A/N: huge shout out to SadSaltyQueen for the assist in this! Mysti is her OC Ghoul and she helped create the dialog between Seth and Mysti!

Go check out her work! It's a One Piece fanfiction that is absolutely EPIC!!!

Also, thank you all so much for your continued patience! I'm sorry it's taken so long to get updates out, but hopefully soon I'll be able to spend more time writing!

Love you all 💖
Don't forget to like and comment!!
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The bed was large and cold, the sunlight streaming in through the curtains too bright making the lone man groan before pulling the blanket over his head as he rolled over, the action making him inhale sharply when he felt the almost pleasant ache in his lower half and memories of last night flooded his mind. He smiled to himself, letting out a giggle of happiness as he nuzzled into the pillow under him, taking in his ghoul’s lingering scent. He wished the body it belonged to was here, but alas, he was away to perform at a Ritual and wouldn’t be back until later.

His thoughts turned to Annie next. Since Rain was at a Ritual, it meant Annie was off looking for the next coven with Sage, Ace, Mysti and…Kali.

Seth’s smile fell, and his heart gave a soft pang of hurt. It was that ghoul that Rain had called out last night in their passion, not him. It had all been perfect until then. But… Seth couldn’t hold it against Rain. Not really. He knew the ghoul had lingering feelings for his former mate, and before he agreed to be with Seth, Kali had been the only other partner he’d had. And Rain didn’t seem to notice the slip up himself, so, maybe it was only an accident? Something he said on instinct? Surely Rain wasn’t thinking about Kali the entire time they were…

The man is brought out of his thoughts by his stomach giving a loud grumble, demanding food. He wondered what time it was, anyways, and a quick glance at his phone told him it was just before 11. He was glad Copia had given him the day off.

‘Wow, I slept a long time,” Seth thinks to himself as he sits up. “May as well get up and get some food, at least.’

It takes him a few minutes to actually find the will to move his body enough to get out of bed, but he eventually does so with a slight wince and a groan, bending over to pick up his scattered clothes. Or, what he thought were his for the most part. He ended up in his boxers and jeans and Rain’s discarded shirt but he couldn’t be bothered to look for his own, prompted by another painful rumble to his stomach that demanded food. The ghouls should have all been either at work somewhere within the ministry, at the Ritual, or with Annie so he was very surprised when he heard loud chatter and laughter when he neared the Ghouls main living area that was comprised of a large open concept living room, dining area, and kitchen.

“What..?” He says in slight shock as he stops in the doorway, seeing Ace and Mysti sitting at the counter eating as they banter back and forth. The two ghouls notice him and give him warm wide smiles.

“Seth!” Mysti calls over. “Hey, sugarcube! What are you doin’ here?”

“I spent the night with Rain,” the man says as he tries to walk steadily but he still has a very noticeable limp as he nears the counter. “Just got up a little bit ago and was hungry.”

Ace watches the man, their mouth widening in a growing, knowing smile. Mysti nudges them to shut up before they even say anything, but it doesn’t stop the ghoul.

"I thought I heard someone goin’ at it that wasn't Swiss and Dew. My man, congrats!" Seth can’t help but blush brightly at their words, reaching up to rub the back of his neck nervously.

“Ace! Knock it off!” The ghoulette scolds with another swat to her companion's arm, frowning at the limp as Seth walks closer. “Poor baby. You okay, sugarcube? Happy, I'm sure, but probably sore and hungry as hell.”

“Well, since you both clearly know why I’m here in this, uh, state,” Seth says slowly as he takes a seat, holding back a wince. Yup, he was definitely starting to feel the aftermath of last night. He still wouldn't change it for anything. “What are you two doing here? Shouldn’t you be with Annie looking for the next coven?

"We've already been gone and came back," Ace says through a mouthful of cereal, milk dribbling down their chin. Seth looks at them with confusion. Mysti rolls her eyes and shoves a napkin at Ace before turning back to Seth.

"We already went out looking but all we found was an abandoned settlement. Whoever was there, they've been gone a long time so we came back since we have no other leads on them."

"Which one was it?"

"Drudic."

Seth nods in understanding and looks around the island for what he can grab without needing to get up again, only seeing a banana marked with an 'A' that Ace picks up and peels.

"You know Aether doesn't like people eating his bananas," Seth says with a soft laugh.

"You're probably jealous there isn't another certain…banana for you to eat right now," the ghoul teases with a wink of their bad eye.

"Ace, enough already. Why do you have to tease people like that?"

Ace shrugs, letting out an airy laugh. "It's fun, and I'm bored. Bite me."

