p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Amethyst it's four in the morning, I swear if you called just to say you found another naked woman in your textbook I'm blocking you. This may be rather hard for you to understand but not everyone has the maturity of a prepubescent boy." Pearl squinted past the brightness of her phone screen to look around her dorm. Everything was as woefully small and cramped as it had been the previous day when she moved in. Two twin beds, one of which she was currently occupying, with a cheap pressboard dresser between them took up a majority of the space. Said dresser contained all of the student's clothes, neatly folded of course, while the top served as a convenient perch for her digital clock. It was the very same clock whose bright red LED display merrily reminded her that she had only gotten to sleep about two hours previous. A cursory glance at the bed across from hers showed that her roommate still hadn't arrived. Briefly she wondered if she should be concerned with the girl's absence but she dismissed that thought. Classes didn't officially start for another three days; she supposed some people might not want to move in until the last minute./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""No P it's nothing like that", Amethyst's voice crackled through the phone's speaker threatening to cut out as she spoke. "Well I mean yeah I did find some more nudey pictures in chapter twelve but that isn't why I called this time." Not even the inconsistent service or the poor quality audio device could hide the heavy slur in her voice. Lovely so she had been out drinking with her idiot friends again, that explained why she was calling so late. "Listen; me, Sugilite, and Mal were out messing around by Dead Man's Mouth and we fucked up Pearl, we fucked up bad. I know it's like stupid late and shit but please you gotta grab your wand and get out here." Voices were speaking in the background too muffled to fully understand although Pearl was sure she heard someone say "it's moving". "Shit", Amethyst swore loud enough for her fellow student to hear in spite of the distance between her mouth and the phone. "Please dude you're like the smartest person I know you gotta hurry and get out here."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Anger, Pearl found, was doing an excellent job of chasing away the fog sleep had draped over her mind, "Are you serious right now? Not even a text for almost a week then you call me up at four in the morning and expect me to drive an hour to come get you? Swear to god if this is another one of your childish pranks", her rant was cut off by a desperate sounding scream. Pale fingers tightly clasped the bridge of her nose in a gesture of frustration that went back as far as she could remember. "Assuming I believe you I'm going to need more information than you've given me before I even consider doing this. You have to tell me exactly what you three were doing and what went so horribly wrong that it justifies me saving you." As she spoke she rolled over so she was sitting fully upright with her feet touching the floor at the side of the bed. Prank or not Amethyst genuinely sounded terrified and was asking Pearl to bring a wand rather than something simple like a charm./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Okay I'll tell you but you gotta promise not to get mad or call me stupid until after we get this thing dealt with okay?" Well that was never a good sign; Pearl was already opening her top drawer so she could put on pants. For Amethyst to recognize the gravity of a situation without being scolded usually meant serious consequences were incoming. Pearl strained her ears attempting to pick up and sirens in the background. "So a few days ago Peridot and I were going through her mom's house trying to find where the giraffe-necked bitch hid Peri's birth certificate. We found it in a locked chest under the bed along with a bunch of really old books. I get the bright idea of pocketing one of the books to teach her mom a lesson about stealing people's stuff. P-Dot didn't think it was a good idea, something about knowledge beyond mortal comprehension or whatevs; you know boring shit. Anyways I totally forgot about it until tonight when I was out here looking for my lighter and it fell out of my bag. Malachite was convinced she could read the thing and found an awesome incantation that was supposed to summon a fuck ton of money."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Oh my stars Amethyst please tell me you didn't try to cast something that you couldn't even read. I know you get off on rebellion but come on", pants secure Pearl pulled the phone away from her ear long enough to put on a shirt. The first week of October was proving to be unseasonably warm requiring little more than a t-shirt to keep the wind off. Just to be safe she made sure to grab her university hoodie in case the rain picked back up. "Didn't you learn anything from the time poor Steven accidentally turned himself into a cat monster? You're always putting us in danger with your little outbursts ugh, you are just so childish!" A loud bang on the wall near her bed served as a reminder that she wasn't the only one who wanted to sleep. True to the stereotype the dorm walls were quite thin and far from soundproof. She made a mental note to research silencing spells once the campus library opened for the year. There was no sense is making herself a pariah just because her idiot friends had no idea how to maintain a Circadian Rhythm./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Yeah, yeah and don't forget reckless, vulgar, loud mouth and that's just what makes me so awesome!" Pearl couldn't stop a weary sigh from filtering through her nose; this wasn't the first time they had this argument. A variation of those same words had been used their sophomore year of high school when they broke off their three year relationship. The breakup felt like it had happened a lifetime ago when in reality it had been two years; things were almost back to normal. "Save the lecture P please now is not the right time to remind me how shitty I am at everything. You can boot up your thirty fucking slide PowerPoint after your scrawny ass helps me send this thing back where it came from. Hell I'll even make the popcorn for the grand viewing ceremony and get the whole freshman class together to watch. Peridot has an in with the drama geeks, we could probably convince them to turn it into a fucking screen play." For