Born To Die Part One - The Case Chase

Shapeshifter Shifted

Alexis scratches at the assortment of weapons she has, all covered in mud and blood. She fusses over her dagger; the tip is bent. Her loud music plays through her speaker, despite it being only eight in the morning. Rain drizzles down the windows, the sun clawing desperately at the clouds, begging for freedom. She begins to hum along to a rather busy rock song.

'Morning,' A cold, husky voice comes from the bottom of the stairs. Alexis turns the volume down via her phone to see a rather frantically put-together Ashton. With his hair scraped back from his face, his glasses lopsided, his large black t-shirt, light blue joggers, and the darkest circles she's ever seen around his eyes, she feels concern well in her gut.

'Hey Ashton,' She replies, an eyebrow raised, 'You don't look all right.'

He groans in exasperation, 'I got a message from Yen Yamaguchi last night.'

'Is something wrong with her?'

'The hospital found out she was magic and made her leave.'

'Isn't she still...?'

'Recovering from her gunshot wounds? Yes, Alexis, she is. She told me that her husband took her home and is still looking after her, but that doesn't make it better.'

Alexis slams down the weapons in the sink with a loud clang. The coffee pot begins to whistle shrilly, working into both of their brains.

'She'll come back for the next SPMP meeting, right? We could bring this up,' Alexis turns off the heat on the stove, grabbing three mugs from the cupboard. He shakes his head in response. She takes a loud exhale, the coffee pot's heat still coursing through.
Ashton tries to grab it, minimally burning his hand in the process. He swears under his breath.

'Nice music, Alexis,' Kristoffer says from the doorway.

'I forgot you were here,' She snarls in retaliation. He recoils, his eyes moving to the three mugs. He still looks weary and beat. Ashton meets his eyes.

'How'd you sleep? Do you want coffee?'

'I slept okay,' Kristoffer finds this desperate question odd. Ashton seemed to ache for answers to useless questions forever, 'And I would like coffee, thanks.'

Ashton nods, finally able to touch the coffee pot. He pours the coffee messily, spilling a few drops on the marble countertops. Alexis waltzes into the dining room with her coffee, humming a bassline to a different song. She shifts into a cat, jumping onto her chair. She quickly shifts back.

'So, Kristoffer,' Alexis suddenly says, her tone in fake warmth, 'How's your mum?'

'Oh, uh, yeah. She's fine. She's a bit better now she's home with my dad,' Kristoffer watches her shifting her hair into different colors. She simply nods, as Ashton brings the two remaining cups of coffee through. She takes a small sip. Kristoffer looks at his coffee; placed on a saucer with a spoon, two cubes of sugar, and a small jug of milk.

'You remembered?' He smiles at Ashton. He nods softly, taking a sip of his.

'Ugh, my mama called me yesterday evening,' She stands up from the table, shifting into an older lady with matching thick eyebrows and amber eyes, 'Ah, Alexis, why you never call? Stress your mama out. That's why hair go white. Have you been eat? You must, working against AMI must be difícil, eh?'

She shakes her jazz hands, making Ashton laugh. He covers his mouth. Kristoffer's throat makes a lump at the last sentence. He decides to distract himself with Ashton's laugh. Four years since he'd heard it, and it was still the same. His eyes crinkle like a paper bag, his freckled cheeks turning upwards. He could get lost in his eyes, deep crystal blue pools of light. He catches himself before he finds himself staring. He feels his cheeks burn.