“So you talked to my partner about it before you told yours? She’d support you way better than this revenge fantasy ever could.” Ciara replied, biting her lip before she pointed out that these were the kind of secrets that could wreck homes. Unblinkingly, Ciara watched him in his discomfort - she wouldn’t look away just because it was inconvenient, or painful.
After a moment, he spoke again, and Ciara just cocked an eyebrow. Her lips pursed as half the blood peeled off the wall she had just painted, and scattered across the room to leave perfect mirrors of her marks on each wall. Her eyes dropping to his hands was the only warning he got before both his index fingers developed a cut so small it might have been from paper. Two drops of blood floated out of him, merged, and split into four, each dropping flying into a different wall. “Silence ears to these hands,” Ciara spoke life into the spell, and the blood sank deep into the wall, leaving only the faintest impressions in the paint. You would only spot it if you were looking for it.
Ciara’s eyes narrowed as she cocked her head, her nose flaring. He spelled out her role in this perfectly. She was to be the strategist, the tracker. She had to lead him into danger, and then prance into the sunset as she left him to the wolves. Not even wolves, Ciara thought snidely, those he could handle. Fry them with his lightning storms. No, the war he wanted to wage was against an interdimensional mafia, without faces. A mafia with potentially unlimited power, that was somehow linked to demons.
In short, in her mind, he didn’t stand a chance.
“I won’t take your fucking money. Is that what you think of me?” Ciara spat, anger flashing across her face like a flame. Her expression cooled just as fast, like tempering steel, leaving a glowering core. “I do understand that you need to do this. You will fail. You’re a soldier, not an army; They will tear you to shreds, grind you to gravel. You said you need my help to even try. So why shouldn’t I save your ass by not helping?”
She stepped forward, and looked pointedly to the door, and dealt right from the bottom of the deck. “After all, it isn’t like you don’t have someone to live for.”
This was the reaction he should have been anticipating, but he’d let his mouth run faster than his mind could catch up with, and now he had to face the consequences. “I didn’t--” But her ire faded so fast that the shock of it cut off anything he was about to say, and all he could bring himself to do was listen. She was right, he probably didn’t stand a chance, honestly. Even if he could turn to solid rock, he wasn’t immortal. He wasn’t impenetrable. He was still capable of death, and a demon surely knew its way around magic, if that was what this shadowy organization in fact was. But his resolve stayed in place regardless. He couldn’t just stand by.
That was until Ciara spoke again.
She knew what she was doing. A dagger right in the heart. “I still haven’t told her,” he admitted quietly. “About any of it.” The thought of diving into certain death, leaving Cassie and the kids behind, it shook him to the core. That, and the guilt that until Ciara had brought it up, the thought that he would potentially leave without a trace just as Lilo had, leaving Cassie alone once more, hadn’t even crossed his mind.
“Are you done with the spell?” He said pointedly after a few moments of silence.
“But that isn’t our problem,” Ciara replied, setting down her blood and paintbrush, leaning against unpainted problems. “It sucks, right, but literally what are you going to do against and interdimensional organisation that can simply suck us away at the blink of an eye, with the most innocuous of situations. How are you even going to begin finding them?”
She sighed, her eyes skimming over him, glancing to the drum kit. There was a ferocity in his gaze, thick as the lightning storms he’d summoned over the arena. This space they were building to bring peace to his neighbours, and Joey was talking about war. He may have been a soldier, in a past she didn’t fully understand, but that didn’t mean he was suited for this.
Ciara pursed her lips, opening her hands to him. “Why would I help you get yourself killed?”
“You’re right,” Joey said quietly, crossing his arms. “It’s not our problem. It’s mine. Because I’ve made it my problem.” He expected as much, honestly. Not that he didn’t respect Ciara. They shared a bond now that few had. The bond of fighting side by side. But unfortunately that seemed to be where the similarities between them ended. Joey was nothing if not determined though. “I don’t know what I’d do yet, but that’s the point. Make a plan of attack and then strike. I can’t plan on my own.”
He could see the wheels turning in her head, but in what direction was a complete mystery. She herself was a mystery to him. Dark and brooding but with an odd spark. That will to survive lit deep within her. That spark was what ruled her life. Her decisions. And honestly, he couldn’t blame her. He’d made decisions with that spark in the past. Bad decisions.
“Look, we can debate in circles as long as you want, but the fact of the matter is I need your help. I’ll even pay you for it if I have to.” He ran a hand through his short crop of hair with a sigh. “I need your to understand that I need to do this. You don’t have to understand why, but it has to be done. They have to be stopped.”
“It’s an incredible collar,” the mate offered, stepping forward a little as Mrs. Gracey and Joey went up the stairs. “Opals and white gold. We spent a few months designing it together.”
“Gosh,” Ephram said at his aw-shucks best, “that sounds like it had a fair amount of personal sentimental value then, huh, Mr. Gracey.”
“Todd, please, Sheriff.” The wolf came forward fully now, and Ephram saw that he was a little grey around the temples; older than his wife, with a relaxed smile where she was somewhat more brisk. He gazed up the staircase with an unmistakeable shine of love on his face, and Ephram found himself a little more curious about their dynamic. “Cheryl likes to keep specific boundaries around other public figures – she works for the Mayor’s office, so she’s very official – but me, I like first names.”
“Pretty fond of em my own self,” Ephram said, returning the smile, “so Ephram and Todd it is, then. Did the robber steal anything else like your collar? Sentimental, I mean–”
“–anything that might make this a targeted theft? No, can’t say they did.” Todd added after a moment, “…I write mystery novels, true supernatural crime, stuff like that. Not that I think I can do your job, Ephram!”
“My job ain’t so very hard, not in this town,” Ephram said, starting to get a little fond of Todd himself by this point; anybody who worked in the SBSD knew what a relief it could be to find yourself working with people who were cooperative and took you at good faith rather than needing to buck the system or fight the power or whatever their personal schema was. “Mostly it’s interesting, the sort of stuff that comes up. Soapberry’s an unpredictable place.”
Todd said, “All the same. Can I get you and your partner some coffee? We’ve always got a pot going. Come on in to–” he cut himself off and called up the stairs, “Mrs. Gracey? We’ll be in the kitchen! I’m giving Sheriff Ephram some coffee, when you two come downstairs come join us!”
Joey and Mrs Gracey were called to from downstairs by the wolf mate and Joey stood up from his crouching position. “I think I’m done in here,” he said, rubbing his hands together. He gestured for Mrs Gracey to exit the room first, always placing himself behind her. He had no problems in this role, but was glad Cassie wasn’t into the dynamic. At least she would get a kick out of it when he told her about it later.
He followed her into the kitchen and graciously took the coffee he was offered, sidling up next to Ephram as he took a sip. “Everything taken seems important to the Gracey’s and their wolf culture,” Joey announced, setting down his mug. “It’s my personal, gut feeling that this was somehow targeted.”
