Then I heard your heart beating, you were in the darkness too Who: Quentin, his girlfriend Calista (NPC), and his familiar Willie (also NPC'd) Where: Calista's apartment When: Evening
Quentin had been putting this off for far too long. It wasn't like anything about what he was would change overnight - he was still a psychic, and he was still a water elemental, and sooner or later he was going to have to accept both of those things as nothing but pure fact. He didn't have to like it, but he would have to learn to deal with it. The psychic abilities he could hide, mostly. He could not tell anyone about seeing the future. If he stayed calm, then the objects wouldn't spin around him.
His seagull familiar, however, was impossible, mostly because Willie would not shut the fuck up. Seriously, at this rate half of Scarlet Oak had to know what Quentin was, if only because Willie was loud and foul-mouthed, and he was quite proud to be attached to him. Why, Quentin had not a fucking clue, and arguing the point had gotten him nowhere. Willie insisted that being a water elemental was awesome and Quentin would learn to love it, and Willie would be there to help him through it all.
Quentin insisted that Willie needed his head examined, because seriously now.
There was, however, one person Quentin had to tell about all of this - Calista. His girlfriend, his love, the only person in this world he'd put above himself without even blinking an eye. It wasn't so much that he wanted to hide this from her as he wanted to protect her from it. She was deathly afraid of water and her recent drowning experience - the one he happened to rescue her from - wasn't helping things. Yes, being an elemental had helped him then, saving her and allowing him to level in the process, thus bringing Willie to him. He'd never be glad for that, though. He'd much rather he'd never seen her like that at all, because those memories were not ones that could be easily swept under the rug and forgotten about. He kept telling himself that if he could deal with seeing Kevin's death beforehand, then he could deal with this too.
But that might have been just another lie.
Tonight, though, tonight there was no more running. In the wake of everything that had happened - the bombing, the rescue efforts, the fact that his mother bothered to call and actually assure herself that he was all right - he needed his girlfriend right now. And beer. Lots of beer. And once Willie found out where he was going, there was no getting the seagull to shut up about tagging along.
She's gonna have to meet me someday, Willie pointed out. I'm sure as hell not hiding in no closet or flying off whenever she comes over. Shit don't work like that.
Quentin rolled his eyes. "So you keep telling me." Though it was raining, he knew Willie was following him as he drove over to Calista's apartment, a six pack of beer in tow. He'd texted Cali to say he was coming over, but whether or not she remembered would be a different story. In which case, it would be fun to surprise her. He leaned against the doorway as he knocked, waiting to hear those telltale footsteps that said she was coming.
"Oh!" For half a second, Calista's eyes lit up as she answered the door, and for his girlfriend, that was the equivalent of a smile. He'd been with her long enough by now to be able to point emotions in the faintest of expressions. "You're here! You're early." She paused, "Or late, I don't remember. Come in, you'll get all wet." There was an innocence behind Calista's words, one a lot of people would take advantage of, but Quentin never would. Not with her.
"I am neither," he said, managing a smile for her, "because I never specified a time." Mostly because if he had, he'd have gotten lost and therefore ended up much later than he ever planned to be. Directions and Quentin would never be on speaking terms, even when he was driving to a place he'd been to dozens of times before. "I come bringing beer." He held up the case of Sam Adams, the best he could find considering that Scarlet Oak just didn't carry the best of New England beers.
Calista gave him another little half-smile as she leaned up to give him a kiss. "I like beer. I'm not sure how well it goes with cupcakes, though."
"Beer always goes with cupcakes," he said, drawing his free arm around her so he could keep her close. So long as she was near him, Quentin didn't feel quite so bad - this was where he was supposed to be, and he'd draw what strength he could from that. "What kind are you making?"
Still holding onto him, Calista led him into the kitchen, where there was, indeed, an assembly line of cupcakes in process. There were a few batches cooling on the rack already, and what looked to be at least two bowls of frosting and another batch waiting to be scooped to go into the oven. "Red velvet, and chocolate. And maybe a vanilla batch, too, I haven't decided yet."
"What's the occasion?" Quentin only let go of her enough to put his beer in the fridge, grabbing them each one. He popped the top off her bottle before passing it to her; of course he only drank his beer out of bottles. He had standards, after all.
"One of my cousins is having a birthday party tomorrow," Calista said. "At least, I think it's tomorrow. Anyway, I'm in charge of making the yumyums... but I think I might have gone a little overboard."
He glanced over the kitchen, estimating that there probably had to be at least a hundred cupcakes, or there would be once she finished cooking. "That depends, how many people are coming?"
"My mom didn't say." Calista just shrugged. "I just used the recipe from the bakery."
Quentin managed a chuckle at that. "You're going to have leftovers for a week, you know that, right?" He sipped at his beer. "I'll help you put a dent in them, too." Maybe he'd bring a few back for Renee... if she'd eat them, that was. That depended on the day, with his sister. "Do you need any help or anything?" Granted, the last time he'd made cupcakes with her, he'd more or less covered her kitchen with food coloring and frosting, but hey, he did clean it up, and he liked to think they'd both had a good time. Bonus, that was back when they weren't together, like as a couple, so maybe it would be more fun now.