all of her boorishness Amethyst couldn't hide the fear creeping into her voice. Nor was she able to repress the pleading in her tone when she spoke again. "Hurry I can't hold this circle forever and I have no idea what'll happen if it gets out. Fuck", there was a crunch and the line abruptly went dead leaving Pearl blinking in the sudden brightness caused by her screen reactivating./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Amethyst", Pearl scrambled to call her friend back but the phone went straight to voicemail without ringing. There was no way this was a prank; Amethyst loved her phone too much to risk something happening to it. Mind racing the blue eyed girl tied her hiking boots with a level of precision that only came with muscle memory. On autopilot she grabbed her car keys from the top of her dresser and rushed into the smoke scented halls. The hour's drive to Dead Man's Mouth was a blur of tangled thoughts and overwhelming worry. In the back of her mind Pearl knew she was speeding on winding roads that were hardly safe at the best of times. The road was a fairly popular spot for illegal street racing resulting in a handful of crashes every few months. Guard rails did a good job of preventing anything too terrible from happening but there were still a few handmade crosses on the shoulder. Above her a moonless sky gave the night an eerie quality which only compounded her growing anxiety. New moons were known to play havoc with the ley lines transforming the already mercurial energy into something almost unpredictable. Even the more experienced summoners avoided tapping into the lines on nights when the sky was bare./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"By the time she reached the top of the large hill that housed the colorfully named swimming hole Pearl's hands hurt from gripping the steering wheel so hard. Amethyst's car wasn't hard to find; the obnoxious purple Jeep stood out like a sore thumb next to the brush it was parked in. A decal on the back featuring two gleaming yellow eyes read "If you can read this I'm out chasing tail". Pearl carefully maneuvered her much smaller Chevy over the rocky terrain so she was parked more or less beside the eyesore. Goosebumps made the fine hairs on her thinly muscled arms stand on end; the air practically crackled with energy. Even without the warning phone call she would have been able to tell something powerful was done here. Ley line energy had a unique taste about it, like something fizzy and metallic on the back of the tongue. Some of the most powerful casters in the world used the lines to accomplish feats far beyond anything simple charms could do. It was a potent force that could grind mountains to dust and turn thriving cities into black craters. Use came at a cost; channeling the lines required running what amounted to pure will through a person's body. Side effects ranged from manageable things like a headache to literal insanity caused by the body not being able to handle what was happening to it./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Another more subtle, but potentially just as dangerous, side effect of ley line magic was its addictive quality. Stay hooked into a line too long and the body becomes dependent on the extra energy intake. Prolonged exposure could fry a caster's connections to the metaphysical world leaving them a drained husk of their former selves. Should they continue attempting to draw the lines their very mind shatters twisting them into an Eldritch being beyond the imagination of even Lovecraft. Such Corruptions, as they were called, were said to roam the Void where the lines originated from. Stories existed of unsuspecting casters being snatched out of thin air by these monsters; not that Pearl believed them of course. Though all cultures had a name for the void it was most commonly referred to as Niflheim; the land of fog and mist. Ancient peoples believed that all life originated from within the mist and all life would return there when the world was reborn. A fringe group of scholars at Cornel University were attempting to prove that bursts of ley energy were a catalyst for evolution./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Flashlight in hand Pearl carefully picked her way through the gnarled brush that twisted around the gravel trail. Silently she offered a thank you to her grandmother who would always remind her to pack as if she could end up stranded. Once again she attempted to call her friend back but just like before her call went directly to voicemail. The utter silence around her set her teeth on edge; normally these woods were teeming with life no matter the hour. Her footsteps crunching on the hard packed earth sounded unnaturally loud compared to the stillness. Buried in the pocket of her hoodie her left hand gripped the small bottle of salt that she always had in case of emergencies. Few things disrupted magical energy as thoroughly as good old fashioned sodium chloride. Minute increases in the electric like current flowing across her skin led her to her companion as efficiently as a GPS. By the time she turned the corner to find the clearing Amethyst had told her about it was like thousands of fire ants were crawling along every inch of exposed skin. Discomfort rapidly segued into awe when she realized what exactly she was looking at and she rushed to her friend's side./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Illuminated by wavering candlelight Amethyst stood at the center of the clearing arms held out almost pleadingly towards a summoning circle. Sweat rolled down the girl's coco colored skin in thick droplets soaking into the neckline of her lavender tank top. Dust and bits of dead grass clung to the knees of her black jeans, remnants from setting the circle Pearl assumed. Empty beer cans lay strewn across the grass more or less centered on where Amethyst was standing. An open book sat next to the girl's foot along with a clay bowl, a pocket knife, some salt, and a half dumped beer bottle. Chocolate brown eyes remained fixed on the circle in front of her while she spoke, "Sup P. did you find the place okay?" Her normally rich voice was growing hoarse from the amount of strain she was under. Up close Pearl could see that her shoulders were shaking and her normally unmovable legs looked like they were going to buckle. "Malachite and Sugie ran off as soon as the thing started movin, fuckin cowards, so it's just gonna be the two of us." A tired bark of laughter broke through her gritted teeth, "Hopefully you can figure out what happened before I pass out."