Fortune and Fortitude Pt. 06

She blinked as she gazed at the table gathered in front of her, her eyes flickering between Miss Senguine, Kiara, Jared, and lastly Quinn. She regained her composure after a moment. "Hi, everyone."

Annika scowled. "Who's this? Did you bring in another protégé, 'mum'?"

Senguine didn't seem bothered. "Of course not. She's one of Mr. Bertreck's new vassals. She will be staying here for the time being." She looked back to the girl in question. "Pull up a seat, Ms. Aspen."

With a sideways glance to Jared, Zoe grabbed a chair from the kitchen and pushed it between Kiara and Jared before sitting down. Nonchalantly, she grabbed a bowl and dished herself some soup. Jared couldn't help but notice just how small she was. Sitting straight, her feet didn't touch the floor, and she had to stretch to reach even the center of the table.

The silence resumed, now somewhat awkward. Quinn raised her eyebrows at Jared, who just rolled his eyes. He didn't know what to make of the situation either. Or just how much Zoe knew.

This time, Zoe was the last one to finish eating. Senguine glanced around the table. "Kiara, you will stay with Zoe and help with dishes. Then take her with you to your regular duties. Dismissed."

Again, everyone rose and deposited their dishes in the sink before breaking off to go where they had been assigned. Jared had never suspected that there was so much... order in their daily lives. It had looked to him like everyone just sort of wandered, doing whatever. How wrong he had been.

Quinn gave him a small wave before following Senguine and Ria upstairs. Before he could wave back, Annika grabbed his arm with both hands and yanked him towards the basement. Kiara remained seated, striking up a quiet conversation with Zoe.

"All right, are you ready for this?" Annika grinned. "I heard you got in an actual fight last night. Show me what you can do!"

They stepped out onto the cold concrete in the basement floor. She was already dressed for the occasion, in a black halter top and biker shorts. She had black fingerless gloves on, with the knuckles padded.

He, on the other hand, was not. She eyed him. "Are you sure you don't want to change?"

He shrugged. "I don't have my clothes here."

She grinned. "I'm sure I can find you some... My bigger stuff might fit."

Jared scowled. "I'll be fine. I'd rather wear this than someone else's clothes."

"Suit yourself."

Without warning she lunged for him. He reacted quickly, but she was still alarmingly fast. He blocked and jumped back, narrowly dodging her second punch.

He backed away as she swept low, her leg nearly connecting with his ankles. She stood, pouting. "Oh come on. You know you're going to have to hit me at some point, right?"

"I mean, I guess s-"

She leapt suddenly, her leg connecting heavily with his chest. Before falling, he swung and managed to grab her leg and yanked her to the ground with him. She landed a solid punch to his face, which stung, but he didn't let go. Instead he yanked her beneath him and caught her upper arms, pinning her to the ground.

She glared at him for a moment, before pulling her legs up and pushing off of his stomach with surprising force, effectively shoving him off of her. She had enough time to roll out from underneath him and stand up again as he rose to face her.

She was panting, a bead of sweat sliding down her face. "You're... a lot stronger than you were before, you know that?"

He shrugged. His face still stung somewhat where she had hit him, and the kick had hurt, but she seemed in much worse shape, especially considering he hadn't yet landed a hit. She was spending too much energy, and it wasn't having much of an effect.

She jabbed forward again, but he dodged back and swung after her, trying to get ahold of her arm again. If he could get into a grappling match, he would almost definitely win. He had no training in how to punch or kick correctly, so he was relying on her small stature and his superhuman strength to win this thing.

When she lunged again, this time, he didn't step aside. He let her fist connect solidly into his stomach, with enough force to shove the air from his lungs. He didn't flinch, instead using the opportunity to quickly latch onto her wrist. She went to yank away, lining up another fist to his face, but he reacted faster. He reared his head back and brought it down, slamming into hers with a loud crack.

She stumbled back, but he kept ahold of her. She slumped to the ground, her eyes dazed. A small trickle of blood came from where their heads had collided.

Jared's eyes widened. "Annika! Are you alright?" He thought he had been doing well to keep his anger in check, and therefore his fire. Apparently he needed to hold back more than he thought. "I'm so sorry, I just-"

She grunted and brought her knee straight to his groin - hard. He doubled over briefly, before the inner flame roared to life.

