Lost In Translation

[Existentially Odd]

Samuel stared at the screen for a solid three minutes before relenting and looking to his left and out through the glass wall of his office. It was a new record. He'd been looking out every twenty seconds, waiting on Remi's appearance in the library entryway, ready to pop up from behind his desk and rush out to greet the angel and usher him in. He'd begun to annoy himself, so he'd started timing his concentration, forcing his eyes to stay riveted on the screen for as long as he could stand it before looking for the angel's beautiful form. Excitement curled in his stomach like a frantic butterfly.

It was a joke, really. He wasn't even doing anything on his computer. He'd opened Word in preparation and now all he could do was wait for Remi to arrive and start reading out the first book to him.

He'd set up a chair to the right of his, in front of the more open part of his desk, his computer pushed over to the left to give Remi space to read from the Enochian text sitting upon it. It was the shortest of the three books (he guessed). He couldn't even title the Word document because he couldn't read the cover. All he could do was wait. He'd asked Garan to come in tonight to cover the circulation desk, uncertain how demanding the translating would get. He didn't even have to be out to talk to the students he'd seen coming and going.

Instead, he sat in his wheeled computer chair, his knee bouncing with agitation, making plans in his head that were unlikely to ever come to fruition. He'd dressed in a simple grey suit with a blue and grey waffle patterned button up shirt and blue tie. His hair was currently smoothed back with some product in it but he knew from experience that the strands would be loose and arching towards his eyes from him running his fingers through it once he started working. He tended to fiddle with it more when he was reading or typing.

Sam just needed his work partner to turn up and the dishevelment could begin.

[Ehcorn]

Remi hadn’t waited any more patiently than Sam had.

When the sun began to slip beneath the horizon, the angel grinned and leaped from his favorite perch — the highest ledge that overlooked the entirety of his garden and offered some of the best, unobstructed views of the city. He flew across a sky streaked fiery red and orange, periodically wrapping his arms around himself and wishing the sky’s warm appearance meant for a warmer flight. Once he had the means, he’d invest in all the wonderful things that humans had invented to keep heads and fingers and necks away from the biting cold. Until he received his first payment for his translation services, he’d have to suffer through it.

By the time buildings gave way to an extensive forest and it was too dark to see, his phone stopped working. Sam had warned him that he might lose the ability to access his maps this far out from the city, but there was no missing the sprawling academy situated atop a hill and twinkling brightly like stars on a cloudless night. Finding his way inside was equivalently easy. He landed nearby, glamored his wings away, and watched people coming and going through a set of double doors long enough to confirm it was the entrance. Then it was his turn. He crossed the threshold and… didn’t make it much farther than that.

He looked around the entry area with widened eyes; it was roomy, and like the foyer at Sam’s hotel, it had been painted nice, calming colors, but he could already feel an itchy uncomfortableness set up between his shoulders. He pulled on and adjusted the collar of the scarlet red dress shirt he wore beneath his brown herringbone blazer, then slipped his hands into the pockets of his dark denim jeans. If he kept from fidgeting and breathed, maybe it wouldn’t get too bad. Maybe he wouldn’t need to call Sam and tell him to come to find him.

Breathe. He sucked greedily at the air. Alright. Now, exhale. He released it all in a long sigh. 

Despite his best efforts, something of his panic and dismay crawled across his face for everyone to see, and a young mortal with an aura Remi couldn’t place approached him and asked if he needed help. Remi gratefully accepted. His companion insisted on walking him to the library and didn’t leave his side until he pointed towards Sam’s office and Remi nodded confirmation.

"That’s him," he said, smiling at Sam. Every bit of tension in him became water on a duck’s back and slid away. Forgotten.

[Existentially Odd]

Samuel smiled broadly when he saw Remi delivered by someone, thinking he’d asked for directions and paying it no mind. He was too busy hurrying out of his office and around the long curve of the circulation desk to greet him. He looked him over when he reached him, giving an appreciative little whistle.

“Welcome, it’s good to see you. You look great! Very professional,” he complimented, finding it amusing they’d both dressed the part tonight. It was like they were pulling on armour to go into battle, in a way. Look the part, feel the part of... work colleagues? “This way,” he gestured, keeping his hands to himself despite wanting to take Remi’s hand and lead him in.

Once they were in his office, he closed the door (even though it was glass) to seal their conversation inside. He didn’t immediately guide Remi to his desk, though, he watched him anxiously to see if being inside the mostly-glass room would have a negative effect on the angel. “You know, I think I got used to seeing you with your wings last night. You look a little... less without them. Are you feeling okay in here?” he queried, relenting and placing a hand on Remi’s. It was trapped between them, where no one would see.

[Ehcorn]

"I feel a little less without them," Remi admitted with a wan look as he tangled his fingers with Sam’s.

If he’d wanted, he could’ve dropped his glamor and summoned his wings from the half-world they resided in. On his way to the library, he’d spied more than one set of wings, but they’d been of the impish variety, which — as far as he knew — depended more on magic than anatomical structure to keep them aloft. Angels balanced the two. Each of his wings were twice as long as he stood tall, and made navigating enclosed areas difficult at best. Sometimes, a little discomfort was worth avoiding greater pain.

He’d keep his wings hidden until he was ready to fly.

"But otherwise, I’m..." Remi trailed off and took a moment to look around Sam’s office. If the walls had been opaque and if Sam hadn’t been there with him, he would’ve gone to a corner and cowered there until the building fell on his head, but his reality was one where he could stand tall and maintain his dignity.

"You know, I think I’ll be okay as long as you’re here to distract me." He squeezed Sam’s hand and grinned, chasing some of the pallor from his cheeks. "If you’re up to the task."

