Chapter 19
Eddie rides his bike back to the Alexandria building after his visit to his family’s physician, Dr. Gob Lin.
(Yes they are a goblin with green skin and a small stature.
Yes they’ve heard the jokes. And yes, they find them hilarious much to their associates dismay).
He’d gotten a clean bill of health but his mind still dwells on what was discovered.
His magic is changing, in a way Eddie thought impossible after being told years ago he was closer to a human than a shifter. Though his mana reserves remain low, he seems to have awakened an affinity for druidic magic, common to shifters.
Upon further examination the doctor concluded that Eddie is simply a late bloomer, that perhaps before the year’s end he’d be able to shift for the very first time.
It’s the only possible explanation for the change in his magic, but he doesn’t believe it justifies what happened at ‘Shape of Brew’ last month.
People were terrified of him, paralyzed by his presence. Was that simply a prelude to the beast awakening within him? He doesn’t recall any of his siblings awakening like this. Then again, they had all first shifted early in their adolescence, as shifters usually did.
Dr. Lin warned Eddie that his first shift will be painful when it happens, especially since it was at such a later point in his life. Wolf shifter’s often changed for the first time during the first full moon after hitting puberty, so he should be prepared for any of the upcoming full moons.
None of that is what weighs heaviest on his mind.
The idea of a fated mate, something Eddie had resigned himself to never having, seems plausible now.
He imagined what it would be like so many times.
To find the one person who would complete his soul, to find the happiness his parents, friends and siblings had found.
What should have sparked hope in heart causes a knot to form in his guts. It’s the idea of leaving Hakeem and Jackson one day, two men he had known for hardly three months had become such an important part of his life. Would finding his mate make him feel the same way he does with them?
Eddie pulls up in front of the Alexandria Building, shrinks his bike down using the key fob and pockets it. He doesn’t know what the future holds for him, but for now he’s relieved there was no immediate threat to his health, even if he doesn’t know what the magic stirring inside of him means.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Seung-LaLune, welcome back.” Steven gives a small bow, adjusting his glasses when he raises his head back up. Eddie offers a small smile, mind still racing with questions.
“Good afternoon, Steven. Quiet day?”
“Yes, nothing out of the ordinary. A special delivery came for you, sir.”
Eddie pauses at the front desk, eyebrows slightly furrowed, “Special delivery?” Usually mail was sent to the mail slots in the lobby, anything too large or urgent would be handed to the front desk, but Eddie hadn’t ordered anything. “What came in?”
Steven retrieves a gilded envelope from under the desk, swirls of metallic pink and green coating its sides. Eddie recognizes the seal on the wax stamp, belonging to the ruling family of the Spring realm.
The Primaveras.
Eddie hadn’t realized the date with all the events that had transpired, the spring solstice ball is upon them.
They sent invitations to all noble families in the fey and magical realms, even to high profile families like Eddie’s.
He and his siblings received their own personal invitations when they reached adulthood, a sign of respect from the ruling family that they were their own people, outside of their family names.
He’s allowed a plus one, a privilege he never made use of in the years prior.
Perhaps he never had anyone to ask. He didn’t want to take Oswald or Bernard without the other.
But perhaps this year, he knows exactly whom to ask as his date.
Turning the invitation over in his hand, a realization dawns on Eddie, one that coaxes his lips into a grin. “Thank you, Steven. If you don’t mind me asking, did an invitation like this come in for Jackson as well?”
Steven’s eyes spark with a glimmer of understanding, one of his gray eyebrows shooting to his hairline.
Eddie can’t help the warm chuckle that escapes him, perhaps he was thinking too strongly to hide his intentions from the telepath before him.
A sly smile blooms across Steven’s face, who knew the man could look so devilish.
“Perhaps, sir. I do recall handing something off to Mr. Nocturne. He didn’t seem too excited to receive it, but it’s not my place to speculate. ”
Eddie’s smile wavers, the reason it took so long to cross paths with Jackson was because he avoided these types of social events for decades.
He steels his resolve, remembering Hakeem’s advice regarding magic, applying it to this scenario.
Don’t let fear hold you back, this year can’t be different if he lets anxiety cloud his mind and heart.
