The Guild of the Forsaken

CHAPTER 31 - Fundamentally Wrong Yet Achingly Glorious

!TW: Violence!

Spooky - Dusty Springfield

October 4nd 2024

GOTHAM CITY

Damian hadn't called yet.

The small piece of paper continues to taunt him as it rests in a drawer by his bedside.

Quite frankly it has stumped him. For once he has no idea what to do. He will not lie and say he didn't find Bridgette interesting, or beautiful. But that wasn't necessarily the issue. Damian was already being pulled in a hundred different directions with Wayne Enterprises work, Robin work and the whole Dupain-Cheng situation.

Does he have space for something else?

Would he be prepared to face something new?

Something that would undoubtably take up a lot of time. Though he argues with himself that she mentioned just having fun, whatever that meant. Perhaps she would be fine with them only meeting sporadically.

A stray 'meow' draws his attention to the windowsill where his cat Alfred sits. The cat gazes at him, eyes filled with mirth and...disappointment? Damian shakes his head, after doing so his eyes lock with Alfred's once more.

"Tt. What? Don't look at me like that," If cats had eyebrows Damian is sure that Alfred's would be raised. Scoffing Damian tears his eyes from the cat's keen gaze.

Feeling another headache threaten his already exhausted mind Damian slams the drawer shut blocking his view of the paper. Running his hand over his face Damian's eyes stray to the large clock on the wall.

The metal hand reaches towards the one, its pointed tip just shy of meeting its target. Standing Damian is briefly thankful for his day off of work. He wasn't in the mood to stare at a screen all day. Neither was Drake apparently if is yelling about square eyes last night meant anything.

But maybe that was just the caffeine withdrawal speaking.

Grabbing a small A5 sketchbook Damian handles it with care as he places it into his jacket pocket. A lightweight pen and some pencils also find themselves within the confines of Damian's pockets.

Leaving his room Damian begins his trek towards the kitchen holding onto hope that no one is in there to annoy him.

Unfortunately, Damian is not so lucky as upon reaching the kitchen he finds a disaster in the making, in the form of one Timothy Drake-Wayne. The man in question is currently trying to work the new coffee machine.

It seemed simple enough when they bought it, but for Drake whose one-track mind is undoubtably only focused on consuming the brown sludge its too much to handle.

Sighing Damian crosses the threshold into the kitchen and clears his throat, "Drake, you imbecile what are you doing?"

Damian's hard voice startles Tim who drops the cup that was loosely held within his grasp. It collides with the floor with a sickening crack, then a load of small ones as the mug shatters. Wrongly made coffee flies everywhere. Damian instantly takes a step back to avoid any stray liquid that may come his way.

A thump is heard from the other side of the kitchen where Drake has slammed his head against the kitchen island while his body slumps onto the chair below.

"I was just trying to make some coffee, because I need coffee, but the stupid fucking machine won't work and I – I," Damian deduces is what Drake meant to say, however the fact that his face was buried into the table and his arms Damian heard,

"I waz jusq eying qu gake suh goffie , begause aye neeed goffie, bu thu soupid fukeng mooshine wun't waok eh, I – I."

Blinking to try and make sense of Drakes garbled language Damian moves towards the island, while making sure to avoid any stray droplets of coffee.