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leightonhaywood‌:

It must have been interesting. Showing up at old estates, going through storage bins, just collecting old relics. You could learn a lot about a person by their belongings, interior decorating, that kind of thing. Despite his often nomadic nature, Leighton often wanted a house just to fill it with things. An old Victorian kind of place full of furniture and knick knacks from his travels. Make it like a museum of his life, of his travels. Collecting such artifacts kind of made Silas a tourist in these people’s lives. Someone who shows up and buys great grandmother’s ottoman. “If only these things could talk, right?” Leighton turned his head to offer Silas a small smile before picking up what looked like a wooden jewelry box off a shelf. Simple, but the craftsmanship was beautiful. Something for Lia maybe, but he didn’t know if she’d appreciate it. “Ever run into anything…” He wasn’t quite sure how to phrase it out in the open. “Suspicious?” Cursed, enchanted, that kind of thing. Items that should probably be passed off to the witches, maybe even a genasi.

Hadn’t that been the whole reason for Silas’ current existence? Suspicious artifacts, cursed objects, enchanted things that gave the allure of normalcy and tricked the unsuspecting. Not in the sense that the cubi did this for a living wage, that his whole life was altered by what Leighton called suspicious. Silas would be lying if he said that wasn’t a major part of why he went heavier into that side of the business. The more he was in contact with supernatural objects, the more he could learn from them and how they all functioned. He couldn’t afford to be ignorant to their existence and instead had to embrace it, find out more. “Absolutely,” was the cubi gut response given his close ties and personal feelings. Many of his clients were part of the community and wanted to remain confidential, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t speak on his other lines of work. Even his own connection continued to be a mystery for most, which he didn’t mind keeping that way, “It’s rather interesting that over the years I’ve become well-known for that— able to dig out what others are seeking so eagerly. And enchanted artifacts are a hot ticket item depending on the need or purpose.”

💐 from @gabrielxnikephoros​ give a gift

Objects, at times, belonged with certain people. Even those who claimed to not understand Silas’ line of work, artifacts and items had always been important in some degree or fashion. Family heirlooms, precious gems — no one could deny that they had at least one thing they cherished most and wanted to protect. He hadn’t grown to discover what side of the fence his fellow cubi was on, but the shine of the coins and the engravings meant they were from nowhere other than the Byzantine Empire. Years had passed, Silas knew, since those days that he wondered if Gabriel just wanted to forget. He supposed this was a way to test the waters and discover more about his friend. “Found something interesting,” the cubi stated as he pulled the gold coinage from a cloth just behind his shop desk. They had been there for almost a week at this point, Silas stewing on the idea of forcing the interaction, but decided on the more organic approach, “Picked them off another collector at an estate sale.” Which really meant he forced the man’s hand and got a little snack in the process, cheeks taking on a strawberry hue at the thought, “Thought maybe they deserved to be in your hands instead.”

❛  because the world is so full of death and horror, i try again and again to console my heart and pick the flowers that grow in the midst of hell.

@silaskyun​ happy birthday loveeeeee 

gabrielxnikephoros‌:

“I heard…that Tranquilitea is under the ownership of a shapeshifter who just really fucking likes tea. Then you have the witch at Anxietea who loves the magical brews that do a little more for the person that drinks it. Neither is really better in my opinion, but I’ve also had way too much fucking tea in my life time.” It took Gabriel a few more moments, but he placed his hand against Silas’s chest, “What’s wrong?” He noted the exhaustion that seemed to creep in from the other’s soul – the way he looked far more tired, almost like Kasandra had. 

