#ajco

“The possibilities are endless B!”

“Wonderful,” she said clapping her hands together as she hopped down off her bed and made her way over to the cabinet her television was sat on top of. Swinging it open she kneeled in front of it and ignored all of the questions being fired at her from the annoyance sitting on the bed.

Letting him know she’d be right back she spent a good ten minutes rooting around in the kitchen for the bags of popcorn she was sure she had brought into the compound.

“What’s this?”

“Well this-” she paused as she plucked the DVD box from his hands “-is Grease but this in general,” she waved her hands around the pile of DVDs mixed in with bags of popcorn, chocolate and bottles of fizzy drinks “We’re having a movie day!”

“I was expecting fun B!” he whined pulling a face when he plucked Dirty Dancing off the pile “Like vampire fun. Fun involving blood.”

“That’s what these are for,” she answered innocently as she pointed over to where her Halloween and Friday the 13th movies were sat “I’m pretty sure you’ve either spent your entire life daggered because you’re a little shit or out doing the things that led you to the daggering without taking time to keep up with these kinds of cinematic masterpieces-”

“This one is about a tornado that has a shark in it?”

“Cinematic masterpieces,” she said snatching the DVD he was holding up and placing it back into the pile “So sit back and eat your popcorn,” she said chucking him a bag of his own before she switched the tv on and started to set up the film.

“But I don’t-”

“Eat the popcorn,” she insisted glancing over her shoulder and flashing him a look at her electric blue eyes, laughing to herself as he obediently opened up the packet “This’ll be fun,” she continued diving onto the bed beside him. Reaching out she grasped onto the blanket at the bottom of the bed and flung it over the two of them.

They lasted barely a couple of moments before they were bickering over all of the different questions Kol was coming out with. He wanted to know whether or not this ‘Grease’ was the country or something different? Were they going to be singing the entire time?

It took a dig to the ribs and the threat of telling Ava he was being annoying while she was out before he promised he’d only ask relevant questions.

“You’re being quiet,” he said as he glanced to her halfway through the first Scream “I thought you said you liked this one?” he asked gesturing to the screen.

“I do I do!” she nodded shuffling beneath the blanket as she tried to get comfortable. Placing her bag of popcorn by her side she turned to face Kol properly “I was just thinking…” she paused as her eyes narrowed and she stared into his face “Were you Jack the Ripper?”

He shrugged “Yes.”

“What?!” she exclaimed kneeling up and turning so she was properly facing him as she reached out and pressed pause on the remote, ignoring his protests about how much he was actually enjoying this murder filled one “Wait wait wait…” she said placing her hand on his arm “The Texarkana Moonlight Murders?”

“Guilty.”

Briar’s jaw dropped open as she shook her head “I can’t believe I’ve never asked before! Why would I never ask?? Of course you lot could have been involved in all of these unsolved mysteries!” she said, her words getting faster and faster “The Zodiac?”

He thought over it for a couple of seconds “Yep.”

“The Atlanta Ripper?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Kol…” she began, her eyebrows furrowing as she tugged on his sleeve and made him look to her “Were you in the Manson family?”

“Not for long,” he said with a shrug “Didn’t play by the rules so Marilyn kicked me out.”

“Mar-Kol!” Briar groaned aiming a punch toward his arm “The one modern day singer you know is Marilyn Manson?” she said with a sigh as he shrugged his shoulders once more “Was any of that true?”

“I don’t know, I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he answered shrugging his shoulders “I’ve just learned that when I agree to something it makes you happy.”

“I swear to God,” she said placing her hand over her face “I thought I’d cracked some unsolved cases!” she whined putting on a pout “Have you really no idea what I’m talking about?”

“Okay I’ll let you play detective,” he said placing his own bag of popcorn (for someone who had pulled his face at eating it he was sure scoffing it down) at his side “Give me some dates.”

She took a couple of seconds to think over the unsolved cases she had blurted at him “Uhm 1888, 1946, 60s and 70s, 1911 aaaand the 60s again.”

Kol’s eyes raised to the ceiling as he whispered beneath his breath and worked out where he was during those times “I don’t know why I’m delaying it’s pretty easy. Daggered, daggered, daggered, not daggered but busy elsewhere and, you’ll never guess, daggered.”

“Oh,” Briar said with a sigh, feeling more disappointed than she was expecting “I thought I was sitting next to Jack the Ripper!”

