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Cassiopeia glanced back at Nero before she climbed up the stairs. "That choice is yours. You can stay here and wait until I decide to bring him back, or you can come and see him for yourself. I won't make you do either and frankly, he deserves to be in the hot seat for once." Cassi decided to keep the fact that Caden broke into her shop to herself. There weren't many reasons why he would do that, and if she told Nero, they would likely come to the same conclusion she had.

"Can you drive me?" she asked Nic once they were upstairs. Avery and Kimiko still weren't in the living room, and if Nero decided to stay, Cassi wanted to leave them with the imp.

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Avery grinned and slid off the bed. He walked over to the drawer he had in Kimiko's room and grabbed his usual black joggers he liked to lounge in and a blue adidas sweater.

"Well, the food did smell good. But maybe you can be my dessert later," Avery said, winking at Kimiko before he pulled the sweater over his head.

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Nero pauses, thinking over the options as Nic tells Cassi he’ll drive her. Cassi’s words resonate with what Avery had said to them earlier. “Tell him he’s a dünnbrettbohrer hosenscheißer lackaffe mit einem Arsch mit ohren.” The imp waits for a moment before they pull their phone out of their pocket.

“I’ll just text it to you. It’ll devastate him, trust me.”

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Kiki starts to sit up as Avery goes to get dressed when he suggests that she be his dessert. Her face flushes again and she throws the closest pillow in reach at him. “Avery!” She says, absolutely flustered as she hides her face behind her hands.

“You’re so… bloody hell.” She kicks her feet and shakes her head, trying to calm herself back down.

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Cassiopeia blinked as she listened to Nero's German. She repeated the phrase back, nearly perfect, and nodded. "Alright. I'll say it to him and have him read it. And good. He deserves it after his behaviour. Do you want me yo keep you updated?" Cassi offered Nero.

Cassi finished the glass of whiskey she had poured and grabbed something that was easily portable for food. She glanced at her clothes, debating on changing. If she had to, she would just have Nic take them to her house or his. It seemed Cassi was developing three separate wardrobes.

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Avery laughed as he dodged the pillow. He pulled on his pants and walked over to the bed. He kissed the top of Kimiko's head. "I believe the word you are looking for is "god". At least that's what you called me earlier," he teased again. Avery quickly ran for Kimiko's bedroom door and ran out into the hallway before she could come after him.

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Nic fishes his wallet and the keys for the SUV out of his stuff as he waits for Cassi and Nero to finish. “If you would.” Nero says as a light blush warms the tips of their ears at how pleasant the two of them are being with each other.

“Will you feed me while I drive if we bring more food? I’m actually starving.” Nic asks sheepishly, seeing Cassi grabbing some of the food to go. Nero reclaims their spot in the arm chair, the tray of sweets in their lap.

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Kiki peeks out when she feels Avery kiss her head and looks up at him with a smile before her face quickly grew hot again. “Avery!!” Kiki shouts as the man runs out. With a huff, she gets to her feet and stomps over to the dresser to grab some clothes for herself, shaking her head as she cursed the wolf under her breath. Once dressed, she left her room as well, but at a much more normal pace.

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Cassiopeia smiled at Nero and nodded. She didn't mind keeping them updated. After all, even though Caden had been an ass and broke into her shop to likely summon a demon, he was still Caden. He was still Cassi's best friend and Nero's partner. She didn't call them mate anymore because, well, they weren't. But one day.

Cassiopeia looked at Nic and could practically see the man wasting away to nothing from his words. She laughed and nodded. "Yes, I'll feed you. Grab whatever you want." She ate her dinner roll and turned her head when Avery came running into the room.

His face was flush with eyes bright. He had a big grin on his face as he glanced back down the hallway but he was quite alone. Avery looked at her and the keys in Nic's hand. He frowned.

"Are you leaving?"

"Yes. Caden's been arrested and I have to go bail his ass out of jail. However, we're taking our time getting there."

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Arrested? Caden?

"Please take a picture. I don't think I'd believe it otherwise."

"Oh, Caden's been arrested plenty of times. This is nothing new to him," Cassi said matter-of-fact. Avery stared at her slack jawed.

"What? He wasn't always good, and then there is the whole "I'm a white cop and your a black man" bullshit that had him arrested for way more reasons than I can count."

Avery snorted and walked over to the food. "Ah well, then yes. Been there done that, but I take it it's not one of those scenarios this time?"

"May as well be," Cassi seemed to snarl. Avery glanced over at her then Nic, with an expression that seemed to say good luck. "Ready?" Cassi asked Nic.

