#barbeus

“And do you have any other questions?” She smiled encouragingly.

“Ah yes, now that I think of it. Can you tell me about the magic you have to employ for your large range of clientell?” You hoped you hadn’t sounded too eager, but the first day you had came into the shop, there was a man you met. A man that was so larger than life he would’ve had to stoop to stand inside your home, if he had been able to fit at all. You must have gawked up at him with your application in hand. Your head tipped so far back your body had to bow to follow your eyeline. What a handsome hunk of a man he was too, he had deep green horns, so dark you had thought they were black at first. A dusty blue-green complexion and striking emerald eyes you had gotten lost in. Your eyes had locked for what felt like enternity before his cheeks had dusted with a flush and he turned away. Starstruck and awed, you had watched as he had taken a package with large claws before disappearing into the large mirror. Just like that, he had left the shop and returned to whence he had came. This being had came to this tailor shop and it had made your head spin. You had heard stories about the five demon brothers who guarded a territory up in the North-West. It was rife with rumors and speculation, but the only thing that was confirmed were that they were much larger than the average folk. You wondered if it had been one of those men. You never would have thought to see one of these infamous creatures in a tailors shop of all places. You wondered if you would see him again, if you got this job. Next time you hoped you wouldn’t stand around with your eyes bugging out of your head.

The interviewer smiles and taps her chin, “Well that depends, for folk with more than two arms there are patterns that are avaliable. For adapting in another set of sleeves on a two armed garment, that can be rather tricky. For those who live underwater there are enchantments to keep the clothes warded to keep longer in water, and yet others which absorb quanties of water for those who need to be on land if a personal reason arises. I would say the trickiest would be for our few special customers. They are larger than all typical clients and need their clothes specially created. You can’t simply increase the size of, for example a shirt, without the fabric becoming very, very thin. You would need to have in some cases at least ten pairs of shirts to equate to the right size.“

”Oh. So to scale up you would need a lot of fabric. That makes sense,“ You were beginning to feel foolish about your comment but she nods, “That and we need to increase the volume of the fabric too, the thread that would be needed should be thicker as well. That way it is comfortable to handle for those clients.” The interviewer smiles, “Nobody has ever asked that before, that was a very thoughtful question.” You smile and try not to shuffle your feet awkwardly, the only reason you thought to ask was that man. He had been dressed to the nines if you remembered correctly, a sharp pinstripe suit. Had it been silly for your mind to keep you up at night thinking about how someone that large would have to accquire clothes? Perhaps a little, but sewing was a passion and goodness, one little sewing machine trying to take on such a large amount of fabric sounded Herculean. Not everyone that tall could sew surely.

“Would that be the reverse for say, smaller folk, like some fae or pixies. To make sure the thread isn’t too thick it would have to be split?” You ask,

“That’s right, although it’s much easier to split the threads and make smaller clothes than larger ones. But you are correct, it’s in the same line of thinking.”

“My mom used to knit pixie sweaters when winter came around.” You smile thinking back on that fond memory. “She had to use teeny tiny needles and croquet hooks to make them. There was also a couple of magically enchanted frogs who would also stop by for new seasonal sweaters too.” You laugh, “They were quite the storytellers.”

“Sounds like you had an interesting childhood,“ she chuckles.

“I think that’s all the questions I have,” You admit, leaning forward to shake her hand. “Thank you for taking the time to interview me.” The handshake is warm and firm.

“It was a pleasure,” She replies, as your hands part she smiles. “Have a lovely day, it’s supposed to be bright and sunny out there.”

”That‘s funny huh?” He huffs, his voice sarcastic but you can tell he is playing along and your shoulders shake harder, sides heaving from trying not to laugh. A big ringed hand reaches down, playfully musing your hair. “Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up, wise guy.” His voice loses the sharpness then, “Not sure when I’ll get back tonight Sweetheart. You don’t worry about me alright? If you don’t wanna wait around for dinner, I can order something for us both.”

