[WIP/Draft] Marching Ever Forward. Chapter 1,
Just more of this story I'm noodling on, I don't know if this chapter is finished.
Chapter 2:
In his brief life, Billy had experienced many awkward situations. Most of them happened around Agatha.
Billy realized his mouth was hanging open and shut his mouth. He knew Agatha would make fun of him if she caught Billy staring at her, but he might as well not exist. Agatha's focus was on the guy who claimed to be Nicky.
She looked stunned. And--delicate, as if Billy reached out and touched Agatha, she would break.
"Nicky?" Agatha whispered.
The skull face flickered into a more fleshy and Human face. "Yes, mama, it's me. Nicky."
Agatha flickered and turned pale--literally. The color drained from her skin, and Billy realized he could look through her.
Then, just as suddenly, Agatha launched herself at Nicky.
"Wait!" Billy yelled to remind Agatha she was a ghost and could pass through Nicky.
Or… not.
To Billy's surprise, Nicky also lost his color and became… a ghost?
Instead of passing through Nicky, he caught his mother, and the two ghosts held each other. Agatha wept and Nicky held on to his mother.
The moment felt too private.
He felt a twinge of something, like a phantom limb. They still haven't found Tommy. With that thought, Billy turned on his flight and floated up.
The three-headed hellhound growled at him, and Billy sped up, not wanting to become its chew toy.
He flew just in time to see government vehicles arrive. Fear shot through Billy, and he dropped to a more secluded area and switched back to civilian clothes.
He decided to wait for the mother and son duo in a coffee shop a few blocks away. Just in case.
Billy decided against broadcasting where he was. Agatha had a preternatural way of finding him.
He asked her once how she kept finding him and Agatha said, "You light up like a Christmas tree, Billy."
"Really?"
"No," Agatha said with a shake of her head.
Billy had just finished getting his order when Agatha found him.
"There you are, Teen."
"Hey," Billy said and looked at Agatha. She looked composed and fully corporeal. With her hands in her pocket and an imperious air, as if Billy hadn't seen her crying a few minutes ago. She projected a familiar wall of detachment. After months with Agatha, Billy recognized it as her way of keeping others at arm's length.
Using 'Teen' was also one of her tells.
"Everything okay?" Billy asked.
"I think so," Nicky answered. He, too, looked human--unnervingly so. Tall, with dark brown hair and a crooked smile that reminded him of--
"You look like Rio," Billy blurted out. "I mean, you also look like Agatha!"
"And you look like you descended from a toaster," Agatha snapped. "Congratulations. Now you know what happens when two women--"
"Is that coffee?" Nicky interjected, thankfully cutting off what Billy was certain would have been an embarrassing and devastating verbal skewering.
"I got us all ice coffees."
"Blech," Agatha said, sitting down with a flourish. "What's wrong with a good espresso?"
"I've never had coffee," Nicky said, taking the chair between Billy and Agatha.
Agatha paused, stared at Nicky, and asked, "Your mother never let you have coffee?"
"Not the Earth equivalent, at least. She gave me something from Asgard once, and I didn't sleep for a week. Mother decided I shouldn't touch caffeine after that."
"See, people think she's the fun parent," Agatha said, pointing at Billy as if this was all his fault. "I'm the fun parent!"
Before Billy could respond, a snuffle and a bark drew his attention. He looked down and saw a cute French bulldog that looked nothing like the three-headed monstrosity from the alley.
"Oh," Nicky said, patting the beast masquerading as a cute dog, "This is Servious. He's sorry about earlier--he was just looking for me. He wasn't supposed to be here."
Agatha wrinkled her nose. "I can't believe your mother gave you a dog."
A brief memory flashed in Billy's mind of a cute and fluffy puppy he and his brother adored, followed by Bohner's anguished: "She made me kill the dog!"
"You don't like dogs," Billy said.
Nicky turned to Agatha, looking affronted. "You don't like dogs, Mama?"
Agatha glared at Billy but softened her expression when addressing Nicky. "They're not my preference. I do have a rabbit as my Familiar."
"You made us rabbit stew once," Nicky said as if remembering something.
"And it was delicious," Agatha replied. She reached for her iced coffee as if she needed to occupy her hands.
"It was," Nicky agreed, mimicking Agatha's movement but leaving it at that.
"What are you doing here? I don't think… Rio would appreciate that you're here."
"Mother will be angry," Nicky acknowledged.
"So why did you risk the wrath of Lady Death herself?" Agatha's tone was casual, but her attention was sharp and serious.
"Despite my appearance, I am not that young," Nicky said dryly.
Agatha tsked. "Don't give me that. In terms of demigods, you're no older than the Teen."
Billy's mind caught on the word 'demigod' but decided to keep it to himself for the moment, and sipped his now very watered-down coffee.
"Is 'Teen' really your name?" Nicky asked, redirecting his focus to Billy.
Surprised by both question and attention, Billy spluttered and coughed. "No, no! I have a name. I'm Billy Maximoff, no, Kaplan! I'm Billy Kaplan!"
"I know," Nicky said with a sudden crooked grin. "Mother's been very annoyed with your sudden appearance."
Agatha let out a cackle.
Billy pulled out a tissue to mop his face and glared. "I can see the family resemblance."
"I'm sorry," Nicky said, offering more napkins. "You were just too serious."
"That's my boy," Agatha said, still cackling.
"A few months ago, I felt my spirit summoned to the mortal realm. I felt like Mama needed me."
The sudden topic change silenced Agatha's laughter like a valve being turned off.
"It's been months, and Mother hasn't given me a concrete answer. It's been two centuries, and you didn't seem to be coming home anytime soon, so I decided to visit the mortal realm to check on you."
Nicky looked sideways at Agatha, who seemed as thrown as Billy felt. Billy was transported back to the moment Nicky had talked about, to the Road that wasn't a road. In a cabin, and Alice slowly dying in front of him. The planchette flew around to spell: "N-I-C-H-O-L-A-S-S-C-R-A-T-C-H.”
"Jesus Christ," Agatha muttered. "You've inherited your mother's talent for dropping verbal grenades."
Unrepentant, Nicky shrugged. "You asked."
"And where is the Lady now, huh? I'd think she'd be here dragging you back to Undead City by the ear."
Nicky tilted his head as if listening for something. "There's an interstellar war. A lot of bodies have been dropping. A lot of Death gods were slaughtered a few years ago, so Mother had to pick up the slack."
"'Death' gods?" Billy interrupted. "There are other Death gods? I thought Rio was the Death god?"
"Mother is not a Death god," Nicky corrected. "Mother is Death. The original concept of Death. Growth and decay. All the Death gods work under her domain."
"And now all the other gods are dead?" Billy asked, concerned.
"A man waged a one-man crusade to kill the gods. He nearly succeeded, but Thor and the Mighty Thor stopped the god slayer."
"Bet your mom loved ferrying all those stuck-up gods," Agatha quipped.
"It's her job," Nicky said with a shrug.
Agatha groaned. "Ugh."
"It's why she hasn't noticed yet. Mother's stretched thin. I figured it was time for me to take my holiday."
Agatha snorted. "Death's son takes a Holiday."
Nicky reached for Agatha's hand, "I wanted to visit you."
Billy could see Agatha twitch at the earnestness in Billy's voice. She was battling tears.
"Nicky, when you say things like that…" Agatha's eyes sparkled.
Billy looked down to give mother and son some privacy.
"You're such a softie, mama," Nicky teased.