jossjuniper

[jossjuniper]

It seemed odd that he might be sheepish now, discovering her home as an extension of herself and feeling shy to verbalize it. There was a great many things she could do, even when she was fully formed and not in her current state, but reading minds was not one of them. Disinterested in seeming coy, she watched his face and studied his body, searching for things in the language he might be speaking without words. There were times when he great quiet, after stretched periods of sarcasm and that confused her. There was little to be sorry for and even less room for pity, or at least so she thought.

It felt strangely intimate, him being there. No one had ever come here. It felt like a blind date, shuffling into their house and taking your clothes off - the anxiety of what you might encounter and the scrutiny of what lie underneath your clothes for them to see. Her clothes her house, Joss suddenly became much more critical of how she’d left it and how it was being received - despite the state of his own apartment in comparison. The sheen layer of dust apparent on her appliances, the clothes and assorted items that would have otherwise found their place had she returned home. The less bothered she became about her mortality the more she focused on the cleanliness. She never even thought about smells, never crossing her mind now that she lacked the sense.

Like a puppy looking back for acceptance, she leaned forward to look as if herself in suspense at what he might find behind the fridge door. To her surprise they both found that not much was spoiled in there, an indication that soothed her in more ways than one. For starters, it saved her the embarrassment of a rotten fridge but also meant that she hadn’t been gone for all that long, even if the estimate was still in the air. What didn’t surprise her was what happened next as he opted for just above at what she housed in the freezer. A wave of unjust jealousy ran through her and she pushed it down, if not for anything but seeming absolutely childish.

“I’m starting to think the more you know about me the less I want you to know.” All she had to say would feed in to his jests, but her back was against the wall. She wasn’t going to lie. “I work at a parlor and do readings. Palm, tarot, sometimes connecting with the dead, ironically.” She sighed and her voice dragged with it, practically waiting on the ridicule. “Tourists get really into it in places like this. A lot of people don’t believe it, mostly just do it for fun. But it’s not bad money, I make my own hours.” She shrugged, feeling as though the shame she’d never had for playing into her craft was never as embarrassing as it was now. “I hate being told what to do so I couldn’t stand, like, having a “boss”.”

Watching on as he slipped a spoon under running water and shoveling it into the ice cream, she chuckled. “Deeply millennial, I’m not that young but, thank you.” She smiled warmly, hand at her chest in regard.

Joss scoffed, giving no room for another snide comment at how right he thought he might be for the words could not form in her head. She even felt like she could give up at that point, a sudden dip in the urge to finally let something go, but it was short lived. An open, crooked smile formed in her mouth and stayed there, watching as he pulled an imaginary pen from the crook of his ear to write on an equally invisible notepad in thin air. “When you’re done writing a list of all those jokes maybe you should write a song, too.” Her eyes rolled, a common occurrence now as they crossed the threshold of leaves and cover of long hanging tree branches to reveal a small cottage of a home.

In an ideal world, someone’s first introduction to her home would be under less scrutiny given that they would have known nothing about her supernatural status - but she was no longer afforded that luxury. Her home, albeit probably exactly what he would have pictured outside of a black and tattered shack meant to lure children, was still as cozy and quaint as she’d remembered however long ago that may have been. Not many people had seen it, under the condition that she wanted them to it was otherwise shielded by a spell that kept it under somewhat of a concealment, not that he would have noticed a difference given she’d led him right through it.

He seemed to be enjoying himself too much to the point where his hunger and its lingering impact of anger subsided for short moments, amused by one of the many things she had said to him. It was nice to hear him laugh even if she’d known him for a short while, and the smile on his face was warm and charming. It made sense why he had such a hard time with women, for when he lacked such warmth his dead eyes and stern mouth made him look withdrawn and nearly lifeless- not anything like how he looked to her now. Joss returned the warmth as she looked back at him, more inclined to share his joy now that he’d seemed more hopeful in the belief that she was all that she said she was.

“Oh I will, you don’t have to worry about that.” she didn’t want to fuss over it, or think on it until it was absolutely important. It still felt sour and stung, especially now that she couldn’t sate the nostalgia of returning home, feeling and smelling everything around her for herself. Her hand lifted softly and unlocked the door, leading the way as they made their way through her home, which seemed to open up the further they entered. “Well…..this is it.” Everything was left untouched, a jacket hanging over the end of her couch where she’d left it, an open book on the table beside it. “No black cats or cauldrons but it’s a home. And I don’t have to pay rent on it, so.” There were logs still in the fireplace, and she made a point to start as they walked by, illuminating the room even though the many windows brought in the light from outside. Through the living room into the kitchen she led him, feeling for the first time in a long time that she might be safe.

Suddenly very grateful that the last thing he’d done was having been uncharacteristically clean and done her dishes, the sink was empty. “You’ll have to tell me what in my fridge isn’t expired - I don’t know how long it’s been since I’ve been away.” She wondered, half worried to check herself even if she could open the fridge with a wave of her hand. It simply couldn’t have been that long. “I mean, take whatever you want, in the cabinets there’s a ton of shit I know is still good. I don’t know how much of a chef you are but you’re welcome to whatever you want. When you’re done with that I have a bunch of sweaters that I’m sure would fit you if you want to change into something different. There’s also wine in the lower cabinets that I’m jealous I can’t enjoy with you, but you’re welcome to that, too.”

[jossjuniper]

Joss scoffed, giving no room for another snide comment at how right he thought he might be for the words could not form in her head. She even felt like she could give up at that point, a sudden dip in the urge to finally let something go, but it was short lived. An open, crooked smile formed in her mouth and stayed there, watching as he pulled an imaginary pen from the crook of his ear to write on an equally invisible notepad in thin air. “When you’re done writing a list of all those jokes maybe you should write a song, too.” Her eyes rolled, a common occurrence now as they crossed the threshold of leaves and cover of long hanging tree branches to reveal a small cottage of a home.

In an ideal world, someone’s first introduction to her home would be under less scrutiny given that they would have known nothing about her supernatural status - but she was no longer afforded that luxury. Her home, albeit probably exactly what he would have pictured outside of a black and tattered shack meant to lure children, was still as cozy and quaint as she’d remembered however long ago that may have been. Not many people had seen it, under the condition that she wanted them to it was otherwise shielded by a spell that kept it under somewhat of a concealment, not that he would have noticed a difference given she’d led him right through it.

He seemed to be enjoying himself too much to the point where his hunger and its lingering impact of anger subsided for short moments, amused by one of the many things she had said to him. It was nice to hear him laugh even if she’d known him for a short while, and the smile on his face was warm and charming. It made sense why he had such a hard time with women, for when he lacked such warmth his dead eyes and stern mouth made him look withdrawn and nearly lifeless- not anything like how he looked to her now. Joss returned the warmth as she looked back at him, more inclined to share his joy now that he’d seemed more hopeful in the belief that she was all that she said she was.

“Oh I will, you don’t have to worry about that.” she didn’t want to fuss over it, or think on it until it was absolutely important. It still felt sour and stung, especially now that she couldn’t sate the nostalgia of returning home, feeling and smelling everything around her for herself. Her hand lifted softly and unlocked the door, leading the way as they made their way through her home, which seemed to open up the further they entered. “Well…..this is it.” Everything was left untouched, a jacket hanging over the end of her couch where she’d left it, an open book on the table beside it. “No black cats or cauldrons but it’s a home. And I don’t have to pay rent on it, so.” There were logs still in the fireplace, and she made a point to start as they walked by, illuminating the room even though the many windows brought in the light from outside. Through the living room into the kitchen she led him, feeling for the first time in a long time that she might be safe.

Suddenly very grateful that the last thing he’d done was having been uncharacteristically clean and done her dishes, the sink was empty. “You’ll have to tell me what in my fridge isn’t expired - I don’t know how long it’s been since I’ve been away.” She wondered, half worried to check herself even if she could open the fridge with a wave of her hand. It simply couldn’t have been that long. “I mean, take whatever you want, in the cabinets there’s a ton of shit I know is still good. I don’t know how much of a chef you are but you’re welcome to whatever you want. When you’re done with that I have a bunch of sweaters that I’m sure would fit you if you want to change into something different. There’s also wine in the lower cabinets that I’m jealous I can’t enjoy with you, but you’re welcome to that, too.”

“It’s like your special skill.” Eyes glazing over suddenly set in focus and turned over to him, pointedly as to her knowledge and his lack thereof. “Talking about things you don’t know about and being right about half of them.” Keeping in pace with his walk was easy, not that she would notice the difference, but even now when he argued with her his back almost hunched, same frustration collecting in his brow. In the moments following, her eyes rolled back into her head as if it were the least surprising thing he’d said all day. She found herself settling into his eventual habits and mannerisms, the way he continued to leave one subject just to round back around to it later. Still unconvinced she was what she said she was, Joss now knew the neglect in his gift was probably half rooted in disbelief, as with much everything else.

“Me not being able to prove I’m a witch, which…I did already by the way, does not mean I’m not. I am one. I’m sorry you can’t fit me into whatever movie variation makes the most sense, but coming from you it shouldn’t matter. Anyone who’s got this little marbles in the bag isn’t allowed to pass judgement on me.” She waved her hand in the air, moving at a steady pace, turning her feet as he followed, towards a less residential and more wooded area. “And don’t make a fucking comment about me living in the woods. Be…original.”

Sighing again as he followed, she allowed him the curtesy of at least letting him ramble before she chimed in, fighting the urge to interject. “Your obsession with being in jail and becoming someone’s bitch is concerning and maybe you should reflect on that first.” She pointed a finger at him, leading him closer to her place. It wouldn’t be much longer, five or ten minutes at the most. The city was starting to tuck itself behind the trees and the quiet had almost begun to envelop them. It was strange for her to come this way with someone by her side, as most of the time she never left home or did during odd hours. She even hated chancing the idea of someone following, as ironic as it seemed now.

