The mortal had finally agreed to let Audra come over to the house and do her witchy hoodoo stuff. Commune with spirits. Burn sage. Whatever. She's a little fuzzy on all of the details, but Audra D'Villy seemed to know what she was talking about. Even if it was crazy. She'd forewarned Amity of Audra's presence that night and invited Amity to join them if she felt so inclined, but Mavis hadn't filled in all the blanks on Audra's end. She intended to do that when she had the Darkling face-to-face.
Mavis waits for Audra in her kitchen, keeping her phone nearby should the Darkling text that she was here rather than coming up onto the porch to knock on the front door. Some people were funny about that sort of thing. A pot of coffee has been brewed and Mavis sips a cup of it while she sits at the kitchen table, scratching a pencil over the page of a sketchpad. Just killing time 'til Audra got here.
There's a sharp rapping on the front door, and then the sound of it being opened. Audra was casual about these sort of things. There wasn't any reason to warn Mavis, considering they had already made the plans and talked about it. As such, she merely walks inside and glances about. The black-haired woman was clad in her casual garments. Which were, in fact, still quite nice.
A simple black dress with ruffles. Large belt. Long-sleeved jacket over the top. Leather boots and dark leggings. Large purse slung over one shoulder. Her voice pipes up, announcing her arrival. "I'm here." She takes a moment to appraise the foyer again before seeking out a seat to better strip her heavy shoes off.
Mavis is clad in her casual pajamas, red and black flannel bottoms, mismatched purple and orange socks, and a black, ribbed tank-top. All of that, of course, is beneath a floofy, maroon house-robe that's half-cinched up. The mortal is just sipping her coffee when she hears the knock, pencil still moving over the sketch pad. She is about to get up but then the mortal hears the door open, someone in the mudroom, and then the second door opening. Was that Amity? Widget? No. She didn't use the front door. Then Audra's voice calls out to her and Mavis gives a start of surprise.
"Oh!" comes Mavis voice and there's the sound of a chair scraping back. "I'm in the kitchen!" Of course, she's saying this as she's coming /out/ of the kitchen. The human is grinning, both happily and a little anxiously. She walks up to Audra, seeming like she might hug her, but then sticks her hands into the pockets of her house robe. "Hi. Thanks for coming over."
"Hello there." Audra slips her feet from the boots and stretches languidly, hefting her purse and setting it on her seat, leaving it for the time being. Rubbing her hands together as she leaves the crisp evening behind, the woman sizes up Mavis' comfortable garments, then looks past her towards the kitchen. "Got any coffee on? I just need to warm up for a moment." She flashes a small, impish smile.
Mavis bites down on the corner of her smile, which grows wider despite her efforts to subdue it. Her gaze smoothly slides down Audra sharp, casual clothes then back up again. "Somehow you make slogging around seem so.. classy. Like you walked out of an advertisement," she tells her, snickering and motion Audra to follow her. "Yeah, we got coffee. Well.." Mavis amends, "Amity got coffee."
The mortal pads her way to the kitchen in her fuzzy socks, closing the mudroom door behind them. She mutters, "There's a draft that keeps slammin' this," about it.
In the kitchen, the aroma of coffee of is rich in the air and the coffee pot on the counter is allllmost full. Mavis had already filched a cup of it. She goes over to the counter, opens a cupboard door and pulls down a cup for Audra, commenting over a shoulder, "This is where we keep cups. Spoons are over there," she points, "but I already got one out for coffee." And, of course, Audra would know where all of the fixings for coffee were, mostly on the counter near the pot, except for the liquid creamer in the fridge.
The idea strikes Audra as particularly amusing. Her eyes light up with amusement, and she nearly chuckles as she runs a finger over her lips. "Hah. Out of an ad? That's a nice little fancy." She murmurs, following along happily. Her eyes scan the kitchen, and she is quick to start searching cupboards for a mug, until directed to them by Mavis. Once a suitable mug is found, she idles by the coffee pot, listening to the drops as she loiters.
