To say it had been a tense week was the most enormous understatement of the century. Most of the Sanctuary had been startlingly subdued. Not even the most rowdy and dangerous of residents had caused a fuss. Instead everyone, residents and workers alike lived in some kind of limbo in which no one spoke.
Things worked as per usual, feedings occurred, bills were paid and, much to everyone's relief, the power fluctuations stopped though Henry still harboured a distinct feeling that it wasn't because of his work, instead this mysterious 'Order of Maat' had simply ceased the program now that they had what they wanted. Rose and, surprisingly enough Tesla had assured him time and time again that the programming error was gone but even having Erika tell him the same thing had no effect on his state of mind.
It had come out on day two that Rose knew where Helen was being held, much to everyone's dismay but not even Tesla had been able to draw the location from her. Henry hadn't been privy to the meeting at which the information had come out but by all accounts it had been an explosive one. The fact that he'd been forced to order a new conference table for that room told him all he needed to know.
Revelations aside, it had been an uneventful week in comparison to others but Henry hadn't been able to shake the overwhelming feeling of foreboding or the loneliness that had taken up residence in his heart. Magnus was his Mom in a lot of ways, the woman who had raised him since before he could remember and the woman who had given him every opportunity in life. She'd paid for college courses and textbooks and numerous computer systems for him over the years and she was, to his mind, the grandmother of his child.
He knew he wasn't the only one cut up about her disappearance but often he felt as if he couldn't voice it. He hadn't known her as long as Tesla or Druitt or Rose, he wasn't the protégé like Will and his experiences with her seemed to pale in comparison to those of many others.
But he loved her. More than he could ever really explain, he loved her and it was because of that love that, for an entire week, he'd had a grand total of 12 hours sleep. There wasn't much he could do, those in charge of planning the actual security surrounding the event really did have it covered but he spent every second he had cleaning and fixing and double checking every weapon they might ever need. He ran programs searching for The Order of Ma'at in any of Magnus' files and, when that failed, he grabbed Gregory's notes and read each and every page for something that might give them a clue.
When that too turned up no results, he started looking for abnormals that had powers similar to Druitt, testing theory after theory of how they'd teleported in, grabbed the boss and gotten out again in less than 3.96 seconds. While it didn't help get her back, he managed to safe guard their systems against any further attacks to the best of his ability. There really was no way to test whether or not his actions were effective until another attack came but he had so many fail-safes and back-ups in place he astounded even Erika.
Erika.
She had been something of a rock for him through all this. She kept his spirits up when the sadness got too much and reminded him to stop and breathe and eat from time to time. Henry had been loathe to abandon her like this during what really was an exciting time in their relationship but the idea of bringing a baby into the world when it didn't have Helen Magnus to look out for it seemed downright stupid.
Thankfully, this was something Erika seemed to understand and, not once had she complained. Smiling, Henry looked over to the frame sitting on one side of his desk. It was of a picnic they'd held about two weeks after they'd all successfully moved down to the new Sanctuary. He and Erika were in the foreground, laughing and smiling as they hugged but, next to them on the mat sat Magnus, Will and Tesla. Will was shaking his head at something while Tesla was displaying one of his face splitting grins but it was Magnus' joy that Henry most loved about the additions to the picture. Her head was thrown back, face creased in laugher with an overflowing glass of wine in her hand.
It was one of the most relaxed, carefree pictures he had of his surrogate mother and, in a lot of ways, his favourite too.
"That was a good day," a voice said, startling Henry. He turned quickly in his seat, startled to find Tesla standing behind him, hands in pockets as he regarded the photo. Over the past few days the normally reclusive vampire had withdrawn even further, only appearing when his presence was absolutely necessary. While Will had termed this a 'welcome break', Henry found it all too telling. If the vampire was this withdrawn, it could only mean he didn't like their chances any better than Henry did which, to be honest, was on the wrong side of terrifying.
"I took her for a picnic once," Tesla continued absently. "We went to Sandford for the day. It was beautiful until the end when it rained." His lips quirked into a ghost of a smile. "I stained her dress with cherries and then she fell asleep in the carriage back to Oxford."
Henry watched as Tesla stepped forward slowly, picking up the frame.
"I made fun of her for not being British enough. But I wasn't lying, she did taste of tea."
Henry could sense this half conversation heading into a territory he was not even a little bit comfortable with but he didn't have the heart to stop it. Tesla let out a soft little chuckle and his smile widened.
"It took me weeks to think it all up and coax the food out of the kitchens," he continued. "I remember the look on her face when I picked her up, she was..." Tesla took a deep breath "...enthralled."
Carefully and still supporting that wistful smile, Tesla put the frame back down gently before turning to Henry. There was a beat before he processed what had just happened but, when he did, Tesla's face almost flushed. He cleared his throat uncomfortably, eyes sliding away from Henry's quickly.
In an instant, Henry swore he'd never, ever again mention this very second if only so he didn't have to see this level of discomfort in the vampire. Normally he loved watching the genius squirm but somehow this was different, way more personal and way more... Well, Tesla seemed way too human for Henry's liking.
"They want you down in the video conference room," Tesla snapped suddenly. "We're just about ready."
