Chapter 36
After much needed talk
The family came to terms with the events of last night. Hanna was sentenced to grounded at home for two weeks after this weekend. Hanna didn’t complain, she felt relieved to confide in her parents. Even if she was grounded for summoning spirits outside of the Cradle and fighting a Demon alone.
Soon the back yard was setup and the whole family were relaxing around the BBQ.
Michelle with a “kiss the chef” apron, working the BBQ. The Crew having a chat in the back corner, relaying last night’s events. The rest gathered around the deck with drinks in hand and conversations with each other.
Hanna leaned back on the sun lounge, barely listening to the conversations around the deck. Tried as she might, her mind wouldn’t let go of the Abyss. She tried focusing on anything else. Her parents hushed discussion about the Demon with her aunties and grandmother. Jillian and Michelle’s heated debate who will win the next women’s soccer match. Her friends trying to settle on tonight’s movie. The feeling of Persephone’s warm hand in hers, and the feeling of Persephone’s fingers stroking her Angel wing helped draw her back into reality, but it wasn’t quite enough. Nothing seemed to work.
Hanna felt a chill down her spine and turned her gaze past her family, to the back fence. There in the garden, her eyes widen at the sight of the Abyss. Standing in the flowers, glowing eyes and knowing smirk. The feathers of her wing prickled up in alert, brushing against Persephone.
Persephone turned away from the group chatter to Hanna, followed her eyes down to the backyard and then back to Hanna. She frowned concerned. She gripped Hanna’s hand tighter and whispered “han?”
Han jumped, turning back to Persephone.
“are you okay?”
Han turned back down the backyard and sighed relieved at the empty space. Relieved the illusion was just that, the hallucinations of a troubled mind. “I’m fine” Hanna reassured, with a small smile.
Persephone smiled back “good, tell me when you are not”
Hanna nodded.
“Be honest dude” Kit began, distracting the pair to her. The punk leaned close in a hush whisper “how fucked am I, on scale one to ten?”
Hanna snorted, trying not to laugh too loudly. “dude…” she whispered.
The Punk’s face fell as she groaned “oh fuck dude I’m so screwed”
“You are going to be fine”
“Please..I’ll be in prison for the rest of my life”
Soon the discussion ended between the Crew and they started returning to the outdoor table.
“Who’s in Prison?” Michelle piped up, turning to the gang.
“me” Kit answered. “I’m going to be in prison”
Michelle laughed. “Oh I heard about that” she spoke. She turned back to the steak, flipping them over. She looked over her shoulder to Kit “and I heard imprisonment is in order”
“Oh come on”
“Stop mopping, lunch is ready”
As the Gang started moving to the deck. The rest of the family started taking their seats. Once Kit jumped into hers, Lilith and Mary sneaked over. Leaning on either side of the back chair. Kit turned her gaze up, moving her head left and right with nervous anticipation. Their knowing smiles sent chills down Kit’s spine.
“Hi mums” Kit squeaked. “nice day isn’t it”
“Not as eventful as your night” Mary stated. “So I hear”
Kit chuckled, leaning down in her chair. “well I didn’t lie, just didn’t…explain the full truth”
“Yes, when you said you and the gang went running, you meant running from a Demon” Lilith clarified. “And the spirit game you played was a summoning of urban spirits and the ugly dude who tried to have a go at you four was actually a very angry spirit trying to kill you all”
“Pretty much”
“Anything you have to say for yourself young lady?”
Kit scooted up and addressed them both “I’m sorry I lied” she apologised. “Last night I was still in shock over what happened…I didn’t know…haven’t seen anything like that before”
Lilith and Mary turned to each other. Sharing a common look and wordless conversation. They soon turned back to their daughter.
“We know” Lilith comment. She pressed the back of her hand to her daughter’s back, causing the teenager to look up at her. “We tried to keep you away from that side of life for a long time, but…bad things happen to people. And it ours and your aunties job to protect those people when the darkness comes”
“That’s why we are not going to punish you till the next century” Mary continued. She wrapped her arm around Kit and pulled the teenager into a side hug.
Kit leaned into the embrace and asked, with a hopeful tone “That mean I’m not grounded?”
“Oh hell nah, you are definitely grounded young lady!” Mary laughed. “You are cleaning the bar after every shift”
“Until when?”
“Until we see fit”
Kit groaned and her parents laughed at her displeasure. “Guess I deserve that”
“No Summons or supernatural games unless it’s at your aunties place or Addam’s place” Lilith stated.
“I’ll be happy to host them at my place” Addams offered.
“Hey why do we get to host the supernatural games?” Ava piped up.
“Because we run a bar and Supernatural beings barging in terrorising the place is bad for business” Lilith answered.
“I don’t know man, do it at the right time and it will make for an interesting night”
“That’s if anyone thinks they are real” Serita comment.
“True”
“Still bit of a risk, perhaps aim for Halloween next time” Jillian advised.
The gang seemed to light up at the suggestion. Especially Addams and Kit, who looked to Jillian with excitement in their eyes. Immediately forgetting about the last consequences of the summoning ritual they performed.
“That could work” Mary comment.
“Doctor don’t encourage them” Suzanne advised.
“Too late” Jillian laughed.
“So, what are you guys going to do about this Abyss?” Kit asked.
The Crew looked to each other, then focused on the four.
“Don’t worry about this Demon” Michelle reassured. “We will handle it”
School came too early.
Each minute it took to get there felt like pulling a dead weight up stream in raging river. When the gang reached the school and learned the infamous bathroom was fine. The weight dropped immediately.
By lunchtime they snuck out of the school prescient, to the beach. Chilling by the cliffs, watching the waves and the town below. Discussing the bathroom incident.