Mrs Gracey scoffed at the idea, even if she’d been coming to some sort of realization upstairs. It seemed the idea was too far fetched for her. “We have no enemies. Everyone loves us.” Joey frowned. This would be more difficult than he thought. He glanced to Ephram for help.
Joey, Cassie, and the kids head to Victoria’s to celebrate the holidays. Takes place in early December.
It would have taken Cassie longer to get ready if she hadn’t planned out outfits for herself and the kids ahead of time. It cut down on a lot of decision making anyways, luckily Addie wasn’t picky and Albie just didn’t have any choice. But as Cassie crouched to buckle the shiny toddler shoes she smirked lightly to herself, at least her kids were always dressed with taste. “Would you relax?” She laughed, looking back up at Joey who was pacing with things in the living room. “It’s going to be fine. You’re wearing a Christmas sweater. It’s not like it’s official Christmas dinner or anything.”
Joey tugged at his Christmas sweater as he paced, mentally making a checklist to make sure they had everything they planned to bring. It wasn’t like the farmhouse was far away, and it wasn’t even like this was his first time meeting Victoria, but he couldn’t help the nerves creeping up into his belly. “I know, I’m sorry,” he said, stopping in his tracks when Cassie said something. “I just feel like I’ve got to make a good impression, even if she’s already met me.” He had the complex or proving he was ‘good enough’ for Cassie.
Cassie was going to point out that once her mother made her mind up about someone, it was pretty hard to change her mind. They were similar in that way. It was very likely that Victoria was already forming opinions on Joey that making good impressions wouldn’t exactly adjust. Her lips thinned to keep these thoughts to herself though, they weren’t exactly comforting. “Are you kidding? You’re a perfect gentleman.” Cassie smiled easily at him, standing and letting Addie go from her seat on the stool near the front door. She hopped over to Joey, grabbing the red nose on his jacket, “Rudolph! Let’s watch!” Cassie cleared her throat with a reminder, “We’re leaving for Grandma’s. I’ll grab Albie, want to head out to the car?” She raised a brow at Joey, “Do you have everything?”
Joey nodded in his best attempt at confidence, taking a deep breath. It wasn’t like he had anything to hide. He smiled down at Addie when she grabbed at the nose on his sweater. “Yeah, right in this bag,” he said, pointing to a little sack that had the food he’d prepared to add to their dinner and the gifts they’d all be exchanging. He hooked it on his shoulder and then looked back down to Addie. “Want a reindeer ride?” he asked excitedly. “I’m Rudolph so we get to be at the front always!” Addie nodded enthusiastically and he crouched down to let her clamber up into his shoulders, reaching up to hold her knees as she kicked her little heels against his chest to get him going. With puff of his chest to let the nose lead the way, he stopped down and headed out the door toward the car with a little wink at Cassie.
Cassie watched in admiration as Joey collected Addie up on his shoulders to playfully gallop out to the car. She could hear Addie faintly cheering Joey on before she was disrupted to get buckled into her car seat. Cassie chuckled lightly to herself, picking up Albie from his play pen before exiting and locking up the house. “You’re a good sport, huh buddy? Happy first holiday.” Cassie murmured to the baby, rustling his light hair as she hurried down the porch steps to get Albie and herself into the car as well. “So my mom goes a little overboard on hosting.” Cassie warned. “It might look more formal than it really is. She mentioned wanting to do cookies with Addie too.” Addie perked up in her seat, “Cookies!”
Addie had seemed to warm up more to Joey lately and he was doing his best to keep it that way. She’d actually listen to what he said (most of the time) and wanted to play with him as much as her mother. She still tried to force Cassie and Joey apart whenever they tried to kiss or cuddle in front of her, but hopefully she’d get over that soon enough. Once everyone was in the car, Joey backed out and headed off toward the farmhouse. “I hope she likes the sides I made. There’s some traditional Native America fry bread and lots of other stuff. I didn’t attempt anything remotely French, just like you told me.” He chuckled a bit, the nerves still on the edge of his voice.
“She’ll love it.” Cassie assured him again, patting his knee as he backed out of the driveway and drove towards the Grove. “She isn’t picky with food. And hey, if you wanted to make a baked brie or something you could have-” She raised her hands slightly in defense, “You just don’t know what she’s like.” Cassie laughed, because by word of mouth she was probably blowing up Victoria Germaine’s tendencies larger than they really were. “Seriously though, it’s more than enough, and you got her a nice gift. Everythings covered. Besides-” Cassie’s brow furrowed at him again, “On the crazy chance she doesn’t like you, she doesn’t get a say in my relationships anyways.”
Despite Cassie’s reassuring words he still couldn’t help being nervous all the same. Joey tried to feed a bit off of Addie’s excitement as she hummed a nonsense song in the back seat, smiling at her in the rear view. “I know. It’s not you I’m worried about. Not in the slightest,” he said, putting his hand on hers on his knee and giving her a quick smile as he drove. Once they arrived, Joey took a deep breath. “If I start talking about how the first thanksgiving is a lie, you have permission to shut me up by any means necessary,” he joked, mostly just trying to relieve some tension in his own body.
Cassie smiled over at Joey as reassuring as possible when he parked the car and made his little joke. “Thanksgiving is over, it shouldn’t even be a thought. But ok.” She nodded to him, unbuckling her seatbelt and stepping out of the car to gather Addie and Albie from their carseats. The little redhead was already running towards the front door of the farmhouse, hopping up the front porch steps announcing herself with a comfortable familiarity while Cassie hung back with the younger boy on her hip and one of the bags of presents in hand. She could hear the signature voice and shuffle of Rags the domestic troll, and her mother not far behind. “Oh good you made it.” Victoria mused, descending the stairs quickly taking Albie from Cassie’s arms, “Come in come in, don’t you all look a picture.”
“My parents used to rant and rave about how the white man stole all their holidays from other cultures and it always got really bad right around now. They’d be talking about Thanksgiving until New Years.” Joey shuddered dramatically with a smile. “Thankfully I’m not that bad,” he jokingly added, gathering up the rest of the bags to head toward the door. Cassie has told Joey about Rags, but he’d never seen anything like him before. Joey smiled politely at the troll, and then at Victoria as she appeared and immediately took Albie. “Thanks for inviting us, Victoria,” he said as he ascended the stairs. Of course she’d invite her daughter and grandkids over. What a dumb thing for him to say. He was just trying to be as polite as possible, hoping he wasn’t coming on too strong.
