Sabrina Spellman (s_spellman) wrote in madisonvalley, @ 2021-01-16 12:53:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | !closed, !completed gdoc, ~2021 january, ~~quentin sollys (quentinsollys), ~~sabrina spellman (s_spellman) |
WHO: Quentin Sollys and Sabrina Spellman
WHAT: Coffee
WHERE: Starbucks
WHEN: Tonight
WARNINGS: No
STATUS: Closed/Completed Gdoc
Quentin wasn’t sure why he’d invited Sabrina out for coffee, except for the fact that she seemed really interesting. Back home, sure, he was sort of seeing someone, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t have friends, or that what was true back home was true here. He liked Dean, but he really wasn’t sure where it was going, or if it even could go anywhere with both of their futures decided for them. And anyway, Dean wasn’t here. So that was that.
Before leaving for Starbucks, he dressed in a nice yet casual outfit - a light blue button down shirt with a pair of blue jeans, and took a little longer than usual to cast an illusion over himself, blunting h MV is fae features. He was happy with how he looked - his ears appeared humanly round, his eyes blue but not intimidatingly so, and his hair was a deep blonde instead of the unnatural bronze that it was in its natural form. His cheekbones were softened as well; the whole structure of his face appearing softer and less fae. Basically, the illusion got rid of all the things that made him look other; that made people stop and stare in the street. He basically just looked like a really good looking teenage guy.
Of course, anyone familiar with magic would be able to sense his illusion, but she shouldn’t be able to see through it, at least. And the other people at the Starbucks definitely wouldn’t be able to. Under Toby’s guidance, he’d gotten a lot better at his illusion spells.
He arrived at Starbucks right on time, moving with a grace that no illusion spell could hide. It was the grace not just of the fae, but of the Crown Prince of the Westlands - something that he had been born for and had been training for his entire life.
He smiled when he saw her in line and caught up to her, pulling out his wallet.
“I’ve got this.”
***
Sabrina wasn’t looking for anything. Friends, always. But the idea of dating or romance scared her after having lost Sam. Jason had been nice, but she had to admit that she had pulled away from him. Quentin seemed nice, but also alone. Sabrina knew how that felt which was why she’d reached out. She was also probably more friendly than she’d like to admit.
She startled in place then giggled. “Oh, hey you don’t have to.” It was the obligatory denial, but she also wasn’t so rude as to refuse if he insisted.
He was different than she expected. There was...something...that tickled her magical senses. Looking at him, he seemed like any other guy. Handsome guy. Ok, hot. But when she turned her head something seemed to blur in her periphery vision. She wasn’t getting a sense of warning, however, so she paid it no mind.
***
“I want to, though,” he smiled. He’d invited her out, after all, so he would be the one paying. It only made sense. He might not have had the nearly unlimited funds that he had back home, but he had plenty for this. And honestly, he just appreciated getting out and spending time with people. He’d been pretty lonely since moving here.
They reached the front, and he ordered himself a caramel brulee latte. It sounded like the kind of sickeningly sweet thing he’d like as a teenage boy who was basically a black hole for calories.
After she ordered hers, he paid, and they found a table, he smiled at her conspiratorially.
“You have magic, right?” He lowered his voice so that only the two of them could possibly hear. “Can you see my spell?”
***
“Ok,” she said with a smile. “Thanks.” Sigrun gave her an allowance. It wasn’t that Sabrina didn’t work for it. She pulled her weight at the Settlement. Not out of gratitude. Sabrina actually liked doing the work there. It was an interesting opportunity you wouldn’t get at home or anywhere else without going back in time.
For herself, Sabrina got the aforementioned peppermint mocha with lots of whipped cream. By the time they got to the table, she’d managed to get whipped cream on her nose. Fortunately, she had napkins and a good sense of humor.
“I do,” she said proudly. “I’m a witch. Well. Half witch. Half human.” But probably stronger than most witches
her age. She tilted her head as she gave Quentin a more solid look. “I sense something. I can’t tell what it is without using magic, though.”
***
Quentin visibly flinched when she thanked him - he couldn’t help it. Giving thanks were a way of swearing fealty, a way of owing someone that the Fae hated to do. Even though she wasn’t fae and he knew she didn’t mean it that way, he simply hadn’t heard the word enough in his life not to react to it when it was spoken. He didn’t say anything, though. He’d try to be cool and just let it go.
