#wr lil

Lil practically fell into the seat across from Arden seeing the other and not bothering to go around with the pleasantries she had been getting better at. After all, although she couldn’t say she was the closest to Arden - other than Jonas who could Lil really say she was close to them after all - but she did know her. So she’d taken the other on the offer to meet up and trade information. She needed someone that she knew wasn’t going to turn around and hurt her for no reason. She was fairly certain Arden wouldn’t, and - well if nothing else Lil wanted to make sure the other didn’t do anything too reckless. Part of her too - the small part that was practically screaming at her - also wanted to find more people to trust with all of this. 

Lil wanted people that would care - and as soon as that came across her brain she pushed it down. 

“If I still look like a drowned rat, know that there’s not much I can do about that,” Lil said with a voice that was still a bit raspy from everything as she leaned back into the chair waiting for the waitress to notice her as well. Her throat didn’t feel like it was on fire anymore anyway, and she’d mostly gotten the tangles out of her hair.  Hell, she even slept for a few nights. She probably looked at least a little better than she had been. “But at least I’m not late? I also got some - well it’s at least interesting news. - Oh wait, I'm supposed to say hi first. Hi, Arden. Hope your week has been better than mine. I also got some pastries for you from the bakery.” 

—

As was often the case, Arden was early. She had been waiting a little bit, a cup of coffee already in front of her by the time Lil arrived, nearly collapsing into her chair. Raising a brow, she took in the state of her companion– somewhat harried, hair mussed, circles under her eyes. Lil was objectively beautiful, but she did look a bit of a mess at the moment. The woman was in good company, though, as the broken arm, bite scar, and general lack of sleep meant the writer wasn’t looking her best these days either. There wasn’t any judgment, but there was some concern as she looked over the other. “Uh, hi,” she greeted. 

The raspy voice was unexpected, and she found herself wondering if Lil was sick. But if her throat hurt, the woman didn’t seem phased, words spilling out of her without much pause. Arden blinked, taking a second to process. “Oh, thanks? You didn’t have to do that. And, you’re fine, I mean,” she gestured at herself with her good arm, “glass houses, and whatnot.”

“Are you okay, though?” It wasn’t like the two of them were close, but between her appearance, the rasp, the comment about her week, and just the fact that they were in fucking Wicked’s Rest, it seemed like a safe bet to say that something had happened. 

—

Lil focused on the other, and realized she wasn’t the only one that seemed to have a bad time as of late. It had taken her a moment to realize that Arden wasn’t her normal self, and that she probably wasn’t the only one that had to get medical attention. Taking in the arm with a glance, part of her wanted to ask what had happened, and the question was on the tip of her tongue before realizing it was probably too much. Instead she gave the box of pastries over, making sure to put them on Arden’s not broken arm side. 

“No problem,” Lil said almost automatically as thanks. She had a habit of trying to feed people anyway, and well she wasn’t any good at cooking or baking. It was much safer to pull some pastries, than accidentally poison someone. At the question, Lil couldn’t help the shrug as she continued. “Someone pushed me into the harbor to kill me, I think. Hell of a guess that I couldn’t swim, but someone fished me out anyway. Are you okay? I really want to believe that you just tripped, but we live in a horror town during a weird time.” 

She wanted to let Arden in on what she knew, but Lil for some reason also wanted to make sure the other was okay. After all, as squishy as Lil was, she was a Medium. Death wasn’t all that much of a mystery or fear for her normally. Sure, she’d been pissed and scared at the moment but it didn’t continue haunting her. 

—

She was not one to turn down free pastries, especially when they were from Bread Cemetery, even if she did feel a little awkward about it, and even if it did send a small pang of hurt through her as it made her think of her ex-roommate. But Arden ignored them for the moment, her attention entirely focused on Lil as she continued, very casually mentioning the possible attempt on her life. It seemed she wasn’t the only one who’d been having a terrible time recently. 

Her eyes widened at the woman’s words. “Holy shit, what?!” She made sure to keep her voice down to its normal volume, but she couldn’t help the jolt of shock and concern that ran through her. It brought to mind that time at Vicker’s, the incident that had made her scared of the water. She could remember that feeling of fear and panic as something grabbed on and began to pull her under, the panicked scream, water flooding her lungs. Suppressing a shudder, Arden’s brows furrowed as she prodded Lil for more information. “Do you know who? Or why??? You got yourself checked out, right?” After a moment, she gathered herself, though. “Sorry, you don’t have to answer any of that. I’m just… glad you’re alright, I suppose.” 