Victoria nodded at Joey’s kind, though unnecessary thank you. “Of course. Any chance to see my precious grandbabies.” She bounced Albie on her hip with a short chuckle before looking back at Cassie as Joey as she stepped back into the house. “You two as we ll. I figured it was about time we were properly introduced anyways, Joey.” Her smile curled a bit more pointedly, and Cassie had to hide the roll of her eyes. “Do you have anything that needs to be heated in the oven?” The older woman asked next and Cassie glanced up from where she placed the presents. “Um, maybe the fry bread?” Her gaze flicked to Joey, “I’m not sure. Are we ready to eat pretty much?” Victoria nodded slowly, “Practically. Hope you all came hungry.” Addie piped up from the kitchen, “Cookies! Time for cookies!”
In person Victoria was far less intimidating than Joey had her built up in his head. They’d met briefly before and it has only served to hype her up more as this otherworldly thing looming above him. But she was just an ordinary woman. Just a person like he was. Nothing to be scared of. Right? “Nope, everything is ready. I have enchanted glassware I bought in a shop here that keeps everything at just the right temperature.” He smiled at Addie’s cries from the kitchen, looking over at Cassie with an overly loving expression.
“Oh I like that.” Victoria laughed at the mention of enchanted cookware. “You’ll have to tell me where you found that Joey, we never had stuff like that in Chicago, and I imagine it’s still a special order item around here.” She set Albie down in a highchair set up near the already dressed dining room table before she went to go help Rags in the kitchen. Victoria waved at the couple, “Sit, sit. You too Adeline.” She gently pushed the toddler towards the table. “I want to know everything. Other holiday plans-” Her voice raised in volume as Victoria started to move back and forth with serving plates of food. “You have to tell me how you two met.” She cleared her throat, refreshing her kind smile as Cassie slowly took a seat at the table after wrangling Addie into a booster.
“The shop was called ‘Just Right’. Everything in there was enchanted for temperature control, or repelling pet hair, or preventing you from losing things, etc etc,” Joey informed as Victoria walked away, reaching over to adjust Albie’s outfit a bit and tickle the boy’s sides to make him giggle. He unpacked the food he’d brought and populated the middle of the table with it as Victoria brought food out as well, and soon the table was full to bursting with dishes. “I was a security guard at the time. Cassie was still pregnant with this little guy,” Joey began, pinching one of Albie’s cheeks lightly, “and she was at the doors to the library after hours. At first I thought she was trying to break in but she was just looking for Addie’s little fox rattle, and I helped her find it.” He’d leave out the second meeting where he’d accidentally bought her a cursed painting. Not his proudest moment. “As for other holiday plans? I’m really at Cassie’s whim there. I don’t have any family left to celebrate with…” He realized there was a very downer thing to say, and he looked to Cassie desperately for help.
Victoria let out a laugh of pure amusement at the bits of story Joey provided. “Cassandra trying to break into a library? If she didn’t run the main one in town I wouldn’t be surprised.” Cassie blinked at the playful dig, but at least thankful her mother took the meeting light heartedly. “So Albie has known you since the beginning then? How sweet.” Her smile grew just a bit more genuine as she took a seat and began to pass a few of the serving plates around. The familiarity between the two was hard to miss anyways. She clicked her tongue at Joeys next admission. “Cassie will be sure to include you in everything. You seem keen on sticking around.” The older woman’s gaze dropped for a moment and she opened her mouth for the more pressing questions on her mind when Cassie jumped in. “I think the rec center for Holt mentioned sleigh rides, and of course we’ll do Christmas morning. You should join mother.” She glanced over to Joey then with a small nod. “We are small too.”
Joey couldn’t help but smile at Victoria’s little joke. Mostly because he completely agreed. “He has for the most part, yeah,” Joey said, just a twinge of sadness in his voice. At this rate the boy would never know his biological father, and that hurt Joey’s heart to know. But he kept the thought firmly to himself. He began to load his plate with food as everything was passed around, getting Albie some mashed potatoes to pick at and fitting his bib around his neck. “I am,” Joey answered simply when Victoria mentioned him sticking around. He loved the fact that both women were happy to include him in their holidays. Anything that made him feel like more of a part of the family warmed his heart. “Sleigh rides sound fun,” he chimed in. “I bet we could get them to let Addie sit up front and hold the reigns too.”
Cassie watched in loving admiration as Joey clasped the bib around Albie’s neck, part of her was happy to watch the young boy babble happily and attempt to eat mashed potatoes all the while covering himself in them. None of them would want to outright mention it, but the fact that the little boy would never meet Lilo would undoubtedly cross their minds. Joey was here now, she wished the rest didn’t weigh so heavily. When the plates came around to her she loaded up her plate appropriately with brisket and a few latkes. She pointed the latter out to Joey and muttered, “You have it with sour cream or applesauce.” Victoria was cutting into her food, and took one of the fry breads Joey brought examining it for a moment before she smiled over at Addie, “Think you could control some horses ma petite fille?” Addie puffed out her chest, “I’m in charge!” Cassie let out a breath with a shake of her head, “Oh now you’ve done it.” Victoria’s topic changed just as quickly though and she prompted, “So are you two living together?” It certainly looked serious enough from the outside. It made Cassie pause though, leave it to her mother to ask something official. “No. Yes? Um…” She frowned looking to Joey for help then.
Joey nodded at Cassie’s instructions. Him not needing to eat to survive meant he wasn’t too adventurous with his food choices, so there was plenty he hadn’t tried before. Victoria’s use of French made him smile, and Addie’s answer only made him smile wider. Goddess, he never thought he’d get something like this again. He hadn’t had a family holiday dinner like this in decades, but here he was with the woman he loved, her gorgeous children that he adored, and her mother that seemed to be warming up to him. How could he not be all smiles when life seemed so damn good? But then Victoria’s question cut through the fluffy thoughts with a sharp knife. There was no malice or trickery in the question, but Joey still felt there was somehow a right answer here. “Uh, sort of? I stay over at Cassie’s more often than not, but I do have my own home still.” Albie cooed next to him, mashed potatoes all over his mouth and the bib. He seemed to have gotten them everywhere but his target. Joey took a napkin and wiped some of it away, before picking up the spoon and feeding some to him with a smile.
Victoria nodded as Joey added some confirmation beside Cassie’s own. She really didn’t know what to make out of the situation for the most part, but figured as long as it was working then that’s all that really mattered. Addie watched Joey feed the younger baby pointedly before she started to pick apart a roll and throw bits of it on the floor. “Too much poe-tay-toes.” She commented, eyes wide at everyone at the table, the small face crinkled with laughter when Albie spit up the rest of the food he didn’t want. He squirmed under the napkin before babbling with hands outstretched towards Cassie’s plate. “Hang on there sport.” Cassie chuckled pushing the china further out of reach, which only seemed to upset him more. Victoria’s chin tilted up slightly, “Give him some of the roast Cassandra. Just tiny slivers.” Cassie frowned, but did as suggested anyways. “What do the kids call you Joey? Has that uh...come up?”
