A house that was usually filled with the noise of hopeful Trollhunters laid completely silent in the chilly glow of morning.
That in and of itself was suspicious.
Perhaps it was the eerie silence that made the structure's haunting creaks just that much more noticeable.
A half-asleep Dictatious wandered the house with no other souls to speak of, blissfully unaware of the dark gaze bearing into him, unaware of the trap set in place.
Watching.
Waiting.
There would be no warning to the clueless Conundrum, no hope of survival.
The hunter made his move, lunging at his unsuspecting prey with all the force of a flock of Stalklings.
A thunderous crash broke the silence (and the coffee table), many Trollish profanities being shouted out by the startled Dictatious as he tumbled across the floor, being pinned down in seconds by his attacker.
Rather than the terror one might feel at being jumped by a violent killer, Dictatious was more annoyed than anything.
"Angor Rot!" Dictatious shouted in exasperation. "Must you do that?!"
"You should always be prepared for an attack." Angor said, his voice not betraying the smirk that crossed his face. "You never know when an enemy could strike."
He helped Dictatious back up, the smaller troll rolling his eyes and sighing in annoyance. "Well you would think, in the comforts of one's own dwelling-"
"You were too comfortable, not alert at all. That's the fourth time I've gotten you." Angor said. "You didn't even se-"
Angor cut himself off immediately when he realized the poor choice of words he was about to use.
Didn't shut up soon enough, though, as Dictatious immediately squinted at him. "Go on. Finish that thought." He challenged. "I didn't what, Angor? See it coming, perhaps?"
Angor was dead silent for a second there as he carefully chose his words. He spoke again, slowly. "You… did not anticipate my ambush." He said instead.
Dictatious gave him a most sarcastic grin. "Mm-hm. Nice save."
Their banter was cut short by the entrance of the fair Claire to the living room. She took one look at the broken coffee table, then gave the pair of trolls the most scolding stare you could imagine.
"Guys," She sighed irately, "Do you have any idea how fast our families go through furniture? Because it's unnaturally fast."
"… Apologies." Angor replied. Dictatious only snickered under his breath.
Claire rolled her eyes, but she was used to such mishaps by now, having lived with NotEnrique and all. "Don't worry about it." She replied. "We've got to get going, Toby and Jim are waiting for us at the Heartstone already."
.
What it was that they were looking into, neither Angor nor Dictatious were completely sure. (Technically speaking, Dictatious's presence wasn't requested, but who's going to stop him from tagging along? Nothing better to do.)
As per routine, Claire Horngazeled their way into Trollmarket, they embarked down the crystal stairway, and headed straight for the Heartstone where the boys were waiting.
They walked (mostly) in silence… up until Dictatious noticed something out of the ordinary.
His cloudy eyes glanced up at Angor, utter confusion in them, "Is something the matter?"
Angor's teeth gritted. "… Why do you ask."
"You've gone rather… tense." Dictatious pointed out, one eyebrow raising. "You weren't before."
He's never tense, not that Dictatious's noticed, and he's an observant troll who's had his hand on the other's arm multiple times for guidance. Even while training, especially while training, he moves as relaxed and fluidly as ever.
So, this is an odd occurrence…
"… It is nothing. A… strange feeling, nothing more."
Now both Dictatious's brows raised and his eyes squinted unbelievingly. "… Hmm."
"Hey! Slowpokes!" Claire called over, having gotten much farther ahead of them. "You coming?"
.
"Okay, Tobes. Everyone's here."
Jim, Claire, Angor Rot and Dictatious all stood in wait at the base of the Heartstone. With Angor Rot so close, as Toby suspected, it glowed vibrantly.
"Okay." Toby said, turning around. "Then let's head on down."
"'Down'?" Dictatious repeated. Angor's expression darkened.
Down. Down where Morgana had been imprisoned all those years in the Heartstone's core.
What is this Trollhunter getting at…?
.
The second they got down there, Angor had tensed again.
At least this time, Dictatious could somewhat understand why.
Even if he couldn't see the extent of the damage himself.
Shattered fragments of Heartstone lay strewn amongst the ground, alongside the scattered dust of troll remains. The remnants of jagged Heartstone from which Morgana broke free hung over them like a chandelier of death, dripping a glowing, gold blood as if its veins had only just been cut today.
Silently, solemnly, the children drew closer.
"You were right, Tobes…" Jim murmured.
Jim and Toby were obviously offput. To Claire, this feeling was fearfully familiar.
She looked back at Angor, who'd remained frozen in place. Dictatious was giving him an odd look at this point too.
"Angor…?" She hesitantly called over.
He heard her, sure. He tried to reply. But he couldn't.
For she wasn't the only voice he heard.
This wasn't the only place he could see.
"My fearsome servant…"
The emerald glow of magical light. He remembered how blinding it was, Merlin's staff illuminating this whole room.
"Stay true, and your devotion shall be rewarded…"
The deafening boom of Her golden powers blasting screaming Gumm-Gumms around him into pieces.
"Waver… and I will destroy you."
Her hand touching his face.
"Once and for all."
The rumbling thunderous sounds surrounded him as fallen troll remains spiralled into the Eternal Night.
"Angor." Dictatious tightened his grip on the assassin's arm to get his attention. Angor jumped as he was pulled back into reality, that motion earning an even stranger look from Dic. Now the boys were giving him worried looks too.
"Hey…" Jim spoke up next. "You okay, man…?"
Again, he found himself unable to reply. All he could manage was a slow nod, eyes locked on the dripping shell that was Morgana's broken cage.
Claire frowned, following his stare to the Heartstone, then looking back to him. "Well, um…" She said, "We were going to go take a closer look… Are you comin-?"
"No." Angor stepped back immediately at just the thought of getting closer. For just a second, something almost akin to fear had taken him over. "I just- No…" He seemed to come back to his senses, and he sent a regretful look their way. "I'm… sorry…"
"It's okay!" Toby piped up, immediately laying on the reassurance. "You've been a big help already by coming down here. You guys can head back, if you want. We'll be along." With a smile, he added, "Besides, you guys wanted to practice magic stuff today, right?"
Angor's eye looked at the jagged overhang of stone one last time. He again gave the kids a slow nod, and took his chance to leave, a still-dubious Dictatious giving him the side-eye as he followed.
"… Are you sure you're alright?" Dictatious asked, squinting. This was very unusual behaviour for him, from what Dic's seen. He's usually so much more stoic.
"… I'm fine…" Angor still insisted, insincere as he may have sounded.
Sure you are. If that were true, your lies might actually be convincing.
Oh, well. Dictatious's curiosity may go unsatisfied, but he honestly didn't care enough to pry for an answer he clearly wouldn't be getting, so he stifled those thoughts and just followed along.
Claire watched them go, a frown on her face. Jim had turned to Toby. "You sure we don't need him anymore for this?"
Toby nodded. "Yeah… He's pretty much confirmed my hunch." He turned to the Heartstone piece above them. "To be honest, I think it's better he not be here for this."
Now Claire turned their way too. "What do you mean?"
Toby pulled off his backpack, Jim helping him carefully pull a small video camera out of it.
"… I'm not saying I don't want to trust him." Toby first made clear. "… but if there's some way that Morgana's been finding out what we're doing, I think this camera location should stay between just us." He looked at his friends for confirmation.
They nodded in understanding.
Toby moved the camera to a well-concealed spot in some rocks.
During the Eternal Night, Merlin said Morgana had a reliance on the Heartstone's power.
If that still holds true now, which all the evidence so far seems to suggest, then maybe…
.
On the way out of Trollmarket, Dictatious paid extra attention to Angor Rot's behaviour.
And again, there was a brief moment in time in which Angor tensed up again, for just a moment. Dictatious couldn't tell for sure, but it seemed to be in around the same area as last time, too.
How peculiar.
"Merlin."
He was drawn out of his thoughts by Angor's voice calling out the wizard's presence near them.
"What are you doing here?" Angor said, a hint of suspicion in his tone that he so happened to be down there at the same time they all were.
