Night's Omen

 Selene hated going through the stupid mirrors. She didn't trust that stupid blonde girl and she didn't trust the strange gelling sensation that washed over her every time she went through one. Fortunately, Loic didn't do it often. Of course, once they were on the other side she was face to face with that stupid vampire who was always looming around the stupid blonde.

Was it fairly obvious that Selene felt her time could be spent better elsewhere? Always. She was devoted to Loic, yes, but she felt he could invest himself to people more deserving of his presence. It seemed she'd either retained her own regal arrogance or his had rubbed off on her, because she utterly ignored the people speaking to her and only said to Loic, And you are positive this is more important than the man who I was working on? Loic was fair and generous, and someone he'd helped out previously had decided not to return the favour. Selene had just broken all of the fingers on his left hand when she could feel Loic summon her. She didn't like leaving her work unfinished, but her first priority was always his next request.

When the Diamond leader made the comment about the hawk they knew to be in Midnight, Selene felt her blood boil. She wouldn't stand a chance next to me, she thought to herself, simultaneously letting out a shrill cry to show them she did not appreciate their conversation.

Loic would have LOVED to hear that she was daydreaming about him, even if it was a bad spin on the truth of the matter, and not even because he was in love with her.  He wasn't, though he couldn't have honestly said that he'd turn her down if he had an opportunity with her.  That didn't mean he'd offer her anything like what her husband would, Loic wasn't interested in her in a long-term fashion, but he found her to be appealing (perhaps moreso because it drove her husband insane when he was a little too friendly with her).  Frankly, it was enough for him to just flirt with her and make Benjamin angry, as it was with a lot of married couples.  He just didn't have the attention span for trivial, petty things such as destroying marriages.  The flirting was amusing, though.

What would normally have also amused him would have been telling her the details of whatever he was up to, just because she didn't usually care to hear any of it, but the situation with Selene was surprisingly...dull.  He'd just walked in and taken her, end of story.  There was no big fight, no nothing.  He actually preferred not telling that story, simply because everyone made up more interesting tales on their own. 

Given the way Selene tended to put people off, he was pretty certain that there were some very interesting stories about how he'd gotten and trained her, but the truth was very boring.  She went ahead and basically ignored Irene's greeting, which made Loic smirk ever so slightly.  Of course, he could also hear her question about the man she was working on, so he could understand her irritation at being there with Irene and Benjamin.  She enjoyed her work.

Think about it this way: you made your point, so the next time we go looking for him, he should be more inclined to do as we ask.  Meaning: what Loic asked, of course.  This is important, yes, and it should be entertaining.  Try to have fun with it.

He was pretty certain that they would enjoy this, because none of that mess really felt like a threat to him.  Actually, he was hoping to get something out of it, if only some favors and contacts.  She had better not stand a chance.

"I would try for his hawk, but I'm sure the creature is ruined by now.  Between his idiotic notions and the bred-in attitude that hawks come with, she would be more trouble than she's worth," he declared, though the thought had entered his mind and he would probably take her if the opportunity presented itself.  He just wasn't going out of his way to take her.  "Don't worry, I'll send you a competent set of wings.  I'm off to Frost, so Baxter and Wright should be accessible.  If not, there are others."

"If you're going to Frost I'll re-distribute Taro to Crimson, then. Firuza can handle it in the interim," she said without a second thought, eyes scanning the paper she had in her hands. She crumpled it up and threw it aside, the most recent fax to have come in across the lines. Shit was falling apart everywhere. She was eager to see Loic's hypno-power on the birds, even if she wouldn't say it aloud. She was smug about the fact that the three sisters were in the other guilds and did virtually nothing, and Loic could come in for an hour and suddenly they had organization. She rolled her eyes and walked to the mirror, waiting for Murphy.

"William's flight is ready. See that Taro knows where he's going," she said, glancing to Irene.

Irene thought it was a little cruel how Loic spoke of the other hawk in front of his own. To her, it would be like if Benjamin said, 'I'd sleep with another woman, but it's not worth the effort.' Of course, she didn't know much about Loic's relationship with Selene, she was just bothered on behalf of the hawk. Considering Selene disliked Irene and everyone else, it was wasted emotion.

"Of course," she said to Noelani, snapping back into the present. "Benjamin, let's get you to Crimson now before anything else goes wrong."

Perhaps it was because Loic made her so uncomfortable, or that she was genuinely worried, but regardless she acted slightly out of character for a moment, grabbing Benjamin by the shirt and yanking him down for a kiss. "Okay," she said, nodding her head and taking a breath she didn't need. "Go."

And she put her hand to the mirror, readying it for departure. Hopefully nobody else came through.

Nobody else came through the mirror, but Murphy made his entrance just in time to see Irene's little grab and kiss on her husband, and it wouldn't have been a big deal with another couple.  Really, they were married, and married couples kissed, but this was Irene and Benjamin.  Murphy had heard they were more open while Irene was undercover in the guilds, and he still had trouble believing it.  Walking in to see it with his own two eyes, especially without preparation, there was no way he couldn't comment.

"Holy frickin' PDA, Batman!  You two've been holding out on us!" he shouted, his backpack slung casually over one shoulder and his grin more befitting a trip to the beach than into a possible warzone.  Benjamin shot him an unpleasant look, but other than offering up a mangled salute, he had no response.  "Loic, you're here.  Good.  We ready?"

He glanced at Noelani, and really, she looked more than ready.  That was good, because so was he.  He hoped.  If Dev hadn't already taken charge of Onyx, it might be pandemonium, so they might not be ready, but he figured that the man had to have done something.  He was just too damn smooth not to.

