. (by ann he.)
Eden Let’s Loose:
Three months have passed since her parent’s death. Three months since she’d seen their dead bodies surrounded by blood. Even less time since she and Seth became partners. Well, he liked the term mentor but that just made Eden feel like a child.
After a particularly long day, which consisted of saving a woman from a djinn and finding out zip about her parents, Eden just wanted to wind down. Seth was all business when she spoke to him. “Look, I’m feeling restless and we’re getting nowhere.”
Seth looked up from one of his dusty and boring research books, “I think Mrs. Jones would disagree.” Eden rolled her eyes and sighed, leaning up against his desk. “Okay so we’re saving some people and that’s great. I’m all for it. But we still have zilch on my parent’s deaths.”
“I’m not a magic 8-ball, Eden. Besides, those things are rarely ever accurate. Mostly by chance.” He saw Eden’s glare and continued, “This is going to take time. If you don’t want my help, just say so.”
Eden pushed herself off of the desk, “I do. I just-I need to go out and clear my head.” As she was walking to the door, Seth said, “How bout this time make sure whoever you pick up leaves in the morning? I don’t generally like finding naked men in my kitchen wandering around. Generally.” Eden smiled as she headed to her room to change.
Opting for a glittery disco ball dress, she left her hair down and headed to the only club located in town, Mickey’s. After a couple of drinks, she was on the dance floor being circled by a group of guys. Eden didn’t care, she just wanted to have fun. Finally, after a couple of songs, she made her way back to the bar. A guy that was already at the bar slid over to sit next to her. “I saw you out there.”
Eden laughed and turned to look at him, “Way to not be overly creepy.” She took a sip of her drink, still keeping an eye on him, “Normally people start conversations with ‘Hello’ or ‘My name is….” She trailed off and he backpedaled a bit.
“Right sorry, where are my manners? I’m Jeffery.” That’s when the accent hit her ears, making her swoon slightly. Or maybe it was the drinks she’d had. “You do NOT sound like you’re from around here.”
“I hadn’t noticed,” he said, drinking from his glass. ‘And he’s a bit sarcastic. This may work out after all,’ Eden thought as she smiled. Normally guys found her abrasive and she was the one that had to make all the moves. Maybe not this time.
She turned on her stool and faced him completely. Scooting closer, she yanked on the tie he was wearing, “I don’t really care where you’re from. But that accent is HOT.” He leaned in to her and whispered in her ear, “But maybe you should, Eden.”
Her face fell and she dropped his tie as she jerked away from him. “How do you-” Eden felt the room spinning and soon all she saw was black as she passed out.
—————————————————————————————————
Eden woke up on top of the counter in the woman’s restroom. Surrounded by balloons that must of found their way from the dance floor. She sat up, still groggy, and looked around. Nothing seemed unusual but when she tried to move, her arm ached. Looking down she found a needle mark in it with dried blood pooled around it. She had no idea if someone had shot her up with something or taken her blood.
She noticed the door was cracked slightly and hopped off the counter. She felt a little wobbly in her heels so she pulled them off and threw them aside. Opening the door as quietly as possible, Eden looked into the hallway. No one was there so she softly began walking out. Once she reached the dance floor, she held back a gasp.
Dead bodies were everywhere. They almost completely covered the floor. She had no idea how long she was out but she had a feeling it had been a while. The bartender must of drugged her drink for Jeffery or whoever he was. Maybe she should say whatever because a normal human couldn’t have destroyed these bodies like…..like how her parent’s were killed.
Stepping over the dead carefully, Eden found her way back to the bar. She found a note under the drink she was drinking. All it said was:
You’re time is coming, little girl. But for now, let’s play. There’s someone here who has been /dying/ to see you.
Eden felt as if someone, or several someones, were watching her. She set the letter back down and grabbed one of the wooden stools. Breaking off the legs, she managed to get two makeshift stakes out of it. One in each hand, she hopped behind the bar to get a clear view from every angle.
Too bad she didn’t look behind the bar first. The bartender from before lunged at her and she sidestepped him, punching a stake through his heart. She regained her composure as she pressed herself flush against the wall. Hearing a noise to her left, she ducked as a spiked chain flew over her head and landed on the bar. Whoever was holding it yanked it, causing a whipping sound as it flew back.
