Carter
Once the two of them had several too many drinks in their systems, they decided to call it a night. They hadn’t exchanged anything truly important during their time together tonight, but they had enjoyed one another’s company. It was Kami’s turn to escort Isaac home, and they were slowly making their way across town, stumbling and laughing softly to one another.
Just as they rounded one of the last corners leading to the humble abode of The Dolofinias, the two men heard a struggle coming from the alley to their right. They both paused, before Kami raised a finger to his lips, mouthing the word “Quiet”. They slowly and silently made their way over, pressed against the wall and peeking passed it, into the dark little space. There, they saw a well dressed man sprawled on the ground, back flat against the wall behind him. A figure dressed in shadows was crouched above him, with a blade pressed against his throat. Kami and Isaac were not close enough to hear what was being said between the two, but they had keen enough eyesight to see the cloaked figure attempting to absorb whatever magic the injured man had.
A starcatcher.
Isaac glanced at Kami, and Kami glanced at Isaac. They came to a sort of silent agreement, before the two of them played a game of rock paper scissors. Isaac ended up being the victor, and let a soft sigh of relief escape him. Kami stared at him blankly before rolling his eyes, unfurling his wings. Whenever Isaac saw them, he couldn’t help but wonder if perhaps the reason the two of them got along so well was due to the fact that they both had so many eyes.
He was still lost in that thought when Kami seemingly appeared behind the starcatcher, dagger in hand. In a moment the blade was wedged in the creature’s shoulder, and he twisted it sharply. The creature let out a shrill shriek, flailing it’s all too long arms, backing away from the man it had attacked. It yanked Kami’s blade free from it’s strange flesh, tossing it to the side, before attempting to flee.
It had the misfortune of heading in the direction Isaac was hiding.
Despite the fact that he had won their game of rock paper scissors, it seemed Isaac was going to have to be the one to take care of things after all.
He had very loose control of his magic when he was inebriated. It wasn’t necessarily that he had no control, it was simply that he had a tendency to use it unconsciously.
So, when the starcatcher started running towards him, it was mere reflex. His fight or flight kicked in. He felt his skin prickle, and his magic react. The starcatcher stopped in it’s tracks, and then, one by one, each of it’s bones began snapping. In mere seconds, it was a mutilated and misshapen form of gore on the cobblestone. Isaac knew breaking it’s bones wouldn’t be enough to truly get rid of such a creature, so, once more, his magic responded for him. As he stood above it, looking down at it’s mangled form, he remembered a starcatcher will live so long as it’s fed.
All he had to do was drain each drop of magic the creature had stolen.
So, he did just that. Knelt down next to it, gazing into it’s empty eyes. He fed from it. Luckily, it was half way starved already, so he didn’t have to absorb too much and end up overflowing or anything like that. His own vessel was still entirely intact, although he was a bit nauseous after the whole ordeal. He shakily stood upright again, taking a deep breath to try and ground himself, leaving the withered corpse as it was. He looked up to see the injured man from before clinging to Kami, thanking him for saving him, asking what he could do to ever even hope of repaying such a heroic act.
Isaac felt a bit underappreciated.
“Hey, Hyde.” Kami growled, trying to pull the man away from himself. “Mind giving me a hand here, or…?” Isaac blinked at him slowly, before stepping over what was left of the starcatcher and heading towards the two of them. He grabbed the strange man by the back of his collar and simply lifted, pulling him off of Kami, as well as the ground.
“Happy now, dear?” Isaac sang, wiggling the man gently, before setting him back down, ensuring he was stood between Kami and his admirer.
“Wait, dear?” The man blinked up at Isaac, before squinting. “Who are you?”
Isaac felt his eye twitch. He did not respond. He turned back to Kami. “Now that this has been dealt with, can we please go home? I feel sick after eating that.”
“No, hey–” The man attempted to interject once more. “Don’t ignore me! Do you even know who I am? I asked you a question. Answer me. Who are you? State your name simply.”
“... Do you know who this man is, dear?” Isaac kept his eyes on Kami. He used the endearment again in hopes of further riling this stranger up. Kami’s lip twitched upwards, ever so slightly.
“I’ve not the slightest clue, pookie! I presume you don’t, either?” Kami wrapped an arm around Isaac’s, glancing between him and the stranger before them.
“Wh– Does the name Zachary mean nothing to you people?” The stranger huffed, running a hand through his already unruly hair. “Carter Zachary, maybe? Second heir to the Zachary House, renowned knight, spectacular fire mage…?” He blinked at the two of them dumbly. “Nothing, huh. Okay. Well.’ He paused, squinting again. “I’ve introduced myself. Your turn. Unless, I mean, I could also call you dear… And pookie.”
