Hey, everyone. I apologize for the long wait. I've been going through a lot, nothing realy bad, just busy. I've been made section leader of the saxophone section in my high school, and it feels a lot like being the mother to 14 other high schoolers! On top of that, some of the others seem to think that, even though I'm the section leader, that gives them the right to act like they're in charge. Ugh, it's frustrating! But I love it! I love the feeling I get at every game, and I love the people, and the experience, and I could go on, but that isn't really what you're here for!
Azkadellio: No, I don't think I've mentioned him before! And you'll find out! And Clive Barker's Jericho is on PC, Xbox 360, and PS3, if you're interested. It's a VERY good game, and I highly recommend it.
jenmar14: I agree. They balance each other out, and I think that's cute!
Overly Emotional: I know those feels, bruh. I'll sit here and hit the refresh button over and over again until the story I want to read is updated. And the Dragon Age series is available for Xbox 360 and PC that I know of. It's a very good series, sort of a mix between an rpg and a romance game. Check it out of YouTube!
fruitfly50: No offense, but unless you've played the game, I doubt your ideas are close. Again, I mean no offense! I know that sounds a bit snobby, but I'm just excited!
Alright, ladies and gentlemen and everyone in between and outside, the moment you've all been waiting for!
ON WITH THE STORY!
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"Why the Hell is she coming with us?" Robbie asked Jade indignantly. He rode in the passenger seat of the car, while Tori slept in the back, Jade's leather jacket clutched in her hands under the blanket she had brought.
It was the middle of the night, twelve hours since the siblings and the Latina had set out from LA to their destination in Atlanta, where Jade's father had been tracking signs of a possible vampire clan living in the MARTA tunnels. They'd prey on those that took the subway at night, moving faster than the cameras could detect.
The trio was currently driving through Texas, and Jade was looking for a place to pull over.
"Because Kiera is as much her daughter as she is mine, and she deserves to know what's going on as I do." Jade replied firmly, her eyes on the road.
"So? She kept her from you for all that time, time that you could've spent with her." He protested.
The Goth sighed. "You know that's probably not true, Rob. It'd be like it was with dad, I'd take her with me and expose her to all of this shit, never giving her a chance to be a kid. That, or I do like some of the other hunters, and maybe come home to see her on her birthday and Christmas."
Internally, she wondered what would happen with her and her daughter once this whole ordeal was over. What would she do? Hunting was her life, it was all she'd ever known, and yet both she and Robbie swore that they would never put their children through what they themselves had gone through.
"Well, what about her and Beck? She probably didn't even wait for the divorce papers to go through before she was chatting him up! Face it, Jade, the way she acted towards you, she was a total bit-" Robbie ranted, before Jade cut him off with a sharp look.
She pulled off to the side of the road, where there was a shady looking motel, and turned to him once she had parked the car.
"Look. You may not like it, but she's part of that kid's life, and she probably knows Kiera better than anyone. It's important that she come, because she can help us figure out why whatever wants her, wants her. I know that you have objections about this, but please, will you at least try to be civil? For me?" She looked at her adopted brother with pleading eyes.
Robbie huffed, and grabbed the door handle.
"Fine. I won't start anything, but I'm not gonna go out of my way to be nice to her. She broke you, Jade, worse than anyone or anything I've ever seen. I'm not gonna let that go." He exited the car, heading into the lobby of the motel to check them in.
Jade looked in the rear-view mirror of the car, at the sleeping Latina in the back seat. A smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
Tori had curled up into a ball in the back seat, nearly buried under the blanket, only her head poking out. She had buried her nose in Jade's leather jacket, and she had a content smile on her face.
Jade tore her gaze from her, opening the car door and shutting it. Jade knew that smile, she'd seen it before, countless times. It was when she was tired, dead tired, she used to come in from her job at a record store, her eyes half closed, and fall into bed. She'd toss and turn, not quite finding peace until Jade came home, or stopped what she was working on, and slid into bed with her. Those days, Jade wouldn't even change clothes, she'd just kick of her boots and hold the woman she loved in her arms, stroking her hair and tracing patterns into her skin until she went to sleep, with that same smile on her lips.
Whenever she had that smile on her face, she was usually dead asleep, and a tornado ripping through the apartment wouldn't wake her, so Jade closed the door, popped the trunk, and began gathering their belongings, not bothering to be quiet.
Robbie came back a short time later, tossing Jade a set of keys. She looked down at the key ring, made a note that they were in room 9, and grabbed their clothes bag, leaving the weapons to her brother.
!
Once they had gotten all of the bags inside, Jade and Robbie stood in the middle of the room, checking everything out. It was nothing special, two beds, a pull out couch, a small tv, and a tiny bathroom, but it was what they'd grown up around. They grabbed salt, some papers, some markers, and a few books out of one of the bags and set to work, drawing protection runes and seals all over the room, lining all of the entrances and around the beds with salt.