You tilt your head, peeking up at him as he straightens and adjusts his tie. “You know I like cooking, big boss man. Besides, you can’t live on buying food from restaurants all the time.”

He raises a brow. “Yeah? An‘ why is that?”

”Home cooking is better,” You say simply.

The corner of his mouth twitches in the ghost of a smile. “S’long as it makes you happy Sweetheart. Do whatever ya want.”

Your hands linger on a glass casserole dish, thinking. The suite at the top of the building Barbeus owned was your home. It was a gorgeous space. Tailor fit for the demon that resided within. The serious, down to earth businessman who mostly lived and worked in one place and rarely went elsewhere. Everything could be ordered in from the outside, and you lived very similarly. Yet, there was a little thing you had entertained in your mind for a while now. A thing you had wanted to ask for, but couldn’t bring yourself to speak the words.

You run a finger across your lips, nail scraping against the skin.

You loved showing your affection with food and keeping the place tidy, but there was a fear that if you asked for too much, or took up too much space, the loving life that had been crafted around you would split into a thousand glass shards. Even after all the reassurance Barbeus would give you, an old sharp wound still lingered. It had been there so long you hadn’t even realized it existed until he had noticed it.

”Maybe today I can ask…” You mumble softly to yourself, sliding the step stool back around to a new spot, you gather ingredients for the casseroles. Grating cheese over top of the two different sized pans then placing them into the oven to cook. Setting an egg timer you wander out of the kitchen. In the parlor of dark blue jewel tones trimmed with a vibrant electric green you pause in front of a full length mirror. Chewing on your lip you reach out and caress the glass. The black and green art deco surface ripples and clears, Barbeous is at his desk. Horned head bent low, his expression dark as he skims over the papers in his clawed hand.

You open your mouth to speak, but the words stick to your throat like molasses.

“Bar-Barbie? Honey?“

He looks up sharply, his scowl rearranging to worry. “Sweetheart?

“Is this a bad time?” Your eyes drop immediately, darting around and unable to look at him. “I can call later or-or.”

”No, baby, it’s fine. Did you need something?” His voice is the same tonation, but slightly flatter than you expected. Chewing on your lip more leaves the tang of metal on your tongue.

“I was… wonder-wondering, if we could eat out for dinner?”

“I can order something, what would you like?”

You swallow hard, “I want-ted. To. Know.” The words came out stiff and warbling, “If. We. Could-could. Go to a Rest.Tur.Ant. Tonight?”

“You want to go out to eat?” Your knuckles go white squeezing your hands together and you nod mechanically, not daring to look at his expression.

”Yanno. It has been a while. I think I know a nice place we can go. Unless, you have somewhere in mind,”

”No!” Your words come out in a relieved rush, “No, no, I mean. I would love, if…” You picked at your nails, “I would love it if you picked the place...”

”I think you’ll like what I have in mind. Quiet. Not a lotta people. I have a little more to do, then I’ll be home to pick you up, alright Sweetheart?”

You nod, looking up with a relieved and hopeful smile before your image fades.

Barbeous watches the glass go dark and leans back in his chair. Steepling his hands together. His brow knotted with worry and confusion. Sweetheart was usually a pretty happy person. Cheerful and mild tempered compared to his gruff personality. But every once in a while, something like this would happen and it would make him worry. Sweetheart would act as if they were waiting for him to take a swipe at them. This meek terrified side would surface and he felt ill-equipped to deal with it. Against every rule he had laid for himself he begrudgingly had asked his whackjob of a brother Zelle to help him assess the situation. Zelle was a certified lunatic in charge of a lunatic asylum of a zone, but had an uncanny knack for unraveling how intelligent beings' minds worked. The conversation however had been less than insightful.

Zelle grinned widely and rested their slender hands on their chin. “The main take is this, brother of mine! They have baggage. Like all of us do! If they open up and tell you, you can support them. But if they continue to leave you in the dark, weeeeell you can only do so much! So you have to let them know, you want to know what’s going on! You have to get all warm and fuzzy with all those big warm and fuzzy feelings!”