Merlin was hardly even paying attention to the trolls, looking all around their surroundings and examining every inch as if Trollmarket was some elaborate 'Where's Waldo' puzzle. "Oh, the same as you." He said with leisure. "Investigating."
… Right.
Angor didn't bother asking him to elaborate. He knew he wouldn't get a straight answer.
He was about to move with Dictatious past the wizard, but Dictatious paused.
"Angor…" He casted a quick thoughtful glance at the blur that was Merlin before aiming his eyes at Angor again, "… while we're here, would you mind grabbing something from my library?" He asked. "An… Anamnesis Stone, it should just be on the main desk."
Angor must've still been too out of it to not catch the look he gave Merlin, or to ask any questions as to why the Conundrum would require such a thing right now… He simply nodded and went right to the library.
While Angor was doing that, Dictatious turned to Merlin. He was pretty sure the wizard was off poking around at something else, turned away from him.
"… Say, wizard…" Dictatious spoke up, "What sort of places lie near here?"
The path he's used to is the way to the library, but he's not too familiar with much else of Trollmarket, especially after the earthquakes.
"What, can't find your way around?" Merlin said offhandedly as he looked around.
… Whether that was a jab on his lack of sight or not, Dictatious wasn't sure. "Well…" He said, blinking a few times, "excuse me for not having the best sense of direction around here."
"Hmm." Merlin sighed, as though speaking with the troll were such an inconvenience. "Well. There's the expected rows of marketstands… What's left of them anyways… let's see… the tattoo parlour, the Gyre Station, of course…"
"The Gyre Station…" Dictatious repeated under his breath, a hand placed on his chin in thought.
"Dictatious."
Dictatious turned at the sound of Angor Rot's return, the taller troll lightly brushing against his arm so Dictatious knew where to put his hand. "Is this what you wanted?" Angor asked, passing off the object to him.
"Ah, yes." Dictatious answered, fiddling with the golden stone in his hands. "That's all I needed. We can go."
Angor seemed relieved to hear that, and very eager to get out of here.
Merlin watched them go.
Specifically, he watched Angor Rot.
"… Hmm…"
.
"Focus…"
Almost immediately upon leaving Trollmarket, Angor had been much more relaxed again, moving on to the Domzalski backyard like nothing ever even happened.
Perhaps Dictatious was letting it distract him too much, for the simple instruction of 'Focus' seemed very hard to follow today. They were trying to recreate that simple fireball spell from before, but basically the only thing Dic's managed to produce so far is a pathetic, fizzling spark or two.
"Don't try to force it." Angor said calmly, seeing Dictatious's struggle. The smaller troll sighed, clearly discouraged.
"Practicing in the magical arts can be difficult."
"It seemed so much easier the first time." Dictatious said, then looked to Angor and added, "It's always so easy for you."
"My powers came with sacrifice." Angor reminded him. "Yours are natural, they must be honed like any other skill. You wouldn't expect a whelp just learning how to walk to engage in a game of PyroBligst, would you?"
As usual, Angor had a point. Dictatious still won't acknowledge that verbally, but Angor's starting to be able to tell when Dictatious begrudgingly agrees with him. He sighed again in annoyance.
Angor tilted his head, watching the novice with a thoughtful stare. He circled around, and sat down in the grass in front of him. "Sit."
Dic looked confused, but did as he said.
"You're trying too hard." Angor continued. "Such sorcery, you will find, can be exhausting to you at first. Any magic you conjure out of strain will end up causing your body and mind more stress than it's worth."
"O… kay…" Dictatious frowned. "If 'trying' is the problem, then what am I supposed to do?"
"Yesterday, you managed to render simple flames more than once." The more experienced magic-user pointed out. "You hadn't been thinking so hard about it. You just did it. You need to get used to that feeling, let things flow naturally."
Angor Rot extended a hand, a puff of violet flames taking on a ball-like shape in his outstretched palm. The glowing fire held Dictatious's attention. Blurry as it was to him, the brightness was still captivating. "Hold out your hand." When a look of hesitancy crossed Dictatious's face, Angor went on to assure him, "It will not hurt."
Dictatious still seemed unsure, but he was at least willing do as Angor said, slowly offering his hand.
"I'm going to pass this flame off to you." Angor said, moving his free hand just below Dictatious's just in case the novice hesitated. "Try to sustain it for as long as you can manage. Pay close attention to what you feel."
With that said, and a tentative nod from Dictatious, Angor raised his hand with the fireball over Dictatious's. Mumbling under his breath, some incantation Dictatious couldn't make out, Angor Rot slowly tilted his hand, letting the fire pour into Dictatious's palm.
"It's okay." Angor reassured him again when Dic looked about ready to pull away. "Just be calm, and pay attention."
"Uhhhh-" Instincts and logic told him the fire magic would hurt, so it was a strange feeling to… not feel pain. Even stranger, the disorienting tingling sensation creeping around his extended limb. It was unsettling, as shown by the look on Dictatious's face, but he tried to hold it steady, watching with a squint as the glowing blur twitched and flickered in his possession.
The look of befuddlement on the smaller troll was mildly amusing, but something behind Dictatious distracted Angor for a second. Jim and Claire were watching them curiously from where they had leaned against the house.
Hmm. Wonder how long they've been there.
His attention went back to Dictatious when he'd almost dropped the fireball, Angor catching his hand and steadying it. "Is it tiring you out?"
Dictatious nodded and sighed in annoyance. "I don't understand how…" He huffed. "It doesn't even feel like it weighs anything…"
"Like I said, using magic can be exhausting – though it's not a physical kind of exertion." Angor explained, pinching the flame and causing it to fizzle out. "How did it feel?"
"Absolutely bizarre. How do you do that all the time?" Dictatious wondered, perplexed. "I thought my arm was going to mutate or something for a good few seconds there."
"You'll get used to it." Angor replied, a slight smile ghosting his face for a second. "But first… What helps you relax?"
That got Dictatious to laugh. "Relax?" He repeated. "Sounds like a foreign word coming from you."
Angor merely raised an eyebrow. "You keep pushing yourself too hard. With magic, that will not work." He asserted once more. "So, I will ask again. What helps you relax?"
As usual, Angor was being serious. Dictatious frowned, looking down at the grass as he considered the question. You'd think, considering recent times, the answer would be something along the lines of spending time with Nancy, or watching his crime shows on TV, the habits that were becoming most usual to him… but…
… The first thought to come to his mind was… Blinky. How well they had gotten along that one night, remembering the good times before the Battle of Killahead… that was relaxing.
Dictatious seeming to have landed on a memory, Angor again instructed him to hold out his hand.
"Close your eyes, keep that thought in mind, and try again." He said, standing up. "I'll be right back."
While Dictatious did that, Angor headed over to Jim and Claire.
"Apologies for making you wait." He said to them. "Did you need something?"
"Oh, don't worry about it." Jim replied. "We just wanted to make sure you're okay?"
Seeming confused, Angor blinked. "… I'm… fine?"
"You sure?" Claire asked, frowning slightly. "You seemed pretty shaken up earlier…"
Ahh. Of course that's what they meant.
Angor's teeth gritted together for a second, like he was biting back some words, and he looked from Claire to Jim and back. "I am fine, Trollhunters." He repeated, more sternly. "You shouldn't be wasting your concerns on that."
The children exchanged a look.
"… If you say so." Jim said to him, but he was clearly unconvinced.
"I, uh, hope you didn't mind we were watching your lesson, there," Claire told him, changing the subject and putting on a small and awkward smile. "I'm surprised he's still listening to you."
"Hmm." Angor glanced Dictatious's way as Claire and Jim did. "He is crotchety and stubborn. But, not unteachable."
Truthfully, he learns fairly quickly. A good trait.
"Well…" Jim spoke up, placing a hand on Claire's shoulder. "We'll let you get back to it."
Angor gave them a nod, and they both went their separate ways.
Claire looked back occasionally as they left them. Jim giving her a questioning look.
"… I knew what it felt like to have Her in my head." She said quietly. "It must've been hell dealing with Her as long as he did…"
Jim then frowned, also looking Angor's way. "… Yeah…"
Angor stared at the Trollhunters one last time before they left the yard, catching their worried glances. His eye narrowed slightly, unsure of how to interpret their… concern.
