Episode: 3.6

--- Cheshire ---

“How are we doing on Malice?” Rai asked after managing to sneak away from his friends, something he did every day she bothered to stick around his school.

“Straight to business?” she asked with a grin, hoping to keep his mind off the one topic that always stressed him out, something she could already feel across their pack bond.

“You know we can go a couple days without taking any Malice.” She reminded him, trying to ignore the hint of desperation in her own voice, because she wasn’t sure if it was a good idea for him to out with the way his other-self was acting.

“Yeah we could,” Rai nodded, running a hand through his hair, “but we’ll end up needing twice as much when we finally do take it.”

She watched him for a moment, before sighing when she realized he had no intention of budging.

“How much was left in the flask?” she asked pulling out said flask, half hoping they could put this off for a night.

And from the feel of it… “There isn’t even half a dosage left.”

(Shit…)

Rai winced as she undid the cap. “So, we do have to get a refill…”

“Yep,” she nodded, before taking a sip, knowing she’d need the pick me up for what they were about to do, and that her brother would both refuse to let her do it alone, and to drink the stuff himself… (no matter how much he needs it still.)

“Any signs of Sanctuary in town?” he asked her as they began to move away from the school the moment her ‘talent’ spread over them, filling the back of their heads with a faint static.

“No more than usual, they’re still sticking to the north side of town,” She’d been keeping an eye on them while he was in school.

(And knowing him, Rai going to want to stay out of Sanctuary’s way even with his emergency escape switch…)

She shook her head, “They don’t seem to think we Deviants can live anywhere outside the ghetto.” (the racist fucks.)

“Speaking of, how are those guys holding up out there holding up?”

She shrugged before letting a few memories flash through her mind, pushing them through the pack bond.

[Memory] [Depression] [Anger] [Regret]

(Filthy streets… Armed soldiers… Children hiding…)

Rai ran a hand over his face before letting out a tired sigh, “Same old, same old…”

“Yep.” She agreed downing the last of their flask.

A silence set in between them, something they were both more than used to given their mutual childhood, if you could call it that.

“Any idea what we need?” Rai asked as they began to near their usual place.

“Already checked the cache at the apartment, we’ve got everything but the… catalyst.” She told him, hating the way their euphemism tasted in her mouth.

“So, we don’t have to deal with the others at least.” Rai told her, trying to cheer her up now.

“We could get the catalyst from them.” She offered, knowing that gathering the catalyst was the part that made them both sick, him especially.

“We both know that won’t work.” He sighed running a hand down his face, “Only place that would trade for it is deep in Sanctuary’s watch zone, and even then, it would probably cost too much to get it back to the apartment, at least in quantity worth using.”

“I could always carry it, they don’t call me ‘Cheshire, The Unseen’ for nothing.” She smirked, placing a hand on her chest in a properly dramatic fashion.

“Still I’d rather not risk it.” Rai shook his head, despite a twitch on the corner of his lips, “You know that while Sanctuary may hate all Deviants, they’ve got a special hate on for the Malcontent.”

“Yeah, yeah,” she rolled her eyes in what she felt was well earned arrogance, “but I will figure out how to really hide from Malice trackers at some point you know.”

“Like you said, they don’t call you ‘Cheshire, The Unseen’ for nothing.”

----

A few hours later, saw her and her brother sitting on a roof top, in the middle of downtown waiting for an opportune moment.

“See anyone that fits the bill yet?” she asked tossing a ball against a nearby vent, rather than watching the streets like she was supposed to.

“Not yet…” Rai sighed, twitching slightly whenever the ball hit the metal, a reflex that doubled when his phone went off.

She moved the moment he pulled the phone from his pockets, swiping and unlocking it with her tail, “Is it from the ‘rents’?”

“Told them I was staying over at a friend’s tonight.” He explained grabbing the phone with his own tail before tossing it back to his hand, “It’s from Nadya…”

“Ooh, is it spicy?” she smirked, knowing he was too social awkward to actually handle anything like that, “Is she asking for… help sleeping tonight?”

