Hocus and Pocus

Jessy looked as though she was sleeping soundly, but her dreams were of horrid things. As usual. They were filled with curdling screams, strange pale faces she'd never seen before, and the little boy that always sat quietly in the corner. He never really cried, but rather an everlasting whine. She tossed and turned for a bit, and soon an actual scream woke her. Startled, she sat up in her bed and stared out through her window. Everything seemed to look normal. She put on some underwear and a big shirt, making her way out to the living room. Jack looked as though he was dead on the couch. She tip-toed to the kitchen and got herself a glass of water. She heard a distant bang coming from outside, something like a gunshot, but again, she decided it was nothing. They didn't live in the best neighborhood, probably some drunk threatening his wife by shooting off into the sky.

Her mouth craved for a cigarette. She slipped her feet into some flip flops and stepped out quietly. Trotting down the stairs, she lit her cigarette. The night was calm and very still. It wasn't as cold as it was earlier, it was actually quite nice. She leaned back against the wall and took a long drag of her cigarette. Her lungs filled with smoke as she leaned her head back and closed her eyes momentarily. A cloud of smoke hovered around her as she exhaled. Taking another drag, her mind wandered back to the conversation with Jack earlier that night. Then back to the man at the bar, with his wild tales. Was everyone finally catching on to her crazy, as if it was contagious, or could it be possible that the man was really telling the truth, and Jack was just doing his duty as a brother and protecting her.

As thoughts wandered in and out of her mind, Jessy thought she heard footsteps approaching her. Again, thinking it was nothing she continued to smoke her cigarette. Closing her eyes, once more she took another long drag. Just as she exhaled, her body met with another man's quite forcefully.
"OW! What the fuck!" She shouted at the figure in the dark. The man panted. The dim light from the apartments revealed his face. It was Nolre.

"Hey--Jessy, was it?--Imagine meeting you here. What say you we run away somewhere?" He grabbed her by the arm and began to sprint. She whined as she lost a flip flop on the way, and barely kept up.
"I thought you were going to call tomorrow?!" She yelled, breathlessly.
"Couldn't wait, thought I'd just show up instead." Even while running through the night, sweaty and a mess, he managed to remain charming.
"Why are we running?" She remembered to ask. Since he had emerged in such a sudden manner, she had forgotten to even take a look at her surrounding and inquire as to why they were running aimlessly through her apartment buildings.
"Look behind you," he said casually. She turned her head and froze in shock. Not too far behind them was a pack of... a pack of... she didn't know what. She was so dumbfounded, she couldn't even force a scream from her mouth. Nolre yanked at her arm, "Don't just fucking stand there! We've got to keep running."

She snapped out of her shock and quickened her speed. The fear of whatever it was back there had really lit a fire under her, for she running as fast as Nolre now, and almost surpassing him.
"What are those things!!?" She asked in between breaths.
"Ghouls."
"GHOULS? I thought those were suppose to look like ghosts. You know, pale white things that float... sometimes friendly. Kinda like casper." She frantically ranted.
"These things look like they could tear me to pieces."
"They can. Which is why we're running."
"Well, where the fuck to? They're going to catch up sooner or later. Can't you like kill them or something?"
 
"GHOULS? I thought those were suppose to look like ghosts. You know, pale white things that float... sometimes friendly. Kinda like Casper." Nolre was growing annoyed by her ranting.
"These things look like they could tear me to pieces."
"They can. Which is why we're running."
"Well, where the fuck to? They're going to catch up sooner or later. Can't you like kill them or something?"

Nolre chewed his lip and considered it. There were five of them, and he had fired one, two shots in the apartment.. had he fired another? Lost in his thoughts, he noticed that he was starting to slow down and tried to speed up.

His gun held twelve bullets, and that spared him ten. Nolre let go of Jessy's arm and stopped, turning on his heel and raising his gun.

The first four shots struck the ghouls in their foreheads, but Nolre lowered his gun to take out the last one's knee. It fell quickly and thudded loudly on the cement, then tried to crawl. Nolre raised his foot and stomped its throat, crushing its windpipe and its spine. It stopped squirming but let out a slow, pained groan.

There was a tag on the back of its head that signified it belonged to Hocus and Pocus, and Nolre lit up a cigarette. He sighed when he exhaled, and scratched his head as he walked back to the girl.

"My car isn't too far from here, you want me to take you someplace safe?"

Nolre didn't wait for an answer, he just kept walking to his car and got in. Jessy followed, and Nolre examined her while he started the car.


"You're not wearing any pants."

She blushed.
"Right on," he charmed as he put the car in gear and offered her a cigarette.
"We're going to my place, are you cool with that?"
 
When they arrived at Nolre's apartment he flicked on the lights, though before Del could rush inside Delial instructed for her to remove her shoes, something Bobby followed suit in only to get halfway out of his own before the girl grabbed a hold of him and dragged him through to the living room with her.

?I get the couch!? Del exclaimed.
?Says who?? Bobby challenged.
?Me,? she replied, folding her arms.
?I?ll fightcha for it,? he proposed with a grin.
?You?ll lose,? Nolre warned as he walked by.

Bobby considered it for a moment and decided it might be best to let her win, though mere moments after sitting down she was back on her feet, heading off to look around the place.

Despite there being plenty for the teen to investigate, he instead slumped down on the sofa and turned the TV on. His way of looking around a place was better left for when he was on his own anyway. Just as he'd turned the set on Del hurried back in and, after being disappointed in the lack of seeing a dog on TV, suggested they instead play a game.

?What kinda game?? he asked.
?It?s a game I play with Delial and Eve sometimes. I make little tiny versions of things and I have to remember the names of them to go with it. Only this time, you have to remember the names of them.?
?But I don?t know the names of them,? he reminded her.
?Well now you?ll learn them,? she emphasized.

He shrugged and conceded, having nothing better to do really. Del clapped her hands together and then sat down before him on the floor, keeping a couple of feet between them. She conjured up the smaller version of a freaky looking thing with three heads and bodies of men, one of them carrying a club. It was a violent creature that started shouting in its tiny voices, banging on Nolre?s carpet with the club.

?Well? What?s it called?? she asked him.
?A sausage fest,? Bobby replied, raising an eyebrow.
?Wrong!?
?What is it then??
Del opened her mouth to speak and then paused, looking back down at the creature. She furrowed her brow and brought a finger to her chin. ?Um, I forget.?
?This game isn?t going to go very far of neither of us know the names of shit.?
?You said a bad word!? she cried, lifting her hand and pointing to him.
?Who says it?s a bad word??
?Um, Mister Goose,? Del replied. ?And besides, I know it?s a bad word. I?m not stupid.?
"Well, it's okay to say bad words sometimes. I mean, as long as you're not with uptight people, or around people you work with. Then it's pretty much fine. Anyone who who gets annoyed by it is just funny to watch get their panties in a wad."
Del cocked her head to the side. ?Mister Goose wears panties??
The boy nodded. "Probably ladies', too. And stockings and everything."

She lifted her hand to her face and giggled, then created a tiny tulpa of Swan in nothing but women?s underwear and stockings. Bobby burst out laughing and reached down to pick the miniature man up. The tiny Mister Swan started to scream in fear.

?Hey, little fella,? Bobby said and reached up. He started to pull on the man?s left arm, applying more strength until the limb tore off the socket. It bled onto his hand and Del giggled as she watched him. ?Oh shit,? Bobby stated in surprise, then repeated the same process on the other limb. It was awesome. He proceeded to rip him up into little pieces, finding great amusement in watching the weird little doppelg?nger apparently dying.

?Bobby?? Del asked after a moment.
?Yeah??
?Are you scared??
?Of what?? he looked up.
?People die a lot in Hocus Pocus, you know. I make lots of friends and then I never see them again because they die or get eaten by monsters, which is I guess the same thing, except sometimes the monsters spit them right back out again or they don?t chew them and we can cut them out of their bellies, but that usually kills them to, only sometimes it doesn?t. Um?what was I saying? Oh yeah!? she said, remembering. ?People die a whole lot. Even the really strong ones.?
"...They do, huh?" he asked, then paused for a moment. "Sounds even more fun now."

Del grinned happily, pleased to hear that Bobby would be sticking around.

Suddenly Nolre appeared and announced that he'd be out for a bit to Del and Bobby, and apparently also Delial who'd been standing to one side without the latter having realised.

As Nolre stepped out, Delial headed into the kitchen and Del ran off into Nolre's room to investigate...something. Bobby stood up to look around while he was alone, but was quickly joined again by Del, who was holding a bag of weed.

"Bobby, what's this?" she asked.
"Looks like herbs to me. Probably for putting on cereal." She looked intrigued and heading into the kitchen, he assumed to bother Delial and possibly eat marijuana on some cereal, which would be extremely entertaining. Either way, she'd possibly be busy for a while.

Bobby turned and walked around the room, looking for anything of interest. He eventually came to a large set of bookcases, absolutely crammed full of books, and all in alphabetical order. When he looked closer he realised they were also in order of subject and, he could've sworn, the type of book, as in what they were bound in, colour, size, possibly even how old each item was.

"Well hot damn," he mumbled to himself as he looked over the names.

There were books on the occult, on every religion he could think of, on a variety of weird sounding creatures - some of which he'd heard of - and how-to books on capturing and killing them, on absolutely every language imaginable and then some. He even saw one that distinctly read "Necronomicon".

"Oh, please let that be real," he said in a hushed voice, though decided against even touching it just in case his wish was granted.

And then he came to a particularly large book entitled "The Comprehensive Encyclopaedia of Creatures of the Supernatural". He slid it off the shelf with a little difficulty, it not only being heavy but packed tightly into place by all the surrounding volumes. Once he'd managed to get a hold of it without knocking everything else off as well, he held it steadily in one arm and opened it up with his free hand.

The front page was adorned with an intricately detailed and somewhat disturbing image of some ungodly monster, and after it lay several pages of contents. It was a bit much to go looking through for something specific, especially when you weren't even looking for anything in particular, so instead he just began to flip through the pages.

As he did so his eye widened.* There were several different sections filled with creatures, and each beast was dedicated a good couple of pages detailing all of its known names, its appearance - along with one or more pictures, its origin, how old it was, how many were known to exist at the time the book was made or whether they were extinct, its behaviour, its strengths and weaknesses, how to avoid it, capture it, get rid of it or kill it and more.

He placed his thumb on the edge of the bulk of the pages and began to flick through, hundreds of names and pictures flashing before his eyes; Serpent, Chupacabra, Harpy, Poltergeist, Mermaid, Aswang, Djinn, Kelpie, Unicorn, Gryphon, Wendigo...Demons. An entire section on them, and a large one at that.

