Hellhound AU

[just_aces]

Sometime round about 1900, a witch summoned a hellhound as a familiar.

He didn't mind it, hellhounds are loyal after all, and if some of her spells left him tired and drained, well, that was what he was there for, to keep her from using too much of her own energy for things. That and to eat the souls of her victims, sometimes.

But then, in the early 1970s, she ran afoul of a much stronger coven.

She was quite quickly banished to hell, but the hellhound couldn't be allowed to go with her, because, well, hellhounds are loyal and she was powerful and would have been able to use him to escape.

So the hellhound was made human, figuring that sixty, seventy, even eighty years if he was lucky would be enough time for the witch to have been consumed, so that even when the human-that-had-been-a-hellhound died, and Death herself realized that he was definitely not where, or what, he was supposed to be, she'd send him back.

But then one Charles Rowland kind of fucked up that whole plan by dying young and immediately running away from Death herself.

So the ghost-who-was-the-boy-who-was-the-hellhound has no idea what he was, or still is, under it all.

But, after a trip through hell to save his best friend (Hellhounds are loyal, after all) and time spent in a familiar position -though not a familiar kitchen- after that has been enough to knock a few things loose...

Comments

[uptightboy]

Edwin snapped his mouth shut as Lady Goode started to talk and did not address him but Astra. He was ready to fight, ready to put his debating skills to use as he always had to whenever one of these witches sank their claws deep into him but this time he didn't have to.

Astra went completely silent, looking over at Lady Goode in disbelief. He sent a look at Edwin as if it was personally his fault and leaned back in her chair.

"Me and my sisters are only trying to protect the coven from a gruesome future or yet another useless hunt if that beast gets out of hand," she said, though with less fight than she had moments ago. "I'm only looking out for us, Lady Goode," she added.

Edwin had to tighten his lips as to not snark at her. But it was precious information knowing that apparently there was a discourse about the hound in the coven, besides their usual meetings. It was good to know that others were actually out to take Charles, no matter what it took. It made Edwin more determined to do good by him, to take care of him and keep him by his side. He barely noted his hand reaching for Charles again, stroking the back of his head to soothe him.

[just_aces]

Lady Goode nodded, "I'm sure you are." She squared her stack of papers, passing them over to Daphne to file, picking up her still-smouldering cigarette once more, "Now, that concludes our business for today, Daphne will schedule a follow-up meeting with you for next week, Detective, so we can get a better read on the Hound's state before resuming our usual schedule."

She nodded once, prim as ever, "You are, of course, welcome to visit the library as usual, though we can't allow the hound inside in it's current state, too many fluctuating energies. You can leave him in the anteroom with Daphne if you wish, but for now we will call this meeting concluded."

Daphne carefully filed the notes along with Edwin's report, tucking it into the folder under her clipboard, sliding easily from her seat to go open the door for Edwin and Charles, waiting until it had closed behind them, effectively blocking the sound of what was bound to be yet another argument before turning a gentle smile on the pair, "Library, then? Or are you departing us now?"

[uptightboy]

With a barely there sigh, Edwin sent a thankful look at Daphne. She was always there to support them in her own way, it was eerie how invisible yet crucial her role was in some of these meetings. Along with auntie. Every time Edwin was reminded that while there were horrible people about like Astra, there were still the types of Daphne. Edwin was thankful he can accept help from them, and it was all thanks to Charles. And Crystal, too.

So he smiled all too politely when the meeting is concluded though he wasn't too happy about having to come next week. With Charles's current state he wouldn't want to drag him all over if not necessary. He gently said his goodbyes, even to Astra who ignored him.

"Ah, well..." Edwin frowned, looking at Charles. He would have loved to leave, it was a hectic meeting. And now that he knew some witches were out to get Charles he didn't feel all too comfortable sticking around. "I do need to look at some books quickly, mostly on healing. It shall not take long, Charles. Will you be alright?"

