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The door closes behind Abrams, the last one left in the bar. Infernus sighed in relief, his eyes looking onto the nearby clock on the counter and noticing its hand crawling towards 3:30 AM. Of course he was thankful for the business, but well, he was becoming more thankful for being able to rest.
A light rain poured outside, sticking onto the windows and staining it with droplets. The cursed apple went on like always, cars honking by while overworked office workers returned back to their apartments after a night of partying and drinking. To anyone else from the countryside, or from any other city for that matter it would’ve been bizarre to witness this much business at such a late hour.
“This city never sleeps, does it?” The bartender murmured to himself. Placing down his hat, he poured himself a virgin cocktail, lighting a garnish on fire for effect. His hands slowly gripped onto the glass, before Infernus took a full swing.
“...needs something more.” Infernus noted, before finishing the rest. After a moment or two, he grabbed onto a mop and began to clean up for the day. Whatever staff Jezebel’s had managed to afford to hire left, and he was the only one who was willing to clean up the mess behind them. The splash of a nearby mop bucket was the only noise alongside the light humming of the bartender, as the night went on. The church window stood ominously, before being slapped by an old damp rag and the sloshing of another bucket of whatever cleaner was on hand.
It was nice, quiet, something that Infernus could get used to.
...
Well.
Until the door slammed open.
Infernus looked back and felt his hand heat up. Thoughts raced in his mind, did Hank forget to notify the Hex & Alchemy Bureau about their infractions being dealt with? Did the ritual make things worse? Who the hell comes in at this hour for anything? The bartender slowly looked back, readying himself for the worse. His scalp lightly sparked at the thought of having to light another poor sod on fire.
...
“G-Graves? The hell are you her- holy shit.”
The bartender ran over. Standing a bit back, his eyes noticed how absurdly wet the kid’s clothes were. Stained with Gods knows how much, Darcy Graves stood at him with an almost dead like pose, her back curved outwards as her hair went down towards her knees. What shocked Infernus the most however was what she didn’t have. He’d expected a ghoul or at least a flying skull right by her, but yet nothing else swirled around the two of them like they were prey. In fact, Infernus noticed her lack of the lich hand.
Bringing her down to a nearby booth, his hands hovered over and tried to dry her body. Radiating heat from his digits, he thought of a drink to make her comfortable, before realising that he should be thinking of asking what the happened.
“You doing okay, kid?” The bartender kept drying Graves’ clothes.
Graves finally looked up at him. “...c-could be better.”
“You say?”
“Don’t push it.”
“S-sorry.”
“...i-it’s fine.”
They took a moment in silence, Infernus drying up her ripped up leggings while Graves could only stare at the bartender doing his magic. The former sighed into the air.
“All I can really do, sorry. But really, what the hell did you get yourself into?” Infernus began to walk back to the bar, grabbing a glass of water.
“...e-everything just-” Graves coughed. “I-I think I just lost everything.”
“...I get that.”
“No you don’t!”
Infernus placed the glass down by her. “I do. You remember what I said to you?”
“...y-yeah.”
“If you need anything-”
“-come here. Yeah, I get it. Why do you think I’m here now?” Graves complained. Yet Infernus also noticed a sense of gratitude, even if the young necromancer didn’t want to make it apparent.
“Fair enough...huh, lemme see if I can do anything more- wait right here.”
The bartender left for the back, hearing Graves take a sip of water as he opened the storage door. Back here, stacks of the most profitable booze and richest liquor money could by stood on shelves.
But well, Infernus wasn’t ready to start giving alcohol to minors.
He went further in, and grabbed an old coat. Bringing it back, he slung it onto Grave’s frame.
“That’ll keep you warm. Hey I know it’s itchy but it’s that or having to soak outside. Now...what the hell do I do with you...”
Infernus pitched his nose, while Graves tried to cozy up onto the wool jacket she was now wrapped in.
The bartender glanced at the entrance door. “...how about I start asking: what did you exactly lose?”
“Well for starters, the source of my dignity, my purpose in life, my only way out of the hellhole I’m in- you know, everything!”
“...the lich hand?”
“The lich hand!”
“Well uh...yeah, that’ll do it.”
“And now I’m...I don’t know what I’m gonna do.”
“Say, exactly how did that happen? I swear I’ve asked that at least six times by now but how-”
The look Graves gave to Infernus made him stop speaking. Unexpectedly, the necromancer looked to be hollowed out by something. Instead of being pissed off, like what the bartender expected, her face looked more...defeated, almost betrayed.
“...my parents. Somehow, Gods knows how, came back, after the ritual. I thought they were off to a case elsewhere in the country but I happened to meet them. They asked about what I was doing for once and we had this whole argument about my quote-unquote ‘safety’ and what I was doing with the dead, and I...lost my mentor. Somewhere, somehow, I- I lost t-them. L-Last thing I remember was just, screaming at them while they held onto my mentor like it was some critical evidence for my indictment against me and I ran at my father.
“...and they kicked me out. Just like that. Had their security grab a hold of my shoulders and threw me to the curb. Said something about assault, and not being welcome here, and I was left outside.”