[Existentially Odd]

Samuel relaxed when Remi grinned at him, as always struck by just how darn pretty he was, with his twinkling eyes and pouty, kissable lips. Sam's responding smile was broad and he didn't drop Remi's hand as he led him across the office towards his desk, sliding in between the chairs and the desk into the one in front of the computer, dragging his companion after him.

"I am absolutely up to the task of distracting you in any way I can," he smirked, releasing Remi's hand so he could get comfortable. Once Remi was beside him, the wheels on their chairs allowing them to slide nice and cosily together, he transferred his hold to the angel's leg. He rubbed his hand along it then squeezed it briefly. "And if I fail, well, hopefully the book's good enough," he chuckled wryly, reaching over to drag the text he'd chosen slightly closer to Remi.

"This is the shortest one," he informed, tilting his head as he looked at it, as if having someone who could actually read the symbols on the ancient, papyrus-bound tome would suddenly help him understand what it was about. "I thought we'd start with it, to get us into the swing of things, but I'm open to negotiations," he grinned, lifting his gaze to meet Remi's eyes. The other two texts were on the vast cupboard/bookshelf that filled the solid wall behind him so he didn't have to look far for alternatives if Remi wasn't happy with his first offering... but that wasn't all he was thinking about just then.

"We can do something else to settle your mind first, if you need," he said mischievously, giving Remi's thigh another squeeze.

[Ehcorn]

He was only able to glance at the book long enough to confirm the title was written in Enochian before Sam's suggestion, paired with a dangerously placed hand, stole his attention. He stared back at him, enthralled by the images that danced through his mind at the vampire’s prompting. Every nerve ending was atingle, ready to launch his arms up and his hands out to help him dig his fingers into Sam’s perfectly styled hair and drag him the short distance to his lips. That would certainly settle his mind. But for how long? If they kissed, he’d want — need — more, and it wouldn’t end until they were undressed and on the desk, writhing against each other.

Remi made a strangled sound at the back of his throat and forced himself to focus on the book and the job at hand. With a sigh, he dragged it closer so he could run his fingers over the familiar glyphs as he read them aloud, first in sing-song Enochian, and then again in English.

"The Travels of Pravuil," Remi said, then puckered his lips in thought. "I swear I've heard that name before. I can’t remember where, but— Well, I suppose we should keep reading, shouldn’t we?" Remi flashed a quick smile at Sam before he carefully lifted the cover. Smaller, densely packed glyphs lined the first two pages, and he scanned them briefly to find his starting point. He traced the words from the upper right-hand corner to the left, opposite what he would’ve been if he’d been reading a Latin-based script.

"'Here are presented the results of inquiry carried out by Pravuil on the Earthly plane.' Definitely an angel's name, then. That's probably why it sounds familiar to me." He settled in closer to the book, crossing his feet beneath his chair at the ankles and resting his forearms on the table as he continued translating. "Where was I? Hm, presented results… Pravuil... Earthly plane. Ah, here we go. 'To the end that neither the discoveries of Angels may be forgotten, nor the works great and marvelous, which have been produced by the learned among the non-Angels.'"

He looked askance at Sam. "Please don't tell me the shortest one is supposed to be the easiest."

Enochian hadn't changed much over the eons, but the book's content and the scribe's archaic way of writing guaranteed a headache by night's end.

[Existentially Odd]

The heated look Remi gave him was enough to satisfy Sam's desire for a reaction; he chuckled wryly as the angel's expression spread warmth through him. Knowing Remi was willing but keeping himself in check made Samuel feel better about his own restraint. They were both playing the part tonight. He withdrew his hand from the angel's thigh and it hovered over the keyboard as Remi pulled the text closer to him.

Remi's voice speaking in Enochian was transfixing and his ensuing reading in English wasn't much less lyrical. Sam froze, watching him with his mouth agape as he read the glyphs on the cover. He didn't start typing quickly enough. As Remi opened the book to begin, he realised he was mildly hypnotised by the angel and had to force Remi to backtrack and help him figure out the spelling of 'Pravuil'. He laughed when Remi accused him of picking the most complicated text. "No, but it is the shortest," he warned, chuckling at the angel's expression.

Once Remi began reading in earnest, it took Sam a little while to find his groove but he got there eventually. At first, he wasn't sure whether they should stick with the ancient syntax being offered or interpret it but he quickly decided a direct translation was best, the first time around. He could rewrite an interpretation of it on his own time, after the whole thing was complete. As they progressed, Sam was disappointed to realise that the text wasn't going to be particularly relevant. As a historical snapshot, certainly, but not as a text to bring enlightenment to anyone modern.

It was basically a tour guide for angels.

Pravuil had basically had a gap year and backpacked his way around the Earth, visiting all the modern sights. Well, as 'modern' as one could see around the year eight hundred AD, anyway. What slightly confused both he and Remi was that Pravuil had made a similar trek around the globe about a millennia before, because he often exclaimed about the differences between then and what he was seeing on his current journey, referencing things he'd written in an earlier text. Obviously, Sam didn't have volume one so they were stuck coming into the series without all the contextualisation Pravuil had provided in book one. They did their best.

It took them two and a half hours to complete what might have been considered the first chapter. It was more like the opening section, discussing where Pravuil had landed (which happened to be Greece, they soon figured out). He'd certainly had a lot to say about how run down the buildings had become in the thousand years he'd been absent. Sam found his passive aggressive criticisms of modern peoples' disregard for the classic structures' disintegration quite amusing and he'd laughed over his keyboard more than once.

When Remi told him they'd reached the end of the Greek section, Sam glanced over at him at last. "You look like you need a break," he smiled gently. "We have a refreshments station out in the library," he informed, gesturing beyond his glass door. "There's hot and cold filtered water available, as well as instant coffee or tea. And herrrrrre," he drawled, rolling back from his desk towards the cupboard/bookshelf behind him. He opened one of the cupboard doors to reveal a small bar fridge, inside which he had a few bags of blood and a large fruit platter covered in cling wrap. He'd brought it with him from The Luminary. "Is a snack for you."