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Movement on the edge of her peripheral vision drew Pearl's eyes away from her friend and on to the circle of ley line energy in front of them. Though it was invisible by nature line energy always took on a bit of the essence of the person channeling it at the time. Based on the thick swirls of blue and green hovering in the air it was logical to assume Malachite helped set the circle. The circle was roughly five foot in diameter with runes scattered somewhat haphazardly along the four cardinal directions. Pacing the edge of the circle was a figure, ruddy in skin tone with hair the color of wheat ready for harvest. Humanoid in body shape the figure stopped its slow walk to study the newcomer with orange eyes whose pupils were thin vertical slits. Two pointed cat like ears twitched on the top of its head and it gave a slow smile revealing upper and lower fangs. Wide nostrils flared scenting the air; its gaze locked onto Pearl its smile growing wider. Each ear was pierced with three dark colored rings, it had a septum piercing, and each nipple was pierced. Curved black claws ran lazily along the circles surface testing the barrier with every slight movement. It wore no clothes leaving a pair of small breasts exposed, in spite of that its pelvic area was completely smooth suggesting it had no actual gender./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Stars", Pearl breathed taking a half step closer; the figure matched her movement until it was almost pressed into the edge of the circle. Never a religious person Pearl couldn't stop the thought that she was looking at a real life demon from entering her mind. As much as she scoffed at the idea she couldn't quite bring herself to banish it completely. Nothing else could explain the dread feeling of wrongness that the creature radiated. Careful not to break the etchings that made up the circle's edge she sank to the ground and pulled the book into her lap. Whatever was in the circle mimicked her actions giving her a clear view of the claws that covered its toes. A cursory glance at the open page gave the blue eyed student immediate insight into what went wrong. "Right away I see that you confused the rune of Fehu, wealth, with Berkano, companionship, no idea how you messed that up. Also it says you're supposed to mix the wax with goat's blood and sage not cheap beer and Doritos. Since I wasn't here during the actual summoning I have no idea if you got the actual incantation right but given the circumstances I doubt it. Honestly the three of you are lucky you aren't missing body parts from all of this, what were you even thinking?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""First of all you're totally wrong; Aqua Mexica is malt liquor, not cheap beer, and those are Cheesy Chaps not Doritos. Fascinating as all that is Pierogi it doesn't exactly help right now unless you're hoping your nerd talk will bore this thing into leaving." Amethyst's voice was thicker than it had been a moment ago like she was talking with food in her mouth. Pearl looked up and put her hand over her mouth to stifle a gasp; blood was flowing from Amethyst's nose. Her cheeks were taking on a grayish green tint similar to someone getting over the flu. Perspiration soaked her long hair causing it to stick to the side of her neck uncomfortably. The hurt that flashed across Pearl's thin face made her pause, "Shit Pearl I'm sorry I shouldn't have snapped. You deserve better than that, you've always been here for me and all I do is rag on you for it. All of tonight's bullshit happened because I wanted to impress you; I was going to call you up with a fat stack of cash that I pulled out of nowhere. Heh it was a pretty stupid plan now that I'm sober enough to think about it", she smiled weakly. "So what do you reckon we do about this?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I have a few suggestions", a purring contralto voice spoke from the other side of the metaphysical barrier Amethyst was struggling to maintain. Both students jumped and looked away from each other to the now rising figure. Its nostrils flared in response to their fear and it gave a low chuckle; the sound made the hair on the back of Pearl's neck stand on end. "Do forgive me for interjecting into your conversation but I find myself growing quite vexed the longer I remain caged." Inhuman eyes met Amethyst's own; although she'd never admit it the eighteen year old was sure she was going to die. Claws slid through its thick hair in an attempt to smooth it, "perhaps you should let me out so we can speak properly. After all it was you who decided to interrupt my evening plans by dragging me here; most uncouth if you ask me. Considering the situation I have been shockingly patient even after one of your companions attempted to strike me with a rock. Others in my position would have eviscerated you hours ago and used your entrails to recreate Van Gough on the walls of the citadel. Starry Starry Night looks positively stunning in red hues, more so than in blue if you ask me. Ah I can see from your faces that you don't like that suggestion; is there a particular artist you prefer? I once watched an associate of mine do a brilliant reimagining of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel using the family of an arrogant monk. Sadly I'm sure the irony was lost in the ensuing chaos", it shook its head for a few seconds./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Pushing that mental image firmly aside, Pearl stood so she was eye level with the creature, "Threatening us isn't going to get you freed. " Logic dictated that if this thing was capable of freeing itself it would have done so at the earliest opportunity. The fact that it was still there meant that for all its bluster it was still at their mercy putting the odds squarely in their favor. Either that or it was going to break through the circle any second now and use their blood to practice its painting skills. Fighting down the panic blooming in her gut she continued, "Hypothetically if we were to break the circle what would happen? Obviously if you don't give us a way to guarantee our safety there's no way we're listening to you. You and I both know it's impossible to lie when you're surrounded by blessed salt so don't even think about it." Silently she sent a prayer to whatever deity was listening that Amethyst was using the blessed salt she had gotten her for