Eden edged along the bar and spotted her attacker’s feet. She grabbed the stake in her hand tighter and stuck it through the guy’s foot. Jumping up she curled his whip around her other stake and headbutted him. It wasn’t until he fell to the ground she figured out who it was: her ex-boyfriend, Luka.
“Shit. Shit. Shit.” She lost her cool for a second and bent down to check on him. He was warm as apple pie so definitely not a vampire. She pulled him with her behind the bar. Luka came to, looking up at her from his lap. “Eden?”
So he didn’t even know it was her. Great. “Yeah, it’s-uh-it’s me. I would say let’s catch up but someone is trying to kill me. I thought-” He sat up and took a deep breathe. Yanking the stake out of his foot, Eden knew he was about to scream so she put her hand over his mouth.
“Sorry about that. But yeah, again. Someone is trying to kill me.” Luka grabbed her arms and looked her over. “You’re okay though, right?”
“Yeah, I’m just peachy.” Seeing he seemed to be okay, Eden peeked over the bar, finding no one in the dark. Luka caught her attention once more, “What are you even doing here?”
“They aren’t trying to kill you, Eden. They’re after me.” When she left after her parent’s died, she and Luka had been over and done for months. She knew that Luka still cared for her but she just never felt the same way. “They’re after an untrained after school librarian and not a hunter? That would be-” Luka was glaring at her and she stopped talking.
He sighed and looked away. “After you left I searched for you. I never stopped. I knew you were in town and this just /seemed/ like a place you would go.” Eden crawled back over to him, “So you found me. Exactly what were you expecting? I would let you come and rescue me like some damsel and I would be with you forever as a reward? Two things, I am /NOT/ a damsel in distress and we were done. You should of never followed me.”
Eden forgot where she was for a moment and stood up, ready to storm out. And that would be the moment that the person trying to kill her, or Luka, showed their face. It was Jeffery, if that was really his name. Either way, he saw her and began walking over to her. She threw Luka a glance, saw that he had stood up beside her with a stake in his hand and his whip device primed and ready.
“This is just TOO adorable. You finally got her, Luka. Months and months of searching and you finally caught Eden. The question is will you-” His voice was cut off as his head rolled off his shoulders and onto the ground. It happened so fast that Eden didn’t even know who did it. Then she heard his voice.
“Is it really too much to ask for you to use your fucking phone when this type of shit happens?” Seth walked over to the bar and sat down. “I mean, how does ‘I’m going out’ turn into ‘I’m going to bar to get drugged and killed by vampires?’ You lead such an interesting life, Eden.”
She rolled her eyes and turned to Luka, who was getting his weapon ready. How he could tell Seth was a demon, she wasn’t sure. “He’s fine, Luka. A pain in my ass but he’s with me.” Luka’s face fell and she realized what that sounded like, “Not like /WITH/ me just-he helps me. Okay.”
Seth grabbed Eden’s drink from earlier and sniffed it, “I like to think of myself as her mentor. And the stuff they drugged you with is harmless. Should be out of your system in a couple of hours.”
“How do you know-” Eden cut Luka off, “Just roll with it. It’s a lot quicker that way.” Luka nodded as she showed Seth the needle mark on her arm, “And this?” Seth pulled her arm closer and sniffed the spot, “They just drew blood. My guess is Mr. Bartender wanted a snack but didn’t want Jeffery to know.”
“Right. And how long have you known that Luka was tracking us?” Eden crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Seth. “From the beginning. I just wanted to see if he had the stomach for this lifestyle.”
“You what?” Eden hopped the bar and tackled Seth onto the floor, “You put my friend’s life on the line as a test?” Seth rolled her off of him, easily and shrugged. ‘He passed didn’t he? Though if I hadn’t shown up I don’t know if either of you would of passed.”
Eden stood up and brushed her dress off. “You’ve been here the whole time. Quit acting like I’m an idiot.” Seth smirked as he stood up and sat back down on the stool. “So I was. You’re starting to catch on, missy.”
