you do this, you do

[nunchii]

ROOK

i.
[ most of the time, Rook is aware of where he is going and what random surface he is deciding to nap on. he has his favourite spots, out side of his hoard of pillows and blankets, and they are usually in presence of other demons, the few vampires he has decided he likes, or the bar in downtown Seoul that caters to those with magic in their blood.

this couch is in none of those places.

it smells like earth and dampness and moss first off.

second, there is way less magic in the air here and it's weird. well there is magic, a kind that Rook hasn't felt in a long while, and nothing like the static feeling of too many magical creatures in one area brings to his skin. this is... calmer. more unified.

still, he has no fucking clue where he is. not that it seems to bother him. the demon hums and sits up on the couch hair a mess and eyes half lidded, standing out if only because he is clad in just loose black pants and a whole lotta gold body jewellery.

what there are standards for demons of lust okay? sometimes he cares enough to hold himself to them. kinda.

his voice is rough when he speaks.]

Mm, where 'm I?



ii.
[ Rook doesn't need to stay. he can leave as easily as he came (but with more intention), can slide between the worlds and slink back to hell where he has whatever he needs to make eternity terrible for others. but--

and isn't there always a 'but'

he kinda likes it here. this place is weird, with the people and the place. the magic that is so different in them all but also strangely similar. how all these beings are under one roof in the swamp and have found things that so many spend their whole existences searching for.

how there is more love than lust here and well fuck, isn't that something.

so yeah, Rook could leave. Rook should leave. there isn't much for him to do here with his Cardinal. there are only so many strings for him to pull on (and yeah yeah yeah, a good demon would seduce and destroy, would ruin relationships and cause hurt but-- if you ask Rook he doesn't do that because he is lazy, not because he if soft). but he doesn't. he stays.

stays and starts bringing little pieces that he likes into the home. a pillow. a blanket. a set of dishes where none of them match but they are inlaid with precious stones so who cares. today's present is a bookshelf. complete with books. mostly in dead languages but hey, it's the thought that counts right?

Rook is in the middle of the living room (or what he thinks is the living room) hands on his hips and head cocked as he tries to figure out where the shelf would look best.

feel free to help him out.]

Ros

i.
[ the early morning, Ros has found, is the best time for him to practice much of anything in this place. sure he still goes to the underworld, still has his haunts and the shadows but--

he likes this place. these people. so he has taken to sticking around whenever he doesn't have a job that needs to be done. not because he thinks that they need protecting (they totally need protecting, almost more from themselves than from outsiders) but because he likes it here.

so early morning, when the sun is just thinking about getting up and most everyone is asleep, if not quiet, Ros can be found on the grounds outside with more than a few short blades in his hands and a concentrated look on his face.

ever since the war, ever science the adaptation of science and magic and everything, Ros has found that he cannot rely on his hound form as much, cannot rely on what he is, so he needs to adjust. needs to learn. and learn quickly (which considering he is a weapon isn't very hard at all). still, practice is necessary and, since he does not need much sleep, it is a nice way to just-- exist for a while. ]


ii.
[ if you happen to pass by the kitchen, you might notice one (1) rather confused looking hellhound who is staring at what appears to be a rather fancy looking espresso machine. the machine in question is sitting on the counter, in the middle of a hastily cleared spot, with a bag of actual coffee beans next to it while Ros leans against the table and just stares at it.

you see, he learned very early on that everyone here is quite fond of coffee (well, not all but--) so, being the being he is, Ros set out to find the best of the best. apparently this machine was supposed to be one of the best so long as you had the right beans (which he did make sure to grab) and followed the instructions (which he did not have at all). which is why he is looking confused.

because how the hell were you supposed to turn those beans into liquid coffee? the hound has no idea.]

Sage

i.
[ to say that Sage feels like shit would be a bit of an understatement. he isn't sure what is worse, death maybe? but he is certainly there. ever since the night where he made the fucking brilliant choice to let Minsu into his room (and subsequently kicked him out) the witch has been no where to be found within the confines of the house.

or even the immediate swamp.

Sage has, despite knowing better, been in the darkest parts of the swamp where the sun barely reaches and humans haven't been in fucking centuries (okay, maybe they have, but shhh) with no real point to it all but to just get out. be alone. away.

maybe to punish himself a little bit but, that is neither here nor there.

the magic in this part of the swamp is thicker, is heavier and seeps into his bones and makes it easy for him to forget about fucking humans and their brilliant smiles, or their soft mouths or--

(such a soft and fragile thing, the human heart is witchling. careful.)

Sage doesn't really forget anything, but he does manage to push more magic into the wards and finds a small patch of fungus that he can most certainly use in potions so not a total loss. still, when he trudges back into the house, covered in swamp and a little paler than usual, he isn't so sure that is a good win.

the witch leaves the ingredients he found on the kitchen table (along with a note stating not to eat them because he really doesn't want to deal with that, thanks Ten) then makes his way to the washroom to clean himself off and then to his room to get dressed. and if he comes out wearing sweatpants that belong to Ros for how huge the are and Minsu's shirt, well--- shut up.

he is then making his way back to the kitchen for coffee. because jesus fuck he needs that. ]



ii.
[ inhale. exhale. inhale. exhale-- you can do this!

