Shadowess

Denix Vames - March 1, 2021 Charles sighed. "Fine. I'm sure they're still sleeping anyway." He tried to sit up but grew dizzy. "I wish I'd knew when this crap is going to wear off." shadowess - March 1, 2021 (I might have to write up what Alex has been up to since he was found outside the station xD Been thinking it over all day and have a few ideas.) Amelia smiled, gently holding Charles to steady him. "For me, whenever I push myself too far, it usually only lasts for about a day." She wasn't so sure about Charles though. He might recover just as quickly for all she knew but it was apparent that he had far more power than she did. Denix Vames - March 1, 2021 (well at least you got some ideas) Charles closed his eyes. "I'm hoping for less." ----- Day soon became night. Carter had gotten himself dressed. He put on his jacket. He made his way downstairs. Quickly, he sank his teeth into a bag before making his way to the front door. shadowess - March 1, 2021 (lol Mkay, I'm typing up Parker's experiences now. This should be interesting xD Might take a little while.) Denix Vames - March 1, 2021 (alright. do you want Carter to make it to the station? cause i was thinking of him and Sebastian having an argument about going there.) shadowess - March 1, 2021 (Carter could go looking for him at the station if he wants but he won't find him there. I was thinking maybe Blaire could call Carter to let him know she saw Alex was snooping around the Vampire club? lol) Denix Vames - March 1, 2021 (that would be something. ill write that scene down.) Carter stopped when he heard his phone ringing. He quickly answered so as not to wake anyone in the house. "Blaire? What's up?" Blaire was whispering as she spoke. "Big problems here. Alex is around. The guy you told me wasn't a vampire anymore? Well, now he's coming here and asking questions. I think a part of him still remembers something or maybe he wants answers? Either way, he's going to be a target if you don't come here and stop this." "I'll be there as soon as possible. Just try to distract him." "Easier said than done but alright." She hung up. Carter closed the door. He zoomed his way to the vampire club which he was glad he could detect by scent nowadays. It made traveling in this city a lot easier but sometimes really smelly. He soon made it to the club where Blaire was trying to coax Parker into some drinks. He stepped inside. "Parker?" shadowess - March 1, 2021 Parker had been suffering from nightmares since he was found laying unconscious outside the police station a few days ago. His memory of the couple of days prior completely gone. Like he'd blacked out or something. He frequently woke up crying, as if he'd lost something important. Unable to even really remember his dreams. The only thing he could recall from his nightmares being piercing yellow eyes. The precinct had made him see a therapist when it became apparent he had no will to live, and as a result he was given anti-depressants which he never took. But still, he went to work the next day as if life was normal. That was until his superior gave him a missing persons job. He opened up the file, looked at the photo and his face went white as a sheet. Red hair and yellow eyes. Name; Bryce Heathcliffe. The local grocery store reported him missing when he didn't turn up for work and didn't answer their calls. Parker held his head in his hands and felt breathless. The room swam and his head felt like it was splitting in two. He closed his eyes and the moment he did, he saw the man standing in front of him. "Come now. We have to start the wedding soon." He heard him say and just as quickly, he was gone again. Alex gasped and opened his eyes. It was so surreal. It was like he'd actually been standing in front of him, talking to him. Wedding? What wedding?! This was weird. Had he known him?! He needed to find out! What if this guy has something to do with his blackout?! His investigations soon led him to the burned up mansion. He kicked through the ash and debris until he found the stone steps that lead down into the basement. The memories that were triggered there... First, he looked at the chains on the wall. Again, his vision blurred and his head pounded. He closed his eyes and saw a woman chained there with what looked like a cloth in her mouth. Then she was gone. A little dizzy, he made his way further in and found something shiny in the ashes. He picked it up and saw it was a half charred police badge. Breathing heavily, he gripped his head and groaned as another memory forced it's way to the surface. It was another detective arguing with the captain outside of a nightclub. The Detective placed this badge into Parker's hand and said; "Take my advice kid. You want people you can trust? Try somewhere else. I quit." Then he was gone too and Parker was back in the burned up basement. He stumbled back and leant against the wall, catching his breath. He needed to keep going. He needed to know what happened. He left and headed for the club he'd seen in that memory. While at the club, he saw a familiar face. He recognized her but couldn't remember her. The girl however, seemed to remember him. She approached him and they got talking. Parker explained to her that he'd lost some of his memory and he was trying to get it back. The girl, Lucy, seemed to show pity for Alex and she told him everything she remembered from that day over drinks. That he'd come here with a Detective Carter to investigate the murder of one of the other girls that used to work there. That Carter didn't like the way her boss talked about them and punched him in the face, as a result got suspended from work but then quit. She hadn't seen Parker again since then. The night went on and they continued to drink and talk. Eventually they both stumbled back to Parker's apartment where one thing led to another. That night, Parker had the most vivid nightmare yet. He was curled up on a bed, crying. He looked up and saw Bryce with a phone in his hand, smiling at him. "Did you hear that Parker? We're going to a vampire club. How fun is that?" Next he was in his arms but the world was passing them by so quickly that he couldn't focus on anything that they passed. Frightened, he buried his face in Bryce's neck and heard him say; "Aww! Feeling a little scared? Well, it's nice to know that you're relying on me for support." Then they were stood outside somewhere. Parker was staring up at the stars, the other male holding him. He heard the words "You are now mine." They were outside next, running at impossible speeds in the warm sunlight. Laughing. Smiling at each other. "I'm impressed. You're quick at this." He heard Bryce say. Then they stood facing each other. Bryce began; "So let it be known that Bryce Heathcliffe and..." "Alexander Draven Parker" "Stand here together to promise that the other will sacrifice themselves in order to save the other one. That there is love and happiness in such a bond. One that can never be broken." Then he was sitting across from Bryce in his own apartment. Bryce looked severely injured but he leant forward and kissed him despite his pain before saying; "You're the only one that I love. The only one who I will ever love." "Bryce!" Parker gasped awake, sitting bolt upright. He looked around his bedroom in confusion then looked at Lucy next to him whom he'd just woken up. She was looking at him in an annoyed way. "Who's Bryce?!" "Uh...I'm not sure..." Alex admitted but Lucy scoffed and jumped out of his bed, snatching up her clothes and getting dressed. "Wait, what are you doing? It's three in the morning!" Alex asked as he watched her. She glared at him while putting on her shoes. "When you get over your ex, give me a call. But I am not going to be your rebound!" She snapped before storming out of his apartment. Rubbing his face with his hands he thought over the dream. Most of that couldn't have been real. It was impossible. Probably just dream stuff...but one thing he heard Bryce say...Vampire club...He was sure there was a club where gothic fanatics go to pretend to be vampires. Maybe he could ask around there...maybe someone there knows where this Bryce character went... --------------- Alex felt like he'd met this woman before as well. She seemed pretty insistent on getting him to buy drinks but the more she tried, the more on edge he felt. "Look, I just want to know if anyone has seen a guy matching this description. I don't want a drink, I'm trying to work." He said, beginning to get agitated with her. He just wanted to be left alone so he could scope the place out. Then a familiar voice caused him to pause and he blinked. He'd heard that voice before. He turned and looked at the man. "Carter?" He asked, remembering him from that small flashback he'd had. -------- Sebastian awoke several minutes after Carter had already left. Noticing the empty spot next to him, he sat up and rubbed his eyes while looking around the room. "Carter?" He got up and got dressed then made his way downstairs, looking around. He grabbed himself a blood bag while down there and drank it while still looking around the empty rooms, being sure to steer clear of the washroom. When he couldn't find Carter, he threw his empty bag into the bin and took out his new phone, dialing his number. Denix Vames - March 1, 2021 Carter was immediately concerned. "What are you doing here?! You shouldn't be here. This isn't your kind of scene." He gripped his arm. "Let's go." He attempted to take him out of the club. Denix Vames - March 1, 2021 He heard ringing from his phone. He quickly pulled it out and hit decline then stuffed it back in his pocket. (forgot to include this) shadowess - March 1, 2021 "What the-?!" Parker struggled to get out of Carter's grip as he ground his heels into the floor. "Let me go! Get off me!" --- Sebastian heard the voicemail message and lowered his phone, staring at it a little concerned. Why would Carter just leave the house without saying where he was going? Without even a "see you later."...and why was he now rejecting his call? Something was off here. He tried to call him again.

Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Carter smiled. He blushed. "I wonder how vast and wide Hell is." He kissed him. shadowess - February 28, 2021 Kissing Carter in return, the hand that was on Carter's cheek rose to run his fingers through his hair before coming to rest gently on the back of Carter's head. His kisses strayed from Carter's mouth to his cheek and then to his ear where he carefully and playfully nibbled his earlobe. "Not nearly vast enough to keep me from you." He whispered into his ear then brought his kisses down to Carter's neck. Then to his shoulder. Then his chest, working his way down. (Aaaand private time xD ) --- Waking up a couple of hours later, Amelia sat up and rubbed her eyes sleepily. She got up and went into the bathroom to splash some cold water on her face. She didn't feel sick anymore, which she was glad of. Maybe eating now wouldn't be such a bad idea. She made her way to the kitchen and smiled at Charles on her way through. "Hey, you been up to much while I was passed out?" She said as she poured herself a glass of water. Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 (yep lol) Charles was fighting the dizziness he was feeling. His body felt weak. He tried not to show it as he smiled. "I've been doing just fine. I made some food for you. It's in the fridge if you want to reheat it." He made his way to the couch when he nearly fell. He leaned against the counter. "I-I'm fine." shadowess - February 28, 2021 Amelia had been about to head to the fridge when she saw how Charles was. She rushed over to him and put his arm around her shoulders. She'd smiled at his attempt to reassure her but her eyes reflected the worry she felt. "Don't be daft." She said in a gentle but firm way, letting him know she wasn't buying it. She helped him over to the couch to sit down. "What's up?" She asked, looking at him worried. "Is it because of what you did with the organization? Did you overexert yourself?" It would make sense. Charles had used far more power than she'd ever thought possible before. Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Charles frowned. He was frustrated that he had a limit. He was able to do so much. But now? Seriously? "....Maybe?" He fell on his side. Laying on the couch. His breathing was slow as everything seemed to be fading away. "Water. Some water." shadowess - February 28, 2021 "On it." She said, bending down to give him a quick kiss on his forehead before hurrying back to the kitchen. She poured water into a jug and grabbed a glass. Bringing both into the living room, she poured the water from the jug into the glass before setting the jug down onto the coffee table. She then knelt by Charles and tried to help him up so he could have a drink. "Here. You just need to rest." She smiled at him "Guess it's my turn to take care of you." Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Charles drank some sips. He sighed. "Yeah, it seems like it. But you don't have to. I'll be alright. You just enjoy yourself here. Relax." shadowess - March 1, 2021 Amelia gently swept some of his hair out of his face with her fingers while looking into his eyes with a small smile. "I don't mind." She said softly then stood and bent down to leave a lingering, tender kiss on his forehead. Standing straight, she looked into the kitchen. "I'm going to eat now, but if you need anything else I'll be happy to get it for you." She then walked into the kitchen towards the fridge and took out the plate he'd made for her. She smiled at it. "This looks great, thank you." Amelia then went about re-heating the plate before sitting herself at the table and eating it. When she was done, she washed her plate and headed back to the couch to sit near Charles, rubbing his back soothingly. Denix Vames - March 1, 2021 Charles smiled at her touch then frowned. "We need to talk to Carter soon. He's planning on finding Alex. He wants to talk to him. Get him to remember without having him turn back into a Blood God." shadowess - March 1, 2021 This news troubled Amelia. "We'll talk to him when we next see him. We both need to try to rest for now." She reassured him. She could see why Carter might think it'd be a good idea but Amelia new it wouldn't be fair on Alex. He'd already had the chance at an oblivious human life snatched away from him once. Doing it again would just be cruel, even if that's not the intention.

Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 "Cupid's literally banging a vampire. Something tells me that he doesn't care about God's rule book and his fellow angels." Carter laid back. "Besides, I'm pretty sure God's an egotistical prick anyway. He probably enjoyed watching me suffer when I lost my family." shadowess - February 28, 2021 Sebastian shrugged with a frown. "Who knows. Maybe we're all just ants to him at this point. Too many to keep track of and too small to really care about..." He was fiddling with a frayed piece of thread on his jeans as he spoke. He didn't like to think about the afterlife. Too depressing and too many unanswered questions that he never really dared to ask. "I don't know...humans and all other species have come a long way since we were created...In terms of societal progress...maybe the afterlife and God have ways of progressing too? I'd like to think so anyway...otherwise, it all just seems a bit...bleak." Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Carter glared at the ceiling. "If and when I die, I rather go to Hell." shadowess - February 28, 2021 After his comment, Sebastian was quiet for a moment. Still frowning as he looked up and stared off at the wall thoughtfully. He placed a hand on Carter's leg and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Me too." He admitted quietly then sighed. "But not as someone who committed a sin...I'd be lying if I said I'd never given my death any thought before...and knowing what I know...I've thought about what I'd rather happen to my soul..." He glanced back at Carter momentarily, almost hesitant before looking away and saying "I'd want to be a Demon. So I could stick around to help Amelia. I kind of feel that I owe it to her after she saved me from the Asylum. No Angels came to rescue us. But Devils did." He then tilted his head a little and smiled. "Also because she's a good friend." Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Carter sat up. "I'm not even so sure what I would be. A demon or a devil? Feels weird just to think about it." shadowess - February 28, 2021 Looking back at Carter, Sebastian shrugged. "I think it'd be a lot harder to become a Devil...and then there's the control aspect of it. All that power. I mean, you saw how much Vincent struggled to control his anger and Amelia has to keep a special Angel crystal on her at all times in case she 'hulks out'... Maybe it's something we can ask Amelia about when we next see her? Know what our options are..." Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Carter sighed. "Yeah, that shit was crazy. I've never something like that before. But that makes me wonder..." He looked at him. "If souls down below can become demons or devils then can souls above become angels?" shadowess - February 28, 2021 Sebastian thought about that possibility for a moment. "Maybe...I mean, it'd make sense, wouldn't it?" He looked down at the bedsheets in contemplation. "I never really thought of that before..." He admitted. Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Carter frowned. He placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry. I'm making you focus so much on this." He leaned his head against his. "We should be resting right now." shadowess - February 28, 2021 Half laughing, Sebastian grinned at Carter. His kind eyes looking into his. "I don't mind. I like being able to talk to you like this." He brought a hand up and caressed his cheek. "If there is one thing that I truly want when we die. It's to be able to spend our afterlife together too." He brought his thumb down and lightly brought it over Carter's lower lip. "I'd travel the endless expanse of Hell just to stay by your side."

Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Carter ran over. He sniffed. "Looks like the scent leads over there " He pointed to his left. ----- Nate, still naked, smirked. He stood from the floor where there were many scattered feathers around from before. He cupped his chin. Looking into his eyes. "Oh c'mon. What's the rush? They can wait." shadowess - February 28, 2021 Sebastian looked at Carter then at the door to the washroom. He stepped up to it cautiously and knocked. "Hey, Tom. You in there? Are you ok?" --- Tom couldn't take his eyes off of Nate as he approached. He stood close and the way he cupped his chin and looked at him sent shivers through Tom. His scent was utterly intoxicating and the commanding presence he had made Tom weak at the knees, unable to help blushing like crazy. He couldn't deny that he had an overpowering physical attraction to him. His words made Tom bite his lower lip, unable to resist his temptations. He heard the knock on the door and Sebastian's voice and without really thinking about it he called back; "Yep. Busy! Please go away." He never once took his eyes away from Nate. Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Carter sniffed again. "Wait a minute. Is that....?" His eyes widened. He became red all over his face. He pulled Sebastian away from the room. "I don't know that new scent but I can definitely smell something else. And for both our sakes Sebastian, I think we should leave those two lovebirds alone." ----- Nate chuckled. "See? What'd I tell ya?" He brought a hand under his shirt. Caressing his chest as he kissed him. shadowess - February 28, 2021 It took him a moment but as soon as Carter pulled him away, Sebastian also became aware of a couple of different scents. He too became red and chuckled embarrassed. "Right, yeah." They walked back to their bedroom in silence. Once in the bedroom, Sebastian closed the door, leaning against it and chortled. "Wow...that was a close one." --- Tom kissed him back and moaned a little when he felt Nate's hand slip under his shirt. He took his shirt off and threw it to the side, wanting to feel Nate's bare chest against his own again and kissed him deeply. He placed one hand on his waist while running his other hand through his hair. Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Carter crossed his arms. He shook his head. "Something about that mystery guy's scent was off though. It's like it's really rich. Like a diamonds kind of rich. I mean do werewolves smell like that? Is there anything else that could smell like that?" ----- Nate's wings sprouted. They slightly curved forward. Keeping themselves like a shield on Tom. With the washer turning on by his own magic, the vibrations of it were going like crazy. He smiled into another kiss. Knowing what he was planning to do on that washer to Tom. (private time) ----- Carter blushed. "Are they seriously....?" He covered his face as if he had seen it happen. "I don't even want to picture it." shadowess - February 28, 2021 (lol Nice) "I know what you mean" Sebastian commented thoughtfully. He shook his head a little. "I don't think I've..." He then paused, he'd been about to say he'd never smelt anything like it but that wouldn't be true. He'd smelt something similar once before. Albeit, it was somewhat masked by the smell of death and dozens of other scents from a variety of different species but he'd smelt it at least once. "No wait...I think I have smelt that before...back when Amelia and Damien set me free...when I went to help them and...there was a dead Angel on an operating table..." Hearing the washer turn on, Sebastian's face became very red. Carter's reaction making him burst out laughing. "Kinda jealous we didn't think of it though." He laughed. Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 "I am never doing it on a washer. I honestly don't think I'll be able to wash my clothes there anymore." Carter shivered. He tried to put the thought aside. Focusing on what he said earlier." "So, you said an angel? Does that mean that this one is ok with us? From what I've been told, it seems like angels are dicks." shadowess - February 28, 2021 Chuckling at Carter's reply, Sebastian nods. "Yeah, we might need to buy a new washer after today..." He then thought for a moment, walking over to sit on the end of the bed as he did. "Maybe. Vincent said Charles set him free...maybe the Angel arrived with him? I know there's a war between Heaven and Hell but Amelia is always talking about ending that war...Maybe this Angel wants to help?" He sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "Guess we'll have to wait to ask." Denix Vames - February 28, 2021 Carter sat next to him. "An ongoing war? Even to this day?" He chuckled. "And I thought us humans were bad with our wars." shadowess - February 28, 2021 Sebastian chuckled at Carter's comment, turning to face him as he sat down. "Yeah, apparently the afterlife know how to hold a grudge..." He laughed. "It's why Amelia's always been so jumpy about crossing paths with Angels. She never normally stays in one place for long for that reason. Apparently it's a kill on sight rule that they have and Amelia being Amelia, she doesn't want to fight if she doesn't have to. But if this Angel came here with Charles then maybe they're ok?"

Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Charles frowned. He could tell that something was wrong. He just wasn't sure what was making her feel this way. Maybe it was Clementine's death? It seemed that way. Once he finished up, he saved some leftovers for Amelia and ate his own share. ----- Carter sat up too. He cracked his knuckles. He had enough of this. "I got it." He stormed downstairs. He stopped when he saw that Vincent was sitting on the couch. Free from his cage. "Sebastian! Get down here!" shadowess - February 27, 2021 Hearing the urgency in Carter's voice, Sebastian flung himself out of bed and raced down the stairs. Not stopping to put a shirt on first this time as he assumed it was an emergency. He ground to a halt when he saw what Carter was seeing. "Wha-?! Where'd the cage go??" Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Vincent stumbled out of the couch. "Charlie boy freed me. I'm the good guy now. Yay!" He fell on Carter who caught him. The bottle slipped out of Vincent's hand. "You're....cute...." He fell fast asleep. Carter sighed. "Alright. Time for bed." He lifted him off the floor. "Better tell Elliot about this." shadowess - February 27, 2021 Sebastian rolled his eyes at Vincent. He could smell the booze and his last remark just went to prove that he was back to his old, randy self. He sighed and nodded at Carter before looking around the room curiously. They hadn't had a chance to clean up the mess from the previous night but he was pretty sure some of this mess was new. He made a mental note to ask Vincent about it when he was sober. With Carter's hands full, Sebastian lead the way upstairs and headed towards the spare room where he knocked on the door and called out "Hey Elliot, you awake? We might need a hand here, buddy." Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Elliot sat up and yawned as he stretched. He walked over and opened the door. "What the-?! How is he-?" "It's a long story but you're safe. He seems to be fine now." He frowned. Examining his face. "He was going on about drinking blood. Getting more powerful and all that crap. How is he fine now?" "We're not sure but that's just how it seems." shadowess - February 27, 2021 Sebastian stepped to one side to let Carter through with Vincent so he could put him on the bed. "Yeah, it looks like he's back to how he was when he was good." Sebastian agreed. "We just found him drunk off his ass downstairs, rambling about how Charles let him out. The cage was gone too. Look, I know you two had a bit of a falling out earlier, but maybe it'll help if you tried talking to him again when he's sober, now that he's not bad anymore. Would you be up for doing that?" Sebastian then glanced around the bedroom and noted the empty bed as well as the bedding on the floor. "Hey, where's Tom by the way? I thought he'd come in here with you?" Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Elliot hesitated. He crossed his arms. "Fine. Just put him there." Carter placed Vincent on the bed. Elliot shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe he's downstairs in the kitchen?" shadowess - February 27, 2021 Sebastian looked at Carter worriedly. The sun was still up, so he couldn't have left the house. He didn't see him downstairs but then again, they only really saw one room and were distracted by Vincent at the time. "You think he's ok?" He asked uncertainly. Sebastian was worried that after everything Tom had gone through that he might do something drastic or that he might not know how to handle his new senses just yet and might feel overwhelmed. A small part of him wondered if having Amelia's blood in his system when turning Tom might have had any sort of impact on his transformation, though he doubted there was much risk there given the low dosage. Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Carter frowned. "I don't know. Let's go look around." "Guess I'll go back to sleep then. Hope you find him." ,said Elliot. Carter and Sebastian headed back downstairs where they started their search. shadowess - February 28, 2021 They looked around downstairs. As they did, Sebastian called out "Tom?" a couple of times. He walked into the kitchen and found the empty blood bag on the floor. "Carter, come here!" He picked it up. "Looks like he got up at some point for a drink..." --- Still out of breath from their fun, Tom was hurriedly trying to dress himself when they'd heard Sebastian calling out for him. He looked over at Nate, his cheeks red. "I- I-...That was...um...I don't normally do things like this..." He flustered.

Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 "It'll be fine. Vincent will explain everything to them. They'll see that he's free for a good reason." Charles held her hand. "Trust me. Things will be fine here." Vincent burped. He raised the bottle in his hand up. "Yeah! I got it!" shadowess - February 27, 2021 She smiled at Vincent then at Charles. She could see there would be no arguing with these two. She didn't really feel up to arguing either. All she wanted to do right now was lay down and try to feel better. With a defeated sigh, she nodded. "Alright." She said, leaning forward to rest her forehead against Charles's and closing her eyes. "I trust you." Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 "Thank you." Charles held her in his arms. They disappeared. He placed her on the bed. "If you need anything then please let me know." shadowess - February 27, 2021 When Charles lifted her, she wrapped an arm around his shoulders. When they arrived in his home and he put her down on the bed, she smiled up at him. "Thank you." Now that she was away from the smell of alcohol, she didn't feel quite as sick. "I think I'm just going to sleep it off for a while." She said as she lay down. She then reached out and held his hand, rubbing her thumb over it with a thoughtful expression before bringing her eyes up to his. "Thank you...for everything." If not for Charles, there'd still be the organization to deal with. Clementine would still be around and most likely plotting Amelia's demise and she would have still had the burden of trying to achieve peace on her own. She was truly grateful to have Charles in her life. She felt even more fortunate that he loved her as much as she loved him. Despite all the bad things that had happened lately, she felt like there was some hope for the future. That maybe they'll finally reach peace and have a happy life. Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Charles knelt. A few tears left him. He kissed her hand. He brought her hand over his cheek. "I'd destroy the moon for you." shadowess - February 27, 2021 The way he looked at her. How he kissed her hand. She saw his tears and when he placed her hand to his cheek she used her thumb to wipe some of the away. His words touched her deeply and for a moment she was speechless, feeling her heart beat a little harder as she looked at him. She smiled and sat up to kiss him tenderly. Pulling away, she kept her lips close to his while looking into his eyes and grinned as she whispered. "I'll settle for peace instead." Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Charles smiled. "A good choice I'd say." He stood. "I'm going to go eat. I'll save something for you." shadowess - February 27, 2021 "Alright. Thank you." Amelia smiled as she lay back down. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to relax herself. It didn't take her long to fall asleep. Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Charles was in the kitchen. Cooking salmon along with cheesy potatoes and seasoned green beans. ---- Vincent had put away a few of the bottles of alcohol in the fridge. Leaving two bottles for himself to finish. He began singing but terribly. Waking up everybody in the house. shadowess - February 27, 2021 The smell of salmon reached Amelia's nose and while she'd normally love that smell, for some reason it just made her nausea feel a little worse. She turned on her side with a groan and stuffed her face into the pillow to block the smell. After a few deep breaths to settle her stomach again, she quickly fell back to sleep. --- Sebastian was woken up by the god awful singing coming from downstairs. He groaned and rubbed his eyes. "Can we ever get a full day's sleep?!" He complained as he sat up.

shadowess - February 27, 2021 ((You could probably add a few things to what he would find in Clementine's house. But a couple of things he'd definitely find are some books from the library that are specifically various spells that Demons and Devils can perform. Another book which would essentially be alchemy recipes which is where she got the recipe to make the serum that made Alex into a human. The angelic dagger. A few old looking Angel feathers. An entire drawer full of the serum which would mean she'd lied to Sebastian to try to manipulate him into letting Amelia stay human as a kinder way of getting rid of her. Bryce's book. As well as some other potions with various effects.)) --- Amelia pulled back and wiped away her tears. "That's awesome. Guess the Angel's knew what they were doing when they made those..." She chuckled. "I just thought...with us each having a half of the same crystal it's almost like we have one of those friendship pendant things that you can put together." She sighed and looked at Clementine's pile of ash sadly. "Don't suppose you're still abstaining from drinking, are you? Because I could really use a drink right now..." --- Tom wondered what he'd meant by that but then lost all train of thought as he felt Nate's tongue slip into his mouth and caress his own tongue. He couldn't help letting out a small moan, feeling both excited and nervous. He'd never done anything like this before and this man seemed pretty strong. Stronger than him anyway. Which became even more apparent as the Angel lifted him off the ground with ease and began carrying him away to another room. (Private time for Nate & Tom) Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 (alright) Charles's eyes widened at the sight of the dolls that stood. He glared at them. "So this is what she did to those who disagreed with her?" He waved a hand at them. The dolls shattered into pieces. "I'm sorry that this happened to all of you." He stepped into the house with ease. He searched everywhere. Finding the angelic items along with some important books, Bryce's book, and the serum that had been used to turn Alex back into a human. He grit his teeth as he saw the serum. "That lying bitch." He let the serums fall. Shattering on the floor. Spilling everywhere. He burned all the books but took the angelic items with him. Once he stepped, he destroyed the house. ----- Vincent raised a brow. "Really? Never had one of those before." He stood. "I could use a drink too." (yep) shadowess - February 27, 2021 Amelia stood up and thought for a moment. She then vanished and re-appeared a few minutes later with two shopping bags full of various colored bottles. Some were pre-mixed cocktails, some rum, whiskey and vodka. "Wasn't sure what I was craving so I just picked one of everything." She shrugged and set the bags down. Picking out one of the cocktail bottles, she sat on the couch and relaxed. "Help yourself." She said before opening the bottle and knocking it back. It was nice to have a drinking buddy again. Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Vincent took two glasses from the kitchen. He set them on the coffee table before sitting next to her. He smiled. "Thank you. I'm sure this will all taste good." shadowess - February 27, 2021 It was still difficult to believe that Clementine would betray her like that. Amelia had always known her to be closed off and a bit stand offish but to go that far? She'd grown up knowing Clementine. She remembered stumbling upon her house for the first time as a kid. How shocked she'd been to see a living child wander into her home in Hell. The argument between her and David as David made her swear to never tell Lucifer about Amelia. Whenever Amelia had gotten sick or hurt herself, Clementine turned up with one potion or another to make her well again...then promptly scolded her for showing weakness. Whenever Amelia slipped out of the library to explore and Clementine found her first, she'd spend a moment telling Amelia stories about the area she'd found before guiding her safely back to the library. At that point, Clementine seemed content to nurture Amelia into one day joining them as a Demon or a Devil. It seemed that Clementine's resentment only truly started when Lucifer disappeared and Amelia began convincing Damien that things in Hell needed to change. Then of course Damien was obliterated and Amelia supposed Clementine just couldn't stand the thought of her taking the position of power, making changes in Hell and trying to end the war. Amelia sighed heavily, trying to push those memories away as she poured the liquid into the glass. She offered Vincent some of the liquid from the bottle she was drinking too. Pouring him a glass of whatever drink he wanted to try before sitting back and drinking from her glass. "Sometimes I wonder if Damien's advice was right...about not trusting anyone." She said sadly, staring into her glass. "I've known Clementine all my life...but she was trying to get rid of me for god knows how long...and I didn't even know...I just thought she had an attitude problem..." Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Vincent looked into the glass before sighing. "Someone out there is always going to betray us. Not everybody. Just a few. But that's how things are. If we stop trusting people then we stop trusting our friends, lovers, and anyone who's willing to work with us. What Clementine did shouldn't stray you away from trust." He drank a sip. Charles appeared. Holding the dagger and handcuffs. "I found them. That snake's house has been destroyed." In his hands, he crushed both items. Shattering them into pieces. "She had so many damn tricks up her sleeves. I probably should have tortured her before killing her but I couldn't stand her being alive any longer with power like that. If she had a better perspective of the world then I would have spared her." Vincent frowned. "I don't blame you." shadowess - February 27, 2021 Amelia thought on what Vincent said as she looked at her glass. After a moment, she smiled a little. "Yeah, you're right. I think I'd go crazy if I couldn't trust anyone..." She then looked up as Charles re-appeared and she watched in astonishment as he destroyed the items seemingly with ease. She found herself wondering again just how powerful this Devil was...and then her mind slipped into thinking how much of a turn on what he just did was. He then talked about the things Clementine had been hiding and she lowered her eyes back to her glass again sadly. "I don't want to talk about Clementine anymore..." She said quietly, still upset over the betrayal. The whole thing made her feel sick...she lifted the glass to her lips then paused. She didn't want to drink anymore. The smell of the alcohol was also making her feel nauseous. Like, really nauseous. She put it down on the table, her nose creasing a little in disgust at the drink. Feeling a little better as she sat back, away from the smell of it. That was weird. She'd never been put off of drinking like that before. Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Charles frowned. He walked over. Putting a hand on her shoulder. "Is everything alright?" Vincent drank the rest of his glass. He poured himself another as he continued to drink. Not wanting to be involved. Instead, he wanted to keep drinking because he was done with stressful situations. shadowess - February 27, 2021 Smiling at Charles to reassure him, Amelia nodded. She'd wrapped her arms around her own waist. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just feeling a little queasy, that's all. I guess it all just got too much for me...Maybe I just need to lay down for a while." She'd glanced at the drinks in the bag and cringed. Although she'd barely had any, the idea of drinking any more made her feel ill. She looked over at Vincent. "Just make sure you save me some for when I feel better, mr." She smirked. Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Charles knelt. "Do you want to go to my home and rest there?" Vincent smiled. "Don't worry. I won't drink it all up. I promise." shadowess - February 27, 2021 Smiling at Vincent's answer, Amelia looked at Charles and nodded then looked thoughtful. "What about the Angel? Someone will need to explain things to Sebastian and Carter when they wake up." She looked between them then hesitantly added. "Maybe I should stick around for a bit first. I can always rest later." She didn't want to leave all the responsibility to Charles and Vincent. With how important this was, she felt it was also her responsibility to see things through.

shadowess - February 27, 2021 The knife became embedded in her porcelain armor. Only inches from hitting her heart. It burned her horribly, her armor around it cracking and breaking off. She shrieked loudly and stumbled, falling back off the rocks. Stumbling to her feet, she clawed at it, the knife too small for her giant fingers to grip. She staggered back to her feet, hissing and roaring angrily at Bryce as she stumbled away from him before vanishing, taking the dagger with her. --- At her doll house, having transformed back into her child form and pulled the dagger out of her chest, she stumbled to her basement door shakily. Blood pouring from the wound, leaving a crimson trail as she went. She unlocked the basement door then re-locked it behind her. She was going to die from this wound and re-awaken elsewhere in Hell. But before she could allow this to happen to her she had to lock the dagger away so that she could come back for it later. She slowly made her way to her cabinets, unlocking them and placing the dagger inside. Ignoring the fact that her hand was burning from touching the metal. She closed the cabinet and locked it then hid the key. Gripping the wound in her chest, she wandered over to the wall and leant against it. Sliding down it, she sat and stared at the basement door, struggling to breathe and coughing up her own blood. That was close. Too close. Had he hit her heart, she'd have been done for! She made a mental note to destroy Bryce at her earliest opportunity. She then had a very sinister thought. One that brought a vicious grin to her face. Bryce wanted to get on Amelia's good side, did he? Too bad she would destroy that chance for him! The icing on the cake would be that he gave her the perfect way to do so. Ensuring her mind and emotions were guarded as normal, she forced herself to her feet and made herself hyperventilate, making herself look panicked before vanishing again. --- Amelia had jumped, holding onto Charles a little tighter, her eyes widening and darting to Nate when his wings sprouted. Just like their steel, a single feather from their wings could do quite a lot of damage to a Devil. She only relaxed a little when he put them away again. When they arrived in Carter's office and Nate immediately tried to approach Vincent, Amelia had tensed and opened her mouth to object but Charles beat her to it. She was relieved to hear him make it clear that Vincent wasn't an option and suggest that they wait for the others. She supposed she should at least make some kind of effort to be nice. He might be a little rough around the edges but so far Nate hadn't given her any reason to suspect him of anything. Maybe Charles was right. Maybe she was just worrying too much. Maybe she was just so used to being on the run from Angels that she her distrust was just a habit at this point? She was about to offer to make coffee when the small form of Clementine appeared in the room. She was hunched over, gripping her wound, breathing heavily and losing a large amount of blood. Clementine fell to her knees, feeling herself begin to die. "Amelia! It's Bryce! He has them! He has the items! He attacked me!" She coughed up more blood. Her eyes then shot up to Nate and her face turned an even paler shade of white. "A-Angel!" She gasped, showing true fear. Light sleeper as he was, Tom had heard the commotion and had wandered downstairs to see what was going on. He stared in confusion between the dying child, the stranger, Amelia and Charles. "Oh, my God! Is that kid ok?! What happened?!" Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Vincent awoke to witness this all. "Wha-? What's going on?" Charles glared. He picked Clementine up by her neck. "Don't be fooled by her form. She isn't an innocent little girl." Nate sprouted his wings. He plucked a feather out from one of of his wings. He flinched for a moment before placing that feather on the end of his weapon. "I know what she is too." He pierced her heart. "And she will never attempt to bring another like Lucifer to reign again." Charles let her body go. "I'm sorry Amelia but Clementine had plans to kill you and possibly anyone who would stand in her way to make Hell the way she envisioned it. That would mean a constant and perhaps worse war with the angels." "What a shame. I was planning on killing her too." ,said Vincent. "I know you were." Charles snapped his fingers. The cage was gone. "It seemed that Elliot has helped change your mind about things." Vincent nodded. "Then stay here while I go look for Bryce. I'm going to search Clementine's home as well. I'm sure she's stolen a few things in the past from me or some other devil or demon." shadowess - February 27, 2021 Gasping, Clementine stared at Charles fearfully as he lifted her from the ground by her neck. She could only watch helplessly as Charles announced she wasn't innocent and the Angel sprouted his wings. Her mental guard broke down completely as she began to panic. "No! Please!" Her last thoughts as her heart was pierced being 'I may have... miscalculated... just a bit...' Her form froze, turning grey. Every vein in her body lit up as if her very blood had just been ignited. Then piece by piece, her skin began to crack and burn. Embers lifting from her little body before she crumpled and disintegrated completely. Leaving behind nothing but a pile of ash on the floor. The fate any Demon or Devil would endure upon their Obliteration. Amelia had lifted her hands to cover her mouth and nose. Tears running down her face. She had known Clementine all her life. The news that she was trying to betray her and possibly even kill her was a huge shock. She was shaking and backed up until she felt a chair behind her, feeling like she needed to sit down to try and process this. Everything else happening in the room was soon tuned out as she tried to comprehend that Clementine was a traitor. Tom was standing against the wall, having watched the whole thing and deeply disturbed by the sight of a child turning to dust like that. Even if she was as much of a monster as they said she was, it was still a very jarring sight. "Wha-? What just happened?" Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 "I saved all your lives. Had she had her way, you would have either been her slave or dead." Charles walked to Amelia. He knelt by her side. Placing a hand over her knee. "I'm sorry but I had to do it." Nate winked at Tom. "Hey there handsome." Vincent gripped his arm. Stopping him. "That's a bit over the line. Even for myself." shadowess - February 27, 2021 Removing her hands from her face, Amelia looked at Charles and nodded. She took a breath to calm herself enough to talk and said in a broken voice "I know...I know..." She wanted him to know that despite her grief, she didn't blame him for what had happened. She was just heartbroken by the betrayal and grief stricken from losing what she thought was the equivalent of a family friend. She then leant forward so her head rested on his shoulder as she wept, barely able to contain it and needing to let it go. Needing him to hold her. To just be there. Tom's face had turned red at the compliment and he wasn't sure where to look. "Uh, hi...um..." He stammered shyly then pointed towards the kitchen with his thumb. "I'm- I'm- I'm just guna...go get..." He trailed off, saying the rest too quietly to hear as he walked into the kitchen. 'What was that?! C'mon Tom! Pull yourself together...you've only been shot, turned into a vampire, watched a demon kid turn to ash and been hit on by an Angel...all in the same day...' He thought as he paused in the kitchen to rub his face briefly. Shaking his head and taking a deep breath, he opened the fridge door and took out a blood bag, biting into it quickly. His new senses had been going nuts. Particularly smell. Vincent and that demon kid didn't smell that great but the others in the next room? Was that their blood he was smelling? That really sweet smell? Whatever it was, it had been making him hungry and he didn't really fancy joining that demon kid in ash-town. So he thought the best thing to do was fill up on the blood bag instead to eliminate any cravings. Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Charles frowned. "It's ok. It's alright." He pat her back. Vincent let him go as it seemed like Tom was stable enough to talk to. Nate walked over to him. He placed his hands over his shoulders. He whispered into his ear. "You look lovely today. What's a drop dead gorgeous vampire like you doing in a place like this?" shadowess - February 27, 2021 Amelia took several deep breaths to try and calm herself down. Charles talking to her and holding her the way he did helped her a lot. When she felt calm enough to do so, she pulled back and looked at him. "Do what you need to do." She whispered. "I'll be here when you're done." She didn't want to hold him up any more than she already had. Coming to terms with what had happened, she knew that what happened next would be important and potentially even vital to their progression towards peace. Whatever Charles decided to do now, he had Amelia's absolute trust and loyalty. She then looked over at Vincent and smirked. "Oi, you. Your sister needs a damn hug!" Despite everything that had happened, she'd been glad to see Vincent was back to himself. The version of him that she had effectively adopted. --- Feeling hands on his shoulder and then hearing the Angel's voice in his ear had taken Tom by surprise and caused him to squeeze the blood bag tightly. Sending blood shooting into his mouth and causing his cheeks to puff out a bit. With a little bit of a struggle, he managed to swallow the big mouthful a little painfully and he gasped. Coughing a little and catching his breath a bit. "I-I do?" He asked, his face red as he looked down at the blood drenched clothes he was still wearing from when he'd almost bled out. "Um...I...I..." He stammered shyly, his mind racing. Turning his head to look at the Angel, he shivered excitedly and then looked at the ground. "Oh man...Y-you smell good..." Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Vincent smiled. "Needy as always." He walked over to her. Giving her a hug. Charles stood. Watching Tom and Nate's interaction. Nate caressed his cheek. He smirked. "Really? Thanks. Glad to know that I don't smell like shit." He kissed his neck as he touched his waist. "Wanna be alone with me?" "The two of can take this crap upstairs!" ,said Charles. "Oh hush!" Nate looked back at Tom. "How about it? You want to go into a room and have some fun?" He pulled him closer by his pants. shadowess - February 27, 2021 The banter brought a small smile to Amelia's face as she hugged Vincent. "Don't you ever scare me like that again!" She said, holding him tightly. "I was afraid we'd lost you." Nate's touch sent shivers through Tom. He couldn't help letting out a quiet gasp and tilting his head back a little when feeling him kiss his neck. More shivers passed through him as he felt his pants being tugged. "B-but the bedrooms here...they're all taken." He said, turning his head to look at Nate again. His eyes falling to his lips. Denix Vames - February 27, 2021 Vincent chuckled. "I thought the same until I got that half crystal back from Elliot. It seems like it helps." "I'm off now. Be safe." ,said Charles who disappeared. Nate cupped his chin. He leaned in. "Then we'll make our own bedroom." He slipped his tongue into his mouth. Kissing him before lifting him off the floor. Taking him to the washer room down the hall near the kitchen.

Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 (that would be fine. we can start that now.) "There always seems to be." Carter laid next to. Resting his head over his chest. "I'm sorry if I scared you earlier." ---- Bryce wasn't sure where he was. He just knew he had the items that he needed to capture any Devil. ----- Once Amelia was dressed, Charles and her appeared in Carter's house. Sitting crisscrossed on the living room floor was the angel. He had on a white hospital gown. His left eye was nothing but white. A faded scar was over it. His hair was dark brown and wavy. He somewhat had a beard. Barely growing. He was muscled but not extreme. There was dry blood all over his gown. He was playing Solitaire. He had bruises and whip marks just about everywhere. His one good black eye looked at them. "Don't be alarmed by the blood." He focused back on the game. "Charles let us....express our anger towards the experiments by having a little chat with the scientists before he tore that prison to the ground." shadowess - February 26, 2021 Lowering an arm to wrap around Carter, he gently stroked his arm with his thumb. "You don't need to apologize." He kissed the top of his head tenderly. "I just hope you're alright. That must've been one hell of a nightmare that you had." --- Deadman's Desert. An orange 'sky' with no sun. Never nightfall. Sand for as far as the eye can see and large, sharp, jagged rocks sticking out of the ground here and there. Souls who didn't know how to traverse Hell well often ended up here. Stuck to walk in the seemingly endless desert until they either went mad or a Demon found them and put them out of their misery. Clementine found herself standing near one of those sharp rocks, she saw Bryce in the distance, looking just as lost as any soul here would. She approached from behind and maintained a safe enough distance. He might be just a soul, but even without those items, he was a particularly dangerous one. "Mr Heathcliffe. Such a pleasure to see you again." Clementine called out pleasantly. "I'm going to need those items that you stole. Perhaps we can come to some sort of arrangement?" --- Once they were in the house, Amelia couldn't take her eyes off the Angel. Instinctively, she felt afraid of him. She moved slowly and nervously over to Charles, and wrapped an arm around his waist, wanting the comfort of his arm around her as she swallowed her fear to try talking to the Angel. She was shivering a little. 'Just be nice. There's nothing to fear. He's on our side.' she thought to herself to try and calm herself down. "H-hi...I'm Amelia..." She began, staring at his injuries and the blood on the gown. The wrath of an Angel isn't something new to Amelia. Although the humans liked to depict them as these gentle, patient creatures, the truth was they could be just as vengeful as any Devil was capable of being. It only made sense given that most of them were soldiers of God and technically speaking, Devils were just another form of Arch Angel. "S-sorry...this is new...never talked to an Angel who didn't try to kill me straight away before...not including that one Angel but back then I wasn't...what I am now..." She rambled a bit out of nerves. Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Carter smiled. "I'm fine now. It was fucked up but I'm ok." He closed his eyes. He sighed. "I just want to forget about it." ----- Bryce turned around. He smiled. "No, thank you. I plan to give these to Amelia. You see, I know what you truly are. After all, it's hard to trust someone who looks like a bitch." ------ Nate stopped. "Let's get one thing straight. I'm not on your side, the human's side, or God's side. I'm on my side. Because I'm the only one who hasn't abandoned myself." He examined the cards on the floor. "As for the angel bit, well....Let's just say that I've killed a few in the past. I never liked angels either. Just the ones who didn't mess with me. Unfortunately, God has an egotistical temper. He doesn't like it when he's proven wrong. So he threw me into that facility. The damage they did to me was something that I didn't expect." He breathed in the air with a smile. Recalling the fond memories of torturing those scientists. "But crushing their bones did feel good." "You should get dressed. We need your help." ,said Charles. "With what?" "Forming a peace treaty with the angels." Nate laughed. "And what makes you think that they'll listen to me after all that I've done to them?" "Because I have this." Charles held the handle of an angelic blade that was in the shape of a head. An opening was under it with jagged points facing where the neck would be. Nate dropped the cards in his hands and stood. "Is that....my weapon?" "Indeed it is." He walked over as he reached out. He took the weapon. Examining it. "I thought I lost it to those human bastards. Its capabilities of grabbing a head and ripping it off the person's torso always made me happy." shadowess - February 26, 2021 Sebastian gave him a comforting squeeze and kissed his head once more. "Whatever you need. I'm here." --- Anger momentarily flickered across Clementine's features but she maintained that sickly sweet smile. "A fine time you're going to have trying to do that while wandering around this desert in circles." She teased then tilted her head to one side. "So, you're going to give Amelia those items? Just like that? After you kidnapped her. Tortured her and for all you knew at the time aided in her being poisoned? Or did you mean "give them to her" in the more sinister sense?" Because Clementine would be down for that. "What exactly do you hope to gain, here?" --- Ok, rude. Amelia immediately got bad vibes from this Angel. She wasn't sold on whether or not he could be trusted and was a little disturbed by the way he talked about torture as well as the way he fondly spoke of his barbaric looking weapon. She was still holding on to Charles. Still too nervous around this Angel to let him go. She looked between them both momentarily with mild confusion. "Sorry...I'm not following...how does that weapon help us get peace?" She looked at Charles questioningly. Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Carter began to slowly fall asleep. "Thank you." ---- "What I did was out of love. What you do is out of hatred. You despise Amelia." Bryce chuckled. "You're naive. Stuck in your ways. Frankly, I like her a lot more than you. Which is why I will find any other way to give her these items before you can get your dirty little hands on them." ----- Nate smiled. "He hoped it would calm me. And it somewhat has but I need something else. Then I'll be part of your little merrymen group." Charles rolled his eyes. "Name it." "I want to fuck someone." He raised a brow. "I'm sorry, what?" "You heard me. I don't care what they are so long as I can fuck them." "Deal but first, you need to get a shower and find some clean clothes." "Fine. Where's the bathroom?" "Upstairs." Nate headed up with his weapon by his side. "I''ll be done in no time." shadowess - February 26, 2021 "Oh Bryce..." Clementine says in disappointment. "We could've been such a team. I might even have given you the resurrection spell but...I guess you just don't want to exist at all anymore." She grinned, her mouth beginning to widen unnaturally. Her eyes glowing red. "I will be taking those items. I'd have preferred you gave them to me willingly but I don't mind destroying you to get them either." Within moments, she'd transformed just as grotesquely as she had done in the woods. Towering over him, she let out a loud, ear-piercing roar before swinging a fist at him from the side. --- Amelia watched Nate leave and she looked at Charles again, still feeling lost. She really didn't trust that Angel and she couldn't help but wonder if this might be some kind of mistake. She hoped Charles would comfort her. Tell her she had nothing to worry about. That she was misreading the body language and general vibe she was getting. "Who do you suppose would want to sleep with him?" She asked, wondering if Charles already had someone in mind and if that person would even want to sleep with Nate. Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Bryce was thrown off in the distance. He rolled over and cringed as he landed on his back. He forced himself to get up. He ran at her with a frustrated scream. The knife was in his hand. Ready to stab her. ----- Charles shrugged. "You're worrying too much. This is just the aftermath of an angel being tortured. Anyway, I'm not so sure who would do it. Vincent might but I don't know about letting him do it. I could do it since it means nothing to me if you're cool with that." shadowess - February 26, 2021 Seeing the flash of the blade, Clementine moved rapidly to stand atop the jagged rocks, out of his reach. She hissed at him angrily and aimed a kick at him with one of her four legs, hoping to knock him back. ----- Amelia's brows furrowed, a little angry at the suggestion. "No. I am not cool with that." She said simply. She then thought, uncomfortable by his suggestion to let Vincent do it either. "Vincent isn't himself right now. He might be crazy but he's still my friend. It wouldn't be fair to ask this of him while he isn't himself." Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Bryce jumped back. He quickly stabbed her foot. ----- "Why don't we bring him to Carter's office and see who's willing to do it?" Nate soon came downstairs. He was dressed in white pants and a coat along with a black buttoned shirt. The buttons at the top were opened. Revealing some of his hairy chest. He had shaved his sort of beard. He smiled. "I feel good. How about it? Do I look good?" shadowess - February 26, 2021 Letting out a deafening shriek, Clementine pulled her foot back rapidly. The wound burned and bled. She tore a chunk of rock from the one she stood on and threw it in Bryce's direction. --- This entire situation made Amelia uncomfortable but she didn't feel they had much of a choice. Not if they wanted an Angel on their side. Not if they wanted peace. She sighed and reluctantly nodded at his suggestion. She turned to look at the Angel as he rejoined them looking far less like he'd just taken part in a massacre. She didn't answer his question, just lowered her eyes to the ground shyly and waited for Charles to do the talking. She still couldn't shale the feeling that something was off and she just wanted this over with. Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Bryce fell over. Dodging the rock. He threw the knife at her. Piercing her chest. ------ Nate gave an annoyed look. "Hmph! Seems like someone doesn't know fashion when they see it." "Don't mind her. She's just nervous." "Oh don't worry. I wouldn't hurt a fly. Not unless it bothered me. Anyway, we should get going." His wings sprouted from his back. "We're teleporting." ,said Charles. Nate rolled his eyes with a sigh. "Fine!" His wings retracted back into him. Charles touched his arm. All three appeared in Carter's office at the living room. " Nate caught his eyes on a sleeping Vincent. "He smiled. Ooh!" Charles gripped his shoulder. Stopping him from going near Vincent. "He's not one of yours. You night as well wait until everyone's awake."

Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Elliot, while sleeping, was shivering. Gradually, he began to shake from the cold. ----- Carter listened. Sitting right next to him at the edge of the bed. He massaged his temples as he was thinking. "I really need a smoke right now." ------ Vincent grit his teeth. "Are you saying that you've been making me and Charles feel different by putting your thoughts into our heads?" shadowess - February 26, 2021 Being a light sleeper and having a little trouble sleeping through nightmares about getting shot repeatedly at the facility, Tom woke up when he heard Elliot shivering. He looked over at him with a frown and looked at the thick duvet on the bed. He was barely using it anyway. He didn't quite feel the cold like he used to. Lifting it, he pulled it off the bed and draped it over Elliot gently before laying back down on the bed, staring at the ceiling and praying he could just sleep without the nightmares. --- Sebastian hesitated. He really hated smoking, drinking or doing anything that could harm your body but Carter had a right to choose what he could and could not do. If smoking helped him to stay calm through all this madness, then he couldn't really deny him that. "You still can, you know..." He said while holding him. He sighed. "If it helps you...you can still smoke." --- Clementine sighed impatiently. "No." She answered him. "I can't fake thoughts or emotions. That is beyond my power. I can only hide them or direct certain thoughts in your direction while keeping them hidden from other telepaths. Like a private conversation." She then concentrated. 'Like this. If there are any other telepaths in this house, they will not be able to hear what you can hear me think right now. My point is, you are fully capable of doing this as well.' Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Elliot quickly became warm with the blanket. Having an easier time sleeping. ------ Carter smirked as he shook his head. "I wish. I don't have any damn cigarettes. I threw them out after that talk in the kitchen we had. Remember?" ------ Vincent grinned. "Good to know. You really do make a remarkable servant. Perhaps you could help me in my mission to destroy that facility." He stood. "Before, I would have gone in there without thinking. Now, I have an idea." shadowess - February 26, 2021 "Oh yeah..." Sebastian smiled, rubbing the back of his head with embarrassment. "Well...at least now you know." He said, leaning in to kiss his cheek. "So...where did you want to travel to first?" He asked, hoping to take Carter's mind off the dream he'd had. --- Clementine smiled, happy to see he finally got it. She placed a hand on her chest and bowed her head at the compliment. "You flatter me. I would be honored to help you in your endeavor. Unfortunately..." She stepped up to the cage and flicked the bars. "I don't have the power to release you...You need a Devil to do that. Which means you'll need to convince either Amelia or Charles that they can trust you enough to let you out." She then smiled slyly. "I may also have a lead on those Angelic items that were stolen in Hell. If I can find them before David, would you prefer that I gave them directly to you? Amelia and Charles don't need to know you have them." Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Carter frowned. "I'm sorry Sebastian but I can't think about having a vacation when there's still that god damn organization. Running around and kidnapping people to do whatever sick fucked up things they've been doing." ----- Vincent nodded. "Those items will be of good use to me." He thought for a moment. "Though I'm not too sure how I can convince either one. They're very stubborn." ----- Charles had left after his personal time with Amelia. Leaving her alone in the bed as she slept. He soon came back with a smile on his face. He gently shook her awake. "Oh dear. I have a surprise for you." shadowess - February 26, 2021 Sebastian's smile slipped. He had meant for after they'd taken down the organization but he saw Carter's point. It might not be such a good idea to try making any plans before they knew they were safe again. He nodded. "Then we'll come up with a way to stop them first. Amelia, Charles and Vincent must've seen some of the layout. Maybe we could use what they saw to our advantage?" --- Clementine glanced at the staircase warily. She felt she was beginning to push her luck with this secret meeting. "Charles might be more difficult but Amelia is not a telepath. Her thoughts and memories are an open book to you. Perhaps you could use that to your advantage?" She glanced back and smiled. "You are a smart man, Vincent. I trust you will find a way. For now, I believe I have some Angelic Items to find." --- Amelia's eyes flickered open. She had been sleeping soundly with a small smile. Hearing Charles's voice, she looked up and her smile grew. "Hey you." She said sleepily, rubbed her eyes and sat up. Waking up a little more, she looked at Charles curiously. "Oh?" She asked, wondering what he meant. Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 "Something tells me that those three don't need our help. Especially Vincent. Though, I guess now it would be Charles. I never knew a guy like that could have so much power." Carter bit his lip. "I don't mean to sound like one of those hunters but it's terrifying." ----- Vincent nodded. "Good luck finding them. I have a feeling that Bryce may be the culprit. But that's just a feeling." ----- Charles sat at the edge of the bed. "I freed the last surviving prisoners and put them in Carter's house. I killed all of the hunters and destroyed their facility. Leaving no trace of them behind. It's nothing but rubble and ash now. I told them the prisoners everything that they needed to know. I said they can return to their homes if they had any. Many did leave. I guided them to their places. However, there's an interesting fellow that I think we should all meet. A rogue angel by the name of Naoutha. But he prefers to be called Nate. It's much more simpler he says." shadowess - February 26, 2021 "I know what you mean..." Sebastian agreed. "Thank God he's on our side, right?" He then looked a little thoughtful. "Did you see how...Amelia and him? You don't think they're-?" He stammered, unsure of how to phrase the question. He'd noticed how Amelia had hugged him and they'd vanished together and couldn't help wondering if there was something between them. While he was happy for her if they were together, he also worried for her considering his level of power. But then, he supposed he'd probably worry for her no matter who it was. She was like family to him at this point. --- Frowning, Clementine nodded. Recalling Bryce's unpredictability and ruthlessness, she knew she'd have to be wary of him if he did have them. That dagger could destroy her just as easily as it could destroy any Devil. Especially now that she had his book locked away in her lab. "Then I will search for Bryce first. Good luck on gaining your freedom, Vincent." She vanished, in search of Bryce in Hell. --- Stunned into silence, Amelia listened until Charles finished speaking. Her eyes wide and her mouth hanging open a little. At first she found it difficult to believe but as she thought on it and about how powerful Charles seemed to be, she felt an immense relief wash over her. It was over. Everything with that wretched organization was finally over with! She broke into a wide smile and shook her head a little, overjoyed. "How-? y-you-? You did all that? I-it's only been a few hours! Th-that's amazing! You're amazing!" She threw her arms around him, laughing joyfully. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this happy. Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Carter nodded. "Yeah, I can tell. It doesn't seem like a bad mix though. They seem to genuinely care about each other." ----- Vincent laid down and closed his eyes. "What a annoying predicament I am in." ----- Charles smiled as he held her in his arms. "We can meet him now if you'd like." (i can describe the angel for you if you want. i had an idea in my head already) shadowess - February 26, 2021 (Sure Shall we have Clementine find Bryce or did you want to wait a bit for that?) A little comforted by Carter's words, Sebastian smiled and laid back on the bed with his hands behind his head. "I guess so." He looked at Carter. "I guess it's just a bit surprising. I've known her for years and she's always turned down people who tried to ask her out. Never thought she'd be the type to have an actual relationship...but then again...there's been a lot of firsts going on lately." --- Amelia was both excited and nervous about the idea of meeting an Angel. Any Angel she'd ever come into contact with she'd had to either fight for her life or run from to survive. But with Charles by her side, she felt a little more confident that they'll be safe. "Yes! I'll just get dressed..." She said as she sprung to her feet and began gathering her clothes that had been thrown about the room during their passionate time together earlier that day.

Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 Carter smiled. "You can stay with us. You can sleep on the couch or in one of the bedrooms. We're more than happy to let you live here. We've got enough blood for us all. And if we run out then we can always buy more." shadowess - February 25, 2021 Nodding, Tom smiled and looked between them. "Thank you...um...do ya mind if I head up to one of the rooms now? I feel really tired...and sore..." Sebastian smiled and looked towards the curtained windows thoughtfully. "Changing is exhausting...that and it's almost daylight out. Which reminds me, don't let the sunlight touch you. If the stories about vampires got anything right, it's that we burn in the sun." Tom nods uncomfortably. "Got it...no more sun bathing on the beaches..." He shakily got to his feet and headed towards the staircase. "Well good nigh-....day? Good day, I guess..." He said before walking up the stairs and disappearing into one of the spare rooms. Sebastian sighed heavily and leant against Carter, resting his head on his shoulder. "Now I really can't wait to go travelling!" He commented wearily. --- Feeling a little calmer than she had a moment ago, Amelia stood and took a deep breath. She really wanted a drink and a smoke after everything that had happened today. But she wanted something else more. Or rather, someone else. She headed back into the house and looked at Charles. Walking over to him, she wrapped her arms around him again, just wanting to be held by him. "Can we go back to your place?" She whispered, wanting to get away from everything for a while. Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 Elliot sat up from his bed when he saw the door open. "Oh, it's you." He glared. "Do you have any more secrets up your sleeve? Or did you tell us everything?" Carter pinched the brim of his nose as he was fighting off a migraine. "Me too." His legs were a bit wobbly. ----- Charles nodded. He smiled. "Of course." They appeared in the condo. He kissed her. "How are you feeling?" shadowess - February 25, 2021 Tom jumped at the sound of Elliot's voice and he hesitated. "-Um! Sorry, I didn't realize this room was taken..." He said quickly, still standing in the doorway then paused at the questions. "I...I told you guys everything I know..." He said looking at the ground guiltily. He felt awful about everything that had happened. Even though he didn't know just how bad ADIEU were, he still felt responsible. In fact, he'd been planning on waiting until just after the sun had set to slip away quietly. He'd already brought these people enough trouble without burdening them with taking care of him as well. "I'm-...I'm sorry...I'll just...I'll just find another room..." --- Sebastian helped Carter to his feet and hugged him. "Blood bag and bed?" He suggested with a small smile. "Then maybe we can start coming up with ideas on where we want to visit first." --- Amelia kissed him back and smiled. Her blue eyes glowing a little and her cheeks shimmering. A reaction that only Charles seemed capable of getting from her. "Better now." She answered softly, still smiling. It was true. Back at Carter's office, she'd felt nothing but a deep sadness. Her close friend had lost his mind and was now a raving lunatic sitting in a cage. Her father had come close to complete destruction and was now dealing with injuries that could take days, if not weeks to recover from. That's not even mentioning all the people she'd seen burn to death or that Sebastian had had to turn another human into a vampire. But now that she stood in Charles's condo, in his arms and looking into his eyes...it felt like all of those worries were melting away. Like all that mattered right now was simply being here with him. Like they were the only two people in the world. She kissed him again. Softly, then deeply, then passionately. Lifting a hand to run her fingers through his hair. Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 Elliot sighed. "No, wait a minute. Come here. You can....sleep on the bed. I'll take the floor. Besides, the other room belongs to Sebastian and Carter." ----- Carter held a small smile. "Definitely." He soon drank from a bag which made him feel somewhat better. Him and Sebastian headed upstairs and into their bedroom. ----- Charles became lost in those kisses. He placed his hands on her hips. Keeping her close as he led her to the couch. shadowess - February 26, 2021 Lifting his hazel eyes to Elliot he entered the room sheepishly and closed the door. "Oh...oh, you don't have to do that." He said, now feeling bad that he was going to make someone sleep on the floor. "I could...I could sleep in the chair? I don't mind." He suggested. --- A small moan escaped Amelia as she felt his hands on her hips. Her body pressed against his as they kissed. They moved around the room until she felt the back of her legs touch the couch and she giggled a little as she sat down, bringing him down with her. She slid a hand under his robe to run her fingers over his chest while caressing his tongue with her own. Utterly lost in the moment. Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Elliot shook his head as he got off the bed. "At this point, you deserve the bed after everything that just happened to you." He shrugged. "Besides, I don't usually sleep with people unless I'm really close to them." ------ As Carter was sleeping, he found himself in another nightmare. One that felt so surreal. Vincent, in that skeletal form, was flying above. Roaring. Fire spread everywhere. Carter began to run. Trying to get away. Men in white grabbed him by his arms. He struggled but they seemed to be stronger him. They strapped him to a hospital bed. A surgeon cut him open. He screamed. He hadn't realize but in his sleep he was mumbling with panic in his voice. Sometimes, he screamed. Yet, he was still stuck in the nightmare. He was suddenly in darkness. He could hear children screaming. "Carter!" ,said Jack. He looked around to find him but couldn't. Then he saw a burning house. His house. Being engulfed by Vincent's flames. "Jack! Kids! I'm coming! I'm here!" He ran towards the house. The building collapsed into blood that pushed him into his own coffin. He jumped out of it. Finding himself in a cemetery where he faced himself. It was like clone. The only difference was that its eyes were red as it grinned. It laughed at him then pounced. He gasped awake. He fell over the bed. Trying to get away from whatever he saw. He was sweaty and shaking. Hyperventilating as he tried to breath. Tears were down his cheeks. ------ Elliot soon pulled his own cloak and robes off. He gently pushed her forward so that she laid on the couch. Pressing himself against her. He moved his lips to her neck. Kissing there. shadowess - February 26, 2021 Tom chuckled at his last comment. "Guess that makes two of us" he lowered his eyes to the ground. "Thank you..." --- Sebastian had been woken up by Carter's screams. He sat up, startled and tried to shake him awake. "Carter! Wake up! It's just a dream, you're ok!" He said while trying to wake him up. When Carter awoke and jumped from the bed in fright, Sebastian jumped to his feet as well and placed his hands on his shoulders. "It's ok! You're ok! It was a nightmare! Just a dream! I'm here. You're alright." He said soothingly, wiping the tears from his face before pulling him in for a hug. That must've been one Hell of a dream! --- (Private time lol) shadowess - February 26, 2021 ((Forgot to add this in.)) Once everyone had gone to bed. Once Amelia and Charles left. Clementine re-appeared in the room where Vincent was being held prisoner. She tilted her head at him with a small smile then knelt on one knee, bowing her head to him. "My allegiance is to you. Not Charles or Amelia." She spoke quietly, being careful not to wake the others and lifted her head to look at him. "I think you'd make a fine Devil." She tilted her head once more. "Did you know, as a telepath, you have the ability to hide your thoughts and emotions from others? Even Devils." She grinned. "That's what I do. Any thought or emotion you or Charles have felt thus far has been deliberate on my part." Denix Vames - February 26, 2021 Elliot awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, I guess so." He took a pillow and a bedsheet. "Anyway, I'll be sleeping down there if you need me." He laid on the floor with the pillow under his head and the sheet over himself. He was on his side with his eyes closed. ------ Carter soon calmed down when he heard Sebastian's voice and felt his touch. His breathing slowed down. "S-Sebastian.....I thought....I don't know what I saw. But I don't want to see it ever again." ------- Vincent glared. "What do you mean by deliberate?" shadowess - February 26, 2021 "Alright" Tom said, watching Elliot settle himself. He then moved over to the bed and lay down. It didn't take him long to fall asleep. --- Sebastian rubbed his back and held him tight. He kissed the side of his head. "It's ok. It's over now. C'mon, lets sit on the bed for a bit." He guided him over, intending to just cuddle him and listen to anything he wanted to say for however long he needed to feel better again. --- "I mean anything you ever heard me think or feel was something that I wanted you to know at the time." She stood to watch him carefully. All the while listening intently in case someone approached. The moment she heard any footsteps approaching them she'd vanish back to Hell before she could be discovered. "This does not change the fact that I am loyal to you. Just some information about your own powers that I thought you might find interesting, given your...predicament." Her eyes moved over the cage that he sat in. It being made by a Devil, she had no power to be able to release him or she'd have done so by now. He'll need to use his cunning to get himself out. She brought her eyes back to his.

Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 "Tell you what? I'll go check on her." ,said Charles. He disappeared. Carter nodded at Sebastian. He carried Elliot upstairs and to his bedroom. Placing him on the bed. "I'll stay here with you. You can tell me anything that you need to get off your chest." ------ Charles appeared at the scene that was unfolding. He quickly himself on top of Vincent as well. He gripped his neck. Making him look at him. "Enough of this! You and I have to switch back! You can't handle this kind of power!" Vincent shouted, "LISTEN TO ME!" "No! You LISTEN TO ME!" Charles's eyes became red. There was a sudden flash of light before both men had collapsed. Charles instantly sat up. He was now in his original body. Naked. He looked at Vincent who was in his original body too. It seemed as though he had passed out from the process. "We have to get out of here!" He grabbed both of their arms. They all disappeared then reappeared in the living room. shadowess - February 25, 2021 Thankful that she was basically flame proof, Amelia could feel her clothes begin to singe as she continued to fight Vincent with her bare hands. She struggled with him as hard as she could, trying to keep him from moving any further into the complex. She heard Charles's voice and she looked up to see him gripping Vincent as well. "Charles!" Was all she had time to gasp when both men collapsed, Vincent falling right out of her grip. The heat in the room evaporated and through the blaring alarms she could hear guards beginning to approach now that it was safe enough to do so. She knelt down hurriedly and tried to shake them both awake. Vincent (now Charles) sat up and she looked at him warily for a moment before he spoke and gripped both of them. She could heard thudding footsteps approaching just before they vanished and knew they'd escaped in the nick of time. She stared at Charles, ignoring the fact he was naked and stared into his eyes as if searching. She had heard him say they needed to switch bodies and she wondered if it had worked this time. "Ch-Charles?" She asked, then flung her arms around him. Hugging him tightly, her whole body shaking. Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 Charles wrapped his arms around her. "I'm here my dear. I'm right here." Vincent slowly opened his eyes. He sat up with a groan as he clutched his head. He gasped as he saw his hands were different. He soon noticed that everything about himself was different. He ran to the bathroom upstairs. He screamed at his own reflection. He punched the mirror. Pieces of it scattered everywhere. He picked up a large piece. He ran to Charles. "Give me back my body! That was me! Mine!" Charles ran at him at the same time. He dodged the shard and gripped his wrist. Flipping him over. Vincent cringed as he hit the floor. Charles was on top of him. He slammed his hand down. Making Vincent lose his grip on the shard. Vincent's eyes were wide with rage. Glaring at him. "It was my power! My power!" "It was making you sick! You lost control! I told you not to kill anyone and look at what you did!" Vincent maniacally laughed. "I know! Wasn't it fun?" shadowess - February 25, 2021 Comforted by his words, Amelia relaxed in his embrace. Just happy that they were all alive. Something about his voice now. The way he spoke along with the accent just sounded...right. All she felt in that moment was pure love for him. Hearing Vincent's scream, she pulled back in alarm and watched as Charles handled him with ease. She watched as Vincent laughed at what he'd done and called it 'fun' and she felt disgusted. She looked at him now and knew without a shadow of a doubt that she felt no attraction to that body whatsoever. This made her realize that it had truly been Charles that she had fallen for and that the body hadn't mattered. But this realization was vastly overshadowed by the anger she felt welling up within. "Fun?" She snapped. "Fun?! My dad was almost destroyed because of you!" She raged and gestured towards Tom who was still writhing around and screaming. "Tom almost died because of you! You killed people! Burned them alive! And you call that fun?!" Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 "Oh c'mon! Where's your sense of humor?" ,asked Vincent. He grinned. Charles raised a hand at her. "Don't be mad at him. Because he's back in this body, his views are different. We might need to make him realize again that violence is wrong. Something that you should only use when it's needed." "Don't even think about locking me up bitch!" "Ooh! What a feisty word. It's not like I haven't heard that one before." ,said Charles sarcastically. He shook his head. "I have a better idea." He snapped his fingers as a new set of clothes appeared over his body. Now fully dressed in a white cloak and blue robes. He lifted him off the floor with ease. Placing him over his shoulder. An adult sized baby cage appeared in a corner of the living room. He threw him in it. The gate closed and locked. Vincent grabbed at the bars. Trying to get himself out. "Hey! What are you doing?! Get me out of here!" "Not until you understand the difference between right and wrong." He grit his teeth. "Theo was right! I can become a Devil! Once I drink your blood, I'll be unstoppable!" Charles flicked his nose. "Go ahead and try. I'll just keep killing you until the body pile reaches the moon." He walked away. Vincent tried to get the gate again. He cried out. Frustrated with his situation. "You bastard! I'll gut you like the rest of them!" shadowess - February 25, 2021 Amelia growled at his remark but paused when Charles held up a hand. She listened to what he had to say and looked at Vincent's crazed eyes. He was right. He'd regressed, big time. She then watched as Charles created a cage from nothing and threw Vincent inside without any difficulty. She was amazed by his sheer power and knew that he was right about Vincent having not had any idea about how to use or control it when he'd had it. Vincent's next words disturbed Amelia greatly. He now seemed to agree with Theo and seemed to think he would become a Devil by drinking his blood. Thankfully, this wasn't the case. The only way he'd become a Devil is if a full blooded Devil (Such as Charles or Amelia) granted him the power or a Blood God (Such as Parker) turned him in the same way a vampire turns humans. Amelia and Charles currently had no intention of granting him such a gift and Parker was stuck as an oblivious human until his death. Thankfully she didn't have to worry about him trying to go after Parker with him being stuck in that cage. Maybe they could turn him back around? Teach him how to be a good person again? She hoped so. She'd grown quite fond of the Vincent she'd gotten to know and it hurt her to see him like this. To hear him agree with a monster like Theo...Theo who'd attacked her...who'd tried to...She shivered and took her eyes away from Vincent, trying to hide her tears. The trauma still very much fresh in her memory. Clementine had been watching all of this silently. Never taking her eyes off of Vincent. Her mind and emotions completely blocked off from both him and Charles. She seemed to just want to observe as she stood near David who was still leaning against the arm of the chair, looking pained and weak. Amelia got to her feet and turned to look at Tom and Sebastian. Tom had stopped screaming and was now laying on his back, sprawled out, breathing heavily. His entire body drenched in sweat. "It's almost over." Sebastian said sadly, looking at Amelia. "He's going to need a lot of support..." Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 Charles snapped his fingers. Elliot and Carter appeared. "Wha-?! How the hell are we here?" ,said Elliot. "I teleported you here. I needed you to see Vincent. Hopefully, you'll put some sense back into him." Elliot hesitated as he looked at who he use to call Charles. "That's Vincent?" "This is his original body that he's now back in. Talk to him for however long you need to." Charles turned to Clementine and David. "I recommend that you both return to Hell." He snapped his fingers and they were gone. shadowess - February 25, 2021 "With you and Carter to teach him, I'm sure he'll be fine." Amelia said to Sebastian reassuringly. She then turned to see Charles snap his fingers, apparently summoning Carter and Elliot to them. Her mouth fell open in surprise. Just how powerful is this guy?! Would she get that powerful in time? She was just as shocked when he snapped his fingers again, sending David and Clementine away. She understood why he was doing it but she wasn't entirely comfortable with the way he could take control of others so easily. She sighed, rubbing her temples, too tired to want to think on it further. This had been one hell of a day and she longed to spend the rest of it alone with Charles, in his arms. Tom sat up weakly. He was shaking and every muscle in his body felt sore. He looked at his hands as if expecting to see anything different. He felt different. He looked up at Sebastian and tried a weak smile then flinched, feeling something sting his lower lip. He brought a hand up and felt the new fangs. He froze, his finger still on one of them. Sebastian picked up one of the bags and gave it to Tom who looked at it tearfully. "It'll help." Sebastian said gently. Tom took it off him and looked at it uncertainly. "How do I-?" He started and trailed off when he looked up and saw Sebastian smirking at him in amusement. "How do you think?" "Oh..." Tom looked back down at the bag and brought it up to his mouth nervously. Meekly, he bit into it and then moaned as the liquid gushed into his mouth. He drank it quickly, dropped the empty bag and picked up the second bag, feeling starved. Sebastian sighed in relief, looking over at Carter. Tom might take to vampirism easier than he thought. Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 Elliot slowly walked over to the cage. He knelt. "Vincent?" "Elliot." Vincent grinned. "Help me get out of this now, won't you?" "What happened to you?" "I'm better than I was before. A demon again but a killing machine." Tears dripped Elliot's eyes. His hands were shaking. He took out the half crystal from his pocket. "I-I saved this for you." Vincent was stunned for a moment before turning away. "Do you honestly think I need that anymore? What I need is a way out of here! And you can help me with that." He touched his fingers which were gripping parts of the cage. Looking into his eyes as he smiled. "Then we can be together." Elliot shook his head. "I trusted you. When I was scared, you were the one who made me realize that everything was fine. That none of these people were going to hurt me. The only one that has hurt me is you." Vincent glared. "Stop it!" "I loved you, Vincent! I did!" "I said stop it!" Elliot threw the half crystal at him before running upstairs. Vincent glanced at the half crystal before picking it up. Examining its shape and color. Carter sighed as he walked over to Tom and Sebastian. "Hey buddy. Welcome to the vampire life." shadowess - February 25, 2021 Amelia watched everything between the vampires as well as Elliot and Vincent. She sighed and walked towards the back door, stepping out into the garden and sitting on the bench, looking up at the fading stars as the sky began to lighten up. She just needed some peace for a little while. Some fresh air to clear her head. --- Tom lowered the now empty second bag and stared at it. "Yeah...Guess this really is my life now..." He said in reply to Carter. He was still coming to terms with everything that had happened. "I know it probably seems overwhelming right now but it's not so bad." Sebastian said to try and comfort him. Tom shrugged "My life was over the second I decided to help you...They were going to hunt me like they hunt you guys anyway...guess it's only fitting that I become like you guys too..." He brought his eyes up to look at Sebastian and Carter, looking a little lost. "What do I do now though? Like...how do I live? Where do I go?"

Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 Elliot ran to Tom's side. He lifted him up. "What's going on man? What's wrong?" As Vincent watched this all unfold, he wondered why David had risked his life like that. Were those men really about to kill him? Did words mean nothing to them? Did peace, love, and happiness mean anything? He tossed the half crystal aside. Letting it fall on the floor. "Vincent?" Carter turned to him. Vincent fell to his knees as he growled. "LISTEN TO ME!" "Vincent! Stop! Take a deep breath!" But he did not listen. He quickly transformed into his flying skeletal form. He disappeared and found himself in the secret base again. All of their weapons heated up. Causing them to drop their guns. Those guns had melted. "JUST WANTED TO TALK! WANTED PEACE! BUT YOU HURT! LIKE KILLERS! YOU SLAUGHTER INNOCENTS! WE'VE CHANGED! BUT NONE HAVE YOU! OTHER HUMANS BETTER FRIENDS! NONE LIKE YOU! YOU ARE NOT HUMANS! YOU ARE MONSTERS!" He let out massive flames from his mouth that began to burn the men there. "LISTEN TO ME!" shadowess - February 25, 2021 Sebastian watched helplessly as it all happened. Vincent had vanished with Tom and then David vanished right after. Only a moment later, they all returned but David was apparently hit by Angelic bullets which Clementine was currently trying to dig out of him with her little fingers and Tom was rapidly bleeding out from a wound in his neck. Vincent had then thrown his half of the crystal away from him before transforming and disappearing again. Now he watched as Amelia wept hysterically by David's side, holding his hand, begging him not to die and Elliot held Tom in his arms, seemingly unable to comprehend that he too was dying. "He's bleeding out!" Sebastian had gasped and he knelt by Tom and Elliot, looking at the wound quickly then tore a piece of this shirt off to press down on it. "He's been shot. Looks like the bullet passed straight through but it must've hit an artery. He's losing a lot of blood, fast." He says, trying to keep pressure on the wound without choking him but it was no use, he was still losing a lot of blood. They now practically sat in a puddle of it. He looked up at Carter desperately. "It won't stop!" "Got it!" Clementine announced, flinging the second bullet away from them. "He'll be fine. He won't heal as quick as we normally do but he'll live." "Amelia, listen to me." David says weakly. "Don't let him go alone. They were prepared for Demons, prepared for Devils and he has lost control. Either he'll be a risk to any prisoners they have in there or he's in danger of any other weapons that they have made with Angelic Steel." --- The room filled with the screams of the guards as they caught fire and ran around desperately trying to put themselves out. An alarm sounded and a red light flashed on and off in the room. A robotic voice sounded throughout the building announcing a Code 52 was in progress. The scientists who had been unfortunate enough to still be in the room when Vincent reappeared were now hammering on the doors, begging to be let through as the building went into lockdown. A far door opened and three large, heavily armored men ran into the room with massive guns. The barrels of which were about the diameter of a car wheel. They ran around Vincent, splitting up so he couldn't focus on all of them at once and they each fired a round at him. What they fired were huge, weighted metallic silver-white nets. Each net made of thousands of Angelic Steel wires to render any Demon or Devil powerless under it's weight. If hit, Vincent would be trapped, pinned to the ground and forced to revert to his human form where the wires would irritate and lightly burn his skin. Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 Elliot took his shirt off and wrapped it around his neck. Carter ran to them. "Maybe we need to turn him to save him?!" ----- Vincent flew past the nets. His mouth opened as he caught one of the men. Crunching down on his body until he heard a sickening crack. He let his body go. The flames he had caused were now growing by his pained heartbroken cries. Melting the walls along with the other two men. He flew out of the melted wall. As he made his way through the facility, he began to burn and melt everything in his way. "LISTEN TO ME!" shadowess - February 25, 2021 Sebastian hesitated at Carter's suggestion then looked down at Tom. They were running out of time. Tom was looking at them with wide, terrified eyes. His tanned features were now a sickly grey color. "Tom, I'm sorry. You're dying and there's only one way we can save you. I just need a yes or a no." He watched him carefully as he spoke. "Do you want to be what we are?" Tom stared at them both but so afraid of death and feeling himself getting weaker, he nodded his head. "Alright. Just hold on." Sebastian said quickly. Then lifting Tom's arm, he bit into it. He couldn't take much. He'd lost so much already. He just needed to make sure his venom was in his system before he could feed him. Letting go of his arm, Sebastian looked at him and could see his eyes rolling, his body beginning to relax. He looked at Elliot, recalling what Carter had gone through when he'd turned. "You may want to get back for this part." He then brought his own wrist up to his mouth and bit into it, ignoring the feeling of his venom, he pressed his wrist against Tom's mouth. "Carter, he's going to need a bag...or two." He said, wincing as he felt Tom start to drink from his wrist. "Elliot, he's going to be in a lot of pain in a minute. That's normal. It's part of his transformation. Listen to me carefully. Do not approach him to see if he's ok until after he's had the blood bags, do you understand?" Or he'd wind up seeing Elliot as food instead. As all of that was going on with Tom, Amelia was gawping at David. "But-" "Amelia, please. He needs help. I'll be fine." David argued and Amelia got to her feet. She looked between Charles and Clementine uncertainly. She really didn't want to leave David after something like this. "Take care of him for me?" She said shakily before vanishing. --- Amelia arrived in the very hot facility. Alarms, flashing lights and a tannoy going off. She saw burned corpses scattered around the place. Walls and guns melted. The sheer shock of what she was seeing caused her to falter as she turned around to look at what had happened. Then she heard Vincent's screams and she turned to face the direction it came from before racing towards the source. "Vincent!!" She screamed as she ran, following the trail of destruction he was leaving behind. "Vincent!! Stop!" She ground to a halt at the sight of his skeletal form. "Vincent, wait! The prisoners! You need to stop! You need to calm down!! Think!" She pleaded with him. Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 Carter nodded. "On it!" He ran to the fridge and came back with two blood bags. Setting them on the floor near Tom. Elliot took many steps back until he was in a corner. He lowered himself as he started hyperventilating. Carter knelt by his side. Placing a comforting hand on him. "Hey, it's alright. Everything's going to be ok. I promise." He gave him the half crystal. "Vincent will need this when he gets back. Hold on to it for him. Can you do that?" Elliot nodded. Charles helped David to the couch. "You can rest here until you feel less like shit." ------- Vincent heard her voice. "MONSTERS! THESE HUMANS! HUNTERS! KILLERS! ALL MONSTERS!" He continued flying through the many corridors. Repeating his actions. shadowess - February 25, 2021 Tom suddenly let go of Sebastian's wrist with a gasp and began writhing on the floor. Sebastian watched him carefully, feeling just as helpless as he had when watching Carter change. It could take up to a couple of hours for this part to end. "It'll be alright. This is normal. It'll be over soon." He tried to say to him comfortingly as Tom began groaning and crying out from the pain he was in, turning this way and that on the floor and clawing at the floorboards. Sebastian stayed near him to make sure he stayed close to the bags and didn't end up going after Elliot. He looked over at Carter sadly, knowing he was going to have as much trouble adjusting to the change as Carter had. David groaned as he moved to the couch then leant against the arm of the chair, his back in too much pain to be able to sit back normally. His breathing was shallow. He looked up at Charles and nodded. "Thank you." He breathed and stared off at the ground. He was worried for Amelia and Vincent. Both of them alone in that place. Either the humans are a danger to them...or they'll be a danger to each other with Vincent being as angry as he was. Clementine looked between David and Charles. She glanced back at the vampires and Elliot then looked back at Charles. "Do you really feel comfortable letting them go to ADIEU on their own?" She felt helpless. She hated feeling helpless. --- "Vincent, no!" Amelia screamed and watched him continue on his path of destruction. "Oh for God's sake!" She snapped, knowing she was going to have to do something drastic to stop him and save any prisoners trapped in this building from his wrath. She couldn't transform so she would only be able to rely on the powers she had in her current form. She ran after him and ran ahead, coming to a stop, blocking his path. Her eyes were glowing red. "Vincent, I am warning you!" She shouted. "Stop this now or you'll leave me no choice but to knock you back to your senses!!" She really didn't want to hurt him. She was praying that he'd just stop and listen to her. That he'd calm down enough to realize what he was doing. "Vincent! Don't make me fight you!" Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 Charles smirked. "From what I saw and heard, it seems that Vincent doesn't have any trouble killing those bastards." Elliot suddenly started sobbing. Carter sat next to him. Gently rubbing his back. Charles shrugged. "Did I say something wrong?" ------ Vincent didn't listen to her. Or maybe he couldn't think what she was saying anymore. He only thought of chaos. shadowess - February 25, 2021 Clementine held no interest in the man sobbing in the corner. Crying only ever seemed to annoy her. She thought about what Charles said and she too didn't think Vincent would have much problem. Not with how easily he took her down in her doll form. She noticed the Crystal horse on the coffee table and wondered how long ago Amelia had used so much energy. She walked over to it thoughtfully and stroked it's snout while admiring it. "And Amelia?" She asked. David had watched her and his eyes widened. He had forgotten about that horse completely. She'd be exhausted! Forced to fight and utterly exhausted. "Amelia!" He gasped and tried to get up then groaned, flinching before falling back to sit on the couch again. Sebastian was so focused on making sure Tom was alright that he didn't hear the conversation. He was vaguely aware of Elliot sobbing but he needed to keep his eyes on Tom who was still writhing around, crying and groaning. --- He didn't seem to be stopping. Amelia was afraid of this. She took up a fighting stance and tried to make herself a weapon. She only managed to make herself an unshaped handful of crystal before she felt the effort become too much for her. She was sweating and a little breathless from it. "Fucking horse!" She cursed and deciding she had little choice but to defend herself, she ran forward while throwing the crystal to the side and aimed to tackle him to the ground. Looks like she was going to have to do this with just her fists. Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 "You better rest easy. I'm sure Amelia will be fine. She's been through worse and still somehow managed to survive even with very little energy." ,said Charles. Carter pulled Elliot in for a hug. Trying his best to keep him calm. ----- Vincent didn't expect her to try and attempt to pin him to the floor. He struggled with a great force that made her shake. Crying out in pained sadness and anger. Denix Vames - February 25, 2021 "You better rest easy. I'm sure Amelia will be fine. She's been through worse and still somehow managed to survive even with very little energy." ,said Charles. Carter pulled Elliot in for a hug. Trying his best to keep him calm. ----- Vincent didn't expect her to try and attempt to pin him to the floor. He struggled with a great force that made her shake. Crying out in pained sadness and anger. shadowess - February 25, 2021 Charles was probably right but Amelia was still David's daughter and he worried for her. He gripped the arm of the chair tightly, regretting sending her away. What if he loses her too? Tom's screams became a little louder and Sebastian tilted his head a little to one side as he reached over to pull the shirt away from his throat. The bullet wound had healed. He was going to be just fine. "Make it stop!" Tom sobbed. "Oh God! It hurts!" He felt hot. He could feel himself sweating through his clothes and he began clawing at them, desperate to take them off and try to keep cool. "It'll be alright. It'll stop soon. We're here. We're not going anywhere." Sebastian said calmly, trying to comfort him. Sebastian glanced over at Elliot and could see he was distressed. He looked at Carter then nodded at the ceiling, suggesting taking him out of the room altogether might be better for both Elliot and Tom. --- Amelia tried to grapple with Vincent. This was difficult enough with him being made of bone, making him hard to keep a grip on. But he pushed back, fighting her and his strength was shocking to her. But then, she supposed, the body he was in possession of was far older than she was and therefore might be stronger. "Vincent! Please!" She tried, pushing him back.

Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 Vincent lifted her off the ground with a smile. He placed her over his back so that her legs rested over his shoulders. "Let's take the cameras out then. You can grab them yourself. Wouldn't want to touch your belongings without your permission." ,said Charles. "Everyone's gotta take a smiley picture then a funny face one and then a funny pose one! Or one where we all wave!" Carter chuckled. "Easy there, Elliot. We'll get to them one at a time." Elliot blushed. "Oh alright." shadowess - February 24, 2021 "Alright..." Tom said as he opened the taxi door and routed around for a bit. Having detached one of the hidden cameras from the back, he handed it to David, being careful not to sever the wire. He then climbed into the drivers side, checking the settings on what look like a radio before stepping out. "Alright, it's set to constantly take photos. It's snapping around thirty images per minute so more than enough to get us all. Just point it at whoever... When we're done, I'll send the footage." He walks back over to them and takes the camera off of David, pointing it at them all and passing it around so they could take whatever pictures they wanted. Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 As everyone started passing the camera around, they were smiling, making those funny faces, and whatever else. Carter zoomed to the taxi and placed the camera on the side of the hood. Aiming at everyone. "Gather around!" He zoomed back to them and reached for some friends. Pushing them into the shot. The others did their best to get in the line of sight. Vincent pulled Tom in for the last photo. They smiled. shadowess - February 24, 2021 Once they were all done, Tom took the camera and threw it back into the taxi before fiddling with the dials on the radio again. "Aaaand done." He said before stepping out again and looking at them all. "They'll have those immediately. Security in that place is probably going nuts right now! We... uh-" He then turned pale as he seemed to remember something urgent. "-might want to get away from this vehicle! Like, now!" He started running away from it like crazy. "Wha- oh shit!" Amelia realized what he meant and started running after him. Sebastian and David followed. Just as soon as all of them reached a safe distance from the car, it exploded. Causing alarms from the cars around it to start going off simultaneously. They watched the burning wreck from their safe distance. "I forgot!" Tom panted. "Fail safe! If security get wind...that a watcher is compromised...they can remote detonate the vehicles!" He said between breaths and looked up at them. "They won't leave anything to chance!" Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 "They're a bit off in the head, aren't they?" ,said Charles. "We should go before people notice we're here." ,said Vincent. They held each other's hands once again and appeared in Carter's office. "Let's bake a cake for them! We can also do some mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, corn on the cob, turkey-" "One dish at a time. I can't imagine there's that many of them." ,said Carter. shadowess - February 24, 2021 "Um..." Tom hesitated at Carter's comment. "Tom?" Amelia turned to him, still a little shaken from the car blowing up. "Out with it!" "There's-...it's just...the complex...it's pretty big..." "It can't be! They've just started coming back!" Amelia snapped, not wanting to believe him. "...I've been working for them for two years..." Tom answered after a minute as though gathering up his courage. "and they've been re-growing and rebuilding since way before then...I'm pretty sure since just a year after the last one burned down...always keeping a low profile...in case they...you" He looks at Amelia "came back...You're looking at a couple hundred employees...most of them I haven't even met!" He shook a little. "That's what I was doing before you brought me here...trying to find out if you were the same woman who burned down the first ones...They have all their watchers out looking out for you and the red haired man." "You...you waited until now to tell us?" Sebastian stared at him. "I thought you knew! I mean...did you really think a small group could afford to give each employee a cyanide tooth each?! That shit aint cheap! Not to mention equipment to spy on people and blow up cars from a distance!" He took a breath as he looked between them all. "From what I know though, this is the first complex to actually get back up and running since the others were destroyed. It's the only one that exists right now. But they're looking at possibly expanding." Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 Vincent stepped forward. "I have an idea then. We are to call in every demon, devil, vampire, werewolf, and human who is willing to come with us to meet with these people. We get as many as we can to prepare the dishes and drinks. To take them with us and show the ADIEU that the world has changed since the 1800s. People don't fear us anymore. They accept us." "He's not wrong. So many humans have fallen in love with the idea of dating anyone who isn't human. Nowadays, there's humans that are dating vampires. Elliot's practically dating Vincent who's a devil. With enough people and food, they're bound to see that there doesn't have to be this ongoing war between humans and us." ,said Carter. shadowess - February 24, 2021 "Ok, no." David said suddenly. "You are living in a fantasy if you think approaching the complex with hundreds of supernatural beings won't result in a massacre!" He became angry. "They won't think 'Oh hey, here come some friendly looking people with food and drink for us'! They'll think you're an army! They'll feel threatened and they'll react as every human group, cult or army has ever reacted when feeling threatened! Violently!" He stepped up to Vincent and stared him in the eyes. "Please listen to me, this will not end well if you continue down this road! Think rationally! Have some tact and make a proper plan! These people are DANGEROUS! Just ask Amelia and Sebastian or have you forgotten what they both witnessed?! You didn't even know how big the facility was because you didn't even bother getting the correct information from the man you kidnapped before you began making these absurd plans! And now you may well have put us all in danger with that stupid photo idea!!" Amelia was quiet, watching David and Vincent nervously. Making David this angry was incredibly rare. She wasn't sure how to react to it. Tom also looked between them nervously. Feeling guilty for having not told them enough information sooner. Even Clementine seemed wary of David. Sebastian was just as tense as the rest. He also had very strong doubts about this plan. Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 "Fine! If none of you will listen to me then I'll do this on my own!" Vincent pulled Tom away from them. Both men disappeared. They reappeared in the facility. Vincent let him go. He took his hood off. He nodded at the men who stood in front of him. "Hello there. I am a friend of Tom. I came here to talk to you all about what you are doing is wrong." shadowess - February 24, 2021 "Vincent wait!!" Amelia had screamed. Tom had cried out when Vincent grabbed him. In a second they stood in the main hall of the large and pristine white building. Several guards stood by holding large automatic weapons. As soon as Vincent spoke, all scientists in the area ran behind desks and other furniture and the guards took aim. Tom literally pissed himself. --- "For goodness sake!" David had snapped and vanished as well. --- As shots rang out, David appeared in front of them. He grabbed Tom and Vincent, wincing as he felt a couple of shots hit his lower back and they teleported back to Carter's office. The second they arrived Tom fell to the ground, spasming and choking as blood poured from his throat. David began screaming, the bullets feeling like they were made from fire. He fell to his knees in agony. "GET THEM OUT! GET THEM OUT OF ME!!" He screamed, trying to reach around to his back where blood poured out of the bullet holes. Amelia ran to him and dropped to her knees, pulling his shirt up and seeing why the bullets were causing him so much agony. The skin around the wounds being burnt and irritated as well as smoke seeping out of him. "Angelic Steel?!" She gasped. "They have bullets made of Angelic Steel?!" She looked around wildly at anyone who could help. "Someone get some tweezers or something! They'll destroy him if they stay in him!" "Move!" Clementine barked, marching over. "Give him something to bite down on!" She said before plunging her tiny fingers into the wounds, making David scream in pain. She dug into the wounds until she felt the tips of her fingers begin to burn and she knew she'd found the bullet. She pulled it out and tossed it away from her, waving her fingers to try to cool them off before reaching into the next wound for the second bullet.

Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 "Will they try to kill us? Yes. Will they think we've poisoned the food? Yes. But here's the thing. They will know we're saying the truth once they find us hanging out with two humans. Especially one of their own. Before they even have tried the food, they will ask one of you two to eat it to see if it's been poisoned or not. What great friends they are huh? And when they finally see that neither one of has dropped dead then they'll get it. They'll get that we just want to be left alone. That we mean no harm to humans." ,said Charles. Vincent stepped forward. "The thing is that many people do know that vampires exist. Those people willingly donate blood to vampire clubs. There's even two humans who work in a vampire club. Blaire and Hades. Blaire even has a vampire lover who she cares about deeply." ------- "Actually, he's fine. We're all planning on taking pictures for the ADIEU. Family photos. And he's going to be in them." Carter smiled. "You're part of that. Especially the part where we're going to make food for the welcome party at their base." shadowess - February 24, 2021 Tom gawped at them all as they all seemed happy with this plan. Well, all except David and Amelia. Amelia had laughed at first but as it became apparent that they were serious she was beginning to look at them with some concern. "I don't think you guys have thought this plan through well enough..." Tom says slowly, looking between them. "You lot going to them with food and expecting a party will be like an alien knocking on area 51's door to ask for a cup of sugar...if they don't immediately go out of their way to capture you, they'll shoot you on sight and dissect you later." He then points to Elliot. "Him and me included just for being with you. Being human counts for nothing if we're seen as 'in league' with the supernatural!" Amelia was uncomfortable with the idea. Recalling what the Asylums had been like when she and Damien took them out, she knew they weren't exactly going to just let them walk through the front door. Not without there being a trap for them in place first. That's not even mentioning the kinds of weapons they must've manufactured in all this time and they'll just be itching to put them to use. David looked utterly unamused by the plan. "That's an awfully nice thought that they'll just see that we mean no harm and just want to be left alone...but if human history has taught us anything, it's that they can be ruthless. Especially when underestimated. Going in without a proper plan is a suicide mission for all involved. Do you really believe you're going to waltz in there with cake, say 'we're not bad' and they'll just hand you the keys to release all of their captives?" --- Sebastian stared at Carter, wondering if he was serious and waiting for the punchline. "Carter..." He started, wondering how best to say it. "I know what these people are like. They'll not hesitate to either kill or capture us. Please tell me that that is not the entirety of your plan?" He was frightened. This organization was far more dangerous than Carter seemed to think. Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 "If they try to attack us then we'll attack them." ,said Vincent. He closed his eyes. "Clementine. Come here." "But for now, we'll talk to them. Be friendly." ,said Charles. ------ "Why don't we go downstairs and find out?" ,said Carter. He led him to the living room as he held his hand. shadowess - February 24, 2021 Amelia hugged her arms, looking at each of them. 'I trust you...but I have a really bad feeling about this.' She thought to Charles, looking at him worriedly. She was frightened of losing her friends. Frightened of losing her dad. Terrified of losing Charles. "And that's the whole summary of your plan, is it?" David asks sternly. "Try to talk but if they fight, fight back? You realize your plan is essentially just all of us 'winging it'? You need a proper plan. Find out how they operate first and then infiltrate. It would be a far better idea to have this man;-" He gestures to Tom "Working for us on the inside. Find a way to get him promoted so he can see how it all works. To come back to us with intelligence on a daily basis so that we can find out how best to release anyone they might be holding prisoner!" "You called for me?" Clementine says pleasantly, looking at Vincent after having appeared in the room. She then glances at Amelia and her smile slips, looking her up and down with a disgusted expression. "Oh, I see you're still around." She remarks then catches sight of Charles and tenses up momentarily before sighing and looking away from him hurriedly, trying to hide her fear. "And he's here too...swell..." "Where'd the kid come from?!" Tom exclaims in surprise, having jumped at the sound of her voice. Sebastian followed Carter but he was dubious about this plan of his. He remained quiet though as he was interested to see where this was going. He hoped it wasn't as reckless as he thought it was, though. Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 "Enough!" Vincent placed a hand over Clementine's shoulder. "Now, I want everyone to listen. We will talk to them and we will enjoy their company. I don't want anyone to harm them. I want to talk. If any of them decide to try and harm us then we'll leave instead. Either one of us can touch either Devil or Demon and disappear with them. Fighting will now be our only last resort." He turned to Clementine. "Which means that I want you to be nice. I want you to show respect to everyone. I don't care how long you've been around or how much you hate humanity. You will be a decent person. Because violence is never the answer." He held out his hands. "Everyone hold hands so we can go to the cameras. I want to do this before the sun comes up." "Guess that means we should go too." ,said Carter as he took him to the others. shadowess - February 24, 2021 Clementine opened her mouth to object but quickly closed it and nodded. "Fine." She wasn't happy about it but she wasn't about to disobey him either. "Except we only get a two jumps on earth per day." Amelia reminded him. "Charles jumped once tonight to bring Tom here and I've jumped twice today. Once to get myself and Charles here and then again to bring Elliot back and don't forget, we're not all indestructible here. Devils and Demons can come back but the rest are stuck if they die!" She sighs and looks between Sebastian and Carter. "Speaking of...there's still that wolf venom dart gun that I'm worried about..." "You mean the Lupusbolt?" Tom looked at Amelia. "They've actually made them then?" Amelia asks, turning her attention to Tom who nods gravely. "They keep them on sight though. Only members with higher ranks get to wield the special weapons." "Shit!" Amelia marches off into the kitchen and brings in two glasses and a small knife. "Elliot, Tom, you may want to turn away for this. It won't be pretty." She says briefly while setting the glasses down on the table and looks up at Vincent. "You want to try this crazy ass idea, fine. I'll come along to make sure no one dies as a result. But first things first, we need to take precautions. We've got hours before the sun comes up and with my blood in their veins the sun won't matter anyway..." David stared hard at Vincent. "Anything happens to my daughter or the people you're about to lead in there and I will hold you personally responsible." It was clear there was no arguing with him so David decided to go along just to ensure his daughter would be safe. She was his first priority above the rest. If shit went south, he'd grab her and escape. Sebastian noticed what Amelia was doing and his eyes widened in alarm. "Amelia, wait-!" Amelia cut into her hand with a grunt and held it over the glass, balling her hand into a fist and letting the blood drip into one of the glasses. She intended to only give Sebastian and Carter a small amount each to keep them immune to the sun's rays as well as wolf venom. The sweet smell hit Sebastian immediately and he covered his mouth to hide his fangs as he turned away breathing heavily to try and keep control. Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 Vincent nodded. "Actually, I've been able to teleport constantly. Which is why we will be fine. Once we do gain their trust, I will have those weapons destroyed so that no one can be harmed." He turned to David. "I give you my word that I will not let anything happen to anyone." Carter gently rubbed Sebastian's back. "Hey, it's ok. Just take a deep breath and try to stay calm." He accepted the drinks from her. Handing one of the glasses to him. "Bottoms up I guess." shadowess - February 24, 2021 After giving the glasses to Carter while keeping her eyes on Sebastian, Amelia walked back to the kitchen to wrap a towel around her hand. With a heavy sigh, she returned to them and looked between them all uncertainly. "Well...Good luck everyone...we're going to need it." She took Charles's hand and, with her other hand, held on to David's hand. Sebastian drank his glass and stared at it, hating the fact he wished there was more. He took a few breaths to calm himself before turning and placing his glass down. He gave a weak smile to Carter, shakily taking his hand. His stomach turning at the thought of being in an ADIEU facility again. Clementine took Vincent's hand and Tom looked between them, unsure of whose hand to hold. Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 Carter drank up. Soon, everyone was holding each other's hands. Vincent held Tom's hand and smiled. "You'll be fine. I promise." They appeared near the taxi. "Alright ya'll! Gather around and say cheese!" ,said Elliot. shadowess - February 24, 2021 Clementine faked a cough into her fist and held up her hands to Vincent without looking at him. Too embarrassed to ask to be lifted. So small that everyone else would quickly overshadow her in the footage. "The cameras are in the taxi..." Tom says hesitantly.

Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 Vincent shook his head. "Whatever bad things the ADIEU said about us is wrong. We only want to be free in peace without worrying about people trying to torture and kill us for experiments." Carter rolled his eyes. He sat down. "Geez pal. You have a worse reaction than what I had when I use to be human." Charles smiled at Amelia. "Well, it's good to see that everyone's here." Elliot smiled at Vincent who stood. "We're back!" He ran up to him and gave him a kiss. "Look! The hospital gave me a lollipop." "That's nice, Elliot. Do you want some pasta? David made some." "Sure. That'd be a real treat." He turned his head to Tom. "Who's that guy?" "That's Tom. He works for the people who kidnap and experiment on us. Tom, this is Elliot. He's the human that I told you about. He's one of our friends." Elliot casually patted his shoulder. "Nice to meet ya, Tom! You sure don't sound like a swell fella but I'll try and get to know ya too." shadowess - February 24, 2021 Wait, they know about ADIEU? But he hadn't said anything about them! Sebastian had also gone pale at the mention of the name. He recalled seeing it as a logo on clipboards and on the walls of the Asylum. Tom was gawping at Vincent, slowly lowering his hands from his head. "Did- did you just read my mind?!" He gasped. David chuckled at the human's revelation. "He's beginning to catch on. You might actually be getting somewhere with him." Tom looked up when Charles spoke and saw the woman and man who had also been in his taxi earlier. How did they get back here so quick?! He hadn't heard the door open or anything! He watched the entire exchange between Vincent and Elliot in silent confusion. He flinched again when Elliot pat his shoulder and he stared at him in disbelief. "What is happening?..." Is all he could muster as he looked between them all. "I don't understand! Y-you're meant to be monsters...I should be dead by now..." "Is that what you were told?" Amelia interjects. She was staring at him coldly. "Sounds like something your organization tells it's people to try to justify it's actions. But it's far from the truth, isn't it? Surely you see that by this point?" David had gone into the kitchen and returned a moment later with a bowl of pasta which he set down on the table in front of Elliot. "There you are. Did they give you any pain relief for your hand? I can store it away for you if you'd like?" He said gently. Amelia gestures to David and Elliot as this happened. "You see? What monsters would take care of a human in their home? I mean come on, you drove us to the hospital! Don't try to tell me you didn't listen in on our conversation!" The combination of Vincent being gentle and Amelia dishing out the harsh truth caused Tom to falter. He watched Elliot and David and recalled the way Elliot had greeted Vincent. He seemed happy. Comfortable. She was right, too. He had been listening in. He hadn't understood it at first but given everything happening around him, it suddenly made sense. He turned back to Vincent. "Y-you're really not going to hurt me, are you?" He asked, having calmed down considerably. Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 Elliot shook his head. "I'm alright." He raised his bandaged arm up. "They fixed me up real good!" He nodded at the bowl. "Thanks." He started eating up the pasta. Tears dripped from Vincent's cheeks. Everyone had tensed. Wondering what he was going to say or do. "Hurt? Hurt....Hurt...." He walked into the kitchen and came back with a kitchen knife. He placed it in Tom's hand. He sat on the coffee table. Looking at him. "Tell me this. I am a Devil. How would you cut me open?" He guided his hand so that the tip of the knife was on his chest. "Or would you starve me for however long and make me drink an innocent human that you kidnapped? How about electrocuting me? Or injecting me with someone's blood just to see my skin turn yellow as I foam at the mouth and bleed from every hole in my body? Crying out in agony as I slowly succumb to my death?" His grip on the knife tightened. Pressing the knife hard enough to make a cut that was small enough to not be deadly but still enough to make himself bleed. "Imagine enduring all that pain and never knowing what year it is. Never knowing how much longer you're going to suffer. Never eating or drinking unless they decide. Never sleeping because you know that at any moment, they're going to take you out of that small cold isolated cell room and run more experiments on you. Never knowing happiness or love." He let the knife fall as he was shaking. "We would never hurt you or your friends. Yet, your friends and you have tortured and killed our families. Our loved ones and friends. Can you imagine not knowing why your son hasn't come home? Why didn't someone's dear wife wake her husband? Where's mommy? Where's daddy? All the people that you killed weren't monsters! We are not MONSTERS!" He suddenly broke down into tears as he lowered his head. Elliot frowned. He guided him to the couch where he continued to sob. shadowess - February 24, 2021 Tom watched Vincent get up and walk away. Apparently disturbed by his question. His eyes widened again when he saw Vincent return with a knife. As he approached, he'd brought his hands up defensively and backed up into the couch. "P-please-!" He'd started, frightened he was about to plunge the knife into him but instead was taken aback by the knife being placed into his hands. He froze, staring at Vincent questioningly until he sat on the table and started asking him what he'd do to him for being a Devil. "W-what-?" He'd asked horrified, his horror mounting as Vincent took his hands and pressed the blade against his chest. Tom tried to pull it back, terrified. The more he spoke, the more disgusted he felt. He didn't know about any of that. He was just a Watcher. He just watched, listened and reported his findings to ADIEU. They then made arrangements to intercept the supernatural and from there...it was beyond Tom's clearance to know. Until now, he'd never questioned it. He didn't want to know. He just wanted to keep believing they were doing humans a service by getting rid of the monsters. Sure, he'd seen the old footage of Sebastian but he always seemed to be complying in the videos he'd seen and the tests never seemed to be anything worse than the odd injection. But what Vincent was describing...that couldn't be real, could it?! Sebastian was now leaning against the wall, a hand covering his mouth as he watched this unfold tearfully. Vincent's words forcing him to remember every horrid detail of that awful time he'd spent as their captive. Vincent kept talking and Tom kept trying to pull the knife back, growing more and more desperate to do so as he saw the knife pierce his skin. "S-stop it!" He screamed. "Stop!!" Vincent let go of the knife and Tom jolted back from the force of having been pulling away. He froze, staring at Vincent then down at the knife as he spoke again. When Vincent had moved to sit on the couch with Elliot, sobbing, Tom kept staring at the knife which shook in his hands. "I-it's not true...that's not..." He shook his head. The dark, tight curls on his head barely moving as he did. He breathed heavily, tears streaming down his face. "It is true..." Sebastian's broken voice made him look up. "All of it...I was tortured for decades...forced to become what I am against my will by the organization you seem determined to protect." His tone turned acidic. "The vampire they forced to turn me...my friend...they murdered in front of me...and then they celebrated her death because to them she was no more than a scientific breakthrough!" His anger was rising as he spoke. He could see it all over again. Feel the same pain and anger that he'd felt back then. His fangs were prominent and he glared at the human dangerously. "Sebastian." Amelia said in a warning tone, trying to snap him out of it. Sensing the danger, Tom got to his feet hurriedly. Holding the knife in front of himself defensively. "S-stay away!" He shouts before bolting for the back door. He didn't get very far. Everything that he heard and the realization of what he'd been helping ADIEU to do became too much for him to bear. He'd run into the garden but had to veer off suddenly to the nearest plant pot to vomit violently into. Dropping the knife as he gripped the sides of the pot tightly. Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 "Sebastian! Don't!" Carter gripped his shoulders as he looked at him. "We don't fight unless they do, ok? I know that you suffered but killing him isn't going to make you feel better. He wasn't the one that did those things to you. The people who did have been dead for decades." He turned his head to the back door. "I'll go calm him down." He walked to Tom. He picked up the knife and stuffed it in his pocket. He sighed as he bent down to talk to him. "I can tell that you really don't know what the hell's going on. Looks like your so called heroes never gave you the full scoop. I'm gonna be honest though, they will be arrested. I can spruce up plenty of charges as a private detective. All I need is a warrant." He gently rubbed his back. "It's hard to face the facts but what your business has been doing is all true. Now, if you want to save innocent lives then you need to take us to your base so that we can talk to them." He shook his head. Thinking about what ADIEU had been doing. "And I thought serial killers were the worst." shadowess - February 24, 2021 Sebastian had been about to follow Tom into the garden, nothing but murder on his mind when he felt Carter's hands on his shoulders. He looked at him and heard what he had to say then seemed to come back to his senses. His fangs retracted and he inhaled sharply at the realization of what he'd just been ready to do. He watched Carter leave to try to talk to Tom and he took a step back, away from everyone. Amelia could see the distress in his features and she took a step towards him. "Sebastian, it's alright-" "No!" He snapped and shook his head at her, tearfully. "It's not." He then turned and ran up the stairs, dissappearing into the bedroom. Tom was still huddled over the plant pot and crying when Carter came out to speak to him. He heard the knife being lifted and knew he was now weaponless again. Not that he currently had the strength to fight anyone. He felt his hand on his back and flinched but soon relaxed as he realized he meant no harm. When Carter told him he intended to have the members of ADIEU arrested and that they needed him to take them to the base, Tom lifted his head a little to stare at the grass ahead of him. If everything these people said was true and they'd been torturing and killing people just for being different then they needed to be stopped. But there was a slight problem. "I'm supposed to report back...with the surveillance footage I was supposed to get in the taxi...If I don't report back, they'll assume me dead and find the footage themselves...they'll come looking for you all anyway...I need to get back to my taxi...destroy the footage..." Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 Carter smiled. "Then I've got an idea." He stepped back into the house. "Hey guys! How long before the sun comes up? We gotta do some family photos for the people waiting for Tom back at home." Charles checked his watch. "Believe it or not, you've got plenty of time." "It's settled then. We'll smile for the camera. Let them know that we're their neighbors." Vincent smiled. "I never thought I would hear a funny plan like that but I like it." Charles walked to the garden. "You're going to have to come with us. I promise I'll let you know when we teleport. Just hold my hand and everybody else's." Carter looked around. "Where's Sebastian?" Vincent frowned. "You should talk to him." Carter headed into the bedroom. "Sebastian? What's wrong?" shadowess - February 24, 2021 Tom watched what happened next with mild confusion as he stood up and wiped the tears from his eyes. They want to be found?! Charles told him he'd have to go with them and Tom blinked at him. "Teleport?...is that what we did earlier?!" He hesitated but seeing no other option he went inside with everyone else. "I don't understand. You want them to come looking for you?" He said, clearly a little lost on the idea. --- Sebastian was sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at the wall. His elbows resting on his knees and both hands covering his mouth and nose. When Carter entered the room, he lowered his arms and blinked back tears, shaking his head a little. "I..." He took a breath. "I was so ready to...Carter, I was going to kill that man down there..." He looked up at him guiltily. "I just...I looked at him and all I could see was those doctors...But he really has no clue, does he? I was going to kill someone who didn't even know what was going on!" Denix Vames - February 24, 2021 "They're not our enemies. Not anymore. We welcome them with open arms." ,said Vincent. "And after the photos, we can make the food for the party at their base. Although, we'll need you around so we know where they are if we want to have the party and greet them." ,said Charles. Elliot wrapped an arm around Tom. He smiled. "We can help out together!" ------ Carter sat next to him. He caressed his cheek. Brushing a few tears off. "I don't blame you but that's why we're here. All of us make sure that the other person is ok. I mean, you saw Vincent when he got pissed at himself. It was almost a disaster." He wrapped an arm around him. Pulling him in for a hug. "But you can't blame yourself entirely. It's ok to be upset. You just have to know when it's time to calm down. And we can always be here for that." shadowess - February 24, 2021 Tom stared at them all, unable to comprehend what was happening. Were they being sarcastic or serious? He honestly couldn't tell. The icing on the cake was Elliot wrapping his arm around him. He looked between them all in utter bewilderment. "You can't be serious? That's crazy!" Amelia chortled at Tom's reaction as she walked over to stand near Charles. David merely watched in mild amusement, patiently waiting for Carter and Sebastian to rejoin them, curious to see this plan unfold. --- Sebastian hugged Carter and cried into his shoulder while listening to him. He nods quietly and smiles a little, glad to have Carter and the others in his life to help him through something like this. "Thank you..." He breathed, calming down again. "Is he alright? What do we do with him now?" He asked, concerned. He hoped he hadn't frightened the man too much.