Before he could process what was happening, he had her down, one arm around her throat, the other raised, ignited with flame and ready to annihilate her helpless form beneath him. Her arms were at his wrist, straining for release to no avail, her face red from lack of air. She kicked underneath him, but he hardly noticed.

He regained control and released pressure from her neck but didn't let go entirely. If she tried something like that again... She was dead, whether or not he intended it. With another thought, he extinguished his other hand.

She gasped for air, her hands lowering to her sides. "Touchy..." She said between breaths. "Note to self, don't try to cross that line."

"Probably smart," he agreed. But he didn't let go. "You alright?"

"Aside from nearly getting choked to death? Peachy. Tired, but that can hardly be helped." He released her, and she sat up as he climbed off of her. "Well, it could, but you don't exactly seem interested."

Jared sighed. "I'm less opposed than I used to be, but... It'd be nice to let me have some time to adjust." He eyed her with concern. "Sorry about that."

She waved away his apology, still catching her breath. "Eh, it was my fault. I got mad. Kinda forgot who I was fighting for a second there."

Jared nodded, then frowned. "How much does Miss Senguine know about your... situation?"

Annika shrugged, one hand on her neck. "She thinks she knows more than she does. I lie to her. A lot. Heck, if she knew my state of affairs..." She frowned. "She might even kick me out as a protégé."

"It's that bad?" Jared winced. "Haven't you been eating?"

She sighed. "Of course. Like at breakfast today. But I told you, I need a lot of food to reach any degree of power."

Jared smiled. "I want to know more about your bloodline. What are you, exactly? Now that we kind of have a deal, you can tell me, right?"

Akani eyed him shrewdly. "I guess so. It's not information I'm used to just... giving out. You know?"

He gave no answer, just looking at her patiently. She rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'm a vulthrabu." At his blank stare, she thought for a moment. "Look, I don't know what myths are about us, really. We do a lot of different things, but nothing so dramatic as your bloodline." She winced. "Okay, so I guess one myth is kind of... accurate. But we can't shapeshift, so I have no idea where it came from."

Jared raised an eyebrow. "I'm listening."

She relented. "We're kind of like... Unicorns."

He stifled a laugh. "Wait seriously?" She glared at him, and he cleared his throat. "I mean, when I first met you, I thought YOU would be a succubus. Then later I thought you must be some sort of... Well, you know. Scavenger or something. I wasn't expecting something quite so... wholesome."

She sighed and folded her arms. "I told you, I can hardly do anything myself. I can become faster, sure. Illusions, piece of cake. Well, depending on the illusion. But most of my powers are found in boosting other people. For example, I'm a mean healer. I can soothe emotions. I'm also a master of placing wards, which is how I maintain my privacy." She scowled. "But getting powerful is a real trick, especially in this day and age. My ancestors would visit towns, make themselves into beneficiary gods of sorts, claiming sacrifices of food, sex, death, who knows what else. Now? Humans have their precious medicine and they're atheists. Or," she glared, "Worse yet, monotheists."

"Wow. I'm... sorry to hear that." She was a unicorn. A creature of light - sort of. It made a lot of sense, but it still caught him off guard. "What about your parents?"

She looked as though she'd been slapped. "What?"

"You know, you were talking about your ancestors... I guess I'm just asking what your parents were like."

Her scowl deepened. "My dad is human. He has no idea about Mom and I. She works at a hospital - gives out miracle cures sometimes, eats some deaths. Between Dad and her work, she gets by okay."

Jared didn't respond, choosing to just listen. It was like a dam had just broken once she had told him what she was.

"She taught me all about my true nature. I was sick a lot as a kid, and all of her medicine couldn't help me. The only way to help me get better was to teach me how to eat, so she did." She rolled her eyes. "I think you'd like her - she's Christian as well. Protestant, though."

Jared made a fake look of disgust, and she smiled. "It was nice, but..." Her smile faded. "There was never enough to eat. I was ravenous, and normal food can only do so much, even in high quantities. I went to high school for a couple of years, but when Mom found out about my first boyfriend..." She stared off into the distance. "She was mad. Told me to be patient, learn to live off of just a little. I was tired, I AM tired, of being hungry. At least she had some death and sex," she muttered. "And she wouldn't let me have either. She wanted me to grow up, be human."

"It was then that I realized that I didn't want to grow up to be like her. I wanted to be full. She had told me stories of my great-grandmother. It sounded... perfect."

