Babe, there's something tragic about you. Something so M A G I C about you Don't you agree? Babe, there's something lonesome about you. Something so WHOLESOME about you. Get closer to me.
SUMMARY: Raphael and Zatanna perform a wish spell in an attempt to help Belphegor get some peace and quiet away from the Void; however, the spell takes an unexpected turn when Belphegor changes the wish.
TRIGGERS: Torture, PTSD, Depression
WRITTEN WITH: @ofguardian, @ofhellsbells, @offallenfeathers (Belgirel)
ZATANNA: She lost track of how many spells they'd tried so far. None of them helped permanently, but it wasn't all for nothing. One of the spells had given the fallen healers their ability to heal again which was nice. But they were running out of things to try. Zee stepped into the warded circle where Belphegor sat in a chair and looked at them. "Alright, so, we're kind of on our last leg with these," she told them. "I don't really like the spell because it's akin to djinn magic and that stuff gets messy. What I need from you is a well worded wish about how you want peace and quiet. It can't be too broad or magic will take it the wrong way and you'll end up deaf or...I dunno, you'll make the whole population disappear. You have to make it really specific to your case. Any ideas?"
BELPHEGOR: They were tired and exhausted from so many of these attempts and the transfers and the emotions and having to hear the Void constantly. They were disappointed to know they didn't have ma y more options to silence it, but they at least needed it this time. It was all so overwhelming, and a time out was necessary. "Okay." They nodded, thinking about what they could say exactly to ensure the spell went smoothly. "Like I wish the Void couldn't speak anymore?" They thought that was pretty specific. Asking for peace and quiet itself was pretty broad. They might've gone deaf completely or just died to rest in peace, but they didn't think asking for the Void to just shut up would go bad.
RAPHAEL: Raphael could feel the exhaustion radiating off of Belphegor. Bells was usually always tired but these trials brought upon a whole new level of tired for them. Raphael hoped for their sake that this spell would provide some relief, even if it was only temporary. Raphael listened to Belphegor list off their wish. "I can't think of any ways that might be misinterpreted, but since it's our first attempt with this kind of magic it's probably best to add a time frame. That way, if magic takes this was the wrong way, you won't be stuck living with the consequences for too long," they suggested. They would let Belphegor pick the amount of time they saw fit to be under the influence of an experimental spell.
ZATANNA: Zatanna listened to the suggested wish and nodded in agreement with Raphael's input. "I like to call it the Cinderella Clause. As in putting something in the wording of the wish so that at the stroke of midnight the slate is cleared again. If it works this time around, we can add different increments of time until we burn out the spell entirely." Some of the spells had been nice like that and they were able to use them multiple times until they no longer worked. Each time the spell was cast it wasn't as strong, but Zatanna hoped they could get at least a few uses out of it. "Is that okay?" she asked.
BELPHEGOR: They were relieved the wording they had was good, but they also felt like if they could use a wish for anything, it wouldn't be this. Sure, they wanted the silence, but they could do so much more with this. They nodded when Raphael and Zatanna both agreed that a time limit would be necessary. "So it would be I wish the Void couldn't speak until midnight?" they asked. It seemed simple enough. "Yeah, that's okay." Maybe they could use this for something else if it only lasted that long. At the end of the day it would go back anyways as long as they gave it the same time limit.
RAPHAEL: "I dated a trickster once. Wild magic," they grinned. It was an interesting time but they learned a lot. "It's probably best to add tonight at midnight specifically or it'll pull you out of the spell on any given midnight." Magic was peculiar like that but Raphael had faith in the spell. They hoped they'd get a few good uses out of it before it burned out entirely. They handed Zatanna the bowl of herbs they'd prepared for the spell so that she could start.
ZATANNA: "Ah, you too?" she grinned as she took the bowl from Raphael. "They're charming bastards, but they'll fuck you over as much as their magic will," she agreed. She hated these kinds of spells but at least it wasn't necromancy. She hated that more. She set the bowl on the alter beside Belphegor and dipped her hands in it. When she pulled her hands out of the bowl, her finger tips were stained dark. She approached Belphegor and drew a sigil on their forehead with her now stained fingers. "Alright, Bells," she began. "Close your eyes and clear your mind the best that you can. I need you to focus on your wish and only your wish." She knew that would be difficult. The void was likely extremely chatty right now in an attempt to break Belphegor's focus and fuck up the spell, but Zee had faith in Bells. She'd seen them clear their mind before for spells. "I'll give you a minute to do that now."
