CATALYST.

The smile on her lips didn’t falter, merely widening infinitesimally at Isa’s question. If Juliet felt any hint of regret, it didn’t show in her gaze, which flickered from the woman in front of her to the funnel cake in her hand, then back up. Because if she felt a stab of longing in her heart, then surely it was for the dessert. 

“Seems like a question someone in your House Spooky would have the answer to,” she replied, leaning down to take a bite of the funnel cake, though she didn’t break eye contact with Isa, almost daring the other woman to protest. 

“Well, you can get back to me on that. But I missed you,” Juliet practically sang, never quite one to practice restraint when it came it pushing the buttons of those around her. Even if they were surrounded by big red warning signs.

☾

If Isabel hadn’t known Juliet as well as she did, she might’ve believed her to be a pyrokinetic with often she reveled in playing with fire. Certainly something flickered, at least she thought she saw some burning ember behind the pair of the prettiest eyes she had ever known, the same set currently focused on her — goading for a reaction. 

“They certainly would know best.” Isabel nodded along, taking another bite of the cake before settling it a couple of inches between them in a somewhat intimate offering, as if time hadn’t passed and all that remained was familiarity. She wouldn’t take the bait, no matter how tempting.... 

I missed you. 

Bullshit.

It was an uncomfortable mixture of weariness and resentment that guided her actions next. As if those three words hadn’t been at the tip of her fingers of every unsent text. Juliet certainly couldn’t mean them. (Could she?) 

No. No. Isabel wasn’t going to fall down those depths again until she was begging to be drowned. 

Whatever resolve Isabel held to remain civil in a public setting shattered in that moment. Retreating the once offered dessert, her hand glowed as the properties of the funnel cake turned into hard stone. Taking the no longer edible object, she chucked it unceremoniously in a nearby garbage bin. 

Elena laughed at Isabel’s reaction. However, before she could say anything, she felt a tug on her overalls. It was little Emilie, confused look on her face as she looked up at Elena. “She said a bad word. Miss says they’re not allowed.” Elena almost laughed again and she bent down to her height. “And she’d be right but sometimes adults say them by accident and we have to forgive them.” With all the seriousness a little girl could muster, Emilie turned to Isabel and said  “I forgive you” before kissing Elena on the cheek and rushing off.

Struggling to hold in another bout of laughter, Elena stood back up. “I will be sure to pass them on.” Soon, she lost her hold on her laughter and it came bubbling out of her. “Little Emilie is going to be terrifying when she’s older, I bet.”

☾

Any veiled desire Isabel may have had towards becoming a mentor was habitually brought into question by none other than her own behavior. It had been a reoccurring rumination whenever she spent time on the Oleander grounds or in the training room, engaging with the younger initiates. Offering some of her wisdom (usually on what not to do) if they ever asked. The thought never lasted long, but it sometimes made her wonder...

The present, however, wasn’t very convincing, even if it was just a slip of words, the little girl that seemed to be one Elena’s charges was not having any of the sentinel’s antics — intentional or otherwise. 

Isabel offered her best attempt at an apologetic smile before Emilie had already run off. “I won’t even bet on that, because you already know it’s going to be true.” 

✦

He reached for her hand when it settled against his chest, fingers gently grasping her palm to give it a light squeeze of appreciation. Just for the words, just for her presence, for never making him feel worse about those flaws he tried so hard to hide from everyone else. Better expressed in the next moment when he pressed the rest of the drink into her hand, a smile on his lips that was the closest to sincere as he could manage at the moment. 

If he understood what she was telling him, it wasn’t advice he’d ever known how to follow. He didn’t even like the idea of trying to make a decision that he couldn’t rationalize, especially when logically, he didn’t even know that there was any decision to make. 

“It’s a little stupid,” he said. Head tilting to the side to look at her, a faint smile on his lips because she could argue it, but it felt stupid. Something almost childish about just talking about the man when they weren’t together, like living out a brand of high school drama he’d never had. 

“I don’t know what I feel,” he admitted in the next moment. Those attempts to keep things light fading, and feeling slightly guiltier for it. They were already walking through a festival that they could only take limited part in, and not for the first time he thought he needed to find a way to make all this up to her sometime soon. “I don’t know what I should be doing. If anything. Usually when it’s done it’s done.”