Joey leaned back to let Cassie take care of her son. He tried his best with the kids, but he was constantly reminded in the end that they were Cassie’s children, even if she had basically given him unspoken permission to be a father figure to them. He still was uncomfortable disciplining Addie and always looked to Cassie for guidance or silent permission. He felt like a child in his own way that way, and it made him feel guilty. He was supposed to be helping take weight off of Cassie’s shoulders, and he ended up almost feeling like a new burden instead. It would get better though. He knew it would. And almost like Victoria was reading his mind, her next question cut through him like a knife. “They just call me Joey,” he said, stopping himself from saying ‘for now’ like he almost did. He didn’t want to be a replacement, but she was right, it was a subject they’d have to broach as the kids got older. “This roast is delicious, Victoria!” He chimed, trying hard to change the subject in his fumbling way.
It was a clever diversion, and Cassie was thankful for it. The compliment had Victoria smiling and distracted rather then taking the extra moment to dissect what exactly Joey’s role was. “Thank you dear. It’s a tried and true recipe. Not that it takes a genius to cook a roast.” She laughed slightly at her own joke. “This fry bread is tasty. I do like to try new things, it’s appreciated. Cassie said you were ninety four. Is she messing with me?” She paused for a moment and Cassie watched her mother carefully, before giving a light scoff. “Mother, age isn’t appropriate discussion.” Victoria frowned doubtfully “Well if it’s true I just wonder if it isn’t a bit overwhelming. Holidays. It can be a bit par for the course.” Cassie reached out for Joeys hand under the table and squeezed it gently. While she couldn’t help but also be curious, she didn’t want him too feel like he had to drudge up anything.
Joey chuckled at Victoria’s question. She really had a way of getting right to the point. And even though Cassie tried to discourage the discussion, Joey waved a hand to dismiss any concern. “She’s not messing with you. I am ninety four,” he admitted, his voice a bit far away. “It’s a bit complicated but I was asleep for more than half that time. I haven’t had a holiday since the 60s.” He shrugged, then reached over and took Cassie’s hand because in that moment he needed it. “We didn’t really celebrate Christian or American holidays. We had our own, both Native and Atronach related. I’m not a stranger to the concepts of Christmas and all that but, it’s certainly not a boring experience for me.”
“Don’t worry.” Victoria laughed, “It’s not like we know exactly what we’re doing with the Christmas holiday either. Mostly, just the glitter and glam you see on television and movies. Right Cassie?” Cassie obediently nodded when she was pulled into the conversation. “So even further proof you fit right in.” Something that very clearly seemed to be pleasing VIctoria, whether she said so directly or not, her facial expressions were at least something easy for Cassie to read. There was a brightness and happiness to them that wasn’t always there. It was a bit of a relief to see. Victoria cleared her throat then, “So nintey-four? Did you serve in World War II?” “Mother-” Cassie exasperated, knowing Victoria was blunt, but even this was a little much. “Well, I just want to thank him if he was. Not many veterans left from that.” She raised her hands in defense.”If it wasn’t for the states assistance, we probably wouldn’t be here. That’s all.” Addie kicked her legs impatiently on her booster seat, “Cookies now!”
It struck Joey just how obedient Cassie was around her mother. She still had that same lively confidence and independence that seemed to glow from her very core, but it dimmed slightly in Victoria’s presence. She became a daughter first and everything else second. He supposed he just wasn’t used to seeing that. Cindy always challenged their parents whenever she could, and it wasn’t like his random hook ups after the war had took home home to meet the family. He’d never even met Lenore’s parents...but the observation was quickly wiped away when Victoria brought of the war and while he appreciates Cassie trying to shut down the line of questioning, he nodded at her to assure her it was okay. At least okay as it could be. “I did, yes. I was a paratrooper. Enlisted right before D-Day.” He hoped his body language made it clear he didn’t plan to elaborate more. Instead he gestured to Addie. “Looks like someone’s getting impatient,” he said with a smile to hide the sudden heaviness grief in his chest that he attempted to swallow down. “Maybe after cookies we can do gifts?”
With the bit of information that Joey did give about his military career, Victoria thought of a hundred more questions. But Addie diverted the conversation with her demand for cookies, and Joey and Cassie quickly followed “Oh finally cookies!” Cassie exasperated, lifting the toddler from her spot wnd setting her down to run to the kitchen, “What do you think about gingerbread men and snickerdoodles hmm?” She poses the question as she gathered Albie up back into her arms as well. “Make sure to save some cookies for Santa.” Victoria pointed out, piling the dishes that were no longer needed. Addie laughed, eyes crinkled in mischief “All for me!” Cassie clicked her tongue, “That’s not good sharing. Just see if you get presents then.” She winked over at Joey, a silent gesture of confidence. And it did make Addie pause as she counted on her fingers for show, “....Three cookies for Santa!”
Joey was so thankful for the distraction. Victoria was good at getting the information she wanted, and Joey wanted to make her happy and likely would have given it despite how hard it would be for him. But now he could focus on helping clear the table as everyone fled to the kitchen to get the cookies started. “I think three cookies is very ‘nice list’ behavior,” Joey said, returning Cassie’s wink. Victoria and Addie worked on getting the cookies in the oven and Joey retreated to the living room to make sure everything looked good for gifts. It wasn’t long before the others joined him, and he designated himself as the one to pass out the gifts. “Okay, who’s first?” Addie jumped up from Victoria’s lap excitedly. “Me, me, me!” Joey chuckled and considered making her wait, but it was the holidays after all. “Okay, but you and your mom have matching gifts, so you have to open them together, okay?” He searched the pile and picked out the two small boxes, handing one to each of them.
Cassie was glad Victoria took over when it came to cookie making. It gave her the next small break she needed. As Joey helped clear she started to slowly work on some of the dirty dishes only stopping when it came time to pass out gifts. Joey was the one who collected most of them, so it made sense that he’d pass them out as well. “You didn’t have to get me anything.” Cassie signed, taking the small box and unwrapping it with promptness only because she could see Addie squirming out of the corner of her eye. Her brows rose at the silver locket she pulled out, and she glanced over to see Addie with an identical necklace. The toddler pouted confused at the gift, but before she could do anything with it Victoria took it and clasped it around the young girls neck. “Oh it’s beautiful.” She mused, trying to hype it for Addie. Cassie stared at it with more wonder finding the clasp and opening it up so it unraveled pictures of her and the kids. “Joey.” She whispered, feeling a slight pang in her chest. “It’s wonderful. I love it.” Cassie learned over to show Addie her own picture before standing and kissing Joey quickly on the lips. “Great pictures and everything. Can you help me with it?”
