Procrastination

[snarp]

Rigsin was in the doorway, breathing hard, his steel eye drifting dazedly. It took him a second to summon up language: "There's a demon outside. I'm a little confused."

Everyone looked immediately at Teo. He had slammed his book closed. Illogically, he snapped, "I don't know why you all think it's about me -"

"'s not about me!" protested Rigsin. "I asked. (I don't like talking to demons, you know.) You need me to distract it and you go out the back?"

"- no, I don't need - I didn't do anything, damnit -"

Scowling thoughtfully into space, Lyssa asked, "Do demons care if you do something else with bird hearts, do you think?"

Teo stared at her for a second, then said carefully, "Perhaps you'd better stay inside, just in case. I'll go," he told Rigsin, standing with a wince and pocketing his book. "It talks?"

"Not so good at it -"

As Teo closed the door, he heard Scarlet saying, blank with hysteria, "'Something else?'"