I'm Friends with the Monster Under my Bed [Tony]

Jude had known that this moment would come.

He'd been working with the Nightmare League for roughly a year now. The original seven months of his servitude to Oogie had run their course and he'd managed to get a hold on his habit to keep his debt from spiralling and that time extending. He'd gone into this expecting to want to be free the second his debt was repaid. And yet, once those seven months had ticked by he found himself unwilling to leave. The Nightmare League had, weirdly, become something of a home for him. It was the one place where he wasn't living a lie, wasn't having to put on a mask and a persona and pretend to be someone he wasn't. And as much as he tried to tell himself that that was it, that was the reason... it really wasn't. It was like he had spent his life trying to be a square piece in a circular hole and had suddenly discovered a square hole to fit into. The work that he was doing at the Devil's Den - the things that he was learning from Bertram - this was what he was made for.

So far his time had been quiet. Evenings spent brewing, then any spare time silently observing Bertram from the corner of his lab. The man was a genius. Jude felt constantly in awe, like he was in the presence of a true master. The guilt that he felt for 'cheating' on Noemi had gradually been replaced with good old self-interest. Bertram was what Jude needed for his own personal progress. Surely Noemi wouldn't deny him that, if she knew. And she still didn't know. At least, Jude hadn't told her - as per his agreement with the skeleton man. Perhaps she had her own sources though. She operated out of Knockturn and many of Oogie's employees and associates used her shop and deli. Maybe she'd heard talk about 'Jude' the young potions apprentice in the Nightmare League and put two and two together. He wanted to tell her... he really did. But he also quite liked not having his still-beating heart ripped out through his open chest (something he'd heard that Oogie was fond of doing) and had no intention of disobeying the infamous kingpin.

But Jude had known that his quiet life wouldn't last forever. One couldn't be part of a criminal organisation without a certain amount of risk - he'd always known that at the back of his mind. At some point he would have to face the reality of the Nightmare League. The bits he tried not to think about. The torture. The murder. Not thinking about these things had been Jude's survival tactic. He'd never thought of himself as a 'dark' wizard. Live and let live was the way he went about his life. He tried not to harm others... but he'd never charged into battle to defend the innocent either. He was able to put a certain amount of detachment in place by simply not asking how and where and on whom the potions he created were used. Some of them had particularly nasty effects - but Jude didn't see that side of things. He saw the bubbling cauldron and neat bottled vials. He didn't have to think about the people who suffered because of his talent. And on the odd occasion it did cross his mind, he justified it to himself. Innocent people didn't have reason to cross Oogie's path. They got what they had coming.

But now came the moment that Jude had been long dreading - an assignment that took him out of the potions lab and into the depths of the world he'd been swimming the surface of. In simple terms, it was a shopping trip. Except in this case the produce was a series of extremely rare and valuable potions and ingredients, and the shop was someone who refused to sell those things to Oogie. Or perhaps the things had been Oogie's to begin with? Jude was hazy on those details but the facts were clear - these were things that Oogie wanted, and Jude was tasked with retrieving them. Apparently the man in possession of these things - a Mr. Levithan - was a recluse and an alchemist. Someone without potions knowledge might come away with the wrong things, which is why Jude was given the task, although thankfully he was not going alone. One of Oogie's enforcers, Antonio Mackey, would be coming along too. Jude wasn't sure if he was comforted or discomforted by this fact. Of course he didn't want to walk into a potentially dangerous situation without some muscle at his side - fights and duels had never really been his strong point - but he'd also heard plenty of rumours about the man who Jude imagined as some kind of beserker that liked to tear people apart with his bare hands.

He let out a huff of air as he walked into the bar area of the Devil's Den. He was dressed rather smartly - slim dark trousers, black oxfords, black plain tshirt and black blazer. His binder and packer helped him to pass. Effeminate male. He'd been working on his voice too, and it did seem a little lower these days, although perhaps that was mostly wishful thinking. Personally, he still felt that his biological sex was guessable, but he tried to bury that anxiety beneath false confidence. False confidence, Jude had decided, was what a lot of the underworld was based on. Any hint of fear was weakness, and thankfully Jude had always been excellent at hiding his emotions behind a stone facade. He carried what appeared to be a briefcase, and with his hair neatly styled back, he looked like he was on his way back from a fashionable city office. Clothes had always been something of a battleground for him, but these days he was starting to get comfortable with his style. And at least if he got blood on his clothes, he knew a recipe for an excellent stain removal potion.

