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@officer-callihan
"hello there stranger ! come by to sign some paperwork ? make a statement anything of that sort? "
he looks at you with a playful expression before going back to what he's doing
paperwork. lots and lots of it
" i wont be here all the time you know....cases ill be called out to that sort of thing. "
he looks up back at you.
' soo what will it bee we cant just sit here and stare at each other all day?"
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
“… sure. …Mike, is somethin’ wrong? What’s buggin’ ya?”
His expression seemed to harden a bit, worry starting to write itself across his face.
“… Mike y’ scarin’ me a bit. What’s off?”
For once Parker commented on the apprehension he was picking up from the other, deeming it worth the risk of asking.
"................"
callihan knows he cant hide this at all not behind a lie and not behind his silence.
"alto said somethin about ..............killin us if we got any closer to..him."
"....he looked far more inhuman than i was expectin "
callihan would draw a crude shape on a notepad he had brought over.
"I'm scared parker. kayne clearly did somthing altos not doing fine. and i just left some guy alone with him! i didn't even offer to take him with me. "
“… what the hell…? How did that happen?”
His face paled slightly. Now he seemed more hesitant to go and check up on him. His eyes went back to the front door, making sure it was closed and locked.
It was.
“Well… not much we can do to stop Alto from doing anything. Just gotta hope.”
He stepped closer to Callihan, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.
“Just take a bit to breathe. No pressure to do anythin’ just yet.”
"i don't know its...all been a lot i tried fixin his wounds noel did too and he just snapped at us."
callihan did not want to go back but...eventually he would have to. to at least check if his house was wrecked. all he could hope is that the pair was ok.
"....i just hope their fine and not biting eachother heads off"
callihan would bury his head into parkers shoulder getting it a bit wet and gross. though callihan would try his best to catch his breath.
yeah.... they could wait a bit before going back.
"......................"
“Let’s just take a minute before we start swinging blindly at whatever the hell happened with Alto.”
He was deep in thought before a chill ran up his spine, looking around rather anxiously.
@the-crawling-mist
*A flash. A large flash- and suddenly Kayne was there, clearly at its wits end as it looked between the two men that it knew it had seen before.*
"Hello hello! I'll make this very quick, because I'm really NOT in the mood." *It tapped its fingers together,* "Where is Alto."
*Kayne's voice was low and dangerous- posture tall and hair floating wild around its head.*
@officer-callihan
callihan would break away from Parker to stare the thing down. Pittifully.
unfortunately he knew exactly where alto was. and yet another victim.
though….he maybe could play dumb for a while. He can’t just cower and run and freeze again.
“And um why do you need to know?”
…also stalling
……….and great he forgot his weapons at the house.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker stilled, a hardened look on his face as he stared down the being with as little fear as he could muster.
“Why? You a cop?”
He snarled.
“I ain’t telling you jack shit.”
@the-crawling-mist
*Kayne's eyes flicked between them both, smile falling into a deep scowl.*
"I don't think you understand." *It spoke, almost in a growl.
And suddenly it was pinning Parker to the ground, knees dug painfully into his arms and tendrils wrapping around his legs to keep him there, claws pressing into the skin on his face.*
"You're going to tell me, or he is going to die."
@officer-callihan
no no HE CANT JUST DO NOTHING and he can’t just rat out someone to this THING.
…….callihan would stare like a damn deer for a solid 15 seconds weighting his options.
alto could survive right…? Just a little longer? He’s a god compared to Parker.
……………right ?
He can’t just let him die.
“f-fine ! Do you swear you won’t lay your hands or do any of that weird magic stuff on parker.?
He’s not giving that sweet information just yet.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker hit the ground hard. It took him a moment to get his bearings again before his attention was turned to Callihan as soon as Kayne made its threat.
“Don’t tell him.”
He didn’t know what Kayne wanted with Alto, but he’d be damned before he threw him under the bus to a being that supposedly was a threat to everything.
@the-crawling-mist
"I make no promises to mortals. This is your final warning." *It growled, claws pressing in harder and drawing blood from Parker's face.* "I suggest you tell me, officer."
@officer-callihan
callihan would pause some more thinking
“you know what no. I’m not telling you a damn thing. No.”
if Parker didn’t want to tell him….should he really? How cowardly to throw alto under the bus so soon.
his heart was racing though who wouldn’t with a murder god in the room.
“You’re not getting shit from me.”
not unless he can just pry the information from his head right?
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker gave Callihan the biggest smile he could muster, which was closer to a smirk. The closest thing he could give Callihan to say ‘good job.’ Because… at the moment… he felt like he was getting crushed by a thing that to him, looked happy his size.
@the-crawling-mist
"Okay." *It replied, wasting no time pressing it's fingers into Parker's head and allowing it to explode- blood and viscera painting the walls and floor alongside the two others in the room.
It stood after a second, not bothering to clean itself off before its claws made contact with Callihan's shirt.*
"Now... you can tell me or I pull it out of your head! And that likely won't end well for you either."
@officer-callihan
Death was still one of those things one would never take seriously unless it seriously happened.
All he could be glad for right now is that his mouth was not open.
no no he can’t just fold now that……nothings stoping him from being harmed
“I-I’m not telling you! No. Damn you.”
he’s sticking to Parker’s morals. At least trying to apper strong. Maybe a bit of time and pressure will make him slip it out.
he has to stall!
*Claws made their way to the back of Callihan's head, pressing through hair and into skin, just as they had done Parker's.*
"You have until~ I count to three." *It smiled again, a sadistic look that matched the maddening swirl in its eyes.*
"One... two..."
….of course callihan was easier to fold than Parker when faced with potential death.
he struggled and tried to get away but in the end failed.
“Fine”Callihan would weakly say. He wasn't going to HELL for this. he didn’t want to die for this.
……….a coward
“I-I’ll tell you”
he would look away from kaynes maddening eyes refusing to make eye contact out of shame.
"Then get on with it." *The god spat, drawing closer, pressing harder, bearing teeth.*
“he’s at my house “
ah…..so quite literarily the last place kayne found alto last time.
How anticlimactic.
“………………..”
"Good." *And suddenly its typical smile returned, stretched across its face with... glee. It almost looked like a happy human and not some sadistic god.* "Have fun~"
*Like that... it was gone again. There was no evidence of it having being there in that viscera... it was all down to Callihan.*
Once kayne was gone callihan would break the fuck down. he was alone in a room covered in gore his best ‘friend’ was GONE.
how was he meant to explain this to the police? it’s not like callihan could just say ‘oh some guy who has a suit on bloody hands and….i don’t even know what else just appeared in the room killed this man and vanished’
he’d be mad!
And yet still it’s not like callihan could walk out the room looking innocent he was covered in blood with no wounds to show.
fuck fuck quick think of a plan so you can leave here!
……is there a spare set of clothes around here to at least get off the blood? Callihan would look everywhere untill finding Arthur’s old clothes. Well they were about his size though the shirt was….not really suited for him.
callihan would look through again and find Peter’s clothes ……. Too big for him but at least fixed the waist issue.
guess he would have to make some mismatched scramble.
…….peters coats seemed big enough to be able to wrap around callihans bloodied clothes.
he would quickly change afraid that anyone was about to burst in the room and find him.
callihan would bundle up his clothes in a ball and put them into Peter’s coat to hide them away.
There’s not much of a good way to clean his face. Go find a hat! They must have one they have to!
Everything seemed kind of hard to remember his heart was pumping straight out of his chest. And it was hard to keep thinking and to keep moving.
Just breath just breath.
callihan would pick himself up open and close the door and would start trying to run all the way home.
every glance his way felt like a million eyes who knew what he had done. Knew what happened in that office.
just keep running all the way home.
please….make it home
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
“… sure. …Mike, is somethin’ wrong? What’s buggin’ ya?”
His expression seemed to harden a bit, worry starting to write itself across his face.
“… Mike y’ scarin’ me a bit. What’s off?”
For once Parker commented on the apprehension he was picking up from the other, deeming it worth the risk of asking.
"................"
callihan knows he cant hide this at all not behind a lie and not behind his silence.
"alto said somethin about ..............killin us if we got any closer to..him."
"....he looked far more inhuman than i was expectin "
callihan would draw a crude shape on a notepad he had brought over.
"I'm scared parker. kayne clearly did somthing altos not doing fine. and i just left some guy alone with him! i didn't even offer to take him with me. "
“… what the hell…? How did that happen?”
His face paled slightly. Now he seemed more hesitant to go and check up on him. His eyes went back to the front door, making sure it was closed and locked.
It was.
“Well… not much we can do to stop Alto from doing anything. Just gotta hope.”
He stepped closer to Callihan, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.
“Just take a bit to breathe. No pressure to do anythin’ just yet.”
"i don't know its...all been a lot i tried fixin his wounds noel did too and he just snapped at us."
callihan did not want to go back but...eventually he would have to. to at least check if his house was wrecked. all he could hope is that the pair was ok.
"....i just hope their fine and not biting eachother heads off"
callihan would bury his head into parkers shoulder getting it a bit wet and gross. though callihan would try his best to catch his breath.
yeah.... they could wait a bit before going back.
"......................"
“Let’s just take a minute before we start swinging blindly at whatever the hell happened with Alto.”
He was deep in thought before a chill ran up his spine, looking around rather anxiously.
@the-crawling-mist
*A flash. A large flash- and suddenly Kayne was there, clearly at its wits end as it looked between the two men that it knew it had seen before.*
"Hello hello! I'll make this very quick, because I'm really NOT in the mood." *It tapped its fingers together,* "Where is Alto."
*Kayne's voice was low and dangerous- posture tall and hair floating wild around its head.*
@officer-callihan
callihan would break away from Parker to stare the thing down. Pittifully.
unfortunately he knew exactly where alto was. and yet another victim.
though….he maybe could play dumb for a while. He can’t just cower and run and freeze again.
“And um why do you need to know?”
…also stalling
……….and great he forgot his weapons at the house.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker stilled, a hardened look on his face as he stared down the being with as little fear as he could muster.
“Why? You a cop?”
He snarled.
“I ain’t telling you jack shit.”
@the-crawling-mist
*Kayne's eyes flicked between them both, smile falling into a deep scowl.*
"I don't think you understand." *It spoke, almost in a growl.
And suddenly it was pinning Parker to the ground, knees dug painfully into his arms and tendrils wrapping around his legs to keep him there, claws pressing into the skin on his face.*
"You're going to tell me, or he is going to die."
@officer-callihan
no no HE CANT JUST DO NOTHING and he can’t just rat out someone to this THING.
…….callihan would stare like a damn deer for a solid 15 seconds weighting his options.
alto could survive right…? Just a little longer? He’s a god compared to Parker.
……………right ?
He can’t just let him die.
“f-fine ! Do you swear you won’t lay your hands or do any of that weird magic stuff on parker.?
He’s not giving that sweet information just yet.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker hit the ground hard. It took him a moment to get his bearings again before his attention was turned to Callihan as soon as Kayne made its threat.
“Don’t tell him.”
He didn’t know what Kayne wanted with Alto, but he’d be damned before he threw him under the bus to a being that supposedly was a threat to everything.
@the-crawling-mist
"I make no promises to mortals. This is your final warning." *It growled, claws pressing in harder and drawing blood from Parker's face.* "I suggest you tell me, officer."
@officer-callihan
callihan would pause some more thinking
“you know what no. I’m not telling you a damn thing. No.”
if Parker didn’t want to tell him….should he really? How cowardly to throw alto under the bus so soon.
his heart was racing though who wouldn’t with a murder god in the room.
“You’re not getting shit from me.”
not unless he can just pry the information from his head right?
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker gave Callihan the biggest smile he could muster, which was closer to a smirk. The closest thing he could give Callihan to say ‘good job.’ Because… at the moment… he felt like he was getting crushed by a thing that to him, looked happy his size.
@the-crawling-mist
"Okay." *It replied, wasting no time pressing it's fingers into Parker's head and allowing it to explode- blood and viscera painting the walls and floor alongside the two others in the room.
It stood after a second, not bothering to clean itself off before its claws made contact with Callihan's shirt.*
"Now... you can tell me or I pull it out of your head! And that likely won't end well for you either."
@officer-callihan
Death was still one of those things one would never take seriously unless it seriously happened.
All he could be glad for right now is that his mouth was not open.
no no he can’t just fold now that……nothings stoping him from being harmed
“I-I’m not telling you! No. Damn you.”
he’s sticking to Parker’s morals. At least trying to apper strong. Maybe a bit of time and pressure will make him slip it out.
he has to stall!
*Claws made their way to the back of Callihan's head, pressing through hair and into skin, just as they had done Parker's.*
"You have until~ I count to three." *It smiled again, a sadistic look that matched the maddening swirl in its eyes.*
"One... two..."
….of course callihan was easier to fold than Parker when faced with potential death.
he struggled and tried to get away but in the end failed.
“Fine”Callihan would weakly say. He wasn't going to HELL for this. he didn’t want to die for this.
……….a coward
“I-I’ll tell you”
he would look away from kaynes maddening eyes refusing to make eye contact out of shame.
"Then get on with it." *The god spat, drawing closer, pressing harder, bearing teeth.*
“he’s at my house “
ah…..so quite literarily the last place kayne found alto last time.
How anticlimactic.
“………………..”
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
“… sure. …Mike, is somethin’ wrong? What’s buggin’ ya?”
His expression seemed to harden a bit, worry starting to write itself across his face.
“… Mike y’ scarin’ me a bit. What’s off?”
For once Parker commented on the apprehension he was picking up from the other, deeming it worth the risk of asking.
"................"
callihan knows he cant hide this at all not behind a lie and not behind his silence.
"alto said somethin about ..............killin us if we got any closer to..him."
"....he looked far more inhuman than i was expectin "
callihan would draw a crude shape on a notepad he had brought over.
"I'm scared parker. kayne clearly did somthing altos not doing fine. and i just left some guy alone with him! i didn't even offer to take him with me. "
“… what the hell…? How did that happen?”
His face paled slightly. Now he seemed more hesitant to go and check up on him. His eyes went back to the front door, making sure it was closed and locked.
It was.
“Well… not much we can do to stop Alto from doing anything. Just gotta hope.”
He stepped closer to Callihan, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.
“Just take a bit to breathe. No pressure to do anythin’ just yet.”
"i don't know its...all been a lot i tried fixin his wounds noel did too and he just snapped at us."
callihan did not want to go back but...eventually he would have to. to at least check if his house was wrecked. all he could hope is that the pair was ok.
"....i just hope their fine and not biting eachother heads off"
callihan would bury his head into parkers shoulder getting it a bit wet and gross. though callihan would try his best to catch his breath.
yeah.... they could wait a bit before going back.
"......................"
“Let’s just take a minute before we start swinging blindly at whatever the hell happened with Alto.”
He was deep in thought before a chill ran up his spine, looking around rather anxiously.
@the-crawling-mist
*A flash. A large flash- and suddenly Kayne was there, clearly at its wits end as it looked between the two men that it knew it had seen before.*
"Hello hello! I'll make this very quick, because I'm really NOT in the mood." *It tapped its fingers together,* "Where is Alto."
*Kayne's voice was low and dangerous- posture tall and hair floating wild around its head.*
@officer-callihan
callihan would break away from Parker to stare the thing down. Pittifully.
unfortunately he knew exactly where alto was. and yet another victim.
though….he maybe could play dumb for a while. He can’t just cower and run and freeze again.
“And um why do you need to know?”
…also stalling
……….and great he forgot his weapons at the house.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker stilled, a hardened look on his face as he stared down the being with as little fear as he could muster.
“Why? You a cop?”
He snarled.
“I ain’t telling you jack shit.”
@the-crawling-mist
*Kayne's eyes flicked between them both, smile falling into a deep scowl.*
"I don't think you understand." *It spoke, almost in a growl.
And suddenly it was pinning Parker to the ground, knees dug painfully into his arms and tendrils wrapping around his legs to keep him there, claws pressing into the skin on his face.*
"You're going to tell me, or he is going to die."
@officer-callihan
no no HE CANT JUST DO NOTHING and he can’t just rat out someone to this THING.
…….callihan would stare like a damn deer for a solid 15 seconds weighting his options.
alto could survive right…? Just a little longer? He’s a god compared to Parker.
……………right ?
He can’t just let him die.
“f-fine ! Do you swear you won’t lay your hands or do any of that weird magic stuff on parker.?
He’s not giving that sweet information just yet.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker hit the ground hard. It took him a moment to get his bearings again before his attention was turned to Callihan as soon as Kayne made its threat.
“Don’t tell him.”
He didn’t know what Kayne wanted with Alto, but he’d be damned before he threw him under the bus to a being that supposedly was a threat to everything.
@the-crawling-mist
"I make no promises to mortals. This is your final warning." *It growled, claws pressing in harder and drawing blood from Parker's face.* "I suggest you tell me, officer."
@officer-callihan
callihan would pause some more thinking
“you know what no. I’m not telling you a damn thing. No.”
if Parker didn’t want to tell him….should he really? How cowardly to throw alto under the bus so soon.
his heart was racing though who wouldn’t with a murder god in the room.
“You’re not getting shit from me.”
not unless he can just pry the information from his head right?
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker gave Callihan the biggest smile he could muster, which was closer to a smirk. The closest thing he could give Callihan to say ‘good job.’ Because… at the moment… he felt like he was getting crushed by a thing that to him, looked happy his size.
@the-crawling-mist
"Okay." *It replied, wasting no time pressing it's fingers into Parker's head and allowing it to explode- blood and viscera painting the walls and floor alongside the two others in the room.
It stood after a second, not bothering to clean itself off before its claws made contact with Callihan's shirt.*
"Now... you can tell me or I pull it out of your head! And that likely won't end well for you either."
@officer-callihan
Death was still one of those things one would never take seriously unless it seriously happened.
All he could be glad for right now is that his mouth was not open.
no no he can’t just fold now that……nothings stoping him from being harmed
“I-I’m not telling you! No. Damn you.”
he’s sticking to Parker’s morals. At least trying to apper strong. Maybe a bit of time and pressure will make him slip it out.
he has to stall!
*Claws made their way to the back of Callihan's head, pressing through hair and into skin, just as they had done Parker's.*
"You have until~ I count to three." *It smiled again, a sadistic look that matched the maddening swirl in its eyes.*
"One... two..."
….of course callihan was easier to fold than Parker when faced with potential death.
he struggled and tried to get away but in the end failed.
“Fine”Callihan would weakly say. He wasn't going to HELL for this. he didn’t want to die for this.
……….a coward
“I-I’ll tell you”
he would look away from kaynes maddening eyes refusing to make eye contact out of shame.
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
“… sure. …Mike, is somethin’ wrong? What’s buggin’ ya?”
His expression seemed to harden a bit, worry starting to write itself across his face.
“… Mike y’ scarin’ me a bit. What’s off?”
For once Parker commented on the apprehension he was picking up from the other, deeming it worth the risk of asking.
"................"
callihan knows he cant hide this at all not behind a lie and not behind his silence.
"alto said somethin about ..............killin us if we got any closer to..him."
"....he looked far more inhuman than i was expectin "
callihan would draw a crude shape on a notepad he had brought over.
"I'm scared parker. kayne clearly did somthing altos not doing fine. and i just left some guy alone with him! i didn't even offer to take him with me. "
“… what the hell…? How did that happen?”
His face paled slightly. Now he seemed more hesitant to go and check up on him. His eyes went back to the front door, making sure it was closed and locked.
It was.
“Well… not much we can do to stop Alto from doing anything. Just gotta hope.”
He stepped closer to Callihan, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.
“Just take a bit to breathe. No pressure to do anythin’ just yet.”
"i don't know its...all been a lot i tried fixin his wounds noel did too and he just snapped at us."
callihan did not want to go back but...eventually he would have to. to at least check if his house was wrecked. all he could hope is that the pair was ok.
"....i just hope their fine and not biting eachother heads off"
callihan would bury his head into parkers shoulder getting it a bit wet and gross. though callihan would try his best to catch his breath.
yeah.... they could wait a bit before going back.
"......................"
“Let’s just take a minute before we start swinging blindly at whatever the hell happened with Alto.”
He was deep in thought before a chill ran up his spine, looking around rather anxiously.
@the-crawling-mist
*A flash. A large flash- and suddenly Kayne was there, clearly at its wits end as it looked between the two men that it knew it had seen before.*
"Hello hello! I'll make this very quick, because I'm really NOT in the mood." *It tapped its fingers together,* "Where is Alto."
*Kayne's voice was low and dangerous- posture tall and hair floating wild around its head.*
@officer-callihan
callihan would break away from Parker to stare the thing down. Pittifully.
unfortunately he knew exactly where alto was. and yet another victim.
though….he maybe could play dumb for a while. He can’t just cower and run and freeze again.
“And um why do you need to know?”
…also stalling
……….and great he forgot his weapons at the house.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker stilled, a hardened look on his face as he stared down the being with as little fear as he could muster.
“Why? You a cop?”
He snarled.
“I ain’t telling you jack shit.”
@the-crawling-mist
*Kayne's eyes flicked between them both, smile falling into a deep scowl.*
"I don't think you understand." *It spoke, almost in a growl.
And suddenly it was pinning Parker to the ground, knees dug painfully into his arms and tendrils wrapping around his legs to keep him there, claws pressing into the skin on his face.*
"You're going to tell me, or he is going to die."
@officer-callihan
no no HE CANT JUST DO NOTHING and he can’t just rat out someone to this THING.
…….callihan would stare like a damn deer for a solid 15 seconds weighting his options.
alto could survive right…? Just a little longer? He’s a god compared to Parker.
……………right ?
He can’t just let him die.
“f-fine ! Do you swear you won’t lay your hands or do any of that weird magic stuff on parker.?
He’s not giving that sweet information just yet.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker hit the ground hard. It took him a moment to get his bearings again before his attention was turned to Callihan as soon as Kayne made its threat.
“Don’t tell him.”
He didn’t know what Kayne wanted with Alto, but he’d be damned before he threw him under the bus to a being that supposedly was a threat to everything.
@the-crawling-mist
"I make no promises to mortals. This is your final warning." *It growled, claws pressing in harder and drawing blood from Parker's face.* "I suggest you tell me, officer."
@officer-callihan
callihan would pause some more thinking
“you know what no. I’m not telling you a damn thing. No.”
if Parker didn’t want to tell him….should he really? How cowardly to throw alto under the bus so soon.
his heart was racing though who wouldn’t with a murder god in the room.
“You’re not getting shit from me.”
not unless he can just pry the information from his head right?
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker gave Callihan the biggest smile he could muster, which was closer to a smirk. The closest thing he could give Callihan to say ‘good job.’ Because… at the moment… he felt like he was getting crushed by a thing that to him, looked happy his size.
@the-crawling-mist
"Okay." *It replied, wasting no time pressing it's fingers into Parker's head and allowing it to explode- blood and viscera painting the walls and floor alongside the two others in the room.
It stood after a second, not bothering to clean itself off before its claws made contact with Callihan's shirt.*
"Now... you can tell me or I pull it out of your head! And that likely won't end well for you either."
@officer-callihan
Death was still one of those things one would never take seriously unless it seriously happened.
All he could be glad for right now is that his mouth was not open.
no no he can’t just fold now that……nothings stoping him from being harmed
“I-I’m not telling you! No. Damn you.”
he’s sticking to Parker’s morals. At least trying to apper strong. Maybe a bit of time and pressure will make him slip it out.
he has to stall!
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
“… sure. …Mike, is somethin’ wrong? What’s buggin’ ya?”
His expression seemed to harden a bit, worry starting to write itself across his face.
“… Mike y’ scarin’ me a bit. What’s off?”
For once Parker commented on the apprehension he was picking up from the other, deeming it worth the risk of asking.
"................"
callihan knows he cant hide this at all not behind a lie and not behind his silence.
"alto said somethin about ..............killin us if we got any closer to..him."
"....he looked far more inhuman than i was expectin "
callihan would draw a crude shape on a notepad he had brought over.
"I'm scared parker. kayne clearly did somthing altos not doing fine. and i just left some guy alone with him! i didn't even offer to take him with me. "
“… what the hell…? How did that happen?”
His face paled slightly. Now he seemed more hesitant to go and check up on him. His eyes went back to the front door, making sure it was closed and locked.
It was.
“Well… not much we can do to stop Alto from doing anything. Just gotta hope.”
He stepped closer to Callihan, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.
“Just take a bit to breathe. No pressure to do anythin’ just yet.”
"i don't know its...all been a lot i tried fixin his wounds noel did too and he just snapped at us."
callihan did not want to go back but...eventually he would have to. to at least check if his house was wrecked. all he could hope is that the pair was ok.
"....i just hope their fine and not biting eachother heads off"
callihan would bury his head into parkers shoulder getting it a bit wet and gross. though callihan would try his best to catch his breath.
yeah.... they could wait a bit before going back.
"......................"
“Let’s just take a minute before we start swinging blindly at whatever the hell happened with Alto.”
He was deep in thought before a chill ran up his spine, looking around rather anxiously.
@the-crawling-mist
*A flash. A large flash- and suddenly Kayne was there, clearly at its wits end as it looked between the two men that it knew it had seen before.*
"Hello hello! I'll make this very quick, because I'm really NOT in the mood." *It tapped its fingers together,* "Where is Alto."
*Kayne's voice was low and dangerous- posture tall and hair floating wild around its head.*
@officer-callihan
callihan would break away from Parker to stare the thing down. Pittifully.
unfortunately he knew exactly where alto was. and yet another victim.
though….he maybe could play dumb for a while. He can’t just cower and run and freeze again.
“And um why do you need to know?”
…also stalling
……….and great he forgot his weapons at the house.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker stilled, a hardened look on his face as he stared down the being with as little fear as he could muster.
“Why? You a cop?”
He snarled.
“I ain’t telling you jack shit.”
@the-crawling-mist
*Kayne's eyes flicked between them both, smile falling into a deep scowl.*
"I don't think you understand." *It spoke, almost in a growl.
And suddenly it was pinning Parker to the ground, knees dug painfully into his arms and tendrils wrapping around his legs to keep him there, claws pressing into the skin on his face.*
"You're going to tell me, or he is going to die."
@officer-callihan
no no HE CANT JUST DO NOTHING and he can’t just rat out someone to this THING.
…….callihan would stare like a damn deer for a solid 15 seconds weighting his options.
alto could survive right…? Just a little longer? He’s a god compared to Parker.
……………right ?
He can’t just let him die.
“f-fine ! Do you swear you won’t lay your hands or do any of that weird magic stuff on parker.?
He’s not giving that sweet information just yet.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker hit the ground hard. It took him a moment to get his bearings again before his attention was turned to Callihan as soon as Kayne made its threat.
“Don’t tell him.”
He didn’t know what Kayne wanted with Alto, but he’d be damned before he threw him under the bus to a being that supposedly was a threat to everything.
@the-crawling-mist
"I make no promises to mortals. This is your final warning." *It growled, claws pressing in harder and drawing blood from Parker's face.* "I suggest you tell me, officer."
@officer-callihan
callihan would pause some more thinking
“you know what no. I’m not telling you a damn thing. No.”
if Parker didn’t want to tell him….should he really? How cowardly to throw alto under the bus so soon.
his heart was racing though who wouldn’t with a murder god in the room.
“You’re not getting shit from me.”
not unless he can just pry the information from his head right?
@yorick-the-vanguard
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
“… sure. …Mike, is somethin’ wrong? What’s buggin’ ya?”
His expression seemed to harden a bit, worry starting to write itself across his face.
“… Mike y’ scarin’ me a bit. What’s off?”
For once Parker commented on the apprehension he was picking up from the other, deeming it worth the risk of asking.
"................"
callihan knows he cant hide this at all not behind a lie and not behind his silence.
"alto said somethin about ..............killin us if we got any closer to..him."
"....he looked far more inhuman than i was expectin "
callihan would draw a crude shape on a notepad he had brought over.
"I'm scared parker. kayne clearly did somthing altos not doing fine. and i just left some guy alone with him! i didn't even offer to take him with me. "
“… what the hell…? How did that happen?”
His face paled slightly. Now he seemed more hesitant to go and check up on him. His eyes went back to the front door, making sure it was closed and locked.
It was.
“Well… not much we can do to stop Alto from doing anything. Just gotta hope.”
He stepped closer to Callihan, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.
“Just take a bit to breathe. No pressure to do anythin’ just yet.”
"i don't know its...all been a lot i tried fixin his wounds noel did too and he just snapped at us."
callihan did not want to go back but...eventually he would have to. to at least check if his house was wrecked. all he could hope is that the pair was ok.
"....i just hope their fine and not biting eachother heads off"
callihan would bury his head into parkers shoulder getting it a bit wet and gross. though callihan would try his best to catch his breath.
yeah.... they could wait a bit before going back.
"......................"
“Let’s just take a minute before we start swinging blindly at whatever the hell happened with Alto.”
He was deep in thought before a chill ran up his spine, looking around rather anxiously.
@the-crawling-mist
*A flash. A large flash- and suddenly Kayne was there, clearly at its wits end as it looked between the two men that it knew it had seen before.*
"Hello hello! I'll make this very quick, because I'm really NOT in the mood." *It tapped its fingers together,* "Where is Alto."
*Kayne's voice was low and dangerous- posture tall and hair floating wild around its head.*
@officer-callihan
callihan would break away from Parker to stare the thing down. Pittifully.
unfortunately he knew exactly where alto was. and yet another victim.
though….he maybe could play dumb for a while. He can’t just cower and run and freeze again.
“And um why do you need to know?”
…also stalling
……….and great he forgot his weapons at the house.
