[ Mary's Studio ]
The studio sits quiet.
Only the paintings on the wall stare back at Nico. He ignores them, eyes narrowed to the artists by the edge of the hallway. Their eyes drift without focus, lips slack, shoulders slumped as they wander about in their own minds.
Yes, this is what he expected.
"What a mess. I'll have to clear their memories of this meeting."
Except, the violet fire's effect was unusually delayed.
Daniel and Mary should have completely blacked out as soon as the violet fire flared near them. Instead, the latter managed to close the door on him and retreat as if were nothing. Fortunately, they didn't get far in their free steps, but it was bad enough that he had to use the goddess' fire more than usual to pay a visit.
He studies Mary for a bit. 'She must have a strong fire in her.'
The average person carrying the flame is not uncommon. Various remnants across history roamed the planet, spreading their fire to the people. Such burns carry down to descendants, weakening, but always present. While the majority of people would never know about the connection to the goddess they carry, there are those like Morgan who can hear the crackle within them.
Some are louder than others.
Nico hasn't developed this sense, and likely never will. It's such a rare trait that even a few on the council could possess. When he considers the chances, he's lucky to have been even heard by Morgan.
It's for that same reason, he wants to ensure she doesn't waste time on people who will only cause trouble. While Mary's resistance might be an indication of an inherited value in Marlin's family, it can also be a threat.
For now, Nico can't make any judgments yet. His gaze shifts to Daniel. 'What about him?'
He's not sure of the male artist's relation or his inner fire, if he has any. As he was hidden behind Mary, the female artist could have dragged him back while he was taken out immediately by the flame.
With one too many witnesses to deal with, Nico shakes his head, passing the artists with a heavy sigh. 'All this trouble you're putting me through, are you going to keep hiding, Brother?'
It could be very well Marlin is sick, but this isn't the first time members made excuses, especially once the fire behind the Order is exposed.
SPLICK!
Three steps in from his impatience, Nico skids to a halt. A wet noise behind him pierces his ear, sending his eyes wide. He's about to look back at the artists until...
"You... What the hell are do... ah?"
Ignoring the noise, Nico snaps his attention forward to catch "Marlin" stepping out from a room farther down the hallway. Rather than meet him, the bald man's eyes waver past his large body to the frozen couple behind.
Snorting, Nico tilts his hat. "I didn't get to properly introduce myself at the airport. As you are probably aware from Morgan, I am Nico. I apologize for the intrusion and... measures I've had to take, but you'll understand I couldn't wait to follow up after missing you at the pub."
"The... pub. Um... yeah..."
Seeing how he's still looking past him, Nico closes his eyes. "Rest assured, your niece and the other man behind me are... how to say, asleep. You should be well familiar with the state after your visit to the pub."
Marlin, or rather, Viviane, swallows down her shock. She looks to Nico, then back to the standing artists.
Does he not know?
[IMAGE]
In her view, Mary's gooey clone stares back, tight-lipped, holding herself partially stretched from the waist down over her human host. The cultist is only a turn away from noticing as she keeps silent, her pupils shrunk. Like Viviane, she also switches between the back of the intruder and her "uncle".
'Ah? Uncle is free? Wait, no... where is Viviane? Also, w-why did I only split away instead of moving? What is happening?!'
It's amazing Nico hasn't noticed the silent turmoil. His gaze waits on "Marlin", confident that the two behind him are locked up, isolated in their own minds from hearing them.
Less isolated, Viviane quickly adapts, thinking back to Victor and the clinic. Not only did the sudden memory wipe of the staff not affect her, she was able to "wake" Daniel out of the mental conversation with Victor. If the gooey Mary is similarly unaffected, maybe Mary and Daniel aren't in any real danger.
Yet.
'How stupid of me! I should've gone straight to them instead!'
She thought there was enough time to leave the lounge, slip into Marlin's suitcase, and shapeshift into him. If Nico was waiting for someone to answer the door, she figured he didn't want to draw too much attention and wouldn't do anything extreme.
Clearly, she misjudged. In less than a minute, Nico put the artists out of commission like Victor did to Daniel. If it weren't for Mary's slimy pull, she might have broken her cover and lashed out at the cultist in their defense.
Nico steps closer, his chuckle breaking her concerns. "Brother, you're understandably tense. Try to relax. After this, I'll wipe their memories of my arrival, and we can go on our way."
Viviane smiles crookedly. 'So, it's exactly like how Victor manipulated himself into the clinic.'
It's no wonder how The Order managed to persist silently throughout history.
"Right... of course. Why don't we discuss in here?" she suggests, motioning to the emptied lounge. At the very least, she's thankful Anne listened, leaving her to only have to worry about the artists.
"Actually, I'd like to check out more of your niece's work while we talk." Nico closes his eyes to a more easy smile. "You don't think she would mind?"
"Not at all," Viviane answers, wiggling her lips. A quick, pointed glare to the slimy Mary urges her to hide already.
