Who: Reagan and Caius When: night, Sunday, Dec 31st Where: the marina Status: Complete
The denizens of Point Pleasant never failed to amaze Caius. One would think that nobody would feel like celebrating anything, after what they’d all been through days earlier ... but a crowd still showed up at the marina for the New Years Eve festivities. Caius had been working hard to put it all together and make sure it went off smoothly, and everything seemed to be going well so far. The vibe perhaps wasn’t as boisterous as it had been in previous years, but he still saw a lot of smiling faces as he flitted from here to there to check on various aspects of this project. Caius couldn’t wait for it to be over, if he was being honest. This was the last big holiday for a while, and he was drained. It was hard to focus when there was so much else on his mind.
Finally, he’d verified the final details with the firework crew, and that meant Caius was actually free to enjoy himself. Or to try, anyway. It was another hour or so before the show would start, and he wanted to find Reagan and have a drink or five to loosen the tension in his shoulders. Walking briskly away from the dock area of the marina, Caius set out to locate his wife, pulling his phone free to send her a quick text. Done w/ work. Where are you?
Reagan had driven to the marina about thirty minutes before Caius thought he might be done with the working aspect of the evening. It was cold out, and she hated the cold with a vengeance, especially now, but she had dressed appropriately in a sweater, jeans and knee high boots. Her peacoat was heavy and warm, as was the scarf wrapped around her neck and shoulders, and the wool hat she had pulled down over her ears. Her hands wore the gloves her mom had given her for Christmas, and Reagan suspected they were enchanted with something because they were incredibly warm, but not in a way that made them unbearable.
Despite the warmth, Reagan still bought a brandy from one of the booths, carrying it around the marina and watching the boats bob lazily in the water. Many of them were still illuminated with Christmas lights. It was a nice atmosphere, and a lot of people seemed to have shown up for this. Why not? They had all been trapped inside for a couple of days, just like she had. The bodies had been cleared out of the roads and just like that, the fog was forgotten. Mostly.
Reagan had walked out to the pier to wait for Caius's text. It was slightly less crowded out there, thanks to the chill coming off of the water. She sipped her brandy, remembering when Caius had taken her out on a yacht for her birthday. It hadn't been that long ago, but it still felt like years. Before they broke the curse and unleashed new forms of hell to deal with.
After a few minutes of staring out into the water, Reagan shivered as a bitter gust of wind whipped around her. No one else seemed to mind it, the people around her still chattering about, some laughing, kids running about, their feet pounding on the wood. Reagan could see her breath and for a moment it seemed like the small puffy cloud of oxygen hovered in the air in front of her. Her brows drew together in confusion and she very nearly reached out to touch it before it crystalized and fell to the ground, shattering on the wood by her feet. Fascinated, and slightly confused, she stared at the shattered remnants of what had been her breath before she turned to look down the length of the pier, wondering if Caius had found her. He would be capable of that kind of magic, after all. But she didn't spot him among the visitors.
She did, however, spot another man near the end of the pier on the marina, leaning forward against the ledge rather casually. Reagan couldn't say how she knew he was watching her, but she knew. She felt his eyes on her, despite all of the people around her. It took her a second to realize it was the same man she saw out on Ludlow during Zania's Christmas party. Irritated, and yet intrigued, Reagan started purposely down the pier. As she drew closer, the man straightened, smirked, and then turned to walk away into the crowd. Reagan's pace quickened, but it was too difficult to run with this many people around her, not to mention the slick spots on the pier from patches of ice that had been missed when the whole thing was salted.
She felt her phone buzz in her coat pocket and Reagan took it out while trying to keep her eyes on the mystery man. Reagan glanced briefly to the screen to see it was Caius, and when she looked up again... well, there were plenty of men around, just not the one she had been following. Her heart was racing and Reagan cursed under her breath before pulling up Caius's message to respond.
near the pier. will wait for you here if you're close.
