Sorry it took so long to finish this. I've been reading Infamous and Inferno from the Chronicles of Nick series. They are great. Also, I heard they are making Chronicles of Nick into a movie. I'm so excited. I wonder if they'll make the Dark-Hunter series into movies too. Both are already comic books and manga. I found the manga version of Night Pleasure - its got the dialogue word for word! Being a manga lover, I found this so cool and totally recommend you guys check it out.
I love the part in Night Play where Vane and Fury adopted Cujo and their interaction with Bride's family. If you read Night Play, you'll understand. I was disappointed that there wasn't much of it shown so I decided to write my own.
"Fury..." Angelia said in a sultry tone. They were lying in bed together and his body was turned away from her.
He responded with a groan, his head buried under the pillow. Angelia shook him to get his attention.
"I'm tired." he came his muffed voice.
Angelia sighed. "Fine!"
She got out of bed and went into the bathroom to wash herself. Standing under the shower head, she thought about Fury's behavior lately. He gave her pleasure, and made her happy, but she had caught him yawning a couple times. He would pull away when she wanted to cuddle. Was he bored with her? It couldn't be. Fury loved her. He wouldn't be bored with her. Maybe it had something to do with his eye infection? Even if she was not a doctor, she knew that sounded a little far-fetched. What did his eye having anything to do with his behavior? If it was not this eye then what was it?
Angelia's worse fear came creeping into her mind. Did he meet Holly? Was that why she wasn't carrying his pup yet?
Cursing, she realized that she was so busy with Fury that she forgot to call Holly and warn her to stay away. Maybe Holly took her silence as a yes and introduced herself to him?
Angelia turned off the facet and grabbed a towel. When she returned to the bedroom, she noticed that Fury was not there. She was frustrated with his suddenly disappearing act, but thought it over and figured it was good that he was gone at the moment. She had lost the card Holly had given her and must search the room for it.
Fury pulled his head from under the pillow after Angelia left the room. He went into the other available bathroom, took a quick shower, and got dressed.
He was not enjoying sex with Angelia as much as he used too. He was going through the motions and wanted to get it over with as soon as possible. Afterward, he didn't want to be touched. He would roll over to his side of the bed and pretend to sleep. What was wrong with him? Was he having so sort of Were mid-life crisis? Do Weres have mid-life crisis?
His appointment with Dr. Paul McTierney was in an hour. He would have made a short visit to Alex to look over their project, but Alex had told him there was an emergency at home. He had to go back to California to fix it. Their project had to wait until he returned. Feeling like visiting the McTierney animals, he headed out early.
When he arrived, he was enthusiastically greeted by Cujo, a Lab mix he and Vane had adopted. Fury played wrestled with Cujo before they went to Coco, a cocker spaniel, and Cujo lay beside her. Six months ago, Cujo went out for a walk and disappeared. During the time he was gone, Fury, Bride, Vane, and the rest of the pack were beginning to worry that something happened to him. As it turned out, the old dog had found himself a mate. When he returned, a week later, he brought Coco with him to present her to the pack and they gladly welcomed her. She was a stray and had no name. Trace was the one who gave her the name Coco. It was what he called her when he saw her. Then again, he could have been asking them for more Cocoa Puffs, which he was eating at the time.
Cujo was staying with the McTierney for now because his mate was pregnant and was going to pop any minute. Since Paul was the leading vet in the state, they thought it was best for her to be here. The McTierney's were prepared for this situation and had a conformable area made for her. After she gives birth and the pups were strong enough, Fury and Vane were going to bring them home and introduce them to the pack.
Fury knelt to where Coco was laying on her side.
"Hey, girl." he said. He petted her chocolate colored coat. "Ready to get the little pups out, huh?"
She weakly barked in agreement. She was not as energetic as she was in his last visit. Her due date was close and her belly was swollen. He could see the puppies moving through her skin. He wonder if Angelia would be like this when they have their first litter or would she only have one like Bride did. He also wondered how she would be during her pregnancy. If Bride's pregnancy with Trace was anything to go by, this was not going to be all fun and games. She was very emotional and would laugh or cry at the smallest thing.
Fury looked at Cujo who was relaxing with his eyes closed. He was completely different from when they had first met him. The dog was filled with rage and hatred, ready to attack. He calmed around him and Vane after he sensing their animal part. They took him home, adding him to their pack. He was still a fierce dog, but much more mellowed.
"Fury," said Joyce, Bride's mother. She was about three inches shorter than Bride, who had the same exact build. Her short black hair was liberally laced with gray and she had an older version of Bride's face.