He nodded. “Yeah. There’s something there. Basically...I don’t look like this? It’s an illusion spell. To make me look like a normal human. We always wear them in public so that humans don’t get the idea that there are...different creatures walking among them.” He took a sip of his drink. “Back home, I wouldn’t be able to talk to you about this at all. The whole existence of faerie is a closely held secret. That’s one of the things I like about being here. You don’t have to hide anymore.”
***
The flinch hadn’t gone unnoticed. Sabrina was curious but didn’t ask. But it was weird that he reacted like that to her gratitude. For now she listened to his explanation while drinking her mocha and wearing whipped cream.
“Doesn’t that get tiring?” she asked as she tilted her head. “Having to hold a spell constantly?” Then she nodded. “I’m familiar with not being able to talk about things. I had to lie to my mortal friends for a while, and I hated it.”
***
“I mean, I’m pretty used to it by now,” he shrugged. “And I don’t have to do it all the time. Just when I’m going to be around humans who might question my actual appearance. I guess the worst part is that I dated a girl when I was younger, a human girl, and she never got to see what I actually look like.”
His relationship with Katie had ended badly, but that was Blind Michael’s fault, not his.
“I mean, I’m not going to drop my spell in the middle of Starbucks, but if you want to go for a walk or something, I could.”
***
“That sounds awful.” Sabrina’s heart went out to him. She’d had to hide her witchiness from Harvey, and it had been hell. “You know, I could maybe help you with the illusion. I could make a charm that would cast the illusion. Something you could wear like a ring or something.”
Oh, her curiosity was way up so she didn’t hesitate to accept the offer. “Sure! I mean, we can wait until we drink our coffees. Let them warm us up before heading out into the cold.”
***
“Yeah. Faerie and the human world mix a lot - Changelings are real - but it’s probably best that things with Katie didn’t work. I mean...because of who I am, I have to be careful who I marry. If that makes any sense.” He didn’t seem terribly happy about that, but it was simply the truth in his world.
He raised an eyebrow as she spoke.
“I mean, it’s not terribly difficult for me to do it. I’ve been doing it all my life.”
He was a pureblood and had plenty of his own magic to sustain a simple illusion charm.
“I’d like you to see what I really look like. This…” he indicated himself. “It feels like kind of a lie. I guess this is what I’d look like if I were human? But I”m not.”
***
Sabrina tilted her head as she looked at Quentin. Now that she really looked she could see the shimmer of the spell like a very slight haze around him. But that wasn’t what puzzled her. Well, she wasn’t really puzzled, per se. She was just surprised.
“Your fae must be different from the ones I read about,” she said with a smile on her face. “They wouldn’t give two wits about lying to people, and here you are wanting to be honest with a total stranger.” Sabrina shrugged. “But I’m all for honesty.”
***
“Well, a lot of fae lie. It’s something we’re particularly good at, actually. That, and finding loopholes in promises and such. It’s just that I’ve never really had the chance to be honest before. I’ve never been able to tell other people what I am, not if they’re not fae. It’s...liberating, somehow.”
He still wasn’t going to drop his disguise and freak out everyone in the coffee shop, but showing his true self to a mortal or two was something that he really, really wanted to do. Who knew when he’d ever get the chance again?”
***
“I get that,” Sabrina smiled. There was a part of her that she never showed anyone. There didn’t seem to be a need for That side of her here. If there ever was they would all be in real trouble. “I’m flattered that you trust me like this.”
She chugged a good potion of her coffee then stood up. “C’mon. I’ll take the rest with me. I know a few places in the park that don’t have a lot of people.”
***
“Sure,” he said, grabbing his own drink and pulling on his coat. He followed her to the park, which, as she’d promised, didn’t have anyone about.
He took a long drink of his drink, then raised his hand and muttered something. The steel and heather scent of his magic rose around them as the disguise fell, leaving him in his natural state. His blonde hair had changed to a deeply inhuman bronze, and his blue eyes were exponentially more intense than they had been. His ears were sharply pointed and the lines of his face were sharper and much more…other. There would be no mistaking him for a normal human on the street.
