#faustianbroker

It was a risk Leviathan had happily taken in stride for centuries, and it had never really bitten the demon in the ass too badly until now. The monstrous, semi-aquatic creature was tucked away in the dark recesses of a damp cave that sat along the coast of another dimension, its sides rising and falling with fluttering irregularity. Every once in a while the silence would be broken by the sound of scales dragging across stone as it repositioned itself, battered body aching and bleeding blue onto the cavern floor. It didn’t have much time to make good on the deal it had been forced into accepting, it knew. It had to move soon, but it was in too much pain to even try. They had cornered it here, a half dozen of them, bearing down upon it with ferocity that it knew came from fear. But they wouldn’t kill it, they wouldn’t stoop to that level. No, they had other ideas. They would still make use of Leviathan yet. There was little sense in wasting the talents of one of their own kind, after all, like Leviathan had wasted Wyvss’Kgorr’s. So, with teeth cutting into its neck and its spine threatening to shatter under the pressure, it had accepted the deal. The other demons left it then, satisfied with the results of this single-use league, and went back to their respective dimensions, likely to never coordinate with one another in such a way again. 

Leviathan would be proud of causing such a reaction once it felt less like it was on the brink of death.

There wasn’t a way to tell how much time had passed here, cut off from the starlight as it was, but every moment that passed stacked an additional brick of unease on the wall that the demon was trying to build around itself. All of this had happened because it cared too much, because it was too curious for its own good. It wouldn’t let such things get in the way again, it told itself, even if it did have to return to Wicked’s Rest. It wouldn’t (it probably would). Laying there in the pitch darkness, Leviathan was acutely aware of a sudden tug in its chest. It lifted that massive head, many eyes blinking out of sync as it focused on nothing but dark. A low growl started in its throat and it shifted lazily before wincing in surprise as a sudden light filled the cavern. It was only a pinprick at first, but it blinded the beast into submission, eyes squeezing shut and head rearing back, away from the offensive glare.

Those eyes remained shut, until it heard a sound. It wasn’t sure what the sound was, but it knew it had not come from itself. Blinking them open again, squinting against the light, Leviathan peered into the space in front of it while its eyes adjusted. That tug in its chest grew stronger, heart hammering against prehistoric ribs. The light was a ring in the air, and in the center of it, a dimmer source of illumination, and… a figure. A person. 

“... Teddy?”

—

Days of non-stop work, weeks of planning, months of research. All boiled down to a pin prick point of focus. Determination. Hope. Teddy’s blood, sweat, and tears ran rivers. But the ritual was working. Energy effused through every vein, every pore. Alight inside, illuminating their skin and the dim basement around them with an eerie blue glow. 

Teddy's breath felt like fire, each labored movement came at cost. This wasn't the kind of magic that naturally flowed through them. Summoning was much more Van’s thing than Teddy's. But there was no way they were going to risk hurting her, or even the possibility of bringing her near something so dangerous. 

Hell, Emilio was supposed to be next to them too, but Teddy wouldn't let that happen. Was supposed to be by their side in case shit went sideways, or they somehow dialed the wrong demon number. But he'd been through too much with Basil or whatever the fuck that demon was called. Still on bedrest. His favorite thing. So no. Teddy had to do this alone. Had to make contact. Had to hear from their father. 

And it was working. 

A hole ripped through the fabric of the universe, tore a portal through to another dimension. The brusk smell of the endless ocean burst through first. Unmistakable and nostalgic. Enough to know Teddy was doing something right. A hazy picture began to form next. A room too dark to see, something that Teddy couldn't allow their heart to race at. At that moment, it was like they were a twelve volt battery channeling a whole power plant through its cells. All while trying to recite the dictionary backwards from memory. 

And then its voice rang through. Rough, rich, and rumbling deep into Teddy's bones. 

“D-dad!” Ted called out, the portal shrank slightly as their focus faulted, their breath hitched until they could catch themself and steady it once more. A sizzle at their fingertips reminded them how little room for error there was, and how dumb of an idea it was to do this alone. 

