Dealing with Demons Chapter 10: Something Unnecessarily Personal Part 2: Cee
Masterlist with CW
Taglist: @demyxdancer @softvampirewhump @d-cs
"So that's all you remember?" Sil asked and took a sip of her coffee. Per Avi's request we were at a cafe a few minutes' walk from the base.
They took a big gulp of their hot chocolate. They thought coffee was too bitter. Frappaccinos were an exception, but with the weather turning cold a hot drink was more appropriate and enjoyable.
The cafe wasn't busy, but it wasn't empty either, so we were sitting at the table farthest from other people to avoid being overheard. It wasn't loud and busy enough for Sil to cast a silence spell around us and have it go unnoticed so the two of them were keeping their voices low, barely above a whisper. The atmosphere was cozy, it reminded me of the diner I used to go to with Bev on special occasions. That place had the best chocolate cake I'd ever tasted at the time. In the last five years I'd found much better. Which was lucky, because the diner had closed a few years before I met Avi. Good things just don't last sometimes.
"It was dark. I don't have night vision." Their voice brought me back to the current discussion. Now was not the time to wander around in the past. "Not usually anyway."
"What?"
"I can use my power to enhance my senses at will, but I wasn't doing that at the time."
"Okay... Look, can you at least tell me if the walls were wood, concrete, or dirt?"
"I couldn't see, but..."
Smelled like rotting wood.
"They were wood, I think. Poorly maintained and smelly. The floor couldn't have been dirt at least, or I would have gotten it on my feet. I think it was concrete."
Yeah, it felt rough and uneven.
"You weren't wearing shoes?"
"I was dressed casually. I didn't have anywhere to go that day, Cliff's lucky he didn't catch me in my pajamas."
Your pajamas might have looked more professional than what we were actually wearing.
I felt their mouth try to twitch up into a smile, but they stopped it. That wouldn't be a correct response to Sil's half of the conversation.
"And you're sure it was underground?"
"There were no windows, and the air had that stale feeling of an unused basement."
"Okay. I guess now we look at all properties that have ever been associated with Mason and look for poorly maintained basements with wood walls and concrete floors." Sil sighed and took another drink of her coffee. Her shoulders slumped.
She seems tired.
"You seem tired."
"I am tired. I haven't been sleeping well. Cases aren't usually like this. Usually we observe someone for a while, figure out what they're doing, and stop them if we need to. Or we track down a monster that's left a trail we can follow. Now there's all these dead ends, and no evidence, and so many different pieces to consider, plus I have to work with—" Sil cut herself off.
"With me." Avi's mood dropped and their chest got a little tight, but they hid it well behind a smile while staring into the remains of their drink.
My opinion of Sil soured a bit in Avi's defense, not that I thought of her as friendly to begin with.
Rude.
"I'm sorry, I just mean that—"
"It's okay, I get it. I'm something of a wildcard. I don't think like a human, and I don't act like a human."
"You do. More than I expected you to at least. And trust me, you're at least much easier to work with than the fae."
Their smile got a little more genuine. Okay, so maybe Sil wasn't so bad.
"I haven't ever really dealt with the fae, they don't make deals because they don't typically plan on ever dying. But I've heard they're hard to handle."
"God, yes. I could sit here and bitch for hours about how much of a pain in the ass it is whenever we have to bring them in on a case."
Avi laughed. We'd never heard Sil curse before, I guessed she was a bit less uptight now that today's part of the mission was done.
Sil looked at them curiously. "You're... surprisingly easy to talk to. I never would have told Mike or Riley how much this case is getting to me."
"It's probably just because I'm in the loop but not really a part of the team. And maybe you should tell them, let them know how you feel."
"Maybe. But I can't. Every team needs a rock to rely on and for us that's me."
"Hmm."
"I'm gonna go get another coffee to go, then I'm gonna head back to base."
"Alright. I'll see you tomorrow, Agent Silverman."
"See you tomorrow, Avi."
Avi got up and walked out of the door to the cafe. Then they ducked into the nearest alleyway and teleported to the closest alleyway to their apartment, startling a dumpster-diving stray cat, whose meow sounded hilariously like a scolding.
"Sorry," They said to the orange tabby, and started walking.
