By the way, this fan fiction is set before the epilogue of Finale!
Nora's Point Of View:
Closing the car door gently behind me, I leant against it and bit my lip nervously as Patch shoved his hands deep into his pockets. He stood in front of me, arching his eyebrow quizzically.
"What's the matter? " He stepped forward and looped his arms around my waist, staring into my eyes worriedly.
"Let's go upstairs! I need a drink – then we can talk." I broke away from him and headed for the elevator that would take us up to our flat. It stank and I counted the seconds desperately as we travelled up towards our floor. Patch towered behind me. I could feel his eyes staring at the back of my head, searching for an inkling of a hint. But I wasn't giving any clues until we were in private. The signature bell let us know we had reached our destination. Uh oh, this was it.
I stepped forward quickly, like a horse on the racetrack, and hurried to our front door. It was a deep red, almost brown, with golden letterings hanging above the peep hole. We had purchased number seven, my lucky number. Rattling through my handbag, I couldn't find my keys – they were in here somewhere, I could hear them jingling but they wouldn't reveal themselves. I felt Patch's hips nudge me out of the way as he pushed his own key into the lock and gave me a satisfied nod as we heard the click of the door opening. I smiled timidly and followed him into the house, pushing the door closed behind me. I leant backwards and stared at Patch as he took off his worn leather jacket, hanging it onto a coat hook. He finally turned round and stared at me.
It was the kind of stare that made you uncomfortable but you didn't want him to stop. I looked at my feet and sighed. He was waiting for me to tell him. I knew I had to do it at some point – I was just hoping it would be later rather than sooner.
"So… I have some news. I met Pepper in town today. He contacted me this morning." Standing up straight, I wandered up the hall towards the kitchen, pushing past Patch. I heard the shuffle of his feet as he followed me and sat on one of the barstools. I reached into the cool fridge and grabbed a can of soda sprinkled with drops of condensation. They trickled around my fingers, cooling the tips. I sipped my refreshment, feeling it trickle like honey down my throat, soothing my tired body.
"Right – what did he say? What aren't you telling me? Stop pacing and come talk to me, angel!" He said, clearly annoyed that I was withholding anything from him. Reluctantly I trailed around to the other side of the breakfast bar and perched on the seat next to him. He grabbed my hand that had been resting on the smooth surface in front of me and held it tightly, urging me on. My eyes flicked up to his face. It was contorted with worry and anxiety.
"Look, the Vendurians have been in touch with me – that's why Pepper asked me to meet him. They sent me a message that he gave to me."
"Well, what did it say? Why would they contact us?" He squeezed my hand again, before releasing it altogether. His hand stretched up and brushed my cheek softly. His touch made my pulse race and I leant my face into the palm of his hand ever so slightly.
"I'm just going to come out with it – we have to go on a trip. I don't know how long it's going to take but you might want to pack a case of clothes and stuff."
"What? But we just bought the house. Where do they want us to go? Why do we have to do it?" Patch leapt up in a fit of rage, and paced across the kitchen floor.
"Just calm down! It's going to be alright. We have to travel to a small town called Morganville. The reason is… well, actually… it's because…" I didn't know how to break the news – how was I supposed to tell him he wasn't the last of his species anymore.
"God Nora - just spit it out. I'm a big boy – I'm pretty sure I can take it!" He cried, flapping his arms around. Clearly I would have to tell him now otherwise he would have a fit.
"They think there might be another fallen angel!" I said quickly. He froze on the spot, standing stock still. I rose calmly and walked towards him, coming to a stop about an arm's length away. He blinked dazedly for a second before coming to his senses.
"Okay. That's fine. I hate it when you keep things from me, you know! We'll go to this Morganville place, find this guy and let the Vendurians know. Easy peasy. Sorted."
Wow – he'd taken the news better than I thought he would have. As I thought, he strode pointedly off into the other room. I heard the sound of scraping against the wooden floor that ran throughout the house. He hurried back in dragging two large suitcases.
"Wait here – I have two more for me!" He ran off like a child in a toy store, giggling with glee. What had gotten into him?
"Are you alright? You seem very happy to meet the demands of these people."
"I'm fine – this is going to be fun. Me and you on a road trip, it'll be fantastic!" He called, clearly still searching for the other suitcases.
"Oh… about that – we aren't going to be alone. Pepper is coming with us." I winced as I imagined his facial reaction to what I had just said. His head popped around the corner of the kitchen door and his eyes bulged, as if they were going to pop out.
"You invited Pepper?! Of all the people…."
"Patch, calm down! There's a reason I invited him – you really think I would have if it wasn't absolutely necessary? Look, he is our only connections to the Vendurians and we need him with us to alert them when we find this fallen angel guy." I rushed, hoping he would understand.
"Fine – but he has to sit in the backseat. I refuse to sit next to him. That guy just annoys me."
"That's fine, Patch, thank you! I better ring Violet and let her know that we are going away for a few days!" I grabbed my mobile and began to dial Violets number. The phone began to ring and I heard the other end pick up.
"Hello?" Violet answered the phone. I could hear the television on in the background, a game show probably. She loved those shows.
"Listen Violet, I have some news…"
I didn't know how she was going to react to this but I was about to find out…