The Grimoire's Chosen Ch. 4 (Worm) (Patreon)

A/N: Jason and Crystal go and get coffee.

-x-X-x-

There was no way Crystal was asking him out on a date. Which meant that she had something rather serious to talk to him about. Hiding his sudden anxiety behind a smile he plasters across his face, Jason nods.

“Sure, that sounds good to me. Uh, I have a short amount of time between here and work around three if that works for you?”

Crystal’s eyes light up, and then she frowns.

“Yes that works for me! Oh, but that’s right… you work in a coffee shop, don’t you? We can do something else if you prefer…”

Maybe if Jason had thought this was an actual date he would have taken Crystal up on that offer. But seeing as he knows it’s not, he just shakes his head and chuckles.

“It’s no problem. We can just go someplace different from my work, if that’s alright with you.”

“Yeah, sure!”

And with that, the not-a-date is set. Jason and Crystal get back to work, exchanging small talk here and there, but with Carol all but breathing down their necks, Jason doesn’t dare spend too much time ‘distracted’. He’s already pissed the woman off enough by being late after all.

-x-X-x-

Ding!

Transformation Pendant – Illusion – 100 points

A cool pendant one can attach to their clothes or wear around their neck. By pressing a button or flipping a switch you can change clothes in an instant, into a different pre-prepared set.

You now have 500 points saved up!

His latest pull comes right as he’s holding the door open for Crystal. Jason doesn’t react of course, having gotten rather good at nonreactions at this point. However, he does do a double take after giving the pull a cursory glance over. A… Transformation Pendant?

It wasn’t as strong as it seemed at a first glance. It didn’t let you disguise yourself. But it did let you change clothes in an instant, and that… that actually sounded quite good. Only a hundred points as well, and Jason had more than enough to buy it.

He does hesitate for a moment though. What the fuck was up with his power’s pricing? How was a transformation pendant supposed to be equal in value to a whole-ass refinery? Jason honestly couldn’t say. But one thing was for sure… he was taking this one.

The only thing he doesn’t know for sure is where it’ll put the pendant if he accepts right now. Thinking fast, he turns to Crystal and gives her an apologetic smile.

“Hey, do you mind if I use the restroom real quick?”

“Oh! No problem, want me to get something for you since I’m already in line?”

Giving Crystal his usual coffee order, Jason heads off. Luckily this coffee shop’s bathroom is both a single person deal and unlocked. He’s able to slip inside, lock the door behind him… and then finally accept his second ‘power’. Not that it’s actually much of a power. But Jason will take whatever he can get at this point.

Keep.

Transformation Pendant Purchased! 400 Points Remain!

Jason had been afraid the pendant would appear in the middle of the air in front of him until he grabbed it or something, maybe glowing with a bright light like items in a video game sometimes did. That doesn’t happen, thankfully. Instead, the Transformation Pendant appears in his right hand, causing Jason to look down at it in wonder. It’s a small thing, on a relatively unassuming silver chain. With a shaky breath, Jason puts it around his neck, hiding it under his clothes.

Immediately, he can feel the pendant going to work. If he wanted to, he could have it suck in his current set of clothing so that he could put on more. Jason doesn’t do that, of course. But he DOES designate his current clothes as a ‘prepared set’ so that he can toy with it later. For now though, after stroking the pendant through his shirt for a moment, Jason schools his face, getting rid of the goofy smile he finds on it when he looks in the mirror. Then, he heads out of the bathroom after pretending to wash up.

By the time he returns to her, Crystal already has their orders and has gotten a table. Trying not to dwell too much on his newest acquisition, Jason sits down and takes a sip from his drink, finding it to be perfectly prepared. He gives Crystal a reassuring smile when she eyes him hopefully.

“Perfect, thanks.”

Shrugging, the older girl just lets out a little laugh.

“Ah, well… I just followed your instructions, really.”

Jason nods, humming as he takes another draw from the cup. Then, he sets it down and raises an eyebrow.

“So… what’d you want to talk about, exactly? I’m not silly enough to think this is an actual date or anything like that.”

Jason lets out a little self-deprecating laugh at that, to show he’s just joking around. Even if part of him wishes it was a date, he’s smarter than that. And judging by the look on Crystal’s face, he was right to be as well. For a second, Crystal Pelham looks mortified.