Of course, it was natural the other have questions for her, too– she did look like shit. “I mean, I’m still kicking,” she replied with a crooked grin. “I would love to be able to tell you that I did just trip, but, yeah, horror town.” There was no way she was going to get into everything that had happened at the barn right now, especially not while they were in public. Besides, while Lil obviously knew about ghosts, she didn’t know exactly how far her knowledge went. And it wasn’t exactly a pleasant topic, either, so she kept it at that for now. 

Looking over, Arden caught the waitress’ eye, and she came by to take Lil’s order before leaving them alone once again.

— Even though Lil couldn’t be considered normal, and most of her reactions she knew were probably outside the norm, she did expect Arden to have some questions about it. Still, there was a bit on Arden’s face that made Lil wonder if she was afraid of the water. “Yeah I think someone’s trying to kill me,” Lil said with a bit of a shrug trying to keep it as well less scary as possible. “Not sure who, although I think there are a couple of leads, don’t really know why cause I don’t think I pissed off anyone that badly,” Lil said with a bit of a shrug she didn’t really feel. Sure, ghosts sometimes wanted to kill her, but they usually didn’t feel corporeal while trying to push her. “Oh yeah, I got checked out. I should be fine, my throat is just all salt water-y.  Not good for the vocal fry, you know? And no problem, it was something that I just said. You’ve got a right to be curious or cautious.” 

After all, it would be more than fair for Arden to not want to work with Lil if she had some sort of dagger above her head. It could be a liability. Lil nodded lightly and said, “Sorry to hear that. If you need help, let me know. I still have a hell of a right hook.”  At that she ordered her coffee, giving the waitress a smile before turning back to Arden. 

“Anyway - barring all the horrors and terrors, I think I at least have something for you on those crystal people. Whatever it is, it’s not a spirit or haunting. It’s something else,” Lil said softly, aware of the ears around them. “Couldn’t tell you what, but it’s not a ghost.” 

—

Arden didn’t quite know how to respond to that. “That’s– Wh– What the fuck? That’s insane???” She supposed it wasn’t any less insane than the rest of the shit that went on in town, but still, why would someone want to kill Lil? “What kind of leads do you mean? Do you need any help?” As thinly stretched as she was these days, she would be willing to spend some time looking into things for the other. It wasn’t like she was spending her nights getting much sleep. She might as well get something done during those periods of wakefulness aside from tossing and turning. 

It was good to hear the woman had gone to the doctor, at least. “I do, in fact, know,” she nodded.  “It’s a shitty feeling.” It was a testament to how much she liked Teagan that she had initially agreed to go swimming with her. She remembered never wanting to go in the water again after her childhood adventures in almost drowning. 

She shrugged her good arm at Lil’s apology. “I appreciate it, and noted,” Arden grinned, “but that particular issue has been dealt with, thankfully. Also, apparently I’m pretty decent in a fight– or at least I am when I happen to have two working arms. A friend was helping me train,” she explained. “I figured it’d be a good idea since I’m planning on staying here for the foreseeable future. So, you know, if you need back up in a few months, I’m your girl.” Flashing the other a sarcastic smile, she drained the remnants of her coffee, ordering another when the waitress stopped by. 

“Oh.” It was a bit disappointing to hear. “I mean, that’s probably good, I guess? But it also means we’re back to a big ‘ol question mark.” She supposed it narrowed down the possibilities, but she was still nowhere near any answers about what the fuck was happening in the town and the mines. “How were you able to rule it out?” While she trusted the woman, especially when it came to the matter of ghosts, Arden wanted to understand how she had come to the conclusion.

—

Lil shrugged a little, not rising to the idea that it was awfully insane. It wasn’t the first time her life had been in danger, although it was one of the first times that the person was corporeal. “It - isn’t easy being an Exorcist. I’m assuming someone wants me dead to hide something else.” It was the only thing that made much sense and gave her a sinking feeling. After all, the longer her family wasn’t found, the more likely that they were connected.  “I’ll keep it in mind though if the leads turn out the way I think they might, I appreciate the help. I just don’t want to tip them that I know.”  She didn’t know who this Astra person was, and although part of her wanted to ask Arden, most of her didn’t want to see the other end up in a mess because of her. She’d just have to hope that the personal investigator got back to Jonas soon. 

