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athenaquinn · 4 years

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Mummer Mia || Quintin & Athena

Timing: Friday, July 17th

Parties: @faecurious and @athenaquinn

Summary: Just some casual warden bonding, as one does.

Warnings: NPC Bestiary Fae murder? Not super graphic but there is mention of it.

Quintin rarely hunted without a plan. It wasn’t that he didn’t have the instincts to deal with things on a whim, especially involving Fae monsters which were his favorite to collect and study, it was that he wasn’t the best hand to hand fighter. He preferred traps, weapons that stunned, and various forms of cages, and injury causing surprises that allowed his planning to do the work, so he could scoop in and finish them off. There was another side to it. Sometimes he wanted them alive, and such a hunt always required a different mindset going into it. Today wasn’t one of those days. He was minding his own business when he noticed a man knocking on something invisible, and shouting to let him out in a small green space area. Quintin immediately heard someone in passing comment, mimes must be practicing out of costume. But Q knew better, all his sense telling him this wasn’t the case, that there was a Fae nearby. He moved towards a lamp post and watched for a moment, hands tucked into his band hoodie, a heavy backpack on his shoulder.

She needed a good hunt, sometimes. There was something satisfying, even if just going out on her own without a set plan. For all that Athena did plan for many things, sometimes the best way to go about things with regard to hunting was spontaneity. Certainly, running headfirst into certain situations had gotten her into trouble before, but it didn’t stop her from still doing the same thing. Over and over - which she knew her brother wouldn’t approve of, but he wasn’t living with her and their family, so she didn’t have to worry about what he thought (not that she’d ever really worried, anyhow). All of a sudden she felt a chill run through her body. The same sort - though the response her body gave did tend to vary - that she felt when fae were around. A man in a small green space apparently trapped. Well, that was odd. She thought to herself, moving a few steps closer. Pausing for a moment, she pressed her fingertips against her shirt, feeling the cool iron blade tucked against her hip.

Quintin noticed the other younger woman pause as well, but this town always had people curious. Even now, with the man obvious in trouble, those on the sidewalk had already convinced themselves it was some training, or weird mime thing. How many people died this way here? Just in plain sight with others walking right by. Bad way to go, but Quintin didn’t feel one way about it. He wasn’t always difficult to feel disconnected while on a hunt. Killing wasn’t something that he enjoyed, and it felt more duty then desire. His hand burrowed in his hoodie rolled a handful of iron beads. They were one of his favorites, sometimes exactly what he needed to find something invisible. The man started miming for help, his gestures clearly distraught, but waving at both of them watching. Quintin wasn’t looking at him anymore, but around, and started walking along the east side of the green space. Looking casual and youthful, but his eyes were darting quickly to see if he could make the Fae’s location.

There was someone else here. Besides the man who looked to be in a box. Athena frowned for a moment, wondering if this person was fae. If they were the cause for whatever was going on with the man. Except… she bit her lip, mentally scrolling through a mental list of different fae types. It’s important to keep as many memorized as possible, she could hear her parents whispering to her. Even if they all are based on the same principle and must be treated equally, some have different skills than others. She could curse herself for not putting together exactly what was going on, but the young man was proving to be a distraction to her. Adjusting her posture and pulling her ponytail tighter, she marched over to where he was standing and tapped him on the shoulder. “Having fun observing, are we?” She raised an eyebrow, before glancing back over to the man in the box. Invisible box. Fae. She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. Mummer. Of course. Had to be. The only thing more annoying than mimes were mime-like fae. The worst of both worlds.

Quintin took a step back at the tapping on his shoulder, looking far more relaxed then the pounding of his heart betrayed. The younger woman seemed to pick up on the situation as odd, which Quintin wasn’t ever sure if someone would just make an excuse for what they are seeing or know the cause. Her eyes squeezing shut like she was in thought was a little cute. If a lightbulb could turn on above the head of blonde hair, it would have shown bright enough to blind him. Quintin kept his hands in his pockets, “I’m not having fun. There’s a man trying to mime his way out of a box,” he tested, “I’m looking for who made it.” He saw fast movement in a brush and ducked down to get out of view, his hand pulled out revealing those small iron beads.