“O-Oh! Oh no, I didn’t even think about that when I asked… Jason, I’m so sorry if I-!”

But Jason just waves her off with an easy-going smile. Sure, maybe some very tiny piece of him had held out hope that it WAS a date right up until this point, but he’d known better. No harm, no foul.

“All good, Crystal. Like I said, I’m not that dumb.”

She still looks a little regretful, taking a moment to sip from her own drink in order to hide her distress. When she’s finally done however…

“Look, Jason… I just want to be clear that it’s not like I wouldn’t want to date you. I just have a lot on my plate right now. Between college and being Laserdream, I-!”

“Holy shit, you’re Laserdream!”

Speaking of which. Jason leans back as Crystal, almost like she summoned them by invoking her own heroine name, finds herself dealing with a fan. They aren’t too annoying about it at least so Jason doesn’t have to get involved, but they do gush over Crystal for a moment before having her sign a corner of their T-shirt. Then, thankfully, they leave. Crystal winces as they depart, before looking at Jason like she doesn’t know what to say.

A gentle smile on his face, Jason gives her a reassuring nod.

“I’m all ears, Crystal. What did you need to meet with me about?”

Letting out a shuddering sigh, Crystal seems to gather herself up. Meanwhile, Jason prepares for the worst. He doesn’t think Carol would have Crystal dismiss him for her, but it’s not completely out of the question.

“… It’s my cousin Vicky. You might know her as Victoria Dallon… aka Glory Girl.”

Jason raises an eyebrow but nods all the same.

“I’ve heard of her, yes. Have yet to meet her though.”

Which was pretty strange in and of itself, he couldn’t help thinking. After all, Crystal’s cousin Vicky was also Carol’s daughter Vicky. They were the same person. However, Vicky didn’t attend Brockton Bay University, despite being a high school graduate. Jason had always found that odd, but it explained why he hadn’t met her yet he supposed.

“Right, yeah. That’s because Vicky decided to take a gap year after graduating high school. Rather than jumping straight into University like us, she went ahead and took a year off. Only, rather than vacationing and figuring out her life like most people would, she’s spent the past year patrolling more as Glory Girl than ever before.”

Jason hums to show he’s listening. He doesn’t really know what to say to that information. He also doesn’t really know where Crystal is going with this.

“… Some would say Vicky has been almost singlehandedly keeping New Wave in the public eye with her patrols. Some would say that’s not entirely a good thing.”

Oh? Jason raises his other eyebrow, but Crystal just shakes her head.

“Sorry, family drama. Nothing you should be worried about. The reason I’m telling you all of this is that Carol has put her foot down. Vicky has to go to college or she’s going to be cut off. Luckily, Vicky DOES want to earn a degree, so it’s not that big of a deal… and Carol was even willing to pull some strings so Vicky could take an exam that might get her into BBU too.”

At Jason’s confused head tilt, Crystal bites her lower lip and clarifies.

“Vicky’s grades in high school were… fine. But not good enough for Brockton Bay University. Part of the reason she chose the gap year was because she knew she’d wind up at community college first. Part of the reason she’s willing to entertain going back to school now is because Carol is offering her a path straight to the University. I know, I know… it’s nepotism at its finest.”

Jason just shrugs as Crystal hangs her head.

“It is what it is, Crystal. But I still don’t really understand where I come in here.”

“Oh! Right, sorry. Vicky needs tutoring. God, I really beat around the bush there, didn’t I? The exam Vicky has to take is in a month and she’s rusty on just about everything. She needs a tutor and I was hoping you might be willing to help out. Not for free or anything… I can afford to pay you a very good rate, actually! See, Carol put me in charge of finding Vicky a tutor… and well, my cousin’s family is pretty loaded thanks to the whole lawyer thing.”

Wow. That was… an offer. Jason takes a moment to process Crystal’s words. He could use the money. Of course he could use the money. Of course, he could also get a power in the next day that allowed him to create gold from nothing or something ridiculous like that. Then again, he could not as well.

That all said…

“Does Carol know you’re offering the job to me?”

He’d thought Carol hated him. Or at the very least, had a very low opinion of him. If Crystal was going behind her back then… except no. Crystal nods her head.

“Yeah, I told her. I wouldn’t keep that sort of thing from my aunt Jason. I know you think she doesn’t like you very much… but that’s just how Carol is. She didn’t have any objection to you being Vicky’s tutor, so long as it doesn’t affect your work as a TA and the two of you turned out to be compatible. And it’s really good money, Jason. Good enough that you could quit your job and still be set for the rest of the year. That kind of good.”