“there’s no way administration will clean up the mess and not punish someone” Addams observed. “Those prissy fucks will make those responsible for any damage to their building clean up the mess on hands and knees”
“Reckon the thing did it?” Kit asked.
“Exactly”
Hanna sighed, shaking her head confused. “Why would it do that?” she asked. “What’s the goal? Cleaning up the mess from the fight doesn’t seem a very Demon thing to do” she sighed, with a soft shake of her head. “something isn’t right”
Addams hummed, scrunching up her face for a moment. She turned to Hanna and asked curiously “Did the Demon ask anything of you?”
“She just wanted to know who I am?”
Addams frowned, she leaned onto her girlfriend’s legs and asked “Did you answer?”
Kit looked to her cousin curiously, with raised eyebrow. Persephone looked to Hanna worriedly.
Hanna looked up at Addams and shook her head.
Addams sighed a relieved “good”. She pulled back from Kit. Leaning on the back of her hands, she turned to the ocean as she said “you did the right thing, never trust a demon like that”
Suddenly, Hanna’s angel feathers perked up. Both her eyes and the angel wing eye turned to the town. To the sight of two people talking in the distance. One a man, another a stranger in long tailored black coat and hood. Hanna narrowed her gaze. She crawled just in front of the group till her hands gripped the edge of the cliff.
Persephone rose to her feet. Flicking her gaze back and forth between the town and Hanna. “what’s wrong?”
“think I know him”
“Him?” the gang asked confused.
“yeah” Hanna whispered. “stay here, I’ll be back” Hanna started to move cautiously towards the two figures. Leaving her gang behind.
Persephone didn’t waste another breath, she stood up and followed after Hanna.
“yeah right” the punk laughed as she got up, with Addams following by her side.
The girls soon sneaked into the parking lot. Using the cars for cover as they closed in on the strangers.
“Is it done?” the hooded figure asked, his tone deep and familiar.
Hanna dove for the nearest car, pressing her side into the front wheel. Closing in on the strangers conversation. The others followed her lead. Hanna looked behind her, then back in front.
“Yes master, it’s done” the man, in similar voice, answered. “no one well know”
Hanna stood up slowly, peaking over the bonnet to the strangers talking. Taking out her phone, she began filming the two.
It was strange watching the two of them. Two identical men talking openly in the packed town, with the confidence no one was listening. Unaware four teenagers were hidden nearby and filming the two. Hanna knew enough stories about Christen to identify him in the crowd, but she was sure from the stories told, he didn’t have a twin brother.
“what are they saying?” the punk whispered.
“shhh!” the gang responded.
A car alarm startled the gang and the strangers. Christen and the hooded man turned to them. Hanna dropped out of the way, pressing her back firm against the wheel.
“Shit” Kit cursed.
“did they see us?” Persephone inquired.
“they couldn’t” Addams informed adamantly.
Hanna was about to respond when her attention drifted to the car in front of them. The very shiny red car, freshly washed and polished, showed their reflections hiding and the heads of the men in the window. Hanna cringed at the sight. Out of all the cars they could have hidden behind, they managed to find the only spotless one. “they might”
The men’s conversation died down. Christen continued to talk to the hooded twin, but the twin refused to look away from the clean window. Demon eyes peered out from the hood and starred intently at the window reflection.
Hanna felt her eyes draw up to the Demon Christen’s reflection and become trapped in the gaze. She reached out her hand to the left and nudged her friends till their attentions focused on the reflections in the car.
Soon Demon Christen whispered one final word and the human Christen walked away. The Demon Christen continued to stare at the car, with a look that made Hanna wonder if he could see them. Suddenly the Demon started storming forward towards them.
“what is that thing?” Persephone whispered petrified.
Hanna took a deep breath, then jumped to her feet. Turning around over the car bonnet ready to fight. Only for the Demon Christen to have disappeared into thin air. Hanna looked around, just to make sure they were truly alone. “come on” she whispered. She turned to her friends and stated “Okay let’s go!” she helped the girls up one by one, starting with Persephone and working down the line. She ushered the girls out of the car park, then followed behind. Keeping one eye on them and the other on the lookout, for the Demon.
After school, the girls visited Arch-tech
Hanna barged into her Grandmother’s office with phone in hand and her friends in tow. Her phone clutched tight in her hand.
Jillian looked up from her laptop and raised her eyebrow at the girls storming towards her. “Hello Scooby gang, what’s up today?”
Hanna stopped short of Jillian’s desk. She clutched the phone with both hands and started to fiddle with it as she asked “Remember the story you told me, the one about your ex-colleague Christen?”
“The mad bastard that got himself obsessed with a Devil God, tried to organised the death of your aunties, watched his god die and disappeared nearly fifteen years ago? That Christen?”
“Yes him”
Jillian sat straighter in her chair. “Yes?”
“He’s back” Hanna declared, handing the phone and the video to her grandmother. “we think”
“you think?” Jillian asked concerned.
“I filmed them”
Jillian nodded confused. She pressed play and watched the video. Her eyes widen at the sight of Christen, then frowned confused at the sight of his Demon twin. “la hell?” she comment. “where was this?”
“down at the beach”
“right…” she trailed off. Doctor Jillian paused the video. Handing over the phone, she stood up and declared “send that to me right now and go back home straight away”
“Are we in trouble?” Hanna asked.
“No, no your not in trouble, just go home and be safe”
“okay, see you later Grandma J”
“See you then, goodbye”
“Goodbye” the girls spoke as they left.
Once gone and the video received. Doctor Jillian picked up her phone and made a call to Suzanne “hey babe its me, we need to call the others. Emergency meeting right now. Christen is back!”