… Maybe he's just… not used to it.
He sighed under his breath, and returned to Dictatious. Upon seeing the smaller troll's progress, his eye widened slightly in surprise.
Eyes still closed, a sparkling amber flame hovered, unwavering, in Dictatious's hand.
A half-smile snuck on Angor's face for a second as he quietly took his seat in front of Dictatious again. "I knew you would get the hang of it."
Angor's voice surprised Dictatious. He opened his eyes, and looked even more surprised at witnessing what he'd produced. "… Oh!"
Angor Rot chuckled, though too quietly for even Dic to notice. "You see how your repose can pay off now?"
Dictatious could hardly find it in himself to be annoyed that Angor was right yet again, for he was grinning with excitement at the magic he made, playing with the flames with one of his other hands. "So…" He said, his smile turning to more of a smirk as his eyes looked Angor's way. "What's next, then?"
.
"Dumbzalski!"
Toby turned around to the sound of a familiar voice down the street calling at them – Aaarrrgghh had eaten the kitty litter again this morning, so of course, Toby was sent to buy a new box.
"Hey, Steve." Toby greeted him. "Something up?"
"Look, I talked to Brody and Kyle." Steve replied, frowning. "I'm all for protecting good creepers, but I think knife threats and shooting fireballs at idiot teenagers is a liiittle alarming!" Gesturing to himself he added, "I'm an idiot teenager!"
Face scrunched up with a confused look, Toby frowned. "Wait… what? What do you mean?"
The Trollhunter's expression fell more and more with the information and concerns Steve relayed to him. Angor Rot shooting spells at those idiots would explain the broken pieces of paintball gun Toby saw at the bridge. And he couldn't deny it sounds like something Angor would do…
He sighed heavily.
"Jimbo's not going to be happy to hear this…"
.
It's been some days since they've begun their practices in the magical arts. Dictatious, as Angor expected, tires easily in this area. Wanting to be careful, they take breaks often for him to recuperate, usually ending up with him napping or watching those "CSI" show things while Angor sits nearby or in the other room, carving.
This occasion was mostly the same.
"Not making another one of those totems, are you?"
At the interruption of what was usually silence between them both, Angor paused, glancing into the living room.
Dictatious chuckled, eyes not looking away from the TV at first. "The children may not have noticed yet, but you don't exactly hide it." Now he looked at Angor, one eyebrow raised. "I can hear the knife against your stone almost every chance you get. Why make so many?"
"… One never knows when we might need them," was all Angor replied with.
"… Hmm." Tilting his head, Dictatious squinted, trying to make out what Angor had in his hands today, to no use. "That doesn't sound like stone, though."
"Perceptive." Angor said as he went back to his work. "It's just wood."
Dictatious again raised an eyebrow. "What use is that going to be?"
"You'll see."
"Ha… Very funny."
Their banter was cut short when Jim walked into the house.
"Trollhunter." Angor greeted, not looking up from his carving at first, but when he did, he saw a familiar look of upset on Jim's face. "… What's wrong?"
Jim sighed. "Can I talk to you?" With a look at Dictatious, he added, "Outside?"
Angor nodded and set aside his tools, following the Trollhunter out into the yard.
Jim had his back turned at first, talking a long, deep breath in and rubbing his temples. Things had been going so well lately and now he hears about this… but he tried to keep his cool.
He slowly turned around. "I have… no idea how you could think shooting fire at those kids was okay."
Angor frowned. "It never touched them. I was aiming for the weapon."
"It doesn't matter, Angor. They didn't know that." Jim said firmly. "It wasn't even an actual weapon-"
"And how was I supposed to know that?" Angor growled, already starting to get irritated himself. "I told them to stay away from us, yet they persisted. How am I to interpret their actions as anything other than hostile?"
"Angor, they're just kids."
"So are you." Angor countered.
Jim bit his tongue in his vexation. "Look." He said. "You can't just threaten and attack people's kids. Humans don't see these things in the same way you do, you have to understand that-"
"I am TRYING, Trollhunter!"
The sudden raise of his voice shut Jim up, if only from how it startled him at first.
There was a glow of frustration in Angor's eye that Jim could see before the troll looked away, his fangs gritted with an annoyed, quiet growl. "Nothing makes sense here."
He was trying. Jim hasn't been giving that credit where it's due. The culture shock Angor's been going through, he'd kept well hidden, but Jim was now kicking himself for not taking into account how serious it's got to be.
This is all entirely different from what he's used to, after all…
"… I know…" Jim finally said, sighing. "… I know you're trying. I'm sorry."
Angor's eye turned to Jim again. He still looked annoyed, but as he wasn't fully expecting an apology, so the surprise was enough to alleviate some of his anger.
"I'm just worried, Angor." The Trollhunter went on to explain. "Lots of humans are having a hard time accepting trolls… I mean, there's still loads of people in the world that can't accept different skin colours, now there's a whole other species into this mix." Jim sighed. "If we start confirming people's beliefs that trolls aren't safe, it'll just…"
The boy trailed off with a sigh.
Angor's frown deepened. He did know of the human race's… unaccepting tendencies. That aspect of their kind seems to still linger even today.
He… can understand the Trollhunter's struggles on trying to maintain peace.
"… I see your concerns." Angor said, breaking the tense silence. "That doesn't mean I plan on resigning myself to your kind's scorn."
"… That's… fair…" Jim admitted. The negative treatment was something anybody would be upset about. "Please, just… try not to give anyone a reason to be scared of you?"
Angor snorted, unsure of how they'd manage that what with the way people just look at him. But… "Fine."
Jim gave him a thankful nod. He was about to be on his way again, but before he left, he added, "And Angor, you've… you've been doing great, everything considered. We're all grateful to have you."
That unexpected statement got an odd look from Angor. He looked as though he were going to say something, decided against it, and just gave a small nod of acknowledgement instead,
He watched the Trollhunter go, quiet all the while.
.
It's not as though he went out of his way to interact with other humans anyways. The weeks that followed held nothing of concern… in that area, at least.
.
Bursts of magic flew across the backyard at a pace that would almost be alarming, if not for the two trolls keeping careful control of them.
Blindfolded, Dictatious mostly had to go off of sound to figure out how his target moved – Angor circled him at a relatively even pace, the pair passing a ball of energy back and forth, and Angor would occasionally switch directions or change pace to keep Dictatious guessing.
"Much better. There's far more control to your shots now."Angor praised, having caught each throw of his with relative ease. "How are you feeling?"
"Oh, none the worse for wear…" Dictatious replied, catching the sphere when Angor shot it back – wash, rinse, repeat. "You were right, as usual – it's been feeling easier to manage over time."
Angor nodded. "Good. So you've been noticing the improvement."
"This is what you call improvement?"
Both troll heads turned, Dictatious pulling up the blindfold, at the unimpressed voice that belonged to none other than Merlin, who'd taken to watching them from afar with a look of ridicule that carried through his tone of voice. "I'd hate to be the one stuck relying on that as back-up."
Dictatious's ears pulled back and his eyes narrowed slightly, having clearly taken offense, but just gritted his teeth and didn't say anything. Angor spoke up in his defence, though.
"Just because he doesn't meet your standards doesn't mean he's not doing well… Everyone has to start somewhere." Angor countered, the sphere in his hand fizzling out. "What do you want?"
"To speak to you. Privately."
… Angor was becoming very unfond of those words. This time around, Dictatious also squinted in suspicion.
"I thought the Trollhunter didn't trust the two of you alone…" He mentioned, casting foggy glances between the two.
"It's a matter of utmost importance, regarding Morgana." He looked pointedly at Angor Rot. "I thought you wanted to help with that problem of ours."
At the mention of that name, Angor's expression darkened. "… Perhaps it is time we take a break, Dictatious." He said, leading the smaller troll back inside.
Dictatious's eyebrows raised in surprise that Angor was actually going to go with him. "… Okay then…" He said with another look the wizard's way, "If you suddenly go missing, at least I'll know who to blame."