Sage isn't usually a nervous person. not even a little. but-- standing outside Minsu's door with a basket full of fresh berries (that cost him more than he would like to admit but worth it) and a new frying pan, the witch is nearly shaking with nerves.

what if Minsu left? what if he hates him? what if he tries to smack him upside the head with the frying pan and just--

Sage knocks before his mind talks him out of this.]

... Minsu? You there?

Comments

[squelch]

[ Ten does a pretty characteristic thing here and covers his mouth to muffle some laughter. It's not mean laughter. He never laughs at people, not really.

Ten is not mean. He's happy. And Ros' efforts endear him a lot, which makes him happy enough that he laughs. ]

Aren't you the nice one? You're spoiling us! [ He leans over and does the squid version of nudging Ros with his elbow, which is to lightly poke his arm with one tentacle. ] I know some people are going to really love this. [ He can think of a few in particular. ]

We've got this, okay? We're gonna figure it out. Forget water for a second. I think that goes in last... [ That sounds right.

Yes. From his several mornings spent observing the other coffeemaker, it feels like water should go in second. ]

Beans? Beans first. Where are the beans? [ Minsu! Where are you! There's a squid and a puppy in your kitchen and they might be dangerous! ] Um... [ Now he's going to poke around, don't mind him. When he gets into the cabinet, he does that routine where he pulls things out - rather reverently - and sniffs them to discern what they are.

Ocean dwellers, am I right? ]

[spott]

[ there is a huff at that, he isn't nice! okay he is but-- !!!!!]

Hey, everyone really likes coffee here and no one cares that I am in and out all the time and--- well, if we can figure out how to work it than I think it will be even better.

[ a core aspect of who Ros is as a being, aside from the need to protect, is the need to please. to show the people that he considered friends or more in his life that he cared about them and make sure they were happy, it just so happened that most of the house now fell into that category and, well-- yeah.

as Ten goes and starts sniffing the cupboards, Ros barks a laugh before pulling out a bag of new beans from what seemed to be just shadows, grinning.] I got some of those too!

[ look at him being thorough!!! ]

I just.. don't know how to make everything work. Do we have to cook the beans? Crush them? I don't-- I've never made coffee before.

[squelch]

[ Ten would argue that point into the ground. Ros is definitely nice. This is the action of a nice person. Also, he saw that piano! ]

They really do like coffee. I think Sage might have coffee in his veins. I'm pretty sure. It's like, the source of his magic! Maybe it really is... [ Ooooh, he solved a mystery. Wait until he tells Freddy. ]

We'll set it up and they'll all be super impressed with us! [ Yeah! Got this one in the bag.

Speaking of bags, Ros is very responsible, isn't he? Ten turns around abruptly, watching the beans appear and applauding a little. ] Like magic! You thought of everything!

[ Ten looks around the machine again. ] Does it grind things? [ He may be opening flaps and peeking into reservoirs and the like.

A curious person, this one. He must poke his nose into everything he can poke his nose into. And it's not a particularly big nose, so there's lots of places he can poke around. ] I don't wanna put the beans in the wrong place. That would be bad. [ He looks at Ros, perhaps pouting just a tiny little itty bitty bit.

They must succeed! ]

[spott]

[ how about we leave it at that Ros is tolerable and knows the power of good coffee, let's say that yes.]

The small grumpy witch? Yeah, he smells like coffee and swamp water so-- you're probably not wrong. Though I don't know about the source of his magic. Granted I met a witch that worked only with baked goods once in Europe, so you might be right...

[ Ros doesn't pretend to understand how magic works in a lot of places or a lot of ways despite being magic himself. he actually thinks of himself as less magical and more just, well, monstrous. but that isn't the point. the point right now is that they have beans and this fancy ass machine that no one knows how to use.

yet.]

I tried! I should probably have gone looking for the book with instructions though....

[ not that he would really know what to look for but still. he watches Ten with a small smile on his face, coming up behind him to peer into the machine looking for what he thinks would be the grinder. there is a large plastic piece at the back and then a smaller one on the top and--]

Maybe this is the grinder? It looks like there are blades beneath the funnel....

[squelch]

[ How about we say Ros is a dreamboat and Ten thinks he is the bee's knees? ]

Small, grumpy witch might not be a bad way to describe him. I think he's not very grumpy anymore though! Or less? [ He thinks about this, then shrugs. ] I think that's right.

Wait, baked goods? [ Wow. That's cool and also impressive. Not that Ten knows anything about magical baked goods, but he does know abut Minsu's baked goods and those are as good as magic, in his mind.

Side note: There's no way Ros qualifies as monstrous if Ten doesn't. He's an actual tentacle creature. ]

The last time I tried to use a book to figure out how to make something that I was building, I build it inside out, so I dunno if I trust those things anymore...

[ Or he's very bad at constructing stuff. But he does like to tinker with things a lot, so who knows? ]

Oh, blades? [ Ten scoots in a bit and tries to look at it too. There's no way this is not a comical image, the two of them closely observing the coffee machine. ] I guess, in this case, blades are probably a good thing... [ Normally he's kind of averse. Because blades chop things.

And he has too many limbs to worry about at once. Chopping is like the stuff of his nightmares. ]