Sunflowers and Ink

Part 2: Chapter 15

Josephine was behind the cash register when they walked in, and the first thing she said was, "Meara, you look exhausted."

Meara chuckled wryly, but didn't deny it.

"Want an extra shot in your drink? On me."

He nodded. "Thank you."

The two men started with just their drinks and Josselin led Meara to a small, two-person table in the corner where they could continue to talk privately.

"If you don't want a curse," Josselin finally ventured to say, "I could work up some kind of protective magic. In the meantime, I could give you some war water to sprinkle around your store. And probably your apartment."

Meara stirred his coffee absently. Josselin was already halfway through his, and Meara hadn't even taken a sip.

"I'm not entirely sure what that is," Meara finally said. "I don't have a lot of experience with magic outside of the fairy work I do, which isn't really... it's not spellwork. It's intuitive work. It's different."

"It's basically just oxidized iron nails in water, if you break it down to its parts," Josselin said. "But when you put it together it's a lot more powerful than that. It's a protective substance. All you need is a sprinkle to protect you. It won't stop her from making phone calls and all that bullshit, but it'll keep you safe from any potential repercussions."

Meara's head jerked up when Josselin swore. He sighed and took a sip of his coffee. "I'm sorry. She's just really pissing me off."

"It's okay. It doesn't offend me. You should see the things Stacey says when he gets angry," Meara laughed. "It just always surprises me. I know I've known you for a while, but sometimes you still seem too mellow to swear." He shook his head and finally tried his coffee. Very, very strong. He'd be going for hours after this. Thanks, Josephine. "But, anyway, lets try that. After hours, tonight?"

Josselin nodded. "I have an appointment at six, but it's just a small inner arm piece, so it should only take forty five minutes or so. You can come hang out with us, or wait at my place, or come back over here or whatever."

"I'll come hang out with you," Meara said.

Josselin smiled.

The rest of the day, was, thankfully, uneventful. At 6:00, Meara locked up and went next door. Josselin was already with his appointment, so Meara let him be and approached Sara, instead.

"Hey!" she grinned.

"Hey."

"Josselin told us you'd be stopping by," she said. She put her magazine down and pulled a stool out from between her and the wall. She pushed it out to the side of the desk. "Have a seat," she said. "He shouldn't be more than an hour."

Meara sat, propping up his feet on the bar between the stool's legs. "Thanks," he said softly.

"How are you feeling?" she asked. "A little better at least, if you're back to work?"

Meara looked up from his hands, between his legs. "I'm still really tired, but I'm getting there," he said. He offered a weak smile. Sara smiled back sympathetically.

"I feel you," she said. "I got hit hard by the flu last year. It sucks."

They made small talk for a while, pausing occasionally so Sara could ring up a client or answer the phone. Eventually, Meara grew quiet, too tired to try to force a conversation he wasn't sure how to have, and Sara went back to her magazine. Finally, Josselin's client approached the desk so he could pay, and Josselin rested his hand on Meara's shoulder.