ota 👏

[pixiesweat]

It was a regular day for Manuel. In other words, he had nowhere to be, nothing to do, and no motivation to do anything other than wander around aimlessly.

The anniversary of his sister’s death had come and gone. The emotional turmoil had faded away, but he felt curiously flat, like it had taken the rest of his emotions with it.

He’d had a quick breakfast before he left his flat, but hadn’t even thought about eating anything since then. He didn’t know how long it had been. He wasn’t keeping track of time. He barely felt hungry, and more importantly, he didn’t care.

He walked around, considered stealing something from a convenience store he passed, just because he could, but there wasn’t anything appealing enough to be stolen even for no reason. Eventually he came to a bench, sat, and watched traffic passing by until it was making him feel irritable instead of just empty.

He stood, and that was when the lack of food finally caught up with him. The sudden change in position made his head swim, and he staggered just enough to put himself in the path of someone who’d been about to walk by.

“Sorry,” he said, once his head had cleared enough for him to realise what had happened.

Comments

[hardertohide]

Dutch raked her brains for what she had read up on fairies. "The... fairies they leave in place of the human babies they grab?"

[pixiesweat]

"They don't do that much." Why swap a perfectly good fae baby for a crappy human one? "It usually means someone who's part fae and part human."

[hardertohide]

"So you're a hybrid?" Dutch checked.

[pixiesweat]

"Yeah," Manuel said, still feeling awkward, but it was also a relief to admit it.

[hardertohide]

"And what does that mean?" Dutch glanced at him as they walked, patting her pockets until she found a pack of cigarettes.

[pixiesweat]

He hesitated, unsure how to answer. "You mean like do I have magic?"

[hardertohide]

"Among other things, yeah," Dutch confirmed with a nod.

[pixiesweat]

"I do," he said. "A little. It's not very strong."

[hardertohide]

"It's still infinitely stronger than most humans'," Dutch pointed out. Seeing as most humans had none.

[pixiesweat]

"Yeah," he agreed. "It's nothing like a pureblood's though."

[hardertohide]

"So you're not the deal-making type?" Dutch checked.

[pixiesweat]

"No," he said. "My magic's not strong enough for that."

He wasn't evil enough, either.

[hardertohide]

While it wasn't the best reason not to fuck people over, it was at least a reassuring one. Him being unable to. If he was telling the truth, of course. "But you're vamper bait like the fullbloods."

It would certainly explained the vampire's reaction, way back when.

[pixiesweat]

"Yeah," he said. "I don't know much about vampires but I know they really like faeries."

[hardertohide]

"Apparently," Dutch agreed, briefly wondering if she could make use of that to reveal the existence of vampires to the world. Too complicated, and dealing with fairies was just as dangerous as dealing with vamps. "So, what else? Any more pros and cons to this whole changeling thing?"

[pixiesweat]

"I heal faster than humans," he said. "I don't get sick much."

[hardertohide]

"Sweet deal," Dutch remarked.

[pixiesweat]

"It's harder for me to get drunk," he added, wondering if that might change her perception of how sweet the deal was.

[hardertohide]

Dutch frowned slightly, then admitted, "I can't tell if that's a pro or a con."

[pixiesweat]

"It can be either. It depends on the situation," Manuel said.

[hardertohide]

"Yeah, exactly," Dutch agreed.

[pixiesweat]

"I don't really get hangovers either," he said. That one was definitely a plus.

[hardertohide]

"Now that's definitely in the pro column," Dutch remarked. She'd had more than her fair share of those lately.

[pixiesweat]

"I'm nocturnal," he added, wondering what she would make of that.

[hardertohide]

"What, like a vampire?" she asked with a surprised frown. She'd never heard of nocturnal fairies.