Mysti narrows her eyes before smiling sweetly and when Ace raises the banana she grabs their arm and pulls it over towards her. Ace’s brows scrunch in confusion before their eyes widen, their mouth curving into a half smirk as Mysti slowly licks up the side of the banana before taking it deep into her mouth, letting out a sensual moan. Seth blushes deeply but can’t tear his eyes away from the scene in front of him as this is so very out of character for her. The ghoulette makes a show of it until Ace is wriggling in their seat and when she feels Ace is into the implications of her suggestive handling of the banana, she hardens her eyes and suddenly bites down with a growl, biting the banana in half and Ace flinches with an audible gulp, clenching their thighs closed as their free hand covers their crotch. Even Seth from his spot flinches and his own thighs close with a wince before he laughs at the ghouls reaction.

“Keep teasing him,” Mysti says after swallowing the large bite of banana, looking the ghoul up and down as they set the other half on the counter. “And, well…”

Ace pales and groans, lowering their head to the counter with a thump before turning to face her. “I get it. Didn’t have to do that for me to get it…ouch. You can be one scary lady, you know that?

“Good.” Mysti beams and pats them on their cheek before turning back to her food.

“Do I even want to know what I walked in?” Kali asked with a laugh as he stepped into the room and Seth visibly flinched, something that didn’t go unnoticed by Mysti.

“Mysti was being mean because I was teasing Seth about-”

“About him over sleeping!” Mysti cuts off the ghoul, throwing her arm around their shoulder and drawing them in close to whisper harshly in their ear. “Shut your mouth. Please. Seth is already uncomfortable enough. Did you see how he reacted when Kali came in?”

Ace’s brows furrow and they glance over at the man, noticing his downturned gaze and nervous posture. “Shit. Sorry, Mys. I’ll stop. For reals.”

“I thought you were going to spend the afternoon with the girls?” Mysti asks, turning back to Kali. She takes note that Seth still hasn’t gotten food so she gets up and starts gathering some things from the fridge to make him something to eat.

“I was, for a bit. But Lilit was tired so we left her to nap. Annie went to her classroom to work on some orders that came in since she’s got the time today and I came down here for a bit to relax.”

“Didn’t Sunny want to drag you away at some point today?” Ace asks, finishing their cup of coffee.

“At some point. She ran off to do something else for a bit. Who knows what she’s getting into. Want a refill?” Kali asks, walking around the island to the cabinet, reaching over Mysti to grab a clean mug. Ace nods and hands theirs over and Kali fills both with coffee.

“Why don’t you two go see if Annie wants any help? Might learn a thing or two about what she does,” Mysti suggests, turning on the stove after mixing a batter together. She peeks over at Seth, seeing that he’s leaned over the counter with his forehead resting on his crossed arms.

“That’s not a bad idea. What do you think, Kal?”

“I guess I could. I’m always up for bugging my little sister. Just gotta stop by my room to get my mask.”

Ace smiles and scoots off their stool before pushing it back into place under the counter with their foot. They rinse their bowl and place it in the dishwasher, grabbing the other half of the banana and their mug before heading down the hall, Kali following after them.

Mysti waits a few minutes, flipping the pancakes when they're ready before she sighs softly. “You doing okay, Sugar?”

“Hmm?” Seth lifts his head and peeks out at her.

“I couldn’t help but notice how.. tense and nervous you got when Kali came in. Did something happen with him?”

Seth frowns and looks away, chewing at his lip while he rests his chin against his arms. “Not really. Not in person, at least.”

“Wanna talk about it?”

"I don't want to trouble you with it."

"Seth, honey" she plates the pancakes before walking over, setting them on the counter in front of him along with some syrup and butter before rubbing along his shoulders. "It's no trouble at all. I know we haven't really talked much before, but I'm here for you if you need it."

He smiles and leans over, resting his head on her shoulder a moment. "Thanks, Mysti. And thank you for making me pancakes."

"It's no trouble. You want a drink? Coffee? Juice?"

"Coffee, please," he asks timidly with a gentle blush rising to his cheeks. He wasn't used to someone fussing over him like this. Mysti smiles and pulls out two clean mugs, pouring coffee to fill one most of the way adding only about ⅓ to the second cup filling that one the rest of the way with creamer before she sets the creamer near him and reaches for the sugar, adding a generous amount to her mug as well.

"So….. wanna tell me what's up?" She asks as she sips at her coffee before reaching for more creamer, much to the astonishment of Seth. He watches her with wide eyes, a smile spreading over his face.

