Choices
"No, I don't know." Alex paces in her apartment. "Maybe... maybe it's the only way she could cope. I don't know. Sometime people do that. If a memory is too painful."
"Alex?"
"One minute, Krissy's... uhhh" Alex pauses as she turns to see an unfamiliar dark haired man with familiar green eyes standing in her living room in jeans and a t-shirt. "H-hello? Wait, Jo, hold on... um.. I'll look it up and see what we can do or should do, I.. I don't know. I'll talk to you later." Alex looks over at the distractingly handsome young man. "Can...can I help you?"
"I changed my vessel." He says simply.
"Michael? How? When? Why?" She stammers.
"Dean felt uncomfortable with my prior vessel. Since he was willing to speak to Gabriel on my behalf it's the least i could do. I simply got permission from John when Gabriel went to arrange her wedding gift to Sam. Raphael was able to alter the one I was already in easily enough as it's the same family. Adam said he didn't care so long as I didn't look like him anymore. Hopefully he'll be satisfied with this one. I don't exactly have many options."
"Oh." She stares at him. "Okay. Why? I mean.. wow. I mean, you know, you're going to attract alot of attention. right?"
"Why?"
"Ah.. well, your vessel is very very pretty?" Alex stumbles over the words not feeling that mind numbingly hot is the most appropriate thing to say, no matter how accurate. "Handsome." She corrects herself. 'It's very nice looking at you."
"It wasn't before?"
"Well, no, not exactly. I mean, you weren't unpleasant to look at just not really, my.. um... okay, moving on." She only just catches the small grin that tells her he was teasing her. "How are things with you and Bree?"
"Better. She's actually started asking my advice on things. She's never done that before. Granted it's only about training matters, but that is my greatest skill set. Speaking of which I wished to offer my services to repay you for yours."
"What? Your what?"
"I could teach you to better defend yourself." He offers. "it doesn't feel right accepting your time and understanding without offering some sort of repayment. This is your profession is it not? Aiding those in distress."
"Well, I... I'm training." Alex demures as the thought of sparring with the gorgeous body before her makes her blush. "And really, i can't legally charge you anyways, since I'm not licensed, you know." she shrugs.
"Very well. If you change your mind, let me know." He nods, noting her discomfort.
"Though if you wanted to do something for me, you could stop pointing out how much older you are than me whenever we disagree. If you felt so inclined. I know you're older than time itself, that has absolutely no bearing on whether you're right or not." Alex crosses her arms. Michael just raises an eyebrow at her. "Anyway, I actually have a little crisis of my own at the moment."
"Is there anything I can do?"
"No. I don't know. Krissy... She lost her son and had a bit of a nervous break down. When she woke up the next morning she couldn't remember him at all or even having been pregnant. She's just blocked it all out. Jo's kind of afraid to push and have her become suicidal again, and she's refused to talk to me herself. I'm just not sure what to do. Obviously she can't see a normal psychiatrist, even if she would."
"Why do you have to do anything? You said yourself that she doesn't want your help, even if it is just talking. You can't force someone to talk to you. It's likely she'll remember when her mind can handle it again."
"No, I know, but still." Alex traps her phone in her hand. "I should call Claire."
"Very well. Let me know when you're free." Michael nods.
"Thanks for understanding."
"So, you've decided to become pen pals with my sister." Claire leans on the door to the library as Rhys crumples up another sheet of paper and tosses it into the overflowing waste basket.
"I'm not taking human form in her presence so it doesn't matter if you tell on me or not." He retorts. Claire just shakes her head at him. "I am seriously interested in her, Claire."
"Yeah, seriously interested in her virginity." Claire scoffs and stretches, hands on her sore back. "Just keep your playboy hands off her and we're good."
"I'm not..." Rhys starts to protest, but gives up. He can't say anything to convince her otherwise anyway, so why bother?
"Hello?" Claire picks up her phone when it rings. "Alex. hey, everything okay?.. No, I needed to get back. There are a lot of deliveries but she's with Jo and ...Oh.. oh, no... you can't do anything?... no, I guess not... I know... I can't just take off again, though, this is a demanding, job... No, I know. I'm worried about her, too.... Geez, no, don't do that.... what? Why the hell didn't anyone tell me? Okay... okay, I'm going to see what I can do. Just make sure Jo and Aiden don't let her leave." Claire covers her eyes. "I'll call you soon."
"Is everything okay?" Rhys perks up, having paid close attention at the first mention of Alex's name.
