ʜᴇʟʟʙʟᴀᴢᴇʀ (incendium) wrote in valloic, @ 2020-11-24 20:47:00 |
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Entry tags: | !: action/thread/log, ₴ inactive: zatanna zatara |
Not a sense of negative energy--yet, John all but inhaled his waning pack of silk cuts as he could see ShadowCrest in the distance but bought himself enough time to take in the tobacco and keep him straight.
Well, nothing was impossible now was it? If he could walk through the door to Zee and his boy John would have no other choice than to keep playing along. They were all that really mattered to him at this point in any case. Odd, how quickly one’s intent and actions could be shaken into a narrow path with just a small magical baby. Leo was already so powerful and had yet to show any of his magic...which was just fine with John.
So there was a demigod living here too, roommates--best not to just walk in. Flicking his cigarette out into the abyss and blowing the lingering smoke from his nose, John rapped the door with the back of his knuckles. “Tree hugging society. Have you a moment to talk about our lord and savior, Yggadrasil?”
A very cheap dad joke but it was helping John with how long it was taking to get a visual confirmation on his wife and son. No, he wasn’t gripping his coat with white knuckles just to keep his nerves.
Dad joke or not, it was only mildly funny but still heartwarming confirmation that this was her John - and while Zee didn’t really expect him to show up here, she had to admit that if the universe was going to toss any version of her scouser onto Vallo, she was pleased it was the one whom she’d married and had a child with.
Shadowcrest was a mansion, all darkness and wrought-irons gates, but it was bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside, Odd, right? But true to her word, she’d disabled the wards that protected the place from intruders - otherwise anyone who attempted to reach the front door may suddenly find themselves ejected to a random place miles away, or having spent the past hour swimming as a mollusk in the sea. There was a lot to protect past these gates. Zee happened to be serious business about that particular aspect.
The front door creaked open, and blue velvet eyes shined with delight. “Hello, handsome,” she purred, tugging John a little closer by his tie and planting a kiss on him where the relief just seemed to seep out of her pores. She had missed him and hadn’t really gone for romantic interludes with anyone else - her feelings about him just wouldn’t let her, and she’d preferred to focus on Leo.
Leo, who toddled into the entranceway. “DADDY,” was his excited shout, a squeal of little kid delight.
John had only just gone to sleep beside her in their bed at the House of Mystery before he’d woken up here. To him, it was like sleeping through a few month’s time. Though it wasn’t his fault he felt bad for his wife and only kissed her more deeply, arm slinging around her waist to pull her against him. Reaching with his back foot to close the door behind him, ahem, so he could finally let his guard down. “Hello love, sorry I’m late.” He held her tightly, pressing a kiss to the top of her head to hold her there as his own relief for finding his exact family in a chance of any other realities melted up and out...but that was part of his magic, wasn’t it? Being in the right place at the right time. Only time he’d thank magic for anything.
Leo’s voice perked him significantly, as it always did, different than anyone else could. The warmth and fire lit in his eyes that Constantine rarely if ever had. If Zee had been the only light in his life, Leo was certainly there fanning the flames to make it brighter.
“Get a wiggle on, Ducky, I’ve been looking for you everywhere.” John teased the boy but let Zee go only enough to meet the toddler half way to scoop him up into his free arm. A right little family he had, and John felt out of place sometimes holding them like this, as if it was someone else’s life. Leo got two kisses only because...well. John needed them.
Leo was just a wiggling, squirming personification of squee - because he hadn’t seen his dad in foreverrrrr, but right now, it was like they’d never been separated at all. He was eager to catch up dad on everything, that was it. Kids were remarkably understanding and resilient in that way. “Daddy! In pre-school there was fishies - “ Though of course a toddler enunciating made his sentence sound like in pwe-skoo’ der wuz fishies which was amusing to Zee; Leo was a very vocal kid though, he always had been. His first word had been ‘bunny,’ and it just snowballed from there.
“Do you want to show daddy your art?” she asked, and Leo wiggle-waggled some more until he was set down, running off into the kitchen.
That gave Zee a moment to turn toward John, smiling fondly as she patted his chest. “Well, come on - have a seat in the living room? I know it’s sort of overwhelming, arriving here like this.”
“Fishes, eh? That better not be a pre-curser to what I think it is…” Considering two people in the family had a thing about animals and something along the lines of hoarding them. But as always John was never serious when speaking with Leo. He couldn’t be. Discipline was even a little hard for the ruggedy scouser but he’d gotten the hang of it.