Kami and Isaac shared another glance, here. A silent conversation, of sorts. See, they could introduce themselves as they normally do to those uninvolved in their line of work. It would be entirely foolish to be honest about their identities, especially with a knight of a prominent noble family.
… But it would also be kinda funny.
“My name is Kamirala Amantis of The Twin Elms Guild, a Cavae feared by many. Twenty four years old. Single. Gemini.” Kami sighed, curling his wings against his back and flipping his hair over his shoulder. “Pleased to make your acquaintance, Carter.”
“Isaac Hyde of The Dolofonias, also known as Cheri of The Dolofonias. Roughly twenty four years old. It’s complicated. Aquarius sun, Capricorn moon, Sagittarius rising.” Isaac held out his free hand to shake. If this man proved to be trouble, the two of them could get rid of him no problem. They seldom made drunk choices like this, but as this man had just witnessed them exterminate one of the oldest monsters to exist, they felt as if he would understand that. “I apologize for not recognizing you sooner.”
Carter seemed to be thinking rather hard, staring at Isaac’s outstretched hand. He slowly took it, giving it a faint shake, almost as if he was reluctant to touch him. “Okay.” He retracted his hand, brushing it off against his pants. Definitely hadn’t wanted to touch Isaac. “So… What I’m understanding here… Is that you two aren’t, like, a thing?”
—
After their awkward encounter with Sir Carter, wherein he was rather focused on Kami, Isaac managed to drag his friend away. Carter had promised to come by and visit him sometime, as soon as he could manage, though. For the entire rest of their walk to Isaac’s home, he teased Kami about the entire ordeal. Kami had slapped and punched his arm more times than either of them cared to count, but they still laughed it off. It seems that strange man did not care that they were enemies to the crown, since Kami was simply too beautiful to resent.
“You know… He’s the one I used to play with as a child.” Kami’s voice was quiet and thoughtful as they reached Isaac’s porch. “I don’t think he has connected the dots, but his family funded the orphanage I was raised in. They frequently visited.”
“What makes you think he doesn’t recall that?” Isaac asked, voice just as soft. Kami’s expression was one of grief, oddly enough. Isaac escorted him to the rundown swing atop the stairs, pulling his small delicate hand into his own misshaped and scarred ones.
“When Elyria and I fled the orphanage, the story was that we had died. As far as Carter knows, that childhood friend is no longer of this world.” Kami sighed, resting his head on Isaac’s shoulder. “His mother is the one who assisted us in our escape, but I doubt she would’ve told him the truth. She would have seen it easier for her son to accept my death, rather than… She would have had to tell him everything. From what the director had done to Elyria and I, to what I was that entire time. He was too young to understand all of that. Too sheltered.”
“What are you going to do if he truly does come and visit you?” Isaac asked, resting his head atop Kami’s.
“I’ll just have to tell some of my people to not allow him entrance to my tavern. He should not hang around mercenaries, it would taint his reputation.” Kami sighed, closing his eyes. “What are the odds, though, that the individual we rescued ended up being the very same childhood friend I mentioned just earlier?”
“Maybe you should stop by the shop sometime, ask Quella for her input? She gives really good advice.” Isaac hummed, rubbing his thumb along the back of Kami’s hand.
“Maybe I will. It’ll be strange to see you in such a normal setting, though.” Kami chuckled, giving Isaac’s hand a squeeze. “I should head home, though. Emerson is likely worried about me being gone this late, and I can feel Nepthys’ eyes on me even as we speak.”
Isaac blinked before turning towards the front window. Sure enough, Nepthys was standing there, a steaming mug clasped between both hands. He quirked an eyebrow when Isaac met his gaze. Isaac grimaced and nodded towards Kami, and though it was without having said a word, Nepthys understood something distressing must have happened. He closed the curtains and walked away. “Tell Emerson I send my regards?” He sighed, looking back down at Kami.
“Will do. Ah, actually, his birthday is coming up. It would mean a lot if you could attend. It would make things a bit easier, for the both of us.” Kami huffed, slowly standing and stretching his arms above his head. “He’s turning nine, can you believe that? Why do children grow so quickly these days?”
“I’ll be there. Should I try and get my hands on another one of Rowdy’s paintings for him? Would he like that?” Isaac stood up as well, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
“He’d love nothing more. Perhaps throw in one of your pressed flowers, as well. He keeps the other one you gave him on his nightstand.” Kami smiled softly up at Isaac, before taking a slow step backwards. “I truly should head home now, though, Isaac. Thank you for tonight.”
“Yeah, anytime.” Isaac blinked, shrugging. “Get home safe. If anything happens, you know how to reach me.”
“Yeah.” Kami paused. “Goodnight.”