“I think you’re worse than Copia when it comes to coffee!" He laughs, shaking his head as he watches her. "Is there even any coffee in there?”

The ghoulette winks as she takes a sip, humming in delight when it's just right. "I'll say it this way. I like cream and sugar with a hint of coffee." She takes another dramatic sip before giggling. "I have no idea how y'all drink it with so little. I love the caffeine but it's still too bitter otherwise."

“I can understand that. I usually just have a splash of creamer and a spoonful or two of sugar. If it's flavored I don't need the sugar. With these long days working for Copia I've, like, had to live off coffee. I don't know how he does it.” He takes a sip from his mug before he digs into the pancakes with a sound of enjoyment. “Seriously. Thank you for making me these.”

"Of course! I usually don't eat breakfast type foods but I'm a sucker for sweet stuff and chocolate chip pancakes are one of the few breakfast foods I can handle! Mine are even better cuz I add vanilla to the batter. Don't tell anyone though. That's my secret." Mysti says while leaning closer before she laughs and takes another sip, watching him eat. "So…. I saw your reaction when Kali walked in. You doing OK with that?"

Seth pauses mid bite and looks over at her, his eyes flashing sadness before he sighs, lowering his fork. “You’re not gonna let this go, are you?”

"Nope! One of the worst qualities of mine, but I do it cuz I care 'bout people." She nudges him slightly with a small smile. "That includes you, Tadpole."

Seth pushes his plate away with a sigh, looking at the counter in front of him. “I..” He starts before hesitating, his cheeks flushing darker as he looks away. “Last night, me and Rain finally…had sex for the first time.”

Mysti gets up and grabs his plate, giving him some time to collect himself as she cleans up the kitchen area, putting the dirty dishes in the washer before leaning forward against the opposite side of the counter in front of him, hands reaching to grab one of his. "I hope it it was a good experience, but based on that tone am I safe to assume something happened?"

Seth nods, holding her hand lightly as a loving smile graces his face. “It was amazing. Magical almost. The way he made me feel… But then… at the end…” He has to stop, his smile fading, face scrunching with a mix of sadness and hurt as he lets out a shaky sigh. “He… He called out Kali’s name instead of mine.”

Mysti gives a small noise of sympathy and gently reaches over to caress his cheek. "Oh Honey, I'm sorry. I'm sure he didn't mean it at all. Judging from the way you walked in, there is no doubt that he loves you so much to be able to take that step with you. I may not have known him long but even I can tell that much. Nothing's gonna change that."

“Kali being back might.” Seth rubs at his eyes before his tears can fall. “I know how conflicted Rain has been over it. We’ve talked about it. A lot. And I know I said I would be there and support him no matter what he decided, no matter who he chose… But him doing that, intentional or not… It really, really hurt. I love him. So much.  And I don’t want to lose him…”

A sob breaks free from his chest and he can't hold it in anymore, lowering his face to his hands as he begins to cry.

"Seth…" Mysti lets go of his hand to walk back around the island where she takes a seat on the stool next to him, reaching over to pull him close and wrap him in a hug as she smooths a hand over his hair, gently rocking back and forth. " It's okay, honeybun. It will be okay."

Mysti pauses her gentle rocking when he takes a deep breath before pulling away, wiping at his face with a small smile of thanks cast in her direction and she returns it with a gentle one of her own.

"I am a firm believer in the two of you," she says, gently rubbing across the back of his shoulders. "However… I think you really need to talk to Rain 'bout this sweetie. He seems a little…dense when it comes to talking 'bout his feelings."

Seth gives a small laugh and shakes his head, reaching for his discarded and now cold coffee. “Not as dense as you think. He can often read what I'm feeling just by looking at me. He's observant like that." Seth pauses to take a sip before he takes a deep breath. “The talking bit might be an issue, though. I can tell you right now he’ll get overwhelmed and become non verbal, and it’s not always easy to talk when he's emotional. His hands shake and blur the signs a bit.”

"Us water ghouls are a little more emotional than others in a way. I'm more bubbly and energetic while Rain is more of the opposite, the quiet one per se."

“You didn’t know him before. He never used to be so…quiet and stoic like he is now. Like, he always was in a way, but he was more outgoing and happy and energetic before…” Seth looks away with another sigh. "What Kali did really, really messed him up. It was only recently that he started talking again. He was exclusively non verbal for 16 years.”

"That is true. But trauma affects everyone differently as one would know. I've had my fair share but that's not important right now." Mysti gently grabs his face and playfully squishes it between her cool hands. "He may have been non verbal for so long but you helped him get out of that. Even if you didn't know it at the time."