“Ouch, sorry. Wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemies and you're certainly not,” Lil said with a nod. Well, sometimes she kind of wanted Marcel to fall into a well, but she would eventually pull the man up. After he said sorry. 

“Nice! I’m glad to know that,” Lil said with a bit of lighter humor than she normally had this day. “We’ll have to exchange techniques when you’re back to hitting strength.” It was a small way of saying she was also stuck here for the foreseeable future. She wouldn’t leave without figuring out what happened to her family, and she had a sneaking suspicion that after, Jonas wouldn’t want to go back to a life of wandering. Even if she felt listless - Lil knew she couldn’t leave him, especially in this town. 

Lil nodded lightly, sighing as she said, “Yeah. I was kind of hopeful it would be in my wheelhouse this time.” At the question, Lil continued, rubbing the back of her neck lightly as she did so, “A friend asked me for a favor, and it ended up involving one of the people who’d touched a crystal and was possessed. I ended up meeting and going to see my friend's friend and the guy and - yeah not a ghost. Guy was for sure possessed, but it wasn’t a ghost. ” 

—

She frowned at the thought, but she supposed it made sense. There were many people in this town who had a lot of things to hide. From murders to who or, perhaps more accurately, what they were. Even if they weren’t all her own, Arden herself had a lot of secrets, a lot of knowledge that if given to the wrong person could end incredibly poorly. But for someone to go to the extent of trying to kill a medium, an exorcist, that seemed incredibly extreme. However, the method of the attempted murder was considerably less extreme. It wasn’t a very hands on or surefire way of killing someone, just pushing them into the water. Maybe the person was only human, then? 

She shook the thoughts away. “I’m sorry. And that’s a hell of a way to go about it.” Were they cocky? Were they trying to send a message of some kind? Arden didn’t know, but she would love to find out, to help. However, this wasn’t some mystery novel, this was real life, Lil’s life, and it was good that she was handling the situation with caution. For a moment, she wondered if Lil had gone to the police before remembering how useless the WRPD was, especially since this was all likely related to the supernatural. “Yeah, back at you. I’m really sorry–” that someone tried to drown you “– that you had to experience that.”

“Sure! I’m always down for more training buddies,” she grinned. It would be nice to get to know Lil better. Arden liked her well enough, and she seemed fun and knowledgeable, as well. Even if they didn’t become besties for life, having another ally was always good. And if there was a part of her that complained about getting close to people, about people leaving and getting hurt, she shoved it down. She could and would think about it later, but right now they were talking crystal bullshit. 

“Gotcha,” she nodded. Though, after a moment, she cocked her head to the side. “What else can possess someone aside from a ghost?” Her mind was jumping to ‘demons’ before she was even able to finish the sentence, but, from the little she knew about both demons and the crystals, the situation didn’t immediately strike her as something demonic. Still, she threw out the idea to the exorcist. She likely knew more than Arden when it came to the topic of demons.

—

Lil shrugged and said gently, “Not everyone is good with their words, I guess.” That and she couldn’t actually hear ghosts. If it was because of what one might have said, well, Lil wouldn’t be any the wiser. She’d never solved anything by knowing something a ghost told her. The dead were as quiet to her as they were to most people. “Yeah, hopefully they don’t try that again.” She was pretty sure she was smart enough not to have it happen again. 

“Great. I won’t go easy on you though, I don’t have any special powers that make me good, so there’s no need. We’re probably pretty evenly matched,” Lil said with a laugh in her voice. After all, exorcists were painfully human with that kind of thing. Still, it would be nice to have someone to practice with that wasn’t a hunter. She enjoyed the times she could hang out with them, but they were always going to beat her in the end. She really was useless, even if she kept punching. That was really on her probable father issues. 

“Lot of things, mostly demons though,” Lil said slightly more casually then she really felt, rubbing at the inside of her palm. “I’m not sure that’s what's happening, though. The energy was super weird, but I’m not a demonologist, so it could have been demon-y.” She was at least 60% sure it wasn’t a demon, but she was never going to be certain on that one. She certainly didn’t think she’d be able to do anything about it. 