She put down the folded blanket she was holding to hug him. Fury hugged her back. Over two years ago, on Thanksgiving, Bride had invited him and Vane to dinner with her family. They were kind and welcoming. Joyce didn't know about the paranormal world and her husband ordered them not to tell her. All she knew was that they were ordinary humans.
Joyce looked at Coco and Cujo and smiled. She picked up the blanket and gently placed it around them, "Paul's out back with Bart and Carson."
Bart was a gator that lives in the backyard. Paul had fixed him up after a poacher almost killed him in a trap. Since Bart was getting too big for his pen, Paul had found a nice animal reserve willing to accept him. They would have released him back into the wild, but feared that poachers would get him again.
Joyce led Fury into the house where a large black Rottweiler, Titus, came running to him. Fury picked Titus up and played with him for a bit before putting him back on the floor.
"Are you thirsty? Want a snack?" asked Joyce, walking toward the kitchen with Titus following behind her.
Having no appetite, he declined, although he knew she'll get him something anyways. He sat on the couch, waiting. Carson appeared from the hall and motioned Fury to follow him. Quietly, they went into a small home office and waited for Paul. Fury didn't think his eye warrant all this attention Carson and Paul was giving it. It wasn't irritating him or causing him pain. It was just there. When Paul arrived, he greeted Fury warmly. He took out a small flashlight to exam Fury. Fury kept his eyes opened as the light shined into it. Carson was the main doctor for Weres, but since Paul had more experience dealing with patients, Carson often consulted with Paul when he ran into something he couldn't handle.
Paul turned off the flashlight and looked over some papers in a folder. "There is nothing physically wrong with you. No foreign bodies. No infection."
"It's the girl." insisted Fury. "She's a demon. She did this to me and-and Fang sees it too."
"Fang saw her?" asked Carson.
"No, he saw my reflection as a wolf."
"Maybe he knows something we don't." said Paul, "Where is Fang?"
"Probably near Sanctuary spying on Amiee." said Fury.
"Wait here, I'll see if I could find him." said Carson before he flashed out of there.
Fury and Paul turned to the door when they heard a knock. Paul opened the door to reveal Joyce, holding a platter or drinks and snacks. She placed it on a nearby table and went back out after the men thanked her.
"Bride told me you've lost your appetite lately and have headaches." said Paul.
Fury shrugged. "No big deal."
"Are there any other changes you've undergo recently? Minor ones even."
"I and Lia are planning to have our first litter." Fury informed him. Not like it was a secret. Everyone hearing distance at home could probably tell what they were doing.
Paul slapped him on the back. "Congratulations!"
"Paul! Paul! Coco's going into labor!"
Paul and Fury run out of the room and followed Joyce to Coco's pen.
"I already called Bride and Vane. They'll be here soon." said Joyce.
In the pen, Coco was licking a bloody moving ball laying in front of her while Cujo was whining with concern for his mate. Fury took Cujo out of the pen to keep him out of the way as Paul and Joyce went to work. It seemed Coco had already given birth to one of her pups and more were on their way. Joyce petted Coco's head, murmuring encouraging words to relax her, while Paul carefully handled the newborns.
Soon Vane and Bride arrived, carrying Trace. Bride went to help her parents as Vane, Fury, and Trace stood and watch from a safe distance. Trace was in Vane's arms. The young boy kept his eyes shut and pressed his face against father's chest. For hours, Cujo was fussing to be with his mate, attempting to jump over the fence. His head would shoot up in alarm when Coco made any noise. Fury held him back until Paul said it was all right. Cujo went to Coco and helped her licked their pups. It was gross and beautiful at the same time. Everyone embraced in celebration of the new lives brought into the world. Fury embraced them in returned and enjoyed the intimate family moment.
As Furry watched his human self and the humans hugging he became disoriented at the sight. The memory of hugging Angelia in their youth materialized. She was the first person who hugged him. It wasn't unpleasant. He rather liked it. She was so close to him, her warm scent enveloped him. Before he knew it, he was rubbing his head against her shoulder. When he realized what he was doing, he ran away and hid from her for three days.
He'd never allowed her to hug or touch him again. It was too dangerous. The animal in him was too fond of her. He loved her as much as he loved Wrath.
After that, he stayed on the outside observing others and their family, feeling envious of things he didn't comprehend.