She punched him in the face and he turned with the blow, rubbing his jaw when he looked back at her, “That actually hurt a little bit, Eden.” Looking past him to Luka she said, “Go wait for me outside.” Hands up in surrender he did as she asked, “Oh and Luka, I’ve texted you the address of some hunters that might be able to hone your skills. They’ll be expecting you.” With that, he was out the door.
“How does he know-” Eden smiled, “He just does. You should take him up on the offer. He rarely ever spends the time on someone unless he thinks they’re worth it.” Luka walked around the bar and stood in front of Eden.
“This is goodbye then?” he asked. She shrugged, “Goodbyes don’t seem to work with you.” Eden punched him on the shoulder, “Think of this as see you next time.” She was about to walk away when he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her towards him. He kissed her softly, brushing the hair from her face. “See you next time then.”
Eden walked out, hoping that it /was/ goodbye. Because the two of them were on seperate paths. His was a path of rightiousness, helping the ones that couldn’t help themselves. Hers was going to be filled with death, destruction and revenge. She didn’t want to expose him to that. Not when she knew that there were people that he could still help. People that really needed him.
Eden didn’t need anyone. She had Seth and he had his moments but the truth was that Eden wanted to be alone. She wanted to focus everything she was and all that she did on getting revenge for her parents. She didn’t need distractions.
That night Eden fell asleep, dreaming of the same thing she had every night since their deaths. Walking into their bedroom, finding their bodies and collapsing to the floor. She longed for the the day she avenged them. Because until then she’d never rest.
exit2eden asked: Heard you met Jesse. I trust that he must've made a good first impression considering he's still here. I'm assuming you stuck around. Find out anything new?
A little. I don’t know how useful it’s going to be, but I’ll need to put you and Gwen (and Jesse and his friends, if they’re willing) on a bit of a research/search party for me.
In honor of the first Cupcake Flavored Vodka I give you the Jailbait Shooter recipe:
1/2 OZ of Devil’s Food Flavored Vodka
1/2 OZ of Godiva Chocolate Liqueur
1/2 OZ of Brown Creme Da Cacao
Splash of Cream
Combine ingredients into a shakers with ice, quickly swirl and strain into a shooter (or cocktail) glass.
DRINK UP!
Seth, what do you think about this one?
I heartily approve.
“Apparently there is a priest directly related to Mary Magdalene somewhere,” she answered, “however, Joshua isn’t sure if he’ll help. He did say that Azrael was trying to find him and that he seemed “afraid”.” and she used that term lightly. She wasn’t sure if Azrael was really afraid of some human and why should he be, anyways? From the stories she’s heard of him and the atrocities she had witnessed, he didn’t seem to be afraid of their Father’s wrath.
“But, he didn’t say how to find him… I apologize… I told you it was nearly useless…”
Seth jotted down what she’d told him and frowned. ”Do you know anything about him? Anything about his name or looks? Parents?” He doodled absently on the page, drawing a vague sketch of a pair of wings. ”I can find him, I’m sure, I just need something. Is the relation to Mary maternal or paternal?”
He was in full business mode now. After all, anyone who scared Azrael had an automatic plus in his book, and probably needed protection.
Ayla hesitated before answering quietly, “No, but I can try to find out. This is the first time that I have ever heard of a descendant of Mary’s and I believe it was the same for Joshua. I don’t think the child’s well known.” she leaned back against the bench, toying idly with a loose string on her shorts.
“I assume that demons and angels would be able to tell if he was near by. And, if I were to venture a guess, he’s probably… young. I honestly can’t believe he’d be able to stay hidden from angels or demons for so long if he was older. But, his family apparently managed to… I’ll find one of Azrael’s angels and try to get it out of them,” she hated the idea, however. “I’ll call when I hear something, alright?”
Seth wanted to beg her to stay on the line. He wanted to make her promise not to talk to anyone related to Azrael. Even more, he wanted her to appear in his locked office and continue what they had started earlier. And then he would lock her up in a safe little rom and go take care of Azrael himself.
But he didn’t. He just said: ”Let me know what you find out. And be careful. Please.”
Ayla smiled softly when she heard Seth’s voice break over the line, sitting down on the bench and tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear.