When they were done, Jade asked Robbie to get her a bag of chips and a drink from the vending machine on the far side of the motel, handing him a couple of bucks. He gave her a questioning look in response. It wasn't unusual for Jade to want a snack after setting up the room, as it took a was usually kind of a draining task, but she usually never asked him to do it. She usually never asked him to do anything, preferring to be independent.
He shrugged it off. It had been an exhausting couple of days, and chalked it up to stress. He figured that she probably just needed some time to herself.
When Robbie left, Jade put on a pot of coffee and sat down on one of the beds. She ran a hand through her hair, then rubbed her eyes. When she brought her hands away, she realized that she still had he makeup on, and went to the tiny bathroom, scrubbing it off with a dingy washcloth.
Jade checked on the coffee, then poured herself a cup, adding in two sugars into the dark brew and stirring it with a small straw. Once the sugar had dissolved, she took it with her outside, propping the door open with a chair.
She drank it quickly, feeling the bitter drink burn her throat on its way into her stomach. Once she was done, she crumpled the container and threw it into a nearby trashcan, and headed to her car.
!
"Jeez, Vega, you look so much smaller than you weigh" Jade mumbled under her breath, grunting as she gently pulled (or tried to, at least) the youngest Vega out of the car. She hooked her arms underneath Tori's, pulling her upper body out. She then maneuvered her let arm under Tori's upper body, pulling her out a little more. She piled the blanket and jacket on top of her, and put her right hand under Tori's legs. She kicked the car door closed, and pushed the motel door open.
She placed her down gently on one of the beds, pulling the blanket off and pulling the motel sheets over her instead. She then tucked the jacket in her arms, watching her bury her nose in the material.
Jade smiled, kissing her on the forehead and tucking her chestnut hair behind her ear.
The Goth sighed deeply, wandering over to the pull out couch and setting it up, using the blanket Tori brought along, and a balled up t-shirt as a pillow. She went over to her pack, pulling out various guns and knives, and began to clean them, something she did every time they stopped.
Robbie came in a short while later, just as she was finishing up a 12 gauge. He tossed her a bag of Doritos and a Coke, and plopped down next to her, grabbing from the pile that hadn't been cleaned yet and getting to work.
"So, what ever happened to all of that liquor that we got from that ghost town?" He asked conversationally.
Jade chuckled. "I put half of it in Vega's closet, so Kiera wouldn't find it, I sold half of the half I kept, and the rest is in the back seat, if you wanna see if it holds up?" Jade suggested.
Robbie grinned. "Maybe after we see dad, I'll take you up on it."
He then changed the subject.
"Jade, why is Tori really here?"
Jade froze internally, but replied nonetheless.
"To help us find out what it is that's hunting my daughter."
"I get that, but i feel like there's something more, Jay."
She smiled wistfully. "Can't get anything past you, can I?"
He returned the smile. "I didn't almost go to law school for nothing, you know."
Jade noticed that they were done with the weapons, and packed them all away.
"I still love her, Robbie. And she still loves me."
Robbie looked down, and gently grabbed one of her wrists.
"Even after this?" He asked, tracing the scar that nearly killed her with his thumb.
Jade nodded, watching her brother's face.
"I love her, Robbie. So much. I was a wreck without her, and you know that. She's the only woman I love, and ever will love, and I want to spend the rest of my life with her."
Robbie met her gaze sharply. "Even if it meant abandoning me?"
Jade laughed, and Robbie's expression changed to one of hurt.
"Robbie, no matter what, I want you in my life. You're my best friend, and my brother. I love you, and I love her, but I promise you that I'll always be there."
He nodded, digesting the information.
Okay," He stood, messing with his jeans. "I don't like her, and I probably won't ever trust her with you, and if she hurts you again, I won't hesitate to kill her slowly and painfully, but I support you. Just, don't act like lovesick teenagers. I got that enough in high school. Ugh." He shivered at the end, and Jade snorted, ripping into her bag of Doritos.
"No promises. Say, what took you so long?"
Robbie smirked. "Well, there's a cute blonde in room 4, Roxanne, and let's just say you aren't the only one with game."
"Hot damn, Robbie. Hot damn."
!
And that's where I'm gonna end it. This was a little bit of a filler chapter, just to let everyone know that I'm going to try to update more frequently, and the next chapter will finally be meeting Jade's dad. Side note: I'm thinking o getting an Archive of Our Own account. What do you think? Does anyone have one? If so, can you pm me and tell me a bit about how it works? I'd appreciate it!
Don't forget to leave a review! Until next time, everyone!