You're getting along pretty well with the team.
"Yeah, all we need is for Mike to tell us something unnecessarily personal and we'll have the whole set."
I sent them an image of laughing. They smiled.
Seriously, I think you're finally putting down some roots, you're becoming a real part of human society, like you always wanted.
"I wouldn't call a team of monster hunters part of human society."
Well I'd call it the most fun part of human society.
It was their turn to laugh.
Then the elevator doors opened and the laugh died in their throat. Cliff Mason was attempting to break into the apartment.
He had lockpicks in his hands and was hunched over the doorknob muttering to himself. He turned around at the sound of the elevator and froze when he saw Avi.
I don't know whose anger I felt, theirs or mine, but it made no difference. This was our home.
Avi surged forward and grabbed the taller man by the throat, then teleported us to the roof. Cliff wobbled dangerously on the edge, grabbing their arm for support as much as to try to stop them from choking him.
He managed to get out a few words around the vice of their fingers. "If you kill me, you'll never find the people I've taken."
"Fuck." They roughly pulled him away from the edge and forced him to his knees.
Avi was using strength far beyond what a human was capable of and my whole body hurt even as their power continuously worked to heal it. I only felt the pain detachedly, though. Probably because of the rage boiling our blood.
"Okay." Their voice was like a growl through clenched teeth. "Tell me right now where the people you've taken are and I promise not to kill you."
"Let go of me first so I can breathe!"
"Do I look like an idiot to you? You can breathe enough to speak and that's all you need."
"Let go, or I'll make you let go."
"Are you really in a position to be making threats?"
Then he smiled. Fear stabbed through the anger in us, Avi drew back a fist to punch him into unconsciousness, but he was faster. We should have been more observant. We should have thought to look at his hands.
Quick as a striking snake, Cliff let go of Avi's hand, spun around the silver ring on his middle finger, and dragged the sharp spike on it across their arm. It stung enough that their grip on his throat loosened, just a little bit, but that was all he needed. He pulled himself free, drew a rune in the air, and vanished.
Blood dripped from the deep scratch on Avi's arm, they couldn't heal the wound as fast as normal since it was silver that did the deed. They would have to bandage it up later.
But for now they just fell to their knees, then caught themself with their hands as they fell forward. The rough concrete scraped up their palms but after everything else we barely felt it. We were exhausted. Not so much physically, although the power needed to wield that much strength without tearing a human body apart certainly took its toll. No, it was emotional weariness that brought us to our hands and knees on the roof of our apartment building.
Cliff was powerful enough not to need a physical medium for his runes.
We were fucked.
.......
In the dream I couldn't move my head. I had to look down, to watch. The numbers on the scale were rising so fast I couldn't possibly read them. With each passing second more shame built up inside me until I couldn't keep it in any longer and I cried out. As I did I heard familiar voices.
"So, was it worth it?"
"Have we tried cutting out dairy? And meat? And..."
"Is this really how you want to live your life?"
"You just need to try harder."
I screamed louder, trying to drown them out. Then things shifted, I was now in front of a mirror, frantically scrubbing at my upper arms.
The ink in them had twisted, morphing itself into vulgar and grotesque designs, I had to get rid of them before anyone saw.
I scrubbed until the skin felt raw, until it was left smooth and unblemished. I sighed in relief. Then I realized what I'd done.
No, no, no, how could I? I loved my tattoos! Why had I been ashamed? They were all I had left of—
There she was. In the mirror, her face stared back at me. Not angry, just sad and confused. I started crying.
Then Bev's face got paler and thinner. Her hair fell out, her skin got tight, there were bags under her eyes. I pleaded with the mirror not to show me this, anything but this, but soon where her face had been there was only a skull. It moved forward from the mirror and advanced until it had me cornered. It's jaw fell open and from it spilled forth—
Avi's phone's ringtone.
They jerked awake in the chair in front of the door, we must have fallen asleep for a little while. Couldn't have been long judging by how exhausted we were, but then again my stress dreams weren't exactly restful.
They checked their phone. The text was from Riley.
"Meet at the cafe asap."
"I guess I had better get ready."
Sorry about that.