“You never know in this town. People have all sorts of odd amusements. Take it from someone who’s lived here her whole life.” She glanced over to him. “So am I.” She pursed her lips for a moment. “I like to problem solve, and this is quite the problem.” Athena gave a small huff, though as the young man ducked down she did too, her arm bumping against his. “Sorry.” She adjusted her positioning, kneeling against the ground when her eyes caught the beads in his hand. The cold iron knife against her hip was like a continued breath of fresh air, though not one that she was willing to share yet. You had to play your cards close to your chest, no matter how metaphorical they might be. “Nice beads you’ve got there.” She raised an eyebrow, voice barely above a whisper. “Look like a sort that could be good from problem solving, if I’m not mistaken.” A smirk covered her lips.

“Entire life?” Quintin offered a small smile, his fluffy hair of curls blew in his face a little as he peaked over. Anyone who grew up here and knew all the weirdness well, had a leg up in experience. LA was infested with Fae wanting stardom or eating talent, but here was a bit of everything all the time. “I like to problem solve too-- though this is a puzzle I’d rather not be boxed in on.” He shook his head lightly at their banter, the boyishness easily exposed as he chuckled. It was refreshing when Quintin usually took his hunts a little more seriously, over planning, and didn’t pause to savor. “Thanks, want a few?” He rolled a couple into his palm, offering some over if she wanted them. “They can cover a bit of ground.” From their position he could see the mummer with their hands in the air, looking like they were trying to put on a tiny striped shirt two sizes too small and their arms got stuck in the up position. His head tilted, as the human trapped started miming the same thing. “I hate mimes.”

“Born and raised.” Athena did her best to match his smile with one of her own. Voice perhaps a bit too cheerful, too similar to what one might expect out of a Pollyanna movie (and if there was someone who she absolutely was not, it was certainly Pollyanna. She’d never been that naïve). Clearly the man next to her wasn’t from around here - his surprised tone indicated that much - and besides, he didn’t look too much older than she was, so she might’ve run into him if he had lived here for longer. “Nice pun,” she rolled her eyes, though a small smile covered her lips. She flicked a hand through the end of her ponytail and looked over at his words, before grabbing a few of the beads from his hand. “Thanks, I’ve got a more close range item, but these’ll do wonders. Maybe I’ll have to make it up to you after this, we’ll see.” She rolled one between her thumb and forefinger, eyes closing again for a brief moment as she relished in the comforting chill of the iron. When she opened them again the mummer was clearly present and began further controlling the human trapped in the box. Athena felt her blood boil beneath her skin, iron travelling to her fingertips as she felt frustration roll through her body. “Gee, me too.” She made a face. “We’ll have to act fast. Those - well, the thing causing this might decide to crush the person inside and I’m not keen on that at all.”

“Good,” he commented about the melee weapon. “This might be quick then, it’s nice to partner up. Never have before.” Quintin agreed with her final statement wholeheartedly and it expressed easily on his face in sadness. Nothing was worse than monsters playing around with humans. “I’ve actually seen it happen before, and it’s a bit graphic. Ill lure it out and get its attention.” Jumping up and dashing with his speed towards a tree where above him was cut off in sharp lines as a box formed just over his head. Barely ducking in time, he poked his head out pulling the mummer’s attention towards him and away from the trapped man crying in the box as they mimed getting stuck in a sweater. Q made eye contact with it, and he toyed with the hidden beads. Calmly leaving himself open for attack. “Have it mime something funnier,” he challenged, hoping for a playful edge, and a solid distraction so it could be flanked.

“I know what I’m doing,” Athena raised an eyebrow. “Prefer solo, usually?” She did a quick once-over of him. “I’ve seen it happen too. Read about it, seen it, studied it.” Her parents had made sure of that. So perhaps her competitive side was coming out just a bit more than it should have, but she wasn’t going to be shown up by some newcomer to town, even if they did appear to be a hunter. Then the young man was gone and trying to distract the mummer. Athena stood up and walked out, her boots digging into the dirt. “You know there’s another way to get rid of it.” She smirked, walking past the two of them to the man in the box. “The way to get out of a box is a key. Or a door.” She made eye contact with the man in the box, mouthing ‘We’ll get you out of here’ before she turned around to the young man. “Go left!” She yelled as the mummer attempted to toss up another box around him. Pulled her knife out from where it had rested on her hips and took a glance at the fae, holding the handle of the knife between her thumb and forefinger. “I’d love for this to end quickly, but I have been dying to test this beauty out. It was laying in a box under my bed for so long, what a shame.”