“Great.” Barbeus snarks, “Just what I wanted to hear.”

Zelle shrugs, “You can’t help if you don’t know what’s wrong. It might not even be something you’re doing that scares them. It may just be the past.“

”Tha past…?” Barbeus had glared into the distance.

“Yup! Could be. I don’t think I can tell you anymore unfortunately.”

Barbeus glances at them with a brow raised, “An’ why is that?”

Why Barbie, don’t you know? I’m crazy in the Cocomelon!” Zelle sang in an offkey voice.

”Th’ hell is a… no. No.” Barbie raised a hand, as if he could push the cursed phrase away. “No. Nevermind. Don’t wanna know.”

“Welp. Good luck sport!” Zelle winked and gave a thumbs up before his image faded from the glass.

And this is why Barbeus tries to avoid Zelle like the plague if he could help it. He blinks back to focusing on his office and growls. Shuffling his paper work.

The casseroles are cooling on the table. You sit in a high chair, feeling like a child as you swing your feet and stare at the two dishes. One larger than the other, they sit side by side, cozy and at rest. You let your vision drift out of focus, the soft warm yellows and oranges hazing into a molten smear.

You thought rousing the courage to ask for something you deemed as fun and romantic would be exhilarating. Give you more courage, but the opposite happened instead. Fingernails drumming on the table as you glance up at the clock. Only five minutes had passed from the last glance at the time. Your stomach twisting into a series of knots. Sitting here wasn’t doing much for your psyche, and you needed to try and think of something else.

Sliding off the chair your vision comes back into focus. You look around the space. Dishes in the dish rack, one set big, the other small. The coffee cups are the same, the chairs. Barbeus bought these things for you because he wanted you to fit. Your fingers grabbed onto that line of logic and stared at the space around you. He wanted to install a ridge of small steps around the counter so you didn’t have to drag around that wooden stool. He wanted to fit you in comfortably, and more than that, the effort to do so was here. It was in the furniture, the pots and pans, the dishes. The sets of things, one large and one small that sat nestled together. A tear rolled down your cheek, and you took a shaky breath.

You weren’t a hurdle, nor something to be compromised. Your happiness wasn’t expected to be put on a shelf for convenience. Some days it was hard to remember that.

You wiped at your eyes with the hem of your sleeve and moved through the house. Stopping at the bedroom before going inside. You rummage through the closet of your clothes, stopping once you find the dress you are looking for. You let the silky blue fabric slide over your hands. It matched the suit and tie he had worn today.

You had slipped on the gown and now stood in front of the mirror, putting on a pair of pearl earrings. Stepping back to look at your appearance. You give your reflection a hesitant smile just as the door opens.

“Baby I’m home,” You glance over your shoulder and Barbeus pauses in the doorway, a cake box in his hands. He stands still for a moment before a grin scrawls over his face.

“...You look beautiful baby.”

He takes the time to carefully close the door. Your fingers fiddle with an earring as you walk over to him. Both of you move slow and hesitant, you wrap both your arms around his middle and lean against him.

“I’m sorry,” You murmur against his arm.

“Sorry? Ya got nothing to be sorry about,” his clawed hand runs up and down your back.

“I made all that fuss about home cooking then asked to go out. I…”

“Fuss?” Barbie chuffs faintly. “We were jokin’ around. I told ya, if ya want something, just ask me.”

You feel movement around your ankle, and peek down to see Barbie's spaded tail loosely draped across your skin.

“I want you happy Sweetheart, you know that, don’tcha?”

You nod, before nuzzling your face into his side. Taking in the smoky scent of his cologne.

“I know. It’s just hard sometimes, to ask for things. I don’t want to be a burden.”

“Who said you were a burden? I would like to have a word with them.”

Your lips lift into a weak smile.

“I think gettin’ outta here is exactly what we both need. Let me spruce up a little, an’ then we can step out, alright?”