— 

All those ideals of closing itself off from others crumbled in the hopeful and frightened face of Theodore Jones, who called out to it with a term of familiarity that it hadn’t heard in so long… It groaned, picking itself up off the floor of the cave and dragging that enormous body closer to the portal. Without any care for what might happen if its child lost focus and the portal closed on it, Leviathan stuck one bestial, webbed hand through the opening, gripping the edge of the luminous tear in reality as if it were merely a rung on a ladder. “Teddy,” it repeated slowly, eyes closing again as it hauled itself closer. It wasn’t sure which would be easier—helping Teddy make the portal stronger and larger, or shifting into something smaller. The latter would be advantageous to fitting into the basement of their home, which is what the background behind its child appeared to be. But the former wouldn’t be a bad idea either, so Leviathan summoned the last of its strength to do both at the same time. That handful of eyes snapped open again, glowing a bright ethereal blue as it tried to strengthen the connection with its own power, continuing to pull itself through the portal as seafoam bubbled up around it and sloughed off parts of its body. Shedding its previous form didn’t get rid of the wounds, and the pain of ripping them open drew a long, grating cry from its jaws as it slumped to the floor of the basement, thrashing its body farther into the room and curling its tail around itself. 

The spiny, webbed dorsal fin flattened as the creature let out a long, exhausted sigh. Gills flapped uselessly, but the lungs in its anatomy kept it from being in any immediate peril. Drying out would be unpleasant, but that was a concern for later. Leviathan was still slicked with blue blood, long head swinging around to face Teddy. Even among the perplexing layout of the demon’s features, pride could be seen. “Just… the person I wanted to see,” it rattled.

—

The portal wasn’t necessarily supposed to work like that. Was built to be more of a phone call than a bridge, but— Ahh. Leviathan’s energies pooled into the ritual, like the sea meeting a freshwater spring. A brackish backlash that somehow both soothed and burned with a familiarity that only stood to bolster Teddy’s resolve. It wasn’t expected, but they couldn’t help the elation, that quickly melted away into horror as they realized exactly what shape the beast was in. 

Leviathan slithered through and the gateway snapped shut. A sickening pop and rush of air and energy propelled Teddy backwards, falling into the great creature’s side with a soft thud. A moment of shock left the caster breathless, whirling around to take stock of what just happened. Long distance facetime connections don’t usually end with an instantaneous house call. 

A horrible part of Teddy’s imagination briefly wondered whether it was an improperly done ritual that had marred the Leviathan’s hide in such a vicious manner, that somehow this blood was their fault but the bite marks and claw wounds were more than enough evidence that something else was at play. 

“W-what happened— Dad are you okay??” Teddy’s voice croaked, their hands found its face, or at least what they could hold from such a small state beside it. “What can I do to help?” They were tired, spent from the spell, from the variant magic running through their veins, from the weeks of exhausting research and need to get it just right. But goddamn there wasn’t a fucking thing they wouldn’t jump up and do for Leviathan right then. 

Their dad was home, really properly there, not just on the other end of a half-thought dream. It looked at them with pride and Teddy’s heart soared with all the ache they’d carried these months without their father. Thinking they’d never get to see it again at all. Hell, if Levi wanted a few human sacrifices Teds could think of a few less than pleasant neighbors who hadn’t been so kind during Pride month. “What do you need?” 

—

The demon groaned and shifted its body weight again, but held its head still in the caster’s hands. “Fine, I’m fine,” it breathed, not wanting to worry Teddy more than it inevitably would. “They ah… well. It was as I feared.” The greater demons had taken issue, and had pursued it. “I was found.” It sucked in another long breath, closing its eyes again and just enjoying the feeling of being embraced. “It’s okay. I needed… to come back here. You… made that much easier,” it admitted, closing its eyes. “As for what I need… time. Just time.” It let out one last ragged sigh before blinking and swiveling its gaze to meet Teddy’s. 

The human emotions that had plagued it while it remained tethered to its ward had never fully left. Or rather, they lingered in spite of the involuntary compulsion to experience them having been removed, and now they only existed in the Leviathan’s breast because it wished it so. Hours ago, it had wanted to feel nothing, to return to numbness, but how could it still want that when Teddy was here in front of it, pressing their hands to its scales and asking how they could help? Void above, they’d never wanted anything but to help their father and make it proud of them, and Leviathan could have done much better in showing them just how proud it was. In the end, it had become cold. It told itself this was to spare them both a more painful goodbye, and while that might have been true, it was not the whole truth.

“I am sorry,” came the creature’s low, rumbling apology. “For everything. Please, tell me… how have you been? What’s happened since I had to leave?”

—

Fine wasn’t a word they’d use to describe the gouged flesh and torn hide, but Teddy also knew the beast well enough that it would deny any fussing and worrying unless given forcefully. Years ago, a young Theodore had tried to salve the demon’s wounds with stolen Hello Kitty bandaids, glittery stickers, and ‘healing’ pancakes with extra shrimp. But the Jones house never lacked for those dumb enough to pick a bone with them. So Teds got a lot of practice in. Even shapeshifting demons from before the dawn of time needed a little TLC after a rampage or two. 

