Coop doesn't know what he'd expected when he'd pulled up into Spencer and Joel's driveway but somehow, what he'd been picturing in his mind had been nothing like this. He'd nearly killed about six thousand pedestrians on his way here, had hit almost every single red light, and he'd had to call Les four times before the guy had even picked up his goddamn phone. He'd been out the door of his house before he'd even gotten off the phone with Spencer, and Coop's pretty sure he's never heard Spencer's voice sound that shaky, that fucking small in the entire time they've known each other. Spencer hadn't said much at all after Dane had been killed; in the few attempts Coop had made to talk to him, he hadn't gotten much more than some noncommittal mumbles and a nod or two.
Coop's never held that against him. He hadn't believed that Spencer had killed his family, not even for a second, and he still hasn't said that to the guy but he thinks that maybe one day, he should. They're kind of friends, he thinks, in a weird way, and mostly by proxy through Joel. But Spencer's a good guy, he'd married a good guy, and somewhere along the line, Coop's become kind of really fucking fiercely defensive of their well-being.
So he puts the pedal to the goddamn metal and floors it to get to the house and now that he's here, Coop is feeling like a complete moron because he has no idea what the hell he's supposed to do. He can't get in the house. He remembers that he'd been told about a protective charm, the only problem is that none of them had thought to do anything about it before, y'know, the demon got loose. He tries to break the barrier again, failing miserably and having to watch in horror as the thing that had been Joel just yesterday seems to lift Spencer without even touching him--like Joel with Eli Jasper that night, just like Eli Jasper--and throws him across the room. Spencer hits the wall hard enough for it to make a sickening crunch, drops to the floor, and he doesn't get up.
Coop's eyes stay on Spencer for a long moment, trying to determine whether his friend's chest is even rising or falling at all, but he can't tell from her. All he can see for sure is that there's a huge crack in the wall where Spencer's body had hit, and Coop forces himself to tear his gaze away so he can focus on Joel. On the demon. It comes toward him, floating with its eyes blackened, and Coop keeps flashing back to the night of his birthday. He remembers Joel being so angry, so goddamn infuriated that Eli would have fucked with Spencer, and he remembers that flicker of Joel's hand that had sent Eli across the lawn. That had been for Spencer. This, this had been against Spencer, and Coop doesn't know what the hell that means or what this demon's endgame is, but he guesses it doesn't really matter. Either way, if Les and Nerium don't show up soon, if Spencer doesn't wake up long enough to let him in, they're... Well, they're pretty much fucked.
The demon hovers in front of him, and Coop takes a step back out of instinct. The barrier's up but that doesn't mean the demon won't come out and if it knocks Coop out cold, too, he doesn't even really want to think about what that'll mean. It's creepy as hell, seeing Joel's body being used like this, like an actual puppet, and the thing starts spouting out words can't understand. He thinks it's Latin, maybe, can make out a word here and there that he recognizes but not enough to translate. Coop assumes that it can't really be good. "Hey, Joel, buddy," he says, hands outstretched in front of him like that might do something to assuage the demon that's controlling his friend, and he can only hope that Joel can hear him, that Joel's still present somewhere inside that body.
"Throw me a bone here, okay? Spencer's gonna kill me if I'm still out here when he wakes up so if you're in there, you gotta let me in." Coop's always been a pretty optimistic guy, he's been able to bounce back from some shit, but he wouldn't ever say that he's had a difficult life. He works hard, he plays hard, he's got good friends, he's got hobbies and no shortage of people who are happy with a strings-free sex romp--yeah, life is pretty goddamn easy for him. He's sure as shit never had to deal with this before, and he doesn't know if he's doing it right but he thinks--thinks--he sees maybe the slightest flicker in Joel's eyes and so that optimistic side, the one that's suffering a pretty hard blow right now, forces its way back to the surface.
"That's it, man, I know you're fighting. You've gotta fight, you just have to hold on a little bit longer, and you know it'll be worth it, right? You have a husband in there who loves you, okay, who'd do freakin' anything for you, you have any idea how many people would kill to have that? I've seen this before, the whole black-eyed thing is so four months ago, but remember why you did it. You did it for him, you did it for Spencer, I know you did."
Coop tries to rush the barrier again, but he's only pushed back. He groans with frustration, running his hands through his hair as he begins to pace back and forth on the stoop. He can't undo someone else's protection charm, he knows that much, so any attempts would be futile. What he needs is for Spencer to wake up or for Joel to be able to take back a little bit of control, though he doesn't even know if that's a thing his friend can even do right now. He's clueless, and he hates that, it's like being back on the island and surrounded by people he couldn't help because his powers had disappeared. What good is being a witch when he can't even help his own friends when they need it the most?