Bobby could almost feel his mouth watering at the prospect. All of these weird, disturbing and dangerous monsters really existed? Would he get to see them? Would he get to interact with them? Kill them? It would be interesting to see how they worked, how one would even go about killing such creatures.

Suddenly he realised it was strangely quiet. He quickly closed the book and shoved it back into its place on the shelf, turning and heading into the kitchen. Both Delial and Del seemed to be spacing out, the latter sitting on one of the counters and the former swaying around. He also saw what appeared to be an apple bong sitting to one side.

"You made a bong out of an apple?" he turned to Delial.
He took a breath, paused for a moment, then finally said, "Yes."
"Killer. So...is she high? She...definitely seems high."
"Bobby!" Del exclaimed upon seeing him. "Do you want to meet Stanley!?"
"Depends, who is he?"
"Are you the one that put the coloured spheres inside my eyes?" she asked, looking at him with wide eyes.
"Is it safe for her to get high, you think?" he turned to Delial.
"Probably not for us."
"Huh."
 
Suddenly he heard the sound of the door opening and Nolre called to them.

"I'm back." After a moment or so he came into the kitchen. "What's going on? Oh, apple bong. Nice," he said as he noticed it.
"Yeah, is it safe for her to get high?" Bobby pointed to Del with his thumb.

The girl Nolre had been talking to at the bar earlier walked in wearing a big shirt and one flip flop.

"Oh, hi. Apple bong?" he pointed to it and she looked for a moment before shaking her head.
"I'm good, thanks."
"Heeey, aren't you the juice lady?" Del asked, almost falling over her own feet as she walked over to her. "Nolre, I feel weird."
"Hey, didn't you mention before that you didn't have a liver?" Bobby said, his brow furrowing. "So, you're not human either, are you?"

~
​

{{Not a typo, he's wearing an eye patch, lol.}}
 
He didn't respond as they kept on running. She noticed his speed was slowing down and gave him a skeptical look. He then made an abrupt stop and let go of her arm. He drew his gun quickly and fired several shots at the creatures that stood before them. One of them was still gasping for air as it began to crawl toward the two. Jessy backed up and got behind Nolre. He stepped forward and stomped on the thing's throat. Soon everything was still.

Jessy stood there in awe at everything she had just witnessed. She was more than just a bit shook up. Jack was trying to protect her, but how did he know of these people? Did he work for them too? Who was them? A million questions raced through her mind as she looked over at the striking man next to her. The night light was exceptionally good to him.

"My car isn't too far from here, you want me to take you somewhere safe?"
"Yeah..." She mumbled quietly doubting he was even listening.

She followed him to the car and felt his eyes on her as she positioned herself in the passenger seat.

"You're not wearing any pants."
She felt her cheeks get hot as she blushed.
"Right on," he charmed as he put the car in gear and offered her a cigarette.
"We're going to my place, are you cool with that?"
She smiled nervously, "Yeah, that's fine."

She took a long drag of her cigarette and relaxed a little.
"Do you live alone?"
"Usually it's just me and Delial, but I've got some company over tonight. Hope you don't mind."
She did mind, she really didn't want to be around too many people at the time, but she hadn't much of a choice. She didn't want to go home.
"Yeah, it's fine."

She took another drag from her cigarette, "Do you mind if I roll down the window?"
"No, go for it."
She blew the smoke out of the window. The wind felt nice in her hair, she was still a bit sweaty from running.
"Is this an average night for you?"
"You could say that."
She gave him a skeptical look. "What exactly is it that you do?"
He eased on the breaks as they came to red light. He looked over at her and paused for a moment before he spoke.
"I'm in the extermination business. And waaaaaaaaaaaaay back in the day, I was a gunsmith."
"Bull****, extermination." She spat back.
"I'm pretty sure I asked exactly what you do."
"Extermination and retaliation, sweetheart, that's what we call it." Nolre took a drag of his cigarette as he stepped on the gas. "And, you know, weapons design."

She gave him an annoyed look and rolled her eyes. He was giving her standard textbook descriptions of what he did. She wanted to know why anyone would hunt those things and how one would even go about getting into that business. She sighed deeply as they pulled up to a building.
"Home sweet home." He put the car in park and got out. She let herself out and felt the cold breeze of the night on her legs. She shivered.
"I regret not wearing pants."
"You can borrow something, I guess."
They made their way up the stairs without saying a word. As they arrived at the doorstep, Nolre drew his key from his pocket.
"I hope your friends aren't creeped out by the fact that I don't have any pants on.... and how I'm missing a shoe."
"My friends don't really get 'creeped' out by anything." He grinned as he opened the door.

The silly girl from the bar was there with a giant bowl of cereal, accompanied by two other boys.
"Hey! It's the lady with the... the... what was it?... WAIT DON'T TELL ME." She scrunched her nose as she pondered intensely about who Jessy was. "The lady with the egg-- JUICE! The lady with the juice!" She proclaimed cheerfully.
Jessy giggled. "Yeah, that's me."
The other man in the room had droopy eyes and a spacey look on his face. They both looked pretty stoned.
"Welcome to the chill zone." He smiled. "It's where we chillax.. that's chill and relax... all at the same time....."
Jessy laughed.
"And that's Delial. Everyone, this is Jessy." Nolre introduced her to them. Delial nodded, the crazy girl was too busy enjoying her bowl of cereal, and the other young boy in the room gave an unenthusiastic wave.

"How come she gets to wear no pants, Nolre!? I don't want to wear pants either. I absolutely hate pants." Del complained.
"I hate pants too, no one should ever wear pants, they're the devil." Joked Jessy.
Del furrowed her brow and looked to Nolre as if asking permission to get rid of her pants.
"You gonna finish that cereal?" Asked Delial, and just like that Del forgot all about her problematic pants and dove back into her cereal.

Jessy noticed Nolre slipping away and followed him. She entered what she figured was his room. He looked startled to see her following so closely behind him as he turned.
"...What? You said I could borrow something."
He gestured to the closet. "There's nothing but jeans here."
"Your point?"
"I can't sleep in jeans, they're uncomfortable."
"Then don't."
She pouted angrily. His arrogance was annoying and alluring all at the same time.

She wandered around the room for a moment and turned to see him changing out of his shirt and into a clean one. She tried hard not to stare.
"Do you have a phone I could use?"
He tossed her his cell phone. "Thanks."
She stepped just outside his door and called Jack, hoping he wouldn't answer. Voicemail, perfect.
"Hey, my friend called me up and asked if I wanted to go for late night coffee. I didn't want to wake you so I just slipped out. I'm going to stay the night here. Just calling so you don't worry. See you soon. Bye." She hung up the phone and made her way back into Nolre's room. He was sitting at the edge of his bed, cigarette in hand. His eyes were glassy. He looked as though he was somewhere else. She made her way over to him and cleared her throat. He didn't even flinch.
"Nolre...?"
Again, he didn't move. She knelt down in front of his face and snapped her fingers, "Hey!"
"What?" He sounded annoyed.
"Sorry...I was just wondering, where am I meant to sleep?" She shifted her weight from one foot to another, feeling uncomfortable asking him that.
Nolre points over his shoulder, taking another drag of his cigarette.
"Right there."
She bit down on her bottom lip, confused, "Where will you sleep then?" The man pointed over his shoulder again.
"You haven't even took me out on a proper date yet and you're already expecting to sleep with me?" She joked as she plopped herself down on the bed. He chuckled a bit, but he still seemed distant. If it were anyone else Jessy would've asked what was the matter, but something about him was off. She felt as though asking or saying the wrong thing would set him off. She may have been completely wrong about this, but for the time being she went with her gut.

She fell back on the pillow and stared up at the ceiling. "Mind sharing those cigarettes?"
He handed her one and lit it for her as she placed it in her mouth. She lay back thinking about all of what had happened in such a short amount of time. All this time she thought monsters only existed in fairy tales and nightmares. She was having a hard time figuring out what was real and what wasn't. Nolre was still sitting at the edge of the bed. It made her uneasy that he hadn't made himself comfortable yet. She eyed him carefully, trying to be discreet. He looked young, but his eyes seemed as though they were older than time itself.

"Nolre.."
"Hm?"
"How old are you?"


(fuuuuuuuuuuuu, laura, i didn't even notice that you had posted, I've just had this window open for so long. There's just little tiny details that are different so if everyone could just... ignore those... that'd be grand.)
 
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After smoking some cereal herbs with Delial, Del started to feel very funny. It became difficult to hold onto one moment to the next, which wasn’t extremely unusual for her, but the state was certainly amplified. She began to remember all sorts of things that she’d meant to remember but had forgotten to. One distinct thing that she couldn’t seem to get her mind off of was how quickly and heartlessly she’d disposed of Stanley. She’d spent ages coming up with the perfect companion and just when she had, she let one simple case of incredibly annoying swimming.

Her level of concentration was actually quite remarkable consideration she could barely remember things from one second to the next on a regular basis. Holding onto a stream of thought for upwards of twenty seconds was actually quite a feat for her.

Just when she was beginning to grow tired of spinning around in circles, she noticed Bobby had returned to the kitchen and lit up.

"Bobby!" Del exclaimed upon seeing him. "Do you want to meet Stanley!?" Before he could respond however, or before Del took a moment to pay attention, something occurred to her. "Are you the one that put the coloured spheres inside my eyes?" she asked, looking at him with wide eyes.
"Is it safe for her to get high, you think?" he turned to Delial.
"Probably not for us."
"Huh."

Suddenly they heard the sound of the door opening and Nolre called to them.

"I'm back." After a moment or so he came into the kitchen. "What's going on? Oh, apple bong. Nice," he said as he noticed it.
"Yeah, is it safe for her to get high?" Bobby pointed to Del with his thumb.
“Nolre, I think I’m going to bring Stanley back. What do you think?”

The girl Nolre had been talking to at the bar earlier walked in wearing a big shirt and one flip flop.

"Oh, hi. Apple bong?" he pointed to it and she looked for a moment before shaking her head.
"I'm good, thanks."
"Heeey, aren't you the juice lady?" Del asked, almost falling over her own feet as she walked over to her. "Nolre, I feel weird."
"Hey, didn't you mention before that you didn't have a liver?" Bobby said, his brow furrowing. "So, you're not human either, are you?"
“Nolre’s a succubus!” Del exclaimed.
“Jesus,” he muttered, lifting a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose.
“Wait, that’s not right, is it?” she thought on it. After a moment she shrugged, no longer caring. She turned to Bobby and let out a cry. “Bobby, your eye is gone! Here,” she said firmly, holding out her hand to reveal a human eyeball. “I made you a new one.”