Caius was indeed close to the pier, but he’d been walking the wrong direction, so he veered in the right one and sent her a short brt. Tucking his phone away, Caius weaved through the people until they thinned out a bit as he reached the pier. He spotted Reagan and approached her with quick steps, a weary smile on his face. “Hello my love,” he murmured as he put a hand on her arm and leaned in to kiss her briefly. “Have you been here long?” Without even really thinking about it, Caius started to warm up the air around them. It was bitterly cold out, and he knew she couldn’t warm herself like she used to.
Reagan forced herself to focus on Caius, rather than look around him at the crowd, searching. Whoever had been watching her was gone now, though Reagan had a feeling it wouldn't be the last time she saw him. So Reagan managed a smile for her husband instead. "I got here about thirty minutes ago. I've just been wandering. Warming up." She lifted the cup of brandy in her hand. "It seems like everything is running smoothly. I'm actually surprised at how many people came out tonight." But again, Point Pleasant loved to forget fear as quickly as it could. "Do you want to grab a drink?"
Oblivious to what Reagan had seen, Caius gave a grateful huff and put his arm around his wife’s shoulders to walk them back toward where the drinks were being served. “I want to grab five or six of them,” he answered with a chuckle. “I’ll start with one though.” A strong one. Caius didn’t intend to get wasted tonight, he still had to get home, but he was longing to turn even part of his brain off for a while. He wanted to watch fireworks and kiss his bride at midnight and try to fucking enjoy himself for once. Caius just hoped that Cthulhu or something wouldn’t emerge from the depths to fuck up their night. “I was surprised at the numbers too,” he added as they strolled. “I guess people really needed something to take their minds off of ... well, this town.”
"Well, it looks like you've put together something to help them do that," Reagan said. It was nice, even if it was cold. Vendors had shown up, there were plenty of pretty lights and heaters. The fact that Caius found time to put this together and still research his ass off for solutions to her problems amazed Reagan. "I don't know how you manage all of this. I spend eight to ten hours at the shop and I'm ready to take off for another vacation." Having Caius with her now was relaxing - the brandy also helped - and the man on the pier was quickly leaving her mind. "Hopefully when you take over for your father you'll have someone else running around down here in the cold."
If Caius cared more about people, it might have been something he would take pride in, providing fun and shiny distractions for the citizens of Point Pleasant. Bringing joy to a dark place, however one wanted to phrase it. His work at the marina was more for his father’s company’s benefit, the company he would inherit some day. That was how Caius looked at it most of the time. But strolling through the crowd with Reagan on his arm, it was kind of nice to see all the smiling faces, even with pink cheeks and noses from the cold. Really, if Reagan had a good time? That was all Caius cared about. “Oh yes, I’ll delegate the fuck out of everything, just like he does,” Caius responded with a low chuckle. “Just paying my dues right now.” They reached one of the drink stations and Caius took his arm back to get his wallet out as he ordered a hot toddy. He normally eschewed hot drinks except coffee, but tonight was cold even for him. Once he had the hot cup in hand, he steered them toward a spot that would provide a good view of the fireworks once they started.
Reagan smiled, because she knew Caius was probably more than ready to put all this "man on the ground" behind him. Someday he would be the one in the cushy office overlooking the marina, sitting behind that desk and watching everyone else do the tedious work. Reagan kept hoping Anthony would hand over the reins to Caius sooner than later, but she knew Caius's father liked control, so it would probably be a while before he stepped down in the company. "You've been paying your dues for years," Reagan said absently before she sipped from her cup. The air around her felt warmer, but she knew that was Caius's doing. "But you continually do an amazing job. Are you going to be able to give up control to other people?"
