[crow]

Esmond's eyes went wider than ever, and he looked briefly to Qual. However, there would be no help forthcoming from the demon. He had settled fully into observation. It was not as amusing as he had first imagined it would be, and he was genuinely a little concerned for both sides, but he also wanted to know why it had happened, and was loath to interfere too soon. Besides, he had seen enough of the trouble that came of his own interference over the years. Perhaps he would do more harm than good if he stepped in, whatever his intentions.

[crow]

“I-I really don't remember,” Esmond stammered. He swallowed, or tried to. The cord had gone so taut around his throat. Alain snarled again, an unearthly sound that didn't seem as if it originated solely from within his body. Esmond scrambled for an answer to appease him. “My best guess is that my father bought it. He--- he collected antiques. Trinkets. Anything strange.” He had always privately wondered what had driven his father to pick up such a plain, unremarkable thing, but he had been glad for it until today. Alain held him there a moment longer, golden eyes searching his face, but then the barrister sighed and released him.

[crow]

Alain had been doing what he did for a long time now, and he knew how to spot a lie. The boy had not been lying. This was the true extent of his knowledge, and all the terror and torment Alain could inspire would not wring more information out of him. But still, something in him seethed. He paced back and forth a while before turning to Esmond again. The boy had not moved--- had not dared to move. Well, that was all to the good; Alain wasn't ready to let him go just yet. “Do you have any idea what that is?” he said. His voice was soft now, but no more comforting to listen to despite that.

[crow]

“I... It lets me jump through realms, I think. Sometimes g-go back in time,” Esmond said. His voice trembled. He was still a little shaken.

“Yes, and I suppose that was why it was created,” Alain said. “Someone else wanted that power.” He couldn't help the tiredness that slipped into his voice, despite the anger that still curled hotly in his gut. Someone had--- for this. But it was not this boy, and he had not known how the artifact was made when it had fallen into his hands. Even if Alain punished him, it would not bring back the one that had been harmed by the making of the object. He would regret it later, he was sure, even if he didn't feel as if he would regret it now. He thought of his shop, and its reputation. He thought of his cups and his mugs, all lined up in their shelves.

[crow]

“What... What is it?” Esmond asked, holding his shard aloft. Alain looked away. The very sight of it disgusted him now. He took a deep breath before he spoke, his gaze fixed on a bare patch of wall.

“A shard of a soul,” Alain said. There was no heat in his voice anymore, only resignation. “My kind has... powers. Manipulation of time and space is part. Someone sealed her soul into this, and...” And what? He didn't know. She was likely dead now, whoever she was. He could only sense faintly the presence of the one who had been sealed within. The shard was too small for him to know much. She had been female, and scared, and one of his own. That had been enough. The headache had been her, or what was left of her in there, reaching out to his mind.

[crow]

Esmond's horror did him credit, Alain supposed. He might not have known all that Alain had known--- how he would have borne the use of the artifact knowing what it was, what resonated from it, Alain didn't know. He could see well enough that the boy was soft-hearted, so much so that he was likely to become a fool. No, it really wouldn't have done any good to torment him.

"Does it... cause pain to, er, to her? When I use this?" Esmond asked. Alain shrugged.

"You aren't using it. I wouldn't know." He was suddenly weary beyond words. "It would be wise if you left now. Don't come back."

"I could leave this---"

"No!" Alain said, and then more softly, "no, take it with you. Do not leave that thing with me." He was sure it would drive him mad.

[crow]

Esmond paused a moment longer, and Alain thought he might snap again, but the boy quietly let himself out the door. His sense of propriety as a barrister chose now of all times to recall itself: he had never served Esmond a drink. He should have done that. No, he shouldn't have. He was too busy being filled with righteous rage for--- no, he wasn't going to think about that. He would bring on another migraine.

"It's funny," Qual said. "Weren't you looking for your own kind?" Alain looked at him and tried to glare, but he didn't have it in him anymore.

"You should leave too." He didn't know if Qual was going to. Respect for each other's boundaries was not exactly the basis of their acquaintance. However, as if the universe felt as though Alain had suffered enough for one day, Qual acquiesced to his wishes. When he closed the door behind him, Alain made sure it locked.

[end]