He pulled the platter out of the fridge. but didn't roll back to the desk, holding the fruit protectively to his chest as he looked from Remi to the book in his hand. "But you can't eat or drink anywhere near the text," he insisted, his fussy book-lover side rearing its ugly head. Thinking about the text becoming compromised in any way made him feel sick and as much as he liked Remi, he trusted no-one near his precious, unique texts.

[Maxpphire]

His class had finished for the evening and he made his to the library for the night. He didn't plan on staying too long as the stress of the previous night seemed to be a breaking point for his body stress wise and he wanted some rest. Either the medication that Hofflan started him on wasn't working well enough for him or something else was at play. He made a mental note to bring it up with his new doctor to see what could be done about it all given the pain and nausea wasn't exactly fun to deal with. It did however make him forget how warm he felt due to the fever it brought.

If he had not known it was an issue with his immune system then he would have stayed home, but since he knew it wasn't contagious he had come in anyway. He had felt bad that he missed nearly a weeks worth of work back two weeks ago. Sure it wasn't his fault really, but he was still bothered enough by it that he refused to take time off right now. The only reason why he was coming to the library now was because he didn't want to miss his chance at meeting Remi, he honestly wanted to get that dealt with sooner rather than later. It would relive that worry, and he hoped that it wouldn't bring any new ones given what Sam had told him last night.

He was wearing his normal wear of a button down shirt with the top button undone, a black vest that was buttoned up, and black slacks. His hair was braided in one braid either side of his head and where they met, the hair was bright together and pulled upwards. Mostly to keep it away from his neck as he felt warm enough. He figured it would be a quick visit of him being Remi, asking Remi if he'd want to even help him, then possibly exchange numbers, then leave to go rest. He had made his way to Sam's office door and hesitated a moment before he finally knocked. He had no idea the door was glass and even when knocking on it, it was thick enough to sound different compared to knocking on a home or car window.

[Ehcorn]

When the fruit platter first made an appearance, Remi straightened from his slumped position and smiled brightly. He hadn't considered bringing anything aside from himself to work, but Sam had. He'd known he'd be peckish this far into the night and made sure to have something ready for him. Wonderful, thoughtful Sam, who... Refused to hand the snack over until he'd carefully closed the book and no, he couldn't put it there, he needed to put it over there, on the far side of the desk. Remi pulled a face but stood and held the book suspended on the other side of Sam's keyboard, glancing back at the vampire to confirm he had the right spot before he set it down.

And here he'd thought it was just his mentor who was particular about his tomes and scrolls and ancient codexes. To be fair to the vampire, though, Sam at least trusted him to eat in the same room he kept his texts. Vretil wouldn't have. He would've made him eat outside, and then he would've been forced to wash thoroughly before he came back to read anything.

Sam's fussiness seemed downright reasonable in comparison.

"Thank you, I'm starving," he said, moving over to Sam to accept the proffered platter. It took everything in him not to devour everything where he stood, but he managed to wait until he sank back into his chair and placed the platter in his lap before he removed the plastic wrap. Which fruit would he introduce to his stomach first? He'd just lifted a cluster of deep purple grapes when a knock at Sam's door made him look up.

He recognized the part angel, part human man from the carnival without having to look at his aura, but that didn't mean he rushed to answer the knock. It wasn't his office, after all.

Remi looked expectantly at Sam and popped a grape into his mouth.

[Existentially Odd]

Samuel was startled by the knock. He looked up to see Dreki at his door and a very annoyed Garan standing a short distance away, glaring over his shoulder at the trespassing angel - who'd apparently felt it was his right to stroll around the circulation desk into the restricted area behind to knock on the Head Librarian's door.

As Sam looked towards the shifter, Garan must have felt Sam looking at him because he made eye contact and threw his arms up in the air, gesturing at Dreki in a 'Who the heck does this guy think he is??' kind of way. Sam closed his eyes and nodded in a manner he hoped told his coworker his distress was acknowledged but that it was alright Dreki had barged through. Garan huffed and turned back to talking to the person on the other side of the desk that must have been the reason he'd been too distracted to stop Dreki's march on the internal office in the first place.

His door did kind of line up with a break in the desk - and the partition that dropped down to close it off was currently folded back onto the counter - so he supposed Dreki's blindness may have tricked him into thinking he could access the restricted area freely. Or something. With a grim expression on his face, Sam got up, tucked his chair back in beside Remi and circled around the angel and his desk. He rested a familiar hand on Remi's shoulder as he passed, then paused on the other side to rescue one of the two chairs in front of it from its cargo of a stack of books (by piling it onto the already-burdened chair beside it) so Dreki would have somewhere to sit. He headed for the door wearing a polite smile.

"Evening, Dreki. Please, come in," Sam greeted, deciding he'd wait for a more tactful time to tell the blond that he'd broken Library protocol and antagonised one of his staff. "There's a chair there, in front of my desk, please sit. Remi, you remember Dreki from the other night?" Sam prompted as Dreki passed him and Sam shut the door behind him. The library wasn't exactly a noisy place but there was enough going on out that there that Sam still appreciated the sound dampening effect of the door being closed. He certainly didn't want anyone hearing their conversation, either.

"You've got impeccable timing, Dreki. We were just taking a break," Sam marvelled as he headed back to his seat beside Remi. He watched Dreki as he went, to be sure that he had no trouble finding his way to the four-legged chair set up exactly opposite Remi at his huge wooden desk. He didn't look right and the amount of heat coming off him was above that of a normal mortal temperature, which had Sam frowning. Was he sick? It had always baffled him that Dreki could have his DNA spliced with that of an angel and not manage to garner their healing properties.

