KazAlkemi

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Caden

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Location: Mystic Dreams —> Outside Police Station – Chicago, IL
Skills:

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While Cassiopeia settled the shop cats, I waited by the car, flipping a coin and watching passerbys. A few women stop to admire, and even a man or two. I wink at them all, a shameless flirt and open for anything.
A door slams shut and I glance back. Cassiopeia stands there shaking her head. She turns and locks the shop up.

"There was a time when you enjoyed my flirtations," I reminded her.

"That was a long time ago," she reminded me.

I chuckled and opened up the passenger door for her. She passes by me and I help her inside.

"Aye, but I think about it often, mon amour," I whisper. She rolls her eyes but I don't miss the slight tinge of pink that now graces her cheeks.

Cassiopeia is one of my longest friends and we have an even longer history. I followed her to Chicago from South America, having grown bored of the scene down there. We had been here for about ten months now, but I got us working for the police. I often did consulting work for law enforcement no matter where I was, but I wasn't exactly tied down to the work. I often up and left, growing bored easily.

It was silent for some time while we drove. I wove in and out of traffic. A vehicle like mine wasn't meant to stand still and drift along.

"Do you ever miss Scotland?" she asked me. I glance over and see Cassi watching the world pass her by. Her hands are in her lap but they grip each other tightly.

I smile gently and reach out to touch her hand with my fingers. Slowly she relaxed them and intertwined our fingers.

"I think about it often. I enjoyed our time there and our time together, but I don't dwell on it. We needed each other differently then than we do now. This is a good path we are on. Better."

"I know," Cassi says with a nod of her head. "I suppose I just miss how it was. How easy it used to be, even though I wasn't in a good place. Everything just seems so complex now."

"That's called growth mon amour." She hits my arm again and I chuckle, planting a kiss on her hand as I pull up to the police station. I park but stop Cassi from opening the door. She frowns at me.

"What?" She demands.

"Nic is here," I say and gesture towards his bike. Cassi sighs and relaxes back.

"I told him to talk to the police again. He must have come straight here." I nodded in agreement, but we couldn't go in while he was here. He would confront us and know more was going on if we showed our faces.

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Cassiopeia Claire Alistair

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
Skills: Sorcerer

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I wave my hand, and the door locks as soon as Nic leaves. The open sign switches off, and I whack Caden’s arm.

”You can be such a jerk sometimes, Caden. You didn’t have to push him out the door like that. I had it handled.”

Caden simply shrugs. ”Looked like you were getting a little too cozy to me. You know he can’t be around this. I did you a favour.” He walks away from the counter to sit in one of the chairs. He crosses an ankle over a knee and flashes a grin at me, his eyes shifting to that of a predator before returning to their normal blue-green. I roll my eyes and finish cleaning up.

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Caden

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
Skills:

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”So are you going to tell me what you actually saw and felt or leave me in suspense?” I questioned her, mildly amused at her trying to clean up the shop and not look upset that Nic left with unresolved business.

”I have half a mind not to,” she grumbles, but I see her face and demeanour shift. I set both feet on the ground and lean forward.

”What did you see?” I coax, speaking more calmly.

Cassiopeia’s work slows until her hands rest on the counter.

”It’s what we feared. Something from hell has gotten out. I knew the walls were growing thin. There were rumours, and then something shifted that allowed all of us with the magical ability to feel the shift, the bonds lessening. I just didn’t think Crowley was growing that weak.” She shakes her head, falling silent for a minute and runs a cloth over the countertop, picking up loose herbs. ”Whatever it is, it's come to eat souls. To devour hearts and bodies.”

I roll my eyes and stand. ”You’re being dramatic again,” I declare. She looks at me and frowns.
”I saw his mother when she was brought in through his eyes. It wasn’t pretty, Caden. It was cruel and uncaring. Unfeeling, but it was also precise, just like the other kills. It’s looking for something specific.”

Calypso comes back into the room, followed shortly by Wayland. Calypso hops up onto the counter, and I scratch behind her ears. ”We should go talk to the police. They should know, even though they are incompetent. But they could place a cop car at Nic’s house and keep him out of trouble.”