solstice. The salt on the ground certainly didn't look like it had been blessed but that could just be because it was mixed with potato chips./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""You are rather astute for something that descended from a bunch of knuckle dragging primitives now aren't you? Shame you weren't the one to call me here; I could have a lot of fun coaxing an arrangement out of a mind as quick as yours. Such a promise would involve the use of a name, names can hold quite a bit of power you know; may I suggest a counter proposal?" The two young adults glanced at each other for a second before Pearl offered a shaky nod. "No need to be so dramatic", the demon chuckled, "instead of providing you my true name I will offer you an alternative title. You may refer to me as Venandi and yes I give you my word that if you release me I will not harm either of you during our negotiations. I still feel I am entitled to some form of compensation given the fact that I was dragged here without so much as a whisper of warning. Decide quickly I fear our little wizard may not be able to hold on much longer, the poor dear can barely stand up." Bruising was spreading across Amethyst's bloodied cheeks blooming into a spectacular pair of black eyes. Assuming she survived the night the girl was going to look like she got on the wrong side of a wrestling match./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Going against every survival instinct she possessed Amethyst reached out with her right foot and scraped away a piece of the circle. Pearl could verbally fence better than anyone the young adult knew if given enough time; unfortunately time wasn't on their side. Bull headed as she was Amethyst just didn't have the strength to hold the circle anymore. Better to break it on her terms instead of passing out and leaving Pearl to face this thing alone. The rest of the energy cleared with a sound akin to gun fire leaving Amethyst to stagger forwards. Black smoke choked the air filling it with the smell of charred grass and stale chips. Strong arms caught her, warm and comforting except for the slight pressure of claws against the exposed flesh of her shoulders. Unable to hold back anymore she heaved empting the contents of a night's worth of bad choices all over the ground. As good as greasy fry bits were going down they felt like badly mixed cement when they made their way back up. The strength of the abdominal spasms forced errant liquid out of her nose adding to her misery./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Venandi had a strange scent, like a mixture between a campfire and something acidic, unnerving but not entirely unpleasant. Still it was better than the sludge that had forced its way up from her stomach. Groaning weakly she sagged against the body in front of her using it to remain upright while her own body adjusted to life without the line. Clawed fingers ran through her hair pulling it away from her face with a surprising amount of tenderness. "Careful little wizard we wouldn't want something happening to you before I get my payment now would we? Kudos for holding on as long as you did; after your friends left I was sure you'd be mine within the hour. Though I must admit when I imagined you spilling your guts vomit was the furthest thing from my mind." Laughing at its own joke the demon lowered its summoner so she was sitting safely on the dying grass. Brightness on the edge of the eastern horizon caused the demon to let out an enraged hiss, "Damn out of time. Looks like we shall have to pick this up again another evening as much as I was enjoying myself watching a group of drunkards attempt to recite Latin. Alas parting is such sweet sorrow my little wizard next time we meet I assure you things will be much more entertaining", and with those final words Venandi vanished in a puff of acrid smoke./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The only evidence anything had went down were the charred remains of the circle and Amethyst's vomit. Too tired to talk the still shaking student started gathering up her summoning equipment as well as her filched book. She considered just leaving the fucking thing to rot but the idea was quickly dismissed; it didn't belong to her. It was a sobering thing for her to accept that the only reason she was still alive was some arbitrary rule about demons and daylight. All her life it felt like she had been skirting by on luck with a heavy pinch of raw talent. Up until that evening she was fine with that because it was easy. Suddenly a lot of the stuff Pearl had been nagging about for years made sense; her luck couldn't last forever she needed to take more responsibility. Complacency wouldn't do her any good when Venandi came to collect whatever payment it felt was owed. Relying on Pearl to save her all the time wasn't fair to her friend and it wasn't fair to her own abilities./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"While Amethyst gathered her school things Pearl set to work cleaning up the mess left over from the impromptu party. Littering was never acceptable even if she was exhausted enough to almost look the other way. All her plans for the day's productivity, which had seemed so reasonable the previous evening, sounded like torture. She was so preoccupied with tidying up that she hadn't noticed Amethyst was behind her until the other girl pulled her into a tight hug. "Ugh after all this drama I feel like I could sleep for a week; any chance I could crash with you for a bit? After all of that I'm kind of scared of being by myself", admitting fear wasn't like Amethyst. Pearl nodded her consent and the two of them set off for the parked cars. "Fuck it I'll come back for The Puma later I don't think I have the energy to drive an hour without fallin asleep." True to her assessment she dozed off not even ten minutes into the drive; her cheek squished into Pearl's boney shoulder. Cuddling together in Pearl's tiny bed felt so familiar, so right, that the purple loving wrestler wondered why she had stupidly given this up. "Hey P", she spoke softly halfway hoping the other girl was too drowsy to hear; "do you think we can go to the library together later? Maybe I can find a book or something about the stuff that lives in the lines that way I can not get made into art."