“I don’t know I feel like you enjoy being bossed around by a woman.” Now she smiled, looping back to picking on things she knew would make him flustered, happy to veer away from things that were either an argument or harsh truth. “No control in life so having someone control you in bed kind of thing.” Her eyebrows rose in suggestion, light chuckle when she opened her mouth to continue. “You think if I could find a way to make myself whole again it’d be so you could fuck me with a candle?” Another laugh met the air. “Unfortunately praise and approval isn’t my kink, per se. Probably a bit more like what you were doing before but with less apathy and more direction. Generally I like being told what to do, but I don’t think you have the strength or the nutrients.” She sighed into a smile. “Maybe a few home cooked meals and a seance and we can find some common ground. Maybe after you’ve borrowed an oversized shirt from my closet or something, that way you could focus on my holes instead of the ones in your jacket.”

[jossjuniper]

“It’s like your special skill.” Eyes glazing over suddenly set in focus and turned over to him, pointedly as to her knowledge and his lack thereof. “Talking about things you don’t know about and being right about half of them.” Keeping in pace with his walk was easy, not that she would notice the difference, but even now when he argued with her his back almost hunched, same frustration collecting in his brow. In the moments following, her eyes rolled back into her head as if it were the least surprising thing he’d said all day. She found herself settling into his eventual habits and mannerisms, the way he continued to leave one subject just to round back around to it later. Still unconvinced she was what she said she was, Joss now knew the neglect in his gift was probably half rooted in disbelief, as with much everything else.

“Me not being able to prove I’m a witch, which…I did already by the way, does not mean I’m not. I am one. I’m sorry you can’t fit me into whatever movie variation makes the most sense, but coming from you it shouldn’t matter. Anyone who’s got this little marbles in the bag isn’t allowed to pass judgement on me.” She waved her hand in the air, moving at a steady pace, turning her feet as he followed, towards a less residential and more wooded area. “And don’t make a fucking comment about me living in the woods. Be…original.”

Sighing again as he followed, she allowed him the curtesy of at least letting him ramble before she chimed in, fighting the urge to interject. “Your obsession with being in jail and becoming someone’s bitch is concerning and maybe you should reflect on that first.” She pointed a finger at him, leading him closer to her place. It wouldn’t be much longer, five or ten minutes at the most. The city was starting to tuck itself behind the trees and the quiet had almost begun to envelop them. It was strange for her to come this way with someone by her side, as most of the time she never left home or did during odd hours. She even hated chancing the idea of someone following, as ironic as it seemed now.

“I don’t know I feel like you enjoy being bossed around by a woman.” Now she smiled, looping back to picking on things she knew would make him flustered, happy to veer away from things that were either an argument or harsh truth. “No control in life so having someone control you in bed kind of thing.” Her eyebrows rose in suggestion, light chuckle when she opened her mouth to continue. “You think if I could find a way to make myself whole again it’d be so you could fuck me with a candle?” Another laugh met the air. “Unfortunately praise and approval isn’t my kink, per se. Probably a bit more like what you were doing before but with less apathy and more direction. Generally I like being told what to do, but I don’t think you have the strength or the nutrients.” She sighed into a smile. “Maybe a few home cooked meals and a seance and we can find some common ground. Maybe after you’ve borrowed an oversized shirt from my closet or something, that way you could focus on my holes instead of the ones in your jacket.”

“I want to let that one go but that’s a deep cut. Deeper because you know literally nothing about the practice.” She paused. “Technically, yes, witches usually are in covens instead of just being solitary.” She smiled to herself as he got ready for yet another aimless walk, her own ego fresh off a scathing and ignorant guess. “Dickhead.” She added once a few more moments had passed. It was one of the few widely spread beliefs and myths about witches that just happened to be true, even if most of his assumptions seemed outlandish.

Like he might instead be holding a microscope concentrated by sun right into her chest, she felt the sting of insecurity from his thoughtless comment. It wasn’t something she tried to sit with for long periods of time, especially given how many years had passed already. Being a lone witch wasn’t completely out of the question, or even taboo, but it certainly didn’t feel good. Through no fault of her own had she ended up alone, many of her own friends moving from town to safer spaces, no family left within the practice to join her. Staying behind was a choice made mainly due to nostalgia. What felt familiar and comfortable soothed her, and for what she imagined up until now, safe. Even if the idea rattled her, it made the most sense that her friends and family’s leave could correlate to the very reason she now hung in limbo, but like much everything else she opted not to dwell too long on the thought.

She peered over at him as he rustled his things back in his pockets wearily, waiting patiently for him to collect all his items back on his person. An unexpected laugh filled her mouth, a smile stretching across her lips. “Okay, you little freak.” She charged with amusement, thoroughly enjoying his lapse of judgment and the embarrassment that came along with it. “I’m not opposed to a little back door action, probably not with a candle, but..” She shrugged, smile still lingering as he fought against his slick mouth and shoved his wallet in his pocket as they made their way out.

“Well don’t get mad at me you’re the one without food.” Pushing back, she rolled her eyes as he made yet another quick and witty false remark. ““Oh I’m sorry I thought you were following me?” She narrowed her eyes at him as they made their way down the street, remembering her house was not too far from where they were now, even if it was a fairly unconventional route. “I feel like you get so bothered by the lack of control you have right now..” she sighed. “I feel like by now you should be used to it. Hopefully after I’ve fed you you’ll be a little nicer to me.”

[jossjuniper]

“I want to let that one go but that’s a deep cut. Deeper because you know literally nothing about the practice.” She paused. “Technically, yes, witches usually are in covens instead of just being solitary.” She smiled to herself as he got ready for yet another aimless walk, her own ego fresh off a scathing and ignorant guess. “Dickhead.” She added once a few more moments had passed. It was one of the few widely spread beliefs and myths about witches that just happened to be true, even if most of his assumptions seemed outlandish.

Like he might instead be holding a microscope concentrated by sun right into her chest, she felt the sting of insecurity from his thoughtless comment. It wasn’t something she tried to sit with for long periods of time, especially given how many years had passed already. Being a lone witch wasn’t completely out of the question, or even taboo, but it certainly didn’t feel good. Through no fault of her own had she ended up alone, many of her own friends moving from town to safer spaces, no family left within the practice to join her. Staying behind was a choice made mainly due to nostalgia. What felt familiar and comfortable soothed her, and for what she imagined up until now, safe. Even if the idea rattled her, it made the most sense that her friends and family’s leave could correlate to the very reason she now hung in limbo, but like much everything else she opted not to dwell too long on the thought.

She peered over at him as he rustled his things back in his pockets wearily, waiting patiently for him to collect all his items back on his person. An unexpected laugh filled her mouth, a smile stretching across her lips. “Okay, you little freak.” She charged with amusement, thoroughly enjoying his lapse of judgment and the embarrassment that came along with it. “I’m not opposed to a little back door action, probably not with a candle, but..” She shrugged, smile still lingering as he fought against his slick mouth and shoved his wallet in his pocket as they made their way out.

“Well don’t get mad at me you’re the one without food.” Pushing back, she rolled her eyes as he made yet another quick and witty false remark. ““Oh I’m sorry I thought you were following me?” She narrowed her eyes at him as they made their way down the street, remembering her house was not too far from where they were now, even if it was a fairly unconventional route. “I feel like you get so bothered by the lack of control you have right now..” she sighed. “I feel like by now you should be used to it. Hopefully after I’ve fed you you’ll be a little nicer to me.”

“They wouldn’t be telling me something you haven’t already been told a million times yourself.” She resolved, confident that was the case outside the great pleasure of their meeting. Besides, she was probably much more agreeable than this most times and given the circumstances she was at a certain disadvantage. Joss figured she was probably less charming while transparent and not tangible, and perhaps had she been a real woman she would’ve met a different person. Still, she was glad they met this way because at least she knew he was being honest.

“No one is asking you to be a ray of sunshine, I’m not looking for a miracle here.” She raised her hand in defense, scanning his hopeless eyes as his voice rose. Maybe that was just his regular base tone because he only softened it when he felt pity for her, and she suddenly found herself with a preference for the first. Joss watched his eyes light up with disbelief, fear and shock that this world was as a wicked and unbelievable as he’d previously thought. “Well yeah.” She chuckled at his question. Of course it had been her way of life for some time. Another laugh followed, this one with much less snark. “I wish I could shove candles in my ass for spells but that’s not how it works unfortunately.”

Joss looked at him inquisitively. “Don’t tell me you’re a dad, too.” Had she been tangible she would have offered a hand on his shoulder. “Pathetic and hot only works when you’re not a deadbeat.” Knowing the only thing worse than not sleeping this very instant was waking up on an empty stomach, Joss gave a sympathetic smile for his cause, snickering when he finally recognized how similar they were. “Way to assume I’ve been dead for a while,” She responded with an air of attitude. “I said they would expire eventually.“

Narrowed eyes focused on him as he slung on his boots, keeping her eyes on the equally dead ones that met hers. “Let’s not waste change on what could be a jarring embarrassment for me and we’ll walk okay?” She huffed, tapping her foot along the floor where it would muster no noise. “Maybe the walk will make you hungry enough to stop being so defiant. You know it’s never been this hard for me to get a guy back to my place. You should be so lucky.”

[jossjuniper]

“They wouldn’t be telling me something you haven’t already been told a million times yourself.” She resolved, confident that was the case outside the great pleasure of their meeting. Besides, she was probably much more agreeable than this most times and given the circumstances she was at a certain disadvantage. Joss figured she was probably less charming while transparent and not tangible, and perhaps had she been a real woman she would’ve met a different person. Still, she was glad they met this way because at least she knew he was being honest.

