strut it out, walk a mile, serve it ancient city style !

He didn't hear a single word out of the witch's mouth, the sound of his breathing drowned everything out. Disoriented, he couldn't think. This was different from waking up in a stranger's bed after getting black-out drunk. This was different from passing out and finding himself in an ambulance. This was...this was...

There was a memory, of Rhiannon ranting about how she had watched a group of men trying to catcall a girl in a bus, relentless in their pursuit, and how she had been furious that the passengers pretended to not notice how uncomfortable the situation was, that at the end of the day, only she had stepped up and told them to fuck off, receiving a bunch of insults in return. He had barely listened, just nodding and humming as he continued watching TV while she talked about how men were all disgusting, that rapists were–

Was this what they called rape? He had never heard of the reverse, that a woman could force a man to go through with it, but wasn't that what happened just now? 

A choked sob left his mouth, his hands pressed against the cool floor as if that was the only thing tying him to the earth right now, and suddenly the witch's hand touched his shoulder. He didn't notice it like he usually did when he was on the knife's edge, the feeling of his power taking life on its own. It was a feeling of darkness that immediately latched onto Autumn's hand.

His dull eyes glowed blue but there was no response, despite the energy in the room changing. His hand suddenly moved to grip hers, the monster within him taking control. It wasn't angry, it wasn't vengeful, but it was hungry, and Autumn had unwittingly freed it from the cage of self-control Hywel usually had.

There was a reason why Hywel still lived with his sister, even if they had long decided to have separate apartments due to their varying lifestyle. Once the beast was out, there was nothing he could do to rein it in. It was worse when supernaturals were involved; that was where all their research went into, after all. As delicious as it was, stealing time from a creature like himself, it had dire consequences for him. The last time it had happened...well, he could still feel those memories that didn't exactly belong to himself swimming inside his head.

Hywel wasn't really there anymore. Whatever he was, it had taken over, clutching onto the woman as it drained her of her life, his own skin glowing for a moment, as if smoothing every wrinkle and every sign that he had grown any older since the disaster.

If Autumn had taken any more time pulling away from his grasp, she probably wouldn't have been able to throw him off. The moment the connection severed, the glow of his eyes faded to reveal the dazed expression of the man, confused and lost, as when he had just woken up from the trance Autumn had pulled him into. For a moment, he seemed like he was fine, like he was alive with all the energy in the world. His skin glowed, and he rose on shaky legs, like a newborn faun, stilling himself for a brief second before proceeding to vomit his lunch all over the floor, heaving as his chest burned.

There was a reason Rhiannon was always here for this. The dissonance between him and his power meant that he couldn't quite digest it without giving over his consciousness to a beast who knew no limits, only power. It often took the help of the other witch to get him back in control of his own body, and a few potions and a power transference to make sure he recovered okay.

But this was clearly not the case as he heaved, shaky arms still propping him up as he leaned into the side of the couch for something to balance him, his heart beating rapidly, painfully loud. It was a battle, between an exhausted consciousness and a beast that wanted more. The man looked up to Autumn, and for a moment, all he could think of was that she deserved it. She flung the door wide open without any awareness of its consequences; maybe it'd serve her right if he stopped fighting himself like this. So he was going to die like this? Lose like this? Huh.

With that, he drifted out of consciousness once again.

He didn't come around until later, his eyes felt sticky when he finally awoke. God, his body ached as if he had been thrown around in a cement mixer that had spat him out onto the ground. His arms and legs felt so heavy, even sitting up made him grit his teeth in pain, tears almost welling up in his eyes at how sick he felt. The moment he was fully upright, a choked gag left his mouth, as if his body was still trying to retch something up, trying to empty the contents of his stomach onto the ground...except there was nothing left, just spittle leaving his lips. Everything in his mouth tasted horrible, and his throat felt like sandpaper.

What happened? Where the fuck was he? He tried to recall the day before but everything just felt...blurry. The same kind of blurry that came up when he'd try to remember the night everything changed. A strange feeling washed over him; he should remember it. He hadn't taken anything or drank anything–he had been clean for more than a month this time. Using the couch to support him as he stood, he looked for his phone.

The only thing he felt was a need to get out of here. This house was stifling, and something about this space felt unwelcoming despite all of its appearances. It felt...dark, as if the house itself didn't want him to know why he had woken up with just faded images in his mind.

He contemplated calling Rhiannon to pick him up but he knew she'd rant about how irresponsible he was, how he always put himself in such ridiculous situations, how he was the older one and still acted like a child and he'd snipe back something about how he wasn't her kid and that she could compensate for that elsewhere by...hmm, maybe getting married and finding someone else to bother...ugh he could already hear her stupid mother hen lecture.