Even if Leo tried to use his own little charms against him.
John placed his hand over Zee’s, thumb running over her skin. She was being very calm but she could put on the best of shows. “Not really, love. I’ve got the only thing I was worried over. I’m more concerned with you and the little duck. How you’ve been getting along…?” He kept her hand as he moved to follow her along into the living room for the art demonstration.
She needed to know he was still there, still the same man who was doing his best to be better for her and their son and nothing had changed except this bloody universe leap. John couldn’t think of a time they’d all been separated at all since Leo had been born. Their bond was quite strong and just the thought of not knowing where the two of them could have been for weeks was nauseating at best.
“We’ve been good. Missed you, of course - and it was...difficult. The other version of you being with someone else,” Zee admitted, settling on the sofa, legs tucked up beneath her. She wore yoga pants and a tank top, Shadowcrest kept at a good temperature for actually doing a bit of yoga herself - some nights she came home from performing at Fireflies and was so amped up, energy buzzing through her veins and the high from flourishing beneath the stage lights still something she needed to come down from with stretchy moves and a soothing cup of tea.
She curled up against John, comforted by the fact that he smelled like tobacco - the scent clung to his skin, his hair, his clothes. Clung like shadows, yet she’d grown used to it. “But I’ve made friends and of course there’s Leonardo and Ezio. Now everything’s better that you’re here.”
John with his little mini-me, who wandered back into the living room, climbing up onto the sofa holding paper splashed in bright blue paint with fish (schools of fish, actually) cut-outs glued onto it. “You painted it and then what did you do?” Zee asked.
“Add da fishies,” Leo said, proud of his work of art that clearly rivaled that of his namesake.
Relaxing against the sofa, arms outstretched over the back as he usually did, John let his head rest on top of Zee’s as she recounted her time. Difficult was probably putting things lightly when they’d been more than actually married now... only to see that person with someone else. They’d been through it before but not as a married couple, good and proper for over three years. His arm ran along her side, smoothing over the warmth beneath her comfy clothes, holding her against him once more, hand patting her hip ever so slightly.
“All’s fair for the others,” he whispered softly against her hair, turning his head to kiss her cheek. “You’re my Zatanna, and I’m yours.” Constantine wasn’t particularly possessive. But he wouldn’t let something get in the way of his “happier” ending for the world. “There’s no one else for me than you and the little duck.”
He was here now and he’d make sure to make up for the lost time as best he could. Both his wife and child were both exceptionally responsive to physical contact and he could be all the more accommodating to them than his dissipating hard exterior. “Yes, I saw your assembly of knights in armor waiting to deem me acceptable for passage.”
All the while Constantine was more concentrated on his son, running his spare fingers gently through the boy's hair, scritching at his head lovingly. “What? You made this yourself?” John feigned disbelief as Leo showed him the picture. “Impossible. That’s a masterwork painting. Only the best painters in the world could make fish like these.”
Leo giggled, flopping to rest on his dad’s leg - he’d fallen asleep like this many times, face pressed to the material and would end up with lines barely imprinted in his cheek, but he was a cuddly sort so uncomfortable sleeping positions didn’t seem to matter to him. Zee figured it was a kid thing - they could fall asleep upside down or randomly on the floor with their face smashed into the carpet, she didn’t understand. That ability to just nod off anywhere was lost in adulthood.
But he loved having his hair played with so Zatanna figured it was only a matter of time before he passed out; it was almost his bedtime anyway.
“You like preschool, right?” she asked, patting his back. Amazing how she could be filled with such love for one tiny person - if anyone hurt him, she’d burn down the world. “We can show dad where it is so he can take you on Monday.” And maybe mom would get to sleep in - she flashed one of those enigmatic smiles at her beloved.
“Yeah!” Leo wiggled some. “Daddy, read me a story - and I can read too.” Or pretend ‘wead,’ as he did - to his stuffed animals, mostly. But getting a story was part of his bedtime routine, and Zee was beyond relieved that John was here now, to be a part of all of those things - Zee tried to pick up the slack but they were a tight little family and she knew Leo missed his dad.
Yes yes. Dad was back and co parenting could commence. Not that he had anything else to do or anywhere else to be just then. Given the choice of his son or dealing with people...He’d take the babysitting.
John had an idea of where the flopping came from. He had an old habit of just falling asleep anywhere on anything—still could, and if he and Leo napped together it was just a flop pile.