Joey watched eagerly as Cassie and Addie up wrapped their gifts. He expected the toddler to be a bit disappointed, but he knew she’d appreciate it when she got older. What he hadn’t expected was for Cassie to be so moved. He knew she’d like it, but the look in her eye told of so much more. He took the kiss happily and smiled as she handed him the necklace, waiting for her to move her hair out of the way to clasp it around her neck. “I’m glad you like it. You look beautiful.”
“It’s perfect.” Cassie muttered, holding her hair to the side as Joey managed to set the clasp on the locket. It hung easily against her collarbone. She touched the metal gently, and smiled “Thank you. Though-“ and here she laughed a little, “I didn’t bring anything for you tonight. What a way to show me up Santa.” This moment aside, Cassie couldn’t think of anything that would match the thought of the locket. “Seems like a theme.” Victoria commented, moving Addie to pick up her own paper wrapped gift for the pair. It was clearly a photo frame. “Just something nice, for the both of you.”
“That’s okay,” Joey said with a smile, soaking up every bit of her reaction with a goofy smile on his face. “I wanted to give it to Addie tonight because she’d be too busy with all of Santa’s gifts come Christmas morning,” he joked. His attention shifted as Victoria handed him a present, and he took the lead in opening it. Inside there was a picture frame with the words ‘we make a great pear’ printed on it, with two pears holding hands. Inside the frame was a picture of Cassie and Joey that Cassie had posted a while back that Victoria had clearly nicked from the internet and gotten developed. “This is so thoughtful, thank you,” Joey said sincerely, handing it to Cassie so she could get a better look.
Victoria waved off Joey’s thankfulness for the gift. “I just saw it and thought it was cute. Couples always need more pictures of themselves when there’s kids involved.” Cassie took the opportunity to look over the frame and picture and snickered lightly to herself. “It’s great mother, I can already think of a place to put it.” Shed just need to make some room on the mantel. “Thanks for having us and the kids over. It’s been sort of hectic otherwise.” Victoria upturned her palms, “Of course I could never turn down a visit from my grandkids and lovely daughter. Don’t forget to take some cookies when they’re out of the oven. I sent forward the gifts for the kids with the postal service. Just for extra things under the tree.” Cassie nodded in understanding. “You don’t think we forgot you did you?” She teased lightly, motioning for Joey to grab the last gift.
Seeing how put together Victoria was, Joey could see it was very much like mother like daughter. Cassie very much seemed to unintentionally mimic the other woman. Sat up a little straighter when she was around. Things like that. Joey simply continued to smile at the exchange. Victoria being so accepting of him in spite of the situation with Lilo was so comforting to him. All he wanted was family in his life. “Oh! Yeah,” he mumbled, reaching down for the gift and handing it over.
“What…” Victoria feigned shock when Joey handed over the small gift, and Cassie could tell she was trying not to look too excited. Fifty year old women weren’t supposed to get excited over holiday gifts, at least that seemed to be a Germaine-ism. The older woman unwrapped the present and turned the large candle around. “Homesick Chicago?” She repeated, and Cassie explained, “I know you had a bit of a hard time moving out of the old house mother. That’s just a bit of something letting you know you don’t have to forget, yeah?” Victoria pouted slightly, resting a hand against her chest, “How sweet. Very nice. I’ll be sure to enjoy it.” She squeezed Cassie’s shoulder in silent thanks. Addie meanwhile had snuck over to the oven to crouch and watch the cookies cook, pressing her hands against the tempered glass when the timer went off. “It’s ready!” She beamed.
Victoria got up to join Addie in the kitchen and before Cassie could move to do the same, Joey reached out to grab her forearm and pull her close. “Thank you for this,” he whispered, leaning down to kiss her softly. “Being part of a family means so much to me.” He tucked some hair behind her ear and let his thumb caress her cheek. “You letting me into your life is the best gift I could ask for.”
“How should I know?” Mrs. Gracey began in irritation to Joey’s questions, but as she was about to launch into more quarrelling she paused, drawing closer to him, and sniffed at him. Quickly and without leaning in much to Joey’s personal space, but enough so that when she drew back, it was with a changed expression. One more knowing, her eyes a little darker, her smile bordering on salacious.
“You’re the property of a wolf woman,” Mrs. Gracey said, pointing at Joey as her mate gave a slight whine where he was hanging back in the hallway. “That’s a relief. Somebody who’s been taken in jaw by a wolf will have a better idea of what to do here.” She angled herself to subtly box Ephram out of her attention, and the witch in response rocked a half step back, deeper into the house, closer to the husband with a little pointed nod at Joey.
Mrs. Gracey’s initial hostility seemed to have mellowed noticably now, and she set one hand on her hip and rubbed her forehead with the other one as she looked around. “My mate and I were out when this happened,” she related, “so I don’t know if the intruder knew what he was looking for or not. If he was looking for jewelry, valuables, then he grabbed what was visible and available. Came straight up to the bedroom to get his disgusting little grubby hands on my trinket box and stole my mate’s dress collar off its stand.”
She began to climb the stairs, saying, “Come with me, Deputy Voeman,” and paying no mind to the husband peering up the staircase to watch her ascent. “
“Go on,” Ephram said to Joey lowly as the atronach passed by. “Catch what you can. I’ll handle things down here. And Joe–” Ephram ducked his chin slightly; they were of a height, so it softened his voice, but he was very aware of wolf hearing, “–you belong to a wolf woman, lean on it.” Whatever Joey and Cassie’s relationship dynamic actually was, clearly Mrs. Gracey had a specific view in mind. And a bit of judicious and proper beta behaviour on Joey’s part might net them some insights.
The shift in Mrs Gracey’s expression was noticeable before she even spoke again, and when she did Joey furrowed his brow a bit, but said nothing. He didn’t want to think of himself as property, but he also knew arguing would get him nowhere, so he simply nodded. “I am,” he admitted. Anything to keep her talking.
And talk she did. Much more hospitable than before. Joey soaked up all the information, nodding to encourage her, and when she started upstairs, Joey quickly moved to follow. He nodded at Ephram’s advice. He belonged to a wolf woman. His heart certainly did. That was enough to lean into for him.
Mrs Gracey led Joey to the bedroom. He stayed behind her, slouched his body language to mask a bit of his height. His first step was to make Mrs Gracey feel in charge and superior.
“See, he made an absolute disaster of our bedroom. My mate and I keep things very tidy and organized. Structured.” She eyed Joey curiosity, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “I’m sure your wolf does as well...” She pursed her lips. “A wolf and an atronach. An odd pair, that’s for certain.”
“She does,” Joey agreed. He wasn’t a particularly good liar, but so far, he hadn’t exactly lied about anything. “She takes excellent care of me.” He took a quick cursory look around the room, but stayed in the doorway. “Do I have your permission to look around, Ma’am?”