Thanking Steven, Eddie heads up to the penthouse. He stows the invitation into his jacket, his nerves still a buzz. He would figure out a way to ask Jackson to join him at the solstice ball, with Hakeem as one of their plus ones.
Arriving at the apartment, Eddie hears a commotion from behind the front doors. “Princess Bandit, get down from there this instant!”
“Jackson, be careful, she has a knife!” Mischievous chittering comes from what Eddie assumes is a very naughty young raccoon.
Opening the doors to the apartment, peeking in instead of announcing his arrival, he spots the cause of the commotion.
Princess Bandit is on top of the fridge, multiple cabinets tossed open, snacks and spices tumbling out of open the doors.
It seems she has a small paring knife in her left front paw.
Jackson is covered in flour trying to coax her down and Hakeem is trying to clean up the mess on the counter.
“Uh, hello? I’m home.” Eddie closes the door behind him as he walks into the apartment, all eyes turning to him.
“Hi, Eddie,” Hakeem looks up, flustered, from where he attempts to clean the mess on the counters, “So, Princess kinda got into…..everything. We were both busy and forgot to get her lunch. She took matters into her own paws, with varied results.” Hakeem cringes as he gestures to the mess in the kitchen.
Jackson huffs, one hand on his hip with the other rubbing his temple, “Now she’s armed and refuses to come down.” A hiss and chitter come from Princess Bandit on top of the fridge.
Eddie eyes dart to the small critter, “It’s a paring knife,” he says, eyebrow raised.
“It’s still sharp and she could hurt herself!” Snaps Jackson.
Eddie shakes his head and giggles at the sight before him, a domestic chaos he had become accustomed to come home to. “So why didn’t you just use a spell to bring her down or wish for the mess to be cleaned up?”
Both men stop in their tracks, a record scratch practically audible when they pause.
A certified genius in the fields of magic working on his PhD, and a ninety nine year old vampiric elf with more magic than half the city.
Princess Bandit chitters at them like she was laughing, seemingly too amused by the scenario.
Eddie makes his way over to the fridge and holds his arms out, “Come on, Princess Bandit, let’s get you lunch and clean you up.
” Princess drops the small knife at Jackson’s feet, causing him to jump a step back.
She leaps into Eddie’s arms and snuggles in close.
“You’re lucky you’re adorable.” He can’t help but laugh as he scratches her chin, all fluff and purrs.
Jackson and Hakeem tidy up the kitchen while Eddie keeps Princess out of trouble, a few pieces of fruit and attention doing the trick for the time being.
Jackson looks up at Eddie with a forlorn expression on his face, wallowing in his defeat at the paws of a small raccoon. “Please never mention this again.”
Hakeem’s distraught expression echoes the statement. “Is this the kind of thing that stops people from getting their PhD?”
Jackson pats him on the back as Eddie barks a laugh at the thought. “No, Hakeem, I think you’ll be fine on that front.”
After the kitchen is cleaned up and Princess Bandit settles down for a nap, Eddie and Hakeem head out for their shifts at work. Jackson is working from home, only partially to keep an eye on the little rascal they adopted into their home.
The idle click clacking of his keyboard and the soft snores coming from Princess Bandit on top of her cat castle are the only sounds filling the apartment.
Rain starts to pitter patter lightly on the terrace, the sound of droplets hitting the glass falling from a cloudy sky create a serene scene around Jackson.
A feeling of melancholy washes over Jackson.
He had grown accustomed to being alone for so many years, now in the quiet of his apartment his heart begins to yearn for the chaos of the morning.
He can do without the mess, the armed raccoon, or the embarrassment of being outwitted by said raccoon, but it was just so quiet without Hakeem and Eddie home.
His office downtown is always filled with the hustle and bustle of people talking aloud, scurrying off to meetings with clients and Wendy stopping by to fill him in on the latest circulating gossip.
When was the last time he craved the rowdiness and chaos that came with living with other people?
You remember little bat, don’t deny yourself that.
Not again. Jackson grows tired of hearing that voice whenever he feels low. Why now, after so many years of solitude does it constantly try to remind him of a past he would rather forget?
Forget them? Or what you did? How you ran.