The Human Realm: Streets of Essex → Jasper's House
"A-Actually, yes, we will..." Francis was aware of how his words were coming across, as he stuttered and blushed even more furiously. It was clear the Lesser God of Death was clearly pushing their buttons, now that he had found something that was getting under their skin. But why was it? The butterflies fluttering within his stomach hadn't ceased, and the fact that Thanatos, of all people, was making fun of him... It made him feel worse. He coughed lightly, trying to compose himself. "After all, what would
you know about flirting and relationships? You don't strike me as an expert," Whilst his words were shaky and maybe a little bit more biting than usual, Francis knew it wouldn't be enough to ever live down this. So he proceeded to move on, taking out the spare keys to the Teresi mansion and opening the door. He hoped everyone else was still fast asleep... Or at least tired enough that they could slip in, undetected.
The Human Realm: Jasper's House
Once Tyree busted down the door, Layla took a step closer to peek in. Unsurprisingly, the Spirit of Love had long since gone, leaving no trace she'd even slept in the guest room. Birthday cursed lowly under her breath, before realising she was still around Tyree and Roland, at which point she quickly coughed to clear her throat before speaking.
"...You're right, Tyree. If she went out, she could have quite easily gotten out numbered by the Deadly Sins..." The pinkette murmured, staring at the empty room for a moment before she heard the voice of April Fools, clearly concerned at the sound of the door being broken open. "We should go downstairs and let them know," She nodded at Independence Day and the Human before taking the lead back to the living room, where the other three were waiting. Ferris looked nervous, Nina was clutching to him and Celeste was sat on the couch looking slightly curiously at everyone for answers.
"...As you can probably guess, we've got bad news. Valentine's Day has run off on her own," Birthday explained, folding her arms and sighing. It would certainly make their lives easier if everyone chose to stick to one plan. "Not only that, but it looks like Thanatos and two holidays ran off... I needn't say who... Given that they aren't here. Do we have any idea where those three might have gotten to--" Her question was cut off, at the sound of the front door rattling open, and the female spirit was on guard.
Friday walked in, quietly shutting the door after Alice and Thanatos, though as they went to turn into the living room, all eyes were on them. Whatever embarrassment Francis had from the Greek God's teasing quickly vanished as his eyes faded into a deep blue hue and he stood on guard. It wasn't a good sign that everyone was awake so early. He gulped a little and looked away to the ground. He knew he'd definitely betrayed the other's trust in him.
"... So, where were you three, hmm?" Birthday's voice cut through the silence as she crossed her arms and looked at the two holidays and the Greek God. "I take it you went off to try your plan of doing something reckless to get the Reaper's attention?"
"...Yes. I overheard Alice and Thanatos discussing that plan and decided it better to go along to keep them safe. You know how Coffyn is..." Francis explained the situation truthfully to his fellow companions, instead of covering like he did in front of Death. As Birthday let out a sigh, Friday quickly continued. "Layla, listen, it didn't go badly... Coffyn showed up almost immediately and heard us out, and nothing bad happened... It's all okay... Balance isn't worse for wear and the Reaper knows of our situation..."
"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I think you're underestimating that whole 'all being okay' thing," Roland muttered. He'd been flipping through his phone to check for any signs of catastrophe from overnight, and he had already found several local news stories. "For one thing, a giant spider? Whilst it's certainly not super magical so kudos, Alice, for actually picking something relatively normal, spiders aren't the size of a motorcycle. And it's being reported on news sites. Hell, there's even some pictures..."
"Pictures? Uh oh..." Celeste couldn't help but chuckle slightly. "Man, you're lucky the Reaper doesn't know there's pictures of it out there yet. If he knew... Wham, Bam, Straight to the Box!" The brunette covered mouth to stifle her giggles. "Sorry. Inappropriate, I know. Carry on," The Demigod looked slightly embarrassed as she tucked a wavy lock of her hair behind her ear and listened.
"Well not only did your little prank make the news sites, we've got a bigger issue. Valentine's Day is gone," Layla looked towards Francis, no outward emotion in her eyes, only a tired gaze. "... If she didn't go with you, she's gone off by herself. And if she's not back by now, she's either lost or the sins got to her,"
"..." Francis looked positively worse for wear, paling at the fact that Lilith ran off when he was supposed to be watching her. "I... I'm sorry. I should have just stayed put. I should have just stayed..." He looked distraught, and even Birthday couldn't help but ease up a little as she sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.
"...Naturally, we can't just leave her alone. We're going to have to split up and find her,"
"Oh can we finally go outside?" Celeste asked, practically lighting up. It had been a long time since she'd visited the human world and a chance to roam around without the scrutiny of other Greek Gods would be a blessing.
"Yes, but I'm changing up the pairs. I'm sorry, but you guys broke the trust we were supposed to have. I even compromised and said we'd do your plan if books wouldn't help, but if you won't meet me half way, I won't do the same for you," Layla knew there would be protests, at the very least from Thanatos.
"...I'll stay here. If Valentine's does some how make her way back here, someone needs to be around to be here, and... I understand you can't trust me to go out searching for her..." Francis, surprisingly made the suggestion to stay at the mansion, and he took a seat on the couch, falling silent.
"...Then - Ferris and Nina will stick together, as previously suggested. Francis will stay here. Tyree, instead of working with me, you'll team up with Celeste. You've had the least experience in the human world and she's a Demigod so she's had experience visiting the human world," Birthday pointed towards the blonde holiday in question, and then the Greek Demigod.
"Sweet, go team!" Celeste grinned and patted Independence day on the shoulder. Clearly, the female Greek God held less issue with being around holidays than her friend.