Seth playfully swats at her when she squishes his face, unable to help the small smile at bay from her action. “I know it affects everyone differently. And I know I’ve helped him come out of that shell he locked himself into. I just… I don’t want him to lock himself away again. To lock me out because he slipped like that. I worry telling him will do more harm than good. He’s stressed enough as is.”

She lets out a soft sigh of her own as she nods. "I know it's gonna be hard, but keeping stuff like this in a relationship will only make it worse down the road. If you want help, I can tell those two boys to put their big boy pants on and finally talk like the adults we are. It's driving me a little nuts, not gonna lie."

Seth looks at her confused and she pokes his nose, giving a slight giggle at his confusion."What I mean is that they need to sit down and talk. About Kali coming back and what happened between them. What they want to happen now."

“They did, though. A little bit at least.. Remember that day Kali was in the dress? He and Rain walked Annie back and she let them talk.”

"That's true,  but maybe you should also sit in. Clear the air with everyone. Make the water clean and clear, not the muddiness that's happening right now." Mysti sighs and rubs her head with an apologetic frown. "I'm not so good with relationships like this since I'm ACE but I am still pretty good at reading the room and the people in it. I really think you should tell Rain, honey."

“They kissed.” Seth pauses to see her reaction, noting her slight wince. “The night we all got high. You and Ace were pretty well gone on the floor so you probably didn't notice, but they kissed while shotgunning a hit. Kali ran away after but Rain… He's never even looked at me like how he looked at Kali then.”

The ghoulette pauses to collect her thoughts, tail flicking like a cat behind her. "Don't be mad, but what if…" She stumbles over her words, trying to find the right ones before giving a sigh. "Have you considered letting Kali join you two?"

“Just hear me out!” She holds up her hands in front of her as Seth gives her a look. “If Rain kissed Kali, maybe it could have been a goodbye? I don't know, because as you said I was gone that night, but would you be upset if Kali was with you guys?"

“I could barely handle one ghoul!" He laughs before sighing sadly, giving his head a slight shake. “I haven't, no. That's… not something that I ever really considered. Not with Rain. It doesn't feel right, and even if Rain and I were open to the idea of a third… I'd just feel in the way if it was Kali.”

"This is why I think all three of you need to sit down and talk, Bugaboo." Mysti pokes him gently in the forehead before standing up and reaching her arms above her head in a long stretch, her back popping several times before she rolls her neck.

“Nothing about it will be easy. And… I’m scared at what Rain might actually choose. Who he might choose.”

"Well, he chose you right now, right? That has to mean something. Besides, if you need me I'll be here. I always have time to listen."

Seth nods and takes a deep breath before letting it out as a shaky sigh. “Thanks, Mysti. I know relationships aren't really your thing. But…You’ve given me a lot to think about.” He looks over at her and gives a small smile before resting his chin on his hand, elbow propped on the counter. “It’ll have to wait, though. I don’t want to distract Rain with Midsummer days away. We need to be ready for anything.”

"That's true. Forgot that was happening soon." Mysti looks over at him with an evil but playful glint in her eye and he sits back, concerned at the look. "Besides, if one of them does something I can always take them to my pond."

“And do what, exactly? Both are water ghouls. or at least part water ghoul, in Kali’s case.”

"Smeh, details aren't important. I scared Ace earlier."

“You scared me, too!" He laughs loudly giving his head a shake. “Remind me to never get on your bad side.”

Mysti wiggles fingers at him in a joking 'I'm gonna getcha' way before laughing.  "Good idea. Now, what are you up to then for the rest of the day?"

____________________________________

“So what’s Sunny got planned for ya later, Kali?” Ace asks as they turn down another hall, the overhead lights glinting off of their silver masks.

The ghoul shrugs, sipping at his coffee as he walks. “No idea, if I’m honest. She’s fairly unpredictable.”

“You seem to have gotten pretty close to her lately.”

“She wasn’t around when I was here last. Hard not to like her, though. Even with as annoying as she can get.”

Ace laughs and shakes their head. “You got that right. I thought I was bad before I met her.”

Kali looks over at his companion and gives a silent laugh. “The difference between you two is she’s a very open book. With you it’s hard to know what you’re thinking before you open your mouth.”

“I like to keep people on their toes.”

“So I've noticed,” Kali mumbles over the rim of his mug before taking another sip. “This doesn’t taste like the usual coffee. What one did y’all’s make?”

“Just one that was on the counter. I like it! Very yummy and packs a bit of a punch.”

