[ markus goes for the door, and every alarm in simon's body goes off. demanding he stop him, warning him about the likelihood of slipping from the freight car if it hits an inopportune bump. he manages to get to one knee, hand pressed to the flat of his thigh in preparation to leverage himself to his feet, but then markus is upon him. there are fists in his clothes, and strength that surpasses that of a natural-born human's lifting the weight of simon's body to his toes. forcing him back against the corrugated wall of the car they're in, pinning him there.

he doesn't fight back; there's nothing to fight, right now. markus is angry, and his anger is right.

simon keeps his hands where they can be seen, and doesn't go reaching for markus's skin. he rests them along the material of his coat, though. trembling, because this wasn't an easy choice. he thought it would have been easy, to save markus, to leave everything behind and commit to a method of survival that had served him well for a very long time. it's not. none of this was easy, and it's the reason why simon volunteered for it. ]

I promised them.

[ behind markus's back, the three of them had come together and promised. ]

You did so much for us, without asking. This is what we decided to do for you -- North and Josh. And me.

[ if the worst should come to pass, north had grimaced, you need to protect him. ]

You'd never have left Detroit willingly.