“Yes, of course,” she said, smiling even wider at the request. She seemed to be relishing in this. Joey bent down to closer examine the scene, doing his best not to move anything.
“It seems everything taken pertains to your species,” Joey observed. “The collar, the claws, the trinkets. All wolf themed, yeah?”
Sad times, friends, but my muse for Darla has dried up already. Maybe she’s just too much personality for me to handle and she burned me out too quick. I don’t think time will make it better either, unfortunately. So this is goodbye for the prettiest Pettaline don’t @ me @ephrampettaline :P
That being said, I’m NOT leaving altogether. I’m sticking around with Joey, but I do need to on hiatus because I’ve been super busy lately. Probably until mid February. I’ll still reply to the few Joey threads I have, but I won’t be starting anything new until I get back.
For a moment Isa worried that this might have been a terrible idea. If Joey started teaching her how to wrestle… well, just looking at his size she felt like it might not be the best idea. But then he started listing all kinds of smart tricks that she didn’t know about and she started taking mental notes. “Salt and iron for ghosts, just iron for fae,” she repeated out loud with a nod. “Got it. Anything else for other species? Is the garlic for the vampire an actual thing that works or did some vampires really hated garlic and started a rumor?”
Her eyes grew wider when he stood in a pose that suggested any moment he could start charging at her and Isa was suddenly told to try knocking him down and she didn’t even know how that was… was that even an option? “Me? Knocking you down?” she echoed his words in disbelief as if what he said sounded ridiculous. “Have you seen me? I’m like—half the size of yours. How am I supposed to—oh!” And finally, the lights switched up. “Okay, I’m coming. Though I should probably not announce it first, that is not good when somebody is trying to threaten me, right? Just ignore I did that.”
She bounced a couple of times on her heels, and then after a big breath, she was off, trying to work her speed since she was pretty sure she didn’t have any other advantage she could use. She tried going from more of an angle at him, not straight from his front, hitting him with her shoulder to try and push him out of balance.
“Garlic won’t keep them out, just gives them a nasty rash,” Joey replied, amused by how into the tips Isa was, and happy with how she was catching on. “There’s werewolves and silver, but not all are sensitive. Always a safe bet though.” He searched his brain for any other tidbits, but couldn’t think of anymore, so he simply shrugged and moved on.
Joey dug his heels in as she charged at him. He didn’t really know what to expect. She was a small girl compared to him, but that didn’t mean much. He’d learned to never underestimate people, because it often would come to bite you in the ass. When Isa hit him though, he moved a bit, but wasn’t anywhere near knocked over.
Isa bounced off of him, and Joey reached out to grab her before she fell on her ass. “You okay?” he asked, helping her stand up straight before he did the same. “Alright, I’m gonna teach you your first lesson. When you go up against someone bigger than you, use their weight and weakpoints to your advantage.” He pointed down to his foot. “The instep is a good place. Or kicking in the shin. Anything that’s going to topple them. Then when they bend down, you hit them in the face, or the....you know.” He pointed to his pants and whistled awkwardly.
“So, knowing that, what would you do to knock me over now?”
“I’m…very hard to kill,” CIara replied, looking back at him with a cocky smile. “That arena wasn’t even close when comparing to even just the attempts in the last two years.”
She turned back to the wall, painting symbols as old as time. Both small and delicate, and large and bold. It expanded from a simple sygil, and with it, she checked her spelling at every turn. When she found one, she licked her thumb and smudged it away, before continuing.
It was hard to listen to, the way he described his mind. Ciara hadn’t ever been haunted by her own life the way he was describing. Sure, once in a while she’d have a migraine that crushed her mind, and her back ached, but it wasn’t the same. Ciara wanted to understand, but in some fundamental way she didn’t. Couldn’t.
When he laughed, she turned back, tilting her head. “Is that really better? I’m not judging. They’re from another dimension. Best case scenario, we never even hear of the arena again. Wouldn’t you rather move on?”
Joey was very curious who or what had been trying to kill her over the past two years but he didn’t pry. He didn’t feel it to be his place. They’d shared a life or death ordeal together. Something that bonded them whether they liked it or not, but she was still such an enigma to him. She seemed to wear that fact with pride too. She never truly offered anything unless it was asked of her.
Her answer to his musing though, it was about what he’d expected. He couldn’t blame her. He wished he could move on so easily. “To me it’s better, yeah. Even if we never hear of it again, it’s still out there, isn’t it? Still stealing people like us and making them fight for their lives.” He felt himself getting a bit overly passionate in his words, and knew his passion could often lead to anger, so he did his best to calm himself before continuing. “I wish I could just move on, but I can’t. Not knowing they’re still getting away with it.”
He cleared his throat. “Will you help me find them? I won’t ask you to do anything further, but I want...justice.”
“I’m sure you will”, Rein assured with a smile. Joey was a good man, he surely would be a good cop too. The joke about copper made Rein raise his brow and then he just laughed at Joey’s explanation about it. “You do know I’ve named all my cats after metals. Copper, Tin and Brass. Like yeah, I know my coppers.” he chuckled after his own words.
Rein looked at the goatling hopping around the yard all happily and Rein had a feeling once the goat would grow Joey wouldn’t have the heart to let her go. Especially if he was going to let her stay in the house. “Yeah, I can give you a hand with that. So I take it you’d let her be out more after the winter?” He looked at Joey raising his brow a bit in a questioning manner. Then a random thought came to his head. “What kind of professions you actually have had during all these years? I don’t think we’ve ever talked about that. Like I know you have that soldier thing under your belt, but what else is there?”
Joey’s eyes shined a bit at Rein talking about what he’d named his cats. “That’s adorable,” he admitted, nodding. “Leaning into it. I like that.” It reminded him that he still needed to rename his rabbit. Having her named after his sister just felt weird now since she’d visited him as a ghost so recently.
“Oh yeah probably,” he mumbled, still wrapping his head around the fact he’d agreed to this and now had a goat to look after. “Though I bet she’d love playing in the snow.” Reins question surprised him a bit, and he cleared his throat before answering. “Uh, well I was a carpenter for a little bit. And a mason. Had a hard time keeping jobs on account of my...issues.” He didn’t want to talk about it at that moment and hoped Rein wouldn’t press. “Just bounced around construction jobs, worked as a logger. Whatever I could sink my teeth into to work with my hands and just...forget.” Hell of a lot of good that did.
The goatling came and butted its tiny head against Joey’s shin, and he simply smiled down at her. “Somebody wanna play?” He asked, picking her up and letting his horns slowly unscrew from his head. He held the goat up and bumped their horns together gently with a small laugh. “You’ve ruined me, Rein. Look what you’ve done,” he joked.
