Holding a blunt in one hand, and a bottle of wine behind a paper bag in another, a man in a crimson vest approached the door of the Viper Room. He blew rings of smoke as he knocked on the door and waited for the click of the lock. He entered once he heard it, and Ted was on the sofa like always, tail flicking in pleasure. “Bloodshot! There you are,” he said. Bloodshot sighed, exasperated, and sat next to his leader. Ted took the wine out of the bag, popping the cork off with the prick of his wing.

“Yep,” Bloodshot said. “I did what you said…”

“All of it?” 

A drop of red wine rolled down Ted’s chin as he glanced towards Bloodshot. Bloodshot smiled guiltily, and wiped the wine off with his sleeve. “Of course I did,” he said. 

“Oh, don’t be ridiculous, honey, I know you skipped,” Ted replied. He grinned, grinding his teeth angrily. Bloodshot sighed again, dropping the note that Ted had given him earlier that evening, instructing him on what to do.

“I’m sorry, I just…I just couldn’t kill all those people,” Bloodshot said. “What could you possibly have against them? They were all innocent. If you want it so bad, you could just do it yourself.” 

Ted’s dead heart rose hearing Bloodshot’s defiant tone of voice, and he turned to face him, his anger hiding behind his emotionless face. “Why should I do it myself when I have my followers to do it for me?” he said. “You live here because you promised to do whatever I said. You bring me my wine, I give you a roof to sleep under. So if you don’t want to do that anymore, then you can go back to living on the street. Does that make sense to you?”

Bloodshot stared into Ted’s blank eyes, trying not to show any more resentment. “Yes, sir,” he said quietly. Ted smiled again, putting a hand on Bloodshot’s face as if he had been forgiven.

“That’s what I thought,” he said. “And speaking of your fellow members…you’ll never guess who I met today!”

Ted’s eyes flickered with excitement as he held Bloodshot’s hands in his, and Bloodshot forgot about the previous scuffle in replacement with the caring demon he originally fell in love with. “Who?” Bloodshot replied, a smile creeping up on his face as well.

“Dick Fitzsimmons! Jeff Fitzsimmons’ son. He joined the cult!” Ted said. Bloodshot’s smile faded a little, and he cocked his head.

“Oh…?” 

“He’s got that beautiful blonde hair and bright green eyes. Although he grew his hair out to cover his eyes…but he’s still recognizable as is. He seemed shy. Not like Jeff at all. But I think with enough conditioning I can mold him to be something better. Knowing his father, he probably has some…well, for lack of a better word, issues. If I can get him out of his shell he’s surely fit to destroy. Don’t you think?”

Bloodshot looked away for a moment, worrying that the poor son of Fitzsimmons would end up in the Viper Room like him. But he had no power to object, not only because Ted wouldn’t let him, but because it was the kid’s decision to join in the first place (at least, Bloodshot hoped). “Well…it would be cool for him to be a better successor…” Bloodshot said, “but how old is the kid?”

“Eighteen. Fresh out of high school, he works at Waffle House and lives with two other boys in a townhouse down Swanson,” Ted replied, seemingly not bothered. Bloodshot’s heart sank. The son of Jeff Fitzsimmons, the serial killer with violent anger issues and a sense of cocky entitlement who killed enough to become infamous…was only a few years younger than him. And he was now under the influence of a similar man, but with a sugar coating of care and love, because it wasn’t his cult, it was theirs. Bloodshot hoped not that Dick would take his place as Ted’s right hand man, but that Dick wouldn’t let Ted take advantage of him at all, especially to the point where he abandons his whole life.

“...Oh.”