His phone was still on a table. He reached for it, frowning at the 6% left of his battery life and the 20 messages ranging from 'oi boss wya thought u were in today' and 'hey is silvy with you? she's not in my flat rn where are you?' Right. The cat. He felt his face flush at his own assumptions–that his sister would be angry rather than worried–and he quickly opened the uber app, trying to find the closest location he could hopefully make to before the cab arrived.

Jesus, his body hurt, and he was sure he hadn't just spent the last what, ten hours getting thrown around by a vampire this time? It never felt like this unless...unless...the realization shook him fully awake as he stumbled forward, heading towards the bathroom. The mirror...oh shit, he did look younger.

So that was why. A shudder ran down his spine. Was this the house of someone he accidentally killed? He shoved the phone back into his pocket. The uber could wait. He had a bad feeling about whoever lived here.

He didn't know why, but the moment he saw Autumn, he could feel his stomach lurch as if he was going to throw up. He remembered her but he couldn't exactly piece what why. His memories were still fuzzy. Something about meeting her at a park, having a cup of tea in the room, something about her being a witch...everything else seemed to be hidden from view. What the fuck? He couldn't understand why he couldn't remember anything.

"What the hell am I doing here?" he croaked out, "and why the fuck do I feel like I got run over by a train?"

He was just as wary of her as she was of him, and for good measure too. Waking up somewhere after feeling this drained never meant a good thing for him. He had clearly not intended to stay here either, and the atmosphere was oppressing. The air never felt as stale and heavy as it did right now.

"You're a witch aren't ya?" he gritted his teeth. He didn't trust witches; that was something that had been trained into him as a child, and he wondered how he had so willingly followed this woman to her home without a second thought or doubt. Rhiannon was definitely going to kill him if she ever found out.

"What the hell did you do to me?" he snapped, "why can't I remember why I'm here?" He could remember them talking on a bench, something about her being from the coven and some innocent conversation about the New York scene...and nothing else. This was unnatural, not in a way that things would slowly clear up.

He felt like she had something to hide, and whatever she took from his memory, he needed it back. Whatever trust or kinship they had built up earlier, it had all but dissipated.

It didn't make sense. Now that she mentioned it, he could feel his memories slowly slip through. The botanical gardens, talking with this woman, the healing...yet that didn't seem to be all. He closed his eyes, and he could remember the medicinal taste of the tea. He hadn't noticed it earlier, but the strange after taste was starting to sour in his mouth.

"No," he hissed, "I don't...I can get back myself." He didn't trust this woman, and maybe when he got back home, Rhiannon could figure all of this out. His sister was a talented witch after all, even if she wasn't to this one's level. There were few people he could trust, and not truly remembering put Autumn on the naughty list.

He really had no reason to distrust her, but at the same time, he couldn't shake the idea that maybe something else happened. His powers never activated like this without his knowledge, and despite his body screaming in pain afterwards, he always remembered. It was difficult not to.

The man stumbled towards the door, tossing Autumn one last glance before leaving. Despite not wanting to call his sister, he doubted that he'd stay awake for an uber ride in his condition. He dialed her number.

"Hey Rhi?" he spoke.

"Where the fuck are you?" the irritated voice came from the other girl, "I've called you a few times last night; Sylvi isn't back yet. Is he with you?"

"I–" he suddenly was at a loss for words.

"Hey, what's wrong? Where are you?" Rhiannon's voice softened into one of worry, "send me your location. Do you need me to pick you up?"

He mumbled the location, quickly sending her the google maps as he moved forward towards the main street. He needed to leave this place as quickly as he could.

HAHAHA omfg sorry I took my time I was feeling uninspired and now I'm inspired

---

Rhiannon found him on the steps of a bodega looking more haggard than usual. "You look like shit," she spoke nonchalantly, her expression full of distaste at her brother's antics. He was always like this; the man took any excuse to take a night off and get drunk off his ass. It had been like this since the twenties, why did she think any of this would change? Perhaps he wasn't as impulsive and wild as he had been in the seventies but still–

When Hywel looked up, her mood shifted from annoyance to concern. Okay, something was definitely wrong. Even when he was high as a kite, he didn't look this drained or distraught. "Let's get into the cab," she frowned, helping him up. Damn it, he was heavy.

The ride was short, and they kept silent. She glanced towards the man, noting that he was practically asleep. It was only when they were back in her apartment, when she had passed a hot cup of tea into his waiting hands. "Okay, what happened?" she asked, the grim expression on her face reflected her worry for him.

Hywel frowned. "I..." he started, staring at the contents of the cup, "I don't remember. I was in a garden, I went to some witch's home for tea...she said–" He hesitated. Should he admit this to her? He knew she'd find him foolish, to go against her wishes, to think that anyone could cure him of his own power.