This seemed worse, somehow. In a way that Teddy couldn’t put into words but felt deep in their gut. They didn’t want to leave its side, but some of the weeping wounds needed a little more than just time. “Too many— even for you to fight?” They guessed tentatively. A spark of undeniable skepticism lacing their sentence, as if anything in the great vastness of the void above and below could ever come close to the might their father commanded. The question was a good enough segue to step aside for a moment. Grab some tools and tenderly start to work. A needle and thread would do about as well as a kayak in a hurricane, so the next best thing would be a staple gun and duct tape. Emilio would be proud. 

“Made easi— I helped you? Dad I just— It wasn’t supposed to be a physical tear— that was all you.” Mend the big gaps, ignore the sounds of pain, wipe off anything too mucky, sanitize with vodka. Teddy’s brain went all methodical in times like this. An engine built to bring things back to calm, to safety. Even so, the talking was nice. Hearing his voice made them feel a little less alone in the world. Sure, Teddy had a pretty tight family they’d forged for themself here, but Levi was their dad. And that was— a bit of a sore subject. 

“Lots.” They admitted. Their mind flashed back to Canada. To the worst parts first. How many times they’d be injured, only to be saved by Leviathan’s blessing. How many times they nearly died. But it wasn’t all bad. “I uh— I think I’m gonna marry Emilio. That’s a big one. Didn’t really see that coming.” 

—

There was a long pause before Leviathan answered the first question, for the demon disliked the answer. “Yes. Even for me.” They had no natural predators but themselves, and while Leviathan had spent centuries battling ferocious creatures and armies of men, it still could not stand up to the might of six others at once. “But I am alive, so who really won?” it added with a grating sound that was maybe supposed to be a laugh. 

Dying, of course, had never been the true peril of being caught. Leviathan had wondered for a time if they would merely seek revenge, but knowing what it would do if faced with such a crisis of personal security and safety, it knew that it would have used that leverage for more than just death. The scenario with Wynne’s demon had been different—more had been at stake. Or, well, things outside of itself had been at stake. There had been no room for loopholes. But of course, it could not tell Teddy any of this.

The demon hissed softly in response to the staple gun, flinching away from it without wanting to, eyes tightly shut. “Maybe not,” it ground out, “but I didn’t have the strength to even contact you, much less… create a portal from the ground up. So yes. You gave me an anchor. You helped.” 

Lots. That was nondescript. But they’d have plenty of time for talking, it knew, so it didn’t worry too much that the full truth was being withheld for now. It had its own secrets, after all. “Marry?” it piped up, looking up at Teddy again. Humans were really pretty crazy about that kind of thing, weren’t they? It stood to reason that Teddy would be just as susceptible to romanticism. Hm. I suppose my faith in the slayer to look after you was well placed. It would have to thank him later. “That is very good news,” the demon purred, carefully lifting a front leg and brushing the back of a clawed, webbed toe against Teddy’s side. Its teeth were bared in something that was probably supposed to be a smile, though given the beastly form it had taken, it looked more like a grimace. Ah well. “I am… here for you. I’m not leaving again, Teddy.” There was a beat of powerful silence. “I promise.”

—

“Naaaah, I bet you had them all scared. Just a flinch and they’d be quaking in their eldritch boots.” A childish lie, hoping to be true. Teddy nuzzled in closer to the hardened scales and expanse of rough flesh. Worming their way between the folds of its arm into a crook that snugly held the all too human Jones. A body never meant for comfort or its ilk, but to the Leviathan’s ward? It was home. Teddy was home after far too long, even if it wasn’t exactly the same, even if it never would be again. They had their dad and everything seemed just a little more okay. 

From their squished up position, using the big amphibious lizard-thing as both blanket and mattress, Teddy surged with a pride vibrant enough to spur what dregs of energy was left in their system to spark outwards and shatter the one lightbulb in the basement. Leaving just the candles and one very persistent glow-stick from a parade in June to keep the space from total darkness. Thankfully. Teds didn’t exactly want to explain that one just yet, and the Leviathan probably needed some quiet and peace to rest. 

“Better that you’ll be here for it. Who else is gonna give away the blushing bride?” To be fair, most of Teddy’s ideas of what marriage was came from old movies and pop culture. Growing up, Levi had never been shy about multiple partners and enjoying itself whenever the whims arose. The desire to tie their life to Emilio came from somewhere else entirely. All wrapped up in the ways the hunter made them feel so secure and safe, in the respect and admiration they had for him. In the love for his personality and how perfectly it complimented their own. Love in a completely new form, as steady as a stone. 