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Caden

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
Skills:

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Alright, enough of this. I come out of the back room and stand between Cassiopeia and Nic. Calypso runs out after me and chases Wayland from the room. The pair ran off to the back.

Cassiopeia shots me a look to stay silent and I just stand beside her, staring at Caden. Cass sets two paper bags on the counter and pushes them towards Nic. ”No charge. This is your tea from today and something to help you sleep.”

I pick up the bags and hand them to Nic instead. ”Off you go,” I say with a smile.

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Cassiopeia Claire Alistair

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
Skills:

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I gather the cards and add them back to the deck of tarot cards. I shuffle them once before tucking them into the cabinet. He’s mad, of course, and I can hardly blame him. I don’t look at Nic as I stand and gather the tea cups.

”What I would or would not do does not matter. What matters is what you do. You came here looking for answers. To look for ghosts to chase. That, I cannot give you. If you continue down this path, it will not end in victory. You will not find peace.” I set the cups on the counter and turn around to pull jars off the shelf, and start making a batch of the tea I made for us and something to help him sleep. I glance at Nic as I work.

”I am sorry for your loss, Nic. It is never easy to lose someone, let alone see them in distress and watch them die. You witnessed someone no human should have to, but as a nurse, you also know that there are limits to what medicine and science can do.”

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Cassiopeia Claire Alistair

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
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"Really?" I can't hide the surprise in my tone. Head nurse for the university hospital. That was impressive, to say the least. I was familiar with the hospital and they had a glowing reputation. Most of the trauma accidents went to that hospital. Nic had certainly seen his fair share of blood and gore, but that didn't mean he could handle the other side of the world.

I drew off three cards, one from each pile and set them face down in the middle of the table. I piled the remaining cards up and put them away. I pulled the smoking bowl away and set it on the side table.

"I am not sure. You're the nurse," I reminded him. "You should tell the police of your information, though. It may help your mother's case." I smile encouragingly before flipping the first card over.

"You have great compassion for the world around you and more so for the those you care for. Its what led you led you to nursing, saving people. Protecting them." Truthfully, that bit was obvious enough without the cards. I flip over the second and nod slowly. "Sorrow and great change. The path you have chosen is full of it." I flip over the third and hesitate. If only Caden wasn't here. This card tells me I should definitely not be keeping Nic in the dark. Something was coming. Something dark and his world was full of it. "The journey you are on will shift. Where you are and what you are going through will continue to grow." I leave the cards on the table and pull my hands back.

"None of this is new information for you. It's more confirming what you already know. It may be in your best interest to let this go." I wish I can take back the words as soon as I say them, but I have to protect him. I have to try and get him out of Chicago.

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Cassiopeia Claire Alistair

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
Skills:

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I watch Nic as he meticulously makes equal piles of the cards. I'm half tempted to knock a pile off the table to see what he does. Before becoming a witch, I am 95% certain I was a cat in one of my past lives. Instead of knocking over the cards I smile when he is done and pull them back to me.

"You seem like a person who likes order and precision. You mentioned it was your hospital earlier. Do you work in health care?" He seemed young to be a Doctor but I didn't want to assume he was a doctor or nurse.

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Cassiopeia Claire Alistair

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
Skills:

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As Nic's hand touches mine, I get brief flashes of his day. Nothing major, things that just needed to be confirmed. His emotions though tell a different story, and as I release his hand I feel genuinely sorry for him. The anger and hurt he is going through is a lot.

I've been alive for a long time. I look to be about 27 but in reality I am over a hundred years old. I'm a sorcerer and though I often get called a witch, that is not who I am. I may work with and base my spell work off of emotions, but the fact that I do craft spells and call on other forces deems me far more than just a witch who collects herbs.

I pull my hand from his and rest my hands on the table. I gesture for Nic to do the same. "Wayland will stay by your side for this process. He has a sixth sense about this sort of things." As if on cue, Wayland tucks his bushy, black tail around his paws and looks up at Nic, meowing in encouragement.