@Antonio Mackey and lots of mentions of @Oogie Boogie del Olmo

The corner he rested in was dark, allowing him to sit without notice as he watched the patrons around him. Light blue eyes drifting lazily across the room as a glass of scotch was lifted to full lips. The long inked fingers of his free hand drummed against the table, he was trying to behave himself. His time working for the bone man had been what he’d been missing. The empty spot inside him was no longer there and the man found it harder to deny himself the darker side of his urges. He had purpose now, someone allowing him his simple pleasures but also there to keep him reigned in. The small bits of compassion and mercy he held, owed thanks to his wife, his family kept him intact.

Without an anchor he would be a monster, the thing he’d been before her. His gaze snapped to the left and he watched as Jude walked into the room. His chest rose as he took a deep breath, twirling the amber liquid in the glass before taking another sip. He wasn’t too sure how he felt about the assignment but he didn’t raise a fuss. He preferred to work alone, it was better that way. Sometimes he forgot himself. Thud came the soft sound of his glass touching table before he was standing.  His ensemble was all black all except the stark red converse he wore, a small indicator to the mood he was in. His hand rose to fix the black fitted hat lower over his eyes as he moved forward.

His head tilted to the side as his gaze swept over his partner in crime for the night. Long legs carried his tall frame quickly so that he could come to stand directly in front of Jude. His pale eyes drifted over his face for a moment before a slow smile made its way to his lips. “Well, this should be fun.”  Why they were going to get whatever it was Tony didn’t care, it wasn’t his concern. His concern was to make sure that Jude came back unharmed. The white soles of his shoes lifted as he rocked on the tip of his toes, almost giddy for what may come.

He hoped – beyond hope – that this man, Mr. Levithan, would refuse so that he could have a bit of fun. His day had been busy; the fading red stains on his hands said that as they came to rest on the rim of his hat. “So, tell me. Will you be able to hold it together?” His brow arched beneath his hat as his pale eyes bore into the potioneer.  “I will do my job amazingly if you do well under pressure.” He couldn’t be sure he’d ever seen Jude actually go anywhere and that worried him. Being worried didn’t sit well with him so he had to ask to be sure. His hand dropped from his hat to come out in front of him, “Reaper.” he introduced himself with that same slow smile that missed his eyes.

Antonio Mackey never walked through the doors of the Devil’s Den; he couldn’t, not if he wanted his soul to survive. It was a promise made to his wife while they talked late into the night one day after he’d just become an enforcer. Once he had his feet in his converse he was no longer a husband, no longer a father or a son. He was the thing that went bump in the night and held no remorse for his actions. “How much time will you need…if a problem does arise?”

Jude noticed the other man approaching out of the corner of his eye and turned to face him. Once he was standing in front of him, Jude felt dwarfed. Whereas he was on the shorter side of average (for a guy anyway), the other man was a wall - easily 6'4 or higher to Jude's estimation, and built like a prize bull. Reminding himself that they were on the same side, he made a decision on his earlier indecisiveness - the man's presence was a comfort. Jude wasn't surprised by the man's opening line - whereas to Jude this was a job and a test of his metal, apparently his companion for the night saw it more as entertainment. Was it coincidence that he'd been paired up with someone that rumours said was deeply violent, filled with blood lust and lacking mercy? Or perhaps it was a part of the test. Jude had no doubts that there was more to this 'mission' than met the eye. Oogie had other potioneers he could have sent. It felt like a trial by fire.

"Mmh, sure," he replied with a non-committal tone. Although as he said it, he knew that there was a part of him excited for what lay ahead. He was eager to see exactly what lay in this man's lab. He was under instructions to return the listed items... but should there prove to be trouble, anything else was fair game. And given what was on the list, Jude expected there would be other unlisted items of note. Fuck, he hoped the man was sitting on a stockpile of boomslang.

He raised an eyebrow at Antonio's next words. Aha, the crux of the matter. The question that Jude had been asking himself constantly since he'd been given this little assignment. "I thrive on pressure." he replied in a steel tone. That, at least, was honesty. Whether he would be able to hold it together or not, he really didn't know, but he hoped for his sake that the answer was yes because he'd always assumed that failure wasn't much of an option when it came to Oogie Boogie. Not if he wanted to keep on doing the living thing, anyway.

He shook the man's hand, lips twitching into a hint of a smirk at the name offered. "Nice," he responded, his hand steady, palm cool and dry. "And I'm Jude." he added. Not a fancy nickname, but also not his 'real' name either although it felt a damn sight realer than Juliette ever had.

