Thalia had barely turned towards him, or rather towards the chair he’d swung to face her, when Colt said “I have never come across this…group of deluded fools before. I had no idea they even existed.”
She frowned, a slight wrinkle appearing between her eyebrows. The crease was new and he wondered what its addition to her usual frowning expression meant to her mood. “You’ve never heard of them before?”
“No. It sounds as if they found Gregory’s diary. I hadn’t known he kept one.”
Her hand rose and she began to fiddle with one of her earrings, flowers today, her frown deepening. “You’re certain you’ve never been involved with them before? It really sounded like they’d talked to you before. I can’t imagine how they found all that out only through second hand accounts.”
Colt shrugged. “They must be good at acquiring information. Besides, you heard what your cousin said. They didn’t know about me until after they found Gregory’s diary. I spent nearly all the time between leaving Gregory and meeting you, trapped in the bottle. It would be impossible for me to have come into contact with them.”
After a moment of thought, Thalia nodded, her shoulders relaxing. “That’s true. So, what are we going to do about them? Should we try to spy on them, research them, or make them leave? I’m a bit worried about what they’ll do to Will when they find out you’re not with him.”
Standing up and slipping behind her, Colt gently laid hands on her shoulders, making her jerk at the sudden touch. He squeezed her gently, then began to knead her back and neck in the massage technique he learned during his time with Jakys. Like his old friend, after a few minutes, she fully relaxed, the tension slowly draining out of her. He could feel her muscles unknotting, frowning as he realized how truly tense she’d been since lunch. “I don’t think you need to worry,” he said.
“Hmmm?” she murmured, eyes half closed, her body having completely surrendered itself to his ministrations.
“About your cousin. I don’t think you have any cause for concern. Even if they find out it’s not him I’ve attached myself to, I can’t imagine them doing anything to him after meeting him in public. My experience with groups both interested in the occult and gathering power is that they prefer to work in the shadows.”
“I suppose you’re right. Still, I’d like to get more information on them. I’ll see what comes up on the internet at school tomorrow and I’ll ask Anna if she can find anything out. She’s good at separating fact from fiction, especially when it involves itself with anything historical. She might even be able to find out where they got their information on you, besides the diary.”
Colt hid the faint spasm of his hands at the name “Anna” by squeezing her shoulders again. “I would prefer it if you would only conduct your research while I’m with you. If they were to try something…”
Thalia nodded. “Alright. Should we tell Will?”
“I don’t think he’ll be happy if he finds you’re researching this group.”
“No. I mean, should we tell Will about you?” she asked, craning her neck back, trying to look at his face.
She was off by only a few inches. Colt stilled his hands. “I don’t think that’s advisable. Your cousin…I don’t think he’d like me much. And I’m worried that if he found out, he’d seal me into something and hand me over to this group.”
Thalia shook her head. “He wouldn’t do that. But…I suppose with those people around him, it’d probably be safer for all three of us if he didn’t know. Deniability for him, and more time to figure out what this group’s like for us. Colt…do you think these people might be able to help you get your body back?”
He snorted, moving his thumbs again in a circular motion against the back of her neck. “These cretins aren’t even aware how to become awakened. I highly doubt they have anyone who has the kind of communication with a god I’d need to be able to get my body back or even to get into contact with the god who took it in the first place. And that’s doubly true since they found Gregory’s diary. He was well aware that to become awakened, you must be free of ties to any god. I can’t imagine there are more than one or two who’d have chosen the path of service to a deity while searching for the way to unlock their abilities.”
“You’re right. I just hoped…well, for now, we’re stuck I guess.”
Colt chuckled, sliding his arms down and then around her shoulders in a hug, glad she hadn’t stiffened, as she did whenever he’d pushed her boundaries of comfort. “Don’t sound so upset. I’ve spent longer like this than I did with a body. I’m used to it. And it’s not like it’s all bad. And it does make it harder for this occult assembly to find me.”
She must have been more worried about him than he’d thought, Colt decided when she reached up to lay a hand on top of one of his arms. She twisted in the chair enough so that she could look, approximately, at his face. “I find myself worrying about it,” she said, eyes flickering back and forth like they were searching for his. “I promised to help you and I worry the longer it takes, the harder it will be.”
He smiled and held her tighter, leaning forward so he could kiss the top of her head. “You needn’t be worried. It’s been so long, even another decade or two won’t make any difference. But thank you for thinking about me. I’m glad you care.”
Colt didn’t hear what she muttered, but his smile widened nonetheless. He loosened his grip on her enough that he could duck around to the side of her face. The sudden ring of the telephone had her turning, so that kiss he’d intended to put to her lips, hit her cheek instead.
Her face went the same pink colour they always did, a shade that always put him in mind of tulips for some reason, before she slipped out of his grasp to answer the telephone’s demand. He shrugged, still smiling as he watched her escape him. He was invisible and somewhat immortal now. He had all the time he needed to press his suit.