You reluctantly let him go, but your smile feels more genuine, more you. “Get a wiggle on it, boss man.” you hum, he snorts in response his tail slowly unwinds from you.

He squeezes your shoulder, heading into the kitchen with the box, before returning empty handed and pausing in front of the mirror. He unbuttons his pin stripe jacket to smooth out his rumpled button up. You watch his reflection meticulously collect himself as you join him beside the mirror.

“What was in that box?” you ask,

“I had ordered something special from the bakery, you’re birthday is comin’”

You laugh, “My birthday is almost a month away still!”

Barbeus grins, “You’re telling me you don’t wanna start celebrating early?”

The mirror ripples and you see the city street winking with nightlife.

“After you doll.” Barbie rumbles, your hand brushes against his, holding the tips of his clawed fingers. Then you step through the mirror into the muggy city air. Barbeus’ form joins you a moment after and you let your hand slide up to hug his arm.

“Are you going to tell me where we’re going?” you ask softly,

“I think I’ll leave that as a surprise.”

“Cake surprises, dinner surprises, I don’t think I can handle any more surprises,” you tease and Barbie gives a huff of laughter.

“I think you’ll be just fine, doll.”

Valentine: If Barbie is considered the father of the city, Val would be considered the mother. Strong demon mum who will kick your butt. Has a fiery temper, no patience to be taken lightly, and a strong sense of justice. The city fears her, even Barbie is cautious not to make her mad. x//Dc She runs a very classy establishment for singers and other musical entertainment. A well renowned signer herself. If she likes you, she will adopt you in a sense of the word, but don’t let her know someone made you cry, she will destroy them.

Sly: Local mirror station ‘radio’ host, with chaotic energy. Hyper and silly, but is mistakenly seen by many as a loan shark for the way he talks and dresses. A little scatterbrained but has a good heart, despite his bright untrustworthy appearence. Has a high pitched HIHIHIHI laugh when he finds something extremely funny. Chaotic goofball!

Stella (Purple horns): Sly’s assistant. An imp who got swept into the radio man’s antics when he offered her a better paying job than the one she had as a secretary. She didn’t realize she would feel like she is babysitting him though! Practical and punctual, her boss is anything but, which has been tough on her, please pray for her and give her lots of coffee. Sly doesn’t mean to drive her bananas ;U; )

Mellow (Green hair): As name suggests, Mellow is very chill. Happy to join in why Sly’s shenanigans with a goofy smile. Is the moderator and peace keeper between Stella and Sly. Mellow looks up to Sly a lot as a boss, and had their hair colored vibrantly to mimic the goofy guys. Is in charge of making sure the mirror networks are working properly and other magical hiccups that may arise.

Wally: Relaxed and goofy imp that works under Barbie’s main big building. Is one of the best paid imps there is. A little ditzy and silly, but tries their best to take care of and help other imps in need. (Imps are techincally the bottom of the food chain besides humans) Is dating Mere’s Eric <3<3<3 And there was an incident with a cake this one time. . .

Benny: Fiesty taxi driver, who couldn’t win a fight with the other person’s hands tied behind their back. He still tries though! Pretty much lives out of his taxi, broke baby who usually spends all his money on food. This string bean eats a LOT, has a very high metabolism! (Most imps do!)

Rat (Rathbone): Shady crooked creature, who slinks around in back allies like raccoon in a trenchcoat. Don’t feed him, he will follow you home and is next to impossible to get rid of!! (Somehow keeps letting himself in, you swear you’ve locked all the doors and windows.) Rat knows the streets and secret short cuts like the back of their grimy paw. The resident ghost of the city. Has been known to come out of no-where and rescue folks from muggers… by smashing a bottle over the bad guys head and then proceeding to steal their wallet while they are unconcious. Is happy to help someone in a pinch, and can be swayed by offereing some kind of compensation. Also is a bit of a pervo—(Don’t kiss him, you don’t know where he’s been)