Chapter Text
Nico stopped the car at the hotel’s front parking lot, quietly getting out. The sun was set high in the sky, no later than four in the afternoon. There were a fair number of people in the streets, but not many, considering it was a Saturday.
“We’re here. Come on.” Nico called out to Sofia. She ‘slept’ at the backseat of the car, or at least pretended to do so, nuzzling her head onto the seat to make her act more convincing. It was actually quite obvious she wasn’t sleeping, but it was cute, so he decided to play along.
“Alright, guess I’II leave her out here then.” The man slowly turned and walked a few steps, causing the girl to suddenly wake up.
“No!! Don't leave me here, please.” She begged, so he re-approached, opening the car’s backdoor.
“I won't fall for dat trick, cher.” He gently tugged her hand so she would get out. “Come on.”
“I don't wanna walk..”
“Why not? I see ya have two legs.”
“Because it's cold.”
“Doesn’t matter.”
She rolled her eyes, standing up and following him inside the hotel.
The lobby was… extravagant, to say the least. Most of the decorations were golden and flower patterned, reflecting onto the floor of dazzling pale marble. Yet, they were outshined by the giant shape of a yellow flower with black vertical stripes running at its bottom, placed at the center of the circular room.
In contrast to the outside, it was somewhat warm, so Sofia took off her wool coat, tying it around her waist.
“Pardon me sir, but is she your daughter?” A skinny receptionist pointed at the girl, who scurried to use Nico as a shield from his glance.
“Yeah, she is.”
“May I ask why she wasn't with you before? I need to register the names of everyone who stays-”
“She is a guest, dat’s why.” Nico cut the man, the corners of his mouth plastered into a smirk as one muscular arm leaned over the desk.
“Oh… Right, apologies.”
• • •
As the elevator went up, the girl began, “Why are we here again?”
“I want you to meet someone.”
“Who?”
“You’ll see.”
They passed by two or three halls with the same sort of appearance from the lobby. In terms of odd luxury, the place was familiar to her home, except for the darker colors and unsettlingly lower ceiling. The man stopped in his tracks, knocking at the door of number 687. Sofia's heart began to pound, trying to imagine what they looked like.
“There you are. What took ya so damn long?” Her eyes widened at the sight of a woman. She resembled her father by the short white fur, piercing yellow eyes and odd general endeavor. She wore a long beige dress, some sort of tooth necklace, and a red bandana on her hair, tied up in a bun.
“Well well, ain't you a pretty little ‘ting?” The woman leaned down to get a better look, her accessories clinking with the movement. Startled by being the new center of attention, Sofia hissed at the woman, rushing to hide behind Nico.
“Hey, she’s nice, no need to be rude!” Nico chuckled, shoving her back in front of him.
“Yeah. Promise I don' bite.”
But it looks like you do. The girl thought, petrified in place.
After multiple seconds, the woman became impatient by her silence. “Damn, now dat’s a shy kid.” She let out an exasperated sigh, standing back to her full height. “What we doin’ outside anyways? Come in.”
Nico nodded, gripping Sofia’s hand. She tried to stand and pull back, but it felt like he wasn’t even making an effort. Not having much of a choice, she got dragged inside.
Almost immediately, Sofia’s nostrils were flooded by the repulsing scent of smoke, creeping up from all corners of the suite. Bones and dry herbs hung from the many ropes at the ceiling, along with other variations of creepy objects. Why would someone use that as decoration?!
As the two approached the couch, she could hear them chatting in an incomprehensible language.
“Je veux dire, elle ne s'occupe pas de son propre enfant. Ce sont les domestiques qui s'en chargent.”
“C'est donc pour ça que ses cheveux sont comme ça ? Mince.”
“Oui. Fais-le bien pour moi, s'il te plaît? Je vais aller fumer.” Nico waved at her, proceeding to take a cigarette out of his pocket and strut away to another room.
“Quoi ? Oh, tu me possèdes, espèce de fainéant.” The woman pinched the bridge of her nose, turning and calling out Sofia. “Hey, go sit on the couch.”
“What? Why?”
“Dat ain't a question.” Her voice went sharp as a knife, perhaps a little bit intimidating, so the girl hurried to comply.
“Stay.” Sofia sat for some moments, watching the woman return with a hairbrush. “… Are you gonna brush my hair?”
