The Rising - Ennead 2

Scene 13.6 - Sleeping with the Enemy

The surface of the blood mirror is disturbed. It ripples and bubbles whilst the two spectators try to calm it. It takes a while.

"Well there's a lesson you should learn. No spying on Magi." Phyllis groans as she rolls a kink out of her shoulder.

"Noted." Kelly replies, "But how do we know there's going to be one of them somewhere?"

"You're only thirteen. I can't teach you everything."

Kelly sticks out his tongue and promptly gets his ear tweaked again. After a moment he scowls and considers something before saying slowly, "I think we should stop now. Something doesn't feel right."

"We have one more go. Where do you want to go?" Phyllis says, ignoring her ward's opinion before muttering, loud enough for him to hear, "Chicken!"

He relents, "How about we try looking at something in the present? There's someone I'm curious about."

"Who?"

"Some guy called, Jason. Jason Mamoa.

#

The huge windows of Jason Mamoa's lodge are filled with the night sky and a breath-taking view of the darkened slopes of the mountain. It is a house anyone would envy. Trust me.

The man himself is tall and well-built for someone his age. Even though his goatee and soul patch are peppered with flecks of grey, and a few wrinkles have built up here and there, he is still quite a hunk of a man.

He's looking at a drafting board when we begin to spy on him. Of course, this drafting board is not just for the former champion to design the surf boards he's famous for. He's flipped it over, revealing a pin board of the world map, complete with detective-like scribblings, fuzzy polaroids, and lengths of cord stretched between plastic push-pins.

His dark brown eyes are filled with concern as he glances at this smartphone. He's expecting something, and it appears that, whatever it is, it's late.

He pulls his attention away and back to the map. He picks out a felt tip pen and scribbles, in his large bold script: 'ELDEST?!' After a moment of pensive thought he underlines the word with double strokes. Either he did that to underscore the word's importance, or to calm his mood. Maybe even a bit of both.

A voice calls out of the kitchen, just a few yards away from the living room/home office. "Honey, are we all out of cayenne pepper?"

"I think so." He calls back, and then grins as he says to himself, "Thank God!"

"What was that?" his lady friend asks.

"Nothing dear." He replied. "Just thinking out loud."

A woman sashays into the living room. She's not especially pretty: rail thin, pale, twinkling sapphire eyes and bone straight, shoulder length blonde hair. Not a stunner, unless you like her sort of look.

She bears a plate with a whole-wheat sandwich. She sets the plate down gently and without saying a word, envelops him from behind in a hug.

Justin sighs and straightens out his hunched form. He gently turns around and returns the hug. His eyelids shutter unconsciously as he bends his head down to breathe in the scent of her hair.

"How did I get along before you?" He rumbles.

"Beats me," she grins, as she snuggles into his chest, "you didn't even know what to do with the magus you have in the basement."

He chuckles and then sighs.

"You're worried." She murmurs into his maroon t-shirt, "I could feel your tension before I came in. Is it the girl?"

He nods and then lets her go. She stretches out lazily like some sort of feline and then watches him move to one of the cane couches in the sunken living area.

"You know I'm not going to eat this late, right?" He says, gesturing towards the sandwich. "Of course," she smirks, flicking her hair and then striding down the steps to join him, "this girl needs a late night snack. Seems like my Mr. Mamoa is rather full of himself."

He chuckles and flips on the telly. She curls up next to him, and begins to devour the sandwich, rather messily if I might add.

This is becoming boring very quickly isn't it?

The lady soon falls asleep on Jason's shoulder. The surf board maker cum Aelf archon is still deep in thought. His eyes are unfocused as they stare at the moving lights of the widescreen TV.

After five minutes of absolute silence Jason finally unwraps his arm from around his girlfriend and eases her down on to the sofa. He tiptoes out of the living room and returns with a pillow and blanket.

When she's covered up, a small smile of satisfaction breaks across her face. She snuggles into the pillow and then mutters something unintelligible.

Jason strokes her hair for a minute, then murmurs gently, "I am concerned honey. I've lost Levi, I can't lose Manuela too."

He kisses her softly on her forehead and then moves off. As he pads out of the living area he says to himself, "Let's see what that little Coven witch can tell us, hmm?"

...

But hold on a minute. Shouldn't this little spyglass be following Jason Mamoa? Why are we still stuck here, staring at his lady companion?

Her eyes flicker open and she positively meows as she stretches out. Suddenly, she looks straight at her observers with a glint in her eye and grins.

"Hello Mephisto. It's been a while hasn't it?"