[just_aces]

Charles considered for a moment, but nodded once, something that made Daphne smile, just leading them both to the lift down to the Library, tilting her head off to the anteroom, "We'll be just here, do you know where you're looking?"

At that point she was pretty sure that Edwin knew the Library as well as any of the coven members and would be able to find what he needed with relative ease. She perched in one of the comfortable chairs, waiting for Charles to settle beside her, crossing his front paws and keeping his head up and alert with his ears pointed towards the Library doors like some kind of Anubis statue.

While Edwin looked up what he needed, she jotted down a quick list of all the things she could remember that a Hellhound could eat besides souls, there weren't many, other types of magical energy mostly, but there were also suggestions like letting him sit somewhere where he could smell food cooking or even in a vegetable garden where food stock was growing, because those things both generated small amounts of energy that he could, potentially, draw from.

[uptightboy]

"I shall be alright, thank you," Edwin said before quickly ducking into the library. He heard giggling inside, despite seeing nobody for the short time he was there. It was a usual phenomenon whenever they visited.

Little did Daphne know that that list was indeed something Edwin was looking for. He did find some satisfactory information in the books he checked but Daphne's little list helped his case more. He thanked her as he tuck it in his notebook, thinking about how they could ever repay for her invaluable support.

Edwin did want to start on 'feeding' Charles by bringing him to one of the markets but he still needed a stop by their office. It was his safe space a place where he could unwind and relax after such a meeting with snappy witches. He also wished to know if Charles wasn't overly exhausted.

"Well, that was quite an excitement," Edwin remarked as they walked through the mirror. He immediately took the list to have a better look at it. "I did have suspicions about some kind of talk going on in the coven about you but I truly did not expect it to be a malicious one," he said. "I believe it is difficult to think of ill intentions with such support also present," he held up the list. Then he paused to look at Charles. "How are you feeling, Charles?"

[just_aces]

Charles had shifted back to himself almost as soon as they were through the mirror, just leaning against the desk, arms folded loosely over his chest, comfortable as he ever was, practically lounging.

He nodded at Edwin's initial run of statements, because he'd felt the same, really, and agreed, it was just remembering in the moment of being argued against that they also had support that was the hard part, which was part of what had him asking: "It's Celeste and Estelle is the other two, yeah? One of them asks questions differently than Astra and the other one." His brow creased, lifting one hand to scratch behind his ear, squinting ceilingward as if that might help him figure it out, but he finally shook his head, fingers wiggling near his temple, "I'll sort it out eventually, got to let it simmer a bit, probably just have to pay better attention next time they're both talking."

He was caught up enough in trying to remember what it was he'd noticed about the three of them who seemed to delight in needling Edwin and, apparently, were trying to 'confiscate' him -and he definitely didn't like the sound of that- that he almost missed Edwin's actual question, and he smiled, "I'm alright. Better here than there." Which had as much to do with familiar and friendly surroundings as it did anything else.

[uptightboy]

Edwin frowned at Charles. Asking questions differently? He narrowed his eyes. Had Charles noticed something about the sisters? But he just nodded a little preoccupied, waiting for Charles's answer to his question.

"Good, I did not wish to exhaust you further with this visit but I was afraid it would look worse if we didn't show," Edwin sighed. "We shall catch our breath then..." he started, then took his notebook with the list Daphne got them. He walked to Charles, showing it to him. "Then we shall look into these items and practices," he said. "Some of these are quite expensive and rare magical items but there are some items and things we could try out to see if we can replenish your energies faster. And maybe... maybe get rid of the scarring too," he added a little careful.

[just_aces]

"Oh yeah, would have been worse if we hadn't gone." He replied easily to that explanation, glancing at the list as it was offered over, brow creasing as he studied it more intently once he realized just what was on it.

His fingers drifted reflexively to the where that scabbed-over burn spot was on his shoulder, currently hidden by his shirt, when Edwin mentioned the scarring, "It doesn't hurt. Mostly just annoying." He assured, even as he dropped that hand to tap a fingertip against one of the line items, "We've still got a couple of these in storage, bottled spells, from the Cloister case, they were in the bottom drawer of the alchemy case and we just moved them to a shelf to make room for actual ingredients."

