"... so now we're waiting for Wrath to possess Charlie. Or someone," concluded Ben. He'd spilled the entire story to Ezra, whose eyes had glazed over.
Hearing the story conclude, Ezra cleared his throat, eyes drifting to the side. "So you don't know what power you have now?" he asked. "After you filled the second column?" He spoke slowly, skeptically.
"Uh..." Ben clicked his tongue and shook his head. "No. All I know about is the shields, and that's... I dunno. Weird." Putting his hand on his knee, under the desk, he splayed out his fingers and allowed the grey forcefield... thing to come to life. Quickly, he closed his hand, and it vanished.
They were sitting in the back of the history room, whispering to each other as if it was some big secret. But if someone overheard them, would it be so bad? No one would believe them.
Ezra grinned widely. "That's crazy, though. Can you imagine knocking up anyone who gets in your way? Slicing them right in half?"
Ben raised an eyebrow, silent in response.
The other boy blushed, squirming. "Not... knocking up. You know what I meant. But you could really do some damage, Ben, you know?" Ezra shrugged, then tilted his head. "I wonder what would happen if I put it on."
"You'd go around slicing everyone in half," Ben mumbled.
"That was a joke," Ezra scoffed.
Ben crossed one leg over the other, crossing his arms on the desk. "I don't want you to get hurt."
Ezra sighed, rubbing his thumb against his palm. "I wouldn't get hurt. I'm blind, not dumb. And frankly, you should share."
"What?"
"I-" The other cleared his throat, shrugging. "I just... it was a joke."
He sounded like a kid who'd deeply offended someone and did, in fact, mean it, but didn't want to be ridiculed for it. It gave Ben pause, examining his friend, and he decided the other was, in fact, right. Ben did need to share.
"I'll let you try it on during lunch. But we're doing it somewhere secluded, like-"
"The bathroom? That's weird, man."
He was going to suggest the bathroom, but on second thought, maybe that was weird.
"We'll figure it out," he mumbled.
"Hello," said the teacher, shutting the door behind herself. "Let's start, then."
Ben clenched his jaw and allowed himself to focus on the lesson.
"Alright," said Ben. "Please don't break it."
The two had gone to the football field to test the Enchantment. It was lunchtime, so there weren't exactly a lot of people out there.
"Is that possible? It's from Hell." Ezra chuckled, taking the silver Enchantment into his hands and only feeling it. Soon, his face twisted into confusion. "What's it's shape?"
"It sorta looks like, uh... a cross... and a circle? You know crosses, ri-"
"Yes," Ezra snapped. Today he had a strange demeanor and Ben wondered if it was because of his mother. But really, that didn't make sense considering he'd been holding together pretty well. He knew from experience, though, that trauma took many different shapes. "What color is it?"
Ben sighed through his nose. "I'm saving my ego and not answering that one."
The other's eyes slid over to Ben's direction, lids narrowed. "Don't."
After a second's hesitation, he decided to answer. If only for Ezra's own ego. "It's silver. Like how metal feels, you know?"
"Not white or black?" Ezra asked, lifting his gaze to the sky curiously.
"No. Ewan's is black, though. Elizabeth's is white. Hers almost looks like plastic," Ben joked, "maybe she's not possessed. Maybe it's a fake."
The boy lifted an eyebrow. "Possessed?" He chuckled breathily. "Huh."
The other was acting quite different and Ben opened his mouth to ask what in the world was up, but the other put the Enchantment on before he could utter a sound.
Instantly, the necklace began to vibrate and glow a ghostly black. Ezra gasped as his eyes went green, purely green - a sight that made Ben want to vomit - and he began to struggle to breathe. His body trembled and he clawed the Enchantment off of himself.
The instant it was off, he threw it to the ground, and Ben watched as the Enchantment returned to normal.
"Are you okay?" Ben asked, returning his gaze to his friend. His eyes were normal now, only narrowed in an irritation Ben had never seen on him before.
"Fine," Ezra snapped. There was a burn mark on his shirt and neck in the shape of the Enchantment. The boy scrunched up his nose, eyes narrowed. "I'm fine."
"Guess it doesn't react well with mortals?" mumbled Ben.
"You're mortal," hissed Ezra. His face remained twisted in irritation until he perhaps noticed this was entirely unlike himself, and he cleared his throat. "Sorry. Sorry, I just... I was really eager to try it out, I guess."
This drew a nervous grin from Ben. "I know. I'm sorry, that... that must've been disappointing. But hey, no severed heads now."
Timidly, he leaned down and picked up the Enchantment, putting it back on. It gave a brief glow before it dimmed again, and Ben felt a weird sense of relief when he didn't end up gasping for air.
"Why doesn't it affect you?" mumbled Ezra, crossing his arms. "That seems really weird. You're... you're a mortal, right? I mean, how can you use it and I can't? That doesn't make sense."