—

She laughed. “I think there are probably a few more options to try between conversation and murder. Then again, my job is words, so what do I know.” Arden pulled a pain au chocolat out of the box. “Yeah, I also hope no one tries drowning you again,” she grinned, feeling a little bewildered by the words coming out of her mouth. It felt a little uncomfortable, making light of such a serious situation, but it was kind of insane. Besides, she was just following the other’s lead. She took a bite of the pastry as Lil spoke. 

After doing most of her training with a firefighter balam and a master combatant vampire, it would be nice to spar with someone who was more of an equal, especially while her arm continued to heal and regain strength and mobility. It would be beneficial to Lil, also, especially if someone was actually out here trying to kill her. “You’re on, then.” The comment about special abilities once again had her wondering what the woman knew. Arden knew that sometimes mediums and exorcists worked hunters, at least when it came to the Scribes. Though, she couldn’t see why the same wouldn’t apply to others. 

“It would be nice if something related to the mines could be straightforward,” she sighed. It would be nice if anything in this fucking town could be straightforward, but that usually wasn’t the case. “It doesn’t seem demon-y to me either, but I’m really not a demonologist.” Shit, that reminded her, Wynne had been asking about demons. “Actually, I know you literally just said it's not your thing, but do you know anything about greater demons?” 

—

“Not sure the other steps to be honest, although most people aren’t actively trying to kill me - I would like that on the record I’m not that much of a threat,” Lil said, going back to her more naturally unaffected nature. After all, if she let every almost death make her sad, she would never be jokey again. “Yeah, I’m hoping the same. I don’t want to get fished out again.” 

“Bring it,” Lil said with a toothy smile, feeling more like herself than she had in a while. It always felt formal being back in Wicked’s Rest, like she was trying to protect her family's reputation or something. She should probably consider why that was, but at the moment she didn’t want to think about it. 

“Unlikely to happen. Those things have to have all sorts of fuckery in them,” Lil said knowing that while not technically a science term still fits it well. Lil chuckled, trying not to think of her sister and what that sort of life would have been like. She’d be terrified. Sort of like when asked a question about greater demons. Freezing for a half of a second, Lil tried to settle in and said cautiously, “Yes. I would say that I know some about greater demons. Why?” 

—

Arden took a beat to think it over. “I don’t know, maybe like throw a brick through a window with a note or something? Horse head in the bed? Going straight to murder seems a bit much, but that’s just me,” she shrugged, playful grin on her face. 

Hopefully Lil would be left alone, and none of this would come up again, but that seemed pretty unlikely. If someone had gone through the trouble to make an attempt on her life, they would likely try again. She wondered how far they were going. Were they watching her? Maybe even Jonas? The situation sounded terrifying enough without her mind jumping to the worst case scenarios, but the same things must be running through Lil’s mind, right?

She really should’ve thought over a response to ‘why’ but she wasn’t exactly at the top of her game right now. Were the situation reversed, Arden would certainly be asking Lil the same question, however, she couldn’t think of anything believable. Bare minimum, it was. “Someone I know grew up in a demon worshiping cult, like, with human sacrifices and everything? And this person is trying to find out more about all of that.” Some days, she couldn’t believe the shit coming out of her own mouth. 

—

“You know, they just jump straight for murder. Must be an unrequited crush thing. Only thing that makes sense is to want to murder me so bad,” Lil said with a bit of a cough, joking. Although she wasn’t sure that the list of her ex’s didn’t involve some women who wouldn’t be willing to kill her. She should work on that one. 

Still, she had a suspicion that it wasn’t her that they particularly cared about - or rather it wasn’t just her. It didn’t feel personal enough for it to be something she had done, but rather someone wanting to get rid of any Ballard they could find. That was the part that worried her the most - the fact that she wouldn’t or couldn’t be the only target. 