"I cannot guarantee that I will find the answers you seek. I cannot guarantee that the results will be pleasant or forthcoming." I reach behind to the shelf to bring out a set of candles and a bowl. I light the candles in the traditional way before I add some herbs. "Set an intention, what you would like to get out of this reading," I explain to him. I set the herbs on fire with the lit candle. Smoke curls up before drifting towards Nic and circles around him in loose tendrils. I pull out my tarot cards and start shuffling them. "If the smoke bothers you, let me know. That bit is just for show really," I say with a wink.

After the deck is shuffled I push the cards towards him. "Shuffle them into three separate piles," I encourage him.

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Cassiopeia Claire Alistair

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
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I rubbed my hands together as I walked back to the front. 'Everything okay?' I looked at the kid, my attention having been elsewhere in my shop. I flashed a smile and nodded.

"Aye, just dealing with a long-time annoyance." I sat down across from the kid again and set my hands on the table. "You still haven't told me your name," I reminded him. "I'm Cassiopeia," I said and extended my hand to his.

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Cassiopeia Claire Alistair

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
Skills: Witchcraft

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The desperation in his voice is a lot to take. I bite my lower lip and shift nervously in my seat.

”What if I don't have the answers you are looking for? There may be nothing to gleam from this…” I inform him.

Most of the time I am able to give the people what they want. But every so often there is one that asks more than they should. More than I can give.

I could truly help this kid, but the treaty warns me against this.

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Caden

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
Skills:

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The desire to jump out there and stop this conversation from happening is great. He was asking for information, a clear answer to what had happened. That was information we required and information Cassi could get easily after she reads him, but it was a thin line.

Hell is responsible for keeping the unseemly creatures and monsters from invading earth, but one has gotten out. If they were aware, no human was safe. Especially this guy. Especially if Cassi found out what we needed.

I look around the back room for an empty glass bottle. I need to talk to Cass, but I can't just barge back up there. So, I knock it off the shelf where it crashes to the ground and watch it shatter. I curse and wait. I hear Cass excuse herself before she storms into the back room.

”Ward this place,” I demand immediately.

“What?”

”Ward it from anyone overhearing or walking in or anything!” I whisper harshly.

Cassiopeia frowns and crosses her arms. “Do you think I'm that stupid to not have this place warded?”

”Just reinforce it.” She stares at me and I stare back, locked in a silent battle. Cassi breaks first and rolls her eyes.

“Paranoid shapeshifter,” she mutters to herself before approaching a small table in the backroom. She waves her hand and several candles light on the table. In the bowl before her she adds different herbs before pricking her finger. Blood drops onto the herbs and it starts to smoke, drifting up to the ceiling. Cassi starts to mutter in Gaelic as she rolls an unlit candle into the smoking concoction.

I watch all of this closely. One to make sure she does it, and two because I find her work fascinating. I always have.

After she completes her work, Cassi lights the candle and sets in on the table.

“There. Warding spells amplified. Any supernatural creature will feel compelled to leave and not walk down this street. No one can listen in or get in. Happy?”

”Ah, mon amour. I am always happy,” I say with a wink.

She shoves me in the chest before walking back out front.

Chicago After Hours -- Paused (indefinitely)

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Cassiopeia Claire Alistair

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Location: Mystic Dreams – Chicago, IL
Skills:

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I let him talk and get everything out. It sounded like that was more of what he needed at this moment. Besides, I was trying to figure out how to get him out of this and get the information I needed without drawing suspicion. Of course, I knew the easiest way to do that, but it was better with permission.

I followed his gaze, looked around my shop and smiled. Wayland returned to the kid’s feet and sat on them before proceeding to pure.

”I can make up a package to send home with you. Plus something to help you sleep,” I offered him. I finished off my tea before setting it on the table. I clasped my hands together and leaned forward.

”Why have you come to see me? What do you want me to do?” He had to ask. If he didn’t ask, there was nothing I could do for him.