"I can ask Ewan-"
"No," Ezra butted, shaking his head. "No, it's fine. I just... I'm curious."
"I didn't make the rules," Ben muttered. "I... almost wish it didn't work for me."
"Why?" asked Ezra, baffled. "That thing has some crazy power. If I had that power, I'd... I'd do a lot of things."
This made Ben pause. "Like what?"
Ezra opened his mouth to reply, only to stop and shrug. "Help people," was his slow reply.
Perhaps that should have changed Ben's mind about the whole situation. Made him rethink his entire life and the way he used his ability - something like the Green Arrow, who'd gone from murdering the bad guys to only disabling them.
That's what Ben did already, though. Before Stirling, all he'd done was hurt people. Teach them a lesson to just stop lying because someone was getting hurt and someone would always find out. Someone like Ben.
It wasn't like he wanted to murder someone.
"That sounds nice," Ben mused.
The idea of helping people did linger, but he didn't want to make a scene out of what he could do. It wasn't like he even wanted what he had - but at the same time, everything that came with the bad was good. Ewan was... well, a blessing. Just a nice thing to happen to him after years of what most considered solitude. And while he had been irritated about Gabrielle being possessed, she was also a pleasant addition.
But were two people worth the power to kill people? Were two people worth accidentally killing someone?
He didn't know if it was. Especially since Ewan would eventually leave, like all good things.
"Hey," said Ezra, "you alright?"
"Lost in thought," murmured Ben.
"How about lunch?" he asked. "Lunch might make you feel better."
It took Ben a moment, but eventually, he nodded. "Maybe."
He didn't eat lunch, and rather simply got a tray of food and watched Ezra sit opposite him and scarf down his own tray as if it was the best thing he'd ever tasted. It wasn't unnatural for Ezra to eat so voraciously - oftentimes Ben wondered how he kept himself so fit when all he ate was school food and his sister's cooking. They didn't seem to know what salads or vegetables were.
"What'd you get?" Ezra asked once his tray was clean. He clasped his hands on his table, giving a crooked smile.
Forever his indirect way of asking for his food.
And Ben obliged, as he always did, sliding his tray over to the other and simply averting his gaze, instead looking over as Gabrielle, Charlie, and Ewan approached their table with their own trays. He straightened his back, smiling politely as Gabrielle sat down to the left of Ezra with Charlie, and Ewan sat beside Ben.
Ben locked eyes with Charlie and he squirmed uncomfortably.
Certainly, he knew not to sit with Ben, but... maybe four months of torture resulted in a difference in life decisions. Or a lapse of judgment.
"It still feels like you don't trust me," admitted Charlie. He eyed Ben anxiously. "I'm... sorry."
Unsure of how to reply, Ben looked down at the table, silent.
After which, Charlie went quiet. He and Ewan exchanged a gaze that Ben didn't understand, but perhaps they'd talked about something beforehand.
The mood of the table shifted from lively to... oddly uncomfortable. Gabrielle was quick to try and fix it by singing, "How was class, Ewan?"
Gazes shifted to Ewan, and Ben cleared his throat, eyeing the other curiously. He looked slightly panicked but also as though he had an agenda. It was a weird expression to see on the demon - not Stirling, though. The dead boy oftentimes looked panicked.
Seeing the confusion glint in Ewan's eyes made Ben a bit concerned. He kept his mouth shut, biting his lip and looking down.
"Fine," the demon said, "just... eventful." Charlie raised an eyebrow in question, so Ewan continued more firmly, "Nothing really happened, actually."
The table went silent yet again before Gabrielle smiled at Ben. "P.E. was nice, I think, wasn't it, Ben?"
The two had PE together, and it turned out they made a decent team during rugby. Despite how tiny Gabrielle was, she managed to catch everyone off guard with how fast she was. Or maybe it had been Elizabeth. Or maybe everyone was too scared of him to really try. Either way, it had been a good game.
"Ben," Ewan said firmly.
Snapped out of his trance, he directed his gaze to the other and raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"I asked what your plan was for tonight," Ewan repeated, casting a glance to Charlie. "Since he's back from Hell, he said he wanted to do something fun."
Ben snorted, putting a hand over his mouth to prevent any other sounds. "Wanted to what?" he asked. He shifted his gaze to Charlie, raising an eyebrow.
The boy shrugged, taking a bite of his mystery meat that more closely resembled a chicken leg. "I dunno. I just... think I've been treating you badly."
"Excuse me," Ben said slowly and in disbelief, "but I was the one that cut your face open. You started treating me like shit after that, though, so... thanks. I guess."
Charlie swallowed weakly, looking as though he'd forgotten... or almost as though he didn't know at all. "Right," he mumbled, looking down. "That's... Er, that was crazy. I was pretty awful."
"Yeah," Ben mumbled.