Waving a hand, Silas tried his best to ignore the topic of his own personal health. He had been on the brink of exhaustion all week and each moment the cubi finally made it into deep sleep, the usual nightmare routine would creep in. There was no way he wanted to talk about it fully, even with the look of pure concern hanging on Gabriel’s face and filling Silas with guilt. “Haven’t fully recovered from the Eidolon’s,” a white lie that he hoped didn’t show through given his current state and tried to change the subject back, “I like Anxietea’s Secret Tea Party blend with the rooibos. You can’t tell me you don’t have a favorite.”

gabrielxnikephoros‌:

“You, of course,” Gabriel flashed a smile in the other’s direction, glancing away from Silas after a moment so he could actually turn and see what was in the other’s store. It hadn’t taken long for the incubus to decide that he was definitely going to be dragging the other into all sorts of trouble. It had begun some sort of unruly friendship between the two, and he’d be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy the company of Silas. “When are you closing up shop? I think I promised to show you an even better time tonight than like…last week’s night. This one involves a tea recipe stealing scandal.”

“You had me at tea recipe, but started loosing me at stealing scandal,” the fellow cubi said without much conviction, but held onto a curious expression. The last so-called adventure left Silas setting up ground rules for what Gabriel was allowed to toss him into, along with some warning so he could behave accordingly. “And I’ve got a client in a half hour picking up a table, so fortunately for you— I close up shop after that,” a slight grin fluttered back onto Silas’s lips at the idea of what he could be stepping into. For once the unknown gave him more sense of excitement than total dread, a quality that his new friend was the root cause of.

leightonhaywood‌:

“Interesting line of work.” Useful, probably lucrative considering how full of supernaturals the bay was. Leighton took another sip of his tea as he thought back to his London flat. He really didn’t have anything “magical” aside from maybe a few books about healing magic. Which were kind of pointless, but he liked them anyways. It’s not like he had anything against magic, he was sure if he found something that interested him enough, he’d get it. He’d just never bothered searching for anything. 

“What do you find around here usually?” There were a lot of historical sites, local artisans and such, but he was curious. Corinth was a hub for the supernatural for a reason, surely it was brimming with magical things all over the place. Maybe that was something he should be looking into. “Solely speaking as someone with not much interest in such things.”

“A lot of jewelry,” the cubi started, placing his mind on several gold and copper pieces that had been enchanted for different purposes. As he had learned more about the supernatural world after his transition, Silas realized how much power was in the objects that dangled around everyone’s necks. Charm spells, anointed in magical oils, various stones that could even make a mere human more fortunate and those were the hot ticket items. The only thing that was truly different was the details or the style, which varied from different regions and forged with a contrast of items. “Masks, coins— bronze trinkets. Some of them just seem like completely ordinary things sitting on your grandmother’s hearth, but actually help find magical ingredients. Kind of like a metal detector,” a smile holding, clearly speaking from experience and still enjoyed talking with the client that took it in. An older gentleman whose eyes were not as good as his younger years and paid Silas a little extra just for being polite. “Though the objects I find are just as interesting as the people that seek them, in my experience,” his usual tone, but with a sour punch at the end that the cubi couldn’t quite control. He saw many different types, not just the good side where people cherished the object and it sat on a shelf. No, some lusted for darkness in a way that Silas had never seen— even at war.

gabrielxnikephoros​:

Gabriel had idly wondered how Silas had fared during the entire ordeal, though the other incubus had drifted from his mind after their argument. He’d told himself that he didn’t need to take care of the other cubi in the city, not when he had his own issues to deal with – and with the exception of Kasandra. Fran, Silas, and Chris were going to have to just deal. Though that didn’t mean he didn’t care, it was just difficult for him to maintain any kind of balance in his personal life. 

The sound of Silas’ voice only made him frown, the usual joy he felt seeing the other somewhat tampered by their last conversation. Setting the book down, he looked at his friend, “Being one of the only librarians here, I can take a break whenever I want.” He flipped the little sign around on the desk to say “on break,” looking at the other incubus expectantly. “Do you need something?”