"That leaves me with you, Thanatos," Layla was less than pleased with this outcome - She knew the Lesser God of Death and herself were complete opposites, and ever since she had to pry him off Tyree when the latter started a fight, the others had used her besting Thanatos as a way of mockery towards the Greek God, something which he no doubt held against her. "Alice, you created the Giant Spider, correct? It's probably best for you to lay low. You used magic during this time of crisis and it's like painting a target on your back. If Coffyn does see that the Giant Spider was photographed, I really doubt he'd let it go. So I'd suggest staying here. If that's all fine, then we should probably head out," The pinkette turned to Roland. "Will you drive us into the main part of town? We can get dropped off at different ends of town and start our searches,"
"Sure, I can do that. But I won't be able to pick you all up right away. I've got work at the University to do. I may have been called in about someone's giant spider." Roland went to the front door, opening it and gesturing for the holidays and Thanatos to walk out towards his van. "So I'll give you all a bit of money so you can get the bus back to the University. If you aren't allowed on Campus, then just wait by the entrance,"
Chaos' Hideout
Wrath stopped in his tracks, just by the entrance. He turned his head and looked in the general direction of Chaos as he agreed to free Envy, giving the sin his word. The blindfolded man seemed to consider it, scratching at the bandages as he mulled it over, weighing his options. It was true, Chaos was a man of his word, especially where Demons and Deadly Sins were concerned. He considered the low percent chance though that the Master would go back on his word. Then Envy would be trapped and Wrath would have killed a soul. He would be condemned forever - Harmony, Hades, The Reaper, Balance... They'd make sure that he too, would never see the light of day again and no one would be around to help Envy then.
"..." The sin approached and knelt before Chaos, bowing his head politely. "We have a deal. I'll take those three out. And any who get in my way..." A wide and unsettling grin found it's place on Wrath's face as he began to remove the blindfold. And once the ragged piece of cloth fell, murky yellow eyes fixated on his Master and Mistress. "There'll be nothing left of them when I'm done! I'll cut them to pieces! I'll make them realise they were fools to even oppose us, and they'll beg for mercy before they die. Tartarus and The Underworld will regret they sent those weaklings to their deaths and will lose all hope!" The green-haired sin felt the rage and blood lust take over, now that he had dropped his mask. He chuckled and weaved his own portal, letting himself loose to go find those three meddlesome servants. And when he found them... He wasn't going to let them go so easily.
"Well, he was quite easy to convince... Then again, you're far more trustworthy than lying snakes like Balance and Harmony," Aria couldn't help but chuckle and give a bittersweet smile - After all, it was true that Chaos had always upheld his side of the bargain, at least where she and the Sins were concerned. And now that they were alone, she could breathe a little easier, relax a little more as she leaned her head against the shoulder of Chaos and sighed in relief. The Sins were gone, off to do the work they needed to do, so she could afford to finally let the cold facade finally drop. She draped her nine-tails into her laps, smoothing the black and white fur down and just simply enjoying the peaceful moment for it was, as short as it would be.
"...We should go free Envy then, whilst the Sins all have things to do. After all, we want to be back here before they get back - They'd be helpless if we weren't there for them," Reluctantly, Aria pulled away from Chaos, and began to make the preparations for heading deep into the center of the world - No doubt that's where Harmony had locked up Envy and the other precious Sins. In a dark labyrinth where the worlds were linked, albeit in confusing and contradicting ways. And even if she would rather cherish the little alone time she had to spend with her closest friend, the lives of the Sins were more important to her - They were like the children she never had, and she cared for each of them, flaws and all.
The Human Realm: The Streets of Essex
Glad that the blonde had dropped the subject of the spider entirely, Laura gave him a smile. "It's a little early for Pasta and Lava Cake though, but I will take your word for it. It's been a long time since I went out to eat..." She then couldn't help but grin at the bike comment. "I don't think you should even have a crash quota to begin with. That sounds like a health and safety violation to me. But I'll trust you when you say it will be smooth sailing. On your bike. Not a boat," The Reaper's assistant couldn't help but feel a sense of ease talking with Russel. The gentle teasing, the back and forth, it was almost... natural, how she could just be herself. It'd been a long time she'd been able to be that way. And then he asked her what her story was. If she had a heartbeat, it would have skipped out of sheer panic. But... She felt a little bit awful lying to Russel so much. Perhaps she could tell him the truth?
"...Well... It's not a really interesting story. This is my hometown. My family has lived her for a long while, for a few generations now. I was quite sickly so I was sheltered, but I chose to leave home and grow up a little. It's not been easy. I met Ash and Ember along the way, and they were like me, sheltered too only they've yet to learn a lot about the world. I wanted to come back here, get into the university here, study literature and maybe reunite with my family, if I ever have the courage to. But well... A supposed giant spider is in the campus, I haven't a home to go back to and I don't really feel like begging for my father to take me back in. It's not exactly going according to plan," It wasn't exactly a lie - This was her hometown. She had been sickly. It was all true, just minus the more spiritual side of the story. The blonde girl gave a shrug as she walked beside Russel, following him to where-ever this delicious cafe was.
"It's a bit of a downer, but... I don't know, I guess I just felt like telling you. You've been nice to me so far so I figured you deserved to know," Laura gave a smile. "And don't think I've forgotten that'd let you look at some of my old books. I've got them right here," Laura patted the messenger bag at her side. "I'll show you whilst we're in the cafe. Kind of hard to walk, read, show and talk at the same time, you know?" The reaper's assistant gave a playful giggle before meeting Russel's gaze. "You heard my story, what's yours?"