Henry nodded mutely and slid from his chair, collecting his folders before scurrying after Tesla whose long strides seemed to swallow up the corridors.
The moved in sync but in silence, only their footsteps echoing about the place. Even when Tesla punched in the code for the transport pod, Henry didn't trust himself to try and speak. They were avoiding eye contact it seemed and, based on the way Tesla was half pressing himself into the corner, any attempts at conversation probably wouldn't go down well.
So Henry bit his tongue, holding in the odd questions that kept popping up. Like where Sandford was and whether they'd been back since and whether Tesla was coping all right. In reality, he knew the answer to the last one. None of them were coping, this state of limbo had them all tied in knots and the vampire was no exception.
By the time they arrived at the conference room however, some of the tension had disappeared and Henry was left feeling much more at ease with his companion. They were never going to be best of friends but, at the very least, they had some truly common ground. Henry's feelings for Magnus may have run in a very different direction to those Tesla held but he was starting to suspect they ran just as deep.
It was strange to think that this man, this insufferable man, as Magnus liked to call him, was actually capable of genuine emotion though Henry knew he'd have had to be blind to miss the way the other man had changed. In the time that they'd known him, he'd... softened. It was the only word Henry could think to use to describe it. Tesla was... softer. He was like a kitten that had been housetrained to love his owners just enough that he no longer hissed after them, instead just swanning about as if he owned the place. He was still insufferable, still a pain in the ass but he seemed to have learnt how to play with others a little better.
"We'll find her," Henry said softly and Tesla stopped in his tracks. Henry merely walked past him. It wasn't a discussion or a hope, it was going to be fact. It had to be.
Sighing heavily, Will shifted uncomfortably in his chair. The day had been a long one and it was barely 9am but, more than that, it had been a long week. His head hadn't stopped pounding for seven whole days and, to top it off, Abby had barely spoken to him which left him high and dry in terms of support. He supposed he probably could have turned to Rose but his conscious just wouldn't let him. Plus she was freaking out, it wasn't as if she could be the cool and rational head to his own brand of stressed out anxiety.
Henry had been totally absorbed all week too and none of the other Head's wanted to talk with him. Declan was the only one he felt was actually on his side and he was stretched thin enough as it was. Even though Will was the one officially in charge, Declan had subsumed at least half of the work load without complaint which, while still leaving Will with more than enough to occupy every waking minute for the next century, made Will guilty at the thought of tearing him away just to have a bit of a chat.
He had tried to talk to Kate but she'd been sullen and distant and, soon enough, had begged off and returned to Hollow Earth. She was back now but for most of the week she'd communicated via video calls and hurried emails only. Honestly, he didn't blame her either though.
It was all too much to handle, for any of them. Even Druitt was struggling and not in the way Will had expected. The man hadn't been violent or angry, in fact he'd pretty much holed himself away much like everyone else. He'd been at meetings and contributed rather sedately but Will never saw him in the communal kitchen when meals were served nor did he haunt the libraries Will had taken to hiding in. In fact, the man was a veritable ghost.
Now though, he was lounging in the corner silently but for once without that almost eerie quality he managed to radiate. Just like Tesla, he was a broken man.
But Tesla at least still seemed to hold hope. Or, he was willing to act on what little hope they had. He was like a possessed man at times, willing to try anything to get Helen back but other days he had been listless and unhelpful in the extreme.
And, as if on cue, the doors to the room sprang open to reveal both Henry and Tesla, both of whom wore rather queasy expressions. Rose and Kate both looked up at the intrusion from where they sat by Magnus' desk. Rose flashed them both a small smile but Kate's was more welcoming.
"Hey Hank," she said softly, waving towards him.
He smiled gratefully and moved across the room to her. Rose stood seamlessly, shifting to allow Henry to take her seat as she moved across the room to Tesla's side. Heads bowed, they began to talk quietly, moving to the side of the room.
Will watched as Tesla's face darkened in what he guessed was anger as Rose laid her hand on his arm. He tried to shake her off but Rose grabbed him and, with a dark look, seemed to silence the vamp. Or at least he seemed to submit to whatever it was they were arguing about.
Suddenly Tesla's head snapped up and his eyes locked on Will's. The scowl he received would have been enough to break a lesser man but Will just rolled his eyes.
"Can we get started already?" he asked, turning towards the nearest keyboard.
"Whenever you're ready," Rose said, sounding too chipper. She'd been like that all week, smiling and skipping about as if her enthusiasm could make up for everyone else's melancholy mood. She was the only one who ever left a meeting with a smile but, despite the slightly grotesque happiness she was displaying, Will had started to see just how much of a front it was. There were moments when she'd sort of collapse in on herself and the smile would falter. It never lasted very long but Will caught it and, in a lot of ways, he found it a relief. The fact that she was cracking meant that she was just as human as the rest of them. Sort of.
He did like the fake show of strength though, it was nice that at least someone could pretend to bear the load.
The others quickly gathered around Will, Henry clutching a folder to his chest as if it were a lifeline. Tesla and Rose seemed grimly determined while Kate looked a little queasy.
Oh yes, this was going to be an interesting conference call for sure.
Magical prize of magic for anyone who can figure out what the title is referring to :P And by that, I mean, you can order me to write a chapter of something, if you'd like. So not really magic.
xx