Merlin rolled his eyes at that comment, simply waiting for Angor Rot to come back outside on his own, which he did moments later.
"What is it?"
Merlin gestured to a path that led away from the house and to the woods. A more private speaking place, one could guess.
"Walk with me."
.
… They've been gone an awfully long time.
Or maybe it just seemed long… time seemed to go by slower when he was alone, after all.
Still, Dictatious was starting to lose count of all the Law & Order episodes he kept blanking on.
Why should he even be concerned? Angor Rot can obviously take care of himself, there's literally no reason to keep thinking about it.
… But… it seems the others' distrust of Merlin had started to rub off on him. (Granted, it's not as though Gumm-Gumms were fond of that wizard in the first place.)
What is he supposed to tell the children and his brother if he does do something to Angor? It was Dictatious's job to watch him.
Just as he was starting to overthink this whole situation, the door opened. Dic immediately squinted at the figure, trying to make out who it was.
"Angor Rot?"
"Yes."
Immediate sigh of relief. Dictatious tilted his head slightly, frowning. "So what was that about?"
He followed Angor's movements with his eyes as the assassin moved to the dining room, sitting down in his usual spot to carve. "… It doesn't concern you." He eventually said, albeit through clenched teeth.
"Oh really? Then why do I feel concerned?" Dictatious shot back, narrowing his many eyes.
"That is your problem." Angor said, chipping into wood with his knife. "Do not ask."
Dictatious was about to say something else, but didn't get the chance when Toby basically kicked the door down and shouted, "IT'S TIME!" while holding a DVD case up high above his head.
Both trolls jumped at the sudden noise, and both looked at the child, confused.
"Time… for what?"
Jim and Claire followed behind him, chuckling.
"Don't scare the poor guys, T.P.," Claire said.
Closely following the children were Blinky and Aaarrrgghh, mostly just looking curious.
"I still don't see what all the fuss is about," Blinky commented, Aaarrrgghh shrugging with agreed sentiment.
"Oh, you will!" Toby then turned his excitement onto Angor and Dictatious. "Are you ready for magic and wonder in your lives?"
"… Is that a sarcastic question?" Dictatious blankly asked.
"Nope!" Toby looked to the TV, then started to say, "Oh, unless you're in the middle of-"
"I wasn't paying attention anyways." Dictatious assured him with a go-ahead gesture. He stared Angor's way again, still somewhat apprehensive about the earlier topic… but figured he may as well welcome this change of subject. "Besides, now you've piqued my curiosity, child."
"Trust me…" Toby said, grinning mischievously when he went to pop the DVD in, "… you guys have got to like the Harry Potter movies."
Oh, this subject again?
Claire and Jim followed, though Jim paused when he noticed Angor getting up like he was about to leave. "Not sticking around?"
Angor Rot snorted. "The time would be better spent elsehow."
"You'll be missing out, dude!" Toby called from the living room. Jim just stared at the assassin for a moment, then shrugged.
"Well, you don't have to stay…" The Trollhunter drawled, "… but, you know, you need to relax sometimes, too."
… Did this child just use his own words against him?
Jim smirked a little at the look on Angor's face, pulled a chair from the dining room to the corner of the living room (a fair distance away from everyone else – he knew Angor liked his space), patted the seat as an invitation to stay, and then joined Claire sitting in front of the couch without another word to him.
He did do just exactly that. The nerve.
When Jim saw out of the corner of his eye Angor Rot silently taking a seat in that chair, quietly picking away at his wooden carving, he couldn't help but smirk a little wider.
Whatever. Angor Rot was honestly also a little curious about this whole "Harry Potter" fuss anyways…
.
Toby wasn't expecting to get through three of those movies tonight, but by the time Prisoner of Azkaban was wrapping up, most of the trolls actually seemed pretty invested in this ragtag group of awkward British teens.
Angor and Blinky, though, had taken to ripping apart the story's inconsistencies thus far. The third movie got them rolling on the topics of the Maurader's Map first.
"I don't understand… if the Weasley one's own kin had been using the Maurader's Map, then why were they not concerned of the name of a complete stranger always lurking around their young brother for so long?" Angor had asked.
"Not to mention the lack of concern when Ginny was parading around where she shouldn't have been in the last movie!" Blinky added. "And how long had Sirius been on the school grounds? Why did Remus not confront him sooner?"
"Drama." Toby said with an amused grin, quite enjoying their engagement with the films.
"Speaking of Sirius… Why does he not just use Polyjuice potion now?" Angor went on. "If three whelps can concoct a batch so easily, what excuse does he have not to keep a consistent supply? It would help him in hiding."
"Rowling had to save that idea for a future character, I guess!" Jim laughed, to which Claire gasped and play-jabbed him, shouting 'No spoilers'!
"What about the Time Turner? Why did that girl only wait until now to use it? Could she not just use it any time something goes wrong? Such a tool would solve many of their problems." Dictatious added into the conversation.
"Well, it might be dangerous, if she were to be discovered by another wizard-"
"She takes several classes at the same time in the same building and no one notices once!" Blinky jumped in again. "Who keeps track of all these children here?! You'd think they'd better improve their supervision skills with all these hijinks going on!"
Toby, Jim, and Claire were all getting a good laugh out of this. "Oh man, you guys are not going to enjoy all the plot holes still to come." Toby chuckled.
"There's more?" Dictatious gasped, shocked.
"Welcome to the world of book-to-movie adaptations, my friends!" Claire giggled, Jim and Toby joining in.
Angor stayed quiet as the rest of them continued their banter.
They seem so… calm. Happy.
Almost… familial.
… It didn't sit right with Angor.
He's been here over a month now, and he's still not used to this.
.
.
"Repeat after me."
Two empty bottles sat across the yard from Dictatious and Angor, placed just a few centimeters away from one of Nana's trees. Angor held out his hand, focused on one of the bottles, and incanted.
"Saa chu'lak."
When he said those words, a purple light began to glow beneath one of the cans, the object floating up in the air, then getting pressed against the tree, surrounded by purple smoke.
Obviously, Dictatious could barely make out what was happening, but he got the gist of the idea… Mimicking Angor, he too raised one hand in the direction of where the cans sat.
"Saa… chu'lak…"
A small rattle, one telling enough that Dictatious knew there was motion, sounded from across the yard. But, that small rattle was all to happen – no light, no significant movement to speak of, happened from the spell.
Angor watched quietly as the troll tried again, only to produce the same results, As usual, multiple failed attempts would lead this troll to get discouraged, Dictatious sighing in annoyance.
"Spellcasting with the spoken word is a more intricate form of magic." He said in an attempt to reassure. "It would be unrealistic to expect you to have it perfected on the first day."
Dictatious's ear twitched back, a look on his face that Angor couldn't quite place as he squinted at the empty cans…
"You don't necessarily have to have a good visual on your target for this." Angor went on. "You know your mark's position, and how you want to change it. Focus on that."
Dictatious took a deep breath to calm himself. He tried again, this time getting the can an inch or so off the ground before it plopped back down again.
"Better-"
"Saa chu'lak."
Again, no more than a couple inches off the ground before it fell. Dictatious growled quietly.
Angor frowned. "We've… been at it for some time… Perhaps we should take a break now-"
"I can do it." Dictatious insisted. Again, he pushed the spell. A similar purple light to the one Angor produced sparked beneath the empty can for a second, popping noises bouncing off the metal when the energy hit it, but it still all stopped within seconds, Dictatious growing more and more visibly frustrated.
Angor took a step closer to him. "Dictatious, stop."
"Saa chu'lak."
Light beamed out from beneath the now-sporadically-moving can, the spell obviously having been unstably cast. Dictatious was visibly shaking, his words starting to have slurred when he incanted, yet he still held up a hand at the can to try again.
"Stop it!" As Angor snapped that demand, he grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him back so Dictatious was forced to face him. The second Angor had touched him, Dictatious flinched, a hint of fear in his cloudy eyes when they met Angor's.
Upon seeing this, Angor let him go, but the assassin was still clearly annoyed. "I have told you not to force acts like this." He growled, unimpressed.
