Codename Caligo

Chapter 5 - Caligo (TW: Murder)

Chapter Five 

[TW: Murder but it's okay]

---

"Ew." Elijah squinted.

Phineas turned around, facing away from the body of a man he had just driven a knife into. 

"Did you just say ew?"

The two nineteen year-olds stared at each other in the dark alley. A metallic tang of blood hang in the air, cold, grey fog emerged out of Phineas' breath as he slid a black cloth out of his pockets and wiped the remaining trace of dark red mess on his hands. The body of--- God knows who, Percival definitely knew who, considering he was the one that had them sent there in the first place. It laid motionless at Phineas' feet, a pool of crimson lays out as the blood became one with the concrete ground, making it seem like a regular puddle of water in the dark at first glance.

"I'm sorry, I don't know the protocol for witnessing a murder." Elijah put his hands in his pocket and out of the cold, burying his own face into the woolen scarf worn loosely around his neck. "And blood is unsightly."

"You might better built for this job than I might." Phineas laughed, in spite of the man that laid lifelessly on the cold ground. "When I was around fifteen, or sixteen--- my father had a man show me how these things work. I couldn't stand the sight of a dead person, so I got cold feet and ran away, I got a fever the next morning." Phineas sighed with a smile on his face.

"Well, you were that young. It's different." Elijah came closer.

"I suppose." Phineas muttered, glancing over at the boy that had by then standing beside him. "Huh." He looked down, examining Elijah's figure, wondering what could've gone through his father's mind to have hired him. Whatever it was, it definitely wasn't at first sight.

Elijah looked up. "What are you staring at?"

Phineas was drawn aback. "Sorry, it's nothing." He looked away, while Elijah didn't take his stare off Phineas, seemingly examining him back. 'So this is sir Percival's son.'  Elijah observed, lost in his thoughts.

"Why the look? Do you pity me or something?"

"No, you just look a mighty lot like your father."

"Is that a compliment?"

"Yeah." Elijah responded, unhesitatingly. 

"Well, that's what I'll take it as." Phineas reached his right hand towards Elijah, after having it thoroughly cleaned. "Phineas, Phineas Beaumont."

"I know." Elijah looked down at the hand that Phineas had extended.

"I know you know--- but this is what people do when they first meet each other, Elijah."

Elijah lifted his head, meeting Phineas' sincere eyes. He smiled, taking his hand.

"Elijah, Elijah Pierce. I have a feeling we'll get along."

"I hope that feeling is right." Phineas laughed.

---

"But of course, I was wrong. He's only about slightly less than half a douchebag his father is. I never had a knack for reading people's impressions." Elijah squinted as the sun hit his eyes through the front windshield of the car. Noah reached his hand towards the sun visor on Elijah's side to put it down, looking over at Elijah's face, assuring that the sunlight had stopped bothering him. Elijah's head turned ninety degrees over to Noah who was sitting in the front passenger seat. He smiled. "How flattering."