She grabbed her spatula and shook it at him playfully. "You make messes in the kitchen," she said, rather matter-of-factly, even though there wasn't much emotion in her voice to speak of. It was Calista, after all - deadpan unless something really earth shattering happened.
"Fine, I'll help supervise." Quentin had to smirk at that, because she was kind of right. "And I'll provide the entertainment. Reach things in high cabinets. Be your taste tester. The important things." That was considered helping, right?
Her mouth might not have moved, but he could tell when Calista was happy, and that was enough for him. It was better than the last few times he'd seen her, still unnerved from her drowning experience, when all the two of them could do was hold onto each other. The bombing didn't make it any better, considering that the two of them hadn't been there, but they did know people who had been hurt. Quentin was just glad it wasn't Calista, because this he hadn't seen coming and he never wanted to think about losing her again. Just no. He was broken enough as it was.
"Here," Calista said, passing him a now-empty bowl, "can you wash this up for me please? I need another bowl for frosting." That was one thing he'd always admired about her, Calista never half-assed anything, and when she did something, she did it right. Granted, it would take her forever to do it, but it would be perfect at the end.
"Not a problem." He snagged said bowl with his telekinesis, unashamed to show off in front of his girlfriend, and was about to turn on the water when there was a knocking at the kitchen window. All he had to do was glance up to see Willie there, his wings spread as he tapped at the glass with his beak. Were Willie human, he imagined the bird would have pressed against the glass and made faces at him until he got Quentin's attention.
Hey asshooooooooole, Willie was almost singing the words as he spoke, his head even moving back and forth. It's raining and nasty out and I want to meet your girlfriiiiiiiiiiiend that you keep hiding from meeeeeeeeee.
If Quentin could have, he would have facepalmed. Hard. As it was he looked up at the window and shook his head, ignoring the bowl or the sink in front of him. "Act like that and your ass stays outside." He'd meant to think those words, not say them out loud, but once they were out it wasn't like he could take them back.
Calista, for her part, wasn't even fazed. "Oh, there's a bird." She tapped on the window pane. "Hello, birdy."
Oh hello there, hottie! If Willie could have, he probably would have started whistling. How Quentin got the douchebag familiar, he'd never know... or perhaps it was more fitting for him than he realized. Damn, man, you got some taste, because seriously. I would high five you right now if I had, you know, hands.
The sigh that escaped Quentin's lips sounded more like a hiss as he reached over to the window, unlocking it to let Willie in. "If you misbehave and fuck this up for me, I damn well mean it when I say you're a dead man. Or bird. Whatever." He'd already messed things up with Calista once, and like hell he was going to put himself in the same position twice, familiar or no familiar.
Willie flew in, careful to land on a spot on the kitchen table that was free of both cupcakes and cupcake making materials. So you gonna introduce me or am I gonna have to do everything for you? Jesus Christ, it's like you don't have manners or anything.
Calista's eyes went wide for a brief second, the equivalent of her surprised face. "He's a talking birdy."
Seagull, thank you very much!
"Calista, this is Willie." These next words were a little harder for him to get out, mostly because while he knew what Willie was to him, that didn't mean he'd accepted all of it yet. Being a psychic? Sure, he'd been that his whole life. Adjusting to being an elemental too was going to take some time. "He's my familiar."
Damn straight I am! Willie fluttered his wings a little, puffing his chest out for Calista. And you must be Quentin's hot as fuck girlfriend. He talks about you a lot and now clearly I can see why-
"She's still my girlfriend," Quentin pointed out. "Not yours."
Willie snickered in his head. You sure we can't share? One of the cupcake pans rattled next to the bird, thanks to Quentin's telekinesis, and Willie squawked, flapping his wings a little as he backed away. Kidding, kidding! Can't you take a fucking joke? The glare on Quentin's face said that, no, he most certainly could not. At least, not when it came to Calista. Anyway! Familiar, yes. Good to meet you.
Had it been anyone else, Calista might have been surprised, demanded to know what was going on, been in shock, something. Any sort of emotional reaction to describe how she was feeling. But Calista wasn't that sort of girl, and her only response was to lean over and pat Willie on the top of the head. "Hello, Quentin's familiar," she said. "Do you like cupcakes?"
Are you kidding? I fucking love cupcakes! If Willie could have, he would have been grinning right about now. Quentin's kind of an asshole in that he doesn't like to share his food-
"You tried to eat all my french fries, you douche!"
-But I promise I'm much better about that sort of thing than he is. Willie moved his head up into Calista's hand, loving all the attention. Which also made sense, considering that he was Quentin's familiar and all. I'm sure we'll be friends and stuff. Or at least, you'll see me around, he keeps trying to get rid of me and he hasn't gotten the message that there ain't shit he can do about me.