"Welcome to the chill zone," Delial said to Jessy. "It's where we chillax.. that's chill and relax... all at the same time....." Jessy laughed.
"And that's Delial. Everyone, this is Jessy." Nolre introduced her to them. Delial nodded, Del was too busy enjoying her bowl of cereal, and Bobby gave an unenthusiastic wave.

Then Del noticed something absolutely detrimental.

"How come she gets to wear no pants, Nolre!? I don't want to wear pants either. I absolutely hate pants." Del complained.
"I hate pants too, no one should ever wear pants, they're the devil," joked Jessy.
Del furrowed her brow and looked to Nolre, waiting for the word that she could get rid of her pants.
"You gonna finish that cereal?" asked Delial, and just like that Del forgot all about her problematic pants and dove back into her cereal.

Del distracted herself with trying to remember what Stanley look like, as well as finishing the marshmallow cereal. When she was finished and had given up on reconjuring the fish, Delial and Bobby moved back to the living room. The two males slumped down on the sofa while Del wondered around the room. In this altered state, it was almost as if she’d never been there before.

However, she remembered that Nolre was there only moments ago and she couldn’t recall him leaving. He had been there with a lady, too, she was sure of it. With Bobby and Delial spacing out in a stoned daze, Del took it upon herself to find and potentially rescue Nolre. But when she found him, he was laying down on his bed beside the juice later. A wry grin appeared over Del’s face and she squealed, getting both their attention.

“Are you two making love?” she asked obnoxiously. She held out her hands and conjured two miniature figures of them, naked and...engaging in explicit activities. "OoooOooOoOOOoo-"
"Stop that."
Del popped the vision away and pouted. "Hmph."
Nolre groaned. “Go play with Bobby and Delial, Del.”
“I think they’re dead.”
“Then go dissect their corpses and figure out how they died.”
“Okay!” she sang sweetly and went to do so.

By the time she returned to the living room, the two had passed out. Del cocked her head to the side. She realized she, too, was quite tired. Her eyes were growing heavy and they had stolen her bed. After glaring at them, she hopped up onto the couch between them, pulling her knees up to her chest. She closed her eyes and started humming a song she knew but couldn’t recall the name of, and eventually she sang herself to sleep.
 
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Nolre was awakened by Del's soft voice carrying throughout the house. The bartender's arms were wrapped around him, and he slowly slid out of bed. There was something familiar about the song. Nolre pulled a shirt over his head and looked at the alarm clock.
5:27
​
He frowned and looked around for his cigarettes, then walked out into the living room. Del was curled up hugging a pillow with her pants cast aside. Bobby and Delial had fallen asleep on the couch with the television on mute. Nolre turned it off and opened the sliding glass door to his balcony. He lit up a cigarette and stared over the city, taking a long drag and rubbing at his tired eyes.

"You could almost call it a family."

Nolre opened his eyes to see Mr. Swan standing beside him, gazing out at the same city, and dressed in a fine silk suit.

"Bobby, the troubled brother. Delial and Del, the children. That girl, the mother. What's her name?"

Nolre took another drag, narrowing his eyes when Swan asked about the girl.

"Gofuckyourself."
"A strange name."
"It's Italian."

Swan's lips curled maliciously.

"The Tangibles you slew last night were released from the research building. Our clean up arrived almost immediately, and the witnesses have been taken care of."
"It was Greene," Nolre said darkly.
"How do you know?"
Nolre narrowed his eyes again. "He's the only Department Head stupid enough to fuck with shit like that."
Swan raised an eyebrow, still looking out at the city.
"You want his position?"
"I want his head."

The two stood in silence for a moment, each avoiding the other's eyes.

"That song.. it is the one she was singing when we found her, correct?"

Nolre recalled the ashes of human remains and their homes. He recalled the devastation Del was skipping around in, devastation by her own hands. He recalled a whimsical poem about a sailor abandoning his wife. He took a hard drag.

"Mhm."

Swan began to sing.

"Sammy, oh Sammy, please come home,
Sammy, oh Sammy, don't let me grow old.
Sammy, oh Sammy, I beg, I plead,
Come home, or I'll kill you while you sleep."

Nolre remembered the man who was curled into a ball, the man who was crying and begging for them not to take Del away. He closed his eyes again and put the cigarette between his teeth, reaching into his pocket.

"I have some business to take care of, if you'll excuse me."

Nolre walked back into the house and toward the door before the knocking even came. When it did, he opened the door and removed the small bag of cocaine from his pocket and handed it to the addict, who was accompanied by a friend.

"I can't thank you enough, Mr. A, really, I mean I just, whenever I need a fix-"
"Yeah, whatever man, just pay a motherfucker."
"Sure thing, man, sure thing.. my friend here, uh, he's kind of, he wants to know if you have any meth."
"No, man, I don't fuck with that shit. Neither should you."

Nolre closed the door and set the money down on the kitchen counter. He reached into the fridge and took out the carton of eggs. He washed a pan and turned on the stove, then opened the carton.

"Three eggs... this is some bullshit..."

Nolre threw on his ripped coat just as Delial was waking up.

"Don't go around dealing out of our home," he slurred, yawning.
"I'm going out to buy some eggs. Please don't give Del any more drugs."

Delial threw loose change at Nolre and grinned sleepily. Nolre walked outside and threw the cigarette down, stepping it out and walking through the dark streets to the twenty four hour convenience store.

Many cars were on the streets at that hour. Nolre walked in silence past an shadowy alleyway, catching a glimpse of a human figure out of the corner of his eye. When he turned to look, there was no one there. Nolre furrowed his brow and kept walking.

The fluorescent lights of the small store imposed on Nolre's eyes. He was greeted by the man at the counter, who was busy with a newspaper.
Who was also a badass and had fought in a war with Nolre.
"Hey."
"How's business, Michael?"
"Shit," the man said frankly.
Nolre grinned and wandered through the store.
"Are these eggs any good?"
The man turned a page in his newspaper. "Yeah."

Nolre grabbed a carton and walked back to the counter, reaching over it and processing the transaction himself. Michael didn't move at all, and nodded when Nolre took the correct amount of change and no more from the register.

"Someone's following you."

Nolre looked through the window and saw nothing. His brow furrowed again and he took his eggs, wishing the man a good night. In response, the clerk spat on the floor and murmured to himself.

"Fucking Maple Leafs...."

Nolre once again walked the dark streets, heading home quickly. He passed the shadowy alleyway again and saw the figure. When Nolre turned, a reflection of light sped towards his gut.

Stepping back, he dodged the switchblade and nearly dropped the carton of eggs. The man leaped out of the alley and made to slash again but missed, and Nolre stepped into his range. He shoved a shoulder into the man's sternum, pushing him back into the darkness. Nolre kicked the knife out of the man's hand and delivered a strong headbutt to his nose, pushing him up against the wall. With the eggs in one hand, Nolre ground his elbow into the man's throat, pinning him.

"Do you see these? I JUST BOUGHT THESE FUCKING EGGS!!"
"I-I'm sorry!"
"Who do you work for?!"
"Nigga, I'm in my own business and you're pushing on my-"
Nolre delivered a swift knee to the man's gut, grinding his throat even more.
"DON'T GIVE ME THAT SHIT. You're too good with a blade and you're not dressed like a drug dealer. NOW WHO DO YOU WORK FOR?!"
"I d-don't know, man! He never told me his name!"
"What does he look like," Nolre demanded.
"Uh-Uh, uhm, he-"
"Uhm isn't an adjective, motherfucker!!"
"Uh-well, see-"
"PERSON, PLACE, OR THING, MOTHERFUCKER. PERSON, PLACE, OR THING!!"
"I never met him in person! None of us have!"
"Us?!"
The man shook his head.
"They'll kill me, man. Please, just let me go."
Nolre looked deep into the man's eyes. They begged for mercy.
"You know.. where I come from, people like you don't get second chances."
"..Compton?"
"HELL, MOTHERFUCKER. DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT I AM?!"
"Please don't yell at me!"
Nolre pushed the man away and kicked him in the back.
"Get the fuck out of here! You're pathetic!"

The man stumbled out of the alleyway and retreated as fast as he could. Nolre watched him go and then picked up the knife, dropping it immediately when he felt how scathing hot it was.

White wax covered the blade.

Nolre frowned, imagining the unbearable agony he almost suffered at the hands of the weapon before continuing home. The sun was coming up and the morning air was beginning to warm up. When he opened the door, the household was stirring. He gave Delial a look that said "We really need to talk," and then addressed everyone.

"How do you guys like your eggs?"
 
?Nolre?s a succubus!? Del exclaimed when Bobby inquired as to the man's race.
?Jesus,? he muttered, lifting a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose.
?Wait, that?s not right, is it?? she thought on it. He was about to suggest that she'd meant incubus when she apparently decided it didn't matter, shrugging and turning to him, letting out a cry. ?Bobby, your eye is gone! Here,? she said firmly, holding out her hand to reveal a human eyeball. ?I made you a new one.?
"Oh, that's okay. Actually, I-"
"Welcome to the chill zone," Delial suddenly said to the girl who had returned with Nolre. "It's where we chillax.. that's chill and relax... all at the same time....." Jessy laughed.
"God damn, how strong was that shit?"
"And that's Delial. Everyone, this is Jessy." Nolre introduced her to them. Delial nodded, Del was too busy enjoying her bowl of cereal, and Bobby gave an unenthusiastic wave.
"Hi."
"How come she gets to wear no pants, Nolre!? I don't want to wear pants either. I absolutely hate pants." Del complained.
"I hate pants too, no one should ever wear pants, they're the devil," joked Jessy.
Del furrowed her brow and looked to Nolre, waiting for the word that she could get rid of her pants.
"You gonna finish that cereal?" asked Delial, and just like that Del forgot all about her problematic pants and dove back into her cereal.

After a moment or so Nolre made to slip away, and Jessy followed after him. Delial still seemed to be pretty zoned out.

"You all right there, man?" Bobby inquired.
"Super."
"Uh-huh." When the man got up to head back into the living area Bobby followed. "Will Del be all right in there by herself?"
"Yeah, she's got the cereal," he said, taking a seat.