BELPHEGOR: Belphegor looked between Raphael and Zatanna as they talked about dating tricksters. It felt weird being in the middle of it. They both seemed happy about their exes being tricksters, but neither of them were currently dating any, unless you counted Michael as one for lying to them. "Would that be such a bad thing?" they asked. It would just mean that there was a chance for more time. Of course, it would've made it harder for them to prepare for. "I'll make sure to include it," they agreed, watching as Zatanna drew on their face. "Simba," they whispered in a deep voice. They hoped they weren't going to be held up in front of a crowd though. They weren't dressed in their best clothes. They closed their eyes as she instructed, but clearing their mind was harder. The good thing was that it was easier to focus on their wish. They'd wanted it for centuries now. I wish that Belgirel could be alive again until tonight at midnight. They wanted nothing more than that, to just get him a moments peace from the torture of the Void. He needed the break more than they did.
RAPHAEL: “I feel like Zachary would agree with that statement,” Raph smiled. “Which is growth.” Hopefully this wish wouldn’t bite them back as badly as Zach’s had. They gave Bells a sympathetic look when their sibling remarked that it wouldn’t have been a bad thing if the spell simply stopped working on any given midnight. Raph knew the anxiety of not knowing when the voice would return was probably just as exhausting as trying to block out the voice. They were glad when Belphegor agreed to include a time limit. Raphael stood close by and observed as Zatanna prepared Bells for the spell. They smiled at Bells joke. It was nice to see them in decent spirits despite everything. They nodded to Zatanna when they were certain that Bells mind was as calm as it would get.
ZATANNA: "We can only hope," she grinned. Zach was doing pretty good so far though she was sure he wouldn't really approve of this spell. It wasn't like she liked this kind of magic either. "It would be a pretty unpredictable thing and I do recall a certain Archangel telling me I should be more careful." She gave them an up and down look. It was them. They'd told her to be more careful. She was glad they at least agreed to include all the stipulations into the wish. She smiled softly at their joke and stood quietly by their side to give them a moment to clear their mind and hold onto the wish.
When Raphael gave her the go-ahead, Zatanna lifted her palm over Belphegor's forehead. The sigil on her palm and the sigil on their forehead lit up and for a moment, the two sigils began to create an intricate spider in the space between her palm and their forehead. The pull of the spell was strong. Zatanna waited until it was at its apex, almost close to pulling her in before uttering the spell, "Ruoy hsiw si ym dnammoc." She pressed her hand to their forehead and that was all it took. A white light and a strong wind over powered the room before quickly dying down. She was out of breath, but she and everything else in the room were still in one piece. "Trickster magic. Always so fucking dramatic." She pulled her hand away from their forehead and surveyed them for a moment. "How do you feel? Are you alright?”
BELPHEGOR: "You should really listen to their advice." Belphegor nodded, pretending not to realize it was them who had said it. Of course Belphegor considered themself different from Zatanna. She needed to be more careful, but they didn't. They knew what they were doing. At least they thought they did, and if they did get in trouble, they'd accept those consequences, whatever they might've been. They felt light as Zatanna's magic filled the room. They glanced around the room quickly as wind whipped around, expecting Belgirel to appear anywhere there, but as Zatanna pulled her hand away, there was still no sign of him. They sighed. "I feel fine. I don't think it-"
Searing pain spread through their body, and the bright room around them was replaced with dark emptiness. They screamed in agony before they could even begin to process what had happened. They didn't feel like they could move. From what little they could see, they were restrained, being held half in and half out of some kind of dark fluid. It felt heavy. Alive but also dead, trying to pull them down into its depths. A deep guttural laugh echoed through the Emptiness, and Belphegor could recognize that voice. Their eyes widened in horror as the Void took shape in front of them. "No, Belphegor, it worked exactly right. Your wish just took a little tweaking. Why should your twin get all the fun?" The restraints suddenly dropped down, and Belphegor's screams were drowned out.
BELGIREL: Despite knowing how his torture was used against his twin, he couldn't help the screams he made. The physical torture became repetitive, but it still hurt. It was still unbearable. He screamed even as the emptiness became filled and dark became light. His body didn't even recognize the pain had stopped at first. The only thing that really made a difference was that he could move. His body had collapsed on the ground, and he'd pulled in on himself. He could never do that before. His screaming stopped and he looked around, squinting to see through the blinding light. He hadn't seen that since before the Void had stopped torturing him with what Belphegor could see. "What trick is this now?" he growled at the Void. He recognized the people of course. the girl who'd bound herself to him before and Raphael. Those binding marks were still on his wrists now, along with his other scars from the Empty. This had to be a ruse of the Void's to rip hope from him once again. "Don't think I'll fall for this shit again!" He lunged at Zatanna, wanting to end the vision before it hurt his heart with false hope.