@yorick-the-vanguard
Parker stilled, a hardened look on his face as he stared down the being with as little fear as he could muster.
“Why? You a cop?”
He snarled.
“I ain’t telling you jack shit.”
@the-crawling-mist
*Kayne's eyes flicked between them both, smile falling into a deep scowl.*
"I don't think you understand." *It spoke, almost in a growl.
And suddenly it was pinning Parker to the ground, knees dug painfully into his arms and tendrils wrapping around his legs to keep him there, claws pressing into the skin on his face.*
"You're going to tell me, or he is going to die."
@officer-callihan
no no HE CANT JUST DO NOTHING and he can’t just rat out someone to this THING.
…….callihan would stare like a damn deer for a solid 15 seconds weighting his options.
alto could survive right…? Just a little longer? He’s a god compared to Parker.
……………right ?
He can’t just let him die.
“f-fine ! Do you swear you won’t lay your hands or do any of that weird magic stuff on parker.?
He’s not giving that sweet information just yet.
@yorick-the-vanguard
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
“… sure. …Mike, is somethin’ wrong? What’s buggin’ ya?”
His expression seemed to harden a bit, worry starting to write itself across his face.
“… Mike y’ scarin’ me a bit. What’s off?”
For once Parker commented on the apprehension he was picking up from the other, deeming it worth the risk of asking.
"................"
callihan knows he cant hide this at all not behind a lie and not behind his silence.
"alto said somethin about ..............killin us if we got any closer to..him."
"....he looked far more inhuman than i was expectin "
callihan would draw a crude shape on a notepad he had brought over.
"I'm scared parker. kayne clearly did somthing altos not doing fine. and i just left some guy alone with him! i didn't even offer to take him with me. "
“… what the hell…? How did that happen?”
His face paled slightly. Now he seemed more hesitant to go and check up on him. His eyes went back to the front door, making sure it was closed and locked.
It was.
“Well… not much we can do to stop Alto from doing anything. Just gotta hope.”
He stepped closer to Callihan, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.
“Just take a bit to breathe. No pressure to do anythin’ just yet.”
"i don't know its...all been a lot i tried fixin his wounds noel did too and he just snapped at us."
callihan did not want to go back but...eventually he would have to. to at least check if his house was wrecked. all he could hope is that the pair was ok.
"....i just hope their fine and not biting eachother heads off"
callihan would bury his head into parkers shoulder getting it a bit wet and gross. though callihan would try his best to catch his breath.
yeah.... they could wait a bit before going back.
"......................"
“Let’s just take a minute before we start swinging blindly at whatever the hell happened with Alto.”
He was deep in thought before a chill ran up his spine, looking around rather anxiously.
@the-crawling-mist
*A flash. A large flash- and suddenly Kayne was there, clearly at its wits end as it looked between the two men that it knew it had seen before.*
"Hello hello! I'll make this very quick, because I'm really NOT in the mood." *It tapped its fingers together,* "Where is Alto."
*Kayne's voice was low and dangerous- posture tall and hair floating wild around its head.*
@officer-callihan
callihan would break away from Parker to stare the thing down. Pittifully.
unfortunately he knew exactly where alto was. and yet another victim.
though….he maybe could play dumb for a while. He can’t just cower and run and freeze again.
“And um why do you need to know?”
…also stalling
……….and great he forgot his weapons at the house.
@yorick-the-vanguard
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
“… sure. …Mike, is somethin’ wrong? What’s buggin’ ya?”
His expression seemed to harden a bit, worry starting to write itself across his face.
“… Mike y’ scarin’ me a bit. What’s off?”
For once Parker commented on the apprehension he was picking up from the other, deeming it worth the risk of asking.
"................"
callihan knows he cant hide this at all not behind a lie and not behind his silence.
"alto said somethin about ..............killin us if we got any closer to..him."
"....he looked far more inhuman than i was expectin "
callihan would draw a crude shape on a notepad he had brought over.
"I'm scared parker. kayne clearly did somthing altos not doing fine. and i just left some guy alone with him! i didn't even offer to take him with me. "
“… what the hell…? How did that happen?”
His face paled slightly. Now he seemed more hesitant to go and check up on him. His eyes went back to the front door, making sure it was closed and locked.
It was.
“Well… not much we can do to stop Alto from doing anything. Just gotta hope.”
He stepped closer to Callihan, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.
“Just take a bit to breathe. No pressure to do anythin’ just yet.”
"i don't know its...all been a lot i tried fixin his wounds noel did too and he just snapped at us."
callihan did not want to go back but...eventually he would have to. to at least check if his house was wrecked. all he could hope is that the pair was ok.
"....i just hope their fine and not biting eachother heads off"
callihan would bury his head into parkers shoulder getting it a bit wet and gross. though callihan would try his best to catch his breath.
yeah.... they could wait a bit before going back.
"......................"
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
“… sure. …Mike, is somethin’ wrong? What’s buggin’ ya?”
His expression seemed to harden a bit, worry starting to write itself across his face.
“… Mike y’ scarin’ me a bit. What’s off?”
For once Parker commented on the apprehension he was picking up from the other, deeming it worth the risk of asking.
"................"
callihan knows he cant hide this at all not behind a lie and not behind his silence.
"alto said somethin about ..............killin us if we got any closer to..him."
"....he looked far more inhuman than i was expectin "
callihan would draw a crude shape on a notepad he had brought over.
"I'm scared parker. kayne clearly did somthing altos not doing fine. and i just left some guy alone with him! i didn't even offer to take him with me. "
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
That was a sobering surprise. Callihan having the guts to straight up grab a guy off the street and then tell a professional private investigator bout it was ballsy.
“… we should probably go back over to em then. Try and help where we can? Alto doesn’t seem like the kinda thing that’d kill one of us on a whim.”
He grabbed his coat off the hanger, clearly just about ready to run out the door and check things out himself.
“If they’re injured we shouldn’t keep em waiting then.”
Callihan was unusually silent with Parker’s words. Clearly something maybe a bit more……disturbing had happened.………it would be rather nice to stall getting back there.
”agh fuck let me catch my breath first..”
Callihan had after all ran all the way from his house to here. He wasn't going to do it again without a small break.
“………………………”
Callihan would start staring off into space. maybe a bit of an unusual habit for him but…..
“………………….”
maybe he was just thinking?
there were a few light handed knocks on the office door.
who in the blazes could that be? “Um Parker are you in there ? It’s Micheal ,Micheal callihan”
He sounds quite out of breath almost like he ran here. Strange.
Why would he be here? And more importantly do you open the door?
-🔦💼
@officer-callihan
-🍻
Parker opened the door almost immediately, looking more haggard than he had the last time they’d seen each other. He wasn’t exactly taking the news well. That was for sure.
“Mike?- what the hell are y’ doing here? I thought y’ were busy?”
His eyes were red and puffy and there was an ash tray on his desk covered in cigarette buds, and a bottle of alcohol half drunk next to it.
“Did somethin’ happen hon?”
callihan would cough and struggle to get out his words.
he would choose to not comment on...parkers rather unfortunate state as that would be considerably rude. though he was doing quite awful himself.
"i-i just i don't know i found this guy on the street a-and like he knows about all these things and um his name is noel-i thinks he's a P.I like you and uh i accidently sort of kidnapped him. "
callihan would pause to take a breath and to catch it too.
" but uh alto showed and like hes doing terribly and i thought i could like summon him to help this other guy and i uh..well he uh..."
tears begin to well up in callihans eyes despite happening only a short while ago. it still hurts.
"i thought i could h-help him........ but i ended up running away to here instead. "
he's a coward for leaving two heavily injured people alone isn't he? a damn coward for running away like that. a coward.
Callihan was having a fairly normal day. Of course the last few days had been a little hectic from cults music monsters and everything else unfortunate enough to bless him.
He was lucky enough to get a break from his job under the assumption that he was still recovering from being shot.
he had been pretty much a recluse in his house for the time being. Not great but better than the alternate.
what is he doing now one may ask?
pretty much nothing of great importance. Maybe a few notes there some eating here but pretty much nothing.
how would one approach this situation?
-🔦💼
(@officer-callihan)
*Noel clung to the shadows. New universe meant new dangers. He frantically scribbled in his notebook, Phoebe resorting to waddling around on the ground, circling his feet.
She must be so confused. She's probably never universe hopped before. But he needed to get as much information as he could. He wasn't sure where he was, so some sort of location indicator would be nice. It looked to be around the same time that he left, though. Maybe a bit earlier in the year? Around autumn of 1934? He'd need a confirmation on that... He could find a newspaper! That would be a good solution.
He scooped up Phoebe, holding her like a book under his arm, and went to rush for the nearest newspaper stand. If he was paying closer attention, he wouldn't have run into the oblivious-to-his-circumstances officer. He falls flat on his ass, his notebook goes in one direction, Phoebe flies in the other, and he's ready to keel over and let the universe do whatever it wanted with him.*
if anyone had seen noel he would have probably looked shady as hell. creeping in the shadows aint exactly a good look. ….just the same dreary streets of Arkham.
callihan was just doing his usual patrol of the streets. pretty boring but better than other things. of course he didn't expect to be body slammed while on his job. he would try to gain back his balance before falling himself.
callihan went to check his pockets to see if anything was damaged. thankfully not. there were certain things that were..important to not get damaged . even from a small fall.
he would move to get up before pausing. ah..so thats what happened
it wasn't a malicious attempt to kill him just an accident that happened to involve him. whoever that was is still on the ground. he would look around a little more around the area for anything else of note.
they must have dropped something! was that a bird? no matter!
callihan would move pick up the notebook before getting up on his feet offering a hand to get up to this stranger.
it was the least he could do seems their having a bad day to say the least.
*He tenses. Fuck. Fuck! He didn't want to be thrown into an asylum again (thanks a lot, Universe 17), and everything that was in that notebook was evidence to any normal person that he had lost his marbles decades ago.
He snatched the notebook, scrambling to his feet before he could even process that the man in front of him was trying to help him up. Phoebe waltzes over to Noel's feet, hopping onto one of his shoes and smacking his leg with her wing. The second she makes contact, he closes his eyes and steels his breathing.
When he opens his eyes again, he looks utterly mortified at what he'd done. Not beating the crazy allegations, apparently.*
"Ah, Jeez..."
*He shoves the notebook in his pocket, sliding Phoebe off his foot.*
"Sorry about that, doll. I should've been payin' closer attention to where I was walking."
*He didn't hear this guy's accent yet. He hoped his own didn't come across as bizarre in the area. Speaking of, he tries to eye a nearby street sign. It doesn't help him much.*
callihan? Probably not the normal person who would get him thrown to the asylum but what can you do? Trust every person ever?
yeah no.
he of course didn’t quite expect an atypical response of snatching back the notebook and getting up on their own. Notebook must be important clearly. callihan would put his hand back by his side.
he would just sort of stand around at Noel’s whole…thing.
Noel’s accent was not unusual its peculiar how many people callihan knows with accents.
“Ah it’s no big deal things happen ya know?”
southern. Not as southern as a grandma but still southern.
callihan would make a gesture with his other hand as if excusing it. He seems tired to say the least.
It’s no big deal this is the least of his worry’s right now.
his pockets look weird
“ have a nice day”
Callihan would begin to walk off taking this as just a one off accident. He had a job to do after all.
*Wait, no! He could use this! This guy didn't seem too suspicious of his strange behavior, so... who cares if he got a little more strange?!*
"Hold on, sorry if this sounds weird, but where are we?"
*He could go full into the madness schtick here and ask about when they were, but he needed to test the waters first.*
"Wasn't payin' attention to where I was walkin' and ran straight into a wall, if you could believe it! Hit my head and just wanna make sure I've got all the details right..."
*Hopefully this guy wouldn't send him to a hospital first. He didn't feel like explaining each and every scar and scab that he has. Or the branding. He has to suppress a shudder just thinking about it.*
"Now that I say it aloud, I sound like a huge clutz, don't I?"
*He chuckles softly, trying to lighten the mood. Come on, he needs information. As much as he could get, then he could leave this guy alone. He wouldn't have to get wrapped up in this mess. And Noel wouldn't have to admit how curious he was about the other man's pockets and stay out of it. If he had just stayed out of it as a whole, none of this would've happened in the first place!!*
callihan would stop in his tracks and kind of turn back to noel pausing for a bit to think.
what does this man want with him? information or something more? he kind of has that weird detective look to him. although unprofessional what the hell happened to his outfit for it to look so horrid?
"...Arkham.... Massachusetts? the particular street is slipping my mind ..sorry. "
how do you not know where you are? seems common to know. unless there was some weird circumstance that prevented someone from knowing.
"sir are you fine like your head? are ya good? "
how do you hit yourself walking into a wall? something just feels off.. just wrong like many other times. though callihan seemed genuinely concerned for noels well being at the current moment.
he still seemed on edge and nervous just waiting. both his hands were near his sides. one probably containing a gun and the other god knows what. can't tell much of a concealed chunky item.
noels small joke does not lighten the mood at all. callihan had nothing to lighten up about right now to say the least. point is callihan was not in his best mood there was nothing to be cheerful about.
he almost seems like a sad puppy
" sir ? "
callihan would ask again
*His own hand darted closer to his side where he kept his pistol at the mention of his mind. Just in case.*
"Arkham, got it. That's what I thought, just wanted confirmation."
*Maybe he wasn't exactly right in the head right now, actually... He should've grabbed antibiotics for his neck wound. Even stitched up, it wasn't easy to keep it clean, and it had already gotten infected once. He was supposed to take antibiotics continually, right?*
"Got a little busy writin'. Same reason I ran into you, doll."
*He gestures with the notebook, to which he opens rather quickly to scribble down the information he just received. That seemed like a fair excuse. Writers could be rather wacky at times, right?
Arkham. He could find his way around here, he worked here! Sure, it was over ten years ago that he worked here, but he could figure it out!
He makes sure to keep his eyes on the other man, just in case he made a move for a gun.*
"But I've seen some pretty bad head injuries. They mess with your sense of time and direction. Wanna make sure that ain't happening to me, you know?"
*He taps his temple with the back of his pencil. His heart was racing. Fuck. This guy was onto him, wasn't he?*
"Speaking of time, the year is...?"
*He was really pushing it. He was really, really pushing it. He felt sick. He needed to run. He needed to hide. His heart was racing. His neck felt hot.
Wait, his neck felt hot?
Shit. He really should've snagged some antibiotics...*
callihans hands would still remain near his pockets. Of coursehe was on edge who wouldn't be? Callihan could have not known the situation Noel was in. not the neck wound different universe connections none of it.
Noel was just terribly shifty and suspicious. He was just so on edge.
what was in that notebook? If he had been more curious he might have maybe taken a look. Seen what was exactly in his notes
But running while writing…
wouldn't that make it really hard to write though? Small details were not adding up in his mind it was like there was maybe something missing.
“The years 1934 sir.”
running would only make him look more suspicious callihan could have resemble claim that maybe something was definitely wrong with this man.
“and how do you expect me to believe that you can write while running sir? ”
what does he even mean by he’s seen petty bad head injury’s ? So many questions raced through callihans Brain.
“you know lying to an officer can be a pretty serious crime yes?”
"Wasn't runnin', just walking."
*It's not impossible. Sure, it was tricky, but he got the hang of it after a few tries. His handwriting was never the neatest, anyway. Roland always nagged at him for that.
And then he deadpans when being an officer is mentioned.*
"Yeah, I do know that. Being a detective gets you pretty familiar with the law."
*He meets Callihan's gaze. If he wanted to play the authority game, Noel would play the fucking authority game. He scribbles down the year before shoving the notebook in his pocket.
His neck... wasn't getting any cooler. It was actually starting to get a little itchy. When did the infection come back? How long had it been festering? He had to suppress a shudder at the thought of it festering for a while.
When had Arthur forced him to take that antibiotic pill? It was more than twelve hours, surely. Not long after, the doctor (what was her name... Daisy?) had stitched him up. Ugh! He needed a clock or something to keep track off all this stuff!!
That didn't matter now. He needed to figure out how far along he was and how much time he had left before he was out of commission. Was he slurring his words? Did he just not notice? Was he genuinely confused and had not caught on yet? Was the heat that he was feeling from swelling or a fever? Did he look sickly? Is that why this officer was so dead set on interrogating him?
He was sure he made a face during his little spiral, he wasn't focused on looks until he realized that might be why he was in this situation in the first place. He could feel himself frowning with scrunched eyebrows.
Oh, he had a headache! That could just be stress, though. That's why he didn't notice it until now.
Phoebe whacked him. Right. He was spiraling. He needed to focus.*
"Anyways, thanks for your help, sir. You have a good one."
*He offers a small nod and a smile, and turns to go. And, of course, his vision swims when he turns. Because of course it does. He tries to walk in a straight line, but winds up finding himself closer to the buildings on his side than before. So basically, he was fucked. Dead on his feet. The cop was going to arrest him, throw him in some asylum or something... He was done for!*
Callihan highly suspects that this man is lying. But his suspicions were correct at the least at his guess that whoever this was probably a detective.
why was he here then?
it would be pretty unlikely to be able to hit callihan with that much force if the man had been walking and only walking. only thing that could have happened is the fact that they might have tripped into eachothers legs or just bumped into one another
Callihan would maintain his gaze on Noel trying to be as stern and intimidating as he could possibly be.
He must be delirious ! Drunk ! Just anything ! Therecouldentbeanythingparanornalhere.
why couldn't this just be a normal accident. enough paranormal stuff has happened in the last few days!
“No no you get right back here sir! I have reasonable cause to detain and search.”
Maybe this was against his standard protocol but callihan just needed to know more about whoever this was. something just seemed...off like every other time.
fuck standard protocol he cant just let someone get away!
aha! He was not walking straight! That could be a clue. Callihan would pick up the pace speed walking to where Noel was heading.
he would try to grab noel by the shoulder to get him to just stop walking.
*He slips away from Callihan's grip, but turns to face him anyway. He doesn't stop, though. Keep up the pace, try to shake him off. Persistence.*
"And why is that, officer?"
*He lets his hand wander up to the sutures and almost immediately flinches away. That's... Not great. Especially the heat that met his fingers. He could feel sweat building up on his skin.
He tried to gauge if the other man had also been in the War, or, at the very least, knew what an infection looked like. If he did, he might clock the fact that Noel was slipping pretty quickly into a fever because of it. And if he did recognize the signs, two things could happen: Noel's brought to a hospital (bad. Very bad. Don't do this. He has no records.) or he's given a slap on the wrist for his strange behavior (good. Very good. Please do this. He would cry with relief.). Or both, which could be... Something?*
if there's anything callihan is right now its stubborn. he will find out.
"well i have reasonable cause to search you with how you're acting ! "
he looks pretty clueless to say the least. callihan does not really know how to treat infections only do basic first aid. probably would have presumed the man was very guilty because of the sweat.
he would continue to keep pace with noel.
"please stop resisting sir."
it was more likely for him to try the hospital than to try to help with the infection.
and it was likely that he would probably search noel for anything anything at all.
just judging on...his attitude
though his hands were...not immediately in range of his gun
" get back here sir."
*Fine. He'll stop. Just in case. He'd rather not have killing a random man as the first thing he's done in this universe. To be fair, he'd also rather not have pissing off a cop be his first thing, either, but...*
"Alright, alright."
*His head was starting to pound and the way the world was spinning wasn't helping. He wanted to just... Sit down. Maybe lay down, shut his eyes for a few minutes. God, he didn't realize how bad he felt.*
"Just... Make it quick. I'm feelin' a little under the weather."
*He was leaning on the wall. He didn't realize when he started, but it quickly became a lifeline. He screwed his eyes shut. Please, just stop spinning!*
"I've, uh... I've got a pistol on me. Concealed carry. Like I told you, I'm a detective."
*He gestures vaguely to his hip. Crap, were his hands shaking? Oh, his neck was throbbing, too! Great! Perfect! He didn't even know if he had his badge or registration on him, either! Getting thrown in jail for this universe would suck, to put it plainly.*
welp……great at least he was following orders . He could get a chance to look at the notebook.
last thing that he wanted to do right now was loose the man. After he got what he wanted he would most likely leave him alone to…do whatever he pleased.
what he was doing was corrupt.
Callihan would start his usual search starting at the waist checking for the gun and the notebook. Though more focused on finding the latter.
as promised the gun and a suspiciously shaped object that was most likely the book.
He would pull it out of Noel’s pocket. If Noel asked he could probably lie and say something about incriminating evidence and it’s just something he needs to check.
callihan would start a few pages in skimming each page to see what they said before flipping to the next. Reading quickly as part of the man’s request.
it was the least he could do.
the man seemed….out of it to say the least. And on the brink of passing out.
*His body heat meets Callihan before Callihan's hands meet him. He's sweltering, yet he shivers. Shivers that he desperately tries to stifle.
He immediately goes to grab the notebook back, but the second he lifts his hand from the wall, it looked like he was about to fall straight into Callihan, so that thought was abandoned.*
"N-No, wait-"
*His words are slur together. He feels his eyes burn. No, he wouldn't cry now. No. He's gone through worse. It's fine.*
"Please, I- I'm not- I'm not mad, I-I swear..."
*Every other page of the notebook is labeled "Universe", then a number, then a nickname. One page is labeled "The Permafrost" pretty early on, and has brief blurbs on a world that was completely frozen over - how a lot of people had died out, how civilization and agriculture had been moved underground, how... Did that say Arthur?
Wait, he wrote about Arthur a lot. And some guy named John. They seemed to be a pair. There was also this guy named Kayne? He's mentioned occasionally and it's always with vitriol.
The three most recent entries are labeled "Kayne's Christmas Party??", "Eden's Home", and the last one... Unlabeled apart from "Universe 37". Underneath the last one is written:
"I thought I was done. Fuck me for being hopeful I guess. Phoebe's with me, got one good thing going for me. 1934 Arkham. Might be by Mosby Ave? Roland, Arthur or his partner (Peter, right??) there? Might just get thrown into jail. Fucked."
If Noel looked like he was about to pass out before he got the notebook taken, that look had increased tenfold afterwards. He was leaning a little too far right, but didn't even seem to notice himself. He was deathly pale, the pink scar on his face creating a stark contrast. His pupils were dilated and moving hazily about behind the cop in front of him. That and there were tears brimming in his eyes.*
"I-I... I swear..."
callihan would ignore Noel’s pleas focused more on reading the contents of the notebook.
…….oh OH OH
what type of paranormal crap is this ? yeah he thought something was off about the guy but really hoped it wasn't some paranormal that callihan would have to deal with.
callihans mind immediately tried to make sense of whatever was going on in book.
…..Arthur John Kayne!?
worst of all to him. He knew those names. Well not John but he seemed damn important.
Arthur. Deadman’s mouthpiece who was currently resting unknown to be dead by anyone else but him and Peter. Someone Callihan would consider to be a very good friend.
John who he had no clue of why he was important. No identity to him other than…name. Like a John Doe.
Kayne. Oh him. Described as someone to never meet and someone who could destroy everything. Advised to not attack and to not get under his notice. Good thing he didn’t seem to care about callihan existence. who the hell was phoebe ? who the hell was Roland?
How does this guy know about everything ? How would he know about Arthur and Peter already being here? did they have history that he didn't know about
better him that this guy ran into than anyone else.
callihan would slowly give back the notebook having seen enough in its pages to understand. no no he had to act he couldn't just stand frozen like a baby deer for this one but what the hell could he even ask or say or do in this situation ?!
......no questions yet he needs to help noel first. he cant answer questions if he's dead on the floor!
".....do you need help sir? "
*It takes a second for him to process the book being handed back to him, hazy eyes sliding from somewhere in the distance to Callihan's hands. He stares blankly until Phoebe whacks his leg. He slowly takes it back, surprised that he wasn't immediately put in cuffs.
He readjusts his position on the wall to flip through the pages. Did... Something magically change? He couldn't exactly tell with how his vision was right now, but... Well, it looked the same from what he could tell. He looks back up to Callihan, visibly confused.*
"...Why didn't-"
*He tries to blink the dark spots from his vision as he stares. He wobbles on his feet, still clinging to both the book and the wall.*
"What...? Are- How come- I sound insane!"
*His tongue feels fat in his mouth as he speaks, but he needed to. He needed to figure out why he wasn't dead yet!*
"It- I mean-"
*"Did he need help?" Of course he did!! He felt like he was stuck in a maze with no exit!! It's not like some random copper would be able to go back in time and stop all of this from happening!!
...Maybe he meant with the infection. That...
Oh, he felt so woozy...*
"Uh... Yeah... I think I do..."
*He offers a weary smile as the ground lurches up on his left. He could feel his eyes roll back. He's out before his head hits the concrete with a crack. It breaks the skin. A small amount of crimson pools under his temple, soaking into his hair.
Phoebe lets out a surprised coo, rushing over to Noel's face. She walks in a couple of panicked circles, cooing the whole time, trying desperately to wake him up.*
maybe he shouldn't have handed it back but hey.. the man had a gun and it seemed pretty precious.
It had only recently clicked but…..if this guy was familiar with Kayne Arthur and all this….paranormal crap. well he can to help In some way like more information? callihan loves his job but….this takes priority after all he needs to figure out what the hell is going on!
'i well um its complicated! very complicated and uh...I cant say anything on it!"
callihan can’t possibly take this to the police he’d sound just as mad as that missing persons case. hell he was barely able to convince them of his sudden recovery from the hospital.
he couldn't possibly take him to the hospital either.
"um...how do you know who arthur is? kayne! pete-parker."
callihan watched noel pass out. oh..is that a bird? maybe callihan should have grabbed a bit earlier but uh......oh well no time!
………
the next when Noel awoke…well he was laying on a couch.
callihan had done his best to care for Noel’s wounds with the…..limited amount of information he had. He tried to clean Noel’s wounds.. well it was shabby but it would at least keep Noel from dying. his trench coat was off and put off to the side.
who knows where Phoebe is?
and callihan? callihan was sitting nearby just…writing taking way too many notes. hell he didn't really seem to notice noel waking up.
this place seems like no hospital police station or anything like that ! just a house.
and this weird officers couch.
*He was awake, sure, but he didn't want to be. Everything hurt. He felt like his insides had just been blended. He didn't want to open his eyes, but... Well, he had to. It wasn't safe to sleep in, not ever.
When he blinks his eyes open, he's overwhelmingly confused. He wasn't in the place he passed out, he wasn't in jail, he wasn't in an asylum, he wasn't being attacked, he wasn't at the Threshold... Where was he...?
He goes to sit up, but the second he moves, it sends the world spinning. He flops an arm over his eyes, trying to stifle a whine. Why was he so stupid as to not think to keep antibiotics on him?? He needed to be smarter than this!!!
And... it was quiet. It was too quiet. Sure, there was the scribbling of a pen, but that's not what he was looking for.
He didn't hear Phoebe.
She was a loud bird. She was always cooing or ruffling her feathers or walking around. He didn't hear her rumbles, he didn't hear a feather, he didn't hear the tell-tale tick of her talons...
He jolted upright. It didn't matter if it made his vision black, he needed to find Phoebe. His feet were planted on the ground the second he could see a pinhole of where he was.
And he spotted Callihan.
He had him in a choke hold in seconds.*
"Where's my fucking bird?"
*He had to fight a cringe at how raspy his voice sounded. He also had to fight a cringe at how little strength he had. The officer would be able to break the hold in seconds if he was trained properly.
And then it clicked how fucking ridiculous that sounded. He was threatening a man over a pigeon. To be fair, that man had read through his notebook and hadn't thrown him in an asylum immediately, so... He could be a little mad here and then if it meant getting Phoebe back.*
of course the way home was awfully hard between trying to carry what looks like dead body and having a bird constantly attack you for no apparent reason. one could say it was challenging.
and of course callihan found a temporary solution to his problems bird had following him home after all and no amount of shooing would deter it. he needed to take drastic measures. after all it would be awfully hard to write his notes....and well care for noels injury's.
speaking of noel callihan was alerted by the sound of movement. after all there wasn't much going on in the meantime. he would look to where he had put noel. oh! the man was up well that's good! HOLY SHIT.
callhan was not prepared to be immediately choked out. you know its awfully hard to give a verbal answer if you cant speak. maybe threatening with a gun would have been better.
he would try to pry noels arms away from his neck.
of course callihan took care of the bird. not well. he had no idea what the hell birds ate. so he kind of just stuffed it in a room and hoped it wouldn't get out and start attacking him again. there were few bird shaped marks on his head and hands and god knows where.
" BATHROOM " callihan would try to get out. "YOUR BIRD IS IN THE BATHROOM."
callihan would break the hold and back the hell away. gesturing to wherever the hell the bathroom was.
he had shoved the thing into the bathroom. it would do to keep the noise and bird away from him. he needed that time badly.
callihan put his hand near his gun. he was not being attacked again without consequence. also known as a bullet to wherever was unfortunate enough to reach.
*He was in the bathroom in an instant, scooping Phoebe up in his arms and holding her tightly. She nestled back into him. He breathes a heavy sigh of relief, the adrenaline almost immediately draining from his body. He doesn't bother trying to get back to the couch, he crumbles to the floor where he is.*
"You're okay...?"
*He spoke softly. It was hard to do much of anything due to the haze of fever, but he still needed to check on his bird!! With shaking hands, he stretches her wings out to check for any injuries. She fights the advance a little, but gives up relatively quickly when he finds nothing and lets her tuck her wings back at her side.*
"How'd you get in there?"
*He scratches gently by her eyes, which she eagerly leans into.*
"You can't scare me like that, Pheeb... I thought you died or somethin'... And- And you can't do that, alright? You gotta last long enough for us to find a home, got it?"