He looked at her a bit nervously.
“Well, um, here I am?”
***
That was the first time Sabrina had experienced a scent with a smell. Fascinating! She’d learned that the fae were very connected with nature, but there hadn’t been anything like this! Now she had a thousand questions building on each other. But that wasn’t the point, and it would be super rude to start blurting out questions.
It was easy enough to set the questions aside as she took in what he really looked like. He kind of looked like Caliban, but that was where the similarities ended. She may not know Quentin very well, but she knew that much!
“Wow!” she replied with a smile. “I really, really want your hair!”
***
He grinned.
“Guess that means you like it?” His hair was normal for the Sollys family - it was one of the things that marked them as who they were. He supposed he liked it too, although he’d never really thought of it that way.
“You’re not really freaking out as much as I thought you would.”
***
“Why should I freak out?” Sabrina laughed but it wasn’t at him. It was more for the concept of freaking out at his real appearance. “I mean, you don’t have giant fangs, six eyes and eight legs so we’re good.” She chuckled for the giant spider reference. Honestly, there wasn’t much that creeped her out.
“Besides,” she said as she tilted her head, a smile curling her lips. “This is a good look. Handsome.”
***
“I’m not a spider,” he laughed in return. “I’m Daoine Sidhe.”
He blushed when she called him handsome, even though it wasn’t the first time he’d heard it. It was however, the first time he’d heard it from a human who had seen him as he truly was.
“Uh, thanks?”
***
Sabrina giggled again. “Not used to compliments?” she asked. Sam had been the same way. It was an adorable quality in a guy, and rare, honestly. Nick had known he was hot. Harvey had been humble, but she couldn’t remember ever seeing him blush.
***
“Oh, of course I am. Royalty deals with more flattery than you can possibly imagine. But all of that is fake, and because they want to get something from you, or just get in your good graces. You don’t care about my good graces, and I’m not important here.”
That was weird. It was like arriving at Shadowed Hills all over again.
***
“Well, there’s a difference between flattery and a compliment.” Sabrina got a little uncomfortable and shifted in place. “I should know since I’m kinda royalty, too. So I get where you’re coming from.” And just like him, her title meant next to nothing here.
“I’m ah...Lucifer’s daughter.” She smiled as she shrugged. “Future queen of Hell.”
***
He raised an eyebrow at that, but didn’t run screaming. He’d faced the Luideag multiple times and he doubted even Lucifer could beat her at scary.
“I mean, is that something you want? To be queen of Hell? Sounds like it could be kind of depressing. Don’t you have to die or something?”
***
“Not really?” Sabrina sighed because it was a complicated story. “But taking the throne is still better than letting my dad have it, or anyone else for that matter. I can guarantee that Hell won’t invade the mortal world and start enslaving people.” She shrugged again. “But, that’s future me. Now me gets to be a teenager. Plus, I’m here so there’s no Queen of Hell stuff.”
The dying thing was a legitimate question but she smiled and shook her head. “No dying. All part of the daughter of Satan thing. I can pretty much come and go whenever I want.”
***
“Well, that’s good anyway,” he said softly. He didn’t know how he felt about the rest. It wasn’t that he held it against her or thought of her negatively in any way - no, really he just kind of felt sorry for her, to have to be in charge of something so terrible. When he ascended his throne, well, it wouldn’t be terrible at all.
He offered her his arm in a courtly gesture, smiling at her slightly. “Shall we walk? I know it’s dark, but I can see and the evening is truly lovely.”
***
Sabrina smiled. She didn’t expect everyone to understand the whole daughter of Satan thing. If they weren’t involved in the dark arts there was no way they could understand. But she wasn’t going to hide who she was for a number of reasons, the primary being that she wanted to be honest with people.
She slid her arm through Quentin’s as she smiled up at him. He was a nice guy, and she was flattered that he decided to share this with her. Trust her with it. “We shall. I don’t have to be anywhere so wherever you want to go is fine with me.”
***
Since his eyes could see better at night than during the day, he headed in the direction of the forest, his sure feet not making a sound, not even in the leaves that carpeted the ground beneath the trees.