Caius didn’t expect to inherit the company anytime soon. He knew he probably could delegate now more than he did ... but he also had perfectionist streak a mile wide, and he sometimes still felt like he was proving to Anthony that he could run things. Part of Caius knew that was probably part of the mind-games his father used to keep him in line, But he was still pretty proud of everything he accomplished. Reagan’s compliment made him smile a bit, and Caius kissed the side of her head. “We’ll have a family by then, so I’ll be more than happy to hand things off,” he told her. It was a stubborn sort of optimism, but he meant it. They would have children someday, and he wasn’t going to neglect them for work like Anthony had. “But enough shop talk. How are you feeling today?”
Reagan used to spend hours daydreaming about having a family with Caius. The wedding, the house, the children. It was strange to think about it now because of her missing magic. Now those particular fantasies - at least the one involving kids - seemed tainted somehow. But now wasn't the time to talk about it. It was New Year's Eve and Reagan had no desire to fight, or have a potentially upsetting conversation with her husband. "I feel fine," Reagan said as she looked away from the dark skyline to smile at him. "Much better than the last few days, at least. I'm going to have to get a new car this week, though. I don't want to have to keep borrowing yours. I thought I might go see Deputy Solomon tomorrow too, just to see how he's doing."
Caius couldn’t lie and say he hadn’t thought about all those what-if questions, but he was still madly in love with Reagan and he still wanted her to be the mother of his children. Time would tell if they would recover her magic, but they would cross all those bridges when they came to them. Caius wasn’t quite sure he believed her ‘I’m fine,’ but she was smiling and she’d come out to a social function at least, so he was taking those as good signs. “I think he’d really appreciate that,” he said, rubbing Reagan’s back lightly. “I agree that a new car is in order ... do you want me to go with you?” They’d stopped at a spot that overlooked the water, and Caius motioned for them to sit down on the bench and checked his watch.
"For which part?" Reagan asked lightly as she sat down. The bench was cold, but only for a moment. Still, she scooted in close to Caius, wanting his comfort to warm her more than any sense of magic. "The car, or visiting Solomon? In either case, I think I can handle it." She had purchased her now totaled car on her own, after all. Reagan was not a woman who needed a man to walk onto a car lot and negotiate for her. "Besides, I doubt you want to spend any of your free time at the police station, so I won't make you do that." Reagan knew how the police department viewed the Overlook brats - people like her, and Caius and the others, especially Anthony, considering he owned half the town. She didn't want to put Solomon, or anyone else who might be there, on guard.
Caius had meant the car buying, but he chuckled as Reagan snuggled in close, draping his arm around her shoulders. He knew she didn’t need his help, she was brilliant and perfectly capable and ran her own business after all, but sometimes those things were easier or more fun with company. “I know you can. I meant car shopping, but thanks, I appreciate it,” he said with some wry amusement. “I deal with them enough, scheduling for security when we need it.” Barrett was pleasant enough to work with, he was at least professional, but some of the others made Caius roll his eyes. Still, if Reagan had to get stuck with anyone during the fog, Caius was kind of glad it had been a police officer. “Please extend my gratitude to Officer Solomon, though. I’m glad he was there,” he added.
Reagan smirked softly, watching the sky as she waited for the fireworks. "Well, he should be glad I was there." Being stuck with a cop had its benefits, of course. He had been out there at the time she needed him to be to help her out of her overturned car. But he had also made some shaky decisions, like trying to get back out to his car. But it was what it was. They were both alive, and certain traumatic experiences... well, Reagan couldn't say she felt bonded with Ty, but she was grateful for his company and she hoped he was healing. Reagan lifted her face a little to look at Caius. "Do you want to come with me to get a new car?" she asked, still smirking. "Perform some of your mind voodoo to get me a good deal?"
Caius thought the cop probably was glad she was there, especially since he’d gotten himself hurt. He himself had been thoroughly annoyed at the company he’d been stuck with, but it probably would’ve been even more nerve-wracking alone, and he was an exception when it came to capabilities. Caius was glad that Reagan hadn’t been alone. He moved on from the subject with her though, giving a rakish grin at her question. “I mean, it’s not out of the realm of possibility, if you want a bit more of a discount. But I of course know you can handle it. I just like to shop for expensive things.” He gave a gentle shrug. “Speaking of mind voodoo though ... I had an interesting conversation with my mother earlier today,” he added, his voice dropping a bit. ‘Interesting’ barely began to cover it.
