Swooped | ✓

Chapter 14: Night Owls

"Hey! Don't be rude to Maggie and Piper! My girls already have low self-esteems!" I huffed, taking  another step forward, my wings flapping, sending some dirt spraying onto the guy's face. He spluttered and clawed at the dirt in his eyes, shaking more now than he was before.

"M-Monster! Demon!"

"Says the person threatening the poor kid with a knife," I said, rolling my eyes, though no one  could see the movement because of my ski goggles. God, I probably look like an idiot right now.

"You're not human, you're not human," the mugger chanted, and I almost expected him to whip out a cross and spray me with holy water. 

"Oh no, you caught me," I said, shrugging. "I'm a messenger from God, telling you that you're gonna go to Hell. Plenty of real estate down there, my bro Luci just built another torture apartment complex. Room 666 is ready for you, comes with daily room service with fire and brimstone and whatever else he likes." 

Unlike with Rapist John, Mugger Mask did not pale at the mention of an eternity of torment in Hell. He was still terrified, but not shitting himself in the face of the threat of heavenly condemnation.

"Oh, you're not Christian?" I asked, the guy remaining quiet as he stared at me in fear. "Dude, answer me, or I'll kick you again."

"I'm Buddhist," he said hastily, and I clicked my tongue.

"Dude, aren't Buddhists supposed to be all zen and shit? Like, violence is bad etcetera, etcetera? What the heck are you doing mugging people? You know what, religion isn't even the issue here. Practise whatever you want, but don't be a dick. Now give me back Fel- this guy I have never seen before's wallet, and promise not to hurt other people, and I'll let you go."

"Okay! I promise! I fucking promise! Just take it! Take it! Just don't kill me!" the guy said, throwing Felix's wallet at me feet before pulling himself to his wobbly feet and darting away.

"Thanks, Buddhist mugger!" I called out, the man tripping at the sound of my voice. "Remember! If you pull this shit again, I'll fly down to grab you and throw you off a skyscraper!" I could hear the man screaming as he ran for his life (even though I had no plans on trying to kill him, because I wasn't a psychopath, jeez).

Turning back to Felix, who stood fixed in the position he had been before, I tentatively extended my arm to pass him back his wallet. Felix looked down at it, then back at my covered face, and then carefully grabbed it. Thoughtlessly, one of my wings moved as I did, Felix's eyes snapping to it in shock.

"Oh, right. Sorry. Didn't mean to freak you out," I said sheepishly, tucking them back, but not retracting them completely. "Maggie and Piper are harmless, I swear. Unless you decide on picking up the same career as our friend Mugger Mask there."

"I-" Felix started, his voice thick and croaky with emotion. He was still shaking terribly, obviously still terrified at what had happened, and I felt bad for the poor kid. Yeah, he hated me, but he was Milo's brother, and no one deserved to get threatened at knife-point in an attempted mugging. 

"You're welcome, though," I said, smiling even though he couldn't see anything but a slither of skin between my goggles and my pulled-up turtleneck. "If I hadn't come, you might have become a pin cushion, kid."

Heh. If Culver Fleet had called Felix Shultz 'kid', he would've been punched for sure.

"Yes, I... Thank you," Felix said, holding his wallet tightly to himself. 

"No problem. But what are you doing wandering around anyway? I'm sure you mum and b- I mean, your family, which I assume you have unless you're an orphan or... Uh, anyway. Why are you out?"