“Yup.”
“But why?”
“‘Cause your father told me to.” Oh, so that's what they were talking about.
“What’s your name?”
Nope. She wouldn't tell a strange lady such information.
“I’m not telling.”
“Hm, I’II tell mine. It’s Serafine.”
“Serafine? What a weird name-”
“What? Why?”
“Dat ain't a question.” Her voice went sharp as a knife, perhaps a little bit intimidating, so the girl hurried to comply.
“Stay.” Sofia sat for some moments, watching the woman return with a hairbrush. “… Are you gonna brush my hair?”
“Yup.”
“But why?”
“‘Cause your father told me to.” Oh, so that's what they were talking about.
“What’s your name?”
Nope. She wouldn't tell a strange lady such information.
“I’m not telling.”
“Hm, I’II tell mine. It’s Serafine.”
“Serafine? What a weird name-” A sudden sharp tug in the hair cut the girl out of her thoughts. She let out a pained (perhaps a little dramatic) yowl, stopping to turn around and yell at the woman.
“Ow! That hurts!”
“It ain't my fault your hair's a mess.” She paused for a moment, as if thinking about something. “Don't your mama take care of your hair?”
“No.” The girl muttered, adding “The maids do it.” shortly after.
“Okay.” Serafine's response annoyed the girl a little. Was she even paying attention to what she said? Maybe it would be better if she just shut up. It's not like she was even enjoying staying there anyways.
“Your hair's very pretty, cher. Did you know dat? Looks like mine when I was your age.” Serafine's sudden compliment caught her by surprise, a faint blush riding up her cheeks. Thankfully the woman couldn't see it, but a feeling in her gut told Sofia that she did anyway. Could she detect emotions?
“Thanks..” Sofia stuttered, her grumpy mood being momentarily pushed away by embarrassment.
“Aww, you blushin'?” The woman chuckled. How did she know?! She wasn't even looking at her face!
“H-how do you know?!” Sofia turned her head around, now actually worried about what was going on.
“It's in your voice.” Serafine had a cocky grin on her face. “Clear like crystal.”
“You're lying.” The girl accused in a poor attempt to hide her fear.
“Oh yeah?”
Sofia didn't answer. She didn't have anything to say in her defense.
“See? You don' have a 'ting to say.” Serafine snorted, gently turning the girl's head around so she was facing her hair again. “Don't say 'tings 'bout someone you don' know, cher.”
She tried to think about something else so she wouldn't have to hear the lecture, but it was quite hard when it felt like her scalp, eyes, forehead, and soul included were being ripped off.
“When are you going to finish? It hurts!”
“I don't know, but I would be much faster if you stopped whinin' like a dog.”
“But it hurts!” The girl cried, dramatically clutching small hands at her head as a plea. Serafine groaned, now irritated with her pestering. “Did ya know I have a snake?”
“A snake?” The girl asked curiously, the new topic about a pet snake immediately distracting her from the painful hair brushing.
“Mhm.” Serafine nodded “Wanna hold it?”
“Yeah!”
“Alright, but you have to promise you'll be quiet. And don't tell your mama.”
She stopped, placing the hairbrush down and getting off the couch, walking towards a bookshelf. On top of two thick red books, a long yet slightly thick snake laid curled up as a peaceful noodle.
“Does it bite?”
“Sometimes; depends on the mood.” Serafine chuckled, picking up the snake. Its scales were dark with lighter yellowish spots all over, except its head.
“Really?”
“Nah. Just don' scare it.” She approached Sofia, carefully unwrapping the python from her paws onto the girl's. "It's a python, very big snake species."
"It doesn't looks very big..." Sofia muttered, sliding her paw across the snake's smooth scales. They felt a little weird to the touch.
"Dat's because it's still a bébé, like you." Serafine went back to sitting behind the girl, caressing her dark locks before picking up the hairbrush.
"Does it have a name?"
"Nah, no need for dat."
"Why?"
"Cause it's uh, not stayin' here for long."
"Oh." Sofia wasn't sure what that meant, but it made her wonder.
“I see you met our pet.” Nico's voice made her ears perk up. Looking around, she saw the man coming out of a room, holding a can of biscuits. And much to her disgust, he reeked of cigarettes now.