The flickering of the overhead lights snapped Infernus back from what he heard from Graves.
“...holy shit kid. When was-”
“Like a week or so.”
“...and how are you-”
“Still alive?”
“...y-yeah.”
Graves looked up to the ceiling. “I can still hear the dead well enough. They’ve helped me forge for anything to eat, drink, mangle from a few Blackmore kids...”
Infernus noticed the bruising on Grave’s face. Whatever she got, Infernus thought, must’ve been really good to withstand a beating from a bunch of rich kids.
“...and well. I made it, here. After exhausting everything. I-I didn’t know where else to go. It was so cold and the rain was just-”
“No need to explain yourself. I did say you can come and pull a stunt like this. But damn, Graves...you’re in deeper shit that I thought you would ever be in.”
Graves looked down. “Don’t remind me.”
“Mhm. But first, you look like you haven’t had anything good in a while. Let me at least fix that up.”
Infernus walked to a stove top around the bar, Graves slowly following behind after realising how hungry she was. Jezebel’s didn’t have a full on kitchen, but there was at least a fridge and food in it just in case any customer wanted a bite to eat. Of course, it was plain in comparison to the more higher end pubs, bars and bistros but well what do you expect with coming to a bar in an abandoned church with pool tables in it? The bartender snapped his hands, and the stove went alight. Infernus threw down a pan right after.
“Ever heard of a bacon egg and cheese? Heard they’re popular among you youngsters, and well, I get the appeal.” Infernus placed slices of bacon down, while cracking open some eggs. “It’ll be enough to stomach your hunger, even for just a day.”
“Y-You really don’t have to-” Graves retorted.
“Shut it before you’re in the pan.”
“W-What-”
“Said that if you got over your head, you come here for help did I? So, let me help you. This isn’t even the fullest extent I’m willing to do so.”
“...o-okay.”
The pan sizzled on, as slices of bread came out. One in each hand, Infernus toasted one side of each slice with a flick of a wrist. Graves could only stand there amazed, as he swiped his hand under each piece of bacon and cracked egg onto the toasted side.
Infernus smiled. “Now what I like to do is to toast one side, and have the stuffings on top of the toasted side so that the bread don’t get too soggy. But well, I know some of the patrons I feed bitch about that too much, but I hope this works for you.”
“...i-it will.” Graves drooled onto her hand. “Honestly...never even thought about making one...had them sometimes and they’re good though...”
As quickly as she finished her last sentence, Graves was served her meal, plate included. The bartender quickly went over and made a quick virgin drink, before extinguishing the stove’s flame by grabbing it. Passing on the glass, he forced Graves to take a seat and eat. Infernus ate his portion as well, out of indulgence if anything.
“...t-this is really good.” Graves kept biting and biting.
“Helps that you look like you haven’t had anything to eat besides cornerstone candies and a sliver spoon kid’s leftovers.”
Graves didn’t say anything back as she continued on devouring her food. By now the clock rang 4:00 AM, a signal to get out Jezebel’s.
“Once you’re done, we’ll head over to my place. You’ll take the bed while I’ll take the couch. Sound fair?”
“At least let me take the c-”
“You literally look like you’re about to snap with how crooked your back is. Take my damn bed.”
“...well, fuck you too I suppose.”
Infernus chuckled. After a minute or so, the necromancer was done with her first meal in Gods know how long. The bartender grabbed his hat and opened the door. Graves swiftly left. Infernus locked the door as the teen looked to the sky. By now the rain was nothing more than a vague mist, its strength now mostly gone.
“Down this block and turn left, and then a right...and I think a snake pattern...”
Graves looked onto Infernus as he began to walk. “I’ll uh...just follow. You know I can do that right?”
“...oh right.”
“You said that way too bluntly for comfort.”
The two went down the street. Taxis zoomed by while the streetlamps flashed in and out. The weather was gloomy, not being helped with the recent maelstrom that occurred. The concrete street walks the two were using were starting to crack by their edges, as trash from the previous days began to pile up and smell. Advertisements shone onto them as they hurried back to Infernus’ apartment, their coloured light bulbs giving a strangely warm feeling to anyone that passed by. Signs for fast food, pop drinks, hexes, and spell books littered each and every building, while American flags swayed under the pressure of the wind.
“...you still go to school kid?” Infernus patted his neck.
Graves gave him a confused look. “What do you think?”
“...guess not, sorry I asked. Still though, I’m surprised that Blackmore or whatever private academy you’re in hasn’t tried to reach out.”
The necromancer looked down. “They haven’t been for a while. They already got my tuition from my parents, no need to do more, I guess...”
“...was it fun there?”
“...sort of.”
“Sort of?”
Graves looked onto the nearby street, her mind dancing between shutting up or barfing out a bunch of words that would make her embarrassed.
She chose the latter, not wanting to know why. “Started to get my footing a bit. Made a friend. I wanted to start attending more after the ritual but well...looks like those plans got tossed out. I even went out and bought school supplies on my own. I had these fancy pens that the one friend recommended alongside this big leather notebook that I was hoping to properly use...”
