The Hedge

[continued in Headington]

[continued from New College] It’s not until Mehdi, Daxon and Liam have reconvened back in the safety of the forgotten old church that the Changeling can finally breath easy after the harrowing events of the night.  “What now, sleep? I could use some sleep…” he says as he collapses into a pile of pillows moved from his flat to the Hollow. In his spartan dwelling the furniture and decor he had scrounged together since coming to Oxford seemed an afterthought, mismatched, cold even. But here in the light of stained glass and glowing slugs, the furnishings somehow felt cozier.

" Of course, I think we could all use some rest." Liam takes a seat, holding his guitar, he doesn't look much like he's about to rest, and soon notes begin to flow as he seems to be writing a new song.

While Liam plays, Moswen approaches Mehdi, flicking her tail lazily from side to side.

Mehdi remains reclined, but reaches  a hand out to the Cheshire cat.  “What’s up, Moswen?”

Moswen sniffs at Medhi's fingers, before rubbing her neck against his hand. "The crows are a distraction," she declares to the changeling.

“Uhm… crows?” he asks, now propping himself up on one elbow. “What crows?”

"The strix ," Moswen emphasises, as though Mehdi is either stupid, or being deliberately obtuse. "Most would consider them significant, but they are merely scavengers. Only a symptom of the taint spreading across the city."

“Strix?! Since when were there strix flying around Oxford?” The Changeling sits up, crossing his legs. “This taint is the Black Goat? The shit the Mabinogi are up to? Or is all that just another symptom?”

Moswen nods affirmatively. "The Outer Gods would corrupt and consume this world. Our mistress will not allow it."

“Okay… so…” Mehdi starts, but trails off as he struggles just to wrap his head around the scope of what Moswen is saying. “I mean… are we safe here in the Hedge? Can we just wait for the Will of Bast to deal with it and come out when the coast is clear?”

Moswen tilts her head to the side in thought. "Perhaps."

Mehdi’s eyebrows arch in pleasant surprise.  “She said yes!” he exclaims to Liam and Daxon, who’d presumably only understood his side of the conversation thus far. “Honestly the only thing I’d be worried about finding us here is that Alice chick, but i guess that’s better than Strix and mad wizards and all the vampires that want you dead, Liam. Oh! I almost forgot,” Suddenly remembering something, Mehdi reaches into his backpack and produces from it an aluminum can, a small dish, and a fork. ”As requested.” he smiles at their divinely appointed protector, then sets to scooping the beans onto the dish and roughly mashing them with the fork. “Hope ya like.” he says, placing the dish in front of Moswen.

Moswen looks like she's about to add something, but instead eagerly digs into the fava beans when Mehdi puts them out for her.

Liam nods with a slight smile as he carries on gently strumming the bass. "I will need to go to eat eventually. And the girls will need some instructions. Otherwise though, I feel much better letting the storm pass."

"Beware the dance of withering leaves,"   Daxon intones after the conversation fades and Liam's music molds a mood,  " for within their twirl lies the unravelling of destinies." "That's what the Queen said before we left the Court. I'm not sure I can just stay here, if she wants information about those unravelled destinies."

“That’s fair, I mean hey, you’re not the one with people coming for your neck.” Mehdi replies with a shrug. “I guess if the Queen calls on me I’ll have to answer too now, but otherwise I’m keeping my ass put. You’re more than welcome to come crash here anytime though. I think this place has a lot of potential, it’d be nice to have some help with it.”

"Sure, yes absolutely. I will do my best to keep you informed when I learn anything, and I would love to help however I can securing and expanding this lovely hideaway of yours." Daxon smiles and waves, then slips out the door, leaving a chill breeze tickling your skin in his wake.

“Ok…” he looks around, as if trying to remember something he was about to do. “Ah, right.” Without a word he slips back into his apartment, and returns some moments with what looks to be the mirrored door of his bathroom medicine cabinet. He pulls over one of the stray church pews and props the mirror up on it.  “Mirror, mirror, on the pew, Be as a window, one with a view.” He taps the reflective surface once and it ripples like a puddle. When the ripples still, the mirror’s surface no longer reflects the Hollow but instead looks out into Mehdi’s flat. From this vantage one can see part of the minuscule kitchen countertop on which a small votive candle sits, unlit. ”There, now we can see anyone in my apartment. Tell your ghouls if they need to come in they can light the candle so we know to open the door.” He drags his weary form back over to his makeshift bed and collapses once more into the pillowed embrace. “Now… now I sleep.”

"Is it night there still? I will need to return to your flat to text them, and I suppose they will need a spare key..."

