Sometime near sunrise, your mouse watched as all the unconscious people in Mackie's living room were shaken awake and pushed out the door. Some were simply deposited on the porch, if they didn't wake up quickly enough. Afterwards, Mackie heads off into the kitchen to do some tinkering. He turns on a couple high-powered lights, so you decide to play it safe and stay in the living room for a while.
It's still pretty dark in here, since all the curtains are drawn. But you can see that the carpet, though still shaggy, is worn down in places, and the black-light posters are covered with dust. There's a musty, unwashed smell, and the crumbs that Mackie has left on the floor could feed your mouse for a month. Funny you haven't seen any other mice, or even any insects in here.
You curl up behind the couch, watching the kitchen door in case Mackie comes back. What a depressing place. Makes you want to throw yourself into a mousetrap and end it all. Maybe you should just curl up and sleep for the next few millenia.
<Wait. There's something funny about this.>
A long nap. That's the ticket. See if you can find some human's dreamscape to hide in. Forget about everything.
<Must have dropped off there for a second. Watch the door. Watch the door. Watch the -- >
Make the pain go away. You didn't mean to kill your host. Haven't thought about that for years. Still hurts.
<What am I doing? Why am I sitting next to the hookah? GET BACK UNDER THE COUCH!!!>
Hookah. Just one little Song, and you could use it. Just one little Song. Just one little --
<STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP><Oh shit. This is a tether. I'm in a tether to Drugs, and not a weak one either. The hookah -- don't think about the hookah. Don't use any Essence. Mackie -- Mackie is the Seneschal. Don't let him see me.>
<How am I going to get this mouse out?>
While riding in the cab back to Louisa's car:
LOUISA/Appoggee: Hey, I've gotta question. Did anyone we talk to mention that Mackie is a senschal and his place is a tether?JANET: It was what!!! Do you mean that we just walked in an infernal tether???
LOUISA/Appoggee: Ya think that someone would have mentioned sumtin' important like that.
(pause)
LOUISA/Appoggee: Janet, if you don't mind, as soon as somebody opens that door, I think I'll continue surveillance from the outside.
Mouse waiting under debris near front door. Appears mostly patient, but looks bored, alternating with agitation.
APPOGGEE (to self, as if practicing):Well, yes Mr. Seraph-of-a-triad Sir, I did spend a night and a day in a tether of drugs. But it was only a little bit of me.
(nods, sways head, pauses)
You don't say! No I didn't know that other part of me was perched on a tether to Lust. I wasn't inside that one long enough to notice. Maybe Zenaniel noticed, that might explain why he had to get drunk to stay calm and not cause trouble. We had been after all instructed to honor the truce, you knew that already right?
(questioningly)
Uhm, yes we had a Malakite with us. Most of me was with him, so I knew I couldn't fall.
(earnestly)
Oh, he tells us that a lot. Whenever we mention that Malakim can't fall, he assures us that as long as he's around, neither can we.
(hesitates)
Although when he says that, somehow it's just not as comforting as it ought to be.
(listens carefully)
No Sir, Mr. Seraph sir. They never said he was dangerous, they said he was "unfriendly". And even had they said "dangerous", small important words like "tether" and "seneschal" would have clarified the nature of danger, so much so as to have made the word "dangerous" superfluous.
On finding out about Mackie.
ZENANIEL: (musing) So that is why he was so annoyed. Hmmm. Taking a Word-bound demonic seneschal on in his tether. Challenging. Hmmmm. Better take a lunch.And none of these Truce-Whipped angels saw fit to mention it to us. I would expect that from the infernals. I need to see some people. I will be at the hospital.
(Stalks out toting gym bag)