"I brought the sages, some oils, sanctified salt. The basics. Nothing too spooky. Though if you want, I could show you how to make some consecrated liquid. The general idea is it helps you maintain good relationships with local spirits and the like." She fetches the cream as she waits, pre-pouring a small amount into her cup and skipping the sugar.
"What would I even _do_ with this liquid?" Mavis asks, turning to peer at Audra while leaning against the counter then kicking off to pad over to the table. She picks up her own coffee mug that she'd left there, flipping her sketchpad closed and pocketing the pencil. Mavis curls both hands around her coffee cup and brings it up for a sip, raising her eyebrows and peering at the Darkling's face. Ahh. Good coffee. MMm. She lowers the cup, then asks, "And how do I know the spirits even GIVE a fuck?"
Or if the spirits are there at all, but Mavis doesn't bring this one up. Audra already knew she didn't believe in ghosts or bigfoot. She was starting to have her doubts about aliens and UFOs, however. Damn Netflix and their documentaries. "I think I'd prefer to, you know, stay in my lane?"
"Huh? I mean.. The end goal would be to use it in other rituals. Sanctify the house, make offerings with it, douse your shrine. It's pretty general purpose. Depends on how witchy you want to get." Audra rolls her shoulders in a lazy shrug, still grinning as she upends some of the coffee into her mug, pouring it with a steady hand. "It's starting to get colder. I'm curious what the winters are like around here." Her gaze flickers to the window, then back to the well-bundled Mavis. "You look prepared, at least."
Once mingled with cream, the coffee is put to Audra's lips. She watches over the rim, eyeing her human host curiously. "Oh, come on. You're the one who's uncomfortable in the house, aren't you? Even if it's just a placebo effect, you wouldn't be interested in trying to help with that?"
Amity had not had work today. She had, though, left the house dressed in her usual conservative fashion and then returned. As she'd told Mavis, she had "errands" to run, though she hadn't said exactly what those were. She emerges into the kitchen from the front room dressed in flannel pajamas (pink polka dots) and a cozy fleece sweater in a pale blue. Warm clothes for a night in. Mavis had told her to expect company. Still, seeing Audra again is a little strange. First, because she hasn't seen hide or hair of the other Lost since their first meeting. Second because she banged her girlfriend. There's a polite nod towards the other two as Amity crosses the kitchen and pours herself a cup of coffee to which she adds copious sugar, and then a healthy dose of cream from the fridge.
"Good evening," she says in her flat, prim voice as she moves back towards the table. "How are you both doing?" A sip of coffee. "What's this about sanctifying the house?"
Mavis just sighs as Audra rolls out that list of things she could do with this magic stuff. How was she supposed to remember all of that? "So," she says tentatively, pausing to sip her coffee and mull it over, "it's... like the salt of the witching world or something? Cos people put salt on everything." The mortal is trying, really, she is. She cozies into her house-robe, basking in the warm, heavy feel of it while her toes wiggle inside of their fuzzy socks. "Yeah," goes Mavis, grinning. "I'm not really used to the cold and.. yes, of course I want to make the house "homier" and stuff, but this oil stuff /also/ sounds," she pauses, carefully, "like-."
Then, she hears Amity on the stairs. Mavis hisses and fusses about what to do then explains in a rushed whisper, "I told Amity about the other night. By the way, we're dating."
Zoom. Enter Amity. The mortal's head turns and she blurts a quick, "Heys," followed by a tense, "Coffee if you want some. And Audra keeps sayin' I'd feel better if we burned some sage, but now she's talking about "general purpose" magic oil and rituals and I'm trying to tell her that THAT sounds like a LOT of work."
At first, Audra looks a bit confused as Mavis leans in and begins to hurriedly explain herself. Once all has been made clear, Audra's face lights up just a hint. When Amity enters the roomm, her lips split in what is like an awful grin. She follows it up by addressing the pajama'd woman. "Hello there. Long time no chat." The wet-haired fae watches closely, her sunken eyes studing the other woman closely. When the question of sanctification comes up, Audra's back straightens. She remains leaning against the counter, but seems to perk up ever so slightly.