Reagan loved expensive things too, although given what had happened to her car, she wondered if she ought to be a bit more frugal in her next auto purchase. Who knew if something like that would happen again, or worse. Her thoughts of a new car were forgotten when Caius mentioned his mother and while her curiosity was piqued, she still frowned. "What was it about?" As far as Reagan had heard, Miriam had needed stitches after she got hurt in the fog, but that she was doing fine since. Hopefully that was still the case. Caius had enough on his plate already.
“Well, I paid her a visit to see how she was doing. She seemed in good spirits and like she felt okay, the scratch is healing and everything ... but she started asking me all these questions about mind manipulation magic,” he said, his thick brows furrowing a bit. “Like is there any way to guard against it, does someone know it’s happening, that kind of thing. I didn’t even know she knew I could do it. But she basically wanted to know if she could tell if Dad was manipulating her. She was talking like there was something he wants to know that she doesn’t want to talk about. So I offered to charm a piece of jewelry for her so it could tip her off if someone’s trying to influence her mind.” Caius knew it wasn’t his business and he didn’t want to get in the middle of a problem in his parents’ marriage, but he also wanted to protect his mother. This was a favor for her, one he could layer with plausible deniability.
Reagan blinked and sat up a bit to look at Caius more directly. What on earth could it be? She had no idea what Miriam and Anthony's marriage was like, but they always seemed... well, somewhat happy, when they were out in public. Whatever it was, it sounded like it could be a problem, especially if Miriam was asking Caius for help to protect her secrets. After a moment, Reagan snorted softly. "Your mom must not know your dad terribly well if she thinks a piece of jewelry will help her. Even if she knows he's messing with her mind, he'll still be able to do it. Did she tell you what it was that she didn't want him to find out?"
Caius knew charming the ring wouldn’t stop Anthony from doing what he wanted, he’d pitched it to Miriam more as a way for her to know, even if she couldn’t prevent it. She’d still wanted it, so he was still going to do it. “I don’t know what she knows, honestly,” he said with a sigh. “Dad’s not a big sharer. And apparently neither is Mom, because she dropped a fucking bomb on me.” He paused for a half-second, just for dramatic effect, his eyes on Reagan’s face. It was bizarre, kind of exciting news, and he was interested in what she would think of it. “Apparently, my mother is a telekinetic. She was kidnapped as a child, missing for two years, and came back with power she didn’t have before and no memory of what happened to her. She’s kept it a secret all these years. But a creature in the fog startled her into wrecking the kitchen, so now she’s pretty sure Dad knows.”
Out of everything Miriam could have been withholding from Anthony, Reagan did not expect to hear Caius's mother was a telekinetic. Her eyes widened, her lips parting in surprise for a brief moment before she shook her head. "That's a pretty big secret to keep for this long. Why wouldn't she tell him something like that?" Reagan couldn't really judge the marriage of Caius's parents. Everyone had their secrets, but something like that? She couldn't imagine keeping something of that significance from Caius, and she would hope he felt the same. "Kidnapped children... that's not unusual in this town. What is unusual is when they turn back up. So she's afraid your dad will get into her mind to find out the truth, but... she's already pretty sure he knows. So why not just be honest about it?"
Caius wondered if maybe Miriam was concerned about Anthony using her powers for his own gain somehow. It sounded on brand for him, but in the vaguest way and all the secrecy didn’t make much sense to him either. Telekinesis wasn’t a terribly difficult magic to master. He gave his wife a helpless shrug, shaking his head a little. “No idea,” he admitted. “Maybe she just ... doesn’t trust him. Even less than I thought. It was a lot to drop on me though, I guess I’m still digesting it. I get the feeling that someone was experimenting on her as a child, that’s what really interests me.” Caius paused with a thought, then ran a hand through his thick hair. “And I hope she doesn’t tell Sera. That’d just make her feel more alienated, I’m sure.”
