Cal was making progress with her research, but her current problem was when to go through with the 'ritual'... and finding Omega's room... then finally, his journal. She strongly suspected that Aether's room was the place to start, which elicited a sense of guilt she couldn't explain.
Is that stereotyping?
Nonetheless, she still had to figure out what to do and how to get in there.
Calliope sighed, tucking all the books underneath her bed.
Sodo sat up from his lounging position to watch her, ready to follow her if she decided to go somewhere. That was something she noticed in the past day or so; she moved, he moved. It was so out of character for him - especially considering how unbothered and distant he usually was.
Her attention was drawn away from the ghoul as someone knocked on her office door. Sodo got up before she did, looking worried for a second before he grew annoyed.
"It's Copia," He sighed, opening her bedroom door to step into the office.
She scrambled off the bed to follow behind him, unable to predict his next move. The Cardinal was unable to hide his surprise as he opened the door to come face to face with Sodo, his eyes puzzled as he looked at Cal for an explanation.
"Cardinal, how can I help you?" She asked instead, keeping her tone light.
"I, uh... I figured the entire forgery thing out, so you don't need to worry about that anymore," Copia told her awkwardly as he observed the glowering ghoul, wearing yet another set of pink pyjamas. "What's his problem?"
"Heat," Cal laughed, ignoring the fierce glare Sodo sent in her direction. "So, who was tampering with the documents?"
"I'll tell you later. It's a sensitive matter," Copia cleared his throat, turning to Sodo. "Rehearsal's at ten, don't be late."
The ghoul threw his head back with a groan, dragging his feet back to the room. "I don't want to."
Cal rolled her eyes, turning back to Copia. "He'll be there."
Copia nodded his thanks, excusing himself as he left the room with a small bow.
As soon as he heard the door close, Sodo spoke. "I'm not going."
"Yes, you are."
"I don't want to. It takes forever."
"How long is forever?"
"Three to four hours."
"You'll survive."
He grumbled under his breath, and it took Cal a while to figure out what was said.
"I don't think I'm allowed to go with you, but after I've run my errands, I'll wait for you outside."
"Errands? What errands?"
"I technically have a job to do, you know," She lied easily with a laugh. I'll tell him when the time is right. I will.
He pursed his lips, nodding begrudgingly.
"C'mon, let's get you something to eat before you have to go," Cal prompted, nudging his arm as she grabbed her sweater, ready to leave the room.
"I'm not leaving dressed like this," He huffed, grabbing his uniform from one of the sofas as he hurried into the bathroom.
"Fine, just hurry." She mumbled, stepping into her office. Calliope was about to step into the hall, but something on her desk caught her attention. She stepped toward it curiously, picking up the notebook.
A small part of her hoped that it was Omega's, but a quick skim through it would reveal the book to be empty. She wasn't really disappointed, the chances that it would be his journal were quite literally impossible.
She frowned, however, as she paged through it, spotting a glint of gold in the dim light of her office. Cal held it up to the light, trying to figure out where the golden string came from. It seemed familiar...
She was forced to end her brief observation, stuffing it into her pocket as Sodo stomped into the room, tugging uncomfortably at his tight uniform.
"You have really skinny legs," She commented, the only purpose of her statement being to annoy him. Obviously, she succeeded.
"Fuck you-"
"C'mon, that was a compliment," She defended with a laugh, tampering with the thread in her pocket as she left the office, angry ghoul in tow.
He didn't reply, only huffing in annoyance now and then as he fidgeted with his sleeve.
"What do you want to eat, princess legs?"
"Rain is princess legs, not me," Sodo said, his tone surprisingly lighthearted as he took a seat at the small kitchen table. Cal took a moment to take in the sight, a sense of nostalgia overcoming her.
"Rain?"
"The new, uhm, water ghoul," He cleared his throat, refusing her inquisitive gaze. "We call him princess."
She couldn't stop the grin from spreading across her face as she observed his body language. "Do you like him?"
"He's alright, doesn't talk much," He shrugged, still not facing her. She didn't miss the faint blush coating his face and the tips of his pointy ears, and she grinned privately.
"Well, neither do you," Cal pointed out. "As far as I'm aware, you're only this chatty with me."
"Don't flatter yourself," Sodo scoffed, pursing his lips as he twirled the salt shaker on the table, the small object spinning rapidly before coming to a halt. It took her a second to do so, but she ultimately decided to change the topic.
"Do all ghouls have the, uh..." She trailed off motioning to her hand and arm.
"The black? Yeah, I think so. Depends on each ghoul. Aether only has it up to his knuckles, Swiss' goes up to his wrist and mine... well, you can see for yourself."
She had taken note of it before; his markings went all the way up his arms, fading away above his elbows. What could she say? She found it interesting.
"And your tails? Sometimes you have one, other times you don't... starting to think I imagined it."
Whilst awaiting an answer, she shuffled through the cupboards to find a suitable pot.
"That's complicated, we're constantly charmed, you know. Sometimes it's more convenient to not have one."
"This isn't what you normally look like?"
"Not entirely, no. It's... a long story."
Picking up that he didn't want to talk about it, she kept quiet. "So, dietary restrictions. Tell me about those."
Sodo chuckled. "Our diets are a sick joke, honestly. No milk. No honey. Probably no wine, but we haven't tested that theory yet."
"Why?"
"Because the land of milk and honey was dedicated to the followers of god... or something like that, I don't know- I didn't read the book."
"What happens if you eat any of those?"
"A number of things, really. Ifrit dared me to eat a drop of honey once. I didn't care for it," Sodo shuddered, a bitter expression overtaking his features. "It was like heat, except worse... somehow."
Cal hissed through her teeth. "Damn, alright... that's odd, I'll admit."
Sodo nodded in agreement, looking suddenly curious as he turned toward her. "Mary says wine makes him feel better... does it work for you?"
"Kind of, but it makes no sense to me."
"I think I have a theory... Maybe the reason ghouls can't have wine is the reason you can."
"Elaborate."
"It's the blood of Christ. Symbolically, of course. It symbolizes 'life', right?"
Cal stared at him, blinking a few times. "Where the hell is all this logic coming from? You're not wrong... but I'm.... floored."
Sodo scoffed, rolling his eyes. "I told you I'm smart."
"That you are," Calliope agreed, impressed.
---𝔄𝔲𝔱𝔥𝔬𝔯'𝔰 𝔑𝔬𝔱𝔢---
some more filler but i have a good reason- i had to split up the chapter because it was getting too long and there was too much happening at once so... yes.
bonus:
how i imagine cal in the pic above, but you can obviously imagine her however you'd like <3