His smirk deepened as Leo made himself comfortable for a story, thumb brushing across the small boys temple. Yes, this tiny person was quite powerful in that John would let everyone burn in the world for him and his mother. It was the same promise he’d made to Zee long before. He’d always pick her—Leo was now just part of that package.
“Are we going to read here, or get to your bed, Ducky?” He sensed from the warmth of his family laying against him they could all fall asleep right then and there. And they could. He’d find it particularly difficult to move as well. “Have we heard of the boggart story yet?”
If up to Leo, he’d just fall asleep here no problem. Zee chuckled in a velvet undertone, low and husky, and normally she’d insist on getting Leo up so he could brush his teeth and they could get him into his pajamas - but for once, she was fine with forgoing the usual routine because she knew he was loathe to separate from his dad right now, after going a few months without seeing him at all. They could carry him to bed when he inevitably fell asleep.
“I don’t think we’ve heard that one,” she said, her own fingers taking a stroll through soft dirty blonde hair - he was a blondie like John, didn’t really inherit much of Zee’s coloring at all despite how she did all the work of carrying him for nine months. Genetics were ridiculous sometimes. “How does it go?”
“It’s a mischievous little spirit that can live about your home. And when we were young, your auntie and I had one such boggle of our very own. It would make her toys disappear, write letters in the bathroom mirror...and even make the milk sour in her cereal bowl.” Constantine’s lip curled to keep from ruining the distortion of an English folktale to actual history he may or may not have had. “It never had done anything to me, so naturally, Auntie Cheryl thought it was no boggle at all. Nonsense, she said it was.”
Naturally Cheryl was right. But John had gotten tired of her telling him spirits didn’t exist, magic wasn’t real. And he was a tosser of a younger brother.
John pinched at Leo’s soft cheek. “And the boggle heard her say that. What do you suppose it did?”
“Did it scare her?” Leo asked in a hushed voice. Making toys disappear was really scary. “Boooooo?” He did his best impersonation of a ghostie.
Zee would concur with the fact that John was a tosser of a younger brother. Poor Cheryl - talk about people she missed, John’s sister was definitely up there on the list. And Gemma, his niece, whom Leo was especially fond of. “Maybe the boggie finally did something to dad - “ She poked him teasingly. “Had to even the score a little.”
John laughed at the “boo”. Precious little duck, “Not all spirits are scary, Leo. This boggart was just mischievous. A little like you.” He tickled at the back of his son’s neck, leaning ever so closer, ignoring Zee’s teasing.
“Right there, before our very eyes, her cereal bowl floated above her head before..launching right at her face!” The smallest of pounces, wriggling his fingers into Leo’s tickle spots. “She screamed and ran away...and the boggart left us alone. Or at least, your auntie never said anything else about it.”
He placed a loving smooch on Leo’s head before resting back against the couch, waggling his finger. “You never know if you’ve got a tricky little spirit about your home… best to behave….”
The tickling had Leo letting out those sweet little giggles, all childlike innocence and cotton candy clouds. People talked about ‘the terrible two’s’ and beyond all the time, and the stage when toddlers tested boundaries - sure, he did plenty of that, but Zee also loved this time and getting to watch Leo go on all these self-discoveries, develop memory and other cognitive skills, and see how he learned to love; he was beginning to identify his own feelings, and extend that to recognizing how other people felt.
And his dad was basically his favorite person, even if there was some truth to the whole mama’s boy idea. But John was one of Zee’s favorite people too, despite how he did boggart magic to terrorize his sister, so she understood the love.
“I guess there’s a good lesson there, huh?” she laughed a little, scooping up Leo to kiss the top of his head. “Bedtime for you, ducky.”
“It could be a good lesson. For the boy or my sister. I’ll let you determine that. “ He stood alongside Zee, ruffling Leo’s hair once more. He enjoyed sharing experiences with the boy and somehow turned them into stories. Constantine wasn’t exactly a ‘Green Eggs and Ham’ sort, and would rather read his son Latin sooner than he would that. Bleck.
John rubbed at the corner of his eye, not really knowing what time it was at all, following Zee to put the boy down for bed. It had taken him the day to get through processing, find his family, etc. And Zee was all about her healthy bedtimes and whatnot. Whatever mom said, dad learned that was probably best.
He took in the sight of Shadow Crest, how it differed from the ‘home’ he’d grown used to for three years prior. A place he’d felt safe enough to keep Zee and Leo protected. Some place he knew he had control. Vallo looked opportunistic but he’d unfortunately have to reach over the hurtle of finding what he could work with and what he couldn’t. John had never thought he’d miss Orange County--but he was human, and the familiarity would help him sleep better.