[Maxpphire]

"Thank you," he spoke to Sam after being told to come in and sit down, he was going to ask if this was an ok time to come by but hadn't had the chance to with how fast Sam managed to just instantly come in and take a seat. He was able to find the chair without issue, being able to see its outline fairly clearly and sat down in it. His outward expression seemed to be somewhere in the more neutral to happy range, with a professional edge to it, however if Remi could read emotions in ones aura, Dreki's was very much lined with a heavy layer of depression. He hid it well on the outside. He had given Remi a small wave, when Sam had introduced him.

"Oh good, I was going to ask at the door if this time was a good time to stop by but you ushered me in before I could even ask," he spoke with a smile, "So how goes the translating work?" He asked, starting off with some small talk, not sure if Sam even talked to Remi about him, but didn't want to just jump right into it. The frown he noticed on Sam's face worried him a bit, he wondered if it wasn't actually a good time, or he should have just straight up asked, or even hurry to get out and leave them alone. He felt a bit awkward, given what Sam talked to him about last night, the fact that Remi was of course on the same side of the desk as Sam. He wasn't sure how to proceed from here.

[Ehcorn]

Remi continued piling grapes into his mouth and chewing mechanically as Sam invited his guest in and set him up in a chair that made him the tip of their triangle. Sam's introduction and Dreki's greeting came at a moment he was unable to speak, so he lifted his chin upwards in acknowledgment. Of course he remembered the man. He was, and still remained, baffled by his existence. Remi opened his inner eye briefly and frowned. The swirling white and golds that belonged to an angel and the duller tones of a human shouldn’t have mingled together in his aura, but they did. He wished he’d been able to talk to his mentor about the creature before he’d encountered him again. Vretil would’ve known what to make of him.

When he finally finished the last of his grapes, Remi discarded the bit of vine that’d joined the cluster together and wiped his forefinger and thumb on the side of his jeans. His eyes narrowed as he further inspected Dreki. At the carnival, they’d only spoken briefly, and it’d been dark enough that he hadn’t realized something was wrong with his eyes. Their cloudiness made him think Dreki was blind, though he’d navigated well enough to the chair Sam had pulled out for him, and he’d looked directly at each of them as they’d spoken or been spoken of.

Odd.

He prepared to insist that Dreki explain himself the same way he’d demanded to know why his aura was muddled and wrong, but his question about their progress translating Sam’s texts made him stop short. Although his relationship with time was complicated, he'd agreed to work with Sam recently enough that he was surprised Dreki already knew about it.

"The scribe was fond of flowery, overcomplicated prose, but it’s not terrible. It’s only given me a small headache," he said, shaking off his confusion in exchange for an amicable smile. "I’m not sure it’s everything Sam hoped it’d be, though." He bumped his leg into Sam's and chuckled, then grabbed another piece of fruit, this one a section of watermelon that hadn’t fared as well as the grapes; it was mushy, but still tasted marvelous.

[Existentially Odd]

Samuel laughed along with Remi, grinning wryly at him as he nudged his leg in return. His knee remained resting against Remi's below the desk as he commented. "You could say that again!"

He turned to look at Dreki, the wattage of his smile sobering slightly. "If I came from the Heavenly Plane and needed to know my way around old town Greece, I'd definitely want this text in my pocket," he joked, rolling his eyes. He glanced at Remi, momentarily watching his mouth as he chewed.

"Remi, Dreki has some questions for you," he prompted, trying to encourage the two angels into discourse.

[Maxpphire]

He let out a small chuckle with his exhale in regards to what their first translation project seemed to be about. It didn't seem to be terribly interesting given both of their reactions. Seemed like quite the boring book, but figured that not all the books they had would be exciting. Then Sam brought up the reason as to why he was there.

"Ah yes," Dreki started, taking a moment to think where to begin as it seem that Sam gave Remi no warning of this, "I guess the best way to sum this up, is I'd like to be your student." He said able to condense most things down to a single sentence. "I'm only part angel, I have a very mortal background given how I started life that way. I want to better learn how to use what abilities I do have and maybe more about angel culture and even the language if you're willing to go that far." He wanted to explain his goal for it, so maybe Remi could understand better what he'd be expecting at the very least, and what more he'd like to learn beyond that. He was a huge learner, already knew several languages, and knew he'd be up to task to learn whatever Remi was willing to teach, if that was anything at all.

"Would you be willing to teach me?" he asked, "I can offer money, a place to stay, teaching you more about mortal life, or if there is another price you have, please name it." He knew that such a thing wouldn't come free, he couldn't expect it to. Nox had since disappeared thus freeing up his spare room again, he worked a full time teaching job on top of the class he teaches at the Academy and could very well pay Remi a living wage for this. Also having grown up as human, he could teach quite a bit himself, although he knew his knowledge did have weird gaps. He was very booksmart but was still getting his footing when it came to dealing with people one on one, as well as some other odd life nuances, he still had yet to grasp. He still could offer Remi what he knew in that regards at the very least.

[Ehcorn]

Remi finished his watermelon but didn’t retrieve another piece of fruit from the platter. He peered skeptically at Dreki. "How does that work, anyway? How are you part angel?"

It was about time he figured out what he was dealing with. 

[Maxpphire]

He shifted mildly uncomfortable in his seat as he thought how to respond to this. It was a very involved topic, some of which was even hard for him to still process. The smile had faded away, and his jovial appear mood shifted to be something more serious.

"Thats, well," he seemed to struggle to find the right way to start, he didn't want Sam to be let in to most of what happened either, last time he did, it ended with him having lost Sam. Being a friend was better than nothing and didn't want to chase either of them away.