Jason blinks owlishly and finds himself categorizing the Pelham Family up a handful of income brackets in his head. Jesus fucking Christ, apparently being a lawyer paid really, really well. Set for the rest of the year off of a month’s work?

It honestly felt too good to be true. However, if he hadn’t had his powers, Jason doesn’t think he would have been in a position to say no to such an offer. It’s only because he has these crazy powers now that he finds himself hesitating and considering the situation from all angles.

“I… can I have the night to think it over? It’s an amazing offer, don’t get me wrong…”

Crystal smiles and nods in understanding.

“I’ve gotta get Vicky set up with the tutor in the next couple days, but you can totally give me your answer tomorrow morning. And I get it, Jason, really I do. All I’ll say is that Vicky isn’t like her mom. In fact, the two constantly butt heads because of how different they are in personality. My aunt can be… very abrasive. But Vicky is nice. You’d like her.”

A ringing endorsement if Jason has ever heard one. The two of them finish up soon after that and Jason finds himself heading to work. Taylor is already there waiting for him and the two of them relieve the day shift before getting started on the night shift. Thankfully, no Emma Barnes shows up to mess with them again this time around, and everything is almost normal, even.

Taylor also doesn’t come onto him again, nor does he come onto her. He might have if he didn’t have so many things on his mind. She definitely gives him a few looks that he doesn’t fail to notice. But she doesn’t approach him, correctly realizing that he’s lost in his own little world as the hours go by.

Fuck. On the one hand, not having to waste so many hours of the day on working at the coffee shop anymore would feel great. On the other hand, he doesn’t necessarily want to abandon Taylor. But… he doesn’t have to. If he had more free time, he wouldn’t have to spend it all on power shit. He could also make time for Taylor. Would he though? Or would he forget all about her?

… At the same time, Taylor couldn’t be his reason for sticking it out in this dead end fucking job. All things came to an end and even if he didn’t take Crystal up on her offer, he would still probably have to quit working at the coffee shop if he managed to earn the internship that Carol had offered when he’d started as her TA.

And all of THAT was ignoring the fact that with his powers, he might not wind up doing any of this for much longer. Being the Senior Barista of this Coffee Shop, going to school… how long before he was strong enough that none of it felt like it mattered anymore?

Ding!

Keen Eye – Destruction – 100 Points

You have quite the keen eyesight and kinesthetic sense my friend. I guess it comes with the territory of having to avoid things in flight. But in concern to martial skills it’s really helping with your aim - be it spellslinging, healing, offensive magics, or even any form of projectile based weapon. Perhaps you have a fairy sized bow, or slingshot? Your ranged skills would be quite good, easily the equal of any arbalist. This slightly boosts your abilities with other medieval level ballistic devices used to launch projectiles at greater ranges, like catapults and onagers. You’d do wonders helping defend a place against a siege. After all, it helps when you have the skills to actually hit a distant target.

You now have 500 Points saved up!

… What… the… fuck. Jason knows he shouldn’t be surprised. His powers have been giving him more options much faster since yesterday. At the same time though, this makes for three pulls in one day. Why? How… and more importantly than that, how has he gotten lucky enough to get two good pulls in one day?

Keep.

Keen Eye Purchased. 400 Points Remain!

It was a no-brainer. Maybe if it had been more expensive, but a hundred points for better eyesight and ‘kinesthetic’ senses? Yeah, Jason would take that. He’d take that in a heartbeat. Especially because he was sure it would help him with his use of Flash Air… and he could immediately tell after taking Keen Eye that he was right. Everything was smoother. Everything was so much clearer. He could utilize Flash Air far more efficiently like this, especially... especially in combat.

… Though once he got over his excitement, he was right back to his earlier conundrum. If only making life choices was as easy as taking or rejecting the things his power offered him…

-x-X-x-

A/N: Will try to keep this up to date at the end of every chapter, get on me if I forget please. Though if it gets too out of hand, might have to change it at some point.

Jason's current banked points:

400 Celestial Points

Jason's current powers:

• Flash Air (Gained in Chapter 1)

• Transformation Pendant (Gained in Chapter 4)

• Keen Eye (Gained in Chapter 4)