*He was surely about to be locked up now. What sane person talks to a bird, let alone a pigeon???*
callihan would follow after noel to make sure he didn't break or trip or like jump out a window. and to additionally make sure the bird also did not destroy his bathroom as to be blunt he haven't checked on it for however long noel was passed out for.
he would of course keep his hands near his sides just in case. hey the man had attacked him once who knows what else he would DO?
however when he got to the bathroom he would breath a sigh of relief that nothing much had happened. everything was mostly fine..
he would shut the door behind himself.
...ah what a crazy thing someone could do talking to your pet or just plain talking things out with yourself. no one would ever do that!
....well not quite. who's to say what callihan did at the police station filling paperwork?
callihan still had so many questions he wanted to ask. yet only one could come to mind right now.
" who the hell are you? how do you know about arthur? "
well...two... but honestly too many questions to know what was important to ask.
*It takes a second for him to register the words being spoken at him, the fog over his brain making everything a little tricky.*
"Noel Finley."
*He swallows thickly. He was not a fan of the radiating heat on the side of his face.*
"Or Charlie Dowd. Don't know how this universe works yet..."
*Fuck it. The guy had already seen his notebook. It didn't matter anymore.*
"Arthur was a friend of mine. Back... Back home, at least..."
*It didn't matter how tired he sounded, it didn't matter how sick he felt, it didn't fucking matter. He was going to be stuck doing this for the rest of his life, so who cared if he sounded insane? Who cared if everyone knew he had two identities? Who cared if he had friends or a family or anyone that he loved? It didn't matter."
ah great a name he had no clue of. maybe he could get some notes later but right now he had nothing. hopefully this wasn't just a case of someone with no papers. though the current notes he had could only be in his mind.
" i'm uh callihan. Micheal Callahan. "
guess they were doing full name introductions. or in noels case 2 name introductions.
callihan would move to sit on the floor to get on a more even level with the man. he would move his hands to his lap to be more away from his gun.
never thought he would be having a conversation like this in the bathroom.
"Arthur lester? im guessing? " there's no harm it guessing right?
who knows the connections Arthur had in other places....other universes. but what did that really matter? he was gone. he was gone and there was nothing to do to bring him back.
"but um who's that? " callihan would ask pointing to the bird.
maybe asking easier questions could get him to open up.
*He shuffles away from Callihan before he could get too close. He was far too tired to actually get up and move, so it was just a little shimmy.*
"Yeah... Nice to meet ya..."
*He was not at all pleased to be getting to know him. Nor was he pleased that the door was closed behind him.
What a pathetic way to go. By some cop he just learned the name of for being suspicious.
Well, at least he had Phoebe. Hopefully Callihan would take good care of her after he was put away or killed.*
"Yeah, had to assume that was the Arthur you were askin' about... Only one anyone ever asks about."
*Oh, Arthur. Noel told him he'd be fine, and now look at him. Right where he started, all over again. And John, too... He'd go back to only having Arthur, trapped and alone.
Did it matter, though? They were just another person he got attached to that would be taken away from him. He knew it was inevitable.
...Callihan was still talking to him. He needed to pay attention.*
"...Who, Phoebe?"
*He points to the pigeon in his lap with a raised eyebrow.*
"She's just a pigeon."
*...Just a pigeon that he would kill anyone for, at this point.*
callihan would decide a different tactic. clearly this was not going very well. as much as he was trying to be friendly and the 'good cop' in this case it wasn't really working well.
he would breath through his nose and pull out a small music box out from his pocket winding it up and praying to whatever god that this thing works.
he had never tried the music box before. not even once.
callihan would turn the key a few times before letting it play.
a slow tune would start playing. it sounds light and childish. simple yet still sad in its own way. like it was made on the spot.
is this what callihan had in his pocket all this time?
*The second he hears the music box wind up he's on his feet and out of the bathroom. He attempts to make it to the front door, but running in a straight line with a fever isn't always the easiest thing to do. He crashes straight into the couch he was sleeping on.
His shoulder brushes against the swollen hot skin on his neck and he lets out a cry. It burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it bur-
Where was Phoebe? She was out of his hands. Was she okay? He can't move to find her. It hurt too much. He felt sick. He wanted his bird. Where was his bird?*
@yorick-the-vanguard
There wasn't any fancy flash of light, or over the top summoning like might've seemed fitting for the being that Callihan knew that had been called.
The front door opened to a familiar being stumbling in, leaning rather heavily on the doorknob as it looked over the scene. He looked like he’d just gotten out of a rather nasty fight.
"Do you need something Callihan?"
His ears twitched at every little noise, and flinching at the loud crash and cry of pain. It took him a second to register that it was Noel’s voice, but when he did he’d slammed the front door closed and Alto was by Noel’s side checking him over immediately.
"Noel? Christ- What are you doing here?"
Its hands were holding him, feeling as cold as a corpse against Noel’s feverish skin as he propped him against the couch, sitting on the floor.
“… Noel you fucking idiot.”
He held his hand against Noel’s neck, hoping to try and cool it down to a temperature that wouldn’t feel like he was on fire.
“Callihan get a fucking first aid kit!”
He called over to the officer, his tone leaving no room for argument or rebuttal, before he returned his attention to Noel.
“It’s gunna be okay. It’s just me, don’t worry. I’ll take care of you. You’ll be okay. Don’t worry. I’m here. I’m here, and you’re gunna be okay.”
His tone softened to a gentle, insistent voice.
@officer-callihan
of course callihan was trying to recover from being run over and kicked in the face. Thanks Noel…errrr Charlie.
callihan would fix his glasses before getting up and using the door handle to stabilize himself.
callihan would check himself to see if any damage was done before closing the bathroom door behind him.
at least alto was alto still alive…Callihan had half expected to music box to not work.
why the hell did Noel have such an adverse reaction though ? Speaking of Noel how did alto just immediately know his name? Is this just a thing that alto could just do?
No time to question….that whole thing.
Callihan nearly missed the part where alto was calling out to him. Whatever the man says do it. Just….follow what he says.
callihan would run off to the kitchen to go get a first aid kit. It was the place where he tended to somehow get most injured so it’s where he kept it.
….as callihan predicted alto was better suited to deal with the situation just not in the way he was expecting.
callihan would rush over to alto giving him the first aid kit. Before getting up again and getting his notes to jot down some more.
Slowly walking back to the pair to see however Noel was doing after his little crash. @aguidetothemultiverse
*He stared up at Alto, then looked over to Callihan, then back to Alto. Over and over and over until Alto's hand touched the swollen skin. He lets out a whine, eyes screwing shut and hands darting up to grip onto Alto's arm, trying to pull him away slightly.*
"How are you..."
*No, no he needed to check. This could be someone else. This could be a different Alto. This could be Kayne pulling a trick. He didn't know. He had to check.
...Geese. Geese. He had to think about geese really loudly.
Oh god, where was Phoebe? She wasn't nearby, what happened to her? Why wasn't she in his hands anymore? He immediately starts scanning the room until his eyes land on her, attempting to perch on Callihan's head despite his movements.
Okay, back to thinking about geese.*
"I-I know I'm an idiot. I meant to- I meant to grab some antibiotics, it just... It slipped my mind."
*His voice shakes. He can't let go just yet. He needed to hold on. He needed to keep thinking about geese. He needed to see Alto's reaction to geese.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
He moved his hand away from the injury as soon as Noel’s hands tried to push him away.
His face contorted like he’d just tasted something sour at the thought of geese getting flung at him for the second time by Noel.
“Noel- Really? Again with the Geese?-”
Oh. Noel asked a question.
“The music box Callihan played. That was him calling me over here.”
He sighed, unable to stay mad when the man looked like he was dying. As soon as he had the first aid kit in his hands he was rummaging through it to find what he needed to properly treat the wound.
He was more than aware of Noel’s bird perching on Callihan’s head. He was honestly trying not to crack up at the scene.
“Can I treat the wound on your neck or do you want to do it yourself?”
He spoke softer to Noel than to Callihan, but his tone was still firm.
@officer-callihan
pheobe was a pretty big bird to say the least. If only Noel ate half as good as her.
callihan would try his best to balance whatever the hell was on his head. of coursehe had no idea what the hell was going on as they were seemly blabbering nonsense.
geese??? he would simply continue to jot down as many notes not being very useful to the current situation at hand.
He was…no longer really needed in the situation just waiting for more direction someone to talk to him. Just…anything.
though he really hoped no one would read his notes right about now. It was less of the paranormal and more…personal than anything else. Callihan hadent gotten the chance to write down much during and after Parker’s little visit as he was….distracted.
he would look over at the pair to see whatever they were doing about right now staring dumbly off into the distance.
but For now Callihan was just stuck in the middle.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*All of the tension in his body dissipates at Alto's reaction to the geese thought.*
"It's... It's really you...?"
*He looks like he's about to burst into tears. A shaking hand rises, looking as though he's about to reach out to touch Alto, only to go directly to the infected wound. It hurt like hell.
...It hurt. This was real.
That's when the tears start flowing.*
"You're- You're here and- And you know me. The- The real me!"
*He smiles. He has to close his eyes just so he could fully smile. He wraps his arms around the god in front of him and pulls them into the tightest hug he could manage.
When he could finally squint his teary eyes open, he stares at Callihan.*
"...Thank you..."
*It didn't matter if Callihan thought he was being thanked for bringing more help or not. All that mattered to him was that this man had saved him from an eternity of being just a name and a face. He would be known. He would be known for who he was, and not a name.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
His expression gave way to something almost pained. Like it hurt to see him like this, but… seeing Noel smile was something else.
“Yeah… it’s me. Don’t worry.”
He didn’t fight the hug, finding himself pulling Noel closer instead. It was… grounding.
“How d’you get yourself into this mess this time?”
The items in the first aid kit were arranging themselves on their own, items that weren’t needed being left inside instead of being laid out next to them.
“Still have to address that neck wound of yours before it knocks your head off your shoulders.”
He didn’t move, giving Noel time to object or protest anything if he felt the need too. The man was already clearly jumpy; he had no intention to make it worse.
@officer-callihan
callihan just presumed that the thank you was for alto. he hadn't done very much. only inspired panic and pain in himself and others. got himself hurt and hurt noel more with his lack of knowledge ..
he didn't look up from his notes choosing to simply sink himself into them instead. he was no longer being instructed to do anything. he was no longer really needed.
he would simply just continue his notetaking...forgetting to pay attention.
he couldn't find the space to ask his questions. not right now when so much was happening.
he tried to itch his head only to find a fat object in his way.
callihan quickly gave up after that. resigning himself to take more notes.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*Phoebe takes the opportunity to grab at his fingers. She wanted attention and she was going to get it one way or another. That other way would be fluttering onto his notes and staring at him petulantly. She. Wanted. SCRATCHES!!!!
Noel, on the other hand, had drawn his attention entirely back to Alto, pulling back to look him over.*
"...You're... You're you..."
*He wipes his eyes to truly get a look at him.*
"Jesus..."
*His face falls. It didn't matter how blurry or shaky his vision was, he could see how bad a shape Alto was in. There was blood. Unfortunately, he didn't exactly catch that there was a first aid kit within arms length due to the shock of Alto being here and in his arms, but also the fever that was actively boiling his brain.*
"Mr. Callihan? Where's your first aid kit?"
Alto’s eyes scrunched up in confusion for a moment before he seemed to realize something. His hand shot up to check the back of his head, wincing just at merely touching it before seeing that his hand came away bloody.
“…god… fucking damnit-”
His tone spiked ever so slightly as his form shifted. The dried and fresh blood disappeared, not a single scratch or drop of ichor visible anymore. looking good as new.
“I- I’m fine. Really, I just forgot to clean myself up after a bit of cleaning up I had to do.”
His eyes flicked away for a moment before returning to look at him sheepishly. He lied exactly like the same way Noel remembered him doing so.
“D-don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.”
He hastily moved to grab the items he picked out of the first aid kit. It was definetly not nothing. He moved on from it too franticly for it to be nothing.
“I’m going to clean your wound now. Hold still for a bit.”
He pulled out the disinfectant wipes, gently rubbing the area so he could start dressing the wound with antibiotics. He even added a few wads of cotton with gauze to hold everything in place and act as a barrier just in case it gets bumped.
“Better yet- Callihan, do you have any fever medication on hand?”
@officer-callihan
callihan would grab pheobe off of his head sort if just holding her in the palm of his hand. Before giving a few gentle scritches to the top of her head and to some of her back. he was lost in petting this cute bird until his name was called.
he would look up from his petting to noel to answer his question.
“uh right in front of you…next to you?”
callihan would look alto over again and....hm
altos bloodied from wasn't simply nothing though. Callihan given his…recent encounter could only conclude one thing.
Kayne. Kayne had done something. kayne that sick thing had done something to alto and now he was badly hurt.
"yeah i um... think i have some i can go get it for you."
it was at least something for him to do. other than petting this darling bird
callihan would stand up leaving his notes on the floor. he would be most careful to make sure he wouldn't drop the bird.
should he ask about kayne? he needs to know more if he's going to not die terribly in some way to that thing. he needs to know more if he needs to care for alto
callihan would walk to the kitchen thinking over if he truly wants to ask alto about this. well he's not going to know if he doesn't press at least this once.
"so um...what happened between you and...that thing after you let it take you? "
he would give phoebe a few scriches looking at altos expressions.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*He offers Callihan a barely noticeable nod (if he pushed it any further, he was sure he would've lost the meager contents of his stomach on Alto immediately). Just as he goes to grab the first aide kit, Alto grabs it first.
...Alto was moving fast. And he stammered. Arthur was too confident for that unless caught off guard. That or lying.
He squints.
Before his fever addled mind had time to process the information he was being given, Alto was attempting to disinfect the wound and all he could feel is pain. Because OW. That fucking HURT????
Before he could think to stop himself, he slaps Alto across the face.
He stares blankly at Alto. His eyes dart to his hand. He just struck a god.*
"...Oh my god..."
*He slowly brings his hands to his mouth, utterly shocked at his own actions. It feels like his breathing had stopped.*
"Oh- Oh my god... I... Alto, I didn't- I..."
*He pulls his knees to his chest.*
"I'm so sorry, I... I didn't... I didn't mean to, you... I just-"
*He needed to breathe. He needed to breathe.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
Alto’s head jerks sideway, his hands having stopped their work momentarily before he finished wrapping the gauze around Noel’s neck and pulling his hands away and holding them up placatingly.
His brain felt like it was full of static. Things were spinning and it was a miracle he stayed upright at all.
His ears were ringing. He couldn’t- he couldn’t hear properly- he couldn’t- what was going on around him? He had nothing to be able to tell with.
He held his head still for a good long moment, waiting until his mind started working again.
“Sorry I- I shouldn’t have rushed that-“
He didn’t even sound angry. If anything he was worried. He was worried that he’d done something wrong to upset Noel and that it was his fault. He didn’t even seem mad at the fact that he’d just been hit. He was worried about the why.
“It’s okay- I’m okay. Promise.”
He didn’t seem okay. At all, actually. He looked like a gust of wind would knock him over.
The illusion hiding the blood still soaking his hair and tricking down his back had dropped as soon as he’d been hit. he had a major head injury most likely.
One he hadn’t been able to heal and could only hide.
“Just breathe for me, okay? Breathe.”
How could his tone be so gentle when he was bleeding so much his face was slowly turning a different shade.
@officer-callihan
Callihan would have to put the bird down in favor of helping alto. First aid training he knew plenty of that!
sorry pheobe.
Callihan would go to grab some gauze from the medkit trying to get to alto and treat the wound on altos head. He would grab altos face Turning the wound to where he could easily see it.
he would do his best to properly wrap it.
if alto was down then callihan would have to deal with treating Noel. And god knows he’s terrible at that considering that despite his try Noel was still doing terribly.
………..to be fair he knew nothing.
Please can’t they not both pass out? That would be inconvenient.
the best he could do was try to reassure Noel….well he’s done worse than just punching alto. But no need to mention that right about.
callihan would grab pheobe and try to give her over to Noel. He seems to value this bird. And who could hate this bird? She was just so cute.
hopefully she would be the right amount grounding. Callihan was having a hard time forming words of encouragement.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*He's stuck staring at the two in front of him in, watching Alto's face practically unfold as well as Callihan attempt a clumsy first aid.
Why wasn't he dead right now? Why didn't Alto kill him? Why was Alto trying to comfort him????
He only snaps out of it when Phoebe is shoved into his hands. His eyes dart down to her. She tilts her head at him.
...Callihan wasn't packing the wound. It'd continue to bleed, and the head bleeds a lot. And if Alto didn't bleed out, it'd be a surface level scab, but the internal wound would fester.*
"Michael, wait."
*He clears his throat, placing Phoebe to the side and grabbing the pack of disinfecting wipes.*
"Disinfect first. Infections aren't fun to deal with."
*He offers a small, weary smile with a gesture to his neck, holding his other hand out with the wipes.*
"Then, you don't wrap it like that. You gotta stop the bleedin' first. Shove as much gauze as you can into the wound until the blood stops seepin' through. It'll hurt like hell, but it's better than losin' blood from your head."
*His heart was still pounding wildly in his chest, but at least the adrenaline was going to good use, for once. He finally draws his attention back to Alto, making sure to lower his voice.*
"Hey, you're gonna be in a world of pain in a second, but it's helpin' alright? Don't accidentally kill anyone, alright, sweetheart?"
*To emphasize his point, he shuffles Phoebe between his back and the couch cushions. He hoped Alto didn't catch onto that one, actually.*
"'N you gotta stay awake, gotta ask you a few questions when our mutual friend over here is done, got it?"
*Speak slowly so the injured brain could process the words being spoken. That's what he learned from the medics in his brief stay in the trench infirmary. Sure, the patient they were treating was dealing with shell-shock, but hey... the brain still might be injured here.
...If Alto still had a brain there... Arthur Amalgam God anatomy might be very different from human anatomy.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
Callihan even putting his hands near it made Alto flinch violently. He batted the man’s hands away, looking mildly miffed at the man trying to jerk his face around. It made him dizzy just thinking about it.
Wait-… what did Noel say…? Pack the-
He grabbed Noel’s wrist with a grip strength stronger than most he’d ever dealt with before, twisting until his forearm felt close to snapping.
“-Shove gauze into my head and I’ll turn you into a god damn corpse do I make myself crystal fucking clear?”
He was expecting a world of hurt already if either of them started fussing with it. His appearance turned immediately to the glassy thing he’d seen back in the waylay, his own face reflected in the cracked surface.
That was until he’d managed to calm himself down and let Noel’s arm go, returning to human form with an apologetic look.
“Y-you’ll just make it worse- it’s a skull fracture and concussion not a god damn bullet wound you morons-”
He tried to make the words sound more playful than menacing. He hoped it worked.
@officer-callihan
Was he doing this wrong?
Callihan would pause his attempts to try to help alto.
he would nod before making a closer move to alto.
…. ……….
altos sudden move would make callihan pause thinking maybe this was perhaps not a good idea-
…………this was not wanted.
callihan would back off like a scared dog away from alto. he was just trying to help. But every attempt to help ended badly.
he shot alto and it only had gone downhill from there.
He picked up Noel from the streets and that had only gone downhill.
……it just seemed to just be going downhill.
he would hold the gauze tight.
his mind tcoukd scarcely comprehend altos form at the current moment. Sure it was a bit of a stretch to believe altos….other forms but at least they held some level of humanity.
…….
he truthfully felt like exploding. …….well in reality he was getting quite lightheaded.
but he felt like he was being squished.
…………….
well altos attempt at something to ease the mood.
It did not work to the effect alto was hoping for. At least on him.
Callihans face was quite sweaty and the only reason right now ? fear.
the damage had allready been done.
sure callihan knew in the deepest part of his heart something about alto was…..invigorating. A light he needed in the darkest of times. A melody that you can’t quite get out of your head.
Though Parker had said “to trust it as far as you can throw em” ……..that was not very far.
…..not right now at least.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*He went as stiff as possible when he was grabbed. He had to fight the urge to bite Alto. Biting would only make it worse. Biting would only make it worse. He learned that the hard way, but...
Biting would keep him safe. He could defend himself.
Thankfully, he stalls his mind long enough to be let go. He immediately scrambles to the other side of the couch, out of Alto's reach. He rubs at the already bruising mark around his wrist, avoiding looking at the two men nearby.*
"...You... You need to stop the bleeding..."
*His voice was stiff. He spoke like he was speaking to a higher up in the army. No emotion. This was his superior. Stay in line to stay safe.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
His ears drooped like wilting leaves. As if the wind was taken right out of his sails. He looks away, a sort of bitterness setting in at the two’s reaction.
He didn’t want either of them to be scared- they were friends! Friends he cared about! More than he cared about most anyways. But… he couldn’t ever have nice things, could he?
“…just disinfecting and wrapping it will do fine for a wound like mine.”
His smile returns, but it looks fake; forced, even. There was something missing now from his demeanor. That humanity that he usually carried so close to his chest, like it had been dislodged and was floating around somewhere in his mess of a mind.
The very thing that made most gods so dangerous.
“I forgive you. It’s alright, you don’t have to be scared of me.”
He spoke it more like an order than a reassurance. To both of them, that is.
He looked about ready to grit his teeth, like the solid moral code he held himself to just became guidelines.
“But I will handle my injuries myself. I hope I made that clear.”
Alto was quick to distance himself; standing ever so slightly faster than what felt natural, and stepping away to handle his injuries alone out of either of the two men’s reach.
@officer-callihan
His reassurance did not work.
HE HADENT SEEN ALTO LIKE THAT.
What was he supposed to make of this FUCK! ……….. ……………………….
……………………………………..
there was one thing to do.
“you know I u-um think I have somthing to do with pet-Parker and I’m uh hate to be late !”
callihan would scurry past alto to go get some of his stuff before booking it for the front door.
Looking back at Noel.
His eyes look wet.
and alto………didn't quite look like the friend he wanted to him right now.
“Bye Noel…..I hope we u-uhm meet again…”
@aguidetothemultiverse
Callihan was having a fairly normal day. Of course the last few days had been a little hectic from cults music monsters and everything else unfortunate enough to bless him.
He was lucky enough to get a break from his job under the assumption that he was still recovering from being shot.
he had been pretty much a recluse in his house for the time being. Not great but better than the alternate.
what is he doing now one may ask?
pretty much nothing of great importance. Maybe a few notes there some eating here but pretty much nothing.
how would one approach this situation?
-🔦💼
(@officer-callihan)
*Noel clung to the shadows. New universe meant new dangers. He frantically scribbled in his notebook, Phoebe resorting to waddling around on the ground, circling his feet.
She must be so confused. She's probably never universe hopped before. But he needed to get as much information as he could. He wasn't sure where he was, so some sort of location indicator would be nice. It looked to be around the same time that he left, though. Maybe a bit earlier in the year? Around autumn of 1934? He'd need a confirmation on that... He could find a newspaper! That would be a good solution.
He scooped up Phoebe, holding her like a book under his arm, and went to rush for the nearest newspaper stand. If he was paying closer attention, he wouldn't have run into the oblivious-to-his-circumstances officer. He falls flat on his ass, his notebook goes in one direction, Phoebe flies in the other, and he's ready to keel over and let the universe do whatever it wanted with him.*
if anyone had seen noel he would have probably looked shady as hell. creeping in the shadows aint exactly a good look. ….just the same dreary streets of Arkham.
callihan was just doing his usual patrol of the streets. pretty boring but better than other things. of course he didn't expect to be body slammed while on his job. he would try to gain back his balance before falling himself.
callihan went to check his pockets to see if anything was damaged. thankfully not. there were certain things that were..important to not get damaged . even from a small fall.
he would move to get up before pausing. ah..so thats what happened
it wasn't a malicious attempt to kill him just an accident that happened to involve him. whoever that was is still on the ground. he would look around a little more around the area for anything else of note.
they must have dropped something! was that a bird? no matter!
callihan would move pick up the notebook before getting up on his feet offering a hand to get up to this stranger.
it was the least he could do seems their having a bad day to say the least.
*He tenses. Fuck. Fuck! He didn't want to be thrown into an asylum again (thanks a lot, Universe 17), and everything that was in that notebook was evidence to any normal person that he had lost his marbles decades ago.
He snatched the notebook, scrambling to his feet before he could even process that the man in front of him was trying to help him up. Phoebe waltzes over to Noel's feet, hopping onto one of his shoes and smacking his leg with her wing. The second she makes contact, he closes his eyes and steels his breathing.
When he opens his eyes again, he looks utterly mortified at what he'd done. Not beating the crazy allegations, apparently.*
"Ah, Jeez..."
*He shoves the notebook in his pocket, sliding Phoebe off his foot.*
"Sorry about that, doll. I should've been payin' closer attention to where I was walking."
*He didn't hear this guy's accent yet. He hoped his own didn't come across as bizarre in the area. Speaking of, he tries to eye a nearby street sign. It doesn't help him much.*
callihan? Probably not the normal person who would get him thrown to the asylum but what can you do? Trust every person ever?
yeah no.
he of course didn’t quite expect an atypical response of snatching back the notebook and getting up on their own. Notebook must be important clearly. callihan would put his hand back by his side.
he would just sort of stand around at Noel’s whole…thing.
Noel’s accent was not unusual its peculiar how many people callihan knows with accents.
“Ah it’s no big deal things happen ya know?”
southern. Not as southern as a grandma but still southern.
callihan would make a gesture with his other hand as if excusing it. He seems tired to say the least.
It’s no big deal this is the least of his worry’s right now.
his pockets look weird
“ have a nice day”
Callihan would begin to walk off taking this as just a one off accident. He had a job to do after all.
*Wait, no! He could use this! This guy didn't seem too suspicious of his strange behavior, so... who cares if he got a little more strange?!*
"Hold on, sorry if this sounds weird, but where are we?"
*He could go full into the madness schtick here and ask about when they were, but he needed to test the waters first.*
"Wasn't payin' attention to where I was walkin' and ran straight into a wall, if you could believe it! Hit my head and just wanna make sure I've got all the details right..."
*Hopefully this guy wouldn't send him to a hospital first. He didn't feel like explaining each and every scar and scab that he has. Or the branding. He has to suppress a shudder just thinking about it.*
"Now that I say it aloud, I sound like a huge clutz, don't I?"
*He chuckles softly, trying to lighten the mood. Come on, he needs information. As much as he could get, then he could leave this guy alone. He wouldn't have to get wrapped up in this mess. And Noel wouldn't have to admit how curious he was about the other man's pockets and stay out of it. If he had just stayed out of it as a whole, none of this would've happened in the first place!!*
callihan would stop in his tracks and kind of turn back to noel pausing for a bit to think.
what does this man want with him? information or something more? he kind of has that weird detective look to him. although unprofessional what the hell happened to his outfit for it to look so horrid?
"...Arkham.... Massachusetts? the particular street is slipping my mind ..sorry. "
how do you not know where you are? seems common to know. unless there was some weird circumstance that prevented someone from knowing.
"sir are you fine like your head? are ya good? "
how do you hit yourself walking into a wall? something just feels off.. just wrong like many other times. though callihan seemed genuinely concerned for noels well being at the current moment.
he still seemed on edge and nervous just waiting. both his hands were near his sides. one probably containing a gun and the other god knows what. can't tell much of a concealed chunky item.
noels small joke does not lighten the mood at all. callihan had nothing to lighten up about right now to say the least. point is callihan was not in his best mood there was nothing to be cheerful about.
he almost seems like a sad puppy
" sir ? "
callihan would ask again
*His own hand darted closer to his side where he kept his pistol at the mention of his mind. Just in case.*
"Arkham, got it. That's what I thought, just wanted confirmation."
*Maybe he wasn't exactly right in the head right now, actually... He should've grabbed antibiotics for his neck wound. Even stitched up, it wasn't easy to keep it clean, and it had already gotten infected once. He was supposed to take antibiotics continually, right?*
"Got a little busy writin'. Same reason I ran into you, doll."
*He gestures with the notebook, to which he opens rather quickly to scribble down the information he just received. That seemed like a fair excuse. Writers could be rather wacky at times, right?
Arkham. He could find his way around here, he worked here! Sure, it was over ten years ago that he worked here, but he could figure it out!
He makes sure to keep his eyes on the other man, just in case he made a move for a gun.*
"But I've seen some pretty bad head injuries. They mess with your sense of time and direction. Wanna make sure that ain't happening to me, you know?"
*He taps his temple with the back of his pencil. His heart was racing. Fuck. This guy was onto him, wasn't he?*
"Speaking of time, the year is...?"
*He was really pushing it. He was really, really pushing it. He felt sick. He needed to run. He needed to hide. His heart was racing. His neck felt hot.
Wait, his neck felt hot?
Shit. He really should've snagged some antibiotics...*
callihans hands would still remain near his pockets. Of coursehe was on edge who wouldn't be? Callihan could have not known the situation Noel was in. not the neck wound different universe connections none of it.
Noel was just terribly shifty and suspicious. He was just so on edge.
what was in that notebook? If he had been more curious he might have maybe taken a look. Seen what was exactly in his notes
But running while writing…
wouldn't that make it really hard to write though? Small details were not adding up in his mind it was like there was maybe something missing.
“The years 1934 sir.”
running would only make him look more suspicious callihan could have resemble claim that maybe something was definitely wrong with this man.
“and how do you expect me to believe that you can write while running sir? ”
what does he even mean by he’s seen petty bad head injury’s ? So many questions raced through callihans Brain.
“you know lying to an officer can be a pretty serious crime yes?”
"Wasn't runnin', just walking."
*It's not impossible. Sure, it was tricky, but he got the hang of it after a few tries. His handwriting was never the neatest, anyway. Roland always nagged at him for that.
