Cult of Two

To Survive

TW: MENTION OF RAPE

***

Caliban eventually had to leave to meet with Beelzebub, and take care of his own wedding preparations, but that was after asking about her new companion.

"Who is the young lady?"

"Dorcas," she answered, and took a sip of coffee, "We went to the Academy together."

"You were friends," Caliban concluded incorrectly.

"We tried to kill each other."

"Why did you stop?"

As strange as it was, she smiled. He knew enough about her, and about witches and general, to know that if they really wanted each other dead, nothing would have stopped them from ripping each other to pieces.

She reached out to stroke Dorcas' hair again, "We... realized we were better allies than enemies."

It was Caliban's turn to smile.

And after offering to escort the two of them back to her chambers. She refused, as she didn't want to go back just yet, and she wasn't sure Dorcas wanted to go back at all.

"I could stay with you," he suggested, "For as long as you would like."

"You don't have to do that," she insisted, "I'm fine on my own."

"You are not 'on your own.'"

She looked from Caliban to Dorcas and back to him again.

Maybe she's not alone. Maybe she never was.

Maybe she was just alone inside her own head.

Nevertheless, she sent him on his way. She had to make her own preparations for the day, preparations she imagined would be very difficult to carry out as long as he was present. She told him that he could send Lilith back for them if it made him feel better.

She assumed he did, but, for now, it was just her and Dorcas who was, miraculously, still sleeping like the dead. Well, she was dead, but she just kept forgetting. When all of her scars were hidden, it was easy to.

"Dorcas," Sabrina said nudging her, in an effort to rouse her from sleep, "Breakfast."

"For the love of Lilith, Pru," she murmured, trying to burrow further into the bedsheets, "Just let me have five more minutes."

"I'm not Prudence," Sabrina informed her.

Dorcas opened her eyes, and reluctantly pushed herself up into a sitting position, "You're just as demanding as she is."

She yawned and snatched the cup of coffee from her.

If anyone else had done that there would have been consequences, but she had guaranteed her all of the pleasures she had been promised when she signed away her soul.

If one of those pleasures was Sabrina's fancy Hawaiin coffee, then so be it.

"Do you even need to drink?" she asked, "Or eat?"

Dorcas shook her head, and reached for a slice of banana, "Nope, but I'm glad I still can, purely for the pleasure of it."

"Of course you are," she said, taking her coffee back and pushing the plate of pancakes in her direction.

She was surprised at the sudden jolt of pain that shot down her arm, and she hissed. Dorcas put the mug down and removed the tray from her lap. Taking hold of her wrist she turned it and exposed five finger-shaped bruises wrapped around her upper arm like a bracelet.