The wriggling human stilled after the Leviathan’s next statement. Its promise. Teddy’s breath stopped short, they let the weight of what it said sink in, even if they couldn’t fully process immediately what it would mean, the elation and joy sparked up right away. Like a giddy toddler, they pressed themself further into the beast’s side. “Thank you, dad I— I needed you. I think I always will. I love you.” 

—

Teddy was wrong, but Leviathan would let them believe what they liked. It didn’t matter, anyway. What had truly transpired was something the demon would not—and could not—speak of. Eyes flicked up toward the shattered bulb—the beast wanted to ask, it wanted to know what had become of Teddy since it had fled this plane, how the child’s power had truly manifested itself without the demonic runes on their bones overpowering whatever had been dormant all these years… but they would have time. They would have all the time that they needed, and Leviathan would ask every question that rolled across its mind like a cavalry of tumbleweeds across the desert. 

“I am going to make sure I write…” It paused to suck in a tired breath, “a very long and embarrassing toast.” There was another rumble of amusement in its throat as it thought about that day, whenever it came about, and it felt itself warm from the inside out. To see Teddy happy was all it needed, whatever form that came in. 

Leviathan was loath to include a third, uninvested party unless it was absolutely necessary, but the fury hadn’t been a bad idea. The search to track one down had ended up being a bit convoluted, but the undead creature now sat in the corner, bound and afraid. The demon had warned them that they might be useful, and that that usefulness would be the thing to spare them. They would get no sort of meal out of this, if it came to it—Leviathan was levelheaded, clear minded, and ready. There was no anger, only preparedness. It told the fury that if they were called upon to help, they would assist or perish. And if they were not called upon, they would be released with no harm done come the end of the ritual. There wasn’t time to build a rapport and trust with them, hence the bindings keeping them from escaping the basement. 

On the floor, an intricate ritual circle had been carved. Not drawn, but carved. There was no room for error caused by a smudge or a wet spot. This was a permanent change, and so too was a permanent scar left upon this house that would be given to Teddy to do with as they pleased. 

So much of this ritual was improvised, coming straight from Leviathan’s own power with little to no guidance by way of previous attempts. And the concern was not being able to sever the connection—the demon knew it could do that easily enough. The concern was doing it and keeping Teddy alive and unharmed. 

Father and son sat in the circle together, cross-legged and facing one another. Leviathan held out its hands, palm up, taking Teddy gently by the wrists when they were offered. There was a static charge in the air as it began to speak in a voice that was many, overlapping and crashing together like fierce waves. The language was old and alien, but not one that Teddy hadn’t heard before. This went on for a minute or so before the greater demon quieted, and then in a voice that Teddy had come to know as Chuck’s, muttered a soft, “I’m sorry.” 

It was not a comfortable affair. The connection between them burned white hot, a glowing thread of light that appeared between their bodies. The low grinding sound of metal on concrete filled the space, and the house creaked in ways it never had before as the foundations trembled beneath them. Leviathan continued to speak in those many voices, keeping a firm but gentle grip on its child, its seafoam green eyes glinting with tears as it stared at the tether. The cord would vibrate intermittently as the demon reached a metaphorical hand into the pot, stirring around for the binds that siphoned power from one to feed it into the other. And trying to zero in on such an intangible thing was… painful. Its breath came in small gasps between sentences, its whole body tensing with each magical connection that was found and determined to be the incorrect one. Every deal it had ever made that still remained unbroken made this like trying to locate a needle in a haystack, even if it burned so clearly between them in the basement of the opulent home. It was not so easily recovered from a place that one could not physically access, and even though it felt significantly different from the rest of them, there was so much noise…

—

To be unraveled. Inch by inch, thread by thread. What a strange sort of agony. Fire, too hot to be felt as heat. Pain, too sharp to be registered as sensation. There was no one point, no singularity to it. The edges where Teddy ended and the searing swath of suffering began, blurred. They struggled to keep their breath, to hold still and not yank away their arms like it would do them any good. Any flinch might mean their utter destruction. Better to sit and endure annihilation with a chance of survival at the other end of the rainbow, then to walk to oblivion willingly.

Teddy's mind swam as the flood rushed forward. As waves of magical energy pulsed into the lightning storm anchored in their chest. As pained and labored as each stolen second was, they were present. Fully. A sharp centered attention they had lacked for years now. Spent dulled by a constant thrum of aches and fatigue. Strange, how the only thing that could pull the younger Jones back into focus was the addition of more pain. 

They'd been checked out even more than normal the weeks leading up to this ritual. Skulking around, hiding from Levi at all costs. Any communication was through sticky notes left on piles of research. Like their presence at all was a burden. Avoiding disappointment by avoiding existence. Even then, in the middle of the tempest, their mind couldn't help but flicker back to where things went wrong. Perceived faults, guilt ridden gales of doubt. A decades old wound ripped wide. 

