Chapter 11 Chase
Chase
Stepping into a sex toy shop with Sagitta was, oddly, not as awkward as I thought it would be.
It was a locally owned co-operative that I’d passed on the street many times, but had never been brave enough to enter until now.
I was a little nervous for the first few seconds until we were greeted warmly by somebody of indeterminate gender whose name tag read “Alex.”
“Hey, folks! Can I help you with anything?” they asked.
Sagitta stiffly shook his head. He stared at the walls instead of anything in particular. “No, thank you.”
“Yeah, we’re good for now,” I confirmed with a smile. “Thanks, though.”
Alex offered help if we had any questions before leaving to help another customer. Right before they turned around, I noticed the trans flag pin on their shirt.
“Wait, that’s cute. Do you sell those here?” I asked, pointing to the pin.
Sagitta pointedly turned his head towards me like an owl.
Alex beamed as they examined the pin in question. “Oh, this? Yeah, we sell them up by the counter. I can set one aside for you, if you’d like.”
“Sure.”
After Alex left, I noticed Sagitta regarding me closely.
“What’s up?” I asked.
“I... Nothing,” he murmured. After a loaded pause, he said, “That pin. Are you...?”
It took me a second to understand what he was asking.
“Oh, no, I’m not trans,” I explained. “It’s for my best friend, Lily. She loves cute stuff like that.” Wanting to be sure, I asked, “It wouldn’t, like, be a problem if I was, would it?”
“No,” Sagitta stated firmly. “Sorry. I was just surprised.” His mouth curved into a smile, and almost imperceptibly, the corners of his eyes softened. “Although I suppose I shouldn’t have been. I already knew you were a kind person.”
I blushed at his random compliment. “Huh?”
“Nothing. Let’s look at the dildos.”
My cheeks flushed hotter at the casual way he mentioned it, but once I followed him to the colourful display rack, I got over my embarrassment. It felt like shopping at any other store, except more fun.
“So we’re in the sex toy store,” Sagitta said under his breath. “Does the demon have anything to say about it?”
“Now that you mention it, Faust’s been suspiciously quiet since we got here,” I mused. “Maybe he was telling the truth.”
Sagitta crossed his arms. “I highly doubt that.” He paused in meditative silence, then picked up a lime green dildo. “But for argument’s sake, let’s pretend he was. What exactly does he find repellent about this place? Surely this demon from Hell isn’t a pearl-clutching Puritan.”
I gulped at the sight of the fake dick in Sagitta’s grip being wielded like a weapon. He looked ready to beat Faust to death with it, if that was what it took to exorcise him.
“I dunno. Like I said, he’s been quiet,” I admitted. “Should I try talking to him?”
Sagitta frowned. He’d instructed me to ignore Faust, but now that he was absent, he seemed torn. He paced back and forth, still clutching the dildo as he thought hard and long about what to do.
“Yes. Do it,” he decided. “See if Faust responds.”
“Okay.”
I searched for him in my mind, but his annoying voice was nowhere to be heard. It was like he popped out for a break.
“Weird,” I mumbled. “He’s not talking to me. Usually I can at least feel him there, you know? But right now, nothing.”
Sagitta’s eyes flashed with intrigue. “I see.” He fixed his gaze on the dildo, then back at me. “May I hit you with this?”
“Um, what?”
“Faust prevented me from harming you this morning,” he explained. “But if he’s truly gone—at least for the moment—I should be able to strike you without his interference.”
That made sense. Sagitta wasn’t beating me with dildos for fun. He was only doing his job.
I shrugged. “Sure, dude. You’re the expert. Do what you gotta do.”
Sagitta stepped back, readied his aim, then walloped me in the arm with the silicone dick. It hit me with a thud and a dull smack of pain.
“Ow!” I cried.
“Is everything okay back there?” Alex called, shooting us a nervous glance from the front counter.
“Yeah, sorry,” I replied, giving them a thumbs up. “It’s all consensual.”
Alex nodded in relief. “Great! Maybe next time you can do that at home, with purchased merchandise instead?”
Sagitta grimaced in shame. He lowered the lime green dildo into the shopping basket.
“Now I feel like I have to buy this...”
I chuckled. “It’s a symbol of our friendship.”
Sagitta flashed a genuine smile that made something stir in my chest. He’d agreed we were friends, but... what if, deep down, I wanted to be more than that?
“He’s really not speaking to you?” Sagitta asked, arching a brow at me.
“Faust? No.”
“Interesting.” He scanned the wall of fancy silicone sculptures and murmured, “Do these function as a ward somehow? And why?”
“Beats me. All I know is he hasn’t said a word since we got here.”
Sagitta glanced curiously at the front door. “Is the entrance protected with holy magic I didn’t notice?”
I shrugged. “No clue. Unless the rainbow ‘everyone is welcome’ sign doesn’t apply to demons.”
After a moment of deep thought, Sagitta thrust the shopping basket at me. “Here. Fill this with anything that grabs your eye. If sex toys are all it takes to keep the demon at bay, I’m satisfied. I’m going to search the perimeter for any potential wards.”
“Okay,” I said. Then I picked up the nearest toy—a sea blue dildo in the shape of a tentacle—and blanched at the price tag. “Uh, hey, Sagitta? Who’s paying for all this?”
“I will.” He smirked over his shoulder. “It’s a business expense.”
