The streets were as empty and quiet in the dark as they were in twilight a few hours ago. I had proudly thought to myself of how our costumes would have disguised us perfectly as trickle-treaters but we didn’t pass a single person by on the way there anyway and I might as well be naked for all it matters at this point.
Even though that’s probably a good thing no one at all saw us, I still feel unsatisfied.
Then again I expect this part of town is usually pretty quiet, most likely due to fear given its proximity to the outskirts of the Field. There was actually one house we passed nearby on the way here that was apparently audacious enough to break this unspoken law. The echoes of their raucous revelry were audible long before we were even close to it. I had cursed their discourtesy earlier but now in its absence, an eerie silence was left in its wake. There was not even low playing music or drunken ramblings to reassure us that there were people nearby.
In retrospect staying out this late probably wasn’t a good idea…
“Well that was underwhelming.” Said Heather.
“at least you actually did something tonight.”
“But I’m relieved honestly, messing with demons is too scary.” she brushed her blonde curls from her forehead.
“Aye, but you’re scared of everything.”
“Kestrel could lock us up for attempted communion!“
“-Fuck the birds, and every other tendril of the GFA, if they don’t care about the pot enough to move it then they aren't going to care about us trying to talk to it.”
“O-ok but literally every story about making deals with demons ends badly.” Heather retorted.
“Aye ‘stories’, written long before demons or the Field ever existed, why would they be experts on something that neither they nor anyone in their era could even experience?”
“You don’t think it’s alarming how greatly the demons of reality resemble their mythical and fictional counterparts?”
“They were called demons based on arbitrary similarities. I'd wager half of my blood that most of the parallels between the two are either exaggerated or straight up fabricated by the K, makes their narrative easier to shill. Historical people have zero factual basis for their knowledge regarding demons of the modern day.”
“Yeah and what about all those news reports of contractors murdering people and using their abilities for other dreadful things, that seems to line up pretty well if you ask me..”
“Of Course the news tells us that they’re owned by the Birds! you really think they'd want us to know about the contractors who are normal and chill?”
“But don’t they say you have to give up your soul to make a bargain with a demon.”
“Aye and it's almost certainly bullshite! Don’t you think if we had scientific confirmation that the human soul actually exists it would be a much bigger deal? It’s probably a metaphorical kind of ‘soul’ selling, like eh… when you take a job in government.”
“Even if that's really true, isn’t it still a big risk? Meddling in forces you don’t understand?”
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“Do you really think humanity would have gotten anywhere if their first response to something they didn’t understand was to just run away? What do you think went through the head of the guy who made the wheel? ‘What have I done? oh the horror!’?”
“Sure, people made advancements by taking risks but how many do you think were culled in that process?”
“Ach- why are you such a-?”
I felt a light but strangely tangible sensation on my left shoulder.
“did you feel something just now?”
“what?” asked Heather.
“I dunno I just-“ I spun around but there was nothing but an empty street behind us.
…
“What is it?”
“I thought i-… just felt like someone touched me on the shoulder just now…”
“don’t say that shit Liz, it's freaky as hell!”
“Fucks sake Heather I wasn’t trying to-! Look It was probably nothing, don’t get so hysterical!”
“Probably nothing?”
“Calm down already. Sheesh.”
We walked in silence for a bit.
“Well… I guess it doesn’t matter at this point anyway, what were you gonna wish for if it was real?” I asked her.
“I'm not sure… what would you have wished for?”
“I think I’d wish for Scarlett and her clique cursed with perpetual agony.”
“That’s horrible! What’s wrong with you?!” she spun around.
“Chill it out! That was obviously a joke. Jeez.”
Heather said nothing.
“Come on, did you actually think I was serious?! What kind of person do you take me for?” I attempted to settle her.
“Right… What would you actually wish for then?”
“Money would probably be the practical thing, pretty boring though.”
“If you suddenly acquired a massive sum of money out of nowhere, the Global Financial Assembly’s Revenue office would immediately investigate and seize it from you,” said Javinka.
“Vampires! I suppose I'd wish for cash to eternally be drip fed to my bank account instead. There, I said mine, Now it's your guy's turn.”
“I guess… a boyfriend.” Said Heather slightly embarrassed.
“Wishing someone to fall in love with you is just magical date rape- where do you get off blowing up at me for-?!“
“-No-no-no I-I mean I’d wish to meet a guy who would really like me.”
“Oh. Well- that’s just asking to be monkey’s paw’d. You’d probably be sent a seventy-year-old homeless dude.”
“That’s why I’d ask to meet my perfect match.”
“Ehh… tthat might work… provided it doesn’t figure out how to twist your words…” But honestly… even if you found a decent guy with standards that low you’d probably blow it anyway.
“What about you, Javinka?”
“A time machine.”
“Aye? Where would you go?”
“World war two.” She replied almost immediately.
“If you stopped it from happening it might prevent us from being born.”
“Why would I stop it?”
“Right, forgot who I was talking to.”
“I want to see it first hand and collect memorabilia.“
“Of course you would…”
“I’d want a first hand account from soldiers too, ask them how the feel about sacrificing themselves for a nation that ultimately betrayed the ideals they were willing to die for-”
Javinka continued rambling about her hyper fixation without our consent.
She’ll say almost nothing for hours but once the conversation arrives at world war 2 it never leaves, her historical knowledge could be considered encyclopedic if It didn’t include certain ‘facts’ that were considered by the GFA to be illegal. Lucky for her kestrel doesn't seem to give a shite but I don't see why she couldn’t have just gone with dinosaurs or trains.
She continued on until we parted ways. I stuck with Heather for a while longer, seeing her current state I opted to detour and walk her all the way home. Someone of her fragile composition wouldn’t well handle being out on their own this late at night.