Kali’s steps falter and he stops, shoulders falling as he groans. “Purple and black container?”

“Yeah, why?” Ace stops and turns to face him, confusion reflected in their eyes.

“We are so dead.”

“Again, why?”

“That was Dew’s coffee. You know how he is about it.”

Ace laughs and shakes their head before taking a large drink of their coffee. “His fault for leaving it out! If it’s on the counter it’s fair game.”

“Your ass will be fair game if he finds out!” Kali can’t help but laugh as well.

“Nah. I bet he won’t even notice.”

The ghoul sighs and shakes his head as he starts walking down the hall once more and they fall into an easy silence for a while until Ace starts talking again.

“Soo…. Tell me,” they say, glancing over at Kali. The ghoul looks back, brow raising behind his mask as he raises his mug to take a sip. “Are you and Sunny like a thing now? With Cirrus?”

“What?!” Kali sputters and coughs, his sip of coffee dribbling out over his lip and he frantically wipes it away. “The hell did you get that idea?”

Ace shrugs and holds up a hand defensively as they laugh. “Hey, I’m just curious. You two really are, like, super close lately. She’s always clinging onto you and you two usually sit off in the corner. Seem a bit closer than friends, if you ask me.”

Kali sighs and shakes his head. “Well, we are just friends.”

“Seriously you two seem way too close for just friends. Always inseparable when you’re not busy. One would guess you two might even be….inseparable at night, even?” Ace’s eyes flash and their brow wiggles suggestively behind their mask and Kali chokes on his coffee again.

“Dammit, Ace!” Kali grumbles, wiping at the front of his shirt. “We are just friends. That’s it! I mean, yeah she’s tried but..I can’t focus on shit like that right now.”

Ace frowns lightly and sighs. “Sorry. I’m pushy, I know. Don’t be mad at me?”

“I’m not mad. Just a little annoyed that you keep pushing it.”

“So why can’t you focus on ‘shit like that’ right now?”

“Because there’s…more important things to worry about. My sisters, for one.”

“Well, what’s something else?” Ace asks after a while when Kali doesn’t say anything else. “Talk to me, man. You know I’m here if you wanna talk about shit.”

“There’s really nothing to talk about.”

“I’m not blind, you know. Not entirely.” Ace turns to face Kali and points to their one white eye. “I can still see out of this one, too, even as bad as it is. You’ve got a weight you’re carrying and I see it every day. It’s more prominent when a certain ghoul is around.”

“What are you..?”

“Rain.”

“Don’t,” Kali says lowly, his voice almost growling. “Don’t even go there. That’s not something I want to talk about.”

“That alone tells me so much.”

They walk in silence as they round the next corner and take a flight of stairs up a level before turning back down the hall towards the classrooms. Ace keeps glancing over at Kali, brows furrowing behind their mask as they try to get a read on the ghoul before letting out a sigh.

“You should really talk to someone, you know,” they say after a while. “It’s not healthy to keep shit bottled up.”

“There’s nothing to say, Ace.”

“Isn’t there?”

“If you don’t stop I’ll sic Mysti on you. I don't know what happened before I came into the room but based on your expression and her laugh It was something good.”

“She’ll just ask you the same, friendo. We worry about you. Not just as our friend, but if you’re distracted while we’re out guarding Annie…”

Kali turns quickly to face Ace and backs them into the wall, trapping them with an intense fiery gaze as he leans in close. “When we are out with Annie the entirety of my focus is on her and her safety. Don’t you ever question that again.”

“Chill! I’m sorry!”

Kali sighs and steps back, raising a hand to cover his eyes as he shakes his head. “No, I’m sorry. Let’s just get to her classroom, okay?”

Ace nods and pushes off the wall after Kali turns and walks away, shaking their head with a sigh. They wished the other ghoul would open up to them, but at the same time they understood why he didn’t. They’d already pushed their luck today and didn’t want to risk pissing off Kali even more. Luckily they were soon at Annie’s classroom and could hear her singing softly from inside. Ace was tempted to sneak in and startle Annie but Kali beat them to it, stepping lightly as he crept up behind her, but as Kali reached out for her she turned her head to the side a bit and thrust her right hand under her left arm and sent a strong gust of wind that knocked him back several steps.

“Damn! Almost gotcha, Solros!” Kali laughs.

“You’re lucky it was just air, Kako,” Annie smiles widely and turns fully to face them. “What are you doing here? I thought you went to the dens to rest?”

Kali shrugs and steps back over, setting his mug on her worktable. “Mysti kinda kicked us out. Told us to come bug you and learn some witchy things. Whatcha working on?”