RAPHAEL: They grinned as they watched the banter between Belphegor and Zatanna. This was all dangerous, of course, but they were being as safe about it as they could be. The air in the room seemed to change as the spell worked its magic. Raphael squinted as a light filled the room but they made sure they always had a view of Bells and Zatanna in case something went wrong. For the moment, they seemed frozen in place. The wind whipped around them and toppled a few objects over. Some things crashed here and there but nothing that couldn't be replaced. It was all over as quickly as it started. The silence was eerie before Zatanna spoke.
And then the screaming started. It didn't come from Zatanna, but rather from Belphegor. Only...was it Belphegor? Something about them felt off. Their body was changing rapidly with new scars forming here and there. And their voice...it was a familiar voice, but it wasn't Belphegor's timber, pitch, or cadence. Raphael only had seconds to process who was standing before them before Belgirel was lunging for Zatanna. Raph's form shifted quickly as they pulled Zatanna away and stepped in front of her. Belgirel collided with them instead and was immediately swept up into a warm hug. This was both because Raphael was elated to see Gears and also because they needed to safely hold him until he could be talked down. "Belgirel. It's good to see you, little brother," they spoke in a voice full of emotion. "I know that you're scared and confused right now, and you have every right to be. But I need you to take a few deep breaths and focus on everything around you." They maintained a calm voice as they spoke. "This is not the Empty. You know it isn't. Warmth, light, magic...ours and yours. You can feel it because you're alive, Gears."
ZATANNA: She pressed her lips together in a smile when Belphegor pretended they didn't know she was referencing them. They knew. And they knew that she knew. "Naturally," she smiled. Though the smiles disappeared the moment the spell was over and the screaming started. She wasn't sure if she'd done the spell wrong or not, but she knew that wasn't suppose to happen. She was about to approach them to see if she could troubleshoot whatever was going on when they yelled angrily at her about this being some kind of trick. "It's not a—" she gasped as Raphael yanked her to the side just as Belphegor lunged at her. Zatanna grabbed onto the counter to support herself so she didn't fall, but in doing so she cut herself on some glass that shattered during the spell. She gasped and pulled her hands away before turning her attention back to the scene. Raphael was holding them now...and they'd called them Belgirel? Zee kept a cautious distance from the two Archangels as Raph tried to calm Belph-Belgirel down. Realization dawned on Zatanna's face. "They changed the wish," she whispered. "Son of a bitch..."
BELGIREL: He was stopped before he could manage to put an end to this vision, but it wouldn't let him. Arms wrapped around him, and although they weren't confining him completely, he felt like it was trying to. "No!" He screamed, struggling to get away. He wasn't going to fall for this. It wasn't real. It was never real. He reared his head back before trying to slam it into Raphael's head. It broke him away from them, but he wasn't prepared to stand on his own, so he fell to the floor. He felt more stuck then he'd been in their arms. He was breathing heavily, which felt like a new experience. When was the last time he'd breathed? He looked around him like this Raphael instructed. They were right that this didn't feel like what he'd known for centuries, but he didn't recognize it. He was distrustful, but he heard Zatanna. "What wish?" He asked. "What is this?"
RAPHAEL: Raphael wasn't expecting the headbutt but it was nice to see his brother still had a fighting spirit after everything. They adjusted themself, healing almost immediately, but they did not move to grab Gears as he pulled away and subsequently fell to the ground. There were gears turning inside Belgirel's head, all puns intended, as they tried to process what was going on. Raphael was still blocking Zatanna with their body in case Belgirel got a second wave of energy, but it was clear he was already spent. "Zatanna and I have were working on a spell with Belphegor to give them a moment of peace and quiet from the Void. We used wish magic this time. They were supposed to say I wish the Void can't speak until tonight at midnight but it would appear they had some ideas of their own." They were always wishing for Gears so although this was unexpected, it wasn't entirely surprising.
ZATANNA: As Belgirel eyed them suspiciously, she eyed him suspiciously. Raphael seemed certain that this was Belgirel they were dealing with but given that Belphegor changed the spell without telling them the exact wording, she wasn't sure what else changed. "They had the audacity to lecture me about being more careful and never go off script. Laeh," she muttered into her hand to heal the cuts and scrapes she'd received. She peered over the side of Raphael, their massive form still blocking almost all of her except for her head. "Hello." She waved cautiously with her hand which carried a rope burn that matched Belgirel's. "We met briefly before. I'm Zatanna Zatara or apparently better known as the woman that makes your oldest brother more tolerable."