Which was part of why it was complicated, but he didn’t think either one of them needed to say out loud what the more prevalent part of that was. Not only trying to find a way to handle Brody’s presence here, but do it while pretending the man had never meant anything to him. Certain that he lacked either the same confidence or courage as the woman walking alongside him. “You know, I’m constantly awed by how much braver you are than me.” 

☾

Isabel returned his warm smile and she squeezed his hand briefly as she accepted the offered beverage — to say without speaking that’d she always be there no matter what; that she was never without arm’s reach. 

She snorted then at Montgomery’s insistence, rolling her eyes gently at the insinuation that somehow talking openly about his feelings, no matter whom they were concerning could be considered trivial. As if she hadn’t come to him, too many times to count, with an uneasy mind and a bottle of tequila to warm their veins, to remind them that they were alive and that even a broken heart still beats. Which is why it was only fair that whatever he had to say, she’d listen intently, freely and without judgement. 

Should. She despised that word. The implication that there was always going to be a correct and acceptable way to do things, as if one size fits all when it came to matters of the heart. As if society would be more forgiving for who they were if they just acted a certain way deemed previously tolerable. It was a difficult lesson to learn, but one that was well ingrained in grooves of her brain — the world was always going to try and break you down into something more palatable, more agreeable. So by her reasoning, there was no point in trying to fit the mold when it was never designed to accommodate her and who she was in the first place. 

“That’s okay, you know? To not know.” It wasn’t her most eloquent reassurance, but she meant it all the same. She’d felt that turbulence of emotions before, the unknown of where you stand in another’s life and sometimes if you even made an impact at all. “This is new for you and I know you’re not going to like this,” She gave him a pointed look before continuing, “but you’re going to have to feel things out and what, in the moment, feels right to you. You don’t have to decide anything now.”  She downed the rest of the drink then, suddenly feeling the urge to repress a faint dimness of longing.

It was probably the equivalent of heresy of what she just provided as her advice to navigate this new and uncharted territory. Even so, she empathized deeply to the delicate situation Montgomery was in. The sheer amount of pressure that lain upon his shoulders and how even the slightest variable could disrupt the system and an ex was one hell of an upheaval.  

Brave. Yeah, right. Even if she personally disagreed with the sentiment that he was somehow any less comparably so, she still appreciated the tenderness of which his words bore, self-deprecation aside. “I’m not that brave. Reckless, definitely. But no more brave than you are.” 

With the festivities coming to end, Silver finally allowed himself to relax a bit; he walked around the game booths munching on some cotton candy, offering a little smile to someone familiar here or there but not slowing down even for a second to talk to anyone. He felt tired and worn out - The Peak took its’ toll on him, amplifying the voices he tried so hard to ignore all this time - so all he wished for was a long bath and some sleep to recover, get himself back in order before going back to his regular life.

Yet when Isabel appeared in his field of view, he pushed those plans back a bit; offering her a smile matching her own, he tilted his head, questioning what was this about. Whatever she had planned sounded a lot more interesting than just sulking around in a bathtub anyway… “Absolutely. Just… let me finish my cotton candy first - unless you want to stick it in someone’s hair, because I’m willing to give it up then.”

☾

“I’m thinking of something a little more nefarious, but no less deserved — I promise.” Isabel clarified, resisting the urge to clasp her hands together like a disney villain in case Silver might have any moral reservations for what she was about to ask him to assist her with. It certainly wasn’t the most devious scheme she’s ever come up with, but it would serve its purpose all the same.

Leaning towards him conspiratorially, Isabel began to explain her plan to him. “See that guy over there with the blue jacket? But don’t look directly at him.” She glanced over at him, allowing her eyes to point towards him as to not raise suspicion. “Yeah him. He’s been a dick all day, challenging kids to games knowing he’ll win and grabbing all the good prizes.” 