shadowess - February 23, 2021 Sebastian took his shirt off and climbed into the bed after Carter, looking at him worriedly. He cuddled him from behind and kissed his shoulder. "What's wrong?" He asked softly. --- David looked over at Vincent and a frown. "There's still time to talk to him. I'm sure he'll understand when you see him." He said, trying to comfort Vincent then he looked towards the staircase after Sebastian and Carter went upstairs. He'd waited until they were out of earshot. "Vincent, keep an eye on those two." He looked back at Vincent. "They took a lot from Amelia in one go. Their withdrawals might not seem apparent now but they're bound to get worse before they get better. Much worse." He sighed and began sanding down the marks on the wall again. "I'll have a word with Amelia when she gets back. See if there isn't a way we can make this any easier on them." --- Listening to him, Amelia bit her lip as he spoke. She could tell he was just trying to play it off cool with a tough guy attitude. Weirdly, it was the combination of him wanting to do good but maintaining the tough guy approach that she found incredibly attractive. She was half tempted to seek out an empty hospital room they could lock themselves in for a little while so she could show him just how much she liked it when he talked tough. If only minor burns weren't such a quick procedure. Some burn cream, a bandage and some painkillers and Elliot would be back in no time... Instead she just settled for a little playful banter. "Aw, that's a shame." She purrs "Because I tend to make quite a bit of noise when I get really... excited." She grins. Denix Vames - February 23, 2021 Tears fell from Carter's eyes. "So much has happened since I met you. I try so hard to deal with these sudden changes. To confront whoever tries to attack us." He squeezed the pillow that was under his head. "I try not to show it but I'm getting tired of this. Fighting for my life everyday." He shut his eyes. "I want to feel numb. Like I'm not even alive. Just free." ------ Vincent looked at the stairs. "Of course. They're my friends too. I don't want anything bad to happen to them." ------- Charles smirked. "You naughty girl." "Hey y'all!" Elliot walked over with bandages wrapped around his arm. "Look at what they gave me!" He held out a purple lollipop. "It's grape flavored." Charles smiled. Trying not to laugh when he heard him. "Good for you." shadowess - February 23, 2021 Sebastian didn't know what to say. His words made him deeply afraid for Carter. "I'm sorry you feel that way..." He whispers, trying not to sound upset. He cuddles him a little tighter and kisses his shoulder a few more times. "I know it's hard. I know. I love you so much and I'll do anything I can to help you." He thought for a moment. They needed a break from all the crazy shit, that would be nice. But maybe getting away altogether for a while might help him too? "Maybe we should go travelling? Take a holiday. You and me? Get away from everything for a while...See some parts of the world we haven't seen yet, maybe?" He suggested. --- Amelia gave him a seductive smile and was about to say something else when Elliot's voice broke the mood. Pulling her mind out of that place quickly, she faked a cough before turning to smile at Elliot. "Oh, that was nice of them!" She pulls out her phone. "I'll just call the taxi again to take us back..." She gets up to pace while on the phone. She needed to stretch her legs a bit anyway. "Hi yeah, it's Amelia. You dropped us off at the Presbyterian Hospital, we need a ride back to Wessen Street...oh, really?...oh, alright! that was lucky!" She chuckles. "Cool, see you soon. Thanks." She hung up and looked at them both with a smile. "Looks like we don't have long to wait. Driver said he just had a drop off nearby and would be back here in about five to ten minutes." --- Meanwhile the taxi driver remained in the parking lot of the hospital, having just hung up the phone to Amelia. His eyes now flicked between the hospital entrance and the clock, a bead of sweat rolling down the side of his face. He'd call her to tell her he'd 'arrived' in about five minutes. He needed to be certain these were the people that matched the description of who they were looking for. While waiting he'd rigged a couple of hidden cameras in the car to snap photos of them. Denix Vames - February 23, 2021 "Where could we go? The sun's everywhere. We would have to time everything. Honestly, I rather just smoke." ,said Carter with a sigh. ------- Charles gripped both of their shoulders before they could have left. He whispered into her ear. "Don't go out. That driver of ours is with the organization. I've been hearing his thoughts ever since we got into that cab. I'm going to take him to Carter's office. I'll talk to him there. You two stay here until me and him are gone. You'll know when that happens." He smiled and took a step back. "Sorry but I have to use the restroom. Excuse me." He walked away. Elliot shrugged. "Ok." He licked his lollipop as he was about to leave. Charles got into a stall. He disappeared then reappeared behind the driver. Gripping his shoulder. "Someone wants to talk to you." He and the driver appeared in the living room. Vincent's eyes widened. "You're one of them! The people who want to hurt my friends!" shadowess - February 23, 2021 "Oh, no Carter." Sebastian whispered, "Don't think like that. There are lots of places we can visit safely. I've done quite a bit of travelling since gaining my freedom. I can show you how. We should visit Venice, or Paris. See the Eifel Tower all lit up! Visit the museums in Amsterdam. We have all the time in the world to see it all." --- Hearing Charles, Amelia froze. Her features hardened as she stared at the ground, listening to him carefully. When he finished she brought her eyes up to look into his, nodding to show she understood. He then told them he was going to the restroom and Amelia watched him leave. 'Be careful' She thought to him as she turned her attention back to Elliot. "Hold up, Elliot. They're not here yet. Might as well wait inside where it's warm until they get here." She says patiently and stands near the windows by the front door. She looked out and saw the taxi in the distance, keeping her eye on it. --- The driver had been about to call Amelia back, the phone still being in his hand when he felt someone grip his shoulder. He jumped, his head whirling around to see the male from before was now sitting in the backseat. How?? Before he could open his mouth to question him, they were suddenly sitting in the living room of a house he'd never been in before. He gawped at the two men in front of him who'd apparently just been cleaning. How did they get here?! How was this possible?! The phone dropped out of his hand and clattered onto the wood floor. When one of the males identified him as being from an organization, he shot to his feet and darted towards a corner in the room. He'd pulled out a gun and pointed it at them in turn. He was sweating, shaking and had turned white as a sheet. His pupils dilated in fear. "Wha-?! Who are you people?! WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE?!" He shouted. The gun was snatched from his hand by one of the men who'd appeared in front of him faster than his eyes could follow. David proceeded to remove the bullets and throw the empty gun to one side. "I never did like guns." He sighed. He looked between Charles and the stranger. Then smiled at Charles. "Well this is certainly the development. I'm impressed." He said as he began rolling his sleeves back down, re-buttoning the cuffs calmly. "I'm assuming your bringing him here this way means that my daughter and the human are safe and will be joining us soon?" "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" The male screamed, backed up against the wall and staring at them all. "We'll be asking the questions, thank you." David replies coolly as he turns to Vincent. "We may need some restraints. We don't want any avoidable accidents to happen." Denix Vames - February 23, 2021 Carter opened his eyes. "Really?" He paused. "It would be nice to go to places that I've never been to. I've never left America at all." He rolled over on his side. Facing him. "I'd like that. Just to travel with you? It'd be nice." ------- Elliot stopped and continued licking the candy. "Ok." -------- Charles crushed the phone in his hand and then the gun. He nervously chuckled. "Well, I kind of forgot to tell them to go home too. I could call them if anyone has a phone?" He looked at the crushed phone in his hand. "Well, a working phone." Vincent walked over to the man. "I don't want to tie his hands up as if he were our prisoner because he's not." He held his hand. Shaking it gently. "I'm sorry sir to have scared but we want to talk. You see, you've been hurting a lot of our friends and loved ones because you think that we're monsters. You think that we're killers. While some of us may done terrible things, not all of us are like that. We're better now. After all, how many human killers have committed mass murders, torture, and rape? Hitler is a great example of that." He smiled. "I just want your people to know that we want to live in peace with humans. We even have a human friend named Elliot who really likes us." He nodded at the chair. "Do you want some tea, coffee, or water? There's leftover pasta if you're hungry." shadowess - February 23, 2021 (I've come up with a name for the organization lol the Association for the Destruction or Identification of Entities Unknown. Or ADIEU for short.) Sebastian grinned, seeing him warm up to the idea of them travelling the world together. "I could show you some of my favorite places." He says while lifting his hand to stroke his cheek. There was commotion downstairs and Sebastian lifted his head to look at the bedroom door before looking back at Carter with concern. --- Shaking his head with a small smile, David takes his phone out of his pocket and passes it to Charles. All the while keeping his eyes on their 'guest'. The driver watches nervously as Vincent approached him and almost pissed himself when he reached out and shook his hand. He listened to him, but his expression made it clear he wasn't buying what he was hearing. In that moment, he thought they were trying to brainwash him to turn against his own kind. To betray the cause he'd signed up for. They seemed like insane creatures to him. If he survived this encounter, he fully intended on reporting these people and this house to his superiors. Vincent nodded at a chair and he moved to sit in it nervously. With how quickly these people moved, and without a weapon to defend himself, he was left with little option but to comply with whatever they told him to do. Worse comes to worse, he could always bite down on the cyanide tooth at the back of his mouth..."N-no..." He shook his head a little in reply to the offer of food and drink while he stared at them all suspiciously. Denix Vames - February 23, 2021 (cool) Charles called up Amelia. "Hey Amelia? It's safe to come home. Although, I would recommend teleporting over here. You should find a place where no one can see you doing it." Vincent frowned. "Alright but if you ever need any food or water, please let me know." He gripped his cheeks and took the cyanide tooth out of his mouth. He put it in a trash can. "I don't want you to die though. I don't like it when people die. I like to help people." He knelt in front of him. "I want to ask you some questions and you can answer them however you can. Is that alright?" Carter and Sebastian ran downstairs. Carter glared at the man. He could read it all over his face. He had seen the broken gun and phone. "You son of a bitch! Torturing my boyfriend!" Vincent ran over to him. "No!" Carter froze. "But-" "We're not like them!" He pressed a hand against his chest. "We are not them. We are better than this. Talking should be our only solution. Fighting is what cowards do when they want to take advantage of the weak." He turned to the man once he knew that Carter was done. Again, he knelt by the man's side. "My name is Vincent Hayes. You might have heard me as once being a human who was a serial killer. A lot has happened since then but I've changed for the better. I don't kill anymore. I only help. And I'm a Devil which yes are very helpful people. We're not like what you've heard in a book that was made thousands of years ago, that you humans listen to this day for some reason, by sexist racist men who most likely owned slaves." Charles raised a brow. "You really don't like the bible, do you?" "I'm venting." shadowess - February 23, 2021 Amelia's phone rang and she answered it immediately. Relieved to hear Charles's voice, she glances at Elliot as he tells her it's safe to come home and recommends how they do so. "Alright. I'll see you soon." She answers before hanging up the phone and turned to Elliot. "Elliot, something has happened and I'm going to need you to trust me, ok?" She starts in a gentle tone. "We need to go outside first and then I'll tell you, follow me." She says and leads him out into a dark part of the car park, away from cameras and other people. She turns to look at him, offering him a reassuring smile as they walked. "Ok" She sighs. "Sort of an emergency. We need to teleport back home. It'll be ok though!" She adds quickly, "You won't feel anything and if it makes you feel better you can close your eyes. I'll tell you when it's ok to open them, alright?" --- Without any warning, the male gripped his cheeks, forcing his jaw apart and tore the cyanide tooth out of his gum. The driver had cried out and struggled a little before falling back against the chair and gripped his cheek, wincing from the mild pain. He watched the male throw his last resort in the trash and tell him he didn't want him to kill himself. He couldn't believe what had just happened. How did he know he had it?! David had raised his eyebrows upon seeing the tooth. "Poison? These people mean business if they're willing to give their own people a way to kill themselves..." Before he knew it, two more males ran down the stairs and one of them tried to lunge at him. He flinched, bringing his arms up to protect his head and watched terrified as the man who'd torn out his cyanide tooth stopped him before he could get close. His eyes darted around the room for an exit and located the back door. He was tempted to make a run for it but caught sight of the one who'd taken his gun from him, staring at him with a 'don't even think about it' look on his face. He looked back at the two men who had just joined them. He didn't recognize the angry one but the other...The one now staring at him with the same level of fear he, himself was reflecting...he'd seen pictures and video footage of when he'd been held captive. He was classified as 'Subject 24261' an escaped test subject from years ago when all the ADIEU buildings burned down. All of this was already blowing his mind, but then Vincent approached him again and introduced himself as a famous serial killer who was apparently now a Devil...He blinked. Confused. His eyes suddenly darting to the dark haired male who had brought him here. He'd suspected earlier in the evening that he had been Vincent because of the striking resemblance to the photographs. He couldn't be sure at the time though, so was going to have the camera footage from his taxi analyzed to make sure. But now this blonde haired gentleman was saying he was actually Vincent Hayes?! How?! Vincent then went on a sort of rant about the bible but by this point, the driver wasn't listening. He held his head in his hands, trying to fathom all of this information. Trying to figure out how he was going to escape them. Denix Vames - February 23, 2021 Elliot was nervous about this but nodded. He held her hand and closed his eyes. "Just make it quick." ------- Vincent placed a hand on his knee. "I'm sorry. I didn't do that correctly. I didn't mean to scare you. I just want to talk. You see, I switched bodies with this man named Charles by accident. Anyway, I want to ask you what's your name? And why do you hurt us?" He glanced at the back door. "We're not going to hurt you or kill you. We just want to talk." shadowess - February 24, 2021 "T-T-Tom...." The man stammered, staring at Vincent with his hands still on his head. He'd flinched when Vincent placed a hand on his knee. That was all he'd say for now. If he spoke about ADIEU, he'd be betraying his people. Some confusion was beginning to set in though. Why hadn't they killed him yet? If they wanted answers, why are they not torturing him like the training instructors told him they would? Were they trying the nice route first? Would they eventually get tired of playing nice if he remained silent and then show their true colors? This scenario was exactly what that tooth was for! If only they'd banked on the supernatural creatures removing it...then they might have given him a second option... Vincent spoke again. This time telling him they weren't going to hurt him and they just wanted to talk. "R-right!" Tom said indignantly. "I get it. You're being nice to me to get me to betray my people. Not going to happen! I'll die before I tell you anything!" He was trying to seem brave but he was still shaking, still sweating and his heart was beating so loudly that he half thought they could hear it too. --- "It'll be quick, I promise." Amelia said and when she was happy his eyes were closed tightly, she imagined Carter's office. A second later they were in the now crowded room. Everyone was looking at the taxi driver who now sat on the couch with Vincent, looking as if he was about to pass out from fright at any minute. She turns to Elliot "We're here. You can open your eyes now." Seeing Charles, she smiled at him. Glad to see he was alright and proud of what he'd done.

shadowess - February 22, 2021 A short time later, David entered the room holding a bowl of spaghetti with some sort of tomato based sauce. "It's not much. I had to improvise with ingredients that I found." He says as he passes the bowl to Vincent. He then takes a seat near them all. "There's plenty left over for when the others get back, if they're hungry." He says. He wouldn't be eating. He didn't need to. Finishing quickly, Sebastian sat back with the empty bag still in his hands. He was looking at it sadly, wondering how long it would take for his appetite to go back to normal. --- "You know he didn't mean to do it, right?" Amelia asks, looking at him. She wondered how best to explain it. Particularly, how to explain it without the taxi driver catching on to what they were talking about. "He's...still learning. But what I gave him should make it easier for him to learn without causing accidents..." Denix Vames - February 22, 2021 Vincent nodded. "Thank you." He began to eat. Carter read his face. "It's alright, Sebastian. I'm sure human blood will taste delicious after a while." ------- Elliot sighed. "Even if he didn't, I don't know how to feel about this." He frowned. "I'm just hoping that what you said is gonna be true. Because right now, I'm scared out of my god damn mind." "Calm down, Tex. No need to crap your pants." ,said Charles. Elliot glared. "You've got a problem fancy man?" "Yeah actually! I do!" shadowess - February 22, 2021 Sebastian smiled and placed a hand on Carter's leg, squeezing it gently. "I know..." He says quietly. David regarded them both thoughtfully. He wasn't so sure about Carter. If he was having withdrawals, he was hiding it well. Sebastian however, seemed to be struggling a little. Perhaps he'd have a word with Amelia on how best to help them both through this new addiction when she returned. At least they both seemed to be doing well at controlling themselves around her. He looked around the place. "Vincent, when you're finished with your meal, would you be so kind as to help me clean up? There are a few burn marks that need clearing. I'm sure Carter would prefer to have a clean office for when he starts getting clientele." At best, cleaning can serve as a decent distraction for a while. --- "Enough." Amelia growls at them both, beginning to get tired of their bickering. "Elliot, I get it. This is all new to you and I can only imagine that it's terrifying. But, look at me." She gave him an understanding look. "We're not out to hurt you. Non of us want to cause any trouble. In fact, we want the opposite. We want to help people. We want to do good. Ok, sometimes we slip up and accidents happen but we're trying our best with what we have...all we need is a chance and a little understanding. So, please bear that in mind before judging any of us." They pulled up at the hospital and Amelia paid the driver. She sighed heavily. "Alright...let's get your hand sorted out." She says as she got out and held Elliot's door open for him. Denix Vames - February 22, 2021 Carter leaned in and kissed him. Wanting to just relax. Vincent nodded. He set his empty bowl on the table and stood. "How do we get rid of burns?" ------ Charles and Elliot both stopped talking when they heard her. Charles crossed his arms. Never looking at her. But Elliot did. He slightly nodded. "Ok." They all went inside the hospital. Elliot was right in front of them. shadowess - February 22, 2021 "First things first. We clear up some of these scorch marks as best we can with some soap and warm water. Then we get some sandpaper and buff out any stubborn burn marks. The wall and ceiling might need a fresh lick of paint once that's done." David had said while getting to his feet, looking over the damage and unbuttoning his cuffs to roll up his sleeves. He turns to Vincent and grins a little. "Should keep us quite busy for a while. Though I hear cleaning can be quite therapeutic." Having kissed Carter in return, Sebastian rested his head against his and looked towards the other two. "Would you like some extra help?" He offered, not wanting to leave all the work to them. "Thank you, Sebastian but I think we'll be alright." David replies without looking back. Smiling, happy to relax with Carter, Sebastian takes a deep breath and closes his eyes for a moment before looking at Carter. "What do you want to do now?" He asks quietly. --- Amelia could see Charles was annoyed but her concern right now was making sure Elliot was alright. As far as she was concerned, his safety and health right now was their responsibility. This made for a bit of an awkward and tense wait in the waiting room. Before long a kind looking nurse had come by to take Elliot into another room to take care of his hand. While they had this moment alone, Amelia turned to Charles and sighed. "What's wrong?" --- The taxi driver was still parked where he'd dropped them off. Lifting his phone to his ear, he spoke into it; "Presbyterian Hospital...Two male and one female...Will maintain surveillance from here...No. Too many civilians present...I'll keep you updated." He hangs up the phone and continues to watch the hospital entrance. Denix Vames - February 22, 2021 Vincent nodded. "Alright I'll try my best." He took a small towel from the kitchen and ran it through warm water. He scrubbed some bar soap into it then rubbed the wet towel over a burn mark. -------- Charles shook his head. "It's that damn human. He's a dumbass. He doesn't know basic words or really anything. It's like he grew up in the woods." shadowess - February 23, 2021 (Carter didn't answer Sebastian's question lol) David managed to find some sandpaper and once they'd finished washing the marks, they then began to file them down. --- Amelia rose an amused eyebrow at Charles. That's what was bothering him? She shrugs "All the more reason to protect him. Given what he knows, how long do you suppose he'd last on his own?" She questioned. "He needs our help." She moves to take his hand in hers. "and to answer your earlier question..." She smirks at him. "I do promise." Denix Vames - February 23, 2021 (sorry about that. been a lot on my mind) Carter sighed. "Sleep. All I need is some damn sleep after that crap." Vincent said, "Will Elliot forgive me?" ------ "He is like a child, isn't he?" He smiled. "Good to know." shadowess - February 23, 2021 Kissing Carter's cheek, Sebastian stood. "Let's go lay down for a while then." He says with a small smile. Wiping a little sweat from his brow with his sleeve, David paused and looked at Vincent. "I believe he will." He said reassuringly, "That lad has been thrust into a frightening new world. It's understandable that he might need time to adjust. As long as you continue to show that you care and don't mean any harm, I'm sure he'll be fine." --- "I guess." Amelia chuckles at his comment. She smiles at him. "Thank you for stepping in back there." She smirks, thinking of how she'd liked seeing him take charge the way he did. (Oh, don't worry about it I hope you're alright. I don't mind waiting if you need to take a break for a while.) Denix Vames - February 23, 2021 (no its fine. this helps) Carter held a small smile but deep down, his heart was heavy. Once inside, he laid under the covers. Putting himself into the fetal position. He gripped his own arms. Frowning, he said, "I'm not cold." Vincent nodded. "I understand." He rubbed his eyes. "I just wish I could have talked to him about it before she did that." ------- Charles blushed at her compliment. "Oh? That? Well, it was getting kind of annoying." He crossed his arms. "You know I can't really stand....noise." But he did seem to care. It had been so long since he was able to help anyone. He was glad to have done something good again.