Only a moment later she came in after them and wandered around for a while, then disappeared in the same direction Nolre had. Bobby glanced at the clock across the room. It was getting pretty late, and he certainly felt tired. While debating whether he should go to sleep or try and stay up to search around the place some more his body answered for him and he dozed off.

In the darkness Mr. Swan appeared before him, smiling. A series of visions of strange creatures flowed through his head, some changing into one another or splitting apart and morphing into other beasts as they did so. Everything seemed hazy and he forgot most of it. The most prominent thing in his memory was the fire that everything had eventually engulfed everything and faded out as he opened his eye, the first beams of sunlight creeping across his face and waking him.

He squinted as the light caught his eye and lifted an arm up to shield it, sitting up on the sofa where he'd fallen asleep. Delial was no longer beside him, however Del was, curled up in a little ball with her arms around her legs.

Bobby climbed to his feet slowly so as not to wake her, stretching and looking around. It was still fairly early, and it appeared the sun was only just rising. He pulled the throw from the back of the settee down over Del, and was about to head off in search of Delial when the man came in from the kitchen. Then he heard the door open and Nolre wandered in as well.

"How do you guys like your eggs?"
"Cooked. I don't mind the details. Whatever's easiest."
"In a banana wagon!" Del suddenly cried, and Bobby turned to see that she'd woken up abruptly.
"Awesome. Banana wagon it is," Nolre said, heading off to the kitchen.

Delial followed immediately and Bobby turned to Del.

"You all right?"
"Mhm. I like eggs," she said sleepily.

Bobby turned to head off after Nolre and Delial, Del close behind. He sat up on the counter to one side, it appeared he may have interrupted a conversation just about to occur between the two men, but he didn't think much of it.

"So, you're an incubus, huh? Awesome. I've heard you guys have either extremely large or cold dicks. If not both. How's that workin' out for ya?"
Del giggled. "You're talking about penises."
"Sure am."
"Um..." They all turned to see Jessy standing in the doorway. "Good morning?"
"'Sup?" He turned back to Nolre who was preparing the eggs. "So, as I was saying, about your dick..."
 
Del dreamed of a large field with tall grass. Down at the foot of the hill, rested a small, quiet, pleasant sort of village. Del was sitting in the grass, feeling the blades between her toes and her long, voluminous hair tumbling down over her shoulders and arms. She was sitting next to someone. His face was foggy, but she could recall his laughter clearly. He made her feel happy.

The dream started to fade as well as any memory of it, when Del felt something soft and warm being wrapped around her. Only half conscious, she lifting his arms to pull the blanket around her tighter. She became fully awake when she head the sound of the apartment door opening. She opened her eyes and saw Nolre speaking to the other two males, asking them how they?d like their eggs.

?In a banana wagon!? she cried, causing them to turn to her in surprise.
"Awesome. Banana wagon it is," Nolre said, heading off to the kitchen.

Delial followed immediately and Del climbed off the sofa, rubbing her eyes as she headed to the kitchen. Bobby turned to her as she approached..

"You all right?"
"Mhm. I like eggs," she said sleepily.

Bobby turned to head off after Nolre and Delial, Del close behind. He sat up on the counter to one side. Del watched him for a long moment, and then decided to mimic him. She used Delial for leverage.

"So, you're an incubus, huh?? Bobby asked Nolre. ?Awesome. I've heard you guys have either extremely large or cold dicks. If not both. How's that workin' out for ya?"
Del giggled. "You're talking about penises."
"Sure am."
"Um..." They all turned to see Jessy standing in the doorway. "Good morning?"
"'Sup?" He turned back to Nolre who was preparing the eggs. "So, as I was saying, about your dick..."

While Nolre spoke with Bobby, Del found the apple they had used the previous evening. She took the tinfoil off the top and then lifted it, opening her mouth to take a bit of it when Delial snatched from her.

?Don?t eat that,? he said, dropping the apple into the trash.
?I want more cereal herbs.?
?They?re not?oh forget it. You can?t have anymore.?
?Why?? she demanded, folding her arms.
?Because it will make you start to look like Swan.?
Del?s eyes widened. ?Ew, I don?t want to look like him.?
?Exactly.?

Del was overjoyed that Nolre had actually carved a little canal in a banana and filled it with scrambled eggs. It didn?t taste very good and she didn?t eat more than a bite, but that didn?t mean she didn?t absolutely adore it.

After they?d all eaten, Nolre instructed Delial to take Del and Bobby to headquarters. The latter had to meet with Swan about his post with the institution, while Del had to take her medication, as well as change her clothes. Delial made a few lewd gestures about Jessy and Nolre, before ushering Bobby and Del out of the apartment.

When they arrived at HQ, in the main lobby, Delial told Bobby to hang back while he took Del to the medical and research floor to meet with her doctor. Del was instantly opposed to this.

?No,? she stated firmly. ?I want to stay with Bobby.?
?You?ll see Bobby later. Come on.? He went to take her hand and guide her toward the elevator, but she snatched it back.
?I want to stay with Bobby,? she repeated more sternly.
Delial sighed heavily. ?You?re already late. You don?t want to start forgetting everything, do you? C?mon, stop being a pain.?

She scurried behind Bobby, turning her head defiantly from Delial?s direction. The young of the two males had a suggestion.

?Why don?t I just go with her while she gets her meds? Then swing by Swan?s after.?
?Yes, I like that idea,? Del piped up.
?Fine,? Delial groaned. ?Let?s just go before she starts calling us Andrew.?
?Andrew??
?He?s an Adaro I met yesterday.?

When they arrived at Medical and Research, Delial asked the receptionist to summon Del?s doctor. Del amused herself while waiting by creating multicoloured frogs and watching Bobby try to tramp on them before they could hop to safety.

?Delirium,? they heard and turned to see Doctor Stanford walking toward them. ?How are we feeling today??
?Don?t call me that,? she snapped. ?I don?t like that name.?
?Certainly,? he replied disinterestedly, before turning to Bobby and Delial. ?A new face??
?His name is Bobby,? Del chimed. ?He?s my best friend.?
?I thought Delial was your best friend.?
?Delial?s my other best friend. And Nolre. And Stanley. And Sergio. And the juice lady. And Dionysus. And??
?Yes, well,? the doctor interrupted, ?let?s get things underway then, shall we??
?Okay,? she sighed.

She turned and smiled weakly at Bobby and Delial. It was probably for the closest thing to genuine sadness Bobby had yet to witness from her. She followed behind the doctor, who led her into the room they were standing next to. It had a large glass window so people could see inside and observe whatever the scientists did. Del waved to Bobby and Delial, before hopping up on the steel table.

The doctor walked over to her, holding the needle in his hand. He reached up and pulled the collar of her shirt down a bit, rubbing the alcohol over her neck. Del hated everything about this procedure. It was necessary for her to receive injections every two days to keep what little memory she had, or she would forget things much more quickly. But she hated being touched so much and the doctor always had to put his hands on her shoulder and neck. She hated needles. It hurt and it was uncomfortable. She hated the drowsiness and sickness in her stomach that lingered for about an hour afterward. The entire ordeal was absolutely dreadful.

After he pulled the needle back out of her neck, he placed a little cotton swab there to catch the blood, taping it in place. He gave her a glass of water and then the two of them walked back out to meet the two men waiting for her.

?All done. And no fuss this time,? the doctor added patronizingly.
?I don?t feel very good??
?Um?what the fuck did you just do to her?? Bobby wondered aloud, crudely as ever.
The doctor raised an eyebrow at him. ?A chemical injection that helps jog her memory. If we were allowed to experiment on her physiology further, we might be able to develop something that could completely restore her lucidity, but?certain parties object to this.?
?In other words, Nolre won?t let them cut her open,? Delial simplified. ?C?mon, Del.?
She nodded and took his hand, keeping her other wrapped around her stomach. ?I think I want to lie down,? she said quietly.
 
"So, you're an incubus, huh?? Bobby asked Nolre. ?Awesome. I've heard you guys have either extremely large or cold dicks. If not both. How's that workin' out for ya?"
Del giggled. "You're talking about penises."
"Sure am."
"Um..." They all turned to see Jessy standing in the doorway. "Good morning?"
"'Sup?" He turned back to Nolre who was preparing the eggs. "So, as I was saying, about your dick..."
Nolre didn't take his eyes away from the eggs.
"It's as big as I want it," he said simply.
"Or," he continued, glancing at Jessy, "I can make it as big as other people want it."
She blushed and Nolre winked, making it worse. He handed her his eggs and carved a banana into a wagon, scooping eggs into it. After he served Bobby and Delial, he washed the pan and put it back where he got it.

"You're not going to eat?," Jessy asked.
"No need to. You guys should head out," he said to Delial, Del, and Bobby, "Bobby needs to get to Orientation, too."

Delial made lewd gestures about Nolre and Jessy before ushering the other two out. When the door closed, Nolre turned back to Jessy.

"Sorry about that. Do you need a ride home?"

The two of them made small talk as they walked to his car, and Jessy told Nolre a little bit about herself while they drove. When she had finished talking, her apartments came into view.

"So what got you to work for.. Hocus and Pocus, was it?"

Nolre narrowed his eyes and recalled the literal climb out of Hell.

"That's a story I'll never tell," he said in a flat tone. "We're here. Be safe, Juice Lady."

He watched her walk away for a few moments before rolling down his window and shouting after her.

"I liked you better without pants," he yelled, and then drove away. into the sunset
 
Nolre didn't take his eyes away from the eggs as he answered.
"It's as big as I want it," he said simply.
"Or," he continued, glancing at Jessy, "I can make it as big as other people want it."
She blushed and Nolre winked, making it worse.
"That has to be the single greatest ability ever," Bobbly said. "Just...ever."

He began handing the eggs out and everyone but him ate.

"You're not going to eat?," Jessy asked.
"No need to. You guys should head out," he said to Delial, Del, and Bobby, "Bobby needs to get to Orientation, too."

Delial made lewd gestures about Nolre and Jessy before ushering Bobby and Del out of the apartment.

"I can't believe a motherfucker can change the size of his dick," he mused. "I mean that's seriously the greatest ability ever."

When they arrived at HQ, in the main lobby, Bobby looked around. It looked just like any other office building, aside from a rather eerie air about it. But then that could be said to exist in every office. So could the feel of depression and suicidal tendencies. So really, it seemed pretty average. That was until some extremely dangerous looking demon-like creature strolled by wearing a suit with some files tucked under his arm and a cup of coffee in his hand.

Bobby turned his head to watch the man - he assumed it was male - as he walked by, then looked to Delial.