All of this, perhaps with one common thread. One the magic between them seemed to pick up on too. Something it appeared to react to. As Leviathan's words continued, the room around the pair darkened. The ephemeral strands of light that writhed between them shifted as the elder worked through their energy. Until everything seemed to sputter. Reverb. An explosion of light and force nearly pried them apart, but Levi held fast, and Teddy stayed rooted. Their eyes closed for just a second as the intense heat and brightness hit its apogee. When they opened them again… everything was different. 

This was it. The ritual they devised together was always going to have a few surprises, but there was no mistaking this as a reflection of their intent. Even if neither could have guessed it would have shown itself in quite this way. 

All around them, a sphere of woven strands of golden light illuminated a vast and unending sea of void and stars. Teddy could see those ancient words just as plainly as they had been in the x-ray doctor Kavanaugh had taken. Written and revolving all around them now, a cage of their own design. The sphere sat spinning on an unseen axis. The basement, the house, the circle they had been sat in, everything was gone. Whether this was just a vision or if they'd actually been transported to some distant in-between… Teddy wasn't completely sure. It was just them and Leviathan. Looking much more like itself than the human facade it wore on shore.

Teddy's eyes followed one of the threads, saw how at each crossroads a small nodule of energy seemed to pulsate, as if asking to be touched. To be explored. 

"So–" Their own voice sounded distant, unsure. "Do we just–" a spectral hand reached out, and Teddy realized the pain was left behind with wherever their flesh and bone bodies remained, a distant hum. Barely registered. Good. Made it easier to do…whatever they were supposed to do here. The spot they reached toward shivered and opened. A tiny window into a moment long forgotten. An innocuous memory. A young child resting on the chest of an ancient monster, sleeping contentedly as the creature hummed. 

"Oh." 

—

Their minds had gone to some untouchable place, and just like that, the demon’s human visage was shed like snake skin. What was left wasn’t even one of the seafaring bodies it had grown so fond of using in Teddy’s dimension, but just a large, dark mass, pricked with light and writhing in a way that might have made one think of shifting tentacles or vines. The darkness leaned forward as Teddy reached out to touch one of the nodes, equally as curious to see what would happen. 

It was unexpected, to say the least. Were they meant to find the memory of the day Leviathan etched those words onto Teddy’s skeleton? The day that the bond was created, both literally and metaphorically? It would seem that way. But the demon was distracted, momentarily, watching the memory from a third person perspective and feeling a familiar tug of affection. 

"I always loved you," it spoke without lungs or a mouth, projecting its thoughts into Teddy’s consciousness that hovered in front of it. "I know I may not have been the best at showing it, but I did." There was a pause. "I do." It could not stress enough that this was for Teddy’s own good, but it also knew Teddy well enough to realize that there would always be doubt there. Always a seed of guilt, like this was somehow their fault. "I always want to protect you, but I think I have been holding on too tightly." Something that could be called an arm raised into the shared space, reaching for another node and swirling around it, activating it as well. Another memory, another snippet of time. An afternoon in the ocean, two beasts swimming about the cool, calm waters. Though these forms lacked expressive faces, you could easily see the love shared between them. The smaller swam just below the larger, back pressed to its belly, head nuzzling against its chest. Not what they were looking for, but not a horrible thing to see.

A dozen or so eyes appeared in the pitch black mass, turning their gaze on Teddy. The wispy form spread out farther as if reaching for them. As it did, it became more solid, taking on more familiar aspects that Teddy had seen before. "We must continue until we find the day that I… changed you."

—

I always loved you. 

If they had been attached to their heart, it would have begun to beat faster. Maybe it still did, but they weren't there to feel it. Teddy ducked away from the many eyed gaze, blinking into the brightness of the memories surrounding them. A shame and guilt swelling in their chest. Especially in the face of such happy scenes. How they contrasted the last month, how they felt like moments so light and joyful were just… a thing of the past. When things were simple, when they weren't a burden. They thought briefly of shooting back a reply, something about how they understood why its feelings might have changed but– but… I did, I do. 

Still? 

Even as the world was falling apart, even if it always felt like it was somehow Teddy's fault? Always acting too childishly, too impulsive. Making things difficult for Leviathan. How could it possibly still–

The spectral space around them responded to the shifting emotional state. The lack of control Teddy felt reflected outward. The golden threads shuddered and tinted a deep muted purple. Before the younger Jones could respond at all another node expanded, this time showing Teddy alone. Hiding from Levi in the way they often did. Whenever anything bad happened. Whenever they were injured or sad or something else so human that they assumed it would be a disappointment. The threads connected to the node tangled as Ted watched in mortified shock as it showed a secret they had never meant for Levi to see. 