"Mavis had mentioned how she felt uncomfortable in the house at times, given its age and connection to the deceased. She also didn't want to do anything so extreme as set up a shrine to the dearly departed." That sentence is punctuated with a telling glance from Audra, boring holes in the side of Mavis' head. "My alternative suggestion, to which she agreed, was to burn some ingredients and purify the place."
Those facts established, Audra sets her mug down. "Now, real quick, rewind just a little bit. Because I have at least two questions. First-" She glances from Amity to Mavis. "How long have you been dating and what implications are there behind ambushing me with that fact all of a sudden?" Like a watersnake without tact, Audra has no qualms biting straight at the jugular of the issue, even if it means filling the room with a heavy bit of tension.
"I see. I didn't realize you didn't feel comfortable here, Mavis." Though maybe that's why they've been sharing beds the last couple nights, now that she thinks about it. You know, aside from the /other/ reason. She peers at Audra, her own gaze unflinching. At least for now. She takes a slow sip of coffee--and if she feels uncomfortable, she certainly isn't showing it now. Her face remains as placid as ever as the question is asked. Then answered.
"Officially? Only a few days. Before that I think you could call it mutual, ah..." She searches for the right word. "...mutual sexual tension? Maybe?" She seems awfully calm for this conversation, which... Mavis might notice, considering how flustered she's seen Amity get before. "And it's important because while I don't strictly speaking mind if she wants to sleep with other people--" A glance to Mavis. "--I like to be kept informed." This... sounds more like customer service Amity than blushing, lovey-dovey Amity.
Way to go, Mavis. Maybe if she had heard Amity's footsteps on the stairs sooner then she could have given Audra more of an explanation, but if it hadn't been for that creaky stair third from the bottom then she wouldn't have been able to relay what she did. She shoots Audra a glance, face impassive and partially hidden behind her raised coffee mug, but that pinch around her eyes /might/ be apologetic. It's not as if she expected Audra to care about it much, but the mortal didn't want to lead the woman into the dark.
The mortal can't choose which to Lost to look at and peers from one to the other. She takes a quick survey of Amity's features and posture, as stoic as ever, although perhaps a bit frazzled beneath the surface. The blonde was too controlled, too precise for Mavis to buy it in the present situation. She peers back at Audra, cringing inwardly at the lanky lawyer's smug, easy confidence. Sheesh. And then Amity goes and says /that/-- "I didn't realize you didn't feel comfortable here, Mavis."-- and Mavis reads about ninety shades into the subtext behind the statement. But, thank God for Amity's aplomb, because Mavis isn't equipped to answer Audra's sudden interrogative line of questions. She squeezes her eyes shut, listening to Amity's cool reply, and opens her eyes again, fixing Audra in her sights. "It's new, yes, I wanted to tell you in person 'cos.. phone seems so.. impersonal? I dunno, I'm old fashioned," she says, sounding like she meant that in /SOME/ sense. "And you've been here, like," she pretends to check a watch that she's not wearing, pulling up her over-sized robe sleeve to reveal the bracelets on her wrists, "five fucking minutes. I didn't mean to ambush you, Audra. I'm sorry." She shoots a daggery stare at Amity, not wild about that terse phrasing or implied control over her. She wasn't a possession. Mavis clears her throat and adds, "And /I/ like to keep people informed.. just.. here lately I've been.. late on the informing part."
"It's a good conversation to have, and now is as good a time as any. I don't like the idea of stepping on toes just because I'm ignorant of the situation." Audra fondles her coffee mug, long fingers wrapping around it, tugging it to and fro. At Mavis' last remark, Audra actually tsks aloud. She shakes her head, sharp teeth on display in that bemused grin. "There's no need to apologize. Not in the slightest. If anything, I appreciate that you let me know, even if it was short notice." She winks, before turning back to Amity. If she can lock eyes, she does.