All the more fun for Zee to decorate another room for Leo. John ran his finger gently over the books they’d stacked years ago, heirlooms to read to him, most not right now. When Zee had the boy all tucked in John made sure to kneel beside the bed to give the boy some extra cuddles goodnight. “Give us a kiss,” he asked until Leo kissed his cheek, and John returned the affection the same. “‘Night son. Daddy won’t go anywhere so long as he can help it. Promise.”
With his teeth brushed and in his footie pajamas, Leo settled comfortably in bed. His small arms moved to hug his dad too, in addition to that kiss, and he whispered a “‘night, daddy,” before his lashes fluttered closed and he would be out cold pretty soon - Zee was big on enforcing a proper bedtime, and he usually didn’t fight it unless he was cranky with a head cold or something; she was glad they’d gotten through teething pains. The last stretch of it was probably something John wouldn’t have minded missing.
Zee stood in the doorway, switching the light off once John had kissed the boy goodnight. It was still early by adult standards - though the day felt long for some reason. Maybe it was the sheer emotional overload she’d experienced, feeling so relieved that John was here now.
“You okay? Have any questions or anything?” she asked, sliding her arms around him once they were out of the room.
Emotional overload was something John thought he could handle by now but he was mistaken. Still had to put on a good face for the boy, though he suspected that came with parenting anyways.
“Me? I’m always alright.” He gave her a wry grin but as she drew closer John took the time to study her more closely, palm cupping her chin, glancing over her face and sparkling eyes. She was tired. From the emotional overload or from him being gone. Again— something he couldn’t imagine as their life had become his new familiar.
Now it had taken a large move to an even larger reality. “Only what I can do for you, love. How’ve you settled, where do you need me—other than to take the duck to school.” Zee was always a working woman and now John could watch their son when she undoubtedly continued that in some format. But he needed to contribute too. He had a fairly easy schedule being a teacher in the OC but he wasn’t attached to it at all.
The welcome party didn’t exactly mention the need for a demonologist, exorcisms, or the dark arts.
“Taking the duck to school is a good start,” she grinned, tilting her face up so she could kiss him. John would find his niche here too, somewhat, it would just take longer than an hour or so. There were plenty of opportunities for him to put his skills to use. “There’s a school called Academy of the Unseen Arts - they may have a spot for a demonology teacher, if you wanted to continue that.” He taught Occult History in the OC, but here it was a bit more hands-on, considering being open with magic was a thing.
In the OC, they were constantly trying to cover up magic - it was an exhausting job, given the rate at which the weird and unusual actually occurred. So for once it was nice to not have to worry about lying to the general public.
As for her, well. She’d settled in cozily too. “I do my magic act at a couple different nightclubs in the city. One’s owned by Dinah Lance, it’s called La Sirène. Not the Dinah you may know, but a good version all the time.” Apparently the club had once belonged to a mobster asshole, but luckily it wasn’t that way anymore - she’d rebranded it, made it her own. Zee liked the place, it had flair and style. “It’s a night job though, so I had to find a daycare with later hours for Leo. But if you stick with a dayjob, we can each be with him while the other is working.” And weekends together - they’d ensure it turned out, she was confident of that.
His lips turned as he considered the possibility of teaching demonology. Or even teaching again. Family or not John was still a recluse—he just made room for them. Not much for anyone else.
At least Zee’s magic had more than one practical use. “Pitty. We could have put the halves of our old bands back together.” He was kidding of course. Dinah actually had a decent band—but was Liverpool underground punk supposed to be “good”? Though John was the night owl he could work with Zee’s schedule, trying to think of what he could do so Leo always had one of them and neither of them were quite without the other.
John ran his hand up and down Zee’s back as he considered. “I’ll find something in that schedule, love. Perhaps meander a bit and see if something suits my fancy.” Not having to hide magic was all the more easier. And it also meant his jobs didn’t need to be conventional either...
“Meandering’s good,” she agreed, and Zee believed that any person who arrived here suddenly deserved some time to figure out what they wanted to do and how their skills transferred to a world like this. For her, it had been a combination of that and also figuring out what to do with a John that wasn’t hers - but luckily there was no worrying about that now.
They were all together, this little family. As they should be. “Come on, I’ll show you around Shadowcrest,” she offered, hooking her arm around John’s. “It’s been awhile since you’ve seen it. And then maybe we can get some rest too.”
Tomorrow would come quickly, and they’d still be here. That was, actually, a pretty comforting thought.