He wouldn't have remembered as much if he hadn't literally just done the inventory a few days before, "'Course I'll have to figure out how to y'know, consume the magic without using the spell, but I'll have to do that for most of these anyway." He doubted that consuming magic was the same as consuming a soul, for one thing he doubted the magic would fight back, or be afraid of him.

[uptightboy]

"Good memory, Charles," Edwin nodded. "Then, we shall start with those," he decided. "Then we may look into places where they make delicious food so you can... feed," he added, bringing the list to put it on his desk for now.

"As I noticed," he started, turning to Charles again. "Your instincts work quite sharp when you shift," he said. "So, it may be advisable to trust your other self to find out how to consume the magic of a bottled spell. I shall also see what I can find." Edwin stopped for a second, thinking. "I'm quite relieved we do not need to feed you souls, however," he said. Though, he wondered... if they had no choice, would he do it? Would he catch a ghost to feed it to Charles? Would it ever come to it? As Edwin remembered how it felt when he thought he was going to lose Charles, he had to realize Despair of the Endless had chosen him as a 'friend' for a reason. He closed his eyes for a moment to try and get that thought out of his head. They didn't need to feed souls to Charles, not as long as he was careful.

[just_aces]

He did smile at that praise, the same as he ever did, "It's only because I just did inventory the other day. Should probably try some of the lower-power ideas first, though, just in case?" A little shake of his head as he explained, "Too much energy might be worse than not enough, I know how I used to get after I had a coffee, figure this is probably about the same thing, yeah?"

It seemed like it should be at least, or at least something similar, "But if there's no change after we get back from the market, can try one of the bottles. But yeah, other shape is probably for the best, I think I can still absorb energy or whatnot like this, but I don't know for sure, and probably better not to test that if it's just as easy not to." And considering that changing between the two forms was already second nature, something he did without even having to think about it too hard, it really would be that easy.

[uptightboy]

"I had never imagined a high-quality magical spell in a bottle would be compared to coffee and yet, here we are," Edwin remarked with a raised eyebrow. "That said, starting small is indeed the safest way to proceed into this."

"May I suggest..." he started, narrowing his eyes. "You need a scent of food, any kind. While the market is indeed a good place to smell food, we could visit actual kitchens," he advised. "Restaurants, perhaps. Including Italian ones. My idea would be it may work better if it is food you actually like."

[just_aces]

That suggestion just kindled warmth in his chest all over again and his smile spread, "Yeah? Sounds like a valid theory, only one way to find out." He gave a shrug, hands in his pockets once more, but smile very much in place. He knew Edwin knew how much he missed spaghetti -among a handful of other things- but the fact that he thought ahead that way, or even took something like that into consideration in a new situation was... it was nice in ways he didn't have words for.

"If it works we could always try that park near the university, where all the food trucks set up on the weekends? Crystal says it always smells amazing over there, that many different kinds of food at once and all." His brow furrowed a moment later, "Usually pretty big crowd, though, might be safer to go disguise route if we're doing that."

[uptightboy]

Edwin is already trying to rake his memory of nearby places where they could start feeding, when Charles also suggests the university.

"Ah, yes, I suppose finding new favorites may also benefit the cause," he nodded. "Do you think we need disguises? I believe plain ghost form should be enough to visit. Or, well, if we were to go with Crystal I suppose we can take on the disguises," he adds, not too enthusiastic. He would fight for Crystal and protect her with everything he got but being in a crowded area for her? No, he has to draw the line somewhere.

[just_aces]

He laughed softly, "I just meant it'd be less people trying to ask questions if it's two of you and a fuckoff big dog instead of just you." He shook his head, "We'll save that for later, have to find out how well this even works first, and how close I have to be, all that kind of thing. The finer points and all."

