I want to thank my awesome beta who made this a ton better:laconic edge

Three years later...

That phone rang and Allison perked up. But then she knew who it was and nearly rolled her eyes. Didn't he know that Erica wasn't here?

She strode towards the phone, blanket falling from her waist, wondering what they planned for her this time. While Erica would not be back for a while, the Hales sometimes made Allison do the things usually reserved for her. Impatience, no doubt.

Leaning on the table next to the phone, she picked it up and simply answered, "Yes, Mr. Hale?"

The voice on the other end let out a puff, Peter probably smoking a cigarette. She hoped she didn't have to complete one of those tasks again. The Hale clan scared her, even more so with Erica being their property and her too by default. Not that she would admit that to anyone.

"Allison, right?" She opened her mouth to answer him but before she could reply, he continued, "I take it Erica is not there." He sighed loudly. "Well I guess you'll do. I don't have time to debrief you so you'll have to meet with someone in Los Angeles. Be there before the sun falls."

Click.

Allison put the phone down before rubbing her temples. They probably meant the spot Erica had met the others in last time. Would she have to make a deal with some lowlife the Hales were in business with, or perhaps make a not-so-legal delivery? Ugh. She hated all of the dirty work they pushed onto others.

And speaking of last time, she didn't go, but Erica was paranoid and always gave her information about where she was going in case of an emergency; only, she didn't do that this time strangely enough. Erica either felt confident she didn't need anyone this time, or there was something she didn't want Allison to know.

Allison hoped it was the first option. She could only guess what sort of mischief and trouble Erica was getting herself into if the second option was true. Her gaze flickered to the clock in the corner before she narrowed her eyes. It was almost seven, and he expected her to make a three hour trip (if the traffic wasn't bad might she add) in just two hours? He must be out of his mind.

She quickly got dressed and grabbed her keys off the table before sprinting out the door to her car.

The ride was just as long and time-consuming as she predicted. She missed the time by an hour and a half, and knew she'd have to do some major ass kissing by the end of the night. The place was some abandoned warehouse that the younger Hales occasionally threw huge raves in, as well as a place to debrief people like her and Erica. It was bigger than an ordinary warehouse and most of the glass was busted out of the boarded up windows. The gates leading inside were wide open, and she strode through them with her head held high. She would get through this like every other time.

Allison strode further into the compound, eyes scanning everywhere. Not much had changed since the last time she had been here. Nothing seemed amiss, either, and hopefully whoever waited inside wouldn't cause anything to become the contrary.

Coming closer to the door, her ears perked up at the sound of nails tapping a wood surface. Someone inside was impatient, she thought, and hurried her steps. The door swung open easily. Two women and three men sat in chairs around a huge wooden table. Tension turned her posture rigid. Something wasn't right. Too many people were here for a simple task she had assumed would be assigned to her. What was going on?

"It's great that you finally showed. Do you have a reason for being so late?" said the well-dressed woman who sat at the left side of the table while her perfectly painted nails still tapped against it. Her other hand propped her head up, until she shifted her position and sat up straighter.

"I'm sorry if I have caused you any trouble." Allison bowed down to the waist, feeling that she looked ridiculous. Demon culture constituted that she bow to her higher-ups, but even after so many years, it felt strange and foreign.

The woman waved her hand in front of her face, the universal demon sign to stop talking, and motioned to the one open seat.

As soon as Allison sat down, the woman spoke again, "So I guess we'll get right to business." She reached down and pulled out a large glass container holding a single vial. Afterwards came a folder. "We need you to deliver this to the locations listed in this folder. The people will know what to do with it." The woman nodded towards an albino man to her right and then towards a bored-looking, red haired woman to her left. "I guess we'll be seeing you very soon."

All of the others except for the speaker quickly gathered their belongings and left through the backdoor. Only then did the woman pick up the vial and folder, slinking up to Allison with a grace no human could possess before handing them to her. "Don't fuck up and be quick," she said, before she turned around and made a quick exit like her companions.

After a second or two passed, Allison finally let out a shaky sigh. It didn't go as badly as she thought it would. There probably wasn't a need to kill anyone this time, either, unlike last where the lowlife had decided to turn their back on the Hales and had tried to kill her.

Not that she flinched at death any longer as she did in the beginning. She literally fed off death and sorrow, for God's sake. If she refused to kill people, she would have been wiped out long ago. But a small part of her still held onto her parents' voices, even if it did clash against her own stance on different issues. Sometimes she wished it would go away, but other times, she couldn't seem to throw away the one thing that linked her to them.

Her fists clenched around the folder and vial before opening the folder up. Inside, it contained four addresses with pictures of the exact demon they wanted her to deliver it to. It made sense to start at the closest location. But...she wasn't too familiar with Los Angeles.