"June didn't deserve those lies," Ezra added. He straightened his shoulders, eyes lit with attention.
"Totally," Charlie said quietly.
"So you did lie about having sex with her?" Ben clarified. He knew he was right, but something about the confirmation always eased his mind.
"No," Charlie said slowly. He blinked a few times, looking astounded.
Ben took pause. "What?"
"Er, yes. I did. I lied. It just..." - he sighed through his nose - "astounds me that anyone would cut half a foot into someone's head because they lied. I mean, I can't even see in my left eye. That's a real psychopath, huh?"
Of course, Charlie must not have changed. He was still there to insult Ben, to call him names, to demean him. And that was fine. Maybe four months in Hell hadn't changed him all that much and that was partly relieving for Ben.
"Psychopaths don't need a motive," Ben said, glancing to the side.
"Ben," Charlie replied firmly. He leaned forward, making sure Ben paid attention, using his chicken leg like some sort of baton. "Psychopaths are so cool. Motive or none."
Ewan and Ben shared a hesitant glance. Ewan looked particularly unnerved, his face going pale and body tensing up.
Maybe Hell had changed Charlie a bit. Maybe Ewan understood what he was feeling because he, too, had been to Hell.
Then again, that excuse sounded a bit ignorant.
There was the other explanation that Ewan knew something Ben didn't. But that idea made Ben irritated - he'd just allowed Ewan into his life, and he was already keeping secrets?
His thoughts were interrupted by Charlie continuing with the same urgency.
"I think we should hang out tonight," he said. "Catch up. We need to be friends, Ben."
"That'll be fun!" added Gabrielle, eyes widening happily.
Charlie directed his gaze to Gabrielle, looking her over and contemplating. Then he grinned. "Sure."
"What about me?" asked Ezra. "I'm... I'm Ben's best friend."
Everyone was acting strangely. Ezra never usually pulled the 'best friend' card, but then again, he never had to. No one else was ever trying to make plans with him, and Ezra usually didn't have to introduce himself to Tiana again.
Things were changing.
"No," Charlie dismissed. His gaze flicked over Ezra in disturbance, a disgruntled scowl on his lips. "No thanks."
Ezra opened his mouth to say something, abandonment creeping into his eyes, but he didn't know what to say. He gaped instead, clenching his fists.
The fact that Charlie thought he'd go to the party without Ezra was astounding. Ben raised an eyebrow. "He doesn't go and neither do I."
"I..." Charlie sighed, running a hand through his hair. He nodded. "That makes sense... I guess..."
Confusion and doubt were clawing its way into Ben's thoughts, but... maybe this party would be a good thing. Ben would be able to understand more about what was going on with Charlie, maybe make amends, and he'd be able to spend time with Ezra, who might have felt abandoned since Ben got caught up with all this, and he'd be able to just... exist with Ewan.
The idea was warming.
"My place," said Charlie. "My parents are gone. Everyone can come over and we can have a party."
What did gone mean?
"Sounds good," Ewan clarified quickly.
Half of his mind told him to object, to just quit the whole thing and stay home tonight. But the other part of him didn't want to. He wanted to see how this would play out and he'd deal with it as it came. Besides, it was only five people. They'd probably sit around the table and talk about... angels and demons or whatever it was their sort of group would talk about.
"Oh," said Gabrielle, checking her watch. "It's time for class. Ben?"
Gradually, he brought himself to nod. "Right." He got up, sighing softly and glancing to Ezra, who eyed Gabrielle nervously before smiling at Ben. "I'll see you," Ben mumbled.
Shouldering his bag, Ben left with Gabrielle, eyeing her.
She looked troubled. Everyone was acting curiously and it was getting a little irritating. Charlie had an excuse since he'd been tortured for four months... And Ezra had an excuse since he might be feeling abandoned... Gabrielle had an excuse since she was possessed by an angel... and Ewan had an excuse since the person he'd killed was living and breathing again.
So everyone actually had an excuse. Maybe everything was alright. Maybe-
"I have a bad feeling about Charlie," Gabrielle said very abruptly, looking down at the ground, clutching her books to her chest. "It's troubling me."
The truth spilling from her lips brought a weight off his chest. He grinned crookedly, letting out a breathy chuckle.
"Thanks for telling me..." He paused. "Is it... is it you or Elizabeth?"
"Me," clarified Gabrielle in her French accent, "I have a bad feeling. And... she does too."
"He'd been in Hell for four months," Ben murmured. But the excuse was getting old. And sometimes it applied, sometimes it didn't.
"I know that. But why would Wrath say he was going to possess Charlie but then... not?"
"To throw us off," offered Ben. Doubt pooled in his stomach. "Do you think he's possessed?"
The tiny girl shrugged. "I think we should just... be ready, Ben. I did not know Charlie well, but... he did not seem like the man to be tortured for four months and then want to spend time with you."