He gave a shrug, "And if the garden thing works, we can always get some planter boxes up on the roof, yeah? Might not be enough for full recharge, but could work for a sort of top-up?" And depending on what they managed to actually plant in them it might attract more birds for the Hound to chase besides the pigeons. Not that he was actually trying to catch them, he just liked pouncing at them to make them scatter.

[uptightboy]

"Right, later then," Edwin agreed. "Oh dear, a garden of our own," he huffed. While he does love nature, gardening isn't really their forte. But maybe for Charles, he can put some effort into the skill, and maybe the witches can advise them on the details of it. "If we start going down that path, I believe we could also grow some of our own supplies of alchemical components," he added. It may be useful but Edwin still wasn't entirely thrilled about gardening.

"Well then, do rest now, and inform me if we can go to, well, feed you," Edwin said at last.

[just_aces]

He nodded, moving to drop onto the couch, "It's probably a couple hours until most restaurants are open, still early." Their meeting with the Coven hadn't gotten dragged out like they sometimes did, which he was definitely grateful for in some ways, but he'd already been tired to start with, though not as badly as he had been the past few days, so he'd take it.

He shifted himself around so he was leaning against the arm of the couch, just dragging the blanket down off the back to wrap himself in like a shawl, "Three hours? Then we can go."

[uptightboy]

"Alright," Edwin nodded, watching as Charles got comfortable on the couch. It was still so new, knowing that he needed naps and even slept too. Now they were going to visit places where people were eating. It was almost like Charles had his wish come true, he was 'being alive' again. "Charles, do you..." Edwin started but halfway he wondered if it was a stupid question. In the end, he squared up and asked. "Do you prefer being a hound than a ghost?"

[just_aces]

He did, actually, seem to consider that question for a moment, brow creasing as he turned it over in his mind, weighing it against his experiences, realizing only belatedly that he'd been quiet for maybe a little too long, and finally just shaking his head, "No."

His brow creased, "I mean, some things is easier? But it's just gone and complicated everything else." He pinned Edwin with a look then, "I don't regret it, though, so don't go getting that in your head, either." He shook his head, settling in a little more, "It's just going to take some getting used to, that's all."

[uptightboy]

Edwin felt a little alarmed as Charles stayed silent. He didn't even realize how he was so fixated on the answer. But he let out a sigh, even if useless, when Charles spoke.

"I'm glad," Edwin said, looking away for a second. "I was only thinking that you are alive again, in a sense. You got your 'life' back."

[just_aces]

A string of various confused expressions chased each other across Charles' face, finally just asking: "What?" He shook his head, "No, I mean, I can see how you got there, but that's not what it's like at all. It's more like..."

His brow was still furrowed, trying to figure out a way to explain and finally just coming up with: "Like that story about the swan that got raised as a duck, yeah? Spent this whole time thinking I was just bad at being a ghost and turns out it's because I've been using the wrong script the whole time." Which was two different metaphors, but still fit.

[uptightboy]

Well, Edwin had to admit it got more clear to him with that metaphor. Right. A swan raised by ducks. That... was fairly accurate.

"Well then, Mr. Swan," Edwin started. "I just wanted to say I am happy we will finally put you in your place. In multiple ways," he added. "I shall let you rest, thank you for indulging me."

[just_aces]

He snorted a laugh at the new title, though his expression softened into an actual smile at the rest as he settled in again, "'Course I will, you've done the same for me since the start, wouldn't be fair if I didn't do the same."

Another nod, kicking off his shoes to draw his feet up onto the couch as well, though it left him curled up like some kind of isopod, he seemed comfortable enough, "Three hours. Then we'll go."

He was always surprised at just how easy it was to slip off to sleep, because it wasn't like normal sleep, or at least not how he remembered sleep being, he was still mostly aware of what was going on in the office, but even then it was still restful, it was enough to recoup some energy and he was uncurling again in just over two hours, shaking the blanket out to drape it back over the back of the couch again.