“Some herbal remedies. A couple salves and a tincture. And I got a tea request.”

“Sounds interesting. Want any help?”

“Do you know plants?” Annie asks with a smile, crossing her arms lightly across her chest.

“Ah, not really,” Kali laughs softly, reaching up to rub the back of his neck.

“Confident enough with your fire abilities to dry out plants without scorching them?”

“That I can do!”

Ace laughs and finds an empty chair, sitting backwards on it to lean against the backrest. “I’m just here to watch.”

Annie turns and looks at them with a smile, shaking her head. “Nope. If you’re here you’re gonna help.”

“But I don’t wanna!” Ace pouts as they whine, shoulders sagging.

“Do you have anything better to do?” Annie asks, turning back to her work table to sort through her piles of fresh herbs and plants, setting some aside into smaller piles. She smiles when Ace simply sighs. “Can you go to the kitchens for me and ask Sage for a large bottle of vinegar and a grain alcohol between 40 and 70 proof?”

“I can do that. Anything else? Snackies? A drink?”

“I think I’m good. Kali?”

Kali shrugs and sighs. “I could eat but I can also wait.”

“Alrighty!” Ace says with a smile. “I’ll be back. Stay out of trouble you two!”

Annie rolls her eyes with a soft laugh. “See you soon, Ace.”

Annie continues to work quietly after the ghoul leaves, setting the selected piles of herbs in front of Kali to dry. He glances over at her between bundles, blowing on his hands to cool them a bit before turning to the next.

“You doing okay, Solros?”

“Hmm? Yeah. Why do you ask?”

“Just wondering. You’re awfully quiet today.”

Annie sighs and rests her hands on the work surface, leaning against them as she lets her head hang. “I’m just worried. Midsummer is in three days, and anything could happen. I don’t feel like I’m prepared enough. On top of that, there are the covens. Two of the four we found and warned. One was already gone and one tried to kill us. There’s only one more we can get to before the deadline, and there are probably others out there that Ma didn’t know about. What if they get attacked too?”

“Annie,” Kali sighs and steps over to her, wrapping his arm around her waist to pull her close. “I’m sure there are. But, you did your best and we have to just hope that things will be okay. In the end, we need to focus on us and ours. So that we can survive and work on bringing those monsters down.”

“Can we?”

“Can we what?”

“Bring them down.” Annie leans her head against his shoulder with a sigh.

“You’re a badass witch with a fuck ton of power. You’ve got a horde of ghouls who would follow your beck and call, follow you into battle to protect you. You’ve got a Cardinal who loves you who will do whatever he can to see those beasts taken down. You’ve got friends who have your back, no matter what. And you’ve got a brother who will protect you with his life. We will take them down, one way or another.”

“You make it sound so easy,” she laughs softly before sighing. “It’s just hard to see it with everything going on. With so much bad with not enough good to balance it out.”

“There’s plenty of time for more good to come.” Kali reaches his free hand over and gently hooks his fingers under her chin, tilting her head up. “Just keep your chin up, yeah? And have faith that everything will work out.”

“What would I do without you, Kako?”

“You’d be bored out of your mind with no one to pick on you like I do, like only a brother can.”

“Yeah yeah.” Annie rolls her eyes and nudges her hip into him. “Love you too, Kako.”

“Now then,” He laughs and presses the cheek of his mask against her head before letting her go. “I got the herbs dried out. What do we do next?”

____________________________________

“Copia!”

“Amore-oof!” Copia laughs as he catches Annie with a stumble when she flings her arms around his neck, lifting her off her feet and twirling her around. “What has gotten into you?”

“Just happy you’re finally home,” she smiles when he sets her back on her feet. “It’s been a long day and I missed you.”

“I missed you too, amore. How did it go today?”

Annie sighs lightly, giving a small, sad smile. “We found an abandoned settlement where the coven should have been, so with no other leads we were back pretty quick.”

“Ah, I am sorry, cara.”

“It’s okay. I was able to get some orders finished with the spare time I had today because of it. Kali and Ace helped.”

“That’s good.” Copia gently cups her face, his leather clad thumb brushing over her cheek before he leans down to kiss her gently. “It was quite hot today at the Ritual and I’m in desperate need of a shower now. Did you want to join me?”

Annie blushes and shakes her head. “It’s probably best if I don’t. I can get dinner started in the meantime. Any requests?”

Copia hums softly in thought as he kisses her forehead. “I have nothing in mind. Whatever you feel like making, amore.”

“Alright. I’ll surprise you then. Go enjoy your shower, hun.”