"This doesn't really change anything for me, though I had been meaning to harrass you at some point. I appreciated the assistance in settling in. The hotel stay was nice, but once I slipped out I hadn't found a chance to wander back and chat." There was an implication there, something in the subtext and the way that Audra leered at Amity. "You can relax around me. I'm not going to bite you for being informal."
"I think clear communication about all of... this," Amity gestures at the three of them, "Is a good idea." Wait, was she really about to just... be in a three's company thing? Regardless of that, at least some of the tension seems to bleed out of Amity. Perhaps she'd been nervous about the reaction from the other Lost. Perhaps she was just a nervous person in general. Or somethng else. She shifts her weight, then lets herself slowly sink into a chair next to Mavis. She exhales and her shoulders loosen as her coffee cup is set on the table. "God. I'm glad that's dealt with, then..." She reaches up and pinches the bridge of her nose. She'd been nervous. Probably more nervous than she wants to exist. She reaches over, squeezes Mavis' shoulder. She blinks, looks up at Audra from her sitting position. That leer and the words catch her off guard. She had... not expected that.
"Oh, ah... Harass me?" She blinks, glances sidelong at Mavis, as if asking if she knows what that means, then gives one of her small smiles. One of the more genuine ones than those she displays for customers. "I didn't think you would, ah... I'm glad you enjoyed your stay, and honestly I'd been expecting to see a bit more of you."
The artist checks for the exits. The way back to the living room was cut off by Amity, but if she made a dash for the back door... This is a very real notion Mavis entertains, but it dissipates like smoke when Audra digests this all in her usual charming manner. Nevermind that Mavis can't see what Audra D'Villy looks like beneath that Mask. The Mask is what she believes. "Sweet Oprah.. I'm glad you feel that way." Mavis turns and sets her coffee down on the table, smoothing out her robe and saying while looking at Amity, "I thought you were going to be gone later when I made plans." It wasn't an accusation or any implied wrong-doings on Amity's part and then she tells Audra, continuing along the same vein and in the same tone, "And I thought I'd have more time to get you up to speed in person. Should'a gotten out of the house." She sighs. Hindsight's a bitch.
While Audra and Amity talk, things simmering down, Mavis pulls out a chair from the table to sit down. She needed to sit down. When Amity says something about "clear communication" there's a weak hand raise and arm flop from Mavis and a murmured, "I'm poly." She and Audra never really got around to talking about that. Amity would find that the mortal is tense when she squeezes her shoulder over the poofy house-robe, the muscles in her shoulder tight with stress. She's also unable to offer any insight when Amity searches her face about that word Audra'd used-- "Harass."-- because Mavis is peering down at the slates of hardwood floor.
Something about the conversation tickles Audra. She can't help but giggle and hide her mirth behind her mug. The couple being rendered tense and uncomfortable struck her as particularly amusing, and she is all too happy to point it out. "You two are more uncomfortable than I am, which seems... Odd." She waves a hand dismissively. "I've got no claims to a monogamous relationship. As long as nobody's upset about overstepped boundaries, I'd say we all came out ahead on this."
It takes her a moment, but eventually Audra decides to elaborate. "Yeah, harass you. Stop by, pester a bit. Tease. You were fun, and I was glad to hear that you and Mavis ended up being... Friends." She lets that word linger, smiling. "What a cute couple!" She's still smiling, this time it's quite genuine. The woman slips from her perch and wanders over to refill her coffee mug. "Anyways, back to the conversation at hand. Did you still want to go through with the cleansing? We can be informal about it, just do it in here, chat while I go through the motions and walk Mavis through the important bits."