Mintha had once told him that the thing she most desired in life was a home with her mother. Home was foreign to Furry, a nonexistent word in his mind for years. It seemed he found one with Vane, Bride, her family, his pack, and even Fang. They accepted him, but he continued to keep a degree of distance between himself and others. He had locked himself in his own personal cage, afraid to suffer more pain by the hands of those he cared for. Never allowing anyone close. They could turn on him any moment. Even Lia he kept the invisible barrier closed against her. When they were children and as mated adults. He knew that he would only experience more heartache if he carried on this way.
Maybe it was time he took down the barrier and allowed himself freedom?
He knew what he must do. Confront his human-self, reunite, and let go of their past together.
"Fang! There you are." said Carson. As Fury had said, Fang was near Sanctuary in a dark alley, waiting for a glimpse of Amiee.
"What do you want?" asked Fang.
"I need to ask you about Fury - his reflection - he said you saw it too."
"You mean the wolf?"
"Yeah."
"I see it." admitted Fang.
"Do you have any ideas about why that is?"
"How am I supposed to know?" said Fang, although he had a theory. He suspected it had something to do with demons. The one in his head was babbling in some nonsense language, since he saw Fury like that. He was worried that it was going to take over his body while he slept and harm Fury.
Carson told him about the little girl with bright red hair and silver eyes and Fury's theory that she was a demon.
"Listen, I got a source. I'm about to go get some information from him. I'll go tell Fury myself if I find anything good."
After making that promise to Carson, Fury flashed out of there and materialized deep in the swamp. Not a place where he'd like to visit again, but it was the only location he could think of where no one would overhear their conversation.
"Thorn!" He called. He would not have summoned him if it wasn't serious.
A tall, lean man appeared. He was dressed in bloodred cloak that covered black spiked armor. His eyes were light blue. His hair was brown and shoulder length.
"Someone has to be dying if you're calling me out here." Thorn said, taking in his surroundings. "Like what you did to your place."
Fang ignored Thorn's sarcasm as he attempted to figure out a way to explain Fury's predicament without endangering his life. If something happened to Fury he would never forgive himself.
"I saw a demon girl the other night. She had bright red hair, silver eyes, horns, travels with a wolf. Know anything about that?"
"Can't say I do." said Thorn. "It's not much to go by. Are you sure she was a demon? Maybe it's that Charonte demon girl that likes to parade around in tights."
Fang took that into consideration that it might have been Simi, Acheron's demon companion. But he was sure Fury knew about Simi and wouldn't have mistaken her for someone else. Besides, if Simi was playing a practical joke on Fury, Acheron would have put a stop to it by now.
"Maybe the swirling eyes and blue skin is from her falling in toxic waste? Or Halloween came early and she's dressed as Mystique out to kill X-Men."
"I would have never taken you for a comic geek." Thorn said dryly. "Wait a minute - did you say swirling eyes? Pale white skin with blueish outline? Is her hair so bright red it looks bottled?"
"Sure..." Fang said after a short pause. He honestly didn't know all that, but went with it.
Thorn expelled a curse.
"Friend of yours? How do we kill her?"
"She's not under my jurisdiction and you can't lay a finger on her."
"You mean we can't do anything about her?"
"Did she break any of the rules? Killed innocence?"
"No...not yet."
"As I told you before, we can't do anything to those in separate pantheons unless they cross the line - killing or eating innocent humans."
"Well, she's been harassing people." claimed Fang in an attempt to help his brother.
"The most I can do is snitch to her mom."
Fang silently growled at his helplessness.
"Mintha is obedient to her mom and her mom minds her own business...most of the time. They won't give you trouble if you stay out of their way. Also, whatever you do don't touch the kid's hair."
Alex and Traver were in their home office in San Diego, going manually through their book accounts. Their computer had crashed and it messed up their inventory. They had to contact the shipping companies and reorder everything.
"I'm getting dizzy from looking at these numbers." said Traver, rubbing his eyes.
"Want to take five?" suggested Alex.
"Yeah," Traver shut the book he was looking over and put it on the desk. He took out his cellphone and dialed Kelly's number.
"We're taking five minutes not five hours!" commented Alex.
"Shut up! - Not you baby. It's my brother." Traver said leaving the room.
Alex shook his head at this brother and went downstairs for a drink. Hearing his cellphone ringing, he fished it from his pocket. When the screen light up, he realized that it was not his cellphone, but his mother's. He must've grabbed hers by mistake. He did recognized the number, but answered anyways. It might be something important.
"Hello, is this Holly?" came a feminine voice.
"No, sorry. She's unavailable. Would you like to leave a message?"
"Who is this?"
"I'm her son." There was silence on the other line after he said this. He wondered if the person was still there. "Hello?"
Not only did the woman not answer, she hung up on him.