“Sorry to disappoint,” he answered reaching back for his popcorn “My killings were obviously much more thought out. Intelligent even.”

“Yeah right,” Briar scoffed sending him a grin when he glared in her direction “Calm down with the popcorn you pulled your face at anyway. You’re getting crumbs all over my bed!” she exclaimed leaning over to try and pull the bag out of his hands. 

Settling down once she had triumphantly won she bit down on her bottom lip “You were daggered a lot in the past huh?”

“You can blame your little boyfriend for that.”

“I’m sure you had a part in it,” she laughed settling back down beside him “No more daggerings. I kinda like having you around...even if you do lie and get my hopes up.”

But the look of amusement slipped off Ava’s face at Briar’s words. Placing the cake tin down on the kitchen top she turned around.

“Ohhhh no!” Briar said diving forward. She had assumed her best friend was checking the calendar in a moment of confusion not that she’d have to wrestle a bottle of vodka off her “It’s six o’clock in the morning, you’re not having vodka!”

“You were gunna let me eat cake. What’s the difference?”

Briar let out an exasperated sigh as she placed the bottle back into the cupboard “We were going to eat cake later,” she said with a scowl “We never celebrate your birthday AJ! I just wanted to make you feel special!”

Ava was shaking her head as she bit down on the inside of her mouth and raised her eyes to the ceiling “I’d just...I’d rather not,” she said as she tugged the sleeves of her dressing gown further over her hands.

“But-”

“Briar please!” Ava snapped as she ran her fingers through her hair “Just leave it okay? Today’s a normal day,” she added in a softer tone as she eyed the alcohol cabinet before she wandered out of the kitchen.

“But I can fix it!” Briar said rushing after Ava “There doesn’t have to be cake I promise... I can’t really be bothered trying to make another one myself anyway,” she continued as she put a slight jog in her step to keep up with the redhead “I suppose I could call some caterers in though? Do you prefer chocolate or-?”

“B stop,” Ava insisted as she spun on her heel and held her hands up “No cake. No caterers. No mentioning it to another being in this household okay?”

“I just don’t understand why!” Briar said with a slight whine “You showed up to every single one of my birthdays with gifts and fussed over me making me feel like the most important person in the world and I never got to pay you back for that! I never got to help you celebrate, help you feel like the most important person-”

“Today isn’t my birthday Briar!” Ava blurted out, cutting through Briar’s sentence before she could say any more.

“I...yes it is?” the younger of the two replied with a confused look on your face “I remember you being at mine and Katherine mentioning it,” she said with a shrug “How you were another year into your life and you should be celebrating not moping.”

“I didn’t know you were listening in that day,” Ava said with a sigh before a small smile came to her lips “Though I’m not surprised, you were always lurking around somewhere when we were meeting with your mum,” she added teasingly but her smile soon dropped from her face “Today isn’t the day of my birth it’s the day I died. The day Katherine killed me.”

“I...but - what?”

Ava smiled as she reached out to rub Briar’s arm “She insisted we celebrate that instead of my birthday to convince me this new life was so much better for me,” she explained before she shrugged “But discussing the inner workings of the psychotic Katerina is the only thing lower on the list of things we should be doing than celebrating my death day.”

“AJ I...I’m sorry,” Briar said with wide, sad eyes Ava most definitely did not mean to cause “I’ll make it up to you! My misunderstanding! When...well, when is your actual birthday?”

Ava paused as she tapped her fingers against her palms and the corners of her lips tugged into a nervy smile “Well I don’t...I don’t remember,” she stuttered with a shake of her head and a shrug of her shoulders “When you aren’t surrounded by familiarity and the only day of the year Katherine mentioned in passing was this one it’s easy to let things like that slip.”

She let out an ‘ouff’ as Briar launched forward to pull her into a tight hug “It’s okay B I’m used to it,” she chuckled as she reached up and patted the younger girl’s back “I know the year was seventeen forty five and that’s all that matters to me.”

“Go and get dressed,” Briar said once she had pulled out of the rare hug Ava allowed “Me and you are spending the day together. Like old times.”

Ava narrowed her eyes almost in suspicion “Aren’t you playing mummy and daddy with your hybrid husband and his child today?”

