ILLUSION || Jason Todd

FORTY-TWO

❝AND IT'S WRONG

AND I HATE THAT IT'S THE TRUTH❞

LITTLE MIX, NOBODY LIKE YOU

The following morning was spent with the uncomfortable rumble of stomach before Lorelei and Jason decided to get up for the day. Selfishly, the pair wanted to bask in the warmth of one another for far longer than necessary. A tight squeeze it had become, but it didn't matter to them; it was a comfortable tightness because of who it was spent with. That was until their stomachs were practically screaming with emptiness, which led them to a nice and quiet cafe for breakfast.

With their stomachs now full, the pair took on the walk back to the safehouse. With their rushed footsteps in hopes of not getting caught by anyone - Bruce or Alfred in particular -, the journey was shortened by a lot. Not every corner of Park Row was run down but still, the young mage was happy to see the riches of Bruce's safehouse when it came into sight.

Then an unsettling motion swirled within her stomach. Her intuition warned her yet again, something she would not ignore this time.

The first thing they were met with within the elevator was a note taped to the mirror. From Rose, according to Jason who grabbed it before Lorelei could. He told her the brief details, that Rose was heading to help the Titans and reform her lying. Then something about finding forgiveness and contacting her if they ever found it, which earned a scoff from the blue eyed boy and a rip down the middle.

She was gone, and according to her note, Deathstroke was in San Francisco with the plan of ending the Titans - again. One problem down, one to go.

Lorelei took nervous steps into the apartment, both her and Jason scanning the place for any obvious signs of intrusion or danger. None could be found, but there was a change that piped their interest as they wandered over to the living room.

A black box rested on the coffee table, standing like a sore thumb around the light exterior. Completed with a gold ribbon, bowed at the top, the package screamed luxurious and unwanted. The box itself wasn't big; just enough room to fit a small bag of apples within.

The pair immediately swarmed the gift, sitting on opposite sides of the coffee table with eyes undaring to move. They weren't sure how to react, in all honesty. Anything could be inside. From a bomb to a cake.

The white card folded in half resting on top of the box, underneath the bow, was also something they found unsettling to touch. It could be laced with anything. The white paper was addressed to one person, the gift becoming obvious who it was sent by from the second the cursive penmanship had been read.

Addressed to Lorelei, it sat taunting her with its existence. With a breath of encouragement, her mind bubbled with a certain type of curiosity with the acknowledgement there was only one true way to know what lay inside the box. She had to see, it would not kill her if her suspicion was correct. The ice blonde mage reached for the envelope with a slow motion, not wanting to cause too much movement for the uncertainty of the box.

"What if there's a bomb?" Jason quickly asked, rushing his words out as Lorelei was a centimetre away from making contact with the card addressed to herself. The young mage brought her eyes to meet his own, the boy visibly worried as he looked between the box and her hand.

The young mage paused her action, pulling back her hand towards her lap. "If it's from Archmage then it definitely wouldn't be." She shrugged, her mind finding no reason to be worried for her life. On the other hand, Jason's life? That is what made her worry.