House Call

Soul flopped down onto the couch and sighed on frustration. ‘Maybe she heard me making wishes about her and got pissed.” He wondered. ‘Nah, she would’ve just barged in and beat me upside the head with a book. Again.’

He reached up to rub his aching head when he suddenly realized it didn’t hurt anymore. He couldn’t even find a bump. “Huh. Maybe she didn’t hit me as hard as I thought.”

He brought the stone out of his pocket and looked at it once more. ‘Maybe I should just wish for her to come back?” He thought with a smirk. “Nah, that’d be a waste of a wish. She takes this whole soul thing way too seriously to bail on a mission. I’ll just chill here until she gets over whatever it is she’s getting over. I guess I wish for something to do until she gets back. Like a new videoga—’ The stone glowed in his hand, and Soul dropped it in shock. ‘Whoa! Did that thing just read my mind?!’ He thought-sclaimed. He eyed it for a moment, and tried it again. ‘I wish for a chicken sandwich.’

Nothing happened. Soul raised an eyebrow, and reached out for it, but stopped at the last minute. Mind reading was pretty high-level magic, not something you usually find in a novelty toy. He’d heard the horror stories of people that got harmless looking objects in the mail from unknown addresses only to find that it came to life at night, or whispered suicidal urges while you slept, or listened in on all your conversations. He was probably over-reacting, but it still wasn’t something to be taken lightly. He would show it to Maka when she got home, and then she could figure out how it worked.

…Except that if it was recording his thoughts and she heard them, she was liable to never speak to him again. He’d save it for tomorrow and show it to Stein.

There was a sudden series of knocks on the door, and Soul dragged himself up off the couch. He scooped up the stone and carried it over to the fire place, than set it down behind one of the framed pictures on the mantle. He walked down the short corridor leading to the front door, peered through the peephole, raised an eyebrow, and started to unlock the door. The door opened and Nurse Medusa stood in the entryway, dressed in her nurse’s attire and carrying her medical bag in her left hand. “Sorry for interrupting you at such a late hour. Is this a bad time?” She asked.

“Uh, no, not really. Is there something wrong?” Soul asked.

“In a way. You missed your appointment today and I was worried that something had happened to you. I come through this neighborhood on my way home, so I thought I’d check up on you.” Medusa replied.

“Oh crap, sorry Doc. I didn’t even know I had an appointment today. I guess I must’ve just forgot. I didn’t mean to make you worry.” Soul said. “Do you think we could do it tomorrow?”

“Well, we can do it right now, if you’d like.” She hefted her bag. “I have all of the necessary tools right here.”

“Well, I’m sorta going on a soul hunt with Maka soon. How long do you think this’ll take?”

“Not very long at all. Just give me a moment or two to get ready and we can get right to it.” She said with a smile.

Soul mulled it over for a moment. “Alright. Come on in.”

He stepped to the side and let her past. She strolled into the living room and set her bag down on the coffee table. “Do you want something to drink?” Soul asked. “I can’t make anything fancy but I think we have some juice and soda in the fridge.”

“Thank you, but I’m fine. But do you think I could use your bathroom?”

“Uh, sure. Up the stairs and to the left.”

“Thank you.” Medusa ascended the stairs swiftly and Soul sat back down onto the couch.

Medusa turned off the faucet and dried her hands. She was rather proud of herself for getting this far so easily. Soul wasn’t stupid per se, but he was far too trusting for his own good. The fact that he’d actually been skipping his appointments as of late didn’t hurt either. The way he was acting, he probably didn’t even know that he had anything extraordinary. But she’d sensed it. Beautiful and powerful, beyond measurement and scale, stretching forwards and backwards into infinity—it was terrifying and breath-taking and she would be the one to control it.

It only flashed across her awareness for a split-second, but she knew that it had been in the possession of that boy. She was confident in her ability to make small talk, to get any information she needed without magical means, but if worst came to worst, she had a back-up plan. A syringe infected with an enchantment that would swiftly increase his arousal. All she needed to do was flash some skin, and he would be putty in her hands. It wasn’t her best work and she honestly preferred not to use such vulgar tactics, but this magical artifact was unlike anything she’d ever felt before. She had to have it, no matter the cost.

*written by Armidillo