And then he deadpans when being an officer is mentioned.*
"Yeah, I do know that. Being a detective gets you pretty familiar with the law."
*He meets Callihan's gaze. If he wanted to play the authority game, Noel would play the fucking authority game. He scribbles down the year before shoving the notebook in his pocket.
His neck... wasn't getting any cooler. It was actually starting to get a little itchy. When did the infection come back? How long had it been festering? He had to suppress a shudder at the thought of it festering for a while.
When had Arthur forced him to take that antibiotic pill? It was more than twelve hours, surely. Not long after, the doctor (what was her name... Daisy?) had stitched him up. Ugh! He needed a clock or something to keep track off all this stuff!!
That didn't matter now. He needed to figure out how far along he was and how much time he had left before he was out of commission. Was he slurring his words? Did he just not notice? Was he genuinely confused and had not caught on yet? Was the heat that he was feeling from swelling or a fever? Did he look sickly? Is that why this officer was so dead set on interrogating him?
He was sure he made a face during his little spiral, he wasn't focused on looks until he realized that might be why he was in this situation in the first place. He could feel himself frowning with scrunched eyebrows.
Oh, he had a headache! That could just be stress, though. That's why he didn't notice it until now.
Phoebe whacked him. Right. He was spiraling. He needed to focus.*
"Anyways, thanks for your help, sir. You have a good one."
*He offers a small nod and a smile, and turns to go. And, of course, his vision swims when he turns. Because of course it does. He tries to walk in a straight line, but winds up finding himself closer to the buildings on his side than before. So basically, he was fucked. Dead on his feet. The cop was going to arrest him, throw him in some asylum or something... He was done for!*
Callihan highly suspects that this man is lying. But his suspicions were correct at the least at his guess that whoever this was probably a detective.
why was he here then?
it would be pretty unlikely to be able to hit callihan with that much force if the man had been walking and only walking. only thing that could have happened is the fact that they might have tripped into eachothers legs or just bumped into one another
Callihan would maintain his gaze on Noel trying to be as stern and intimidating as he could possibly be.
He must be delirious ! Drunk ! Just anything ! Therecouldentbeanythingparanornalhere.
why couldn't this just be a normal accident. enough paranormal stuff has happened in the last few days!
“No no you get right back here sir! I have reasonable cause to detain and search.”
Maybe this was against his standard protocol but callihan just needed to know more about whoever this was. something just seemed...off like every other time.
fuck standard protocol he cant just let someone get away!
aha! He was not walking straight! That could be a clue. Callihan would pick up the pace speed walking to where Noel was heading.
he would try to grab noel by the shoulder to get him to just stop walking.
*He slips away from Callihan's grip, but turns to face him anyway. He doesn't stop, though. Keep up the pace, try to shake him off. Persistence.*
"And why is that, officer?"
*He lets his hand wander up to the sutures and almost immediately flinches away. That's... Not great. Especially the heat that met his fingers. He could feel sweat building up on his skin.
He tried to gauge if the other man had also been in the War, or, at the very least, knew what an infection looked like. If he did, he might clock the fact that Noel was slipping pretty quickly into a fever because of it. And if he did recognize the signs, two things could happen: Noel's brought to a hospital (bad. Very bad. Don't do this. He has no records.) or he's given a slap on the wrist for his strange behavior (good. Very good. Please do this. He would cry with relief.). Or both, which could be... Something?*
if there's anything callihan is right now its stubborn. he will find out.
"well i have reasonable cause to search you with how you're acting ! "
he looks pretty clueless to say the least. callihan does not really know how to treat infections only do basic first aid. probably would have presumed the man was very guilty because of the sweat.
he would continue to keep pace with noel.
"please stop resisting sir."
it was more likely for him to try the hospital than to try to help with the infection.
and it was likely that he would probably search noel for anything anything at all.
just judging on...his attitude
though his hands were...not immediately in range of his gun
" get back here sir."
*Fine. He'll stop. Just in case. He'd rather not have killing a random man as the first thing he's done in this universe. To be fair, he'd also rather not have pissing off a cop be his first thing, either, but...*
"Alright, alright."
*His head was starting to pound and the way the world was spinning wasn't helping. He wanted to just... Sit down. Maybe lay down, shut his eyes for a few minutes. God, he didn't realize how bad he felt.*
"Just... Make it quick. I'm feelin' a little under the weather."
*He was leaning on the wall. He didn't realize when he started, but it quickly became a lifeline. He screwed his eyes shut. Please, just stop spinning!*
"I've, uh... I've got a pistol on me. Concealed carry. Like I told you, I'm a detective."
*He gestures vaguely to his hip. Crap, were his hands shaking? Oh, his neck was throbbing, too! Great! Perfect! He didn't even know if he had his badge or registration on him, either! Getting thrown in jail for this universe would suck, to put it plainly.*
welp……great at least he was following orders . He could get a chance to look at the notebook.
last thing that he wanted to do right now was loose the man. After he got what he wanted he would most likely leave him alone to…do whatever he pleased.
what he was doing was corrupt.
Callihan would start his usual search starting at the waist checking for the gun and the notebook. Though more focused on finding the latter.
as promised the gun and a suspiciously shaped object that was most likely the book.
He would pull it out of Noel’s pocket. If Noel asked he could probably lie and say something about incriminating evidence and it’s just something he needs to check.
callihan would start a few pages in skimming each page to see what they said before flipping to the next. Reading quickly as part of the man’s request.
it was the least he could do.
the man seemed….out of it to say the least. And on the brink of passing out.
*His body heat meets Callihan before Callihan's hands meet him. He's sweltering, yet he shivers. Shivers that he desperately tries to stifle.
He immediately goes to grab the notebook back, but the second he lifts his hand from the wall, it looked like he was about to fall straight into Callihan, so that thought was abandoned.*
"N-No, wait-"
*His words are slur together. He feels his eyes burn. No, he wouldn't cry now. No. He's gone through worse. It's fine.*
"Please, I- I'm not- I'm not mad, I-I swear..."
*Every other page of the notebook is labeled "Universe", then a number, then a nickname. One page is labeled "The Permafrost" pretty early on, and has brief blurbs on a world that was completely frozen over - how a lot of people had died out, how civilization and agriculture had been moved underground, how... Did that say Arthur?
Wait, he wrote about Arthur a lot. And some guy named John. They seemed to be a pair. There was also this guy named Kayne? He's mentioned occasionally and it's always with vitriol.
The three most recent entries are labeled "Kayne's Christmas Party??", "Eden's Home", and the last one... Unlabeled apart from "Universe 37". Underneath the last one is written:
"I thought I was done. Fuck me for being hopeful I guess. Phoebe's with me, got one good thing going for me. 1934 Arkham. Might be by Mosby Ave? Roland, Arthur or his partner (Peter, right??) there? Might just get thrown into jail. Fucked."
If Noel looked like he was about to pass out before he got the notebook taken, that look had increased tenfold afterwards. He was leaning a little too far right, but didn't even seem to notice himself. He was deathly pale, the pink scar on his face creating a stark contrast. His pupils were dilated and moving hazily about behind the cop in front of him. That and there were tears brimming in his eyes.*
"I-I... I swear..."
callihan would ignore Noel’s pleas focused more on reading the contents of the notebook.
…….oh OH OH
what type of paranormal crap is this ? yeah he thought something was off about the guy but really hoped it wasn't some paranormal that callihan would have to deal with.
callihans mind immediately tried to make sense of whatever was going on in book.
…..Arthur John Kayne!?
worst of all to him. He knew those names. Well not John but he seemed damn important.
Arthur. Deadman’s mouthpiece who was currently resting unknown to be dead by anyone else but him and Peter. Someone Callihan would consider to be a very good friend.
John who he had no clue of why he was important. No identity to him other than…name. Like a John Doe.
Kayne. Oh him. Described as someone to never meet and someone who could destroy everything. Advised to not attack and to not get under his notice. Good thing he didn’t seem to care about callihan existence. who the hell was phoebe ? who the hell was Roland?
How does this guy know about everything ? How would he know about Arthur and Peter already being here? did they have history that he didn't know about
better him that this guy ran into than anyone else.
callihan would slowly give back the notebook having seen enough in its pages to understand. no no he had to act he couldn't just stand frozen like a baby deer for this one but what the hell could he even ask or say or do in this situation ?!
......no questions yet he needs to help noel first. he cant answer questions if he's dead on the floor!
".....do you need help sir? "
*It takes a second for him to process the book being handed back to him, hazy eyes sliding from somewhere in the distance to Callihan's hands. He stares blankly until Phoebe whacks his leg. He slowly takes it back, surprised that he wasn't immediately put in cuffs.
He readjusts his position on the wall to flip through the pages. Did... Something magically change? He couldn't exactly tell with how his vision was right now, but... Well, it looked the same from what he could tell. He looks back up to Callihan, visibly confused.*
"...Why didn't-"
*He tries to blink the dark spots from his vision as he stares. He wobbles on his feet, still clinging to both the book and the wall.*
"What...? Are- How come- I sound insane!"
*His tongue feels fat in his mouth as he speaks, but he needed to. He needed to figure out why he wasn't dead yet!*
"It- I mean-"
*"Did he need help?" Of course he did!! He felt like he was stuck in a maze with no exit!! It's not like some random copper would be able to go back in time and stop all of this from happening!!
...Maybe he meant with the infection. That...
Oh, he felt so woozy...*
"Uh... Yeah... I think I do..."
*He offers a weary smile as the ground lurches up on his left. He could feel his eyes roll back. He's out before his head hits the concrete with a crack. It breaks the skin. A small amount of crimson pools under his temple, soaking into his hair.
Phoebe lets out a surprised coo, rushing over to Noel's face. She walks in a couple of panicked circles, cooing the whole time, trying desperately to wake him up.*
maybe he shouldn't have handed it back but hey.. the man had a gun and it seemed pretty precious.
It had only recently clicked but…..if this guy was familiar with Kayne Arthur and all this….paranormal crap. well he can to help In some way like more information? callihan loves his job but….this takes priority after all he needs to figure out what the hell is going on!
'i well um its complicated! very complicated and uh...I cant say anything on it!"
callihan can’t possibly take this to the police he’d sound just as mad as that missing persons case. hell he was barely able to convince them of his sudden recovery from the hospital.
he couldn't possibly take him to the hospital either.
"um...how do you know who arthur is? kayne! pete-parker."
callihan watched noel pass out. oh..is that a bird? maybe callihan should have grabbed a bit earlier but uh......oh well no time!
………
the next when Noel awoke…well he was laying on a couch.
callihan had done his best to care for Noel’s wounds with the…..limited amount of information he had. He tried to clean Noel’s wounds.. well it was shabby but it would at least keep Noel from dying. his trench coat was off and put off to the side.
who knows where Phoebe is?
and callihan? callihan was sitting nearby just…writing taking way too many notes. hell he didn't really seem to notice noel waking up.
this place seems like no hospital police station or anything like that ! just a house.
and this weird officers couch.
*He was awake, sure, but he didn't want to be. Everything hurt. He felt like his insides had just been blended. He didn't want to open his eyes, but... Well, he had to. It wasn't safe to sleep in, not ever.
When he blinks his eyes open, he's overwhelmingly confused. He wasn't in the place he passed out, he wasn't in jail, he wasn't in an asylum, he wasn't being attacked, he wasn't at the Threshold... Where was he...?
He goes to sit up, but the second he moves, it sends the world spinning. He flops an arm over his eyes, trying to stifle a whine. Why was he so stupid as to not think to keep antibiotics on him?? He needed to be smarter than this!!!
And... it was quiet. It was too quiet. Sure, there was the scribbling of a pen, but that's not what he was looking for.
He didn't hear Phoebe.
She was a loud bird. She was always cooing or ruffling her feathers or walking around. He didn't hear her rumbles, he didn't hear a feather, he didn't hear the tell-tale tick of her talons...
He jolted upright. It didn't matter if it made his vision black, he needed to find Phoebe. His feet were planted on the ground the second he could see a pinhole of where he was.
And he spotted Callihan.
He had him in a choke hold in seconds.*
"Where's my fucking bird?"
*He had to fight a cringe at how raspy his voice sounded. He also had to fight a cringe at how little strength he had. The officer would be able to break the hold in seconds if he was trained properly.
And then it clicked how fucking ridiculous that sounded. He was threatening a man over a pigeon. To be fair, that man had read through his notebook and hadn't thrown him in an asylum immediately, so... He could be a little mad here and then if it meant getting Phoebe back.*
of course the way home was awfully hard between trying to carry what looks like dead body and having a bird constantly attack you for no apparent reason. one could say it was challenging.
and of course callihan found a temporary solution to his problems bird had following him home after all and no amount of shooing would deter it. he needed to take drastic measures. after all it would be awfully hard to write his notes....and well care for noels injury's.
speaking of noel callihan was alerted by the sound of movement. after all there wasn't much going on in the meantime. he would look to where he had put noel. oh! the man was up well that's good! HOLY SHIT.
callhan was not prepared to be immediately choked out. you know its awfully hard to give a verbal answer if you cant speak. maybe threatening with a gun would have been better.
he would try to pry noels arms away from his neck.
of course callihan took care of the bird. not well. he had no idea what the hell birds ate. so he kind of just stuffed it in a room and hoped it wouldn't get out and start attacking him again. there were few bird shaped marks on his head and hands and god knows where.
" BATHROOM " callihan would try to get out. "YOUR BIRD IS IN THE BATHROOM."
callihan would break the hold and back the hell away. gesturing to wherever the hell the bathroom was.
he had shoved the thing into the bathroom. it would do to keep the noise and bird away from him. he needed that time badly.
callihan put his hand near his gun. he was not being attacked again without consequence. also known as a bullet to wherever was unfortunate enough to reach.
*He was in the bathroom in an instant, scooping Phoebe up in his arms and holding her tightly. She nestled back into him. He breathes a heavy sigh of relief, the adrenaline almost immediately draining from his body. He doesn't bother trying to get back to the couch, he crumbles to the floor where he is.*
"You're okay...?"
*He spoke softly. It was hard to do much of anything due to the haze of fever, but he still needed to check on his bird!! With shaking hands, he stretches her wings out to check for any injuries. She fights the advance a little, but gives up relatively quickly when he finds nothing and lets her tuck her wings back at her side.*
"How'd you get in there?"
*He scratches gently by her eyes, which she eagerly leans into.*
"You can't scare me like that, Pheeb... I thought you died or somethin'... And- And you can't do that, alright? You gotta last long enough for us to find a home, got it?"
*He was surely about to be locked up now. What sane person talks to a bird, let alone a pigeon???*
callihan would follow after noel to make sure he didn't break or trip or like jump out a window. and to additionally make sure the bird also did not destroy his bathroom as to be blunt he haven't checked on it for however long noel was passed out for.
he would of course keep his hands near his sides just in case. hey the man had attacked him once who knows what else he would DO?
however when he got to the bathroom he would breath a sigh of relief that nothing much had happened. everything was mostly fine..
he would shut the door behind himself.
...ah what a crazy thing someone could do talking to your pet or just plain talking things out with yourself. no one would ever do that!
....well not quite. who's to say what callihan did at the police station filling paperwork?
callihan still had so many questions he wanted to ask. yet only one could come to mind right now.
" who the hell are you? how do you know about arthur? "
well...two... but honestly too many questions to know what was important to ask.
*It takes a second for him to register the words being spoken at him, the fog over his brain making everything a little tricky.*
"Noel Finley."
*He swallows thickly. He was not a fan of the radiating heat on the side of his face.*
"Or Charlie Dowd. Don't know how this universe works yet..."
*Fuck it. The guy had already seen his notebook. It didn't matter anymore.*
"Arthur was a friend of mine. Back... Back home, at least..."
*It didn't matter how tired he sounded, it didn't matter how sick he felt, it didn't fucking matter. He was going to be stuck doing this for the rest of his life, so who cared if he sounded insane? Who cared if everyone knew he had two identities? Who cared if he had friends or a family or anyone that he loved? It didn't matter."
ah great a name he had no clue of. maybe he could get some notes later but right now he had nothing. hopefully this wasn't just a case of someone with no papers. though the current notes he had could only be in his mind.
" i'm uh callihan. Micheal Callahan. "
guess they were doing full name introductions. or in noels case 2 name introductions.
callihan would move to sit on the floor to get on a more even level with the man. he would move his hands to his lap to be more away from his gun.
never thought he would be having a conversation like this in the bathroom.
"Arthur lester? im guessing? " there's no harm it guessing right?
who knows the connections Arthur had in other places....other universes. but what did that really matter? he was gone. he was gone and there was nothing to do to bring him back.
"but um who's that? " callihan would ask pointing to the bird.
maybe asking easier questions could get him to open up.
*He shuffles away from Callihan before he could get too close. He was far too tired to actually get up and move, so it was just a little shimmy.*
"Yeah... Nice to meet ya..."
*He was not at all pleased to be getting to know him. Nor was he pleased that the door was closed behind him.
What a pathetic way to go. By some cop he just learned the name of for being suspicious.
Well, at least he had Phoebe. Hopefully Callihan would take good care of her after he was put away or killed.*
"Yeah, had to assume that was the Arthur you were askin' about... Only one anyone ever asks about."
*Oh, Arthur. Noel told him he'd be fine, and now look at him. Right where he started, all over again. And John, too... He'd go back to only having Arthur, trapped and alone.
Did it matter, though? They were just another person he got attached to that would be taken away from him. He knew it was inevitable.
...Callihan was still talking to him. He needed to pay attention.*
"...Who, Phoebe?"
*He points to the pigeon in his lap with a raised eyebrow.*
"She's just a pigeon."
*...Just a pigeon that he would kill anyone for, at this point.*
callihan would decide a different tactic. clearly this was not going very well. as much as he was trying to be friendly and the 'good cop' in this case it wasn't really working well.
he would breath through his nose and pull out a small music box out from his pocket winding it up and praying to whatever god that this thing works.
he had never tried the music box before. not even once.
callihan would turn the key a few times before letting it play.
a slow tune would start playing. it sounds light and childish. simple yet still sad in its own way. like it was made on the spot.
is this what callihan had in his pocket all this time?
*The second he hears the music box wind up he's on his feet and out of the bathroom. He attempts to make it to the front door, but running in a straight line with a fever isn't always the easiest thing to do. He crashes straight into the couch he was sleeping on.
His shoulder brushes against the swollen hot skin on his neck and he lets out a cry. It burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it bur-
Where was Phoebe? She was out of his hands. Was she okay? He can't move to find her. It hurt too much. He felt sick. He wanted his bird. Where was his bird?*
@yorick-the-vanguard
There wasn't any fancy flash of light, or over the top summoning like might've seemed fitting for the being that Callihan knew that had been called.
The front door opened to a familiar being stumbling in, leaning rather heavily on the doorknob as it looked over the scene. He looked like he’d just gotten out of a rather nasty fight.
"Do you need something Callihan?"
His ears twitched at every little noise, and flinching at the loud crash and cry of pain. It took him a second to register that it was Noel’s voice, but when he did he’d slammed the front door closed and Alto was by Noel’s side checking him over immediately.
"Noel? Christ- What are you doing here?"
Its hands were holding him, feeling as cold as a corpse against Noel’s feverish skin as he propped him against the couch, sitting on the floor.
“… Noel you fucking idiot.”
He held his hand against Noel’s neck, hoping to try and cool it down to a temperature that wouldn’t feel like he was on fire.
“Callihan get a fucking first aid kit!”
He called over to the officer, his tone leaving no room for argument or rebuttal, before he returned his attention to Noel.
“It’s gunna be okay. It’s just me, don’t worry. I’ll take care of you. You’ll be okay. Don’t worry. I’m here. I’m here, and you’re gunna be okay.”
His tone softened to a gentle, insistent voice.
@officer-callihan
of course callihan was trying to recover from being run over and kicked in the face. Thanks Noel…errrr Charlie.
callihan would fix his glasses before getting up and using the door handle to stabilize himself.
callihan would check himself to see if any damage was done before closing the bathroom door behind him.
at least alto was alto still alive…Callihan had half expected to music box to not work.
why the hell did Noel have such an adverse reaction though ? Speaking of Noel how did alto just immediately know his name? Is this just a thing that alto could just do?
No time to question….that whole thing.
Callihan nearly missed the part where alto was calling out to him. Whatever the man says do it. Just….follow what he says.
callihan would run off to the kitchen to go get a first aid kit. It was the place where he tended to somehow get most injured so it’s where he kept it.
….as callihan predicted alto was better suited to deal with the situation just not in the way he was expecting.
callihan would rush over to alto giving him the first aid kit. Before getting up again and getting his notes to jot down some more.
Slowly walking back to the pair to see however Noel was doing after his little crash. @aguidetothemultiverse
*He stared up at Alto, then looked over to Callihan, then back to Alto. Over and over and over until Alto's hand touched the swollen skin. He lets out a whine, eyes screwing shut and hands darting up to grip onto Alto's arm, trying to pull him away slightly.*
"How are you..."
*No, no he needed to check. This could be someone else. This could be a different Alto. This could be Kayne pulling a trick. He didn't know. He had to check.
...Geese. Geese. He had to think about geese really loudly.
Oh god, where was Phoebe? She wasn't nearby, what happened to her? Why wasn't she in his hands anymore? He immediately starts scanning the room until his eyes land on her, attempting to perch on Callihan's head despite his movements.
Okay, back to thinking about geese.*
"I-I know I'm an idiot. I meant to- I meant to grab some antibiotics, it just... It slipped my mind."
*His voice shakes. He can't let go just yet. He needed to hold on. He needed to keep thinking about geese. He needed to see Alto's reaction to geese.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
He moved his hand away from the injury as soon as Noel’s hands tried to push him away.
His face contorted like he’d just tasted something sour at the thought of geese getting flung at him for the second time by Noel.
“Noel- Really? Again with the Geese?-”
Oh. Noel asked a question.
“The music box Callihan played. That was him calling me over here.”
He sighed, unable to stay mad when the man looked like he was dying. As soon as he had the first aid kit in his hands he was rummaging through it to find what he needed to properly treat the wound.
He was more than aware of Noel’s bird perching on Callihan’s head. He was honestly trying not to crack up at the scene.
“Can I treat the wound on your neck or do you want to do it yourself?”
He spoke softer to Noel than to Callihan, but his tone was still firm.
@officer-callihan
pheobe was a pretty big bird to say the least. If only Noel ate half as good as her.
callihan would try his best to balance whatever the hell was on his head. of coursehe had no idea what the hell was going on as they were seemly blabbering nonsense.
geese??? he would simply continue to jot down as many notes not being very useful to the current situation at hand.
He was…no longer really needed in the situation just waiting for more direction someone to talk to him. Just…anything.
though he really hoped no one would read his notes right about now. It was less of the paranormal and more…personal than anything else. Callihan hadent gotten the chance to write down much during and after Parker’s little visit as he was….distracted.
he would look over at the pair to see whatever they were doing about right now staring dumbly off into the distance.
but For now Callihan was just stuck in the middle.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*All of the tension in his body dissipates at Alto's reaction to the geese thought.*
"It's... It's really you...?"
*He looks like he's about to burst into tears. A shaking hand rises, looking as though he's about to reach out to touch Alto, only to go directly to the infected wound. It hurt like hell.
...It hurt. This was real.
That's when the tears start flowing.*
"You're- You're here and- And you know me. The- The real me!"
*He smiles. He has to close his eyes just so he could fully smile. He wraps his arms around the god in front of him and pulls them into the tightest hug he could manage.
When he could finally squint his teary eyes open, he stares at Callihan.*
"...Thank you..."
*It didn't matter if Callihan thought he was being thanked for bringing more help or not. All that mattered to him was that this man had saved him from an eternity of being just a name and a face. He would be known. He would be known for who he was, and not a name.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
His expression gave way to something almost pained. Like it hurt to see him like this, but… seeing Noel smile was something else.
“Yeah… it’s me. Don’t worry.”
He didn’t fight the hug, finding himself pulling Noel closer instead. It was… grounding.
“How d’you get yourself into this mess this time?”
The items in the first aid kit were arranging themselves on their own, items that weren’t needed being left inside instead of being laid out next to them.
“Still have to address that neck wound of yours before it knocks your head off your shoulders.”
He didn’t move, giving Noel time to object or protest anything if he felt the need too. The man was already clearly jumpy; he had no intention to make it worse.
@officer-callihan
callihan just presumed that the thank you was for alto. he hadn't done very much. only inspired panic and pain in himself and others. got himself hurt and hurt noel more with his lack of knowledge ..
he didn't look up from his notes choosing to simply sink himself into them instead. he was no longer being instructed to do anything. he was no longer really needed.
he would simply just continue his notetaking...forgetting to pay attention.
he couldn't find the space to ask his questions. not right now when so much was happening.
he tried to itch his head only to find a fat object in his way.
callihan quickly gave up after that. resigning himself to take more notes.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*Phoebe takes the opportunity to grab at his fingers. She wanted attention and she was going to get it one way or another. That other way would be fluttering onto his notes and staring at him petulantly. She. Wanted. SCRATCHES!!!!
Noel, on the other hand, had drawn his attention entirely back to Alto, pulling back to look him over.*
"...You're... You're you..."
*He wipes his eyes to truly get a look at him.*
"Jesus..."
*His face falls. It didn't matter how blurry or shaky his vision was, he could see how bad a shape Alto was in. There was blood. Unfortunately, he didn't exactly catch that there was a first aid kit within arms length due to the shock of Alto being here and in his arms, but also the fever that was actively boiling his brain.*
"Mr. Callihan? Where's your first aid kit?"
Alto’s eyes scrunched up in confusion for a moment before he seemed to realize something. His hand shot up to check the back of his head, wincing just at merely touching it before seeing that his hand came away bloody.
“…god… fucking damnit-”
His tone spiked ever so slightly as his form shifted. The dried and fresh blood disappeared, not a single scratch or drop of ichor visible anymore. looking good as new.
“I- I’m fine. Really, I just forgot to clean myself up after a bit of cleaning up I had to do.”
His eyes flicked away for a moment before returning to look at him sheepishly. He lied exactly like the same way Noel remembered him doing so.
“D-don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.”
He hastily moved to grab the items he picked out of the first aid kit. It was definetly not nothing. He moved on from it too franticly for it to be nothing.
“I’m going to clean your wound now. Hold still for a bit.”
He pulled out the disinfectant wipes, gently rubbing the area so he could start dressing the wound with antibiotics. He even added a few wads of cotton with gauze to hold everything in place and act as a barrier just in case it gets bumped.
“Better yet- Callihan, do you have any fever medication on hand?”
@officer-callihan
callihan would grab pheobe off of his head sort if just holding her in the palm of his hand. Before giving a few gentle scritches to the top of her head and to some of her back. he was lost in petting this cute bird until his name was called.
he would look up from his petting to noel to answer his question.
“uh right in front of you…next to you?”
callihan would look alto over again and....hm
altos bloodied from wasn't simply nothing though. Callihan given his…recent encounter could only conclude one thing.
Kayne. Kayne had done something. kayne that sick thing had done something to alto and now he was badly hurt.
"yeah i um... think i have some i can go get it for you."
it was at least something for him to do. other than petting this darling bird
callihan would stand up leaving his notes on the floor. he would be most careful to make sure he wouldn't drop the bird.
should he ask about kayne? he needs to know more if he's going to not die terribly in some way to that thing. he needs to know more if he needs to care for alto
callihan would walk to the kitchen thinking over if he truly wants to ask alto about this. well he's not going to know if he doesn't press at least this once.
"so um...what happened between you and...that thing after you let it take you? "
he would give phoebe a few scriches looking at altos expressions.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*He offers Callihan a barely noticeable nod (if he pushed it any further, he was sure he would've lost the meager contents of his stomach on Alto immediately). Just as he goes to grab the first aide kit, Alto grabs it first.
...Alto was moving fast. And he stammered. Arthur was too confident for that unless caught off guard. That or lying.
He squints.
Before his fever addled mind had time to process the information he was being given, Alto was attempting to disinfect the wound and all he could feel is pain. Because OW. That fucking HURT????
Before he could think to stop himself, he slaps Alto across the face.
He stares blankly at Alto. His eyes dart to his hand. He just struck a god.*
"...Oh my god..."
*He slowly brings his hands to his mouth, utterly shocked at his own actions. It feels like his breathing had stopped.*
"Oh- Oh my god... I... Alto, I didn't- I..."
*He pulls his knees to his chest.*
"I'm so sorry, I... I didn't... I didn't mean to, you... I just-"
*He needed to breathe. He needed to breathe.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
Alto’s head jerks sideway, his hands having stopped their work momentarily before he finished wrapping the gauze around Noel’s neck and pulling his hands away and holding them up placatingly.
His brain felt like it was full of static. Things were spinning and it was a miracle he stayed upright at all.
His ears were ringing. He couldn’t- he couldn’t hear properly- he couldn’t- what was going on around him? He had nothing to be able to tell with.
He held his head still for a good long moment, waiting until his mind started working again.
“Sorry I- I shouldn’t have rushed that-“
He didn’t even sound angry. If anything he was worried. He was worried that he’d done something wrong to upset Noel and that it was his fault. He didn’t even seem mad at the fact that he’d just been hit. He was worried about the why.
“It’s okay- I’m okay. Promise.”
He didn’t seem okay. At all, actually. He looked like a gust of wind would knock him over.
The illusion hiding the blood still soaking his hair and tricking down his back had dropped as soon as he’d been hit. he had a major head injury most likely.
One he hadn’t been able to heal and could only hide.
“Just breathe for me, okay? Breathe.”
How could his tone be so gentle when he was bleeding so much his face was slowly turning a different shade.