Quintin didn’t find himself with a choice to ever hunt with others. He barely had friends, and anyone professional in his field were all humans trying to find cures to diseases, or work out how to stop a pandemic. He did move left, the box attempting to wrap around him just missing him again and hilariously giving him a little haircut on the tips. The mummer scurried around, and seemed to find this situation unfavorable. The box around the human tightened, the man inside started screaming, slamming his hands on the box, and trying to dig into the ground. Q saw the mummer’s attention shift, and so he came around the back end, pushing all the iron in his body to his hands, and forearms with a shiver he leapt towards them, and wrapped his arms around their middle. Holding them in a frantic screech as their skin hissed. Q held on, even when they cut into his skin. “Test it then--” he said, the two words always alluring to the scientist who wanted to know what she was referring too.

“Just, give us a moment.” Athena held her hands up at the man in the box. I’d be screaming too, if I were there. All of a sudden, the man was grabbing the mummer and the mummer was screeching and Athena flashed a glare at the man. “Don’t kill it.” She couldn’t believe she had to be the one to tell someone to not kill a fae. Yet, at least. “If we want to save our friend over there,” she motioned with her chin, “this little guy has gotta be alive.” She smirked, running her tongue against her teeth. “Doesn’t mean I can’t have a little fun.” She flicked her ponytail and knelt down, inches from the young man’s face and from the mummer. “You’re going to watch that man and you’re going to let him go.” The mummer’s face contorted into a gruesome smile as Athena grabbed hold of its arms. “We’ve gotta hold onto this. Or else it can make its own special wall and we wouldn’t want that, now would we?”

“It won’t die, have a little faith. It’s just a little burn,” Quintin said just as confidently though he was a hair surprised at her reaction. Maybe she was around a lot of people who simply killed without realizing how tricky the Fae were and not knowing who was bound to their magic. He never assumed with anyone, their amount of knowledge or expertise. She was curious in the situation, confident, a bit bossy, but it wasn’t annoying. Quintin was calm, almost emotionally disconnected from the struggling mummer as he held onto them much like wrangling a cat for a bath. The smile from the creature was awful, and corrupted in that way which made Quintin’s frustrations at the Fae in general erupt in disgust in his gut. “That wouldn’t be fun, forever isn’t something we have,” Q spoke right in the mummer’s ear which made them wince. “So a door right? The guy inside needs to mime one, if I’m not mistaken.” He made sure to hold its head in the trapped human’s direction, shifting the iron up his arm, or in his hands to keep the creature still when it started to wiggle out. “I’ll hold its face so it’s looking at them.”

“I have plenty of faith when I see fit to have it.” Athena smirked. She didn’t see any reason in particular not to trust the young man, but one could never be too certain. She might have been an outgoing person, but she also didn’t trust too easily. Trust had to be earned, at least proper trust did. “I just also like to help the greater good as a first step. Everything else is secondary. His life comes first.” She blew a strand of hair out of her face, lips curved into a smirk. At least he wasn’t fighting her. That meant more than most other things could. “Yes, he does. Mime a door, mime getting out, and he should be all good.” She glanced over at the man. If he doesn’t panic-attack himself out before then. “Fine. You do that,” she twirled her knife between her fingers before she moved over to where the man was still present in the box. “Hey,” she said, voice soft and gentle, “hey, I’m going to help you, okay? I’m sorry for what is happening. I need you to breathe, first off. Breathe, and then do you think you can play pretend with me? I want you to find an imaginary door.” The man looked up and nodded. Athena looked back over to the young man still holding down the mummer and grinned. Turning back to the man she held out her hand - iron concentrated throughout her fingertips (just in case he was fae too, though her sense wasn’t growing, not now). He turned an invisible handle and collapsed onto the ground.

Quintin felt a deep pang in his center. A cold iron drop, which had his soft features frowning slightly between his brows. He wished his dad still hunted and was here with him. Q didn’t ever hunt with others, but this particular moment had been a lot easier and without anyone getting hurt. So many times he’s had to watch someone perish, or lose their name, or get hurt and he had to call an ambulance for them. Amity Road was a cesspool of Fae equally living their lives like they belonged there and those who harmed people every day. The man collapsing and free was a win, and Q was relieved. He pushed the mummer forward, digging his knee into their back and pulled out a twine of rope and iron threads from his backpack. The more the creature struggled, the more it would ache its skin. He tied up the mummer’s arms in long loops to stop it from being able to mime, and its legs just in case they could use their magic from those limbs as well. “Is he okay?” he asked about the man, “I have an iron chest on my truck bed. I’ll toss this thing in there and deal with it later. I also have some water in my bag here if that guy needs it.” He looked up, Quintin always looking frail and malnourished with his work habits. “Thanks too. I’m Quintin, by the way.”