He nods and, with another kiss to her forehead, heads off into the bedroom. Annie sighs lightly, a smile on her face while she rubs her hand over her face, chewing at her lip as she slowly turns around, stopping when something catches her eye. Cocking her head to the side her brows scrunch together in confusion as she walks over towards her section of the bookshelves.

“Something is out of place, but what..?” She says to herself as she looks over her collection of herb jars and already concocted remedies, down over the lower shelves full of books and when she leans closer she spots it. They were out of order with several pulled out and hastily put back, including her mother’s Book of Shadows which was in a different spot entirely. It sent a chill down her spine.

Someone had been in here. There was no other explanation.

Annie turned on her heel, skirt flaring up around her as she ran to the main door and looked out into the hall, looking down one direction and up the other catching sight of a pair of ghouls walking away. She whistled to get their attention, both flinching at the harsh sound before quickly turning and jogging over.

“Yes, Ma’am? Is everything okay?” The taller of the two asks with a worried tone as his companion looks up and down the hall.

“Are you two the ones who patrolled this hall today?”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

“Did you notice anything out of place? Anyone who wasn’t supposed to be here?”

The pair look at each other with confusion before letting out a series of chirps and half syllables.

“Did you notice anything, Mojich?” The shorter of the two asks.

“Just the cleaning crew, but they didn’t go in her room or the other sisters. What about that Sister that passed us?”

“Tall with green eyes? She was leaving Prevens rooms with an arm full of books. His assistant, I believe.”

“The other two, as well. One went to Cardinal Thomas’ rooms and we didn’t see her for a few hours. The other, I’m not sure where she went after knocking on Cardinal Copia’s door since we turned down the next hallway, but she was gone when we came back through ten minutes later.”

Annie’s eyes widen at that and she replies to them in ghoulish, making the duo look at her with wide eyes. “What did that one look like? The one who knocked on our door?”

“I didn’t know you understood us. Forgive us,” the shorter says with a bow of his head. “She was shorter. Not sure her hair color as it was hidden under her veil. Had a bit of a limp.”

“Was that everyone you saw today?”

The pair nod.

“Why didn’t you mention the sister who was at my door earlier?”

“We figured since the doors remain locked it wasn’t an issue. You can’t access these rooms without the proper key. She seemed harmless enough, and she didn’t have the same scent as what was on that found habit."

Annie relaxes a bit at that before nodding. The ghouls look at each other before turning back to her. "Why do you ask? Is something wrong?"

"My books have been rearranged. Things not where I left them. And, yes. You can open locked doors if you’re a witch."

The ghouls' eyes widen, having not known that tidbit of information. "Want us to check it out? We might be able to scent something you can't."

Annie thinks for a moment before nodding. "I don't see why not. Let me just go tell Copia you'll be there so he doesn't startle."

They nod and Annie ducks back in to give copia a heads up and close the bedroom door before allowing the two ghouls inside, leading them over to the shelves where her books were kept. They looked around, sniffing along the spines of the books and surrounding areas before pulling back with soft sighs.

"Not picking up much aside from you and the Cardinal," the taller of the two says with a frown.

"I caught a very brief whiff of an old fire, different from yours. And some kind of herb mix, but that may be from what you've got in the jars up there," the other chimes in with a shrug. "But other than that nothing else seems out of place. Was there anything else you noticed?"

Annie shakes her head, giving the pair a small smile. "No. That's all. Thank you, Mojich, was it?"

"Yes Ma'am!" The taller one says with a bow of his head. "At your service."

"And you are..?" Annie asks, turning to the other with a smile.

"Chyllis, Ma'am."

“Fire and Air?” They smile under their masks and nod. “It’s nice to meet you. Thank you for patrolling, and for coming to check this out.”

“It’s our job, Ma’am.”

“Annie.” Mojich tilts his head to the side and she laughs softly. “You two are new, hence why I didn’t know you. And it’s just ‘Annie’. No need to be so formal with me.”

“Are you sure? It seems…rude to just address you by name.”

“You’ll get used to it. Thank you again.” They bow their heads and walk to the door, followed by Annie who smiles as she lets them out. “Take care, you two. I’m sure I’ll see you both again. And if you see someone by our door again, please let us know.”

“We will. Have a good night Ma’-Annie.”

