Heat From The Forge

[Jonah]

It was less an assumption that the Eyrie was well ventilated and more a deeply held belief, even before Jonah had ever considered it. Everything about the organization, including their lair, was thoughtfully planned and since there was a forge, it would be ventilated well.

As he worked the fire and the metal, he forced air in and out of his chest at a steady pace, helping him maintain the rhythm. Deep breath in, deep breath out, strike the anvil. Over and over again. Ash and smoke curling around his body with each breath, part of his vampiric heritage.

Mid blow, he stopped himself and looked at the item he was creating. It was a random assortment of trash bits that he had managed to improve barely from the trash he collected in the catacombs. The blade was functional but not fit to fight with. He could make it more pleasing to the eye...probably, but it wouldn't make it anymore valuable. Not really. Might as well add it to the pile of stuff to sell.

Picking the still hot sword from the anvil, he tossed it in to a nearby heap of similar blades and pulled out his phone. How long had he been here? It took him a moment to count the days accurately. He had tomed home when the competition ended. That was before Christmas...10 days he'd stayed in front of the forge, only stealing away long enough to curl up in his crypt before coming right back and starting over again.

"Maybe I should take a break, just for a little bit..." he said to himself, and wondered if anyone else was in the Eyrie.

[Every]

The months had been slowing together, Every losing the dates easily unless she looked at her phone or set a reminder that she needed to be somewhere, do something. She spent quite a bit of time breaking and entering, slumming through the sewers, or fighting in the castle when she wasn’t up on her favorite branch in the Eyrie or at MRC, working away at her car. Occasionally, she would break her habits to get something active in - dancing, perhaps, or ice skating now that she didn’t have to worry about freezing if she were to fall through the ice.

It was cathartic in some manner, she supposed, but all in all a distraction.

Between dealing with men from her past and keeping a bit to herself, she’d been spending a lot of time alone. She’d forgotten about the holidays, again, although gifts had been bought for some. And as she stepped out of her dwelling, pulling the beanie lower over her hair, she ran her tongue over her teeth in consideration before tugging the tome out of her pocket. The words slipped past her lips easily, transporting her into the Eyrie as she sighed and headed towards the elevator, stepping through the fadeportal without second thought.

When she stepped by it, Every jumped slightly when she heard the beep and whirl of the camera and sensor picking her up. “It’s been a few days.” A peace sign was flashed as her image caught - a sign of greeting to both Micah or Velveteen before she eyed the metal box uncomfortably and balled her fist, hitting the up button with reluctance. She had never been fond of elevators, but Niklaus had only increased her fear the day he’d cut the lines with the group inside it, and clenching her jaw as the doors slid open, Every took a deep breath before pressing against the wall.

“One, two, three.” Counting helped as she closed her eyes, feeling it give a small jerk as she was lifted through the middle of the massive tree up to the second floor, the doors sliding open after a long twenty seconds. There was no time as she stepped out quickly, her hazel eyes scanning the floor quickly as if to make sure she hadn’t been seen leaving in haste until she stopped, seeing a familiar face. “Hello Jonah.” She greeted.

[Velveteen]

The rhythmic clang of metal smashing against metal under the killer’s hand rang out about the second floor creating a rather hypnotic melody. One that Velveteen seemed to appreciate over the silence as she tended to the plants on the balcony. She tended to practice at the forge when no one was around to see the monstrosities she made. She had a long way to go before she would be producing anything worth displaying but she was determined to one day master the art. Jonah had been there night after night for a few days now and she was growing increasingly curious to see what he had made.

Instead of using pruning shears or scissors or whatever other might use to trim their plants Velveteen found her ability to morph her fingers into claws rather useful for the task. The razor sharp tips created clean cuts and essentially both hands remained unencumbered. The growth rate of the plants had slowed down a little due to the freezing temperatures despite her efforts to protect them from the weather but still the pots produced more than enough for her needs. Once she was satisfied she collected up the baneberry cuttings and made her way back inside, leaving the trimmed fauna on the altar for Her husband to collect when he came to do her attunement ritual.

The woman slumped into the leather couch that was off to the side of the metal working station and couldn’t help but find the amount of warmth that radiated from the flaming heart of the forge somewhat comforting. She nestled into the cushioned corner and curled one of her legs beneath her. The sparks that jumped from the metal with every powerful blow were mesmerizing. Between the warmth, the light show and the sounds, Velveteen found herself being lulled into an almost trance like state.A smile was offered to Eve as she approached and when silence descended on the area it took her a moment to register that Jonah had laid down his tools for now. “Do you need some more bits to play with. I got plenty stashed away.”