"She said she was like us, she just wanted to talk and next thing I know," he murmured, "I woke up. I don't know what else happened but–"

"You used your powers?" she spoke curiously, "and you can't remember?"

Hywel shook his head. "I don't know why this changed...I know the years start taking a toll but I've never...felt like this after. It feels different, like," he swallowed, "I feel like I don't know who I am." His voice was small, as she silently cast a spell simply to run diagnostics. There was nothing out of the ordinary other than the usual drain his body took with the powers. It hadn't lasted long, and it was a miracle he hadn't overloaded. Strange. If he had forgotten, it wasn't due to his powers, it was something else.

"Come on, you need your rest," she sighed, "I can't solve this when you're not back to normal."

---

It had been months since the incident, and while Hywel had been shaken by it, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Whatever had happened, Rhiannon couldn't quite rule out anything, and it grated on her nerves, that she couldn't figure out everything on her own. She didn't even know the witch's name, and Hywel wouldn't say. Frankly, she worried for him. He had a tendency to just compartmentalise like he always did with everything else. Frankly, it wasn't that he had a terrible memory, but it was clear to her he wanted to forget. She never pushed when it came down to things like this. 

Frankly, whatever his power took last time had left him out of commission for longer than usual. He was honestly happy that he hadn't died, but whatever had happened, it had sated his hunger for a while, but he could feel the sting of it in the back of his throat, the restlessness, the tingle of his hands that said how much the creature within him wanted to be fed. 

Rhiannon was prepared for that. 

She had scouted around this hospital for a while, wondering what to make of it. Hospitals were easy prey after all, they could easily pretend to be nurses in the hustle and the bustle, no? They walked in as if they had done this for years. "Ready?" she turned to her brother as he fixed the collar of his shirt.

"Ready." 

The hospital's sterile smell always made Hywel's nose twitch, a reminder of a time he'd rather not think about. He'd never admit it to Rhiannon, but the fact that he couldn't exactly remember how he had lost control that night, months ago, still bothered him. Of course, it was easy enough to compartmentalize; he had done it his whole life. It was simple enough to pretend that nothing happened, to go back to work the next day all fake smiles and friendly banter, but not knowing always put Hywel in a bad mood. Powerless was not a feeling he enjoyed, and that was exactly how that felt, even more so than usual.

"Eleventh floor, a man called John Cooper. In his 80s, had a stroke a few months back, the family can't afford the medical bills. They'll think he's taken a turn for the worse and passed on," Rhiannon spoke without a shred of emotion in her voice. She turned to pass Hywel a hospital ID, only to notice that he had stopped still. Her brow furrowed, before turning to where he was looking, assuming he probably recognized some guy he met at a club or something; hospitals were always bad when it came to this, especially with how reckless her brother was–

a woman? Well that was out of the ordinary. Her expression smoothed into a nonchalant one as the woman came forward, and suddenly Rhiannon could feel a weight lift from her chest, making her stop for a moment. A witch? Usually they were more discrete about this; she could feel unease slip into her own heightened senses, despite the other witch's powers. Who was she? She turned to Hywel with a sharp look; rule number one was to never get involved with the rest of the supernatural community.

When Autumn gave an introduction, she gave her a double take. Botanical gardens? Wait, this couldn't be–?

Hywel, on the other hand, had his face drained of color, suddenly feeling his palms start sweating. Autumn. That was her, the girl, the one he woke up to see, the one he drained without a single memory of, the one... wait, she wasn't pregnant the last time they spoke. Frankly, she had never mentioned it either, or had he not noticed? His brow furrowed, confused to why this was his fixation...

Oh. He drew a sharp breath, taking a step back. Oh shit.

He had spent weeks trying to remember and now, he kind of wished he didn't. They came in bits and pieces. Her glowing eyes that had seemed so captivating, how relaxed he felt, and then suddenly the feeling of not being in control, of existing in his body while unable to manouver in it, of her straddling him, of him, trapped in his head trying to claw his way out and then the darkness, taking over–

"I need some air," he croaked out, his eyes meeting Rhiannon's for a brief second before he stumbled out of the hospital lobby, leaving the two women behind.

What. The. Fuck. Rhiannon's first instinct was to chase after the man, to calm him down and to figure out what was wrong, but if she went now, perhaps she'd never find out what was going on. She could put two and two together. Hywel had mentioned being in the botanical garden months ago-one of his favorite places–and now he avoided it like the plague after that incident. She was a witch. She was in the botanical garden.

"You better tell me who you are right now and what you did," Rhiannon spoke in a cold voice, "and what the hell all of this is before I curse you to hell. I don't care if people are watching, but it seems like you have plenty to lose." She glanced at the woman's pregnant belly.