Briar rolled her eyes in reply “Klaus isn’t my husband and you know you love Hope as much as the rest of us,” she said shoving Ava’s shoulder jokingly “I just want to spend the day as just us,” she added with a shrug “Maybe you could tell me more about what you remember of your old life? Even some stories about Almyra?”

Ava frowned, if her heart beat she was sure it would have skipped. Just hearing her little sister’s name sent all kinds of nostalgic feelings flooding through her body “You remember?”

“I remembered this date after one eavesdropped conversation Aves multiple stories about a princess called Almyra when I was younger was bound to stick,” Briar said hooking her arm through Ava’s as the two wandered back toward the stairs “Plus I am a SuperWitch.”

Ava let out a groan “You and your superwitch shit,” she said with a teasing look as she elbowed her friend gently in the side “Thanks B.”

The large crash of glass shattering echoes through the open halls of the castle and all Nights can do is sigh and go back to work. It seems it happens at least once a week, so she has stopped bothering to go out and look. She simply goes back to the book she is reading as she lounges on one of the couches in the sitting room.

Several minutes pass without any further disturbances, as though nothing had happened. Then distantly, a voice calls out.

[BlueSky] Niiights!

It calls out again, louder, as though the source is getting closer very rapidly.

[BlueSky] Niiiiiiiiiiiiiights!

Nights groans as she closes her book with a soft thump and puts it down. She sits up and stretches before looking down from the platform she’s sitting on. [Nights] Over here!

Blue dashes into the sitting room, sliding to a stop on the wooden floorboards, looking somewhat panicked with her ears pricked and fur ruffled.

[BlueSky] I think the newbie is broken!

Nights calmly makes her way from platform to platform, then down the stairs to where blue stands panicked. [Nights] Raziel? What do you mean ‘broken’?

[BlueSky] Well… something went ‘crack’ and I’m pretty sure humans aren’t supposed to go ‘crack’. I think.

Nights sort of looks both confused and concerned at the same time as she describes the ‘crack’ noise.

[Nights] Uhhh…. No. No, they should not make that noise. Where is he?

[BlueSky] After he ran into a wall we went to the forest. He then ran into a tree and didn’t seem to want to move much.

She starts to hop back towards to door, keen to get back to him.

[Nights] Why did he run into a tree?!

Nights briskly walks behind Blue, trying to keep up with her, all the while imagining every scenario in which someone would choose to run into a tree.

[BlueSky] I don’t think that was part of his plan. He was trying to slow down but doesn’t seem to have quite nailed how to land properly. I mean fair’s fair, it’s not the easiest thing to master.

They walk through the courtyard, Shattered glass litters the grass and roots. Nights looks up, seeing Raziel's window utterly shattered. There is no blood but there is bark missing from the large oak as they pass. They quickly walk out the large doors and make their way down the bridge over toward the sacred forest. There, in the distance, is Raziel, standing perfectly still with his hand on his back amongst the bright trees.

Blue bounds ahead to check how he is doing. She paces around him, ears back, still nervous about touching him.

Raziel grins awkwardly at the sudden return of Blue, he starts to walk slowly in circles, rubbing his back. The pain has reduced in amount but he still feels rigid from the impact against the tree. Upon spotting Nights he waves.

[Raziel] Morning Boss! Lovely weather this evening, don’t you agree?

[Nights] Blue said you were … uhm… broken? *She shouts out before she starts to jog toward him, her coat jangling with all the things in it as she goes.*

[Raziel] Broken? Well I’m not sure about broken but I am... *He goes to approach Nights before grimacing in pain from attempting to move.* In a considerable amount of pain! *He continues to rub his back.* I may or may not have decided to do another magic experiment that made me pick a fight with gravity... and a tree….

[Nights] So… it hurts to move but it only hurts in your back I hope? *She says in concern while she reaches into the inner pocket of her jacket to produce a shining flask with intricate carvings on it.*

[Raziel] Yeah that's right, I used a spell to try and reduce the damage,  but I guess I crashed a bit too hard… Although if you think I look a state you should see the other guy *He points to the human shaped dent in a nearby tree, pieces of bark lay scattered about the landing zone with the giant cracks now going up the makeshift safety net*

*Nights mutters something about that she’d have to be in the accipiter to make that kind of dent, before opening the flask and offering it to Raziel. The liquid inside is dark and foul smelling, like a strong chemical that’s not been ventilated properly.*

*Blue backs away and pulls a face as the strong scent meets her sensitive nose.* [Nights] Here, take a sip of this. Uhm… only a sip though.