❖

As Isabel formed a truly dastardly plan, Emil gave her a downright scandalized look. “You’re asking me to commit a crime against humanity, but fine.” At least she wasn’t asking him to drink Starbucks, which would be a crime against his taste buds, but it did seem terribly irresponsible to lend his very convincing voice to such a horrible institution and their excuse for passably digestible coffee.

“If you lose,” he started, pondering an equally suitable bet before landing on one. “Then I get to set you up on a date. No questions, no protests, and you have to give them half a chance before you come whining to me at the bar for an exit plan. Deal?” He, of course, had a suitably elaborate plan in mind for how and why this would be amusing to him, but he was under no obligation to share that at this time.

Instead, he stepped forward to pay the person manning the simple bottle toss game, getting two sets of three baseballs, one for each of them to have a go. He had no spectacular skill at either strength or hand-eye coordination, but he suspected this game relied more on luck than anything else. Shooting Isabel another goading look, he nodded his head to the challenge at hand. “Shall we?”

☾

Any impulse Isabel may have felt towards cackling diabolically died in her throat the second Emiliano offered his proposition for the wager. A date. It sounded seemingly innocuous enough, deceptively too easy, but this was Emiliano and whatever unsuspecting prospect of a date he was intending to set her up with had to be something that certainly she’d never wager upon herself. She could attempt to pry, but the game hadn’t even begun so perhaps she’d wait to ask depending on how the tides turned. For now, he could keep his secrets. 

“Fine...” Isabel conceded, although not without narrowed eyes and a warning. “But...” she continued, as she stepped closer to the bottles, eyeing them as if to glean any sort of tactical advantage from their construction. “If they try anything inappropriate, I can’t be held responsible for what I potentially break.” 

Leaving him with that food for thought, Isabel gave a quick nod of affirmation to the carny coordinating as they placed the rings in front of them. “Thank you” she offered, going to pick up one of the rings and playing around with it in her hand. Truth be told, she wasn’t sure if that would do anything, but she hoped it appeared as if she knew what she was doing. 

Eyeing a bottle towards the left that appeared to be an easy target, Isabel bit down on her tongue as she attempted to line up the plastic ring before flicking her wrist forcefully forward. It clinged against the bottle and then clattered to the floor a little ways away. Perhaps she used too much force. 

“Don’t give me that look; you know I’d never change you for anyone else.” He offered Isabel a little smile; if someone told him upon his first arrival to Asphodel that one day they’d get to this point in their life, he would’ve laughed at them. He would’ve laughed at the idea of settling down too; yet here he was, almost entirely settled down and in fact enjoying this going their own way. “I might have an idea actually? But I’ll tell you more when we get there.”

He was grateful for the attempt of reassurance; although it wasn’t that easy, but he was willing to ignore that little voice in his head until it was really necessary to listen to it. “Shhh, once a year I’m allo…” …wed; would he finished if Isabel gave him the chance - and for a split second he was tempted to go the childish route and lick her hand. But instead he just opted for delicately pushing her hand away, giving her a wide grin. “Well… once a year I can wreck my reputation a bit, so if you have any ideas - I’m up for it.”

There was also that bottle of wine in his car, waiting for the accurate moment at the parking lot; for a second he thought about mentioning it - but then he changed his mind, rather resorting to keeping it as a consolation prize, just in case, if any of them would get absolutely wrecked by a kid. Not like he ever experienced it, no… It was all just hypothetical. Clearly.

Isabel scrunched her face up at him in question, “If you have something you’d like to share with the class, Raph, then by all means don’t be shy.” She didn’t mind taking the lead in most situations, more often than not she was usually dragging her companions along with her with whatever impulse popped into her head at the time. She lived much of her life that way, save for her duties with Oleander and the parlour — jumping from one whim to the next, no matter what path it lead her down.

“Only once a year? You schedule your fun time? Do you use spreadsheets?” Isabel continued to tease him lightly, prancing around him much like a child would. After a bit, she continued to lead them along the path, careful eyes glancing at their surroundings for anything suspicious. They were still on the clock so to speak.

“Don’t be such a baby. We haven’t been sparing for that long.” 