“Hello, Seth,” she greeted, feeling strange to even be speaking to someone over the phone. It was her first time, after all. “This is the first phone call I ever made.” there was laughter in her voice, as if she were truly amused by this fact. And she kind of was.
She paused for a moment, resiting the urge to sigh as she glanced up at the sky, “I found Joshua, he wasn’t of much use, but he did give me a… hint on defeating Azrael, I suppose.” and she couldn’t help the soft scowl that colored her face as she said this.
“A hint?” Seth leaned over and turned on his desk lamp, getting out a pen and notebook labelled ‘Azrael’ as he spoke. ”What kind of hint?”
Seth kept detailed documents of everything and anything he came across; and Azrael, the douchebag, had been suspicious enough from his first appearance to warrant an entire notebook to himself. He flipped to the first empty page and tapped the pen against it, waiting for Ayla’s information.
He hated himself for being so business-like, but he had to be. As much as he wanted to write poetry and whisper sweet nothings over the phone, that wouldn’t help the angel right now. He laughed internally at his own wit.
“Apparently there is a priest directly related to Mary Magdalene somewhere,” she answered, “however, Joshua isn’t sure if he’ll help. He did say that Azrael was trying to find him and that he seemed “afraid”.” and she used that term lightly. She wasn’t sure if Azrael was really afraid of some human and why should he be, anyways? From the stories she’s heard of him and the atrocities she had witnessed, he didn’t seem to be afraid of their Father’s wrath.
“But, he didn’t say how to find him… I apologize… I told you it was nearly useless…”
Seth jotted down what she’d told him and frowned. ”Do you know anything about him? Anything about his name or looks? Parents?” He doodled absently on the page, drawing a vague sketch of a pair of wings. ”I can find him, I’m sure, I just need something. Is the relation to Mary maternal or paternal?”
He was in full business mode now. After all, anyone who scared Azrael had an automatic plus in his book, and probably needed protection.
Ayla supposed that going to Seth would have been easier than just calling, but the angel was still being as elusive as ever. Not only that, but she was upset after what Joshua had said to her and the fact that the visit seemed to be nearly pointless. How long was it going to take her to find that priest, anyways? She wasn’t even sure how she or any of the others would be able to point him out in a crowd and the very thought of having to start a search for him left her feeling frustrated.
With a quiet sigh, she tugged the phone Maggie had bought her out of her pocket, scrolling through the names until she found Seth’s. She hesitated for a moment before pressing the call button, feeling a strange nervous flutter of wings in her stomach.
Seth had been staring so intently at the darkened screen, waiting for it to light up and proclaim proudly that Ayla was calling, that he answered before the ringing had even started.
“Ayla?” he said, forgetting the typical human convention of saying ‘hello’ to begin telephone calls.
Ayla smiled softly when she heard Seth’s voice break over the line, sitting down on the bench and tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear.
“Hello, Seth,” she greeted, feeling strange to even be speaking to someone over the phone. It was her first time, after all. “This is the first phone call I ever made.” there was laughter in her voice, as if she were truly amused by this fact. And she kind of was.
She paused for a moment, resiting the urge to sigh as she glanced up at the sky, “I found Joshua, he wasn’t of much use, but he did give me a… hint on defeating Azrael, I suppose.” and she couldn’t help the soft scowl that colored her face as she said this.
“A hint?” Seth leaned over and turned on his desk lamp, getting out a pen and notebook labelled ‘Azrael’ as he spoke. ”What kind of hint?”
Seth kept detailed documents of everything and anything he came across; and Azrael, the douchebag, had been suspicious enough from his first appearance to warrant an entire notebook to himself. He flipped to the first empty page and tapped the pen against it, waiting for Ayla’s information.
He hated himself for being so business-like, but he had to be. As much as he wanted to write poetry and whisper sweet nothings over the phone, that wouldn’t help the angel right now. He laughed internally at his own wit.
Ayla supposed that going to Seth would have been easier than just calling, but the angel was still being as elusive as ever. Not only that, but she was upset after what Joshua had said to her and the fact that the visit seemed to be nearly pointless. How long was it going to take her to find that priest, anyways? She wasn’t even sure how she or any of the others would be able to point him out in a crowd and the very thought of having to start a search for him left her feeling frustrated.
