A Holiday Special featuring Arella Logan and Landon, two OC's shared by bearhow and I. Arella is the youngest daughter of Garfield and Raven Logan. Landon is the demon king of Hell. Enjoy some holiday romance!
"There's no place like home, for the holidays…"
The deep male voice played from the speakers of the box-shape radio that sat on the mantle over the fireplace. The fire below cracked and grumbled as the flames slowly consumed the small wood logs. The pine-scent mingled with ash filled the open cabin. The fire's heat bathed the room and gave off a soft glow that danced off the pale grey skin of the young woman who sat away from the mild blaze.
Her dark green cloak matched the pigment of the forest leaves outside that were not yet covered in the snow that fell from above. The heavy fabric wrapped around her lithe figure, hiding her natural curves and shapely legs. In contrast, her skin-tight black leotard was thin and showed off her thin arms as the sleeves stretched out to her fingers.
One hand laid on a wooden windowsill, drumming along to the festive music, while its twin was folded and pressed against the woman's rounded cheeks. Her elbow resting beside her other hand on the windowsill. Her hot breath touched the icy window, causing a small spot to fog over. Her large, round eyes, mixed with violet and green, looked out passed the glass and watched as the snowflakes fell and piled on the forest floor. The trees of the woods were covered in shadows as the only light that shined upon them came from the distant moon hidden from the grey clouds that circled around it.
"Bang!"
The sound of the door being kicked open jolted her from her thoughts. Her attention turned to newcomer who stumbled into the cabin. It was a man wrapped in a heavy, black coat that covered his whole body from his neck to his ankles. Snow blew inside, piercing the warm air that had gathered in the cabin. He quickly slammed the door shut, before lumbering across the room and letting himself fall into an oversized recliner that faced the open fire. He threw his head back as he soaked in the warmth of the flames as they worked their magic on his frozen body. A loud and relieved sigh escaped his lips.
"Where were you?" Her accusing tone broke his momentary relief. The nicely dressed demon spared the young lady a passive glance.
"I told you, I had to make a call." He answered with a grumble as he closed his eyes again, soaking in the warmth of the fire.
Over by the window, Arella narrowed her eyes at him and rose from her seat. "Yes, that's what you said." She started as she stepped closer to where he laid.
The exhausted king watched with a wary eye as she slowly closed the gap between them, as if she were a predator stalking her prey. Something about this both frighten and arroused him, and he could not explain how he could possibly be feeling either. Her cloaked body stopped in front of him, blocking the fire and casting a dark shadow over his body. Her arms were folded over her chest, pushing against her cleavage and on her face she wore a suspicious scowl.
"Then please explain why it took you the entire day to make a simple phone call?"
The demon's chest rumbled with a low growl as he shut his eye. "Because it wasn't so simple."
Arella rose an eyebrow at that. "Well what was it about?"
Landon's eye snapped open, the crimson fires of hell burning with in them. His teeth sharpened and his tongue became pointed like a serpent. He jumped upright in his chair, and the girl stepped back, a look of shock appearing in her face.
"The King of Hell does not answer to you, wrench!"
His outburst made Arella tremble. The human in her wanted to run and cry at his harsh words, but the demoness inside her shook with rage. Her own eyes spilt into four, stained with the color of blood as her own teeth sharpened and violet hair turned white as the snow outside.
"The King of Hell will quickly lose such a title if he ever speaks to me with such a tone again!"
The two powerful, supernatural beings stared down each other. Their eyes locked in an unspoken battle for dominance.
"Bullocks!" Landon cursed as he broke away from the moment, his facial features returning to normal as he walked past the demoness and began pacing the floor.
Arella too returned to her normal state, but her anger never left her eyes. She glared at him as he ran his fingers through his hair and let out a sigh of frustration. Finally, he came to stop and his hands rubbed over his prickly cheeks. The troubled king then fell to the floor, his back leaning against the cabin wall and his knees pulled close to his chest.
An eerie silence fell upon them, with only the sounds of the crackling flames and the soft music that played from the radio. Arella's anger softened as she witnessed a scene unfamiliar to her. She shuffled her feet awkwardly as she stood in the center of the room alone.
"I went to see my daughter."
She nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of his voice. She looked back at him and saw a sight she had rarely seen. With his head bowed and his hair all a mess, his legs tucked close and a far away look in his eyes, Landon no longer looked like the demon king of Hell. He looked like a simple, plain man.
"We didn't have Christmas when she was around. But our village did celebrate the winter solstice."