BELGIREL: He was still hesitant to believe all of this. It sounded like a scheme the Void would cook up, and even now he could still hear people being tortured in the distance. It didn't sound like he'd gotten out, but some of this other stuff felt real. He was able to move freely, to breathe, to see light and color. "Hello," he greeted Zatanna. She seemed faintly familiar, though he didn't remember her well. The rope burns were more familiar to him, and he rubbed his wrists. "I wouldn't know you for that." He'd only seen her briefly. He had no idea how she affected Michael. "So they wished for me to be here? Then where are they?" He looked around. Why would they disappear if they had wanted to see him? His heart started racing and he looked down at what he was wearing. He pulled on the fabric, something he had never put on himself. They weren't his clothes. This wasn't his body. The screams he was hearing weren't just the standard ones. "No, no, no, no, no." He looked up at Raphael and Zatanna desperately. "You have to send me back! They're stuck in there! It's hurting them." He couldn't get back up off the floor but he pulled on Raphael's pant leg to plead with them. "Send me back!"
RAPHAEL: "No, you'd know her from the time she willingly bound herself to your astral form." They were among the people who wouldn't let Zatanna live that down. In her defense though, her self-preservation skills were improving. She kept her distance from Belgirel and allowed Raphael's body to continue to block most of his access to her. Raph could feel the panic building up inside Belgirel as he came to the realization of where his twin was now. It was hard to see Gears beg like this. It wasn't hard to imagine that he must've pleaded for his life like this more than a hundred times. Raphael's form shifted back and they knelt down beside their brother so that they were on even ground. "Zatanna, can you get us some water and food?" they asked. It wouldn't make the news any easier to deliver, but it was clear Belgirel needed some sustenance. As the magician went about the task, Raphael turned their attention back to their brother. "With the way this spell worked, we can't create a counter spell to bring them back unless we know the exact wording they used," they explained gently. Based on Gears confusion, Raph doubted he'd heard the spell Belphegor used but it was best practice to ask. Raph would never dismiss either of the twins input. Perhaps Gears did hear a word or two. "Did you catch any of it in the exchange?"
ZATANNA: "They're always saying that like they expect me to regret it," she sighed. "I, in fact, don't." Had it been dangerous? Yes, more than a little. But it also allowed Michael to tell Belgirel he was sorry and it gave all of them some knowledge about the Empty. Zatanna felt an ache in her chest as Belgirel figured out just where Belphegor was. Perhaps that was because she empathized with him or perhaps it was because he now controlled Belphegor's empathy manifestation, but his pain was palpable. Based on the fact that Belgirel could hardly muster the energy to move, she deemed that he wasn't really a threat. She was relieved when Raphael made the request for food and water. There was some in the mini-fridge at the front end of the shop. It would give her a small break from the heavy energy. "I'll be right back."
She was shaking slightly as she made her way to the front of the shop. She opened up the fridge but it was slim pickings. She hoped Beelzebub would stop by with more options. If Raphael could discern that this was Belgirel's energy, the others were sure to pick up on it soon if they hadn't already. She grabbed the PB&J sandwich, apple, and bottle of water from the fridge and made her way back over to the two Archangels. "I'm going to go call the others and inform them of what's happened," she told Raphael as she handed them the food. "I'm going to need you to tell Cupid though," she called to them over her shoulder as she made her way to the front of the shop again.
BELGIREL: He frowned. "What was wrong with her doing that?" Sure it had been practically torturous for them both, but she hadn't seemed all that bothered by it at the time, and he was used to torture, even if it did get significantly worse after that event. It still wasn't nearly as bad as this. The mention of food and water didn't faze Belgirel. They didn't register as real things to him since he'd go so long without them. He was far more focused on what was happening to Belphegor, hearing the pain they were in. "But we have to," he insisted. "You don't understand. You don't know what it's like in there. You can't know. They weren't supposed to know," he whimpered. He was desperate for something to get them out of there. "No. No. I don't- The Void hasn't been letting me see anything lately. It's just been- It was- It can't do it to them too." Storms started to rage on outside the shop, and although he didn't recognize it, his twin's powers were amplifying his feelings. His nails dug into his scalp like that would somehow stop the screaming or stop their pain, like he could transfer their pain to himself. He just had to dig deeper. Dig straight through your skull. He stopped when he recognized the Void's voice. He felt like he'd been slapped. He looked at what Zatanna had brought into the room. Fruit pulp between bread slices, another fruit, and water encased in some sort of clear membrane. His stomach screamed at him.
RAPHAEL: "The same thing that's wrong about Belphegor doing this. It's unpredictable and unsafe." Much like Zatanna, they were pretty sure Belphegor wouldn't necessarily regret their actions. Belgirel's panic and anxiety was building up with no signs of slowing down. Raphael conjured a circular ward around themself and Gears in an attempt to keep Belgirel's energy from spreading. They gently took his hand in theirs once he stopped digging his nails into his scalp. "With the kind of magic that was used, trying to undo the spell will only make it worse. If we mess with it they could end up stuck there forever, and I know you don't want to risk that," they explained gently as they waved their other hand over Belgirel's face to heal the small bleeds he caused himself when he dug his nails into his skin. "What I can tell you is prior to casting this spell, we talked to Belphgor about putting a very specific time limit on their wish. It's to end the spell tonight at midnight. They might have changed their wish, but I don't think they'd disregard that advice. If they don't return by midnight tonight, I'll perform a counter spell with whatever we can piece together. But right now, we have to ride it out and see where it takes us."