"The short of it, I lost my parents when I was 16 years old. In foster care there was a little girl with mental disabilities I ended up meeting that the foster parents tasked me with helping take care of her, on top of other chores. Her and I ended up growing close, and when she felt like she could trust me enough, she hid me in her room. I had learned there that the foster dad was abusing her in a very," he looked away from them, "I don't really feel comfortable saying exactly what, it was despicable. Anyway when I found that out I basically went on the attack and had become the ire of his abuse for that night instead." He looked back towards him as he continued speaking, "after he went to bed, I took Emma and I ran. I really had no plans or any idea where I was going, but stopped at a gas station where the attendant noticed out injuries, and called the police. We ended up getting removed from the home, pending finding another place to foster us since Emma didn't want to leave my side anymore they wanted to find someone who would be able to take both of us. The story of what happened made the news, I was interviewed by a few news stations." He felt it was important explaining this before introducing Hofflan.

"The story caught the attention of a nearly 800 year old vampire, who decided that at least I would be an easy addition for an organization in which he worked. It was a heavily anti-supernatural organization that liked fighting fire with fire. They would take humans and alter their DNA with supernatural DNA in order to use them for their own purposes. I was allowed to choose what I wanted to be augmented with, but not many where that lucky. Back then I didn't think it meant I was actually getting augmented with actual supernatural DNA, I just thought it was science lab grown DNA that made changes similar to what the myths and legends say about those creatures. As a 16 year old I didn't know any better, and he manipulated me into it all using Emma, my education, and the fact that I didn't want to be blind anymore. He only focused on my eyes the initial time, but I had been augmented more than once over the years." It was clearly not an easy thing for him to talk about at all. His body language, seemed closed off, he seemed uncomfortable talking about it all.

"That organization no longer exists. Charon and his group ended up finding me by chance, decided that such a place should no longer exist, and with my help, it no longer does." He wasn't aware that Remi probably didn't know of the District Leaders or anything. He ended up leaving it at that, figuring if Remi had questions that he would be asked them.

[Ehcorn]

The ‘short of it’ ended up being long enough that Remi resumed eating while he listened. By the time Dreki got around to discussing the augmentations he’d undergone, the platter was empty and Remi wondered if the sick feeling in his stomach was due to eating too much or the confirmation that Dreki hadn’t become part angel by natural means.

It explained so much; why his aura felt wrong, like pieces of a puzzle that’d been forced together; how Dreki could look blind but see well enough to maneuver around Sam’s office; and why he’d be desperate to learn about a culture and language that he would’ve known already if he’d been born to it. They’d somehow taken parts of an angel and shoved them together with parts of a human, and the results of their experiment sat across from him.

What Dreki hadn’t explained, however, was how the organization had come by light angel essence to begin with.

"Where exactly did they get angel… DNA from?" Remi pushed the platter onto Sam’s desk so he could gesture at Dreki’s face without worrying about it toppling to the floor. "Why would they have given away pieces of themselves when they could’ve just healed your eyes?"

[Maxpphire]

"I can't say it was consensual on how they got it," He said feeling uncomfortable with that line of questioning, his tone becoming quite. He figured he hasn't gotten to those parts of the Data stores yet that he's been trying to get through it all as quickly as he could. But even so, a specific memory stood out in his mind, "I remember, during the downfall of the Facility, that me and Jeanne, someone who helped me a lot, that we were in the area where they kept other beings. We helped those there to escape. I remember seeing another Angel but it was very brief, certainly not long enough to ask questions. They left pretty quickly after their release. I've been going through data that was gathered at the Facility, I likely just haven't reached those sections yet."

He didn't look at either of them while he explained that, his stomach pulsed with pain as he had spoken about the incident. He didn't like to talk about that very much, as hard as it was losing Emma and killing Hofflan, it was also pretty hard to see everyone having been trapped, in ways worse than he was. His was only mentally and emotionally, not physically. He couldn't have imagined being physically trapped like that for who knows how long.

[Existentially Odd]

Sam was stunned by what he heard from Dreki, his mouth hanging open as he stared at him, processing. It made sense but... it was horrifying.

"Hang on," he said warily, holding a hand across his desk towards Dreki as if the man was still throwing information their way and it was too much. "You're saying that those evil bastards had an angel imprisoned at the facility? An angel and other creatures?" Sam rocked back into his seat, putting facts together and speaking before Dreki even had a chance.

"And you don't know details but, what? You're thinking that the angel they held was the one they used to enhance you?" he guessed. "That's awful! At least you released them," he sighed, fighting the urge to reach across the desk and squeeze Dreki's hand.

Sam turned to look at Remi. Knowing how Dreki had come about didn't change anything, really, but he was curious to see what Remi made of the story.

[Ehcorn]

When Sam had first found out that he’d earned a fine from the Ward for flying in the city, he’d issued a warning: he might not be fined next time — he could be tossed into a cell until they’d ascertained he’d learned his lesson. The angel at the facility hadn’t been offered the same terms. They’d only been able to escape because they’d been given the chance by Dreki and his companions. If they hadn’t shown up, the angel would’ve likely still been there.

The thought of one of his kind trapped indefinitely and at the mercy of the same people who’d abused and used helpless children was a knife twisting in his chest. They couldn’t have flown away, or defended themselves, or— Cracking plastic and sharp pain in his hands startled him back to the present, where he’d clenched the armrests of his chair tightly enough that he’d broken them. He flipped his palms over, expecting to see blood, but it was only two bright red welts that he focused his healing ability on until they faded.

"Yeah," Remi said finally, his voice low and rough. "Thank you for helping free them. I hope they’re home now."

He pushed free of the chair and stood, pressing his fingers into the space between his brows as he paced away as far as he could and turned back. The chair’s arms had fallen sadly askew. "I’m sorry, Sam. I— I’m just… It’s a lot. I’ll get you a new one." And he wouldn’t sit in it when he was given news that overwhelmed him. Remi sighed and dropped his hand. "I’m sorry to you, too," he said to Dreki, "but not because of the chair… because I need to talk to Vretil, my mentor, about… Well, about everything. About what you said happened to the angel, and what’s been done to you. I want to teach you what I can. It’s the least you deserve after everything, but I need to talk to him first, okay?”