“It should be, we haven’t been here that long.” Mehdi responds from his reclined position. ”I keep all the curtains drawn either way.”

With a quick nod, Liam steps through the door and back into Mehdi's flat. He pulls out his phone and speed texts his Ghouls with instructions and waits for them to arrive to collect his key. I'm sure Mehdi won't mind if I get them to help arrange a party in his flat tomorrow night. I will need to feed and much safer to avoid direct contact with the outside world...

Liam's phone buzzes with an onslaught of messages. Professor Durand wants a status update. Where is he? Where are Rae and Eve and the other witnesses of Silas's demise? Inside the hollow, the pipe organ suddenly begins playing a melody of its own. Its strangely electronic beeping rings out in a doodle-ooo-doo  doodle-ooo-doo  doodle-ooo-doo-doo .

Mehdi is too startled by the incoming call to groan at having to get up once again. He walks over to the organ and intuitively pulls on two of the pipes. They come free of their fittings at the top of the organ, remaining fixed at the bottom, and bend in his hands like metallic pool noodles. He’s not sure how he knows to do this, and he’s too tired to question. One of the pipes he places next to one large ear and the other he places in front of his mouth. ”Hello?”

At first, all that Mehdi can hear from the other end of the line is the howling of the wind. Then, a voice emerges from the haunting harmonies of the whistling tune. "Hello helldiver, word has reached my ears of a vampire in Oxford without a feline companion. A Dr. Daniel McDermott of Keble college. Investigate him. Learn what makes him different." The Autumn Queen's instructions are strangely chilling.

Liam's fingers dance over the keyboard as he responds to his sire. If he could still sweat, beads would be dripping from his face and his fingers would be shaking with the nerves, but death had it's perks and instead he stayed steely cold as he chose the words which could save or end his unlife. Eve is hiding in her vast home, too well protected to get to for now, but I will know when she moves and she will jot speak. Rae also seems to be hiding, I have her address, and will coax her out to meet in time, we have nothing to worry about with her speaking out, she was a big part of what killed him. I left the others untouched, as you instructed.

Mehdi gulps as the windborne voice reaches his ears and sends chills down his spine.  “Daniel McDermott. Understood; I’ll see to it at once, your majesty.” he responds.He hangs on the line waiting for any further instruction, but barring that he hangs up the phone and steps back into his flat after Liam. ”Uhm, hey Liam, do you know a Dr. Daniel McDermott? Apparently he’s the only vampire at Oxford who doesn’t have one of these fey cats following him around.”

Liam raises an eyebrow at the mention of a familiar name. "Sure I know him. Top bloke, teaches law and politics, mostly equal rights stuff. Fella loves his Jazz, been to see me plenty. He's good people I'll tell you." Liam crinkles his brow. "What would be able to get rid of these things though? Reckon he experimented like I thought about so much?" He gestures flippantly at his feline protector.

Mehdi shrugs. ”Or he never got one in the first place. Maybe he’s allied with the bad mages that the cats are protecting you from. The faerie queen just called and she wants me to investigate.” he says, looking away as he ponders how exactly he feels about his new obligations. The phone in Liam’s hands snatches his attention back. “What’s the word on your end?”

Liam smirks a little  "I don't think so. Like I said, fella's gold." He glances down at the phone. " This? My sire wants to know why I haven't killed the others yet. I'm just trying to delay her wrath, hoping she'll change her mind about it before she tries to kill me."

Mehdi nods. ”Let me try Rae again.” He says before pulling out his own phone to text her. Checking in again. Shits still crazy, a lot to fill you in on. When are you free? Looking back up to Liam, Mehdi sighs.  ”Well, whether or not McDermott is cool I’ve been tasked with investigating him. If you say we’ve got nothing to worry about from him then maybe we should be worried for him. Without one of those cats he’s probably a target. Do you know where to find him? If you wanna stay hunkered down here I could  wear your face to meet up with him, or just dive and spy from afar.”

The response from Rae reads: "Hey, shit is still crazy on my end as well, lots to share. Could you come by my flat tonight?"

Liam thinks for a moment. "I will need to feed so I had best come anyway. I know where his office is. I can take you there, but for what it's worth, he'll probably not meet you straight away. May be best to set up a meeting, he's been known to take interest in Jazz projects, I could try to meet with him about an idea I've been having."

“Yeah show me, I can just snoop around for awhile but it wouldn’t hurt for you to hit him up too to try and arrange a meeting.”  Still holding his phone he looks down to respond to the speedy message from Rae. “Tonights good. Not sure exactly when I’ll be free, I’ll let you know”