"So I ran away. I killed my first man at fifteen - I didn't really feel any guilt. And the food..." She leaned her head back and licked her lips. "It filled me. I had never been so full. I wanted to kill again, but a homeless girl looked pretty suspicious, especially when the man murdered was a police officer investigating me."

She glanced over, realizing that he was still there. "Um, long story short, I..." She suddenly looked sheepish. "I tried out prostitution for a small bit, got raped, found, dragged to the hospital, found out I had AIDS..." At his surprised look, she rolled her eyes. "It wasn't hard to purify. Not for me, at least. But when they found out that I was miraculously healed, it made the papers. Miss Senguine rescued me from the eye of the public and brought me here." She shrugged. "End of story."

"Wow. That sounds..." He hesitated. "Exciting."

Annika smiled sadly. "I wish I was powerful like you. That I could take what I want, when I want. Maybe then I wouldn't be so... hungry." She closed her eyes and sighed. "There. You have my sob story. I went from cheerleader to murder to prostitute. Happy?"

Jared smiled. "Very. Thanks for being honest with me." He paused, then frowned. "Provided you were being honest."

She looked at him in surprise, and then rolled her eyes. "Look, I don't have any reason to lie, okay? We made a deal." The smirk vanished, only to be replaced with uncertainty. "Didn't we?"

Jared nodded. "Of course." She relaxed. "I'll... Try to help feed you. I promise."

She eyed him with good-natured suspicion. "Didn't you just save some kids last night? Are you going to help me kill any?"

Jared winced. "I'm hoping it doesn't come down to that." He took a deep breath. "If you're my vassal, you'll at least get masculine essence, right?"

She fiddled with her shorts. "Right."

He sighed. "You don't seem terribly excited about the prospect. Not that you should be, but you seem... distressed."

She hesitated. "It's just... I look out for myself, okay? But if I become your vassal, it means I can't eat anybody else's essence - not without severing our bond and hurting you in the process. Look," she said, exasperated, "Other than the few murders I can get away with and the occasional pigging out at meals, essence has been my only real sustenance. I'd be giving that up, relying on YOU for my main meals. Can you see why that's concerning?"

Jared nodded. "I see your point. You don't have to do this if you don't want to."

She shook her head. "No, it's my best bet. I just have... reservations."

They fell silent for a long moment. "You said that you tried prostitution earlier. But you stopped. Why?"

Annika huffed. "I didn't understand how essences worked back then. I sold myself off for the money, not to eat. But it was... incredible. Illegal, but not nearly as traceable as a murder. But the second time was..." She made a face. "I felt worse, not better. By the third time, I was through. I thought it had been a fluke."

He scratched his head. "So how have you been eating essence if not by sex?"

She chuckled. "Didn't they teach you about this earlier? Even just being near a male/female sheds some, but you have to be pretty close to get any meaningful scraps."

He eyed the six-inch gap between their legs. "So, are you eating now?"

She shook her head. "No, you have to be basically touching to acquire meaningful amounts."

"Oh."

She sighed and checked her watch. "You should probably get ready for whatever you're doing next. What is next for you?"

He thought back. "Honestly, I wasn't paying enough attention. I have no idea."

She shrugged. "Well, until someone comes and gets you, you're welcome to join me."

"What are you doing?"

"Survivalist training. Or, in this case," she said, gesturing to the pool, "Swimming."

She hopped to her feet and offered him a hand up. "What do you say?"

Jared shook his head. "I'd rather not get wet if I have to be somewhere else. But thanks for the offer."

She smiled and walked to the back, where there was a door labeled Lockers. "See you later."

He rolled his eyes as she swayed her hips dramatically. She had grabbed his attention, but that wasn't the point. He climbed back up the stairs, hoping that someone would come to tell him what was happening.

Almost as if on cue, Quinn was waiting for him at the top of the stairs. She was dressed unlike he'd ever seen her - in a slightly too large tan sports bra and black leggings that extended down to her ankles. Her light brown hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail.

"Are you ready?"

Jared cleared his throat and met her eyes. "Uh... For what?"

She smiled, seemingly pleased at his reaction to her appearance. "I'm not sure. I just know we're meeting up with your other 'vassals.'" She put air quotes around the word. "Come on."