The clone stiffens. Although she does mind, she can't say much. With a nod, she eases back over her human host swiftly, but with precision. The subtle wet noise that trickles from her movements is enough to raise brows, but by the time Nico actually glances back, the slime has seamlessly disappeared into Mary, leaving her and Daniel in the same position as before.
He hums, scanning around. "Is there a leak somewhere?"
"A-ah..." Viviane's inner goo shakes by the close call. She rubs her now-bald head, chuckling weakly. "Maybe? I'm not too familiar with this studio or town, really."
The Italian man hums again, scanning the area behind him before facing the uncle. "Well, it's the same for me. I'm sure it's been quite the day for the both of us, so let's see to it that we can enjoy more of this city later, capisce?"
'This fucking guy,' Viviane mutters in her head while her forehead creases. "Capisce."
With the lovely greetings out of the way, Nico follows the false Marlin into the main work area. As the man's heavy footsteps fade against the tiles, Mary's human eyes tighten before peeking one eye out.
'Huh... I'm back?'
Her shoulders loosen once the two disappear around the corner. She slowly breathes out. 'That was close, and it seems I can move again. At least I've broken from whatever spell Nico cast. Is it because I reconnected?'
With memories synced, it appeared the studio continued to warp from her human perspective, crushing the air like she was a part of a horror movie. Any will to escape only affected her slime part.
'So this is what Daniel experienced. But, what were those flames? Nico disappeared once my clone separated. Not only that, but there was a bright white flame I saw in uncle too.'
She twists her lips to the side but ultimately stashes these questions away. When her uncle and Nico are far enough where their echos are distorted, she steps in front of Daniel, drawing her hands to his temples.
'If I connect to him just like I did to myself, that should wake him... oh?'
Glancing at the rest of his form, her eyes catch an unmistakable tent poking out from his pants below. Her mouth hangs before her fingers retract briefly. 'Wha... what the fuck, love! Are you serious?! What are you seeing in this situation?'
She thins her lips before gulping, swallowing her disbelief. Regardless of what she might find, she can't leave him be. Refocusing, she wills her slimy layer attach to him.
The muffled voices between Nico and "Marlin" grow even more distant.
SHLICK!
Their minds connect, and in an instant, Mary finds everything pitch-black instead of the usual memories that would transfer. Before she can panic, Daniel's shaky voice shatters through the void along with... herself?
"M-mary, please, this isn't the time! Nico might have left for now, but your uncle is still stuck with Mother!"
"Love, forget about them. It just occurred to me that we could possibly be blown up by all this magic. Since life is short, let's try making babies, right now!"
"You're overreacting! S-stop... ah, y-your slime is..."
'GYAAAAA!' Color drains from the real Mary as she jerks away, her slime abandoning the strange mind of her boyfriend. She shuts her eyes, barely restraining herself from slapping him right then and there. 'What the hell are you imagining, you idiot!'
She clenches her fist instead, right by his head.
Fortunately, the quick intrusion and scream into his mind springs Daniel out with a sharp gasp. Before he can question the unexpected cut from the false reality, Mary removes her slime quickly, sliding over to seal his mouth with a hand.
"Mmph?!"
With her other hand, she raises a finger to her lips, checking the hallway to her work area before dragging him into the corner of the lobby where they wouldn't be seen. She isn't sure what will happen when Nico finds out they're free, but they can't play statue without a clue either.
"Damn it, and you call me strange!" Mary blasts in a harsh whisper. "Put aside your fantasies, love. Nico didn't leave, and we were caught in his illusion just like how Victor swept you away. Right now, my uncle is alone with him, so we need to pull ourselves together!"
Daniel's pupils shrink, his face flushing red. After a few seconds processing his fellow artist's words, he weakly nods, his heart cringing with shame. Mary removes his hand as he clears his throat. "J-just for the record, I have no idea why the illusion turned out that way. I really had thought he left after you shut the door, but I should've known something was up when you suddenly pushed up against me."
Mary stares flatly. "Suuure."
Daniel coughs. "Anyway, it doesn't matter. What about Mom and Rachel?"
Mary squints at him for a moment before huffing. "Fine. I'm guessing they must have fled, seeing how uncle suggested having a talk in the lounge."
Daniel hums, and glances to the hallway entrance. "Okay, but what can we do to a large guy who can bring up who-knows-what magical flames?"
"You're the Harry Potter fan, love. Maybe think with a proper wand, and I don't mean the one down there."
"Okay, give me a break! You're the one who was so excited about the possibility of learning magic from oh-so-great Merlin. Forget about helping, we'll only put ourselves into more trouble at this rate!"
SCHLIP!
The artists stop their inflamed strokes against each other. In the next breath, they turn their gaze to the frosted door where a blue slime spills in from the bottom. They can't even question before Anne's head pops out of the puddle, her gelatinous eyes flickering with relief.
"Oh, thank goodness! Quick, both of you should join Marlin and Rachel outside. I'm going to stand by for Viviane, if I can."
"Mom?" Daniel calls, but blinks. "Wait, did you say Marlin is outside? But Mary said that..."
He turns to her, but the dark artist's eyes widen. "Oh... So that white flame was..."