Annie watches them walk down the hall before closing the door with a sigh. She only knew one person with burns and a limp that would come up here, but it couldn’t be her. Annie would have sensed if she had magical abilities as that was the only way to get in here without a key. Plus she was so timid and unsure. Annie’s move to her classroom for making her remedies was something fairly new and not everyone knew about it yet, so it would make sense why she came up here to look for her. They hadn’t told anyone that she was still looking for the covens. Maybe she’ll go check on her tomorrow when she has some free time, to make sure everything is okay.

But, that still begged the question. Who was in their rooms, and who, or what, messed with her books?

Annie walked back over to the shelves and pulled out her mothers book of shadows with a grunt of effort, walking over to the island counter to set it down with a thump before resting her hand on the cover. The energy radiating from it seemed….agitated.

“Bliorax, zorge. Zir kures,” she says softly, rubbing her thumb against the leather. “Zamran ol fafen ol unig.”

Raising her hand the book’s cover flies open and the pages quickly turn of their own accord before stopping on a random blank page that slowly starts to swirl with ink that spreads out in tendrils before runes are visible, the inking looking scratchy and rushed and Annie’s brow furrows trying to make sense of it.

ᚢᛖᛁᛚᛖᛞ ᛖᚢᛁᛚ᛫ᛚᚢᚱᚳᛁᚾᚷ ᚾᛖᚫᚱ
ᛏᚫᛖᚹᛖᚱᛖᛞ ᛋᚹᛖᛚᛋ᛫ ᛁᚢᛏᛖᚾᛏ ᚢᚾᚳᛚᛖᚫᚱ
ᚹᚱᚩᛏᛖᚳᛏ ᛏᚻᛉᛋᛖᛚᚠ᛫ᛞᚫᚢᚷᚻᛏᛗᚱ ᛗᛁᚾᛖ
ᛁ ᚳᚫᚾᚩᛏ ᚷᚢᚫᚱᛞ ᚫ ᛋᛖᚳᚩᚾᛞ ᛏᛁᛗᛖ

“I don’t understand…” Annie whispers softly with a sigh. “Was someone here? Did they try to do something to you?”

‘Yes.’

Annie's eyes widen at the new runes to appear. “You…you can understand me? Answer me?”

The runes grow wider as they darken, emphasizing the ‘yes’ before more appear.

‘There is much you need to know, child, and you are running out of time.”

“What do you mean?” The ink slowly fades from the pages as Annie leans closer. “Wait! Tell me what you mean! Ma!”

More words start to appear before a loud noise breaks through her focus and they fade to nothing once more.

“Annie!”

She jumps and turns with a small shriek when hands grab her from behind, raising her own defensively before she focuses on a very concerned looking Copia, blinking her now burning eyes before closing them and pressing her palms into them.

“What? What’s wrong?”

“I should ask you that. I came out of the bedroom and you… you…” He makes a face as he stumbles over his words, gesturing to his eyes while trying to put together what he was trying to say and do so in english for her. “Glowing. And your hair was flying about as you spoke in tongues. I couldn’t get your attention.”

“...What..?”

“You were doing things, Amore. Your eyes were stark white and glowing. Blood…” Copia sighs and gently takes hold of her face, looking her over before focusing on her eyes, wiping his thumb over her cheek before pulling away to show her the smear of red on the pad of his thumb. “This happened before. When your powers did a thing and you spoke in tongues. What were you doing?”

“Someone was in here today,” Annie eventually manages, reaching up to brush her fingers against her cheeks, pulling them away to show them lightly smeared with blood. “The book… They tried to do something to it. It… it was talking to me.”

Copia looks behind her, seeing the blank pages with a frown before he reaches over to grab a napkin from the small pile neatly tucked into the holder they sat in before carefully wiping her face as she continues.

“It sounds crazy, I know. But…it wrote words to me. Talked to me.”

“It is just a book, no?”

“No, it’s not. My mother enchanted it, poured a lot of her magic into it. A part of her lingers within its pages, and it was giving me a warning.”

Copia sighs softly, a worried look on his face as he makes sure hers is cleaned from the trails of blood before tossing the used napkin into the trash. “What warning?”

“Whoever it was tried to tamper with the book, and to be careful because it can’t guard me if it happens again. And that I am running out of time. But… we knew that already. Midsummer is in three days. Unless it meant something else, but it didn’t elaborate. It was about to when you got my attention.”

“Are you okay, though? I am worried about you.”

“I’ll be fine. I have to be.”

Copia nods and takes her into his arms, lips pressed against her forehead in a gentle kiss. Yet, as he held her, his mind raced. Another warning, this time from her mother's magic that's residing within the book. So many warnings in such a short amount of time made him fearful. Would they truly be ready for what midsummer might bring? Or, he wondered, was this new warning regarding something else?