"I'm glad to catch up, too. You seem a good sort," Amity smiles. It's small, but she feels relieved that the brief moment of tension has broken. As Mavis mumbles that calrifying point, she nods. "Yes, um. Poly. That's a thing that I also am." Even if it's kind of new to her? Doesn't matter. Let's move on. Good? Good. She settles back in her chair and takes another sip of coffee, then reaches out with both hands to start poking, prodding, and rubbing at the tension in Mavis' shoulders. "I never thought I would be the person telling someone to relax, but..." She shakes her head, then leans over to rest her chin against Mavis' shoulder.
"Hey, it all turned out fine," she murmurs, then looks back over to Audra. "Sounds fine to me. I'll sit here and provide moral support, if that's quite alright?"
Mavis wilts in her seat as Audra makes those observations. Her chair is askew at the table, so that Mavis can triangulate between Amity and Audra, but presently she's peering down at the floor again. What was that over there? An outline, very faint, almost hidden by the shadow cast by the old fridge that was set alllmost perfect over the square-shaped outline. It was like someone took razor-wire and precisely 'cut' each board of the floor. The graining even match up perfectly.
"Well," she murmurs to Audra, shrugging her shoulders and lifting her eyes up to her, "you didn't do anything wrong so you shouldn't feel awkward. Neither should you, Amity," she tacks on, shooting a glance in her direction. "Thanks," Mavis tells the blonde, peering back at Audra and adding, "to both of you for not freaking out at me about this. I've handled this /better/ in the past and had things go much, much /worse/. Folks surprise ya sometimes."
She clears her throat after confessing all of that and tries to relax while Amity kneads her shoulders, but it was hard to with Audra standing there. She snaps her attention up when the conversation winds back up on her, though, and a smile creeps on her face. "Yeah, I do. I feel.. out-of-place, sometimes? Like this house is so FULL of stuff that there's no room for me and I'm a cat-burglar here to steal the silver or something." Amity couldn't be there ALL of the time to make it seem less empty. Maybe she should get a pet. A cat or a turtle or something. Didn't they have Widget, though? She stops thinking about pet adoptions, however, when Amity says that about "moral support" and turns her head, tilting it back, to peer at her. Geezus. Don't make it sound weird or anything. Mavis blinks at her and peers over at Audra, blinking again. "So, I _do_ want to do the sage-burning thing and maybe some of that low maintenance stuff, but I _also_ want to move the fridge." Then she gets up, pads over, and bumps it with her hip to try and scoot it. The fridge rattles but doesn't budge. "Huh. Am I seeing shit?" She crouches down and scratches a nail over the line, trying to feel the crack.
"You know, I think I agree with you. Really, I AM a good sort." Audra giggles as she sings her own praises, tongue-in-cheek notwithstanding. "And really?" Her eyes flicker back, quickly honing in on Amity with laser-tight focus. "You're poly as well? Now that's good to hear." She all but purrs with this information, lips pulled up in a playful grin that extends to her eyes - narrowed, and watching with predatory glee.
Once Mavis explains the situation, Audra bobs her head. "I mean, that's not too surprising. All things considered, does it really surprise you? You're still settling in. Still learning the place. The consecration will-" She's distracted by the markings as well, now that Mavis points them out. "What's under the fridge?" The woman murmurs, her voice darkening and her shadow seeming to grow long, all but flickering as her eyes turn down towards the floorboards.
The darkling steps forward and rests a hand against the fridge, ready to assist moving it.
Amity shrugs. "I'm... new to it? But I think it might fit me," she admits before the conversation is at last derailed completely from the flirting and awkwardness towards moving the fridge for some reason. She looks at the other two for a moment, not sure if they're off their rockers, then clambers to her feet. "Why are we moving the fridge...?" She squints down at the floor where Mavis is trying to find the gap and has to reach up to make sure her glasses don't go missing. "I can help, if that's what we're doing..." She settles in next to Audra to help. She has no idea what's happening but she'll do her best!
