124 | ONE STEP FORWARD, TWO STEPS BACK
“I think it’s about time I learn some sort of control over the vamp-gift.” I tell Nikki in conclusion. The Ancient lets out a heavy sigh and waves her hand in mid-air. For a moment, I think she’s just being unusually dramatic, but then something materializes beside her- *out of freaking darkness and nothing!* A chair takes form from wisps of darkness that gather together to form the simple, high-backed thing. I stare, stunned, until Nikki settles into the ‘chair’ and looks at me wearily. And here I thought there wasn’t anything that could surprise me…
“Relax, Scarlett,” Nikki hums at me and makes a clicking sound with her tongue. Suddenly, a hole opens up beside her, shimmering with the same darkness, but also with a surprising amount of light. An older man steps out with a tray of-
“Oh, goodness,” The man is dressed in black leather, the thick straps of the material are bound to his lean form by more straps of leather. They seem to crisscross over each other in a woven pattern, slivers of silver and cord-bound handles poking out of the straps in places along his hips, thighs and forearms, though they shift with his body. I stare, feeling my eyes are about to bug out of my head as the man turns to look at me. “Hello, dear.” He nods once to me, not at all surprised, it seems, to be materializing in my home out of midair and meeting Nikki. “Nikki, I didn’t know you had company.” He tells the Ancient with a bright grin.
“Reginal, this is Scarlett Holland-Reinier, Scarlett, this is one of my Reapers, Reginal.” Nikki gestures between us without answering the man’s- *Reginal’s* - question. The Ancient plucks the tray from the Reaper *(what-the-fuck?)* and sets it down on a table that has materialized out of thin air once again.
“Hi,” I manage to choke out, cringing as the odd man - *who smells weird as fuck, like fresh-backed cookies and death* - reaches a hand out to me.
“Nice to meet you, Scarlett.” The Reaper replies to me, dropping his hand when all I do is stare at it in horror. “Will that be all, Nikki?” He turns his grin to Nikki, completely unfazed by my rudeness.
“Yes, thank you, Reginal.” Nikki nods, and the Reginal gives a slight at-the-waist bow before back up into the still-there shimmering portal. A moment later, it sews itself up and the remaining shimmers sparkles out of existence. “Cookie, Scarlett?” Nikki’s utterly mundane question feels like a bitch-slap as I turn to look at the tray between us. A perfectly normal white tray with a large kettle, an array of tea bags off one side with other tea paraphernalia and utensils, and the other holds large plate of still-steaming cooking. “You should try one, I’m told Reginal’s baked goods are the best in the cosmos.”
“Nikki?” I wheeze, staring as the Ancient plucks one of the very delicious smelling pastries from the plate. My head is feeling abnormally full, pounding like it’s about to explode with all this new information and the mental acrobatics I’m doing to reconcile this with everything.
“Yes, Scarlett?” Nikki asks around a mouthful of cookie. She manages to speak easily around the bite, as if nothing were in her mouth at all. If I thought it was possible, I’d think she said it telepathically rater than aloud, but my ears twitch a the sound.
“Can we get back to the vamp-gift issue?” I try not to cringe at the chilling tone in my voice. Nikki stops chewing and looks to me, her eyes burning with silvery sparkles once again, though they’re nearly pitch-black in color behind the dancing glitter.
“Of course, Scarlett.” She replies breezily, but there’s an equally chilling way she says it that seems to echo my own tone. “What would you like to know?”
“How to control it. To make it work for me when I’m fighting.” I tell her, rephrasing my earlier words.
“You are aware that proper training takes considerable time and effort. Time we do not currently have.” The Ancient repeats her usual line and I have to fight another grimace.
“Isn’t there something, though? I don’t have the time to sharpen my Guardian instincts enough to where they need to be. But I figured with both Guardian instincts and the vamp-time-thing I could take out a Revenant.” Nikki’s watching me with a unreadable look, her odd eyes glimmering and shifting in an almost predatory way as she examines me. Her gaze is chilling, cooler than her voice and calculating.
“I suppose it’s possible.” Nikki allows, tilting her head in a way that sends shivers down my spine. “But you are aware that the kill-order is still in affect?”
“Yeah, I know.” I reply, my voice much stronger and confident than I currently feel.
“I cannot bend the rules for you.” This time, the Ancient’s words have a slight bite to them. I bristle at her meaning and can’t hep but let loos a growl of annoyance.
“I don’t expect you to,” I shoot back, gritting my teeth to contain the volume of my voice. Nikki’s thin eyebrows shoot up, amusement dancing in her eyes. “I just thought I should let you know, as a curtesy, and see if you had any pointers to give.” I add.
“I see,” The part of Death I know best replies, the shroud of weirdness and tension dissipates after a beat and the calm press of Nikki’s usual aura pulses through the air like a spring wind. I’m struck by the fast shift, knowing one thing is certain, I never want to be this woman’s enemy. “In that case, I would recommend that - when you call to the Strings of Time - you have a clear mind and try not to tear them to pieces or stretch them.”
“It’s not like I was trying to-” I huff out, crossing my arms defensively, ready to yell my reasons- but force the boiling emotions back down. *Calm, Scar, calm.* “Understood.” I grumble, filing that less-than useful tidbit away in the recess of my brain. *Duh, I know I’m not supposed to be rough with the ‘Strings’, but it’s happened when that’s been difficult.* Especially when I’ve been fighting and juggling the chords at the same time.
“Having a clear mind will help you maintain some semblance of control. And I would also recommend you pull the more vampiric part of your psyche to the surface when accessing your ability, not suffering through the Wolven emotions.” Nikki adds hesitantly, the glimmer of humor still dancing in her eyes. I look at the Ancient carefully, wondering what - if anything - she had been back in her ‘life’. She had mentioned that she was a vampire then, but I’ve got a feeling she was a hybrid like me, just not part Wolven.
“I’ll take that under advisement.” I mutter, narrowing my eyes at the Ancient. She hasn’t told me anything I dont already know. I’ve realized, kind of through trial and error, that freaking out and using too much emotion or strength is bad when handling the chords.
“Practice makes perfect.” Nikki’s fortune-cookie response snaps the last shreds of my resolve and I lurch across the distance to snatch up a cookie and shove the warm thing into my mouth before I can scream at her.