“No one is asking you to be a ray of sunshine, I’m not looking for a miracle here.” She raised her hand in defense, scanning his hopeless eyes as his voice rose. Maybe that was just his regular base tone because he only softened it when he felt pity for her, and she suddenly found herself with a preference for the first. Joss watched his eyes light up with disbelief, fear and shock that this world was as a wicked and unbelievable as he’d previously thought. “Well yeah.” She chuckled at his question. Of course it had been her way of life for some time. Another laugh followed, this one with much less snark. “I wish I could shove candles in my ass for spells but that’s not how it works unfortunately.”

Joss looked at him inquisitively. “Don’t tell me you’re a dad, too.” Had she been tangible she would have offered a hand on his shoulder. “Pathetic and hot only works when you’re not a deadbeat.” Knowing the only thing worse than not sleeping this very instant was waking up on an empty stomach, Joss gave a sympathetic smile for his cause, snickering when he finally recognized how similar they were. “Way to assume I’ve been dead for a while,” She responded with an air of attitude. “I said they would expire eventually.“

Narrowed eyes focused on him as he slung on his boots, keeping her eyes on the equally dead ones that met hers. “Let’s not waste change on what could be a jarring embarrassment for me and we’ll walk okay?” She huffed, tapping her foot along the floor where it would muster no noise. “Maybe the walk will make you hungry enough to stop being so defiant. You know it’s never been this hard for me to get a guy back to my place. You should be so lucky.”

“You didn’t believe me.” She insisted, voice leaning on the side of irritation. It was true most of his remarks were made in disbelief, and even now Joss felt like what she was mentioning was so minor that she said it with ease because she knew it was the least of what might worry him. “I’m not winning myself any points here but yeah, some do. I’m a bells at the door girl myself, but that’s half for the noise it makes. You’re so cranky,” she huffed. “You’re acting like I’ve just ruined Santa for you, I think it’s time to start reevaluating your expectations.”

Her smile was quick to fade, hearing him turn sour and snap at her with less patience than he had in the last few minutes. Her arms crossed at her chest though it did no work on making her look any more solid, or serious for that matter. He began on his apology and she could do nothing but roll her eyes at him. Joss would have otherwise entertained his ramblings, listed off on all the ways he was wrong and how his innate ability to misconstrue and make situations worse would get the better of him, but didn’t in anger. Her brows had pressed into a fitted knot, annoyed that an apology should even follow. It hurt in a childish manner, like she’d spent so long trying to plead her case that when he felt like he couldn’t take he’d shut her up.

She let him have his moments and then some. Joss tried to be sympathetic as holding grudges was not something in her nature. It felt frustrating trying to get him to understand, like she was meeting a wall with words falling flat. What’s worse was that it wasn’t even the worst, and that all the things he had to fear she’d left out of mentioning, not wanting to overwhelm him. It seemed even comical, as the rise of witchcraft had brought these simple things to the forefront so much so that it shouldn’t have even been an issue, but him she guessed it wasn’t.

A snort hid behind her laugh and superseded her frustration with him. “Of course that’s your name.” She sighed to bring herself no closer to relief, turning around to meander at more of the things in his house. Sometimes looking at his face made her feel smaller somehow, like she had something to prove. “If you’re gonna bitch about spell work then we’re just gonna have to go to plan B.” Joss looked over the tattered edges of his vinyls, thinking warmly of their next course of action. “Wanna come back to my place?” She smiled to herself, distracted by her current focus, turning her head at the perverted implication of her suggestion.

“There’s plenty of food there, so we don’t have to dive into a money spell since you’re obviously not ready.” She teased and half serious, as any more of his objections might spoil her mood entirely. “You’re not so far from where I live, maybe a 20 minute walk. I need my plants watered. I imagine the food will expire eventually, but it might be a good gage as to how long it’s been, since we have no other way to measure the difference.”

[jossjuniper]

“You didn’t believe me.” She insisted, voice leaning on the side of irritation. It was true most of his remarks were made in disbelief, and even now Joss felt like what she was mentioning was so minor that she said it with ease because she knew it was the least of what might worry him. “I’m not winning myself any points here but yeah, some do. I’m a bells at the door girl myself, but that’s half for the noise it makes. You’re so cranky,” she huffed. “You’re acting like I’ve just ruined Santa for you, I think it’s time to start reevaluating your expectations.”

Her smile was quick to fade, hearing him turn sour and snap at her with less patience than he had in the last few minutes. Her arms crossed at her chest though it did no work on making her look any more solid, or serious for that matter. He began on his apology and she could do nothing but roll her eyes at him. Joss would have otherwise entertained his ramblings, listed off on all the ways he was wrong and how his innate ability to misconstrue and make situations worse would get the better of him, but didn’t in anger. Her brows had pressed into a fitted knot, annoyed that an apology should even follow. It hurt in a childish manner, like she’d spent so long trying to plead her case that when he felt like he couldn’t take he’d shut her up.

She let him have his moments and then some. Joss tried to be sympathetic as holding grudges was not something in her nature. It felt frustrating trying to get him to understand, like she was meeting a wall with words falling flat. What’s worse was that it wasn’t even the worst, and that all the things he had to fear she’d left out of mentioning, not wanting to overwhelm him. It seemed even comical, as the rise of witchcraft had brought these simple things to the forefront so much so that it shouldn’t have even been an issue, but him she guessed it wasn’t.

A snort hid behind her laugh and superseded her frustration with him. “Of course that’s your name.” She sighed to bring herself no closer to relief, turning around to meander at more of the things in his house. Sometimes looking at his face made her feel smaller somehow, like she had something to prove. “If you’re gonna bitch about spell work then we’re just gonna have to go to plan B.” Joss looked over the tattered edges of his vinyls, thinking warmly of their next course of action. “Wanna come back to my place?” She smiled to herself, distracted by her current focus, turning her head at the perverted implication of her suggestion.

“There’s plenty of food there, so we don’t have to dive into a money spell since you’re obviously not ready.” She teased and half serious, as any more of his objections might spoil her mood entirely. “You’re not so far from where I live, maybe a 20 minute walk. I need my plants watered. I imagine the food will expire eventually, but it might be a good gage as to how long it’s been, since we have no other way to measure the difference.”

“No burning candles is a thing.” She pointed a finger out from under its crossed position. “And animal sacrifices, too, to be honest. Different strokes for different folks.” Joss looked off into the distance for a few moments then resumed when she caught the thought in passing. “You can burn a candle to make contact with spirits, burn one for love, burn a candle to do harm on someone. Hexes and curses those are real, too. Like don’t touch any buried jars on land or in water, that sort of thing.”

“Usually the more accessible something is means it’s a surface level spell. It’s different for everyone but in my practice it’s a lot of open communication with ancestors, lost loved ones, sometimes friends or angels, “spirit team”, whatever.“

It felt like it the first time she’d taken him seriously. “Yeah, of course.” There was hunters for every supernatural creature, so she answered it with the same sentiment. Joss didn’t have the heart to tell him that hunters were the least scariest thing out there, so she left well enough alone. This was enough for one day. “They’re usually from a long line of other hunters, kind of like a family business thing. Most of them hunt with the goal of total extinction in mind but I guess they half-assed it with me. Maybe they wanted something, I don’t know.”

She laughed, smiling back at someone who seemed aghast to hear the horrors of the supernatural world to a mirror of settled contentment. It felt so commonplace to her now that his reaction made her almost feel bad for him. “I’m racist but you just spoke Spanish..right..” She nodded playfully with narrowed eyes. “Yeah, what’s your first name? I’d love to be proven wrong, in the rare instance that ever happens.”

Her eyes softened for a second, briefly moved by his sympathies, maybe because this time it didn’t feel so generic. “It’s fine. At least it can’t get any worse.” She smacked her tongue against her teeth, brows raising as she sighed it off, trying to convey a brief imitation of disdain. “Well act sorrier than you look. I’m not above a little lying for the sake of my vanity.” Joss made a face at him. “How bad do I need to make you feel before I can convince you to do a little spell with me?”

[jossjuniper]

“No burning candles is a thing.” She pointed a finger out from under its crossed position. “And animal sacrifices, too, to be honest. Different strokes for different folks.” Joss looked off into the distance for a few moments then resumed when she caught the thought in passing. “You can burn a candle to make contact with spirits, burn one for love, burn a candle to do harm on someone. Hexes and curses those are real, too. Like don’t touch any buried jars on land or in water, that sort of thing.”

“Usually the more accessible something is means it’s a surface level spell. It’s different for everyone but in my practice it’s a lot of open communication with ancestors, lost loved ones, sometimes friends or angels, “spirit team”, whatever.“

It felt like it the first time she’d taken him seriously. “Yeah, of course.” There was hunters for every supernatural creature, so she answered it with the same sentiment. Joss didn’t have the heart to tell him that hunters were the least scariest thing out there, so she left well enough alone. This was enough for one day. “They’re usually from a long line of other hunters, kind of like a family business thing. Most of them hunt with the goal of total extinction in mind but I guess they half-assed it with me. Maybe they wanted something, I don’t know.”

She laughed, smiling back at someone who seemed aghast to hear the horrors of the supernatural world to a mirror of settled contentment. It felt so commonplace to her now that his reaction made her almost feel bad for him. “I’m racist but you just spoke Spanish..right..” She nodded playfully with narrowed eyes. “Yeah, what’s your first name? I’d love to be proven wrong, in the rare instance that ever happens.”

Her eyes softened for a second, briefly moved by his sympathies, maybe because this time it didn’t feel so generic. “It’s fine. At least it can’t get any worse.” She smacked her tongue against her teeth, brows raising as she sighed it off, trying to convey a brief imitation of disdain. “Well act sorrier than you look. I’m not above a little lying for the sake of my vanity.” Joss made a face at him. “How bad do I need to make you feel before I can convince you to do a little spell with me?”