Gluttony, or Chester, had been one thing - he'd been a kind man, probably, who didn't seem to have a truly terrible intent. He just wanted to eat. And he'd been on good terms with Ewan, which had benefited them greatly. They'd gotten lucky with him even though Ben ended up getting vomited on.
What if Ewan wasn't on good terms with Wrath? What did they know about him?
If it came to it, too, would Ewan be able to do something? He'd been hesitant to hurt Chester because Ewan would, inevitably, return to Hell. And what would happen, then, if Ewan didn't do anything to stop Wrath? If Ben had to fight him all on his own and as a result, there were hundreds of casualties? Thousands? What if Ben couldn't even stop him?
And then Ewan would return to Hell and The Devil Himself would be disappointed in the demon, maybe even kill him for not doing his job.
Could demons die? What if Ewan died because of Ben?
What if everyone died because of Ben?
"Ben," whispered Gabrielle. She'd stopped in the hall and was standing three paces behind him.
Vision blurry, he turned to look at her. The room swirled as he did, but he swallowed and asked, "Yes?" His voice cracked.
Then he felt it. The unnatural surge of wind gushing through the school, whipping open lockers and throwing papers through the air. Doors slammed and threw themselves open, resulting in an abundance of sound.
He was panicking.
Things were beginning to fly around - locks for lockers, chairs, papers, anything that wasn't bolted to the floor or wall were bounding through the air helplessly. Desks screeched against the tile as even they shifted with the wind.
The idea that he was doing it made him panic even more, and he heaved out breaths, collapsing to the ground.
"Ben," Gabrielle said firmly. She fell to her knees in front of him and put her hands on his cheeks, forcing him to look at her.
The pain was the same as before. When he'd found out Gabrielle was possessed - it was the same. A crushing pain in his chest that made him feel like there was no air in the world, like there was no way he would survive this. It sapped his energy and made his vision tunnel, and he looked around absently, groaning in pain.
It didn't take long for a different, colder pair of hands to grip Ben's cheeks, directing his gaze to the owner.
Ewan.
Seeing the other made the pain in his chest cease. He let out a slow breath, gazing into his eyes.
The wind slowed down, leaving the world a mess around them, but Ben could only look at Ewan.
Whether it was because of the hands on his cheeks or the sheer urge to just stare endlessly into Ewan's soul... he didn't know.
After staring at the demon for a second, Ben breathed, "Thank you."
Ewan looked like he was coming down from his own panic attack, which made sense. He kept his hands on Ben's cheeks before pulling him into a hug, pressing him against the other's chest. The feel of arms around him made his heart slow and he felt Ewan's slow as well.
When the two pulled away, they found the hallway cluttered, but students weren't gathered yet. It was just Ewan, Ben, Gabrielle, Charlie, and Ezra.
The gang they'd created.
Ben let out a shaky breath and looked up at the others. "Sorry," he whispered, "I had a panic attack."
Charlie glanced around before scoffing in disbelief.
"You had a panic attack," Charlie announced, raising an eyebrow. "This was a panic attack?"
"Yeah," mumbled Ben.
He pushed himself to his feet, helping Ewan up. "I'm sorry," he repeated. He wasn't sure if it was to Ewan or everyone else. The demon had experienced pain - it was Ben's fault.
"Ben, don't apologize." Charlie stepped forward. "You're capable of controlling air. The very air that every human being breathes - the very air that everyone needs. How cool is that?" He spoke with excitement but it had a malicious edge.
Ben was getting possessed vibes but he kept quiet.
"I think it's more than air," Gabrielle added, glancing through an open door to a classroom, out the window.
Everyone gathered around to look, stepping in slowly. The room was cluttered, but outside was the important part that drew everyone's attention.
There was a raging storm. Lightning was seen among dark clouds, and there was a tree on fire nearby, being dealt with by firefighters.
Ben felt Ewan's cold fingers tangle with his own, and the storm clouds began to clear, the lightning and rain fading as well. Soon the weather was normal again, and Ben was left holding Ewan's hand in a tight embrace.
The two shared a gaze, and Ben couldn't help but grin. Ewan grinned as well, letting out a breathy chuckle.
"That was crazy," said Ewan, shaking his head. "Crazy."
"Alright, kids!" yelled Mrs. Bishop, the history teacher. Her outburst drew the attention of the kids "Just because there was a storm and some trees are on fire doesn't mean classes are canceled. You've got two minutes to get to your classrooms before you're considered tardy!"
Kids began running through the halls, pushing past Ben and Ewan to get to their classes.
Ben returned his gaze to Ewan. "I'll see you," he whispered.
The other reached up and ran a hand through Ben's hair, probably fixing it from the wind. He had a small grin on his lips as he murmured, "I'll see you," in reply.
After a moment of hesitation, the two parted ways, and Ben went to class.