Lil raised her eyebrow at the answer, thinking of a way to steer the conversation away from demons. It wasn’t a topic she really reveled in knowing anything about, and she doubted if Arden knew the same that it would be her favorite topic either. Still, there was something there that Lil knew that she couldn’t just leave. Maybe it was the fact there was so much misinformation out there - that people could easily get killed by what they didn’t know. Breathing in slowly and exhaling, she said, “I - wouldn’t - if a demon is getting human sacrifices, it means it is powerful enough to kill almost anything in the world. Your friend is lucky to have left, and unless they know what they're doing exactly -.” Lil paused, feeling panic that she wasn’t used to rising up, as she went to rub at her left hand. Jane screaming at her to just - Oh God it hurt- Why is it bleeding - Mom I don’t want to - .

Shaking her head slightly trying to get the rising panic to settle in something other than her psyche, she continued softly, “You can get a lot of people killed. Any advice or things I give you may be wrong depending on what they're facing, and I - don’t want to get someone killed because I don’t know the details. It’s not something that you ask casually and get general advice on.” Lil didn’t mean it as a dig, but more so that she couldn’t have more souls on her conscience than she already had. While she had gotten to know Arden, well, there was a huge gap in the middle of experiences Lil hadn’t talked to most people about. She didn’t know how serious what she was asking was, and Lil needed to warn her. “I can try and give you some advice, but - it’s not the type of knowledge most people are able to hold and still be able to sleep at night. It would be better for your friend to reach out.” 

—

“That must be it, yeah,” she laughed. “They want you so bad, it makes them stupid and murderous.” 

Powerful enough to kill almost anything in the world. The words made Arden’s stomach drop. There wasn’t a lot to find on greater demons in the archives, but the occasional mentions did stress the horrible power they had, the terrible things that they could be capable of. It wasn’t exactly surprising, what Lil said, but it felt so far beyond anything she could imagine– anything she wanted to imagine. Plus, it was something that someone she cared about had been caught up in, which that made it all feel more real, made it feel so much worse. 

She could feel her face falling, growing soft with her concern for Wynne, and she didn’t have the energy to fix it. Not now, when she could so easily picture the look that came over Wynne’s face  sometimes when they spoke about home, when they told her the truth. “I– it didn’t seem like it was a common occurrence? The, uh, sacrifices. But yeah…”

It seemed to be a difficult topic for Lil, too, something in her eyes shifting. “No, yeah, that’s entirely fair. Sorry, I know I just kind of sprung that one on you,” Arden replied, feeling slightly bad for asking. If it could get Wynne some answers, though... “They asked me, and I don’t know shit, and you’re the only person I can think of who might know anything.” Despite herself, she was kind of curious, too. 

She wanted to joke about how she wasn’t sleeping much anyway, but she wasn’t sure if it would go over very well at the moment. Instead, she nodded. “I’ll let them know, then.” 

—

“I’d get it, but honestly. They could just flirt with me more normally, like trying to stab me or something,” Lil said with a chuckle, wondering how many of her exes would try to stab her. Probably a few of them, and she couldn’t be super mad about it. 

Lil’s body was tense as she considered everything that was said, and a lot of stuff that wasn’t. She didn’t have to be a genius to know the situation must have been delicate, and it was written over Arden’s face that it had to be bad. “It doesn’t have to be for them to be powerful. Demons are - hard. You’ll get a lot of bad information if you aren’t careful.” Hell, most exorcists probably wouldn’t know very much about them, Lil wouldn’t have if it hadn’t been for her dad pushing insisting that she become a demonologist. She’d seen her sister’s soul weapon, she’d seen a demon standing there. 

At the statement, Lil couldn’t help but chuckle, shaking her head lightly as it stung, and said, “Sorry - not laughing at you. You just got a little lucky that I would know anything. Most exorcists wouldn’t, hell, most of them I think wouldn’t associate with a demonologist unless they absolutely had to. I wouldn’t be shocked if they walked out.” That was true, at least for Lil.  While Jane was somewhat accepted into exorcist society, it was almost solely because of their shared last name than anything to do with their prowess. 

Lil sighing, and in some ways deciding to give up some information in the hopes of saving whoever this was, said“ Listen I know it sounds like I’m being obtuse for no reason. I’m not trying to. It’s just that exorcizing demons is considered cursed work, even among exorcists. Which it might be because at a certain point you can sense demons, but they can also sense you. It’s probably the most difficult thing a human could do, and you’re challenging your soul against something that’s not from here, literally. Most of the time you’ve got to give something of yourself to do it.” Hesitating, Lil flipped her palm to show Arden the scarred skin there. Despite the years, and Lil wanting it to fade, it was still raised and a bit red jagged. It told a bad story and her eyes flickered away from it, looking back at her coffee before continuing. 