[Raziel] Huh, I always did wonder what you kept in that, I always assumed whiskey or something... *He politely takes the flask off Nights, taking a moment to smell the liquid inside* smells like Jägerin...well, to your health Boss! *He takes a small swig of the flask's contents, coughing for a brief moment as his body reacts to the drink* Definitely not Jägerin! I almost had deja vu of Dante’s homemade rum... what actually is that?

[Nights] Give it a moment and you should be able to move back to the castle on your own. You just pulled a muscle, nothing major. *She says this ignoring his question rather quietly. She steps beside him and encourages him to stand up strait.*

[Raziel] Well that’s a relief, I think I’ve broken enough bones this year to say the least... *A very sudden wave of relief flows through Raziel as Night’s concoction starts taking effect*...aaand that’s way more powerful than I thought that stuff would be, power of science, never ceases to amaze me! *He laughs as he stretches his back, testing himself by bouncing up and down on the spot*

Nights cringes watching him, knowing when it wears off it will be all that much more sore. [Nights] You should try not to stress it more… it is still injured, you just can not feel it. Come now, we should go, and you should lay down.

[Raziel] That! Is a fantastic idea...let us be off! *He giggles as he turns towards the castle, somewhat stumbling as he walks onwards, quickly turns around in confusion* Oh! Blue! You're here too?

[BlueSky] Hi. *She deflates as it seems all her worry was for no reason.*

Nights looks over in concern, she didn't think this batch had that much of a stimulant mixed in. Then she realized he didn’t listen and mutters a few curse words under her breath.

[Nights] For bolts sake, you took more than a sip! *She says scowling at him* Now I gotta watch you…. *she sighs rather annoyed.*

[Raziel] *He smiles sheepishly, raising his hands in a surrender like pose* Sorry Boss! I honestly thought it was something a lot weaker and that I could handle it…

[Nights] Well we better get back to the castle before you pass out…. I have half a mind to make you bring it back up.

[Raziel] No need, I should be able to survive the journey..Now...*He points towards the castle* Onwards!

[Nights] He is gonna crash soon. *She says while rolling her eyes and trudging behind him toward the open back gates.*

[BlueSky] Well, don’t they say third time’s a charm? *Blue responded, carefully watching Raz walk.*

They walk along the long bridge and up the flagstone path to the castle, Raziel seems to slowly lose energy as they walk up hill and Nights gently encourages him forward. The large castle flag flaps lethargically in the wind above as they enter the back gates. Nights turns Raziel in the right direction with a hand as she heads toward the West tower library. They step onto the levitator and move up toward the warm cozy library, the whole time with Blue anxiously following, not sure how she could help but wanting to be there if needed.

As they enter she climbs to one of the elevated platforms with a series of large leaps, and settles down to peer over the edge at the two. Many books line the shelves sitting on the floors and a fire forever goes in the corner in the fireplace. The couches sit against the windows and large lounge chairs sit around the coffee tables in front of the couches. Nights points to a couch and and orders Raziel to lay down as she empties a trash can in the corner, filled with random scrap paper, and places it next to the couch.

Raziel flops onto the nearby couch in the library, the warmth of the room not helping his now already drowsy state. He struggles to keep himself awake, starting to wish now that he had actually paid head to Nights advice and had less of the concoction.

[Raziel] *He sighs and yawns* From zero to one hundred in less than five minutes... that truly is an interesting medicine you have there Boss.

[Nights] It does not do that in proper dosages. *She says as she settles into a chair after picking out a random booking that interested her. She's taken off her jacket in the warm room, laying it  down in a pile next to her as she settles herself in the chair.*

[Raziel] Duly noted..*He rubs his eyes, propping himself up to have a proper look at the collection of books on the library shelves*...Hey Nights, on a different note, don’t suppose you have any books on flying do you? Magic or otherwise?

[Nights] Many. As well as many notebooks on the subject. Perhaps when you feel better I will show you. *She could feel the blue eyes staring at them, but didn’t look up.*

[Raziel] Damn, I was hoping to start now *He yawns again,sliding back down onto the sofa* But okay, sounds like a...plan...thanks again…

The concoction finally takes it toll and Raziel falls asleep, it's less than a minute before he starts snoring.

Nights snorts in disbelief as she crosses her legs and settles into her book.