His handwriting reminds me of him. It's such a strange thing, how something so simple can be such a reflection of ourselves. The script is spidery, long and distinct amongst the other writing on the page of the visitor's log. The nurses seemed to avoid Sam as he strode through the hallway towards the priest's room. Andy and Sasha followed on our heels. Sasha seemed in a better mood than either of the boys, waving to those that looked on at our little band. Dalton and Carla were a bit further back, though Carla excused herself before we reached the correct room.

The priest was laying in the bed when we piled into the room. He seemed a bit surprised to see us. Sam moved to the far side of the bed and loomed over the priest. Andy looked around for a moment before turning his attention to the group, almost as if he was looking for something.

"I was not expecting visitors," the priest admitted. His demeanor had not changed much. He still held himself with an air of confidence as if he was above those around him. However this accident was just the latest in the string that was making that frightening demeanor seem more and more like an act. Almost like a teenager who was trying to buy beer with a fake ID. It was convincing until someone pointed out the flaws.

"We wanted to check and see how you were doing."

<<The demon is gone, and Carla begs for forgiveness for punching your lights out,>> Sam wrote.

Andy piped up then, not giving much of a glance towards Sam's notebook. "Yeah. I'm sorry for getting you punched. I didn't think that would happen. Usually it's me getting knocked out. You'll get no judgement from me."

"Keep bringing it up and I will knock you out on purpose," Sasha threatened.

Dalton stood near the doorway, distancing himself from those gathered around the side of the priest's bed. "And I'm here because I want to thank you. I owe you a lot for doing that. Especially after our previous conversations haven't gone so well."

It was strange to see Andy focused on someone other than himself, as his eyes moved to Sasha. Perhaps the blonde was a good influence on him? "What?" Andy asked her. "Oh! Right! I already forgot about that." He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close and kissing her to show that there was no hard feelings for her hitting him in the face. "Don't feel bad, it was an accident. That was not what I was referring to. In general, I usually get beat up the most often in this group. Actually, now that I think about it, I have been assaulted by a lot of women recently. You were the only one to do it by accident though."

Sasha rolled her eyes at him as she shook her head. "I guess I'll settle for thinking myself special then."

"If you're feeling up to talking, we still need to figure out if there's a way to break the compulsion on Reynold."

Sam scribbled in his book while the others spoke and offered it up for the group to see. <<There's the idea of Bruce transferring the compulsion to someone else, for a price of course. But then it's still there and wreaking havoc on someone else's mind. We don't know if his symptoms will go away if we remove the spell either.>>

"Is there a way for us to break the compulsion? We have been debating over what exactly I did, whether it was a ritual or gutter magic."

The priest turned his attention from the blond girl to the rest of the party. "I am not sure... The demon being gone is good... As for the compulsion," he sighed before continuing. "There is no quick nor easy way that I can recall to just undo something like that. Trading it to another is the easiest argument. Of course you could also trade the ailment itself. He will still remember it and that may have some minor effects, but anything can be traded. Now, where exactly are Amy and Reynold?"

"I saw Rey down the hall," Sasha offered. "So, here?"

The priest's attention returned to her, eyes intent. "Rey's in the hospital? Did something happen?"

"He wasn't in a gown," she explained. "So I don't think he's a patient. Maybe just visiting?"

This answer seems to satisfy him, so the priest laid back against the pillows.

"I don't want to force anyone else to deal with the compulsion. How do we get rid of it?"

The priest did not looked pleased that this was the question that kept getting brought up. Andy interrupts before the priest can express his thoughts. "We did stumble upon another possible option. But we don't have much information on it. Have you ever heard of the man at the coffee shop who sits at a booth at the end? He can do anything, but there's a price. You have do whatever he asks of you."

"You found another merchant," the priest stated with annoyance in his tone. "Any powerful merchant can trade in the intangible."

Dalton shook his head. "According to Joshua the man is not a merchant. We're not sure what he is."

"All the more reason that you shouldn't get involved with him then," the priest explained.

"That brings us back to transferring the compulsion to a willing subject," Dalton stated.

<<I'll take it,>> Sam wrote.

"No. I don't want it to destroy you the same way that it has Rey." There was going to be no easy agreement on the matter.

Even though they were warned against it, it only made sense to check out the possible lead. Joshua and Greg had already planned to meet up with the group at the coffee shop. Dalton opted to remain behind, wanting to check on Carla and to speak more with the priest.