The reason they left the house. Why they got the houseboat in the first place. The chronic pain that was so hard to disguise if they were by the eldritch being's side every single day. Teddy never did 'get used to' the feeling. Not in the way they thought they were supposed to. 

"I– I'm sorry I wasn't what you expected or wanted." The words bubbled up and poured out of Teddy. A compulsive tug that made their hidden thoughts audible. Much to their surprise. "I'm sorry your experiment failed, that I failed you. All I ever wanted was to make you proud. But I never did it right. I never did anything right. I just lied and acted how I thought I was supposed to." They clapped a hand over their mouth as if that was going to stop this… whatever it was. As if they weren't in some cosmic therapy session that wouldn't end until they reached some sort of resolution, or Teddy just died. 

—

Those unblinking eyes watched the child’s memories unfold before them for a moment before sliding over to their astral visage. They were speaking, apologizing, and it… it hurt. It hurt in a way that Lkrak’Oaazhir hated. Small. Pathetic. Weak.

Leviathan pushed back, Levi pushed back, Chuck pushed back. Stop. Stop being… alien. This was not foreign. This was an excuse. An excuse to be a terrible parent and role model. Yes, it was a demon, but it was not governed by that fact. Wasn’t that what it had always said? That it wasn’t like the rest of them because it chose not to be? Why was it so different now? Just because these emotions made it uncomfortable? That was the weakness. 

“You did not fail me,” it assured them softly. “I should not have… tampered with you the way that I did. This is my fault, Theodore. Mine alone.” It paused, its form shifting into something more recognizable—something Teddy had spent hours upon hours swimming with among coral reefs and deep, dark chasms in the sea floor. A great, dragon-like muzzle slipped free from the darkness, just as ethereal as Teddy’s own body at the moment, but establishing contact nonetheless. 

“I am sorry for the pain you were in. The pain that still troubles you. I am sorry you felt that you needed to hide it.” It was never going to be a good parent, that much anyone could tell, but it could still apologize for it. Or try to, at least. It wouldn’t blame Teddy for not accepting it.

—

Apologies were added to the symphony of sound. The ancient demon's body, if you could call it that here, shifted. And Teddy's changed along with it. They had been in what they assumed was their human disguise, but it melted away to the blue of the partial demon whatever-the-hell they were. A bit more open, a bit more them. As the words sank in further, as they felt the weight each one carried, Teddy adopted their own serpentine shape to match the great beast.

The two circled each other, entwining the long bodies meant for the sea. In the astral space it was harder to tell where things ended and began, but Teddy could feel their own muzzle and how it brushed up against the softer scales of Leviathan's underbelly. It was safe to do so here. To shift like this. Wouldn't cause any unforeseen side effects the way that it would in the physical world. Reminded Teddy of the x-rays doctor Kavanaugh had taken. How they illuminated more than just the writing on their bones.

"I wouldn't have changed anything. I don't care about the pain I– " Teddy was speaking in the same manner as Levi now, a more raw open connection. Filtered with emotion, not just words. "–I loved being like this. Being with you. I wouldn't have given that up for anything. There's nothing on the surface that compares to a– a fraction of the feeling of swimming in the depths…" There was a hesitation there, one they didn't expect when it popped up, though perhaps they should have. A few things on shore had started to take root. Started to pull Teddy on the other side of the wall that they had constructed to keep secrets in and perceived deficiencies out. 

"I never meant to pull away from you. To make you feel like you weren't a part of my life anymore. Everything just got so complicated when we moved here– everything changed." 

—

“I know.” It did. It knew that Teddy had grown into their own. They were no longer a child, and while they might have stuck around a lot longer than normal humans, there was always going to be a time when they needed to leave, needed to build their own life. Neither party seemed to have prepared for this, for differing reasons, but the result was the same. Misunderstanding. Miscommunication. Hurt feelings, fear, and shame. All these things that never needed to exist, but did. 

“It is time for you to move on to the next stage of your life. It is one that I may not fit into, but this is what is meant to happen. The companions you have chosen for yourself… they are your family. And I will still always be your family, even if I cannot be here with you. But I need to right what I have wronged. I need to make this life easier for you in the only way I know how.” 

It reached out again, tapping node after node, only half paying attention to the scenes of their past that played out in front of them as it searched. None of them were the right ones. How long would it take to get through thirty years of memories? It needed to fix them, to remove the thing it had implanted that hurt them in this way. Turned them into a beast like itself, more and more permanently with each day that passed. 

