Legacy 111: Penny Dreadful
Part 2
Xxx
A week ago, Dahlia flamed into her new nightclub. She looked around and was pleased by what she saw. Her demons were already busy converting it to her personal style. This place had raw potential. Buying it had been easy and relatively cheap, considering it had been empty for years. This would become the perfect place to lure new souls. Ryuu entered the club and came rushing over when he saw her. Despite the fact that he was a snake, he had been her second-in-command for years and she trusted him to run her businesses.
"Do you like it?" Ryuu asked.
"It certainly has my interest." Dahlia replied. "How long before we can open?"
"I just got the permits." Ryuu said. "We'll be open by the end of the week."
"Good. I already booked a band for the grand opening." Dahlia replied. "Their manager owes me a great deal."
"And what about the witches?" Ryuu asked.
"I am not afraid of them." Dahlia replied. "Send them VIP tickets. Let them come. Getting the souls of a few witches should make our opening night a huge success."
Ryuu nodded and walked away while Dahlia sat down at the bar. She snapped her fingers and one of her demonic minions quickly handed her favorite drink. As she looked at the old and broken P3 sign lying in the corner, she realized how ironic it was that a demon now owned the club. Those witches were going to regret ever selling it.
Xxx
Feeling caught red-handed, Wyatt was unsure of what to say as he stood in the hall with Dylan. Henry stood in the door opening, having just walked in on them. After keeping his relationship with Dylan hidden, the secret was out. He wanted to tell his family at the right time and the right way, not like this. Wyatt and Dylan both stood uncomfortably waiting for Henry to say something.
"Henry." Wyatt eventually said. "I wasn't expecting you."
"Clearly." Henry replied. "Who is this?"
"Right, uh, this is Dylan." Wyatt said. "You met him before, right?"
"Hi." Dylan said hesitantly.
"The Manticore, yeah, I remember." Henry replied. "Nice to see you again. Anyway, don't mind me. I just forgot some books for school."
"Wait." Wyatt replied as Henry walked past him. "Is that all you're going to say?"
"What else do you want me to say?" Henry asked with a frown.
"I don't know. Something, anything." Wyatt replied. "Considering what you just walked in on. I can understand if this is confusing."
"Dude, I'm seventeen. Not seven." Henry remarked. "I know what I walked in on."
"So you're not freaked out?" Wyatt asked.
"Why would I be?" Henry asked. "First of all, we're living in a modern world, and secondly, one of my closest friends is literally the gayest kid in school."
"So you don't have any questions?" Wyatt asked.
"Oh, I have plenty." Henry replied. "But I figure you haven't told us for a reason. Does anyone even know?"
"I told Prue." Wyatt said. "I was waiting for the right time to tell the rest of you."
"I should probably go so you can talk in peace." Dylan said. "I really need to get to work anyway."
"Okay." Wyatt replied.
Dylan nodded and hesitantly waited. Eventually he gave Wyatt an awkward hug and quickly left. Henry looked on amused and waited until the door shut.
"That was so awkward." Henry said with a smile.
"Shut up." Wyatt replied.
"So what happened? How did this happen?" Henry asked. "Have you always known?"
"Known what?" Wyatt asked.
"That you're gay, or bi or whatever." Henry replied.
"No. I don't know." Wyatt admitted. "Dylan is the only guy I've ever felt something for, so I'm not ready to hang out a rainbow-colored flag or anything."
"So you have feelings for him?" Henry asked.
"Yeah." Wyatt replied. "So what do you think?"
"I think it's fine." Henry said. "As long as you're happy, screw everyone else and their stupid opinions."
"Yeah, I wish it was that easy." Wyatt replied.
"Wait, are you worried about how the rest of the family is going to react?" Henry asked.
"A little." Wyatt replied.
"Dude, everyone loves you." Henry said. "That's not going to change."
"Thanks." Wyatt replied.
"I have to go to school." Henry said. "Later."
As Henry ran up the stairs to get the books he had forgotten, Wyatt realized how relieved he was. For a moment, he was afraid that his secret would be revealed to the whole family. He wondered if he would have been so understanding at seventeen. Probably not, as he remembered the social pressure he felt in high school as a football player. Back then, he would have probably denied everything.
