Kyrian walked down the stairs slowly with his arm around Alicia's waist in case she fell. Her knees felt like rubber and she stumbled more than once. Amanda trailed behind them, worried about what could be on the other side of the front door and becoming annoyed that the bell had been rung several more times as the demon outside grew impatient.
"So what, this demon is a door to door salesman in his spare time?" Amanda asked.
"Not that I'm aware of, but everyone needs a hobby you know."
"Oh, you have so much explaining to do Ally."
They finally reached the front hallway and Alicia walked over and put her hand on the door. She closed her eyes and waited a moment and the demon on the other side said "Alicia?"
"Okay, that one's mine, let him in."
Kyrian hesitated with his hand on the doorknob, "I don't know if he'll be able to come in. There's so many wards on here that I don't comprehend they may not let him in."
Alicia looked over at him and motioned for him to open the door, "Its okay, Simi comes in right?"
Amanda blinked in confusion, "Simi? But…"
Alicia reached for the doorknob and opened the door to find a very upset looking Xiovar on the other side holding Kyrian's bloody sword. Alicia poked her head out the door and looked around. "Where'd it go?"
"I have removed it. May I enter?" Xiovar asked Kyrian guessing that he was the head of the household.
"Sure, why the hell not?"
Xiovar limped into the house carefully and handed the sword to Kyrian, "Yours I think." Then he hissed at Alicia's back and he bent to examine her wounds. "This has been cleaned?" he asked looking at Amanda.
She was still trying to process the bit of information about Simi and she gaped at the demon in her foyer and nodded dumbly. "Simi's a demon too? Why does no one ever tell me these things?"
Kyrian put his arm around her shoulder and kissed her cheek, "Honey you're supposed to be a psychic remember? You shouldn't need us to tell you these things."
Xiovar was fretting over Alicia who kept assuring him that she was fine. "If you allow me to I can heal some of the damage," he said gently.
"This is going to hurt isn't it?"
He grinned at her with huge fangs and burning ember eyes, "No more than when you got them."
"Fine, do your stuff Yoda."
The demon bowed at her and chuckled at her Star Wars reference before he turned into mist and placed himself over her back. She clenched her jaw fiercely and hissed in pain as he settled against her but then the pain subsided and she relaxed.
Amanda wandered over and studied the demon's form on her friend's back and suddenly realized where she'd seen it before. "That looks kinda like Ash's tattoo."
Kyrian nodded at her, "Now you're getting it."
Amanda pinched her nose to fend off the headache that she was getting, "Oh I so need a drink."
"Why don't I get us all a drink and then we can hear this story." Kyrian said before wandering off to the kitchen. Amanda glared at Alicia who shrugged and headed to the living room.
&&&&&&
They sat around the coffee table sipping glasses of wine as Alicia told the story. Of course she left much of it out, mainly Ash's involvement as anything more than a friend but once she told them about her first life in Atlantis they put the pieces together.
"Okay, so only Atlantean nobility can control Charontes right?" Kyrian asked. He had a little bit more information about Ash's past than Amanda because he'd known Ash for several thousand years. He also had an extensive knowledge of ancient history since he'd been alive for a lot of it. While his past was long after the time of Atlantis the stories of the island paradise were still told in his youth. Alicia nodded at his question. "So then you're what a princess or something?"
Alicia couldn't help but laugh, "Far from it. I was the daughter of a very poor farmer."
"So how…?"
She shrugged and reached for the wine bottle, "What can I say, I've got spunk."
Amanda was processing all of this information very slowly but she was accepting it none the less. She'd seen far too many things that shouldn't make any sense to doubt it now. "So that demon is like a body guard?" she said pointing at Alicia's back.
"Yes, he's really quite nice actually. I'm sorry I should probably introduce you to him. Xiovar? If you would please?"
The demon detached himself from her back and swirled into his human form beside her. Amanda's eyes bulged and Kyrian just sat back patiently. "Amanda and Kyrian Hunter, this is Xiovar of the Charonte."
"Greetings to the friends of my lady."
"Hello…" Amanda said weakly. "Weird."
The front door opened and Tabitha walked in carrying a grinning Marissa. "Yo people I'm home with the midget," she called.
"In here Tabby," Kyrian yelled back.
They came through the doorway and Marissa launched herself out of Tabby's arms into her father's chattering happily about how much fun she had with Aunt Tabby. Tabitha looked from her sister to Alicia to the demon and grinned, "Hey Ally, hey Joe."
Xiovar smiled and waved back, "Tabitha. Your sister is quite charming."
Amanda's jaw dropped, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. You know the demon?"
Tabitha nodded, "Sure, big fan of Star Wars. Not a fan of Coke. Cool guy."
"I totally need to get out more," Amanda sighed.