"Joel," he tries again, holding his hands up against the barrier and staring the demon in the eyes. It's eerie, having those black eyes stare back at him, but Coop holds its gaze. "Let me in, Joel. That's all you need to do, just let me in."
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Coop's never held that against him. He hadn't believed that Spencer had killed his family, not even for a second, and he still hasn't said that to the guy but he thinks that maybe one day, he should. They're kind of friends, he thinks, in a weird way, and mostly by proxy through Joel. But Spencer's a good guy, he'd married a good guy, and somewhere along the line, Coop's become kind of really fucking fiercely defensive of their well-being.
So he puts the pedal to the goddamn metal and floors it to get to the house and now that he's here, Coop is feeling like a complete moron because he has no idea what the hell he's supposed to do. He can't get in the house. He remembers that he'd been told about a protective charm, the only problem is that none of them had thought to do anything about it before, y'know, the demon got loose. He tries to break the barrier again, failing miserably and having to watch in horror as the thing that had been Joel just yesterday seems to lift Spencer without even touching him--like Joel with Eli Jasper that night, just like Eli Jasper--and throws him across the room. Spencer hits the wall hard enough for it to make a sickening crunch, drops to the floor, and he doesn't get up.
Coop's eyes stay on Spencer for a long moment, trying to determine whether his friend's chest is even rising or falling at all, but he can't tell from her. All he can see for sure is that there's a huge crack in the wall where Spencer's body had hit, and Coop forces himself to tear his gaze away so he can focus on Joel. On the demon. It comes toward him, floating with its eyes blackened, and Coop keeps flashing back to the night of his birthday. He remembers Joel being so angry, so goddamn infuriated that Eli would have fucked with Spencer, and he remembers that flicker of Joel's hand that had sent Eli across the lawn. That had been for Spencer. This, this had been against Spencer, and Coop doesn't know what the hell that means or what this demon's endgame is, but he guesses it doesn't really matter. Either way, if Les and Nerium don't show up soon, if Spencer doesn't wake up long enough to let him in, they're... Well, they're pretty much fucked.
The demon hovers in front of him, and Coop takes a step back out of instinct. The barrier's up but that doesn't mean the demon won't come out and if it knocks Coop out cold, too, he doesn't even really want to think about what that'll mean. It's creepy as hell, seeing Joel's body being used like this, like an actual puppet, and the thing starts spouting out words can't understand. He thinks it's Latin, maybe, can make out a word here and there that he recognizes but not enough to translate. Coop assumes that it can't really be good. "Hey, Joel, buddy," he says, hands outstretched in front of him like that might do something to assuage the demon that's controlling his friend, and he can only hope that Joel can hear him, that Joel's still present somewhere inside that body.
"Throw me a bone here, okay? Spencer's gonna kill me if I'm still out here when he wakes up so if you're in there, you gotta let me in." Coop's always been a pretty optimistic guy, he's been able to bounce back from some shit, but he wouldn't ever say that he's had a difficult life. He works hard, he plays hard, he's got good friends, he's got hobbies and no shortage of people who are happy with a strings-free sex romp--yeah, life is pretty goddamn easy for him. He's sure as shit never had to deal with this before, and he doesn't know if he's doing it right but he thinks--thinks--he sees maybe the slightest flicker in Joel's eyes and so that optimistic side, the one that's suffering a pretty hard blow right now, forces its way back to the surface.
"That's it, man, I know you're fighting. You've gotta fight, you just have to hold on a little bit longer, and you know it'll be worth it, right? You have a husband in there who loves you, okay, who'd do freakin' anything for you, you have any idea how many people would kill to have that? I've seen this before, the whole black-eyed thing is so four months ago, but remember why you did it. You did it for him, you did it for Spencer, I know you did."
Coop tries to rush the barrier again, but he's only pushed back. He groans with frustration, running his hands through his hair as he begins to pace back and forth on the stoop. He can't undo someone else's protection charm, he knows that much, so any attempts would be futile. What he needs is for Spencer to wake up or for Joel to be able to take back a little bit of control, though he doesn't even know if that's a thing his friend can even do right now. He's clueless, and he hates that, it's like being back on the island and surrounded by people he couldn't help because his powers had disappeared. What good is being a witch when he can't even help his own friends when they need it the most?
"Joel," he tries again, holding his hands up against the barrier and staring the demon in the eyes. It's eerie, having those black eyes stare back at him, but Coop holds its gaze. "Let me in, Joel. That's all you need to do, just let me in."