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I'd like that Amethyst", Pearl responded through a yawn, "the library part not the you being murdered I mean." A bright blush steaked across her face and she was extremely grateful that she was facing the wall so it was hidden. Amethyst's only response was to pull her closer with the thick arm that was around her waist. Neither one of them appeared willing to break the comfortable hush that had settled over the two of them. Moments of harmony between them were rare given their vastly different personalities. They were both prideful and stubborn, unwilling to bend because they felt the other couldn't possibly be right. Perhaps though, with effort and communication, there was still a chance to come together into something greater than themselves./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""No P it's nothing like that", Amethyst's voice crackled through the phone's speaker threatening to cut out as she spoke. "Well I mean yeah I did find some more nudey pictures in chapter twelve but that isn't why I called this time." Not even the inconsistent service or the poor quality audio device could hide the heavy slur in her voice. Lovely so she had been out drinking with her idiot friends again, that explained why she was calling so late. "Listen; me, Sugilite, and Mal were out messing around by Dead Man's Mouth and we fucked up Pearl, we fucked up bad. I know it's like stupid late and shit but please you gotta grab your wand and get out here." Voices were speaking in the background too muffled to fully understand although Pearl was sure she heard someone say "it's moving". "Shit", Amethyst swore loud enough for her fellow student to hear in spite of the distance between her mouth and the phone. "Please dude you're like the smartest person I know you gotta hurry and get out here."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Anger, Pearl found, was doing an excellent job of chasing away the fog sleep had draped over her mind, "Are you serious right now? Not even a text for almost a week then you call me up at four in the morning and expect me to drive an hour to come get you? Swear to god if this is another one of your childish pranks", her rant was cut off by a desperate sounding scream. Pale fingers tightly clasped the bridge of her nose in a gesture of frustration that went back as far as she could remember. "Assuming I believe you I'm going to need more information than you've given me before I even consider doing this. You have to tell me exactly what you three were doing and what went so horribly wrong that it justifies me saving you." As she spoke she rolled over so she was sitting fully upright with her feet touching the floor at the side of the bed. Prank or not Amethyst genuinely sounded terrified and was asking Pearl to bring a wand rather than something simple like a charm./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Okay I'll tell you but you gotta promise not to get mad or call me stupid until after we get this thing dealt with okay?" Well that was never a good sign; Pearl was already opening her top drawer so she could put on pants. For Amethyst to recognize the gravity of a situation without being scolded usually meant serious consequences were incoming. Pearl strained her ears attempting to pick up and sirens in the background. "So a few days ago Peridot and I were going through her mom's house trying to find where the giraffe-necked bitch hid Peri's birth certificate. We found it in a locked chest under the bed along with a bunch of really old books. I get the bright idea of pocketing one of the books to teach her mom a lesson about stealing people's stuff. P-Dot didn't think it was a good idea, something about knowledge beyond mortal comprehension or whatevs; you know boring shit. Anyways I totally forgot about it until tonight when I was out here looking for my lighter and it fell out of my bag. Malachite was convinced she could read the thing and found an awesome incantation that was supposed to summon a fuck ton of money."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Oh my stars Amethyst please tell me you didn't try to cast something that you couldn't even read. I know you get off on rebellion but come on", pants secure Pearl pulled the phone away from her ear long enough to put on a shirt. The first week of October was proving to be unseasonably warm requiring little more than a t-shirt to keep the wind off. Just to be safe she made sure to grab her university hoodie in case the rain picked back up. "Didn't you learn anything from the time poor Steven accidentally turned himself into a cat monster? You're always putting us in danger with your little outbursts ugh, you are just so childish!" A loud bang on the wall near her bed served as a reminder that she wasn't the only one who wanted to sleep. True to the stereotype the dorm walls were quite thin and far from soundproof. She made a mental note to research silencing spells once the campus library opened for the year. There was no sense is making herself a pariah just because her idiot friends had no idea how to maintain a Circadian Rhythm./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Yeah, yeah and don't forget reckless, vulgar, loud mouth and that's just what makes me so awesome!" Pearl couldn't stop a weary sigh from filtering through her nose; this wasn't the first time they had this argument. A variation of those same words had been used their sophomore year of high school when they broke off their three year relationship. The breakup felt like it had happened a lifetime ago when in reality it had been two years; things were almost back to normal. "Save the lecture P please now is not the right time to remind me how shitty I am at everything. You can boot up your thirty fucking slide PowerPoint after your scrawny ass helps me send this thing back where it came from. Hell I'll even make the popcorn for the grand viewing ceremony and get the whole freshman class together to watch. Peridot has an in with the drama geeks, we could probably convince them to turn it into a fucking screen play." For all of her boorishness Amethyst couldn't hide the fear creeping into her voice. Nor was she able to repress the pleading in her tone when she spoke again. "Hurry I can't hold this circle forever and I have no idea what'll happen if it gets out. Fuck", there was a crunch and the line abruptly went dead leaving Pearl blinking in the sudden brightness caused by her screen reactivating./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Amethyst", Pearl scrambled to call her friend back but the phone went straight to voicemail without ringing. There was no way this was a prank; Amethyst loved her