Being ruthless and unfeeling was never in Silas’s dna. Even after all these years, along with the transition into an incubus, it was hard for him to altogether let go of the person he was in the past. He felt that now more than ever as the guilt was more prominent than before, charcoal irises locking onto Gabriel’s solemn expression, and gave him an empathetic look in return. Gabe wasn’t the one that had lied or acted out of his usual ways, Silas had. Now that the Kyun was mostly back to himself, bags still present under his eyes even with all the sleep, it was easy for him to stick with the path of patience. “I just want to apologize for the way I acted and treated you,” the words came out smooth and heartfelt. It wasn’t hard for him to admit when he had behaved in the wrong fashion, to confront the issue and take accountability, “A friend should never be treated so poorly.” Silas allowed the silence to take over from there, not wanting to add more onto what should be simple. He had overstepped his boundaries once and it was now in Gabriel’s hands to either forgive or keep their divide. How things had been since the two parted ways was hardly any of the fellow cubi’s concern and the destruction of the scale was information he would only give if asked.

What are three things necessary to your happiness? Family, honesty and creativity.

petravidalis‌:

Permanence wasn’t something Petra was used to. So, whenever she set out to find things to decorate her apartment with, she almost always did a one-eighty and left. Buying something meant she was actually looking at her apartment as a place she could call home, and that terrified her. The voice had drawn her away from a path down memory lane and Petra’s attention was on the other for a few heartbeats, looking him over. She wasn’t distrustful of the owner of the simple shop, but she also knew in a place like Corinth Bay, there was always more than meets the eye. “Several things,” Petra replied, short and less than sweet —- her usual tone. “Do you have anything built with minerals, any crystals?” That was her element, the constant she liked to surround herself with. “Good for decoration?”

A gentle nod came from the cubi as he moved closer to the counter top, hand signaling towards the front of his shop, “We have a few small pieces on that shelf there.” An honest phrase as the shelf really only offered trinkets; boxes with crystals as handles, agate replacement door knobs, geodes as cup holders, and various carved statues. But she had said several things, which mean she could be the right owner for— “ Unless you are looking for something a bit larger than that.” His smile continued as he walked around the counter, still keeping his distance to respect his customers space, “I’ve got a few slab style that could be wall mounted or rested.” However, Silas didn’t feel as though she was the type to desire something as generic as that. Even as a human it was easy for him to sense auras and pair objects with people. It was practically in his dna. Which left him with one last option and a long silent pause hung in between them, “It does still need some work, but could be a really nice table if you want to see it.”

beau-zale‌:

“A real professional, huh?” A smirk graced his lips but Beau didn’t take his eyes off the mentioned jewel in the case. He didn’t care so much for authenticity aside from it being something that would last long. Even in his old age he’d never thought to particularly go for something pricey, it was all about the aesthetic. And frankly, he was a sucker for garnets to begin with. Anything deep in color, rubies, moonstone, that kind of thing had always attracted him. The mentioned piece was definitely ticking all of his boxes, there wasn’t much need for this guy to talk it up, he had eyes. But still, he could appreciate an artisan, somebody who knew what they were talking about. Straightening, he crossed his arms over his chest and just looked at the tired looking man. That festival must have really done a number on him, he wasn’t surprised. Everyone seemed a little worse for wear. Which was truly a pity, he was being robbed of so many attractive faces due to lack of sleep.

 Not like that ever really deterred him.

But still.

Supposed he was, though the incubus wasn’t sure if that’s what he would actually call himself. Skilled, maybe. Trained enough to know the difference between a fake and an item that was actually real, letting the word professional hang in the air. Silas almost liked it, only having heard his father’s clients say those kinds of words but never to him. He had always been the apprentice or looked at as a rookie, someone that tried to sell clutter instead of genuine products and worked hard to drive a wedge between that outlook. Instead of boasting, Silas simply shrugged and continued to unlock the case. A click reverberated as the lock came loose and Silas pulled the ring out of the man to examine. It felt as though the two were meant for each other, the same kind of appeal and charm that complimented without seeming gaudy. “Suits you well,” he stated as a fact, a dreamy grin embellishing the dark circles that hung below his charcoal irises as fingertips passed the item over. Noticing the way the man’s eyes lit up as the ring was gently placed onto his finger, the incubus assumed there was no reason to place it back and started to lock up the cabinet again, “As if it was meant to be, so to speak.”