“I’m actually not worried about that at all.” She almost snorted laughing at the very idea. “You’ve been through too much to let a little hunger kill you. You’re living out of spite.” She waved a hand at him dismissively like she might be swatting at a fly, which ironically, was probably how he felt about her. He moved from the window and slunk into the couch, cigarette nestled between two fingers.

“It’s for cooking.” She tried to sound instructional but her contempt joined it. “We use it sometimes for what I guess you could say like a manifestation? It’s really basic stuff.” She laughed to herself, realizing they were never going to reach a point where anything she said was actually believable. “Well so there’s this thing - let’s just say your spirit team. It could be old family or friends, good spirits wanting to help, angels, whatever you can wrap your head around. There’s other ways to go about it, but you ask for something, write it on the leaf and burn it, that’s the gist.”

She spoke out with her hands, trying to make sense of what probably sounded like nonsense. “And you’re in luck because I’m a spirit.” Her hand was pressed to her chest now with an expression of pride. “And if you’re on your best behavior I can be on your team. Now it’s not super straightforward, no one’s gonna show up with a large check and balloons. You’ll find money on the ground, loose bills in an old coat, you get the idea. Not voodoo. That’s a whole other coven and a closed practice.”

He only seemed to give her attention when the shock settled in, like opening a can of worms. He’d have to find out some time or another, especially knowing his little gift didn’t seem to be going anywhere. “That would be my best bet.” She gave him another smile, exchanging a look of disappointment and experienced expectation. “Witchhunters, witchfinders.” She waved her hands and laughed, smiling at him with a little bit of fondness. Knowing much worse was out there than witches and ghosts, she almost felt like protecting him from the truth. He had no capacity to think about them now, especially when they posed no threat.

“No, it wasn’t a deer hunter, that’s actually.. I’m kind of insulted by that, actually.” She gave him a glance of dry disapproval. “They probably wanted something from me, I mean, they knew where I lived. I only remember walking and walking until I realized no one could see me. Couldn’t find my body, don’t remember how I died so I’m not stuck in a dreadful loop. Part of me thinks I might be around somewhere, which brings me back to my previous theory that it’s definitely someone skilled and not some low level zit hunting for game. And with the way you were looking at me earlier I’d say it was personal. I’ve laid down some solid cat in my days but I doubt it was my pussy that got me killed.” She crossed her arms again. “How about we start with why you don’t have a bay leaf in your house? The last name on that tombstone was Ramon, not sure why you don’t have a bay leaf but, okay. Are you nice to your neighbors you easedrop on, maybe they have a one.”

[jossjuniper]

“I’m actually not worried about that at all.” She almost snorted laughing at the very idea. “You’ve been through too much to let a little hunger kill you. You’re living out of spite.” She waved a hand at him dismissively like she might be swatting at a fly, which ironically, was probably how he felt about her. He moved from the window and slunk into the couch, cigarette nestled between two fingers.

“It’s for cooking.” She tried to sound instructional but her contempt joined it. “We use it sometimes for what I guess you could say like a manifestation? It’s really basic stuff.” She laughed to herself, realizing they were never going to reach a point where anything she said was actually believable. “Well so there’s this thing - let’s just say your spirit team. It could be old family or friends, good spirits wanting to help, angels, whatever you can wrap your head around. There’s other ways to go about it, but you ask for something, write it on the leaf and burn it, that’s the gist.”

She spoke out with her hands, trying to make sense of what probably sounded like nonsense. “And you’re in luck because I’m a spirit.” Her hand was pressed to her chest now with an expression of pride. “And if you’re on your best behavior I can be on your team. Now it’s not super straightforward, no one’s gonna show up with a large check and balloons. You’ll find money on the ground, loose bills in an old coat, you get the idea. Not voodoo. That’s a whole other coven and a closed practice.”

He only seemed to give her attention when the shock settled in, like opening a can of worms. He’d have to find out some time or another, especially knowing his little gift didn’t seem to be going anywhere. “That would be my best bet.” She gave him another smile, exchanging a look of disappointment and experienced expectation. “Witchhunters, witchfinders.” She waved her hands and laughed, smiling at him with a little bit of fondness. Knowing much worse was out there than witches and ghosts, she almost felt like protecting him from the truth. He had no capacity to think about them now, especially when they posed no threat.

“No, it wasn’t a deer hunter, that’s actually.. I’m kind of insulted by that, actually.” She gave him a glance of dry disapproval. “They probably wanted something from me, I mean, they knew where I lived. I only remember walking and walking until I realized no one could see me. Couldn’t find my body, don’t remember how I died so I’m not stuck in a dreadful loop. Part of me thinks I might be around somewhere, which brings me back to my previous theory that it’s definitely someone skilled and not some low level zit hunting for game. And with the way you were looking at me earlier I’d say it was personal. I’ve laid down some solid cat in my days but I doubt it was my pussy that got me killed.” She crossed her arms again. “How about we start with why you don’t have a bay leaf in your house? The last name on that tombstone was Ramon, not sure why you don’t have a bay leaf but, okay. Are you nice to your neighbors you easedrop on, maybe they have a one.”

“You’d be the only one doing the living so let’s not start there.” She huffed at him, getting particularly aggravated out of the blue that she wasn’t materialized enough to whip a slap on the corner of his arm. There was a permanent look of gloom on his face, and even from where she stood she could hear the harsh crunches of stale cereal. She saved him from another slight, rolling her eyes as he kept on.

“Well you’ll get used to it, it’s not like there’s much money in the other thing either.” Joss felt herself mirroring his emotions, trying to shake it off before they both became miserable. “You’re so hung up on the possession thing are you sure this isn’t reverse psychology for what you actually want?” Done with having to watch him painfully eat that expired cereal, Joss turned to look around at some vinyls he had tucked into a cubby framed in dust. “There’s lots I don’t remember and it’s of course the most important shit at the end, but I guess the library would be our starting point. What would be interesting to see is if they’ve got me under missing persons or deceased.” She sighed as if she wasn’t talking shop about her own mortality.

“How much of it do you really want to know? I mean, an hour ago you thought this was all you.” She turned to face him, almost entirely sure he wasn’t ready, crossing her arms at her chest again. “It’s likely it would be someone like me, but it very well could have been a hunter.” She tried to measure the look in his eye, but her gut already gave it away. She knew he wasn’t ready to accept that there were far wilder things out there than her, but if they were going to be honest with each other she had no choice. “I think you should eat something substantial before we get into that, and not something that expired last fall.”

But whatever she said, now or before, stuck with him in an unpleasant way and caused him to have an outburst. It was very likely that it was a combination of things, at the top of the list sleep and adequate food the main aggravators. Joss knew enough that little would get done if he wasn’t getting his basic needs, and the part of her that felt his suffering didn’t react to his little tantrum. It was the least she could do as she figured he was already regretting it as it happened.

“Do you have any bay leaves lying around? I know you have a lighter..” She moved on quickly, not acknowledging his words. “I’ll work on getting out of here.” She watched as he blew smoke out of the window, hand now resting on her collarbone, unaware of how ironic her action of discomfort was. “But this isn’t going to work if you’re halfway dead. I want you to have an open mind, because it’s not going to work if you don’t believe it. That’s the whole thing.” She squeezed her fingers in quotations. “What do you want to do more right now, eat or sleep? We’ll start with one thing at a time.”

[jossjuniper]

“You’d be the only one doing the living so let’s not start there.” She huffed at him, getting particularly aggravated out of the blue that she wasn’t materialized enough to whip a slap on the corner of his arm. There was a permanent look of gloom on his face, and even from where she stood she could hear the harsh crunches of stale cereal. She saved him from another slight, rolling her eyes as he kept on.

“Well you’ll get used to it, it’s not like there’s much money in the other thing either.” Joss felt herself mirroring his emotions, trying to shake it off before they both became miserable. “You’re so hung up on the possession thing are you sure this isn’t reverse psychology for what you actually want?” Done with having to watch him painfully eat that expired cereal, Joss turned to look around at some vinyls he had tucked into a cubby framed in dust. “There’s lots I don’t remember and it’s of course the most important shit at the end, but I guess the library would be our starting point. What would be interesting to see is if they’ve got me under missing persons or deceased.” She sighed as if she wasn’t talking shop about her own mortality.

“How much of it do you really want to know? I mean, an hour ago you thought this was all you.” She turned to face him, almost entirely sure he wasn’t ready, crossing her arms at her chest again. “It’s likely it would be someone like me, but it very well could have been a hunter.” She tried to measure the look in his eye, but her gut already gave it away. She knew he wasn’t ready to accept that there were far wilder things out there than her, but if they were going to be honest with each other she had no choice. “I think you should eat something substantial before we get into that, and not something that expired last fall.”

But whatever she said, now or before, stuck with him in an unpleasant way and caused him to have an outburst. It was very likely that it was a combination of things, at the top of the list sleep and adequate food the main aggravators. Joss knew enough that little would get done if he wasn’t getting his basic needs, and the part of her that felt his suffering didn’t react to his little tantrum. It was the least she could do as she figured he was already regretting it as it happened.

“Do you have any bay leaves lying around? I know you have a lighter..” She moved on quickly, not acknowledging his words. “I’ll work on getting out of here.” She watched as he blew smoke out of the window, hand now resting on her collarbone, unaware of how ironic her action of discomfort was. “But this isn’t going to work if you’re halfway dead. I want you to have an open mind, because it’s not going to work if you don’t believe it. That’s the whole thing.” She squeezed her fingers in quotations. “What do you want to do more right now, eat or sleep? We’ll start with one thing at a time.”