Raphael took the food that Zatanna brought forward. It wasn't much, but they needed to start Belgirel off with something small anyway. They nodded to her when she told them that they'd need to be the one to tell Cupid. It was probably for the best. She would likely have as much of a difficult time with this as Belgirel was having at the moment. They unwrapped the sandwich from the plastic wrap and held it out to Gears. "We're about to have some company over once Zatanna gets the message out to everyone. I'll do everything I can to make sure it's not overwhelming, but you'll need to eat first. I'm afraid it won't block out what you hear from the Empty but it'll help you stay in control of Belphegor's depression manifestation."
BELGIREL: He didn't feel like it was the same. Zatanna seemed to know what she was doing, but Belphegor had no idea what they were doing by sending themself into the Empty. It was worse than they could ever imagine. It didn't give him any sort of comfort to hear that trying to get them back could make things worse. "So what- We're just supposed to leave them in there? That . . . Thing finally got them in its grasp like it's always wanted, and we just have to let it torture them? How are they supposed to come back from that?" Even just a few moments in that place was so disorienting that there was no telling how long you actually spent in there, but he didn't want to risk them getting stuck there forever. He didn't know how to get them back even if he tried. "How long is that?" He asked, not sure if he even understood time anymore. He just wanted it to be soon.
He watched as Raphael unwrapped the sandwich. Apparently its outer casing wasn't part of the meal. He took the sandwich hesitantly, unsure if he even remembered how to eat. He opened his mouth, stuffed the whole thing in and swallowed. If he were human, it would've lodged in his throat, but although it had a rough ride, it went down well enough. It was strange having something in his stomach, but it made him feel like he needed more. He held out his hand for the other food Zatanna had given Raphael too. "Company?" He asked. "Who?"
RAPHAEL: "I know this isn't what you want for them, but it's the safest course we can take. I promise you when they get back, and they will get back, we'll walk them through the aftermath. They can do this, Gears," Raph reassured him. They had faith in Belphegor's abilities to hold out. Bells was more resilient than people gave them credit for. "Right now, all we can do is make use of the time we have which isn't a lot. Maybe 12 hours at most." Time likely ran differently in the Empty but it was hard to guess how different it was. They hoped for both the twins sake that Belphegor wouldn't be there for too long.
Raphael handed Belgirel the apple once he was done with the sandwich. At this point, they were sure Gears could probably beat Beelzebub in an eating competition. "Our family and probably Cupid, Dagon, and Andras too." They couldn't avoid telling Cupid or Dagon what happened today. And Dagon would be sure to bring her twin along. He'd probably try to bring Gears entire unit with him, but Raph imagined Asmo would put a quick stop to that. "Would you like to see them?" they asked. It was better to ask than to assume that Belgirel would be up for all of that. Based on sessions they'd had with Cupid, Raph knew there were some hard conversations Belgirel would need to have with her specifically.
BELGIREL: Nothing about it was safe, but there was nothing he could do about it. "No. There is no 'they can do this' to it. You don't get it." When it came to that place, your ability to handle tough situations didn't matter. It happened whether you could handle it or not, and then it just kept going. What was being able to do it even supposed to mean in that context? Of course they could do it. The Void would make sure that they kept going. They were basically already dead, and the Void wasn't going to permanently kill them when it had so much enjoyment in their pain and when the torture itself might push them over the edge once they got back to their body. Nobody really got what being in the Empty meant. There was nothing strong about existing in there. He wasn't strong for having been in there. He didn't just get through it. He just existed there to be tortured and played with for someone else sick and twisted amusement. How was anyone supposed to reassure him about his twin being in there? He looked away from Raphael. He didn't want to be reassured anymore. He just wanted to get this over with.
He silently took the apple. It didn't fit in his mouth whole at first, but he unhinged his jaw until it did. He swallowed it down too. His throat expanded as it went down slowly.
He had mixed feelings about seeing everyone. He wasn't sure what he could say to them, and he didn't want them to see him like this. He worried that some of them might be angry with him or that his presence might make them more upset, especially Cupid since Belphegor had taken his place in the Empty. He did want to see then though. He missed them all greatly, and it felt wrong to not see them one last time while he was here. He could get a real goodbye in before he left this time. "If they want to see me, yeah." He nodded.