"I take it not just anybody can walk into this place with er...non-humans all over the place."
"That's why I had to show ID and tell them who you were."
"When'd you do that?"
"While you were watching that drunken homeless man stumbling across the street and rooting for a car to hit him with Del."
"Oh...oh yeah."
"You really don't like the homeless, huh?"
"They're easy targets," he shrugged. "Nobody notices if they go missing, unless enough go missing, but even then nobody really cares."
"You should hang back here while I take Del to see the doctor."

Del was instantly opposed to this.

?No,? she stated firmly. ?I want to stay with Bobby.?
?You?ll see Bobby later. Come on.? He went to take her hand and guide her toward the elevator, but she snatched it back.
?I want to stay with Bobby,? she repeated more sternly.
Delial sighed heavily. ?You?re already late. You don?t want to start forgetting everything, do you? C?mon, stop being a pain.?

She scurried behind Bobby, turning her head defiantly from Delial?s direction. The younger of the two males had a suggestion.

?Why don?t I just go with her while she gets her meds? Then swing by Swan?s after.?
?Yes, I like that idea,? Del piped up.
?Fine,? Delial groaned. ?Let?s just go before she starts calling us Andrew.?
?Andrew??
?He?s an Adaro I met yesterday.?

When they arrived at Medical and Research, Delial asked the receptionist to summon Del?s doctor. Del amused herself while waiting by creating multicoloured frogs, and Bobby tried to step on them and squash them before they could hop to safety. He was amused to see that they had different coloured blood as well.

?Delirium,? they heard and turned to see some doctor walking toward them.
"Delirium?"
?How are we feeling today??
?Don?t call me that,? she snapped. ?I don?t like that name.?
"Oh. Del...yeah."
?Certainly,? he replied disinterestedly, before turning to Bobby and Delial. ?A new face??
?His name is Bobby,? Del chimed.
"'Sup, Doc?"
?He?s my best friend.?
?I thought Delial was your best friend.?
?Delial?s my other best friend. And Nolre. And Stanley. And Sergio. And the juice lady. And Dionysus. And??
?Yes, well,? the doctor interrupted, ?let?s get things underway then, shall we??
?Okay,? she sighed.

She turned and smiled weakly at Bobby and Delial. It was probably for the closest thing to genuine sadness Bobby had yet to witness from her, and it was highly depressing. As she followed behind the doctor, Bobby coughed the word "asshole".

The doctor led her into the room they were standing next to. It had a large glass window so people could see inside and observe whatever the scientists did. Del waved to Bobby and Delial, before hopping up on the steel table. Bobby waved back, as did Delial.

"Can they hear us through there?"
"Not unless we hit the button."
"In that case. He's such a dick."
"That's how it goes."
"How easy is it to replace these guys?"
"You should probably wait until you're officially employed to kill one. That way you're less liable then."
"Cool."

The doctor walked over to her, holding the needle in his hand. He reached up and pulled the collar of her shirt down a bit, rubbing the alcohol over her neck. After he pulled the needle back out of her neck, he placed a little cotton swab there to catch the blood, taping it in place. He gave her a glass of water and then the two of them walked back out to meet the two men waiting for her.

?All done. And no fuss this time,? the doctor added patronizingly.
?I don?t feel very good??
?Um?what the fuck did you just do to her?? Bobby wondered aloud, crudely as ever.
The doctor raised an eyebrow at him. ?A chemical injection that helps jog her memory. If we were allowed to experiment on her physiology further, we might be able to develop something that could completely restore her lucidity, but?certain parties object to this.?
?In other words, Nolre won?t let them cut her open,? Delial simplified. ?C?mon, Del.?
She nodded and took his hand, keeping her other wrapped around her stomach. ?I think I want to lie down,? she said quietly.
Bobby remained behind for a moment. "Hey, Doc. You're a shit-eating cocksucker. And I wanna cut you. Bad. Know what happens when I wanna cut things? Bad?" The doctor's eyes simply widened. He opened his mouth to speak and immediately was cut off by the boy. "I cut them. Also bad." He lifted a finger to his eye and pointed to it, then the doctor, raising his eyebrows and lowering his voice. "I'm watching you." He then turned and walked out after the others.

Delial continued to lead the way to Mr. Swan's office, not bothering to knock as they entered and leading Del to one of the chairs to sit down.

"Ahh, Mister Flay," Swan said without turning around from where he stood behind his desk, his back facing them. "You made it. Excellent. Some of the others are gathered downstairs, awaiting Orientation. Let me take you to them," he said, finally turning with a grin.
"Can't wait. I am practically shіtting blood with anticipation, Swanny."
His grin faded. "Mister Swan."
"Y' ain't my boss, yet. And when you are, I will still show you no respect. And then I can get away with it because...I'm so lovable?"
Swan sighed. "Just...follow me, will you."
"Sure thing, Swanny." He sighed again and lead the way, Delial and Del following behind them as Del didn't wish to leave Bobby's side.
 
As they got downstairs he took them to a room where a group of more new employees sat around. Some Bobby recognised and some he didn't, but then he hadn't been paying too much attention to the other guests on the yacht, so it wouldn't have surprised him if they were all from the "test" night before. They were an odd bunch, and yet as he headed in and they turned to see who was entering the room, for the most part they gave him strange if not dirty looks.

"'Sup freaks?" he lifted a hand in a greeting. "My name's Bobby and I'm a paedonecrophile. In particular, the very young children but very old corpses." They remained silent, some gaining looks of disgust. "Fuсking dead babies? No? Well, y' gotta test the water to make sure. No harm done. Let's get this shіt underway, people."

He clapped his hands together and headed over to take a seat, Del and Delial doing the same at the back of the room.

"All right," Swan said, standing at the front of the room in front of the new recruits. "You all already got the speech about what Hocus and Pocus is all about, didn't you? So, let's not waste- Yes, Mister Flay?"
Bobby returned his hand to the desk in front of him, having raised it to get attention. "Yeah, um. Not so much. Wanna run that by me?"
The man smiled widely, showing off a mouthful of sparkling teeth. "Well I'm sure you'll get it as you go, Mister Flay. Now," he turned back to the rest of the people, or whatever they might have been.
"Ugh."
"So, since you're all here I take it this means you have all accepted my offer of a job here? Excellent. Now the only details we have to go over are where you will be working. There are a total of five," he lifted up a hand with all of his fingers and thumb extended, "Departments here at Hocus and Pocus, I will now list them, along with what they deal with."

He lifted a hand to his mouth as he cleared his throat. "The Secrets That Pose Threats Department. This Department deals with Demons, corrupted sorcerers, possessions, violent hauntings and so on. It is for the capturing and or terminating of such threats. As a part of this division you will be expected to carry out missions doing both of these things, either solo or in teams, both that and the type of creature you will be neutralising based upon your personal skills, which will be assessed later on."

"The Secrets That Hold Answers Department. This Department deals with Angels, ancient spirits, artefacts and that sort of thing. As a part of this division you will be researching such beings and items in order to try and find, as the name implies, answers. About anything and everything. After basic training and holding down the position of a new member for a certain length of time you will be able to choose an field of specialisation to work in."

He placed his arms behind his back and began to walk back and forth along the front of the room slowly.

"The Secrets That Must Be Contained. This Department deals with giant Sea Monsters as some of you experienced last night, Griffins, Unicorns, Chimeras etcetera, etcetera. You will be ensuring that these creatures' existence is not revealed to the public, or, if it is, dealing with the repercussions. This particular field is quite vast in your specific job, so if you have an interest you can inquire about it later on to find out bore. I shan't bore those of you who are not interested with the details, now."

"The Secrets That Will Become The Future. This Department deals with weapons research, how to detain and kill various creatures and the like. In this Department you will be doing much the same as in The Secrets That Hold Answers Department, except here, you will be researching not ancient artefacts and Angels, but again as the title implies, a future means to many things. Naturally your research here will help those in other Departments greatly, such as how to contain those things which must be contained, and how to eliminate those things which must be eliminated. Again, the same as The Secrets That Hold Answers Department, you will be ale to specialise in particular areas later on."

He came to a stop in the middle of the room again.

"And finally, The Secrets That Have Corrupted Man." Bobby remembered Del mentioning this one before. This was her area of work. "This Department deals with religion and the finding of religious figures. Magic. Immortality. Anything that man has seen and thought 'I would do anything for that', and then...he has. This field is perhaps the most vast, and least simple to explain in a...succinct manner. So, the same as as I said previously goes for this Department, too; you show an interest, we explain in more detail."

"If, however," he continued, "you are unsure of where it is you wish to work, or where you would be best suited for, then we have an aptitude test which will allow both us and you to learn what Department you truly belong in. It should also be mentioned that you are able to work in more than one Department, should you so wish, however I would recommend starting with just one for now so you don't get in over your head. Now, any questions."

Bobby lifted his hand.

"Yes, Mister Flay?"
"Do we get paid for this crazy ass shіt?"
"Yes."
"Fuсking awesome. And, what about a place to live? A bitch gotta live on the streets 'til he has enough money?"
"For those of you who need it, you will be given a place to stay."
"Awesome. Do y'all pay for that."
"Yes."
"And is it possible I could just like, have a place here or somethin'? I mean, I dunno if you're handing out apartments, or houses, or fuсk off huge mansions and shіt, but if you give me a room with a bed and a crapper if possible, I'm good to go."
Mr. Swan sighed. He was obviously a very calm and cool individual, but Bobby was at the very least annoying him. "Yes, yes, something can be arranged. There are other people you can talk to about this, later."
"Well you didn't say that."
"Did it ever occur to you that perhaps I was about to?"
"...No."
"Well, I was."
"...You should've been faster, we ain't got all day."
"Will you shut up and let the man talk?" a man nearby said irritably.
Bobby turned slowly to face him. "Your mother's a whore, but even she will not shed a tear upon hearing the news of your death."
"For your information, my mother is dead."
"Oh, my bad. Then she's not a whore. She's just a slut."
"Excuse me?"
"You don't get paid for sucking coсks in hell."
"Why you obnoxious little-"
"You bore me, sir," Bobby pulled his backpack off and reached into inside, looking for something.
"You little shіt! I should kill you right he-" the man was cut off by his own screaming as Bobby plunged a knife into his hand, pinning it to the desk. "You- you! You little-!" The boy twisted the knife, pulled it out, then stabbed it back in.
"You don't learn, do you, faggot?"
"Holy shіt, this kid's crazy!" a man with a thick southern accent declared. "Hot damn!"