"It's okay, not your fault." Avi yawned and stretched. Half the reason we'd been up all night was that I suspected my recurring stress dreams would show up the second we were asleep. I hadn't had them in over a year, but I had a feeling they'd make an appearance after what we'd just been through. The other half was to make sure Cliff didn't come back to try to take us while we were unconscious.
Avi walked over to the closet and leaned their head against the door. The wood was cool, and felt nice against their forehead. "Maybe you were right. We should have just left, gone somewhere far away."
If it makes you feel any better I'm starting to think that might not have worked.
"Yeah, yeah that's probably true. Okay, let's," they sighed. "Let's get some clean clothes on so I can get some caffeine in us and Riley's team can help me figure out what to do."
Sounds like a plan.
7 notes
·
View notes
Earlier I asked @m34gs if there was a Starbucks in Twisted Wonderland, what would the Housewarden's go-to order be? She answered in this ask, but also prompted me to give my thoughts. As a tea only drinker this will be challenging for me, but online menus are the best!
Riddle - London Fog (Earl Grey Latte) with milk foam
Without a doubt in my mind Riddle has to have a tea order. Tea is an important part of Heartslaybul and if Riddle doesn't drink a certain quota of tea then he's breaking at least ten-fifteen rules and he CANNOT let that happen.
This order is also very simple in both saying and ingredients. There isn't a lot of variety with this one, which helps Riddle ease into the drink order. I'm certain he grew up believing anything his mother deemed "fancy" was unnecessary and horrible. This drink helps meet a balance for Riddle: tea and simple. I'm certain once he becomes comfortable with drinks he'll branch into Refreshers or Frappaccinos.
Leona - Iced Peach Green Tea
Like you said, Leona doesn't like complicated drinks nor does he want something hot or caffeinated. He wants his precious naps! This drink meets Leona's requirements: simple (so no one can screw it up if they're doing a run for him), cold, and a little sweet.
Azul - Brown Sugar Oat Americano with 4-5 shots of espresso
I agree with you: Azul, like Idia, is living on caffeine and sugar. Only while Idia is unapologetic in his caffeine/sugar order, Azul tries to disguise his with fancy additives (the brown sugar syrup pumps, cinnamon topping, and oat beverage). This way he can tell people what he's drinking without mentioning the word "espresso" in his order. No one is fooled though. They all know exactly what Azul's habits are.
Kalim - Strawberry Creme Frappuccino with extra whip
Scarabia is hot and Frappuccinos aren't. Strawberries are delicious and sweet. Combining these elements makes for a delicious drink that I think Kalim would love. I agree he has a sweet tooth and thus he wants extra whip. In truth, I think Kalim would like all kinds of frappuccinos, but he also strikes me as someone who likes fruit. Hence, I think this is a good pick for him.
Vil - Matcha Latte, two extra scoops of matcha, with non-fat milk
Look, I know this is basically my order, except without the non-fat milk, but hear me out. Matcha has many health benefits. It is high in anti-oxidants, can help protect your liver, boosts brain function, may help prevent cancer and boost heart health, and helps regulate weight. With so many fantastic benefits, I think this is something Vil would go for as he strikes me as someone who values healthy foods.
Idia - Espresso Macchiato with milk foam and with whatever unholy amount of espresso shots he's feeling like adding
I agree 100% with you: Idia lives on two things: caffeine and sugar. With this, he's basically drinking milky espresso/sugar. Just typing this is making my head hurt. He's also ordering this late into the night and consuming it as he plays games. Again, as you said, the only reason why he doesn't add more shots (which I checked and the counter wasn't stopping me from adding them) is because Ortho threatened his computer with perma-death.
Malleus - Chai Latte with milk foam
While I also think it's super cute for Malleus to go for the Dragon Fruit drink, I also think he likes tea. He's also wary of coffee shops as he's very unfamiliar and uncomfortable in there. However, thanks to Yuu and Lilia he visits for the first time and nearly panics when he sees all the options and customization. So, he orders one of the most simple items on the menu. Besides, drinking Chai is like receiving a warm hug and I think Diasomnia can be a bit on the chilly side.
(I also think Leona wants to make fun of him for having a "basic bitch order" but his order is also rather basic in nature.)
There you go! Here are my options! I hope you like them, friend!
13 notes
·
View notes