking on the other end of the street.

Phil was walking with Dan, and they were hand in hand yet again, walking together down the street. Phil was taking Dan to Shake Away, and Dan was very much excited about it. 'Happy birthday, Danny,' the raven, who was very elated now, heard Phil say.

'Aww,' Dan replied shyly, 'Thanks, babe.' He planted a kiss on his boyfriend's lips, and on the went, rounding a corner and disappearing from the birds sight.

The raven felt content, seeing them again, and decided to stay.

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It had been 2 more months before the raven saw the boys again.

This time, the sighting was not so cheery. Although the weather was warm and the sun was setting, Phil was crying, sobbing, tears streaming from his eyes. He was running, and when he finally stopped, it was at the bus stop.

The raven tilted his head, wondering silently what had the boy so upset.

The raven heard fast footsteps and  saw Dan coming fast after Phil, shouting, 'Phil…Phil…! Please, wait!'

Dan stopped in front of Phil, looking at him intently. 'I'm so, so, so sorry, Phil…'

Phil choked slightly, trying to stop the sobs as more tears poured like rain. The sun was setting fast, and the street lamps were nearly set to full brightness.

Finally the boy with the ice-blue eyes spoke, and when he did, the sound was sad and low, like a dying bird's: 'Who was it, Dan?'

Dan sighed deeply. 'Peej.'

The name made Phil start sobbing and hyperventilating all over again, and he fell to his knees, crying loudly.

Dan sat on the pavement next to Phil, and tried to take him in his arms gently. Phil pushed him away, leaving Dan looking as though he was about to cry. 'Phil, I am so, so, so, so sorry, babe. But he came on to me, I need you to understand that. he came on to me .'

Phil just shook his head. 'I don't know.'

'He kissed me, I didn't kiss back, ok? He kissed me I didn't kiss back, I didn't want to, because I know I had you, my Philion, my love.' Tears were falling fast down Dan's cheeks, now.

'Your love?' Phil repeated. 'You love me?'

'Do I love you? Love, I've loved you since the day I met you, you're the first thing on my mind when I wake up, the last thing I think about before I fall asleep--yes, I LOVE YOU.'

At this, the raven saw Phil smile, and the older boy allowed Dan's arms to wrap him in comfort. 'I love you, Dan.'

'I know,' the younger boy replied as he leaned in for a kiss. 'I love you too, and I promise I will make it all up to you. I swear.'

The couple lay like that for about an hour, and then they got up and walked back in the direction that they came.  

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It was 3 whole years until they were seen by the raven.

By this time the black feathered bird knew to wait for the 2, as they would always come back.

The next time they came, the raven was pleased, as always.

This time it was spring, and the sun was setting. The other birds were tweeting, flying around, tittering and carrying on.

The familiar brown hair and matching eyes came to the bus stop again, pacing back and forth. Dan was dressed in a nice suit and tie, and carried a little black box around, and said, 'Phil, will you marry me?' several different ways over and over.

The raven heard it all.

'Phil will you marry me? No, no, that won't work, it needs to be more passionate…'

'Phil, you're the love of my life and I'd like to spend the rest of it with you…no, that's way too cliché, that won't work either…'

'Hey Phil, what do you say you and I get married? Oh, for fuck's sake, Dan…'

For over 45 minutes Dan paced around the bus stop, trying out different methods of proposing.

Until Phil finally came, also dressed in a suit and tie.

'Hey, love,' the older boy whispered in to his boyfriend's ear, making him involuntarily shiver.

'Hey, Phil…I have something to ask you, but I don't know how to tell you, but here goes.' The younger boy took a deep breath.

'Phil, for the past 4 years, I've honestly never been happier with anyone as I am with you, and I honestly just love you so much--so much I want to do this.'

At this point, Dan bent down on one knee. Flicking hair out of his eyes, he boldly asked, 'Phil…will you marry me?'

Phil stared at the little black box in his love's hands. And said the one word that Dan was nearly convinced he wouldn't say:

'Yes.'

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4 more years passed.

The raven was flying around, waiting in the cool October air for the couple.
He saw 4 people walking, hand in hand:

A little girl, in between 2 people, holding their hands. She was about 4 or 5, and she had dark brown hair, and stunningly blue eyes, and she wore a little pink dress with flowers and white tights and black school shoes.

There was a woman, around the age of 24 or 25, who was walking on the other side of the 3, walking very slowly, as she was rather very pregnant.

And then, to the raven's surprise, was Dan and Phil, holding the hand of the little girl, Phil had a little pink backpack slung over his shoulder that said, 'Reyn' on it.

The four stopped at the bus stop, the woman huffing and breathing heavily.

'Are you ok, Jade?' Phil asked, concernedly.

'I'm quite all right--just need a rest,' said the woman, sitting carefully on a bench nearby. 'I kind of can't wait to get this boy out of me--then he's all yours.'

