pushbackthedarkness | (no subject)

Marcus is more than willing to let Sam stay in his flat for a few days while he comes down from... well, whatever it is he's done, but for all he's exhausted and sore and unsettled, he knows he needs to speak with Verity first. He needs to tell her how things are going to be, at least for a few days, although it's a terrible relief when they get to the flat and find it empty.

That gives them time to get settled. More importantly, it gives them time to clean up, because after having taken the jar back to that room, that horrible lake of blood, they're both drenched in it. Marcus's clothes are destroyed, there'll be no saving them, and he thinks the same is likely of Sam's.

While Sam is showering, Marcus sends Verity a text message, letting her know he's home. Letting her know, too, if she's staying somewhere else, that's perfectly acceptable. She doesn't have to come running back just because he's here. They've a lot to discuss, but he's also not going to force her into anything if she's found a place where she's comfortable for the time being.

Once he's given Sam some fresh clothes and gotten him squared away in Marcus's room, he takes his own shower and stands in the hot spray for a long time, watching as the blood rinses off him and down the drain. There's a lot he still needs to process, knowing this exorcism was different than so many of the others he's done in the past, but right now he's just exhausted. He wants some hot tea, fresh clothes, and to just sit down for a few minutes.

He's clean and dry, dressed once more, making that tea he's so craving, when he hears the door of the flat open.

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Verity does want to come back. She misses her bedroom and the familiarity of the apartment, and she misses Marcus too. She knows she's a baby about it, but she hates to be alone at night. Not that she needs someone in the room with her, but just knowing she isn't alone in the house, or apartment, or wherever. So she's crashed at Elio's a couple times and at Panoptes with Tony, coming back during the day for the cat and to not be such a burden.

When she comes in, Marcus is right there in the kitchen making tea in the kettle.

"Hey," she says, staring at him. His hair is damp and he's in one piece. He looks tired. She sets her backpack down by the door, toes her shoes off, and greets the cat, finally making her way over. She gives him a hug, he looks like he needs one. "How'd it go?"

Marcus doesn't expect the hug and at first he's not sure how to respond, far too used to being the one having to initiate physical contact in the first place. But then his arms come down around Verity's shoulders and he rests his chin on the top of her head and stays there for just a moment.

It's harder this time around. The aftermath. He can't just offer a few comforting words and then skip town. It's bigger than that. There are people here for him on the other side and after so many years of doing this job, he's found himself in a new situation.

"Rough," he answers honestly, pulling back from her with a small smile. He holds Verity by the shoulders for a moment longer, then releases her when the kettle starts to whistle. "But Betty's going to be alright. That's the most important thing."

Verity finally lets herself feel some relief with the hug. She's always had disruptions in her life, so in a way this is nothing new, but that doesn't make it any easier. Every time she finds something steady, some normal routine, it's always been pulled out from under her.

"That's good," Verity says, staying close and leaning against the counter, watching Marcus prepare his tea. "I was worried about you." She pulls at a loose thread on her sleeve. It's too hot out for flannel, but it's comfort clothes. "So is the demon...like, gone for good?"

That's not really something he can promise, because there will always be demons and this one got out once before, but he nods anyway, because whatever might happen in the long run, he and Sam have done everything they can to keep it contained for as long as possible.

"There was a jar," he says. "It was the thing we were missing, Sam worked it out from the notes Betty was keeping whenever she was still in control. A jar that can contain the demon and we put it back, then took the jar back to where Sam had found it and closed the door to that place, too. It's gone."

Hopefully for good. And in the mean time, Marcus will continue to take his shifts volunteering at the care home, making sure nothing gets back out again.

"A jar," Verity echoes, eyes narrowed and mouth drawn into a confused frown. "Like a mason jar?" That seems odd, but then again all she really knows about demons is what happened to Andy, and she wasn't there for most of what Marcus and Tomas did. She opens her mouth, almost about to ask if there was anything like that with her dad, but stops herself because how could he know?

She just shakes her head.

"You have the weirdest job, man. You didn't miss anything exciting, by the way. Same old around here. I'm just glad you're safe."

"Not a mason jar," Marcus answers. "Something older than that. Something... I've never seen before."

Some of it was the same. The prayers and the belief and God's power and light had worked, it had all forced the demon out of Betty, but it had needed to be contained. The more he thinks about it, the more Marcus is forced to wonder if it's something like Pazuzu, something that had needed a vessel no matter what the cost. The demon had jumped from Angela to Father Karras, after all, it had needed somewhere to go.

"I am," he promises. "Safe. And I'm glad you are, too." Not being here, it had bothered him, which is an odd thing. He's not good at being responsible for people, he's not entirely sure how to do so, but he really is relieved to know Verity is safe. "I- Sam's here. I'm safe, but he needs to stay here for a few days."

Verity doubts the type of jar matters, the idea of a demon in any jar was going to give her a weird mental image. Probably better than the actual image, the whole event. Seeing Andy after he'd been possessed had been traumatizing enough, she didn't exactly want to see it happen to others.

"Sam's here?" she repeats, glancing around. "Like here in the apartment here? Have I met him before?" She feels like she'd remember meeting a Sam, she's got a good memory for people.

"I don't think so," Marcus answers. "And yes, he's in my bedroom now, he needs... the exorcism was difficult for both of us, but for him more than me. It's a different kind of demon, one I've never seen before and Sam had to call on things I think he hasn't touched in a very long time. He needs some help now. Dealing with that."

Marcus doesn't want to get into the details, not because he doesn't think Verity needs to be protected from them, but because these particular details aren't his to tell. He doubts very much Sam wants it to be public knowledge that he'd had to ingest demon blood in order to help finish the exorcism.

Verity glances down the hallway, but everything's quiet at the moment. "Should I wait a few days to come back? I don't mind, seriously. Like if it'd be better for this guy to recover without a stranger here," she offers. She doesn't think Tony would care, and there are always the tech crash rooms. Or Elio's place.

"No," he says. "You don't have to. This is your place, too."

He says it without really thinking about it and lets it pass by in the same way, but he does realize the meaning of the words after they're spoken aloud. Marcus has never really shared his space with anyone and he'd been too afraid to do so with Matthias, for which he feels terrible, but this has, somehow, becomes as much Verity's flat as it is his and he won't ask her to leave.

"Sam has my bedroom. You can still keep yours," he says. "I'll sleep on the couch for a few days. It's fine."