@officer-callihan
Callihan would have to put the bird down in favor of helping alto. First aid training he knew plenty of that!
sorry pheobe.
Callihan would go to grab some gauze from the medkit trying to get to alto and treat the wound on altos head. He would grab altos face Turning the wound to where he could easily see it.
he would do his best to properly wrap it.
if alto was down then callihan would have to deal with treating Noel. And god knows he’s terrible at that considering that despite his try Noel was still doing terribly.
………..to be fair he knew nothing.
Please can’t they not both pass out? That would be inconvenient.
the best he could do was try to reassure Noel….well he’s done worse than just punching alto. But no need to mention that right about.
callihan would grab pheobe and try to give her over to Noel. He seems to value this bird. And who could hate this bird? She was just so cute.
hopefully she would be the right amount grounding. Callihan was having a hard time forming words of encouragement.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*He's stuck staring at the two in front of him in, watching Alto's face practically unfold as well as Callihan attempt a clumsy first aid.
Why wasn't he dead right now? Why didn't Alto kill him? Why was Alto trying to comfort him????
He only snaps out of it when Phoebe is shoved into his hands. His eyes dart down to her. She tilts her head at him.
...Callihan wasn't packing the wound. It'd continue to bleed, and the head bleeds a lot. And if Alto didn't bleed out, it'd be a surface level scab, but the internal wound would fester.*
"Michael, wait."
*He clears his throat, placing Phoebe to the side and grabbing the pack of disinfecting wipes.*
"Disinfect first. Infections aren't fun to deal with."
*He offers a small, weary smile with a gesture to his neck, holding his other hand out with the wipes.*
"Then, you don't wrap it like that. You gotta stop the bleedin' first. Shove as much gauze as you can into the wound until the blood stops seepin' through. It'll hurt like hell, but it's better than losin' blood from your head."
*His heart was still pounding wildly in his chest, but at least the adrenaline was going to good use, for once. He finally draws his attention back to Alto, making sure to lower his voice.*
"Hey, you're gonna be in a world of pain in a second, but it's helpin' alright? Don't accidentally kill anyone, alright, sweetheart?"
*To emphasize his point, he shuffles Phoebe between his back and the couch cushions. He hoped Alto didn't catch onto that one, actually.*
"'N you gotta stay awake, gotta ask you a few questions when our mutual friend over here is done, got it?"
*Speak slowly so the injured brain could process the words being spoken. That's what he learned from the medics in his brief stay in the trench infirmary. Sure, the patient they were treating was dealing with shell-shock, but hey... the brain still might be injured here.
...If Alto still had a brain there... Arthur Amalgam God anatomy might be very different from human anatomy.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
Callihan even putting his hands near it made Alto flinch violently. He batted the man’s hands away, looking mildly miffed at the man trying to jerk his face around. It made him dizzy just thinking about it.
Wait-… what did Noel say…? Pack the-
He grabbed Noel’s wrist with a grip strength stronger than most he’d ever dealt with before, twisting until his forearm felt close to snapping.
“-Shove gauze into my head and I’ll turn you into a god damn corpse do I make myself crystal fucking clear?”
He was expecting a world of hurt already if either of them started fussing with it. His appearance turned immediately to the glassy thing he’d seen back in the waylay, his own face reflected in the cracked surface.
That was until he’d managed to calm himself down and let Noel’s arm go, returning to human form with an apologetic look.
“Y-you’ll just make it worse- it’s a skull fracture and concussion not a god damn bullet wound you morons-”
He tried to make the words sound more playful than menacing. He hoped it worked.
@officer-callihan
Was he doing this wrong?
Callihan would pause his attempts to try to help alto.
he would nod before making a closer move to alto.
…. ……….
altos sudden move would make callihan pause thinking maybe this was perhaps not a good idea-
…………this was not wanted.
callihan would back off like a scared dog away from alto. he was just trying to help. But every attempt to help ended badly.
he shot alto and it only had gone downhill from there.
He picked up Noel from the streets and that had only gone downhill.
……it just seemed to just be going downhill.
he would hold the gauze tight.
his mind tcoukd scarcely comprehend altos form at the current moment. Sure it was a bit of a stretch to believe altos….other forms but at least they held some level of humanity.
…….
he truthfully felt like exploding. …….well in reality he was getting quite lightheaded.
but he felt like he was being squished.
…………….
well altos attempt at something to ease the mood.
It did not work to the effect alto was hoping for. At least on him.
Callihans face was quite sweaty and the only reason right now ? fear.
the damage had allready been done.
sure callihan knew in the deepest part of his heart something about alto was…..invigorating. A light he needed in the darkest of times. A melody that you can’t quite get out of your head.
Though Parker had said “to trust it as far as you can throw em” ……..that was not very far.
…..not right now at least.
@aguidetothemultiverse
Callihan was having a fairly normal day. Of course the last few days had been a little hectic from cults music monsters and everything else unfortunate enough to bless him.
He was lucky enough to get a break from his job under the assumption that he was still recovering from being shot.
he had been pretty much a recluse in his house for the time being. Not great but better than the alternate.
what is he doing now one may ask?
pretty much nothing of great importance. Maybe a few notes there some eating here but pretty much nothing.
how would one approach this situation?
-🔦💼
(@officer-callihan)
*Noel clung to the shadows. New universe meant new dangers. He frantically scribbled in his notebook, Phoebe resorting to waddling around on the ground, circling his feet.
She must be so confused. She's probably never universe hopped before. But he needed to get as much information as he could. He wasn't sure where he was, so some sort of location indicator would be nice. It looked to be around the same time that he left, though. Maybe a bit earlier in the year? Around autumn of 1934? He'd need a confirmation on that... He could find a newspaper! That would be a good solution.
He scooped up Phoebe, holding her like a book under his arm, and went to rush for the nearest newspaper stand. If he was paying closer attention, he wouldn't have run into the oblivious-to-his-circumstances officer. He falls flat on his ass, his notebook goes in one direction, Phoebe flies in the other, and he's ready to keel over and let the universe do whatever it wanted with him.*
if anyone had seen noel he would have probably looked shady as hell. creeping in the shadows aint exactly a good look. ….just the same dreary streets of Arkham.
callihan was just doing his usual patrol of the streets. pretty boring but better than other things. of course he didn't expect to be body slammed while on his job. he would try to gain back his balance before falling himself.
callihan went to check his pockets to see if anything was damaged. thankfully not. there were certain things that were..important to not get damaged . even from a small fall.
he would move to get up before pausing. ah..so thats what happened
it wasn't a malicious attempt to kill him just an accident that happened to involve him. whoever that was is still on the ground. he would look around a little more around the area for anything else of note.
they must have dropped something! was that a bird? no matter!
callihan would move pick up the notebook before getting up on his feet offering a hand to get up to this stranger.
it was the least he could do seems their having a bad day to say the least.
*He tenses. Fuck. Fuck! He didn't want to be thrown into an asylum again (thanks a lot, Universe 17), and everything that was in that notebook was evidence to any normal person that he had lost his marbles decades ago.
He snatched the notebook, scrambling to his feet before he could even process that the man in front of him was trying to help him up. Phoebe waltzes over to Noel's feet, hopping onto one of his shoes and smacking his leg with her wing. The second she makes contact, he closes his eyes and steels his breathing.
When he opens his eyes again, he looks utterly mortified at what he'd done. Not beating the crazy allegations, apparently.*
"Ah, Jeez..."
*He shoves the notebook in his pocket, sliding Phoebe off his foot.*
"Sorry about that, doll. I should've been payin' closer attention to where I was walking."
*He didn't hear this guy's accent yet. He hoped his own didn't come across as bizarre in the area. Speaking of, he tries to eye a nearby street sign. It doesn't help him much.*
callihan? Probably not the normal person who would get him thrown to the asylum but what can you do? Trust every person ever?
yeah no.
he of course didn’t quite expect an atypical response of snatching back the notebook and getting up on their own. Notebook must be important clearly. callihan would put his hand back by his side.
he would just sort of stand around at Noel’s whole…thing.
Noel’s accent was not unusual its peculiar how many people callihan knows with accents.
“Ah it’s no big deal things happen ya know?”
southern. Not as southern as a grandma but still southern.
callihan would make a gesture with his other hand as if excusing it. He seems tired to say the least.
It’s no big deal this is the least of his worry’s right now.
his pockets look weird
“ have a nice day”
Callihan would begin to walk off taking this as just a one off accident. He had a job to do after all.
*Wait, no! He could use this! This guy didn't seem too suspicious of his strange behavior, so... who cares if he got a little more strange?!*
"Hold on, sorry if this sounds weird, but where are we?"
*He could go full into the madness schtick here and ask about when they were, but he needed to test the waters first.*
"Wasn't payin' attention to where I was walkin' and ran straight into a wall, if you could believe it! Hit my head and just wanna make sure I've got all the details right..."
*Hopefully this guy wouldn't send him to a hospital first. He didn't feel like explaining each and every scar and scab that he has. Or the branding. He has to suppress a shudder just thinking about it.*
"Now that I say it aloud, I sound like a huge clutz, don't I?"
*He chuckles softly, trying to lighten the mood. Come on, he needs information. As much as he could get, then he could leave this guy alone. He wouldn't have to get wrapped up in this mess. And Noel wouldn't have to admit how curious he was about the other man's pockets and stay out of it. If he had just stayed out of it as a whole, none of this would've happened in the first place!!*
callihan would stop in his tracks and kind of turn back to noel pausing for a bit to think.
what does this man want with him? information or something more? he kind of has that weird detective look to him. although unprofessional what the hell happened to his outfit for it to look so horrid?
"...Arkham.... Massachusetts? the particular street is slipping my mind ..sorry. "
how do you not know where you are? seems common to know. unless there was some weird circumstance that prevented someone from knowing.
"sir are you fine like your head? are ya good? "
how do you hit yourself walking into a wall? something just feels off.. just wrong like many other times. though callihan seemed genuinely concerned for noels well being at the current moment.
he still seemed on edge and nervous just waiting. both his hands were near his sides. one probably containing a gun and the other god knows what. can't tell much of a concealed chunky item.
noels small joke does not lighten the mood at all. callihan had nothing to lighten up about right now to say the least. point is callihan was not in his best mood there was nothing to be cheerful about.
he almost seems like a sad puppy
" sir ? "
callihan would ask again
*His own hand darted closer to his side where he kept his pistol at the mention of his mind. Just in case.*
"Arkham, got it. That's what I thought, just wanted confirmation."
*Maybe he wasn't exactly right in the head right now, actually... He should've grabbed antibiotics for his neck wound. Even stitched up, it wasn't easy to keep it clean, and it had already gotten infected once. He was supposed to take antibiotics continually, right?*
"Got a little busy writin'. Same reason I ran into you, doll."
*He gestures with the notebook, to which he opens rather quickly to scribble down the information he just received. That seemed like a fair excuse. Writers could be rather wacky at times, right?
Arkham. He could find his way around here, he worked here! Sure, it was over ten years ago that he worked here, but he could figure it out!
He makes sure to keep his eyes on the other man, just in case he made a move for a gun.*
"But I've seen some pretty bad head injuries. They mess with your sense of time and direction. Wanna make sure that ain't happening to me, you know?"
*He taps his temple with the back of his pencil. His heart was racing. Fuck. This guy was onto him, wasn't he?*
"Speaking of time, the year is...?"
*He was really pushing it. He was really, really pushing it. He felt sick. He needed to run. He needed to hide. His heart was racing. His neck felt hot.
Wait, his neck felt hot?
Shit. He really should've snagged some antibiotics...*
callihans hands would still remain near his pockets. Of coursehe was on edge who wouldn't be? Callihan could have not known the situation Noel was in. not the neck wound different universe connections none of it.
Noel was just terribly shifty and suspicious. He was just so on edge.
what was in that notebook? If he had been more curious he might have maybe taken a look. Seen what was exactly in his notes
But running while writing…
wouldn't that make it really hard to write though? Small details were not adding up in his mind it was like there was maybe something missing.
“The years 1934 sir.”
running would only make him look more suspicious callihan could have resemble claim that maybe something was definitely wrong with this man.
“and how do you expect me to believe that you can write while running sir? ”
what does he even mean by he’s seen petty bad head injury’s ? So many questions raced through callihans Brain.
“you know lying to an officer can be a pretty serious crime yes?”
"Wasn't runnin', just walking."
*It's not impossible. Sure, it was tricky, but he got the hang of it after a few tries. His handwriting was never the neatest, anyway. Roland always nagged at him for that.
And then he deadpans when being an officer is mentioned.*
"Yeah, I do know that. Being a detective gets you pretty familiar with the law."
*He meets Callihan's gaze. If he wanted to play the authority game, Noel would play the fucking authority game. He scribbles down the year before shoving the notebook in his pocket.
His neck... wasn't getting any cooler. It was actually starting to get a little itchy. When did the infection come back? How long had it been festering? He had to suppress a shudder at the thought of it festering for a while.
When had Arthur forced him to take that antibiotic pill? It was more than twelve hours, surely. Not long after, the doctor (what was her name... Daisy?) had stitched him up. Ugh! He needed a clock or something to keep track off all this stuff!!
That didn't matter now. He needed to figure out how far along he was and how much time he had left before he was out of commission. Was he slurring his words? Did he just not notice? Was he genuinely confused and had not caught on yet? Was the heat that he was feeling from swelling or a fever? Did he look sickly? Is that why this officer was so dead set on interrogating him?
He was sure he made a face during his little spiral, he wasn't focused on looks until he realized that might be why he was in this situation in the first place. He could feel himself frowning with scrunched eyebrows.
Oh, he had a headache! That could just be stress, though. That's why he didn't notice it until now.
Phoebe whacked him. Right. He was spiraling. He needed to focus.*
"Anyways, thanks for your help, sir. You have a good one."
*He offers a small nod and a smile, and turns to go. And, of course, his vision swims when he turns. Because of course it does. He tries to walk in a straight line, but winds up finding himself closer to the buildings on his side than before. So basically, he was fucked. Dead on his feet. The cop was going to arrest him, throw him in some asylum or something... He was done for!*
Callihan highly suspects that this man is lying. But his suspicions were correct at the least at his guess that whoever this was probably a detective.
why was he here then?
it would be pretty unlikely to be able to hit callihan with that much force if the man had been walking and only walking. only thing that could have happened is the fact that they might have tripped into eachothers legs or just bumped into one another
Callihan would maintain his gaze on Noel trying to be as stern and intimidating as he could possibly be.
He must be delirious ! Drunk ! Just anything ! Therecouldentbeanythingparanornalhere.
why couldn't this just be a normal accident. enough paranormal stuff has happened in the last few days!
“No no you get right back here sir! I have reasonable cause to detain and search.”
Maybe this was against his standard protocol but callihan just needed to know more about whoever this was. something just seemed...off like every other time.
fuck standard protocol he cant just let someone get away!
aha! He was not walking straight! That could be a clue. Callihan would pick up the pace speed walking to where Noel was heading.
he would try to grab noel by the shoulder to get him to just stop walking.
*He slips away from Callihan's grip, but turns to face him anyway. He doesn't stop, though. Keep up the pace, try to shake him off. Persistence.*
"And why is that, officer?"
*He lets his hand wander up to the sutures and almost immediately flinches away. That's... Not great. Especially the heat that met his fingers. He could feel sweat building up on his skin.
He tried to gauge if the other man had also been in the War, or, at the very least, knew what an infection looked like. If he did, he might clock the fact that Noel was slipping pretty quickly into a fever because of it. And if he did recognize the signs, two things could happen: Noel's brought to a hospital (bad. Very bad. Don't do this. He has no records.) or he's given a slap on the wrist for his strange behavior (good. Very good. Please do this. He would cry with relief.). Or both, which could be... Something?*
if there's anything callihan is right now its stubborn. he will find out.
"well i have reasonable cause to search you with how you're acting ! "
he looks pretty clueless to say the least. callihan does not really know how to treat infections only do basic first aid. probably would have presumed the man was very guilty because of the sweat.
he would continue to keep pace with noel.
"please stop resisting sir."
it was more likely for him to try the hospital than to try to help with the infection.
and it was likely that he would probably search noel for anything anything at all.
just judging on...his attitude
though his hands were...not immediately in range of his gun
" get back here sir."
*Fine. He'll stop. Just in case. He'd rather not have killing a random man as the first thing he's done in this universe. To be fair, he'd also rather not have pissing off a cop be his first thing, either, but...*
"Alright, alright."
*His head was starting to pound and the way the world was spinning wasn't helping. He wanted to just... Sit down. Maybe lay down, shut his eyes for a few minutes. God, he didn't realize how bad he felt.*
"Just... Make it quick. I'm feelin' a little under the weather."
*He was leaning on the wall. He didn't realize when he started, but it quickly became a lifeline. He screwed his eyes shut. Please, just stop spinning!*
"I've, uh... I've got a pistol on me. Concealed carry. Like I told you, I'm a detective."
*He gestures vaguely to his hip. Crap, were his hands shaking? Oh, his neck was throbbing, too! Great! Perfect! He didn't even know if he had his badge or registration on him, either! Getting thrown in jail for this universe would suck, to put it plainly.*
welp……great at least he was following orders . He could get a chance to look at the notebook.
last thing that he wanted to do right now was loose the man. After he got what he wanted he would most likely leave him alone to…do whatever he pleased.
what he was doing was corrupt.
Callihan would start his usual search starting at the waist checking for the gun and the notebook. Though more focused on finding the latter.
as promised the gun and a suspiciously shaped object that was most likely the book.
He would pull it out of Noel’s pocket. If Noel asked he could probably lie and say something about incriminating evidence and it’s just something he needs to check.
callihan would start a few pages in skimming each page to see what they said before flipping to the next. Reading quickly as part of the man’s request.
it was the least he could do.
the man seemed….out of it to say the least. And on the brink of passing out.
*His body heat meets Callihan before Callihan's hands meet him. He's sweltering, yet he shivers. Shivers that he desperately tries to stifle.
He immediately goes to grab the notebook back, but the second he lifts his hand from the wall, it looked like he was about to fall straight into Callihan, so that thought was abandoned.*
"N-No, wait-"
*His words are slur together. He feels his eyes burn. No, he wouldn't cry now. No. He's gone through worse. It's fine.*
"Please, I- I'm not- I'm not mad, I-I swear..."
*Every other page of the notebook is labeled "Universe", then a number, then a nickname. One page is labeled "The Permafrost" pretty early on, and has brief blurbs on a world that was completely frozen over - how a lot of people had died out, how civilization and agriculture had been moved underground, how... Did that say Arthur?
Wait, he wrote about Arthur a lot. And some guy named John. They seemed to be a pair. There was also this guy named Kayne? He's mentioned occasionally and it's always with vitriol.
The three most recent entries are labeled "Kayne's Christmas Party??", "Eden's Home", and the last one... Unlabeled apart from "Universe 37". Underneath the last one is written:
"I thought I was done. Fuck me for being hopeful I guess. Phoebe's with me, got one good thing going for me. 1934 Arkham. Might be by Mosby Ave? Roland, Arthur or his partner (Peter, right??) there? Might just get thrown into jail. Fucked."
If Noel looked like he was about to pass out before he got the notebook taken, that look had increased tenfold afterwards. He was leaning a little too far right, but didn't even seem to notice himself. He was deathly pale, the pink scar on his face creating a stark contrast. His pupils were dilated and moving hazily about behind the cop in front of him. That and there were tears brimming in his eyes.*
"I-I... I swear..."
callihan would ignore Noel’s pleas focused more on reading the contents of the notebook.
…….oh OH OH
what type of paranormal crap is this ? yeah he thought something was off about the guy but really hoped it wasn't some paranormal that callihan would have to deal with.
callihans mind immediately tried to make sense of whatever was going on in book.
…..Arthur John Kayne!?
worst of all to him. He knew those names. Well not John but he seemed damn important.
Arthur. Deadman’s mouthpiece who was currently resting unknown to be dead by anyone else but him and Peter. Someone Callihan would consider to be a very good friend.
John who he had no clue of why he was important. No identity to him other than…name. Like a John Doe.
Kayne. Oh him. Described as someone to never meet and someone who could destroy everything. Advised to not attack and to not get under his notice. Good thing he didn’t seem to care about callihan existence. who the hell was phoebe ? who the hell was Roland?
How does this guy know about everything ? How would he know about Arthur and Peter already being here? did they have history that he didn't know about
better him that this guy ran into than anyone else.
callihan would slowly give back the notebook having seen enough in its pages to understand. no no he had to act he couldn't just stand frozen like a baby deer for this one but what the hell could he even ask or say or do in this situation ?!
......no questions yet he needs to help noel first. he cant answer questions if he's dead on the floor!
".....do you need help sir? "
*It takes a second for him to process the book being handed back to him, hazy eyes sliding from somewhere in the distance to Callihan's hands. He stares blankly until Phoebe whacks his leg. He slowly takes it back, surprised that he wasn't immediately put in cuffs.
He readjusts his position on the wall to flip through the pages. Did... Something magically change? He couldn't exactly tell with how his vision was right now, but... Well, it looked the same from what he could tell. He looks back up to Callihan, visibly confused.*
"...Why didn't-"
*He tries to blink the dark spots from his vision as he stares. He wobbles on his feet, still clinging to both the book and the wall.*
"What...? Are- How come- I sound insane!"
*His tongue feels fat in his mouth as he speaks, but he needed to. He needed to figure out why he wasn't dead yet!*
"It- I mean-"
*"Did he need help?" Of course he did!! He felt like he was stuck in a maze with no exit!! It's not like some random copper would be able to go back in time and stop all of this from happening!!
...Maybe he meant with the infection. That...
Oh, he felt so woozy...*
"Uh... Yeah... I think I do..."
*He offers a weary smile as the ground lurches up on his left. He could feel his eyes roll back. He's out before his head hits the concrete with a crack. It breaks the skin. A small amount of crimson pools under his temple, soaking into his hair.
Phoebe lets out a surprised coo, rushing over to Noel's face. She walks in a couple of panicked circles, cooing the whole time, trying desperately to wake him up.*
maybe he shouldn't have handed it back but hey.. the man had a gun and it seemed pretty precious.
It had only recently clicked but…..if this guy was familiar with Kayne Arthur and all this….paranormal crap. well he can to help In some way like more information? callihan loves his job but….this takes priority after all he needs to figure out what the hell is going on!
'i well um its complicated! very complicated and uh...I cant say anything on it!"
callihan can’t possibly take this to the police he’d sound just as mad as that missing persons case. hell he was barely able to convince them of his sudden recovery from the hospital.
he couldn't possibly take him to the hospital either.
"um...how do you know who arthur is? kayne! pete-parker."
callihan watched noel pass out. oh..is that a bird? maybe callihan should have grabbed a bit earlier but uh......oh well no time!
………
the next when Noel awoke…well he was laying on a couch.
callihan had done his best to care for Noel’s wounds with the…..limited amount of information he had. He tried to clean Noel’s wounds.. well it was shabby but it would at least keep Noel from dying. his trench coat was off and put off to the side.
who knows where Phoebe is?
and callihan? callihan was sitting nearby just…writing taking way too many notes. hell he didn't really seem to notice noel waking up.
this place seems like no hospital police station or anything like that ! just a house.
and this weird officers couch.
*He was awake, sure, but he didn't want to be. Everything hurt. He felt like his insides had just been blended. He didn't want to open his eyes, but... Well, he had to. It wasn't safe to sleep in, not ever.
When he blinks his eyes open, he's overwhelmingly confused. He wasn't in the place he passed out, he wasn't in jail, he wasn't in an asylum, he wasn't being attacked, he wasn't at the Threshold... Where was he...?
He goes to sit up, but the second he moves, it sends the world spinning. He flops an arm over his eyes, trying to stifle a whine. Why was he so stupid as to not think to keep antibiotics on him?? He needed to be smarter than this!!!
And... it was quiet. It was too quiet. Sure, there was the scribbling of a pen, but that's not what he was looking for.
He didn't hear Phoebe.
She was a loud bird. She was always cooing or ruffling her feathers or walking around. He didn't hear her rumbles, he didn't hear a feather, he didn't hear the tell-tale tick of her talons...
He jolted upright. It didn't matter if it made his vision black, he needed to find Phoebe. His feet were planted on the ground the second he could see a pinhole of where he was.
And he spotted Callihan.
He had him in a choke hold in seconds.*
"Where's my fucking bird?"
*He had to fight a cringe at how raspy his voice sounded. He also had to fight a cringe at how little strength he had. The officer would be able to break the hold in seconds if he was trained properly.
And then it clicked how fucking ridiculous that sounded. He was threatening a man over a pigeon. To be fair, that man had read through his notebook and hadn't thrown him in an asylum immediately, so... He could be a little mad here and then if it meant getting Phoebe back.*
of course the way home was awfully hard between trying to carry what looks like dead body and having a bird constantly attack you for no apparent reason. one could say it was challenging.
and of course callihan found a temporary solution to his problems bird had following him home after all and no amount of shooing would deter it. he needed to take drastic measures. after all it would be awfully hard to write his notes....and well care for noels injury's.
speaking of noel callihan was alerted by the sound of movement. after all there wasn't much going on in the meantime. he would look to where he had put noel. oh! the man was up well that's good! HOLY SHIT.
callhan was not prepared to be immediately choked out. you know its awfully hard to give a verbal answer if you cant speak. maybe threatening with a gun would have been better.
he would try to pry noels arms away from his neck.
of course callihan took care of the bird. not well. he had no idea what the hell birds ate. so he kind of just stuffed it in a room and hoped it wouldn't get out and start attacking him again. there were few bird shaped marks on his head and hands and god knows where.
" BATHROOM " callihan would try to get out. "YOUR BIRD IS IN THE BATHROOM."
callihan would break the hold and back the hell away. gesturing to wherever the hell the bathroom was.
he had shoved the thing into the bathroom. it would do to keep the noise and bird away from him. he needed that time badly.
callihan put his hand near his gun. he was not being attacked again without consequence. also known as a bullet to wherever was unfortunate enough to reach.
*He was in the bathroom in an instant, scooping Phoebe up in his arms and holding her tightly. She nestled back into him. He breathes a heavy sigh of relief, the adrenaline almost immediately draining from his body. He doesn't bother trying to get back to the couch, he crumbles to the floor where he is.*
"You're okay...?"
*He spoke softly. It was hard to do much of anything due to the haze of fever, but he still needed to check on his bird!! With shaking hands, he stretches her wings out to check for any injuries. She fights the advance a little, but gives up relatively quickly when he finds nothing and lets her tuck her wings back at her side.*
"How'd you get in there?"
*He scratches gently by her eyes, which she eagerly leans into.*
"You can't scare me like that, Pheeb... I thought you died or somethin'... And- And you can't do that, alright? You gotta last long enough for us to find a home, got it?"
*He was surely about to be locked up now. What sane person talks to a bird, let alone a pigeon???*
callihan would follow after noel to make sure he didn't break or trip or like jump out a window. and to additionally make sure the bird also did not destroy his bathroom as to be blunt he haven't checked on it for however long noel was passed out for.
he would of course keep his hands near his sides just in case. hey the man had attacked him once who knows what else he would DO?
however when he got to the bathroom he would breath a sigh of relief that nothing much had happened. everything was mostly fine..
he would shut the door behind himself.
...ah what a crazy thing someone could do talking to your pet or just plain talking things out with yourself. no one would ever do that!
....well not quite. who's to say what callihan did at the police station filling paperwork?
callihan still had so many questions he wanted to ask. yet only one could come to mind right now.
" who the hell are you? how do you know about arthur? "
well...two... but honestly too many questions to know what was important to ask.
*It takes a second for him to register the words being spoken at him, the fog over his brain making everything a little tricky.*
"Noel Finley."
*He swallows thickly. He was not a fan of the radiating heat on the side of his face.*
"Or Charlie Dowd. Don't know how this universe works yet..."
*Fuck it. The guy had already seen his notebook. It didn't matter anymore.*
"Arthur was a friend of mine. Back... Back home, at least..."
*It didn't matter how tired he sounded, it didn't matter how sick he felt, it didn't fucking matter. He was going to be stuck doing this for the rest of his life, so who cared if he sounded insane? Who cared if everyone knew he had two identities? Who cared if he had friends or a family or anyone that he loved? It didn't matter."
ah great a name he had no clue of. maybe he could get some notes later but right now he had nothing. hopefully this wasn't just a case of someone with no papers. though the current notes he had could only be in his mind.
" i'm uh callihan. Micheal Callahan. "
guess they were doing full name introductions. or in noels case 2 name introductions.
callihan would move to sit on the floor to get on a more even level with the man. he would move his hands to his lap to be more away from his gun.
never thought he would be having a conversation like this in the bathroom.
"Arthur lester? im guessing? " there's no harm it guessing right?
who knows the connections Arthur had in other places....other universes. but what did that really matter? he was gone. he was gone and there was nothing to do to bring him back.
"but um who's that? " callihan would ask pointing to the bird.
maybe asking easier questions could get him to open up.
*He shuffles away from Callihan before he could get too close. He was far too tired to actually get up and move, so it was just a little shimmy.*
"Yeah... Nice to meet ya..."
*He was not at all pleased to be getting to know him. Nor was he pleased that the door was closed behind him.
What a pathetic way to go. By some cop he just learned the name of for being suspicious.
Well, at least he had Phoebe. Hopefully Callihan would take good care of her after he was put away or killed.*
"Yeah, had to assume that was the Arthur you were askin' about... Only one anyone ever asks about."
*Oh, Arthur. Noel told him he'd be fine, and now look at him. Right where he started, all over again. And John, too... He'd go back to only having Arthur, trapped and alone.
Did it matter, though? They were just another person he got attached to that would be taken away from him. He knew it was inevitable.