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Nic kisses Cassi’s cheek gleefully before he grabs his plate. Quickly starts to take a bite of everything before deciding how much he wanted of each thing and got it all set to take with them. When he turns back around, he’s greeted by Avery’s arrival. He shrugs at Avery’s expression, knowing more of the reason why she might be upset with Caden. “Ready.” He says, placing a hand on the small of Cassi’s back and starting to leave just as Kimiko arrives.

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Kiki frowns that the two are already leaving, but she had caught some of the conversation as she made her way there, so she has some understanding. “Do you think you’re going to come back?” She’s asks of them, making a small mental note to hit Avery upside the head. She hardly gets to see Cassi anymore and he just had to pick right now of all times.

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Nic’s hand in the small of Cassi's back was comforting and warm, but it was also irritating her. Thankfully, Kimiko came around the corner so she didn't have to brush his hand away. She stepped closer to Kimiko and glanced back at Nero and Avery.

”Yes, we'll have to bring the idiot back home. I don't know when we'll be back, but we'll be back. Keep Nero from dwelling.” Cassi kissed Kimiko's cheek before she gathered her small plate of food and headed for the door.

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Kiki tilts her head as she gazes at Cassi, a silent question in her expression but she doesn’t voice it. She softly snorts at the sorceress’ request. “Yeah, I’m great at not dwelling.” Kiki jokes poorly before returning Cassi’s kiss on the cheek.

“I hope everything goes well.” She says as they leave before she enters the room and smacks Avery upside the head before taking a seat on the couch.

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Nic follows Cassi out, starting to think that Avery might have had a point in his expression. “To your shop first?” He asks as he unlocks the vehicle and opens her door for her and waiting for her to get into her seat before he closes the door to go to the driver’s side.

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Avery had taken a seat on the couch and started to eat before Kimiko arrived. He glanced over when she said goodbye to Cassi and smiled when she joined him. At least until she hit him.

”What was that for!?” Avery frowned and shifted away from Kimiko to eat his good in peace.

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Cassi climbed into the SUV and took Nic's plate from him. ”Yes,” she answered him. Cassi ate some of the pasta she had taken before Nic got into the car and started to drive. She set her plate aside and shifted in the seat to face Nic better.

”What do you want to eat first?” Cassi asked, she examined his plate of food, pushing some of it around with his fork.

Cassi's mind alternated between being angry at Caden and afraid for him. She didn't know what was going through his head but she did know how he got when he was scared or upset.

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Kiki notices Nero watching with glee and laughs. “I had a good reason, I’m sure.” She teases lightly before reaching to steal some of Avery’s food off his plate. “Nero, darling-” She stops when the demon holds up a hand.

“Sorry, putting my name in the same sentence as ‘darling’ gives me war flashbacks. It sounds too much like the Leprechaun.” Nero explains. “And if we’re being honest, I would rather not think about him right now.”

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“Hmm, surprise me. Just know that I want the pasta for a last bite, but otherwise I liked all of what I tried.” Nic says, glancing over to flash a smile before he looks back at the road. For a moment, he taps his fingers on the wheel as he chews his food and swallows. “What should we expect to find?” He finally asks. “Costa seemed pretty alarmed, to say the least.”

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Avery frowned at Kimiko, her lack of reasoning for being hit not amusing to him. He resumed his eating but didn't get very far before Kimiko helped herself to his plate of food. He pouted and turned away from her to eat in peace.

”When do you want to start rearranging Caden's office?” Avery asked, moving right past the uncomfortable topic of conversation.

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Cassi gave Nic some more food before she felt ready to answer. ”Well… I have all the supplies one might need to summon a demon. I have a feeling that's what Caden did and if Caden only wants me in the shop then… I don't know, Nic. Maybe you should just wait for me outside when we get there.”

Cassi knew Nic wasn't a stranger to death. Working in an ER was almost a guarantee to be around a dead body but she wasn't sure how bad the body in her shop would be. She didn't want to subject Nic to that if she didn't have to.

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Kiki frowns at Avery, worried she’d teased him too much. She busies herself with getting a plate of her own to eat as Nero answers him. “Probably after the two of you finish eating. I know Cassi said she’d take her time, but the system I’ve come up with will be complex.” Kiki catches the wicked grin Nero has as she sits back down, keeping a small distance from Avery.

“What did you have in mind?” She asks before she starts to eat.

Nero’s excitement is palpable at the question. “I’ve come up with a cypher we’ll use for each letter of the alphabet that we’ll then use a Slavic classification system to organize by subject based on the cypher.”