RAPHAEL: "You're right. I don't," they agreed. Belgirel was projecting his own experiences onto his twin, but the difference was that for Belphegor at least they knew this would likely have an end. They would get to return to the safety of their own home. For Belgirel, there was no end therefore it was hard to imagine the pain ever stopping. There wasn't much Raphael could do to reassure him at this point other than to work on a plan with Zatanna to bring Belphegor back in case they didn't return at midnight.
They unscrewed the cap off of the water bottle and held it out to Belgirel. "Don't place the whole thing in your month," they instructed. "You're going to want to drink out of the opening. The container is not edible." They could hear the bell in front of the shop ding as people started entering. Familiar voices floated in but they did not enter the back of the shop just yet. "I'm sure they do," Raph smiled softly. They stood up and held their hand out to Belgirel in a gesture of support. "Can you stand?"
BELGIREL: He took the water container and was already starting to put it in his mouth before Raphael told him not to. It was hard to believe it wasn't edible when the container was so thin and clear, but he did as he was told, lifting the opening to his mouth. It was still awkward. He didn't have it properly lined up, and some spilled onto his chin as the rest made it down his throat. It was cool and refreshing, but once again, he felt a desperation to have more. In an instant, he'd sucked up all the water and crushed the bottle against his face. He handed it back to Raphael. "Sorry, I broke it. Can I have more?" He took Raphael's hand, using it to stand up, though his legs shook beneath him. He looked in the direction where he'd heard voices. He needed to seem like he was okay, so he wouldn't worry everyone. He willed himself to stand even if it was hard. "I can do it." He nodded and let go of Raphael's hand.
ZATANNA: Things started getting hectic as soon as the Archangels started arriving. The shop was small and filled up rather quickly. Zee knew that for Belgirel's safety, it was best to keep all of the visits contained to this location. Thankfully, she had a contingency plan. She had plenty of top hats at the back of the shop and inside those top hats she could create pocket dimensions that catered to everyone's taste. She excused herself from the crowd and made her way toward the back. She slipped in quietly in time to see Raphael helping Belgirel up. "The gang's all here," she replied as she picked up a top hat. "This place is too small for a family reunion, but I can create a few pocket dimensions for everyone. I figured you two can test them out first and while you're gone I can set up everyone elses. Do you have a preference for what yours looks like?" she asked Raph.
Just as she posed the question, she could hear Dagon's voice just beyond the door frame. "Andras, stop it. You can't go in there. Do you want Asmo to send you back home? Come on..." She could hear Andras complaining but their voices got further away from the door. She figured Dagon must've pulled him away. Zee let out a long breath. It was going to be a very long day.
RAPHAEL: “That’s okay. No harm, no fowl. You're still learning how all of this works." Raphael used to say those sorts of things all the time when the younger siblings were still learning their craft. "We can always make more.” The bottles were disposable after all. They conjured up a few more and handed them over to Gears. He seemed certain that he could do this, but Raphael could tell he was barely hanging on. The depression manifestation had at least subsided enough to make visitation safe. Raph turned their attention to the door as Zatanna walked in. They nodded at her proposed plan. Giving each of their siblings a pocket dimension of their own would keep the place from getting too cluttered and overwhelming. “That sounds like a good idea.” Their visit with Gears would not only give Zatanna time to prepare, but it would also give Belgirel more time to emotionally prepare for this influx of visitors. Raph didn’t know what the Empty was like, but they doubted there was much opportunity for friendly company.
“I think somewhere open and airy would be nice. Perhaps a forest clearing with a camping set up?” they suggested. They could make a small meal or perhaps roast some marshmallows by the fire while they helped Belgirel regulate and adjust. They chuckled softly as Dagon’s voice came through. News traveled fast among the angels. Andras was likely to make that sort of attempt more than once tonight. “I’ll monitor the pocket dimensions when I get back,” they assured Zatanna.
BELGIREL: The phrase Raphael used was foreign to Belgirel. He didn't know what birds were supposed to do with this. He supposed he was learning how the phrases worked too. He took the extra bottles Raphael made and tried to figure them out. He'd seen them pull off the top of one of them, so he tried to do that, but it didn't just come off by pulling it straight up. He pulled harder until he managed to force it off. He broke the lid, but he assumed it was supposed to do that. He drank the entire bottle again, managing not to smash it this time, and he moved on to drink the others until they were all gone. He didn't really know what Zatanna was talking about, but he was more focused on drinking all the water available to him.
He looked out towards the door when he heard Dagon and Andras's voices. He felt suddenly nervous and unprepared along with an excited thrill. He hadn't seen them in so long, and to an extent, he'd felt like being able to see everyone was just an exaggeration, but they were just out there. "Can I have more food in that place?"