Alex ended the call. Pressing contacts, he searched for Lacy's number and called her.
"Hello," he heard his mother's voice.
"Hey, mom. Where are you at?"
"In Hades."
"I just called to tell you that I got your cellphone by accident and a woman called. She didn't leave her name."
"It's okay, I'll get to that later. Um... listen, I'm going to be here for a while. I don't know when I'll be back."
"Okay,"
"Is Traver near? Can I talk to him?"
"Sure," Alex said as he went upstairs to Traver's room.
Traver said goodbye to Kelly and took the phone.
"Hey, baby. I'm going to be away with your Aunt Lacy for a while. Stay home and take care of your brother, okay."
"Okay, mom."
"Don't leave the house."
Angelia couldn't believe her luck. Holly meant it when she said she wasn't planning to separate her from Fury. She had a family of her own and a son. This knowledge took a weight from her chest. She could have never been happier. She didn't have to worry about Holly anymore. Now, she knew for certain that Fury was hers.
Stepping out of the bedroom, Angelia searched for Bride. They were suppose to fix her hair together. Enough time had passed to allow her to change the color again. She came across a few wolves downstairs. They told her that Bride and Vane went to Bride's parent's house and took Trace with them. It meant that they were there with Fury. Deciding to join them, Angelia flashed to the McTierney's.
When she arrived outside of the house, behind some tall trees, she spotted Bride standing near a pen and went to her.
"Angelia, you're just in time." said Bride, leading her to the pen. "Coco just had her puppies!"
"They're so tiny!" said Angelia, marveling at the five puppies nursing. "Can I hold one?"
"Yes, but you have to be gentle." Bride opened the pen and picked out a newborn that was not nursing and motioned Angelia to come in. "Hold your hand out like this. Be careful." she said as she transferred the newborn to her.
The puppy was barely bigger than Angelia's hand with dark brown fur and tightly shut eyes. She smiled at the little guy and lightly touched his fur, loving the soft texture. When she touched his little black nose and his tiny ears, she laughed at the squealing sounds he made.
"You know there was a time when I thought I was going to birth puppies." Bride said thoughtfully.
"Really?"
"Yeah, when me and Vane first met and I found out about his world." Bride smiled as she reminisced. "He was so comforting and honest and then we - " she shut her mouth and blushed. "Um...we got to know each other more." she said quickly, embarrassed that she almost blurted out that they spent all day in the bedroom making love.
It appeared that she didn't have to say anything, Angelia's grin was proof that she knew when Bride meant. The smile soon fell from her face when she became to consider that she might give birth to an animal.
"What's wrong?" asked Bride, noticing her sudden change in mood.
After Holly ended the phone call, she went to Ray who was tending to Lacy. Holly had only met Ray a few times. She seemed like a nice person, but the Fate sisters had warned Holly against being too friendly with Ray. Apparently, Ray had a habit of stabbing others in the back, which attribute to the pale ghostly state she was currently in.
"What happened to her?" Ray asked with concern.
"She suddenly collapsed." replied Holly. Lacy's feeling for Ambrosius was her personal business, Holly would not disrespect her friend by telling Ray anything.
Ray pulled Lacy into a sitting position. "We must take her to the river. It'll revive her."
Holly pushed passed Ray and wrapped her arms Lacy. "I'll carry her." The Fates didn't leave out any details when they told Holly what Ray was capable of. They wanted to make sure Holly took precautions when around her.
Ray was curious at Holly's behavior, but agreed and led the way. When they reached the shore, Ray instructed her to place Lacy under the water.
"You don't like me." stated Ray, after Lacy was submerge in the river.
"I don't." said Holly.
"Why is that? We've only met a few times. I have never done anything to offend you, yet you behave coldly towards me."
"I don't know you well enough to be comfortable. Not like we're friends." said Holly. She was becoming so emotional that she was reverting back to her British accent without realizing it. Ray had never offended in her, even if she did it would have been forgivable, but Ray had constantly hurt Lacy and that certainly was not.
"Well, since Lacy clearly favors you, I think we should be friends for Lacy's sake."
"I'm sorry, but I don't think that'll workout."
"Why not?"
"I was warned about you. From what I've heard, I've decided not to be friends with you." Holly told her honestly.
Ray stepped back, as if Holly's words had physically slapped her. "What have you heard? Who's been spreading rumors about me?"
"The Fates."
Ray's black eyes and hair glowed, her pale body was shaking with rage. "THOSE BITCHES NEED TO MIND THEIR OWN BUSINESS!"