[Maxpphire]

He had jumped of the noise of the chair breaking, he certainly hadn't expected it. He had felt guilty about this all, even though he knew it wasn't his fault. Anxiety in him rose as Remi said he had to speak to someone else about this. He didn't want this information getting around, nor this Vretil person to investigate further on how things were done at the facility.

"When I said the past couple of weeks I've been dealing with a lot, this is what I've meant, not just deaths of those close to me. I have no idea if that Angel was the one who's DNA I was augmented with, but it was the only Angel I ran into at that place, and while I would have loved it if they stayed and talked with me, I don't blame them for taking off as soon as they realized they could. There were several different demons, nymphs, faes, and other such creatures, but only one Angel." he said looking at Sam, silent tears fell from his eyes as he was slowly unable to hold back the stress of everything anymore, he then looked to Remi

"I understand. The only condition I have is that I will not talk about how their procedures work, nor how to augment anyone else. I've been systematically destroying that info as I come across it. Like any of the hard drives where such information is left on them, I've been opening them up, removing the disks, using bolt cutters to snap the disks in several places, then sticking the pieces to incredibly strong magnets. It's probably overkill, but I'd rather it be overkill than risk any possible chance of anyone else finding this out."

He was incredibly serious in regards to how he felt about that. He wasn't going to let anyone else suffer like he did, not if he could prevent it. He even had plans on going to Jeanne and talking with her about possibly removing those memories or locking them away if full removal wasn't possible, even though he hated the idea of that given what Hofflan put him through, he needed to make sure no one else could get that information. Going to Charon directly made him too nervous, and figured since he felt comfortable around and trusted Jeanne, that they could discuss what would be best for that when the time came.

[Existentially Odd]

Samuel murmured, "Nah, don't worry about it," to Remi and waved his offer of buying a new chair away, glancing up as the angel stood, looking agitated. Sam caught the chair that rolled towards him, inspecting it and seeing that it would be easiest to detach the arms and throw them out. The chair would still work and serve its intended purpose without them. He peered at the collection of stationery in the cups on the top of the cupboard behind his desk to see if he had a screwdriver handy as Remi said he'd need Vretil's approval to teach Dreki.

The vampire had an opinion on the Enochian but he didn't air it as Dreki began speaking, drawing Sam's attention. What he saw confirmed the tightness he'd heard in Dreki's voice, the tears giving him pause. They made him feel uncomfortable but he also felt bad for the young blond and thought about hugging him. That would be inappropriate now, though. "That's a good idea," he commended Dreki's devotion to the destruction of the facility's augmentation information. "No-one should ever get their hands on that. Torture like that shouldn't be repeated."

Sam realised that he'd referenced the mistreatment of supernatural creatures again, which had just upset Remi to the point where he'd wrenched arms off a chair. His expression turned guilty as he looked over at the bearded angel, rising to his feet and walking towards him because he still didn't look like he'd recovered from the news. Belatedly, Sam thought it might have something to do with the notion of his brethren being locked up, because his eyes held a hint of the wildness they'd had in the elevator the night before.

In two strides, he was beside Remi, wrapping his hands around Remi's to give him physical contact to concentrate on. Between him breaking chair arms and Dreki crying, it was becoming a very eventful evening in his office. "Perhaps you should step out and get some fresh air?" he suggested quietly to Remi, squeezing his hand in an effort to focus him. Sam fancied the angel was beginning to look a little peaked around the mouth.

[Ehcorn]

Sam’s much cooler hands became Remi’s grounding point. He sighed and focused on the fact that the other angel was probably safe now. No matter what they had endured, the facility didn’t have them anymore. Hopefully when Dreki had witnessed them disappear, it’d been because they’d pushed their way from the earthly plane to the heavenly one — a place they could heal in mind and body and soul. Until he could confirm their well-being with Vretil, that hope for the angel would have to suffice.

Remi squeezed Sam's hands in return. "If I do that," he said, shaking his head slightly, "then I won’t come back tonight, and we only finished translating the first chapter." The urge to fly until he outdistanced his remaining worry was strong, but something he could resist if he couldn’t breathe the night air deep into his lungs. "I’ll be fine now. Thank you."

Remi smiled, then slipped his hands free so he could dig into his pocket and extract his phone.

"If I could get your number," he said, approaching Dreki at the desk. He opened his phone to the area Sam had when he’d given him his information the night before and set it in front of the blond. "I'll be sure to call as soon as I touch base with Vretil. We can talk more then about what all you want to learn from me."

Dreki’s eyes were cloudy, but the part-angel had said his first augmentation had been to repair his vision. Remi thought he’d be able to see the screen just like him.

[Maxpphire]

He had at one point shifted his position to try and calm down. Leaning forward, his elbows resting on legs right above his knees and his palms pressed into his eyes. He hadn't meant to start crying, and he had kept that position well after the tears had stopped until Remi had started to talk to him, and then he looked up and listened.

"My sight is still very limited. I won't be able to navigate your phone unless you have accessibility settings turned on. I can tell you my number, or I can hand you my phone and you can enter your number there." He explained having seen the phone placed in front of him. He was calmer, but looked almost guilty. He felt bad for possibly having brought down the mood of the room.

"After we trade numbers I plan to head out. Not only have I taken up more time than I had meant to, but I haven't felt well all day and this conversation didn't really help with that. Wasn't expecting it to become this heavy, I'm sorry." He explained as his fears of even not being Sam's friend sunk in. He was convinced he messed up, that Sam wouldn't really want to even be involved as a friend at this point, remembering what caused Sam to run last time. His heart beat raced as his anxiety ticked upwards, looking down at his lap as a way to escape whatever looks sat upon their faces.