...Callihan was still talking to him. He needed to pay attention.*
"...Who, Phoebe?"
*He points to the pigeon in his lap with a raised eyebrow.*
"She's just a pigeon."
*...Just a pigeon that he would kill anyone for, at this point.*
callihan would decide a different tactic. clearly this was not going very well. as much as he was trying to be friendly and the 'good cop' in this case it wasn't really working well.
he would breath through his nose and pull out a small music box out from his pocket winding it up and praying to whatever god that this thing works.
he had never tried the music box before. not even once.
callihan would turn the key a few times before letting it play.
a slow tune would start playing. it sounds light and childish. simple yet still sad in its own way. like it was made on the spot.
is this what callihan had in his pocket all this time?
*The second he hears the music box wind up he's on his feet and out of the bathroom. He attempts to make it to the front door, but running in a straight line with a fever isn't always the easiest thing to do. He crashes straight into the couch he was sleeping on.
His shoulder brushes against the swollen hot skin on his neck and he lets out a cry. It burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it bur-
Where was Phoebe? She was out of his hands. Was she okay? He can't move to find her. It hurt too much. He felt sick. He wanted his bird. Where was his bird?*
@yorick-the-vanguard
There wasn't any fancy flash of light, or over the top summoning like might've seemed fitting for the being that Callihan knew that had been called.
The front door opened to a familiar being stumbling in, leaning rather heavily on the doorknob as it looked over the scene. He looked like he’d just gotten out of a rather nasty fight.
"Do you need something Callihan?"
His ears twitched at every little noise, and flinching at the loud crash and cry of pain. It took him a second to register that it was Noel’s voice, but when he did he’d slammed the front door closed and Alto was by Noel’s side checking him over immediately.
"Noel? Christ- What are you doing here?"
Its hands were holding him, feeling as cold as a corpse against Noel’s feverish skin as he propped him against the couch, sitting on the floor.
“… Noel you fucking idiot.”
He held his hand against Noel’s neck, hoping to try and cool it down to a temperature that wouldn’t feel like he was on fire.
“Callihan get a fucking first aid kit!”
He called over to the officer, his tone leaving no room for argument or rebuttal, before he returned his attention to Noel.
“It’s gunna be okay. It’s just me, don’t worry. I’ll take care of you. You’ll be okay. Don’t worry. I’m here. I’m here, and you’re gunna be okay.”
His tone softened to a gentle, insistent voice.
@officer-callihan
of course callihan was trying to recover from being run over and kicked in the face. Thanks Noel…errrr Charlie.
callihan would fix his glasses before getting up and using the door handle to stabilize himself.
callihan would check himself to see if any damage was done before closing the bathroom door behind him.
at least alto was alto still alive…Callihan had half expected to music box to not work.
why the hell did Noel have such an adverse reaction though ? Speaking of Noel how did alto just immediately know his name? Is this just a thing that alto could just do?
No time to question….that whole thing.
Callihan nearly missed the part where alto was calling out to him. Whatever the man says do it. Just….follow what he says.
callihan would run off to the kitchen to go get a first aid kit. It was the place where he tended to somehow get most injured so it’s where he kept it.
….as callihan predicted alto was better suited to deal with the situation just not in the way he was expecting.
callihan would rush over to alto giving him the first aid kit. Before getting up again and getting his notes to jot down some more.
Slowly walking back to the pair to see however Noel was doing after his little crash. @aguidetothemultiverse
*He stared up at Alto, then looked over to Callihan, then back to Alto. Over and over and over until Alto's hand touched the swollen skin. He lets out a whine, eyes screwing shut and hands darting up to grip onto Alto's arm, trying to pull him away slightly.*
"How are you..."
*No, no he needed to check. This could be someone else. This could be a different Alto. This could be Kayne pulling a trick. He didn't know. He had to check.
...Geese. Geese. He had to think about geese really loudly.
Oh god, where was Phoebe? She wasn't nearby, what happened to her? Why wasn't she in his hands anymore? He immediately starts scanning the room until his eyes land on her, attempting to perch on Callihan's head despite his movements.
Okay, back to thinking about geese.*
"I-I know I'm an idiot. I meant to- I meant to grab some antibiotics, it just... It slipped my mind."
*His voice shakes. He can't let go just yet. He needed to hold on. He needed to keep thinking about geese. He needed to see Alto's reaction to geese.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
He moved his hand away from the injury as soon as Noel’s hands tried to push him away.
His face contorted like he’d just tasted something sour at the thought of geese getting flung at him for the second time by Noel.
“Noel- Really? Again with the Geese?-”
Oh. Noel asked a question.
“The music box Callihan played. That was him calling me over here.”
He sighed, unable to stay mad when the man looked like he was dying. As soon as he had the first aid kit in his hands he was rummaging through it to find what he needed to properly treat the wound.
He was more than aware of Noel’s bird perching on Callihan’s head. He was honestly trying not to crack up at the scene.
“Can I treat the wound on your neck or do you want to do it yourself?”
He spoke softer to Noel than to Callihan, but his tone was still firm.
@officer-callihan
pheobe was a pretty big bird to say the least. If only Noel ate half as good as her.
callihan would try his best to balance whatever the hell was on his head. of coursehe had no idea what the hell was going on as they were seemly blabbering nonsense.
geese??? he would simply continue to jot down as many notes not being very useful to the current situation at hand.
He was…no longer really needed in the situation just waiting for more direction someone to talk to him. Just…anything.
though he really hoped no one would read his notes right about now. It was less of the paranormal and more…personal than anything else. Callihan hadent gotten the chance to write down much during and after Parker’s little visit as he was….distracted.
he would look over at the pair to see whatever they were doing about right now staring dumbly off into the distance.
but For now Callihan was just stuck in the middle.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*All of the tension in his body dissipates at Alto's reaction to the geese thought.*
"It's... It's really you...?"
*He looks like he's about to burst into tears. A shaking hand rises, looking as though he's about to reach out to touch Alto, only to go directly to the infected wound. It hurt like hell.
...It hurt. This was real.
That's when the tears start flowing.*
"You're- You're here and- And you know me. The- The real me!"
*He smiles. He has to close his eyes just so he could fully smile. He wraps his arms around the god in front of him and pulls them into the tightest hug he could manage.
When he could finally squint his teary eyes open, he stares at Callihan.*
"...Thank you..."
*It didn't matter if Callihan thought he was being thanked for bringing more help or not. All that mattered to him was that this man had saved him from an eternity of being just a name and a face. He would be known. He would be known for who he was, and not a name.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
His expression gave way to something almost pained. Like it hurt to see him like this, but… seeing Noel smile was something else.
“Yeah… it’s me. Don’t worry.”
He didn’t fight the hug, finding himself pulling Noel closer instead. It was… grounding.
“How d’you get yourself into this mess this time?”
The items in the first aid kit were arranging themselves on their own, items that weren’t needed being left inside instead of being laid out next to them.
“Still have to address that neck wound of yours before it knocks your head off your shoulders.”
He didn’t move, giving Noel time to object or protest anything if he felt the need too. The man was already clearly jumpy; he had no intention to make it worse.
@officer-callihan
callihan just presumed that the thank you was for alto. he hadn't done very much. only inspired panic and pain in himself and others. got himself hurt and hurt noel more with his lack of knowledge ..
he didn't look up from his notes choosing to simply sink himself into them instead. he was no longer being instructed to do anything. he was no longer really needed.
he would simply just continue his notetaking...forgetting to pay attention.
he couldn't find the space to ask his questions. not right now when so much was happening.
he tried to itch his head only to find a fat object in his way.
callihan quickly gave up after that. resigning himself to take more notes.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*Phoebe takes the opportunity to grab at his fingers. She wanted attention and she was going to get it one way or another. That other way would be fluttering onto his notes and staring at him petulantly. She. Wanted. SCRATCHES!!!!
Noel, on the other hand, had drawn his attention entirely back to Alto, pulling back to look him over.*
"...You're... You're you..."
*He wipes his eyes to truly get a look at him.*
"Jesus..."
*His face falls. It didn't matter how blurry or shaky his vision was, he could see how bad a shape Alto was in. There was blood. Unfortunately, he didn't exactly catch that there was a first aid kit within arms length due to the shock of Alto being here and in his arms, but also the fever that was actively boiling his brain.*
"Mr. Callihan? Where's your first aid kit?"
Alto’s eyes scrunched up in confusion for a moment before he seemed to realize something. His hand shot up to check the back of his head, wincing just at merely touching it before seeing that his hand came away bloody.
“…god… fucking damnit-”
His tone spiked ever so slightly as his form shifted. The dried and fresh blood disappeared, not a single scratch or drop of ichor visible anymore. looking good as new.
“I- I’m fine. Really, I just forgot to clean myself up after a bit of cleaning up I had to do.”
His eyes flicked away for a moment before returning to look at him sheepishly. He lied exactly like the same way Noel remembered him doing so.
“D-don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.”
He hastily moved to grab the items he picked out of the first aid kit. It was definetly not nothing. He moved on from it too franticly for it to be nothing.
“I’m going to clean your wound now. Hold still for a bit.”
He pulled out the disinfectant wipes, gently rubbing the area so he could start dressing the wound with antibiotics. He even added a few wads of cotton with gauze to hold everything in place and act as a barrier just in case it gets bumped.
“Better yet- Callihan, do you have any fever medication on hand?”
@officer-callihan
callihan would grab pheobe off of his head sort if just holding her in the palm of his hand. Before giving a few gentle scritches to the top of her head and to some of her back. he was lost in petting this cute bird until his name was called.
he would look up from his petting to noel to answer his question.
“uh right in front of you…next to you?”
callihan would look alto over again and....hm
altos bloodied from wasn't simply nothing though. Callihan given his…recent encounter could only conclude one thing.
Kayne. Kayne had done something. kayne that sick thing had done something to alto and now he was badly hurt.
"yeah i um... think i have some i can go get it for you."
it was at least something for him to do. other than petting this darling bird
callihan would stand up leaving his notes on the floor. he would be most careful to make sure he wouldn't drop the bird.
should he ask about kayne? he needs to know more if he's going to not die terribly in some way to that thing. he needs to know more if he needs to care for alto
callihan would walk to the kitchen thinking over if he truly wants to ask alto about this. well he's not going to know if he doesn't press at least this once.
"so um...what happened between you and...that thing after you let it take you? "
he would give phoebe a few scriches looking at altos expressions.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*He offers Callihan a barely noticeable nod (if he pushed it any further, he was sure he would've lost the meager contents of his stomach on Alto immediately). Just as he goes to grab the first aide kit, Alto grabs it first.
...Alto was moving fast. And he stammered. Arthur was too confident for that unless caught off guard. That or lying.
He squints.
Before his fever addled mind had time to process the information he was being given, Alto was attempting to disinfect the wound and all he could feel is pain. Because OW. That fucking HURT????
Before he could think to stop himself, he slaps Alto across the face.
He stares blankly at Alto. His eyes dart to his hand. He just struck a god.*
"...Oh my god..."
*He slowly brings his hands to his mouth, utterly shocked at his own actions. It feels like his breathing had stopped.*
"Oh- Oh my god... I... Alto, I didn't- I..."
*He pulls his knees to his chest.*
"I'm so sorry, I... I didn't... I didn't mean to, you... I just-"
*He needed to breathe. He needed to breathe.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
Alto’s head jerks sideway, his hands having stopped their work momentarily before he finished wrapping the gauze around Noel’s neck and pulling his hands away and holding them up placatingly.
His brain felt like it was full of static. Things were spinning and it was a miracle he stayed upright at all.
His ears were ringing. He couldn’t- he couldn’t hear properly- he couldn’t- what was going on around him? He had nothing to be able to tell with.
He held his head still for a good long moment, waiting until his mind started working again.
“Sorry I- I shouldn’t have rushed that-“
He didn’t even sound angry. If anything he was worried. He was worried that he’d done something wrong to upset Noel and that it was his fault. He didn’t even seem mad at the fact that he’d just been hit. He was worried about the why.
“It’s okay- I’m okay. Promise.”
He didn’t seem okay. At all, actually. He looked like a gust of wind would knock him over.
The illusion hiding the blood still soaking his hair and tricking down his back had dropped as soon as he’d been hit. he had a major head injury most likely.
One he hadn’t been able to heal and could only hide.
“Just breathe for me, okay? Breathe.”
How could his tone be so gentle when he was bleeding so much his face was slowly turning a different shade.
@officer-callihan
Callihan would have to put the bird down in favor of helping alto. First aid training he knew plenty of that!
sorry pheobe.
Callihan would go to grab some gauze from the medkit trying to get to alto and treat the wound on altos head. He would grab altos face Turning the wound to where he could easily see it.
he would do his best to properly wrap it.
if alto was down then callihan would have to deal with treating Noel. And god knows he’s terrible at that considering that despite his try Noel was still doing terribly.
………..to be fair he knew nothing.
Please can’t they not both pass out? That would be inconvenient.
the best he could do was try to reassure Noel….well he’s done worse than just punching alto. But no need to mention that right about.
callihan would grab pheobe and try to give her over to Noel. He seems to value this bird. And who could hate this bird? She was just so cute.
hopefully she would be the right amount grounding. Callihan was having a hard time forming words of encouragement.
@aguidetothemultiverse
After a day of radio silence from Alto, Callihan heard a heavy handed knock on his front door.
“Is there a Michael Callihan here?”
An unfamiliar voice with a thick Chicago accent came calling for him.
-🍻
callihan got out of bed and did his best to make himself at least a little presentable by putting on a new shirt before getting to the door to greet whoever was there.
seems important if they know his name
“how may I help you sir? And uh..who are you ?”
callihan would ask in a polite tone.
He was met by a broad, heavy set man. Arthur’s Partner, Peter Yang.
His smile was still there but he seemed antsy. Bags under his eyes and the pungent smell of coffee clinging to him.
“Hey, Uh, Mike, I… thought you were in the hospital. They let you out early?”
Normally Arthur did the talking at the station, leaving Parker to hang back, often times outside or just in the lobby quietly.
It seemed to keep the pair out of to much trouble with the police just fine.
“I uh… look, I got a real big favor of ya t’ ask, and I really need ya to say yes.”
It also explained why Peter had come directly to Callihan rather than through the station. Most of his coworkers weren’t exactly fond of the guy.
“I haven’t seen hide nor hair of Arthur and I heard you may’ve seen em.”
He looked almost pleading.
oh dear. peter did not seem in the best shape working late perhaps? pretty evident by the coffee and bags.
callihan was at least familiar with the guy but any friend of Arthur as long as they weren't to awful was someone to trust.
"oh yes! they let me out early...i'm pretty surprised too!"
of course if callihan were to explain the real reason he would sound a little mad.
callihan would listen to peters words waiting until he was done explaining what and why he was exactly here.
"the last I've heard of Arthur Lester was hearing he was going out of town on a case. i would've assumed he would have told you that sort of thing...notice and all?"
"but seeing...i don't think I've seen him for around two weeks. "
“Fuck…”
He covered the upper part of his face with his hand, looking like another little piece of him died inside.
“I… I just heard that the guy you were picked up with matched Arthur’s description, so I thought…”
He took a shaky breathe, trying to calm himself at least a little.
“Can I come in…? I… I need t’ sit down t’… explain all this…”
callihan would look puzzled by what parker was saying. Was he talking about alto? Sure they looked maybe a little similar but they were two different people.(?)
“I think that might have been someone else…sorry..”
callihan would step aside sort of inviting Peter into his home.
“but do come in! Please take a seat “
It didn't take a p.i to figure out he needed this.
Peter walked in, taking a seat at the dining table, draping his coat over the back. He couldn’t be bothered to do much else.
“I… he wouldn’t’ve gone off without me somewhere. Something had to’ve happened to him for him to just go awol like this…”
He was wiping tears out of the corners of his eyes.
“He’s been gone for over a month.”
It didn’t take a detective to tell that he’d been looking for his partner on his own.
“I- I don’t know what happened to him or where he went. No- note, no nothin. Just disappeared into thin air.”
His head was in his hands. This was a long time coming breakdown he’d been holding off on
“Sorry for bothering you Mike. It’s just- no one seems to care and I’m fresh outta options on finding him.”
callihan would take a seat across from peter setting his hands on the table.
" it...doesn't seem like him to just disappear like that without calling at least once. concerning to say the least. but whatever it is I'm sure Arthur is strong enough to stay alive"
Arthur couldn't just go missing like this could he? callihan didn't put much thought it into for the past few weeks as much as he should have at least. was there a chance he was dead in a ditch and no one had found him?
callihan would look past parker for a second to the general direction to his room. thinking before dismissing it just as quickly.
no that couldn't work could it? its been a day youdontneedhim.
" but its no bother peter. do you need anything like...uh water tea anything like that? a hankercheif?"
callihan is not the best at comfort yet still try's to console parker.
"im guesssing you tried calling him a few times?"
“Neither o’ us can afford an apartment. we both just sleep in the office. He takes the couch most nights n’ I take the one mattress we got in the back room.”
He chuckled sadly, trying to keep himself from letting it deteriorate into sobs.
“Heh- Hell, we don’t even have a fuckin phone line. Can’t even afford that.”
Tears were already streaming by the time he got his breathing back in check.
“I dunno where he’s been hittin’ the hay if not at the office, but he sure as shit woulda told me before he went kickin’ it with some other bozos.”
He held up his hand to deny the offers from Callihan, though he smiled sadly as if to say thanks.
the gay implications would go right over callihans head. no matter what parker could say it would nearly always go over his head.
although what callihan got mostly was the fact that parker was broke lonely and a mess at the current moment without his partner.
"hmm.. i see i see "
callihan would go get some water for himself god knows he needs it.
".....i just assumed he was out of town."
he would think for a moment about what could he do as he felt pity for parker. it was hard not to when he was in such a sorry state.
"is there anything i can do for you? anything at all peter?"
callihan needed to take his mind off alto something else and parker seemed to need a distraction himself.
“… nah. I’m alright.”
He relaxed a bit for some reason that Callihan couldn’t tell the reason for. He hummed to himself a bit, watching Callihan.
“Arthur can give anyone the slip. I woulda thought that too if I didn’t know where he was most hours o’ the day.”
His demeanor changed slightly, closer to the look he had when on the job.
“Something on your mind?”
If it weren’t for something catching his eye behind Callihan, maybe he would’ve pressed Michael on that. He was staring at the top of the stairs in Michael’s home.
“… d’you have someone over…?”
callihan would nod at peters answer before taking a sip of his water.
"hmhm i know what you mean with him. bit of a mystery ill admit."
he was at least glad that peter wasn't shedding his tears anymore over his WORK partner.
".....you could say that i-its just been a rough few days with getting shot and all.."
yeah. you could say that. best not say the whole truth or he will think you're nuts.
although callihan would look confused at question peter next asked. he never had many people over...not even women. the last women he had over
"pardon?...I don't have anyone over."
he would catch where peter was looking...it was more somewhere else
Callahan tried to turn his head to see what the hell he was looking at.
There was a set of two figure, one clad in a yellow cloak of sorts standing at the top of the stairs, looking at them. The second only had the upper part of their face peeking around the corner, eyes glowing with an inhuman light. The figures were gone as soon as they realized they’d been spotted.
Parker was up from the table first, heading up the stairs without a second thought, pistol in hand.
“Unless you gotta gun, stay down here.”
Parker shot Callihan a worried look as he left the man to go check it out upstairs, hoping to leave the scrawnier man in the relative safety of the kitchen. Worst case scenario he had a bunch of knifes he could throw around.
…he’s not imagining this if Peter can see them too..why was wrong with his eyes..
did callihan forget to lock the door when he let him in…he must have forgotten…shit. What were they doing here?
…..
He had too slow of a reaction time to go after Peter. Although it was true the fact callihan had no weapon. He had left it in the bag not bothering to touch it.
Callihan would go to get a knife just some weapon trying to follow after Peter. His safety was not important right now. He’d be a coward if he did nothing.
hopefully it was just those 2 who broke in the house.
callihan would climb the stairs trying to track where they had gone.
All the pair found when checking out the upstairs was the music box he’d been given playing an unfamiliar lullaby, that Parker seemed to vaguely recognize.
“Who gave you that…?”
He picked it up, inspecting the music box. there was the message ‘For Faroe’ With most of it scratched out, and utterly illegible, still engraved on the underside. Michael hadn’t exactly inspected the music box, now had he?
Had Michael left the window ajar…? He could’ve sworn he hadn’t…
“Did you leave this playing or…?”
Callihan would think of how to put this taking a deep breath
wasn't Faroe the name of Arthur’s daughter? He should have inspected it further. Stupid of him.
“so you know the person who I was seen with yesterday Peter? He gave it to me..before I was going home”
Micheal would look around his room for anything out of place.
“I wouldn’t have turned it or anything I swear!”
yellow….eyes it seemed oddly famillar yellow….eyes…..
alto. But who the hell was with him? he had not a clue.
Nothing seemed out of place besides what Parker was inspecting.
Parker turned his attention off of the music box and back to Callihan, the suspicion in his eyes growing slightly; thought, not enough to tip Michael off to it.
“…alright. I trust ya.”
He did not, in fact, trust him.
callihan would not press further on the looks of peter brushing it off as paranoia. it had been a few uneasy days.
callihan trusted peter.
"is there anything else i would need to know that you know about the music box?"
callihan would ask.
maybe as Arthur's partner he would know something he didn't. the man could probably read stuff like this better than him
callihan would move his body to place himself between his desk and peter. blocking the view.
“… nothin I didn’t promise to keep my mouth shut on.”
He sighed, setting the music box back down, looking at it like a smoking gun.
“… Mike, what are you blockin’ me from seein’?”
He tilted to the side; a concerned, almost horrified expression crossing his face as he skimmed through the notes
“… you already got a prime suspect n’ y’ didn’t even tell me?”
He half teased half scolded him for. He gently moved Michael out of the way with ease. The man had clearly been in more than his fair share of fights, and by the looks of it he won most of them.
“Callihan. Stop.”
He seemed… skeptical, of half of the notes, but he wasn’t flat out saying anything.
callihan would simply nod along with parkers words he really wanted to grab the music box back it was important though sighed internally when it was put back down
he could write down in his notes about how it played by itself or something when parker was away ”blocking what? I um nothing important I-hey!”
he failed blocking the notes seems he brought more attention to them than away. damn you peter.
callihan would try his best tactics trying to get him away from the notes by moving pushing pulling on peter and the notes. what would he think of callihan if he saw them
they all failed.
he didn't try to harm peter just get him away from his notes
it’s awfully hard to move someone so well built
The notes seemed messy a bit out of the mind of someone who was not well or just trying to get down information before it disappears from the mind. the notes read as follows in no particular order.
" notes on the thing known as alto "
"has a cult?? hates that cult. what the hell are those people worshipping. i may need to look into later.
shapeshifting?? can he do that? ifhe can like sleight of hand objects and appear himself can he also control lights? supress sound and pain? despite being shot he whent on for god knows how long and got more was there any others i just never noticed likely"
"i had the same nightmare last night i dont know what the hell the whole thing was but i hope it doesn't happen again"
"he healed my wounds nearly instantly his too how can he just be fine after being shot more than someone should be able to handle"
"infinite worlds the dark world thats basically hell for everyone whatever you did before. it never mattered. we are but ants to whatever gods are out there altos not human or at least thats what he said 'fucked up human with a lot of tricks up his sleve and a longer life span' i dont know what the hell to believe in anymore. as much as i would love to still believe in jesus christ and god and all of that i cant i just cant do that anymore"
"they never answered my prayers"
"who the hell is hastur? may need to look into later"
"why would an entity like him be watching over me ? what if i dont know if hes watching what if hes watching me take these notes or somthing was there a moment where i was truly alone at all?"
"can he like control music or like somthjing that"
"that's why his name is alto i dont know anything about music may need to ask arthur. if i can see him again"
"music box?? he said that he would be there if i ever turned the key
i think he meant that literally "
"there was some music on the radio will have to look into later"
some notes are too badly written to make sense of them. they really only make nonsense
other items consist of a map and a missing persons flyer, shitty drawings of presumably what the hell this person looks like. its pretty crude.
Parker was sure Callihan was a sensible man. Well… mostly, but this… was pushing it a bit.
If it weren’t for Arthur pulling him into the loop on some of these things then… well, he would’ve tossed this out the window immediately.
“Well… looks like you’ve got yourself a whole case here… explains why you were in the hospital.”
He was… rather calm about the insane ramblings in the notes. Like they were the most normal thing in the world. He didn’t even miss a beat, just jumping in like he could trust Michael notes.
“… who’s this Alto guy then?”
He looked at the crude drawing. He’d honestly worked with a lot worse, so the details he could get from it were actually quite helpful.
of course callihan was worried about being taken to the hospital. it wasn't exactly a good thing. any random person could do that.
thankfully it was peter. at least he understood some of this.
callihan would take a deep breath before speaking
" he's the guy who gave me the music box...I don't know who exactly he is because he ' has no papers'. I met him two days ago. he came into the police station to provide information and i took the case alone because really who would believe me? "
if he were to have told his coworkers about this little thing they would have been concerned at the least. he wasn't exactly the most liked guy at work.
he never intended for anyone to really see his notes. its not like he expected anyone to come over or come to his room.
he's a mess to say the least.
"what do you make of it?"
“Alright then. That explains some of it.”
He nodded, taking the new pieces of information. He was pacing around the room, trying to figure out the picture he was looking at.
“… i think you got yourself an eldritch friend. For now at least. Whatever it claims to be, only trust it as far as you can throw em.”
He chuckled, though the man seemed… rather wary of Alto. More so than Michael. That wariness was what got him home at the end of the day. Could never be too careful.
“… Arthur would at least know where to look on this.”
Callihan would look back at the music box then to Parker’s pacing and then around his room again
“…better to not piss him off then? It’s hard not to have some sort of trust or…feelings of attachment for him when the saved my life once”
It had been pretty clear that if alto wanted to harm callihan most likely it would have been done. Who knows what he could truly do when pissed off? he always got an unsettling feeling when alto was around…sometimes alone
If only they knew where the hell Arthur had gone…
”yeah..he allways seemed to see more than that meets the eyes. That certainly would be useful right around now”
He gave Michael an incredulous look, but didn’t press on the details, just sighing letting his head hang back, aiming his face up towards the ceiling.
“Fuckin’ Hell…”
When he opened his eyes he froze, staring at something up on the ceiling.
“Mike… they didn’t leave.”
He was referring to whoever broke in; whomever it was, their eyes were glowing, illuminating the glassy surface of their body around its… eyes, for lack of a better term.
It did not look like Alto. Or at least… it wasn’t the same form he took when presenting himself to Michael.
And he was focused on Parker.
"...........i know i know i can't help it"
he would sigh to himself.
at parkers 2nd line though callihan would look up himself welp for sure he was going to have nightmares again.
if only he had an object to throw at it right now.
Callahan would not recognize it as alto.
" GET THE HELL OFF MY FUCKING CEILING DEVIL. "
maybe that would do something forget about pissing off this thing. GREAT IDEA!
shouting was certainly an approach one could take during this.
although callihan could not look very intimidating provided he was not in his work clothes and probably looked like a wet soggy golden retriever.
maybe he should be a bit more polite
"can you kindly get off my ceiling eyes? "
oh no what if that means this thing heard everything that parker and callihan were saying OH NO.
Its head shifted, like a curious cat as it slowly slinked down from the ceiling, its long arms able to reach the floor without issue.
As it entered the light, it looked like a bunch of pieces of shattered glass, groves glinting like obsidian.
Slowly, it morphed into the familiar face of Alto, though with… a few differences. His ears were longer, tinted a purple hue at the tips, his eyes remained glowing lights, illuminating the whole room and plunging it into darkness when he blinked.
His fingers were much like his ears, the tips stained a bruise like purple, topped off with sharp claw like nails.
The underside of his coattail looked like a star dappled sunset, and it glowed and shifted much the same.
“Apologies for the unceremonious entrance my friend.”
He shot Callihan a familiar smile, before turning his attention to Parker more heavily.
“I wasn’t sure if he was going to be an issue or not for you.”
Seems like he took no offense as being talked about to callously.
“I do quite enjoy listening to your theories about me. It’s refreshing.”
This was Alto all right, and he wasn’t pretending to be human anymore. This form seemed to be more to keep their sanity intact rather than actually hiding his nature
—
Parker was… still. He was staring at Alto like he’d seen a ghost. He was pointing his gun at Alto.
“Who the fuck are you and why are you wearing Arthur’s face.”
oh for sure callihan was going to have nightmares over this.
Long arms looks more like a shadowy figure? EVERYTHING would probably keep him up at night.
callihan did breath a sigh of relief at the fact that it was alto and not some monster he never noticed in his house.
although with the changes callihan could only guess that alto was holding back on him previously. Obviously not wanting to scare him off …as easily. It was hard not to smile back to alto.
it was hard not to be charmed almost like a siren by alto. He was just too handsome charismatic.
”Parker’s a friend one could say” Callihan would say in a casual tone as us this should be mostly normal.
Ah great to alto had heard everything…and probably seen everything too.
….who’s he kidding alto probably read over his notes or somthing like that.
…although really haven’t made the connection about Arthur to alto. Callihan was never particularly good with remembering faces
Callihan would look to Peter to see how he was doing
….not well by how haunted he looked
“Peter put down the gun…”
it’s not like a gun could do much right? Callihan had explained that to him! At least rambled on about it in his notes!
Callihan would try his best to get Parker to lower the gun.
violence was not needed now.
“this was my face first.”
He scoffed in faux offense at Parker, not even bothering with the gun pointed at him.