“You have to bet everything for a chance of beating a demon. If your friend wants to do this, they need to be extremely careful and know the limits they are willing to go to and stand by that decision. They also have to find someone or something that can tip the scales in their favor. I - can probably help, but I’m no demonologist and I can’t promise that I could kill a demon.”

Still, Lil could help. Exorcists weren’t born, they were made, and the same happened with Demonologists. While she never wanted to go through the ritual process to tip the scale, she had been forced to learn rituals and things that pushed her to the edge. She couldn’t kill a demon, but she could do something.  

—

She snorted at that, though her amusement didn’t last for long.

As Lil began to explain herself, Arden just shook her head. She understood the need to be careful with information involving the supernatural, and demons, as she understood it, were the most powerful and dangerous the supernatural world could get. Of course, the exorcist didn’t know that, so she continued with her explanation. 

It was interesting to hear her go into more detail about demonologists, how they were seen as cursed and avoided even by exorcists. The way Lil explained it, it made sense, but in the same way it was difficult to even imagine real life demons, she hadn’t really considered the implications of what being a demonologist must really be like. Hell, it was hard enough picturing a regular exorcism, much less a fucking demonic one, but here was Lil, looking uncomfortable, holding up a scarred hand, seemingly showing her proof of one. 

“Oh, yeah, no, I was not expecting or asking you to or anything– that would be fucking insane. I don’t even know if they want to… I mean, I’m sure they probably want to, but, you know.” She didn’t want to consider the option, of Wynne getting involved in dealing with a demon. Wynne was smart, they knew how dangerous these things could be. They had just survived a deadly encounter, after all, they wouldn’t. “They know this stuff is dangerous.” But even if they did… “I sure as hell won’t let them forget it.” Arden would protect them, for as long as she had a say in it.

—

Lil nodded slightly, leaning back into her chair, wondering exactly why people wanted to face their demons. She’d always elected to run away from them personally, still she seemed to have gotten her point across, even though it was somewhat awkward. Moving her hand to not look at it she instead just went to sip at her coffee for a moment. She wasn’t used to talking about most of this, and she wasn’t sure what all was necessary to say. 

Instead, she just listened, and after a moment said, “It’s hard not to want to stop evil when it’s happening in front of you. I’m sure your friend will want to do something if they're able to, and if it does happen, just - let me know. I might not be a demonologist, but I am better than nothing and willing to help. Even if it’s only to say don’t do it. ” 

It wasn’t heroism or something like that. Despite the better angels of her nature, Lil wasn’t exactly an altruist at heart. More so that Lil figured whoever it was might need to be pulled back, and well that was what she did. She pulled people back from interactions with whatever the hell was on the other side. While she didn’t intervene on most things, this was an area she had to.  

Maybe if only because Lil wished someone had pulled her back at some point too. Stepping in when something was dangerous and she shouldn’t be doing it. Although she adored Jonas, he was never in a position to do that himself, and well no one else ever tried. Clearing her throat and wincing, she continued, “Besides, no offense, but I don’t exactly trust that you wouldn’t run off and do something yourself. You know, with those new fighting moves you got.” Lil smiled lightly, trying to joke. “Well, after your arms healed, at least.” 

—

Wynne would definitely want to do something. Their family was still involved in the cult, as far as they knew, there were people there that they grew up with, that they cared about. Lil was right, which, of course, she was. She apparently had been involved in some kind of demonic exorcism herself after all– if Arden was understanding her correctly. Not to mention her experience with the average ghostly dealings. There was such a bravery in what the woman did, dealing with spectral beings, a bravery she didn’t think she possessed. She felt so helpless in the face of tangible supernatural forces, she didn’t think she had it in her to try to take on something intangible, much less a fucking demon. There were enough earthly horrors here, she didn’t need to do any outsourcing. 

But Wynne was a better, stronger person than her, and they were in an impossible situation. Would they risk everything to save their family? She sighed, certain she knew the answer.  “Well, I sincerely hope it won’t be necessary, but I appreciate it. And, if it comes to it, I will be right there with you also telling them not to.”