[Ehcorn]

“Oh,” Remi said, realizing his error too late. Given that he had no idea what accessibility settings were or how to get to them, the angel reached for his phone and spun it around, mentally preparing himself to poke numbers after he’d asked for them. He never reached that point, though. His lips parted and he sucked in a short breath to power his voice, but Dreki had continued talking and all thoughts of phones and numbers flitted off like a startled butterfly.

He’d said he didn’t feel well, and now that Remi was up close and paying attention, he could see redness in his cheeks and a sheen that told of a temperature that was higher than it should’ve been. His lips thinned and he dropped his phone back to the desk to free his hands.

“You aren’t well,” he said, concern in his voice and the lines of his face. “I could help.” He’d already moved around Sam’s desk to stand next to Dreki with his hands outstretched, fully prepared to make contact with the hybrid before he paused and looked questioningly at him. “If that’s alright with you?”

The exact moment he received permission, he closed the gap between them and rested his fingertips lightly on either side of Drek’s face, with his forefingers at his temples, his pinky fingers at the tops of his cheeks, and his thumbs just beneath his eyes. Remi lowered his head as a glow emanated from his hands and he opened his inner eye to begin a search for what could be ailing him.

He wasn’t prepared for what he found.

Normally, fever was a sign that a foreign body of some kind was present — viruses or bacteria, but Dreki’s body was at war with itself, attacking and rejecting what wasn’t human. Remi expanded his influence, and the golden glow encompassed Dreki completely like a halo. He joined battling segments where he found them, smoothing their jagged edges and encouraging them to work in harmony.

Eventually, the fight ended.

Remi smiled but wasn’t ready to stop yet. He homed in on Dreki’s eyes, intending to mend them, too, but there were pieces missing. No connections could be made. He was a healer, not a creator. The glow faded and Remi stepped back from Dreki.

“You should feel better now,” he said, returning to the same side of the desk Sam had remained on. “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to do anything about your eyes, though. I tried.”

[Maxpphire]

He had an idea of what Remi meant by help, after all he could heal others too but that was at the cost of his own health, he doubt Remi had that same restriction but he was curious on whether or not an immune system issue could be corrected by an angel. He knew what was wrong, as he was diagnosed with it right before the downfall of the facility anyway. He agreed for Remi to help him because he figured that at worst nothing would change.

He sat still while Remi did what he could. While he couldn't see the glow, he could feel it's warmth. It was comforting and relaxing, so much so that his worry and stressed faded a bit. Closed his eyes and just focused on that relaxed feeling, while Remi worked. Things that Remi may have learned through that, is that Dreki was about 2/3rds angel, and while it was his stomach and intestines most affected by what was going on, there where hints of other places within him that were likely to start being greatly affected next and would have produced symptoms if Remi hadn't stepped in and corrected it all. By the end of it, he didn't even feel like he was sick. He had opened his eyes when Remi was done and listened to the part about his eyes and he smiled.

"Don't worry so much about that, I'm able to get around fine as it is," He had a light smile on his face, while still slightly worried of how heavy a tone their conversation got, he was in better spirits now that he also was physically feeling better, "Thank you, I was curious on whether or not you could have fixed an immune system issue, seems as if I got my answer on that. I know I'm not that powerful, at least, I don't think I am." He wouldn't be without major repercussions to his own health, which was something he never did quite try was to push his powers to such limits.

"Ready for my number before I leave?" He asked, he hadn't quite felt this good in a long time, which lead him to think that maybe the cost of his powers were just amplified when he was augmented that last time. He was kind of in a hurry to leave, as he was still concerned about Sam's reaction to the heaviness of the conversation that happened earlier and didn't really want to feel those consequences. It was almost as if he was running away before Sam really could, except this was really only for the night as any he just didn't want to deal with any in person reaction right now.

[Existentially Odd]

When Remi had stepped over to speak with Dreki and offer him his phone, Samuel had slunk out of the way and back into his seat at his desk. He'd found a screwdriver he thought would fix the chair arms but he was too preoccupied to worry about those when Remi offered to heal Dreki. He watched in amazement as the angel of light took the hybrid angel's head in his hands and an ethereal glow emanated from them. It was otherworldly and fascinating.

Sam only snapped out of it when Dreki talked about Remi getting his phone number so he could leave. There was colour in his cheeks that didn't come from his body fighting off whatever had been ailing it when he walked in. His temperature felt normal (from across the broad desk) and his heart beat... well, his heart beat always fluctuated a little because Dreki was a flighty creature, in Sam's experience (in his presence, technically but Sam didn't flatter himself by thinking it had anything to do with him), so his body was usually operating under some sort of stress or other. Now, his heart seemed steadier than Sam had ever heard it, which had to be a good sign.

"Look, don't worry about sharing numbers or any of that," Sam interrupted authoritatively, picking up his own phone from his desk. He navigated to his contacts and shared them with each other. "Dreki, I just sent you Remi's number and Remi, I sent you Dreki's," he smiled, though he knew Remi would struggle with adding the contact to his address book without help so he rose into a half-stand in order to reach across and pluck Remi's phone off the desk to do it for him. He spoke as he confidently waded into Remi's phone, treating it like his own (because he'd set it up to give both he and Remi access to it) as he added Dreki Arach as a contact.

"Remi will be able to contact you whenever he knows something and Dreki, I put him in your phone so you'd be able to identify who's calling you, just... be warned Remi's still learning how to use phones," Sam chuckled, smiling at Remi as he got up and walked up behind him. He slid Remi's phone into the pocket it had come from in a familiar manner, his chest pressed against Remi's arm as Sam turned his attention to Dreki.