Mavis straightens up in front of the fridge and sizes it up, top to the bottom, like one might an unwelcome solicitor on her doorstep. She peers over at Amity, puzzled. This poly admission was news to her, but the mortal just arches a brow at her girlfriend in some confusion. The artist is torn between commenting on that now or turning back to the fridge when Audra comes over to help her shift it. She does the latter, assisting the Darkling in sliding it over. It's happier to budge under their combined feats, Mavis about as sturdy as she looks. Then Amity's joining them and Mavis says something about, "Mind the cord," which has enough slack to leash the fridge to the wall and clear the boundaries of the cut-out. "And.. good," Huff-Puff. "I'm glad.. we're all, y'know," Wheeze. "Modern and stuff." Did Amity take her glasses off? Cute.
With the fridge hauled aside, three black, metal hinges run parallel to the wall where they were hidden before. "Huh," goes Mavis, then she accuses, jokingly, "Guess you didn't clean under the refrigerator, Amity." At the center of the square cut-out is a ring-shaped indentation with a metal hoop sank into it as the door's handle. The top-side of the metal is flattened to match up with the floorboards. Mavis squints down, tilting her head and wondering aloud, "What the fuck, grandma?"
"Well.. That's odd.." Audra murmurs once the fridge is out of the way. She doesn't seem too concerned about dirtying her garments as she leans into the fridge, dusting herself off and peering at the door curiously. She pads closer, socks and stocking'd feet completely silent as she approaches the trapdoor and kneels down, one hand tracing the handle.
"Wonder what's down there. Need a lucky talisman? Should I fetch my candles?" It's half-teasing, but Audra glances up and there's a hint of serious questioning, superstitions be damned.
Amity grunts with the exertion of moving the fridge, then stands back to rub the back of her neck as she looks down at the surprise cellar door. Weird. She shrugs over at Mavis when she comments about not cleaning under the fridge. Humph. "What, like you and your noodle arms could help me move it? I did pretty much everything else," she replies in a teasing tone. Honestly finding an old cellar sounds cool. Why would it ever mean something weird? She looks down at Audra. "...We have a flashlight." As if that's what Audra wants candles for.
"Nah," Mavis says at the mention of a lucky talisman and she's grinning goofily, "I have the two of you. Maybe it's grandma's wine cellar. Didn't find a drop of booze in the house." She looks to Amity. "Did you? Oh yeah! Flashlight. There's one in the mudroom. Can we even get this open?" The mortal makes to leave the kitchen, stops, turns back around, collects her coffee off of the counter where it'd been placed during the fridge assault, and then leaves.
She's gone for about a minute, trying to remember where she'd left the damn flashlight then finding it out on the porch when she peeks outside. She returns, clicking the flashlight on and off victoriously with one hand with her coffee cup in the other. Mavis sips her coffee, walks over and hands the flashlight off to either Audra or Amity, whoever wanted it, and walks back over to the table where she puts her coffee back down and hangs her house-robe over the back of a chair.
"Okay." She's ready. Mavis nods.
"You two.. Jeez." Audra murmurs. She shakes her head, seemingly disappointed as the two turn down her offers for magical protection. She slinks her lanky digits around the handle, giving it a small test tug. The thing threatens to creak open, so the darkling waits for Mavis to return with the light.
"Let's find out.. Some vintage spirits sound rather nice. Might be worth celebrating, even." She hoists, standing up as she lifts the trapdoor and pulls it back to reveal the darkness.
Amity reaches out to take the flashlight. She's gonna be responsible. She checks the light, then aims it down into the darkness as Audra hauls open the trapdoor. What horrors await?
Mavis looks from one Lost to the other Lost, frowning at each of them in turn. "Are you two seriously going to make me go through?" She nudges Amity. "You've got the flashlight." That's right, this was a set-up from the moment Mavis passed off the torch.
"This is important, Mavis! It's symbolic, you know. Finding a hidden room in the house you have been living in. You should be the one to find the secrets, be the first to penetrate its depths. It'll help!" Audra sounds rather genuine as she preaches about the esoteric symbolism behind the hidden room, even as she follows directly behind. She's not scared in the slightest but merely seems to be enjoying everyone else's discomfort.
FTB 'cos it was getting late.
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