Dictatious must've realized his scared look when Angor let him go so fast, because he immediately covered it up with a grimace and looked away. "Oh please, it was going fine…"
Unfortunately for him, there was a tired weight to his voice that made him sound very unconvincing.
Angor Rot growled again at the obvious lie. "Because you do not seem to be in a mood to listen, I think we're done for today."
Dictatious sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes. "… Fine, fine…" He muttered. It's just as well… his head had started to throb with that last magic attempt.
He knew Angor was right, and Angor could see that Dic knew he was right. Whatever all that was about, he would just have to hope Dictatious would be more mindful in future lessons…
"Well… come along, then." Angor said, toning back the bite in his voice and offering his arm. "You should rest."
Dictatious sighed, reluctantly accepting the help back inside.
.
Claire and NotEnrique were sitting together on the couch, watching the news for any sign of portal activity anywhere else they haven't checked, but so far, all seems under control.
NotEnrique's little ears perked right up when he heard the door open, and he shot the two trolls that walked in a cheeky grin. "'Ey! How'd it go today?" He chirped. "Learn any new tricks?"
"… Somewhat," was all Angor said, as Dictatious did not bother to answer.
Claire turned down the volume on the TV, also glancing at the pair. "Oh, you were doing spellcasting today, right? That's so neat." She said. "I only know that one spell from Morgana."
"Oh yes, that one for your staff…" Dictatious said, then gave her a puzzled look, "Does it even work on other things?"
"… Huh. You know what, I'm not actually sure."
Claire then looked at the bookshelf across the room, took aim with her hand, and…
"Azazazuth kinekh thoon!"
The book she was aiming for did get yanked out of the shelf… but it fell to the floor, not finishing its trip to Claire at all.
"… Huh. Guess I just had more of a connection to the staff." She shrugged.
"Hmm… You know when a spell like that would have been useful?" Dictatious said, copping a sarcastic smile at Angor. "Looking for someone's eye."
Claire muffled the chuckle she got out of that, whereas NotEnrique just straight-up guffawed. Angor rolled his eye. At least Dictatious was in a decent enough mood to joke, even if it's at his expense.
"Well, what spell were you guys doing?"
They were both quiet for a moment, and Angor took a look at NotEnrique, the faintest smirk on his face as he said to Claire. "Allow me to demonstrate?"
"… I don't like that look in yer eye, Spooktacular." NotEnrique said.
"Oh, it's harmless enough." He assured the Changeling.
NotEnrique squinted. "… Yer lucky I'ma curious bastard, but I'll have my sis beat you up if you do anything funky!"
"I didn't agree to that." Claire said jokingly.
Still, they felt comfortable enough with Angor by now to allow it. Angor Rot raised his hand in the Changeling's direction. Dictatious "watched" as carefully as he could when Angor performed the spell.
"Saa chu'lak."
That purple light appeared beneath NotEnrique, Claire shifting away from him in her seat, watching carefully, and the Changeling squeaked as he suddenly rose up in the air, and was pressed against the wall, dark violet smoke swirling around him, acting as restraints.
"Uh… woah." Claire said, blinking a few times.
"Yeah, 'woah'…" NotEnrique grunted, completely unable to move, "I, uh, I think I get the idea, big guy…"
Angor Rot let him back down right away. He shook himself out a bit, but was physically fine. "A simple constraint, nothing more."
"That seems like a useful spell…" Claire pondered, a thought coming to her. "Couldn't we use it on Morgana until we figure out how to kill Her?" She asked.
"The time it lasts is limited. I doubt it would restrain someone of Her power for more than a few seconds."
"Ah, fudgeknuckles." Claire huffed. "Oh well, guess we'll just have to think up some other ideas."
Angor stayed quiet this time. While they are a resourceful group, he found it hard to imagine them finding a weakness of Hers…
Hmm. He did decide to side with them, so maybe it's not in his best interest to be so quick to think of this as a suicide mission.
Well… for now, he wouldn't think about that…
.
"Angor Rot?"
Angor looked up from his work to see a tentative Dictatious in the stairway. It had only been an hour or two since they came in, he shouldn't still be up… "Aren't you supposed to be resting?"
Averting his eyes, Dictatious muttered somewhat sheepishly, "I've… been trying."
Angor blinked. "Something troubles you?"
Dictatious hid a wince. "… I think I just… need to clear my head." He sighed, clearly really not wanting to have to ask what he was about to ask. "… Would you mind taking me into town?"
A bit surprised by the request, Angor was quiet for a moment. Apparently that was almost long enough for Dictatious to start backpedalling in his mind, starting to say something along the lines of 'never mind' or 'forget I said anything', but Angor spoke up in favour of the idea.
"Your timing is actually somewhat decent," Angor said, cleaning off whatever he'd been carving, and standing from his seat. Upon approaching Dictatious, he held the item out to the smaller troll, lightly tapping one of his hands with it as an indication for him to take it. "Let's see if this helps you get by."
Confused, Dictatious took the object… and quickly realized it was a walking stick. One fashioned to suit his size and sat comfortably in his hands. Dictatious just stared blankly at the blur through his foggy eyes, feeling it carefully with his hands. "This is what you've been making…?"
"It surprises me that no one's thought to give you one sooner."Angor said. "Now you hopefully won't have as hard a time staying upright."
Dictatious looked at Angor with a touch of confusion, but mostly gratitude in his eyes. "… Thank you for this…"
Angor simply hummed in acknowledgement, then offered his arm. "Shall we go?"
.
Throughout their walk, Angor kept watch of Dictatious out of the corner of his eye as they strolled through Arcadia. The walking stick did seem to help somewhat, as Angor hasn't had to point out any curbs yet, nor has Dictatious stumbled on anything else thus far. Angor thought it good to know his work wouldn't go to waste.
… For someone who was usually fairly loud-mouthed, Dictatious had been staying oddly quiet during their walk. Angor thought it might just have been due to tiredness, but… that just didn't seem like the only thing.
"So, what has been upsetting you?" He eventually asked.
Dictatious cast him a side glance, then aimed his eyes forwards again. "Nothing, just… just tired today, I suppose."
"Tired, yet you cannot sleep."
Dictatious gritted his teeth. He said nothing.
Angor raised an eyebrow, but shrugged it off, as it certainly wasn't his problem. "I won't bother you about it. But there's no point in telling such a transparent lie."
Still, Dictatious kept his silence. He's made it clear he doesn't want it discussed.
Very well. Angor Rot has no qualms against some peace and quiet.
Though, peace and quiet in this town never seemed to last for long – in particular, Angor kept an eye out for those two human whelps that had kept bothering them. For now, he saw no sign of them.
… He did see two familiar faces outside of a nearby café, and paused.
"What is it?" Dictatious asked.
"Barbara and Strickler…' Angor said, staring in confusion at them from across the street. "They are away from the Familiars again."
"Oh. They've probably gotten someone to babysit while they're out."
Angor could see Strickler had noticed them staring and gave them an awkward look. Barbara had followed the Changeling's gaze, and gave the trolls a hesitant but polite wave out of courtesy.
"… Hm," Disregarding them, Angor Rot continued taking Dictatious on their way. "I don't understand why they do that."
"What, go on dates?" Dictatious asked. "It's just a way humans like to spend one-on-one time together, to unwind."
Angor was quiet again for a second, contemplating that thought, then he asked, "Does that mean we are 'on a date'?"
"Wh-?" Dictatious couldn't help but to laugh. "No no no, that term's used for mates."
"Ahh. My mistake."
"Heh… I didn't explain very well, I don't think."
Regardless, some of today's earlier tension seems to be starting to melt away. At least that's a good thing.
"Was there anywhere in particular you wanted to go?" Angor asked him.
"No, nowhere in particular…" Dic replied. "… just wanted to get out for a bit."
Angor simply nodded and they continued to just wander, until Dic made a sudden sound as he remembered something.
"Oh, although…" Out of his sash, Dictatious pulled out a shopping list and a 20-dollar-bill, handing both items to Angor Rot. "Nancy did ask if we could get a few things while we were out."