“Ew, you're smelling.” She mumbled, covering her nose with her free paw.
“Come on, don't be rude.” Before Sofia could protest against his answer, Serafine had reached out and snatched one biscuit as soon as the girl opened the can.
"Hey!"
"What? It's my payment for fixin' your hair, it ain't for free." She snorted, Sofia rolling her eyes in response. “And by the way, your hair’s done.”
“Really?!” Her eyes widened, a big smile appearing on her face, revealing the little gap between her teeth.
“Mhm. Wanna see it?”
“Yeah!” She nodded.
“Alright, come on.” Serafine got up from the couch as Sofia followed her with excited steps. They stopped in front of a wall mirror, too high for her to reach. The girl didn’t have the time to point it out before Serafine picked her up above the waist and raised her to the mirror’s height. Now able to see herself, Sofia saw she had tied up a round bun on the top of her head, not too tight so it wouldn’t hurt but not loose either. Certainly better to play than unbrushed hair.
“It looks pretty!”
“I knew it would, cher.”
Though sweet, their little moment of revelation was cut short by a knock on the door.
Nico, already standing nearby, went to open it and was greeted by a tall, slender woman. Yellow fur, slightly greenish. Her hair was black, cut in a bob ornamented with gold.
“My my, you arrived early, cher.”
“Well, I couldn't miss such an opportunity.”
Sofia wasn't looking at the two when Serafine put her down and walked away, but the woman’s tone tugged something in her gut.
“Aw, look at that girl! Is she yours?” The woman stood closer, crouching down for a few moments to take a better look at her.
“Well… yeah.”
“Even looks like you, what a pretty thing.” She reached out and caressed her cheek, making Sofia back away with a snarl, ears glued to her head.
“Oh! Pretty but has no manners.” The woman made a ‘tsk’ sound with her mouth, turning back to Nico.
“When is this party going to start anyways?”
“I’m sure people will start to arrive by now,” Nico said.
“I hope so, because I have a lot of things to tell Jessica….”
Sofia walked away so she wouldn't have to hear the woman’s incessant rambling. . She didn't know the rest of the place besides where they were, so she just pushed the first door ahead. The smell of smoke was denser than before, also somewhat dark, so what she could figure out was a fancy bed, nightstands at both sides of it and a creepy rug of animal fur. A bedroom..? Unnecessarily detailed, but still a bedroom.
A soft hum passed through the girl's ears, catching her attention. The source led to an elegant dressing table, placed centrally at the other side of the room. A silhouette sat in front of it, illuminated by a lamp. Serafine.
“Hello, cher.” She knew the girl was there, of course.
“Hi.”
“Why so shy? C’mon, sit down.” The woman tapped at a stool besides, gesturing for her to sit. Sofia obeyed, walking closer and sitting. Now close to the woman, she saw that Serafine was doing her makeup.
“My mom said that I shouldn't talk to you.”
“Oh yeah? Why?”
“That you're...uh... weird.”
“I don’t care what she thinks of me, cher.”
“Oh.” She didn’t seem to be in the mood for talking much now, which Serafine caught onto a few minutes later.
“You okay?”
“No..” Sofia looked at her sides for a moment to make sure they were alone. “I don’t like parties.”
“Why not?”
“There’s always a lot of people. They… they make too much noise.”
Serafine did not answer, silently listening to her words. She was paying attention? Why?
“The party is going to take a while. But you can stay here in my room, or Nico’s.
“Really?”
“Mhm. I’m sure he won’t mind it.”
“... Mama doesn’t let me stay in her room.”
“Why not?”
“Because it's full of scary things.”
“Well, don't worry. You ain't in your mama’s home, ya can stay here as long as ya want.”
“Thanks, auntie.”
“No problem, cher.” Serafine ruffled the girl's head, getting a giggle out of her. “Don’ touch anything. It’s dangerous.” She raised from the cushioned chair and approached a shelf near the bed, covering something with a piece of cloth and exiting the room, leaving the door open by a small gap.
“… Okay.”
Now given space, Sofia could take a proper look at her aunt's exotic taste in decoration. Some items were the same as in the living room, such as herbs and hanging bones. Was she a witch? According to the book her brother read regarding the topic, witches collected crystals, dead insects and lots of bones to brew spells on other people. Did she put a spell on her? Would she turn into a frog?! The girl could reflect further about such possibilities, but she saw some other interesting possessions that were placed on a low shelf.