"No, but Alex is fine, though so relax." She sits down on the nearest chair, deep in thought. "You know I love your sister, right?"
"Yeah, of course." He insults his chair over. "Still having second thoughts?" Claire gives him a look over the 'still' however accurate it may be. As one who doesn't like to be penned in even by clothes, he can easily see the signs of chafing with confinement in others.
"My partner's kind of in a bad way." She protests. "You know her son died. Nat's mortal now and they're not speaking. He went back to hades to be with his brother. She was going to kill herself and now she's just erased it all from her mind, Nat, the baby, and she wants to go back to hunting, but I just..."
"She wants you to hunt with her?" Rhys prods.
"No, she wants to go solo." Claire shakes her head. "And that's just so.. dangerous. Especially with all this. What if she remembers or something is triggered mid hunt she could get killed and no one would know."
"Do you have feelings for her?"
"What?" Claire frowns at him. "No, not like that. Do you have to be in love with someone to care wether or not they die?"
"I forget how young you are." Rhys shakes her head. "But you're considering leaving my sister for her, so it's a valid question." He nudges her foot with his.
"It's not like that. I... I don't like the work, I never really did. I thought maybe it'd be worth it to be with her, but she never has time, and when she does it's just... not the same. We don't talk, we don't go out and do anything not that I'd have the energy and I just.. I miss my family, my freinds, my life, my freedom. I miss being able to stop everything and go help someone even if it's annoying but its my life. It's who i am. I'm a hunter, not a valkyrie not a... a housewife or bed warmer. This isn't what I want."
"You know, she never asked this of anyone before," Rhys reminds her gently.
"I know. That's part of why I agreed to try. I don't want to hurt her. I just..."
"Don't want me." Claire looks back to see Hel at the door, stone faced.
"I didn't say that."
"Didn't you?"
"How long have you been standing there?" Claire demands.
"Long enough. It's fine. If you'd rather be with that woman who am I to stop you?" Hel turns and walks across the hall to her bedroom.
"Jesus, Hel." Claire quickly goes after her. "Are you seriously getting all jealous over Krissy? You know it's not like that! And I'm not 'leaving you' leaving you, it's just.. this isn't me."
"Whatever you say." Hel replies cooly. "I'll have Brunhilde take you and your things back to the states." She starts to take Claire's things out of her drawers.
"I'm not breaking up with you, Hela. I love you, it's just this lifestyle, it's not me."
"I understand." Is the stony reply. "But you can't just shove me aside any time you please."
"Oh. but you can do that to me." Claire challenges. "I never see you anymore and you're the only reason I decided to even try this."
"I am a goddess, Claire! My work is important. I thought you understood that." Claire just gives her a look. Bringing out the goddess card means there's no point in talking to her right now, not that she can really help herself.
"I understand. I'm not asking you to.. forget it. I'll call you when everything's settled. Just remember I'm not breaking up with you." Claire grabs her jacket from the closet.
"Well, maybe I'm breaking up with you." Hel snaps her fingers sending everything into a neatly packed case even the jacket in Claire's hands.
"Hel.."
"No, Claire." She gives a silencing wave of the hand. "You don't get to just walk out on me with no warning and still be with me. I'm the queen of helheim not some... butt dial."
"Booty call?"
"You know what I mean!"
"I don't think of you that way. Why are you so.. what happened to the fun flirty woman I started dating? The one 'not asking for a commitment'? The one who joked and laughed and had fun with me?"
"She fell in love with you, Claire."
"I love you, too."
"Then stay." Hel puts a hand to Claire's cheek. "Stay with me."
"I'm sorry."
"Who's 'gambling whoremonger'? And why is he in your phone?" Josephine looks at Krissy's phone as it rings.
"Saul something. I thought I changed that." She looks over at it and picks it up. "Hello? Hey, how are you?... why wouldn't I be okay?....What baby? Hey!" Krissy exclaims as Jo snatches the phone from her.
"I need to talk to him, excuse me."
"Geez, fine. I don't even know why I have him in the first place." she shakes her head.
"You can't go, Kris." Aiden takes her clothes out of her bag. "You can't go hunting by yourself. It's too dangerous. You need a partner."
"I've had my fill of partners, thank you. Claire's the only one less dangerous than the monsters and she's shacked up with a goddess." Krissy snatches her clothes back. "I'm fine going solo. Seriously what's your problem? You weren't nearly this fussy the last time I left."
"No, but... you.. you hadn't died the last time you left, either." He scrambles. "I don't want to worry that we'll wake up and find you dying in a ditch somewhere with no one to help you."