ZATANNA: She watched with some concern as Belgirel tried to work the water bottles. "Yeah, I can do food. I'll add a small stream for you guys too." She held out her hand over the top hat and recited a few backward spells. Normally the dimensions she created weren't super ornate. They were used for storage or as free range farms for her animals or training grounds for her students, but with enough concentration and imagination, she was able to create a small campsite near a brook with lots of food and other provisions for Raphael and Belgirel. "Let me just make sure..." Zatanna put on the hat and disappeared within it. She ran one final check through the pocket dimension before reappearing in front of Raph. "You're all set." She handed them the hat. "I'm going to get the the other dimensions ready," she replied as she grabbed a few more top hats. "Let me know if you two need anything."
RAPHAEL: They smiled as they watched Belgirel figure out the water bottle. It wasn't exactly how it worked, but it certainly was creative problem solving and it got the job done. "Thank you," they replied when Zatanna offered to add food and a source of water for them. They watched her rapidly create the dimension and contain it in the hat. It was always neat to see her work. They grinned when she disappeared within the hat. There was a joke to be made here about magicians and disappearing tricks, but Belgirel wouldn't have the context to understand it just yet. A moment later, Zatanna reappeared and held the hat out to them. "We'll see you in about an hour," they nodded. As Zatanna walked away, they turned their attention back to their brother. "This hat will take us to a place where we can talk more privately. I've got a lot to tell you, but we'll take it slow." With that, they linked arms with Belgirel, placed the top hat on their head, and disappeared with him into the pocket dimension.
Beel laughed. “If only it was the fall. No, he’s always been like that. Belgirel was the same way.” At least he’d pretended to be, but he didn’t need to out his brother about how he’d felt. Even if he was dead, there was no need to spill his secrets, especially when they might get Belphegor to run the Empty some day. “Hopefully they’re making me proud too.” He trusted Charlie to make sure Sam was well fed, and Zatanna seemed sure that Sam would make sure Charlie was well eaten. “Oh, well, more for us.” He was more than happy to eat Sam’s half of the food. He took out a taco and started eating it. “Maybe. Lucifer says that Dagon reached out to him to propose some sort of meeting regarding their return, so we might see them soon.”
“Well, that’s unfortunate,” she laughed. “but i can see that the term brat must’ve originated from him.” at least asmodeus seemed like an adequate enough tamer. “ah, belgirel was like that too? that makes the binding spell i did slightly more awkward,” she joked though there was nothing even mildly enjoyable about that experience or its aftermath. “i’m sure he is. he’s getting better at the whole self-care thing. now that things have calmed down a little on the research side of things, i think he’s going to shift his focus a little more toward law school.” she was proud of him for continuing to work toward that goal. their efforts to solve belphegor’s curse had put him a little behind, but maybe after winter break he could get back on track. she took a sizable bite out of the taco as beel spoke. “well, that’s some progress,” she agreed. “do you think they’ll be making an appearance at this meeting?” she wondered if lucifer was nervous to face them. that wasn’t going to be an easy conversation to have.
Belphegor wished there was something more similar or even that they had any record of something like this, but as far as they knew, nothing like it had ever happened. Belphegor made plenty of new discoveries all the time, but this wasn’t one they wanted. “That sounds like fun. You think they’d let me come?” Dean hadn’t seemed all that fond of them the last time they helped him dig up some body, but Sam seemed to like them. “So you wear them for Michael then?” they assumed, grimacing. They didn’t care to know about their siblings sex lives, but when their brother was their neighbor and Lust, they saw more than they wanted to. They slept soundly at first, the hum of the gun keeping them asleep until the nightmares started. Their face twisted in pain, and they started muttering incoherently. “Stop,” they whimpered.
“It doesn’t hurt to ask,” she grinned. dean probably wouldn’t like the idea of belphegor tagging along but with some effort he could be convinced. though, putting in effort wasn’t really belphegor’s thing. “you might have better luck if you get sam on board first,” she suggested. then they could both convince dean. “no,” she laughed. “i wear them because i like them. the fact that michael likes them on me is just a bonus.” her costume, aside from being her signature look, held great significance to her. it was a play on the traditional outfits that male magicians wore. she could prove to the world that she can be feminine and just as powerful as the men in suits. she rose a brow as they fell sleep in the middle of their tattoo. she supposed she should have expected that. zee continued to work diligently on the art. she was almost done when they mumbled for her to stop. she uttered a spell to stop the tattoo gun. “are you okay?”