Some sort of animal skull, a crystal, some incense… and the thing Serafine covered. Standing on the tip of her toes, the girl barely managed to pull the cloth off.
A gun!
It was long, painted with tones of black and dark brown, thicker on the edges. She saw the house maids carrying guns before. Maybe Nico would find it cool if she got one to show off too!
But how would she reach it? Unless she called for Serafine, who would then find out about her plan, there weren't many options available.
Wait, there was the stool she sat on earlier!
⚬──────────✧──────────⚬
The party still wasn't much, but it was fine. Serafine eyed the living room, reviewing all the newly arrived guests to make sure they were having fun. Who wouldn't be having fun now? Everything was fine. Nico walked around at a hurried pace, asking a guest something and moving on to the next. A radio sang smooth tunes over a round table in the corner, a gorgeous grey-furred she-cat elegantly leaning onto its side. Zulie.
“Hey, sweetheart. Come here.” Serafine tapped the seat next to her lightly, the woman smiling and sitting by her side. “You’re kinda cute when ya sit by the table like dat, you know?” She wrapped an arm around the woman's shoulder, feeling her fingers brush against the grey fur, glistening under a fine golden powder.
“Oh, of course I do.” Zullie confirmed with a slow nod. I love looking cute to you.” Serafine smirked. Having a party with your brother and the members of your congregation was nice, but having your girlfriend there was even better. Still, concern quietly tugged at the back of her mind, as if she had forgotten something, yet couldn't exactly point out what it was.
“Serafine?” Zullie’s voice snapped the woman out of her thoughts, who now was staring at her in worry for the lack of a response. “Is something wrong?”
“Nah. Just feel like I'm forgetting somethin’.”
“Forgetting something? Like the two day old snacks in the kitchen?” Zullie joked, making Serafine chuckle.
“Maybe. But really, I did forget somethin’.”
“If you forgot then it's not important, dear.” She reassured, kissing her cheek lightly. Serafine didn't answer, now intrigued by her brother's non-stopping rush. With a gesture, she called the man to come over.
“Did somethin’ bite you? I can see the fear in ya face.”
“Sofia. Where is she?” He urged.
Shit. That was what she had forgotten.
“Can you give me a moment?” Serafine asked Zulie, who moved away further from her side to give the woman proper space. “She entered my room when I was doin’ my makeup.”
“She’s not in your room!” Nico's response now was alarming.
“What do you mean she ain't in my room?!” Serafine yelled. At this point, some guests were staring, apprehensive about what was going on.
“SHE. IS. NOT. IN. YOUR. ROOM!! DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU AGAIN?!” Nico's words faded away as a reminder popped in her head. Boudreaux.
“ARE YA EVEN LISTENING TO ME??” The woman did not stop to acknowledge his shouting, jumping off the couch and hurrying towards her bedroom door, now fully closed.
The first thing she saw was Sofia dressed up in one of her evening dresses, obviously too big for her size and dragging loosely on the floor. It seemed like her wardrobe had been raided, too.
“Uh-huh! Look at me! I'm looking so pretty! With my necklace and my big gun!” Sofia exclaimed, oblivious to Serafine's presence as she admired herself on a wall mirror. The fact that the girl was using her clothes irritated her, but her yellow eyes widened in horror at the sight of her rifle recklessly held between Sofia's arms, loaded and close to the trigger.
“SOFIA!! Drop dat' gun!” Serafine shouted, making the girl bristle up like a ball of lint and tighten her grip on the rifle.
“What did I tell ya about touching my stuff?! Didn't ya listen to me?!” She approached Sofia with heavy steps. “Gimme that gun. Now.”
“Why?!”
“WHY?! Because it's dangerous!!” The girl was close to curling up into a ball at this point, hugging the rifle like a stuffed toy for comfort.
“Sofia. Give me the gun, please.” Nico interjected calmly from the door, though she could feel the tension in her brother's voice as he stepped in front of her and crouched down so he would match Sofia’s height. The girl looked down at the gun in reluctance, before dropping it on the floor with a thud. He pushed the gun aside with a hand, clutching her shoulders to check if she was alright. “Are you okay?”
“Mhm.” She nodded with a frown.