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Nic drums on the wheel again as he thinks about it, carefully considering and weighing his options. “I don’t want to make you clean it all up on your own.” He finally says after a moment. “I’m a big boy, I can handle it.” He shows her a smile before he reaches over to place his hand on Cassi’s thigh, his thumb rubbing in a circle on the material of her pants. “And then I can just charge Caden a cleaning fee at a exorbitant amount.”

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Avery ate the majority of his meal by the time Kimiko came back. He noted how she sat further away from him than she had before. He frowned and shuffled closer so at least their legs were touching. Avery finished the rest of his meal while Nero told them about his plan.

Avery choked on his last bit of food. He drank some of his water before coughing to clear his throat. "Remind me if I ever have to get back at someone to enlist Nero's help. That is a rather thorough plan. I just figured we would rearrange some books onto random shelves."

Avery rested his hand on Kimiko's knee and used it to stand. He walked over to the table full of food still and gathered enough for a second helping.

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Cassiopeia found herself watching Nic's hands. The glow of the dashboard danced over his fingers while he thought about what she said. Cassi suddenly wished in that moment that Nic didn't know about this part of her life, or about how bad it could get. She wished for something separate from this life. A place she could run to and not be Cassiopeia Claire Alistair, an all powerful sorceress with a dragon for a best friend and a demon for an enemy.

Cassi shouldn't have been surprised by his answer but she was. She felt her cheeks heat up with a pricking in her eyes. She turned her head to stare out the window. She breathed deeply in an effort to hold the hot tears back that threatened to spill down her cheeks.

"It's not the first time I've had to clean up a mess," she told Nic.

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Nero’s lips curl up, much like a cat with a secret in its mouth. “I don’t want to simply inconvenience him, I want Caden to spend months trying to decipher it.” Kiki chokes on her drink before laughing.

“Fucking brilliant.” She says with an approving nod. “I’m surprised you didn’t want to give him the Avery treatment.”

Nero shakes their head. “He said Caden might like that too much.”

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Nic squeezes Cassi’s thigh, glancing to over to see her staring out the window. “Maybe not, but I’d like to make sure you never have to do it alone again.” He tells her, giving her leg one more squeeze before they enter the city. He prefers driving with both hands when it come to the busy streets, knowing what can happen if one doesn’t

“If we’re going to spend our lives together, you gotta let me help you.”

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Avery nodded emphatically, having food in his mouth. He chewed and swallowed before speaking.

”Caden is a shapeshifter. He'd just take on whatever form would look good with the makeup Nero puts on them,” Avery said.

He reclaimed his seat next to Kimiko and stole some food off her plate in retaliation of earlier—even though he had a full plate of food.

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Cassi wiped the stray tears that escaped and looked at Nic. ”I know, and I love you for that, I do, but… This isn't making the flowers grow or messing with the weather… this is very different and I worry what you are going to think about us after what you see tonight. I'm fairly confident Caden tortured and then killed the demon and their host body after he was done with them.”

Cassiopeia scooped more food for Nic and offered it to him while he navigated the nighttime traffic in Chicago.

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Kiki frowns, nodding along to the explanation; it makes sense. “Even people in the eighties couldn’t pull off that ice blue eyeshadow and bright pink cheeks.” She sticks her tongue out at Avery when he steals some of her food, playfully glaring at him as well.

“Well, maybe a drag queen…” She says after giving it a second thought before she steals a roll off of Avery’s plate. Nero shrugs before getting up to put the tray of sweets back on the table.

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Nic glances over at Cassi as she talks, letting her speak. He takes the offered food, letting himself take a moment to think of what to say. “I know… I know it won’t be easy to see it and I’m sure it might make me see Caden in a different light for a minute, but… you can’t shield me from these things forever.” He makes the turn down Cassi’s street.

“So, I’m going to help you.” He flashes a smile before he slows down, a cop signaling to him to stop.

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”Woman, I swear to all the gods if you don't quit messing with my food I will tickle you in front of Nero.” Avery was rather particular about his food and when he was hungry, it really was best not to touch the food on his plate.

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Cassi sighed but smiled and nodded. It was getting easier to say yes to Nic. To let him take care of her and support her. Cassi couldn't help but smirk as Nic slowed down.

”I can't believe I'm in a relationship with someone more stubborn than me,” she said.

When she saw the cop, Cassiopeia hunted in her bag for the shop keys. It wasn't an officer she recognized, so Cassi handed the man her ID along with the keys as she explained this was her shop and Costa called her.