“But, I suppose you have a point. This face technically was at one point his. Technically.”
Alto chooses not to elaborate on his statement of ‘technically’ stealing Arthur’s face.
Parker, wisely, puts the gun back in its holster, remembering his own advice. Alto doesn’t notice or care to do so at the gesture.
He winked at Callihan, smirking flirtatiously deviously.
“But that’s neither here nor there. So! Do you have any burning questions either of you would like answered?”
He smiled, actually offering the pair some answers.
Parker stayed silent.
it was concerning to say the least the impaction he stole Arthurs face and idenity. this is weird and unusual. how could Callahan not notice altos face though it was quite literally right in front of him. stupid stupid stupid! he would breath a slight sigh of relief at parker putting away his gun. violence wasn't needed. though altos offer was too great. to admit he had burning questions his theory's would not suffice. he needed concrete answers. but would it hurt to ask about arthur lester? " I'm sure you know all the details by now if you've been watching over us. do you know what happened to arthur lester? did you do anything."
other questions could wait. if he could ask why not use it! worst he could say is that arthur is indeed dead and parker has no more partner and has to work on his own!
“Oh he’s dead.”
He said so matter of factly it sounded almost like he was speaking about the weather.
“Been dead for a while actually.”
He seemed almost pleased by that.
He’s damn lucky he kicked the bucket before Kayne could get his hands on him. Believe me if he found that man before he died— you would’t want to find the body when Kayne was done with it.”
He shuddered visibly. So there were things out there that scared even Alto.
“Did you kill him?”
Parker looked like he was about to start throwing hands of Alto didn’t say no.
“What? No I didn’t kill him! I just found the body and made sure his soul was put to rest, nothing like that.”
well that was such a gentle way to break the news. Great so the worst had come to pass.
Arthur was dead. He had been dead for god knows how long. ….he didn’t even want to know how the hell arthur died. Alto was probably just sparing those details right?
as much as he wanted to believe that Arthur could still be out there if he tried hard enough to find him.
he can’t. Just like the hospital he can’t bring himself to believe in the lie.
oh sure he had burning questions right about now and a burning heart to follow along with it.
“when did you find the body ? Who the hell is Kayne!? What the fuck do you mean ‘he’s lucky that he died before kayne could get to him!”
Why was alto acting so normal about this!? Dammit!
callihan rather be shot again than deal with this. He could feel his eyes getting wetter and breathing worse his feet and chest giving up on him. Sitting down felt like the better option right about now.
“Kayne is someone I’d pray to never meet. He could destroy everything you hold dear just by waving his hand if he saw fit.”
His expression warped into something of unbridled fear just at the thought of the being.
“He could tear beings like me apart with ease. If you catch his notice, you’re likely good as dead.”
He paused suddenly. Going entirely silent.
||: @the-crawling-mist get over here
*Silence. Kayne almost relished in that so-strange silence, appearing a little far back with a typical devilish grin split along its face, hair shifting and writhing and almost making his form seem so much bigger with how it floated around him. It's ears were raised, an elevation to that amused expression that it had.
It took a moment to analyse the people and not-people in the room. He knew for the most part who was there, but the one different being? He didn't think he'd seen that one before- and oh was its face similar to a particular favourite mortal of his.
He lurked, for just a moment, behind Calahan, before he gave a tilt of his head and the rustling of his clothes was the thing to give him away.*
"Unfortunate you wouldn't want to meet such a being as Kayne!" *He chuckled,* "I mean, it is one of the most powerful beings in the universe- next to father dearest."
*It almost seemed to spit that last part, pure hatred laced in it's father's name. Disgusting.*
"Though I am sure you know that already- and what a SPECTACULAR thing you are!" *Another giggle as he vanished from his previous place of standing and was suddenly uncomfortably close to Alto.* "A shame we haven't met sooner, really~"
if only callihan had his gun right now at least he had a knife. Oh right like that was supposed to be useful right now.
just based on appearance this thing looked like the devil. The blood bones and behavior certainly conveyed that message.
It would certainly be an awful idea to piss this thing off with altos description of how it could ruin his life in mere seconds. He was an ant compared to whatever the hell was going on!
First everything he knew was a lie Second his dearest friend died now their all probably in mortal danger if even alto was afraid of this thing.
can people stop breaking into his house?
what the hell was it going on about?
callihans mouth would hang open unable to form words or even action at the situation he was suddenly thrust into.
he froze like a deer in headlights only gripping his knife tighter.
what was he meant to do in this situation other than play innocent
@yorick-the-vanguard
“Speak of the devil…”
Alto took a step back as his attention focused on Kayne entirely. Half faded memories of brutal bloodbaths caused by it flickering behind Alto’s blind eyes.
He needed to get Callihan and Parker away from him.
“What do you want Kayne?”
He mustered all the challenge he could into his tone. Make things interesting. Keep his attention away from Callihan and Parker.
“I’m not very keen on humoring you at the moment.”
Alto was taking a gamble he couldn’t afford to lose with how he spoke to Kayne. He had a… loose idea of how Kayne liked to banter, and it usually included being bit back at.
Parker was just as caught off guard as Callihan.
“… what the fuck.”
||: @the-crawling-mist
*Alto's step back was met with one forwards of its own, keeping that uncomfortable distance as it analysed the strange thing that looked so much like its middle C. Funny, that.
He spared brief glances to the other two mortals in the room, not seeming to care all too much.
He'd seen many of them both- a portion dead by his own hands, of course- there was no need to be analysing them and trying to make sense ot them in any way. Bor-ing!*
"Eh I don't really care! Let's take a look here~" *Kayne took a hold of this... god's? Face, strangely gentle as he began to tilt it around, looking for certain imperfections as if double checking something he was quite certain of,* "Yes.. yes..." *And he seemed to become more excited as he looked.*
"Alto, was it?" *He giggled, lowering his voice,* "How would you like to go somewhere a little more private?"
// @officer-callihan
fuck….. maybe he should try to stab this thing with the knife and - no that was still an awful idea.
Maybe Parker could try a gun…well that was also stupid.
There was probably no good move he could ever make here.
Callihan had never dealt much with the paranormal and now that Arthur was dead he was on his own.
He would look to Parker to see if had had anything to do he was allways the better one at improvising. Plus he was the one that had a gun.
hopefully Kayne would not spot the music box that thing was well…precious to him. Only real link he could have to the paranormal
@yorick-the-vanguard
Alto was caught off guard by Kaynes sudden grip on his face, surprised to find himself having it moved at odd angles as he tried to pry Kayne’s grasp off of him.
His expression was a mixture of fear and confusion as he writhed in its grip, but not enough to annoy. Just to make a show of it. He knew there was no point besides trying to placate the thing.
“What are you looking for?”
He was painfully aware of the different marks on his form left from the many, many piece of his soul that bubbled to the surface quite literally. Especially the long, old gash across his throat, which was the most prominent of the handful of faded marks that just barely made it past the collar of his shirt if he tilted his head back to far.
He already knew the answer to his own question.
Every fragment of him was screaming to get away from Kayne, and in equal measures cursing the being responsible for their deaths that were in front of them.
Alto wasn’t of the mind to listen to any of them at the moment.
He was hesitant to go anywhere with Kayne, but he didn’t exactly expect to have an actually choice in the matter. That and the privacy was likely more for his sake than Kayne’s. Azathoth knows that man had zero shame and all the willingness to cause chaos.
“…okay.”
Not a single thing about this was okay.
Parker was backing away slowly. He was not dealing with that. He was not dying for a god he just ran into.
He was looking at Callihan, expecting him to do the same.
||: @the-crawling-mist
*The question Alto had went unanswered, opting instead just to find what he was after- one perfect neck scar. His neck scar. And he did find it, resisting the urge to run his thumb over it right then and there.
He was looking for other telltale scars, of course, noting them mentally as his eyes traced over them, smiling to himself because he knew.*
"You have some rather loud thoughts, officer~" *Kayne cackled, diverting his gaze for just a moment to acknowledge Callihan.* "Hurting a god wouldn't be your wisest choice."
*He couldn't keep his attention off for too long, however, quickly turning back and almost forgetting himself as his free hand found its way to that scar and touched so lightly. His favourite.
His hand pulled back quite quickly, however, with the response to his request, resting over Alto's arm instead.
Of course, he would've taken him from there either way, but this was just so much easier- whining about him kidnapping a precious little god or anything of the sort, he had full consent!*
"Good good~" *He hummed,* "Have fun here, boys!" *He grinned at the other two in the room, vanishing with the other god in hand shortly after.*
// @officer-callihan
oh no he can hear thoughts that means he could hear about all the times i-
it would be foolish wouldn't it
well Callahan made no attempt to try to exit the room at all. he was just..stuck in place. he couldn't look away even if he wanted to. but just like that they were...gone. ....well he should have acted horrible things keep happening when he doesn't for some reason. like that time two days ago when he got shot....well also alto. yeah.
callihan felt like punching a wall or something.
first Arthur Lester is DEAD. second his other friend got KIDNAPPED by the devil from the bible or something just pure evil. and third there goes all the questions he wanted to ask.
GREAT fucking fantastic. this was unfair. he truly was an ant against literally everything.
all he could hope for is that alto would be safe. he would certainly have to the use that music box later to check.
@yorick-the-vanguard
“… well that just happened. …What the fuck was that.”
He collapsed into a nearby chair, his legs having given out after the adrenaline rush. It felt like he just got punched in the gut a second time.
“… so… what now.”
He glanced at Callihan, trying to gauge how well he was handling this.
Callihan would grab the music box and would go to sit at his desk kind of across the room from parker. he would jot down something on a piece of paper before facing parker.
his face is tense. afraid even afraid for whatever happened and will happen. but how he's dealing with it not well it seems. this is precisely the reason why callihan never delt with the paranormal and always sort of gave it to Arthur instead. he was better at dealing with it anyway
"i don't know! Arthurs dead. my one way of answering anything is gone to GOD knows where by i don't know by PURE EVIL. and I still don't know anything. what the fuck are we supposed to do?! "
callihan cant hold in his tears anymore.
He was staring off into a corner for a bit.
“I guess waiting is our best bet, ay?”
He… he didn’t know what to make of this. Any of this. This was… fuck this was a lot. He needed a smoke, and then to take a fat fucking nap.
“… well, I’m goin t’ pass out. I’ll just… take the floor, ‘less you got a guest room or somethin.”
If he didn’t decide to sleep he was going to choose to do something else that would probably be a lot worse like punching a wall.
He did not want to punch Callihan’s wall.
”Peter just take my couch for cryin out loud! “
Peters not sleeping on the floor not in callihans watch. “I…think I need to be alone for a while.”
callihan was clearly shaken up by the whole ordeal. the equivalent of the devil showed up in his room and just….mostly ignored him and Peter then left. just more things to give him nightmares. And more things to break him.
does callihan truly want to be alone is it right to leave him be?
”please just take the couch Peter” Callihan would say between his tears.
He paused for a second, not having realized he’d said the latter part out loud. The next second he had his arms wrapped around Callihan in a bear hug.
“Bein’ alone with your thoughts right now is not a good idea, Mike.”
He sounded like he spoke from experience.
“… how about we grab something to drink and try to take a moment to calm down for a bit, ‘kay?”
He sounded like he was trying to coax some feral alley cat of a person into listening to him. It was probably how he’d talked to Arthur given how antsy he could be.
“Hell, maybe there’s somethin’ good on the radio, who knows?”
Callihan was not expecting such a tight hug from Peter but oh boy he sure did need it right about now. It was unsafe it have a knife and a gun right about now.
it was grounding.
callihan would drop the blade onto the ground. It thankfully didn't hit anyone’s foot.
deep down he knew Peter was right. He still wanted deep down to lock himself in his room and write down everything everything that had happened.
the coaxing however did work as callihan mumbled somthing out that sounded like an “ok” or “fiiiine”
least he’s not saying no. Hell even if he did would callihan truly be stopped ? Peter could probably just pick him up.
He nudged the knife away and out of where anyone could step on it just to be on the safe side as he held Callihan firmly.
He slowly shifted his hold to hoist the man up into a bridal style carry with relative ease and brought him back down and over to the couch that Callihan had offered Parker to sleep on.
“I know I introduced myself as Peter but, uh… just call me Parker. That’s what all my friends call me.”
He gently set Callihan down, and grabbed a few blankets to throw the man’s way. Maybe he could make the guy an omelette or soemthing
he would have wanted to grab some of his notes before this but ok.
callihan would let himself be carried like this peter could manhandle him anyway. and he was too tired to have much fight in him. or much energy to do anything really.
callihan would nod at pete-parkers words. would take some time to get used to using that name.
"parker....what's going to happen to you now that's Arthur's dead? you don't have a partner."
callihan would silently take a blanket sort of putting it on his lap.
He sighed.
“Back to going solo I guess. ‘nless you wouldn’t mind a career change, but I doubt that’ll happen ‘n I’m not gunna make ya do anything like that. I know you like your job after all.”
He handed the guy his notepad and pen. He knew the guy wasn’t gunna stop thinking about it and would wanna take notes. That… wasn’t something he saw wrong with.
Callihan just couldn’t be left alone while doing it lest he start spiraling and deciding to do something stupid like Arthur had a habit of doing if left to talk to himself for hours on end.
“You’re right about that…I don’t see myself leaving anytime soon. Though..I wouldn't mind helping some.”
Callihan would immediately start jotting down notes. Everything that had happened and everything he’d seen with some rough doodles.
it was really all he could focus on right now..
but it was true callihan couldn’t be left alone he’d probably keep himself up or forget to eat or just perish.
Nothing could ever feel normal again could it?
Callihan kept up writing.
Parker was gone for a few minutes and came back with a plate of scrambled eggs which he placed on the coffee table, before scooting Callihan’s legs over a bit so he could fit on the couch as well in the other side.
“So, any theories or would ya prefer to keep it to yourself for now?”
He leaned closer to Callihan, tilting his head a bit.
callihan would continue to write his notes down.
"well uh..its just on what happened recently nothing too interesting"
parkers awfully close right now. if he really wanted to he could touch him right now.
he haven't been this close to someone since his previous wife. who he divorced. WELL IN DISTANCE. hahahahahaha! things just didn't work out with her.
it still felt nice to have someone around. god knows hes a mess right now.
"you're uh awfully close parker."
“Would you like me to back up?”
He leaned back slightly, seeming a bit self conscious. There was something in his eyes like a scolded puppy.
He wanted Callihan to say it was okay for him to get closer, but he wanted to respect that man’s boundaries as well. He wouldn’t want to push it.
He was already playing with fire by flirting with an officer of all people.
“Sorry about that- I uh… I just wanted to read what you were writing.”
That was only half the truth and it was rather obvious.
"nono! you can see what I'm writing parker i was uh.. just commenting on how close you are."
callihan would feel his face get warmer than usual. ough.
" its um fine! "
callihan completely missed the part where parker was flirting with him. admittedly he might have been oblivious to the thing where men like other men. that just brushed over his head completely.
"parker are you ok? "
callihan would move the blanket onto parkers lap. he cant just hog all the blanket to himself now can he?
“Oh! Oh- uh- yeah, I’m good.”
His face flushed at the gesture, and he seemed almost giddy at being given permission to be close to Callihan.
He let himself rest his head on Callihan’s chest, letting the man continue to write as he snuggled up close to him despite his better judgement telling him that this was a bad idea.
“Is this okay with you?”
He looked up at Callihan, his cheek partially pressed into the other where his head rested.
HOLYSHIT
callihan would freeze up a bit not expecting parker to make such a move. yet the implications fly over his head once more.
"uhhh uhhh " callihan would stumble on his words flustered. parker could probably hear callihans fast heartbeat
Callihan would try to continue his notetaking though less focoused overall.
“yeah it’s um fine ! Go on with it”
“Y’ sure…? You’re freezing’ up there doll. I don’t wanna make you uncomfortable now.”
He doesn’t move just yet, but he seems ready to, until something dawns on him, and he starts laughing into Callihan’s chest. That cheeky, lopsided grin of his spreading across his face.
“Oh Cal you dope of a man, you-“
He said it with all the fondness in the world.
”parker i just said it’s fine. Im….fine”
callihan would go back to writing before Parker’s laughs. He would move to look down at parker over his pad of paper.
brushing aside his other thoughts he only had questions going through his mind.
“what are you cracking up about?”
what exactly was clicking in the mind of Peter? What was the thing that Peter knew that Callihan did not ?
“parker?”
“Cal, you’re red as a tomato.”
He held Callihan just a bit closer as he cut off his fit of giggling, muffling the rest of it in Callihan’s chest.
“Nevermind, nevermind, don’t worry ‘bout it. It’s nothin.”
He was smiling still, clearly content.
“It’s honestly adorable how oblivious you can be sometimes.”
”I am? “
in truth callihan hadn't really noticed the change guess it was easier to see than to feel. Just like how Parker could still probably feel and hear callihans intense heartbeat.
Callihan looked a bit harder at Parker at his remark about him being’ oblivious’
“and what do you find to be oblivious about me?”
it was more playful than accusatory. Callahan would let out a yawn. The warmth was so comforting.
“How normal do y’ think it is for another man t’ rest his head on your chest?”
He hummed thoughtfully as he traced the seem of Callihan’s shirt with his finger idly.
“I’ll tell ya, it’s not.”
Parker seemed to be more than happy to enjoy resting his head on callihan.
"................um uh i don't really know."
truly he had no idea how normal this would be.
callihan had never really witnessed or partook in this sort of thing. it was all pretty new....what would be wrong with this? what would be wrong in enjoying this sort of thing between them?
"and what makes this not normal?"
what was he so oblivious about? what was being lost on him?
" don't people do this sort of thing all the time with the people they care for?"
“Not with people of the same gender.”
If Callihan didn’t get the hint at that he may actually start laughing his ass off.
“Callihan. Buddy. I am flirting with you. I like you the way a man likes a woman or vice versa. I don’t know how I make this more clear to you. I am a pansy.”
He’d lifted up one of his hands to his face, resting his forehead against it as if shielding his eyes from the sun as he started cracking up.
“I don’t know how you don’t understand the blatant signals I’m givin’ you.”
He found this objectively ridiculous.
what was wrong with that? Parker didn't explain what was wrong with that! I mean they were doing it right now! Callihan sat and thought for a while at Parker’s words.
‘I like you the way a man likes a women.’
But callihan had never felt much for women at all. sure they looked like….attractive. But he had never….felt much.
well sure maybe he felt a little different about men but it was more like he wanted to be like them. He wanted to be like some others at the station he wanted to be like Arthur he wanted to be like Parker.
He wanted to be like them.
“um…………I um”
really he had no idea what to say and how to react. Sure he’s been flirted with before. But not like this.
“I don’t understand what you’re tryin to say Parker…..what’s so wrong about this? “
Callihan would move to put one of his hands on Parker’s chest putting his notepad to the side.
Parker seemed to relax a bit at that, knowing that Callihan got the concept, though… he didn’t feel much towards women himself so it wasn’t the best explanation.
“…And what’s that like?”
Parker stopped feeling Callihan’s hand on his chest. His face already beginning to flush red. He hoped Callihan couldn’t feel the way his heart was picking up.
“That… that might not be the best way to phrase it. I love you the way the sun rays hitting your face- I feel… really good when I’m around you. that make sense?…”
He didn’t know how to phrase it.
“There’s nothin wrong with it, it’s just… most people don’t like hearin’ that two men decided t’ love eachother instead o’ lovin’ the kinda things and people they’re expected to.”
He was looking at Callihan with something close to adoration, but… more.
“Pretty few places t’ meet anyone with the same preferences as me besides bars and speakeasy’s.”
He left out the fact that he’d met Arthur in one such bar more than a few times.
“Can I kiss you…?”
oh callihan could definitely hear Parker’s heart. Just hoping Parker wouldn't feel his own.
“I…just want to be so much like you and Arthur and so many others.. I just don’t really get the same with…women “
Callihan would gently move his thumb on Parker’s chest griping the fabric a tiny bit.
“But yes. I think i mostly get it. It feels…just so nice to hang around with y’all like um Arthur you alto and so many others.”
…..most of it not all of it well at least better than before. But this. Whatever he was doing right now felt really good.
Callihan was looking directly at Parker now no notepad to block his eyes from looking at the man below him. he looked at Parker with a look of innocent cluelessness. It was cute in its own way.
He had never really known where to find that sort of thing. Being an officer tended to….hold more weight. He couldn't just go to places like that.
He just had one think to ask Parker.
“is there a word for someone who likes both?”
Parker seemed to know a fair amount about the subject so why not ask?
“But yes Peter you can kiss me”
please…..?
“Art wasn’t one for women either. You don’t have t’ be like anyone but yourself if you don’t wanna.”
One of his hands found its way to cupping Callihan’s cheek, his thumb running across the skin there gently.
“I think that term’s bisexual, though, I wouldn’t consider myself one when men like you are just so damn handsome.”
His expression lit up as his lips peppered Callihan’s face with kisses before Parker properly gave him a peck on the lips.
“I might be able t’ get you into one, though it’ll take a bit more work. It was already a bit of a challenge to get myself in given my own profession, but hey? The communities a lifesaver when y’ need it. Trust me, it’s worth it.”
callihan had never really noticed Arthur’s affection for men. With a dead wife and a dead kid Callihan thought the opposite. Though it’s quite rude to speculate about the dead.
callihan would continue to rub Parker’s back with his thumb.
hm…so that’s the word for it. Glad to have figured….most of it out! That’s what callihan probably was no doubt about it!
“you think I’m handsome?” callihan would sheepishly ask. God forbid callihan just take a compliment.
callihan would give a few of his own kisses back to Parker though not aiming for much of the mouth. He’s a pretty bad kisser all things considered.
“that would be nice. I’m sure it wont make it easier the fact I’m a cop..though I wouldn't want to go alone.”
Parker had a lot of….connections. he could probably do it. “ and it would be um nice to hang out with you…”
callihan needed the company now that Arthur was truly gone. Somthing to….distract him from the hole. To keep him busy
“Hey, the best way to get them on your side is whenever anyone gets caught, you vouch for em or conveniently lose some evidence regarding em.”
Parker hummed, not seemed bothered by Callihan’s rather poor kissing skill.
“I think you’re one of the most handsome men I’ve met in a long time; i can say that for certain.”
Callihan was just about one of the sweetest men he knew, with few to none even being people he’d consider sweet in the first place.
“I’d like to hang out with ya too.”
Callihan would try giving a few kisses to Parker’s neck.
“I suppose I could try doing that if the time comes..but could you vouch for me? If that’s fine of course “
Parker was one of the most considerate men callihan had ever met. He was understanding trusting and has a lot of heart for the people he cares for.
he was also really good for hugs.
“and um…when would you want to hang out?”
Callihan would start playing with Parker’s hair ruffling it up a bit. He just needed something to do with his hands other than writing.
“Course I’ll vouch for ya. Wouldn’t dream of leaving y’ high and dry darlin’.”
He chuckled warmly, leaning into Callihan a bit more.
“I how ‘bout y’ swing by my office tomorrow? It’ll be nice.”
He keened into Callihan’s hand that was playing with his hair, enjoying the feeling of the man carding his fingers through the strands.
“If y’d told me you’d had a partner like this before I’d’ve believed you. You ain’t too shabby as you chalked yourself up to be.”
”I’ll try my best to cover for you too”
Callihan would continue to play with Parker’s hair
“ I technically have a week off from the whole getting shot thing”
callihan had pretty much nothing much else to do. Besides some time out of the house would be good for him.
“ I think I would like that. I can’t stay cooped up in my house all the time!”
callihan would try to make a joke. “Eheh thank you you’re uh..not too bad yourself. I um..presume you’ve done this before ?”
Callahan simply hadn't before. Not even really with his ex wife . He had never felt the same way he did now with Parker. It just felt so homely with him and warm. “do you uh….want to stay over for the time being? I’d hate to end this so soon”
callihan would ask nervously.
Callihan was having a fairly normal day. Of course the last few days had been a little hectic from cults music monsters and everything else unfortunate enough to bless him.
He was lucky enough to get a break from his job under the assumption that he was still recovering from being shot.
he had been pretty much a recluse in his house for the time being. Not great but better than the alternate.
what is he doing now one may ask?
pretty much nothing of great importance. Maybe a few notes there some eating here but pretty much nothing.
how would one approach this situation?
-🔦💼
(@officer-callihan)
*Noel clung to the shadows. New universe meant new dangers. He frantically scribbled in his notebook, Phoebe resorting to waddling around on the ground, circling his feet.
She must be so confused. She's probably never universe hopped before. But he needed to get as much information as he could. He wasn't sure where he was, so some sort of location indicator would be nice. It looked to be around the same time that he left, though. Maybe a bit earlier in the year? Around autumn of 1934? He'd need a confirmation on that... He could find a newspaper! That would be a good solution.
He scooped up Phoebe, holding her like a book under his arm, and went to rush for the nearest newspaper stand. If he was paying closer attention, he wouldn't have run into the oblivious-to-his-circumstances officer. He falls flat on his ass, his notebook goes in one direction, Phoebe flies in the other, and he's ready to keel over and let the universe do whatever it wanted with him.*
if anyone had seen noel he would have probably looked shady as hell. creeping in the shadows aint exactly a good look. ….just the same dreary streets of Arkham.
callihan was just doing his usual patrol of the streets. pretty boring but better than other things. of course he didn't expect to be body slammed while on his job. he would try to gain back his balance before falling himself.
callihan went to check his pockets to see if anything was damaged. thankfully not. there were certain things that were..important to not get damaged . even from a small fall.
he would move to get up before pausing. ah..so thats what happened
it wasn't a malicious attempt to kill him just an accident that happened to involve him. whoever that was is still on the ground. he would look around a little more around the area for anything else of note.
they must have dropped something! was that a bird? no matter!
callihan would move pick up the notebook before getting up on his feet offering a hand to get up to this stranger.
it was the least he could do seems their having a bad day to say the least.
*He tenses. Fuck. Fuck! He didn't want to be thrown into an asylum again (thanks a lot, Universe 17), and everything that was in that notebook was evidence to any normal person that he had lost his marbles decades ago.
He snatched the notebook, scrambling to his feet before he could even process that the man in front of him was trying to help him up. Phoebe waltzes over to Noel's feet, hopping onto one of his shoes and smacking his leg with her wing. The second she makes contact, he closes his eyes and steels his breathing.
When he opens his eyes again, he looks utterly mortified at what he'd done. Not beating the crazy allegations, apparently.*
"Ah, Jeez..."
*He shoves the notebook in his pocket, sliding Phoebe off his foot.*
"Sorry about that, doll. I should've been payin' closer attention to where I was walking."
*He didn't hear this guy's accent yet. He hoped his own didn't come across as bizarre in the area. Speaking of, he tries to eye a nearby street sign. It doesn't help him much.*
callihan? Probably not the normal person who would get him thrown to the asylum but what can you do? Trust every person ever?
yeah no.
he of course didn’t quite expect an atypical response of snatching back the notebook and getting up on their own. Notebook must be important clearly. callihan would put his hand back by his side.
he would just sort of stand around at Noel’s whole…thing.
Noel’s accent was not unusual its peculiar how many people callihan knows with accents.
“Ah it’s no big deal things happen ya know?”
southern. Not as southern as a grandma but still southern.
callihan would make a gesture with his other hand as if excusing it. He seems tired to say the least.
It’s no big deal this is the least of his worry’s right now.
his pockets look weird
“ have a nice day”
Callihan would begin to walk off taking this as just a one off accident. He had a job to do after all.
*Wait, no! He could use this! This guy didn't seem too suspicious of his strange behavior, so... who cares if he got a little more strange?!*
"Hold on, sorry if this sounds weird, but where are we?"
*He could go full into the madness schtick here and ask about when they were, but he needed to test the waters first.*
"Wasn't payin' attention to where I was walkin' and ran straight into a wall, if you could believe it! Hit my head and just wanna make sure I've got all the details right..."
*Hopefully this guy wouldn't send him to a hospital first. He didn't feel like explaining each and every scar and scab that he has. Or the branding. He has to suppress a shudder just thinking about it.*
"Now that I say it aloud, I sound like a huge clutz, don't I?"
*He chuckles softly, trying to lighten the mood. Come on, he needs information. As much as he could get, then he could leave this guy alone. He wouldn't have to get wrapped up in this mess. And Noel wouldn't have to admit how curious he was about the other man's pockets and stay out of it. If he had just stayed out of it as a whole, none of this would've happened in the first place!!*
callihan would stop in his tracks and kind of turn back to noel pausing for a bit to think.
what does this man want with him? information or something more? he kind of has that weird detective look to him. although unprofessional what the hell happened to his outfit for it to look so horrid?
"...Arkham.... Massachusetts? the particular street is slipping my mind ..sorry. "
how do you not know where you are? seems common to know. unless there was some weird circumstance that prevented someone from knowing.
"sir are you fine like your head? are ya good? "
how do you hit yourself walking into a wall? something just feels off.. just wrong like many other times. though callihan seemed genuinely concerned for noels well being at the current moment.
he still seemed on edge and nervous just waiting. both his hands were near his sides. one probably containing a gun and the other god knows what. can't tell much of a concealed chunky item.
noels small joke does not lighten the mood at all. callihan had nothing to lighten up about right now to say the least. point is callihan was not in his best mood there was nothing to be cheerful about.
he almost seems like a sad puppy
" sir ? "
callihan would ask again
*His own hand darted closer to his side where he kept his pistol at the mention of his mind. Just in case.*
"Arkham, got it. That's what I thought, just wanted confirmation."