[uptightboy]

With Daphne's handy list, Edwin and Charles started working on methods to keep a Hellhound strong and fed. The scent of cooking food worked so they took on more runs together. Their supply runs sometimes included walking to restaurants, the market, and the university campus. Some of these runs included them being in disguises which brought a new kind of horror to Edwin's afterlife as apparently, dogs were pretty popular around the university parts. People loved Charles and thus they also paid attention to Edwin's disguised self, a young woman just walking her dog... When Edwin had been asked for his number for the second time, they brought Crystal along more and the attempts were reduced but only about half. Yet, it was still a good method to keep up Charles's strength.

Having all these options at hand did help Edwin's anxiety about using magic. He didn't plan to exhaust Charles again like he did with the destroying spell but it meant they could experiment a bit more boldly about boundaries without leaving Charles empty. Knowing that there were ways to help Charles if he was being used calmed Edwin just a bit. It also allowed him to experiment with a wider variety of spells. It was also a bit dangerous because it made Edwin look for spells he wouldn't usually... as if he learned nothing from using the wrong offensive spell the other day.

So, on a slower day, between cases, Edwin decided to check on one of the smaller spells, like using a seeing stone to send some updates to Daphne.

"Now, let us see," Edwin muttered to himself as he was holding the stone in one hand, and his notebook in the other. He read the spell in his notes a few times in quiet at first. If this was working it would solve some of their delayed communication issues, and also spare them to write letters. Which Edwin did not mind but he had to admit that sending letters was sometimes way too slow.

[just_aces]

When Charles showed up basically good as new at the week-later check-in meeting, it was deemed safe to return to their twice-monthly meetings, and even those hadn't been terrible now that they had a surefire way to keep Charles' strength up, and Charles was still paying close attention to Astra and her sisters, though he still hadn't really figured out what it was that Celeste -he was pretty sure- did differently when she asked things that it was still sharp and pointed and sometimes downright mean, but wasn't the same as Astra and Estelle.

He knew he'd figure it out eventually, but in the meantime he was going to enjoy the fact that they'd figured out a good regular energy top-up on basically the first try, and had bottled spells in reserve, with a few more added to the collection thanks to Auntie who they had gone to visit at the Floating Market. More than that, he sometimes walked with Crystal to the cafe, because even though it wasn't quite as effective in his regular form as it was in hound-shape he still could absorb that ambient food energy, and it always smelled delicious in there anyway, he'd always been fond of the almost-sharp scent of roasting coffee as it was, and that was more pronounced now.

Daphne was still their liaison with the Coven, or their minder, as she often said, only half-joking, and being able to communicate with her quickly would only be a good thing, which was why Charles was sticking close as Edwin worked on the sending stone, not where he'd get in the way, and not close enough for Edwin to draw on the extra power, not that there had been further incidents, but still better safe than sorry.

Something prickled at the edges of his senses whenever Edwin did magic, though this time was different, but he couldn't quite place why, straightening from where he'd been sprawled on the couch leafing through a Tintin comic, fingers marking his place and tilting his head as if he might be able to hear what was different about the spell.

[uptightboy]

Edwin hummed, whispering the words to himself a few times before he attempted to say them out loud. He sent a look at Charles, noting how his attention was on him too. Edwin's very first thought was that Charles was maybe worried he took a lot of power again accidentally. Edwin hated that feeling. He knew he wouldn't take as much, he knew they settled it with Charles... Maybe one day he will believe it himself, that he can do this and protect Charles too.

With a lick of his lips, Edwin nodded to himself. The spell was supposed to open a gate for the message to go through, almost like a voicemail. So Edwin repeats his message in his head too, and then goes for the spell.

He says the spell out loud, holding the stone. He already knew how it would feel when the spell worked and he could feel it working... except what he thought would happen, didn't happen. Upon casting the spell the stone did light up but instead of waiting for his message and small portal opened and something dashed out of it. Something with wings and the scent of sulfur. Edwin yelled and his kneejerk reaction was to grab the stone and throw it at the thing- an imp? But Edwin had no time to properly check it as his body was already moving, kicking his chair back and backing away from the desk where the creature spawned.