Dan grinned. 'Just one more month to go, Jade!'

'Easy for you to say,' Jade retorted, glaring at him. 'You haven't been carrying him around have you now?'

Dan and Phil laughed. The little girl sat on the bus stop impatiently. 'Daddy!' she called.

'Yes, my love?' Phil said, picking up Reyn.

'Can we go to Shake Away, now?'

'Of course, lovely, just be patient a moment, please?' Phil asked, looking into those blue eyes that so matched his own.

'Yes, Daddy.' said Reyn, sighing slightly.

'Good girl. Go on, help Dad feed the birds, while I tend to Aunt Jade,' said Phil, letting the girl down.

As Dan and Reyn went off, Phil and Jade talked on the bench.

After a few minutes, Jade smiled, and hugged Phil awkwardly. Phil helped her get up, and called out to Dan and Reyn, 'Come on, you two, let's go, Shake Away is closing in twenty minutes, you know!'

Together, the four walked down the old road.

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This stretch was the longest yet.

16 years.

But still, the raven waited.

And again, Phil and Dan came to the bus stop, this time with a 20-year-old girl with bright blue eyes and dark brown hair braided down her back in one long braid, and a 15-year-old boy, called Isaiah, who was on his phone, texting, his black hair covering his brown eyes.

The raven watched as the girl hugged each of her fathers, then her little brother, who then prompted to push her away, but she held on, tight.

'Aren't you going to miss me now that I'm leaving for America?' the older girl cooed.

'Miss you? Reyn, I'm getting your room,' the boy retorted, rolling his eyes at her.

'Well, I'm going to miss you,' Reyn replied. 'You too, Dad and Daddy,' she said sweetly.

'Love, we are so, so proud of you,' Phil said as Reyn hugged him and Dan together.

'Good luck in New York! Don't you ever change!' Dan said, tears in his eyes.

'Oh, Dad, don't cry…' Reyn said, tearing up a bit. 'I didn't wear waterproof make up, today…'

Dan half-chuckled, and wiped his eyes dry. 'Sorry…it's just that I've watched you grow from this little girl to this grown woman who's going to school in America…I'm just so proud.'

The four waited silently, and soon, the bus to the airport came. For the last time, Reyn hugged Dan and Phil, and tried to hug her brother, who again pushed her away.

She stuck her tongue out at him.

Dan and Phil took all her bags and suitcases and put them on the bus, leaving Reyn and Isaiah alone.

'Why do you have to go to Uni all the way in America, anyway?' Isaiah suddenly blurted. 'Why can't you just stay here, in Manchester, with our dads, with your friends, with me? I need you, you know!' There were tears in the boy's eyes now.

'Ohhhh, Isaiah,' Reyn said half-chuckling, half crying. She pulled her brother into a hug, who hugged back. She rested her chin on the top of his head.

After about a minute of this, she whispered, 'I'm really gonna miss you too.'

When she tried to let go, he held on to her. So they kept hugging, up until the bus driver shouted at her to "get a move on".

And on the bus, the 3 left waved goodbye until the bus--and girl--were all out of sight.

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10 years passed. Phil was crying again, when the raven saw him next. The street was lined up and down with people dressed in black, 2 coffins being walked down the street.

Dan and Isaiah had been in a terrible car accident with 3 other people, including a pregnant woman who was in the car that crashed in to them.

No one had survived.

In total, 6 lives had been claimed by death that day.

Tons of people came, and Reyn and her husband and 3 children flew from London to come to the funeral.

Everyone dressed in black was crying, and sobbing, and weeping, mourning over their losses.

The raven watched sadly as the 2 coffins--Dan's and Isaiah's--were moved down the street, to the cemetery. Everyone there followed.

Phil and Reyn walked hand in hand, tears streaming down their pale faces.

The raven called softly, and flew to the cemetery alongside the coffins.

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30 years passed.

Every day, the raven had gone to visit Dan and Isaiah at their graves.

And today, 30 years from the day they died, Phil took his life to be with them.

Phil had fallen in to a deep depression after his husband and son died, and no matter how many people tried to console him, he still could not be happy. He would never be happy until he got the thing he wanted most.

And when no one could give that to him, he found a way o get it for himself.

The raven cawed softly all night as he mourned. He'd cared deeply for the family, and was sad to see them go.

Reyn and her husband came to Manchester again, and visited her fathers' graves'.

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Ten more years passed.

No one came to the bus stop.

The raven was lonely. He'd spent his whole life watching the lives of others, and hadn't tended much to his own.

So he made a decision.

He flew to the cemetery and rested between the three graves; Isaiah Ryan Howell-Lester's, Phillip Michael Lester's, and Daniel James Howell's.

And here, in between the graves of the three he loved that never knew him, he rested.

And here, he would rest for the rest of his days.