The officer took Cassi's keys and used them to unlock the door. He returned the keys to her after making a quick phone call.

“Do you need me to stick around?”

Cassiopeia shook her head. ”If the detective dismissed you then we are fine.” Once the cop left, Cassi told Nic to just park up front.

She set the plates of food aside before she climbed out of the car, her bag slung over her shoulder. Cassi stared at her shop, something she had worked long and hard on and was proud of. She tried not to get emotional over it but it was hard not to. She sighed and took Nic's hand once he was near.

Cassi walked into the shop and looked around. The front was relatively okay. Some things were pulled off the shelves behind the front counter but it was the smell of blood and sulphur that caught Cassiopeia's attention.

”Could you lock the door, please?” she asked Nic before she released his hand. Cassi set her bag on the counter before walking into the back and froze.

It looked like a proper robbery. There were marks burned into the ground with chalk marks on her walls. Bottles were shattered on the ground and herbs crushed underfoot. In the middle lay a body with several stab wounds and a slice across the victim's neck. Cassi wasn't the least bit disturbed by the dead body but she was pissed about the destroyed supplies.

”I'm going to kill him.” She stalked forward, somehow missing the pool of blood as she walked back and forth and around the dead body. ”That bastard! It took me a month to grow this properly… and this! I got this from the early 19th century! I can't even remake this!!!” Cassi raged as she stomped around to see how much Caden wrecked.

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Kiki sticks her tongue out at Avery, putting the half eaten roll back on his plate. Nero’s interest is piqued, though. “You’re ticklish?” They ask, the horns on their head really fitting for the mischievous glint in their eyes.

“No!” Kiki says a little to quickly before hold up a finger to Avery. “No - I am not ticklish.” Her tone is stern but her eyes are pleading for her mate not to reveal the truth. “Avery was just joking.”

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Nic chuckles, the same thought running through his mind as well. He helps hand everything to the officer, acting as the middle man to verify Cassi is indeed the owner of the shop. Once parked safely in front of the shop, he got out and quickly joins Cassi. He glances briefly at her when she grabs his hand, concern etched into his features, but he knows that she will rather him not point it out.

The human feels some relief when he sees that the front of Cassi’s shop is mostly untouched. That’ll mean she can still keep up some of her business. However, the distinct smell of blood and rotten eggs is hard to miss. As the sorceress lets go of his hand, he turns around and locks the door behind them.

Nic is quick to follow Cassi to the back of her shop, stopping right behind her when she freezes. His jaw clenches as he sees just how much damage Caden had inflicted on her shop. His own frustration is eclipsed by Cassi’s rage as she begins to take inventory of it all.

“How long do you think he’d actually stay in the cell? Because I’d very much like him to rot there.” Nic shakes his head, brow furrowed at the amount of irreversible destruction the dragon had left in his wake, but if Cassi is going to keep stomping around, he needs to take care of the blood. She’s already tracking it all over the room.

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Avery looked at the half eaten roll with mild annoyance. He popped the thing into his mouth and quickly chewed it up before he swallowed. He looked at Kimiko, a challenge in his eyes.

”I don't know. Are you going to take any more food off my plate?”

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Cassi grumbled and continued to stomp around as she snatched up ruined ingredients and broken bottles. She huffed and cursed in several languages. She grabbed a bottle of lavender oil, something she had imbued with silver and moonlight to create a more pleasant healing experience, and to deter any supernatural creatures who hated the stuff. She watched the liquid shimmer inside before she hurtled it at a wall. It smashed and dripped to the floor. Lavender assaulted her nose. It was an odd combination with the blood and sulphur

”I feel like rotting in a jail cell would be the easy way out,” Cassi concluded. She turned and took in the dead body, and the tracks she left all over the place. ”Dammit. Nic, you don't need to do that. I can call someone to clean all of this. They have to take the body anyway.”

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Kiki gives Avery one last stink eye and tongue before she gets up to get another plate of food for herself. “I have no idea how we’re going to help you rearrange his office, Nero.” She retakes her seat by Avery, picking up his plate for a moment so she can drag her legs on him before handing it back to him.

“Okay, maybe just the cypher and I’ll save the Russian categorizing for another time.” Nero concedes, sitting down again.

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Nic shrugs, working to get the blood soaked up first. “I want to at least get the fluids cleaned so nobody’s tracking it all over your shop.” He says, trying not to let himself get angry alongside Cassi. He can understand what Caden was thinking, but he had to have known how much this would end up hurting his longest friend.

“I just… I’m so sorry.” Nic stands up, jaw feathering as he takes another moment to survey all the damage.