Her phone had a map feature, didn't it? She reached inside her front pockets, but it wasn't there. She jumped up and frantically patted her back jean pockets before slouching back into the chair, letting out a sigh at their empty status. How was she going to do this now? It would be strange to have to ask someone for directions in this city. She didn't trust the demons here. Not that she trusted most other demons in general. But this was the demons' capital and it seemed to draw the most untrustworthy of her species.

She walked out of the building and to her car, mind trying to think of a place where she could ask for directions to the locations. A gas station maybe? It was worth a shot anyways.

So she drove around until she found one. It wasn't hard. Gas stations were everywhere in Los Angeles, it seemed. But when she pulled up, for some reason, it wasn't busy. Completely out of character for this city, but she decided to go to this one anyways.

Everything seemed to be out of character lately; Allison wondered why.

Once her car was parked, she walked in wary, opening the door with care. A bell rang over her head, and the inside was almost empty with the exception of a few people browsing through the selection of snacks and beverages. Her gaze turned towards the man sitting behind the counter. He looked middle-aged with greying black hair and lines marring his face. Despite him appearing older, his eyes looked ancient; at least twice as old as his appearance seemed to suggest.

"Hey so I need to get to - " she took out the file and looked at the list of addresses " - Franklin, Middlebury, Cedar, and Central street. Could you give me directions?"

The man squinted his eyes like those streets were suspicious. Which they probably were, knowing what she had to do. And speaking of what she had to do, what was the point of her mission? The urge to sate her curiosity grew in her chest.

"Well we're on Cedar, and Franklin is three - "

"Why don't I help you?" said a voice to her right, and she turned to find a red-haired woman leaning with her hands on her hips. Her hazel eyes struck her as well as her curvy figure. The woman's beauty tugged at her chest, and that voice reminded her of smooth alcohol rolling down her throat. Allison had the sudden urge to follow the woman anywhere she wanted her to go.

"Lydia," the man behind the counter said. His voice hardened but something like a plea tinged the edges. Allison paid it no mind. She supposed it should be suspicious, but she couldn't think over the sudden fog; she couldn't get herself to care.

"Bart. What have I said about calling me that name?"

The cashier, Bart, shut up instantly and shook his head.

Allison barely noticed, eyes stuck on the woman. Who was she? Was she someone powerful? She looked it. Her aura was something that drew you in but demanded respect at the same time.

"So do you want my help or not?"

Allison blushed bright red. How long had she been staring?

She cleared her throat. "Yeah that would be fine. You can follow me or - "

Lydia motioned forwards in a sweeping gesture, inviting her to show her the way. Allison nodded, face still heated, and went towards her car. She probably shouldn't be doing this, but she wanted to do it; couldn't help following her. Lydia would show her the way, and she knew everything would alright. The warning bells in her mind went ignored. Just being in Lydia's presence soothed her.

She got into the driver's seat and grabbed the vial before putting it in the back while Lydia opened up the door and sat down. Suddenly, Allison was embarrassed all over again.

Allison started the car and turned her gaze towards Lydia before saying, "Where would - " Allison pointed towards the address in the folder and Lydia leaned close to her to see the address, her perfume, a scent that was sweet smelling but also tangy, filled her nostrils; her thinking ability shrunk even more than before "- t-this be?" She cursed herself but knew she couldn't help acting like a fool so close to her.

Lydia smirked and flicked her hair to the side. Her hair reminded her of a wild fire her and Erica once saw and her blush grew just as red. "Just go left until you hit a stop sign and then go right and that should be Franklin."

Allison nodded and started driving. Silence invaded the car, much to Allison's chagrin. Only mere seconds passed until it started driving her insane. She had to say something: "So do you come here often? I mean you just seem to know where everything is. Not that that's a bad thing or anything. You're showing me where everything is after all..." It would probably be better if she just shut up now. Maybe even go and die in a hole.

Lydia chuckled. "You're too cute. And no not often. Just when I want to get business done." After that, her smirk grew smug, but Allison couldn't over the words circulating in her head.

Cute. Lydia thought she was cute. Allison felt as if she was on a cloud and she didn't want it to end. When they did arrive at the house, she was a bit disappointed. She wanted to continue to be in Lydia's presence and going inside to deal with these people would kill her mood.

Despite her conflicting emotions, Allison smiled at her. "Well, I'll be right out. Thank you for doing this for me."

"No, thank you," she purred, before leaning in and kissing Allison right on the mouth. Her lips were warm, and they made her heart flutter until a small pain grew into her chest. Wait. Allison tried to pull away, but her body wouldn't budge.

This meant -

The fog lifted slightly from her mind.

Lydia was a succubus.

Her eyes grew wide and her breathing hitched. Oh fuck was she in trouble.

What should she do? What could she do?

Lydia was going to empty her soul out and make her a slave if this kept up. But she couldn't help lean into the pleasant ebb of energy coming out like a massage.

"Mmnn," Allison groaned, her body still frozen in place.

She could do nothing as her eyes fluttered closed, and she passed out.