#74: Spooky Season #13 (Witch Light)


Prompt: jack o lantern, wizard, dark

The eerie flickering of a jack-o-lantern's candle bears a remarkable resemblance to an imprisoned soul.


"Whatcha got there, Boss?"

Aizen turns to smile at Gin, an expression that instantly freezes his second in command in his tracks. The silver-haired man takes a cautious step backwards and his smile dims slightly.

"Sorry. Am I interruptin'?"

"…Not at all." The captain smoothly turns back to what he's doing, lifting a tiny orb of bright purple light out of a crystal. It shouldn't work; his hands are flesh and blood and the little glowing dot is light…but it rests between his palms like a physical object.

"Oh." Gin cranes his neck to see but doesn't step any closer. "Caught another one, huh?"

"…Not exactly." Aizen eyes Gin speculatively, then softens his body language and gestures him forwards. Cautiously, the other man edges forward to look. "This is Wonderweiss."

"…Huh." Continued silence from the older captain makes it clear a response is expected, so Gin scratches his head and shrugs. He's done weirder things than talk to little balls of light. "Heya Wonderweiss. Welcome to the team."

"Indeed."

That seems to be enough, as Aizen loses interest in Gin and turns back to his work. 'Wonderweiss' flickers, seeming to grow in size for a moment, before its captor frowns and twitches his fingers into a more regular lattice. Then it goes still and calm again.

"You got that one trained real good." Gin observes.

"Hm." The answer is absent-minded. "He's not truly awake yet."

"He's not really one of us, either." A new, unexpected voice interjects and both men go rigid. Gin's hand goes to the hilt of his silver dagger and Aizen's movements become almost fluid, graceful as a dancer…or a swordsman…as he turns around.

"Why, Starrk. To what do I owe the pleasure?" The older man purrs. His own silver dagger is not in sight but all of them know it must be close at hand.

In the doorway stands a man with long brown hair and a faded goatee, glowing faintly blue. His clothes are white but don't seem to move quite right, as if they're made of liquid rather than cloth, and his eyes are slitted like a snake rather than round like a human. In the exposed V of skin between his neck and sternum, a row of dagger-sharp teeth can be seen right above an ugly black burn.

"I felt him." The newcomer growls and slinks into the room, movements feral. "There's another fey here, but he's new. You didn't catch him; you made him."

Across the room, Gin catches his breath in shock. That should be impossible.

Aizen's smile widens slightly. "Yes. So?"

That takes Starrk by surprise. "So? So, why? Why did you make him, and if you can make us, why did you catch so many of us?"

"Ah, I see the problem." The human relaxes and turns back to his bench. In a few quick, sure moves, he has Wonderweiss tucked away in a locked glass jar, then he turns back to Starrk. He doesn't flinch when he finds out the fey has moved even closer in his moment of inattention, and he looks even less human up close. Instead, Aizen offers a comforting smile. "Do not worry, Starrk. I have no intention of violating my bargain or my claim. I have no intention of making more than Wonderweiss and he will not take your place, or those of your…friends."

Starrk's eyes narrow, but he seems to be at a loss for words.

"Now, I think it's time for you to return to your place, don't you?"

In response to the words, the burn on Starrk's chest momentarily glows white-hot, and the fey grimaces in pain, taking a step away. It's surrender and Aizen knows it.

"…Fine." Between one step and the next Starrk has transformed into a ball of blue light, similar to Wonderweiss but many times bigger and brighter. And faster. In a blink, the light is gone, zooming away too fast to see.

After a few seconds, Gin turns to follow and returns almost immediately.

"Well?" Aizen's tone is sharper than before, his only acknowledgement of how dangerous the situation had been, and Gin notes it silently before reporting.

"He's back in his jar, just like the others. Ten little jars, ten little jack-o-lanterns, all the colors of the rainbow."

The remaining tension falls from Aizen's frame as he nods. "An organic prison and an inorganic one, to keep a fey contained and complicit. Traditionally, the organic would be bone and the inorganic would be silver but those can be so hard to come by these days." He glances out the window at the nondescript urban neighborhood outside, nearly every house decorated with multiple glowing carved pumpkins and little glass lights that wink and shimmer in the darkness. "And when I'm offered such a perfect solution, who am I to say no?"

Gin snickers. "The others are never gonna find you if you keep doin' shit like this."

A slow, cold smirk spreads over Aizen's face.

"Exactly."


And now for something completely different.


Thanks to everyone who's read and reviewed! One day left until Halloween!