Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“You’re sure you can hypnotize the guy? The stone oak lieutenant questioned “from what I understand demons are a bit above your pay grade when it comes to your whole hypno thing”

“Normally yes but hes only a quarter demon that leaves 75% cockroach so I think I can manage” Vlad rolled his eyes limping on a stolen prosthetic that didn’t quite fit him.

“Well wont they notice if he comes into the café all zombie like” the lieutenant continued fidgeting with a vampire protection charm she had dangling around her neck. She was an experienced witch, but she never really dealt with vampires or their hypnosis.

“I don’t even have to keep him hypnotized constantly; I just need to get him to meet with me a few times and I can implant suggestions, make him crave immortality to be apart of a family that wont even look at him. Make him jealous, angry. Make him think its his idea to reach out to your coven.” Vlad struggled leaning on a wall for support, his left limbs barely starting to grow back

“Okay but why him, why not someone they trust more like JC or Nicole?”

“I already tried the flannel cockroach and that ended with me losing my limbs, I don’t know what princess will do to me if I try her kitchen manager, but the fresh out of prison new hire she hired as a favor for to the kitchen manager, hes a much easier target.” Vlad continued smiling menacingly “Plus, he doesn’t know who I am, and I can make sure that the others won’t be able to warn him”

Chapter Text

It had been a year since Cyrus’ kidnapping, a year that Erik had been in jail for what felt like the millionth time, a year out of his three-year sentence. A year of Erik feeling like hes going insane. His mental health was never good, worse in prison, but it was never this bad, it was to the point he didn’t know what was even real anymore, some days it felt like there was someone or something else in his head. He couldn’t handle it anymore; he just wanted the pressure and noise in his head to stop.

-at Cafae latte-

“Bob Bob Bob Bob” Jc scrambled shoving their phone in bobs hands prison is calling me, why on earth would prison be calling me. I must’ve done something wrong, must’ve broken some new law I don’t know about”

“If you did why would they call? Wouldn’t they just come to arrest you?” Bob tried using logic to calm JC down, but they were spiraling.

“I’m going to lose my scholarship and my Nicole and the cafae” JC sniffled, their phone still ringing in Bobs hand. Bob shooed them away to Nicole so that Nicole could try to help while she answers the phone for JC. JC slumped into the chair next to their girlfriend and leaned their head on her shoulder. “Whys it taking so long?” JC grumbled.

“Bob has been on the phone all of 10 seconds JC” Nicole reasoned, “Plus do you really think I or more realistically Bob would let them take you and this might be the one occasion where Bob even lets Cyrus do a bit of stabbing if it came to that” the phone call was short and when it was over bob came over trying to hide her disappointed face which just made JC more nervous.

“Alright, the Prison wasn’t calling about you lets just get that out of the way, you're not being arrested or did anything wrong” JC sighed a breath of relief. “However, its about Erik” Bob paused for a moment before continuing. “Nicole, I mean no offense by this, but this is a delicate situation and because of that, I must ask Jennifer Charles are you okay with Nicole hearing this?” Bob asked tapping her fingers on JC’s phone. Jennifer Charles thought for a moment before nodding their head.

“He was transferred to a hospital and put on suicide watch. They called you because apparently, you’re his emergency contact. He also left you a letter. They want you to come see him and get the letter but after what hes done I would not blame you if never wanted to see his face again, and if you do go, go for yourself for your closure not his.”

“Suicide watch? What he tried to kill himself?” JC questioned unsure how they felt.

“They wouldn’t tell me details over the phone, just that he has not woken up yet, but hes stable” the fairy placed JC’s phone down on the table in-front of them. JC thought for a moment about their history with Erik and what he did

“He got me into rehab, I owe it to him, the least I could do is go see him.” JC sighed placing their phone in their purse “will you be okay without me for a few hours?”

“Yes of course, would you like me to come with you? I can leave Husniya in charge” Bob offered. “Just incase you need me” She smiled warmly. JC nodded. “Alright then Husniya you’re in charge while were gone” Husniya gave a big thumbs up while steaming some milk for a latte.

It was a short drive to the hospital and when they got there there was a police escort waiting for them. JC was on edge with him, but he was at least respectful and stood outside the room to give them some privacy. Erik was barely awake, handcuffed to the bed. “Oh fuck” was all he said when he noticed JC and Bob. His voice was hoarse, almost nonexistent.