Angor stared blankly at the list. He flipped it over, turned it around, tilted it every which way, but no matter how he looked at it, he couldn't make sense of the outlandish scribbles left there. "Erhm…"Utterly baffled, Angor stared down at his shorter company. "Dictatious… Is there not one small detail you're forgetting?"
"What could I possibly be forgetting about a simple grocery trip?" Dictatious said, in fact rather patronizingly. "She sends her whelp to do this all the time, it's a simple task-"
"You cannot read this…"
At that Dictatious scoffed, insulted that he'd yet again point out such an obvious fact. "No, really? You don't say-"
"… and I cannot read this…"
Realization of his ancient company's inability to comprehend modern English slapped Dictatious right in the face. "… Oh." He sheepishly said, ears lowering in his mild embarrassment. "Oh, that's correct, isn't it…"
Angor closed his eye, pinched the bridge of his nose, and sighed deeply. "You call yourself a scholar…"
"Ahem… well, no matter…" Dictatious tried to brush his mistake off, "Surely we can just… get it translated by one of the locals, perhaps?"
Angor rolled his eye, but he wasn't particularly bothered. "Very well."
.
Their luck wasn't exactly prosperous in finding hospitable enough locals, though. Dictatious suggested going back and perhaps asking Barbara and Strickler, since they too were in town, but Angor Rot absolutely refused to ask any favours of (or near) that Changeling. Still, they were lucky enough to even find someone willing to point them in the direction of the store, what with most of the humans keeping their distance from them.
When they got there, now they had to solve the problem of finding someone willing to actually translate the list for them.
Immediately, their luck worsened.
When they walked in, they already were getting a few nervous or hostile looks, but neither troll cared, as Dictatious couldn't even see it and Angor Rot, being Angor Rot, literally could not care any less on any judging look a fleshbag might give him.
"They barter these worthless little strips of paper for goods?" Angor asked Dictatious as they wandered, giving the 20 dollars in his hand a strange look.
"Yes. Sometimes little coins too." Dictatious said with a shrug. "Funny, isn't it?"
Certainly didn't seem like equal value. But Angor's given up on trying to understand human ways at this point.
Unsurprisingly, most humans in here kept their distance from them too. Trying to speak to one usually only resulted in bothered looks. It didn't look like this was going to be a simple, short task.
Thinking this might be a better errand for the human whelps to do, Angor Rot was starting to consider just leaving.
"Dictatious," He said to his companion, about to voice his thoughts, "Perhaps we should-"
"Hey!"
They both turned at the cue of a… not-so-happy-sounding fleshbag. A pink-haired human, likely not much older than the Trollhunters, was walking over to them with a scowl on her face. She wore all-black attire that Angor had seen a few of the others wearing, the same logo on her shirt that was on the front of the grocery store.
"… Yes?" Angor said, partially confused as to what she could be upset about, but mostly confused that a human here was actually approaching them now.
"If you're just going to cause trouble here, then you need to leave!"
Dictatious and Angor gave each other confused looks, clearly having no idea what she was talking about. That made the scowl on her face even angrier. She took a step closer and put her hands on her hips, glaring up at the taller of the two, and when she spoke again, it was in a patronizing, slow tone, as if she thought they couldn't speak English. "You two… should… gooo…" She drawled, making ridiculous hand gestures to try and match her words the whole time.
"We… heard you the first time." Angor Rot said, her actions only prompting him to give her an even more confused look. He made a gesture to their list. "We would like to be on our way, too. We just came to-"
"We don't serve trolls." She snapped, shutting him down.
That comment started to make things click in Angor's head. The confusion on his face was replaced with annoyed realization. Dictatious's eyes narrowed at her words as well, but for now, he stayed quiet. At this point, more people were starting to stare at the commotion.
"We have not caused any trouble, as you seem to think." Angor tried to explain, keeping his calm.
The human gave him the biggest most obnoxious eye roll Angor's ever seen, and as someone who spends time with Dictatious, that's saying something. "You're bothering customers."
Now Dictatious laughed, speaking up. "With just our presence?" He said. "I didn't realize your kind were that high-strung."
The girl glared at him now. "Nobody asked you!" She snapped. "You're lucky my coworkers and I don't throw you out into the sun with that attitude!"
Eye narrowing, Angor Rot moved in front of Dictatious, blocking him off from the girl. Those kinds of threats, he wasn't sure anymore whether they would follow through or not, but he didn't want to take chances.
'Please just… try not to give anyone a reason to be scared of you.'
His conversation with Jim lingered in the back of his thoughts, and Angor sighed in annoyance. He was not the type to let someone like this human off so easily. But…
Deciding it wasn't worth it, Angor started to lead Dictatious to the exit, the girl continuing on to an approaching coworker with little scalding insults she said purposefully loud enough for them to hear.
Angor ignored it. He's been treated far worse, and couldn't bring himself to care enough to start anything. But Dictatious, being the living salt mine he was, had enough of letting this slide – not without at least one shot back, and he was never too tired to come up with some sarcasm ammo. He spoke up again, also making sure his next comment was loud enough for her to hear. "We should add something else to that list, Angor." With a glare back in her direction, he said, "We should get that lovely human a plant for her to carry around and replace all the oxygen she wastes."
"Dictatious-"
"What did you say?!"
Angor Rot sighed again, internally cursing everyone's existence as he heard those uppity footsteps coming back towards them. He very much wanted to stab something, but couldn't decide between Dictatious, the fleshbag, or himself.
"Ahh, so she can dish it out but can't take it." Dictatious said before she could shoot back, a vitriolic grin being sent in the direction of her noise.
"You'd better apologize, you fucking gremlin-"
"You were the one to start with the insults." Angor growled, again stepping between Dictatious and the girl when she tried to get closer to him. "He doesn't have to apologize to you."
Apparently that was the wrong thing to say. Her face got progressively redder and she was planning on giving them another piece of her mind, but Dic spoke up again.
"No no, she's right. That was unfair of me to say…" His cutting grin grew wider as he aimed his eyes directly at her and continued, "… because she clearly isn't getting her fair share of oxygen in the first place, since none of it seems to be reaching her brain."
She continued to blow up at them, yelling all sorts of offences at them and Angor giving Dictatious a look that screamed 'You are not helping'. (The smaller troll had no regrets.) Even the other customers around them were starting to look uncomfortable by the scene she was making.
Despite how Angor wanted to leave, this annoying fleshbag had placed herself in the way of the exit they were headed for. He tried to tune her out and head for the other exit across the store, but she grabbed his arm in an attempt to stop him. Not a smart move.
Angor Rot spun back around, jerking his arm away with enough force to make her stumble, and snarled with intense animosity, "Do NOT touch me."
The rage in his eye was enough to put a look of fear on her face for a second, and she even backed away, but still she didn't back down, going on about how 'monstrosities like them had no right talking to humans like that', how 'they were on THEIR land now' and they 'ought to be shot like the animals they are if they try anything to retaliate'… Angor was at the end of his patience.
Just as he was about to say or do something he might regret, somebody else stepped in.
"Hey hey, woah!" A short, chubby-looking human with messy brown hair managed to worm his way between the employee and the trolls, almost tripping over his long, red housecoat as he did so. Angor and Dictatious at first expected him to take his kind's side, until he spoke up on their behalf. "What is the problem here? Leave the fellas alone, they're not hurting anybody!" He said to the pink-haired girl. "You don't have to yell at 'em like that…"
The trolls exchanged a confused and surprised look between each other. The girl put her hands on her hips again.
"They have been incredibly rude and scared our customers!" She persisted. "They need to learn their place-"
"Miss, uh, with all due respect," the man interrupted, an awkward and hesitant smile on his face, "You're the one who's yelling some unprofessional things… I know your manager, I'm pretty sure he likes his staff to be a lil' more civil, you know…?"
She was about to say something else, but wouldn't you know it, somebody must have gone and called said manager about the situation, because he came over, too. "Is there a problem over here?"
The one in the housecoat beat his employee to the punch, immediately speaking up, "Oh, we don't want to get anybody in trouble – my friends and I were just trying to get some shopping done when…" He looked to the employee, who didn't dare start her bitching again with a superior worker present.