"I am so freaking late." Henry said as he came down the stairs. "I'm not looking forward to another week of detention."
"I can orb you over." Wyatt replied.
"Really? That would be great." Henry said.
"No problem." Wyatt replied. "I'm just glad you understand."
"You know, I sooner expected this from Chris." Henry said smirking.
Wyatt smiled and shook his head as he waved his hand, causing Henry to disappear in a column of orbs. He realized that now Henry knew, he needed to tell the others as well as quickly as possible. It was like bandage he had to rip off quickly.
As Wyatt headed out, he noticed some mail on the side table. He flipped through it and noticed a purple envelope. It was an invite to the opening of a new club called Nightshade, expect that it was actually in the old P3 building. Suddenly he got an idea. If he got everyone together to go to the club opening, he could tell them all about Dylan at once and get it over with.
Xxx
In the Underworld, the sounds of battle echoed through the dark caverns. A small army of demons in black leather, both male and female, were fighting against Julian Turner. The demon-witch ducked behind a rock to avoid some fireballs and threw a bolt of lightning, vanquishing another demon. This was how he spent most of his time now, fighting the evil he once was. Strangely, the Underworld still felt like home to him. He didn't know where else he belonged.
"Traitor!" One of the demons yelled. "You were the Source, and now you fight us? For what?"
"I was never the Source, you idiots." Julian replied. "Do you not see? The Source is not just a title. Each Source you served was the same essence underneath."
"Either way, we were once loyal to you." The demon said. "And now you have turned on your own kind. Just like your weak father. The mighty Belthazor who fell for a witch."
Julian peeked over the edge of the rock and barely avoided a fireball. He rolled over the floor and held out his hands, pushing the demons back with telekinesis. He then formed a fireball and vanquished the demon with the big mouth. He was not interested in talking about his father. He had enough drama on the Halliwell side of the family.
"Why are you doing this?" A female demon asked scared.
"I'm bored." Julian replied. "Besides, each demon vanquished is one less evil in the world."
"So you think you can be good now?" The female demon asked. "You are one of us."
"No, I'm not." Julian replied as he threw a fireball and vanquished her. "I don't know what I am."
The other demons looked frightened and quickly disappeared through shimmering. Julian was able to vanquish two more before they got away, but most escaped. He would track them down later. He was about to leave when he felt another presence in the cavern. Someone was watching him.
"Show yourself." Julian demanded.
"Promise not to hurt me?" A seductive voice asked.
"Wait, I know that voice." Julian said.
A stream of smoke rose from the ground and the Seer appeared. As always, she was dressed in a revealing black dress and wore a purple amulet shaped like a flower around her neck. Although Julian had only met her during the time he was possessed, he still recognized her. He held out his hand and a spark of lightning appeared.
"Give me one good reason I shouldn't kill you right here and now." Julian said.
"You don't want to vanquish me." The Seer replied. "Because we want the same things."
"Somehow I doubt that." Julian remarked.
"We both seek a place to belong. And we both know it is not in this depressing place." The Seer said as she looked around the cavern with an annoyed look.
"You know nothing about me." Julian replied as he made the lighting fade.
"I know you better than you know yourself." The Seer said. "You're in denial, but you want to be one of them, a witch, a Halliwell. Why else would you be here vanquishing demons? You look like you want to prove something."
"You're wrong." Julian said.
"If you want to fool yourself, that's fine, but I know better." The Seer replied with a smile.
"So what is it that you want?" Julian asked. "What are your true intentions? I know you offer your services to other demons for souls. But why do you need them?"
"My intentions are my own." The Seer replied.
"So why come to me?" Julian asked.
"There is a new threat in town." The Seer said. "Dahlia, a collector of souls. If we work together, we can both get what we want."
"How?" Julian asked.
"She has what I'm interested in, a nice collection of souls." The Seer explained. "And by vanquishing her, you can save the family you so desperately want to belong to."
"What do they have to do with her?" Julian asked.
"She has taken residence in P3 and she has invited your sisters and cousins to her grand opening." The Seer said. "She hopes to obtain their souls."
"They would never give up their souls." Julian replied. "They're too good."
"Are you sure about that?" the Seer asked. "Everyone wants something."
"True. But even I would want to work with you, there is no way I can let you take those souls." Julian reasoned. "They will never accept me if I allow that."