“I can do that.” She tried to reason with him, meet him at the crossroads of their unnatural arrangement. It was fun, admittedly, to lay into him after he’d given her such a brutal greeting. But part of her watched him with endearment, helpless and formless to come to any real aid and feeling somewhat useless herself. “Alright,” she put her palm up in protest. “Not too much on the dead bit.” She opened her mouth to comment on the state of his face and how much more deceased he was looking than her. Per their agreement, she reined it in and tried to be a little less judgmental to the only person in the world who might be able to help.

“I don’t know,” she shrugged. “We could always try? I mean I can tamper with things, like your light. I bet I could do it with electricity, I’m sure that happens to you loads with other ghosts.” He looked spent and increasingly over her charade. “Well obviously.” Joss chided in, resting the weight she would’ve had on one leg as she crossed her arms with slight annoyance. “You know what maybe you should. No kind of cat frequents this apartment, clearly and maybe it would do you some good.”

Her eyes were narrowed but her temperament remained content. For the first time since their initial meeting, Joss took in her surroundings and slowed her interrogation as he sludged around and unfastened his pants until he was walking about in boxers and a white t-shirt. Nudity wasn’t such a foreign concept that the action moved her, but she certainly took note. It didn’t throw her off how comfortable he seemed to be in front of her, and with her sneaky side eye she got to admire what she had before, now with less fabric.

“You don’t want my help?” She urged him, trying to incite the idea of taking her help instead of trying to rush her out. “It’s not as simple as snapping my fingers but we can make do with what we have. If you trust me and really try to believe what I’m showing you. Otherwise it won’t work.”

“Me and my mom are fine,” she brushed away the thought, remembering it had been some time since they spoke, and no measure of extending an olive branch would be worth the realization that she was, to everyone else, still dead. “No one knows. So unless you want to make it worse, we could probably skip that step.” She sighed, trying to find an answer. “Library is a good idea..” Joss broke out into a short burst of laughter at his question. “Oh, plenty. One’s in the room with us now.” She looked over at him as he crushed cereal flakes between his teeth. “I’ve got a few shit ex-boyfriends who could go without another mention.” Her eyes fixed with concern. “When was the last time you had a proper meal? Some meat and vegetables.. A starch?”

[jossjuniper]

“I can do that.” She tried to reason with him, meet him at the crossroads of their unnatural arrangement. It was fun, admittedly, to lay into him after he’d given her such a brutal greeting. But part of her watched him with endearment, helpless and formless to come to any real aid and feeling somewhat useless herself. “Alright,” she put her palm up in protest. “Not too much on the dead bit.” She opened her mouth to comment on the state of his face and how much more deceased he was looking than her. Per their agreement, she reined it in and tried to be a little less judgmental to the only person in the world who might be able to help.

“I don’t know,” she shrugged. “We could always try? I mean I can tamper with things, like your light. I bet I could do it with electricity, I’m sure that happens to you loads with other ghosts.” He looked spent and increasingly over her charade. “Well obviously.” Joss chided in, resting the weight she would’ve had on one leg as she crossed her arms with slight annoyance. “You know what maybe you should. No kind of cat frequents this apartment, clearly and maybe it would do you some good.”

Her eyes were narrowed but her temperament remained content. For the first time since their initial meeting, Joss took in her surroundings and slowed her interrogation as he sludged around and unfastened his pants until he was walking about in boxers and a white t-shirt. Nudity wasn’t such a foreign concept that the action moved her, but she certainly took note. It didn’t throw her off how comfortable he seemed to be in front of her, and with her sneaky side eye she got to admire what she had before, now with less fabric.

“You don’t want my help?” She urged him, trying to incite the idea of taking her help instead of trying to rush her out. “It’s not as simple as snapping my fingers but we can make do with what we have. If you trust me and really try to believe what I’m showing you. Otherwise it won’t work.”

“Me and my mom are fine,” she brushed away the thought, remembering it had been some time since they spoke, and no measure of extending an olive branch would be worth the realization that she was, to everyone else, still dead. “No one knows. So unless you want to make it worse, we could probably skip that step.” She sighed, trying to find an answer. “Library is a good idea..” Joss broke out into a short burst of laughter at his question. “Oh, plenty. One’s in the room with us now.” She looked over at him as he crushed cereal flakes between his teeth. “I’ve got a few shit ex-boyfriends who could go without another mention.” Her eyes fixed with concern. “When was the last time you had a proper meal? Some meat and vegetables.. A starch?”

Joss thought she might have heard a groan as he sank into his mattress hopelessly, but maybe it was just her imagination. Still less than pleased at making new friends, she stayed some feet behind him as he wallowed in self pity and measured the new slew of mental burdens atop the many. Her head tilted to the side curiously, admiring the curve of his pants over his ass. Her eyebrows raised and her lips made a curt frown, mouthing an inaudible hum.

It carried on until he sprouted up in opposition, her eyes widening in unsurprised shock as he dejected whatever she had managed to say now. “Wow.” She added, nodding expectantly as he emerged with a quick rejection. “Relax no one’s asking for your hand in marriage and a pen to sign the lease. I know you like to move fast but I’m squatting here. No need to make this a romantic thing, I know being in proximity to a woman is difficult for you. Probably especially because I’m dead, since that seems to be the type of shit you’re into.”

A knowing smile crept on her face. “Joss.” Delighted to hear him care enough to ask, she refocused her energy on not letting him get to her, at least not for now. “Seeing as I don’t take up any space I don’t see why I should have to pay anything.” She argued, and started to look around the room and not at him. “I do think we should establish that I am going to need some kind of entertainment so I don’t go postal. I was thinking since it seems you have some vinyls we could listen to music? TV,” she shrugged. “Put on a little antique roadshow, I’ll be such a quiet roommate you won’t even know I’m here.”

He moved around to get more comfortable in his bed, looking like something might be sitting heavy at his shoulders as he leaned forward. “You’re taking a nap?” She almost sounded offended. “But I just got here.” Like it might be a valid enough reason to stay awake. “Do you want to start today, or are you asking me if I plan on being complacent? If you stay and don’t sleep we can talk all about them. Or you can nap and I’ll be complacent.”

[jossjuniper]

Joss thought she might have heard a groan as he sank into his mattress hopelessly, but maybe it was just her imagination. Still less than pleased at making new friends, she stayed some feet behind him as he wallowed in self pity and measured the new slew of mental burdens atop the many. Her head tilted to the side curiously, admiring the curve of his pants over his ass. Her eyebrows raised and her lips made a curt frown, mouthing an inaudible hum.

It carried on until he sprouted up in opposition, her eyes widening in unsurprised shock as he dejected whatever she had managed to say now. “Wow.” She added, nodding expectantly as he emerged with a quick rejection. “Relax no one’s asking for your hand in marriage and a pen to sign the lease. I know you like to move fast but I’m squatting here. No need to make this a romantic thing, I know being in proximity to a woman is difficult for you. Probably especially because I’m dead, since that seems to be the type of shit you’re into.”

A knowing smile crept on her face. “Joss.” Delighted to hear him care enough to ask, she refocused her energy on not letting him get to her, at least not for now. “Seeing as I don’t take up any space I don’t see why I should have to pay anything.” She argued, and started to look around the room and not at him. “I do think we should establish that I am going to need some kind of entertainment so I don’t go postal. I was thinking since it seems you have some vinyls we could listen to music? TV,” she shrugged. “Put on a little antique roadshow, I’ll be such a quiet roommate you won’t even know I’m here.”

He moved around to get more comfortable in his bed, looking like something might be sitting heavy at his shoulders as he leaned forward. “You’re taking a nap?” She almost sounded offended. “But I just got here.” Like it might be a valid enough reason to stay awake. “Do you want to start today, or are you asking me if I plan on being complacent? If you stay and don’t sleep we can talk all about them. Or you can nap and I’ll be complacent.”

Appalled, Joss scoffed and blew her lips together in a noise that could only be described as disbelief. “I’m curious or you are?” She was laughing now. “You wanna test out these hands and find out the hard way, that’s your choice. They’re probably fucking vaporous, the world’s most useless fleshlights. ” She put her hands out for a closer look, shrugging in defeat. “You know you’re something else, I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t have a girlfriend, I mean it’s beyond me.”

“Again, not my choice. In fact I think what might be good for you is to redirect that anger with the universe who basically threw you in my lap.” She tagged along as he drudged along. “Nothing is a coincidence.” She spoke like she knew, but to her it felt factual and had yet to defy her delusions. “How am I stalking you? We’re roommates.” Already she was throwing the word around like she’d stepped a foot inside his house before.

He had already slipped into his racing mind again even before she’d finished tearing into him, like something bigger might have been on his mind. She watched his eyes as they peered instinctively over the what she could only imagine was the smell that sifted into the streets, a well lit bakery with glass panels full of treats.

For curiosity’s sake she might have accidentally hassled him with too many questions and many more things he wasn’t equipped to answer. It was probably for the best he didn’t dwell on it now. Knowing when to stay shut and when to speak, Joss followed him down the street until they reached his apartment. She watched as he huffed and sighed, hands reaching into his pockets with visible exhaustion, eyes drained and shoulders limp. It was a shame she couldn’t use her hands to find some other practical way to provide him with relief, like a homemade meal and a long hug.

When she crossed the threshold of his apartment she found things to be as she suspected, in need of a woman’s touch, and a little cluttered. It looked like a series of half-thoughts, tasks unfinished, the lack of coordination not surprising in the least. “Oh, this is cozy.” Which just felt like the southern way of saying it was small and quaint. Following suit she watched as he splayed himself onto his bed and observed the stress practically ooze from his body. She looked around and imagined she’d spend a lot more time oogling at all of his things when he wasn’t around, but that could wait. “Can my rule be no sad jerking yourself off without putting a sock on the door?”