With a start, Leviathan paused in its search. “Here,” it whispered, watching itself step into the small shack through the ritual portal. Lydia Jones was slowly suffocating on the floor as the human-appearing demon picked the toddler up off the floor and balanced them on his hip.

“Don’t you worry. Papa will take great care of you,” its past self said.

Leviathan sighed, hooking a claw around the thread that came from the node. 

“Two souls for one… now that’s more like it, isn’t it, Tadpole?”

It followed the thread back to their incorporeal bodies with that monstrous digit, untangling it from the rest.

“... are you ready?” it asked, voice wavering.

—

Most people didn't get a third person clip show of their life, Teddy thought. Most people didn't have to witness the most tender parts of themselves displayed like a stained glass triptych. Glistening halation blurring the lines of nostalgia and grief. They watched, through spectral eyes as their father picked them up for the first time. Saved them for the first time. Granted them the nickname that followed until…

When was the last time Leviathan had called them that? Had it been some big dramatic moment? Or just a silent whimpering end of an accidental rift? Teddy should have noticed, should have paid attention more because– well–

"I don't know if I'll ever be ready. Not really. I still need you, I still want you around. I know it's not that easy, I know we can't… but– I don't like the idea of a world where I can't talk to you." Teddy brushed up against the bigger beast, pressing their scaly cheek as hard as they could into the other's. "I don't want to lose you. I know how short human lives are compared to yours and–I'm scared. I don't want you to just forget me in a thousand years, in a millennia. We were supposed to have forever."

They could see the tether, bright and vibrating like a freshly plucked string on some cosmic instrument. They could feel the warmth radiating off of it. Felt the way it coiled in their chest and out again. Winding all around them. Felt the way it hummed with every movement, growing louder as Teddy tried to fit themself into something that could just stay with their dad. Retreat to that far off dimension they only ever saw once in a dreamlike blur. Tried so hard to chameleon into something they just…weren't. Despite desperately wanting to be. 

Teddy had always been torn between worlds. This was no different, if anything it was magnified. At its apex. Just like Levi had said, it was time for them to shift into a new stage of life. But wasn't it just like Theodore Jones to be stubborn and difficult to the very last moment.

A shaking claw joined Levi's in holding the tether tightly from their end. They swam through the aetherial void to mirror the place their body sat back in the basement. Teddy stared at the memory, the first meeting. If the sea monster could cry, they would have been sobbing by then. "I know it has to be done. Just– I– in case this goes–" They stuttered, trying to gather the composure they needed for the ritual. For what they needed to say. "In case it goes bad." The demon's mouth didn't need to move for the words to flow, but their jaw set roughly as if they were choking back tears all the same. Bright teal teeth gritted and grinded together until a deep breath brought back the resolve they needed.

"I–I'm so thankful to have had you with me all this time. I–I couldn't have asked for a better father. Even if things weren't perfect, it was perfect for me. I love you, Dad. I always will." 

—

There were no promises the beast could make that would ease this ache, because there were no promises that it could keep with absolute certainty. It didn’t know if this was going to kill one or both of them, and if they survived the ritual, there was another on the horizon that was equally as dangerous. For Leviathan, anyway—it would not let anything happen to Teddy after this. That was the entire point of disconnecting them from one another. It was a last-ditch bid to keep the child safe from harm and give them the opportunity for a more normal life. It was what they deserved. 

“You would not have wanted forever. These… friends you have made. These earthly connections… you would not want to have to watch them fade and wither,” it explained softly. “But… I will not forget you. As you say, I am eternal, and so will your memory be.” It would have smiled, had it the mouth for it at that moment. “Besides… maybe I will be able to find time for a visit soon. This does not have to be forever.” It might be forever, depending on the outcome of the ordeal with Wynne’s demon, but there was a chance for reunion down the line. 

It cocked its head at Teddy, feeling the raw emotion they were handling and keeping quiet to accept it as graciously as it could. A nod was offered, grip on the tether tightening. “I love you too, Teddy. I always will. You taught me much. You gave me perspective, trust, and the ability to care for someone other than myself. I owe you a great deal.” It glanced down between them, at the magic bind that connected them. “But I’ll always be with you, in a way. For the things I am taking from you by breaking this bond, I am offering protection in their place. You will see what I mean when this is all done.” 

It leaned forward, pressing its monstrous forehead against its son’s, and ripped the tether from its chest. There was an explosion of light, a searing, white-hot pain, and then quiet. Cold. Damp. 