"Geez, couples really do start to sound alike." Krissy rolls her eyes and goes to the closet. "It doesn't matter. God, how many of my clothes did you guys steal? I\m starting to wonder if it wasn't just Jo borrowing all my shit."
"Krissy..." Aiden starts, but the sound of a horn honking in the driveway interrupts him.
"No way!" Krissy lights up and runs to the window. "Get that piece of crap out of our driveway before we have to call a tow truck."
"Bite me, Chambers!" Claire yells back and gets out of the wagon.
"What are you doing here? I thought you were shacked up with your girlfriend in neflheim."
"Yeah, well, it seems I'm not suited for domesticity." Claire rubs the back of her neck.
"Oh.. hold on I'll be right down." Krissy disappears from the window and tosses her bag out before climbing out the window despite Aiden's protests.
"Oh for god sake, little miss death wish." Claire rushes over to catch her as Krissy lets herself drop from the gutter. She only succeeds in breaking her fall. "Aren't I allowed to come in for a minute? Use the bathroom maybe?"
"Better not, Aiden and Jo are getting weirdly protective and stuff. We need to escape while we can. I'm so glad; to see you."
"Well if you're doing stupid shit like jumping out windows when you have a perfectly good door it's no wonder." Claire shoves the hunter off her.
"Are you okay?" Krissy asks helping her partner to her feet.
"I'm fine." She dusts herself off.
"No, I mean about Hel."
"Oh, right." Claire looks down a minute but doesn't answer.
"Sorry, stupid question." Krissy hugs her. "Anything I can do?"
"Go hunting with me?"
"Of course!"
"And come to Bree's ultra kickass Christmas party in Souix Falls with me too? She rented out Louis' V."
"Sure." Krissy smiles. "First thing we do I have to clean your gun though. Because I know you haven't been doing it."
"I haven't exactly been using it."
"Doesn't matter." Krissy gives her a squeeze. "And you call me reckless."
"Krissy, wait, your phone." Jo runs out. "Is Saul another hunter?"
"No, he's a gambling whoremonger." Krissy corrects her. "See the name?"
"They're not exactly mutually exclusive." Claire reminds her.
"I think he's a vessel." Krissy frowns. "Rye used him to save us from those were's. I'm still not sure why he was there in the first place though, without an angel. or why he's in my phone and not the angel using him."
"Maybe you like him."Claire teases. This just gets a glare from Krissy. "Have you heard from Nat?"
"No, that asshole is mortal and didn't tell me. He had to almost die from carbon monoxide poisoning to tell me they finally ran out of ambrosia. And he won't talk to me, he's just off with his brother. And that's fine. It's fine. He can do what he wants." She crosses her arms, turning away.
"They're out of ambrosia?"
"Yeah, and nectar's long gone."
"No wonder Hades folded so fast. I need to let Hel know." Claire takes out her phone. "Hey, um, I... no, I just need to te-and she hung up." Claire scowls at her phone, texting her the information instead.
"I am not taking more of Proserpine's memories." Krissy says warningly. "No, just... no."
"No, I know, trust me." Claire rubs the back of her neck. "You know, we could just go and ask Proserpine. Or Persephone or whoever she is."
"We could. If she wasn't dead." Krissy reminds her.
"She's a pagan god. She's in the abyss. Shall we?" Claire gestures to her car.
"Sure, why not? I don't want Nat to die." Krissy's voice shakes slightly at this. "Off to the bunker?"
"To the bunker." Claire gets into the car. Krissy pauses and just looks warily at the car for a second. "Coming?"
"Let me think about it." Krissy wrinkles her nose at the wagon. Claire rolls her eyes and goes to start the engine.
"Goddamn it! He just fixed you!"
"Yeah, I'm going to go get lunch while you work on that." Krissy tosses her bag in the back and heads towards the house.
"It won't take that long." Claire protests and pops the hood.
"Thank you." Jo walks over and puts a hand on Claire's shoulder.
"No prob." She shrugs. "What is it with this thing and spark plugs? Maybe I should dip it in benadryl first."
"No, really, thank you. I don't think she'd come back if she left alone."
"I know. I'll take care of her. I promise." Claire gives a reassuring smile.
"Do.. do you want to borrow Aiden's car?"
"My car is fine. It's a good car." Clearly Krissy's not the only one in deep pathalogical denial. "It just... has it's quirks. That's all. It has personality."
"Okay, claire." Jo pats her back and heads back inside. "Would you like me to make you a sandwich?"
"Sure."