Reagan wondered just how happy Miriam could be if she didn't trust her husband. Then again, Reagan didn't trust her father in law either... but she wasn't married to the guy. "Do you think someone...developed the telekinesis in her through experimentation?" she asked after a moment. "I always thought psychic ability was something people were born with, like magic. But maybe I'm wrong. Did she have any memory of where she was during the years she was gone?" It did seem like a major thing to tell Caius and not Anthony, but Reagan couldn't pretend to know what was going through Miriam's head. Everyone had their secrets, and for their own reasons.
The actual happiness of his parents’ marriage wasn’t a topic that Caius gave much thought to. He subconsciously ran on the assumption that they weren’t happy, in that way that no one of wealth and influence was truly happy. Happiness wasn’t the goal. He nodded a bit at Reagan’s first question, then shook his head. The development of psychic powers wasn’t in his wheelhouse of knowledge either. “She said she has no memory of anything,” he told Reagan. “Just some early childhood ones, and then they pick up again at eight, coming back home. Perhaps someone ... honed something that was dormant inside of her? Or maybe her emergence of power came from the trauma of being kidnapped? I don’t know. But I’m curious to look into it. Someday,” he added, and glanced over at his wife. Reagan’s issue was his top priority, he wasn’t going to forget about her magic and fall down some other family rabbit hole.
Reagan knew Caius wouldn't allow anything else to distract him from helping her recover her magic. But she knew that it could get messy if he eventually dipped his toe into his parent's marital issues, because that's essentially what this would turn into. She could only imagine how Anthony, and probably Miriam, would try to use Caius to their benefit if things went downhill. "Just be careful if you do," Reagan said after a moment of thought. "Your mom might not want you digging around into her past...and who knows what Anthony might do. It sounds like a big mess waiting to happen."
“She seemed like she wanted some answers herself,” Caius said. He opted not to mention to Reagan just yet that he’d offered to mind influence some of the others who had disappeared and come back to get some more information for his mother. There was time for that down the line. Caius gave Reagan a wan smile and slipped his arm more solidly around her shoulders. The fireworks were going to start soon. “I’ll try not to step in anything, promise. I have no desire to start a family clusterfuck.” His mother just so rarely needed anything from him, he wanted to help her if he could. “You’re what I care about right now,” he added, leaning in to give Reagan a soft kiss.
Reagan knew Caius would try to avoid getting too deeply involved, but she had a feeling both of his parents would pull him into it all if they wanted to. Especially Anthony. Caius was his own person, with his own power, but Anthony still held so many of the cards and it drove Reagan crazy. She didn't think she would ever forgive him for refusing to help Caius get his memory back. Deep down she knew he could have done it if he truly wanted to. But now wasn't the time to bitch about it to Caius. She returned his kiss and settled in against him, putting aside the news that Miriam was telekinetic. There were other psychics in town, Reagan knew that much. She wondered who knew what. It wasn't like this town didn't have its bevy of secrets. "I know we've been busy and preoccupied," Reagan began after a moment of silence, "but did you know Mila Moretti was found? Someone dropped her off at Mercy." They had heard when they returned from their trip that the girl had stabbed Aaron Lucas and went missing. But that had been the end of it, at least in terms of news. While she hadn't been responsible for what happened, she still harbored some guilt that it had happened at all, that they hadn't been able to help. Caius would probably feel differently, but she was curious as to whether he had heard anything about it.