*Maybe he wasn't exactly right in the head right now, actually... He should've grabbed antibiotics for his neck wound. Even stitched up, it wasn't easy to keep it clean, and it had already gotten infected once. He was supposed to take antibiotics continually, right?*
"Got a little busy writin'. Same reason I ran into you, doll."
*He gestures with the notebook, to which he opens rather quickly to scribble down the information he just received. That seemed like a fair excuse. Writers could be rather wacky at times, right?
Arkham. He could find his way around here, he worked here! Sure, it was over ten years ago that he worked here, but he could figure it out!
He makes sure to keep his eyes on the other man, just in case he made a move for a gun.*
"But I've seen some pretty bad head injuries. They mess with your sense of time and direction. Wanna make sure that ain't happening to me, you know?"
*He taps his temple with the back of his pencil. His heart was racing. Fuck. This guy was onto him, wasn't he?*
"Speaking of time, the year is...?"
*He was really pushing it. He was really, really pushing it. He felt sick. He needed to run. He needed to hide. His heart was racing. His neck felt hot.
Wait, his neck felt hot?
Shit. He really should've snagged some antibiotics...*
callihans hands would still remain near his pockets. Of coursehe was on edge who wouldn't be? Callihan could have not known the situation Noel was in. not the neck wound different universe connections none of it.
Noel was just terribly shifty and suspicious. He was just so on edge.
what was in that notebook? If he had been more curious he might have maybe taken a look. Seen what was exactly in his notes
But running while writing…
wouldn't that make it really hard to write though? Small details were not adding up in his mind it was like there was maybe something missing.
“The years 1934 sir.”
running would only make him look more suspicious callihan could have resemble claim that maybe something was definitely wrong with this man.
“and how do you expect me to believe that you can write while running sir? ”
what does he even mean by he’s seen petty bad head injury’s ? So many questions raced through callihans Brain.
“you know lying to an officer can be a pretty serious crime yes?”
"Wasn't runnin', just walking."
*It's not impossible. Sure, it was tricky, but he got the hang of it after a few tries. His handwriting was never the neatest, anyway. Roland always nagged at him for that.
And then he deadpans when being an officer is mentioned.*
"Yeah, I do know that. Being a detective gets you pretty familiar with the law."
*He meets Callihan's gaze. If he wanted to play the authority game, Noel would play the fucking authority game. He scribbles down the year before shoving the notebook in his pocket.
His neck... wasn't getting any cooler. It was actually starting to get a little itchy. When did the infection come back? How long had it been festering? He had to suppress a shudder at the thought of it festering for a while.
When had Arthur forced him to take that antibiotic pill? It was more than twelve hours, surely. Not long after, the doctor (what was her name... Daisy?) had stitched him up. Ugh! He needed a clock or something to keep track off all this stuff!!
That didn't matter now. He needed to figure out how far along he was and how much time he had left before he was out of commission. Was he slurring his words? Did he just not notice? Was he genuinely confused and had not caught on yet? Was the heat that he was feeling from swelling or a fever? Did he look sickly? Is that why this officer was so dead set on interrogating him?
He was sure he made a face during his little spiral, he wasn't focused on looks until he realized that might be why he was in this situation in the first place. He could feel himself frowning with scrunched eyebrows.
Oh, he had a headache! That could just be stress, though. That's why he didn't notice it until now.
Phoebe whacked him. Right. He was spiraling. He needed to focus.*
"Anyways, thanks for your help, sir. You have a good one."
*He offers a small nod and a smile, and turns to go. And, of course, his vision swims when he turns. Because of course it does. He tries to walk in a straight line, but winds up finding himself closer to the buildings on his side than before. So basically, he was fucked. Dead on his feet. The cop was going to arrest him, throw him in some asylum or something... He was done for!*
Callihan highly suspects that this man is lying. But his suspicions were correct at the least at his guess that whoever this was probably a detective.
why was he here then?
it would be pretty unlikely to be able to hit callihan with that much force if the man had been walking and only walking. only thing that could have happened is the fact that they might have tripped into eachothers legs or just bumped into one another
Callihan would maintain his gaze on Noel trying to be as stern and intimidating as he could possibly be.
He must be delirious ! Drunk ! Just anything ! Therecouldentbeanythingparanornalhere.
why couldn't this just be a normal accident. enough paranormal stuff has happened in the last few days!
“No no you get right back here sir! I have reasonable cause to detain and search.”
Maybe this was against his standard protocol but callihan just needed to know more about whoever this was. something just seemed...off like every other time.
fuck standard protocol he cant just let someone get away!
aha! He was not walking straight! That could be a clue. Callihan would pick up the pace speed walking to where Noel was heading.
he would try to grab noel by the shoulder to get him to just stop walking.
*He slips away from Callihan's grip, but turns to face him anyway. He doesn't stop, though. Keep up the pace, try to shake him off. Persistence.*
"And why is that, officer?"
*He lets his hand wander up to the sutures and almost immediately flinches away. That's... Not great. Especially the heat that met his fingers. He could feel sweat building up on his skin.
He tried to gauge if the other man had also been in the War, or, at the very least, knew what an infection looked like. If he did, he might clock the fact that Noel was slipping pretty quickly into a fever because of it. And if he did recognize the signs, two things could happen: Noel's brought to a hospital (bad. Very bad. Don't do this. He has no records.) or he's given a slap on the wrist for his strange behavior (good. Very good. Please do this. He would cry with relief.). Or both, which could be... Something?*
if there's anything callihan is right now its stubborn. he will find out.
"well i have reasonable cause to search you with how you're acting ! "
he looks pretty clueless to say the least. callihan does not really know how to treat infections only do basic first aid. probably would have presumed the man was very guilty because of the sweat.
he would continue to keep pace with noel.
"please stop resisting sir."
it was more likely for him to try the hospital than to try to help with the infection.
and it was likely that he would probably search noel for anything anything at all.
just judging on...his attitude
though his hands were...not immediately in range of his gun
" get back here sir."
*Fine. He'll stop. Just in case. He'd rather not have killing a random man as the first thing he's done in this universe. To be fair, he'd also rather not have pissing off a cop be his first thing, either, but...*
"Alright, alright."
*His head was starting to pound and the way the world was spinning wasn't helping. He wanted to just... Sit down. Maybe lay down, shut his eyes for a few minutes. God, he didn't realize how bad he felt.*
"Just... Make it quick. I'm feelin' a little under the weather."
*He was leaning on the wall. He didn't realize when he started, but it quickly became a lifeline. He screwed his eyes shut. Please, just stop spinning!*
"I've, uh... I've got a pistol on me. Concealed carry. Like I told you, I'm a detective."
*He gestures vaguely to his hip. Crap, were his hands shaking? Oh, his neck was throbbing, too! Great! Perfect! He didn't even know if he had his badge or registration on him, either! Getting thrown in jail for this universe would suck, to put it plainly.*
welp……great at least he was following orders . He could get a chance to look at the notebook.
last thing that he wanted to do right now was loose the man. After he got what he wanted he would most likely leave him alone to…do whatever he pleased.
what he was doing was corrupt.
Callihan would start his usual search starting at the waist checking for the gun and the notebook. Though more focused on finding the latter.
as promised the gun and a suspiciously shaped object that was most likely the book.
He would pull it out of Noel’s pocket. If Noel asked he could probably lie and say something about incriminating evidence and it’s just something he needs to check.
callihan would start a few pages in skimming each page to see what they said before flipping to the next. Reading quickly as part of the man’s request.
it was the least he could do.
the man seemed….out of it to say the least. And on the brink of passing out.
*His body heat meets Callihan before Callihan's hands meet him. He's sweltering, yet he shivers. Shivers that he desperately tries to stifle.
He immediately goes to grab the notebook back, but the second he lifts his hand from the wall, it looked like he was about to fall straight into Callihan, so that thought was abandoned.*
"N-No, wait-"
*His words are slur together. He feels his eyes burn. No, he wouldn't cry now. No. He's gone through worse. It's fine.*
"Please, I- I'm not- I'm not mad, I-I swear..."
*Every other page of the notebook is labeled "Universe", then a number, then a nickname. One page is labeled "The Permafrost" pretty early on, and has brief blurbs on a world that was completely frozen over - how a lot of people had died out, how civilization and agriculture had been moved underground, how... Did that say Arthur?
Wait, he wrote about Arthur a lot. And some guy named John. They seemed to be a pair. There was also this guy named Kayne? He's mentioned occasionally and it's always with vitriol.
The three most recent entries are labeled "Kayne's Christmas Party??", "Eden's Home", and the last one... Unlabeled apart from "Universe 37". Underneath the last one is written:
"I thought I was done. Fuck me for being hopeful I guess. Phoebe's with me, got one good thing going for me. 1934 Arkham. Might be by Mosby Ave? Roland, Arthur or his partner (Peter, right??) there? Might just get thrown into jail. Fucked."
If Noel looked like he was about to pass out before he got the notebook taken, that look had increased tenfold afterwards. He was leaning a little too far right, but didn't even seem to notice himself. He was deathly pale, the pink scar on his face creating a stark contrast. His pupils were dilated and moving hazily about behind the cop in front of him. That and there were tears brimming in his eyes.*
"I-I... I swear..."
callihan would ignore Noel’s pleas focused more on reading the contents of the notebook.
…….oh OH OH
what type of paranormal crap is this ? yeah he thought something was off about the guy but really hoped it wasn't some paranormal that callihan would have to deal with.
callihans mind immediately tried to make sense of whatever was going on in book.
…..Arthur John Kayne!?
worst of all to him. He knew those names. Well not John but he seemed damn important.
Arthur. Deadman’s mouthpiece who was currently resting unknown to be dead by anyone else but him and Peter. Someone Callihan would consider to be a very good friend.
John who he had no clue of why he was important. No identity to him other than…name. Like a John Doe.
Kayne. Oh him. Described as someone to never meet and someone who could destroy everything. Advised to not attack and to not get under his notice. Good thing he didn’t seem to care about callihan existence. who the hell was phoebe ? who the hell was Roland?
How does this guy know about everything ? How would he know about Arthur and Peter already being here? did they have history that he didn't know about
better him that this guy ran into than anyone else.
callihan would slowly give back the notebook having seen enough in its pages to understand. no no he had to act he couldn't just stand frozen like a baby deer for this one but what the hell could he even ask or say or do in this situation ?!
......no questions yet he needs to help noel first. he cant answer questions if he's dead on the floor!
".....do you need help sir? "
*It takes a second for him to process the book being handed back to him, hazy eyes sliding from somewhere in the distance to Callihan's hands. He stares blankly until Phoebe whacks his leg. He slowly takes it back, surprised that he wasn't immediately put in cuffs.
He readjusts his position on the wall to flip through the pages. Did... Something magically change? He couldn't exactly tell with how his vision was right now, but... Well, it looked the same from what he could tell. He looks back up to Callihan, visibly confused.*
"...Why didn't-"
*He tries to blink the dark spots from his vision as he stares. He wobbles on his feet, still clinging to both the book and the wall.*
"What...? Are- How come- I sound insane!"
*His tongue feels fat in his mouth as he speaks, but he needed to. He needed to figure out why he wasn't dead yet!*
"It- I mean-"
*"Did he need help?" Of course he did!! He felt like he was stuck in a maze with no exit!! It's not like some random copper would be able to go back in time and stop all of this from happening!!
...Maybe he meant with the infection. That...
Oh, he felt so woozy...*
"Uh... Yeah... I think I do..."
*He offers a weary smile as the ground lurches up on his left. He could feel his eyes roll back. He's out before his head hits the concrete with a crack. It breaks the skin. A small amount of crimson pools under his temple, soaking into his hair.
Phoebe lets out a surprised coo, rushing over to Noel's face. She walks in a couple of panicked circles, cooing the whole time, trying desperately to wake him up.*
maybe he shouldn't have handed it back but hey.. the man had a gun and it seemed pretty precious.
It had only recently clicked but…..if this guy was familiar with Kayne Arthur and all this….paranormal crap. well he can to help In some way like more information? callihan loves his job but….this takes priority after all he needs to figure out what the hell is going on!
'i well um its complicated! very complicated and uh...I cant say anything on it!"
callihan can’t possibly take this to the police he’d sound just as mad as that missing persons case. hell he was barely able to convince them of his sudden recovery from the hospital.
he couldn't possibly take him to the hospital either.
"um...how do you know who arthur is? kayne! pete-parker."
callihan watched noel pass out. oh..is that a bird? maybe callihan should have grabbed a bit earlier but uh......oh well no time!
………
the next when Noel awoke…well he was laying on a couch.
callihan had done his best to care for Noel’s wounds with the…..limited amount of information he had. He tried to clean Noel’s wounds.. well it was shabby but it would at least keep Noel from dying. his trench coat was off and put off to the side.
who knows where Phoebe is?
and callihan? callihan was sitting nearby just…writing taking way too many notes. hell he didn't really seem to notice noel waking up.
this place seems like no hospital police station or anything like that ! just a house.
and this weird officers couch.
*He was awake, sure, but he didn't want to be. Everything hurt. He felt like his insides had just been blended. He didn't want to open his eyes, but... Well, he had to. It wasn't safe to sleep in, not ever.
When he blinks his eyes open, he's overwhelmingly confused. He wasn't in the place he passed out, he wasn't in jail, he wasn't in an asylum, he wasn't being attacked, he wasn't at the Threshold... Where was he...?
He goes to sit up, but the second he moves, it sends the world spinning. He flops an arm over his eyes, trying to stifle a whine. Why was he so stupid as to not think to keep antibiotics on him?? He needed to be smarter than this!!!
And... it was quiet. It was too quiet. Sure, there was the scribbling of a pen, but that's not what he was looking for.
He didn't hear Phoebe.
She was a loud bird. She was always cooing or ruffling her feathers or walking around. He didn't hear her rumbles, he didn't hear a feather, he didn't hear the tell-tale tick of her talons...
He jolted upright. It didn't matter if it made his vision black, he needed to find Phoebe. His feet were planted on the ground the second he could see a pinhole of where he was.
And he spotted Callihan.
He had him in a choke hold in seconds.*
"Where's my fucking bird?"
*He had to fight a cringe at how raspy his voice sounded. He also had to fight a cringe at how little strength he had. The officer would be able to break the hold in seconds if he was trained properly.
And then it clicked how fucking ridiculous that sounded. He was threatening a man over a pigeon. To be fair, that man had read through his notebook and hadn't thrown him in an asylum immediately, so... He could be a little mad here and then if it meant getting Phoebe back.*
of course the way home was awfully hard between trying to carry what looks like dead body and having a bird constantly attack you for no apparent reason. one could say it was challenging.
and of course callihan found a temporary solution to his problems bird had following him home after all and no amount of shooing would deter it. he needed to take drastic measures. after all it would be awfully hard to write his notes....and well care for noels injury's.
speaking of noel callihan was alerted by the sound of movement. after all there wasn't much going on in the meantime. he would look to where he had put noel. oh! the man was up well that's good! HOLY SHIT.
callhan was not prepared to be immediately choked out. you know its awfully hard to give a verbal answer if you cant speak. maybe threatening with a gun would have been better.
he would try to pry noels arms away from his neck.
of course callihan took care of the bird. not well. he had no idea what the hell birds ate. so he kind of just stuffed it in a room and hoped it wouldn't get out and start attacking him again. there were few bird shaped marks on his head and hands and god knows where.
" BATHROOM " callihan would try to get out. "YOUR BIRD IS IN THE BATHROOM."
callihan would break the hold and back the hell away. gesturing to wherever the hell the bathroom was.
he had shoved the thing into the bathroom. it would do to keep the noise and bird away from him. he needed that time badly.
callihan put his hand near his gun. he was not being attacked again without consequence. also known as a bullet to wherever was unfortunate enough to reach.
*He was in the bathroom in an instant, scooping Phoebe up in his arms and holding her tightly. She nestled back into him. He breathes a heavy sigh of relief, the adrenaline almost immediately draining from his body. He doesn't bother trying to get back to the couch, he crumbles to the floor where he is.*
"You're okay...?"
*He spoke softly. It was hard to do much of anything due to the haze of fever, but he still needed to check on his bird!! With shaking hands, he stretches her wings out to check for any injuries. She fights the advance a little, but gives up relatively quickly when he finds nothing and lets her tuck her wings back at her side.*
"How'd you get in there?"
*He scratches gently by her eyes, which she eagerly leans into.*
"You can't scare me like that, Pheeb... I thought you died or somethin'... And- And you can't do that, alright? You gotta last long enough for us to find a home, got it?"
*He was surely about to be locked up now. What sane person talks to a bird, let alone a pigeon???*
callihan would follow after noel to make sure he didn't break or trip or like jump out a window. and to additionally make sure the bird also did not destroy his bathroom as to be blunt he haven't checked on it for however long noel was passed out for.
he would of course keep his hands near his sides just in case. hey the man had attacked him once who knows what else he would DO?
however when he got to the bathroom he would breath a sigh of relief that nothing much had happened. everything was mostly fine..
he would shut the door behind himself.
...ah what a crazy thing someone could do talking to your pet or just plain talking things out with yourself. no one would ever do that!
....well not quite. who's to say what callihan did at the police station filling paperwork?
callihan still had so many questions he wanted to ask. yet only one could come to mind right now.
" who the hell are you? how do you know about arthur? "
well...two... but honestly too many questions to know what was important to ask.
*It takes a second for him to register the words being spoken at him, the fog over his brain making everything a little tricky.*
"Noel Finley."
*He swallows thickly. He was not a fan of the radiating heat on the side of his face.*
"Or Charlie Dowd. Don't know how this universe works yet..."
*Fuck it. The guy had already seen his notebook. It didn't matter anymore.*
"Arthur was a friend of mine. Back... Back home, at least..."
*It didn't matter how tired he sounded, it didn't matter how sick he felt, it didn't fucking matter. He was going to be stuck doing this for the rest of his life, so who cared if he sounded insane? Who cared if everyone knew he had two identities? Who cared if he had friends or a family or anyone that he loved? It didn't matter."
ah great a name he had no clue of. maybe he could get some notes later but right now he had nothing. hopefully this wasn't just a case of someone with no papers. though the current notes he had could only be in his mind.
" i'm uh callihan. Micheal Callahan. "
guess they were doing full name introductions. or in noels case 2 name introductions.
callihan would move to sit on the floor to get on a more even level with the man. he would move his hands to his lap to be more away from his gun.
never thought he would be having a conversation like this in the bathroom.
"Arthur lester? im guessing? " there's no harm it guessing right?
who knows the connections Arthur had in other places....other universes. but what did that really matter? he was gone. he was gone and there was nothing to do to bring him back.
"but um who's that? " callihan would ask pointing to the bird.
maybe asking easier questions could get him to open up.
*He shuffles away from Callihan before he could get too close. He was far too tired to actually get up and move, so it was just a little shimmy.*
"Yeah... Nice to meet ya..."
*He was not at all pleased to be getting to know him. Nor was he pleased that the door was closed behind him.
What a pathetic way to go. By some cop he just learned the name of for being suspicious.
Well, at least he had Phoebe. Hopefully Callihan would take good care of her after he was put away or killed.*
"Yeah, had to assume that was the Arthur you were askin' about... Only one anyone ever asks about."
*Oh, Arthur. Noel told him he'd be fine, and now look at him. Right where he started, all over again. And John, too... He'd go back to only having Arthur, trapped and alone.
Did it matter, though? They were just another person he got attached to that would be taken away from him. He knew it was inevitable.
...Callihan was still talking to him. He needed to pay attention.*
"...Who, Phoebe?"
*He points to the pigeon in his lap with a raised eyebrow.*
"She's just a pigeon."
*...Just a pigeon that he would kill anyone for, at this point.*
callihan would decide a different tactic. clearly this was not going very well. as much as he was trying to be friendly and the 'good cop' in this case it wasn't really working well.
he would breath through his nose and pull out a small music box out from his pocket winding it up and praying to whatever god that this thing works.
he had never tried the music box before. not even once.
callihan would turn the key a few times before letting it play.
a slow tune would start playing. it sounds light and childish. simple yet still sad in its own way. like it was made on the spot.
is this what callihan had in his pocket all this time?
*The second he hears the music box wind up he's on his feet and out of the bathroom. He attempts to make it to the front door, but running in a straight line with a fever isn't always the easiest thing to do. He crashes straight into the couch he was sleeping on.
His shoulder brushes against the swollen hot skin on his neck and he lets out a cry. It burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns it bur-
Where was Phoebe? She was out of his hands. Was she okay? He can't move to find her. It hurt too much. He felt sick. He wanted his bird. Where was his bird?*
@yorick-the-vanguard
There wasn't any fancy flash of light, or over the top summoning like might've seemed fitting for the being that Callihan knew that had been called.
The front door opened to a familiar being stumbling in, leaning rather heavily on the doorknob as it looked over the scene. He looked like he’d just gotten out of a rather nasty fight.
"Do you need something Callihan?"
His ears twitched at every little noise, and flinching at the loud crash and cry of pain. It took him a second to register that it was Noel’s voice, but when he did he’d slammed the front door closed and Alto was by Noel’s side checking him over immediately.
"Noel? Christ- What are you doing here?"
Its hands were holding him, feeling as cold as a corpse against Noel’s feverish skin as he propped him against the couch, sitting on the floor.
“… Noel you fucking idiot.”
He held his hand against Noel’s neck, hoping to try and cool it down to a temperature that wouldn’t feel like he was on fire.
“Callihan get a fucking first aid kit!”
He called over to the officer, his tone leaving no room for argument or rebuttal, before he returned his attention to Noel.
“It’s gunna be okay. It’s just me, don’t worry. I’ll take care of you. You’ll be okay. Don’t worry. I’m here. I’m here, and you’re gunna be okay.”
His tone softened to a gentle, insistent voice.
@officer-callihan
of course callihan was trying to recover from being run over and kicked in the face. Thanks Noel…errrr Charlie.
callihan would fix his glasses before getting up and using the door handle to stabilize himself.
callihan would check himself to see if any damage was done before closing the bathroom door behind him.
at least alto was alto still alive…Callihan had half expected to music box to not work.
why the hell did Noel have such an adverse reaction though ? Speaking of Noel how did alto just immediately know his name? Is this just a thing that alto could just do?
No time to question….that whole thing.
Callihan nearly missed the part where alto was calling out to him. Whatever the man says do it. Just….follow what he says.
callihan would run off to the kitchen to go get a first aid kit. It was the place where he tended to somehow get most injured so it’s where he kept it.
….as callihan predicted alto was better suited to deal with the situation just not in the way he was expecting.
callihan would rush over to alto giving him the first aid kit. Before getting up again and getting his notes to jot down some more.
Slowly walking back to the pair to see however Noel was doing after his little crash. @aguidetothemultiverse
*He stared up at Alto, then looked over to Callihan, then back to Alto. Over and over and over until Alto's hand touched the swollen skin. He lets out a whine, eyes screwing shut and hands darting up to grip onto Alto's arm, trying to pull him away slightly.*
"How are you..."
*No, no he needed to check. This could be someone else. This could be a different Alto. This could be Kayne pulling a trick. He didn't know. He had to check.
...Geese. Geese. He had to think about geese really loudly.
Oh god, where was Phoebe? She wasn't nearby, what happened to her? Why wasn't she in his hands anymore? He immediately starts scanning the room until his eyes land on her, attempting to perch on Callihan's head despite his movements.
Okay, back to thinking about geese.*
"I-I know I'm an idiot. I meant to- I meant to grab some antibiotics, it just... It slipped my mind."
*His voice shakes. He can't let go just yet. He needed to hold on. He needed to keep thinking about geese. He needed to see Alto's reaction to geese.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
He moved his hand away from the injury as soon as Noel’s hands tried to push him away.
His face contorted like he’d just tasted something sour at the thought of geese getting flung at him for the second time by Noel.
“Noel- Really? Again with the Geese?-”
Oh. Noel asked a question.
“The music box Callihan played. That was him calling me over here.”
He sighed, unable to stay mad when the man looked like he was dying. As soon as he had the first aid kit in his hands he was rummaging through it to find what he needed to properly treat the wound.
He was more than aware of Noel’s bird perching on Callihan’s head. He was honestly trying not to crack up at the scene.
“Can I treat the wound on your neck or do you want to do it yourself?”
He spoke softer to Noel than to Callihan, but his tone was still firm.
@officer-callihan
pheobe was a pretty big bird to say the least. If only Noel ate half as good as her.
callihan would try his best to balance whatever the hell was on his head. of coursehe had no idea what the hell was going on as they were seemly blabbering nonsense.
geese??? he would simply continue to jot down as many notes not being very useful to the current situation at hand.
He was…no longer really needed in the situation just waiting for more direction someone to talk to him. Just…anything.
though he really hoped no one would read his notes right about now. It was less of the paranormal and more…personal than anything else. Callihan hadent gotten the chance to write down much during and after Parker’s little visit as he was….distracted.
he would look over at the pair to see whatever they were doing about right now staring dumbly off into the distance.
but For now Callihan was just stuck in the middle.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*All of the tension in his body dissipates at Alto's reaction to the geese thought.*
"It's... It's really you...?"
*He looks like he's about to burst into tears. A shaking hand rises, looking as though he's about to reach out to touch Alto, only to go directly to the infected wound. It hurt like hell.
...It hurt. This was real.
That's when the tears start flowing.*
"You're- You're here and- And you know me. The- The real me!"
*He smiles. He has to close his eyes just so he could fully smile. He wraps his arms around the god in front of him and pulls them into the tightest hug he could manage.
When he could finally squint his teary eyes open, he stares at Callihan.*
"...Thank you..."
*It didn't matter if Callihan thought he was being thanked for bringing more help or not. All that mattered to him was that this man had saved him from an eternity of being just a name and a face. He would be known. He would be known for who he was, and not a name.*
@yorick-the-vanguard
His expression gave way to something almost pained. Like it hurt to see him like this, but… seeing Noel smile was something else.
“Yeah… it’s me. Don’t worry.”
He didn’t fight the hug, finding himself pulling Noel closer instead. It was… grounding.
“How d’you get yourself into this mess this time?”
The items in the first aid kit were arranging themselves on their own, items that weren’t needed being left inside instead of being laid out next to them.
“Still have to address that neck wound of yours before it knocks your head off your shoulders.”
He didn’t move, giving Noel time to object or protest anything if he felt the need too. The man was already clearly jumpy; he had no intention to make it worse.
@officer-callihan
callihan just presumed that the thank you was for alto. he hadn't done very much. only inspired panic and pain in himself and others. got himself hurt and hurt noel more with his lack of knowledge ..
he didn't look up from his notes choosing to simply sink himself into them instead. he was no longer being instructed to do anything. he was no longer really needed.
he would simply just continue his notetaking...forgetting to pay attention.
he couldn't find the space to ask his questions. not right now when so much was happening.
he tried to itch his head only to find a fat object in his way.
callihan quickly gave up after that. resigning himself to take more notes.
@aguidetothemultiverse
*Phoebe takes the opportunity to grab at his fingers. She wanted attention and she was going to get it one way or another. That other way would be fluttering onto his notes and staring at him petulantly. She. Wanted. SCRATCHES!!!!
Noel, on the other hand, had drawn his attention entirely back to Alto, pulling back to look him over.*
"...You're... You're you..."
*He wipes his eyes to truly get a look at him.*
"Jesus..."
*His face falls. It didn't matter how blurry or shaky his vision was, he could see how bad a shape Alto was in. There was blood. Unfortunately, he didn't exactly catch that there was a first aid kit within arms length due to the shock of Alto being here and in his arms, but also the fever that was actively boiling his brain.*
"Mr. Callihan? Where's your first aid kit?"
Alto’s eyes scrunched up in confusion for a moment before he seemed to realize something. His hand shot up to check the back of his head, wincing just at merely touching it before seeing that his hand came away bloody.
“…god… fucking damnit-”
His tone spiked ever so slightly as his form shifted. The dried and fresh blood disappeared, not a single scratch or drop of ichor visible anymore. looking good as new.
“I- I’m fine. Really, I just forgot to clean myself up after a bit of cleaning up I had to do.”
His eyes flicked away for a moment before returning to look at him sheepishly. He lied exactly like the same way Noel remembered him doing so.
“D-don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.”
He hastily moved to grab the items he picked out of the first aid kit. It was definetly not nothing. He moved on from it too franticly for it to be nothing.
“I’m going to clean your wound now. Hold still for a bit.”
He pulled out the disinfectant wipes, gently rubbing the area so he could start dressing the wound with antibiotics. He even added a few wads of cotton with gauze to hold everything in place and act as a barrier just in case it gets bumped.
“Better yet- Callihan, do you have any fever medication on hand?”
@officer-callihan
callihan would grab pheobe off of his head sort if just holding her in the palm of his hand. Before giving a few gentle scritches to the top of her head and to some of her back. he was lost in petting this cute bird until his name was called.
he would look up from his petting to noel to answer his question.
“uh right in front of you…next to you?”
callihan would look alto over again and....hm
altos bloodied from wasn't simply nothing though. Callihan given his…recent encounter could only conclude one thing.
Kayne. Kayne had done something. kayne that sick thing had done something to alto and now he was badly hurt.
"yeah i um... think i have some i can go get it for you."
it was at least something for him to do. other than petting this darling bird
callihan would stand up leaving his notes on the floor. he would be most careful to make sure he wouldn't drop the bird.
should he ask about kayne? he needs to know more if he's going to not die terribly in some way to that thing. he needs to know more if he needs to care for alto
callihan would walk to the kitchen thinking over if he truly wants to ask alto about this. well he's not going to know if he doesn't press at least this once.
"so um...what happened between you and...that thing after you let it take you? "
he would give phoebe a few scriches looking at altos expressions.
@aguidetothemultiverse
