Peri bit back a snicker, tossing the rest of the trash into the little bin under the desk. It was overflowing, so he assumed Wash didn’t let anyone in here to clean it. He thought about using magic to send it away, but then remembered Wash’s comment about not having any outside magic interfere with his projects. There were too many projects in the room to use magic. Instead, he picked it up and carefully brought it out to dump into the big recycling bin next to the vending machines. He got a few worried glances, but he smiled and waved reassuringly before disappearing back into Wash’s office again.
Wash was licking his fingers when he came back in, which made Peri giggle. His growly demon was a secret sweet tooth, it was written all over his face. Which was a good thing because Peri loved baking.
Putting the trash bin back where he’d found it, he perched his butt on the edge of Wash’s desk, toeing the floor innocently as he asked, “Would you be willing to be my guinea pig? I’ve been wanting to create some of my own recipes, but I don’t trust my friends not to lie and say it’s good just because they like me.”
Wash raised an eyebrow at him. “And you think I won’t?”
“You’re a researcher,” Peri pointed out. “You know how important honest results are. I figured you’d care enough about the scientific process to be honest with me.” He batted his eyelashes innocently.
Wash smirked but nodded slowly. “I can accept that reasoning. Sure, I’ll test out your recipes. Is that the only reason you came in here today?”
“Nope,” he replied, popping the ‘p’. “I’m working with you today.”
Wash’s brows furrowed in confusion. “Me?”
Peri nodded. “Dakota said I’m working with your team. It’ll be fun watching you work.”
Watching Wash’s frown deepen made Peri want to laugh. He didn’t look uncomfortable or unhappy with the idea, just confused. He glanced back at his computer, clicking around for a moment before muttering a curse under his breath.
“I forgot about that.”
“About what?”
“The device we made to assist with magical output is old tech. I’ve been working on an upgrade and sent it off to my team a few months ago. I forgot we were starting some new test subjects this month.”
Cocking his head, Peri peered around the computer screen to see what Wash was looking at. He scrolled through a thread of emails he’d obviously been ignoring for some time, considering how far down he had to scroll.
“Don’t you have a calendar? Or a group chat?”
“I’ve never been able to keep up with a calendar. And a group chat would get exhausting.”
Peri tried not to laugh, he really did, but Wash’s antisocial tendencies were cute. Peri got the feeling Wash was only antisocial because he hadn’t met the right people yet. He got along with Peri just fine. He was an introvert in need of adoption by an extrovert. Peri could handle that no problem.
“You’re such a grump,” Peri teased, squealing and darting away when Wash pinched his hip. He was still laughing when he opened the office door to lead the way to the meeting room, coming up short when he nearly ran into a red-head with glasses and freckles. “Oh, sorry!”
The man blinked in surprise, taking a step back. “Apologies. I was looking for–”
Wash appeared at Peri’s back, his face a mask of annoyance. “I’ve got a meeting, Elijah. I can’t talk right now.”
Elijah. That was Wash’s brother’s name. He’d overheard it during the conversation the other day. At the time, he hadn’t gotten a good look at the man, too busy trying to fix his clothes so no one would find out he’d gotten ravished in Wash’s office, but studying him now, he couldn’t see many similarities between the two. Elijah was tall and slender, with copper hair and hazel eyes. Meanwhile, Wash was shorter, with black hair and dark brown eyes. They weren’t even the same species. He cocked his head curiously.
“Was one of you adopted?”
It distracted them both from the awkward conversation, and Elijah shook his head, his voice calm as he explained, “We’re twins.”
Peri’s jaw dropped. “Twins? But– How?”
Elijah’s smile was fond when he lifted a shoulder. “Luck of genetics, I suppose. Have we met?”
“Oh!” Peri wrinkled his nose, so distracted by meeting Wash’s brother that he completely forgot his manners. He stuck a hand out, beaming at him. “I’m Peri. I’m a temp from Charmed Away.”
Several things happened at once. A few coworkers who had been nearby gasped, one hissed at him to stop, and Wash moved like a wraith, going chest to chest with the witch who had tried to warn Peri away. He bared his teeth in challenge, growling something low enough that Peri didn’t catch but the witch seemed to shrink in response.
“Wash!” Peri cried, racing over to see what had happened. Wash threw his wings out, keeping Peri from getting between them, so Peri did what had worked the last time Wash got into a fight, jumping onto his back and holding on tight.
Just like the last time he did this, everyone froze and went quiet, staring at him like he was a hydra with only one head. Granted, it was a weird way to soothe the situation, but he was little. He used what he had. And Wash would never hurt him.
Elijah was the one to speak first, putting his hands up placatingly without moving any closer to anyone. “I think we all need to take a deep breath. Hugo, take a step back, please. Levi didn’t do anything wrong.”