It was quiet here, and the sky was fairly dark, as Madison Valley did not have much in the way of lights. At least compared to places like San Francisco. It was strange not to see Pixies in the trees. He supposed he’d come to take them for granted back home.
“I love the woods at night,” he said softly.
***
Madison Valley was a lot like Greendale. It had a hometown feel to it with quaint suburbs, but a nice amount of nature. Sabrina had walked through the woods of both many times. This was where one of the differences rested.
“It’s pretty,” she commented with a smile. “I’ve been here long enough now to see this forest in all four seasons. I think I like winter best. It’s so quiet. Autumn is pretty, but this,” she made a vague gesture with the hand currently not holding Quentin’s arm. “It’s sleeping. Peaceful.”
***
“Winter does have its beauty. It also has its cruelty. Death and Winter are close, in some ways.” Of course, he’d never really thought about Death until he’d begun as October’s squire. It was not something that (should) ever affect him. “I suppose humans must think of that as it starts to get cold.”
Quentin was a nice kid, outgoing in a lot of ways, but he was also very thoughtful, and this was one of those moments.
***
Sabrina tilted her head as she thought about that. “I think every season has its dangers,” she mused. “Spring is kind of a violent eruption of life. Everything fighting for the best light. The best mate. Summer can be overbearing and hot. Autumn is another fight to reap enough stores to get through the dead time.”
She chuckled as she looked up at Quentin. “Kinda glass half empty, huh. Sorry. I’m not normally like that. I guess I just try to see the good and bad in everything then make up my mind which is stronger.”
***
“In Faerie, winter never comes. It’s summer all year round. But there are only certain parts of it we can access now, since Oberon closed access to the majority of it.” There was a sadness in his voice that was older than his years. It was something he’d been brought up with, and having visited part of it had only made it more poignant in his heart.
“Since then, we’ve had to live at least partly in the human world. Hence the disguises we wear.”
***
Sabrina looked up at Quentin as she picked up on his sadness. She touched her free hand to his arm. “Doesn’t sound like you like it much,” she said with sympathy in her voice. “And Oberon sounds like a dick.” She smirked a little for her impertinence, but Sabrina wasn’t known for respecting titles.
“I’m glad you’re here then.” Her smile offered encouragement and support. “And for the record? You can always look like yourself around me.”
***
Quentin looked at her in something approximating shock, and then burst out laughing. It sounded like something Sir Daye would say, and that made him feel more at home and more comfortable around her.
“It...it could be worse here.” He paused. “And I will. But only when we’re alone.”
***
She grinned, happy she made him laugh. He had seemed too sad and serious. She gave his arm a squeeze with her own as she chuckled along with him.
“Whatever you’re comfortable with,” she said in that perky voice of hers. “It just sucks that you have to hide what you are. So consider the Settlement a safe place, too.”
***
“Are you sure everyone there would be okay with it?” He didn’t want to make anyone uncomfortable with his otherness. He definitely would like a place where he could just be himself, but he wasn’t going to take it at the expense of anyone’s comfort.
He squeezed her arm back, unearthly blue eyes gleaming in amusement.
***
“It’s just me and Sigrun,” she answered with a shrug. “I know she won’t mind. She encourages me to be myself and proud of it. If we explain to her what’s going on, she’ll be ok with it.” Sabrina just didn’t want to surprise the valkyrie with it. Sigrun was pretty good with a sword when she wanted to be.
***
“Yes, we’ll ask her first. And if she’s okay with it…” Well, he couldn’t say that he wouldn’t enjoy it.
“Should we go back? I don’t want to keep you out too late.”
He assumed that she probably had people who would worry about her.
***
Oh Sigrun was going to adore Quentin. Making sure she got home on time. Being a proper gentleman. He would definitely score points with the valkyrie. She’d make sure she knew when she told her about his illusions.
“Sure,” she said with a smile. “This was nice.”
***
“It was,” he agreed. “Really nice. Maybe Madison Valley isn’t so bad after all.” He knew he still needed to get back home eventually because there was stuff that had to be done but maybe he could be happy here. It definitely was nice to be able to be himself without having to hide it from the humans, or worry about getting killed.
Maybe if all of his world could come here, that would be even better.
***