—

They weren't ready. They knew they wouldn't be and yet– Leviathan pulled, Teddy fell to pieces. The tether siphoned everything they thought they were backwards. The cataclysm cascade pulling the demon apart piece by piece. Return to sender. Their monstrous form melted away, absorbing back into Levi. Reversing time and altering it. They felt each piece as it left. As it was pried off. Each a festering scab, torn and picked raw until it grew and grew and grew. Consumed all that was left until the only thing remaining was… human. 

Then darkness, and silence.

Suddenly feeling more alone than they ever had, they panicked. The vast space was empty. Teddy tried their best to move, but found each effort fruitless. Conscious but immobile, screaming at their limbs to move. Weighted down by what felt like the force of the ocean herself. Sweat ran rivulets down their forehead, their back. Every breath felt like torture. The disconnect between their mind and their body had never been so strong. So vast. Was this it? Was it the end?

Fear gripped their heart. The lights that had danced along the astral space all disappeared. They couldn't see their father anymore. Couldn't see anything. With a shuddered strain, they tried to listen. To hear if there was anything, anything out there. 

—

Two humanoid figures lay sprawled in the basement, and the third, unwilling party was shouting at them to wake up, fearing that if the pair did not, then they would also perish down here. The concrete floor was soaked with seawater, the briny smell mixing with that of the seaweed that lay in small clumps here and there, as if they’d brought back some of Leviathan’s dimension with them.

It was some time before either of them stirred, the first being Leviathan. The demon woke with a start, and where it had anticipated feeling horrible, it felt… great, actually. Better than it had in a long time. Its gaze fell on Teddy as it pushed itself upright and it scooted over to where the human lay in the wet mess, collecting them in its arms. 

“Teddy?” There was a heartbeat, albeit faint. “Teddy, can you hear me? Come back to me, Tadpole. Come on back.” 

—

A hum. Gentle and persistent. 

Just a single droning tone that grew as they listened. The first feeling that Teddy felt that wasn't the fury of fire that had disintegrated them. It was a singing stinging on their arm. More of a pinching, really. Like a cat scratch but continuous. And only on their arm. Right where Emilio had planted the mark. The tattoo.

They heard his laugh. Rare and so beautiful.

They heard Nora's almost not-neutral exclamations of 'sick'. 

Heard Wynne's gentle words. 

Listened as the voices of Alex, Regan, Leila, Arden, Siobhan, hell even Metzli, joined. All giving them a path to walk back to–

To Levi.

Its voice called through the darkness. Different from the others, more concrete, more real. Tangible in a way that the others weren't. In their mind they raced toward it, willing their body to move even if moments ago it was all but impossible. As they ran, something else picked up a bright teal flicker just at the back of their mind, but they paid it no attention. Focusing solely on Levi's voice. On the path laid before them by the memories made in Wicked's Rest. 

In the basement, their body finally began to stir. Fingers twitching, eyebrows knitting close. A rough cough sent them heaving further into Leviathan's arms. To its chest where their head came to rest. Quietly listening to the heart inside the human visage beating loud and fast. 

"D-dad?" Teddy's voice crackled. A ghosted laugh escaping as their incredulity mounted. It worked. They were still here. Both of them. Arms that felt weighted by anchors slipped from the briny water to around Leviathan's torso. They squeezed, but just barely. "Dad you–" They were crying, sobbing. Only this time it wasn't from fear or grief. A wary smile on their lips lit up their face as they looked up at the demon. "You really need to take a shower, you smell like a dead fish."

—

“You’re one to talk,” Leviathan countered with something that was both a laugh and a groan. It was done, and they were alive. Hours had passed as they often did with ritual magic. The captive in their basement was cut free, but not before Leviathan extended a hand to them to shake. “Speak about this with no one, and you shall be permitted to continue existing,” it had threatened, and after everything they’d seen transpire here, the fury was not going to fuck around and find out, simply nodding and taking the demon’s hand, sealing the deal. They ran, finding their path to the front door unblocked, swearing to themself that they’d never let another stranger pick them up in a bar and take them home.

The bind was broken, and all demonic power had been removed from Teddy's body. The damage of ripping away something that had become such a part of them would have been much more substantial if not for the source of vitality that carried them up the steps now, held to its chest just like when they were a child. Full power restored, the demon hardly even felt the siphoning of life force as Teddy's new ability fought to bring them back to baseline. It was the protection Leviathan had promised—any injury they sustained would be rectified by harming another to heal themself. It was not a conscious choice, but an automatic side effect of their innate magical ability—one that had been muted until now. One that Leviathan had not found until it was placing the blessing upon them in their unconscious state, and what a find it was. This whole time, Teddy had been cut off from their ability to perform magic because of the tether to the greater demon. Now, they would truly flourish as the person they were meant to be.