I blushed as he strode confidently away. Sometimes I wondered if he knew how cool he was.
After adding the blue dildo to the growing pile, I walked around the shop looking for new additions.
But was this actually going to work? Would a few hundred dollars’ worth of sex toys be enough to make Faust leave my body?
I still couldn’t tell if he was holding his tongue, or if he had unceremoniously vacated my mind without even a goodbye.
I guess we’ll find out, I thought.
Eventually the rainbow of dildos all blended together and overwhelmed me. I could only put so many fake dicks in the basket before I got bored, so I moved on to a different section where they sold kinkier items. I was no prude, but I still blushed at the wall full of gags, flogs, and leather gear.
“Intrigued? Or not to your taste?” Sagitta asked.
I jumped at his sudden voice, then sighed. “Geez, you scared me.”
“I checked the shop for any sign of a ward or protective charm, but no luck.” His gaze settled on a simple leather collar low on the display. “That would look cute on you.”
His jarring switch from work-talk to dirty-talk made my face burn.
“Huh?”
“You know, because you’re kind of like a dog. Like a golden retriever.”
“I’m—what?”
Was he insulting me or flirting with me?
Sagitta suddenly turned away. “Sorry. Never mind.”
“No, no, wait. How do I remind you of a golden retriever? Is it because I’m blond?”
Sagitta tensed, clearly wanting to escape this conversation he’d accidentally started. “You know.”
“I really don’t,” I said, clueless. “Can you elaborate?”
His mouth straightened into a stiff line. “You’re loyal, and easygoing, and always in a good mood. Plus you’re friendly and charming, like a dog. People immediately like you.”
“You didn’t,” I pointed out.
“Because you disobeyed my instructions,” he grumbled. “But I like you now.”
My heart pitter-pattered. But I knew he didn’t mean it like that.
Probably.
I put my hand on my hip. “Okay, if I’m a dog, then are you a cat? Aloof and sharp and it takes a while for you to warm up to people?”
“I didn’t think about it that hard.”
I snorted. “But you’ve been thinking about me as a dog?”
“Forget I said anything,” Sagitta snapped, his cheeks darkening. “Let’s go already. Are you done with the basket?”
I couldn’t resist the urge to tease him one last time. “I dunno, should I toss the doggy collar in there, too?”
He shot me a death glare, then stormed to the front counter in a clear directive to hurry the hell up.
With a thrill of mischief, I buried the collar at the bottom of the basket. It wasn’t really my thing, but it was worth it if I could see Sagitta blush again. And maybe if he had the nerve to ask me to wear it, I’d give it a try.
When I caught up with him at the front counter, he helped me unload the smorgasbord of sex toys.
“Stocking up?” Alex quipped as they scanned the items.
“These aren’t for us,” Sagitta said quickly. “They’re for... research.”
Alex nodded. “Sure, whatever floats your boat.”
I stifled a grin. Sagitta was cute when he was flustered.
Then I recalled when he said I’d look cute in the collar. That statement hit me far too late, like a truck I didn’t see coming. My pulse kicked into overdrive, making my whole chest vibrate.
He didn’t seem like he was making fun of me. He sounded serious.
Normally, this would be when Faust offered his unwanted input, but he remained silent.
Or absent. Weirdly enough, I was starting to get worried.
I knew the whole point of Sagitta moving in for a week was to get rid of Faust, but it felt odd that the demon who loved the sound of his own voice had vanished without a word.
Alex reached the bottom of the basket and Sagitta’s eyes rounded at the sight of the collar I’d sneaked in. He didn’t make eye contact with me as Alex scanned the tag and put it in the discreet paper bag with everything else.
“Is that everything for today?” Alex asked.
Sagitta cleared his throat. “And... I’d like another one of those pride pins, please.”
Alex scanned a second trans flag pin, then finally checked us out. Sagitta tapped his card, took the receipt, and nodded at me to carry our big purchase.
On the way out, I asked, “Is that pin for you?”
He let the question linger, as if finding the right words. “No,” he said gently. “You inspired me to buy it for someone important in my life.”
I beamed a smile at him. He looked uncharacteristically happy, too, until he frowned and said, “Anyway, buying that collar was a low blow.”
A sputtered laugh escaped me. “Dude, you started it by calling me cute and comparing me to a dog. Do you want me to wear it or not?”
Sagitta missed a beat. Then another.
“I don’t know,” he mumbled, not meeting my gaze. “Do whatever you want.”
Not this avoidant crap again. Determined to get a straight answer, I swept in front of him so fast he nearly bumped into the bag.
“What do you want?” I asked.
His expression flitted from one unreadable emotion to another before finally settling on neutral determination. “I wanted to save you from the demon’s influence. That’s all.”
“Bullshit,” I said before I could stop myself.
“Excuse me?”
“C’mon, dude. You’re more than just your job. What do you want, Sagitta? Do you want me to wear the collar?”
My heart lurched in terror as the words spewed from my mouth. What was I doing? My stupid confrontation was going to make Sagitta retreat back into his shell... but I wanted answers. Answers to my own selfish desires.
Sagitta’s brows furrowed slowly. In a subtle twist of his head, he scanned the busy sidewalk.
“Fine. But not here,” he said under his breath. “Let’s go somewhere private.”
I was shocked he’d actually agreed to talk. I nodded silently, and fell into step behind him, following him wherever he led.
Shit, maybe I was more like a dog than I realized.