#corruptedcodex

Cian had been living with Doug and Donovan for a little while now. He had met both of them, but he was more familiar with Doug, since Donovan tended to have night shifts and was usually asleep when he was awake. However, although he knew the both of them, he still did his best to stay out of their way and avoid them, even if it made him feel worse. Not only was he living here for free, but he was also avoiding the people who were so graciously providing him a home and food. Yet, he was too scared to interact.

Ever since he had been kicked out from the facility, he hadn't gotten a good night's rest. Actually, he couldn't remember the last time he had had a good sleep- even in the facility his rest had been somewhat parse. Not only that, but his anxiety and guilt made it hard to eat. It also made it hard to interact with his roommates, so he ended up hiding in his room when they were home.

Whenever he was struck with a panic attack or a nightmare, he immediately hid away, much to the concern of Doug and Donovan. He also hid the scars littering his thighs, although that wasn't as hard to hide as the fact that he wasn't sleeping or eating enough, since the dark bags under his eyes and his thin weight gave it away. Still, he struggled through it. Alone.

That was a surprise.

Dark had slowly wrapped his arm around Mark's waist. So tender, tender from such a beast that many would fear...

Yet here he is, taking care of his host.

Why wouldn't he? Mark had done so much, many things he wouldn't be able to return, hopefully this was enough from the demon.

"What's wrong?" He asks softly, his hand slowly stroking Mark's side. Dark is a little hesitant before he leans against Mark, his nose buried in raven locks.

After all, he hated the noise that often filled his head, it pounding against his ears and making his skull throb in pain. But here, it was manageable. Until he heard someone else walk in.

“Aw, shit,” Anti mumbles when he hears someone knocking on his front door just a few minutes after sending a text to Ez, cancelling their plans. He had gotten attacked by an unknown animal while walking home from the pub the night before, and hadn’t been feeling well since. His skin had taken on a bit of a sickly grey color, and was also rather cool to the touch. He seemed to have completely lost his appetite as well, the thought of eating making his stomach feel incredibly queasy, although he chalked it up as a bad hangover in the hopes that he would feel better after he got some rest.

“Oh, hey Ez!” Anti says as he opens the door to see his friend standing there. “Did ya get my text? I really hate ta cancel on ya, but I’m afraid I’m not really feelin’ very well,” Anti says, feeling guilty for turning Ez away after he had come all this way to see him. He knew he looked like absolute shit, however, hoping his looks would be enough to convince his friend that he wasn’t just making up some arbitrary excuse.

Ciaran couldn't believe it. He had been banished. 

He knew he shouldn't have done it, shouldn't have listened to Edric and his lies. There had been nothing to gain from that. Everything he had ever known or loved had been ripped away from him before he had been thrust out into a foreign world like a newborn. There were still pangs of pain in his soul, the place where his soul bond with his mate had been left hollow and aching.

It had all happened so quickly. He was still reeling, even now, two days later, as he trudged along. He didn't know where he was and it didn't matter. His eyes stayed down at the ground, blank and thoughtless. He'd keep walking until he couldn't anymore. 

Did it even matter that he continued? Everything was gone. His home, his friends, his mate... Just like that. Demons weren't supposed to survive on their own like this. He wondered if it was even worth it.

Anti had spent the beginning of his life thinking he had no soulmate. It wasn't until he had been banished, stripped of his tattoos and power, that the closed eye surrounded by intricate turquoise swirls had appeared on his wrist. He had almost laughed. After losing everything, it seemed there was still something left for him in this bleak world.

After a few centuries, however, he had given up the idea of a soulmate. Although, it wasn't so much that he had given up, but that he had stopped obsessing over the mark on his wrist, accepted that he was most likely not going to meet his soulmate, and moved on with his life. The possibility was still there, of course, so he kept his eye out, but it wasn't as important as it had been before. He simply lived and enjoyed life.

Today had been one of those days. Anti had taken a walk through the city, hands tucked into his hoodie pockets, when he stumbled across a quaint coffee shop he hadn't heard of before. Never one to let down the chance for coffee, he headed inside, taking in the decor before approaching the counter.