"Landon, you don't have to -"
"We had feasts and exchanged presents. The older children would have a snowball fight, while the younger ones made snow angels. There was a lake, not too far from us, that always froze over. It was perfect for skating. That was always her favorite thing to do."
The young girl's eyes drifted downward as the weight of his grief fell upon her. "I'm sorry Landon. I…I should have respected your privacy."
The King ignored her. "This was her favorite time of year, and since I became king, I always make sure to visit her forgotten grave and wish her a happy solstice."
An uncomfortable silence fell between them, until Landon let out an unenthusiastic chuckle. Arella shot him a bewildered look.
"Why are you laughing?"
With his right hand he massaged his forehead as he shook his head. "Because I have no bloody idea why I just told you all of this."
Arella shook her head and her eyes drifted down to her hands, which were folded over her raised knees.
"When I was fourteen I became a Teen Titan." She began, earning the devil-man's attention.
"I thought I would love being away from my parents, but it actually hurt like hell. I was counting the days for when they would come visit me for Christmas. They ended up getting an emergency call from Uncle Dick. Went on some rescue mission in Afghanistan. When they told me they weren't coming, I was really hurt. I felt more alone than ever. It was…horrible." She shivered as she recalled the unhappy memory.
"No offense, Love, but why the hell are you telling me this?"
Arella leaned back, laying her head against the wall, her green-speckled eyes looking at the roof. "I have no idea."
The pair shared an earnest laugh, their chuckling drowning out the sound of the music that still played from the mantle. The voice of Nat King Cole giving a soothing rhythm.
"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…"
Once their laughter died down, Arella looked over to her mentor and he returned her gaze. "You know, I may not know the pain of losing a child, but I do know what it's like to feel alone."
Landon blinked at her, then broke their gaze, his eyes scanning the room until they stopped at the small antique radio.
"Then let us be alone together."
With an idea sparking in his head, he leaped up off the floor and extended his hand out to the girl. She looked up at him, then to his hand, then back to him.
"What are you doing?"
Landon gave her one of his signature grins. "Seeing if the beautiful woman would care for a dance with the devilishly handsome young man."
"Young?"
"That's the part you question?"
Arella stifled a giggle as she slid her petite, grey hand into his much larger one. With a gentle pull, he lifted her off the floor and guided her to the center of the living room. Arella followed, but when they came to a stop she stood there awkwardly, unsure of what to do next. Sensing her uneasiness, Landon grabbed her left hand and placed it on his shoulder, while his other hand took her right. He then rested is own right hand on her waist, making sure to keep a respectable distance away from her rear.
"Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe, help to make the season bright. Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow, will find it hard to sleep tonight…"
"Is this your first dance?"
"Sort of…"
"Then just follow my lead."
"One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three…" He repeated this a few more times before his voice died off as they became accustomed to the pattern. Slowly, Arella's mind wondered away from the counting and focused on the lyrics.
"They know that Santa's on his way. He's loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh, and every mother's child is gonna spy, to see if reindeer really know how to fly…"
With out warning, Landon extended his hand and spun her, before pulling her back into his embrace. Arella giggled some more, then laid her head into the crook of his neck. For the first time in her life, she thanked her father for passing down his sensitive sense of smell, as she was able to suck in a long drag of his natural scent that was otherwise buried underneath his clone. He smelt of ash and cinder, much like the fireplace that roared in front of them. A small smile formed on her lips as she soaked in the scent.
Landon, for once in his life, was enjoying the moment. He stopped thinking about his work. He stopped thinking about all the troubles of the world. He stopped thinking about the strange, foreign feeling in his chest, that only showed up when he was near her. He simply stopped thinking, and it was bliss.
His crimson eyes glanced down at the woman's face, nestled in his neck. Her eyes were closed and a small, peaceful smile rested on her lips. A grin of his own spread across his face, as he admired the woman in his arms. Sensing a change inside of him, Arella's eyes fluttered open and met his stare.
Her mother always said that before she kissed her father, she would feel some mysterious force pull them together. Like two magnets kept apart, being united for the first time. And every kiss they shared, made her feel reborn. That whatever emotion she felt at the time, or no emotions at all, were replaced with a fresh breathe of life. She compared it to a drug, that with one try she became hooked. Arella always thought her mother was just being sappy.
But as their faces moved closer together, and every thought she had ever had vanished from her mind, she knew her mother had been wrong.
It was way better.
Merry Christmas!
~ LB