With a quiet sigh, she tugged the phone Maggie had bought her out of her pocket, scrolling through the names until she found Seth’s. She hesitated for a moment before pressing the call button, feeling a strange nervous flutter of wings in her stomach.
Seth had been staring so intently at the darkened screen, waiting for it to light up and proclaim proudly that Ayla was calling, that he answered before the ringing had even started.
“Ayla?” he said, forgetting the typical human convention of saying ‘hello’ to begin telephone calls.
fluffywings- asked: I can call if you like.
Please. I need to hear from you.
“Seth?” Jesse gaped at the man. ”You’re Seth?”
Neither Eden nor Gwen had told him that Seth was a demon; he expected the secrecy from Gwen, but not Eden. Maybe she was just so used to Seth presence that the fact he was a demon didn’t bother her anymore. That, in itself, was telling.
“So you’re a demon,” Jesse said slowly, stepping forward. ”Why are you helping hunters?”
Seth shrugged, slapping the cap back on the whisky bottle and sneaking it behind the bar as though it had been there all along. ”I don’t like ghosts and critters. They screw with the natural order of things. People are supposed to be born, live, die, and move on. Ghosts and vamps and shit mess with that.”
He straightened up and sorted through his pockets, searching for the small leather bag he kept with him at all times. He found it and tossed it to Jesse, trusting the kid’s unnatural reflexes to catch it without warning.
Jesse caught the bag and looked down at it, confused. It was worn and old, the leather almost falling apart in places, and through it Jesse could feel what seemed to be bones and some other minuscule odds and ends. The outside had been branded with several unfamiliar symbols; they looked ancient, maybe Egyptian.
Jesse looked back up at Seth and frowned, holding the bag up. ”What’s this?”
“A hex bag,” Seth said, shrugging again. ”It’s the one I use to keep the more powerful demons from finding me. I don’t like killing my own kind.”
Seth grinned and headed for his office, pausing halfway there to smirk back at Jesse. ”Eden’s in the bathroom, by the way,” he said, pointing. The door closed behind him and he locked it, pulling out one of his many, many phones to check for messages, hoping to hear from Ayla.
Jesse wasn’t exactly reassured. ”If you know what I am, then you know what I can do,” he said, his voice low and threatening. ”If I were you, I’d leave right now.” He pulled power through his body, feeling the thrum of energy under his skin. All he had to do was subdue this demon long enough to find Eden. He didn’t want to cause too much damage to Gwen’s bar, and he was more worried about getting Eden to safety than fighting this hellspawn.
Shove the demon out, then find Eden. That was all that mattered.
Seth took another swig of whiskey and laughed. ”Maybe now’s the time for me to introduce myself.” He moved to stand in front of the anti-christ and held out one hand to the kid. ”The name’s Seth. Maybe Eden’s told you about me?”
He was hoping that Eden had told Jesse about him, because otherwise the ex-god-turned-demon was about to be sent back to Hell for the first time in centuries and lose four hundred years of good, solid work. Not to mention the fact that the body he was piggybacking in would decay in minutes to make up for the unnatural length of time it had been wandering around, leaving Gwen with a huge and putrid mess to clean up. Knowing Gwen, she would just leave it there for him to clean up as soon as he managed to fight his way topside again and find a new body.
“Seth?” Jesse gaped at the man. ”You’re Seth?”
Neither Eden nor Gwen had told him that Seth was a demon; he expected the secrecy from Gwen, but not Eden. Maybe she was just so used to Seth presence that the fact he was a demon didn’t bother her anymore. That, in itself, was telling.
“So you’re a demon,” Jesse said slowly, stepping forward. ”Why are you helping hunters?”
Seth shrugged, slapping the cap back on the whisky bottle and sneaking it behind the bar as though it had been there all along. ”I don’t like ghosts and critters. They screw with the natural order of things. People are supposed to be born, live, die, and move on. Ghosts and vamps and shit mess with that.”
He straightened up and sorted through his pockets, searching for the small leather bag he kept with him at all times. He found it and tossed it to Jesse, trusting the kid’s unnatural reflexes to catch it without warning.