"They don't need to know." The Seer suggested. "Besides, these are not innocent souls we're talking about. They all signed over their souls out of greed, envy or lust. Just think about it. I'll be in touch."
The Seer smiled and waved as she disappeared in black smoke. Julian considered her words. Perhaps he was searching for a way to connect with his family. There was something there that he wanted to explore, but he felt a distance he could not cross. He was part demonic, meaning he would never be the same as them. However, if he helped them stop the soul collected, he had a way in.
xxx
After an entertaining day of practicing her new power, Penny Halliwell arrived at the apartment of her parents. She grabbed the mail and used her key to go inside. Because Prue was away on a journalism assignment for a few days, she had agreed to check in on Payton once in a while. As she entered the apartment, she stopped to look at her reflection in the mirror. She was wearing a new designer leather jacket she had charmed off a handsome salesman in the city. It was not stealing if he gave it to her, right?
Penny headed to the kitchen as she sorted the mail. She noticed a strange purple envelope and opened it. It was an invitation to the opening of Nightshade, a new club in the P3 building. That sounded like fun, and it was the perfect opportunity to have some real fun with her power. Penny froze when a column of orbs suddenly appeared in front of her and formed into Noah. The cute British Whitelighter was frowning. It was obvious he knew.
"Hello Noah." Penny said casually.
"Something you want to tell me?" Noah asked as he crossed his arms.
"Not really." Penny replied.
"Penny, you can't abuse a new power like this." Noah said. "It is personal gain and potentially dangerous. You have no idea what you're doing to people's minds."
"Oh please, it's harmless." Penny replied.
"And what if you suggest the wrong thing?" Noah asked. "What if someone gets hit by a car because they're crossing the street, all because you ordered them to?"
"Oh, relax your stiff upper lip." Penny remarked. "I'm being careful. I'm just having some fun."
"This is not like you, Penny." Noah said. "I'm afraid this power is getting to your head. You can't use it to make all your problems disappear."
"You don't know what you're talking about." Penny replied.
"I'm your Whitelighter." Noah said. "I am trying to look out for you."
"I can handle myself." Penny argued.
"Clearly you can't." Noah said. "If you keep abusing your power, it will be stripped."
Noah began to orb away, though Penny grabbed his arm and kept him grounded. She stared into his eyes and her voice began to echo telepathically as she spoke. "Noah, this is not a big deal." She said. "You know I can handle myself."
"Right." Noah replied. "Of course you can."
"You are not going to worry about me or report back to the Elders." Penny said. "Instead, you're going to go to Prue, surprise her with a romantic visit. She will love that."
"I'm sure she will." Noah said.
"Good, now go. Have fun and don't worry about a thing." Penny said. "Everything can wait a day."
Noah nodded and Penny let go of his arm. As he disappeared in a column of orbs, Penny smiled. He was worried about nothing. She could handle herself just fine and her power was harmless. Now she needed to pick out a sexy outfit for the club opening tonight.
xxx
In his garage in downtown, Dylan just finished up on an old pick-up and decided he was done for the day. Since he needed the distraction, he had buried himself in work. He got that Wyatt needed time, but he hated the sneaking around. As he entered his office, he saw he had a few messages. He picked up the phone and called Wyatt.
"Hey, I got your messages, but I've been busy." Dylan said.
"No problem." Wyatt replied. "I just wanted to let you know that Henry understood."
"Okay." Dylan said.
"And I decided that I am going to tell the others, tonight." Wyatt added.
"Are you sure?" Dylan asked.
"Yeah, I realized I have nothing to be scared of." Wyatt replied. "We're going to this club opening and before we go, I am going to tell them about us."
"Good, I'm happy for you. And us." Dylan said with a smile. "Do you want me to be there?"
"I think it's better if I talk to them alone first." Wyatt said.
"Of course. Just… you know, keep me informed." Dylan replied. "And know that I am here for you."
"Got it." Wyatt said. "Talk to you soon."
"Okay, I…" Dylan began to say, though the connection was severed before he could finish.
Dylan sighed as he hung up. He had wanted to say that he loved him, but perhaps it was better to wait. This evening was going to be important. How the rest of his family would react to the news would determine their future together, so he was just as nervous as Wyatt. He needed a drink.
xxx