"Oh, Stuart." The manager said upon recognizing the speaking customer. Aside from giving the two trolls a strange look, he didn't much address them. Instead, he gave the girl an unimpressed look. "You were supposed to relieve Gwen on the till ten minutes ago. Get on it."
She sputtered something, probably another derogatory comment about trolls, under her breath, but caused no more trouble as she walked away, giving Angor Rot a look that was returned with a fierce glare of his own.
Now looking more directly at Angor Rot and Dictatious, the manager asked Stuart, "You're, uh… sure you're alright with these guys?"
"Oh, don't you worry! They're with me!" Stuart said in a very chipper and reassuring voice.
Unsure, but satisfied enough, the other man simply nodded and walked away. Stuart sighed, relieved, and finally got a chance to address the trolls directly.
"Sorry about that, gentlemen…" The human said awkwardly to them, "People don't usually see trolls in here…"
"We can tell." Dictatious said bitterly. Angor still stayed quiet, just eying Stuart with a look of mistrust.
"Well, I'm Stuart, but you guys can call me Stu if you want!" He held out his hand for a handshake as he introduced himself, but when all Angor did was stare suspiciously at it, he pulled his arm back. "Ah, don't worry… I come in peace, and all that jazz." The awkward man chuckled. "What, er, what brings you two in today?"
"We've been trying to pick up some… supplies…" Angor rumbled, still annoyed, "… but clearly it's a waste of time."
"Maybe I can help? What are you looking for?"
Again, a look of mild surprise crossed both Dic and Angor's face. The taller troll showed Stuart the list, him looking it over curiously.
"Oh yeah, you can find all that in here easy peasy!" Stuart chirped. He gestured for them to follow. "Here, I'll show you what you're looking for!"
Angor still hesitated, but Dictatious just shrugged and nudged him. "Well, it's the first human we've had that's willing to assist."
"… So it seems…" Angor agreed. He was certainly easier to deal with so far than the other humans they've seen today.
With Stuart's help, they actually managed to find all the items on their list. While Stuart's merry chatter was tiring to keep up with at times, both trolls much preferred it to the degradation of that girl from before.
… Speaking of.
They approached the checkout line with a cart half-full of groceries, and who else was at the register but miss pink-hair herself?
She didn't say a single word the whole time she checked those three out. Stuart may have felt a little uncomfortable in the silence, but felt it better not to say anything. Angor only cast her the occasional dark look.
Dictatious, at first, wasn't sure if the human serving them was the same one from before. But judging from the familiar blur of pink he could barely make out, and how tensely quiet everyone was being, he could make an educated guess.
As Stuart made the proper payment and they all headed for the exit, Dictatious said nothing but did flash her the most nasty, mocking smile he could make. His hunch of who the cashier was had been confirmed when he heard her mutter 'bastard' under her breath, and he chuckled quietly as they left the building.
.
"Anything else you fellas need?" Stuart asked them.
"No." Angor offered the 20 dollars to Stu. "Does this suffice as payment?"
"Oh! Don't you worry about that!" Stuart assured him, lightly pushing his hand back. "The groceries are on the house!"
Dictatious immediately looked confused. "We don't need them on the house! We need them in the house!"
After blinking a few times, Stuart burst out in the most boisterous of laughter. Neither Angor nor Dictatious could figure out what was so funny, and Stu apologized as soon as he saw their confused faces.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry-" He chuckled, wiping away a tear. "You just- Ahh, that reminded me of a good friend of mine… What I mean to say is, don't worry about it! You don't owe me anything."
That made the pair look even more confused. "… Are you sure?"
"Yeah, of course!"
"Hm, well… thank you for your… help." Angor said slowly, still not sure what to make of this strange human.
Dictatious squinted at their company with similar thoughts. "Why did you help us, anyways?"
Stuart took a good look at them. He knew the second he saw them in there that it wasn't the first time they've been treated like that, and didn't expect it to be the last. "Well… Why not?" He replied, shrugging. "Seemed like you two could use a little kindness, eh?"
Stuart gathered up his portion of the groceries, and started to go about on his way, but he looked back and said with a smile, "Besides, I know what it feels like to be…" He paused, chuckling. "… alienated."
"… What?"
Stuart just winked, waved goodbye, and left, leaving behind two very confused trolls.
"… What a strange fleshbag." Dictatious commented.
Angor Rot snorted. "So long as we don't have to deal with any more." Turning away to head them home, he added, "Now let's get these to that strange fleshbag at the house."
"Hey," Dictatious snapped him a look. "If you're talking about Nancy-"
"She sent two trolls who cannot read this list to a human store. Not a very well-thought out idea."
"It's not her fault. She didn't know."
Now Angor was giving Dictatious a confused look, not expecting him to be so defensive of that random human. "… Well… I suppose it matters not. We got what we were looking for."
"That we did," Dictatious sighed, rolling his eyes and adding quietly, "It would've gone by much faster if one of us could just read properly…"
"I haven't exactly had much time for learning new human writing."
"I know, I know." Dic huffed. "I'd have been happy to teach you, but obviously…" He shook his head and sighed under his breath and ears drooping down a bit, "I can't even read my own books anymore…"
Angor frowned slightly staring at Dictatious. The art of the written word was something he obviously missed, understandably so. He can see how the thought of never getting that back would be somewhat… depressing.
"… Have you considered having someone read them to you?"Angor suggested.
Dictatious blinked a few times, then snickered a little, giving the assassin an incredulous look. "Being read to like a whelp?" He repeated. "I don't even think I could even bring myself to ask that of somebody without dying inside."
"You don't have to ask. I'm offering."
"Wh- … Oh." Dictatious stared at him for a good few seconds, confused. "I mean… really?"
Angor shrugged slightly. "We've done enough training for today, you're clearly tired, so why not?" Raising a brow he added, "If you'd like me to, of course."
"… I… Uhm…" Dictatious just kept staring blankly for a small while. "… Alright…"
.
So, upon dropping the groceries off at Nana's house and picking up a Horngazel and umbrella, the two then made their way to Trollmarket, and to Dictatious's library, perusing the shelves. Angor Rot was just appreciative to have some writing in a language he could read.
Dictatious, upon Angor asking him what kind of books he wanted read, just told him to 'pick out whatever catches your interest'. From the sounds and looks of him, he still seemed a little embarrassed about this whole idea… but still, he hadn't been objecting.
Angor gathered a decently sized pile of books, some on history he's missed in his slumber, others on ancient magics and legends… and then some.
"If you would rather just retire for the evening…" Angor started to say, but Dictatious shook his head.
"No, no, this… err…" Dictatious cleared his throat. "… actually sounds like a… a decent thought."
Angor simply shrugged, and took a seat next to Dictatious, setting down his selection of books. The first one he picked up, an ancient work, recordings of some of the first Trollhunters to be, theories of how a Trollhunter is chosen, things of that sort.
Angor's voice was a strange, gravelly one, but it wasn't irritating to listen to, especially when the assassin was calm. Awkward as the act of being read to felt to Dictatious, there was still a somewhat relaxing undertone to it.
When it came to books he had written himself (which most of these were) Dictatious and Angor would occasionally engage in small talk about some of the topics and details that came up – efforts gone to in order to get the information being read, an insider Gumm-Gumm perspective to many of the battles in question, even correcting some of the older works with new knowledge he's amassed over the years…
All in all, it's been turning into a peaceful evening.
Dictatious had gone quiet for some time, so Angor had just kept on reading aloud in that neutral rumble of a voice he had.
He stopped his reading abruptly, however, going tense when he felt Dictatious's head slowly fall against his shoulder.
"… Dictatious?"
He got no response. Just a soft snore.
"Oh…" Angor settled back down when he realized Dictatious had only accidentally fallen asleep against him. Angor half-debated moving… he wasn't fond of being touched (being used for guidance or used as a pillow are two very different situations)…
… Well… it's not a big deal. Figured he should just leave Dictatious be now that he's actually getting some sleep today. He went back to reading, this time just to himself. Though, not surprising to him, it wasn't long until he was interrupted.
