Chapter Text
Edwin loved his job. Truly, being a detective was something he’d daydreamed about in life and it was his reality in his afterlife, a genuine dream come true. Even better, he had the best partner and agency he could have ever asked for. The work was always intriguing and exciting, there was always more to learn and he always had his favorite person by his side. What more could he need?
Well, as of today, he would certainly appreciate it if clients weren’t so goddamn stupid. Seriously, the client didn’t think to mention that his old magic shop had a variety of magic traps? Because that wasn’t important to the detectives navigating the shop at all! Edwin was definitely going to charge the man extra.
Thankfully, it was just the dead boys since the girls had been busy. Multiple traps had been triggered so far with no apparent cause. They’d managed to dodge each time, the walls now adorned with scorch marks and other magical stains. Both boys were too on edge to be properly frustrated.
Finally, they spotted the object the man needed on a shelf, a small wooden jewelry box that’d been passed through the man’s family. Edwin sighed in relief, thankful the job was nearly done. Caught up in his relief and exhaustion, he grabbed the box without considering the possibility of traps. And that was his downfall.
All of a sudden, the world went dark. Even putting his hand in front of his face showed nothing. When he tried to call out for Charles, he heard nothing. Panic overwhelmed him, drowning out any rationality he had and replacing it with fear. He was probably screaming, not that he could hear it anyway.
He’d been traded to yet another demon. The ones before had punished him purely physically, various beatings and tortures of all kinds. This one had different plans. She stalked around him when she received him, looking at him the way a lion looks at a wounded gazelle. Then, she dragged one long claw against his forehead.
Immediately, he lost his sight and hearing. That was something new. He stood there, petrified and likely screaming, while the occasional hand would graze his body. Every time, he jumped and flinched, unable to see where the touch was coming from. When he finally gathered up his courage, he tried to run.
His hands were held in front of him, ensuring he wouldn’t hit anything. The demon didn’t take it kindly, always finding him. She would beat him senseless, almost literally, and the pain was the only thing he could sense. Even the slightest brush of something against his skin made him shriek, not knowing if it was part of his environment or the demon coming to destroy him again.
She loved toying with him, sometimes just dragging her fingers down his arm to hear him scream. Unlike the other demons thus far, she enjoyed many different types of punishment. Weapons interchanged between beatings and punishments, different every time. Sometimes, she’d just pin him down, her hands roaming his chest, thighs and wherever else she wanted. It was just as bad as the pain, illustrating just how helpless he was.
Eventually, she got tired of him. She passed him along to another demon, his sight and hearing returning. He’d cried in relief when his senses returned, to the confusion of the new demon. Naturally, the demon quickly took to his own punishment. But even after all that, any time it was too dark or too quiet, it set him into a panicked spiral.
He knew she was around the corner. She always was, just waiting to frighten him. On instinct, his hands came up in front of him and he started to move. They touched a few hard surfaces, the naturally panic flaring but not completely consuming him. Something hit him from the side, sending him flying into a wall of some kind. He screamed again, his arm burning like it’d been thrust into a forge.
A hand touched his shoulder and he shrieked , already anticipating the onslaught ahead of him. The hand flew back, letting Edwin curl up with his good arm trying to protect his head. He knew he was shaking, but he knew the pain was coming so what did it matter?
The hand returned, settling on the tortured boy’s own. He froze, tense as a coiled spring and waiting for the touch to turn painful or perverted. Instead, the foreign hand gently intertwined their fingers, its thumb rubbing across his knuckles. It confused the boy, this was far from the repertoire of torture the demon used.
Another hand joined in, its fingers tracing along the back of Edwin’s held hand. He was baffled, none of the demon’s methods had ever been even remotely… comforting? So, he focused on his hand, trying to figure out what exactly would happen. The fingers kept drawing, dragging across his skin lightly and the ghost tried to decipher the patterns.
It took a while, his panic making it hard to focus. Eventually, he could picture what was being drawn. There was a series of swirls, a leafy vine, a few circles. Then, it drew words. “I’m here” “It’s okay” and “You’re safe” all appeared on his skin. The final indicator of who owned the hand slammed into him as the fingers wrote, “I love you.”
He sobbed in relief, gripping Charles’ hand like it would float away. His body finally unfurled, the burnt hand scrambling to find his friend. It settled up near the punk teen’s collar, his pins resting beneath his palm. Edwin’s head thumped against his partner’s chest, tears continuing to stain his face.
Charles let go of his hand and Edwin panicked. Quickly, his partner’s arms circled around him and carefully picked him up. He sighed slightly, leaning against the other’s chest. Charles started walking, and the Edwardian felt the rippling sensation that meant they’d mirror traveled. Somehow, Edwin knew they were back in the office, back home . Maybe it was the smell of papers, wood and various other things or maybe it was just the energy of the place, but he knew nonetheless.
The blinded ghost felt himself being lowered and recognized his bed beneath him. Soft beneath him, he let himself relax into his mattress and blankets. He felt Charles start to move away and he clutched his hand like a lifeline. The other hand gripped his right back, thumb continuing its motions. Charles carefully tended to his partner’s injured arm, carefully bandaging it before he continued with other tasks.
Edwin’s hand was dragged around as his partner did a few things. He felt blankets and pillows get readjusted, the weighted blanket draped over his legs and bare feet. That made him realize that he was probably back in his old undergarments from hell. He hadn’t even noticed the change, having been too panicked. Not that it mattered that much at the moment, his friend covering him in layers of soft fabric.
The hand connected to his drew closer and then Charles was laid right next to him, underneath the blankets with him. Edwin pushed himself into the other’s chest, the shirt’s familiar texture was comforting. His non injured hand carefully made its way into his partner’s curls, another comforting familiarity. Charles’ arms wound around him, holding him tightly enough to be grounding.
His entire being knew he was safe with Charles there, the fingers drawing along his back and carding through his hair lulling him to sleep. When he woke up, he was greeted by the sight of his sleeping partner. He knew that later, they would both chew out their client. But for now, the peaceful face of his person was the first thing he saw after being metaphorically plunged to hell . And truly, was there a better way to wake up?