phone too much to risk something happening to it. Mind racing the blue eyed girl tied her hiking boots with a level of precision that only came with muscle memory. On autopilot she grabbed her car keys from the top of her dresser and rushed into the smoke scented halls. The hour's drive to Dead Man's Mouth was a blur of tangled thoughts and overwhelming worry. In the back of her mind Pearl knew she was speeding on winding roads that were hardly safe at the best of times. The road was a fairly popular spot for illegal street racing resulting in a handful of crashes every few months. Guard rails did a good job of preventing anything too terrible from happening but there were still a few handmade crosses on the shoulder. Above her a moonless sky gave the night an eerie quality which only compounded her growing anxiety. New moons were known to play havoc with the ley lines transforming the already mercurial energy into something almost unpredictable. Even the more experienced summoners avoided tapping into the lines on nights when the sky was bare./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"By the time she reached the top of the large hill that housed the colorfully named swimming hole Pearl's hands hurt from gripping the steering wheel so hard. Amethyst's car wasn't hard to find; the obnoxious purple Jeep stood out like a sore thumb next to the brush it was parked in. A decal on the back featuring two gleaming yellow eyes read "If you can read this I'm out chasing tail". Pearl carefully maneuvered her much smaller Chevy over the rocky terrain so she was parked more or less beside the eyesore. Goosebumps made the fine hairs on her thinly muscled arms stand on end; the air practically crackled with energy. Even without the warning phone call she would have been able to tell something powerful was done here. Ley line energy had a unique taste about it, like something fizzy and metallic on the back of the tongue. Some of the most powerful casters in the world used the lines to accomplish feats far beyond anything simple charms could do. It was a potent force that could grind mountains to dust and turn thriving cities into black craters. Use came at a cost; channeling the lines required running what amounted to pure will through a person's body. Side effects ranged from manageable things like a headache to literal insanity caused by the body not being able to handle what was happening to it./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Another more subtle, but potentially just as dangerous, side effect of ley line magic was its addictive quality. Stay hooked into a line too long and the body becomes dependent on the extra energy intake. Prolonged exposure could fry a caster's connections to the metaphysical world leaving them a drained husk of their former selves. Should they continue attempting to draw the lines their very mind shatters twisting them into an Eldritch being beyond the imagination of even Lovecraft. Such Corruptions, as they were called, were said to roam the Void where the lines originated from. Stories existed of unsuspecting casters being snatched out of thin air by these monsters; not that Pearl believed them of course. Though all cultures had a name for the void it was most commonly referred to as Niflheim; the land of fog and mist. Ancient peoples believed that all life originated from within the mist and all life would return there when the world was reborn. A fringe group of scholars at Cornel University were attempting to prove that bursts of ley energy were a catalyst for evolution./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Flashlight in hand Pearl carefully picked her way through the gnarled brush that twisted around the gravel trail. Silently she offered a thank you to her grandmother who would always remind her to pack as if she could end up stranded. Once again she attempted to call her friend back but just like before her call went directly to voicemail. The utter silence around her set her teeth on edge; normally these woods were teeming with life no matter the hour. Her footsteps crunching on the hard packed earth sounded unnaturally loud compared to the stillness. Buried in the pocket of her hoodie her left hand gripped the small bottle of salt that she always had in case of emergencies. Few things disrupted magical energy as thoroughly as good old fashioned sodium chloride. Minute increases in the electric like current flowing across her skin led her to her companion as efficiently as a GPS. By the time she turned the corner to find the clearing Amethyst had told her about it was like thousands of fire ants were crawling along every inch of exposed skin. Discomfort rapidly segued into awe when she realized what exactly she was looking at and she rushed to her friend's side./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Illuminated by wavering candlelight Amethyst stood at the center of the clearing arms held out almost pleadingly towards a summoning circle. Sweat rolled down the girl's coco colored skin in thick droplets soaking into the neckline of her lavender tank top. Dust and bits of dead grass clung to the knees of her black jeans, remnants from setting the circle Pearl assumed. Empty beer cans lay strewn across the grass more or less centered on where Amethyst was standing. An open book sat next to the girl's foot along with a clay bowl, a pocket knife, some salt, and a half dumped beer bottle. Chocolate brown eyes remained fixed on the circle in front of her while she spoke, "Sup P. did you find the place okay?" Her normally rich voice was growing hoarse from the amount of strain she was under. Up close Pearl could see that her shoulders were shaking and her normally unmovable legs looked like they were going to buckle. "Malachite and Sugie ran off as soon as the thing started movin, fuckin cowards, so it's just gonna be the two of us." A tired bark of laughter broke through her gritted teeth, "Hopefully you can figure out what happened before I pass out."