shadowess - February 22, 2021 When he yelled at her, Amelia jumped and stumbled back. She watched him change nervously, trying to think of some way to help him calm down. Then Charles intervened and she watched him talk to Vincent, seeming to get through to him enough that he was coming back to his senses. When he said a fight with Clementine was unavoidable, she nodded. "He's right. Violence is the only language she understands. You can't blame yourself for that." When Vincent finally calmed down enough to change back, she watched him sink to his knees sadly. Hearing Charles's complaint, she smiled at him "Thank you." She says quietly, just thankful that he managed to get Vincent to calm down enough to not burn the house down. 'I've got it from here.' She thought as she regarded Vincent thoughtfully. He was clearly tormented because he didn't know how to control his power when his emotions got too much. That reminded her of someone. Herself. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out the blue crystal that she used to wear around her neck. She always kept it on her and for good reason. She held it up to show Vincent. "This is an Angelic training pendant. I...I suffer from an affliction that affects a small percentage of new born Devils. It can take centuries to get it under control. It's called 'Devil's Rage.'...basically, if I feel my life is in danger and my fight or flight instincts are triggered, I'll go into a blind rage and destroy whatever or whoever has threatened me...I won't stop until it's done and I'll destroy anyone who gets in my way because I'll no longer be able to tell friend from foe..." She sighed. "This Crystal helps me remain in control." She finishes then in one swift movement, she snaps the crystal in two. It should still work...She holds half out for Vincent to take. "Maybe it'll help you control your powers or emotions? So you don't have to worry about losing control either?" David had briefly stepped out of the room to check on Elliot. He re-entered the room and looked at Vincent. "It's only a minor burn. Elliot will be fine." He says gently then looks over at Carter and Sebastian. "I don't suppose you two would mind taking him to a pharmacy to get it seen to?" Denix Vames - February 22, 2021 Charles nodded with a smile. He stepped out of the way. Letting her do the rest. Vincent took the half crystal. He sniffled before saying, "Thank you." "There's no way either of us can do that. Hospitals take a long ass time when they're working on anything. Those buildings are practically made out of glass. It'd be too risky." ,said Carter. "I can do it." ,said Vincent. "No!" ,said Elliot. He turned away. "But I didn't-" "Just stay away from me! Please!" He was nearly in tears. Vincent frowned. Wishing he had never done what he did. He had promised himself that he would protect Elliot. But now, he had done the opposite. Charles hesitated. "I could take you there." "Really? Fancy man wants to take me to the hospital?" "My name is Charles and....sure. Why not? It's the least I can do thing." Elliot smiled. "Thanks Charlie." "Charles." "Uh huh." shadowess - February 22, 2021 "Of course, my apologies." David tutted in reply to Carter. He often forgot about Vampire weaknesses. To be fair though, having spent most of his life as an oblivious human and then the entirety of his afterlife in Hell, there weren't a lot of opportunities for him to actually meet Vampires. The occasional damned soul but that was about it. Sebastian and Carter were the first living Vampires he'd actually met. Amelia had put her half of the crystal back into her pocket. She listened to Vincent and Elliot with a frown but then smiled when Charles offered to take him instead. She couldn't help smirking at Charles when Elliot referred to him as 'Charlie' and she recalled her mad moment when they first met, when she'd called him every nickname she could think of consecutively. 'At least he hasn't called you Cha-cha yet.' She thought to him playfully. She then kneels down in front of Vincent and places a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "I'll go with them." She says gently. Then she thinks to him 'I'll try to talk to him for you. He might just need a breather from all the supernatural stuff for a while. You just try and relax a bit. See if Carter is alright.' She then stands up again and faces Charles. Before they could go anywhere, David fakes a cough into his fist to get their attention. "Probably not a good idea to teleport with him just yet. I'm sure Elliot has been through enough today without being disorientated by that too." He suggests and Amelia nods understandingly. "On it." She says and pulls out her phone, looking up and calling the nearest taxi company. Sebastian helped Carter to his feet and then to the nearest chair. Denix Vames - February 22, 2021 "Eh!" Carter shrugged. "It's all good. Sometimes I forget that I'm a vampire too." Charles smirked at her comment. Vincent nodded at her. "I appreciate it." He walked over to Carter who was sitting on a chair. "I'm sorry about what I did. Are you alright?" "Yeah, I'm fine. Honestly, I'm just glad you didn't break my ribs." Charles sighed. "Teleportation would be much easier than a cab but alright." Elliot kept a grip on his arm. He glared at Charles. "Well excuse me for not wanting to be dizzy doo!" "What the hell does that even mean?" "Means dizzy." "Then just say that!" shadowess - February 22, 2021 "It certainly takes some getting used to." Sebastian chuckled at Carter's comment about being a vampire. Looking between Carter and Vincent, Sebastian smiles at his effort to help. "We'll wait until the others have gone before we get a bag out of the fridge." He says to them both then turns to Carter. "It'll help you heal up a bit. Having finished ordering the taxi, Amelia hangs up the phone to see Charles getting annoyed with Elliot. She sighs. This was going to be interesting. "Now, now childrens." She says jokingly. "Play nice or no treats on the way home!" She then glances at Charles with a little blush and a smirk, unable to stop the thought popping into her head; 'Don't make me bend you over my knee, naughty boy.' David sighs, looking around the room. He glances at Vincent. "Are you hungry, Vincent? I could make something for us, if you'd like?" Denix Vames - February 22, 2021 Carter pat his stomach. "Guess I have been a little hungry." Charles crossed his arms and smirked. "You'd like to do that, wouldn't you?" Elliot rolled his eyes and said, "Ugh! I think I'm gonna vomit." Vincent nodded. "I haven't eaten anything for a while now. I'm not so sure what i should eat really. Anything will do." shadowess - February 22, 2021 Amelia's cheeks reddened at Charles's comment and then even more so at Elliot's disgust. She hadn't said that out loud, had she?! No...no, she definitely only thought it...weird. Holy shit, what if this human is telepathic, too?! It's not impossible... 'Maybe later. If you behave.' She thinks to Charles, lowering her gaze away from Elliot and to the ground, a little embarrassed. Nodding to Vincent, David made his way to the kitchen to see what he could find. Around ten minutes later, Amelia's phone buzzes to alert them that the taxi was outside. "That's us." She looked around at the others. "We'll be back as soon as we can." Denix Vames - February 22, 2021 "Promise?" ,said Charles. Elliot sighed. "Let's just go already." He followed them out the door. Carter rubbed his head again. "Still got a damn headache from that hit." Vincent leaned his head against the arm of the chair as he was on his knees. "I'm sorry." "It's alright. I've done what you did before." "Really?" "Don't you remember? It was in Bryce's mansion." Carter frowned. "I was so mad at him for hurting my friends that I went crazy. I almost killed Sebastian because of it." shadowess - February 22, 2021 Amelia bit her lip with a smirk at Charles's question but she strongly suspected Elliot of being able to hear her thoughts as well, so any hope of sending Charles any more private messages was pretty much gone. Now she had try her best to repress those kinds of thoughts...as difficult as that was. They headed out to the taxi which was soon on it's way to the hospital. As soon as they were gone, Sebastian got to his feet and headed into the kitchen. He grabbed two blood bags from the fridge and glanced at what David was doing on his way back. Looked like some kind of pasta dish. Handing one of the bags to Carter he sat next to him and looked between them. "But you didn't. Thankfully. If you hadn't scared them off, we might not have gotten Amelia and Blaire out of there." He says before biting into his bag. It still didn't taste right but he tried to ignore that fact as he drank it. --- After a very awkward couple of minutes in the taxi, Amelia looked at Elliot. "How's the hand?" She asks quietly. Denix Vames - February 22, 2021 Carter accepted the blood bag. He smiled a little. "I guess you're right." He sank his fangs into the bag. Drinking it slowly to try and enjoy the flavor. ------ Elliot shrugged. "Could be better." He turned to the window. "Just wish it didn't came from him though."

Denix Vames - February 21, 2021 Elliot let Vincent's hand go. He was in awe by the sculpture he had watched transform and turn into. He stepped slowly closer and closer to it. He knelt. Hesitantly, he touched it. Then he stroke it as if it were a real horse. "Wow!" He smiled. "It's a horse. I love horses. I ride them sometimes on the farm." He picked it up and held it close. "Thank you pretty lady. I'm gonna keep this thing forever." shadowess - February 21, 2021 Relieved that he liked her gift, Amelia smiled a little more widely. "You're welcome." She breathes and wipes the sweat from her face with her arm. She took another step back and stumbled again, this time being caught by Sebastian before she could fall back. "I think you might have overexerted yourself just a bit." He smiled while helping her back to the chair she'd been sitting in earlier. "Just a bit!" She agrees with a chuckle. Letting her rest, he then stood back next to Carter again. Amelia looked at each of them, happy to be surrounded by friends and loved ones. Her eyes came back around to Charles, smiling at him, just happy that he was there with her. She wasn't sure if he knew it, but him just being in the room had made her feel so much more capable of dealing with this. David had been watching all of this unfold patiently as he sipped his tea. When it seemed like the hardest parts of the evening were over, he got to his feet. Facing Vincent and Elliot. "I boiled some water earlier, would either of you like some tea or coffee?" He offered. He was on his way to the kitchen anyway to refresh his cup. Denix Vames - February 21, 2021 "Coffee for me." "I'll have some tea." ,said Vincent. Elliot walked over to Charles. "Hey fancy man. You friends with her?" "Yes. Can I help you?" Elliot set the sculpture on the table. "Are you emo?" Charles raised a brow. "What?" "Your hair is covering half your face. And you're wearing dark clothes." "Hmph! Sounds like someone doesn't have culture." "Culture what?" He rolled his eyes. shadowess - February 21, 2021 Hearing the conversation, Amelia snortled into her coffee before taking another sip. 'Be nice.' She thinks to Charles, her eyes moving to look over at him. She was smirking behind her cup. 'For me.' Sebastian took Carters hand again and smiled at him. "Guess we made a lot of progress today." He said. He knew it was only the first hurdle to getting Amelia to open up more and helping Elliot become more comfortable. But it was at least a step in the right direction. David soon re-entered the room and handed one cup to Vincent before setting the second cup on the table in front of Elliot. "Did you want a refill, Charles? Amelia?" He asks pleasantly. "I'm good thanks, dad." Amelia replies and then looks at him questioningly. "What did you come looking for me and Vincent for?" She asks curiously, recalling David had said Vincent had already dealt with it. David hesitates then looks over at Vincent, wondering if he'd prefer to explain what had happened. Denix Vames - February 21, 2021 Charles rolled his eyes but complied. "Fine." He shook his head. "I'm good." He set his empty cup on the table. Vincent frowned. He nervously rubbed his arm as he looked at the floor. "I had to judge Theo. He's....going to be in his cage for a while." Elliot raised a brow. "Who's Theo?" Carter cleared his throat. "Theo was....an ex of Vincent's. He use to hurt him when they were together." Elliot glared. "Well, ain't that just a lousy thing to do. What an ass he is." "Elliot please." Vincent gripped his own arm. "I know you're trying to be helpful but please don't say that." Denix Vames - February 21, 2021 Elliot frowned. Unsure of what to do or say now. (sorry, i forgot to put this in) shadowess - February 21, 2021 David nodded approvingly at Vincent's explanation although he could see why he was upset. He looked at Amelia, who was looking between Vincent and Elliot. "I needed one of you to make the judgement. Vincent has already passed judgement so that is taken care of." He then sighed. "But that wasn't all of it...the items that Theo dropped in the rubble were missing when it was cleared." "What?!" Amelia's attention snapped back to David in alarm. David held up a hand to quiet her. "I already have a group out searching for them. They will be found." He assured her, although he was deeply worried about the fact the angelic items were missing. He didn't want to worry her more than she already was. "Wha-?! Ok? hang on..." Amelia put her cup down and rubbed her temples with her eyes closed for a moment. "Wait, so why hasn't Clementine come up to inform us? Why did you have to come? You swore you'd never come back." She opens her eyes to look back at David. "Clementine..." David starts uncomfortably, glances at Vincent then sighs. Bringing his eyes back to Amelia. "She's pledge her allegiance to Vincent alone. She refuses to follow your lead. Because you would most likely be with Vincent, she refused to deliver the message herself." Amelia was speechless. She knew the little Demon had no respect for her but to outright refuse her as a leader? Part of Amelia wondered if Clementine would have jumped at the chance to serve any other Devil so long as it wasn't her. How quick would she be to stab her in the back next? If she isn't conspiring against her already... David looked at Vincent once more, thoughtfully. Then turned to Elliot. "Theo is sick, Elliot. We are trying to help him get better." He explained simply, hoping Elliot would understand why Vincent might be upset. shadowess - February 21, 2021 (It's all good ) Denix Vames - February 21, 2021 (thanks) Vincent's eyes widened. "Allegiance? To me?" He clutched his head. He began to breath heavily. He backed up into a corner. "No! I don't own anyone! No one should follow me!" His aura appeared. Elliot ran over. He reached out. "Vince-" "Don't touch me!" The fire stung his hand. Elliot jumped back as he flinched. He held his hand. "Ah!" Carter took a step forward. Slowly making his way to him with his hands out. "Vincent, it's alright. You don't own anyone. You're not a bad person." Vincent's fire threw him across the room. Carter hit a wall. He fell over. "I'm a monster! I fought when I said I wouldn't! I was trying to use my words and she wouldn't listen!" Charles awkwardly cleared his throat. "Should I leave?" shadowess - February 22, 2021 "Carter!" Sebastian ran to him after he was flung at the wall and knelt by him. "Carter! Are you alright?!" He then heard Charles's question and looked up at him in disbelief. "Or you could, you know, HELP!" He shouted at him in annoyance. "Unbelievable!" Too occupied with what was going on with Vincent to hear Charles and Sebastian, Amelia hurriedly got to her feet and stumbled her way to him despite still being exhausted. The fire wouldn't burn her but in this moment, Vincent was easily stronger than she was. She held up her hands and looked at him as she approached. "Vincent, listen to me. It's ok. You don't have to accept her allegiance if you don't want. It's entirely your choice. Vincent, please calm down." She tried to reason with him as she got closer. David, at this point, had run over to Elliot to inspect his burn. "To the kitchen, quickly. You'll need to keep it under cold running water. Let the water run down your arm to the burn, don't pour the water directly to the wound." He instructed him hurriedly. He then turned and saw Amelia approaching Vincent and sensing the danger he also called out to him; "Vincent, breathe. We can think this through rationally!" Denix Vames - February 22, 2021 Carter groaned. "Y-Yeah, I'm alright." He sat up as he rubbed his head. "Just feeling some pain but I'm good." Elliot nodded. He ran to the sink where he turned on the faucet. Letting the cold water run down his arm like David said. Vincent's claws soon came out as his flesh and clothes began to slowly burn away into bones. He shouted at her. "Get away from me!" Charles gripped his head. "Look at what you've done!" He forced him to turn his head to Carter who was on the floor and Elliot who was trying to keep his burn cooled. Vincent's eyes widened as he saw this. Charles looked into his eyes. "The only reason why Clementine respected you after being almost killed by you was because she doesn't know how to be like us! Being fucking human and shaking a god damn hand to say we've got a deal. A fight was always unavoidable with her. Do you understand me?" Tears dripped down Vincent's cheeks. "I hurt them." "You can't let her get to you! You can't let anyone get to you!" He brushed the tears off his cheek with a thumb. "This allegiance could mean that you can teach her about being a better person. Think of it like that." "I hurt Elliot." Vincent's aura soon faded away as his flesh formed back but his clothes were partially opened and burnt from the fire. He fell to his knees as he sobbed. Feeling guilty for what he had done. Charles sighed as he rolled his eyes. "Does anyone ever listen to me anymore?"

Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles sighed sadly. "I missed so much beauty that humanity had to offer. What a waste of my time. Hiding away like a coward. Unable to deal with their deaths." ------ Carter thought for a moment then nodded. He held his hand. Kissing him for reassurance. "Yeah, I am." shadowess - February 21, 2021 Hearing Charles's words, David smiled at him sadly. "This is the first time I've come up to Earth since my death." He admitted. "I felt responsible for damning my family, so I couldn't stand the idea of running into them if I ever came to Earth. Little did I know Lucifer had planned to make my grandson his pupil and that I'd see him regularly. Then when they all died out, I simply continued to stay in Hell. For no other reason than it was 'easier.'" He looks at Amelia "...Until now." ---- Gently squeezing Carter's hand and smiling a little at the kiss, Sebastian took a deep breath to steady his nerves. "Then, here we go..." and walked down the stairs with him to face them again. Denix Vames - February 21, 2021 Charles smirked. "That Lucifer huh? What a good friend." Sarcasm was all over his words. ------ When Carter went downstairs with Sebastian, he didn't know what to do. At first, he hesitated but then spoke. "Amelia? I'd like to say something." shadowess - February 21, 2021 "Oh, you have no idea..." David chuckles then shrugs "But if not for him I wouldn't have been made a Demon and trained by his best soldier. Then I wouldn't have found Amelia." God knows what would have happened to her if another Demon had found her instead. She might not be here now or worse, Lucifer might have forced her into one of his contracts and enlisted her in his army. Raised to be nothing more than a heartless Angel killing machine. Seeing Sebastian and Carter come downstairs again brought a sudden, tense silence to the room. Until that silence was broken by Carter's words. Amelia hesitated, looking between everyone in the room nervously before looking back at Carter and replying quietly; "Ok?" Denix Vames - February 21, 2021 Carter squeezed Sebastian's hand for support. He took a deep breath before speaking again. "Back at the bar, I almost fought because of what you did. I know what you did was wrong but what I did wasn't necessary. I get that. And I should have realized that you've been through a lot. So I'm sorry if I hurt you in any way." shadowess - February 21, 2021 "You messed up, sure. But we can see you're sorry...and like Carter said, we know you've been through a lot recently. Just...Amelia, you know you can talk to us, right?" Sebastian said after Carter had said his piece, while looking at her. He squeezed Carter's hand in return and gently rubbed his thumb over the back of his hand. "I'm sorry if you felt you couldn't, but you can. So, don't go bottling it all up again. Don't go thinking you're alone, because you're not." Amelia was silent as they both spoke. She looked between them, her eyes welling up with tears again. When they finished she put her coffee back down on the table and stood up, walking over to them but stopping just a few steps away. "You don't hate me, then?" She asked quietly, tears rolling down her cheeks. Denix Vames - February 21, 2021 "Of course we don't!" Carter let go of his hand and hugged her. "Amelia, you've saved my life more than enough times to be an accepted friend in my life. I'm not going to abandoned because of this." "Is it our turn to talk?" ,said Vincent who had come downstairs with Elliot. Elliot was hiding behind Vincent's back as he peeked through to see Amelia. He was shaking. Terrified of her. shadowess - February 21, 2021 Amelia let herself cry in relief as Carter brought her in for a hug. She hugged him back tightly, burying her head in his shoulder and shook a little. She was really scared they'd hate her for what she did. When they heard Vincent, Amelia looked up and saw the way Elliot peered around Vincent at her. Her breath caught in her throat while her stomach turned. She'd done that to him. She'd made herself look like a monster to him. Gently letting go of Carter, she took a slow step towards Vincent, again stopping a few steps away. Her eyes kept wandering to Elliot, feeling ashamed for what she'd done. "I-I'm so sorry..." She started in a half whisper. shadowess - February 21, 2021 (*Said. not Started lol* Just realized what I put.) Denix Vames - February 21, 2021 (thats fine. i make mistakes like that too lol) Elliot listened to her apology. Vincent led him downstairs. Taking him a bit closer to her. However, Elliot pulled him back. Keeping him and himself in a corner. "It's alright. She didn't mean to scare you. She was unhappy at the time." ,said Vincent. Elliot shut his eyes. Not wanting to look at her. shadowess - February 21, 2021 Seeing he was still terrified of her, Amelia wanted to break down and cry more. Especially when Vincent tried to explain she'd been unhappy when she'd frightened him. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to try to keep herself calm, thinking of how she could convince him she wasn't a threat. Opening them tearfully, she began speaking softly. "Yeah...ok...I deserve that. Elliot, I'm sorry for what I did. It was wrong of me to frighten you like that. Please, believe me, I mean you no harm...I know you probably think me a monster right now..." Taking another deep breath to prepare herself, she placed her hands in front of her, one over the other as if holding something invisible. "Please...let me show you that I can be something better..." Closing her eyes, she concentrated hard. Gradually, blue crystals formed in her hands from the top and the bottom and growing to meet in the middle. As they did they started to take the shape of a majestic horse on it's hind legs. At first it was just a crude shape but as she worked, finer details began to form. Such as blades of grass on the little platform she had it stand on and intricate patterns on it's saddle. By the time she was done, she opened her eyes and stumbled back a little. Beads of sweat covering her face. Making weapons was easy because it didn't require much thought. But something as detailed as what she'd just made took a lot of concentration and effort. It was quite big as well. About half the size of her torso as she held it, maybe a little over. Yet it was surprisingly light. She looked at it then up at Elliot with a small smile, a little out of breath. She placed it on the ground in front of her and took a few steps back, giving him plenty of space to take it without worrying about her being too close. "A peace offering? My crystals are really strong too...the only thing that can break the crystals that I make are...well...crystals that I make." She watched anxiously, wondering how he'd react to her gift.

Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles glared at Carter. "I'm sure Amelia had her reasons. Sometimes we fuck up like a detective who forgets his shirt." Carter looked down at himself. Finding his chest visible for everyone to see. He glared back. "A simple mistake compared to what happened at the bar. But I get it. I know why she did it." "Oh, do you now?" Before he wanted to punch him, David had suggested tea to Charles. Charles smiled. "I prefer brandy but for today, I'll make an exception." He followed David into the kitchen. Carter continued glaring at him. "That fucking....Thinks he's better than everybody else." shadowess - February 20, 2021 "Guys, can you not?" Amelia pipes up, her anxiety mounting again. The last thing she needed right now was her friends falling out with the man she had feelings for. There was enough to worry about as it was. She was a little relieved when David suggested tea and Charles followed him to the kitchen. Although now she was nervous about what those two might end up talking about. She looked back at her friends, Sebastian was just watching quietly. He still seemed just as disappointed as Carter was angry. 'Ohh, I really fucked up.' She thought to herself, still rubbing her arms. She sighed heavily, trying not to let tears well up in her eyes. "Well...this could've gone better..." She says quietly. --- In the kitchen, at first, David was quiet. Making sure they couldn't be heard by the others. Amelia especially. He put a little pot of water onto the stove and turned on the heat, waiting for the water to boil. He took out some cups and tea bags from the cupboard. As well as some coffee. Amelia hated tea. Always the avid coffee drinker. "I like to think, Charles, that I am no fool. I can have the most skilled liar spin me a tale and I'd see through them as though they were made of glass. It's one of my skills." He says quietly and glances at him. "I can see Amelia likes you. I don't know you, so I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt..." The water began to boil and he turned off the heat, pouring it into the mugs and leaving the rest of the water in the pan for when Vincent and Elliot would wake up. "But if you hurt her. If you break her heart." He turned to glare dangerously at Charles. His calming tone making his glare seem all the more unnerving. "I'll bring you pain so great and endless that you will beg for your own destruction daily. Do I make myself clear?" His glare then seemed to melt away, rapidly replaced with a charming smile. "Do you take sugar?" He already lost one family. He wasn't about to lose Amelia too. So long as Charles kept her safe... treated her with love and respect...then he was sure they'd get along just fine. Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Carter shook his head. "I'm going back upstairs. I'll see you later." He headed to the bedroom. ------ Charles nerves stood on their toes. He could see how much Amelia meant to David as a daughter. He quickly nodded. "Sugar would be fine. Yes." shadowess - February 20, 2021 Sebastian and Amelia watched Carter walk away. Amelia felt her heart drop. Feeling so awful that her stomach hurt a little. She looked over at Sebastian who had crossed his arms now, glaring at her. "Sebastian..." Amelia tried. "What do I do? What else can I say?" Sebastian was quiet for a moment before replying. "I don't think there's anything else you can say, Amelia." A mixture of anger and disappointment in his tone. "Give us time. We'll talk later." He sighs and turns to walk away, wanting to follow Carter to the bedroom. "Sebastian." Amelia calls after him and he pauses in his tracks, a hand on the banister. "I really am sorry." Sebastian sighs again. "I know..." He says quietly and walks away. Amelia watches him until she couldn't see him anymore. She walks over to one of the chairs, resting her elbows on her knees and holding her head in her hands. Tears silently rolling down her cheeks. She was afraid they hated her. That she would lose her friends for her stupidity. --- Handing Charles his cup, David nods at him. "Good." He says simply and picks up his own mug along with Amelia's ready to take to her. They'd then walk back into the room she was in to find her alone, sitting on the chair and looking upset. David sighed and placed her cup on the table in front of her. He sat on the couch nearby and looked at her sadly. "These things are never resolved immediately. But your friends care about you, Amelia. Just be patient and give them some time." He says gently. --- Closing the bedroom door, Sebastian leant against the wall and sighed heavily. He looked at Carter. "Are you alright?" Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles set his own cup on the table. He walked to her. Placing a hand on her shoulder. "They'll understand soon. It's not like they haven't made a few fucks up in their days." ------ Carter ran his hands through his hair. "I should have apologized." He enclosed his hands and looked down at them. "I wanted to but....I was so mad at her. Now, I don't know when's the best time to say sorry." A few tears fell from his eyes. "That fancy guy makes her happy. Makes her feel like she has a friend." He rubbed his eyes with his shoulder. "I had every opportunity to be that friend. And I fucked up. I have no one else to blame but myself." shadowess - February 20, 2021 Amelia lifts her head and wipes away some of her tears, nodding at them both. She didn't feel she had enough strength to talk just now so she picked up the coffee David had set down in front of her and held it in both hands. The boiling heat through the cup not bothering her at all. "How about we take our mind off it for a while?" David suggests. "Charles, why don't you tell me a bit about yourself?" He motions to a chair nearby, between himself and Amelia. 'Oh god, here we go...' Amelia thought, her cheeks turning a little red. 'Talk about meet the parents...' --- Walking over to Carter, Sebastian wrapped his arms around him, placing one hand on the back of his head as he bit back his own tears. "I was no better...She saved me from that Asylum but I could barely even look her in the eyes just now..." He rested his head next to Carter's, no longer able to keep his own tears from falling. After a minute of holding him, them comforting each other, Sebastian stepped back a bit and held Carter's arms. "It's not too late. We're all worked up. We just need to cool off a bit and try again when we're calmer." He wiped away Carter's tears. "So let's try to calm down. Wash our faces to get rid of these tears then we'll go down together and have a proper conversation. Yeah? Let her know that we forgive her and we're still here for her." He then hesitated before asking. "Do you think we should wake Vincent? Give him a heads up that she's here?" Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles hesitated but sat. He cleared his throat. "Well, I use to be a helper. I guess now I'm doing that again." He took a sip. "All I've ever really done was sleeping for thousands of years." ------- Carter smiled at his touch and nodded. "Yeah, I'll tell him." He put his shirt on and headed to the bedroom where Vincent and Elliot were. "Hey guys?" He opened the door. "Amelia is-" His eyes widened as he saw both men kissing under the covers. Vincent broke the kiss as he noticed him. Elliot blushed too. "Oh! Uh...Sorry." Carter awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "No, it's my fault. I'll just close this door here." He did. He sighed. "God, that was awkward." shadowess - February 20, 2021 "I see..." David says slowly, studying Charles. Amelia watched them both awkwardly. "Um...Charles, my dad fought in World War 2 when he was a human." Amelia tried to shift the subject onto David whose turn it now was to feel like he was in the hot seat. "Oh! Uh...I'm sure Charles isn't interested in-" He starts with a nervous chuckle but Amelia cuts him off. "He saved a lot of lives." She turns to her father and asks. "You said you were just eighteen, right?" David hesitated, feeling his own cheeks begin to turn red. "Y-...yes." He sighed, defeated. --- Sebastian watched him leave the room with a small smile. He wiped his own tears away and took a deep breath. He then heard a small commotion in the hallway and opened the bedroom door to look at Carter who seemed embarrassed. "Everything alright?" He asked, curious. Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 "That's no surprise. A lot of young men were in that war. Well, most young men were in every war but that one was definitely something." Charles took a long sip of his tea before sighing. Leaning back on the chair. "To kill some Nazis. That would have been a blessing. Unfortunately, I wasn't awake at the time. I had slept right after the bubonic plague. I honestly the whole world had been destroyed and that all humans were dead." ------ Carter hesitated but then spoke as his cheeks grew red. "They're uh...." He cleared his throat. "Busy." shadowess - February 20, 2021 "I'm just happy that I could do my part to save innocent lives." David shrugged. He thought on Charles's words. "I doubt there is much that can keep humanity down for long. If history has proven anything it's that they're incredibly resilient." Amelia smiled at them, watching the conversation become more relaxed. This was more like it. They actually seemed to be getting along. --- Sebastian's eyebrows rose at Carter's answer then couldn't help grinning. He then faked a cough and nodded with a smile. "Well, um...I'm sure they'll join us later then." He then looks at Carter seriously. "Maybe we should uh..." He trailed off and pointed towards the stairs. "If you're ready, that is."

Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles hesitated. "I once gave up that life of saving people a long time ago. But now that I'm with you? For there to be both who wishes to help. Let alone a demon and a devil." He smiled and nodded. "Yes. I will help you." shadowess - February 20, 2021 Grinning, Amelia kissed him again, happy with his answer. She understood how he'd found it difficult on his own. She hadn't been so sure she could pull it off either. But now...now they weren't alone. Not only did they have each other, she was sure Vincent could help them. David had always been willing to help Amelia in her goals. So all together, their odds of being successful dramatically increased. Amelia truly believed they could do this now. The rest of the picnic was just as peaceful. Amelia thoroughly enjoyed spending this time with Charles and was a little sad when the sun began to set, the park began to empty and they had to go back to reality. She helped him to take the blanket and basket back to his place. Sighing happily, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and kissed him deeply. When their kiss ended she rested her head against his, bit her lower lip and closed her eyes. She was nervous about going back to the others. She wondered if they were still angry with her. She was going to have to face them sooner or later. They were still her friends and she couldn't leave them any longer with the current danger out there. "I think I'm ready to go back now." She says as she steps away a little, holding his hand. She was glad he was with her to support her. She doubted she'd have as much courage without him. Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 As they headed back home, Charles glanced at her. "You know, I could come with you. To your friends? If you need me there. Besides, I want to meet them too." shadowess - February 20, 2021 Amelia smiled "I'd like that." She says softly, blushing a little and caressing his hand with her thumb. "Are you ready?" She sighs, gathering up her courage to face her friends again. Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles smiled. He tucked some of her hair over her ear. Caressing her cheek. "Ready when you are." shadowess - February 20, 2021 Blushing at his touch, Amelia smiled at him then took a deep breath. Trying to settle the butterflies in her stomach. She closed her eyes and imagined them standing in the house she and Vincent had renovated. "Well...It's about time you turned up." David's voice made her open her eyes and she stared at him sitting back on a nearby couch with one leg resting over the other. "David? You're on Earth!" Amelia gasped. David stared at his daughter and then at the man next to her. He recognized him as Vincent but knew it was someone different in his body. Someone he hadn't met yet. He looked between them and saw how pink his daughter's cheeks were. The way they were holding hands. He tried to hold back a smirk as he maintained his hard stare. She was supposed to be in trouble after all. "Yes, I came looking for either you or Vincent to deal with a matter in Hell. Vincent has already sorted it so you needn't worry." He got to his feet and walked over to them, giving Amelia a disappointed look. "Oh, Trouble. You have some apologizing to do when the others get up." He scolded gently. Even when angry, David still managed to seem incredibly calm. Amelia's cheeks reddened with embarrassment. "Yeah, I know..." She says uncomfortably. David then brings his eyes up to Charles and studies him for a moment before holding his hand out to shake. "I don't believe we've met. I'm David. Amelia's father." Amelia bit her lip, watching them awkwardly. She hadn't expected them to meet so quickly. --- Upstairs, Sebastian was beginning to wake up. He could swear he could hear voices downstairs. Blinking his eyes open, he listened carefully before gently shaking Carter awake and whispering; "Do you hear that?" Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles shook his hand. "Good to know. I'm Charles." ------ Carter slowly opened his eyes as he yawned. He heard Sebastian then he seemed much more awake. Listening. "Yeah, I do." He hopped out of bed. "Come on." He ran out the room. Zooming downstairs. Charles was immediately hit by some strong wind. He waved at it when Carter stood there. "Who are you?!" ,said Carter. He looked at the others. "Amelia?" "Now hold on a minute! I need some introductions here." Charles reached a hand out. "And who might you be?" Carter shook his hand with a tight grip that had Charles flinching a bit as he tried to hold back his pain. "I'm Private Detective Travis Carter." Charles quickly took his hand out of his grip. Waving it so that it could stretch out the discomfort. "There's a vampire detective?" He smiled with a shrug. "Who would have thought?" shadowess - February 20, 2021 Sebastian jumped out of bed as well and threw on a shirt before running after Carter down the stairs. He came to a sudden stop when he saw Vincent's old body. "Wait... What?!" He stammered, staring at him. "Ha! That's exactly what I said when I first saw him!" Amelia laughed, momentarily distracted by Sebastian. The humor brought her a little relief as her anxiety at them all meeting this way, mounted. "Uh, Sebastian. Carter. This is Charles. He's on our side." She says, trying to put them at ease. David lifts a fist to his mouth and pretends to cough into it while giving Amelia an expectant look. Amelia looks at him, then looks back at Sebastian and Carter sheepishly. "Uh...guys...I-I'm sorry for what I did. At the club. It was wrong and stupid...I should've known better..." David smiles, happy to see his daughter had learned her lesson. Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Carter crossed his arms. "How about apologizing to the guy you scared?" He pointed up at the stairs. shadowess - February 20, 2021 Amelia looked up at the ceiling then brought her eyes back to Carter guiltily. She rubbed her arm, trying to calm her nerves and lowered her gaze to the ground, feeling awful. She wasn't so sure he'd still be here when she got back. She'd half expected him to run for the hills. She guessed he was still asleep because it looked like both Carter and Sebastian had just gotten up. "I will. When he wakes up and comes down, I'll apologize." She says and she meant it. She didn't want to just go barging up there to wake him up in case she frightened him again. Maybe it was best to wait for him to meet her in his own time. Sensing the tension, David began walking towards the kitchen. "Charles, was it? I don't suppose you'd like a cup of tea?" He offered.

Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles smiled. "I could ask you the same thing." shadowess - February 20, 2021 Amelia grinned at his answer, her blue eyes shining a little as she leant in to kiss him passionately. She pulled back and looked into his eyes. "So, what do you want to do until it's time to go out?" She asked, smiling. Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles's chest bubbled up as he felt her kiss. He shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe we can cuddle? I would like to rest before the picnic." shadowess - February 20, 2021 "I'd like that." Amelia smiled and settled into his arms, resting her head on his shoulder, content to just be there with him. Later that afternoon, Amelia helped Charles take the basket down to the park where they picked out a clear spot on the grass to sit. Laying down the blanket, she sat with him and watched the world around them. She wasn't entirely sure what she was expecting to see or what to look out for. She half wondered if this picnic was just an excuse to get her to go on a date with him. Not that she'd mind now. This was nice. She was enjoying sitting on this blanket, in the warm sun, next to Charles. Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles soon fell asleep. There were kids playing together or with their families when they were hanging out there. He was eating a few pieces of strawberry. The sun was shining on them. He smiled. "So? What do you think?" shadowess - February 20, 2021 Amelia looked at him and smiled. "This is nice. I'm so used to my life just being chaos from one minute to the next that it's nice to be able to relax like this." She then looked around the park at the families with a raised eyebrow. "Not entirely sure what I'm meant to be looking out for though..." Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles chuckled. "The smiles, Amelia! You're supposed to see how happy they are to be alive. To be with their loved ones. This is why humanity is worth saving." He gently squeezed her hand. Looking into her eyes. "It's love." shadowess - February 20, 2021 As Charles spoke, Amelia looked at the families around them. At the children playing, chasing each other and shouting excitedly. Their parents nearby, chatting and watching their children with love and pride. It was a childhood she'd never gotten the opportunity to have...Always stuck in that library with just David and Carol for company. Although this was what she'd been fighting for all along, it was as though this was the first time she was really seeing what peace could look like. This was why she set up the Redemption Programme. This was why she longed to bring peace between Heaven and Hell. To end the war. Funny, that she had never actually stopped to watch something so pure before. Her eyes softened as she watched a mother pick up her daughter, cuddling her and kissing her forehead lovingly. It was a beautiful sight...and one that she was a little jealous of. She was convinced that that kind of life was beyond her grasp. That her own life was simply too chaotic and dangerous for her to have her own family. To settle down. But who knew? Before today she'd been convinced that falling in love would be a bad idea too...yet here she was, breaking her own rule. Maybe, if she succeeded in her goals, then maybe... She felt Charles squeeze her hand and she looked at him. His last couple of words causing her to blush deeply as her breath caught in her throat. She couldn't take her eyes off him now. It all felt too good to be true. She half expected to wake up at any moment and everything would go back to the dark, treacherous life that she was so used to by now. But she didn't wake up. This was real...and the wonderful realization that she was really having feelings for this man dawned on her. She was really falling in love and she had absolutely no control over it. In the space of just a day, Charles had torn down every defense she'd so carefully put up...and do you know what? She was fine with that. Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 Charles found at a loss for words when he heard her thoughts. She had finally understood what he meant. It was enough for him. He leaned in and kissed her. shadowess - February 20, 2021 He kissed her and she kissed him in return, matching his passion. She brought a hand up to caress his cheek. Pulling away gently, she smiled at him. Her eyes a little tearful but these were tears of joy. Charles had opened her eyes and her heart. She felt light, hopeful and full of love. She understood why what she'd done had been wrong and she was ready to go and set things right. Then, once this organization was taken care of, she was going to manage the shit out of Hell. No more putting it off. No more distractions. She'd monitor her Programme herself and seek out Angels to try to broker peace with them. "Will you help me achieve peace? Help me save souls?" She asked Charles in a whisper, looking into his eyes. There was no one she'd rather have by her side to help her achieve those goals.

Denix Vames - February 19, 2021 Charles read her thoughts. His grip on her tightened. "It's alright. It's alright. This didn't exactly happened years ago. It's going to take a while before you can move on. But I'll be here for you. I won't let you suffer alone." shadowess - February 19, 2021 Amelia closed her eyes, taking slow and steady breaths until she was calmer. "Thank you." She says quietly and pulls away from him. "I'm...I'm going to go sit down. I'll be alright." She smiled weakly at him, thankful he'd been here to help her stay calm. Denix Vames - February 19, 2021 Charles nodded. "Just let me know if you need anything else." He put his focus back on the food which was already done at this point. He placed both meals on their separate plates. He put her plate in front of her at the coffee table. He sat next to her with his plate there too. "I hope this helps." shadowess - February 19, 2021 Amelia sat awkwardly. Although she'd had no control over it, she couldn't help feeling like she'd ruined a good moment. She rubbed her arm a little as he placed the plate in front of her. She smiled at him and looked at the food. "This looks awesome, thank you." She began eating hungrily. It was a simple dish but the flavor was amazing. She guessed Charles had been around long enough to become quite skilled in the kitchen. She'd finished her plate in no time, not leaving a single scrap of food. Denix Vames - February 19, 2021 "You're welcome." Charles took a bite. "And don't feel bad. You didn't ruin anything. Having a panic attack is normal." He continued to eat. He smiled as he watched her devour her food. "You must have really liked it." shadowess - February 19, 2021 Satisfied, Amelia sat back in the chair and chuckled at his comment. "You're a really good cook!" She complimented him. Once they were both finished eating, she stood. "I'll clean up. It's the least I can do" She says as she picks up the plates and heads towards the sink. "So, where did you have in mind for the picnic later?" She asked him, trying to shift her thoughts back to what they'd planned. Denix Vames - February 19, 2021 "Why thank you. I appreciate it." Charles nodded. "Clean if you want. It's very nice of you to." He leaned back on the couch. Relaxing after that meal. "Well, I was thinking about the park nearby." shadowess - February 20, 2021 "Sounds good." She replies. Admittedly, she didn't know the area well enough to know what was nearby. She guessed she'd just follow Charles's lead. It didn't take her long to wash the dishes and the utensils that Charles had used to cook with. Once finished, she headed over to the couch to join him, sitting next to him. "I'm thinking...after the picnic, maybe I should go back and apologize to the others. I feel bad about what I did...also, they're going to need my help. There's this human organization...They capture supernatural people and conduct tests on them against their will in order to develop weapons against them. Damien and I destroyed them all years ago but it looks like they're trying to make a comeback." She explains, looking at him. "They managed to get hold of an Angel last time. God knows what they would've learned. I cannot allow them to make a return." Denix Vames - February 20, 2021 What Amelia told Charles got his blood boiling. "I can assure you that whoever these scumbags are, they will pay for what they've done." He held her hand. "And whatever you decided to do will be something that I will support no matter what." He kissed her cheek. "You have nothing to worry about so long as I'm right here." shadowess - February 20, 2021 The way he spoke. What he said. It made her heart beat strongly for him. He gets it. He understands why Amelia feels it necessary to use force against these humans. Because they're dangerous, possibly have weapons that could kill them and cannot be reasoned with. She had more than enough experience with them to know they won't listen to reason. That they'll stop at nothing. If only Vincent could understand that too. She couldn't be mad at Vincent for wanting to do the right thing, but she feared his naivety would get himself or others killed. Charles kissed her cheek and she blushed, her cheeks shimmering a little again. "How'd you get me to fall for you so quick?" She asks playfully with a smirk.