The necromancer continued on as Infernus walked and listened. His brain wandered back to his childhood, committing petty crimes alongside larger scale arson. The tips of his fingers lit up in reaction, as if to remind him of the countless papers and photographs burnt with them. Whatever they were was lost to time, their ashes being far apart from one another and useless to anyone. His eyes looked onto Graves with a sincere worry, his eyebrows furring downwards as the sound of the city surrounded them in a cold embrace.
“...t-thank you, again. F-For this.” Graves muttered. “R-Really, you’re the reason I’m basically alive right now and not getting myself buried in the graveyard.”
“Don’t thank me. Thank Hank for me once you see him. He’s the reason why I’m even making sure your sorry ass isn’t on the corner dying.”
“Speaking of which...is the bar still getting closed down? Overheard it during the ritual but...”
Infernus looked up to the sky. “I think it’ll be okay. Don’t exactly...know if my wish uh, worked. But well, things are getting slowly better. I can’t complain about having less drunks or kids to throw out.”
Graves sighed into the air. By now, they’ve reached the entrance of the apartment building. While no means fancy, it was a more middle-class dwelling that Infernus still awed at whenever he entered. The small lobby awaited them as Graves looked onto the floor, noticing the light waxed polish on the Eastern European inspired tiling. Infernus pressed the button for the elevator.
“Tell ya, I was amazed at the fact that they even have a clean floor.” The bartender took off his hat. “I was always used to seeing cracked wooden boards or off putting stone beneath me.”
“...you would have a field day at where I used to live.”
Infernus hummed before the elevator reached to the ground floor. Opening the gate, Graves quickly went inside while Infernus looked back just in case. A moment later, the two were riding upwards towards the 3rd floor. There was light, grainy music that played but it stopped once the door opened. Stepping out, the two made their way to Infernus’ place.
“Welcome in.” Infernus unlocked the front door. “Might not be much, but well, it’ll serve you well.”
...
Homely.
That was the first thought that Graves had when her eyes scanned across the nearby living room and kitchen. For an assumed bachelor Infernus’ apartment was a lot more organized that she thought it would be, especially given his background. A radio sat nearby a couch, while a vinyl player setup was placed across. A shelf filled with trinkets and books stood to the left, while the kitchen itself was simple enough. Pots and pans sat in the sink, needing to be cleaned while the dining area had a stained plate, with an open jam jar and half filled cup of coffee nearby. Flicking on more lights, the apartment was basked in a warm orange glow that sunsets were made of, as Graves took off her muddy boots and placed her jacket on the couch.
“Get cleaned up if you have the energy, I’ll get a change of clothes for you on the bed. The shower is to your right, and uh...yeah. Yeah no make yourself at home.” Infernus went towards the bedroom.
Graves could only nod, as she made her way to the washroom. Inside was a set of loosely placed razor blades, alongside a toilet that had a photograph by its tank. Nabbing a nearby towel she hoped was clean, she made her way back to the bedroom with Infernus tossing out a worn but soft button up, and a pair of awfully long lounge wear pants.
“...sorry for not having any nightgowns or whatever. Swore I had one from a fling, but uh, looks like they got taken back.”
The necromancer lightly blushed at how casual the bartender was. “It’s all good.”
“You can stay as long as you like.”
“...w-what?”
“No seriously. The homeless shelters they have in place here are a breeding ground of whatever the hell New York’s finest can make, and judging from my last visit there...yeah no, not a place for you.”
“You don’t need to do this-”
Infernus looked up. “Got a plan?”
“...u-um-”
“See.”
Graves mumbled to herself, Infernus noticing how conflicted her eyes were at the sight of it all. She looked back up and down, not knowing what to say.
“...look, I get what you’re feeling even if you think I’m some smart ass with an ego problem. But, trust me when I say this. You need somewhere to grow, a place to call home even if you literally just got thrown out of your home. I’ve been there, trying to do everything all at once while I was wondering where I was gonna sleep the next night, and it sucks. The streets can only take away everything you have and are, and I don’t want that to happen to you. Stay, at least for a night. Then we can discuss the future. For now, I want you to be knocked out and resting. Can you do that for me?”
...
“Y-Yeah.” Graves looked at Infernus.
“Good kid. Alright, time for a nap...”
Infernus walked towards the living room, preparing to sleep while Graves dragged herself to the washroom to clean up. A quick shower later, she was dressed out in whatever the hell Infernus had for fashion sense and crawled to the bedroom.
As she was about to close the bedroom door, Infernus yelled out something.
“NIGHT!”
...
“Goodnight.” Graves replied back. Not a moment later did she hear the bartender snore softy, and she giggled at the sight of him being laid out like a bag of grain. She slumped onto the bed with a remarkable thud, flipping the loose blanket onto her torso and legs. Her mind raced with what to do tomorrow, what has happened, and a lingering sense of dread became evermore apparent. Her eyes swore she saw her father and mother by the bedroom door, taunting her as Graves flipped towards the side with the window. Her heart skipped a beat at the utter idea of the two finding out where she was and being brought to the police station.
...
Stay, at least for a night. Then we can discuss the future.
...
The future...
Right.
I’m here.
...
And alive.
...
Yeah...
...
Not a second after, Graves fell asleep.