Bobby pulled the knife back out, wiped it on the man's shirt, then returned it to its sheath in his bag before slinging it back over his shoulder. He turned back to Mr. Swan.

"You were saying?"
"Oh my GOD!" the man he'd stabbed cried. "Jesus, can I get a doctor?!"
"Sure, sure. Head outside and to the right, ask the receptionist to call you one, you'll be fine, sir," Swan instructed, shaking his head.
"But you won't!" he yelled, Bobby assumed at him, he wasn't looking.
"If you mean me, bring it dіckweed. Let's see what you've got and so on and so forth. Now, as you were saying Mister Swan."
"Right, well. Everyone follow me. Anyone who wishes to get more information on the Departments, please remain in the waiting room with the receptionist and your bleeding co-worker. Those who wish to take the aptitude test, continue after me."

Swan walked to the back of the room and everyone got to their feet, following after him. Bobby waited beside Del and Delial before leaving.

"You got any idea where you wanna work?" Delial asked.
"Well, I have some idea, but that aptitude test sounds like a riot. I'd actually like to know what these douchers think I'm good for, to be honest."
"Sure thing, let's get going."
"Don't worry, Bobby," Del said to him. "They say there are no wrong answers to the test, so you can't fail it!" She smiled.
"Oh, I bet I can find a way. Should be fun."
 
Nolre Aperrelous said:
{{inb4 laura posts}}
Click to expand...
{{You absolute fucker.}}

~
​

When they exited the waiting room, the man with the bleeding hand glaring after them and shouting curses, they continued out to the main lobby. Nolre was just heading inside and Del called to him enthusiastically, gaining his attention. He walked over and asked what was going on.

"Bobby's going to take the test for the hell of it," Delial informed.
"I think he'll do great!" Del exclaimed. "Don't you, Nolre?"
"Yeah. Wait, you don't know where you wanna go?" he turned to the boy.
"Well, like I said to Delial here, I have...some idea," he smiled. "But this test will be interesting."

Bobby was actually quite intrigued by the test. It had some very interesting questions, and ones that both allowed him to be honest and also possibly give some very "unique" answers.

Afterwards the tests were run through some processing machines or, some crap Bobby didn't really listen to, and he, along with the others who had taken them, were called in. Each had someone to go over the results with.

"Bobby Flay," a middle-aged man, balding man with glasses called and he headed over and took a seat in front of him.
"That'd be me."
"Right, well... It seems you, didn't exactly...take this test according to..."
"I just wrote my own shіt in there for answers, yeah."
"Including on answers that did not allow for you to do it."
"Yeah."

There was a silence in which the man looked expectantly at him, waiting for him to say more. When he realised this wouldn't happen, he cleared his throat and continued.

"So, we had to mark the majority by hand. Thankfully it was only yours that needed such...attention. Now, I needed to ask you about a couple of these answers. First of all, for question three you answered," he adjusted his glasses and looked at the paper he held in front of himself. "'Well, under the circumstances I don't think any of these answers are what I would do, so to make sure this is as accurate as possible, I will give my own. I'd say I would cut a bitch up a bit, show that n*gga who's boss and then see if he wants to fuсk wit' me again. If so, then we tango, at which point-' it just goes on like this," the man looked up.
"What's the issue? Can't you pick a category for it?"
"No, it's just that...well...it has nothing to do with the question."
"It doesn't? Well, shіt. Let me see that bitch," he leaned over and pulled the paper around to look at the question under scrutiny. "Oh...ohhh. In that case, C."
"Excellent," the man said, marking it on the paper. "Now this one here. I don't believe this is physically possible," he showed the paper to the boy.
"Oh. Lemme see...no, no I've done that. Totally."
"All...right," he said sceptically, marking something down again.

It continued like that for a while, until eventually he had everything calculated.

"Well then, Mister Flay. I believe the correct Department for you would be The Secrets That Pose Threats."
"Oh, sweet."
"You can er...go now."
"Sure thing."

He stood and walked back outside to where Del was impatiently rocking back and forth on the floor, her arms holding her legs to her chest, making noises of boredom.

"Hey," Bobby said.
"Bobbyyy!" she cried, leaping to her feet and running over. "Did you have fun!? How was it!? Did you win!?"
"I don't think you can really win, but-"
"Wait, one second, I have a question."
"Go ahead."
"Where were you?" He paused for a moment as she stared at him expectantly.
"I was taking the aptitude test."
"Ohh, now I remember."
"Yup."
"How'd you do?" Nolre asked as he and Delial walked over.
"You were the last to come out, I think," the latter said.
"Yeah, well, my answers took a little more than the usual processing. I got the Secrets That Pose Threats Department."
"Wheeee!" Del clapped her hands together excitedly.
"Fuсking called it," Nolre said.
 
After Bobby’s aptitude test, Del was overjoyed he’d be working in the department she occasionally did work with. Doing work with Bobby would certainly not be like work at all, but rather quite fun. Though work was usually fun for her, or if not, she made it so. Usually.

Nolre wanted to get Bobby registered so he could get a quarters in the facility, but Del told them she had to first go to her room and change her clothes and she refused to leave Bobby's side. Because it was easier than having to deal with her being angry, they relented and she happily skipped toward her own room. The sickness from the shot was beginning to fade, as was her memory of it ever having happened.

When they arrived in her room, Del started to fumble in her pocket for the cardkey. She pulled out various things she’d found in her time between now and her last visit to her room. Things she couldn’t remember collecting and no longer cared to keep. There was a watch that went backwards, a doll head that was missing an eye, a pair of extremely thick lense glasses and tangled slinky. When she finally found her cardkey, she squealed and swiped it, causing the automatic door to open.

When inside, Del grinned widely and turned to see Bobby’s reaction. The room was about the size of a dorm room. It had a small bathroom with a shower, but that was it. The main room where her bed and dresser was had pictures plastered all over the walls, all created by her. There were many collages of nonsensical pictures, such as Mona Lisa’s head glued to the body of a butterfly, or a pyramid with legs and arms, holding a lollipop in one hand. There were drawings, too. A lot of them were extremely childish and amateur, all with her handing hands with someone else like Nolre or Eve, as well as creatures and places. Some drawings, however, were remarkably beautiful and realistic. There were drawings of fields and people who Del no longer remembered. It was quite a collection.

Among her art work, there were colourful scarves and wraps that hung in corners. She had a trapeze that hung in the middle of the room that was adjustable in height. Her bed had no covers or pillows, but many stuffed animals. She had personally taken them all apart and put them together again so their parts were all mismatched. Sometimes she loved this place more than anywhere else. But then, sometimes she hated it.

“Well?” she cried. “What do you think?”
Bobby raised his eyebrows. “It’s…something. Did you draw these?”
“Um…”
“Yes,” Delial confirmed. “She doesn’t remember doing most of it though.”
“Delial tells me I’m a very good artist when I want to be. But I think he’s wrong because I always want to be and sometimes I’m not.”
“Hurry up and get changed,” Nolre concluded, exiting the room, followed by the other males.

Del smiled happily and skipped toward her closet. She knew she would go through ever outfit only to pick the first one she chose. So she chose the last one first so that she could wear it and save herself the hassle. It was simply a purple and yellow chequered skirt that went just below her knees, as well as the typical fishnet leotard. After changing, however, she forgot that she was being waited on and became distracted by her trapeze. She pulled herself onto it and hung down from her knees, waving her arms and swinging back and forth.

“Wheee!” she cried.
There was then a knocking on her door. “Are you done yet?” Nolre called.
“Done what?” she answered. “Wheee!”

The door was pushed open and the three of them looked in, Bobby wearing an amused smile. Del grinned when she saw him.

“Bobby! You came back!”
“He didn’t lea—”
“Sure did,” the boy interrupted.
“We’re going to get Bobby checked into a place now. Do you want to come?”
“Yes.”
“Come on then.”
“Nolre?”
“Yes?”
“Are you frustrated with me?”
“No. Why?”
“Because I want to ask a question and you don’t answer very nicely when you’re frustrated.”
“I’m not frustrated. What is it?”
“What’s the word for the precise moment when you realize you’ve actually forgotten what it’s like to make love to somebody you really liked a long time ago?”
“There isn’t one.”
“Oh. I thought there might be.”
“No. Shall we go?”
“Okay!”

She swung her torso back up and then hopped off the trapeze, skipping over to Bobby and grabbing onto his arm. She looked up at him and grinned.
 
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The next morning Jessy awoke to find that everyone in the house was already up and wandering. It seemed as though she was the last to wake. She awkwardly entered the kitchen where Nolre was making everyone eggs. One of his creations involved a banana, she figured it was for the girl with the funny hair.

The young boy called bobby was ranting about penis sizes and how Nolre was an Incubus? Whatever that is, she thought to herself.

"So, you're an incubus, huh?” Bobby asked Nolre. “Awesome. I've heard you guys have either extremely large or cold dicks. If not both. How's that workin' out for ya?"
Del giggled. "You're talking about penises."
"Sure am."
"Um..." They all turned to see Jessy standing in the doorway. "Good morning?"
"'Sup?" He turned back to Nolre who was preparing the eggs. "So, as I was saying, about your dick..."
Nolre didn't take his eyes away from the eggs.
"It's as big as I want it," he said simply.
"Or," he continued, glancing at Jessy, "I can make it as big as other people want it."
She blushed and Nolre winked, making it worse. He handed her his eggs and carved a banana into a wagon, scooping eggs into it. After he served Bobby and Delial, he washed the pan and put it back where he got it.

"You're not going to eat?," Jessy asked.
"No need to. You guys should head out," he said to Delial, Del, and Bobby, "Bobby needs to get to Orientation, too."

Delial made lewd gestures about Nolre and Jessy before ushering the other two out. She giggled quietly waving to everyone as they left. When the door closed, Nolre turned back to Jessy.

"Sorry about that. Do you need a ride home?"
"Usually, I'd say no. I hate cars... but since I'm not sure where we're at, yes, a ride home would be nice."

The two of them made small talk as they walked to his car, and Jessy told Nolre a little bit about herself while they drove. When she had finished talking, her apartments came into view.

"So what got you to work for.. Hocus and Pocus, was it?" She wasn't sure if he'd answer her question, as she recalled how he ignored the question about his age. He paused for a moment then narrowed his eyes, "That's a story I'll never tell," he said in a flat tone.
"We're here. Be safe, Juice Lady."

She sighed at him, "Thanks for bringing me home and letting me crash at your place. I'll see you sometime?"

He grinned up at her and nodded. She gave him a lazy wave as he pulled away. As she walked to her apartment she heard his voice from behind her once more.