It was Claire's voice, Angor recognized, that came from the head popping into the library to look around.
"Hey, have you guys seen Bli-" Claire's face went blank as soon as she saw the two of them. "…nky…"
Angor hadn't looked up once from the book he read, Dictatious still deep asleep leaning against him. "He has not been down here, no." He simply said as he flipped a page. "I assume he'd be at the Heartstone if he's in Trollmarket."
When Claire didn't reply or move at all, Angor eventually looked up at her, confused. "… Trollhunter? Is there anything else?"
She still didn't say a word. Just pulled out her phone, which made a click and a flash at him and Dictatious, and then she left the library.
"… Apparently not…" Angor mumbled to himself, confused still, but just went back to the book he'd been skimming through.
At least this time, he had an hour or so to himself before the next time the silence broke again. This time it was just Dictatious now, though - The smaller troll, though honestly still half-asleep, had finally begun to stir again.
There was a little shifting on his end as he woke, still a little out of it.
… Great. How long did I doze off for.
"So. He lives."
… That voice sounded a lot closer than it was before-
Oh no.
The second he realized what he'd done, the shock sent Dictatious jolting away from the other troll. Angor raised an eyebrow at him.
"Gods, why would you let me do that?!" He squeaked, a mix of embarrassment and alarm in his voice and eyes. "I swear I didn't mean to-!"
"If it was bothering me," Angor said calmly, turning a page, "then I'd have moved."
That comment at least got Dictatious to stop fussing (externally, anyways) but the Conundrum was definitely still going to keep a few feet's distance from Angor and avoid all eye contact.
Things stewed in an awkward silence for a bit.
"You've done much research on me." Angor suddenly said. "I'm surprised you even managed to obtain some of this information."
Dictatious's ears twitched. His head turned just slightly in Angor's direction. "… Well, I… do pride myself on being thorough."
"So I can tell."
… Unless he was mistaken, Dictatious almost thought there was something in his voice that sounded… like just the smallest trace of remorse.
He must be looking through the book about his bargain with the Pale Lady, and atrocities committed by him afterwards…
"… Ah, though it's… not as thorough as it could've been." Dictatious pointed out. Angor looked at him, puzzled, as he went on. "I didn't really have all of the facts… Nobody had known why you'd bartered with the Pale Lady, for one…" When Angor stayed quiet, Dictatious just shrugged and added, "Just another one of those books that could do with some correcting…"
Angor Rot snorted, looking back to the pages. "They're accurate enough."
Dictatious frowned slightly. He was quiet for a moment before speaking up again.
"That's not the only work I've written on you, you know."
Curious, Angor glanced his way once more. "I can't imagine you'd have had much else to cover."
Dictatious, not sure if he was joking or not (but would always assume not at this point), gave him a funny look in return. He stood up, and walked over to a wall of bookshelves, feeling around the texts that sat there.
"You were still well-known even before your bargain with Her, obviously." Dictatious pointed out, in case Angor had… forgotten, somehow. He fumbled a bit in search of the book he had in mind (this would be so much easier with functional eyes…) but he eventually found what he was looking for, and moved back towards the assassin. "You do remember all your services to your people, don't you?"
'I heard you were once a great warrior, a hero to Trollkind.'
… Of course Angor remembered. But that was a version of him long abandoned.
"That was many years ago." Angor eventually spoke. "It's… irrelevant now."
"I can't tell if that's false modesty or just a ridiculously strange sense of humour." Dictatious said. Not having any of his blatant disregard for such straightforward information, Dictatious basically shoved the book on top of the one Angor already had opened. "Just look. I believe these kinds of actions are what some would call 'honourable'."
Angor gave a begrudging sigh, but opened the book. Detailed records lay before him of old accomplishments and heroics, some memories he'd long buried, others all too familiar.
"These are remnants of someone who was killed long ago."Angor growled, flicking the book at Dictatious's feet. "It doesn't matter anymore. The evils I've done have long replaced that."
Dictatious scoffed. He picked up the book, glowering. "So. You think none of your previous deeds mean anything anymore."
"I am known for bringing pain and death. My crimes against Trollkind far outweigh-"
"Okay, stop."
Dictatious had heard enough of this nonsense. He was by no means a 'good' troll. He wasn't in the business of 'honour', 'saving lives', anything of that sort.
But he was in the business of plain old facts.
And there are many significant facts Angor's taken to ignoring, here. How he could be so ignorant, why he'd want to wallow in such self-loathing, the Conundrum couldn't figure out.
Not acceptable. These books were written for a reason, their information isn't going to be ignored.
"The earliest pages of any book are fundamental in writing its ending." Dictatious said, going to put his works back on their shelves, but intentionally leaving the ones regarding Angor by his side. With a thoughtful glance to the assassin, he went on. "And your positive actions have affected more people's stories than you may realize."
Silent and still, Angor listened with furrowed brows. His lone eye wandered from the other troll to the book left at his side.
"You have saved the lives of many, helped evacuate villages that were not even your own… Many trolls would have perished without you. Many of those you've saved, even descendants of such, are still alive today because of you. I'm sure they haven't forgotten all the good you've done." He picked up some more books to put away. "And I know that you haven't, either."
"… You sound so sure about that."
Dictatious chuckled. "It's honestly quite simple." Despite his lack of clear sight, the Conundrum managed to land direct eye contact with Angor for just a second. And, while he could no longer read the books in his hands, this enigma of a killer was like an open book to Dictatious this night. "If you really have forsaken that old part of you, then you wouldn't be trying so hard to help the Trollhunters now."
Eye darting back to Dictatious, Angor (again) said nothing, just stared.
Dictatious was… technically right. Angor has been actively trying to atone for his wrongdoings. Whether he was doing that task well or not was another story, but…
He reopened the records of his good accomplishments. "… So it still… means something, is what you're saying." He said quietly, as if trying to convince himself those words were true.
"Obviously it still means something." Dictatious then snickered, going back to putting the books on their shelves. "I mean, only an idiot would ignore such plain facts."
Angor Rot stared blankly at him, saying nothing.
In realization of how that sounded, Dic's eyes went wide and he turned back around, quickly correcting himself, "Not that you're an idiot!"
"Obviously," Angor replied, a small smirk on his face, "consolation isn't a strength of yours." Thankfully, Dictatious could make out a little touch of mirth in his voice.
"Ha… Not particularly, no…" Dictatious admitted with a tentative smile of his own.
While he may not have realized it, Dictatious actually had managed to make this troll feel just a little bit better. That gesture on his part, Angor could appreciate.
Clearing his throat, Dictatious changed the subject. "So, erhm, how long have we been down here, even?"
"Mm. Long enough, I'm sure. Night has likely long fallen by now." Angor mused. "Shall we head back?"
.
.
The night, no moon to speak of, was near completely dark. If not for the stars and flickering lights of the streets, Arcadia would be swept under a blanket of blackness.
It would be easy to miss the figure moving in the night, a lumbering mass of shadows that one might mistake for a creeper of the night, if not for that giveaway human shape. The being emerged from his car, which had been tactfully concealed behind a plethora of trees.
Something rattled in the tall man's hand, the batteries of a flashlight as he fumbled to get the device out of his coat.
One bright beam of light broke the darkness, landing on a tall, landmark sign that read 'Welcome to Arcadia Oaks!' in the boldest, reddest letters he could see.
"Finally…" Rasped his husky voice, a hopeful grin on his cracked lips. "I'm finally here-"
He cut his own monologue off with a screech when a curious and irritated goblin bolted out from behind the sign to flee from the light. Unfortunately for it, that just caused the man to chuck his flashlight at the thing as hard as he could, splattering the creature in an instant.
"… Ew."
His grin turned to a look of disgust as he picked up the now green-splattered flashlight, shaking it off of goblin remains.
His sourness was short-lived, and an upbeat smile came back when he took one more look at the sign into Arcadia.
Hopping back into his car, he started up the engine, though it took a few sputtering tries. Slow and quiet, the little black vehicle crawled its way into Arcadia's borders.
