Will and Helga.

Helga nervously tapped her foot while biting her thumb. She glanced at the screen of her phone for the sixth time in the last five minutes, and seeing no new messages or calls, she groaned loudly.

“I still don’t know how you still have your thumb after all these years of biting on it when you’re nervous,” Will said, his tone way too casual and relaxed for a worthless, useless and helpless fool in chains. “The foot tapping is new, though. Maybe it’s a habit of the spirit inside you?”

“Do you not realize the situation you’re in?” Helga asked, glaring at him. Although she wasn’t sure he could see her face in this darkness.

“I think I do. I don’t really give a shit, though.”

Helga clicked her tongue, walked up to the man sitting on the cold floor with his hands tied up and kicked him in the stomach. It felt soft and her shoe dug deep, making Will groan and cough in pain.

The idiot shook his head, still coughing as he caught his breath. “Right, right… Short temper. Can’t believe I almost forgot.”

“Ugh!” She kicked him again, this time in the cheek, making his whole head turn. She felt the tip of her foot hitting teeth. “Shut the fuck up! The last thing I need is you yapping like we’re still friends!”

“Oh, we’re definitely not friends,” Will said with a pained chuckle as he kept his head down. “Why are you so nervous, though? Shouldn’t that be me?”

“Do you really want to die that much?” Helga snarled.

“Not at all, but you won’t kill me. You want the Spirit of Lust, don’t you? You lose me, you lose your bargaining chip and bait. Not that I’m sure she wants me back, though.”

“Well, the other women do. I have no idea why, but they’re willing to trade a powerful spirit for you.” Helga smirked and pushed her foot against Will’s crotch. “I bet they’ll regret it when they realize you’re nothing without her powers.”

“Yeah, I’d take the same bet,” Will said, chuckling. “Don’t tell them, though. I want to get out of here, despite how fun this reunion has been.”

“...” Seriously, what was this tough act he was putting on? What was the plan? Get her angry? What for? Or maybe… Maybe it wasn’t an act. He was just… delirious. A complete lack of aether in his system after growing to depend on it along with having the spirit he was deeply connected to ripped away from him. Maybe something broke. Helga could almost feel bad for him. Almost.

She sighed. “Why couldn’t you just be more ambitious, Will?”

“Hah?”

“You were always handsome, smart, competent, fairly popular… I really thought I won big when we started going out. But then I realized why everyone else left you.”

“...” Will sighed, too. “And what was it?”

“You’re so fucking dull. The conversations were boring, sex was boring, LIFE was boring. If I didn’t drag you out to do stuff, what would you have done? The only good thing about you were the gifts you gave me, but then we moved to a shitty apartment and even that stopped.”

“...” Will sighed and raised his head to look up at the ceiling. Helga noticed some blood running down the corner of his mouth. “You know, I can’t say I disagree with you. Did you have to cheat on me, though? Wouldn’t breaking up be enough? Or was cheating on me the thrill you were looking for?”

“That guy was hot and had a big cock, bigger than yours. It felt good, better than it did with you. I wasn’t going to risk losing the apartment, though. Shitty as it was.”

“Uh-huh. How did that turn out for you?”

“Amazing, in the end. I was so pissed, but then I heard a voice in my dreams. It promised me power and everything I ever wished for. Days later I got a luxury apartment for dirt cheap. I was effortlessly convincing people to give me everything I wanted. Then someone introduced me to the underworld and learned much more about my power. Now I’m making more money than big shot CEOs.”

“Glad you’re happy.”

“Yeah, I bet you are.”

Of course Helga’s phone had to ring in the middle of that. A text message from whoever it was the boss was sending to help with this issue.

“We’ll see if you can stay this carefree after you meet my guest, Will. Your spirit friend is as good as ours.”

Helga went out of the warehouse to the open lot. This used to be a construction warehouse in the very outskirts of the city. Now it was ‘abandoned’, owned by the man that hired her and used for his shady dealings. The room Will was in was meant to keep the mirrorkin prisoner, originally.

There was a car parked outside. An old sedan with scratched paint and a couple bumps, but the man who came out of it wore a black suit from a brand Helga recognized as ridiculously expensive, the type to be worth as much as a luxury car. Not only that, but even though she wasn’t an expert on enchantments, the magic in that suit was strong enough to be noticeable. Or maybe it was made to be, probably as a show of power and wealth. A bullet from a rifle couldn’t scratch that suit, and maybe not a magical explosion, either. Hell, even the black shoes, the white shirt and the blue tie he was wearing were enchanted, but Helga couldn’t tell what those enchantments did.

“Ms. Cooper. I hope you haven’t lost this one, too?” the man asked.

Helga swallowed. The presence of this man was… massive. He seemed to be in his mid to late 30s with a few graying locks in his short black hair. He had strong, sharp features. Small, piercing dark eyes behind frameless glasses and a perfectly clean shave. He was relatively tall compared to most men. 1.90 meters or so, maybe slightly less. His build was athletic, toned. His suit fit him perfectly and his posture was immaculate. Honestly, Helga would have found him pretty hot if he didn’t scare the living shit out of her.

“H-He’s here, in the prisoner room,” Helga said.

“May I talk to him?”

“P-Please do…”

Good fucking luck, Will.