"Aw, he's kind of funny," Calista said, straightening back up and going back to her cooking, washing her hands first. After all, feathers and cupcakes didn't really mix. It definitely took her a minute of cooking, scooping the batter into the appropriate pans, before she looked back over at Quentin and asked, "Wait... familiar?"
"Familiar." Quentin downed half of his beer after that, more or less finishing off the bottle. He really should have brought more alcohol, knowing that there was no way Willie would get distracted and forget to follow him out here. "Showed up a few days ago. Damn near scared the shit out of me."
On the table, Willie snorted. You like me and you know it. Someday you'll admit it.
Quentin sighed and rolled his eyes. "Sure, whatever." In his mind, Willie was still really annoying and more of a hindrance than anything, but that was probably because he was such a low level water elemental that he couldn't actually do anything yet. He wasn't particularly interested in leveling, either, considering how it happened last time. "Cali... he's here because I'm not just a psychic."
She stopped for a moment, looking over her shoulder at him. "Oh?" There was no emotion in her voice, no surprise, no fear, nothing. It was as normal as if they were talking about the weather. Quentin could have kissed her for that.
They'd had this conversation once already, right after he saved her from drowning. Quentin never told anyone about his clairvoyance, because it only manifested for near-fatal situations. Like Kevin's death at sea, and Calista's near drowning. He hadn't really accepted that part of his powers, but seeing as Calista needed to know how he'd known to come get her when he did. He'd just been terrified that he'd be too late. And to Calista's credit, she hadn't flipped out then. She hadn't looked at him any different than she was right now, and that was why they worked so well together. She let him be himself, in a way he hadn't realized was possible until he left Maine and moved out to Scarlet Oak. Hopefully, that trend would continue. "I'm an elemental, apparently," Quentin said, letting that word hang between them for a moment. "Water."
In truth, it did explain a lot. It explained why he was always so drawn to the ocean, even when he knew he wanted nothing to do with his family's marina, not that his father would have let him take part anyway. It was a part of him, more than just because it was in his family's history, but because it was supposed to be. Since his parents had never taken the psychic news well, there was no way in hell he was telling them about his elementalism, or Willie for that matter. If his familiar wanted to fight him on that, then he was welcome to deal with his parents himself. He'd sit back and wait for Willie to come back so he could properly enjoy saying, "I told you so."
But Calista though, telling Calista should be easier. Thankfully Willie stayed quiet, for once in his life, because maybe the bird realized that, hello, this was kind of important. Much like when he'd first told her about his telekinesis, and his clairvoyance, Calista only blinked and smiled, just a little. "That's nice. Better to know about it than not, I guess." With her cupcakes now ready to bake, she grabbed the spoon she'd been using for the batter and licked it. "Mmmm, yummy."
He kept waiting for her to say something else, but she never did. She just went back to baking, humming to herself as she worked. Just like that, Calista had accepted what he said as fact and didn't care anything more about it, because it didn't change who he was. He was still Quentin and he was still in love with her and that wasn't changing. Perhaps that made her a little too naive, but having never had that sort of acceptance in his life before, it was a refreshing change. It left Quentin smiling as he went back to what he'd been doing before, washing out the bowl for Calista and handing it back to her so she could make her frosting.
Hey now! What about me? Willie even sounded like he was pouting, moving from the table to the back of one of the chairs, careful not to let his talons dig into the wood.
Quentin shrugged. "I don't know, you could fly off and find something useful to do, like leaving us alone?"
HAHAHA, you wish. Nope, I'm staying here.
"You can have cupcakes when they're ready," Calista said.
See? She likes me! Willie puffed out his chest a little. So therefore, I'm staying. Na na na boo boo, stick your head in doo-doo.
He shook his head. "Fine. Stay out of the way though." And hopefully when he and Calista retreated to her bedroom later, Willie could take the hint then, because seriously. His familiar had no business in his sex life. Just no.
It wasn't until later, when Calista's cupcakes were finished, frosted and put away, and the two of them were sitting on her couch watching a movie, that she finally turned to him. "Please don't put me in water," she said, eyes a little wide, and he knew that meant she was scared. Calista was terrified of water and knowing that he'd always be tied to now - that he always had been - would have brought that all back.
Quentin did the only thing he could. He cupped Calista's face in his hands, and leaned in to give her a kiss. Soft and sweet and with all the promise he could put behind it. "I never will," he murmured. "I promise you." He didn't care if that meant he was going to slow down his own elemental progress or whatever Willie might have to say about that, he'd given Calista his word. He'd never ask her to do anything that scared her that much, remembering well the look on her face as he pulled her out of the water. "I don't know what this is all going to be mean, for me... but I know it doesn't change anything between us."
She rested her hand against his cheek. "Good." And that was all the reassurance Quentin needed. So long as he had Calista, he'd figure out how to deal with the rest. In spite of everything, it was a good place to be in, and it was the first time in a long time he could say that and mean it. "I love you."
It wasn't the first time she'd said those words to him, but they'd always mean so much to him. So that was why Quentin smiled back at her, leaning in for another kiss. "Love you too."