[jossjuniper]

Appalled, Joss scoffed and blew her lips together in a noise that could only be described as disbelief. “I’m curious or you are?” She was laughing now. “You wanna test out these hands and find out the hard way, that’s your choice. They’re probably fucking vaporous, the world’s most useless fleshlights. ” She put her hands out for a closer look, shrugging in defeat. “You know you’re something else, I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t have a girlfriend, I mean it’s beyond me.”

“Again, not my choice. In fact I think what might be good for you is to redirect that anger with the universe who basically threw you in my lap.” She tagged along as he drudged along. “Nothing is a coincidence.” She spoke like she knew, but to her it felt factual and had yet to defy her delusions. “How am I stalking you? We’re roommates.” Already she was throwing the word around like she’d stepped a foot inside his house before.

He had already slipped into his racing mind again even before she’d finished tearing into him, like something bigger might have been on his mind. She watched his eyes as they peered instinctively over the what she could only imagine was the smell that sifted into the streets, a well lit bakery with glass panels full of treats.

For curiosity’s sake she might have accidentally hassled him with too many questions and many more things he wasn’t equipped to answer. It was probably for the best he didn’t dwell on it now. Knowing when to stay shut and when to speak, Joss followed him down the street until they reached his apartment. She watched as he huffed and sighed, hands reaching into his pockets with visible exhaustion, eyes drained and shoulders limp. It was a shame she couldn’t use her hands to find some other practical way to provide him with relief, like a homemade meal and a long hug.

When she crossed the threshold of his apartment she found things to be as she suspected, in need of a woman’s touch, and a little cluttered. It looked like a series of half-thoughts, tasks unfinished, the lack of coordination not surprising in the least. “Oh, this is cozy.” Which just felt like the southern way of saying it was small and quaint. Following suit she watched as he splayed himself onto his bed and observed the stress practically ooze from his body. She looked around and imagined she’d spend a lot more time oogling at all of his things when he wasn’t around, but that could wait. “Can my rule be no sad jerking yourself off without putting a sock on the door?”

“I don’t think you want me to answer that honestly.” Like most of her words, it fell between the cracks of his own. It was rather funny to hear how hopeless his efforts were, right up until they met again at the crossroads of his foul mouth and her gutter brain. It seemed to be a bad habit of his, and had it been any other time or circumstance maybe she might have taken offense. Now all it meant was that he felt comfortable enough to spew nonsense in front of her, which was a hell of a lot farther than she thought she’d be at the beginning of their meeting.

Out came a snarky laugh and a snort, watching his body tense up as his feet stopped in their place in frozen embarrassment. “Hmm, I don’t know.” she laughed between his excuses. “Thats the second time in less than an hour.” She wiggled her fingers in the air, semi-visible in the air as they moved. “Must be a lot weighing on your mind.” She grinned. “What, no girlfriend to pull in for the assist?”

Whatever she said made him stop in his tracks, resuming only when he found words to fill the void she’d just created. “What, living in the woods and eating children? Of course it’s a myth, what the fuck?” She laughed, even if part of her still felt insecure about his disdain for her kind. “Well, okay so I do live in the woods, but that’s a totally separate thing.” Something of a shut-in herself, it made sense to be in an area where she could do as she pleased without the large tourist spots and constant traffic. She preferred the quiet, and not for the sake of snatching kids.

Joss felt her sigh slip into a smile, amused even now at how tight he was holding on to his theories. “Is it fear that you might be wrong, or just you wanting to have control over her memory and what you remember her to be like?” She didn’t know him at that well, but she could imagine the lack of knowledge about all these things could only induce the fear of the unknown. “She sounds nice. I’m not saying she was one, maybe she wasn’t.” She paused for a moment. “You don’t think she could hear like you?”

Regardless of her long thread of free thought, the idea seemed to seep into his own doubts because his teeth were digging into his bottom lip and he’d suddenly turned silent. Joss felt like she’d lifted the veil of his whole hang up, and though she wanted to break into questioning again she couldn’t, wondering and somehow knowing he had to have been doing this alone. Maybe half his issue was how much he kept to himself.

“I wish I could say you had much of a choice.” She mused, but the excitement was already starting to form. “I couldn’t tell you the extent of my reach..I don’t know I mean maybe, but I don’t trust you won’t ditch me so I’m not gonna test it now.” Underplaying her anticipation, Joss allowed herself a short and proud smirk before speaking again. “Since I need to know where you are and know that you’ll always come back, yeah unfortunately.” It was anything but. She laughed, then shrugged. “I thought if someone could hear me it’d be a witch, so imagine my surprise. My plan B would be collecting some of items that I can connect to on my side, then from there.. it’s blind leading the blind. I won’t overstay my welcome and obviously you can have your privacy during your sad, singular sex sessions, that’s no problem at all.”

[jossjuniper]

“I don’t think you want me to answer that honestly.” Like most of her words, it fell between the cracks of his own. It was rather funny to hear how hopeless his efforts were, right up until they met again at the crossroads of his foul mouth and her gutter brain. It seemed to be a bad habit of his, and had it been any other time or circumstance maybe she might have taken offense. Now all it meant was that he felt comfortable enough to spew nonsense in front of her, which was a hell of a lot farther than she thought she’d be at the beginning of their meeting.

Out came a snarky laugh and a snort, watching his body tense up as his feet stopped in their place in frozen embarrassment. “Hmm, I don’t know.” she laughed between his excuses. “Thats the second time in less than an hour.” She wiggled her fingers in the air, semi-visible in the air as they moved. “Must be a lot weighing on your mind.” She grinned. “What, no girlfriend to pull in for the assist?”

Whatever she said made him stop in his tracks, resuming only when he found words to fill the void she’d just created. “What, living in the woods and eating children? Of course it’s a myth, what the fuck?” She laughed, even if part of her still felt insecure about his disdain for her kind. “Well, okay so I do live in the woods, but that’s a totally separate thing.” Something of a shut-in herself, it made sense to be in an area where she could do as she pleased without the large tourist spots and constant traffic. She preferred the quiet, and not for the sake of snatching kids.

Joss felt her sigh slip into a smile, amused even now at how tight he was holding on to his theories. “Is it fear that you might be wrong, or just you wanting to have control over her memory and what you remember her to be like?” She didn’t know him at that well, but she could imagine the lack of knowledge about all these things could only induce the fear of the unknown. “She sounds nice. I’m not saying she was one, maybe she wasn’t.” She paused for a moment. “You don’t think she could hear like you?”

Regardless of her long thread of free thought, the idea seemed to seep into his own doubts because his teeth were digging into his bottom lip and he’d suddenly turned silent. Joss felt like she’d lifted the veil of his whole hang up, and though she wanted to break into questioning again she couldn’t, wondering and somehow knowing he had to have been doing this alone. Maybe half his issue was how much he kept to himself.

“I wish I could say you had much of a choice.” She mused, but the excitement was already starting to form. “I couldn’t tell you the extent of my reach..I don’t know I mean maybe, but I don’t trust you won’t ditch me so I’m not gonna test it now.” Underplaying her anticipation, Joss allowed herself a short and proud smirk before speaking again. “Since I need to know where you are and know that you’ll always come back, yeah unfortunately.” It was anything but. She laughed, then shrugged. “I thought if someone could hear me it’d be a witch, so imagine my surprise. My plan B would be collecting some of items that I can connect to on my side, then from there.. it’s blind leading the blind. I won’t overstay my welcome and obviously you can have your privacy during your sad, singular sex sessions, that’s no problem at all.”

With some expected pushback, Joss looked on as he shuffled in his pockets for an answer to her question. From his pocket emerged a phone which would serve as his cover. Dark, dead eyes bore into her own and left her with a peculiar sensation. Being that she was no longer fully present in her body, it wasn’t manifesting in her gut the way it would have. Instead it shifted her restless mind to the present, taking a liking to how unamused he was by her antics. The struggling musician down on his luck, raincloud of darkness over his head thing really did work for him, the way it sat quite pleasantly in his eyes.

She cracked a laugh to herself and looked down at his feet, making sure she was at his side and not tagging behind him like a child. It didn’t take him long to fill her in on all the details. Even if his words were full of resentment, the context surely made it easier to understand. She imagined an endless stream of constant conversation, emotions pouring in and staying stagnant. She wondered how it felt now, if he could feel the grief radiating from others now that they were getting closer to denser areas.

“A constant stream?” She added, even though she already knew. “I’m guessing the demeanor is a result and not a contributing factor to the problem, so it’s probably not a curse.” She was talking mostly to herself, wondering what sort of mess he’d inherited and where. “What about a little substance abuse, that do anything? Like what happens when you drink?” It was what she would do, had she not had the access to other means herself. There that look was again, this time less pleasing than the last. The spite behind it started to matter a lot less to her now that his anger was becoming attractive. The way he talked made her laugh, like he might be picking up slang she’d never used, grin smug on her face as she spoke. “I would, but like you no one in my world wants to talk to me.”

It wasn’t until his words turned sharp that her mood soured, brow knitted in confusion. An immediate denial as if the mere suggestion was an offense. He just kept going, beating against the notion. How kind and loving she was, and how someone like that could never be someone like her. “You watch your mouth.” She snapped at him like an instinctive response. Her smile quickly faded. “You must think I live in a wooden house in the forest and eat children. Should I turn green and grow warts on my nose?” Her voice held more weight now, unsurprising as anger could often make them stronger. “What’s so wrong with being a witch?”