JC noticed the bandages around his neck that coupled with the voice made it obvious how he ended up in the high-risk ward of the hospital. “The only thing I don’t understand is why, I mean you were so obsessed with being immortal. Why try to kill yourself?” JC looked at him confused picking up the letter addressed to them that was on the nightstand.

“I don’t know, I think I’m losing my mind” Erik rolled over onto his side as best he could, curling up into a very lose fetal position. “I don’t even know whats real anymore everything just feels like I’m half awake or that theres someone or something in my head.” Tears started to well up in his eyes. “I just want it to stop, I want it to be quiet again” He looked up at Bob and JC and sighed.

“You guys don’t even believe me, do you? I don’t blame you I wouldn’t believe me either, especially after what I did to Cyrus, I don’t even know why I would do something like that to one of my friends. My words probably worth jack shit to you guys especially him but I truly am horrified by what I did” Erik curled up even more, closing his eyes all he wanted was to just disappear.

“I believe you Erik.”

Chapter Text

“WHAT?!”
“What?”
JC and Erik were both equally surprised, the only difference is that there was a twinge of anger in JC’s voice.

“However, that is only because I bespelled you to tell the truth when we walked in here” Bob was very direct and that put JC to ease. “And I believe I know what is causing you to feel like you’re losing your mind, and more importantly who might be able to fix it.”

“Really? I can feel like me again?” Erik looked at Bob. For once in the past year, he felt hopeful.

“JC you call Cyrus tell him to get Janine down to the Cafae, it should be her day off, tell him to offer her free drinks for the week” she cracked her knuckles “also you're going to have to drive us back to the cafae this is going to take a bit more magic than I’m used to casting in one spell, meaning I should not be driving and I don’t think Erik is in any condition to drive, and before you look at me with those worried eyes you get. Its not enough to kill or wound me, at most I’m going to pass the hell out when I get home tonight” the fairy clarified.

“Okay” JC was satisfied with the explanation. “But whats the spell anyways?”

“In simple terms magical jailbreak and cover up” Bob stretched, rolling her shoulders back.

“Should I be worried the fairy sorceress is needing to stretch before a spell, Ive never seen her needing to do that before” Erik sat up or at least tried too.

“Im sure it’ll be fine.” JC shrugged “but just incase” they took a few steps back away from Bob.

-One magic jailbreak and car ride later-

(A/N: Yeah, no I’m not writing magic mechanics because I don’t really know how they work and I’m tired)

Bob was leaning against JC when they walked into the Cafae the jailbreak drained her more then she thought it would. Erik wasn’t far behind them, Rethu who was working front of house was not pleased to say the least. “What the fuck is he doing here?!”

They were seething, eyes glowing red, smoke puffing out of their nostrils, the only thing keeping them from jumping over the counter and incinerating or clawing his throat out was bob and JC being seemingly okay with his presence, that and they warned Cyrus about what they were doing, and he trusted them. Rethu was trying to play nice for Cyrus’ sake.

“I bespelled him to tell the truth” Jc helped Bob sit down. “And from how he described things he wasn’t in complete control or at least wasn’t fully aware of what was happening, Erik you were talking about how it felt like there was something or someone else in your head right” Erik nodded sheepishly trying to disappear into a corner. “To me it sounded like Vampiric control which is why I asked JC to tell Cyrus to Janine down here, I’m not an expert or anything on vampiric control or how to reverse it, I thought you might, or you may know someone who does”

“I’m sorry to disappoint but Vampiric Control is one of the skills I never took the time to perfect, the thought or overriding a person very being, stealing their agency, forcing them to do things regardless of how repulsive they find it, never really sat well with me.” Janine explained every word made Eriks skin crawl. “I can try, but I don’t know how effective I will be, we don’t even know if it is a vampire, it could be a spell or even just hypnosis by a human, I also have one condition I will only do it if Erik is okay with it, if at any point he tells me to stop. I stop” Janine was being very precise with how she spoke.

Erik thought for a moment. With his nerves eating away at him along with his current mental state he didn’t want to say yes. Even the thing in his head was screaming at him to decline, which is what made him realize he had to say yes, no matter how hard it was.

“I’ll do it.”