Unphased by her comment, he shook his head, “No, she was giving me a report on recruitment campaign for the party on Sunday.” He explained switching the phone off as he turned back to the street below.

“Huh, that’ll be fun.” She smiled, not sure if she was being sarcastic or jealous.

Rai watched her for a moment, long enough to warn her, her emotions were bleeding over, “I’m guessing you don’t want to come…” he finally commented when she briefly killed the connection.

His tone would’ve made her wince, if she hadn’t been expecting it, “You know me being there… with everyone else… it’s a bad idea…”

Rai ran a hand down his face before sighing, “Doesn’t mean I don’t want you there…”

That did make her wince.

(It doesn’t mean I don’t want to be there either…)

“It’s technically your birthday too…” he tried reminding her.

“Rai…” she glared at him, feeling her eyes prickle as her real eyes shone through.

He watched her for a moment more, before finally sighing as he ran a hand through his hair, “Alright I’ll drop it…”

And with that what little energy he had seemed to leave him once more.

(And on top of everything else… there’s that.)

She ran a hand down her face as her eyes reverted back to their semi-human grey.

(What’s this dumbass thinking letting his concentrate fall this low?)

(It can’t just be depression, or my issues with the rest of his family…)

Her eyes moved to watch her troubled brother as he turned his attention back to the streets below them, his tail wrapping around his waist once more, causing her to frown as another thought crossed her mind.

(Is his Deviant dysphoria acting up again…)

She tapped her fingers against her thumb, feeling her claws itching to come out and attack the intangible threat to her brother, especially given she wasn’t sure how she could help him, if that was his problem.

(This is going to suck.)

Seeing no other option, she let out a sigh before slowly closing her eyes and inhaling.

(1…)

She let the Malice in her veins slowly flood her system.

(2…)

She felt all the thoughts and feeling unnecessary to the task at hand dim into the darkness.

(3…)

She opened her eyes and released her breath and watched in a mild fascination she could never suppress, as the black mist escape her lips, before drifting through the air only to fade into nothingness.

Her eyes took in everything as the world around her seemed to slow down, when in reality she was simply speeding up, thinking faster and clearer than she had while her human half had been keeping her in check.

[Concern]

She glanced at her brother meeting the gaze he cast over his shoulder before shaking her head and returning to her thoughts as he returned to his own task, a slight echo of concern remaining around him all the while.

(Now then, how to help Rai…)

The feelings she’d picked up earlier played back in perfect clarity.

[Running]

[Freedom]

[Momentum]

[Thrill]

[Infiltration]

[Disappointment]

(With the way he felt while he was running this morning, and the fact that those feelings were strong enough for me to pick up unconsciously…)

(Well, obviously he misses using his abilities, so…)

(Objective: Get Rai to use his abilities more.)

(Yeah, the more he uses them, higher his concentrate gets, and the less depressed he’ll be…)

(Place in him in situation, where ability usage is mandatory.)

(Yeah, that could work, but how to do it though?)

(Solution: Have him hunt.)

“Think I found someone.” Rai spoke up, causing her to move to his side without waste.

“Where?” she questioned as the world slowed just long enough for her eyes to search the street and spot a brunette in a red dress stumbling through the streets.

(Target viable.)

“Yeah, that’ll do.” She nodded both to herself and him, before jumping into a crouch on the ledge next to Rai.

She glanced at him, feeling her eyes flash as her abilities began to flare up.

“You take care of this hunt.”

[Shock] [Confusion]

“What?”

She sighed, black mist escaping her mouth once more as she turned to him, “I said, you take care of this hunt.”

[Confusion] [Fear]

“But you’re already…” he made a gesture towards her.

“Yes,” she nodded again, “and I said, you hunt.” She added pointing her tail at him.

[Anxiety] [Dread]

“W-why?!” he asked, his voice cracking with his reluctance.

She tilted her head from one side and then to the other, before nodding once more and answering him, “Because you have to.”

And with that she leaped off the edge of the roof.