Chapter Text
“It’s a sad tale; It’s a Tragedy!”
-
Hermes, Road to Hell
The first thing Jean registers when she wakes up that morning is the feeling of a growing headache forming between her eyes. The second thing she registered was the glaring light of the sun, which absolutely should NOT be possible in the basement wait a sec- She shot up, her hands reaching down for the familiar couch cushions that she had been napping on and instead finding the soft touch of grass meeting her finger tips. She hissed as she opened her eyes, the sunlight almost burning itself into her retinas as she took in the clearing she had found herself in. Man, Jean, you must’ve gotten pissed at Monty’s last night to not even remember it she chided herself, closing her eyes as the pressure started to ramp up behind them. Eventually she mustered up enough energy to stand, before immediately wobbling as she sunk into the soft earth. Definitely drank too much she lamented as she started to trudge towards the nearest path. She took in her surroundings as she walked, the leaves tinged with a promise of autumn. It reminded her of her home, before moving to London. There must be a road here somewhere… Monty wouldn’t just LEAVE me there. Unless, of course, he did. She flinched instinctively at the whisper in the back of her mind, the grating sound of her mother’s shrill voice filling her head despite knowing, with her whole heart, that Monty wouldn’t just leave her there. Not again.
She kept walking down that path, the leaves progressively getting more orange and red as she rounded the corner and set eyes on a Bar, of sorts. It was attached to a railway station that, after a quick glance at the calling board, appeared to be defunct. There was only one train on the board, calling at only one station. She made a start for the steps leading up to the platform to look around more, but instead she found herself in front of the door to the bar. The wind laughed in the trees as she stood there, looking around. That was… weird? Right? Like not just in a dealing-with-a-dead-body weird but like.. Supernatural weird. Right? She thought to herself as her hand reached down to the keyring she had attached to her belt. It had been a gift from Hester, after Jean had lost the key to the Basement for the umpteenth time.
“Here” she said, a twinkle in Hester’s eye as she handed over the box. “Seemed cheaper than getting a new key re-produced every time you lost one,” To anyone else it would seem that Hester was telling Jean off, but there was a familiar glint in her eye and a soft smile on her face that betrayed her. As Jean gingerly took the box, she gasped as she looked down at the simple chain and brass loop. It was delicate and simple and quite possibly the best gift Jean had ever gotten. She had thrown her arms around Hester as she thanked her over and over, until Monty and Charles returned to the basement and started to make fun of Hester for betraying any sort of affection for the lot.
Jean smiled at the memory, the feeling of warmth settling into her chest as she fished out her keys from her pocket, startled to feel not the weight of her many keys on there but rather only one. A skeleton key sat neatly on her ring, two tiny snakes wrapped around it with wings on either side of the top loop. She stared at it in shock for a moment before the pressure behind her eyes grew and she moved one of her hands to press against her forehead. It felt like she was swimming, everything around her buried beneath a layer of fog as she reached out with her hand, slotting the key into place. It fit perfectly. In one fluid motion Jean unlocked the door and pushed it inwards, the warmth of the bar spilling out into the darkening world. Taking one final breath, she crossed the threshold.