That was definitely news to Caius, and his thick brows rose as he gazed out at the dark water. “Really? Hm,” he murmured softly. “Interesting.” He hadn’t thought much about Mila Moretti herself in the time since they’d tried and failed to help her, though the being that had possessed her had certainly crossed his mind more than once. It was unsettling to think about something that dark and powerful just walking around town, so maybe he’d been a tiny bit relieved that Mila had disappeared. And then he had plenty of other things to think about. “I wonder if she came back ... alone, I suppose you could say. Perhaps I’ll pay her a visit.” Caius wasn’t sure if she would even remember speaking to him, but he would be able to see if she was still possessed by an ancient evil, or if she’d been released. It would be close to a goddamn miracle if she was.
Reagan had wondered the same thing. If Mila had come back alone, or not. If anyone could tell for sure, it would be Caius, but she also felt a bit apprehensive about him going to see Mila alone. If that entity was still attached to her, Reagan didn't want "Mila" trying to tempt Caius again with whatever power it held. "I should go with you," she murmured. She didn't have the ability to help if he needed it, but maybe she could be there as a buffer if that thing was still around. Ideally Caius would look into the other woman and see nothing at all, and they could go back to believing whatever darkness had been there was back inside the tunnel. Hopefully for good. "I can check with my mother and see if she knows whether or not Mila is still in the hospital or if she's gone home."
Caius wasn’t sure how wise it was for Reagan to come with him, but he understood why she wanted to. He had been tempted by the dark entity inside of Mila, and it was possible he would be tempted again. He just didn’t think Reagan could actually do anything about it, and she would be even more vulnerable to temptation than he was. He thought he could keep her safe though, if it came to that. Reagan hadn’t mentioned that Mila had tried to kill anyone else, so maybe she was free of the beast. “Let me know what you find out,” he said, giving his wife’s shoulders a gentle squeeze. “If all else fails, we know where to find her boyfriend.” The Lucases were always easy to locate, like big dumb beacons of trouble, everywhere they went. And Caius was honestly a little curious as to whether or not his adjustment was holding in Caden Lucas’s brain.
While she had thought about the thing in the tunnel from time to time, Reagan hadn't had any inklings of temptation. No desire to go there and barter for her magic. Whatever that had been, it had been too dark. And the price would be far greater than she was willing to pay. But Caius was Anthony's son, and even after all these years, Reagan still wasn't entirely sure what his limits were. "I would much rather deal with her than one of the Lucases," Reagan said dryly. "But we'll figure it out." Later. Right now she just wanted to enjoy the new year with her husband. She turned her face up towards him to press a kiss to his jaw. "I love this. Starting the new year with you and knowing that I'll get to finish it with you too." Their relationship had been tumultuous and unpredictable in a sense. But this felt real now, and solid. Even without her magic, even with the pessimistic doubts that continued to plague her from time to time... she knew deep down that she needed to hold onto him, or she wasn't sure what she would do.
“No question,” Caius murmured, smiling faintly at the feel of Reagan’s lips against his skin. He wanted to assure her that she would be made whole long before then too, but that was a dark topic he couldn’t make any promises about, so he opted not to. Not tonight. There was a bit of distance between them and the larger crowd at the moment, but it was clear as a bell when the people started counting down. ’Ten! Nine! Eight!’ Caius turned to face Reagan more, smiling a bit wider the closer they got to ‘one.’ He pulled her close as the countdown ended and everyone cheered, kissing her solidly on the mouth. Magic or no, she still made his heart clench and flutter with intense love, and he was so grateful they had survived everything so far and they were still together. The first of the fireworks boomed and exploded over the water, and he didn’t even care to look at them yet.
They had celebrated so many of these moments together in the past, but it felt different this time. Not because she was missing her magic, but because they were married. They had been through so much and they still had a rough road ahead, but right now, at this very moment, she was feeling optimistic that the would pull through all of it. Caius wouldn't give up on her, and she couldn't give up on him. Reagan melted into the kiss, listening to the fireworks bursting in the sky above them. She had spent over a decade, off and on, kissing his lips, and it never failed to send her heart racing. When they pulled back, Reagan smiled against his lips. "Happy new year."