Isabel shoved him off her then, twisting his grab his wrist and pull his arm down and behind his back. It wasn’t an uncommon occurrence to find these two in the Oleander training rooms together and today was no exception. They had been trading blows pretty evenly for the past half hour. A few of the younger initiates gathered along the edges while some of the sentinels had settled in for the show too, a couple of them even taking bets on the outcome. Levi was stronger and well trained that was for certain, but she was fast and nimble and she tried to hold him in this position for as long as she could. A test of their wills and who would cave in first. 

She began to add extra pressure on a particular tender part of the wrist before Levi grumbled something that caught her attention. She perked her head up then, releasing some of the strain as Levi managed to wiggle free and out of her grasp, putting distance between them before she had a chance to retaliate. “What did you say?” 

“I said,” He took a deep breath, bracing himself in case Isabel decided to interpret his moment of clarification as an invitation to strike. “Eduardo’s taco truck is back.” 

The gears in Isabel’s head turned rapidly as images of fresh tortillas and carefully crafted guac suddenly filled her senses. 

“Don’t you be playing games with my heart right now, Levi Carstairs.” She threw out his last name for emphasis, to let him know she wasn’t fucking around. Not about this. This was serious. It had been years since Eduardo’s food truck had come rolling around, after a family emergency he had to leave Asphodel for a couple of years. But now he was back and perhaps, maybe, there could still be some hope left in the world. 

“How long has he been back for?” She rounded on him them, throwing a playful but forceful punch to his shoulder. “Why didn’t you tell me?” 

Levi dodged her hit easily, putting up his hands in defense shortly thereafter. “Well I’m telling you now aren’t I?” Levi offered, throwing one of his award winning grins her way. She tried to keep her glare level on him (why didn’t you open with this?!), but damn — it was always difficult for her to stay mad at that face. She couldn’t help it, as her features started to mirror his own. 

She removed the protective tape around her hands in record time as she began to head for the door, Levi trailing behind her. Moving seemingly too slow for her renewed appetite, Isabel grabbed his arm to move him along at a more expedient pace. “Come on, before you pass out from ‘lack of sustenance.” 

She ignored the angry and disappointed exclamations from those who had placed bets. After all, it seems they were about to both win with Eduardo’s tacos back in town. 

It was nearing four in the morning and the antics from earlier in the day had Isabel leaning heavily against the bar, elbows firmly planted in the varnished mahogany while her hands performed their most valiant effort in keeping her head held upright. Her eyes had begun to droop before a snap of fingers brought her out of her somnolent stupor. The uncharacteristic quiet of the Voodoo and the dimmed lights providing an unexpectedly lulling atmosphere.  

“I’m listening, I’m listening.” She reassured, readjusting the slump in her back before processing the last sentence Emiliano uttered. It wasn’t a sentiment lost on her, for his words mirrored and echoed in her own thoughts sometimes. The whole idea of marriage itself was a complex, occasionally touchy subject for her. Her mother never married her father and yet she stayed beholden to him while he treated them both like something he owned. She only ever felt compelled to the institution once and that person had already fled before even getting close to voicing such a tenderness into reality. 

But Isabel liked to think she knew Emiliano well, as much as he allowed her to perceive at the very least. For all his fancy clothes, eloquent utterances and penchant for adventure (which she ardently appreciated) — she believed him someone with a great capacity for love. It was obvious, if one paid close enough attention. The astute dedication he gave to their house, the way he’d go out of his way to help a friend in need, the compassion he showed to the downtrodden that circled through the Voodoo every night. 

For all the questionable shit they got up to, she always knew Millie would have her back when it mattered. When it counted. If that didn’t show an exceptional and rare kind of fidelity, then Isabel wasn’t sure what else could. 

Blinking away the tiredness from her eyes, Isabel fixed him with a look as if she were about to begin a Ted Talk.   

“First of all, that doesn’t make you any less deserving of love.” She was fairly certain Emiliano was about to interject, but she needed to get this all out before her ruminations turned to ash by the temptation of sleep. “Second of all,” She pointed a finger at him then, “you know yourself best and you know what feels right to you. Fuck whatever else anyone thinks.” 