"I liked you better without pants," he yelled, and then drove away.

She giggled to herself as she walked up the stairs. She was relieved when she realized Jack wouldn't be home at this hour. Her sense of calm disappeared the minute she stepped foot through the door.

"Where the fuck have you been? And don't give me your bullshit, 'I went for midnight coffee,' you hate coffee."
"Jack, calm do-"
"No, you were with that guy, weren't you? The one from the bar."

Jessy scowled at her brother, "So what if I was? You're not going to tell me what to do, Jack. I can take care of myself!"

Jack's face was turning red with rage, he balled his hands into fists and punched the wall closet to him. His heavy fists plunged through to the other side.
"You can't. Not with these people." He walked over to her and grabbed on to her shoulders, "You don't know what you're getting yourself into. These people are no good, Jessy. Just trust me, please."
Breaking free of his hold she shouted back at him, "Why should I trust you? I've lived with you for some time now and I still know nothing about you. You're my brother and I barely know where you go half the time. You never even told me why you left home! Mom and dad were always harder on me, because you left at such a young age."
"Jessy, I don't have the time or energy to go into all this. Just do what I say."
"No, I will not... and if you keep pushing the subject I'll leave..."

Jack sighed as he fell back on the couch and rested his head in his hands. He rose from where he was sitting and made his way past Jessy and into the kitchen. He searched through the cabinets until he found the bottle he was looking for. He poured himself a cup of Black Label. Jessy looked up at him worried. Jack rarely ever drank, so it was quite odd for Jessy to watch as he downed the cup of liquor before him. He poured himself another.

"If you're going to hang around this... guy. I need you to tell me his name, and I want to meet him."

Jessy froze as she heard the words coming out of Jack's mouth. This had never happened. Jack was never interested in who Jessy even dated, and now he wanted to meet a guy she had only just met?

"Just once, then I'll leave it alone."

She narrowed her eyes and bit down on her bottom lip. "I... I don't know. Can I have some time to think it over?"
"Sure..." he finished his drink, "On one condition."
"What's that?"
"You're not to see him until you've made your decision about whether I can meet him or not."

She pouted up at him, "Fine, I only need tonight to decide anyway."
"Fair enough."
"Will you be home when I get home from work?"
"Yeah..." he walked back to the couch, "I'll do you one better, I'll pick you up. What time do you get off?"
"I'm closing so it'll be a little past 2."
"Alright, I'll see you then. I'm going to sleep now."

Jessy walked back into her room. Why was Jack so obsessed with Nolre and what he did? She couldn't figure it out. Of course it was strange that there were monsters and other pretend things running around in the world, but what did Jack have to do with that? How did he even know about them, and why does he despise them so deeply? She pondered all of this as she entered the shower and began to wash her body.

She dreaded the thought of work, but figured it would be kind of nice to be out of the house and away from Jack. She finished up in the shower and got dressed for work. She wore some old cut off jean shorts, with a big loose black T-shirt. She put on her sandals and made her way to the door.

"Leaving?"

She nearly jumped as she heard Jack.
"Jesus Christ, Jack! You looked like you were passed out in a coma, then you suddenly speak."
"I didn't mean to startle you," he ran his fingers through his hair.
"It's fine, and yes, I'm off."

She opened the door and waved goodbye to him.
"Wait..."
"What is it?" He could sense the annoyance in her voice.
"Let me take you..." He offered.
"Jack, come on. I can walk."
"I have to pick up some things from the store anyway, come on, I'll take you."

She gave him an irritated look before agreeing. They both made their way down the stairs and to the car. Neither of them spoke a word once inside the car. Finally arriving at the bar, Jessy was ready to jump out.
"Remember our deal," called Jack. She threw up her arm and formed the O.K sign with her hand as she disappeared into the bar.

"YA EARLY!" Her smelly boss called from behind the counter.
"There is no pleasing anyone now a days."
 
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After Bobby?s aptitude test, Nolre wanted to get him registered so he could get a quarters in the facility, but Del told them she had to first go to her room and change her clothes and she refused to leave Bobby's side. Because it was easier than having to deal with her being angry, they relented and she happily skipped toward her own room.

When they arrived in her room, Del started to fumble in her pocket for the cardkey. She pulled out various things including a watch, a doll head that was missing an eye, a pair of extremely thick lense glasses and tangled slinky before she finally found her cardkey. She squealed and swiped it, causing the automatic door to open.

When inside, Del grinned widely and turned to see Bobby?s reaction. The room was about the size of a dorm room. It had a small bathroom with a shower, but that was it. The main room where her bed and dresser was had pictures plastered all over the walls. There were many collages of nonsensical pictures, and there were drawings, too. A lot of them were extremely childish and amateur, all with her holding hands with someone else like Nolre or some people he didn't recognise, as well as creatures and places. Some drawings, however, were remarkably beautiful and realistic.

"Whoa..." he said quietly.

Among her art work, there were colourful scarves and wraps that hung in corners. She had a trapeze that hung in the middle of the room that was adjustable in height. Her bed had no covers or pillows, but many stuffed animals with mismatched parts.

?Well?? she cried. ?What do you think??
Bobby raised his eyebrows. ?It?s?something. Did you draw these??
?Um??
?Yes,? Delial confirmed. ?She doesn?t remember doing most of it though.?
?Delial tells me I?m a very good artist when I want to be. But I think he?s wrong because I always want to be and sometimes I?m not.?
?Hurry up and get changed,? Nolre concluded, exiting the room, followed by Delial. Bobby wandered out after him and stood to one side.

After a moment of silence, thinking about what he'd just seen, he finally asked. "So...what happened to her? To make her like this, I mean."
"Short version: she lost her mind. Happens to the best of us, kid," Nolre informed.
"And the long version?"
"Classified," he said simply.
"Uh-huh."

He looked off to one side, wondering what on earth could make a person like that. Or whatever Del was. That in itself could explain a few things. Before he had a chance to ask, however, they heard her crying out from inside her room.

?Wheee!?
Nolre knocked at the door. ?Are you done yet??
?Done what?? she answered. ?Wheee!?

He pushed it open and the three of them looked in, Bobby wearing an amused smile. Del grinned when she saw him.

?Bobby! You came back!?
?He didn?t lea??
?Sure did,? the boy interrupted.
?We?re going to get Bobby checked into a place now. Do you want to come??
?Yes.?
?Come on then.?
?Nolre??
?Yes??
?Are you frustrated with me??
?No. Why??
?Because I want to ask a question and you don?t answer very nicely when you?re frustrated.?
?I?m not frustrated. What is it??
?What?s the word for the precise moment when you realize you?ve actually forgotten what it?s like to make love to somebody you really liked a long time ago??
?There isn?t one.?
?Oh. I thought there might be.?
?No. Shall we go??
?Okay!?

She swung her torso back up and then hopped off the trapeze, skipping over to Bobby and grabbing onto his arm. She looked up at him and grinned. He smiled and shook his head.

He mostly sat to one side with Del and Delial while Nolre talked to someone about registering him. All he had to really do himself was sign some papers, which he did without hesitation. He was pretty sure that if he ever wanted to get out of whatever he'd signed, he'd either find a way or stop caring about it eventually, so it wasn't a big deal.

"Right, that all looks fine. Okay, you should head on in for a physical, then a, er, psych evaluation."
"This is because of my answers to the test before, isn't it?"
"Sir, I assure you, it's routine," the woman said in a very unenthusiastic, monotone voice. "Just head on in to see the doctor."
"Whatever."

Nolre once again lead the way and pointed him to the door.

"Del, you gotta stay here, Bobby has to get naked."
"Aww," she whined, but relented and took a seat.
"Sweet, haven't even worked here a day and someone gets to see my junk."
"Yeah, it's pretty fucking awesome," Nolre said.

Bobby headed through the door and saw a tired looking man sitting behind a desk.

"Mister Flay, I presume?"
"Yup."
"All right, come along. Let's get this over with."
"Wow, maybe you should prescribe yourself some anti-depressants there, Doc."
"Trust me, I have."
"Super. So er, are you gonna give me a prostate exam as well?"
"Do you...think you need one?" the man raised an eyebrow.
"No."
"Then no."
"That's a shame, 'cause I was gonna make that joke about how you should at least buy me dinner first. Then I was gonna punch you in the balls and make damn sure you didn't put your fingers up my ass. I'm a seventeen-year-old boy, dude, if there's a problem with my prostate I'd probably know it. Like...jizzing ants or...some shit, I don't know."

The doctor paused for a moment, just looking at him. "Mister Flay, please, just...remove your clothes."
"You could at least buy me dinner first." The man sighed heavily and Bobby smiled. "Classic."

After he'd undressed he walked out and took a seat on one of the chairs in front of the desk, definitely not intended for people to sit on while naked.

"You didn't have to remove your underwear, son."
"I heard different."
"Ugh. All right, let's see here. Do you...think you could sit up on the table over there?"
"Looks cold."
"You can put your underwear back on."
"I'd rather not."
"Good Lord."
"So do you deal with freaky non-human...things, as well then?"
"Yes, I do."
"Killer. Anything that has like, spiked genitals? Several balls, maybe? Somethin' good."
"There are plenty, I assure you."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Wow. You must have a great time."
"Yes," he said much less enthusiastically, not that he had been the picture of it beforehand.

Bobby got up and sat on the table as the man walked over to it, realising it wasn't really a question the doctor had been looking for an answer to when he suggested he sit up on it.

"My ass in frozen. I hope you're happy."
"So, when did you lose the eye, Mister Flay?"
"Whaddya mean? It's right here," he pointed to the eye not under a patch. The doctor's expression remained unchanged. "Ha, I'm just messin' with you, I know what you mean."
"So?"
"So what?"
"When did you lose it?" he repeated irritably.
"Didn't," Bobby flipped the patch up to reveal a perfectly healthy eye underneath.*
"I see. Right, well. Let's get this show on the road."

Afterwards Bobby got dressed again and came out to sit on a chair as the doctor went over the chart he'd made notes on.

"So, what's the verdict? Is it AIDS, Doc?"
"You're perfectly healthy for your species, Mister Flay."
"Whoa...that's kinda creepy."
"As I said, I deal with many. It becomes habit."
"Uh-huh."
"You will need to visit Doctor Jones for a psych evaluation."
"Super. Thanks."
"Good day, Mister Flay."
"See ya, Doc."
 