"That heal looked... just, wow. You already look better, Dreki. Immune system issues, you said? Wow. Looks like they're fixed. I hope this can help boost your healing on every level," he said softly, his tone conveying the genuine intimacy of his wish because he didn't want to be obvious by leaning forward to give Dreki's hand a reassuring squeeze. The poor hybrid angel had a lot to recover from but hopefully Remi's intervention could be a catalyst for such changes to occur with greater rapidity now. Sam wished for him to be less troubled.

[Ehcorn]

Remi looked sidelong at Sam with a grin. "He’s understating things. I’d never held a phone until he got me one last night." He moved his hand to touch the pocket Sam had dropped the device into, then reached farther back to briefly curl his fingers around the vampire’s in a silent show of gratitude. If Sam hadn’t intervened, there was no doubt in his mind they would’ve still been in the process of exchanging numbers. "But I promise I’ll be able to make the call when the time comes. It’s one of the first things he taught me how to do."

His expression became more solemn as he tilted his head and examined Dreki, paying close attention to his aura; it was different now, too. Angelic threads of silver and gold on a background of white had once been interrupted by more neutral, human tones — something like a roughly hewn patchwork quilt. Now, the colors were blended, cohesive, and the sense of wrongness he’d felt before when he’d observed Dreki’s aura was gone as well.

"Anyway, I’m glad I could help," he said. "If anything changes, let me know and I’ll take another look."

[Maxpphire]

"Thank you," He said to Sam in regards to the whole phone thing and having been healed, "It's one less thing to be stressed about thats for sure. I'm glad the effects of what Remi has done have been noticeable this quickly. I hope that it does indeed work out like that." The genuinity in Sam's tone was a welcomed change from compared to before, it made me feel less worried about the future of his and Sam's friendship for sure.

"I'm sure whatever skills you do have, it's better than what my dad could do. He was also blind and honestly trying to teach him how to even dial numbers was like pulling teeth, sure back then it was with flip phones, but the number 5 had a little guide bump on it to help, but he," he became distracted when Remi had reached out to hold Sam's hand. It was a little much for him to have seen their affection towards each other just yet. When it had been hidden behind the deck, he just couldn't see it and thus wasn't aware it had happened. "He just didn't like anything that he had to work at to do. He didn't like learning, and didn't like the fact that I enjoyed it. Anyway, I should get going now. Again, thanks, to the both of you, and Remi, I'll be waiting to hear back from you."

He had turned around and began to walk towards the door, and would leave provided that no one attempted to stop him. At the end of him talking his tone turned a bit stiff, but he was genuinely thankful towards them both.

[Existentially Odd]

Samuel's attention was briefly captured by Remi's fingers working their way around his; he glanced downward and clasped them back, smiling at him before returning his attention to Dreki. It took him a moment to realise that Dreki was talking about his father using a phone because his mind was still on healing but once he was on track, his expression opened up and he smiled at Dreki.

"You're welcome, Dreki. Thanks for coming," he bade, watching the blond as he exited his office, completely oblivious to Garan's side-eye as he walked past the circulation desk. Sam used their joined hands to pivot to face Remi, lifting the one not connected to the angel to cup the side of his bearded face. "You've had a bit of a stressful night, too! I meant what I said about you taking a break, if you want?" he offered, raising his eyebrows. "In fact, we don't even have to do any more tonight if you don't want to?"

[Ehcorn]

Initially, the appearance of Sam’s hand on his face triggered a flurry of blinks, but over the course of several heartbeats, Remi melted into the touch. Another heartbeat and he’d shifted slightly to press a kiss to the heel of the vampire’s palm, performing an act that he’d wanted to since the night of the carnival. He’d recognized then how absurd it was that he’d wanted to put his lips anywhere near a man — a vampire — he’d just met. Two nights later, it shouldn’t have seemed any less absurd, but enough time had passed that he'd discovered being close to Sam felt a lot like flying — enough so that he wanted to ignore the ants crawling between his shoulder blades so he could remain there with him.

The ants had other ideas, though.

Remi clenched his jaw and rolled his shoulders as the sensation of crawling increased, putting an end to all thoughts of staying at the academy any longer than he had to. Once the need to fly struck him, he knew he wouldn’t be able to shake his discomfort until he summoned his wings and actually took to the sky.

"I wanted to stay," he said, "but yeah, I could use a break." He reached up to gather Sam’s hand in his, pulling it away from his face and down to the same level as their other joined hands. He cocked his head, a smile tugging at one corner of his mouth. "Hang on. You said ‘we don’t have to do more’. Does that mean you’re free to come with me?"

[Existentially Odd]

Sam chuckled, tilting his head towards the worker outside the walls of his office.

"See that fellow out there? That's Garan. He's paid to work at the library like I am. I asked him to come in tonight because I wasn't sure how things would go with you. I was ready - at the very least - to have to relocate into the courtyard with my laptop because you couldn't cope with being inside. If it'd just been me here, I wouldn't have been able to concentrate on the translating as well as help people in the library, so I brought in backup."

He smiled, feeling like he was expanding unnecessarily. "My point is: I'm free to come with you, if you want my company," he nodded, raising his eyebrows. He wasn't sure whether Remi had plans to just walk outside for air, go flying or finish up for the night and return to his garden. There was still a lot of night left ahead of them... and now it seemed filled with possibilities, too.

[Ehcorn]

Remi shook his head, his admiration of Sam’s foresight making his eyes bright. Pride demanded that he deny the possibility that he might’ve panicked in Sam’s office and would’ve needed to escape outside, but they’d both been witness to what’d happened to him in that elevator. Until he grew used to spaces with walls and roofs and no clear access to the sky, it was prudent to anticipate that he’d struggle and plan accordingly.

Just like it'd be prudent to accept Sam's offer before he figured out something else to do with his time.

Remi grinned as he tugged Sam towards the door. "Yes, I do. Come fly with me."

((Continued in Forbidden Fruit))