Emiliano was shaking his head by this point, albeit fondly. He knew Isabel had a tendency to go on little tirades, especially while inebriated but it seemed the adrenaline was fueling her current orations. “And third of all, I’ve seen your messy bits and you’re still one of the best people I know. This world is lucky to get to share you at all.” 

Isabel stifled a yawn that attempted to sneak through her last sentence, blearily glancing over at her dear friend whose silhouette was starting to seep into the display of alcohol behind him. 

“Also, can you take me home please? I don’t think I remember where my apartment is anymore.” 

Isabel → Elena ‘Kill ‘em with kindness’ Kao

so obvi i’m not a professional baker but how many marshmallows are TOO many?? [ unsent ]

i dontfeel lik goin home alone can i crash at hestia’s pls/??? ? [ unsent ] 🍺

how tf are u not wifed up by now?? honestly it’s a crime [ unsent ]

i’m going to set u up with someone so watch out 🤪 [ unsent ]

do you think i’d be a good mentor? i know i say the wrong thing all the time but do u think i could do it?? [ unsent ]

thanks for sending me the notes from that last local business meetup i owe u a drink 😉 [ sent ]

"Just give it a minute. Trust me.” 

Isabel was sitting crossed legged across from them, somewhere on the outskirts of the Watering Hole. After having all but dragged Ulysses outside despite their protestations of preferring to stay indoors, she insisted they ‘bask in some nature together’ and that she had packed something special for them to try. She prided herself on being persuasive or at the very least, persistent to the point of tearing down even the most reinforced walls. 

She stared at them intently, eyes searching for anything varied in their expression. The most delicate of sighs, a widening of the eyes, she would’ve even settled for a minute twitch at this point. But when Ulysses expression hadn’t changed, her grin turned quickly into a frown. 

“Nothing? Really?” When Ulysses shook their head at her, confirming her line of questioning, Isabel threw up her hands in the air. 

“You mean to tell me that these beignets did not just change your whole life?” Deciding to prove a point the only way she knew how (by doing), she took a bite of the fluffy pastry and immediately hummed her appreciation. 

“You’re crazy, Uly.” She teased, playfully twirling her finger near her head to indicate as such. She took another bite before offering them some reassurances. “But don’t worry, I brought other Louisiana faves. One of these will blow your mind.” 

Isabel → Raphael ‘🔥🔥🔥’ 

i have evidence from the festival that u are in fact fun 😈 [ unsent ]

ur hot get ittt get it do u get it hhahahHAHAHHA [ unsent ] 🍺

one of the other sentinels said some shit about u so i ACCIDENTALLY broke his wrist oops [ unsent ]

tbh i don’t know why u put up with me sometimes [ unsent ]

i can’t sleep, u wanna go walk around the watering hole with me?? [ unsent ]

yo come over and watch ponyo with me don’t be a lil punk and say ur too tired 🥺 [ sent ]

Isabel → Monty ‘But they were soulmates’

when are we going back to new orleans?? this town is starting to feel small and i want to runaway with u again [ unsent ]

tu eres mi familia mi corazón el AMOR DE MI VIDA !!! ! !! 💕[ unsent ] 🍺

so i just watched this documentary about abductions and i’m going to be escorting u to and from work from now on [ unsent ] 

if anyone tries to hurt you again, they’re going to have to go through me and i won’t fucking hesitate [ unsent ]

sometimes i think you’re the only person who really sees me like all of me. u don’t make me feel like i’m too much [ unsent ]

i had a bad dream again, will u facetime with me until i fall asleep?? [ sent ]

Isabel → Rebecca ‘I won’t hesitate bitch’

i need u to help me ‘pretty woman’ this hoe at this store [ unsent ] 

do u speeeak franch??? bcs this man wont give me fries and i ned him to udertand that i nEED THEM 😤 [ unsent ] 🍺

when are u getting another tattoo?? u know u want to i’ll take good care of u 😘 [ unsent ]

can i borrow ur motorcycle?? i promise it’s for a good reason i need to make a dramatic entrance [ unsent ]

that book u recommended was so good but now i’m emo [ unsent ]

i need some new music to listen to and i know you have opinions(tm) so send me some recs pls?? [ sent ]