“Wait, you just… get the muscles? Are you serious?” Isa asked back, surprised. “How is that fair?” she couldn’t help the added words slipping out. Sure, she didn’t need the muscles, she had a toned and amazing body because of the swimming, but damn it, that sounded really unfair. “I mean, good for you, but wow, others must feel really envious of you.” She figured this was for people who struggled to work out like how she was envious of those creatures who lived for longer than the human lifespan.
At his question where to start, she pondered for a second, rolling forwards and backward on her heels in the process a bit. “Well, what is the most effective thing you could suggest? I mean, you know a bunch of self-defense and you know what’s best to learn first, right? I am not planning on getting mugged or anything, not even sure if that’s a thing here when there are so many people who can just magic things for themselves and everything.”
“So really, just—what do you think would be effective. Where did you start learning these things exactly?” she asked, curious. “You learned these things for your job, right? Or did you go specifically for some kind of fighting style?”
Joey simply shrugged. “It’s not fair, honestly. But every species is made different for different things, you know? Both in the supernatural and the animal kingdom. And if I was unhappy with my body, there’s little I could do to change it. That’s very unfair for some,” he mused with another shrug. It was things like that he thought about far too much.
“The first thing I learned in basic training, past the obstacle courses and such, was hand to hand combat. Wrestling, actually. But that doesn’t really help us,” Joey said, scratching his chin. He’d thought on this ever since she’d asked him for lessons, but hadn’t really pinpointed exactly what was relevant to what she needed to learn. “I guess we can start with the absolute basics, yeah? Salt will protect against ghost. Iron too. And iron works on fae, like me. Burns like the dickens.”
He walked out onto the mat in the middle of the room, gesturing for Isa to join him. “Things in this town have lots of different rules, all constantly changing. But one thing is almost always certain, it’s gonna be bigger than you.” He planted his feet flat on the ground, hands out to his sides in a threatening way, almost looking like a shaved bear on its hind legs. “Try to knock me down.”
“That’s the thing – ‘desperate for money’ ain’t exactly something we run into real often in Soapberry.” Ephram licked tarragon mayonnaise from his thumb. “There’s so many ways you can barter or trade, even when you get folks who’re chasin’ drugs or other illicit stuff, plain ordinary workaday money ain’t exactly top dollar, so to speak.” Ephram grunted as he crumpled up his sandwich wrapper and put it back in his lunch sack. “Did Cassie tell you her and me got trapped by these brownies who wanted to turn us into kids and sell us on the Changeling Stock Exchange or some crazyass thing like that? Anyhow, that’s what I mean! There’s always some other form of payment a person can wrangle if they really got the need.”
He held still mildly as Joey swatted the crumbs from his shirt, enjoying the small gesture; Ephram liked to be looked after, and even if Joey was his Deputy now, he’d been a friend first – which made personal boundaries a little more fluid regardless of them being at work. “Thanks,” Ephram said, re-straightening his lapels as they got out of the jeep and went up to the front door. “And yeah, shit – you’re probably right, a sex thing. Hey, ask Cassie if she’s got any claw rings. Might lead to some interesting situations for you’ns.”
Ephram snickered, but shifted it to a polite, professional smile when a woman opened the door and broke into his standard greeting and identification by saying, “Finally you’re here! Do you have any idea how terrified we’ve been thinking that this junkie or whatever it is can just break in here again? My mate and I have been worried sick that they’ll come back for what they didn’t get this time!”
“We’re sorry for any delay, ma’am,” Ephram said smoothly with a nod, scanning the entranceway to the mansion – a gesture that took only a couple of surreptitious seconds – before refocusing on her. “Deputy Voeman and I are here now, and I assure you we take this sorter thing real serious. It ain’t right that you been made to feel unsafe in your own home, and we aim to help fix that if we can. May we come in and take a look around, Ms. Gracey?” A male werewolf came into the hall, hanging back and nibbling his nails, wearing what Ephram recognized as a beta necklace tag that matched Ms. Gracey’s alpha tag. The report hadn’t specified that they were mated, and that did change things a little bit. Hopefully not in any way that would hinder the investigation, but you never knew.
“Ah yeah, good point. Still pretty used to human society I suppose,” Joey admitted. He often forgot how Soapberry functioned so very differently from how he was raised. Sure, he had his first six years with the tribe but he barely remembered it. Being taught of supernatural culture secondhand was much different from living in it. “Yeah, she did,” he confirmed, chuckling slightly. It was probably scary at the time but the whole scenario was a bit comical from the outside. “With all the strange things that happen here, sometimes it’s easy to forget that this town will never leave its citizens wanting for at least the basics.”
Joey hummed in reply to his thanks and followed Ephram to the front door, smacking him playfully on the shoulder with his knuckles at the joke. “We don’t need claw rings for interesting scenarios. Trust me,” he said with a smirk before the door opened.
He let Ephram handle the talking as they walked in, waving his hand politely as he was introduced. He took the opportunity to look around more thoroughly than Ephram, tasked by default with calming the woman, as they were allowed inside. Even though it looked as if the entrance hall had been tidied, he immediately spotted signs of some sort of struggle. Scuff marks on the marble floor, rugs out of place just slightly.
“May we see where the stolen items were usually stored?” Joey asked Ms Gracey. He also recognized the tags for what they were now that he was looking at them both. “Was there any other damage to your home? Or did it seem the intruder knew what they were looking for?”
Ciara tilted her head at him, eyes thinning as a new sentence hung unsaid on his breath. She debated a beat whether to ask, and thought the better of it, turning to her spells.
“They won’t. You’ll be fine.” Ciara set her bag down and pulled out a big coffee thermos and a small iron bowl, with intricate designs hand etched all over the inside. Next, she spread a small plastic tarp over the floor where she was going to stand, just in case. Crouching, she opened the thermos, and poured thick red blood into the bowl. Next, a shed snake skin peeled perfectly was taken out of a tupperware and added to the blood. Sealing the thermos, Ciara stood and attached a sketch to the wall, and finally a paintbrush. As he talked, she began to carefully paint the blood onto his wall.
“All healed, finally. It’s good to know I can heal it myself, just agonisingly slowly.” She replied, tilting her head sideways. This was a simple magic any witch could do: drawing a perfect circle without hesitation. “How are you feeling? No lasting flashbacks?”
Joey could tell he’d been found out by the way she was looking at him. He’d made it obvious he had more to say. He was good at reading people but Ciara was too, it seemed. However, she seemed to let it pass and he was thankful.
He watched her intently as she worked. Her use of her magic in the arena had made it obvious she was a blood witch, but somehow he was still mildly surprised she was just carrying some around with her in a thermos like it was part of her lunch. He’d maybe expected something dramatic like cutting of the palm and chanting, but she was just painting his walls with blood sigils. He’d been raised by his Mama to not trust witches, that they were dramatic and power hungry, and while he had grown to look past that ingrained prejudice, he supposed even a man like him couldn’t get past every stereotype he’d been taught as a child.