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Movement on the edge of her peripheral vision drew Pearl's eyes away from her friend and on to the circle of ley line energy in front of them. Though it was invisible by nature line energy always took on a bit of the essence of the person channeling it at the time. Based on the thick swirls of blue and green hovering in the air it was logical to assume Malachite helped set the circle. The circle was roughly five foot in diameter with runes scattered somewhat haphazardly along the four cardinal directions. Pacing the edge of the circle was a figure, ruddy in skin tone with hair the color of wheat ready for harvest. Humanoid in body shape the figure stopped its slow walk to study the newcomer with orange eyes whose pupils were thin vertical slits. Two pointed cat like ears twitched on the top of its head and it gave a slow smile revealing upper and lower fangs. Wide nostrils flared scenting the air; its gaze locked onto Pearl its smile growing wider. Each ear was pierced with three dark colored rings, it had a septum piercing, and each nipple was pierced. Curved black claws ran lazily along the circles surface testing the barrier with every slight movement. It wore no clothes leaving a pair of small breasts exposed, in spite of that its pelvic area was completely smooth suggesting it had no actual gender./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Stars", Pearl breathed taking a half step closer; the figure matched her movement until it was almost pressed into the edge of the circle. Never a religious person Pearl couldn't stop the thought that she was looking at a real life demon from entering her mind. As much as she scoffed at the idea she couldn't quite bring herself to banish it completely. Nothing else could explain the dread feeling of wrongness that the creature radiated. Careful not to break the etchings that made up the circle's edge she sank to the ground and pulled the book into her lap. Whatever was in the circle mimicked her actions giving her a clear view of the claws that covered its toes. A cursory glance at the open page gave the blue eyed student immediate insight into what went wrong. "Right away I see that you confused the rune of Fehu, wealth, with Berkano, companionship, no idea how you messed that up. Also it says you're supposed to mix the wax with goat's blood and sage not cheap beer and Doritos. Since I wasn't here during the actual summoning I have no idea if you got the actual incantation right but given the circumstances I doubt it. Honestly the three of you are lucky you aren't missing body parts from all of this, what were you even thinking?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""First of all you're totally wrong; Aqua Mexica is malt liquor, not cheap beer, and those are Cheesy Chaps not Doritos. Fascinating as all that is Pierogi it doesn't exactly help right now unless you're hoping your nerd talk will bore this thing into leaving." Amethyst's voice was thicker than it had been a moment ago like she was talking with food in her mouth. Pearl looked up and put her hand over her mouth to stifle a gasp; blood was flowing from Amethyst's nose. Her cheeks were taking on a grayish green tint similar to someone getting over the flu. Perspiration soaked her long hair causing it to stick to the side of her neck uncomfortably. The hurt that flashed across Pearl's thin face made her pause, "Shit Pearl I'm sorry I shouldn't have snapped. You deserve better than that, you've always been here for me and all I do is rag on you for it. All of tonight's bullshit happened because I wanted to impress you; I was going to call you up with a fat stack of cash that I pulled out of nowhere. Heh it was a pretty stupid plan now that I'm sober enough to think about it", she smiled weakly. "So what do you reckon we do about this?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I have a few suggestions", a purring contralto voice spoke from the other side of the metaphysical barrier Amethyst was struggling to maintain. Both students jumped and looked away from each other to the now rising figure. Its nostrils flared in response to their fear and it gave a low chuckle; the sound made the hair on the back of Pearl's neck stand on end. "Do forgive me for interjecting into your conversation but I find myself growing quite vexed the longer I remain caged." Inhuman eyes met Amethyst's own; although she'd never admit it the eighteen year old was sure she was going to die. Claws slid through its thick hair in an attempt to smooth it, "perhaps you should let me out so we can speak properly. After all it was you who decided to interrupt my evening plans by dragging me here; most uncouth if you ask me. Considering the situation I have been shockingly patient even after one of your companions attempted to strike me with a rock. Others in my position would have eviscerated you hours ago and used your entrails to recreate Van Gough on the walls of the citadel. Starry Starry Night looks positively stunning in red hues, more so than in blue if you ask me. Ah I can see from your faces that you don't like that suggestion; is there a particular artist you prefer? I once watched an associate of mine do a brilliant reimagining of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel using the family of an arrogant monk. Sadly I'm sure the irony was lost in the ensuing chaos", it shook its head for a few seconds./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Pushing that mental image firmly aside, Pearl stood so she was eye level with the creature, "Threatening us isn't going to get you freed. " Logic dictated that if this thing was capable of freeing itself it would have done so at the earliest opportunity. The fact that it was still there meant that for all its bluster it was still at their mercy putting the odds squarely in their favor. Either that or it was going to break through the circle any second now and use their blood to practice its painting skills. Fighting down the panic blooming in her gut she continued, "Hypothetically if we were to break the circle what would happen? Obviously if you don't give us a way to guarantee our safety there's no way we're listening to you. You and I both know it's impossible to lie when you're surrounded by blessed salt so don't even think about it." Silently she sent a prayer to whatever deity was listening that Amethyst was using the blessed salt she had gotten her for solstice. The salt on the ground certainly didn't look like it had been blessed but that could just be because it was mixed with potato chips./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""You are rather astute for something that descended from a bunch of knuckle dragging primitives now aren't you? Shame you weren't the one to call me here; I could have a lot of fun coaxing an arrangement out of a mind as quick as yours. Such a promise would involve the use of a name, names can hold quite a bit of power you know; may I suggest a counter proposal?" The two young adults glanced at each other