A/N - ...
Phantom is in the clinic when he feels the pull, the sharp jerky pull that could never come from anyone else. There's a beat in which he manages to take a breath before he's dragged through some unseen doorway and slammed against the invisible floor in a vast darkness.
The air is heavy, weighted and from the second he lands he can feel it pressing down on him, harder than it should. Phantom is trapped on his knees as He strides forward. Phantom hears a dramatic sigh above him.
"I gave you one rule, Phantom. One simple rule." A hand plonks firmly on Phantom's head and the deal maker's pulse sky rockets as his blood turns to ice. Power pulses out from where the fingertips grip him and though he shakes with strain, he's frozen in place, unable to move, even if he wants to. "Stay away from THE PSYCHIC!"
The hand throws him towards the floor and the floor meets Phantom's face with a crunch. He stays on the ground, he's not an idiot.
"I told him I don't walk with you any more." Phantom calls back.
"Well that's great. I mean so long as you told him you have nothing to do with me any more. That should be fine." There's a strange echoing clack as He steps away before He turns and bellows. "He's a fucking PSYCHIC! He created you! He's going to know you're lying!"
Shadows meld out of the darkness and Phantom is gripped by tendrils that lift him off the floor while they remove his cane, carrying it away, passing it to Him where He plucks it from their grip with a gentle, 'thank you'. The darkness has a hold of each wrist and each ankle, holding Phantom aloft. Another tendril slowly begins to wrap around the boy's throat as He talks, making sure the deal maker sees his own cane in His hands.
"You've raised Julien's guard now. He'll be expecting me. And I still can't get anywhere near." With a broad swing, He raises the cane so the globe is two inches from Phantom's nose and burning a fiery eye glare at him through the glass. "If your foolish need to show off for your creator ends up costing me, I will take my pound of flesh from between your ears."
"S-sorry!" Phantom manages to splutter before the hold around his throat cuts him off.
With a flick of His wrist, the shadows lower Phantom until he's almost on the ground again, though they continue to hold him in place. "I know you are." There's a smarm to His voice as He raises a hand to gently pat at the deal maker's cheek. "I know."
Seconds drag on for eons as He taps the top of Phantom's cane against His chin, and the boy is helpless as he watches, waits for Him to speak.
"Tell me, did you at least find what I'm looking for?"
The tendril around Phantom's neck recedes enough to let him speak. Even so, the boy struggles and just about manages to nod. He's found it but he can't take it. That's not how it works. That's not how the rules work.
A finger on Phantom's lips immediately silence these thoughts, his mind immediately cleared as the touch breezes through his mind and just brushes everything away. "It's okay, I know. I know you can't do anything."
He is wearing a bright smile as the darkness around His favorite character recedes, forcing Phantom to take his own weight again. He stands close, reaching to hold the boy up. Hollowing him out can do that sometimes but He finds it so much easier than getting into pointless arguments.
Phantom stares hollowly as He presses the boy's cane back into his hand, holding it there as his strength slowly returns to him. As He leans in, the deal maker's eyes close as His word speak directly to his core.
"Watch over it," He whispers, "make sure it stays safe. And stay…away…from the psychic."
The boy's chest swells with the power behind the instruction, and he responds as he always does.
"Yes, Mark."