“That is good to know. I’m really glad. Any longer there and well…let’s just say I feared the worst,” Joey said quietly, still watching her work with a slight awe in his stare. At the mention of lasting flashbacks, Joey chuckled cruelly. “Lasting flashbacks are par for the course in here,” he said, tapping his temple. There was no doubt she remembered his episode he’d had when they first arrived at the arena. “I dream about that place almost every night. Suppose the only pro to that situation is I haven’t dreamed about the war in a while.” Another curt huff of a laugh passed his lips. “Some of the dreams are good though. I dream about finding the people responsible for putting us there and crushing their windpipes with my bare hands.” He brought his hands up in front of him and mimed the motion subconsciously.
Rein’s reaction to the first bit of Joey’s answer was just a frown – he wasn’t a fan of Ephram, but he did know who he was and that he was the sheriff, so just knowing someone to get a job wasn’t really an explanation in the nymph’s books. But luckily Joey did give some more details about the thing and that answer Rein could accept and he even gave a nod to that. “You’re gonna be a good copper, you know. Keep the imps at bay.” He ended up grinning at the last bit of his words because at this point the whole imp situation felt like it was forever ago and just the whole thing felt a bit funny and weird now, so in Rein’s books it was okay to joke about it.
When Joey agreed to take care of the goatling Rein’s face lit up into a bright smile. “Great. I knew you’d take care of her.” Okay, he hadn’t been 100% sure would Joey agree to this weird request, but he surely had hoped he’d agree to this. “I can help building a tiny house for her if you don’t want to use the toolshed though.” The mention of a fellow nymph made him grin a bit. “We nymphs are twisted creatures, aren’t we.”
Rein watched the goatling with a happy smile as she hopped around the yard. Although Joey’s question caused him to chuckle and turn his gaze on the atronach. “Yup. I knew you couldn’t say no to a small and cute horn head.”
Joey couldn’t help but smile, at both the compliment and the joke. “Heh, thanks,” he chuckled. “Hopefully I’ll be able to help with a whole lot more than just imps,” he added, his tone attempting a joke but he was mostly serious. All he wanted to do was help, after all, in any way he could. “It’s a high endorsement, coming from you. You’d know all about coppers, huh?” He said, winking and miming a nudge with his elbow. But when he realized his dad joke didn’t quite make sense, he added, “you know, on account of you being a metal nymph and all? I’m sorry, that was awful.”
Joey rolled his eyes playfully at Rein once again mentioning that both him and the goat had horns. Though he couldn’t get the image out of his head now of them having an old fashioned head butting contest. He also couldn’t get the itchy feeling out of the back of his skull that this all just seemed too peachy and cute. Like there had to be something else going on here.
“The toolshed will work just fine I think,” he said. “But I wouldn’t mind the help converting it. For now she can stay inside though.”
Isa was excited about the possibility to learn how to kick butt. Or, well, maybe not kick butt but at least learns some tricks to defend herself first. And then the butt-kicking could come later on.
Isa wasn’t a working out girl at all. In her mind, all the walking she did delivering the mail and the swimming she did, in general, was more than enough. Going to the gym was annoying and she didn’t really understand the different machines either, so what would be the point. It also means she didn’t really have work out clothes either, so she ended up needing to shop for a set because the only clothing items she owned that had legs were thighs and she figured they wouldn’t work.
She arrived at the gym a couple of minutes late and asked for directions from the lady behind the counter, catching a few moments of the ball bouncing before Joey got caught it and stood up. “Hey, I see you’ve entertained yourself while you waited. Do you come here often?”
Joey smiled brightly as Isa walked in, setting the ball he’d been bouncing into a bucket with the others. “Hey!” He greeted. He already knew her well enough to forgo a handshake, but not well enough to go for a hug or anything like that, so he simply nodded at her with a sense of mild awkwardness
“Oh, yeah,” he chuckled, “I wasn’t waiting too long, don’t worry.” Not that she seemed particularly worried about that. He shook his head at her question. “No, once or twice maybe? My muscle is sort of part of my physical make up as an atronach. I can’t gain or lose it. So there’s no real need to work out, though sometimes I do just for the routine of it.”
He looked her up and down for a split second, noticing her clothes looked new. She probably didn’t work out much either. “Swimming is excellent exercise. I’m not surprised you’re so fit.” And after he said that, all he could do was sincerely hope she didn’t think he’d been checking her out in any lewd sort of way.
“Okay!” Joey said, clapping his hands together and swinging his arms to get pumped up. “Where do you want to start? There’s plenty of ways to use self defense against humans, and some of those things can work against the supernatural, but depending on what you’re dealing with the rules change, you know?”
“Have to say, it ain’t often we get calls like this.” Ephram balanced his lunch sack in his lap as Joey drove the sheriff jeep, carefully extracting his parchment-wrapped sandwich (roast chicken, double-cream brie, spiral-star apple was written in Freddie’s copperplate hand on the paper) and tucking in with gusto. He was getting to lunch an hour and a half late and was ravenous, hence Joey being tasked with driving duty as they headed out to the non-waterfront side of Jamara. Out there was all huge sprawling estates, favoured by certain nymphs and usually werewolves who liked to have the room to run and hunt, and Ephram continued as they went through the winding roads, “–I mean not the theft part itself, but the fact that they got thieved of, like, normal stuff. Considering Soapberry’s what it’s like, normally when folks go to the trouble of stealing, it’s fancy magic items. Rare shit. Not–” he consulted his notepad, “–jewelled collars and – and claw-rings.”
Ephram looked over at Joey, skepticism in the furrows of his forehead as he swallowed his bite of sandwich. “Claw rings?” he repeated. “You ever seen a wolf wear a claw ring? What the fuck.”
@joeyvoeman
Joey gripped the steering wheel of the jeep as Ephram dug into his lunch. He didn’t really feel hunger as a concept, but he had to admit the sandwich he unwrapped looked absolutely delicious when he stole a glance at it. This was Joey and Ephram’s first call together. Usually Joey was tagging along with other deputies as he learned the ropes. But he’d had a good bit of training by now, and Ephram had asked him along on this one, which Joey was beyond happy to agree to.
“I mean, even if that stuff ain’t magical, it still sounds valuable,” Joey mused as he drove up the winding roads between the big estates of the area. “If the perp was desperate for money, anything’s up for grabs. Though I suppose if you’re that desperate, there’s easier marks out there.”
Joey chuckled as they reached the right house, driving down the long driveway once the front gates were opened for them. “Maybe it’s a sex thing,” Joey joked, glancing over at Ephram as he brought the jeep to a halt, shutting if off and reaching over to brush some crumbs off of Ephram’s shirt. He was so used to clean up Addie now that he did it out of habit.