At least one part of this was all dealt with. The man was safe, and that was what mattered most. Athena turned to look at the other man, watching him tie up the mummer. She walked briskly over, raising an eyebrow. “You’ll deal with it later?” Why not now? “What are your plans with it? Just as with any pest, I am of the belief that quick and fast disposal is the best way to go about things.” She covered her lips with her hand, fighting against a giggle that threatened to escape. It wasn’t kind, she knew that much, but it was true. Just the same as the spiders she’d killed for her brother when they were children, a quick and easy end to their lives was the way to go. “Iron chest isn’t a bad way to go, and yes, I think the man is just fine.” She looked over her shoulder. “He’ll be fine, at least.” She stuck out her hand. “Athena. You’re welcome.”

Q shook it. “I’m a scientist, I am paid to research these things,” he was a little wary of the hot and cold vibe she was weaving together with them. He didn’t entirely care if it died right here, right now. But their lack of voice was interesting, and could be a good piece to add to his experiment. If his creation couldn’t talk back, that could be a decent addition. “The iron chest makes it a bit slow on death, less damage to vital organs, and not as messy with the blood so my lab doesn’t get overly decontaminated. However,” he had the same sorta twinkle in her eye, one that truly didn’t fucking care about these creatures. “You can kill it if you want, I don’t really care. I usually work with them dead anyway.” He held the creature out much like offering a casserole between neighbors.

“Well, color me a bit impressed.” Athena raised an eyebrow.”You are paid to research that? I’d want to meet your Principal Investigator.” She winked, before she knelt down on the ground and offered him another smirk. “Well, I might have to add one of those to my collection.” You can kill it, he said and she adjusted where she was sitting, holding her knife firmly in her hands. When he offered the mummer she grabbed it, holding it firmly against her body. “I’ll spare you the shriek, besides, the knife might be fun. Cold iron is fantastic to work with.” She dug the knife into its chest then, aiming for at least a couple clustered significant organs. Pulling the knife out, she brushed a loose strand of hair away from her forehead. “One more moment.” She dug the knife into its chest again, the mummer collapsing against her. “All yours now, I suppose that’s a fair trade.”

“I am,” Q chuckled, faintly embarrassed because no one ever thought it was cool, being that so few people even know what he studied in the laboratory. All his work came in two. One for humanity who didn’t know the supernatural, and the other was for those who did. The kill was easy enough with it bound up and not overly resisting. But she seemed to keep the incision precise over messily aiming, and she had it killed swiftly with only two stabs. “Trade?” his smile was soft, and crooked. “Do you like enacting a trade in these moments with those you work with? I usually burn them, but I am rather interested in its vocal chords, so it would be nice to have.” He grabbed the rope still secured around their arms, and held them like a morbid picnic basket by his side as they bled out. Awkwardness was easy with Quintin, and he already felt it creeping up on his ankles, not sure what exactly to say to end this moment. “Say, I, um, hadn’t ran into many hunters in town, mostly my fault cause I’m always in my lab. But you can find me online. Last name is Ritcher.” He offered.

“Look at you all fancy.” Athena raised an eyebrow. “I don’t do research, but I will be going to med school in a year-ish.” She expertly flipped her blade around, pulling a cloth napkin out of her bag as she wiped it off before tucking it back against her hip, the feeling of the cold iron one of incredible comfort. “I don’t normally trade. This is not a school lunch from elementary school; however, I understand the point you are trying to make, and so yes, you can have this. I have little use for it, I’ve examined these guys before.” So they were new to town. Or completely reclusive. “I’m a Quinn. Also easily accessible online, on multiple social media platforms. Feel free to reach out if you need help on anything like this. If this is the kinda thing you deal with in your lab,” she looked over her shoulder, the other man long gone, “hit me up, I might be able to assist you sometime.” She winked at him. “I do know my way around a scalpel.”

#wickedswriting #c quintin #chatzy #mummer mia

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