Nameless Ghoul

Pancakes

Another day, another nightmare. Itzal woke up with the suffocating feeling he got from the bad dreams that usually plagued him. He was sweating and disoriented for a few moments until he saw the sun shining in through the window and he remembered his new living arrangements in the ghoul lair.

Once his heart had stopped racing and he had woken up properly, he headed to the bathroom to take a shower. The water was nice and hot, the way he liked it and whatever soap the Abbey provided smelled good. It was subtly spicy and not too strongly perfumed. When he was done, he rubbed himself dry, wrapped a towel around his waist and wandered into the bedroom. He jumped when he saw Sunshine was there. She was placing a laundry basket full of neatly folded clothes on the coffee table.

She started when she saw him, but her gaze lingered on his half naked form for just a few seconds too long and she bit her bottom lip. A bit of fang was showing and Itzal felt himself blush. She caught herself and her cheeks tinged pink.

“Sorry!” she said as she averted her eyes, “I knocked, but you were in the shower and didn’t hear. I was just going to dump the basket and leave you be. I brought a few bits that looked like they’d fit you. You’re a similar build to Swiss.”

“It’s ok,” he said, “thanks. Give me a second to get dressed and I’m all yours.”

Her face seemed to turn a deeper shade of red when he said that, but he shrugged it off, grabbed the basket, and headed back into the bathroom. He picked out a pair of faded jeans and a t-shirt with some kind of band logo on it. He thought it said, ‘Repugnant’ but the font looked all messed up so he wasn’t totally sure.

When he came back out, Sunshine was perched on the edge of the sofa, and she stood up when she saw him. Her eyes went to his neck.

“How are you feeling today? I hope you got enough sleep after last night’s adventure?”

He smiled at that and nodded.

“Yeah, think so. My neck feels better today, at least. I can’t believe I pissed Dew off before I’d even met him properly, though. I told you that would be the reaction.”

She laughed and shook her head.

“Believe me, it isn’t hard to piss Dew off. It’s his default setting. You’re lucky you didn’t end up with more burns—he's very protective of his chocolate milk! You’re privileged that he didn’t make you put it back, actually. Did you enjoy it?”

“It was the best chocolate milk I’ve ever had.” 

She looked sceptical about that and said, “That’s the first time you’ve ever had it, isn’t it?”

He chuckled.

“Second, actually.”

Sunshine chuckled and his words made her shake her head again.

“Well, come on then, these pancakes won’t make themselves.”

Itzal was confused for a few moments before he remembered her offer to show him how to make them the previous day. A lot had happened since then, so it felt like a week had passed, not just twenty-four hours.

He was worried in case anyone else was there, but thankfully, when they got to the kitchen, they had the place to themselves. Sunshine quickly gave him a tour, showing him where things were kept, and then they gathered the things they would need.

“I’m sorry about the ritual yesterday,” Itzal said. Sunshine looked over, confused. “When I freaked out. I didn’t want you to see that. I don’t have the best history with rituals.”

She stopped what she was doing and leaned against the counter with a sad look on her face.

“You have nothing to apologise for. Nothing at all. I don’t want you to worry about looking like a big, scary ghoul in front of me. I already know you are," she said teasingly. "You don’t need to prove it.”

Trust Sunshine to lighten the mood, he thought as he found himself smiling again.

“Well, I was worrying about it. I’ve never gone willingly to a ritual before and it was kind of overwhelming. I thought I could handle it.”

She walked over to him and put her hand out slowly towards his arm, holding his gaze the whole time. This time, he didn’t flinch when her hand made contact and she stroked his biceps. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath to release the tension his words had created.

“Ok, so what do we do then?” he asked as he gestured towards the pile of ingredients and equipment they’d gathered.

She spent the next few minutes showing him how to measure things out and mix things up. Before long, they had a pan on the go and a slowly growing stack of pancakes on a plate on the kitchen side. The cooking smells must have attracted the attention of the ghouls who were at home because they gradually started to appear in the kitchen. Sunshine started dishing them out. Aether, Swiss, Cumulus and Cirrus all thanked her and tucked in.

“These are great!” Aether said through a mouthful of pancake.

Everyone else made noises of agreement.

Itzal and Sunshine sat down and ate theirs, too. As Itzal looked around at the other ghouls and ghoulettes, he found himself appreciating a rare moment of peace. Usually, he was on high alert around others and he found these kinds of situations overwhelming. But actually, he was finding a semblance of peace in the company of others of his kind. He realised he had been so alone for the past two decades, merely surviving and waiting for his time to die. Being with other ghouls and feeling their presence calmed his soul like nothing else he’d experienced in his time on Earth. They were all so at ease with each other and shared little jokes and playful banter. Again, he found himself wanting that, too.

His face must have shown his melancholy emotions, as Sunshine touched his hand gently and brought him back to reality.

“What’s bothering you?” she asked quietly so the others wouldn’t hear.

“I’m fine,” he said, just as Omega walked in.

He greeted everyone and then turned to Itzal.

"Shay needs to speak with you. He told me to come and get you. Sorry to interrupt.”

Itzal sighed as the most peaceful day he'd had in a very long time looked like it was about to be ruined.