Benjamin had never liked Loic, and it seemed that every time the man said something else, he liked him less, but there was no denying his effectiveness.  Benjamin didn't necessarily agree with Loic's methods, or with his very obvious lack of a decent set of morals, but he understood that the Frenchman came from a very different time period and had seen a lot.  As long as he left Irene alone, Benjamin would clench his jaw and deal with it.

Irene seemed bothered by the way Loic spoke of the hawks, but Benjamin wasn't surprised in the least.  Loic treated birds like they were tools and weapons to be put to whatever use he needed, instead of treating them with respect and fondness like Ekaterina might with her felines.  Noelani certainly appreciated Loic's difference in his point of view and if Murphy disagreed, he'd never said anything, but Benjamin made it a point to keep his opinion to himself.  He was inclined to find fault with Loic's methods, but that was probably because he didn't really like the man.  He absolutely did NOT liken anything between Loic and Selene to himself and Irene.  There were no similarities.

Loic was smirking, that infuriating, condescending half-smile of his fixed on them, as Murphy entered and called them out on Irene's sudden kiss, and if it weren't for Murphy, Benjamin never would have noticed.  He was a hell of a lot more interested in his wife's aggressive maneuver, and for good reason.  This only ever happened behind closed doors, and for an instant there, he forgot that they had an audience and leaned right down into the kiss.

Truth be told, it was kind of hot to have her yank him down for the kiss like that.

She wasn't the only one who took a deep breath when they parted, and though he shot Murphy and Loic a dark look, he returned his eyes to her and squeezed her hand before stepping through the mirror to Crimson.  Was he worried?  About Irene he was, but not himself.  It was his duty to protect her, so it felt wrong to be leaving her on her own, but he was putting her cover at risk if he stayed.  Either way, he hated it.

At least she wasn't going to Frost with Loic.

 Irene did her best not to look embarrassed as Murphy called her out, puffing her cheeks up as Benjamin left. She turned to him and pressed her hand to the mirror again. "I'll be there in a few moments. I'll try to look surprised," she said with a bit of a sarcastic brow loft. Noelani offered her a pat as she followed Murphy.

"Come on, Murph. Leave the girl alone. We can tease her later after this mess is sorted out," she told him, giving him a playful shove through the mirror.

Irene was alone in the room with Loic for a moment, and then inclined her head a little. "I trust you can get to Frost without my assistance. My phone has been buzzing in my pocket the entire time, so I need to get back to being a fun college co-ed trainee." Within seconds, her entire demenor had changed. Irene shook herself out - literally, gave her hands a good shake and tossed her hair a few times - and then flashed him a smile unlike the one from before.

This was the trainee that Onyx knew. "Let me know how it goes," she said with a wink. And then she was gone.

 Selene remained properly admonished during the exchange after Loic basically told her to shut up and deal with it. It wasn't until Irene left than she lifted off of his shoulder and took her true form, giving her neck a good crack. "I'm going to have to put my foot down about phasing in my bird form," she said with a finger up as she saw his mouth twist into another scowl.

"You may be used to it, my love, but it fries my system every time, and I'd rather be prepared if we're walking into some sort of trap."

It was so strange how casually Selene referred to him - my love - when it sounded as though she spoke with venom in her mouth. Of course, that was absolutely not true - at all. But the Avian Reserve was still something she retained, which was why she hadn't revealed her form in the middle of all of these hunters. It was true, they had seen and spoken with her before, but she felt exposed in her human form with the commotion, and the attention that Loic commanded. It was easier for her to hide her feelings as a bird - the others couldn't get a read off of her. In human form, despite trying to hide it, they would still be able to if they tried. Of course, Loic wouldn't allow them to, but she didn't take his ability to protect her for granted.

Uncharacteristically for Selene as far as the others knew, she smiled gently and put her hand on his face. "Let's go get your birds," she said softly.

Sometimes, it seemed as though Loic lived for little moments like this, when he was almost alone with Irene, or pretty much anything like that.  'Almost' because Selene was there, but she was in her hawk form and therefore not quite as demanding for his attention.  Besides, she was used to his behavior, and knew that his intentions didn't lie in that direction; she also wasn't his lover. 

Loic had the same kind of problem that the sisters did when it came to birds -- he was drawn to them and preferred them in almost the same way that they were drawn to him (except he had the control in that department), but he could never have a legitimate relationship with one of them because of the nature of his power.  He loved Selene because he'd raised her, invested time and energy into her training and ensuring that she was strong, and she was incredibly useful.  Replacing her would be a tremendous, horrific hassle that would take years, and he was attached to her.  She'd been with him for close to two decades, and even at his age, that had created quite a bit of fondness in him. 

It was also why the two of them could predict each other's behavior.  He knew that she might not like his interactions with Irene, or like Irene at all, but she wouldn't react.  She knew that he would behave in that fashion because it amused him. 

Irene inclined her head to him and essentially informed him that she wasn't giving him a ride to Frost, and he gave her a short bow and a half-smile sort of turn to his lips.  "I confess, I've been called capable in the past.  Just make sure you aren't too fun, or that husband of yours might throw a fit," he told her, and then she was gone and Selene had dropped her feathers, making her issue known.

"Of course, I'll take it into consideration," he told her easily, understanding without her saying everything what was wrong.  He knew why she preferred to be in her hawk form around the others, but if she was better off phasing in her human form, that was something they'd have to deal with.  He would absolutely take it into consideration, including warning her before he teleported them anywhere.  She really didn't have any cause to worry about taking his protection for granted because he would always protect her, as long as she didn't do anything stupid to incur someone else's wrath.  Since he'd taught her better than that, that wasn't a concern.

With a similarly uncharacteristic and intimate gesture on his part, he laid his much larger hand over hers against his face, actually enjoying even the reserved contact, and smiled back.  "Let's," he agreed, and that was warning enough before he transported them to Frost on Firuza's heels.