Jared avoided looking at her butt as she climbed the stairs in front of him. She led him up past the study and to the third floor - yet another place of the house that he hadn't yet visited. She opened a room to a bedroom, sitting on the bed. Jared glanced around. "This is your room?"

"I guess so. The decorations aren't mine," she explained. "I think Ria is normally the one who uses it. And technically, I think it's Jessica's."

Jared frowned. "Jessica? Why call her that?"

Quinn shrugged. "I'm still trying to decide what to call her. Jessica. Miss Senguine. Mrs. Scott. Mom."

Jared blinked. "Oh, yeah. You know, from everything that happened yesterday, I totally forgot..."

"That we're siblings?"

He sighed. "Yeah. That."

"And that we're now living with our Mom?" Quinn laughed. "It's like we're playing house. All we need is Dad, and we'll be a happy little family together again."

Jared shook his head. "An incestuous little family."

She smiled and took his hand. "That too."

He relaxed, allowing himself to let go of the turmoil he felt over it. He had made his decision, and he would stick with it.

Of course, he'd never had a sister before, which probably made things easier. To him, she was just Quinn - clever, witty, beautiful, Quinn. Even their marriage hadn't altered their friendship much - the only real differences being that they no longer held secrets, and they were more comfortable touching. And having sex, of course.

Suddenly the door opened, and Kiara led Zoe inside. They were both sweaty and dressed in classic cowboy clothes - plaid button up shirts, belts, and boot cut jeans, with the boots to match. Zoe's outfit was much too big on her, but a new whole in the belt helped.

There was an awkward silence as Kiara took the chair next to the desk and Zoe sat down criss cross on the floor. Jared glanced between the three of them, unsure of what to do or say. He and Zoe hadn't even spoken since...

An image of Zoe's face as he made love to her flashed into his mind and he shook it away. Now is not the time.

Finally, Kiara spoke up. "So... anyone have any idea what 'vassal regulation' is?"

Quinn chuckled. "Actually, I was kind of hoping you might know. She never explained what it was to me."

Zoe frowned. "Which means she's either "Which means she's either forgetful, or she's fine with us not knowing."

Quinn blinked at Zoe in surprise. "Uh, right. So I guess..." Quinn lit up. "She gave us time to sort ourselves out. How... kind."

"Well," Kiara said with relief, "Goodness knows we need to do that."

Quinn sighed. "I guess I'll start this off. Let's get straight to the point." She gazed at Kiara coolly. "Jared told me about your... bond. Beyond the physical, that is."

Kiara's face flushed slightly pink. "And?"

"I have no issue with it. On a few conditions," she added, holding up her hand.

Kiara straightened. "Name them."

"One, I don't want to get kicked to the curb or anything similar just because you two hit it off. Alright?"

Kiara raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't be worried about that. We're talking about the same Jared, right?"

Quinn ignored her. "Two, I want us to be friends." At Kiara's questioning look, she sighed. "I realized on the way here that one of the things that bothered me about your new relationship is that I didn't know anything about it - in fact, I'm presently hardly involved." She glanced over to Jared. "I want to be able to hear about your feelings and thoughts from both sides of the issue." She smiled. "Plus, Jared isn't exactly great at laying out details."

"Excuse you," Jared said, irritated. "You didn't exactly ask for any! I figured you wouldn't want to hear it!"

"Three," Quinn said, unfazed, "Jared's choice is final. If we disagree, we're not to question his decision on whatever topic, much less anything... romantic. Alright?"

Kiara nodded. "I think I can work with those terms." She looked over to Jared and pinked again. "All things considered."

Zoe folded her arms. "What about me? Am I involved in this?"

Quinn pulled her knees up to her chest. "I'm still confused as to how you got involved. And why."

Zoe shrugged. "I thought Kiara was interesting, so I befriended her. Sort of. Then when things went down on the field trip, I realized that they knew what was going on and demanded that they explain it to me. They seemed serious, and when Kiara made clear how dire the situation was, I volunteered to help."

Quinn winced. "Did you realize that you would effectively be kidnapped and imprisoned after?"

Kiara flinches, but Zoe held her chin high. "No. I guess she forgot to mention that part. But honestly, this is better than being at home. It's like..." She hesitated. "Like this is the real stuff. What else would I be doing? Playing video games, doing some pet projects?" She shook her head. "Now that I know the end of the world is coming, I want to do everything I can to prepare for it - and if that means trying to help all of you demon folk out, so be it."