[jossjuniper]

With some expected pushback, Joss looked on as he shuffled in his pockets for an answer to her question. From his pocket emerged a phone which would serve as his cover. Dark, dead eyes bore into her own and left her with a peculiar sensation. Being that she was no longer fully present in her body, it wasn’t manifesting in her gut the way it would have. Instead it shifted her restless mind to the present, taking a liking to how unamused he was by her antics. The struggling musician down on his luck, raincloud of darkness over his head thing really did work for him, the way it sat quite pleasantly in his eyes.

She cracked a laugh to herself and looked down at his feet, making sure she was at his side and not tagging behind him like a child. It didn’t take him long to fill her in on all the details. Even if his words were full of resentment, the context surely made it easier to understand. She imagined an endless stream of constant conversation, emotions pouring in and staying stagnant. She wondered how it felt now, if he could feel the grief radiating from others now that they were getting closer to denser areas.

“A constant stream?” She added, even though she already knew. “I’m guessing the demeanor is a result and not a contributing factor to the problem, so it’s probably not a curse.” She was talking mostly to herself, wondering what sort of mess he’d inherited and where. “What about a little substance abuse, that do anything? Like what happens when you drink?” It was what she would do, had she not had the access to other means herself. There that look was again, this time less pleasing than the last. The spite behind it started to matter a lot less to her now that his anger was becoming attractive. The way he talked made her laugh, like he might be picking up slang she’d never used, grin smug on her face as she spoke. “I would, but like you no one in my world wants to talk to me.”

It wasn’t until his words turned sharp that her mood soured, brow knitted in confusion. An immediate denial as if the mere suggestion was an offense. He just kept going, beating against the notion. How kind and loving she was, and how someone like that could never be someone like her. “You watch your mouth.” She snapped at him like an instinctive response. Her smile quickly faded. “You must think I live in a wooden house in the forest and eat children. Should I turn green and grow warts on my nose?” Her voice held more weight now, unsurprising as anger could often make them stronger. “What’s so wrong with being a witch?”

The second he dismissed her question she knew it had to be worse than she thought, because like every other man he avoided the truth entirely. For the sake of not stirring the pot she guessed, but the way he shrugged it off sealed the coffin. Whatever had happened to her was done in anger and enough to conjure pity out of an unlikely sympathizer. She imagined her neck with rows of purple and blue bruises but it brought her no closer to the memory, as if her brain were still functioning and trying to protect her from the recollection.

“Right.” She replied between his answer and following question, disbelief in her expression. “You laugh but yeah you should’ve been.” A nervous smile spread on her face, suddenly more concerned that she was going to deliver a half baked performance to a problem she didn’t know existed until now. It would be just her luck that she finally made contact with someone who could actually help, only to find out he needed more help than she did. Her eyes darted to narrow in on details that made themselves more obvious to her now, like the sunken look of gray around his eyes and the crease of stress between his brows.

It probably shouldn’t have bothered her as much as it did considering she knew she was dead already, but she hated to know that it was front and center, in eye-line at all times. Of course he had to say she was pretty, he was trying to deflect from the gruesome state of her neck. Drifting in her thoughts her eyes eventually pulled themselves to attention. She couldn’t help but smile at his first rule, laughing at how quickly she knew she would break it. “Yeah, okay.” Luckily it came after an offhand joke otherwise she might not have sold it. “Okay, and how do you plan on selling that having to talk to me? You must have some kind of filter, all those voices at once.”

She followed his pace and glanced over as he made his way through the graveyard, feeling like she was tagging along instead of an unwanted guest. “Couldn’t get a live one so you had to settle for me?” She shook her head and laughed to herself. It was felt like a relief just to be able to make conversation with someone again, and when he wasn’t sulking and sullen he was easier to talk to. “Oh yeah, was she a witch, too?” She was only half joking. “Or did you just never bring anyone home, period?”

[jossjuniper]

The second he dismissed her question she knew it had to be worse than she thought, because like every other man he avoided the truth entirely. For the sake of not stirring the pot she guessed, but the way he shrugged it off sealed the coffin. Whatever had happened to her was done in anger and enough to conjure pity out of an unlikely sympathizer. She imagined her neck with rows of purple and blue bruises but it brought her no closer to the memory, as if her brain were still functioning and trying to protect her from the recollection.

“Right.” She replied between his answer and following question, disbelief in her expression. “You laugh but yeah you should’ve been.” A nervous smile spread on her face, suddenly more concerned that she was going to deliver a half baked performance to a problem she didn’t know existed until now. It would be just her luck that she finally made contact with someone who could actually help, only to find out he needed more help than she did. Her eyes darted to narrow in on details that made themselves more obvious to her now, like the sunken look of gray around his eyes and the crease of stress between his brows.

It probably shouldn’t have bothered her as much as it did considering she knew she was dead already, but she hated to know that it was front and center, in eye-line at all times. Of course he had to say she was pretty, he was trying to deflect from the gruesome state of her neck. Drifting in her thoughts her eyes eventually pulled themselves to attention. She couldn’t help but smile at his first rule, laughing at how quickly she knew she would break it. “Yeah, okay.” Luckily it came after an offhand joke otherwise she might not have sold it. “Okay, and how do you plan on selling that having to talk to me? You must have some kind of filter, all those voices at once.”

She followed his pace and glanced over as he made his way through the graveyard, feeling like she was tagging along instead of an unwanted guest. “Couldn’t get a live one so you had to settle for me?” She shook her head and laughed to herself. It was felt like a relief just to be able to make conversation with someone again, and when he wasn’t sulking and sullen he was easier to talk to. “Oh yeah, was she a witch, too?” She was only half joking. “Or did you just never bring anyone home, period?”

Head tilted just a slight to the side, Joss wondered what might be on his mind that he seemed less inclined to share. Even looking at where his eyes lingered didn’t help much, no answer could be found at the end of the ashes. “Do I think what?” It was rare that a human could connect with another realm without the use of supernatural means. Joss had met many of his kind before, and while he was not the first to be inconvenienced by his talents he seemed to be the first completely inept at the skill entirely.

There was no warmth in his voice for his gift. She could tell in the way it moved within the words, the way he fixed his throat to conceal. Even the way he looked at her stirred worry within her, in her head instead of the pit of her stomach where it normally resided. Her hand rubbed at her collarbone and she found the action must have conjured some pity or empathy, because for the first time he seemed apologetic. Carefully, she watched him, observing the way his hands moved while he spoke and how disturbed his body was with his gift.

“Wait what do you mean, new?” She examined him. “How old were you when you saw one for the first time?” Joss thought a moment before speaking again. It must have been long enough because he’d met her with an experienced indifference, but not long enough that he knew how to manage it. At least now it made sense, making things a lot less personal now that she knew he was shell shocked over the whole thing. A brief look of confusion on her face before she fixed herself, eyes drifting before they shot back up to his own. “I don’t mean to be a dick but that’s not how that works. That’s not normal.”

With a cross of her arms, she sighed. “That’s really shitty, I’m sorry.” At a loss for words, she thought of something soothing to say but in all honesty she just wanted to ask more questions. She looked down at her feet, which left no mark in the dirt and beaten grass. “I just thought you didn’t want to.” There was some regret in her actions, too. “It’s fine, I mean who else am I gonna talk to?” She half smiled, crossing her arms. Anger never came from its own source, and whatever he was afraid of he laid on the table before them, which was trusting enough for where they had been minutes prior.

“I did do spiritual work before this, which was kind of why I felt like I was in limbo in the first place.” Lighting a flame was one thing, and she didn’t want to make too much of a promise without knowing if she could keep it. She had been stronger in her spirit work than with the element, so there was promise. In retrospect maybe she’d come on too strong, making it seem like she had all this power, feeling regret again. “If you can settle for one spirit maybe I can help with that, try to help?” Really she was picking at straws. “If I can’t help with what I do know, maybe my shunning can be of some use to you. I haven’t seen anyone and I saw them when I was alive, I guess it wouldn’t be so unusual for them to avoid me now. It could be like, a repellent, or something. Would that help? Make you feel like I’m using you a little less.”

[jossjuniper]

Head tilted just a slight to the side, Joss wondered what might be on his mind that he seemed less inclined to share. Even looking at where his eyes lingered didn’t help much, no answer could be found at the end of the ashes. “Do I think what?” It was rare that a human could connect with another realm without the use of supernatural means. Joss had met many of his kind before, and while he was not the first to be inconvenienced by his talents he seemed to be the first completely inept at the skill entirely.

There was no warmth in his voice for his gift. She could tell in the way it moved within the words, the way he fixed his throat to conceal. Even the way he looked at her stirred worry within her, in her head instead of the pit of her stomach where it normally resided. Her hand rubbed at her collarbone and she found the action must have conjured some pity or empathy, because for the first time he seemed apologetic. Carefully, she watched him, observing the way his hands moved while he spoke and how disturbed his body was with his gift.

“Wait what do you mean, new?” She examined him. “How old were you when you saw one for the first time?” Joss thought a moment before speaking again. It must have been long enough because he’d met her with an experienced indifference, but not long enough that he knew how to manage it. At least now it made sense, making things a lot less personal now that she knew he was shell shocked over the whole thing. A brief look of confusion on her face before she fixed herself, eyes drifting before they shot back up to his own. “I don’t mean to be a dick but that’s not how that works. That’s not normal.”

With a cross of her arms, she sighed. “That’s really shitty, I’m sorry.” At a loss for words, she thought of something soothing to say but in all honesty she just wanted to ask more questions. She looked down at her feet, which left no mark in the dirt and beaten grass. “I just thought you didn’t want to.” There was some regret in her actions, too. “It’s fine, I mean who else am I gonna talk to?” She half smiled, crossing her arms. Anger never came from its own source, and whatever he was afraid of he laid on the table before them, which was trusting enough for where they had been minutes prior.