"What's going on here?" asked Hades as he materialized between the two women. Tall and lean, he was handsome beyond words. His black hair curled around his shoulders.
Before Holly could explain, Hades spotted Lacy and went into the water to retrieve her. Holding her close, he muttered inaudible words to her ear. When Lacy's eyes slowly opened, Holly and Ray rushed to her side.
"Lacy! Are you all right!" Holly and Ray asked in unison.
Lacy replied with a groaned and closed her eyes.
"She needs to rest." said Hades and gently released her back into the water. As he stride out of the river, he ordered Holly and Ray to follow him.
When they reached the throne room, Hades took his seat on the throne made of human bones and addressed the two women. "Explain."
"The Fates have been gossiping about me." said Ray.
"No they're not." said Holly, rushing to her old employer's defense.
"Not that. I want to know what happened to Lacy." said Hades.
"Ask her." Ray pointed at Holly.
"She fainted."
"Why?"
"She heard something...that caused her to faint."
"That's uncharacteristic." said Ray.
"Don't interrupt." Hades ordered Ray, his attention went to Holly. "What did she hear?"
"People having sex."
Hades held up his hand to cease Holly from elaborating any further.
"I can see why that'll cause her to faint." remarked Ray.
From Ray's statement and Hades' behavior, it was clear to Holly that they both know about Lacy's chastity belt and that she was still a virgin.
"Ray, go to your room." said Hades.
After Ray left, Hades eyed Holly.
"Lacy doesn't have virgin ears. Tell me what really happened."
Holly kept her lips pressed together.
"I admire your loyalties to my daughter. But she is in fact, my daughter, and you must tell me the truth."
Although, Hades had a reputation of being a ruthless monster, that was not the case with Lacy. Holly saw that he was always loving and gentle toward Lacy. The father and daughter shared a close bond. If he knew, he might know a way to help Lacy.
"She overheard Ambrosius having sex with another woman." Holly revealed.
Hades hissed a curse. "I told her not to see him."
"It's my fault. She went to him because of me."
"No, it's my fault." said Savitar as he materialized in the room. "I'm sorry for trying to trick you, Holly. Demons aren't coming after you."
"What?!" Holly said. She was completely outrage.
"You can beat me up later, right now Lacy needs you." said Savitar.
Holly glared at him before she left the room to go back to Lacy.
"To what do I owe the honor of your presence?" Hades said sarcastically.
"I fucked up."
"Nothing new."
"I didn't mean to hurt Lacy."
"You're like a walking cigarette. Every breath you take kills at least ten people a day."
Savitar knew the god would be angry. Hades' children were his greatest weakness. If he thought that any of them were in danger all Hell would literally break lose. "Did you know that Nick was a Malachai demon in his previous life?"
"Ambrosius was not a demon back then." stated Hades. "That's not something I couldn't miss."
What Hades said was true. Malachai demons fed off negative energy. If one were to have lived in Hades for as long as Nick did there was no way anyone would have missed the aura of his powers. Nick would have been overwhelmed by the amount of negative energy there and submitted to his violent nature and drained them of their powers before he begins slaughtering everything in his path.
"Lacy hid his powers from us," insisted Savitar, "I think with the helmet."
"Are you telling me I had a fucking Malachai living in my domain?!"
"We won't know unless we ask Lacy."
"Too bad she's incapable of speech!"
When Holly went back to the river, she saw Lacy standing on the shore of the river in a different location. She was staring at the water that were inches from her feet.
"Lacy?" asked Holly as she went to her.
Lacy pulled her gaze from the water to Holly. Holly was taken aback by Lacy's eyes. They were silver and swirling. Thinking they are a side-effect from being in the water, Holly paid them no attention.
"This is the spot where we said goodbye."
"Why did you let him go if you cared so much for him?" said Holly.
"I didn't want him to hate me." Lacy signed. "I thought I could let him go, but seeing him like that broke my heart."
"Have you confessed to him yet?"
"No."
"Then you should tell him."
"What if he rejects me?"
"Or he might return your love and you two can love happily ever after? You'll never know unless you try."
"I'm scared."
"What is there to be scared of? He's only a man. Yes, there could be a possibility that he'll reject you, but that's a part of life. Growth. If he rejects you, you can still pick yourself back up and find love elsewhere. As long as you open yourself to love you can find it with anyone."
"Do you truly believe that?"
"Yes,"
"Then why have you not revealed yourself to Fury?"
Holly realized too late that Lacy had tricked her. Before she knew it, she had declared that she was going to see Fury right now and tell him the truth.