“Good. Now listen to me, cher. Don’t you ever do dat’ again. Guns aren’t toys, you could have got hurt real bad. The hell would I say to ya mama? She'd lose her mind and I'd be sad too. Now take off Serafine's dress, cher. Those are her clothes, you can't just wear ‘em without askin’.”
“But they're pretty...”
“I know, but they're mine.” Serafine snarled.
“Aw, fine.” Sofia began to slowly take off the dress, having some difficulty to do so due to its size, so Nico aided by pulling it over her head.
“There you go. Let’s go back.” Nico announced, picking up the girl in his arms.
“I don’t wanna go to the living room!” She squirmed in protest.
“Too damn bad, you ain’t stayin’ alone.”
Heading back to the living room, Sofia immediately saw there were at least five more people than when she left… all staring at them.
“What happened?” A light blonde she-cat asked. “Yeah, what’s going on?” A muscular black tom added, siding up with her.
“Don’t worry, folks. The kid just did some mischief back there.” Nico interrupted, pointing at Serafine’s bedroom with his thumb.
“You have a daughter?” Another woman inquired.
“Dat’s right.”
“You never told us you had one.”
“Well I-”
“She's so cute! Looks just like you.”
“Who’s the mom?”
“What’s her name?”
“Was she carrying a gun??”
The tumult of voices grew stronger, to the point Nico could barely respond to everyone properly.
“Everyone! Give us some space to breathe, please?” To Sofia’s relief, all the guests immediately backed off as soon as she entered the room, her tone of voice authoritative.
After the situation had gotten in control, she raised her eyebrows and smirked, clasping her hands together. “Come on, guys! It’s a party, keep it as one.”
Minutes passed and the flow of the party had gone back to normal. People were slowly dancing around, holding glasses of wine or some other smelly drink as always.
Sofia sat on her father’s lap, almost curled into a fetal position. A headache had surged due to the stress, and it kept banging insufferably like a bell. But the presence of her father comforted the girl as a safe place, soothing her from the exterior noise.
“I wanna sleep.” She yawned, nuzzling her head against his chest.
“Why? It's still seven.” Nico glanced down at the girl with a smile, holding her with one arm so she wouldn't fall over to the side.
“But I'm sleepy...”
“Really? The party will take a long time to end, cher.” A few moments later, a frown formed on his face, realizing she was being serious. “Wanna sleep on my bed?”
“Mhm.” Sofia closed her eyes. She felt herself being carried away to another room. A door opened, and she was carefully placed on a bed. Like the rest of the apartment, it smelled like cigarettes, but she was too much in need of sleep to care. “My head hurts…”
“I’II be back.” Nico sighed, caressing her head and exiting the room.
She wasn't sure how long he took to return, but the sweet scent of tea made her open her eyes.
“Here, this will help.” Holding a mug, Nico sat down at the edge of the bed, waiting for Sofia to sit up before handing it to her.
“Thank you.” With a little bit of reluctance, she took a sip. The taste was nice, but she didn't drink much tea to tell the exact flavor.
“It’s ginger, relieves headaches.”
“How do you know that?”
“A wise woman told me once, cher.” His tone of voice was oddly warm with the answer, making her wonder if he was thinking about someone.
“Why does Serafine have a gun?”
“For work.”
“What kind of work?”
“Uh…special work.”
“Can I work with that too?”
“No, not yet.”
“Why not?”
“Uh…did you know I used to be a boxer?”
“A boxer?” Though she knew the answer to the question he avoided, the change of topic was still disappointing.
“Yup. They used to call me The Cajun Gator. People would be cheering for me from their seats, chére, to punch my rivals right in their faces.”
“Really?!”
“Mhm. I remember ya mama watched some of my rounds few years ago.”
“Can I be a boxer? I wanna fight too!”
“A boxer? But cher, you're just a bébé, wouldn't last a minute in the ring.”
“Why do you keep calling me that? I don't know what it means.” She pouted, getting a chuckle out of Nico.
“It means that you're a little kid, a very cute one.”
Sofia blushed, turning her yellow gaze to the side.
“Come on, ya know it's true.” Seeing she had finished the tea, Nico picked the mug from her paws, and as he did so, he realized her fingers were colored in a dark tone of gray, similar to his own. “Goodnight cher.”