Reaper's next question drew a heavy exhale from the potion's apprentice. "Too many unknown factors to estimate," he responded. And how he hated not knowing things. "Could be a one-room lab with nicely-labelled vials... could be multiple floors of maze-like sprawls with things scattered haphazardly. Never know with these mad-inventor types. Plus if he suspects we're coming, then there might be protections to deal with." Jude's hand clenched and loosened around the handle of the briefcase. He'd prepared as thoroughly as he could. He had no idea whether Reaper had any experience with curses and enchantments, but Jude was hoping that as Mr Levithan's expertise lay in potions, any charmwork would be possible to break through.

He met Reaper's eyes, "And if he does create 'trouble', which let's be honest, I think we're both expecting, then it would be useful for him to be alive and able to talk for a while... " his lips curled into a smirk again as he mentally leafed through the various rumours and facts he had about the man in front of him. "Although I get the impression that you're the type who prefers to take things nice and slow anyway, right?" He had to admit, there was a certain amount of curiosity there... and dare he even say it a morbid type of respect. He'd see whether that translated into the real world, though, wouldn't he?

He wondered for a moment if Jude knew the rumors that followed his name were all true. He was exceptionally violent. He had a bloodlust that had slipped into his marriage, it was truly insatiable. His need to kill another living person was stronger than acceptable. He was chaotic and ruthless, finding joy in the destruction of others. Tony was a rabid dog who’d been caged too long. He’d clawed at his confines and tore the better parts of himself away to be free. He was unleashed on the world with no regard for the outcome of his debauchery. The only way to stop him was to put him down and that was a task left for those not faint of heart. He saw through false confidence and smelled fear as if he was a predator stalking its prey. He lived for the moment a person realized his would be the last face they would see. He didn't care about the darkness that now scarred his soul, bits of him were safe, his wife held what was most important. His lips twitched as he stared down at Jude, he was so fragile looking. The demon inside him clocked the other as easy prey, he would be overpowered easily. He wouldn't have the strength to fight back and in his mind Tony could hear the blood curdling scream when it all sunk in.

Long lashes lowered over his eyes as the voice of his partner touched his ears. His mind came crashing back into the bar and the frown distorted his handsome features before the hat was lifted from his head. “We all like to think we thrive..” his jaw clenched then softened “..until we're buried deep with no escape.” He sounded amused though his face was clear of an actual emotion. “I just want a fair warning beforehand, no offense to you.” Though, he knew if Jude proved useless he would be the one begging to end him. He would want the task to simply help the other find a bit of courage before he would meet a swift end. As much as the Englishman wanted to root for the smaller framed man he knew that he wanted to destroy him more. Tony assumed if he would get the chance Oogie would tell him, so, for now he would keep Jude safe. He would make sure they returned alive, hopefully exhausted and satisfied on both ends. The exoskeleton on his left hand stretched as it was flexed, long fingers running down his freshly cut hair onto his face. He was itching to hurt something, itching to give in to the darker parts of himself for his enjoyment.

Jude wasn't afraid or at least that fear was hidden well, it intrigued the former Gryffindor.  It made him want to test the limits of Jude’s bravery. “I hope he's expecting us.” His deep voice grew dark and his eyes glinted dangerously, “What fun would it be if he simply handed everything over.” Besides a bit of resistance would wake the man up, it would get his blood pumping. He knew, just like the other might, he would take things for himself. His head tilted, lips pursed, before he chuckled. He could see his part of the assignment playing out in his head and if reality was anything like his imagination then the night would be as equally exciting as it was all business. He had never been the type to play with his food but sometimes prolonging the experience would be good for all involved, well maybe all.

“I find that getting answers is an art…and I am an artist.” He grinned as he responded to Jude’s hope the man would be alive long enough to give them what they needed. The soft sound of the knife at his waist being removed from its sheath touched the air as the silver gleamed bright. “See people forget that being broken isn't about pain.” The blade rested in the space between them as he spoke, “Its about destroying a person's will. Taking from them the small glimmer of hope they may be holding on to.” His head tilted as the tip of his finger slid along the blade, drawing blood, his pale eyes watched the red liquid make it way down his finger with intense interest. “So, you're right I like things nice and slow.” The blade twirled and seconds later it was back in it's resting place as he leaned, eating up some of the distance between them. His voice dropped to a deadly whisper as he gave a half smile, “Are you sure you have the stomach for just in case and maybes, because Jude, those are the things that make this fun for me.” He grinned, “I hope for resistance and long for the fear that will set into his eyes, so let's hope I get what I want.” For the sake of a stranger who just might be in the wrong place at the wrong time if he didn’t.