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"Autumn?" Jeremiah called out as he saw her, sitting on one of the park benches with Rosalinde. She looked several levels of stressed out.

He had heard from Algie about the journal - they both had kittens now - and with everything else that he he knew, it was not so out of place. Sometimes the detective thought they were playing out parts that they had already done long ago.

Hellbine was with him as well, the kitten having again made a space for himself between Jeremiah's collar and his neck. It was a nice little warm nook that also kept his human a little warmer.

Coming to a stop in front of her, he crouched down to look up at her face and study it. "You doing alright?"

Before standing, Jeremiah scooped Hellbine up and settled him onto the bench next to his mother. The small otherkitten did not hesitate to butt his head against his mother and then curl up next to her and watch the humans.

Jeremiah only cocked an eyebrow about the comment about not judging her taste in music. "Trust me when I say that, in that regard, I am the last person to worry about." The detective was not instantly judgemental in most cases - that required specific circumstances. People were, until they proved otherwise, given the benefit of the doubt.

On his feet, he followed the young woman until she stopped and she was singing.

Then there were animals, small ones that were flocking to her. They did not even seem bothered by the fact that he was there, more focused on Autumn than anything else. It was ...

He blinked.

Rubbed at his forehead with a hand.

"Autumn, I don't know how to tell you this," he sighed, blue-green eyes focusing on her, "but I think the universe wants you to be a Disney princess." It was a very wry look that he was giving her. "Joking aside," it helped that he was comfortable enough with her to actually joke, "I also imagine it's more than you anticipated but sometimes there's reasons for the abilities we gain."

Still he knew how it could be frustrating to have things like this happen, especially for someone like Autumn who had just wanted to get her bathbombs out of the mail.

Jeremiah watched with a fairly neutral expression, though his eyes gave him away more than anything else. That slight twitch upwards of his lips as well. He could understand her frustration all too well.

"You don't strike me as the waiting for the prince to come to you type," he replied, "I fully expect you to be rescuing him." Or her. The detective had no qualms obviously.

Hearing the term otherworld again he rolled his eyes. Still not quite down with the comparison to Silent Hill. "There is not always an explanation to why we get these abilities. Nor do they always make sense," he replied, following her back and sitting down on the bench himself. Hellbine had absolutely no problem with climbing up with his mother into Autumn's lap.

Mostly because he was totally going to rat out about how large Violetta was going to get. She was so lazy but that really had to do with Jeremiah's Algie and his hands. Warm, warm hands.

"Like I said, I'm absolutely certain you are the princess that saves the prince." Jeremiah raked a hand through his hair, making a mental note to at least get it trimmed. "If you can sing and do that with these animals, who's to say you couldn't eventually do that to something that means to do harm? You already showed that you've got a natural talent for it - look at how you handled Pax."

Then, because he clicked. "... talking to animals?"

"Sometimes it's the one who breaks your face that is worth keeping," Jeremiah snorted, then realized what he said and pushed a hand against his face. At least the bruising was gone at this point.

"Mostly because I am aware of horror games like Silent Hill and I would rather not attach that to other ashdown." Which was what he called it but he was losing that battle (had lost it with Algie). "I don't know that there's a real name for it. It's a cage, there are otherbeings there, and it is an otherworld but personal preferences have me refusing to call it that."

Then he was blinking at the news that Autumn could talk to animals and was going to talk to Hellbine. This ... Jesus ******** Christ.

Hellbine blinked at the paw prodding, head raising, 'You don't have to nudge me, mother. I was already listening.' He turned his attention to Autumn with a low mreow. 'It is Hellbine,' he agreed with another noise, 'and I was telling mother how lazy and fat Violetta is going to get. Algie pets her and she just melts.' An annoyed chirp of a meow. 'Like him.'

Except it worked on him too.

Hellbine let out a pleased purr. Yes, Princess Hellbine. He preened underneath his mother's approving lick. Mother knew him so well. 'I tried telling Violetta that she just can't lay around but she doesn't listen.' Another meow that sounded like a sigh.
Jeremiah was blinking, looking between the cats and then Autumn and then look on her face and then ... He leaned back against the bench, rubbing a hand across his face. "I don't think I quite like the idea of you being able to talk to Hellbine." A blue-green eye was visible between fingers flicking between Autumn and the cats. Then he straightened up and huffed a breath out.

Especially when Hellbine seemed to purr quite loudly at being scratched and complimented. 'Princess,' he told Autumn primly, 'Princess sweetheart Hellbine.' Not that he quite grasped what was so funny.

Nor did Jeremiah who just waited for Autumn's chuckles to die down. "As I gather he's ratted us out, I would appreciate if you - aside from what people already assume and talk about - don't mention it to Zac?" He knew that Autumn and Zac talked. Never mind what other people around town said and thought. "... that's something I - we - need to talk about versus him finding out." Another rub of his fingers across his forehead before he lowered his hand back down finally.

Hellbine was very pleased, so very pleased. His purr was a near constant noise, especially at the rubs and scritches. The amount of flowers around the bench they were sitting on was growing by the moment. Jeremiah honestly had no idea himself how to deal with Princess Sweetheart Hellbine. Really.

(Somehow it made perfect sense, it was his kitten. Of course it would want to be a princess.)

The look on Autumn's face however after she spoke, the tightness to her eyes and tone ... Jeremiah's lips pressed to thin frown. "I don't think you'd do something like that, Autumn." The detective was not even sure it was directed at him but he never did enjoy seeing someone with that particular look in their eyes.

"After what I saw you do and talking with you, I can tell that." A hand reached out, fingers resting on her shoulder. It was meant to be a reassuring, fatherly touch (one he no longer even thought about, just reacted and did) because it looked like she needed it. (Also because touch for him was only for those he trusted, not just anyone.) "On the other hand, I am absolutely certain that you would deck someone for mocking it." The relationship or any relationship. She was given a wry grin. "As you do look like you can handle yourself."

Autumn was moving quickly, speaking about the salve before he could actually say anything else. He gave her shoulder another squeeze before he was taking the objects that she was offering to him. Jeremiah held the bottle of salve up to the light, looking at it before he looked back to her.

"Firstly, thank you, Autumn. I mean it." Something that would keep him safe from The Enemy was good indeed but then ... "Just be mindful to not speak about that." The Enemy. "As silly as it sounds, it's a bit like Voldemort," nothing like a British man saying that, "and speaking directly about it is not good."

The bottle was slipped away into his pocket, Jeremiah turning his attention to the book and rested his hand against it. "Algie did mention this book. The idea that we've been at this ..." Before, already have, were going to be ... It was something that he still had mixed feelings about. His fingers slid along the cover before he finally opened it up and flipped through a few pages just to have a look.

The detective stopped at a random page, reading over what it said.

So all of Rosalinde's precious little babies take after their mom- not only in looks, but how precious they are. Turns out, Hellbine can hide s**t in his fur- like some precious little messenger! Princess Sweetheart (as he demands) brought me the best gift ever. Seriously, a Kate Spade clutch!!! Best. Gift. Ever.

He raised an eyebrow, blue-green eyes glancing towards Hellbine who was contentedly being looked after by his mother and then held the book back out for Autumn. "At least it looks like you'll be getting something to help accessorize in the future?"