He headed out. "It's all clear. And I didn't need a prostate exam, so," he gave a double thumbs-up. "Said I need to see some Doctor Jones for a psych evaluation."
"Sure, follow me," Nolre said and once again lead the way to the correct room.
"You know, you guys don't have to come with me everywhere. Not that I don't appreciate it. Just...I figured you would wanna be doing other things."
"Nooo, I wanna be with youuu," Del said, clinging to his arm.
"And as long as Del's with you, so're we," Delial said.
"Okay."
"Can I go in with Bobby this time, Nolre?" she pleaded. "Pleeeeease?"
"I'm sure she'd be okay, I don't mind."
"Sure, if you're okay with it."
"Yaaaaay!"

And so Del accompanied Bobby in to see Doctor Jones, who asked him a variety of questions, the answers of which made him either surprised, concerned or even downright disturbed by the look of it. It made Bobby feel proud to freak the guy out after all the things he had to have heard working at Hocus and Pocus.

"By the way, Doc, is that picture one of those ink blots that you see images of things in? 'Cause if so, I'm gettin' a duck." The picture was in fact just a picture of a rubber duck.
"Yaaay, duckies!" Del cried, summoning up a group of multicoloured rubber ducks that swam around in mid-air, quacking.
"I...think that's all, Mister Flay. For now, at least," he said, raising his eyebrows.
"Awesome. So am I crazy?"
"You are...fine to be working."
"Nice dodge, there."
"You're free to leave."
"Thanks," Bobby stood and walked out, Del and her conjured rubber ducks following.

"So, are you nuts?" Nolre asked as they returned to the waiting room.
"No too much to be working, apparently. So...what now?" he asked, watching as Del walked behind the incubus, one of her ducks landing on his head.

~
​

{{*I had this planned from the start, fuckahz.}}
 
?I like duckies,? Del said as they walked down the hallway.
?Now I have **** to do,? Nolre replied. ?They should have an room prepared for you by the night. Here?s your ID and you?re your cardkey.? He handed Bobby some things while Del stacked the tulpa ducks on his head. ?And try not to kill anyone until you?ve clocked some decent field time.?
?Gotcha.?
?I?ve clocked lots of field time, haven?t I, Nolre??
?Yup.?
?I like clocks,? she said, and as she mused on the subject, the docks transformed into quacking clocks with beaks and feathers. ?They never forget things. Except sometimes they do, like my clock.? She pulled the watch out of her pocket. ?It goes backward, which is why I like it, because even when I forget to tell time, it doesn?t matter because this doesn?t tell the right time anyway.?
?It?s right at least twice a day,? Delial pointed out.
Del narrowed her eyes at him. ?I?m right more than twice a day, so there.?
?I?m going to get a dri??
?I wanna come, too!? Del cried.
?Sounds good to me.?
?Delial, you go with them.?
?I have things to do, too.?
?What do you have to do?? Nolre asked suspiciously.
?I don?t need to go with someone,? Del protested.
?You aren?t allowed out alone.?
?I won?t be alone. I?ll be with Bobby.?

Nolre looked thoughtfully between the two of them. He seemed rather conflicted, but eventually sighed and pulled a pen and paper from his pocket.

?This is my number,? he said as he wrote it down. ?Call me if anything happens. If you lose sight of her for a second, call me immediately. Got it??
?Sounds good,? Bobby replied, taking the number from him.
?Del,? Nolre spoke, looking to her. ?You know the rules. If you break them, I?ll be angry. You don?t want me to be angry, right??
She shook her head. ?No. When you?re angry, you?re mean and your nose is scrunchy like this,? she said, causing her face to contort into a replica of Nolre?s with a furious expression.
?So you?ll be good and stay close to Bobby.?
?Yes,? she sang with a grin.
?I?m going to regret this,? he thought aloud.

When they were outside, Del skipped alongside Bobby. She was now wearing his eye-patch, as he had give nit to her at her request while exiting HQ. She was wearing the patch across her forehead and singing while Bobby walked toward a parking lot.

?Where are we going?? Del wondered.
?To get a ride.?
?You have a car!??
?I will in a few minutes.?

When they arrived in the parking lot, Bobby scoped around to check where the security cameras were. Del followed behind him, tilting her head to the side. She watched as they headed to a corner where a fairly nice blue convertible was parked. Bobby rubbed his hands together before he got to work on picking the lock. Del hopped up on the hood of the car, swinging her legs back and forth. When Bobby got inside, he started hotwiring it. As the engine started up and the lights came on, Del squealed happily and hopped off, going in the passenger side.

?Where do you wanna go?? he asked.
?Um, I don?t know. Everywhere.?
?Where do you wanna start??
?Umm?here??
?Great. We?re here. Now where do you wanna go.?
?Uhhhhmmmmm?? She leaned her head against the window and looked toward him. ?Somewhere that?s not here??
?Alrighty,? he agreed.

As he pulled out of the parking lot, Del got an idea.

?Oh, let?s go see the juice lady!? she proposed.
?Cool.?

Bobby sped down the road, ignoring signs and red lights. Del lifted her arms up excitedly, crying out for him to go faster, which he did. They?d hit two homeless men and heard countless cars swerving behind them, Eventually the police caught up to them and Bobby groaned as he looked in the rear view mirror.

?Balls,? he exclaimed, pulling alongside the road.
?I like balls,? Del said with a grin.
Bobby laughed. ?Y?do, huh??
?Yes, especially bouncy ones.?

The police officer walked up to the side of the car, tapping his pen on the door to demonstrate authority.

?Do you mind, officer?? Bobby spoke, sudden sporting a British accent. ?I just had her refinished.?
?You and the little Missis are gonna have to step out of the car, sir.?
?We?re on our way to see he juice lady. Do you know her??
?Sir, I said step out of the??
?Excuse me, is your name Andrew??
The officer blinked a few times and then seemed to lose his patience. ?Alright, that?s it.?

He went to pull the car door open himself when Bobby pulled a knife out of his pocket and stabbed it into the man?s hand. He screamed and stumbled backward. Del giggled as she watched him screaming after them.

?He was very funny.?
?Total riot,? Bobby agreed, pulling over into a gravel lot. ?C?mon, the bar?s just down the street.?
?Okay!?

They both hopped out of the car as they heard the police sirens following them. Bobby grabbed onto Del?s arm and the two of them bolted off away from the vehicle. Del was laughing up a storm, wondering why on Earth they were running so fast, but enjoying it at the same time. Eventually she forgot what they were running from to begin with, as they approached the bar.

Bobby panted as he opened the door and Del giggled while stepping inside.

?That was fun!? she cried.
?Yeah, just make sure you don?t tell Nolre.?
?Why? I bet he?d have fun going fast, too!?
?Maybe, but probably not when you?re involved.?
?Why? I absolutely love going fast.?
?Some people are just cunts.?
 
When they were inside and Del spotted Jessy, her face lit up and she rushed over, smacking her hands down onto the table and grinning widely at her.

?Juice lady!? she exclaimed. ?Do you remember me? I?m Del and you gave me juice. And this is Bobby and he?s my best friend and we just went really, really fast and then we didn?t go as fast, but still faster than normal and then we got here! Do you like to go fast??
?Hello to you, too,? the girl finally managed to get a word in.
?Two Buds, please,? Bobby said as he hopped up on the barstool.
?Draft or bottle??
?Draft.?
?I like bottles.?
?One draft, one bottle,? he corrected.
?Comin? up.?

Del dropped her head and arms onto the bar, making little mushrooms grow and die and decompose in front of her as Jessy got them their drinks. When Del took a sip of hers she immediately spat it out.

?Yech!? she cried in disgust.
?Not a Bud fan, huh??
?I don?t blame you,? Jessy chuckled. ?Why don?t I mix you up something tasty??
?Yes, please, this is absolutely revolting.?
?But oh so cheap,? Bobby added before taking a large gulp.

Jessy put together a rather colourful drink. Del?s face brightened as she watched it being prepared with layer upon layer of colour. When it was handed to her, she grinned widely and marvelled at it.

?Wow! Look at all the colours! Bobby, isn?t it absolutely wonderful!??
?Yeah, chick drinks are pretty good.?
?I bet it tastes like summertime and giggles.?

She took a sip and was delighted at the fruity flavour. She started to drink it much faster, despite Jessy cautioning her to take it easy. She quickly demanded another and Bobby told her to go for it, saying he?d be paying. After three drinks, Del noticed she started to feel differently.

?Wow, I think the juice lady?s house is rocking back and forth!?
?This isn?t really my hou??
?Oh wow!? Del said suddenly, noticing something. She saw in the back of the bar, one of the man dressed in a leather jacket was taking to another and she noticed them passing along something she recognized. ?Cereal herbs!?

She jumped down from the barstool and rushed over to them, slapping her hands down on the table and grinning at he man she?d seen taking the herbs. They both looked between her and each other, not sure what to make of the situation. The one she was looking at kept glancing at her practically bare chest.

?Give me those, please,? she said, pointing to his pocket.
?Whaddya talkin? about, kid??
?The cereal herbs. I want them. Give them to me, please.?
?Look, fuck off, will you?? the other man snapped.
Del scowled at him. ?That?s a bad word. Only Bobby?s allowed to say bad words.?
The other reached out and pushed on her shoulder. ?Just back off, bitch, or you?ll get yourself hurt.?
?I didn?t know this place turned into a titty bar.?
?What tits?? the other man quipped and they both started laughing.

Del on the other hand had a hardened expression. Bobby had already walked up behind her with his switchblade in hand, while Del?s hands were curled into fists.

?I wasn?t very nice,? she said quietly. ?You should say you?re sorry.?
?Wat part of fuck off don?t you understand??

He stood up threateningly and Bobby was about to strike and Jessy was calling one of the bouncers, when Del caused body a tulpa to grow around her body. It made it appear as if she were morph into a beastly version of herself, with scales and long, sharp teeth. Her eyes looked like they had been shot out, like the Levianthan. Both the man recoiled in fear.

?Say. You?re. Sorry.? Her voice was suddenly deep and ominous and it echoed throughout the entire bar.
?I?m-I?m sorry! Jesus Christ!?

In an instant, Del popped the tulpa away and smiled with satisfaction.

?Thank you for saying sorry. It?s nice to have good manners."

Two bouncers walked up behind them, grabbing onto the men and pulling them to their feet, dragging them toward the door.

?She?s a fucking monster!? one of them cried. ?Didn?t you see that!??

Del stared after them blankly. Bobby looked to her, raising his eyebrows.

?You okay?? he asked.
Del turned to him and smiled. ?Yes. I want more colourful juice, please.?
 
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