for a second before Pearl offered a shaky nod. "No need to be so dramatic", the demon chuckled, "instead of providing you my true name I will offer you an alternative title. You may refer to me as Venandi and yes I give you my word that if you release me I will not harm either of you during our negotiations. I still feel I am entitled to some form of compensation given the fact that I was dragged here without so much as a whisper of warning. Decide quickly I fear our little wizard may not be able to hold on much longer, the poor dear can barely stand up." Bruising was spreading across Amethyst's bloodied cheeks blooming into a spectacular pair of black eyes. Assuming she survived the night the girl was going to look like she got on the wrong side of a wrestling match./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Going against every survival instinct she possessed Amethyst reached out with her right foot and scraped away a piece of the circle. Pearl could verbally fence better than anyone the young adult knew if given enough time; unfortunately time wasn't on their side. Bull headed as she was Amethyst just didn't have the strength to hold the circle anymore. Better to break it on her terms instead of passing out and leaving Pearl to face this thing alone. The rest of the energy cleared with a sound akin to gun fire leaving Amethyst to stagger forwards. Black smoke choked the air filling it with the smell of charred grass and stale chips. Strong arms caught her, warm and comforting except for the slight pressure of claws against the exposed flesh of her shoulders. Unable to hold back anymore she heaved empting the contents of a night's worth of bad choices all over the ground. As good as greasy fry bits were going down they felt like badly mixed cement when they made their way back up. The strength of the abdominal spasms forced errant liquid out of her nose adding to her misery./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Venandi had a strange scent, like a mixture between a campfire and something acidic, unnerving but not entirely unpleasant. Still it was better than the sludge that had forced its way up from her stomach. Groaning weakly she sagged against the body in front of her using it to remain upright while her own body adjusted to life without the line. Clawed fingers ran through her hair pulling it away from her face with a surprising amount of tenderness. "Careful little wizard we wouldn't want something happening to you before I get my payment now would we? Kudos for holding on as long as you did; after your friends left I was sure you'd be mine within the hour. Though I must admit when I imagined you spilling your guts vomit was the furthest thing from my mind." Laughing at its own joke the demon lowered its summoner so she was sitting safely on the dying grass. Brightness on the edge of the eastern horizon caused the demon to let out an enraged hiss, "Damn out of time. Looks like we shall have to pick this up again another evening as much as I was enjoying myself watching a group of drunkards attempt to recite Latin. Alas parting is such sweet sorrow my little wizard next time we meet I assure you things will be much more entertaining", and with those final words Venandi vanished in a puff of acrid smoke./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The only evidence anything had went down were the charred remains of the circle and Amethyst's vomit. Too tired to talk the still shaking student started gathering up her summoning equipment as well as her filched book. She considered just leaving the fucking thing to rot but the idea was quickly dismissed; it didn't belong to her. It was a sobering thing for her to accept that the only reason she was still alive was some arbitrary rule about demons and daylight. All her life it felt like she had been skirting by on luck with a heavy pinch of raw talent. Up until that evening she was fine with that because it was easy. Suddenly a lot of the stuff Pearl had been nagging about for years made sense; her luck couldn't last forever she needed to take more responsibility. Complacency wouldn't do her any good when Venandi came to collect whatever payment it felt was owed. Relying on Pearl to save her all the time wasn't fair to her friend and it wasn't fair to her own abilities./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"While Amethyst gathered her school things Pearl set to work cleaning up the mess left over from the impromptu party. Littering was never acceptable even if she was exhausted enough to almost look the other way. All her plans for the day's productivity, which had seemed so reasonable the previous evening, sounded like torture. She was so preoccupied with tidying up that she hadn't noticed Amethyst was behind her until the other girl pulled her into a tight hug. "Ugh after all this drama I feel like I could sleep for a week; any chance I could crash with you for a bit? After all of that I'm kind of scared of being by myself", admitting fear wasn't like Amethyst. Pearl nodded her consent and the two of them set off for the parked cars. "Fuck it I'll come back for The Puma later I don't think I have the energy to drive an hour without fallin asleep." True to her assessment she dozed off not even ten minutes into the drive; her cheek squished into Pearl's boney shoulder. Cuddling together in Pearl's tiny bed felt so familiar, so right, that the purple loving wrestler wondered why she had stupidly given this up. "Hey P", she spoke softly halfway hoping the other girl was too drowsy to hear; "do you think we can go to the library together later? Maybe I can find a book or something about the stuff that lives in the lines that way I can not get made into art."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I'd like that Amethyst", Pearl responded through a yawn, "the library part not the you being murdered I mean." A bright blush steaked across her face and she was extremely grateful that she was facing the wall so it was hidden. Amethyst's only response was to pull her closer with the thick arm that was around her waist. Neither one of them appeared willing to break the comfortable hush that had settled over the two of them. Moments of harmony between them were rare given their vastly different personalities. They were both prideful and stubborn, unwilling to bend because they felt the other couldn't possibly be right. Perhaps though, with effort and communication, there was still a chance to come together into something greater than themselves./p