It might’ve been a lot of work, but didn’t he owe it to everyone to put in that work? He was surprised to hear that Zatanna thought that he wasn’t all bad. He mainly thought that he was just a nuisance to her for most of their lives. He might’ve grown up with her, but after a certain point he just went downhill. He hadn’t always been that bad. For the most part, he’d been a good kid and tried to be like Zatanna as much as possible from her personality to her skill to her fashion. It was sometime after he’d started using magic that he started to act out more, but it was hazy on what might’ve caused that change. “Can you even name one good thing about me?” He didn’t feel like he could, and maybe if she could, he could start there. “I know. I’m not asking for months. Just a few more days.” He wasn’t sure what he was going to miss out on though. It wasn’t like he had many real friends, and Zatanna didn’t typically involve him in her work either. “You really shouldn’t talk about him like that. It reminds people that you dated him.”
She looked at him sympathetically when he asked if she could even name one good thing about him. “well, for starters i can tell you feel remorseful for the hurt you’ve caused. it might not feel great to feel that way, but guilt is our way of correcting ourselves. generally speaking, all you’ve ever wanted to do was to entertain people and give them a good show. you’re not the kind of person to willfully use your powers for harm.” all the zataras ever really wanted was to make people forget how shit the world is while they were watching them perform. she nodded when he said he needed a few days. she hoped he wouldn’t turn into one of those hermit wizards from the movies. they always gave mages a bad rep. “you act like people let me forget,” she laughed. out of all of her exes, she figured nick necro would be the one that people would judge her for the most. or she figured it would be her almost relationship with bruce wayne. but no that road led to john constantine too.
Michael sat down on the couch and put his arms around Zatanna to draw her closer. As she leaned into him, he kissed the top of her head and rested his chin there for a moment. They didn’t get this kind of time to themselves often but it was important after all the heaviness they dealt with. Everyone was safe and in their respective places, including themselves. He chuckled when she remarked that it was hard to imagine anyone shadowing Aamon. “He was probably the only one of us who could handle that kind of energy. He surprisingly had the patience to handle it.” Michael couldn’t say the same for himself. Gears knew how to push the right buttons better than most. “A part of me wants to believe that you’re right,” he replied quietly. “And another part of me is worried we’re too late.” That part of his mind was much louder and screamed about his shortcomings. Had he just checked in on his siblings earlier, they could’ve started looking for the cures sooner. “We can undo all seven curses and it still might not be enough.”
“Is that what made him the way he is? losing his shadow?” it wasn’t an excuse for the harm and violence aamon had perpetuated, particularly toward tracy, but zatanna was trying to understand michael’s siblings. it was hard to imagine aamon as anything but a bitter winters night. she could tell that right now michael felt a certain coldness too. she rested her head on his chest as he held her and took ne of his hands in hers. her fingers to absentmindedly traced the lines on his palm. “is this about your actions being enough or you being enough?” she asked. “because if it’s the latter, i can tell you that you are enough. it will take some of them longer than others to accept that, but they can’t deny that you’re trying your best not only to cure their curses but also to fix your relationship with them.” michael wasn’t just trying to absolve a guilty conscience by righting his father’s wrongs. zee knew he didn’t want his familial relations to just end when these curses were gone. “they love you and they will still love you even if you can’t fix all their problems.”
“Zach dropped the chaos only for Sam to pick it up,” she groaned. “It must be contagious.” She hoped Sam wouldn’t take it any further than telling Cupid. That probably had consequences in and of itself. She hadn’t seen much of the hunter since they got back. He sort of just dove right into life like everything back there hadn’t affected him. Thorn wished she could let this all roll off of her in the same manner, but she was struggling. Still, she didn’t want to come off that way to Zatanna. She felt the need to impress her and she didn’t know why. She rose a brow as the magician stammered. We can figure it out. Figure what out? “Oh my god…” Thorn’s cheeks turned almost as red as her hair as she put two and two together. “No, no…” she placed a hand on her stomach reflexively. “It’s nothing like that. We’re not–I’m not pregnant,” she assured the magician. Her throat suddenly felt dry. “It’s magic related.”
“Ah, so sam convinced you he was an adult,” she grinned. “that’s one of his best tricks.” she and sam were good in emergencies but outside of that it was a different story. dean could probably tell her stories upon stories of their immaturity. as soon as thorn’s cheeks became rosier, zatanna realized she misread the entire situation. she eased up a little and was relieved to hear thorn wasn’t pregnant. now it was zatanna’s turn to blush. “oh, shit...i’m sorry,” she apologized. “it’s not commentary on you or anything. it’s just that my cousin...” she vaguely gestured as if to say zachary was prone to making bad decisions and a child would be the worst possible decision he could make right now. “i’ll pass on the message to him. i don’t know how willing he will be to talk about it. he’s been avoiding most things related to magic. but if he’s no help, i’d be happy to point you in the right direction.” assuming she was comfortable sharing whatever personal magical problem was plaguing her.
“imaginary. i want you to imagine that you’re full of tiny, itty-bitty boxes. and i then i want you to take your feelings, and i want you to shove them into those itty-bitty boxes.”
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