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From:

heyboss

"Is that right?"

He nudges him with his shoulder. "Tell me?"

From:

lestercraft

"Yes, er- yes, he-" He rallies a little, turning to face Sheehan properly. "He finally told me a bit more about how he actually knows me. I-in New York, I hired a room from one of his parishioners, an older woman. Only-"

He closes the book in his lap to avoid any potential tea incidents. "It turns out there's a creature in her house that can possess people, control them in their sleep and use their dreams against them. Apparently it- tricked me into releasing it."

From:

heyboss

"He told me some of that, too," he says quietly, just a warning that he has discussed this with Owen.

From:

lestercraft

He hums. "He also told me that I blackmailed him into working with me to get rid of Scratch and save his parishioner's sister, so."

He rests his elbow on one knee so he can rub his face with the other hand. "Christ, New York sounds like its going to be fucking ridiculous."

From:

heyboss

"That has been my general impression of the city, yes," he remarks lightly, sliding an arm around his shoulders.

"But that is also an Arthur that has not been in this ship."

From:

lestercraft

"Right, but- knowing that we have the ability to help Oscar solve this in our own future, it..." He gestures a hand weakly. "Don't we have a duty of care, o-or something, to help him solve this without costing him his fucking arm?"

From:

heyboss

"Yes," he answers without hesitation. "At least to try. Unless he doesnt't want it."

From:

lestercraft

"Well, given that he was willing to let me help even after blackmailing him and releasing the thing he was trying to fight against," he says, shifting to lean against Sheehan, "I shouldn't be so surprised. It's just- the way he's so willing to just forgive it all is... I-I don't know. It feels... undeserved."

From:

heyboss

Sheehan gently slides a hand behind Arthur's head, gently brushing his fingers along the shorter hair there. "Of course it does. Because you hold all of that unearned guilt that no one can absolve you of."

From:

lestercraft

And that gets a slightly indignant huff, even as he melts into Sheehan's touch.

"Do you have to be right all the time, doctor?" he grouses, leaning in to give him a quick kiss.

From:

heyboss

"I do," he answers with a decisive nod and a teasing smirk after that kiss. "Because otherwise I'd only be right some of the time and that somehow seems worse."

From:

lestercraft

"Perhaps you just need some practice," he comments. "John and I get things wrong all the time, and it's not always the end of the world."

Though, speaking of - he glances down, a little automatically, like he expects John to come out from under the couch again. And in their mind and out loud: "Ah, John- are you listening?"

From:

greatoldjohn

No.

But there is a little cat nose poking out from under the couch. A full cat will pop out and trot over to the two of them, hopping up towards Arthur's lap.

...Sheehan's going to claim him soon enough, but half the fun is getting stolen from Arthur. And he wants the initial scritchings.

From:

heyboss

Arthur needs him at the moment, so he will get a few seconds of peace before he gets taken. For now, he's still got his hands on Arthur.

"How much did you listen in on?"

From:

greatoldjohn

Like I said: I didn't. I just came when you called.

Arthur is getting cat 'headbutted', rubbing his head against Arthur's chest.

From:

lestercraft

There's something just wonderfully grounding about having John pressed against him, in whatever form he took. That made it easier thinking about all of the supernatural bullshit they dealt with, even without the idea of John's powers protecting him, and both hands bury happily in John's coat to rub his neck and shoulders.

"That's alright - I just wanted to ask you if Oscar's told you anything about a being he called Mr Scratch yet."

From:

greatoldjohn

We haven't talked much about that. Mostly because he didn't get to meet me in New York.

And now he's pressing his whole body against Arthur and purrs.

From:

heyboss

This just solidifies his decision to let Arthur borrow his cat. He slides an arm around his husband's shoulders to hold him there.

"He told me about what happened, but only a little," Sheehan explains.

From:

lestercraft

"Right, well. Since he technically told us both about it in his timeline, whether he knows it or not," he comments, smushing John's fur around so he can lean down to give him a little kiss between his ears.

"Oscar told me about this- being, that could invade people's dreams if they slept near it, possesses people in their sleep. It was trapped in the house of someone in his church, his parishioner. And that when we ended up staying there, for some reason, it-" his hands pause, and with a conscious effort they relax a little rather than tighten in John's fur. "That it tricked me into releasing it. I was-"

His hand goes to the bestiary, having slipped onto the cushion next to them. "Oscar said he had a look through the bestiary, but he couldn't find anything that quite matched, so I was giving it another look, with- that sort of criteria in mind."

From:

greatoldjohn

According to my research, there are many creatures that can fuck with people through dreams. And more than a few entities not unlike the King in Yellow.

A pause.

What did it want?

From:

lestercraft

"Well that's heartening," he commented wryly. "But I'm not sure, actually. It only came up because we were talking about David- since they got paired- and I offered your assistance to talk to David where he could speak freely, and he looked like I just told him I was going to take his other arm as well."

Despite the grim humour, the concern is real. "The parishioner's sister isn't even its first victim, her husband got killed over Scratch possessing him, so. My first instinct is that it simply wants freedom, but obviously we don't know what that would even mean. Oscar thinks it's more powerful than you were, within me, but probably not more than you are now."

From:

greatoldjohn

Why does he think that?

He doesn't sound rankled or defensive, just curious.

From:

lestercraft

"You've never controlled my mind, only my body." He pulls his left hand away a little, just to regard it briefly. "And even those you got under duress. But this Scratch can completely control people just based on proximity, it seems, even if only temporarily. Even holding them asleep to maintain it."

From:

greatoldjohn

Now there's a hint of frustration and irritation.

Oh.

If they held you asleep, in a dream, there's not much I could do. My access to dreams is through you. If that pathway was blocked, I wouldn't be able to get in to do anything.

But... proximity is interesting.

From:

lestercraft

"Maybe he's trapped in a location, rather than a person?" he muses. "Otherwise he wouldn't need other targets to free his, er- primary host, I suppose? Or have access to them, like how you couldn't affect anything outside your own control in me."