“I did do spiritual work before this, which was kind of why I felt like I was in limbo in the first place.” Lighting a flame was one thing, and she didn’t want to make too much of a promise without knowing if she could keep it. She had been stronger in her spirit work than with the element, so there was promise. In retrospect maybe she’d come on too strong, making it seem like she had all this power, feeling regret again. “If you can settle for one spirit maybe I can help with that, try to help?” Really she was picking at straws. “If I can’t help with what I do know, maybe my shunning can be of some use to you. I haven’t seen anyone and I saw them when I was alive, I guess it wouldn’t be so unusual for them to avoid me now. It could be like, a repellent, or something. Would that help? Make you feel like I’m using you a little less.”

It shouldn’t have been that funny, seeing as how her condition already sobering, could only get worse and very well might, still she laughed anyway. There was something so cathartic in laughing about it all, treating it like something much smaller than it was. It took the weight from the reality of it, like maybe if she didn’t say the word it didn’t exist. It was right around the string of another expected rejection that she laughed again, as if he were on the same stream of thought she had been in herself. “Felt that.” She added, the two briefly in agreement. It was quiet, a side comment buried under his recoil, yells and some more laughs of her own.

It didn’t take him long to realize the source, his head turning sharply. She thought how strange it was he didn’t already know, when she’d been making it so obvious. How odd his gift must be, for someone with such an inclination to the supernatural to be so fearful of it. She wiggled her fingers at him. “Witch.” She said, though now perhaps it was falling on frightened ears. They seemed to be operating at opposite ends. “I didn’t know I still could.” She shrugged, trying to press the inner corners of her lips when they failed to hold back a smile. “Haven’t had the opportunity until now.”

She watched his eyes as they shifted again in fear, a new horror unveiling themselves. She hadn’t done anything to warrant it, following his emotions carefully as they quickly moved from one phase to the next. Her smiled faded slowly, face falling in realization. She swore she could even feel the shame as he looked at her, probably actually for the first time. She’d never even looked in the mirror, in truth the thought never passed her mind. It need not be asked, the dread planting itself plainly on his face. Now it was full of concern, full of sorrow, thick with anguish for this poor soul.

Nothing more than the death she would not speak of scared her as much as this, the thought of how she looked to him suddenly becoming very real. It felt disgusting, and she almost let out an audible ‘ew’ when she saw the water well up in his eyes. “Oh my god.. what?” she groaned, pained by his perception. “What, is it worse than I thought?” How gross to be seen again in this way, with no control in her appearance, something she cared so deeply about as a human. “I don’t know. Spite, I guess. If I could kill you right now would you want to die?” She put a hand to her collarbone, annoyed at how much it was bothering her. She wanted to tell him it was mostly intuition, this gut feeling, but restrained herself. This meant so much less to men, she felt, like they didn’t carry the sense. “It’s unnatural for me to do all this. Every day, night, they pass all the same. There’s no cycles. And no one can hear me, except for you.” Her brows furrowed for a second and softened again. “I feel close to my body, like I’m just being held in suspense, but I’m here so I have to be, you know, gone.” Whatever smile she had probably looked just as sad. How deeply pathetic. “Yeah no I don’t remember. That’s the standard with ghosts, though, you know that.”

When she finally did look at him she did so earnestly. “It’s funny to think about life as only being worth it when there’s something to return to. I thought about that too, like what was even the point, and it’s probably why I feel so sure about it. I don’t need anything to go back to, I just want to. That thing they say about wanting something you can’t have it’s really the fucking truth. The world can suck and still be worth living they’re not mutually exclusive. To be honest if this all works out I’m going to find out who did it and kill them myself. And then I’m gonna do everything I ever wanted to do.”

[jossjuniper]

It shouldn’t have been that funny, seeing as how her condition already sobering, could only get worse and very well might, still she laughed anyway. There was something so cathartic in laughing about it all, treating it like something much smaller than it was. It took the weight from the reality of it, like maybe if she didn’t say the word it didn’t exist. It was right around the string of another expected rejection that she laughed again, as if he were on the same stream of thought she had been in herself. “Felt that.” She added, the two briefly in agreement. It was quiet, a side comment buried under his recoil, yells and some more laughs of her own.

It didn’t take him long to realize the source, his head turning sharply. She thought how strange it was he didn’t already know, when she’d been making it so obvious. How odd his gift must be, for someone with such an inclination to the supernatural to be so fearful of it. She wiggled her fingers at him. “Witch.” She said, though now perhaps it was falling on frightened ears. They seemed to be operating at opposite ends. “I didn’t know I still could.” She shrugged, trying to press the inner corners of her lips when they failed to hold back a smile. “Haven’t had the opportunity until now.”

She watched his eyes as they shifted again in fear, a new horror unveiling themselves. She hadn’t done anything to warrant it, following his emotions carefully as they quickly moved from one phase to the next. Her smiled faded slowly, face falling in realization. She swore she could even feel the shame as he looked at her, probably actually for the first time. She’d never even looked in the mirror, in truth the thought never passed her mind. It need not be asked, the dread planting itself plainly on his face. Now it was full of concern, full of sorrow, thick with anguish for this poor soul.

Nothing more than the death she would not speak of scared her as much as this, the thought of how she looked to him suddenly becoming very real. It felt disgusting, and she almost let out an audible ‘ew’ when she saw the water well up in his eyes. “Oh my god.. what?” she groaned, pained by his perception. “What, is it worse than I thought?” How gross to be seen again in this way, with no control in her appearance, something she cared so deeply about as a human. “I don’t know. Spite, I guess. If I could kill you right now would you want to die?” She put a hand to her collarbone, annoyed at how much it was bothering her. She wanted to tell him it was mostly intuition, this gut feeling, but restrained herself. This meant so much less to men, she felt, like they didn’t carry the sense. “It’s unnatural for me to do all this. Every day, night, they pass all the same. There’s no cycles. And no one can hear me, except for you.” Her brows furrowed for a second and softened again. “I feel close to my body, like I’m just being held in suspense, but I’m here so I have to be, you know, gone.” Whatever smile she had probably looked just as sad. How deeply pathetic. “Yeah no I don’t remember. That’s the standard with ghosts, though, you know that.”

When she finally did look at him she did so earnestly. “It’s funny to think about life as only being worth it when there’s something to return to. I thought about that too, like what was even the point, and it’s probably why I feel so sure about it. I don’t need anything to go back to, I just want to. That thing they say about wanting something you can’t have it’s really the fucking truth. The world can suck and still be worth living they’re not mutually exclusive. To be honest if this all works out I’m going to find out who did it and kill them myself. And then I’m gonna do everything I ever wanted to do.”

She didn’t reserve her laughter for another time, amused by his lack of care for the entire thing. She didn’t want to tell him that it didn’t exactly matter if he didn’t want to help, because she had already decided to tether herself to him, a more valuable ally than any regular human, and a degree grumpier than most. A snort came from her nose with a chuckle, hands crossing themselves against her chest. “Oh, well, at least I’m pretty.” Joss sucked at the inside skin of her mouth, holding back a click that would flag her slight frustration. “Real rich coming from you.” She scoffed, a slight she felt in his judgement. “Now he’s an expert on witchcraft and being a medium. What’s next, folk music?” She felt the urge to go on, tender when faced with the inadequacy of her most recent failure.

“Every year on Hallows Eve we round up a group of virgins and bring them back to our lair, hang ‘em in little cages, tend to our cauldrons.” Joss released an exasperated breath, not that it would give her any relief. “No it doesn’t work exactly like that.” She thought on it for a moment, sure that whatever she said wouldn’t register anyway. “We’re not all the same, we don’t do all of the same things. What I can do another may not, and so on. Most of them join covens, things are easier in numbers, more reliable. They take care of each other, so things like this don’t happen.”

Before she could laugh, this time at herself, he fell into distress and a loud yell. He held a stubborn disagreement with her words. “Oh you’re so dramatic.” She rolled her eyes. “You’ll still feel like yourself just…with a friend. It’s not anything like possession. I want to return to my body, not take over yours.” She let her hands fall back to her sides and rest on her hips, feet already ready to advance as he backed from her. It hurt in the way it does when a stranger doesn’t smile back or hold the door, a small offense that noted itself for later.

It was slowly becoming more difficult to reason with him, as she knew it would be. Nothing she could have said would have made him any more keen on helping. Her feet would have sufficed in walking towards him, if only he’d stayed put. “You know you look so crazy right now.” She laughed between a grin. “Yelling to yourself in an empty graveyard.” She added as she watched him turn on his heel and in the other direction. They would meet eyes again, traveling from where she stood to a few paces in front of him, like she’d been waiting there the whole time and not appearing from thin air in a vapor. “Fuck you.” She said with a laugh that held no offense.

She’d been waiting to say it, the only thing stopping her was the ass kissing she’d done before. She wondered when they would stop swinging from the pendulum between fear and judgement, and find some place to settle in the middle. “You’re being very judgmental right now, and very noisy. You’re like a loud bird with its wing clipped.” She watched him fumble with the second cigarette, the tremor in his fingers as they struggled to stay straight. Before he had the chance to light it, she conjured a flame to the end of it, one long and somewhat angry, then calmed into a sizzle like he’d done the very work himself. It seemed to stir him a little, a jerk reaction to the fire.

“Sometimes the illusion of the choice makes it easier.” She gave him a look of brief concern. “I’m not bound to this place. I can follow you wherever you go, no matter how fast you run, I’ll be right there.” Her demeanor had shifted from her helplessness and worry to something slightly more vindictive. “I can go wherever you go.” She still valued his efforts, if only his ability didn’t also come with his foul mouth. “We really don’t have to make this difficult.” It didn’t seem to make him any less easier. “You should really get used to me, I’m going to be around a while. Let’s make nice, before someone sees you and reports you to the cops, you lunatic.”